Human Rights

Just Security’s expert authors offer in-depth analysis on critical human rights challenges, including those related to armed conflict, emerging technologies, abuses by authoritarian governments, repression of human rights advocates and independent media, human rights litigation, racial justice, gender equality, and more.

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3,197 Articles
Posters of missing people hang on a monument in the centre of Marjeh Square in Damascus on December 26, 2024. (Photo by SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP via Getty Images)

The Search for the Missing in Syria: Learning from the Past

The head of Syria's Independent Institution of Missing Persons (IIMP) offers analysis and recommendations for a meaningful justice process.
Naija Raufi in a dark dress and a floral hijab stands at a balcony railing, overlooking the low- to medium-rise urban landscape of Athens, her back to the camera, alongside a young girl in a pink dress and pony tails in her dark hair.

I Was Afghanistan’s Attorney General. Here Is What Justice Looked Like — and What Destroyed It.

Afghanistan’s justice system took 20 years to build and 11 days to destroy. Former Attorney General Mohammad Farid Hamidi outlines the ongoing fight for accountability.
A hand holds three small flags: the European Union flag, a rainbow pride flag, and the blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag.

Ukraine’s Parliament Is Pulling Back on LGBTQ Rights as Courts and Citizens Move Forward

Ukraine’s Supreme Court recognized a same-sex family, but parliament is moving to block legal recognition for LGBTQ+ couples.
Notes about kitchen appliances are seen on a whiteboard as students attend a lesson on housekeeping at a training facility for domestic workers on November 22, 2022 in Kampala, Uganda.

The Kafala System Disables Workers. International Disability Law Can Hold Saudi Arabia Accountable

The story of a Kenyan domestic worker is one of 15 in the first UN communications challenging the Kafala system under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and European council secretary general Alain Berset (R) speak after the signing of an agreement for establishing a special tribunal to try top officials responsible for Russia's invasion of Ukraine at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, eastern France, on June 25, 2025. (Photo by FREDERICK FLORIN/AFP via Getty Images)

In Absentia Trials and the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine

When defendants can be informed of their trial and have a right to a retrial in person, in absentia trials can be legitimate and necessary for victims and society at large.
The facade of the ICC building.

Transnational Repression and the Case for International Criminal Accountability

International criminal law should be applied to transnational repression. The tools to do so may already exist.
Former head of political security in south Syria's Daraa province, Atif Najib attends the first trial session at the Palace of Justice, in Damascus on April 26, 2026. Najib is the former head of political security in south Syria's Daraa province, the cradle of the country's 2011 uprising, and is accused of orchestrating a crackdown there. (Photo by Bakr ALkasem / AFP via Getty Images)

Building Justice After Assad: Syria’s Accountability Dilemma and Pathways to Justice

Syria’s first post-Assad trials spark hope and concern, as legal gaps and due process risks challenge efforts to deliver credible, inclusive justice for victims.
The flag of Mexico flying at United Nations headquarters in new York (via UN Photo)

How Multilateral Powers Can Still Save the World Order

Imperfect as the postwar order may be, the cost of abandoning it would be far greater than the cost of reinforcing it.
Illustration abstract of hands and arms breaking the chains. (via Getty Images)

Moving Beyond Recognition Toward Repair for Enslavement

International law needs to move beyond legal recognition of the wrongfulness of chattel enslavement and the trade in enslaved people, toward repair and remedy.
Collage of images pertaining to artificial intelligence

Just Security’s Artificial Intelligence Archive

Just Security's collection of 100+ articles analyzing the implications of AI for society, democracy, human rights, and warfare.
Four men, one in civilian clothes and the others in uniforms of khaki pants, olive shirts and berets, stand and sit on plastic chairs at the left of the image next to a broad concrete stairway on the right, leading to a green-painted double wooden doorway at the top of the stairs. The mostly white building is trimmed in green and tan.

International Crimes and Human Rights Violations Against Muslims in BJP-Ruled Indian States Require Urgent Action

The international community must redouble efforts to press Indian authorities for accountability in growing violence and rights abuses against Muslims.
People sit, their backs to the camera, in a large hall, watching a large TV screen on a platform that shows Ongwen's face. Two illegible banners hang on stands to the right of the screen. Two windows behind the platform are covered to shade the brightness and ease viewing of the television.

How to Acknowledge Forced Marriage as a Standalone Crime in the Draft Crimes Against Humanity Treaty

Adding forced marriage to the draft Crimes Against Humanity Convention would codify a distinct international crime, reflect its severe harms, and improve legal clarity.
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