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‘Predators’: Amnesty slams Netanyahu, Putin, Trump as human rights decline
TL;DR
Amnesty International has criticized Israel, Russia, and the U.S. for leading a decline in global human rights, labeling their leaders as 'voracious predators.' The report highlights a worrying trend of governments appeasing these nations instead of confronting them.
Key points
- Amnesty International criticizes Israel, Russia, and the U.S.
- Leaders are labeled as 'voracious predators' of human rights.
- Governments often appease rather than confront these nations.
- The report highlights a decline in the global human rights environment.
- Historical context includes a departure from post-war international order.
Mentioned in this story
Agnes CallamardBenjamin NetanyahuVladimir PutinDonald TrumpAmnesty InternationalLondon
London, United Kingdom – Israel, Russia and the United States are leading the destruction of global human rights, Amnesty International has said, describing the three countries’ leaders as “voracious predators” intent upon economic and political domination.
“A global environment where primitive ferocity could flourish has been long in the making,” Agnes Callamard, the head of the global rights group, wrote in an annual report on the state of the world’s human rights that was released on Tuesday.
In 2025, “sharp U-turns were taken away from the international order that had been imagined out of the ashes of the Holocaust and the utter destruction of world wars, and constructed slowly and painfully, albeit insufficiently, over these past 80 years,” she said.
In a news conference on Monday in London, Callamard said that most governments tend to appease the “predators” rather than confront them.
“Some even thought to imitate the bullies and the looters,” she said.
Spain, however, which is an outlier in Europe for its criticism of Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and US-Israeli attacks on Iran, “is standing above the double standard that is destroying the international system”, Callamard said.
She argued that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, who in 2022 sent his forces into neighbouring Ukraine, have had an “absolutely dramatic” impact on the world.
Their conduct is “emboldening all of those that are tempted by similar behaviours,” said Callamard. “It is allowing for the multiplication of copycats around the world, and therefore what we are confronting now is much more aggressive and ferocious than what we had to confront three or four years ago.”
‘Authoritarian practices have intensified worldwide’
Amnesty’s review of the state of the world’s human rights makes for grim reading, documenting attacks on fundamental civil liberties in most nations.
“Authoritarian practices have intensified worldwide”, the report reads, before running through abuses alleged in countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe in 400 pages.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza, Russia’s “crimes against humanity” in Ukraine, and the US-Israeli war on Iran were noted as examples of conflict in which international laws have been ignored.
In a section on repression, the United Kingdom is blamed for cracking down on the Palestine solidarity movement and Palestine Action, the direct-action group that targets sites associated with the Israeli military and is currently fighting a legal battle against its UK proscription as a “terrorist” organisation.
Afghanistan’s Taliban was responsible for further gender-based discrimination in 2025, the report noted, citing measures excluding women from education and work, while Nepalese authorities were said to have failed to investigate instances of gender-based violence against Dalit women.
Q&A
What did Amnesty International say about Netanyahu, Putin, and Trump?
Amnesty International described the leaders of Israel, Russia, and the U.S. as 'voracious predators' contributing to the decline of global human rights.
What is the main concern of Amnesty International's annual report?
The report expresses concern over a global environment where human rights are being undermined by powerful nations, particularly Israel, Russia, and the U.S.
How have governments responded to the decline in human rights according to Amnesty?
Amnesty International noted that many governments tend to appease these 'predators' rather than confront them, with some even imitating their aggressive tactics.
What historical context did Agnes Callamard provide in the report?
Agnes Callamard mentioned that the decline in human rights marks a sharp departure from the international order established post-World War II and the Holocaust.
