Nine lessons for the US from Viktor Orbán’s defeat | Kenneth Roth As US elections approach, the Hungarian prime minister’s loss is a reminder that history does not march relentlessly toward autocracy

Hungarian voters' rejection of their autocratic prime minister, Viktor Orban, holds important lessons for efforts in the United States to resist Trump's own autocratic tendencies. Here are nine lessons that I draw: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

I explain on the BBC why Trump's threatened attacks on bridges and power plants in Iran would be war crimes. Perpetrators could be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court (if Iran joins or a future US administration allows it) or by national courts using universal jurisdiction.

The power of shame in a post-truth world | Ken Roth, ex-director of Human Rights Watch YouTube video by The Institute of Art and Ideas

We do NOT live in a post-shame world. Leaders may be beyond personal redemption but still care about public opinion because they must pretend to serve the public rather than only themselves. Maintaining power by sheer repression is dangerous. I explain: www.youtube.com/watch?v=vInr...

Trump’s war has emboldened Iran. Diplomacy is the only solution | Kenneth Roth The military approach has backfired, with Iran’s position only strengthened. But the door is still open to a deal

Trump's war has ironically emboldened Iran. Netanyahu wants more war, as usual, but there's no reason to think the end result will be any better. It's time for Trump to end the warmongering and accept that diplomacy is the only solution. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

If Trump commits war crimes in Iran, he can be prosecuted | Kenneth Roth There is no question that Trump’s threats, if carried out, would amount to war crimes. The international justice system is positioned to act

Trump may think he is above the law, but if he carries out his threats to commit war crimes in Iran, there are two ways he can be prosecuted -- Iran joining the International Criminal Court, or a group of governments creating a special tribunal. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Americans are protected by two oceans, but the effects of Trump's war-of-choice are still being felt: oil prices are rising, fertilizer shortages may affect food prices, big cuts in housing, education & healthcare are proposed to fund Trump's war: I explain on India's NewsX World.

I describe on Al Jazeera English how Trump is overseeing and threatening war crimes in Iran. His defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, is signaling that military commanders should be indifferent to protecting Iranian civilians. This is lawless, criminal conduct.

I joined Al Jazeera English today to discuss the war crimes that Trump and Netanyahu are committing in Iran by deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure based on the flimsiest of military pretexts. mediaview.aljazeera.com/video/atAvSK...

Over 100 International Law Experts Warn: U.S. Strikes on Iran Violate UN Charter and May Be War Crimes Over 100 international law experts sign letter on Iran War, UN Charter, and international humanitarian law.

More than 100 international law experts (myself included) warn that U.S. strikes on Iran violate the U.N. Charter (no evidence that Iran posed an imminent threat that could justify a self-defense claim) and may be war crimes (attacks on civilian sites). www.justsecurity.org/135423/profe...

Trump’s surreal speech on Iran shed no light on his goals | Kenneth Roth The US president couldn’t give a single coherent reason for why this aggressive war of choice must still be prosecuted

Trump's self-congratulatory speech last night was divorced from reality. He insisted that his war with Iran must continue for another two or three weeks but couldn't come up with a single coherent explanation for why. My take in the Guardian: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Israel death penalty law ‘deeply disturbing, inhumane and discriminatory’: Kenneth Roth | ABC NEWS YouTube video by ABC News (Australia)

I discuss Israel's new deeply disturbing, discriminatory death-penalty law on ABC News. I describe its unseemly and unfair rush to execution with inadequate procedures for fair trials. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcuF...

Kenneth Roth on holding regimes to account Kenneth Roth, the former long-term executive director of Human Rights Watch, has spent over 30 years using strategic international shaming to hold repressive regimes accountable across more than 100 c...

I discuss with RNZ the lessons from my book as applied to today's big challenges to international law, human rights and democracy. The bottom line: we should not despair or become fatalistic. There is a lot we can do to fight back against this lawlessness. www.rnz.co.nz/national/pro...

Trump’s Threat to Iran Crosses a Line, Rights Experts Say

If Trump acts in his threat to “obliterate” Iran’s electrical infrastructure, it would be a war crime, no different from what the International Criminal Court already charged four Russian commanders for doing in Ukraine. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/24/u...

Why is Trump still bombing Iran? Nixon’s Vietnam record offers a clue | Kenneth Roth Richard Nixon’s strategy was about shielding his own reputation. Now Trump needs a face-saving exit of his own

Trump's struggle to justify continuing to bomb Iran reminds me of Nixon's "peace with honor" in Vietnam. Countless numbers of innocent people are killed just to allow a US president to save face. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Trump needs to reject Netanyahu’s quest for a forever war | Kenneth Roth Instead of regime change, all the bombing has produced so far is regime reinforcement and no end in sight

Trump needs to reject Netanyahu's quest for a forever war. Instead of regime change, so far all the bombing has produced only regime reinforcement. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Trump and Netanyahu’s attack on Iran is an illegal act of aggression | Kenneth Roth Their actions are no different from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine or Rwandan president Paul Kagame’s invasion of the Democratic Republic of Congo

