Kategorie: Humans

Responding to reports of an aerial attack by the Myanmar military that is said to have killed upwards of 20 civilians, including children, when multiple bombs were dropped from motorized paragliders, Amnesty International’s Myanmar Researcher Joe Freeman said:

“The sickening reports emerging from the ground in central Myanmar following a nighttime attack late on Monday should serve as a gruesome wake-up call that civilians in Myanmar need urgent protection.

“The international community may have forgotten about the conflict in Myanmar, but the Myanmar military is taking advantage of reduced scrutiny to carry out war crimes with impunity.

“It continues to kill civilians on a daily basis, using methods such as motorized paragliders, a disturbing trend that Amnesty International has documented in the same area that this attack occurred.

“This would be the latest in a long line of attacks that stretch back almost five years to the start of the 2021 military coup. As the military attempts to solidify power with a stage-managed election later this year, it is intensifying an already brutal campaign against pockets of resistance.

“As it prepares to convene later this month, the Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) must increase pressure on the junta and revise an approach that has failed the Myanmar people for almost five years, since the coup deposed the country’s democratically elected government. The UN Security Council should also refer the situation in Myanmar as a whole to the International Criminal Court.”

Background

According to reports and information received by Amnesty International, people from communities in Sagaing Region’s Chaung-U Township gathered in a village on the evening of 6 October as part of a peaceful candlelight vigil to call for the release of arbitrarily detained prisoners, to oppose military conscription and to condemn a junta-organized election set for December. The vigil took place on the Full Moon night of Myanmar’s Thadingyut Festival, in an area where armed resistance groups are active.

According to people present at the scene, the first attack at around 8pm initially killed at least 17 people including at least one child under five years old. Dozens of people are said to be in critical condition in local hospitals. A follow-up attack reportedly occurred at around 11pm but did not cause as much damage. Both were said to be carried out with motorized paragliders, which make a distinctive chainsaw-like sound as they approach, with media reporting that more than 20 people were killed in total.

The UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in September that these paramotor attacks typically involve 120mm mortar rounds dropped from the sky, an indiscriminate form of attack. Amnesty International interviewed witnesses to paramotor attacks in the same township in March in the aftermath of a powerful earthquake that struck central Myanmar.

It is not known if the military’s use of paramotors is related to the lack of resources such as jet fuel which the military needs for fighter jets. In 2022, Amnesty International released a report, Deadly Cargo, about the supply chain of jet fuel to the Myanmar military, and has tracked its changing tactics to import the resource since then.

The post Myanmar: ‘Deadly attack’ on festival highlights paramotor threat to civilians appeared first on Amnesty International.

Reacting to the decision of the Trial Chamber X of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to convict Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman also known as “Ali Kushayb” for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between August 2003 and at least April 2004 during brutal attacks in Darfur, Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, said:

“This long overdue verdict goes some way in providing justice for the victims of Ali Kushayb and should serve as a significant milestone in the pursuit of justice for crimes committed in Darfur more than two-decades ago. The conviction should serve as a warning to those committing abuses in the context of the ongoing Sudan conflict that they will one day be held individually accountable.

“To ensure that the ICC can pursue comprehensive justice for all victims, the United Nations Security Council should extend the Court’s mandate from Darfur to the entirety of Sudan.

This long overdue verdict goes some way in providing justice for the victims of Ali Kushayb and should serve as a significant milestone in the pursuit of justice for crimes committed in Darfur more than two-decades ago.

Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa

“This verdict should spur ICC member states to urgently enforce all outstanding arrest warrants in the Darfur situation, including against former Sudan President Omar al-Bashir and to enhance their political and financial support for the Court to enable the investigation of ongoing violations in Darfur and elsewhere in Sudan.

“Despite US sanctions on the ICC, the Court has shown a clear resolve to continue its pursuit of justice for all victims, including in Darfur. In the face of ongoing US and other states’ attacks on the Court, ICC-member states must demonstrate their commitment and support for victims in Darfur and all situations under investigations through concrete action to defend the court.”

Background

The trial of Ali Muhammed Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, charged by the ICC as a principal leader of the Janjaweed militia, began at the ICC in April 2022.

He was convicted of 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Darfur, Sudan, between August 2003 and March 2004.

In 2005, the UN Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court (ICC). In 2009 and 2010, the ICC issued arrest warrants for President al-Bashir for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. The ICC has also issued arrest warrants for three other government officials, and three members of armed opposition groups.

