human rights

Ales Bialiatski, who is the founder of Viasna, has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison and confiscation of property for alleged tax evasion.

The legislative elections set to take place in Morocco on Friday, have been marred by calls for a boycott of the vote.

Rafiq Tagi, a writer and journalist from Azerbaijan, critical of the ex-soviet state's repressive regime and of neighbouring Iran has died in hospital after being stabbed in a brutal attack.

Zimbabwe's President Rober Mugabe is stepping-up his anti-western rhetoric ahead of the elections, calling the Prime Minister "Satanic" for threatening to withhold aid from countries that do not respect gay rights.

How will the Protection of State Information Bill impact on the economy, media, and people of South Africa?

Protests have erupted in Bahrain to coincide with the publication of a much-anticipated report on the uprisings in the Gulf state earlier this year.

Iraqis loyal to Muqtada al-Sadr, a well-known anti-American Islamic cleric, are fighting in Syria in support of the Assad regime, according to the opposition.

An Iranian woman has posted nude pictures of herself on her blog in support of Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, the Egyptian blogger who last week stirred a controversy in the Arab world for publishing photos of herself naked on Twitter.

South African MPs have approved a controversial Protection of State Information Bill despite widespread criticism, prompting protesters to call the day "Black Tuesday", the darkest day for South African democracy since the end of apartheid in 1994.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)'s inquiry into England's home care system reveals that often old people are badly treated breaching their human rights and expressed concerns that the kind of support they want are often unheard.

Despite months of protests the Syrian regime, Assad's inner circle has remained loyal and launched a brutal crackdown against the democracy movement, that has left thousands dead.

The widow of the former French President Francois Mitterrand and outspoken human rights activist Danielle Mitterand has died overnight, aged 87.

The recent death of 15 eunuchs, or "hijras", in a fire in New Delhi has cast a spotlight on this little-known and often marginalised community.

Amnesty International has slammed Egypt's ruling military council as pro-democracy activists in Egypt call for a mass rally in Cairo's Tahrir Square to overthrow the current government.

Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, the Egyptian blogger, who shocked the Arab world with her nude pictures posted on Twitter, has broken cover to issue a defiant rebuttal on Facebook to accusations of insulting Islam, saying she does not "acknowledge any discriminatory law".

Egyptian nude blogger, Aliaa Magda Elmahdy published a series of naked pictures of herself on her blog and on her Twitter page to protest against Islamic extremism.

The capture of Muammar Gaddafi's playboy son Saif al-Islam, while he was trying to flee to Niger through Libya's southern desert, is just the latest dramatic development in a family saga that ruled the country for four decades.

Gay activists have spoken out against a Russian bill to outlaw "propaganda of homosexuality" to minors.

The King of Swaziland has thrown his 12th wife out of his royal palace following claims she had an affair with his close friend.

While the Syrian National Council has released a document setting out plans for a transitional phase if the Assad regime falls, the armed opposition, the Free Syria Army, is gaining popularity.

The British Justice Secretary is hopeful of reaching an agreement where European Court of Human Rights would be barred from overruling UK judges on immigration cases.

The 20-year-old activist and student at the American University in Cairo made the headlines this week for a series of naked pictures that she published on Twitter under her real name in a protest against Islamic extremism. Her move sparked a heated debate on twitter. Some praised her move, while others left outraged comments.

Maltreatment of African workers in Arab nations has been highlighted by reports that migrants suffered human rights violations during the Libyan conflict.

French Foreign minister Alain Juppe called for the UN to take new steps against the Syrian regime accused of leading a brutal crackdown on pro-democracy supporters.

EXCLUSIVE: An Egyptian group of Islamic law graduates filed Thursday a suit against activist Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, the blogger who published nude pictures of herself on Twitter, and her boyfriend, the well-known blogger Kareem Amer, under charges of "violating morals, inciting indecency and insulting Islam."

Questions surround the police's pre-emptive decision to arrest 179 EDL members to "prevent a breach of the peace".

David Cameron's threat to cut aid funding to countries that do not respect gay rights has been met with hostility by some African nations, who have accused the British Prime Minister of showing a "bullying mentality."

Tensions are mounting between Syria and Turkey, upping the stakes that could force Bashar al-Assad's departure.

Aliaa Magda Elmahdy the controversial blogger who posted nude pictures of herself on Twitter to protest against Islamism, is the girlfriend of Kareem Amers, also a dissident blogger, who was been jailed by the Mubarak's regime.

Basildon Council has warned travellers returning to illegal plots on the Dale Farm site that they could face prison.