Weekly News Recap (10 - 16 August 2026)
© Photo by United Nations Photo via Flickr
International Justice Section
Mali: Trial Begins of Detained Journalist Ras Bath Accused of Criminal Association
Tanzania: Trial Resumes of Opposition Leader Tundu Lissu on Treason Charges
US: Judge Dismisses Fraud and Bribery Case Against Indian Billionaire Adani
Russia: Supreme Court Blocks Pro-Peace Party Yabloko from Elections
Syria: Damascus Court Sentences Bashar al-Assad to Death for Crimes Against Humanity
Austria: Court Convicts Two Belarusians in Russian Arms Supply Case
UK: Trial Begins of Former Myanmar Ambassador Over London Residence Trespass Charges
International Peace & Security Section
Palestine: UN Experts Raise Alarm Over Surge in Attacks by Israel
Myanmar: UN-Appointed Investigative Mechanism Finds Military Attacks on Civilians
Lebanon: Parliament Becomes First in the Middle East to Abolish the Death Penalty
Colombia: UN Boosts Response in the Wake of Deadly Earthquake
IOM: New Report Finds Surge in Migrant Deaths This Year
OHCHR: Condemns Amendments Allowing Life Sentences for Children in Türkiye
Ukraine: HRW Documents Russian Cluster Munition Strike on Kyiv as Potential War Crime
Afghanistan: Five-Year Anniversary of Taliban Rule Highlights Women’s Rights Crisis
International Justice Section
Mali: Trial Begins of Detained Journalist Ras Bath Accused of Criminal Association
On 10 August 2026, the trial of Malian commentator Youssouf Bathily, known as Ras Bath, and activist Rose commenced at the Bamako Court of Appeal. Both are accused of criminal association and undermining state institutions. Ras Bath, who has been in provisional detention for nearly three years, has denied the accusations, while Rose stated that her social media posts and public statements aimed to highlight concerns about increasing prices and the cost of essential goods, rather than destabilise state institutions. Prosecutors introduced audio recordings as evidence to establish a connection between the two, while the defence contested the interpretation and sought to have the recordings excluded.
Tanzania: Trial Resumes of Opposition Leader Tundu Lissu on Treason Charges
On 10 August 2026, the trial of Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu resumed after a five-month suspension. Lissu, chairman of the opposition Chadema party, has been in custody since April 2025 and faces treason charges, an offence that carries the death penalty. He has alleged that the prosecutors are intentionally delaying the proceedings to extend his time in remand custody. The trial had been paused while prosecutors challenged a ruling allowing additional evidence, but Tanzania’s Court of Appeal rejected this challenge last month. Chadema described the case as a “test of Tanzania’s commitment to democracy, the rule of law, and political freedoms,” while Lissu’s supporters have accused the government of using the prosecution as a means to suppress opposition.
https://www.africanews.com/2026/08/10/tanzania-opposition-leader-tundu-lissus-treason-trial-resumes/
US: Judge Dismisses Fraud and Bribery Case Against Indian Billionaire Adani
On 10 August 2026, a US federal judge dismissed criminal fraud and bribery charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani after the Justice Department sought to abandon the case. Adani had been accused of agreeing to bribe Indian government officials to secure approval for a solar energy project and subsequently misleading US investors about his company’s anti-corruption practices. Adani Group has denied wrongdoing. While granting the dismissal, Judge Nicholas Garaufis criticised the Justice Department’s handling of the case, describing “irregularities” in the decision-making process. He was particularly concerned that a senior Justice Department official had worked with Adani’s defence lawyers to determine whether to dismiss the case without consulting the prosecutors and investigators who had originally handled the investigation. The judge also examined whether Adani’s previous pledge to invest US$10 billion in the US had influenced the decision, ultimately finding that it had not. Garaufis emphasised that dismissing the charges did not constitute agreement with the Justice Department’s decision to abandon the prosecution, and stated that the implications of such arrangements for the equal administration of justice and the rule of law were ultimately for the public to judge.
Russia: Supreme Court Blocks Pro-Peace Party Yabloko from Elections
On 10 August 2026, Russia’s Supreme Court cancelled the registration of Yabloko, a key opposition party and the only one among the 11 registered parties openly calling for an immediate ceasefire in Russia’s war in Ukraine, preventing it from contesting the upcoming State Duma elections. Yabloko’s campaign focused on peace, freedom, human rights and opposition to politically motivated repression. The case was brought by the pro-Kremlin Rodina party, which alleged that Yabloko had violated copyright rules, received foreign funding and exceeded campaign spending limits, while also characterising its calls for peace and an end to political repression as “extremist.” Following a day-long hearing, the Supreme Court cancelled Yabloko’s registration, citing intellectual property violations, including the use of ChatGPT to generate campaign images, as well as foreign funding and spending violations. Yabloko has said it plans to appeal. The ruling further restricts political participation and freedom of expression in Russia. Yabloko and its members have faced previous restrictions on their participation in elections, and the party’s exclusion prevents voters from expressing their opposition to the war and human rights violations through the electoral process.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/08/13/russias-supreme-court-bars-pro-peace-party-from-elections
Syria: Damascus Court Sentences Bashar al-Assad to Death for Crimes Against Humanity
On 11 August 2026, a Damascus criminal court sentenced ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia, after convicting him of murder, torture, arbitrary detention and crimes against humanity committed during the government’s violent crackdown on the 2011 uprising. The court also sentenced Assad’s brother Maher al-Assad, their cousin Atef Najib, and six other former military and security officials to death for their roles in the repression. The charges stem from the early stages of the 2011 uprising, when Syrian security forces detained and tortured 15 children in Daraa, triggering protests that spread across the country. The government responded with mass arrests and violence, eventually contributing to a civil war that lasted nearly 14 years and resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. The court found that Assad, as the country’s highest decision-maker, participated in the crimes and used state institutions to carry them out. However, Assad and Maher al-Assad fled to Russia in December 2024 and remain there, meaning the sentences were issued in their absence. Syria’s transitional authorities have asked Russia to extradite them. The court has not yet published a written judgment.
Austria: Court Convicts Two Belarusians in Russian Arms Supply Case
On 12 August 2026, an Austrian court convicted two Belarusian cousins of violating export controls by supplying equipment to Russian companies allegedly used to manufacture military items, including missile and fighter-jet components. The main defendant, a 28-year-old director of a Vienna-based company, used shell companies in third countries and falsified end-user certificates to export specialised metalworking tools and CNC machines to Russia. Austrian authorities said evidence showed that industrial goods worth more than €3.3 million had been supplied to Russian arms manufacturers since 2022. Both defendants pleaded guilty. The man was sentenced to 21 months in prison, with 19 months suspended, while his cousin received a 15-month suspended sentence. The convictions highlight Austria’s enforcement of export controls and efforts to prevent sanctions evasion and the supply of Western industrial equipment to Russia’s military-industrial sector.
UK: Trial Begins of Former Myanmar Ambassador Over London Residence Trespass Charges
On 12 August 2026, Myanmar’s former ambassador to the UK, Kyaw Zwar Minn, went on trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court for allegedly trespassing at Myanmar’s diplomatic residence in London. Minn was removed from his position after opposing the February 2021 military coup and calling for the release of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. He subsequently refused to leave the ambassador’s residence, where he has continued to live. Minn has pleaded not guilty, arguing that Myanmar’s military government is illegitimate and therefore lacked the authority to terminate his right to occupy the property. His lawyer argued that the authorities could not lawfully remove him from the residence following the coup. Prosecutors maintain that his diplomatic appointment was properly terminated and that he was instructed to vacate the property, making his continued occupation unlawful. The UK does not formally recognise the legitimacy of Myanmar’s military government, but prosecutors argue that this does not provide Minn with a legal defence. The trial is ongoing.
International Peace & Security Section
Palestine: UN Experts Raise Alarm Over Surge in Attacks by Israel
On 10 August 2026, several UN experts called out the surge in attacks and human rights violations against Palestinian civilians throughout the month of July in the occupied Palestinian territory. Israeli troops have killed some 160 Palestinians in Gaza in July alone. Since the October 2025 ceasefire, the death toll in Gaza has reached more than 1,200, including women, children, and older people, many of whom were sheltering in densely populated displacement zones. The experts also raised alarm over the continued mass displacement of residents, as well as attacks on hospitals, shelters, UN staff, humanitarian workers, and human rights defenders. Adequate food and water are also failing to reach people in Gaza, with disproportionate impacts on children, women, people with disabilities, and older people. The human rights situation has also recently deteriorated in the West Bank, where 14 Palestinians were killed in July and settler violence escalated sharply, including the destruction of mosques, homes, farms, and critical infrastructure, and the forced displacement of entire communities. Israel’s genocide continues unabated, despite the International Court of Justice (ICJ)’s 19 July 2024 Advisory Opinion, which found its presence in the occupied Palestinian territory unlawful and called for its end. The experts called on Israel to immediately adhere to the ICJ Advisory Opinion, end its attacks on civilians, and allow unhindered access to humanitarian aid. They also called on other states to help ensure respect for international humanitarian and human rights law.
Myanmar: UN-Appointed Investigative Mechanism Finds Military Attacks on Civilians
On 11 August 2026, UN Human Rights Council-appointed investigators released their annual report on human rights violations in Myanmar, based on more than 1,600 sources including witness accounts, forensic evidence, and open-source data. The Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) found that from July 2025 to June 2026, Myanmar’s military deliberately attacked civilians by launching airstrikes on homes, schools, religious buildings, hospitals, and camps for displaced people. By examining command structure, the IIMM was also able to identify some of the military units responsible. It also documented widespread torture and sexual violence in detention facilities. Most of the evidence analysed by the IIMM is related to abuses by the Myanmar military and allied militias, although it is also researching abuses by armed groups. The UN Human Rights Council established the IIMM in 2018 to gather and preserve evidence of grave crimes committed in Myanmar since 2011. It aims to support accountability efforts by sharing its evidence with courts and third-country authorities. When launching the report, Nicholas Koumjian, head of the IIMM, called attention to the human toll of the violence in Myanmar, saying that “behind every piece of evidence…are people whose lives have been devastated by these crimes.”
Lebanon: Parliament Becomes First in the Middle East to Abolish the Death Penalty
On 11 August 2026, the Lebanese Parliament voted by a majority of its 128 members to formally abolish the death penalty, replacing all existing death sentences with life imprisonment with aggravated hard labour. Lebanon becomes the first state in the Middle East to take this step, ending a practice that had remained on the statute book despite an unofficial moratorium on executions in place since January 2004. Although courts had continued to issue death sentences in the intervening years, approximately 85 individuals remained on death row at the end of 2025 and will now have their sentences commuted. The bill was passed alongside a separate amnesty law and requires presidential signature before it enters into full force. Volker Türk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, commended the decision on the same day, describing it as a principled commitment to the right to life in a country subject to devastating attacks and profound suffering, and called on other states in the region that maintain the death penalty to follow Lebanon’s lead. He urged that the law be presented to the President for signature without delay, so that its protections could take prompt effect.
https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2026/08/lebanon-abolition-death-penalty
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/lebanon-abolishes-death-penalty-first-region-2026-08-11/
Colombia: UN Boosts Response in the Wake of Deadly Earthquake
On 12 August 2026, the UN said it was boosting its response following the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that struck Colombia two days prior. The earthquake has killed more than 200 people and injured 2,500 more at the time of writing, with rescue efforts still going. Houses and public infrastructure have been destroyed and severely damaged in a country already experiencing a humanitarian crisis following decades of conflict and climate impacts. The most affected areas of the country are Cali, Pereira, Manizales, and Quibdo, where needs assessments are still ongoing. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has already deployed in Chocó and Buenaventura to meet the immediate needs of children and families whose access to essential services has been restricted. The UN agency, which has been working in Colombia’s Chocó region for more than two decades, has provided family hygiene kits, maternal care kits, menstrual kits, and water storage tanks, and is working with government agencies to bolster protections for children. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is also leveraging its well-established presence in some of Colombia’s most vulnerable areas to quickly mobilise and provide assistance to affected communities.
