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Azerbaijanis went to the polls today (26 September) in a controversial referendum on handing extra powers to long-serving President Ilham Aliyev, with opposition and human rights groups criticising the proposed constitutional changes as undemocratic.

Turkey must produce clear evidence in pursuing participants in a failed coup and avoid targeting teachers and journalists simply because they worked for firms run by the Muslim cleric Ankara portrays as its mastermind, the head of the European rights watchdog said Thursday (8 September).

A delegation from Turkey's justice ministry has met with the Council of Europe to review European human rights standards and conventions as Ankara prepares to prosecute those it holds responsible for the failed 15 July coup, the head of the CoE said.

The head of a top European rights watchdog Wednesday backed a "cleaning up" of Turkish institutions after a failed coup blamed on supporters of US-based preacher Fethullah Gülen.

In light of human rights violations in Crimea and a new law allowing Russia to ignore rulings of the European Court of Human Rights, there is no justification for the country to remain in the Council of Europe, writes Susan Stewart.

The Council of Europe, the continent’s oldest organisation specialised in human rights, has visited prisons in Belgium where a large number of staff were absent due to strike and therefore did not provide services to inmates.

Ukraine's tense Odessa marked yesterday (2 May) two years since clashes killed 48 anti-Maidan protesters during a confrontation with pro-Ukrainian unity protesters at the Trade Unions House in central Odessa. The EU urged Kyiv to investigate the tragedy.

More than a year after the European Court of Justice (ECJ) blocked the EU’s efforts to sign up to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), the European Parliament hosted a meeting with representatives of the institutions yesterday (20 April) to discuss the way forward.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker today admitted that citizens had lost faith in the EU, during a speech at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

The EU yesterday (14 April) called “extremely worrying” the decision by the Russian authorities to suspend the activities of Mejlis, a self-governing body of the Crimean Tatars, and called for the decision to be reversed immediately.

MEPs passed today (13 April) a non-binding resolution, calling on the Polish authorities to restore the ability of Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal to uphold its Constitution and guarantee respect for the rule of law.

Women's rights are being violated in Italy by the serious difficulties they face in trying to obtain safe abortions due to many doctors refusing to carry out the procedure, the Council of Europe said on Monday (11 April).

The EU, Greece and Turkey have to ensure that additional principles guide the implementation of the EU-Turkey migration deal reached at the 17-18 March summit, writes Nils Muižnieks.

Tens of thousands of Poles took to Facebook Thursday (10 March) to support the country's top court in a constitutional battle against the right-wing government.

Polish President Andrzej Duda yesterday (7 January) signed into law a controversial bill handing the conservative government control of state media, despite EU concern and condemnation from rights watchdogs.

Polish President Andrzej Duda will visit Brussels on 18 January following a planned European Commission debate on the rule of law in Poland, whose government has sparked concern by pushing through controversial changes to the judiciary and media.

A coalition of press freedom groups filed a complaint on Monday (4 January) with Europe's top human rights watchdog claiming that a contentious new Polish law threatens media independence.

Political corruption has played a key role in Greece’s economic crisis. But national governments still refuse to take determined measures to tackle it. EURACTIV Greece reports.

The Council of Europe has issued a damning indictment of mass surveillance in Germany. EURACTIV's partner Tagesspiegel reports.

British Prime Minister David Cameron resisted calls on Thursday to take in refugees in much greater numbers after the image of a dead Syrian toddler washed up on a Turkish beach raised the emotional temperature of the debate.

Council President Donald Tusk's trip to the South Caucasus has largely focused on the 'frozen conflicts' in Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The Council of Europe’s expert group on racism and intolerance today (9 June) called for action to fight prejudice in Hungary and Poland, after publishing damning reports on the two countries.

In his capacity as Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, Didier Reynders visited both Armenia and Azerbaijan this week, with a focus on their ongoing conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Separatists said on Tuesday (27 January) they had pushed Ukrainian troops out of two districts on the outskirts of Donetsk, and that their aim was to control the entire region.