It’s time to end physical punishment of kids once and for all, WHO says

20 august 2025 - 20:08:07
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - 1.2 billion children worldwide endure corporal punishment each year. Over half of all children under-18 worldwide continue [...] Full text...

thread Society

World sees highest recorded executions since 2015: Amnesty International

08 april 2025 - 11:01:11
London, UK (PANA) - Global executions hit their highest figure since 2015, as over 1,500 people were executed across 15 [...] Full text...

thread Society

UN rights chief decries substantial rise in death penalty executions

25 february 2025 - 16:29:30
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - International efforts to eradicate the death penalty came into sharp focus at the Human Rights Council [...] Full text...

thread Society

Rights group demands freedom of assembly, association in Libya

27 january 2025 - 11:07:17
New York, US (PANA) – Libyan authorities’ accelerating targeting and harassment of activists and members of non-governmental organizations risks completely closing [...] Full text...

thread Society

Amnesty International says Gambia's Parliament upholding FGM ban is 'good news'

16 july 2024 - 09:59:51
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - Human rights watchdog, Amnesty International has welcomed “with great relief” the rejection of a bill aimed [...] Full text...

thread Society

Crimes against nature: UN agency puts environmental legislation under scrutiny

18 may 2024 - 07:10:34
Vienna, Austria (PANA) - Global efforts to prevent crimes against nature and bring offenders to justice are being hampered by [...] Full text...

thread Environment

UN rights chief welcomes jailing of Gambian ex-minister by Swiss court

16 may 2024 - 14:48:07
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, has welcomed the conviction by a Swiss court of [...] Full text...

thread Society

Germany Court Verdict: Former Gambian leader death squad member sentenced to Life Imprisonment

30 november 2023 - 14:00:09
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - A German Court in the city of Celle on Thursday found former Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh [...] Full text...

thread Society

ECOWAS Court of Justice rules in favor of victim of enforced disappearance against Gambian Government

06 july 2023 - 14:56:14
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice Wednesday issued a landmark decision in [...] Full text...

thread Society

ECOWAS@48, still battling peace and security challenges

29 may 2023 - 15:00:56
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) - The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), one of Africa’s foremost Regional Economic Communities (RECs), [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Nigeria's 2023 elections: Concerns and expectations (By Paul Ejime)

30 january 2023 - 12:27:40
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - As Nigeria braces for another critical general election this year, it is pertinent to recall the [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Rights group says AU guidance, policy reforms needed to ensure young mothers stay in school

30 august 2022 - 07:23:04
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) – Adolescent girls in nearly one-third of African countries who are pregnant face significant legal and policy [...] Full text...

thread Gender

Gambia: Former President Jammeh's victims call on government to take concrete steps toward justice

08 june 2022 - 13:47:51
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - The “Jammeh2Justice” campaign, made up of victims of the former regime and Gambian and international activists, [...] Full text...

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South Africa: New book reveals how Zuma's arrest plunged SA into chaos

01 november 2021 - 19:46:59
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) - A new book has outlined the July riots that caused chaos in South Africa’s [...] Full text...

thread Society

Sahrawi activist accuses Polisario leader of torturing prisoners

28 july 2021 - 19:45:23
Rabat, Morocco (PANA) - A Sahrawi civil society activist, Ahmed Tarouzi, said Wednesday in a statement before the Spanish judge, [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Gambia human rights commission raises alarms on spate of crime, mob justice in urban areas

25 may 2021 - 14:50:27
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - Gambia's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has expressed concern about a spate of violent crimes in [...] Full text...

thread Society

UN human rights office finds Uganda’s sexual offences bill 'deeply troubling'

08 may 2021 - 12:06:15
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - The decision this week by the Ugandan Parliament to pass a wide-ranging sexual offences bill that [...] Full text...

thread Society

Coronavirus: Ghana's president warns of lockdown should surge in cases continue

18 january 2021 - 05:48:02
Accra, Ghana (PANA) - With Ghana seeing a surge in cases of COVID-19 (coronavirus) in recent weeks, the country's leader [...] Full text...

thread Health

ECOWAS and perennial political crises (By Paul Ejime, PANA Guest writer)

