Logo Assembly Logo Hemicycle

News

Hemicycle / Session / Hémicycle

PACE held its summer plenary session in Strasbourg

26/06/2026 | Session

Debates on protecting democracy from the disruptions caused by AI, on fighting back against transnational repression and on democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Iran – with the participation of former hostage in Iran Jacques Paris – were among highlights of the summer plenary session of...

Assembly holds a ‘free debate’ on current issues

26/06/2026 | Session

PACE this morning held a “free debate” on current issues not included in the session agenda. On this occasion, members were able to speak on any issue which falls within the Assembly’s mandate. Twenty parliamentarians took the floor.

PACE denounces ‘the use of starvation as a method of warfare’

PACE denounces ‘the use of starvation as a method of warfare’

25/06/2026 | Session

PACE today expressed concern that overlapping crises were undermining food security, food systems and nutrition worldwide. It strongly condemned “the use of starvation as a method of warfare”, the unlawful denial of humanitarian access, and attacks on assets indispensable to the survival of the...

Ensuring that migrants and refugees have effective and free access to healthcare

Ensuring that migrants and refugees have effective and free access to healthcare

25/06/2026 | Session

PACE today called on member states’ health authorities to ensure that migrants and refugees have effective and free access to healthcare from the moment of first arrival, including mental healthcare. Member states should also guarantee these individuals access to vaccination, medicines, and...

PACE denounces restrictions on media access in sport and growing control of content

PACE denounces restrictions on media access in sport and growing control of content

25/06/2026 | Session

PACE today highlighted a number of challenges affecting media freedom in sport, including restrictions on journalistic access, contractual limitations, growing control of content by rights holders, intimidation and harassment, legal pressure and gender inequalities within sports media. Added to...

The Assembly holds a current affairs debate on migration to Europe

The Assembly holds a current affairs debate on migration to Europe

25/06/2026 | Session

Sandra Zampa (Italy, SOC), the Chair of the Assembly’s Migration Committee, opened a current affairs debate today on migration to Europe, pointing out that the debate was necessary because of two recent developments at European level: the entry into force of the EU’s New Pact on Migration and...

Tackling the barriers that limit women’s access to justice

Tackling the barriers that limit women’s access to justice

25/06/2026 | Session

“Genuine access to justice for all women and girls, in all their diversity, must be guaranteed without discrimination on any ground,” PACE said today during an urgent debate, emphasising that women are still often denied access to legal remedies and redress. According to the parliamentarians, the...

Food challenges and responses: Morocco offers instructive case study for resilient food systems, says PACE

Food challenges and responses: Morocco offers instructive case study for resilient food systems, says PACE

25/06/2026 | Session

Based on a report prepared by Allal Amraoui (Morocco), PACE stresses a human rights-based approach to food security, recalling that the right to food implies that food must be “available, accessible, sustainable and adequate”. It situates food security within the broader 1996 World Food Summit...

Violent pornography normalises violence and undermines consent, PACE warns

Violent pornography normalises violence and undermines consent, PACE warns

25/06/2026 | Session

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting in plenary session in Strasbourg today, warned that the growing dissemination of violent pornography “normalises gender-based violence” and creates “an environment conducive to an increase in such violence”, calling for stronger...

PACE condemns ‘transnational repression’ and urges new laws to stop it

PACE condemns ‘transnational repression’ and urges new laws to stop it

25/06/2026 | Session

PACE has condemned all forms of “transnational repression” – a form of foreign interference used by authoritarian regimes to repress political dissidents, journalists, human rights defenders and members of diaspora communities beyond their borders – and has urged new laws to prevent it. In a...

Eliminating gender stereotypes in the media

Eliminating gender stereotypes in the media

24/06/2026 | Session

PACE expressed concern today at the pervasiveness of gender stereotypes throughout public communication spaces, including the press, radio and television, as well as online platforms and social networks.Too often trivialised and tolerated under the banner of freedom of expression, gender...

PACE warns of risks of AI but also highlights its democratic potential

PACE warns of risks of AI but also highlights its democratic potential

24/06/2026 | Session

PACE has underlined that Artificial Intelligence (AI) brings both major opportunities and serious risks for democratic systems, while warning that regulation and democratic governance frameworks are failing to keep up with the pace of innovation. “AI may represent the most transformative...