Blog Post Oct 27, 2026 Dispatches from Detention: Umar Khalid Indian student-activist Umar Khalid was arrested on Sept. 13, 2020, after he became a prominent face of nationwide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, a law excluding Muslims from eligibility for a fast-tracked path to Indian citizenship.
Human Rights Dispatch Oct 23, 2026 Court Releases India Cockroach Movement Leaders HRF welcomes the Indian court’s decision to release “Cockroach” movement leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka after they were detained for their participation in the recent protests.
Newsletter Oct 23, 2026 HRF’s AI for Individual Rights Newsletter #23 Uganda’s regime, led by dictator Yoweri Museveni for over four decades, has long suppressed political opposition — and its repression is now supercharged by foreign surveillance tech.
Newsletter Oct 16, 2026 HRF’s AI for Individual Rights Newsletter #22 This week, we examine an investigation into the growing influence of the UAE’s national security adviser, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, over the country’s AI future.
Newsletter Oct 10, 2026 HRF’s AI for Individual Rights Newsletter #21 El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele is rolling out AI-powered public services that could boost his popularity — even as democratic checks on his power continue to erode — and expand his access to citizens’ personal data.
Human Rights Dispatch Oct 8, 2026 Vietnam Abducts Activists in Cambodia, India Mass-Detains Protesters, HRF Remembers Anna Politkovskaya HRF expresses deep concern over the mass detention of at least 700 protesters by Delhi police during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-led protests at Jantar Mantar.
Newsletter Oct 8, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #141 In India, Apple removed Bitchat from the country’s App Store after the government ordered the company to block the offline messaging app.
Human Rights Dispatch Oct 3, 2026 HRF Condemns Arbitrary App Censorship and Unlawful Blocking Orders in India HRF maintains that governments should not ban apps or content without an independent court finding the block necessary and proportionate under international human rights standards.
Newsletter Oct 1, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #140 This week reminds us how fragile financial access can be in difficult political environments. In Iran, Tehran prosecutor Ali Salehi announced that the regime had identified and frozen 2,191 bank accounts belonging to 394 people accused of collaborating with a “hostile enemy.”
Newsletter Sep 24, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #139 In Russia, organizers of an international youth festival reportedly created multiple versions of the internet, including an unrestricted network for foreign visitors and a censored one for Russian citizens.
Newsletter Sep 17, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #138 In Iran, the clerical dictatorship doubled the price of gasoline beyond subsidized quotas from 5,000 to 10,000 tomans per liter. With inflation above 87% and food prices also doubled, security forces are now deployed around fuel stations in at least 11 cities.
Human Rights Dispatch Sep 15, 2026 China Expands Exit Bans, India Detains Umar Khalid, and more. HRF condemns China’s sentencing of Chow Hang-tung, Lee Cheuk-yan, and Albert Ho to lengthy prison terms and calls on the international community to denounce Beijing’s weaponization of Hong Kong’s National Security Law.
Human Rights Dispatch Aug 21, 2026 Burkina Forces Military Training on Media, Zambia Opposition Figure Killed, and more. HRF condemns the Burkina Faso junta’s imposition of compulsory military and “patriotism” training on journalists as part of its war on insurgents. This political indoctrination and militarization of the press marks another step in the Ibrahim Traoré regime’s drive for totalitarian power.
Human Rights Dispatch Aug 19, 2026 Senegal’s LGBT Crackdown, Venezuela Releases Prisoners, Kashmiri Journalist Freed HRF calls for the immediate release of all remaining political prisoners in Venezuela and condemns the regime of Delcy Rodriguez for keeping dissidents unlawfully detained under inhumane conditions.
Human Rights Dispatch Aug 5, 2026 Angola Protest Impunity, India Releases Minors, Petition Filed for Mahrang Baloch Together with @freedomhouse and @Hindus4HR, HRF filed a petition on behalf of Baloch human rights defender Dr. Mahrang Baloch, who is serving two life sentences on politically-motivated charges in Pakistan.
Newsletter Apr 16, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #117 We start in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the country’s central bank has announced plans to ban cash transactions in US dollars and other foreign currencies starting in April 2027.
Press Release Mar 17, 2026 HRF succeeds in UN petition, India condemned for arbitrary detention NEW YORK (Mar. 17, 2026) — The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) welcomes the favorable opinion of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), which found India’s detention of activist Umar Khalid to be arbitrary and in violation of international human rights law.
Announcement Feb 19, 2026 The international community must call for the immediate release of Umar Khalid On Jan. 5, 2026, the Indian Supreme Court denied bail to human rights defender and student activist Umar Khalid, who has been detained for over five years without trial, in violation of India’s obligations under international human rights law.
Human Rights Dispatch Jan 30, 2026 The case of Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj HRF, together with its partner the @forum_asia , urges the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) to intervene in the case of Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj.
Press Release Jan 30, 2026 HRF urges UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to rule India’s detention of Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj arbitrary and unlawful Today, the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) and the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) submitted an individual complaint to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) on behalf of Kashmiri journalist and human rights defender Irfan Mehraj, urging the group to declare his detention arbitrary and in violation of international law.