16 october 2020 - 11:49:51
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) - All too soon, but as expected, World  attention is shifting from Mali after a frenetic diplomatic [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Rape is wrong but death penalty, castration, not the answer: UN rights chief

16 october 2020 - 07:16:01
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA - While perpetrators of rape and other forms of sexual violence must be held accountable, capital punishment [...] Full text...

thread Society

Trial of alleged Malian terrorist opens at ICC

15 july 2020 - 11:12:18
Bamako, Mali (PANA) - The trial of Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, a suspected Malian terrorist accused [...] Full text...

thread Society

Nigerian Military Court Martial demotes, dismisses serving Army General found guilty of corruption, other offences

16 june 2020 - 17:05:47
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) – The world of Maj.-Gen. Hakeem Oladapo Otiki, who is due for retirement on account of years [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Coronavirus: South Africa's military addresses Covid-19 lockdown abuses

15 june 2020 - 16:59:08
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) – The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) on Monday condemned acts of violence during [...] Full text...

thread Society

Nigerian to take 'decisive action' against rape, violence against women, girls

11 june 2020 - 10:31:00
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) – Nigeria on Wednesday said that with the “embarrassing” rate of rape cases in the country, it [...] Full text...

thread Society

Amnesty International accuses Nigerian military of subjecting children to unlawful detention

27 may 2020 - 07:52:14
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) – Global human rights group, Amnesty International, on Wednesday accused the Nigerian military of subjecting children in [...] Full text...

thread Society

Kidnapped South African journalist thanks President Ramaphosa

27 january 2020 - 11:05:00
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) – South African photojournalist Shiraaz Mohamed has spoken for the first time since returning home [...] Full text...

thread Society

'Senegalese authorities for failing to end abuses in Quranic schools'

16 december 2019 - 12:42:43
Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - The Senegalese government has not gone far enough to combat the chronic and widespread abuse of [...] Full text...

thread Society

Zimbabwe government to criminalise re-dollarisation

09 december 2019 - 14:23:23
Harare, Zimbabwe (PANA) - Zimbabwe government is planning on criminalising anyone who tries to re-dollarise as it seeks to shore [...] Full text...

thread Economy

Human Rights Watch urges Mauritania's new president to take key steps for women’s rights

15 october 2019 - 06:53:53
Tunis, Tunisia (PANA) – Human Rights Watch on Tuesday sent a letter to Mauritania's new president Mohamed Ould Ghazouani urging him [...] Full text...

thread Gender

EU and Council of Europe urge global abolition of death penalty

09 october 2019 - 12:41:07
Brussels, Belgium (PANA) - The European Union (EU) and the Council of Europe on Wednesday encouraged all countries to join [...] Full text...

thread Society

Rwandan military prosecutor seeks jail terms for former Presidential guard commander

13 september 2019 - 19:47:25
Kigali, Rwanda (PANA) - A Rwandan military prosecutor on Friday charged for the second time the former commander of the [...] Full text...

thread Society

Rights group says Eritrea's conscription system having toll on education

09 august 2019 - 09:29:28
Nairobi, Kenya  (PANA) – Eritrea's use of secondary school to channel students into indefinite government service and its conscription of teachers [...] Full text...

thread Society

Military Council orders review of Sudan's infamous public order law

15 april 2019 - 10:56:36
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - Sudan's Military Council has ordered revision of the infamous public order law which gave the police [...] Full text...

thread Society

Security chief drops charges against journalists, media houses

02 november 2018 - 16:08:03
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - The Director of the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), Lt. Gen. Salah Abdulla Gosh, [...] Full text...

thread Society

Poroposed law threatens Zimbabwe sanctions proponents - HRW

31 october 2018 - 13:04:43
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Global human rights body, Human Rights Watch (HRW), says a call by an influential group from [...] Full text...

thread Society

Nigeria Army chief gives new operational guidelines on Boko Haram war

03 august 2018 - 11:16:19
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) – Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, has released new operational guidelines in the [...] Full text...

thread Society

Rights group says pregnant girls, young mothers in Africa should not be barred from school

15 june 2018 - 08:41:03
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Tens of thousands of pregnant girls and adolescent mothers are banned or discouraged from attending school [...] Full text...

