US to soften human rights criticism of "Israel", Russia, and El Salvador: Report
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that the Trump administration plans to ease human rights criticisms against "Israel", Russia, and El Salvador in the upcoming US State Department annual human rights report.
According to draft versions of the 2024 reports reviewed by the newspaper, the sections on these countries are significantly shorter than in previous reports issued under the Biden administration.
The official reports, which typically cover events from the prior year, have not yet been released but are expected soon. A senior State Department official told journalists that the 2024 report has been restructured to remove repetition and improve readability.
While the US traditionally promotes human rights, democracy, and press freedom as core foreign policy goals, critics have long accused Washington of double standards, particularly regarding its allies.
Under Trump, the administration increasingly distanced itself from traditional support for democracy and human rights, viewing such issues as interference in other nations’ internal affairs. Conversely, Trump officials have criticized European governments for alleged censorship of right-wing political leaders and views.
The draft report reportedly omits references to "Israeli" government corruption allegations, including the criminal case against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and drops previous mentions of "Israeli" restrictions on Palestinians’ movement.
Similarly, the section on Russia no longer includes references to violence and harassment faced by the LGBTQ+ community, which appeared in Biden-era reports.
Regarding El Salvador, the draft states there were “no reliable reports of gross human rights violations” in 2024, contrasting with the previous report that documented significant abuses by security forces and harsh prison conditions.
Requests for comment from the embassies of "Israel", Russia, and El Salvador in Washington were not immediately answered.
The State Department official said the report would be published “in the very near future” and emphasized that its purpose is to provide a broad overview of human rights conditions rather than document every violation in every country.
