Front Line Defenders

Security, protection, visibility + advocacy for human rights defenders at risk.

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[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍Egypt

🚨Two years after the EU-Egypt Partnership, repression continues to deepen.

We urge the EU and its Member States to press Egypt to undertake genuine reforms and stop whitewashing its deteriorating human rights record.

🔗 https://t.co/cSDBmL2Ics

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

FLD welcomes the release of WHRD Sepideh Gholian after serving six months of a now suspended sentence.

We call on Iranian authorities to unconditionally drop all charges against her.
🔗https://t.co/TGdeLZZpaV

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍CAMEROON

🚨The trial against WHRD Maximilienne Ngo Mbe was postponed again to 6 July 2026 after the prosecution requested more time to prepare closing arguments.

We remain concerned by the prolonged proceedings and judicial harassment against her.

🔗 https://t.co/MxhPHBiS7T

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍IRAN

🚨WHRD Nasrin Sotoudeh was released on bail after being charged with “propaganda against state” over her public statements, defence of political prisoners, and recounting ill-treatment in detention.
We call authorities must drop all charges and investigate torture allegations.
🔗https://t.co/kQWnowCb5k

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

We are deeply saddened by the loss of WHRD Deniz Soydam. Our deepest condolences go to her loved ones and to her community during this immensely difficult time. We honour her memory, her dedication and contributions, and how she continued to extend solidarity to others even in her most vulnerable moments.

As a trans woman, Deniz faced relentless systemic violence, including an arson attack on her home. We stand in solidarity with the ongoing fight for the rights of trans persons in Turkey, in their struggle for justice against a system that legitimises transphobia, and for their right to a life lived in dignity.

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍SIERRA LEONE

🚨Judicial harassment continues against HRDs Mohamed Turay and Prince Tommy Williams of Lifeline Nehemiah Projects. A hearing on 19 May was adjourned after concerns over irregular interventions during proceedings.

We call for all charges to be dropped.

🔗https://t.co/fnipVp5TfH

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍Cambodia

🚨Five Mother Nature Cambodia environmental defenders have been imprisoned for nearly two years for their peaceful activism.

We call on Cambodia’s appeals court to overturn their unjust convictions and release them immediately and unconditionally.
🔗https://t.co/bVklhGdjMK

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍Italy

Congratulations to human rights defenders Roberto Malini and Lisetta Sperindei on receiving the Goffredo Parise Prize for Reportage, one of Italy’s significant awards dedicated to journalism of testimony, civic information and the defence of freedom of expression.

The prize highlights the importance of protecting journalists, HRDs and citizens who suffer intimidation or legal harassment for speaking out in the public interest.

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍CAMEROON

🚨Reopened proceedings against WHRD Maximilienne Ngo Mbe continue to prolong her trial in Cameroon.

We remain concerned that the case forms part of ongoing judicial harassment against the defender and REDHAC.

🔗 https://t.co/YzXab6032o

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍Western Sahara

🚨Moroccan authorities have intensified harassment, sieges and forced transfers targeting Sahrawi HRDs in occupied Western Sahara.

We call on authorities to end all reprisals and ensure Sahrawi HRDs can carry out their peaceful work safely.

🔗https://t.co/sKgWgg7hMz

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍MEXICO

The National Indigenous Congress and the Civil Observation Mission-Sixth have convened an Observation Mission comprising various national and international organisations, collectives and journalists, to be held from 22 to 24 May 2026 in the Montaña Baja, state of Guerrero, Mexico, in response to the ongoing violence and forced displacement of Nahua people and communities by organised crime groups seeking control of their territories and resources.

The Mission will seek to document the current situation of the communities and victims of violence, the responsibility of the authorities, and to respond to the call from communities requesting state intervention.

Front Line Defenders calls on the Mexican authorities to provide protection to the members of the mission and to guarantee their work in defence of human rights, particularly their safe entry into and exit from the region. Furthermore, we call for recognition of the Mission’s essential role in documenting human rights violations and in strengthening access to justice and truth.

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍IRAN

🚨Iranian Authorities charged imprisoned HRD Ahmadreza Haeri with “propaganda against state” for the fifth time over his anti-death penalty activism and documenting abuses in prisons.

