Amnesty International on Nov. 20 denounced authorities in Chad for their failure to protect victims of armed clashes between herders and farmers. The group documented seven instances of herder-farmer violence  in four provinces between 2022 and 2024, which resulted in 98 people dead, at least 100 injured, and 600 left without homes or sources of income.

Israeli military operations in the northern West Bank constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Nov. 20 in a report documenting the forced displacement of approximately 32,000 Palestinians from three refugee camps beginning in January 2025. The report charges that Israeli forces carried out mass forcible displacements as part of a widespread attack on civilians, accusations that, if substantiated, would constitute crimes against humanity under international law.

Indigenous groups held protests Nov. 14 in Belém, blocking the main entrance to the restricted area at the UN Climate Summit (COP30) to demand that the Brazilian government halt extractive projects that jeopardize their cultures and livelihoods.

The Israeli cabinet will convene to discuss annexation of areas of the West Bank this week, local media report. The discussion has been called in light of the recently-approved settlement construction plan spearheaded by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, which will see some 3,400 housing units built in the West Bank's contentious E1 area between Jerusalem and the Ma'ale Adumim settlement bloc. (ToI)

Cambodia's prime minister, Hun Manet, nominated Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize on Aug. 7, citing his "crucial role" in restoring peace after bloody border fighting with Thailand. The gushy statement praised Trump's "extraordinary statesmanship" and "innovative diplomacy." (NYT)

Cambodia now becomes the third country to nominate the bellicose Trump for the Peace Prize after Israel and Pakistan. Islamabad's nomination followed Trump's supposed involvement in the ceasefire deal with India that ended several days of mutual missile strikes in May. The problem is that India denies that the US or any other foreign power had a hand in its decision to accept a truce. (Hindustan Times)

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on July 21 called upon the Jordanian government to immediately reverse a policy that mandates displacing a Bedouin community from the Petra area, a UN-recognized World Heritage Site, through forcible evictions. Human Rights Watch deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa, Adam Coogle, stated:

Jordan can't claim to protect Petra's living heritage while sidelining the community that embodies it. It should work, together with UNESCO, to uphold the rights of the Bedul and ensure their full participation in the shaping of the future of the site they've called home for generations.

According to the report, the government is forcibly evicting the Bedul, one of several Bedouin communities living in the Petra area in the southern part of Jordan. In targeting the community for eviction, Jordanian authorities are violating their economic, social, and cultural rights, and their rights to housing.

Israel's ongoing military actions in Syria undermine the Arab country's political transition, and the opportunity for Syria and Israel to form a new security agreement, UN Assistant Secretary General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Khaled Khiari said before the Security Council on April 10.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Dec. 27 called on the Chinese government to immediately release Liu Hanbin, a blogger who was arrested one month earlier following his publication of information regarding a protest by farmers against forced land seizures. RSF's Asia-Pacific bureau director Cédric Alviani stated:

Chinese blogger Liu Hanbin was only serving the public interest by shedding light on abuses linked to land seizures, and should never be detained, let alone denied the right to meet with his lawyer. We call on the international community to build up pressure on the Chinese authorities to secure Liu's release alongside the 124 other journalists and press freedom defenders detained in the country.

The organization condemned Liu's detention as part of a broader pattern of repression against journalists and activists in China. The incident marked Liu as the 125th journalist currently detained by the Chinese authorities, raising significant concerns about freedom of expression in the country.