THE RAPPORT – 3 August to 16 August 2026

THE RAPPORT is the only newsletter devoted to briefing human rights practitioners on the communications of the UN Special Procedures. It is written by our Principal, Kate McInnes, and is published on Sundays on a biweekly basis. To subscribe and read the full newsletter, visit https://therapport.substack.com/

Africa

• Approximately 7,400 migrant, asylum-seeking and refugee women, men and children, mostly originating from sub-Saharan Africa, have reportedly been subjected to a systematic pattern of enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, collective expulsion, refoulement and trafficking from Tunisia to Libya, involving Tunisian state actors as well as Libyan state and non-state actors, which “raise[s] serious concerns regarding possible violations of international law” and in particular the obligations of these states under the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, say the Working Groups on arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, and discrimination against women and girls, and the Special Rapporteurs on trafficking in persons, migrants, racism, and torture. (TUN 6/2026, LBY 1/2026)

• The practice of deploying national laws in Tunisia to restrict the right to freedom of assembly and criminalize its exercise appears to constitute a “systematic repression of civic space through the legal framework” in a manner which is incompatible with international law, say the Special Rapporteurs on freedom of assembly, human rights defenders, and terrorism. (TUN 5/2026)

• The recent discovery of a civil war-era mass grave in Luanda, Angola, has prompted concerns regarding the preservation, exhumation, respectful handling, and identification of the mortal remains contained therein, and particularly the “the insensitive manner in which such a deeply traumatic and delicate matter was publicly presented, without their prior consultation, preparation, psychosocial support, or due regard” for the families of the deceased, say the Working Group on enforced disappearances and the Special Rapporteurs on transitional justice and executions. (AGO 1/2026)

• Eight Special Rapporteurs have followed up on an April 2026 urgent appeal to Equatorial Guinea, concerning persons deported from the United States and detained in Malabo under a bilateral transfer agreement, who continue to face “an imminent risk of being returned to countries where they could be exposed to persecution, torture, or other irreparable harm.” (GNQ 2/2026)

Americas

• Coordinated armed attacks perpetrated by organized crime groups against the Nahua Indigenous People in Chilapa de Álvarez, Guerrero, including the use of high-powered weapons and explosive drones, engage Mexico’s obligations under international human rights law, particularly with respect to the right to life, the prohibition of arbitrary interference with the home, freedom of movement, and protection against arbitrary forced displacement, say the Special Rapporteurs on internally displaced persons, cultural rights, food, housing, Indigenous Peoples, and water and sanitation. (MEX 8/2026)

• The alleged extrajudicial executions by members of the security forces of five civilians, including an 8-year-old girl, and the alleged extrajudicial execution of a civilian at the hands of criminal groups, indicates “excessive and improper use of force” by the security forces of Mexico, as well as “an alleged failure to protect the right to life and to personal liberty and security in the context of cases of trafficking in persons,” say the Special Rapporteurs on executions and trafficking in persons. (MEX 9/2026)

• The reportedly excessive and lethal use of force by military police against Mr. Marco Aurélio, a 22-year-old medical student of Indigenous and Peruvian descent, constitutes a “manifestation” of “patterns of the sustained and systemic use of excessive and lethal force resulting in the arbitrary deprivation of life in Brazil, with a disproportionate impact on marginalized racial and ethnic groups, and continuing impunity for such violations,” say the Special Rapporteurs on racism and executions. (BRA 4/2026)

• Peru’s Bill No. 14337/2025-CR, which is intended to incorporate the crime against humanity into the Criminal Code, “establish[es] an excessively restrictive definition of the constituent elements of crimes against humanity, which could, in practice, result in impunity in cases of serious human rights violations,” say the Working Group on enforced disappearances and the Special Rapporteurs on transitional justice and executions. (PER 5/2026)

Asia

• A proposal to amend Sri Lanka’s 1978 Constitution, and more specifically to increase the retirement age of superior court judges, may not be in line with international human rights standards related to the independence of the judiciary and the right to a fair trial, including the separation of powers, the ability of judges to perform their functions free from undue influence, pressure or interference, and the public’s confidence in the judiciary’s independence, says the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers. (LKA 4/2026)

Europe

• “National priority” pacts signed by authorities in the autonomous communities of Andalusia, Aragon, Castile and León, and Extremadura, Spain, uses language which conveys “discrimination and prejudice by portraying foreign nationals as responsible for the inaccessibility of housing and the overburdening of public services in general,” saus the Special Rapporteur on housing. (ESP 3/2026)

• The blanket exclusion to welfare benefits and social housing to migrants to the United Kingdom and Ireland who are on visas, undocumented, or seeking asylum, “could have severe consequences for victims of trafficking, people who have experienced domestic and gender-based violence, migrant communities, and other vulnerable groups,” says the Special Rapporteur on housing. (IRL 1/2026, GBR 13/2026)

• A requirement of Dutch language proficiency, as established under the housing code in Flanders, Belgium, may lead to “social exclusion and geographic segregation” in the context of public housing support, says the Special Rapporteur on housing. (BEL 2/2026)

• The Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression has offered her views on the motion entitled “Subsequent use of illegally obtained data” (23.4322), currently under review of the Swiss Parliament. (CHE 6/2026)

Middle East

• The arbitrary arrest, detention, enforced disappearance and abusive criminal prosecution in Kuwait of journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin appears to be in response to the legitimate exercise of his right to freedom of expression — stemming particularly from his online republication of, and commentary on, publicly available images and video footage of military activities relating to the armed conflict involving Iran, the U.S. and Gulf States — and may amount to a violation of international human rights obligations, say the Working Groups on arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances and the Special Rapporteurs on terrorism and freedom of opinion. (KWT 1/2026)

• The arrest, detention and enforced disappearance in Iran of Kurdish folk artist Mr. Amir Sobhani “appear to be connected to the peaceful and legitimate exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of association, participation in cultural life and the promotion of a cultural identity through artistic and cultural activities,” say the Working Groups on arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances and the Special Rapporteurs on Iran, cultural rights, freedom of assembly, and independence of judges and lawyers. (IRN 12/2026)