2021 - Countries (World Watch)

This part is going under fairly dramatic changes, so pardon if it isn't the prettiest right now!

Big change is that Briefings are moving to their own page!

Regions

Southern Africa / North Africa / Latin America / Europe / Eurasia (largely, fmr. USSR) / East Asia / South Asia + Oceana / Mid East / The Arctic / Oceana

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I try to give each region a blurb, but this is applicable to many of them, so I include it here: With predatory IMF loans, we have the maintenance of 'neo-colonialism' - nations can only get the money they need if they open up their trade in ways that disproportionately benefit Western capitalist interests, and support austerity politicians who often act to gut programs that help working people. Why colonize when you have the IMF to do the dirty work?

Southern Africa Updates

Angola / Botswana / Burundi / Cameroon / Central African Republic / Democratic Republic of the Congo / Equatorial Guinea / Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) / Gabon / Kenya / Lesotho / Madagascar / Malawi / Mauritius / Mozambique / Namibia / Rwanda / South Africa / Tanzania / Uganda / Zambia / Zimbabwe

Much of the crises in southern Africa stem from (A) the strongman-rule over labor and resources, resulting in highly unstable political configurations which nonetheless are profitable to capitalists (most obvious in the Congo), (B) a racist history due to colonialism which has systemically lead Africans into a compromised position and underdeveloped infrastructure (both literal and institutional) (for example, apartheid still has a strong influence on South Africa today), and (C) failed reactions that aimed at fixing this, often exploited by strongmen for their own benefit, such as Zimbabwe under Mugabe. It's a vicious cycle where militants, relatively enriched due to their tyranny over local capital, corrode efforts at democratic institution-building, with the natural reaction being strongmen efforts that often backfire. In places where democracy prevails, the institutional forces at play are enormous, making true reform extremely difficult (such as South Africa).

