A threat to wipe out "a whole civilization" may amount to a threat of genocide. All parties should respect international law, and those responsible for atrocities should be held accountable. New statement from HRW and 200+ groups, experts:

When anti-Rohingya sentiment turned into gunshots in Myanmar in 2017, 16-year-old Maung Sawyeddollah was forced to flee. What happens when you’re forced to leave your home? Where do you go? 🎙️In EP2 of The Great Unrooting, we hear from people around the world who have faced these questions.

Kazakhstan’s authorities have filed criminal charges against Zhanar Sekerbayeva, a feminist activist. The charges follow an investigation into Sekerbayeva, which appears to have been in retaliation for her LGBT activism.

April 4 marks International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. Landmines are among the most insidious weapons of modern conflicts. There's a global ban on antipersonnel landmines that saves civilian lives, but the treaty faces serious threats. Learn more: https://bit.ly/4vbGdjM

(1/3) The Burkina Faso military with its allied militias and an Al Qaeda-linked armed group have killed more than 1,800 civilians and forcibly displaced tens of thousands since 2023.

In a new report, HRW documents serious human rights abuses against civilians across Burkina Faso by the Burkinabè military, allied militias, and an Islamist armed group since 2022. Read our new Q&A addressing key issues explored in the report:

Thousands of detainees in Iran, including political prisoners and children, are at risk of injury and death from US and Israeli strikes, as well as atrocities by Iran’s authorities, including mass, secret, and arbitrary executions. New from HRW: https://bit.ly/417Izmj

Belarus🇧🇾 is expanding repression through administrative law: “Propaganda” of same-sex relations, "gender reassignment," & even childlessness can now lead to fines. This state-sanctioned censorship & stigma should draw condemnation from int'l partners. belta.by/society/view...

NEW: The Burkina Faso military with its allied militias and an Al Qaeda-linked armed group have killed more than 1,800 civilians and forcibly displaced tens of thousands since 2023. These atrocities amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Read more: https://bit.ly/4vmZBuD

On France 24, HRW's executive director Philippe Bolopion describes a "new phenomenon" of "dangerous rhetoric" being used by world leaders, indicating an open disregard for international law. 🔊Watch now:

Tunisian judge Anas Hmedi, a fervent defender of judicial independence, will stand trial tomorrow on unfounded charges for mobilizing against President Kais Saied’s decrees undermining independence of the judiciary in Tunisia.

Ben Jamal and Chris Nineham, two heads of civil society organizations in the United Kingdom, have been convicted of criminal offenses for peacefully protesting in the UK. This is a travesty of justice and a huge blow to the right to protest. 🔊 Learn more:

In March, Human Rights Watch interviewed Indian, Nepali, and Bangladeshi migrant workers based across the Gulf. They are drivers, delivery workers, security guards, chefs, and cleaners, among the millions of migrant workers working in essential jobs despite heightened risks.

(1/4) A Moroccan court sentenced rapper Souhaib Qabli “L7assal” to 8 months in prison & fined him, for allegedly “insulting a constitutional body,” but did not provide details on the nature of the insult or body in question. Qabli has been in held in custody since early March.🧵

Israel’s parliament has passed a discriminatory death penalty bill that targets Palestinians. This bill aims to execute Palestinian detainees quickly and with limited scrutiny. The Israeli parliament should immediately repeal this discriminatory bill.

The United States’ latest strike on a vessel in the Caribbean, which reportedly killed four people, highlights a sustained pattern of unlawful use of lethal force outside any context of armed conflict, amounting to extrajudicial executions. Read more:

NEW: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is conducting a campaign to recruit children as young as 12 to volunteer to become “homeland defending combatants.” The military recruitment and use of children is a grave violation of children’s rights and a war crime when the children are under 15.

Fearing economic collapse after war, #Iran cracks down on dissent—@reuters.com Quotes me: "Iranian authorities continue to carry out waves of arrests targeting real & perceived dissidents, members of Iran's ethnic and religious minorities including Baha'is & people who share reports...of strikes."

Transgender rights = human rights. In many countries around the world, the rights of trans people are under attack. This International Transgender Day of Visibility, we continue to work for a world where all people can enjoy their rights fully.

The Israeli Knesset has passed a discriminatory bill expanding use of the death penalty. Combined with its severe restrictions on appeals and its 90-day execution timeline, this bill aims to kill Palestinian detainees faster and with less scrutiny.

NEW: The Iranian government has repeatedly used inherently indiscriminate cluster munitions delivered by ballistic missiles in attacks on Israel since February 28, 2026. At least four civilians have been killed in the strikes, which violate the laws of war and may amount to war crimes.

The SAVE America Act would create new barriers to voting for millions of Americans — disproportionately impacting women, trans people, and voters of color. The Senate should reject the bill! More from @hrw.org here: www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

NEW: Communities throughout the country are developing alternative models of mental health crisis response. In a new report, Human Rights Watch, @nylpi.bsky.social and @crdjustice.bsky.social identify key elements of rights-respecting responses to mental health crises.