IOM: New Report Finds Surge in Migrant Deaths This Year
On 12 August 2026, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) released its Global Overview of Migration Routes report, which finds that deaths of people migrating have risen sharply in 2026. The report covers the period January to April 2026 and is based on data from IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix, its Missing Migrants Project, Regional Data Hubs, and government partners to track global migration route trends. The report found that shifts in migration journeys in the first half of 2026 resulted from severe climate, conflict, economic pressure, and changes in migration policies. For example, although the number of people arriving in Europe dropped, deaths increased sharply both along the Central Mediterranean Route, with 821 people dead or missing, and the Eastern Mediterranean Route, with 244 deaths. At the same time, Spain saw a 66% increase in arrivals from the Western Mediterranean Route, and Yemen a 9% arrival increase via the Horn of Africa Eastern Route. Conflict in the Middle East also spurred changes in people’s movement, including large-scale displacement in Lebanon and more cross-border returns to Syria. IOM Deputy Director General Ugochi Daniels highlighted the humanity behind these figures, highlighting that “fewer arrivals do not mean safer journeys” and urging “shared responsibility” for saving lives at sea under increasingly perilous conditions.
OHCHR: Condemns Amendments Allowing Life Sentences for Children in Türkiye
On 13 August 2026, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) condemned legislative amendments to Türkiye’s Child Protection Law adopted by the Turkish Grand National Assembly on 8 August 2026. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk expressed particular alarm at provisions that open the possibility of life imprisonment for child offenders and that mandate the placement of child offenders in closed juvenile detention institutions rather than the rehabilitative, education-based institutions that had previously been the default. Türk acknowledged that some elements of the package may be positive, including measures aimed at better coordination between child protection and education services and restrictions on children’s access to firearms, but he deplored those provisions that introduce severe custodial measures. He called on Türkiye’s authorities to amend the law so that all its provisions are brought into full alignment with the country’s international human rights obligations, specifically the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which prohibits life sentences for children and requires that detention be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time. Türk emphasised that juvenile justice systems must combine accountability with rehabilitation, individualised support, and opportunities for reintegration, and warned that an excessive focus on punishment and retribution runs counter to both children’s rights and broader community safety.
Ukraine: HRW Documents Russian Cluster Munition Strike on Kyiv as Potential War Crime
On 13 August 2026, Human Rights Watch (HRW) published findings documenting Russia’s apparent use of cluster munitions in an attack on Kyiv on 5 August 2026, characterising the strike as a potential war crime. Drawing on verified video footage, satellite imagery, and photographs, HRW confirmed that at least one Iskander-M ballistic missile equipped with a cluster munition warhead was fired at a Nova Poshta courier sorting centre in the Obolonskyi district of Kyiv, killing three workers. A hospital is located less than one kilometre from the site, and a residential area containing schools and high-rise buildings lies within 500 metres. Cluster munitions, prohibited under the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions, to which 112 states are party, disperse explosive submunitions over wide areas indiscriminately; those that fail to detonate on impact remain hazardous for years, functioning similarly to landmines. Russia is not a party to the Convention but remains bound by international humanitarian law, which requires parties to a conflict to take all feasible precautions to protect civilians and to distinguish between military objectives and civilian objects. HRW noted that the 5 August strike formed part of a broader escalation: recorded civilian casualties in Ukraine in the first half of 2026 were 37% higher than the same period in 2025 and 114% higher than in 2024, driven in significant part by increased use of powerful weapons in densely populated areas. HRW called for the attack to be investigated and for Russia to cease its use of cluster munitions immediately.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/08/13/russia-cluster-munition-attack-on-kyiv-a-potential-war-crime
Afghanistan: Five-Year Anniversary of Taliban Rule Highlights Women’s Rights Crisis
On 14 August 2026, it was reported that on the five-year anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan, women’s rights abuses and economic hardship remain serious concerns in the country. Although people living in Afghanistan described feeling safer under the Taliban following decades of conflict, they also called for greater economic, work, and educational opportunities for young people, especially given the ban on girls over 12 attending school. The UN has described Afghanistan as the most severe women’s rights crisis in the world and has urged the Taliban to end restrictions on women and girls’ ability to work, travel, and attend school. Meaningful improvements in women’s rights are critical to Afghanistan’s economic recovery, development, and global reintegration. Although Taliban leaders said they have brought security, infrastructure improvements, and a stable economy to the country, statistics point to a serious educational and humanitarian crisis. According to several UN agencies, 2.4 million girls are blocked from secondary school in Afghanistan, while 53% of primary school-aged children are not attending school. At the same time, child malnutrition has risen to critical levels in a third of the country and will likely be exacerbated by funding and food distribution cuts.
https://apnews.com/article/afghanistan-taliban-5year-anniversary-6179bb5805731f0c2b6b5b59ea322b6c