[Fadel Abdulghany is executive director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights and author of The Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria and the Failure of the International Community and Undermining the Independence of the Judiciary in Syria and Pathways to Its Reform. Kenneth Roth is a former executive director of Human Rights Watch, a visiting professor at Princeton’s School of Public and...
[Mojtaba Touiserkani has a Ph.D. in international relations from the University of Tehran] In early January 2026, Iran went dark. Protests that began as economically driven unrest—sparked by a collapsing rial—spread rapidly beyond Tehran and quickly widened in demands. The state answered with escalating force. On 8 January, authorities imposed a complete nationwide internet shutdown, severing the public’s ability to see,...
[Parisa Zangeneh recently passed her PhD viva at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, where her work was supported by the Hardiman Scholarship] In recent weeks, the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran has engaged in an unlawful use of violence by attacking protesters en masse. According to the Guardian, at least 30,000 people have died, and the bodies of...
[Elliot Dolan-Evans is a lecturer in law at Monash University and RMIT. Sophie Rigney is a senior lecturer in law at RMIT University and the author of Fairness and Rights in International Criminal Procedure (EUP, 2022).] On 22 October 2025, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) handed down its latest ruling concerning Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). This Advisory Opinion was on...
[Nandini Bulchandani holds an LLM in international law from UCL and is an incoming foreign law clerk at the Constitutional Court of South Africa] Introduction On Monday 17 November 2025, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution that sidesteps crucial international legal norms to foist a foreign administration upon Gaza. Stripping law of effect and reanimating imperial hegemonies, UNSC Resolution 2803 is a...
[Mô Bleeker is a Senior Fellow at The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, Geneva, and Special Advisor of the UNSG on the Responsibility to Protect .She served as Special Envoy for Dealing with the Past and Prevention of Atrocities at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.] The opinions shared in this article are solely those of...
[Mô Bleeker is a Senior Fellow at The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, Geneva, and Special Advisor of the UNSG on the Responsibility to Protect .She served as Special Envoy for Dealing with the Past and Prevention of Atrocities at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.] The opinions shared in this article are solely those of...
[Jason Beckett is an associate professor of law at the American University in Cairo] Introduction The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) recently released an analysis of Egypt’s proposed budget for 2025-6, titled, “Egypt in the Grip of Debt”. It is a gloomy read, documenting Egypt’s ongoing immiseration, but concludes with a strangely sentimental optimism. “After all, the state’s role is not...
[Antonia Mulvey is a British lawyer, and the founder and executive director of Legal Action Worldwide. She has also served as a UN investigator on the Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar and advised UN agencies and governments on sexual and gender-based violence and access to justice. Terry Flyte is an international lawyer and programme lead at Legal Action Worldwide. He works at...
[Alice Autin is international justice researcher at Human Rights Watch. Jörn Oliver Eiermann served as senior international justice counsel at Human Rights Watch from September to November 2025.] The December 2024 fall of the Bashar al-Assad government marks a historic turning point for Syria, and after decades of atrocities, potentially for justice. Despite extensive information and evidence of serious crimes, the Assad...
[Alessandra Spadaro works as Assistant Professor in public international law at Utrecht University. She is conducting a three-year project on “Business in and for war: the role and limits of international humanitarian law”, funded by the Dutch Research Council.] On 6 November 2025, The Hague Court of Appeal handed down its judgment in a case brought by a coalition of Palestinian...
[Emilia Klebanowski is a PhD candidate in international human rights law at Radboud University. Her research explores reparations for gross human rights violations.] On 22 October 2025, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued its advisory opinion on the Obligations of Israel in relation to the Presence and Activities of the United Nations, Other International Organizations and Third States in and...