22/04/2026 | Session
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has condemned the adoption by the Israeli Knesset of a law extending the death penalty in Israel in a way that “has clear discriminatory effects against Palestinians” and urged Israel to repeal or invalidate it, and refrain from...
22/04/2026 | Session
All those responsible for the death of Sergei Magnitsky, as well as the beneficiaries of the fraud he uncovered should be held accountable, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) said today. Mr Magnitsky, a Russian tax adviser and auditor, uncovered a US$230 million fraud...
21/04/2026 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
The President of the Council of Europe’s parliamentary body hails ‘a historic milestone’ partly driven by rule-changes The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), which brings together parliamentarians from the Council’s 46 member states, contains an equal number of women and men...
21/04/2026 | Session
“Violence has no place in democracy,” the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) said today, as parliamentarians warned that rising violence and hate speech against politicians pose a direct threat to democratic life and pluralism. Debating the issue in plenary, the Assembly...
21/04/2026 | European Convention on Human Rights
The Assembly is creating a new network of its members to encourage states to implement judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. The network will bring together parliamentarians from all the member states to encourage governments to execute judgments and to drive forward the legislative...
21/04/2026 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Statement on the forthcoming Chișinău political declaration on the European Convention on Human Rights, adopted on 21 April 2026 by PACE’s Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights: “Strengthened by its 75-year history, the European Convention on Human Rights is an essential part of Europe’s...
21/04/2026 | Session
Expressing concern at the growing manifestations of exclusion and intolerance on grounds of religion across Europe, PACE emphasised that freedom of religion or belief – which includes the right not to hold a religious belief or affiliation – “was not only a fundamental right, but also a vital...
21/04/2026 | Session
Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset has reiterated that “democracy is still alive”, as shown by the recent elections in Bulgaria and Hungary, and called on parliamentarians to “build on this positive momentum at this challenging time” in a Q&A with the Assembly. The Secretary General...
21/04/2026 | Session
During its Presidency, the Republic of Moldova has sought to strengthen the Council of Europe’s capacity to adapt to new realities in an increasingly uncertain world: “It must not only react to crises, but act ahead of them,” Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Mihai Popșoi told...
20/04/2026 | President
PACE President Petra Bayr, opening the spring plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg, has called on Europe and its parliamentarians to show determined and principled leadership in the face of the pattern of crises on the international scene...
20/04/2026 | Election observation
Bulgaria’s 19 April early parliamentary elections were marked by an increase in participation and were administered transparently and efficiently, despite gaps in the legislative framework and a last-minute amendment on the number of polling stations abroad, that undermined the stability of the...
20/04/2026 | Session
Addressing the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today in Strasbourg, France’s Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot issued a warning: human rights, the rule of law and democracy are now under threat “even in countries that have traditionally been at the...