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Amnesty International lauds abolition of death penalty in Burkina Faso

02 june 2018 - 08:10:37
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has lauded Burkina Faso Parliament for abolishing the death penalty [...] Full text...

thread Society

Sudan's legislators call for abrogating of redemption article from law

04 april 2018 - 19:17:49
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - A Sudanese parliamentarian on Wednesday said the government should show no mercy towards persons who steal [...] Full text...

thread Society

Rights group says South Sudan warring parties break promises on child soldiers

06 february 2018 - 05:57:11
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) – South Sudanese armed forces and armed opposition groups have continued to recruit child soldiers and force [...] Full text...

thread Society

US: UN rights chief reiterates call to end death penalty

01 march 2017 - 21:36:39
New York, US (PANA) - The United Nations human rights chief on Wednesday reiterated his call to abolish the death [...] Full text...

thread Society

Libya: Rights group calls for medical care, safety for civilians fleeing Sirte

26 december 2016 - 07:50:37
Tunis, Tunisia (PANA) - A human rights group, Human Rights Watch, says Libyan authorities should ensure the safety of and [...] Full text...

thread Society

Nigeria: Palestinian diplomat urges Israel to recognise the Palestinian State

01 december 2016 - 14:51:23
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) – The Palestinian government has called on the Israeli government to recognize the Palestine State and work [...] Full text...

thread Politics

UN: Amnesty Int'l says 20 countries use death penalty for anti-terror drive

07 october 2016 - 18:12:59
New York, US (PANA) - Human rights watchdog, Amnesty International on Friday said some countries were increasingly resorting to the [...] Full text...

thread Society

Ghana: Sentences for radio panellists, host, owners highlighted in Ghanaian media

30 july 2016 - 11:55:59
Accra, Ghana (PANA) – Sentences handed to two panellists and host of an Accra-based radio station on Wednesday by the [...] Full text...

thread Press Review

Kenya: AFC Leopards, Gor Mahia lose sponsorships over fans' hooliganism

27 april 2016 - 09:00:02
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Following the incidents of hooliganism by their fans, Kenya's two most-supported football clubs, Gor Mahia and [...] Full text...

thread Sports

Zambia: Xenophobic violence in Lusaka highlights challenging economic situation – EIU

21 april 2016 - 13:12:45
Lusaka, Zambia (PANA) – The Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) has charged that this week’s Xenophobic attacks in Lusaka, Zambia, have [...] Full text...

thread Society

UK: Rights group records 'alarming surge' in recorded executions

06 april 2016 - 09:24:39
London, UK (PANA) - A dramatic global rise in the number of executions recorded in 2015 saw more people put [...] Full text...

thread Society

UN: 'We must not allow protectors to become predators’ – UN field support chief

05 march 2016 - 06:48:39
New York, US (PANA) - With 99 allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse uncovered by the United Nations in 2015 [...] Full text...

thread Society

US: US Commission on Intl Religious Freedom wants Eritrean Orthodox leader freed

20 january 2016 - 18:20:47
New York, US (PANA) - The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on Wednesday called for the immediate realease [...] Full text...

thread Society

COP21: Angola named as global host of World Environment Day 2016

11 december 2015 - 14:06:48
Paris, France (PANA) - Angola, which is seeking to conserve its biodiversity-rich wildlife and rebuild its elephant population, will host [...] Full text...

thread Environment

Burkina Faso: No amnesty for soldiers who killed unarmed civilians, says AI

14 october 2015 - 12:25:36
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - Burkina Faso’s former presidential guard displayed a cold-blooded disregard for human life, killing 14 unarmed [...] Full text...

thread Society

UN: UN human rights chief says Central African Republic still 'gripped by fear'

04 september 2015 - 18:59:03
New York, US (PANA) - UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Al Hussein said Friday the human rights situation in6Central [...] Full text...

thread Society

Nigeria: 'Over 2,000 women, girls abducted by Boko Haram, forced to join attacks'

14 april 2015 - 09:54:51
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - On the occasion of the first year anniversary of the abduction of the Chibok school girls, [...] Full text...

thread Society

Sudan: 2 human rights activists released in Sudan

09 april 2015 - 15:22:08
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - Sudanese authorities on Thursday released two human rights activists who had been on trial for offences [...] Full text...

