Human rights
Invest in women: Ending the patriarchy requires money on the table
Est. 5minThe fight for women’s rights over the past fifty years is a story of progress. But that progress is under threat and full equality remains light years away, writes António Guterres.
Five EU members to ask for extension of Ukrainian grain import ban
Est. 3minFive Central European EU members will jointly ask the EU on Wednesday (19 July) to extend a ban on Ukrainian grain imports beyond a 15 September deadline to avoid major market disruptions, Hungary's farm minister said.
Ukraine’s response to sexual violence in conflict signals a historic shift
Est. 5minThe swift acknowledgement of the prevalence of conflict-related sexual violence in Ukraine and the firm commitment to hold perpetrators to account signals a historic shift, write Petra Tötterman Andorff, Jessica Poh-Janrell and Johanna Förberg.
Iran releases Belgian aid worker in controversial prisoner swap
Est. 6minOlivier Vandecasteele, the Belgian aid worker held for 455 days in Iran, has finally been released, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo announced on Friday (26 May).
Several thousand Ukrainian children ‘forcibly relocated to Russia’, HRW says
Est. 5minSince Russia's invasion of Ukraine last February, thousands of Ukrainian children in foster care have been forcibly transferred to occupied territories or to Russia itself, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).
European human rights court rules on Russian responsibility in eastern Ukraine
Est. 6minThe European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) published an interim verdict ruling partially admissible Ukraine's allegations of Russia's human rights violations in eastern Ukraine, setting a precedent as the first international court to prove Russia's occupation in Donbas since 2014.
Socialist Bullmann to take over Parliament’s human rights committee
Est. 3minVeteran socialist MEP Udo Bullmann will become the European Parliament’s chief spokesperson on human rights as part of the fallout from the Qatargate scandal.
EU due diligence rules should include finance, Commissioner says
Est. 6minCommissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said the EU executive's goal is to include the financial sector under the EU rules on corporate accountability after it was carved out from mandatory due diligence by member states in their common negotiating position.
US toughens sanctions against Russia’s Wagner mercenary group
Est. 5minThe United States on Thursday (26 January) stepped up sanctions against the Wagner Group, labeling the Russian mercenary company fighting in Ukraine as a transnational criminal organization responsible for widespread human rights abuses.
UN: 2023 could see spike in human trafficking cases from Ukraine
Est. 4minThe United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) predicts a 5% increase in detected Ukrainian human trafficking victims in 2023 and 5.6 million Ukrainian asylum applications in Europe, according to a new report.
Russia fires volley of missiles at Ukraine after Kyiv secures tanks
Est. 5minRussia sent Ukrainians racing for cover with a rush-hour missile barrage, killing at least one person, the day after Kyiv secured Western pledges of dozens of modern battlefield tanks to try to push back the Russian invasion.
Democracy in Equatorial Guinea is key to global fight against authoritarianism
Est. 5minThe power struggle between authoritarian powers reached a new level of intensity with the invasion of Ukraine. But it is important to remember that this fight plays out across the entire globe and sometimes in unexpected places, Juan Carlos Ondo Angue writes.
Russia shuts down oldest rights group
Est. 4minA Moscow court on Wednesday (25 January) ordered the closure of Russia's oldest human rights organisation, the Moscow Helsinki Group, silencing another respected institution amid a political crackdown.
333 shades of evil
Est. 4minEach day of this ongoing war adds a shade of evil done by the Russian state and nation that decided to ruin the existing world order and rules of civilization, writes Roman Rukomeda.
Bulgarian socialist MEPs skip vote for special tribunal to punish Russian crimes
Est. 3minNone of the five Bulgarian socialist MEPs took part in the vote on Thursday (19 January) on a resolution demanding the Russian political and military leadership be held accountable for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
Parliament urges EU to list Iran guards as ‘terrorist’
Est. 3minThe European Parliament voted on Wednesday (18 January) to urge Brussels to list Iran's Revolutionary Guards, also called Sepah or Pasdaran, as a terror group, amid mounting pressure on Western powers to do so.
US obtains exclusion of NGOs from drafting AI treaty
Est. 5minCivil society organisations have been excluded from the drafting process of the first international treaty on Artificial Intelligence based on a request of the US to avoid countries’ positions becoming public.
Russian strike on Dnipro a ‘war crime’: Swedish EU presidency
Est. 2minRussia's weekend strike on a residential block in Dnipro, which killed at least 40 people, constitutes a "war crime", EU presidency holder Sweden said on Monday (16 January).
EU summons Iran ambassador to voice outrage at executions
Est. 5minThe EU summoned Iran's ambassador to the bloc on 9 January and told him it was appalled by the executions at the weekend of two Iranians arrested in the course of a violent crackdown on anti-government protesters in the country.
Russian hackers targeted US nuclear scientists
Est. 7minA Russian hacking team known as Cold River targeted three nuclear research laboratories in the United States this past summer, according to internet records reviewed by Reuters and five cyber security experts.
2023 will mark the end of old normality in Europe
Est. 5minThe central question faced by Western democracies as the new year begins is how to stop the war in Ukraine and establish a new normality, as the old normality clearly no longer exists, writes Roman Rukomeda.
Romania detains ex-kickboxer Andrew Tate in human trafficking case
Est. 2minRomanian prosecutors said on Thursday (29 December) they have detained divisive internet personality and former professional kickboxer Andrew Tate on suspicion of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised crime group.
Turkish court upholds Osman Kavala’s life sentence
Est. 3minA Turkish appellate court on Wednesday (28 December) upheld the conviction of a leading critic of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan whose jailing has added to tensions in Ankara's uneasy ties with the West.
‘It is the time to defeat Russia’
Est. 4minThe war is likely to last one year or more, and it will end with the victory of Ukraine and the liberation of all occupied territory, the question being how will the war end and how will peace be organised after Russia's military defeat, writes Roman Rukomeda.