Civilians Unprotected in Conflicts – Africa.com | Global News Avenue

Armed groups and government forces in West Africa committed atrocities with impunity in 2024, resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries, Human Rights Watch said in its report today. world report 2025.

Human Rights Watch reviewed the human rights practices of more than 100 countries in the 35th edition of this 546-page world report. In most parts of the world, executive directors Tirana Hassan Write In her introductory articlethe government cracked down and falsely arrested and imprisoned political opponents, activists, and journalists. Armed groups and government forces unlawfully kill civilians, drive many from their homes, and prevent access to humanitarian aid. In more than 70 national elections in 2024, many authoritarian leaders have won support with their discriminatory rhetoric and policies.

“Civilians bear the brunt of fighting between government forces and armed groups,” said aunt segunAfrica director at Human Rights Watch. “The African Union and other regional bodies should increase scrutiny of perpetrators of human rights abuses and take concrete measures to better protect civilians caught in the fighting.”

Due to a weak political response from regional and international institutions, there has been no accountability for violations committed in armed conflicts involving Islamic armed groups in the Sahel and Nigeria. Violence, including the kidnapping of hundreds by armed groups, has displaced millions of people and caused widespread damage to critical infrastructure.

• exist NigeriaEconomic reforms have led to high inflation, triggering the country’s worst cost-of-living crisis in 30 years. Without a comprehensive, rights-based social protection system, millions of people will fall deeper into poverty. Authorities have responded harshly to the protests, killing several protesters and arresting and charging dozens more.
• July, one Guinea The court finally made a decision crimes against humanity In a landmark domestic trial, Guinea’s former self-proclaimed president Moussa Dadis Camara and seven others have been jailed for the brutal stadium massacre in the capital Conakry on September 28, 2009. The incident resulted in the deaths of more than 150 people and the rape of dozens of women. This is the first prosecution of crimes against humanity in Guinea. The trial is a rare example of domestic accountability that could contribute to future justice efforts in Guinea and beyond.
• The authorities are Burkina Faso Repression of dissent has been intensified through arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and illegal conscription. Activists and government critics in Mali, Nigerand Nigeria. These governments undermine basic rights and freedoms and deepen insecurity across the region.
• Governments across the Sahel have further reduced media and political space. Burkina Faso and Niger suspended multiple media outlets. Mali and Niger have passed laws that impose excessive restrictions on fundamental freedoms, including the creation of databases that undermine fundamental rights.
• With Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger withdrawing from the Economic Community of West African States (effective from February 2025), victims of violations in the Sahel have fewer opportunities to seek justice. This weakens regional accountability and redress mechanisms and signals a broader deterioration in regional cooperation to address escalating violations and security challenges faced by civilians in the Sahel.

“Nigerian and Sahelian authorities use their unchecked powers to violate human rights with impunity,” Segun said. “These governments and their partners in Africa and beyond should publicly disavow intolerance of dissent, promote rights protection, and ensure justice for victims of violations.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).