APRNEWS - A global human rights organisation said on Thursday that at least 170 civilians have been killed since October in fighting in English-speaking western Cameroon between separatists and government forces.

APRNEWS - Authorities in Burundi rounded seven schoolchildren last week for scribbling on the president’s photo in their textbooks, according to international rights group, Human Rights Watch.

APRNEWS - The U.N. human rights investigator leading the international inquiry into the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi will meet Istanbul’s chief prosecutor on Tuesday, the prosecutor’s office said.

Special Rapporteur Agnes Callamard, on a week-long visit to Turkey with a forensic and legal team, met Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Monday.

APRNEWS - International human rights groups on Friday called on Saudi Arabia to allow independent investigators into the country to probe fresh accusations of torture and abuse of human rights activists.

APRNEWS - A Sudanese group that has spearheaded anti-government demonstrations since last month called Friday for nationwide protests next week to pile pressure on the government of President Omar al-Bashir.

APRNEWS - Rights groups on Wednesday called for a "robust" response to a UN expert's allegations that people she met during a visit to Egypt faced harassment, intimidation and other reprisals afterwards.

A statement signed by six organisations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International urged an "independent UN investigation" into the accusations.

APRNEWS - Human Rights Watch (HRW) has cautioned Ethiopia against plans to enact a new law to curb hate speech, following the rise in deadly ethnic tensions and clashes in the country.

The Attorney General’s office last month said it was drafting a bill to curb the rising hate speech and irresponsible use of social media.

APRNEWS - Unidentified fighters have killed more than 1,000 civilians in Beni territory in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in a series of massacres beginning four years ago, Human Rights Watch said today. On September 22, 2018, fighters killed 17 people in Beni town, bringing the number of civilians killed this year to at least 235.

APRNEWS - Mass vaccination in the Democratic Republic of Congo in an attempt to stem the Ebola epidemic that has already claimed at least 75 lives.

During the vaccination, thousands of people received doses as well as new drugs tested in the Beni region of North Kivu province.

REUTERS - At least 15 people were killed and six were raped during a referendum campaign in Burundi that could let President Pierre Nkurunziza hold power until 2034, Human Rights Watch said on Friday.