Global system of human rights in ‘peril’, warns HRW in its annual report

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has released its yearly World Report 2026, informing that the planetary strategy of quality rights is successful “peril”, with 72 percent of the world’s colonisation present surviving nether “autocracy”.

In the study (PDF) published connected Wednesday, the rights assemblage warned that the United States, China and Russia are “led by leaders who stock unfastened disdain for norms”, and “wield sizeable economic, military, and diplomatic power”.

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“Under relentless unit from US President Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by China and Russia, the rules-based planetary bid is being crushed, threatening to instrumentality with it the architecture quality rights defenders person travel to trust connected to beforehand norms and support freedoms,” Philippe Bolopion, enforcement manager astatine HRW, said successful a statement.

“To defy this trend, governments that inactive worth quality rights, alongside societal movements, civilian society, and planetary institutions, request to signifier a strategical confederation to propulsion back.”

Below are the highlights of the study that overgarment a bleak representation of the planetary quality rights situation.

United States

The HRW study accuses the Trump medication of a “broad battle connected cardinal pillars of US ideology and the planetary rules-based order”.

“Immigrants and asylum seekers person been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment; 32 died successful US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody successful 2025”, and different 4 successful January 2026, it said.

The “unlawful” abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, on with its withdrawal from the United Nations Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization and its sanctions connected Palestinian quality rights organisations, the authoritative of the International Criminal Court and ICC judges, arsenic good arsenic a UN peculiar rapporteur, were highlighted successful the report.

“Trump’s 2nd medication has been marked from the commencement by blatant disregard for quality rights and egregious violations,” the study said, adding that the US authorities is seeking “to weaken planetary institutions created to enforce quality rights standards and clasp violators to account”.

Israel

“The Israeli equipped forces person committed acts of genocide, taste cleansing, and crimes against humanity,” the study said, adding that “These crimes were met with uneven planetary condemnation and not astir capable action.”

Trump’s plans for Gaza “would beryllium tantamount to taste cleansing”, HRW said, portion Israel’s sidesplitting of Palestinians successful Gaza and its demolitions and unlawful restrictions successful the occupied West Bank continue.

The study comes days aft the Israel-Palestine manager of HRW discontinue aft the rights assemblage “blocked” a study connected Israeli atrocities against Palestinians. Omar Shakir, who has worked for the rights radical for much than 10 years, told Al Jazeera helium has mislaid religion successful the organisation aft its caller chief, Bolopion, blocked a study accusing Israel of committing “crimes against humanity” successful its denial of Palestinian refugees’ close of return.

Shakir said connected Tuesday that the study “sought to link the erasure of camps successful Gaza with the emptying of camps successful the West Bank, with the afloat battle led by the Israeli authorities against UNRWA, the assistance bureau for Palestinian refugees and underscoring however successful the midst of this Nakba 2.0 that we’re seeing unfold beyond us, it’s captious that we larn the lessons from Nakba 1.0”.

The Nakba, which means catastrophe, refers to the forced displacement of 750,000 Palestinians expelled from their homes and onshore by Zionist militias starring up to the constitution of the State of Israel successful 1948.

Ukraine

In Ukraine, Russia’s “indiscriminate bombing, coercing Ukrainians successful occupied areas to service successful the Russian military, systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the usage of quadcopter drones to hunt and termination civilians” person not been met with meaningful pressure.

Russia

Russia’s intensifying crackdown connected dissent and civilian nine includes authorities utilizing ill-treatment of those successful custody arsenic a “tool of repression” and wielding authorities to people “foreign agents” and “undesirable” organisations.

The caput of the predetermination monitoring radical Golos, Grigory Melkonyants, was sentenced to 5 years successful prison. Three lawyers were sentenced to situation presumption for providing ineligible services to the Anti-Corruption Foundation’s founder, Alexey Navalny, who died successful situation successful 2024.

“Authorities passim the state continued to prosecute radical for commemorating Navalny’s memory, sharing accusation astir him, utilizing his name, oregon displaying his portrait,” the study said.

The instauration was besides designated a “terrorist organization” by the country’s Supreme Court. International rights groups, including HRW, Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders and the International Federation for Human Rights, person besides been banned successful Russia.

China

In China, authorities “systematically contradict the rights to state of expression, association, assembly, and religion, and persecute authorities critics”, the study says.

With the authorities controlling each important channels of accusation and immoderate of the world’s “most stringent surveillance and censorship”, critics look imprisonment and forced disappearance. Human rights defenders are often harassed and tortured, portion those who beryllium to “illegal” spiritual groups are harassed and detained by police.

As Tibetans and Uighurs are forced to assimilate, the authorities released draught legislation, Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress, which “seeks to warrant existing repression of minorities and facilitate intensifying ideological controls some astatine location and abroad”.

Filling the vacuum

The study stresses determination is an “urgent request for a caller planetary confederation to enactment quality rights”.

HRW said it is “critical to look beyond the accustomed suspects”, pointing to countries specified arsenic Costa Rica, Ghana, Malaysia, Mexico, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Vanuatu, which person “played important roles connected circumstantial quality rights initiatives successful cardinal planetary forums”.

Chile’s Democracy Forever acme brought unneurotic leaders from Brazil, Colombia, Spain and Uruguay, who pledged to prosecute successful “active antiauthoritarian diplomacy”, portion The Hague Group was formed successful solidarity with Palestinians and successful defence of planetary law.

Student protests successful enactment of Palestine, protests against ICE abuses successful the US and Gen Z protests successful Nepal, Indonesia and Morocco were cited arsenic examples of enduring radical power.