Hungary’s decision to order an investigation into Szabolcs Panyi, a prominent Hungarian journalist, on dubious accusations of espionage, marks a dangerous escalation in the state’s crackdown on independent media. Learn more:

One month into the current Middle East conflict, we are seeing leaders threaten the rules-based legal order. As the conflict has spread and intensified, so too has the dangerous rhetoric by leaders on all sides, including open threats to commit war crimes. Read more: https://bit.ly/4uXqEw3

A Pakistani airstrike on a drug treatment center in Afghanistan on March 16 was an unlawful attack and a possible war crime. Pakistani authorities should investigate the incident and hold all those responsible for wrongdoing to account.

India’s parliament passed a bill this week that changes how transgender people are legally recognized and removes their right to self-identification. If the bill becomes law, it will be a major reversal of the rights of transgender people in India.

It’s been four years since El Salvador President Nayib Bukele declared a state of emergency. Since then, authorities have detained more than 91,000 people, including children. Authorities should end the state of emergency and ensure prompt judicial review and fair trials.

One month of escalating conflict in the Middle East and dangerous rhetoric by leaders on all sides, including open threats to commit war crimes, has created a threat to fundamental civilian protections that safeguard us all. Global action is needed now. www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

Deadly bombings in northeastern Nigeria have heightened concerns about the resurgence of violent attacks by Boko Haram. In the aftermath of this apparent war crime, Nigerian authorities should urgently strengthen protection for civilians.

This week, Israel’s Defense Minister said Israel would occupy the area south of the Litani River in Lebanon, where hundreds of thousands of people live. That area is around 8% of Lebanon’s territory and is larger than Bahrain, New York City or Singapore. It is twice the size of Gaza.

🚨 Virtual Press Conference!! @hrw.org and @ishr.ch invite media to virtual joint news conference on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, at 9 am EDT/1500 CET on upcoming election for the UN's NGO Committee - gatekeeper for civil society at the UN. Register here: hrworg.zoom.us/j/84733557530

European policies' focus on China's subsidies & industrial policy is missing a deeper point: that China's political economy is built on "a scaffolding of abuses that enable authorities to reshape economic sectors and to strong-arm communities with minimal resistance." www.lemonde.fr/idees/articl...

NEW: A UN Security Council resolution on the dispute of the Western Sahara does not ensure that a new framework to end the long-standing issue upholds the right to self-determination for the Sahrawi people and is consistent with international law.

NEW: UN Security Council resolution on new framework to deal with impasse around Morocco’s claims to Western Sahara does not ensure that the right to self-determination for the territory’s peoples is upheld and is consistent with international law @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos has declared a national energy emergency, “in light of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.” The Philippines, along with many Asian countries, is heavily reliant on Middle ​Eastern oil for fuel.

Israel’s attacks in Lebanon—and the threat of more to come—have caused more than a million people to flee their homes. Governments should urgently act to end the potential forced displacement of civilians in Lebanon, ensure their right to return, and prevent further attacks on Lebanese civilians.

A court in China has sentenced prominent human rights lawyer Xie Yang to five years in prison on politically motivated charges of “inciting subversion of state power.” The Chinese government should immediately quash the conviction and free Xie.

Jehad Khaled, a young Egyptian activist, said she felt utter panic when her mother—Hoda Abdel Moneim, 67, a prominent lawyer and human rights defender—was arrested by Egyptian authorities in 2018. Jehad is still advocating for the release of her mother. Learn more: https://bit.ly/4bJNNt4

NEW: Iranian forces appear to have deliberately targeted at least two civilian commercial ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz on March 11, 2026, which would amount to war crimes. The attacks may also contribute to significant global cost increases. Read more: https://bit.ly/3NxItRH

Israeli forces have expanded ground operations in southern Lebanon after indicating an intent to forcibly displace residents, destroy civilian homes and conduct strikes that could target civilians.

#Israel's mass displacement in #Lebanon follows the same strategy used in Gaza, the West Bank and Syria. Forced displacement of civilians, widespread destruction and prevention of return. In short, potential war crimes. My opinion for @AJEnglish: aje.news/gn8v60

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported 363 pregnant, postpartum, or nursing women between January 1, 2025, and February 16, 2026, per the Department of Homeland Security. These figures reveal part of the mounting human toll of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

“The tit-for-tat attacks by Iran, Israel, and the US on some of the world’s largest oil and gas infrastructure in Iran and the Gulf states risk causing economic and environmental catastrophe.” Warring parties should immediately cease these attacks, says @hrw.org ⤵️ www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to travel to Hungary, an ICC member country, this weekend. If he visits, Hungary should arrest Netanyahu, who is wanted by the ICC to answer charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza.

Attacks on critical Middle East energy infrastructure risk causing economic and environmental catastrophe to civilians in Iran and across the Gulf. Warring parties should immediately end any and all attacks targeting civilian energy infrastructure.

The arrest of human rights activist Tommy Olsen by Norwegian authorities is based on a groundless extradition request by Greece. Norwegian authorities should refuse to be a part of targeting rights defenders and release Olsen.

"I chose to speak out for my father and others and that choice cost me a disconnection, maybe forever, from those I love back home." It’s been a decade since HRW's @yalkun.bsky.social last visited Kumul, his hometown in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwest China.

This #Eid marks a decade since my last visit to my homeland where Beijing has committed atrocity crimes against Uyghurs. I chose to speak out for my father and others and that choice cost me a disconnection, maybe forever, from those I love back home. www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

Bahraini authorities have arrested dozens of people for exercising their right to peaceful expression amid the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran. Authorities are using the cover of war to justify further violations against the population.