FLD calls to end judicial harassment against HRDs in Iran.

🔗 https://t.co/un4cvA0w9C

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍TUNISIA

🚨We welcome the lifting of the suspension order against Avocats Sans Frontières (ASF).

The restrictions against the Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH) remain in place.

We call on authorities to revoke the suspension order and guarantee freedom of association.

🔗 https://t.co/LPVdlGjpLF

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍 OPT

🚨Israeli naval forces intercepted the peaceful Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) in international waters, approximately 250 nautical miles from Gaza.

We strongly condemn the detention of HRDs, humanitarian actors, and solidarity activists, and call for their immediate and safe release.

🔗 https://t.co/MJyW4AZgMZ

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍TUNISIA

🚨Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH) and Avocats Sans Frontières (ASF) have been suspended for 30 days, amid a broader crackdown on independent civil society and human rights organisations.

We call on Tunisian authorities to revoke the suspension orders and guarantee freedom of association.

🔗 https://t.co/OFaDoUHdWi

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍EL SALVADOR

🚨One year ago, Salvadoran lawyer and woman human rights defender Ruth López was arbitrarily detained in what numerous organisations have documented as political persecution linked directly to her fight against corruption.

Ruth is one of the most recognised anti-corruption lawyers in Central America. Since 2024, her work defending human rights in El Salvador has been recognised with at least six international awards and honours.

Today marks an entire year she has spent imprisoned without trial.

We join the growing national and international calls for her immediate release and echo her demand for a public trial — a right that continues to be denied.

#PublicTrialForRuth #FreedomForRuth

🔗Read more about her work: https://t.co/kytwOvz2cg

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍 CHILE

Front Line Defenders condemns ongoing judicial harassment of lawyer and WHRD Karina Riquelme Viveros.

"The attempt to criminalise Karina Riquelme, who is human rights defender working for years to support the protection and guarantee of indigenous rights in Chile, is another attack on the defense of rights in the country," said Julia Lima, protection coordinator, Americas at @FrontlineHRD.

📰Read more in @InterferenciaCL:

https://t.co/l0qEe8NCWu

[Interferencia @InterferenciaCL]

Karina Riquelme Viveros, destacada por su trabajo en defensa de comuneros mapuche y víctimas de violencia estatal, enfrenta dos nuevas causas penales mientras representa a la familia de Julia Chuñil. 👇
https://t.co/pD1Sb0Nj6Y

[Narges Mohammadi | نرگس محمدی @nargesfnd]

La lauréate du prix Nobel de la paix, Narges Mohammadi, est sortie du service de soins intensifs (CCU) de l'hôpital Pars de Téhéran le 17 mai 2026 et a pu regagner son domicile. Au cours des prochaines semaines, elle devra assurer le suivi de ses complications médicales auprès de son équipe soignante par le biais de visites hospitalières et de séances quotidiennes de physiothérapie en ambulatoire.

Selon les médecins spécialistes, notamment des cardiologues et des neurologues, il est absolument vital qu'elle reste sous surveillance médicale étroite et qu'elle bénéficie de soins thérapeutiques spécialisés. Elle a besoin de repos et de soins dédi��s dans un environnement calme, totalement exempt de tout facteur de stress externe, pendant une période minimale de huit mois avant que l'on puisse observer une amélioration potentielle de ses symptômes.

Nous, la Fondation Narges, exhortons la communauté internationale à maintenir sa solidarité indéfectible envers Narges Mohammadi. Nous exigeons l'arrêt immédiat et définitif de toutes ses peines de prison, l'abandon inconditionnel de toutes les charges retenues contre elle.

En outre, nous réclamons la libération immédiate et inconditionnelle de tous les prisonniers politiques, avec une urgence particulière pour les femmes et les mères de famille qui restent injustement incarcérées ou qui font face à la menace imminente d'une réincarcération.

#FreeNarges

https://t.co/QtC7urx83F

[Front Line Defenders @FrontLineHRD]

📍TÜRKİYE

Front Line Defenders welcomes the acquittal of LGBTIQ+ rights defender Defne Güzel on 13 May 2026. The prosecutor requested her acquittal due to insufficient evidence, and the Court ruled in her favour.