The annual assessment of human rights around the world was released by the US State Department on Tuesday. Excerpts on selected countries were provided, including information on Iraq. The assessment highlighted sectarian-driven violence, acts of terrorism, and revenge by armed groups in a climate of criminality and impunity that hindered government efforts to establish and maintain the rule of law. Sunni Arab groups such as al Qaeda in Iraq, remnants of the Baathist regime, and insurgents opposed the government and targeted Shia communities, while Shia militias with ties to the Iraqi Security Forces targeted Sunnis in death squad and kidnapping activities. PAKISTAN: Despite President Musharraf's assurance of promoting democratic transition and 'enlightened moderation,' the human rights situation in Pakistan remained bleak. The security forces were still engaging in extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and torture. Corruption was widespread within the government and police forces. 

RUSSIA: The centralization of power in Russia's executive branch persisted, with amendments to election laws and new regulations for political parties giving the government extensive control over party activities. When considering a compliant State Duma, corruption, selective law enforcement, political pressure on the judiciary, and restrictions on NGOs and the media, these factors led to a further decline in government accountability. In Afghanistan, despite progress in human rights since the fall of the Taliban in 2001, the country's human rights record was still poor. There were ongoing reports of arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, torture, and substandard prison conditions. North Korea remained a highly isolated and oppressive regime in 2006, controlling nearly all aspects of citizens' lives and denying basic freedoms such as speech, press, assembly, association, movement, and worker rights. An estimated 150,000 to 200,000 individuals, including political prisoners, were imprisoned in detention camps, where many suffered and died from torture, starvation, disease, and exposure. In Myanmar, the military government utilized executions, rape, torture, arbitrary detention, and forced relocation of entire villages, particularly targeting ethnic minorities, to maintain their power. Prisoners and detainees endured abuse and harsh, life-threatening conditions. Likewise, in Iran, the government severely restricted freedom of speech and assembly, cracking down on dissidents, journalists, and reformers with arbitrary arrests, torture, disappearances, excessive force, and denial of fair trials. The Mugabe government in Zimbabwe also continued to violate human rights across the board. Official corruption and impunity were common in both Cuba and China in 2006. In Cuba, under the temporary leadership of Raul Castro due to Fidel Castro's illness, the government continued to violate the rights of its citizens, including the right to peacefully change their government or criticize the revolution and its leaders. In China, there was a decline in the human rights record with an increase in high-profile cases of monitoring, harassment, detention, and imprisonment of political and religious activists, journalists, writers, and defense lawyers seeking to exercise their legal rights.