Human rights defenders
HuMENA documents the cases of human rights defenders in the Middle East and North Africa who have been targeted for their work. Each entry is a dated case file.
Scope of the archive and inclusion criteria
HuMENA applies the definition set out in the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders: a human rights defender is any person who, individually or with others, acts by peaceful means to promote or protect internationally recognised human rights, their own or those of others. The status derives from the act, not from a person's profession or title.
Each person in this archive meets two conditions, established by reliable sources: a specific act of this kind, and targeting that followed from it. Cases that rest solely on a violation suffered, on family ties to a defender, on party membership, or on prosecution in a politically sensitive case fall outside its scope.
References: UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders (resolution 53/144, 1998); HuMENA Editorial Guide.
Defenders on record, by country
Select a country to show its case files in the list below. The same countries are available in the country filter.
The Record
Filtered cases
At liberty Yasser Al-Hamdani
Acquittal, 30 May 2023
Judicial harassment
At liberty Ahmed Gamal Ziada
Released March 2019, arrested December 2013
Arbitrary detention
Latest: Context, 20 September 2023
Kaddour Chouicha
Released December 2023, arrested October 2019
Arbitrary detention
Latest: Acquittal, 26 February 2025
Jamila Loukil
Released December 2023, arrested November 2019
Arbitrary detention
Latest: Acquittal, 26 February 2025
At liberty Said Boudour
Released December 2023, arrested 2019
Arbitrary detention
Latest: Context, 20 July 2026