Health and Human Rights News
News to 8 May 2026
Authoritarianism is speeding up the climate crisis
The global expansion of authoritarian rule is accelerating the climate crisis, as these leaders recommit to fossil fuels, cut global funding for climate mitigation and adaptation, and spread disinformation to undermine climate science. “The climate implications are obvious: a fossil-fuel economy is foisted on countries that lack the power or courage to resist, and they find themselves depleted of funds to invest in systems like health – required to save lives in the face of growing climate disasters,” write Dr Marta Schaaf and Nazia Erum of Amnesty International.
See also: Trump’s War on Clean Air, Richard Pearshouse, 9 April 2026
CESR publishes guide to help tax the rich
Taxing extreme wealth has growing support and is essential to fight severe inequality worldwide, but implementation of such a tax will be far from simple, writes the Center for Economic and Social Rights as it releases a guide to help. Called “From Design to Capacity: an Institutional Capacity Framework for Taxing the Wealthiest,” it argues that the real challenge isn’t just what to tax, but whether governments have the institutional capacity to make it work in practice.
See also: FIGHT FOR RIGHTS: A Tax on the World’s Ultra-Rich to Fight Hunger and Disease, Eric A. Friedman and Lawrence O. Gostin, 20 May 2025
WHO, Red Cross, MSF mark a failure to protect medical care in conflict
The World Health Organization (WHO), International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) are calling for protection of health care workers and systems in armed conflict. “Ten years ago, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2286 on health care in armed conflicts. The situation is even worse compared to 10 years ago. Today, we mark not an achievement – we mark a failure.”
See also: VIEWPOINT Prescribing Death: Israel’s Regional War on Health Mira Younes, Samirah Jarrar, Sahar Saeidnia, Malak Makki, and Nizar Hariri, 16 April 2026
UN to Israel: Release flotilla members and end Gaza blockade
The UN Human Rights Office is calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Saif Abukeshek and Thiago de Avila, members of the Global Sumud Flotilla who were detained at sea and continue to be held without charge in Israel. A spokesperson for the office said, “It is not a crime to show solidarity and attempt to bring humanitarian aid to the Palestinian population in Gaza, who are in dire need of it.”
Sexual violence condemned as a tool of Israeli occupation
UN Experts including Tlaleng Mofokeng, special rapporteur on the right to health, warned that sexual violence is being used as a tool in Israel’s occupation, oppression, and genocidal campaign against Palestinians. The experts referenced findings of the UN Independent Commission, which concluded that sexual, reproductive and other forms of violence against Palestinian women, men, girls, and boys were employed “to terrorise them and perpetuate a system of oppression. It is a central component of the system of settler colonial oppression imposed on Palestinians.”
See also: FIGHT FOR RIGHTS VIEWPOINT Reclaiming Sexual and Reproductive Rights Through a Decolonial Lens, Tlaleng Mofokeng, Vol 27/1, June 2025
PABS annex negotiations extended…
World Health Organization member states have extended negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) annex of the Pandemic Agreement. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General said that despite real progress being made, states should continue approaching the outstanding issues with a sense of urgency because the next pandemic is a matter of when, not if.
…WHO and states coordinate response to hantavirus
As of 4 May, seven cases of hantavirus have been identified on a cruise ship that departed from Argentina on 1 April, carrying 147 individuals. There have been three deaths. The vessel is moored off the coast of Cabo Verde. “In line with the Working Arrangement between the WHO Emergency Medical Team (EMT) Secretariat and the EU Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC), the EMT Secretariat has launched formal discussions to support the clinical management and medical evacuation of symptomatic passengers.”
FDA directs scientists to withdraw vaccine studies from publication
Officials at the US Food and Drug Administration have blocked the publication of publicly-funded vaccine studies that showed vaccine safety, the New York Times reported. These studies focused on widely used vaccines, all found to have only very rare side effects, and the data they collect are essential for medical professionals. “The withdrawal of the studies is the latest step by the administration to try to limit access to vaccines. It has sharply cut research funding for vaccine development, released unvetted information casting doubt on vaccines, and blocked other information supporting their safety, most recently a paper on Covid vaccine effectiveness by career scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
See also: VIEWPOINT “Politicized” Science and Attacks on Public Health, Joseph J. Amon, 18 September 2025
Another suicide in ICE solitary confinement
A Cuban man detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) died by apparent suicide last week, bringing the number of apparent suicides to five so far this year. Solitary confinement remains widespread, despite well-documented evidence of its severe psychological harms.
Telehealth access to abortion at risk in US
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals’ block on the remote provision of mifepristone has been paused until 11 May by the US Supreme Court. It is unclear what decisions will be made next as reproductive rights and essential healthcare are increasingly under threat across the United States. Telehealth services are increasingly used in states with abortion bans following the Supreme Court’s overturning of the right to abortion in 2023.
See also: FIGHT FOR RIGHTS: The US Administration’s Assault on Global Reproductive Health and Autonomy, Winona Xu, 13 February 2025
Widespread abuse against civilians in the DRC
The Islamic State-linked Allied Democratic Forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo are perpetrating widespread war crimes and attacks on civilians across eastern DRC. Amnesty International documents brutal attacks, including direct targeting of civilians, recruitment of child soldiers, abductions and forced labor, attacks on medical facilities, and forced marriages and pregnancies, and various other forms of sexual violence.
Over 2 million children acutely malnourished in South Sudan
The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Report on South Sudan highlights deteriorating food security and nutrition with nearly 8 million people in need of food aid, and 2.2 million children acutely malnourished. Both South Sudan’s military and opposition forces have issued evacuation orders forcing civilians and aid agencies to flee, and deliberate obstruction of aid delivery is exacerbating the crisis. The disease burden continues to rise, WASH services are deteriorating and there is a long-standing erosion of access to health services.
Botswana repeals anti-LGBTQ+ law
Botswana has repealed a law that banned same-sex relations. “This important step is a powerful move towards a more inclusive Botswana,” said UNAIDS. “Criminalising same-sex sexual relations perpetuates an environment of discrimination and fear, making access to essential HIV services for LGBTQ+ individuals difficult. To protect everyone’s health, we need to protect everyone’s human rights.”
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