Displaying results 1 - 10 of 12

Religious Freedom Priorities for the Biden Administration
Feb 4, 2021   As the Biden administration begins to formulate its broader human rights policy, USCIRF highlights several priority countries when it comes to international religious freedom. Condemning and preventing…
The Situation in Sinjar
Feb 18, 2021   In recent years, northern Iraq has become a battleground for Turkish armed forces and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). In June 2020, Turkey escalated their attacks in the region, announcing military…
Ahmadiyya Muslims Face Persecution, Discrimination, and Hostility
Oct 22, 2021 The Ahmadiyya Muslim community was founded in 1889 in Punjab, India and today has an estimated tens of millions of members globally. Because of the differences between Ahmadiyya beliefs and beliefs in Sunni and Shi…
Political Instability Fuels Decline for Religious Freedom in Malaysia
Nov 12, 2021 Malaysia has experienced unprecedented political instability in recent years. During this time, Malaysian authorities from various political parties in several states and the federal government have continued to pursue policies to further…
The Impact of Malaysia’s Dual Legal System on Religious Freedom
Aug 11, 2022 Malaysia maintains a unique dual legal system divided into civil and religious courts. In recent decades, the influence of these religious courts, which are based on the Shaf’i school of Sunni Islamic jurisprudence…
The Legacy of Blasphemy Laws in Southeast Asia
Oct 21, 2022 Seven out of ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) nations have blasphemy laws currently enshrined in their legal codes. USCIRF’s recent issue update reviews these blasphemy laws and their enforcement within this…
The Suffocating Hold of HTS on Northwest Syria
Nov 18, 2022 More than a decade after the onset of Syria’s civil war, the conflict continues with multiple state and non-state actors vying for power. Today, one of the most notable non-state actors is the militant Islamist…
Shortcomings of the State Department’s CPC Designations
Jan 25, 2024 One of USCIRF’s key functions is to make recommendations to the State Department about which countries we think should be designated as Countries of Particular Concern or CPCs, based on our independent research and…
10 Years On: Ongoing Threats to Religious Minority Survivors of ISIS’s Genocide
Aug 2, 2024 Ten years ago, the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched a campaign of mass atrocities to achieve the religious and ethnic cleansing of Yazidis, Assyrian-Chaldean-Syriac Christians, Shi’a and Sunni Muslim Turkmens,…
Responses to Genocide: Two Former U.S. Officials Reflect on ISIS’s Genocide in Iraq and Syria
Aug 9, 2024 Ten years ago, the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched a campaign of mass atrocities to achieve the religious and ethnic cleansing of religious minority groups in Iraq and Syria. In 2016, the U.S. State Department…