thread Society

US: Strong support in China for action to end ivory, rhino horn trade

03 march 2015 - 11:35:09
Washington, D.C., US (PANA) - Chinese consumer awareness of the ivory and rhino horn trade's devastating impact on African wildlife [...] Full text...

thread Environment

Ghana: Mahama receives West Africa drugs report

20 august 2014 - 21:40:23
Accra, Ghana (PANA) - The West Africa Commission on Drugs (WACD) has recommended that drugs use should be treated as [...] Full text...

thread Society

Botswana: Social media offenders irk Botswana Police

05 august 2014 - 18:41:09
Gaborone, Botswana (PANA) - Botswana Police Service (BPS) has warned the public on crimes committed through social media saying the [...] Full text...

thread Society

Tunisia: Amnesty International wants capital punishment abolished in Tunisia

20 april 2014 - 09:02:09
Tunis, Tunisia (PANA) – The chairperson of Amnesty International’s office in Tunis, Lotfi Azzous, on Saturday called on Tunisian authorities [...] Full text...

thread Society

Jailing of two persons for contempt of court dominates Ghanaian media

06 july 2013 - 07:00:03
Accra, Ghana (PANA) – The Supreme Court’s jailing of two persons last Tuesday for criminal contempt, following their comments on [...] Full text...

thread Press Review

'Fines not enough to stop racism in football'

03 march 2013 - 12:19:29
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - Fines have not acted as a deterrent against racism in football, hence a new strategy must [...] Full text...

thread Sports

'Doctors perform amputations for courts in Sudan'

03 march 2013 - 10:35:55
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - Four human rights bodies have called for an immediate end to the practice in which doctors [...] Full text...

thread Society

AU may criminalise unconstitutional power change

24 january 2013 - 12:46:19
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) - African foreign ministers under the aegis of the African Union Executive Council opened their meeting [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Civilians bear brunt of Mali's conflict - Amnesty

21 september 2012 - 12:39:09
Bamako, Mali (PANA) - Civilians are bearing the brunt of horrific abuses that include amputations, sexual violence and extra-judicial executions [...] Full text...

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AI says President Jammeh's conditional moratorium ''not good enough''

17 september 2012 - 18:30:11
Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – The global rights body, Amnesty International (AI), Monday said the ''conditional moratorium'' announced by the Gambian [...] Full text...

thread Society

Amnesty asks Libya to hand over former spy chief Al-Senoussi to ICC

06 september 2012 - 22:37:10
Paris, France (PANA) - Amnesty International has asked Libya to hand over Abdallah Al-Senoussi, the former chief of the military [...] Full text...

thread Society

ICC sentences Lubanga Dyilo to 14 years in jail

10 july 2012 - 09:00:20
New York, US (PANA) - The International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague has sentenced Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Dyilo [...] Full text...

thread Society

Women's rights group appeals for release of Sudanese mother facing death by stoning

07 june 2012 - 08:00:19
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (PANA) – International women’s rights group Equality Now issued an urgent alert Thursday calling for “immediate [...] Full text...

thread Gender

Kenyan military says Al Shabaab to execute two more recruits

12 january 2012 - 17:54:08
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Kenya’s military said Thursday the Al Shabaab was set to execute two more Kenyan recruits within [...] Full text...

thread Society

Same sex marriage may attract 3-year jail in Nigeria

28 september 2011 - 09:16:44
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - Persons who engage in same sex marriage in Nigeria risk three years in jail, under a [...] Full text...

thread Society

Thousands of Egyptian protesters return to Tahrir Square

09 september 2011 - 20:02:53
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - About 20,000 protesters gathered in Cairo's iconic Tahrir square on Friday for what they called "correct [...] Full text...

thread Society

Egyptian authorities to go tough on unruly protesters

08 september 2011 - 10:06:08
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - Egypt's interim ruling military authorities have warned protesters that attacks on the military and the police [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Egyptian military leader, Tantawy, to testify

08 september 2011 - 00:49:19
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - The trial of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his interior minister, Habib Al-Adly, was adjourned [...] Full text...

thread Society

Arab League meeting ends in Cairo, supports Libya's NTC

28 august 2011 - 10:42:19
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - Arab Foreign Ministers wrapped up their extra-ordinary meeting on Libya and Syria on Sunday, with a [...] Full text...