Regional Updates

• Jacobin (30/12/21): Vaccine Apartheid Includes Dumping Expiring Vaccines on Africa - The Global North is responding to vaccine inequality by dumping near-expired doses on African countries without infrastructure to disseminate them in time. Those doses end up in the trash — and it’s the fault of rich countries. [covid-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• The Economist (1/1/22): Middlemen are the invisible links in African agriculture - In Uganda they are traders, tricksters, moneylenders and marketmakers [fail-neoliberal-news, capitalist-farce-news, food-security-news]
• Democracy Now (28/12/21): Israel Tests Fourth Vaccine Doses as COVID Surges in Largely Unvaccinated African Nations [covid-news]
• Foreign Affairs (23/12/21): China’s Soft-Power Advantage in Africa - Beijing Isn’t Just Building Roads—It’s Making Friends [china-policy-news, analysis-news, bri-news]
• Africa News (21/12/21): [Italian] MSC offers to buy [French] Bolloré's logistics branch in Africa [capitalist-farce-news]
• Al-Monitor (21/12/21): Drone sales could dampen Turkey’s African venture - Turkey has made major economic and diplomatic strides in Africa since the early 2000s, but growing military sales to African countries raise the specter of a risky shift.
• Democracy Now (9/12/21): How Europe’s “Shadow Immigration System” Pays Libyan Militias to Jail Migrants in Brutal Conditions [immigrant-news, social-woes-news]
• The Elephant (3/12/21): China and Africa’s Debt Crisis - Ahead of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Tim Zajontz looks at the immense amounts of debt African governments owe Chinese lenders. This debt is central to capitalist accumulation and financial extraction from the African continent. Zajontz argues that Chinese capital is now pivotal to the global circuit of capital and China, just like other creditors, uses debt for the conquest of Africa and its resources. [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (30/11/21): Nurses Demand COVID-19 Vaccine Patent Waiver; China Pledges 1 Billion Doses for Africa [covid-news, healthcare-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• Common Dreams (26/11/21): 'It Was Entirely Avoidable': Rich Countries Blamed as New Covid Variant Sparks Global Alarm - "Allowing new variants to emerge and spread, 13 months into the vaccine era, is a policy choice by the rich world." [vaccine-ip-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): The children of West and Central Africa are the most recruited by armed groups in the world and also have the highest number of victims of sexual violence, a report from the U.N. Children’s Fund has said. Over the past five years, during which the region has seen increased conflicts, more than 21,000 children have been recruited by government forces and armed groups, says the report. In addition, more than 2,200 children in the region have been victims of sexual violence since 2016, and more than 3,500 children have been abducted, said the report. Sam Mednick reports for AP.
• New York Times (19/11/21): China’s Influence Looms Over Blinken’s Africa Visit - On a stop in Nigeria, the secretary of state said the U.S. would no longer treat African countries as pawns in a global game. But American competition with Beijing was hard to overlook. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Jacobin (6/1/20): The Franc Zone, a Tool of French Neocolonialism in Africa - François Mitterrand warned that France would be irrelevant to twenty-first-century history unless it maintained its control of Africa. Its instrument for so doing is the CFA Franc — a colonial currency entrenching French rule more than fifty years after independence. [history-news, analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, economic-news]
• Jacobin (7/11/21): The CIA Undermined Postcolonial Africa From the Start - From undermining national liberation leaders to playing a central role in the assassination of Congolese radical Patrice Lumumba, not enough attention is paid to the CIA’s shameful role in Africa. A new book aims to correct that. [us-policy-news, dark-security-news, history-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news]
• South China Morning Post (1/11/21): Will African conflicts threaten China’s business as usual approach? - Chinese investments in three countries – Ethiopia, Guinea and Sudan – could be threatened by wars and coups even though Beijing traditionally prefers to stay neutral - China’s vast range of infrastructure projects are particularly vulnerable to unrest and some observers believe there may be a long-term impact on investment [china-policy-news, bri-news]
• Jacobin (15/10/21): We Need Thomas Sankara’s Political Vision Today - Thomas Sankara, the socialist president of Burkina Faso, was assassinated 34 years ago today. With Global South debt levels at an all-time high, Sankara’s call for resistance to debt as a tool of neocolonial domination has never been more relevant. [leftist-news, analysis-news, history-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): WHO endorses use of world’s first malaria vaccine in Africa - World Health Organization’s director general hails ‘historic day’ in fight against parasitic disease
• Just Security (30/9/21): U.N. diplomats have said that Russia is holding up the appointment of independent experts to monitor implementation of sanctions on four African countries [russia-policy-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (15/9/21): Only 2% of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered in Africa [covid-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (24/8/21): An Insight into Russia’s Economic Presence in Africa
• Democracy Now (6/8/21): Africa COVID-19 Deaths Surged by 80% in Last Month as Delta Variant Spread
• South China Morning Post (3/8/21): Pressure grows between African mineworkers and their Chinese bosses - Videos purporting to show violent confrontations circulate on social media, highlighting human side of China-Africa relations - Observers say a combination of cultural differences, management style and poor working conditions are to blame
• Democracy Now (19/7/21): Delta Variant Spreads Across Africa, Latin America, Where Vaccines Are Sorely Lacking [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): Africa Suffers Worst Week Since Start of COVID-19 Pandemic [covid-news]
• The Guardian (2/7/21): Major aid donors found to have funded ‘conversion therapy’ clinics in Africa [Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania] - Investigation finds UK Aid and USAid money linked to centres where ‘condemned’ practice is routinely offered to LGBTQ+ people [lgbtq-news, aid-news]
• Democracy Now (2/7/21): WHO Warns Delta Coronavirus Variant Driving Massive Third Wave Across Africa [covid-news]
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Isis-linked groups open up new fronts across sub-Saharan Africa - Military victories combined with new alliances and shifts in strategy reinforce militants’ position across much of continent [islamic-terrorism-news]
• Democracy Now (15/6/21): COVID-19 Surges in Unvaccinated African Nations; Chile Locks Down Santiago Despite Vaccinations [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): WHO Warns of Surging COVID-19 Cases in Africa as Vaccine Shipments Come to “Near Halt” [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (28/5/21): African Nations Need 20 Million AstraZeneca Doses Within Weeks to Complete Vaccinations [covid-news]
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Plans to vaccinate people against covid-19 were set back in many African countries by the halting of vaccine exports from India, as it deals with its covid crisis. The Serum Institute of India, which was expected to supply most of Africa’s doses, has made no shipments to the continent since March and is not expected to resume them before October. [covid-news]

Angola Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Africa News (12/12/21): Doctors continue to strike in Angola [labor-news]
• Africa News (11/12/21): Angola's ruling party, MPLA, confirms President Lourenço's bid for a second mandate
• Financial Times (9/12/21): US places visa restrictions on Isabel dos Santos for alleged corruption - Africa’s richest woman among those targeted in measures unveiled by Biden administration [corruption-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Not much beyond the title - two other officials close with the previous Angolan administration (dos Santos was a key player in the prior Angolan administration) were also targeted, along with several other people around the world. Another notable was Tupytsky in Ukraine, the former head of the constitutional court and oversaw 2020 rulings that "threatened to neuter anti-corruption institutions and, in turn, delayed disbursement from a $bn IMF lifeline".
• Africa News (6/12/21): Angolan opposition re-elect Adalberto Costa Junior as leader
• The Elephant (19/11/21): Freedom After Speech: Angolan Police Detain, and Beat Journalists Covering Protests - Angolan police should stop arresting and assaulting journalists and allow them to do their jobs freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Financial Times (19/10/21): African politics: Lourenço pledges to end Angola’s economic ‘storm’ - The oil-dependent economy is struggling despite a package of reforms from the president and a promise to fight corruption [bri-news, big-oil-news, economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): Angola, heavily dependent on oil, is in the throes of economic troubles and decline. Following the revolution against Portugal, the dos Santos family more-or-less ruled the nation through the ruling MPLA party, and it became steeped in corruption, and saddled itself with Chinese debt (total external debt at $40bn - which is hampering their credit rating). Their hand-picked successor (another MPLA man), Lourenço, has surprisingly pursued a fairly aggressive anti-corruption campaign (although this may be part genuine, part settling political feuds), alongside IMF-backed market liberalizing-and-austerity efforts, and privatization of public goods. Yet these efforts have curried more good will abroad than at home, where hunger is a rising issue, which could be debilitating in next year's election. Meanwhile, big international capital is starting to move in. Critics warn that Lourenço is centralizing constitutional power, ie vote counting, judicial appointments, etc, and that the middle class may turn from in the next elections, and it appears there is a chance the opposition might finally win.
• CPJ (17/9/21): Angolan editor Carlos Alberto sentenced to fine, 2 years in prison over coverage of land deal
• Al Jazeera (2/9/21): DRC gov’t says 12 people died after Angola mine tailings leak - Environment minister says Congo would ask for reparations for the damage caused without specifying an amount. [industrial-failure-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Iran, Ghana Among Those Hit Hardest By Russia’s Vaccine Delivery Delays – BBC [Angola mentioned as well]
• CBJ (27/7/21): Angolan police detain Wizi-Kongo editor Jeremias Kaboco [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera: Angola: Luanda flood death toll rises to 24, thousands displaced - More than 11,000 people affected and at least 2,300 homes flooded, provincial government says. [natural-disaster-news]