Trump's and Netanyahu’s attack on Iran is an illegal act of aggression -- no different from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine or Rwandan president Kagame’s invasion of the Democratic Republic of Congo. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Autocracy is rising in the west. But the global south proves it’s not inevitable | Kenneth Roth While some who have lived their entire lives under democracy seem willing to forsake it, many who have experienced life under autocracy want out

While some in the West are willing to forsake democracy for the far right, large numbers of people in the global South who live under autocracies repeatedly take to the streets to show they want democracy. This is no time for fatalistic despair. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

NZ must build coalitions to defend human rights: visiting expert Kenneth Roth is the former executive director of Human Rights Watch and spent decades investigating and exposing human rights violations.

On book tour in New Zealand, I joined TVNZ's Q&A to discuss the defense of human rights in this hostile era. We address Israel-Gaza, China, Iran, Russia-Ukraine, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Hungary, and more. www.1news.co.nz/2026/02/22/n...

Assessing Syria’s Progress Since Assad [Fadel Abdulghany is executive director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights and author of The Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria and the Failure of the International Community and Undermining the …

My assessment of the new Syrian government so far — the major progress it has made and the considerable challenges before it, with Fadel Abdul Ghany. opiniojuris.org/2026/02/20/a...

Perspectives on Global Governance and Human Rights - Global Women Join us for a timely and thought-provoking panel discussion featuring Rt Hon Helen Clark, Amanda Ellis and Ken Roth, hosted by Buddle Findlay. Together, they will explore the state of […]

I will be speaking today in Auckland, New Zealand about the issues from my book, Righting Wrongs. I'll be joined by Helen Clark and Amanda Ellis at an event sponsored by Global Women. globalwomen.org.nz/event/perspe...

International humanitarian law is at risk – but it still carries weight | Kenneth Roth A study says IHL is at ‘critical breaking point’ amid horrendous violations in Gaza, Sudan and elsewhere. But to declare its demise would be premature

To understand whether recent war-time attacks on civilians spell the end of international humanitarian law, examine the reaction. It has been weaker than it should be but still considerable, meaning it is premature to pronounce the law dead. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Two are dead in Minneapolis. Trump is to blame | Kenneth Roth The US president bears political responsibility for having greenlighted ICE agents’ regularly lawless conduct

Trump didn't pull the trigger for the Minneapolis killings, but he bears political responsibility for having greenlighted his deportation agents’ regularly lawless conduct. I explain: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

FL Season 4, Episode 31: Human Rights, Power and Global Hypocrisy with Kenneth Roth | NewsX World YouTube video by NewsX World

I joined India's NewsX World to discuss the hypocrisy of Western nations in closing their eyes to serious abuses by Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey -- and even India. www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIkO...

Censorship is not the answer to Bondi - Kenneth Roth A democratic society should debate a broad range of views, the former Human Rights Watch executive director writes

Censorship to defend Israel is the WRONG response to the horrible Bondi Beach massacre. Australia keeps getting it wrong, first with the disinvitation of a Palestinian writer from the Adelaide Festival, now with the over-the-top hate-speech law. I explain: www.deepcutnews.com/p/censorship...

I have been writing a lot for the Guardian over the past couple of years. I am thrilled that they have now chosen to name me a columnist. www.theguardian.com/profile/kenn...

Here’s how to fix America’s immigration system. Trump’s path is not the solution | Kenneth Roth A grand bargain on immigration could address problems with both the old approach and Trump’s new approach

We have a statute of limitations (usually 5 years) for most crimes. Why isn't there a statute of limitations for undocumented migrants recognizing that after a certain point we should respect the lives they've built in the United States? I explain in the Guardian: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Buy Upside-Down Love - Sari Bashi I’m proud to announce that the English translation of my book, Upside-Down Love (Blackstone Publishing as a book, e-book and audio book) is available for preorder now and will be published in January ...

My friend and colleague Sari Bashi's memoir launches today - it's a heartfelt story of an impossible Israeli-Palestinian love that triumphed, against the odds and against Israeli law. I was moved by it, and I hope you'll check it out: ummforat.com/en/buy-upsid...

Regardless of whether Israel calls it a "settlement" or an "outpost," it is still illegal. Israel violates Art. 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention by transferring its population to occupied territory. These are all war crimes designed to block a Palestinian state, as I explain on Al Jazeera.

The Unipolar World

As Putin's invasion of Ukraine proceeds, it is worth remembering when he signaled his break from the West -- his infamous 2007 speech at the Munich Security Conference. This dramatic podcast recalls that moment through interviews with eyewitnesses, myself included. open.spotify.com/episode/2y1J...

Paperback of the week: Righting Wrongs by Kenneth Roth Roth spent three decades as head of Human Rights Watch. His record of past victories is also a warning for the future

I'm thrilled that the Observer has chosen my book Righting Wrongs as the "paperback of the week." observer.co.uk/culture/book...