Ruairi Nolan

Tweets on peacebuilding, conflict and human rights, plus occasional odds and ends.

[John Scott-Railton @jsrailton]

THE #EU parliament #spyware debate has kicked off, follow along with me.

( triggered by the hacking of a MEP investigating spyware w/Pegasus)

It kicks off as expected with Commissioner @dubravkasuica (Croatia) trying frame the issue as a national one (govs should investigate...not the parliament).

This is likely to be unpopular among MEPs concerned by spyware abuses.

Next up? MEP & spyware victim @KrzysztofBrejza 1/

[Erika Guevara Rosas @ErikaGuevaraR]

A school turned into a mass grave: those responsible must be held accountable

Our new @amnesty investigation finds the US carried out an unlawful strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, violating international humanitarian law by failing to take even the most basic precautions to protect civilians.

➡️ Unlawful US strike on school in #Iran killed 168 people, including 100 children
➡️ The school was directly hit with guided weapons.
➡️ US forces appear to have relied on outdated intelligence.
➡️ A protected civilian object (a school full of children) was struck in a way that was entirely avoidable.

We demand:
🔹 A transparent, independent investigation, with findings made public.
🔹 Accountability for all those responsible for planning and executing the attack.
🔹 Truth, justice, and full reparation for victims and their families.

Read our full investigation: https://t.co/4z4iGBmHMP

[Amneh Khoulani @AminaKhoulani]

I am proud to receive the Justice Champion Award
My deepest gratitude to the Centre for Justice and Accountability @CJA_News for this honour a message of support to all Syrian who believe justice is possible despite the pain #Syria
@Adalaty

[Erika Guevara Rosas @ErikaGuevaraR]

#Israel’s mass evacuation orders in Beirut are creating a humanitarian nightmare. Entire neighborhoods, including Beirut’s southern suburbs, have been told to “leave immediately,” triggering panic and chaos as families flee with nowhere safe to go. Roads are jammed with people escaping on foot or carrying whatever they can.

At the same time, Israel’s forced evacuation orders across Lebanon have already displaced tens of thousands, with airstrikes hitting residential areas. There are thousands of civilians, older people, children, people with disabilities, who cannot evacuate, and there are no safe routes, no safe shelters, and no guarantees of protection.

[Oz Katerji @OzKaterji]

I am devastated to learn that my dear friend, my brother in arms, Paul Conroy has gone on to the next life.

He was one of the bravest men I have ever known. I can barely believe it, we only spoke yesterday.

His loss will be felt profoundly by us all.

Rest in peace @reflextv.

[Vas Panagiotopoulos @criticalvas]

⚠️ Four businesspeople linked to sanctioned #spyware maker Intellexa – Tal Dilian, Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou, Felix Bitzios & Yiannis Lavranos – were found guilty of violating the confidentiality of telephone communications in 🇬🇷Greece's wiretapping scandal.

https://t.co/iWOMquUnwr

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

Cellebrite technology enables extraction of data from mobile devices even without access to a device passcode.

@amnesty previously documented its use by Serbia authorities against journalists & activists resulting in suspension of use by some clients.

https://t.co/f9V5LGyh4o

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

🚨 A new @citizenlab report shows how Cellebrite technology was used to access Kenyan activist & politician @bonifacemwangi's mobile phone while it was in the possession of the police following his arrest during last year's anti-government protests.

https://t.co/NO8YdAOTIi

[Agnes Callamard @AgnesCallamard]

IRAN: Verified videos and credible information from eyewitnesses in Iran reveal mass unlawful killings committed on an unprecedented scale amidst an ongoing internet shutdown imposed by the authorities since 8 January to conceal their crimes.
Security forces positioned on the streets and rooftops, including of residential buildings, mosques and police stations, have repeatedly fired rifles and shotguns loaded with metal pellets, targeting unarmed protesters frequently in their heads and torsos.
Medical facilities are overwhelmed with the injured while distraught families have been searching for their missing loved ones among body bags near overflowing morgues and witnessed bodies piled up in pick-up trucks, freight containers or warehouses.
Amnesty International has analysed dozens of videos and photographs pertaining to the protest crackdowns since 8 January from 10 cities in the provinces of Alborz, Gilan, Kermanshah, Razavi Khorasan, Sistan and Baluchestan and Tehran. The organization also consulted an independent pathologist regarding photographs and videos showing fatal or severe injuries.

Human rights defenders and journalists outside Iran shared with Amnesty International screenshots of text or voice messages from 38 individuals in 16 cities across nine provinces in Iran. Additionally, the organization spoke to three informed sources in Iran, including a medical worker and two protesters, and 16 informed sources outside Iran including victims’ relatives, human rights defenders, journalists and an eyewitness who left Iran on 12 January.

See the full statement here: https://t.co/dxhtBFFFjr

[Amnesty Iran @AmnestyIran]

Verified videos and credible information from eyewitnesses in Iran reveal mass unlawful killings committed on an unprecedented scale amidst an ongoing internet shutdown imposed by the authorities since 8 January to conceal their crimes.

https://t.co/VGR2UzQcHj

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

Uganda has suspended internet services ahead of tomorrow’s election on information & national security grounds. This digital darkness can be used to hide serious human rights violations against opponents. Authorities must end all internet restrictions.

https://t.co/4WXOgRrsS0

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

Iran has once again blocked internet access to hide horrendous human rights violations as it cracks down on the largest nationwide protests since the Woman Life Freedom uprising in 2022. @Amnesty calls for urgent action to avoid further bloodshed.

https://t.co/0ttcq14MWW

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

On 30th September we @Amnesty will be talking all things surveillance with journalists, activists, technologists, policymakers and individuals who have been targeted by spyware.

If you're in Berlin, join us for a day of workshops and discussions: https://t.co/ZQkMqAQtT9

[Amnesty International @amnesty]

Pakistan's Web Monitoring System and Lawful Intercept Management System operate like watchtowers, constantly snooping on the lives of ordinary citizens. In Pakistan, your texts, calls and internet access are all under scrutiny.

Without urgent action, the unchecked expansion of digital repression in Pakistan will continue to erode civic space and threaten human rights. Amnesty calls on governments and companies to act decisively to prevent further harm.

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

Pakistan is running a huge unlawful surveillance and censorship system.

It is built with foreign tech and carried out without warrants and safeguards, this is enabling human rights abuses on a massive scale. #BreakTheFirewall

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

🚨NEW: An investigation by @Amnesty & partners exposes a shadowy surveillance & censorship expansion in Pakistan via foreign firms.

It reveals Geedge Networks from China supplying the firewall & German Utimaco providing the LIMS system

#BreakTheFirewall

https://t.co/t794FwVPz5

[Erika Guevara Rosas @ErikaGuevaraR]

The US government's decision to impose sanctions against three prominent Palestinian human rights organizations is an outrageous and shameful assault on human rights and international justice.

States must forcefully reject these disgraceful, vindictive sanctions and exert maximum diplomatic pressure on the US government to reverse them.

[Donncha Ó Cearbhaill @DonnchaC]

🚨 BREAKING: New zero-click exploit used to hack WhatsApp users.

WhatsApp has just sent out a round of threat notifications to individuals they believe where targeted by an advanced spyware campaign in past 90 days.

Seek out expert help if you have received this alert

[Mohamed Salah @MoSalah]

Can you tell us how he died, where, and why?

[Amnesty Tech @AmnestyTech]

🚨A year after the racist violence that followed the murder of three young girls in Southport @amnesty has found that social media platform X played a key role in spreading false narratives & harmful content, contributing to racist violence targeting Muslims & migrants in the UK.