Several members of the Committee to Defend Prisoners of Conscience were arrested on May 25 after organizing an exhibition called “They Don’t Belong in Prison,” highlighting cases of persons unjustly detained for political reasons. They were charged with “disseminating false news,” and one activist, lawyer Mohamed Abu al-Dayyar, is also facing terrorism-related charges. Other prominent figures among the arrested are Dr. Hanan Altantawy and Wafaa al-Masry, who have been released on bail but still face criminal charges.

Amnesty International charged that the government is pursuing a “relentless crackdown on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” with “rampant use of arbitrary detention to intimidate activists.”

The Egyptian Human Rights Forum issued a joint statement decrying the arrests, stating that the activists’ prosecution “constitutes punishment for their political activism and their dedication to various causes.”

Amnesty International called for the immediate release of the detained activists, including Mohamed Abu al-Dayyar, and for charges to be dropped against Hanan Altantawy and Wafaa al-Masry. It urged the government to drop its façade of human rights progress when “it has no intention of changing course or addressing the country’s decade-long arbitrary detention crisis.”

Arbitrary detention, or deprivation of liberty in the course of exercising rights or freedoms, is a violation of international law, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

From JURIST, June 6. Used with permission.

See our last report on the crackdown in Egypt.

Image: Egyptian Human Rights Forum

Türk criticized the growing trend of the government’s infringement on the fundamental right to freedom of expression, stating:

Restrictions on fundamental freedoms must remain exceptional, grounded in clear law, be necessary and proportionate to pursue a legitimate objective, non-discriminatory and accompanied by due process and effective judicial oversight. Upholding the rule of law in Tunisia requires stronger institutional safeguards, the protection of civic space, and inclusive, rights based legislative reform, in line with the country’s international human rights commitments.

The government’s ongoing crackdown on the media has seen the enactment of dangerously vague laws filled with ambiguous provisions, Türk said. Such provisions, which lack adequate specificity and internationally-mandated legal safeguards, have been weaponized by authorities, leading to selective enforcement. For instance, in late April, journalist Zied El Heni was arrested and charged under a new law that criminalizes the use of telecommunication networks to “harm others.”

The main issue with this law is that no guidance has been provided as to what the word “harm” constitutes, or what degree of commission of harm would fall under the scope of the statute. This can be clearly seen in another case last year, in which 28 journalists, including Mourad Zghidi, were arrested and sentenced for exhibiting conduct that fell under the broad scope of a 2022 law that ostensibly tackles crime related to information and communication systems, but has been assailed as vaguely worded and susceptible to political weaponization.

In addition to the crackdown on media workers, Tunisian authorities have targeted members of the judicial branch of government. Charges have been brought against Judge Anas Hmedi, president of the Association of Tunisian Judges, over a protest he organized to oppose government interference in the judiciary. Judge Hammadi Rahmani was sentenced in absentia in April 2025 by a Tunisian court to three years’ imprisonment on charges of “insulting others on social media.”

The arbitrary nature of the charges against, along his violent arrest and subsequent detention, were compounded by the fact that he still had judicial immunity from criminal proceedings when the charges were first unveiled. The sustained decline of the human rights situation in the country has ensued since the events of July 2021, when President Kais Saied suspended parliament, dismissed the prime minister, and declared that he would rule by decree.

From JURIST, May 10. Used with permission.

Image: Grunge Love

Note: Activist Saber Ben Chouchane, who received a death sentence for social media posts critical of the government last year, was pardoned by President Kais Saied after an outcry from international human rights groups in October. (Al Jazeera)

Tadjadit was accused of spreading “subversive content” and undermining public institutions, and was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment upon his conviction in January 2025. The charges concern Tadjadit’s participation in the #ManichRadhi (I am not satisfied) campaign, which mobilized social media users to express discontent with the government. Between 2019 and 2024, he had been imprisoned multiple times for participating in peaceful protests, and for exercising his right to freedom of expression.

The UN experts stated that the new charges now being brought appear to be based on the same conduct underlying the earlier offenses, raising concerns that the “reclassification” contravenes the prohibition on double jeopardy. The experts emphasized that the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, in Opinion No. 45/2022 adopted in October 2022, had already found that Tadjadit’s right to a fair trial had been violated, and that he and his co-defendants had been punished for exercising their rights to freedom of opinion and expression, contrary to international law. They further stated that the Court of Algiers must halt the trial now scheduled to open, and drop all new charges that could expose Tadjadit to the death penalty.

