Strasbourg Observers
  • Gunay Ismayilova

Hasani v. Sweden: A Narrow View of Risk with Broad Consequences

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 […]

  • Betül Durmuş

The Russian ‘Anti-Gay Propaganda Law’ Going Online: Klimova and Others v. Russia as a Mixed Picture

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 […]

  • Alain Zysset

An Anxious-Avoidant Court: Adjudicating Democratic Infrastructure in Călin Georgescu v. Romania

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 […]

  • Lorenzo Acconciamessa

The Presumption of Effectiveness of Domestic Remedies in Mansouri v. Italy. How Far Can Subsidiarity Go in This Field?

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 […]

  • Hanim Schnabel

P. v. Poland: Protecting teachers’ online free speech, overlooking homophobic prejudice

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 […]

  • Lorenza Grossi

Special Prison Regime and Cognitive Decline: The ECtHR Finds a Violation of Article 3 in Morabito v. Italy

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 […]

  • Anıl Güven YÜKSEL

Political Expression and Representation in Regional Parliaments Within the Framework of Constitutional Order: a Critical Reading of the Inadmissibility Decision in Costa i Rosselló and Others v. Spain

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, […]

  • Ellen Desmet, Ilse Derluyn and Sara Lembrechts

A mixed assessment on age assessment: F.B. v. Belgium

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 […]

  • Dr. Alice Dejean de la Bâtie

Fraisse et al. v. France: Against the Normalization of Systemic Violence in Protest Policing

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 […]

  • Mathieu Leloup

Green v. the United Kingdom: absolute parliamentary immunity in Parliament, no matter the cost?

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 […]

  • Strasbourg Observers

Event: Keynote Chief Registrar of the European Court of Human Rights Marialena Tsirli at Strasbourg Observers 15th Anniversary Symposium

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 […]

  • Dr. Ufuk Yeşil

From Assumption to Conviction: an Evaluation of the ECtHR’s Decision in Demirer v. Turkey

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 […]

  • Reza Khabook

El Aroud and Soughir v. Belgium: Why the ECtHR Should Rethink Citizenship Revocation as a Criminal Punishment?

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 […]

  • Catherine Van de Heyning

Strasbourg’s consolidation on technology-facilitated gender-based violence: M.Ș.D. v. Romania

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 […]