Sri Lanka has failed to deliver on its international commitments to prosecute government troops and Tamil rebels for atrocities committed during its ethnic war, a UN expert said Friday. Ben Emmerson said Colombo’s efforts at transitional justice were at a “virtual standstill” eight years after the end of its ethnic war which had claimed over … Read more
The UN accused DR Congo on Tuesday of backing a militia that has mutilated toddlers and hacked pregnant women in the troubled Kasai region as the Catholic Church put the death toll there at more than 3,300. “I am appalled by the creation and arming of a militia, the Bana Mura, allegedly to support the … Read more
US Ambassador Nikki Haley, who has accused the United Nations of anti-Israel bias, will travel to Israel next week and deliver an address to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Haley will be the first US ambassador to address the rights council at a session on June 6 that will be followed by a … Read more
UN human rights experts called on Monday for an international investigation into horrific abuses committed in South Sudan, reiterating warnings of “ethnic cleansing” in the war-ravaged country. In a report, the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan voiced alarm at the “massive increase in gross human rights violations and abuses” in recent months. … Read more
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has rejected a fresh appeal from the United Nations to allow international judges to investigate alleged war-era atrocities, vowing to not prosecute soldiers. “I am not going to allow non-governmental organisations to dictate how to run my government. I will not listen to their calls to prosecute my troops,” the … Read more
Heavy clashes have been reported in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo after a three-day ceasefire ended on Saturday. The unilateral ceasefire was announced last week by Russia, which has been carrying out air strikes in support of the Syrian government. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said fighting and air strikes took place … Read more