Amnesty International also criticized the decision of the Algiers Court of Appeals this January to uphold Tadjadit’s conviction on separate charges of “glorifying terrorism,” “offending public bodies,” and “inciting an unarmed gathering,” arguing that these charges stem solely from his expression of opinion through social media posts and poetry. Amnesty International called for his immediate and unconditional release, and for all charges against him to be dropped on the grounds that they arise solely from the exercise of his fundamental rights.

From JURIST, April 30. Used with permission. Internal links added.

Photo: Amnesty International

See our last report on the Assad regime’s crimes.

Photo: SNHR

Commissioners Monia Ammar and Fionnuala Ní Aoláin met with senior Syrian officials and various stakeholders to emphasize the importance of “transparency, accountability, security sector reform, and engagement with impacted communities” as core implementation priorities for the transition. The COI also called for a “legal system capable of fairly addressing the past” while also addressing “more recent violations,” underscoring that the transition must be defined by “equal protection” of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

The commissioners said they were encouraged by the growth of Syrian civil society organizations, including groups returning from exile. Still, they noted continued barriers and fears, and urged conditions that would allow civil society to operate “without restriction.” There remain legal questions about whether and to what degree authorities will tolerate independent documentation, advocacy, and victim participation, which are needed elements for credible truth-seeking, reparations design, and institutional vetting.

The COI was created by the Human Rights Council in 2011 to investigate violations of international human rights law in Syria since March 2011, to document facts and circumstances that may amount to crimes, and, where possible, to identify responsible actors to advance accountability. Its mandate also includes recommending reforms, international responses, and pathways to justice.

The COI statement explicitly linked transitional legitimacy to enabling civil society to operate “without restriction,” reflecting the reality that effective accountability depends on the safety and independence of non-state actors, especially where victims and witnesses may face retaliation.

The COI described spillover effects on Syria from the regional escalation following the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran, including civilian casualties from falling debris from intercepted rockets, and raised concerns about “direct Israeli activity in southern Syria” interrupting internal stabilization efforts.

The statement emphasized core protection duties under international law, such as the obligation to protect civilians and to investigate potentially unlawful harm.

From JURIST, March 8. Used with permission.

See our last report on the transition process in Syria

Image: Damascus protest against Israeli intervention in Syria. Credit: The Syria Campaign via Facebook

On Oct. 1, the Nabeul Court of First Instance sentenced Chouchane to death under Article 72 of Tunisia’s penal code, which imposes the death penalty for “attempting to change the form of government.” A week later, he was granted a presidential pardon. Nonetheless, HRW called the sentence “a chilling message to all Tunisians that no criticism will be tolerated from anyone, no matter what form it takes.” The group also reported that Chouchane was held in detention for longer than the 14-month maximum permitted by Tunisian law and was denied medical care for a prior injury.

HRW noted that Tunisia is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights and the African Charter on Human & Peoples’ Rights, “which guarantee the right to freedom of expression and assembly, to a fair trial, and to not be subject to arbitrary arrest or detention.”

Authorities arrested Chouchane on his way to a medical appointment on Jan. 22, 2024. He was convicted under penal code articles 72 and 67, which criminalize “attempting to change the form of the government” and “insulting the president,” respectively. He was also convicted under Article 24 of the new Decree-Law 54 on Cybercrime, for “spreading fake news.”

Since President Kais Saied instated emergency powers in 2021, human rights organizations have raised alarms over a deteriorating situation for judicial independence and press freedoms in Tunisia.

From JURIST, Oct. 9. Used with permission.

Image: Grunge Love

New fighting in the Kurdish district of Sheikh Maqsoud in Aleppo city between government forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), armed wing of the Kurdish-led autonomous administration that still controls much of the country’s northeast, points to the continued threat of ethnic war. Results in Syria’s first post-revolution parliamentary elections (carried out in a controlled process by the central government, not popular vote) were tilted to the Sunni Arab majority. Exiled left-dissident Joseph Daher sees a consolidation of power by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the ostensibly disbanded Islamist formation that led the rebel offensive that toppled the old regime last December, and whose leader is the current interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa. Can the current transition process in Syria return to the secular-democratic values of the 2011 Arab Revolution without a rethinking of nationalist precepts?