Central African Republic Updates (CAR)

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CAR currently in a civil war, with UN peacekeepers, Rwandan special forces, and Russian paramilitaries backing the government.

• Africa News (20/12/21): EU cut ties with C. African Republic over links with Russian mercenaries [eu-policy-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• CPJ (17/12/21): Central African Republic authorities hold journalist Landry Ulrich Nguéma Ngokpélé for more than 2 months [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (18/12/21): In CAR, desperation grows for mothers unable to feed children - The UN says about 42 percent of people in the Central African Republic struggle to access food daily as violence continues [social-woes-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): EU Halts C. Africa Army Training Over Wagner Influence [europe-policy-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• Africa News (15/12/21): CAR: University of Bangui teaching staff embark on 21-day strike - In the Central African capital, the university is still at a standstill. It is the third time that union have renewed their strike in a row. After periods of mobilization of three and eight days, this time, their strike is at full swing paralyzing all operations of the university until the end of the year - The stumbling block for the moment is the cost of vacation time for teachers. For the moment, the hour is paid 4,500 francs and the unions are asking that the rate be doubled so that classes can resume. [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): Alleged CAR rebel leader to face war crimes trial at ICC - ICC ‘partially’ confirms charges of war crimes against alleged Seleka leader Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, commits him to trial. [!]
• The Moscow Times (29/11/21): Russian Language Added to Central African Republic University Curriculum [russia-policy-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (17/11/21): Central African children in crosshairs, UN calls for their protection
• Al Jazeera (16/11/21): At least 11 killed as CAR troops clash with rebels - Ouham-Pende prefect says Central African Republic forces exchanged fire with rebels who had ‘infiltrated’ a market near the town of Mann. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): The Central African Republic’s presidential guard opened fire on U.N. peacekeepers in the capital, wounding 10 of them, the U.N. mission said yesterday. One person was struck and killed by a U.N. vehicle as it fled the scene. The incident occurred on Monday after a civilian officer for the U.N. mission, known as MINUSCA, entered the security perimeters of the presidential residence, according to a MINUSCA spokesperson. MINUSCA has called the shooting of the unarmed Egyptian peacekeepers near the presidential palace “deliberate and unjustifiable.” A presidential spokesperson urged calm, saying it was “an incident that we are managing,” adding that “we deplore the death of this compatriot and we offer our most saddened condolences to the family,” Jean Fernand Koena reports for AP.
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): CAR declares unilateral ceasefire in fight with armed groups - Armed groups control large swaths of territory, and about one-quarter of the nearly 5 million population has been displaced.
• Just Security (12/10/21): A pre-trial hearing at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has opened today for Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, an alleged Central African Republic leader of the Seleka rebel group, with the ICC’s chief prosecutor urging judges to confirm that evidence against the suspect is strong enough to merit putting him on trial on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes [court-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/9/21): UN withdraws Gabon peacekeepers from CAR over sex abuse claims - Gabonese defence ministry says a number of ‘exceptionally serious acts that go against military ethics and the honour of the armed forces’ reported in recent weeks.
• Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Six civilians killed, several wounded in CAR rebel attack - UN peacekeeping mission says casualties resulted from ‘large-scale attack’ by 3R armed group against army positions in a northeastern village. [civil-conflict-news, un-news]
• Just Security (30/7/21): The U.N. Security Council yesterday extended a Central African Republic (CAR) arms embargo and a targeted sanctions regime for another year, however China appealed for the measures to be removed and abstained in the vote. [un-news]
• New York Times (27/6/21): Russian Mercenaries Are Driving War Crimes in Africa, U.N. Says - An investigative report says that Russian operatives in the Central African Republic who had been billed as unarmed advisers are actually leading the fighting, including massacres of civilians. [foreign-intervention-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/6/21): MSF convoy attacked in Central African Republic, woman killed - Medical charity says female caretaker killed and three others wounded in an ambush by armed men.
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): CAR Prime Minister Firmin Ngrebada and cabinet resign - The entire cabinet steps down in the latest political crisis to hit the country, but the president’s spokesman says the PM could be asked to lead the new administration.
• Al Jazeera (9/6/21): Central African Republic charges French national with espionage - Juan Remy Quignolot also accused of illegal possession of military weapons, criminal association, harming state security and conspiracy. [espionage-news]

Democratic Republic of the Congo Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

Article reviewing the history of late-colonial to modern Congo - CounterPunch: (When you get to the relevant part, it's not made explicit, but Tshombe aligned with the Belgians)

• Africa News (27/12/21): DRC: New death toll from the Beni attack, the government accuses the ADF [!]
• New York Times (26/12/21): In Congo, Bolivia and Beyond, Where the Green Future Begins - The Times’s Race to the Future series is focused on the competition for electric-car resources that will shape the 21st century. [neo-imperialism-news, resource-news]
• The Guardian (25/12/21): Suicide bomber kills at least six in eastern Congo on Christmas Day - Attacker targeted restaurant and bar in Beni on Saturday as patrons gathered to celebrate holiday [!]
• Africa News (24/12/21): DRC: Ex-president Kabila sues NGOs over money laundering claims [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): At least three killed in eastern DRC plane crash - A local official says the death toll could be as high as five as a probe is launched to determine the cause of the crash in South Kivu province. [!]
• Africa News (20/12/21): DRC: At least four dead in Goma protests against alleged presence of Rwandan police [protest-news] [!]
• The Economist (9/12/21): Congo’s president has not kept his word - From free schools to peace in the east, Félix Tshisekedi has failed to deliver [social-woes-news, labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/12/21): Ebola outbreak in DRC’s east declared over - Authorities announce the end of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s 13th Ebola outbreak that emerged in October. [healthcare-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Presence of Uganda troops in DR Congo temporary: Tshisekedi - Earlier this month, Uganda and DRC launched a joint operation against the ADF, an armed group allied with ISIL. [!]
• Al Jazeera (11/12/21): Kidnapped Red Cross workers freed in eastern DRC - Two staff members abducted last month in North Kivu province have been freed, ICRC delegation head says. [!]
• Africa News (9/12/21): Ugandan, Congolese forces continue offensive operations in eastern DRC [!]
• Africa News (8/12/21): DR Congo's army, Monusco agree to form joint operations in the east [!]
• Africa News (7/12/21): DRC court grants provisional release to former chief of staff [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): US slaps sanctions on DRC national over Gertler ties - DRC national Alain Mukonda is accused by the US Treasury of opening bank accounts for Dan Gertler and making payments into proxy bank accounts for him and a close associate of his. [us-policy-news] [!]
• Africa News (4/12/21): DRC: Pres. Tshisekedi replaces board of directors at leading mining agency [!]
• New York Times (3/12/21): Congo Ousts Mining Leader in a Cloud of Corruption Claims - The country’s president removed Albert Yuma Mulimbi as chairman of the state mining firm. Cobalt in Congo is a crucial resource in the global clean energy revolution. [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (2/12/21): Beijing asks Democratic Republic of Congo to help gain release of kidnapped Chinese miners - Foreign Minister Wang Yi makes the request of his DRC counterpart at a meeting on the sidelines of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation - Two Chinese citizens were killed and five kidnapped in a militia attack on a gold mine on November 21 [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera (29/11/21): More than 20 killed in attack on DR Congo displaced persons camp - At least 22 people were killed in an attack on a camp for internally displaced people in Ituri province
• The Economist (27/11/21): Congo’s government has banned songs that annoy it - President Tshisekedi is averse to adverse verse [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Africa News (29/11/21): Flood damage exposes Kinshasa's uncontrolled city planning
• Just Security (30/11/21: The Ugandan military has launched air and artillery raids against the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in an operation agreed with Congolese forces
• Al Jazeera (22/11/21): At least 12 killed in eastern DR Congo attack - Official in Ituri province says six children, two women among those killed when CODECO rebels raided Drodro village.
• Africa News (22/11/21): Police arrest demonstrators in Kinshasa [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Telesur (21/11/21): Uganda To Deploy Region-Backed Anti-Terrorist Actions - The Museveni administration is in talks with Democratic Republic of Congo in efforts to curtail the operations of the "Allied Democratic Forces," an affiliate of the Islamic State in central Africa. Note about Telesur
• Africa News (21/11/21): DRC: One policeman killed, Five Chinese kidnapped in gold mine attack
• New York Times (20/11/21): How Hunter Biden’s Firm Helped Secure Cobalt for the Chinese - The president’s son was part owner of a venture involved in the $3.8 billion purchase by a Chinese conglomerate of one of the world’s largest cobalt deposits. The metal is a key ingredient in batteries for electric vehicles. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): DR Congo President Felix Tshisekedi orders mining licences audit - Congolese leader says measure is aimed at combatting fraud within the lucrative sector
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (5/8/19): Patrice Lumumba Against the Empire in the Congo ft. Milton Allimadi (Illicit History) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (19/11/21): Document leak shows Kabila family, associates looted DRC funds [corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news, leak-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): Thousands rally in DRC capital against electoral commission pick - Protesters in Kinshasa reject last month’s appointment of a new poll body head by President Felix Tshisekedi [protest-news, corruption-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (11/11/21): ‘Wake-up call’ to assist DR Congo battle food insecurity [social-woes-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (9/11/21): Thousands flee DR Congo fighting for Uganda [immigrant-news]
• Jacobin (7/11/21): The CIA Undermined Postcolonial Africa From the Start - From undermining national liberation leaders to playing a central role in the assassination of Congolese radical Patrice Lumumba, not enough attention is paid to the CIA’s shameful role in Africa. A new book aims to correct that. [us-policy-news, dark-security-news, history-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news] - Recently, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo suspended a number of Chinese companies for illegal mining activities and Beijing responded by ordering the companies to leave the region and promising sanctions if the companies are found guilty of violations. This case demonstrates that the Chinese government is sensitive to public backlash.
• The Guardian (8/11/21): ‘Like slave and master’: DRC miners toil for 30p an hour to fuel electric cars - Congolese workers describe a system of abuse, precarious employment and paltry wages – all to power the green vehicle revolution [capitalist-farce-news, labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): Gunmen seize villages in DRC near Uganda, Rwanda borders - Overnight, gunmen have seized the villages of Tshanzu and Runyoni, the last redoubts of the M23 group before their defeat years ago
• Al Jazeera (7/11/21): ‘You make money by finding men’: DR Congo’s gold rush sex trade - In an insecure part of eastern DRC where some of the world’s most valuable minerals are mined, impoverished women and girls sell their bodies to put food on the table.
• Just Security (29/10/21): The E.U. Commission suspended funding to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) programs in the Democratic Republic of Congo, following concerns over the WHO’s handling of a sexual abuse scandal
• Al-Monitor (27/10/21): Egypt boosts medical cooperation with African Nile Basin countries - Egypt is expanding its influence in the Nile Basin region, through the establishment of medical and pharmaceutical centers, amid the stalled negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
• Just Security (26/10/21): Ugandan authorities have said that a suicide bomber was behind an explosion on a bus in the capital, Kampala, yesterday. The attacker was “on a wanted list” and was a member of the Islamist militant group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which operates from neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, a police spokesperson also said
• Al Jazeera (22/10/21): Schoolchildren storm DRC parliament over striking teachers’ pay - Hundreds of students demand the government raise teachers’ pay to end a strike that has put a halt on lessons. [labor-news]
• Just Security (22/10/21): Attackers have killed at least 16 civilians in three eastern villages in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Thousands protest in DR Congo to demand neutral poll body - Demonstrations were sparked by concerns over the independence of the electoral commission.
• Al Jazeera (9/10/21): New Ebola case confirmed in eastern DR Congo - Three-year-old boy tests positive and dies near Beni just five months after the latest epidemic in the country was declared over.
• Al Jazeera (9/10/21): Over 50 dead, more missing after boat sinks on Congo River - Provincial authorities in DRC say 51 bodies recovered and nearly 70 believed to be missing after makeshift vessel capsizes.
• The Guardian (29/9/21): Witch-hunt murders surge in Democratic Republic of Congo - Eight women have been burned to death or lynched in South Kivu province this month, say officials
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): Summary killings, human-rights abuses surge in eastern DRC - According to the UN’s Joint Human Rights Office, 293 civilians were killed in August, including 63 women and 24 children.
• The Guardian (28/9/21): ‘Humbled and heartbroken’: WHO finds its Ebola staff abused women and girls - Inquiry commissioned by WHO details sexual abuse, including rape allegations, during DRC outbreak
• CPJ (24/9/21): Congolese authorities detain AFP correspondent Pierre Sosthène Kambidi without charge
• CPJ (22/9/21): Democratic Republic of Congo journalist Daniel Michombero’s home raided by armed men
• Al Jazeera (15/9/21): DRC police beat reporter in crackdown against opposition protests - Media workers strongly condemn beating of journalist Patient Ligodi who was covering protest called by opposition leader Martin Fayulu.
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): DR Congo president seeks review of mining contracts with China - Democratic Republic of the Congo is seeking what it says is a fairer share of its vast mineral wealth. [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/9/21): Dozens killed in northeast DR Congo by suspected ADF rebels - The attack occurred in the Ituri region on Saturday, officials said, as the restive region sees a rise in deadly rebel attacks.
• Al Jazeera (2/9/21): DRC gov’t says 12 people died after Angola mine tailings leak - Environment minister says Congo would ask for reparations for the damage caused without specifying an amount. [industrial-failure-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): Four killed as attackers ambush east DRC convoy, torch vehicles - More than a dozen vehicles set on fire in latest eastern DRC attack blamed on the Allied Democratic Forces armed group.
• Al Jazeera (28/8/21): Several civilians burned, hacked to death by rebels in DR Congo - The deadly attack happened in Kasanzi village in the Beni territory of North Kivu province, a local chief said. [ADF]
• South China Morning Post (15/8/21): Why China is making a big play for Congolese cobalt – and other critical minerals - A number of Chinese companies have interests in DRC operations mining primary commodities for electric vehicle batteries - The US needs to rethink supply chains if it is to be competitive in the future green economy, analyst says [bri-news]
• The Guardian (13/8/21): UN ‘gravely concerned’ by reports of mass rape in DRC - Hundreds of sexual assaults reported in south-eastern Tanganyika province as armed groups fight over goldmines
• Al Jazeera (3/8/21): More than dozen people killed by rebels in east DR Congo - At least 16 people knifed to death by suspected ADF fighters in Ituri province, say military and local sources [islamic-terrorism-news].
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Dozens killed in fuel truck accident in DR Congo - The fuel truck collided with a crowded bus near Kibuba village about 80km from the capital, Kinshasa, police said.
• Al Jazeera (23/7/21): Sixteen civilians killed in eastern DRC ambush [allegedly by ADF] - One child among those killed as they were returning from a weekly market in North Kivu province. [islamic-terrorism-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/7/21): At least 10 killed in suspected ADF attack in DRC’s Beni - Attackers set houses ablaze and open fire on civilians in an overnight raid in Beni’s Beu district. [islamic-terrorism-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/6/21): DR Congo imposes curfew in Beni after weekend bombings - Curfew imposed after three bomb blasts rocked the eastern city over the weekend, leaving at least two people injured. [civil-conflict-news]
• The Economist World This Week (5/6/21): The Democratic Republic of Congo said that 32 of its MPs had died of covid-19. The reported total for the entire country of 80m is only 786 deaths. So either MPs are very unlucky or there is massive undercounting among less prominent folk, and a far worse pandemic than official numbers admit.
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): At least 50 killed in attacks on two DR Congo villages - DRC army blamed ADF for the attack, but other sources say attacks may have been ethnic in origin.
• Democracy Now (28/5/21): Up to 1 Million Ordered to Evacuate Goma, DRC Amid Fears of Another Volcanic Eruption
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Volcano aftershocks rock east DRC, raise fears of fresh eruption - Death toll increases to 32 as lava lake in Mount Nyiragongo’s crater appears to have refilled, prompting fears of new fissures or another eruption.
• Al Jazeera (23/5/21): DR Congo: Goma ‘spared’ as lava from volcano halts outside city - Region’s military governor says the lava flow stopped on the outskirts of the eastern city as thousands evacuated Goma.; Democracy Now (24/5/21): 15 Dead, Thousands Left Homeless in Democratic Republic of Congo as Volcano Erupts Near Goma
• Al Jazeera (22/5/21): DR Congo’s Nyiragongo volcano erupts, triggering panic - Power cut in the city of Goma, as some residents leave their homes and head towards the nearby border with Rwanda.
• Al Jazeera (15/5/21): Thirty sentenced to death over anti-police clashes in DR Congo
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): DR Congo declares end of Ebola outbreak - Authorities say disease has been contained thanks to vaccination drive as they continue to monitor situation.
• Democracy Now (4/7/21): U.N. Warns One-Third of Population of Democratic Republic of the Congo Facing Acute Hunger [27 million people]

Gambia Updates

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• Al Jazeera (28/12/21): Gambia court rejects challenge to Barrow election victory - The United Democratic Party of political veteran Ousainou Darboe said the election campaign had been tainted by corruption and bribery. [court-news, electoral-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (25/12/21): The Gambia panel recommends ex-President Yahya Jammeh face trial - Truth and reconciliation commission says the former leader was responsible for a spree of killings, torture and rapes during his 22-year rule. [crime-news, court-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (14/12/21): The Gambia opposition asks Supreme Court to annul poll results - Opposition United Democratic Party says corruption and bribery marred the campaign. - The opposition has yet to provide any evidence of wrongdoing. [electoral-news, court-news] [!]
• Africa News (8/12/21): Freshly re-elected president of The Gambia lays out plans for second mandate [electoral-news]
• Africa News (7/12/21): The Gambia opposition leader Ousainou Darboe calls for calm after election results [electoral-news]
• Just Security (6/12/21): Gambian President Adama Barrow has easily won re-election, Gambian authorities have said, in the first vote for decades held without long-term leader Yahya Jammeh. In Gambia’s last election, Barrow defeated Jammeh, who was forced into exile after refusing to accept the result. BBC News reports. [electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/12/21): Gambian President Barrow on course for big win: Early results - Partial results from most districts show incumbent president well ahead of his main competitor Ousainou Darboe. [electoral-news] [!]
• Africa News (25/11/21): Gambia govt urged to pursue crimes under ex-dictator Yahya Jammeh
• Al Jazeera (19/11/21): The Gambia’s ex-ruler Jammeh ignores president’s campaign warning - In a controversial intervention, exiled Yahya Jammeh speaks remotely at public meeting of candidate he has endorsed, accusing his successor of ‘destroy[ing] the country’.
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Greenpeace stops fish oil tanker in Channel in protest over African food insecurity - Fishmeal exports to EU from west Africa have grown sharply, depleting stocks and posing threat to livelihoods

Ghana Updates

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• The Guardian (21/12/21): Punches thrown in Ghana parliament over electronic payments tax - Proposed levy has been challenged by opposition since it was first proposed last month [social-woes-news, tax-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Guardian (1/9/21): British journalist killed by armed robbers in Ghana - Syed Taalay Ahmed, who worked for Muslim Television Ahmadiyya International, was ambushed in Tamale
• The Guardian (5/8/21): Ghana court frees 21 arrested for attending May LGBTQ+ event - Acquittal comes after attorney general said evidence insufficient to prosecute for unlawful assembly [lgbtq-news]
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Ghana’s #FixTheCountry protesters take to Accra’s streets - Lead by social media activists, the protest on Twitter has been highlighting economic problems and government management.
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Iran, Ghana Among Those Hit Hardest By Russia’s Vaccine Delivery Delays – BBC
• The Guardian (23/7/21): Ghana: anti-gay bill proposing 10-year prison sentences sparks outrage - Bill could mean 10 years in prison for LGBTQ+ people and those who support their rights
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• The Moscow Times (19/7/21): Kenya’s Failed Sputnik V Deal Used Emirati Resale Scheme - Documents obtained by The Moscow Times show a failed agreement used the same controversial resale deal linked to a royal middleman in the United Arab Emirates. [+ coverage of similar fiasco in Ghana]
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Ghana opposition supporters march against killings, lawlessness - Hundreds of protesters demanded the government provide better security to citizens amid several high-profile killings.

Guinea Updates

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• Africa News (23/12/21): Former coup leader returns to Guinea
• Africa News (8/12/21): Guinea: junta dismisses head of the Central Bank
• Africa News (29/11/21): Conakry stadium massacre: Guinea "prepares" for trial
• Africa News (20/11/21): Guinea's transitional president promises smooth transition of power
• Jacobin (7/11/21): The CIA Undermined Postcolonial Africa From the Start - From undermining national liberation leaders to playing a central role in the assassination of Congolese radical Patrice Lumumba, not enough attention is paid to the CIA’s shameful role in Africa. A new book aims to correct that. [us-policy-news, dark-security-news, history-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news] - $3.6 billion investment into the aluminum sector - In Guinea, reports Aboubacar Diallo of the Centre du Commerce in Conakry, China is providing $20 billion in infrastructure funding in exchange for mining concessions, an agreement that will last from 2017 to 2036. China has already invested in several hydropower plants. But the focus of its interest now is access to critical ores like iron and bauxite as well as a refinery to turn that bauxite into aluminum and a port to export the metal. In exchange, China has pledged to reconstruct a major road at the cost of $2.1 billion, rebuild four universities at a cost of $300 million, rehabilitate roads and sanitation in the capital of Conakry, and set up an electricity grid for $250 million. Only the road has been started, however, and the other three major projects have been delayed. - "Local law requires restoration of the land," Aboubacar Diallo reports, "but none of it has been rehabilitated." Guinea also has mining laws that require compensation for land taken for such operations, yet companies have seized arable land and displaced people without providing compensation. Rice is the major crop, occupying nearly one-third of the arable land, but the discharge of lubricants and waste water from bauxite mining has compromised this food production. Dust from the mining has polluted the air, and there has been sound pollution as well from blasting and the use of heavy equipment.
• Just Security (3/11/21): Ethiopia has said that it is “extremely disappointed” about U.S. plans to withdraw a deal for duty-free exports to the United States. U.S. policymakers are planning to suspend duty-free rights for Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea under the African Growth and Opportunities Act to address concerns about human rights abuses. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/10/21): Guinea’s military junta leader has announced that a senior international civil servant, Mohamed Beavogui, will serve as prime minister as Guinea’s government transitions to civilian rule following the military coup last month.
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Guinea refuses to allow deposed president to leave the country - Military says detained ex-President Alpha Conde will not be allowed to leave Guinea after the coup, defying regional pressure.
• Democracy Now (17/9/21): West African Bloc Sanctions Military Coup Leaders in Guinea
• Al Jazeera (16/9/21): Guinea coup leaders meet mining execs as ECOWAS talks next steps - Mining company representatives in Guinea say they held ‘promising’ talks with Colonel Mamady Doumbouya as regional bloc discusses country’s post-coup political future.
• Just Security (15/9/21): Guinea’s opposition leaders have voiced support for the country’s new military rulers, as a four-day summit, which is aimed at chartering Guinea’s future following a military coup just over a week ago, began today
• The Economist (7/9/21): A coup in Guinea adds fuel to aluminium’s red-hot rally - But developments in China, not Africa, could matter more for the metal’s price
• South China Morning Post (12/9/21): Guinea coup adds to growing knots in China’s belt and road plans - It is the latest in a series of recent military takeovers in a strategic region for Chinese trade ambitions - China is a key player in the Guinean economy, buying most of its bauxite and with a key stake in its iron ore reserves [bri-news]
• New York Times (10/9/21): U.S. Forces Were Training the Guinean Soldiers Who Took Off to Stage a Coup - American military officials have denounced the ouster of a president in West Africa, and said they had no warning of what their students were planning. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/9/21): Guinea’s military junta, which seized power in the country earlier this week, has said that it has ordered the central bank and other banks to freeze all government accounts.
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): ECOWAS suspends Guinea after coup, says it will send mediators - During virtual summit, regional bloc demands return to constitutional order and Alpha Conde’s immediate release.
• The Guardian (5/9/21): Guinean soldiers claim to have seized power in coup attempt - Elite army unit says it has deposed president Alpha Condé but defence ministry says attack has been put down
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): WHO says ‘no evidence’ Ivory Coast patient had Ebola - New lab analysis shows Guinean woman who previously tested positive for the virus did not have Ebola, the UN health agency says.
• The Economist World This Week (12/8/21): Guinea confirmed west Africa’s first case of Marburg virus, which kills between a quarter and nine-tenths of those it infects. The case was detected near the borders of Liberia and Sierra Leone, roughly where an outbreak of Ebola in 2014 killed almost 12,000 people.
• The Guardian (19/6/21): Guinea Ebola outbreak declared over by WHO - Resurgence of virus in west Africa infected 16 people and killed 12 since outbreak in February

