Egypt: Human rights lawyer ‘forcibly disappeared’ | Middle East Eye

Egyptian human rights lawyer Osama Bayoumi has been “forcibly disappeared” since his recent detention in Cairo.

Russian lawmaker threatens to ‘cut the heads off’ Chechen activist’s family | The Moscow Times

A Russian lawmaker has threatened to decapitate the family members of Chechen lawyer and anti-torture activist Abubakar Yangulbaev.

‘Nobody can say anything’: China cracks down on dissent ahead of Olympics | The Guardian

A chill is blowing through Chinese civil society as activists, journalists and academics report receiving police warnings and censorship of their social media platforms in recent weeks as Beijing prepares to host the Winter Olympics beginning on Friday.

Advocacy group calls on Sri Lanka to repeal ‘anti-terror’ law | Al Jazeera

The Sri Lankan government must repeal a controversial security act, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has said, adding that the proposed reforms by the right-wing government were “woefully inadequate”.

Five Palestinian NGOs to IDF: Reverse terror declaration | The Jerusalem Post

Five Palestinian NGOs, with support from a group of Israeli human rights NGOs, have made the first formal legal move within the Israeli legal system to overturn their terror designation.

US, UK, Canada sanction top Myanmar justice officials | Al Jazeera

The United States, United Kingdom and Canada imposed sanctions on senior Myanmar justice officials on the one-year anniversary of the military coup.

Cypriot police urged to reinvestigate gang rape of British woman | The Guardian

Authorities in Cyprus are being urged to launch a fresh inquiry into a gang rape complaint by a British woman after the country’s supreme court acquitted her of fabricating the claim that she had been sexually assaulted at a holiday resort.

Kazakhstan: Almaty picks up the pieces after riots | DW

Kazakhstan recently faced its worst unrest since independence from the Soviet Union. Protests started over a hike in fuel prices and then spiralled into mass disturbances, particularly in the city of Almaty, where many still can’t believe what happened.