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Photo: Aymara march in Oruro, Bolivia. Via Wikipedia

The detentions are rooted in the military intervention launched by Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah armed group against rebels fighting the Syrian dictatorship of Bashar Assad. These detentions began after Hezbollah’s 2013 capture of the Qalamoun Mountains in western Syria from rebel forces, forcing thousands of local residents to flee across the border into Lebanon, where many have since languished in camps without basic services or legal protections. Starting in 2014, Hezbollah and Lebanese forces began launching raids on these camps, arresting Syrians on charges of “association” with the Syrian revolutionary forces. Arrests intensified in 2017 and continued nearly through the fall of the Assad regime last December.

Detainees often face the Lebanese Military Court, known for harsh, politically motivated rulings against Syrian Revolution supporters. Its current head, Brig-Gen. Wassim Fayyad, recently sentenced three Syrians to life imprisonment.

Many detainees are held in Lebanon’s Roumieh Central Prison, where conditions are dire. Designed for 1,400 but housing over 4,000, the prison suffers from extreme overcrowding, medical neglect of inmates, and food shortages.

At least 40 Syrian detainees in Lebanon have reportedly died due to harsh conditions or medical negligence since 2017. Dozens more, including the elderly and chronically ill, remain without care.

On July 4, a 40-year-old Syrian detainee, Muhammad Fawaz al-Ashraf, also known as “Muhammad al-Malik,” committed suicide in Roumieh. He was found hanged after being held for two and a half years without trial. Al-Ashraf had been denied hospital treatment, despite failing health. (SETF)

The Syrian Network for Human Rights estimates that that some 2,000 Syrians are detained in Lebanese prisons, including 190 held over their involvement in the Syrian Revolution. Syria’s new Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani met with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on the sidelines of the Arab Summit in Baghdad on May 19, and said they reached an agreement on the need “to end the suffering” of Syrian prisoners in Lebanon. However, there has been no progress since then. (SNHR, Anadolu Agency, al Astiklal, Asharq al-Awsat, NaharNet)

Diaa Janah, arrested at a refugee camp in Lebanon’s Arsal area in July 2024 for his previous participation with Syrian rebel forces in the Qalamoun Mountains, was this July sentenced to two years in prison by the Military Court for belonging to a “terrorist group.” This is a reference to his prior activities with forces affiliated with the rebel New Syrian Army—in Syria, not Lebanon. (CounterVortex sources)

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Image: Banners read “Syrians must not shed Syrian blood” and “We reject Israeli aggression against Syria.” Credit: The Syria Campaign via Facebook

Trump said the relief aims to facilitate “a united Syria that does not offer a safe haven for terrorist organizations and ensures the security of its religious and ethnic minorities.” The order simultaneously directs the Secretary of State to “take appropriate steps” to advance policy objectives to support a “stable Syria.”

The executive order has resulted in the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) removing Syrian sanctions regulations (31 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 542), and 518 persons designated under these regulations being taken off the sanctions list. Concurrently, 139 persons’ designation was renewed to ensure “continued accountability for the former al-Assad regime and its abuses.”

Key export controls and financial assistance limitations affecting the provision of services and investments by US businesses into Syria, mandated by the Syria Accountability Act and the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control Act, are to be waived.

Additionally, the executive order directs the Secretary of State to suspend “some or all” of the sanctions under the Caesar Act, which prohibits providing “financial or technological support” to the Syrian government. Section 301 of the act authorizes the president to suspend the act for up to 180 days, subject to various conditions such as the government “taking verifiable steps to establish meaningful accountability for perpetrators of war crimes in Syria and justice for victims of war.” Beyond the 180 days, US congressional briefings will be required to establish a permanent revocation of the act. As of June 30, the Secretary of State is still deliberating on “the potential full suspension of the Caesar Act.”

The executive order follows a broader trend of sanctions relief by Western countries in response to the fall of the Assad regime and the normalization of relations with the new transitional government. Human rights organizations have advised that sanctions would hinder the nation’s reconstruction. In response, OFAC issued General License 25 earlier this year, which authorized many economic activities with Syria. The United Kingdom and the European Union have lifted a majority of their sanctions, resulting in the formation of “Syrian-foreign economic and business councils.”

While the Syrian government welcomed the relief, the United Nations has expressed the need for “genuine political inclusion” during Syria’s political transition. Critics have recently questioned the “promise of real change” in the country after the establishment of an electoral process that does not allow for a direct public vote to seat the new People’s Assembly.

From JURIST, July 1. Used with permission.

See our last reports on the transition process in Syria, the Assad regime’s crimes, and the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act.

Image of Free Syria flag via Wikimedia Commons