Iraq

Killings and abductions by the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) are mounting since the group seized Mosul, Iraq's second-biggest city, and other parts of north-west Iraq.

Thousands are fleeing their homes, gripped by panic and fear in this rapidly unfolding crisis. Our researcher, Donatella Rovera, is on the ground, gathering evidence of the mounting atrocities.

Iraq: The rise of militia rule

Against the current backdrop of lawlessness and sectarian violence, Shi’a militias have been abducting and killing Sunni civilians with almost total impunity.

The Iraqi government often supports and arms these militias – making them largely responsible for war crimes and serious human rights abuses.

Destroying Islamic State may push Lebanon to the brink

US-led attacks on Islamic State forces in Syria and Iraq will undoubtedly mean many more refugees spilling into neighbouring countries.

Our Director Kate Allen blogs on her recent visit to Lebanon, a country creaking at the seams.

Our mission to northern Iraq

Our Senior Crisis Advisor Donatella Rovera is back in northern Iraq where tens of thousands of people are fleeing from advancing ISIS militants.

Follow her latest updates here and on Twitter, at @DRovera.

Iraq: Authorities must immediately reverse media ban on the terms ‘homosexuality’ and ‘gender’

Move is latest in attacks on freedom of expression

Syria: fatal shooting of child in al-Hol camp must be fully investigated

Amnesty International is calling for the Syrian Kurdish authorities controlling al-Hol displaced-persons camp in north-west Syria to launch an urgent investigation into yesterday’s shooting incident which killed at least one child and injured three women.

Kurdistan Region of Iraq: 'chilling' crackdown on journalists and activists

The authorities in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq have launched a chilling crackdown on journalists and activists in the past year amid a “growing atmosphere of fear” in the region.

UN: Angelina Jolie cites forthcoming Amnesty report on Yezidi children

UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie has cited an upcoming Amnesty International report on Yezidi child survivors of atrocities committed by the Islamic State armed group.

Sexually exploited for 'ties to Islamic State'

A new report reveals women trapped in displacement camps in Iraq are being sexually exploited for their perceived links to Islamic State.

Iraq: thousands of homes destroyed in revenge campaign

In an apparent attempt to take revenge on supporters of Islamic State (IS), Peshmerga forces from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Kurdish militias in northern Iraq have bulldozed, blown up and burned down thousands of civilian homes.

How Islamic State got its weapons

Irresponsible arms transfers to Iraq by countries including the UK, USA, Russia, China, Germany and France have provided the armed group Islamic State (ISIS) with a huge and lethal arsenal.

Are the press working for ISIS?

Rarely a week goes by when ISIS aren’t dominating the headlines. Coverage of their human rights violations are all over the news and every story is shocking and brutal. But is our media doing their work for them?

Iraq: Violent Yezidi and Shi'a backlash against Islamic State

A year on from Islamic State’s capture of Mosul in Iraq, Yezidi and Shi’a militia have carried out deadly revenge attacks against local Sunni Arab communities.

The two massacres were apparently to avenge Islamic State crimes in the area, part of the armed group’s year-long reign of terror in northern Iraq.

Yezidi women in Iraq face sexual violence from Islamic State fighters

We have exposed the plight of Yezidi women and girls who have had their lives shattered by the horrors of sexual violence and slavery in Islamic State (IS) captivity in Iraq.

Hundreds, and possibly thousands, have been forcibly married, ‘sold’ or given as ‘gifts’ to Islamic State fighters or their supporters.

A letter from a Syrian activist to an American mother

Ibrahim Al-Assil of the Syrian Nonviolence Movement writes in an open letter to the mother of James Foley, killed by ISIS extremist fighters.

Iraq: Hundreds massacred in ethnic cleansing by Islamic State

The Islamic State armed group (ISIS) is committing crimes against humanity on a historic scale in northern Iraq. Entire communities are at risk of being wiped off the map.

We interviewed hundreds of witnesses, survivors, and victims, including the families of those who were killed or abducted, and others displaced by the violence.

Escape from Sinjar Mountain, but what next?

Dusty, noisy and dangerous. After a harrowing escape from Sinjar Mountain, many Iraqi families find themselves in overcrowded, makeshift shelters. For many people in northern Iraq their entire future now hangs by a thread.

Mass exodus as ISIS continue to attack

Killings and abductions by the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) are mounting as the militants continue their advance on north-west Iraq.

Fearing for their lives, thousands of terrified Iraqi civilians have fled their homes to escape the violence.

War crimes by all sides as sectarian violence against civilians continues in Iraq

In every Iraqi village that our researchers visited in recent weeks, where a community was controlled by ISIS there was a trail of men who had disappeared. The men came from all backgrounds, spanned all ages and religions - but each of their families were similarly struggling to find out their fates.
Read about the human rights horrors unfolding in Iraq.

Death sentences and executions around the world in 2013

2013 saw a sharp rise in the number of executions around the globe, as the world's most prolific executioner states killed even more people than in previous years.

Our comprehensive and authoritative report shows how and where the death penalty was used in 2013. Find out which states are guilty of the ultimate human rights abuse.

Ramze Shihab Ahmed in Iraq prison after unfair trial

71-year-old Ramze Shihab Ahmed is serving a 15 year prison sentence in Iraq after an unfair trial. He was convicted of funding terrorist groups after a hearing that lasted just 15 minutes.

Ramze was arrested in 2009 and held for over a year without charge and claims he was tortured.