The number of judicial executions recorded globally in 2022 reached the highest figure in five years, according to Amnesty International's annual review of the death penalty, released May 16. Excluding the thousands believed to have taken place in China, a total of 883 executions were recorded across 20 countries, marking a 53% increase from the previous year. The Middle East and North Africa region saw a significant rise in executions, with Saudi Arabia executing 81 people in a single day in March 2022 out of a year total of 196, while Iran executed a record-high 576 individuals. Iran, Saudi Arabia and Egypt accounted for 90% of known executions outside of China. The true global figure is likely much higher due to secrecy surrounding the use of the death penalty in certain countries. China is believed to have remained the world's most prolific executioner.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) warned on May 12 that Italy's newly passed Cutro law will have "devastating impacts" on migrants' rights, threatening their ability to seek protection, access fair asylum procedures, and move freely throughout the country. Ironically, the law was passed in response to a February shipwreck on the coast of southern Italy that left more than 80 migrants dead. HRW called upon Italy to "reverse course and ensure a humane and rights-respecting response to sea crossings."

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on April 26 approved revised amendments to the Counter-Espionage Law of the People's Republic of China, in the first revision of the legislation since 2014. Under the previous law, threats to national security narrowly concerned state secrets. However, the new provisions broaden the scope of "espionage" to encompass any action, document, data or material which may be considered a threat to national security by state authorities. The reforms also expand the duties of law enforcement personnel in countering espionage activity, and the definition of "spying" has been broadened to include cyberattacks. The reforms follow President Xi Jinping's new emphasis on strengthening "national security."

Four environmental advocacy groups and one Native American people on May 1 sued the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), alleging the agency failed to undertake a thorough environmental impact analysis after a SpaceX rocket exploded in Boca Chica, Texas, last month. The complaint alleges the FAA violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) which requires federal agencies to examine and consider environmental effects before granting licenses or allowing federal projects. Specifically, the plaintiffs claim the FAA allowed SpaceX to launch its rocket without "fully analyzing the significant environment and community impacts" of the launch, including damage to the region's wild bird habitat, and without requiring the company to pursue mitigation efforts to offset this habitat disruption.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on April 28 ordered Russia to pay 130 million euros ($143 million) in compensation to Georgia, almost 15 years after the war in the South Caucasus nation. The case concerned allegations by the Georgian government that actions by the Russian Federation during the 2008 conflict amounted to breaches of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention). The ECHR can award damages for harmful consequences of a violation under the Convention's Article 41. The court found that there was still a basis to make an award under Article 41, despite the fact that Russia had ceased its membership in the Council of Europe, and failed to cooperate with the proceedings.

A group of Afghan women on April 29 marched in the capital Kabul to urge the United Nations not to formally recognize the Taliban government. Approximately two dozen women took to the streets despite the Taliban government's increasingly strict crackdowns on women. During the march, protesters chanted that they would fight and die for their dignity and condemned the UN, stating that the pending recognition of the Taliban would be a violation of women's rights.

Hundreds of indigenous people from across Brazil marched April 25 in Brasilia, the country’s capital, to demand government protection of their land and rights against invaders. The march was part of the 19th Free Land Camp, an annual national mobilization by indigenous peoples. "The demarcation of Indigenous Lands is an ancestral right provided for in the Federal Constitution," Dinamam Tuxá, executive coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB), said in a statement. "Those who invade an Indigenous Land destroy forests and attack indigenous people, who have been fighting for the protection of their families, cultures and lands for over 500 years."

Togo's National Assembly voted April 6 to extend a "state of security emergency" in the northern Savanes region of the country for another year. The measure follows a recent increase in incursions by militant groups along Togo's northern border. The measure is a further extension of President Faure Gnassingbé's initial state of emergency decreed in June 2022. The state of emergency was lengthened by six months in September 2022 but expired on March 12. The unanimous National Assembly vote authorizes the Togolese government to retroactively increase the measure for a further 12 months starting from March 13.