Today’s verdict comes amid conflict in Sudan between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in which thousands have been killed and over 10 million people have been displaced.

The post Sudan: ICC conviction of Ali Muhammad Ali Abd – Al- Rahman should serve as warning to others committing abuses amid ongoing conflict appeared first on Amnesty International.

*Update: On 7 October 2025 Saber Chouchen was granted a presidential pardon and was unexpectedly released.

Responding to the death sentence handed down by the Nabeul Court of First Instance.to 56-year-old Saber Chouchen for his Facebook posts, including criticism of the president and calls for a public protest, Heba Morayef, Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International said:

“This verdict, which sentences a man to death for peaceful dissent on Facebook, represents a significant escalation and an outrageous assault on human rights. The Tunisian authorities must immediately quash Saber Chouchen’s conviction and release him without delay.

“The use of capital punishment in this case is a stark and horrifying illustration of a government weaponizing the justice system to crush freedom of expression and the slightest sign of dissent. The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment and must never be used under any circumstances, let alone to silence critics for merely expressing their opinion online.

The use of capital punishment in this case is a stark and horrifying illustration of a government weaponizing the justice system to crush freedom of expression and the slightest sign of dissent.

Heba Morayef, MENA Regional Director

“The unfounded charges of attempting to overthrow the state and inciting chaos, which were based on  social media posts in which Saber Chouchen criticized the Tunisian president, calling for political change and urging a protest, expose the government’s escalating reliance on repressive laws like Article 72 of the Penal Code and Decree-Law 54 to silence critics. Criminal law has become the primary tool in an unrelenting campaign to criminalize all forms of public and peaceful dissent. This death sentence and conviction must be overturned, and all convictions and sentences based solely on the peaceful exercise of human rights must be immediately reviewed and quashed”

“Tunisia must follow the example of the majority of the world’s countries and swiftly abolish the death penalty and commute all death sentences. There is no evidence that it has a unique deterrent effect on crime and, as seen today, can be used as a tool in the state weaponry of repression. It must be immediately removed from the law books”.  

As of today, 113 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes and close to three quarters of all countries have abolished the death penalty in law or practice. Amnesty International opposes the death penalty unconditionally, in all cases and under any circumstances. 

The post Tunisia: Authorities must immediately overturn death sentence for peaceful dissent appeared first on Amnesty International.

Reacting to the UN Human Rights Council’s decision to establish an independent investigative mechanism for Afghanistan to collect, consolidate, preserve and analyse evidence of past and ongoing crimes under international law and human rights violations and abuses, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard, said: 

“In the face of continued impunity in Afghanistan, the establishment of a UN-mandated evidence gathering mechanism is a vital step towards advancing accountability for past and ongoing crimes under international law and paves the way for victims and survivors to access justice, reparation, and truth.      

“Amnesty International, together with Afghan civil society and others, has been calling for this mechanism since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. Since then, the Taliban has plunged Afghanistan into a system of control and repression. Women and girls have been systematically erased from public life, denied education, work and voice; journalists, activists and minorities silenced through arbitrary detention, torture and enforced disappearance; and brutal corporal public punishments and executions used as tools of fear. This assault on human rights has long demanded more than words from the international community and the mechanism is a major step in a long journey towards accountability for the people of Afghanistan.  

The establishment of a UN-mandated evidence gathering mechanism is a vital step towards advancing accountability for past and ongoing crimes under international law and paves the way for victims and survivors to access justice, reparation, and truth

Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard

“Today’s resolution has the potential to be an important milestone in the fight against impunity for millions of victims and survivors in Afghanistan, spanning more than four decades of conflict. However, this potential hinges on the mechanism adopting a truly comprehensive approach – one that considers crimes committed both before and after August 2021. This should include systematic targeted attacks by the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISKP) and other insurgent groups, as well as allegations of crimes under international law committed by security forces under the former government, international military and security forces and other agents.       

“Establishing a mechanism is only the beginning. States owe it to the victims to ensure that the mechanism is properly resourced and empowered to promote justice.”  

Background

Amnesty International, together with Afghan civil society and others, has been continually advocating for the United Nations Human Rights Council to establish an independent and impartial investigative mechanism on the situation in Afghanistan since August 2021. Calls for this type of mechanism emerged as early as 2003, and were renewed in May 2021, after the deliberate and targeted attack at the Sayed Shudaha Girl High School in the west of Kabul which killed and wounded over 250 people, mostly girl students. In response, with the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC)’s lead, Afghan civil society organizations and international human rights organizations advocated for the establishment of such a mechanism. 

Afghanistan has grappled with continuous conflict for over four decades, resulting in crimes under international law and human rights violations and abuses by warring parties including the Taliban, ISKP, security forces under the former Government and international military and security forces and other agents. Victims and survivors have had almost no access to justice, reparation, and truth. This has now worsened with the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. Amnesty International has documented many incidents of war crimes and the crime against humanity of gender persecution, as well as other crimes and human rights violations and abuses by the Taliban and others across the country.  

With no access to justice, truth, and reparation, between 1978 and 2001, at least two million people were estimated to have either been killed or wounded due to the conflict.  

Following longstanding calls from Afghan and international civil society organizations, the UN Human Rights Council today adopted a resolution without a vote to establish an “independent investigative mechanism to collect, consolidate, preserve and analyse evidence of international crimes and the most serious violations of international law, including those that may also amount to violations and abuses of international human rights law, committed in Afghanistan.”  While it does not have prosecutorial powers, the mechanism can collect and preserve evidence of international crimes and serious human rights violations. This evidence can support future prosecutions in international and national courts, including those exercising universal or other forms of extraterritorial jurisdiction, and for credible efforts in the future to build a framework for accountability and justice in Afghanistan. 

The post Afghanistan: Establishment of accountability mechanism a landmark moment in pursuit of justice  appeared first on Amnesty International.

Responding to the Singapore government scheduling the execution of Malaysian national Pannir Selvam Pranthaman for Wednesday 8 October, Amnesty International’s Death Penalty Advisor Chiara Sangiorgio said:

“The Singapore government must immediately halt the execution of Pannir Selvam Pranthaman, whose case has been marred by multiple layers of unfairness, including violations of international human rights law and standards.

“It is indefensible that Singapore continues to cruelly pursue more executions in the name of drug control. So far in 2025, Singapore has executed 11 people, including nine convicted of drug-related offences. Yet there is no evidence that the death penalty has a unique deterrent effect or that it has any impact on the use and availability of drugs.

“Pannir’s case is emblematic of the many flaws in the use of the death penalty in Singapore. Under international law and standards, the imposition of the death penalty for drug-related offences as a mandatory punishment is unlawful.

“Singapore must end its use of the death penalty and instead offer effective protection from drug-related harm, such as by expanding access to health and social services for people who use drugs and addressing the underlying socio-economic causes that lead people to engage in the drug trade.  

“Pannir and his family have shown incredible determination and resilience in advocating for the commutation of his death sentence. We join them in asking the Malaysian government, including through its diplomatic relations with Singapore, to take every measure possible to ensure his execution is halted.

“We also renew our call on the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) to increase pressure on Singapore to reform its drug control policies in a way that respects human rights.”

Background

Pannir Selvam Pranthaman was convicted on 2 May 2017 of importing 51.84g of diamorphine (heroin) into Singapore and sentenced to the mandatory death penalty.

Following the Court of Appeal’s rejection of his appeal on 5 September 2025, his family received notification on 3 October that the President had rejected Pannir’s clemency request and his execution was set for the third time.

The judge found Pannir Selvam Pranthaman to have been involved only in transporting drugs, meeting the “courier” requirement under the law. However, the prosecution did not provide him with a certificate confirming that he substantively assisted investigations to disrupt further drugs trafficking activities – a second condition to qualify for sentencing discretion in these cases –  leaving no option to the judge but to impose the mandatory death penalty. This effectively shifted the decision on sentencing to the prosecution. His conviction also relied on unfair presumptions of guilt, which the prosecution can invoke at trial to infer knowledge or possession of the drugs, shifting the burden of proof on to the defendant.

While on death row in Singapore, Pannir has written poems and songs, including some that have resulted in collaborations with other Malaysian artists.

International law and standards prohibit the imposition of the mandatory death penalty, as it denies the possibility of taking into account the circumstances in the case. International law and standards require that the imposition of the death penalty be restricted to the “most serious crimes” involving intentional killing.

Singapore is one of only four countries, alongside China, Iran and Saudi Arabia, where executions for drug-related offences were confirmed in 2024. As of today, 113 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes and close to three quarters of all countries have abolished the death penalty in law or practice. Amnesty International opposes the death penalty unconditionally, in all cases and under any circumstances. 

The post Singapore: Unlawful execution of Malaysian for drug offence must be halted appeared first on Amnesty International.