thread Politics

FIFA bans bin Hammam for life; two others banned one year each

23 july 2011 - 19:04:03
Accra, Ghana (PANA) - Football's governing body, FIFA, on Saturday banned Mohamed bin Hammam, FIFA Executive Committee member, for life [...] Full text...

thread Sports

Kenya’s top judicial body picks five Supreme Court nominees

15 june 2011 - 13:40:03
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Kenya’s top judicial body Wednesday named three serving high court judges and two lawyers to the [...] Full text...

thread Society

Tanzanian papers focus on Bin Laden’s death, press freedom

07 may 2011 - 10:58:58
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (PANA) - Media freedom and Osama bin Laden’s death were the spotlight of the Tanzanian media [...] Full text...

thread Press Review

Hosni Mubarak goes on "mock" trial, verdict reserved for Friday

09 april 2011 - 14:49:00
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - In one of the biggest celebrations since the "Friday of Victory" on 18 February, marking the [...] Full text...

thread Society

Egypt's justice minister explains new law on sit-ins, protests

28 march 2011 - 16:58:43
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - Egypt's Justice Minister Mohamed Abdel-Aziz Al-Guendy said Sunday that the new law prohibiting specific categories of [...] Full text...

thread Society

New law prohibits categories of strikes, sit-ins in Egypt

24 march 2011 - 17:32:24
Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - The Egyptian Ministerial Council, headed by Premier Essam Sharaf, Wednesday ratified a law that prohibits specific [...] Full text...

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Human Rights bodies accuse Mubarak of killing revolution martyrs

23 march 2011 - 19:46:39
Cairo, Egypt, ( PANA) - The joint Egyptian and Arab Human Rights investigative committee accused ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak [...] Full text...

thread Society

HRW asks Saudi Arabia to stop deporting Somalis to Mogadishu

22 december 2010 - 17:29:50
Lusaka, Zambia (PANA) – Human Rights Watch (HRW) has asked the government of Saudi Arabia to immediately stop deporting Somalis [...] Full text...

thread Society

UN official to tackle discrimination against women

16 september 2010 - 17:14:00
New York- US (PANA) -- The newly-appointed head of UN Women, Ms. Michelle Bachelet, on Thursday said she would [...] Full text...

thread Gender

UN Women's chief to tackle discrimination against females

16 september 2010 - 16:59:00
New York- US (PANA) -- The newly-appointed head of UN Women, Ms. Michelle Bachelet, on Thursday said she would [...] Full text...

thread Gender

HRW looks to Cairo meeting to end abuses against civilians

21 april 2010 - 10:13:00
Dar es Salaam- Tanzania (PANA) -- Participants in this week’s international meeting on Somalia should press for an immediate end [...] Full text...

thread Politics

HRW report implicates AMISOM, TFG, Al-Shabaab

19 april 2010 - 11:26:00
Dar es Salaam- Tanzania (PANA) -- The Islamist armed group Al-Shabaab is subjecti ng inhabitants of southern Somalia to killings, [...] Full text...

thread Society

Violence against women persists in Africa, says Women's group

08 march 2010 - 15:02:00
Addis Ababa- Ethiopia (PANA) -- The International Womenâ?s Day was marked Monday amid complaints that more than half of the [...] Full text...

thread Gender

Closure threat looms over Rwandan independent weekly

05 february 2010 - 11:47:00
Dar es salaam- Tanzania (PANA) -- Reporters Without Borders (RSF) -- an internati onal non-governmental organization devoted to freedom of [...] Full text...

thread Society

UN says 33 peacekeepers indicted for sexual abuse

06 november 2009 - 14:15:00
New York- US (PANA) -- The UN on Thursday confirmed that 33 military personnel ha ve been implicated in cases [...] Full text...

thread Politics

Ivorian govt to punish authors of Sunday stadium tragedy

31 march 2009 - 14:44:00
Abidjan- Côte d'Ivoire (PANA) -- The Ivorian government has promised to apply har sh measures following the tragedy at the [...] Full text...

thread Sports

Nigerian economists welcome sanction for erring broking firm

27 march 2009 - 19:39:00
Lagos- Nigeria (PANA) -- The decision of the Council of the Nigerian Stock Exchan ge (NSE) to suspend a stock [...] Full text...

thread Economy