By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image The United Nations General Assembly at UN Headquarters in New York City, January 15, 2026. © 2026 Cristina Matuozzi/Sipa via AP Photo United Nations member countries will select a new UN secretary-general this year to succeed António Guterres in January 2027. The change in leadership comes at a time when human rights and democracy, as well as the international organizations created to uphold those principles and provide lifesaving assistance, are under unprecedented attack.So far member countries have formally nominated only two candidates: former…
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image Anna Kwok, a Hong Kong activist exiled in the US, in Washington, DC, July 10, 2023. ( © 2024 Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters (New York) – A Hong Kong court’s conviction of the father of a prominent US‑based democracy activist on February 11, 2026, reflects the Chinese government’s escalation of its campaign of transnational repression, Human Rights Watch said today.The West Kowloon Magistrates’ Court convicted Kwok Yin-sang, 68, of a national security offense. He is the father of Anna Kwok, 28, the former executive director of the Washington DC-based Hong Kong Democracy…
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By John E. Jones III, President, Dickinson College
Grand juries, historically rubber stamps for prosecutors’ attempts to indict, are rejecting the Trump administration’s moves to indict the president’s perceived enemies. That’s unprecedented.
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By Jo Osborn, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Texas A&M University
Emily Milton, Peter Buck Postdoctoral Fellow, Smithsonian Institution
Jacob L. Bongers, Tom Austen Brown Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Sydney
In new research, biochemical analyses align with imagery and historical sources to show how the pre-Inca Chincha society turned guano into a source of power.
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By Philip McKibbin, PhD Candidate, Sydney Environment Institute, University of Sydney
Māori, for instance, do not place the present at the centre; as some researchers put it, ‘there is no centre’.
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By Iain White, Professor of Environmental Planning, University of Waikato
Bill Fry, Honorary Research Professor, Department of Geology, University of Otago
Julia Becker, Professor of Disaster and Emergency Management, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University
Liam Wotherspoon, Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Melanie Mark-Shadbolt, Environmental Sociologist, Indigenous Knowledge
After a series of extreme weather events over the past month, NZ has been reminded that disasters aren’t just acts of nature.
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By Laura Nicole Driessen, Postdoctoral Researcher in Radio Astronomy, University of Sydney
With Valentine’s Day around the corner, romance is in the air. And what could be more romantic than a picnic under the stars, pointing up to the night sky, and gazing at a star you’ve named for your Valentine?
A quick online search reveals multiple paid services for naming a star, usually accompanied by a certificate and a star map for finding the star.
However, these names are not official and are not used by astronomers. According to the International Astronomical Union’s Working Group on Star Names, the official body that leads selecting star names: “
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Wednesday, February 11, 2026
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called on Wednesday for Israel to rescind recent measures to expand control over Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank.
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image Claire Rogers, mother of Zoe Rogers (C-R), speaks outside Woolwich Crown Court, London, following the acquittal of six Palestine Action activists, February 4, 2026. © 2026 Press Association via AP Photo Last week, six people linked to Palestine Action, a direct action protest group, were acquitted of aggravated burglary in connection with an alleged break in at Elbit Systems, a defense firm with close ties to the Israeli military, in August 2024. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on charges of criminal damage.The six individuals had experienced lengthy…
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By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image Lieutenant General Dagvin R.M. A, USAF, General and Commander, United States Africa Command, at a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, July 22, 2025. © 2025 Michael Brochstein/ZUMA via Getty Images The United States Africa Command has recently disclosed a small troop deployment to Nigeria to support the country’s security forces. This announcement follows the establishment of a US-Nigeria working group focused on enhancing security and counterterrorism cooperation.Increased collaboration may be a legitimate way to address…
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