Crackdown on dissent
Egyptian presidential elections Egypt announces presidential elections in December amid deepening political and economic crisis

It is expected that President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi will contest for a third term. El-Sisi won the 2014 and 2018 elections with huge margins following what critics described as sham processes

Political crackdown Tunisia Tunisian court frees two opposition leaders detained during recent spate of arrests of dissidents

Among the around 20 opposition figures recently detained by the government of President Kais Saied, the court released only Chaima Issa and Lazhar Akremi

Tunisia protests against arrests Protesters in Tunisia denounce spate of arrest of opposition leaders, others 

The government led by President Kais Saied arrested 20 opposition figures and critics in February—including former ministers—on charges of terrorism and threatening state security

Gautam Navlakha India Activist Gautam Navlakha released from prison, put under house arrest

The 70-year-old rights activist was released from prison after two years. A police team took him to a building in the Belapur-Agroli area of Navi Mumbai where he will be staying

Afghanistan women detained Rights bodies condemn detention of women activists in Afghanistan

On November 3, Taliban authorities detained rights defender Zarifa Yaqoobi along with four of her male colleagues during a press conference in Kabul announcing the formation of the “Afghan Women Movement for Equality”

prison term for Suu Kyi Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi sentenced to five years in prison in first of 11 corruption cases

The military has accused the former head of state of election fraud, violating the Official Secrets Act and several other offenses that could potentially lead to her being behind bars for decades

Osman Kvala sentenced Turkey Rights groups condemn life sentence to Turkish philanthropist-activist Osman Kavala

Osman Kavala and seven others were sentenced to long terms in prison on charges of “conspiring to overthrow the government” during the 2013 Gezi protests and involvement in the 2016 coup attempt

Egypt prisoners release 41 political prisoners freed in Egypt ahead of Eid

Egypt, among the world’s top jailers, has approximately 65,000 political prisoners out of a total prison population of about 120,000. As many as 26,000 of them are in pre-trial detention 

Egyptian activists trial Trial of prominent Egyptian activists postponed, detention extended by two weeks

The judge postponed the trial of activists Alaa Abdel Fattah, Mohammed el-Baqer, Mohammed Ibrahim and Yahia Hussein Abdel-Hadi for a review, thus extending their detention which has already surpassed the legally allowed two-year limit 

Algerian journalist Mohamed Moulouj placed in pre-trial detention on terrorism charges

Mohamed Mouloudj faces charges such as spreading false news, harming national unity, and belonging to a terrorist group. The authorities also arrested several prominent civil society figures, including academics, journalists and a Hirak activist  

Mexico’s Supreme Court decriminalizes abortion in landmark ruling and other stories

Today we look at the Mexican Supreme Court’s ruling decriminalizing abortion, the indictments against Palestinian officers in the killing of Nizar Banat, and more

Egypt HRW report HRW calls for sanctions against Egypt over spate of extrajudicial killings

The human rights group also called for the UN to create an investigating and monitoring mechanism for the rapidly degrading human rights situation in Egypt due to the government’s widespread rights violations