People all around the world face human rights violations at the hands of their own government. Often it can be for simple, everyday actions that we take for granted – like voicing their opinions, just for being who they are or peacefully standing up for what they believe in.
Some of these people will be subjected to torture and ill-treatment, unfair trials, enforced disappearances, and tragically in some cases, sentenced to death or left languishing on death row for decades.
Amnesty keeps governments accountable for their actions and reminds them of the international laws and instruments by which they are bound – like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – to keep people safe and free in their countries. To make this happen we need your support.
Here are 5 individuals at risk you can take action for today:
1. Pakhshan Azizi
Pakhshan Azizi is an Iranian humanitarian aid worker, at risk of imminent execution. She was detained and forcibly disappeared solely in relation to her peaceful human rights activities, including providing support to women and children in northeast Syria who were displaced following attacks by the Islamic State armed group.
On February 5th, her lawyer said he was notified the Court has rejected the request for a review of the conviction and that her execution could now be carried out at any moment. Urgent global action is needed: sign the petition now.
2. Dr Hussam Abu Safiya
On 27 December 2024, the Israeli military raided Kamal Adwan hospital and arbitrarily detained its director, Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, along with other medical staff and patients.
The raid put the hospital, the last functioning major medical facility in the North Gaza governorate, out of service. Dr Hussam Abu Safiya’s whereabouts are still unknown.
Sign the petition and demand that the Israeli authorities immediately release Dr Hussam Abu Safiya and all Palestinians arbitrarily detained, including healthcare workers who are protected under international law.
3. Manahel al-Otaibi
Manahel al-Otaibi, a fitness instructor and outspoken advocate for women’s rights, is serving an 11-year prison sentence in Saudi Arabia merely for promoting women’s rights and expressing herself on social media.
She wrote tweets supporting women’s rights and posted pictures of herself enjoying a day at the mall. In the pictures, she is not wearing the abaya, a traditional robe, and these things alone were enough for the authorities to target her.
Manahel was arrested and charged with violating Saudi Arabia’s Anti-Cyber Crime Law. Her case was referred to the counter-terrorism court, notorious for grossly unfair trials and draconian punishments.
In January 2024, Manahel was sentenced to 11 years in prison in a secret hearing. Sign the petition and demand that Manahel is immediately and unconditionally released, and all charges against her are dropped.
4. Mohammad Reza Azizi
Mohammad Reza Azizi was still a child when he was arrested and interrogated without a lawyer present. In August 2021, 17-year-old Mohammad Reza Azizi was sentenced to death in a grossly unfair trial under Iran’s “retribution-in-kind” laws which permit the death penalty even for those under 18 at the time of the alleged crime. International law strictly prohibits this.
Iranian authorities have previously scheduled Mohammad’s execution at least twice. The execution was halted following public outcry, yet Mohammad remains at risk of imminent execution.
Sign the petition urging the Iranian authorities to quash Mohammad’s conviction and death sentence and grant him a fair retrial in full compliance with international law.
5. Narges Mohammadi
Narges Mohammadi is an Iranian rights defender, and her health is failing. Iran’s authorities convicted Narges of several trumped-up offences in connection with her human rights work and sentenced her to 16 years in prison in 2016. She was finally released in 2020 but in April 2022 was once again sentenced to over 10 years in prison and 154 lashes, charged with “spreading propaganda against the system”.
She has suffered several heart attacks and yet is being denied the health care she desperately needs. We must act now.
Thank you
Thanks to incredible Amnesty supporters, we bring torturers to justice, change oppressive laws and free people jailed for voicing their opinion. Together, we are unstoppable.
GOOD NEWS: After 30 years, Rocky Myers death sentence has been commuted.
Rocky, now a 63-year-old man – father of four, grandfather to nine, and great-grandfather to one – has spent more than half his life on death row.
We, with so many others, have long advocated for Rocky Myers. As part of Amnesty International’s Write for Rights campaign in 2023, hundreds of thousands of people from around the world signed a petition asking Alabama Governor Kay Ivey to commute his death sentence. Here in Australia, we handed over more than 30,000 of your signatures.
Earlier this year in February, our message was heard. Here’s the moment Rocky heard the news:
Rocky, a Black man with an intellectual disability, was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole in 1994.
A nearly all-white jury found him guilty of the murder of his white neighbour, despite the lack of any forensic evidence directly linking him to the crime. In a practice that is now outlawed in Alabama, the judge overrode the jury’s decision of life in prison and condemned Rocky Myers to death.
Burdened with ineffective legal representation and abandoned by his post-conviction lawyer, Rocky missed key deadlines for judicial appeals. Key testimonies against him were tainted by inconsistencies and allegations of police pressure. One key witness later stated that he had lied.
“As evidence accumulated of his innocence and the many injustices he experienced over the course of his case, I held out hope that he would someday see some measure of justice, of mercy, of humanity. I’m grateful to the many people who went to extraordinary lengths to support this petition.”
Kacey Keeton – Rocky Myers attorney since 2007
Click here to learn more about our impact.
Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 10 million people who take injustice personally. We are campaigning for a world where human rights are enjoyed by all – and we can only do it with your support.
Act now or learn more about how we protect Individuals at risk.
