TOPIC

Human rights

Human rights
Latest news, features and analysis on human rights, with a focus on civil liberties in Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia.
Relatives of prisoners hug each other as they wait in front of El Rodeo jail in Caracas on Thursday. Photo: AFP
US-Venezuela conflict

Venezuela releasing ‘significant number’ of prisoners in bid to ‘seek peace’

Journalists, lawyers and human rights activists – including citizens and foreigners – were among those freed.

Israel-Gaza war

‘Where is the ceasefire?’: Israeli gunfire kills 11-year-old in Gaza ‘safe zone’

US immigration

Video | ICE officer shoots woman dead in US immigration operation

Israel

UN accuses Israel of subjecting Palestinians in West Bank to ‘apartheid’

For first time, UN rights chief labels situation in occupied Palestinian territories ‘apartheid’, a term previously used only by UN experts.

Israeli security forces check Palestinians’ IDs as they line up to return to Jenin through a gap in a security fence in September 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE
Indonesia

Indonesia’s criminal law overhaul prompts fears of rights erosion

Observers say the new Criminal Code and revised Criminal Procedure Code entrench provisions that undermine democracy.

Middle East

Iran protests death toll hits 35 and 1,200 detained, activists say

Iran’s judiciary vows ‘no leniency’ for rioters as nationwide unrest enters its second week.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Britain

Mobile seizure powers launch in UK crackdown on people smugglers

New UK laws allow officers to seize SIM cards and mobiles to gather intelligence on smuggling operators.

Migrants try to board a smuggler’s boat in an attempt to cross the English Channel off the beach of Gravelines, northern France. Photo: AFP
Middle East

At least 16 dead in Iran during week of protests: rights groups

Rights groups report rising fatalities and hundreds of arrests in the biggest Iran protests in three years.

Africa

War in Sudan: drone strikes cut power supply in oil-rich south

Over the past week, some 15,000 people have been displaced from the region, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration.

Britain

Iranian diaspora in UK rallies in London to support protesters in Iran

Pro-democracy demonstrators gathered outside Downing Street for the rally organised by the Association of Anglo-Iranian Women in the UK.

A bus drives past a protest by anti-government demonstrators and supporters of exiled Crown Prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, against the Iranian regime outside the embassy of Iran in London, Britain on Saturday. Photo: EPA
Donald Trump

‘Peace President’ Trump embraces war: Maduro captured, Nigeria hit, Iran warned

Despite Nobel Peace Prize ambitions, Trump opens 2026 with strikes in Venezuela after a Christmas Day hit on Nigeria.

12
US President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in September. Photo: EPA
Middle East

Khamenei demands Iran rioters ‘be put in their place’ amid protests, Trump warning

As Trump warns the US is ‘locked and loaded’ to intervene, Iran’s supreme leader blames foreign enemies and orders a crackdown on nationwide unrest.

videocam
5
Indonesia

Ageing Asia needs domestic helpers, but can it keep them safe?

While the region cries out for care, top source nations the Philippines and Indonesia have tightened controls to curb exploitation and abuse.

videocam
Myanmar

Myanmar military-backed party leads in election’s first phase by wide margin

The Union Solidarity and Development Party, led by retired generals, won 38 of 40 seats in the lower house.

Electoral officers count early voting ballots after closing the first phase of Myanmar’s general election at a polling station in Naypyitaw, on December 28. Photo: EPA
Israel-Gaza war

Angelina Jolie visits Egyptian side of Gaza’s Rafah crossing

‘What needs to happen is clear: the ceasefire must hold and access must be sustained, safe and urgently scaled up,’ the actress said of Gaza.

American actress and film producer Angelina Jolie greets Red Crecent workers during her visit to the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza on Friday. Photo: AP
Middle East

Saudi Arabia sets executions record in 2025, putting 356 people to death

The surge comes amid Riyadh’s ongoing ‘war on drugs’ and marked the first time more foreigners were executed than Saudis in a calendar year.

Middle East

At least 7 reported killed in Iran as unrest spreads beyond capital

Deaths may mark the start of a heavier-handed response by Iran over demonstrations which started in Tehran and have emerged elsewhere.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Middle East

Iran executions hit 35-year high with 1,500 killed in 2025: rights group

Drug offenses fuel ‘unprecedented’ surge as Tehran uses capital punishment to ‘create fear’, says rights activist.

Faces and stories of Iranians who have been executed as political prisoners by their government are displayed at a protest outside UN headquarters in New York in September 2025. Photo: AP
Israel-Gaza war

Israel to ban several aid groups from Gaza in 2026 over vetting rules

Israel says suspensions are meant to prevent Hamas from exploiting aid, but humanitarian groups say it will harm civilians.

Middle East

‘Hell to pay’: Trump warns Hamas and Iran after talks with Netanyahu

Trump presses for Hamas disarmament in Gaza, warns Iran of further US action if it reconstitutes nuclear programme.

Israel

Israeli president denies Trump claim Netanyahu pardon is ‘on its way’

Trump renews his call on Israel’s president to grant ally Netanyahu, who is in the midst of a corruption trial, a pardon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Photo: AFP
United Nations

‘World stands at a crossroads’: UN chief issues grim New Year message

Antonio Guterres laments US$2.7 trillion global arms race and urges leaders to choose ‘people and planet over pain’ in 2026.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. Photo: AFP
Russia

Putin signs law allowing Russia to ignore foreign court rulings on Ukraine

Under the changes, Moscow can ignore international judgments on Ukraine, shielding officials from ICC warrants and war crime tribunals.

Myanmar

‘They always lie’: pro-military party claims big lead in Myanmar’s disputed vote

The overwhelming lead claimed by the USDP in the first poll phase is met with condemnation from rights groups warning of a rigged process.

videocam
United Nations

‘Adapt, shrink or die’: US pledges US$2 billion for UN aid in humanitarian cut

Trump administration’s latest aid pledge is a small fraction of what the US has contributed in the past.

Women displaced by fighting in Sudan line up to receive food aid at a camp in Al Dabbah. Photo: AP
Myanmar

Why Myanmar’s junta election cannot hide a collapsing economy

Analysts warn that conflict, power shortages and resource extraction under military rule are pushing Myanmar’s economy further into reverse.

A vendor waits beside bottles of oil at a market in Pyin Oo Lwin, Myanmar. Inflation in the country has reached record highs of about 30 per cent over the past two years. Photo: AFP
Israel-Gaza war

Trump and Netanyahu to discuss next phase of Gaza plan during US visit

Israel’s prime minister is making his fifth visit to see Trump in the United States this year.

Keir Starmer

Starmer under fire for activist’s return from Egypt as old posts resurface

Prime minister faces criticism from Jewish groups and Britain’s opposition over Alaa Abdel-Fattah’s return to the UK.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement