News and press releases

WARSAW, 26 June 2018 – “Torture cannot be justified under any circumstances,” Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), said on the occasion of today’s International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, while calling on all OSCE participating States to make it clear that no form of ill-treatment is permitted.

VIENNA, 25 June 2018 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir today condemned the physical attack and death threat against a journalist Hrvoje Bajlo last night in Zadar.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region, however more in Luhansk region between the evenings of 22 and 23 June compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 23 and 24 June, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous 24 hours. The Mission followed up on reports of civilian casualties in Yasynuvata and Dokuchaievsk. It observed fresh damage caused by shelling in a residential area of Pikuzy. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded an explosion inside the Stanytsia Luhanska and three projectiles inside the Zolote disengagement areas. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and elsewhere, including Nova Marivka. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Novoaidar. The Mission continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station. In Lviv, the SMM followed up on media reports of a physical attack against members of the Roma community in the city.

ALMATY, 26 June 2018- Labour migration practices, with the aim to leverage the economic potential of migrant workers in Central Asia and in the Russian Federation, were discussed at a two-day event supported by the OSCE and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), which concluded today in Astana...

ANKARA, 25 June 2018 – Voters had a genuine choice in the 24 June early presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey, but the conditions for campaigning were not equal, with the incumbent president and ruling party enjoying an undue advantage, including in excessive coverage by government-affiliated public and private media outlets, the international observers concluded in a preliminary statement today...

A study visit to Belarus for Tajik state officials and representatives of free economic zones was organized by the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe from 18 to 24 June 2018.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. In Petrivske, the SMM was forced to drive on a mine-contaminated road by an armed member of the armed formations. The Mission observed shelling impacts in a residential area of Pikuzy. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations near the disengagement area near Stanytsia Luhanska. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas.