The Polish government’s declaration of a “state of emergency” at the border with Belarus presents serious risks for asylum-seekers trying to reach Poland and threatens to exacerbate the already dire situation faced by 32 Afghans including four women, 27 men and a 15-year-old girl, who have been held there without adequate food and clean water for over three weeks, after being pushed back from Poland, Amnesty International said.

Dear High Representative Borrell,

Amnesty International Hungary and the Hungarian Helsinki Committee hereby respectfully submittheir joint observations and recommendations under Rule 9(2) of the “Rules of the Committee ofMinisters for the supervision of the execution of judgments and of the terms of friendly settlements”regarding the execution of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in the Baka v.Hungary case (Application no. 20261/12, Judgment of 23 June 2016), in advance of the 1411th meeting(September 2021) (DH) of the Ministers’ Deputies on the execution of judgments.

Further to our letter dated 23 February 2021, Amnesty International wants to renew the call for the initiation of infringement proceedings under article 46 § 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in the case of Kavala v. Turkey at the forthcoming 1411th DH meeting of the Committee of Ministers on execution of judgments to be held from 14 to 16 September.

In a judgment issued today, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled that Russian authorities have failed to properly investigate the murder of Natalia Estemirova, a prominent human rights defender who was abducted and killed in Chechnya in 2009. 

Ahead of the informal meeting of the European Union (EU) Foreign Ministers in Slovenia in September, Amnesty International, Civicus, International Commission of Jurists, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), wrote an open letter to the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the Commission Josep Borrell to express their grave concerns about the continued reticence from the EU and its member states in effectively engaging India on human rights. In light of the deteriorating human rights situation in the country, the organizations urge the EU and its member states to fundamentally revise their strategy toward relations with India and engage with India on human rights.

Dear Commissioner Johansson,

Hungarian journalism non-profit Direkt36 today published a major investigation into the use of NSO Group’s notorious Pegasus spyware in Hungary, revealing that the phones of more than 300 Hungarian nationals were identified as possible targets for infection. Experts from Amnesty International were able to confirm several cases where the spyware was successfully installed.  

Fresh evidence of harrowing violations, including sexual violence, against men, women and children intercepted while crossing the Mediterranean Sea and forcibly returned to detention centres in Libya, highlights the horrifying consequences of Europe’s ongoing cooperation with Libya on migration and border control, said Amnesty International in a report published today.

Responding to today’s scandalous decision from the Polish Constitutional Tribunal which found that interim measures, issued by the EU Court of Justice to protect the independence of Polish judiciary, are incompatible with Poland’s Constitution, Draginja Nadaždin, the Director of Amnesty International Poland said:

Russia: European Court of Human Rights rules ban on sex-same unions violates human rights 

Under the guise of the Covid-19 pandemic the Greek authorities have used arbitrary arrests, blanket bans, unjustified fines and unlawful use of force to curb peaceful protest, new research by Amnesty International has revealed.