The US government should not forcibly return Guantanamo detainees to places where they fear ill-treatment without providing them a fair legal process to contest their repatriation. The Obama administration today transferred Aziz Abdul Naji, an Algerian detainee, to Algeria despite his expressed fears of abuse back in the country.

Algeria should end its repressive policy banning all demonstrations in the capital, Human Rights Watch said today after police blocked a small rally planned in front of the offices of state television to demand press freedom.

Our organizations, Human Rights Watch and the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice & Human Rights (RFK Center), have an established record of working on human rights issues in Western Sahara. Concerned about human rights violations against the Sahrawi people, we write to urge your support at the UN Security Council for the establishment of a UN mechanism that would monitor and report on human rights in Western Sahara and in the Sahrawi refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria.

Human Rights Watch se permet de vous écrire afin de réagir aux refus tardif des services de la direction de la réglementation et des affaires générales de la Wilaya d'Alger d'autoriser la Ligue Algérienne pour la Défense des Droits de l'Homme (LADDH) de se réunir dans une salle de réunion publique, perturbant ainsi le bon déroulement de leur congrès.

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has in recent months stepped up targeting tourists and aid workers for murder and kidnapping in Mali, Niger, and Mauritania. AQIM should immediately and unconditionally free hostages in its custody and end attacks on civilians.

Human rights conditions deteriorated  across North Africa in 2009, with unfair trials in political cases the norm, and a narrowing space for independent journalists and associations to operate, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2010.

Human Rights Watch writes to High Commissioner Pillay urging the redoubling of efforts to establish a program of human rights monitoring for Western Sahara and the Sahrawi refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria.