This bulletin summarizes Amnesty International’s main concerns in 36 countries in Europe during the first six months of 1996. The five Central Asian republics of Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are also included because of their membership of the CIS and the OSCE. The concerns covered here include: imprisonment of prisoners of conscience, ill-treatment and torture of detainees, violations linked to armed conflicts, refugee and asylum issues, political killings and “disappearances”, the death penalty, deaths in custody or as a result of shootings by security forces, conscientious objection, fair trial concerns and discrimination or attacks against religious or ethnic groups. A special section is devoted to human rights violations against women. Updated information is given on ratifications of human rights treaties by European countries.