June 17, 2025
By Harriet Ní Chinnéide and Eva Sevrin On 22 May 2025, a coalition of nine European states, spearheaded by Denmark and Italy, issued an open letter calling for a shift in the European Court of Human Rights’ (ECtHR) interpretative approach in the field of migration and in cases concerning ‘irregular migration’ and the expulsion of […]
June 03, 2025
by Gunay Ismayilova Introduction On 6 March 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter, the Court) delivered its judgment in Hasani v. Sweden, addressing the State’s positive obligations under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights to protect individuals when the risk to a person derives from self-harm. Although the Court ultimately […]
May 30, 2025
by Dr. Betül Durmuş Introduction Over the summer, Bulgaria and Georgia adopted their own ‘anti-gay propaganda laws’ prohibiting dissemination of information concerning sexual orientation or gender identity, under the guise of protecting children. And, on 19 November 2024, the Court of Justice of the European Union held a hearing on the infringement proceedings against Hungary’s […]
May 27, 2025
By Alain Zysset The key feature of an anxious-avoidant attachment style is the ambivalence between seeking connection and seeking withdrawal. This can lead to inconsistent behaviours towards partners, displaying excessive closeness one time and abruptly retreating from the relationship the next time. There are analogous traits of an anxious-avoidant attachment style in the Court’s reasoning […]
May 23, 2025
By Lorenzo Acconciamessa On 29 April 2025 the Grand Chamber issued its ruling in the case of Mansouri v. Italy, which concerned the lawfulness and conditions of an alien’s confinement on board a private ship, used to return him to his country of departure on the basis of a refusal-of-entry order. As regards the applicant’s […]
Strasbourg Observers is an academic blog that discusses recent developments at the European Court of Human Rights. The editorial team of Strasbourg Observers is based at the Human Rights Centre of Ghent University and the Centre for Government and Law of Hasselt University.
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May 20, 2025
By Hanim Schnabel In P v. Poland, the ECtHR ruled by 4 votes to 3 that the dismissal of a homosexual secondary school teacher for, inter alia, writing a blog for adults with some sexually explicit content violated Article 10 of the Convention. Without taking a stance on whether the dismissal actually pursued a legitimate […]
May 16, 2025
By Lorenza Grossi The ECtHR examines the compatibility between special prison regimes and Article 3 ECHR. More precisely, under scrutiny is Article 41-bis of Law No. 354 of 26 July 1975 (the Italian Prison Law), also known as ‘hard prison.’ This provision allows the suspension of ordinary prison conditions – such as outdoor time and […]
May 13, 2025
Dr. Anıl Güven Yüksel In Costa i Rosselló and Others v. Spain, delivered on 27 February 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) declared the applications inadmissible, reaffirming the compatibility of protecting constitutional order with the Convention framework. The case concerned several members of the Catalan Parliament who challenged enforcement measures—and, in some instances, […]
May 09, 2025
By Ellen Desmet, Ilse Derluyn and Sara Lembrechts F.B. v. Belgium concerns the decision of the Belgian Guardianship Service to terminate the support of an unaccompanied minor following an age assessment. While the ECtHR found a violation of Article 8 ECHR due to a lack of sufficient safeguards, it did not substantively engage with the […]
May 06, 2025
By Dr. Alice Dejean de la Bâtie Can the lethal use of an explosive grenade by law enforcement during a protest ever be justified? This question is at the heart of Fraisse et al. v. France (27 February 2025, nos. 22525/21 and 47626/21), a case brought before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) following […]
May 02, 2025
by dr. Mathieu Leloup Introduction Parliamentary immunity is a staple of domestic constitutional law, designed to protect free speech in Parliament. It is present in some form or another in every country of the Council of Europe. Broadly defined, it is a legal instrument which inhibits legal action, measures of investigation, or measures of law […]
May 01, 2025
The keynote of our two-day Strasbourg Observers 15th Anniversary Symposium will be held by the Chief Registrar of the European Court of Human Rights Dr. Marialena Tsirli. Next Friday 9th of May at 14:00, Dr. Tsirli will speaking on the big picture evolutions at the European Court of Human Rights and how the work of […]
April 29, 2025
By dr. Ufuk Yeşil Is crossing the border with the wrong person enough to convict you of terrorism? On March 25, 2025, the Second Section of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) delivered its judgement in Demirer v. Turkey, addressing the perplexing case of Serferaz Demirer, who faced conviction for purportedly being a member […]
April 25, 2025
By Reza Khabook On 3 December 2024, the ECtHR issued a Chamber judgment in El Aroud and Soughir v. Belgium. This case concerns the applicants’ citizenship revocation[1] following their terrorism-related convictions in Belgium. The Court concluded that Article 8 had not been violated and excluded the case from the scope of Article 2 of Protocol […]
April 22, 2025
By Catherine Van de Heyning As society digitalised, so did gender-based violence. Technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) has become an unfortunate byproduct of digitalisation. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) already recognised that cyberviolence may amount to a violation of the right to privacy and, in some instances, even to degrading and inhuman treatment. In […]