Dear Prime Minister De Croo, Belgium assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) at a critical moment, and Amnesty International calls on you to ensure that human rights are at the forefront of your mandate. The Belgian presidency comes at a time of increased challenges in...

Reforms agreed today by the EU on the Pact on Migration and Asylum will set European asylum law back for decades to come and lead to greater human suffering, said Amnesty International. Today’s political agreement on a set of legislative proposals, will reform EU migration and asylum policy through...

Authorities Need to Learn Lessons to Avert Future Deaths at Sea (Athens, December 14, 2023) – Official investigations into credible allegations that the Hellenic Coast Guard’s actions and omissions contributed to the catastrophic shipwreck and loss of life off Pylos, Greece six months ago have made...

Eighteen human rights organisations across Europe, alongside aid workers and survivors of human rights abuses, say that a crunch summit in Brussels on December 7th risks “opening the door to abuses across Europe” including racial profiling and pushbacks, in a “potentially irreversible attack” on...

In a joint civil society organisations letter ahead of the E.U. Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) trilogue negotiation on 6 December, Amnesty International urges the Representatives of the Council of the European Union to effectively regulate the use of AI systems by law enforcement, migration...

In October 2023, member states reached an agreement on the contentious Crisis and Force Majeure Regulation, enabling negotiations with the European Parliament to begin on this piece of the migration and asylum reforms package. Despite its name, this proposal will not usher in a better approach to...

In a joint statement, Amnesty International and 81 other civil society organisations express our concerns regarding the potential retention of Article 5 in the proposed EU Screening Regulation (one of key legislative files encompassing the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum) during trilogue...

In a joint statement, Amnesty International and 17 other European networks and organisations, representing trade unions and NGOs, call on EU lawmakers not to trap migrant workers in exploitation, by ensuring a meaningful right to change employer, and to ensure full equal treatment, particularly in...

Responding to the announcement that the Italian and Albanian Prime Ministers yesterday signed an agreement to construct two centres in Albania in which to detain people rescued at sea by Italian ships, including people seeking safety, Elisa De Pieri, Regional Researcher at Amnesty International...

In a letter addressed to President Michel, President Von Der Leyen and High Representative Borrell, in view of ongoing discussions on the future of EU-Türkiye relations and ahead of the 14-15 December European Council, Amnesty International urges the EU leaders to put respect for human rights and...

In October 2023, Amnesty International submitted its contribution to a strategic inquiry launched by the European Ombudsman (Own Initiative Inquiry OI/3/2023/MHZ), focused on the role of Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, in the context of search and rescue (SAR) operations. The...

Amnesty International, EuroMed Rights and Human Rights Watch shared a letter with President of the European Council Charles Michel and EU Heads of States and Governments ahead of the 26-27 October meeting of the European Council. The 26 and 27 October 2023 European Council’s strategic discussion on...