Guinea Bissau Updates

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• South China Morning Post (28/11/21): China expands African reach as Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau join belt and road ahead of key regional forum - President Xi Jinping to deliver keynote speech via video link at Forum on China-Africa Cooperation ministerial meeting starting on November 29 - Eritrea deal cements China’s foothold in Horn of Africa and Red Sea, while Guinea-Bissau access will boost its maritime interests along West African coast [bri-news, china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Jacobin (17/10/19): The Socialist Agronomist Who Helped End Portuguese Colonialism - Before his assassination in 1973, Amílcar Cabral was one of Africa’s leading anti-colonialists — a brilliant agronomist and socialist whose leadership of the armed struggle against Portuguese rule brought the empire to its knees. [socialist-news, history-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (6/10/21): The U.S. is offering a $5 million dollar reward for information that leads to the arrest of notorious Guinea Bissauan drug trafficker Antonio Indjai after an attempt to lure the drug trafficker into international waters on his yacht failed [us-policy-news]
• CPJ (31/8/21): Guinea-Bissau coast guard officer assaults radio journalist Emerson Gomes

Ivory Coast Updates

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• Workers World (10/12/21): People of the Sahel oppose imperialism [neo-imperialism-news]
• Africa News (11/12/21): Ivory Coast announces partnership with Italian energy giant ENI [big-oil-news]
• Africa News (23/11/21): Ivory Coast plans to strengthen military force, to recruit 3,000 soldiers
• Financial Times (30/9/21): Ivory Coast’s president warns against Russian security group’s involvement in Mali - Alassane Ouattara says hiring Wagner is not the answer in fight against Islamist insurgents Paywall Summary: not much to summarize, title says most if it. The reason that Mali is looking for Russian aid is, it seems, because France is winding down their operation there (perhaps in response to a recent coup in Mali), but jihadists still pose a threat. But Wagner (the Russian security group) is known for committing war crimes and atrocities, so they aren't exactly the people you want around.
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): WHO says ‘no evidence’ Ivory Coast patient had Ebola - New lab analysis shows Guinean woman who previously tested positive for the virus did not have Ebola, the UN health agency says.
• Al Jazeera (31/8/21): Outcry in Ivory Coast over televised ‘rape demonstration’ - NCI TV channel says presenter suspended amid nationwide backlash over scene with man using mannequin to simulate rape.
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Ivory Coast Records First Case of Ebola in 25 Years
• Democracy Now (2/7/21): 10 Sentenced for Child Trafficking in Ivory Coast Cocoa Industry as Corporations Go Unpunished

Equatorial Guinea Updates

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• South China Morning Post (10/12/21): How Equatorial Guinea became a backdrop for China-US rivalry - Reports suggest that the African nation of Equatorial Guinea could become home to a Chinese military base - ‘If China were to establish a naval supply station … it would be different from what the US has imagined,’ says state-backed Global Times [us-policy-news, china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (6/12/21): Classified U.S. intelligence reports are suggesting that China intends to establish its first permanent military presence on the Atlantic Ocean in the tiny Central African country of Equatorial Guinea, raising the prospect that Chinese warships would be able to rearm and refit opposite the U.S. East Coast. Officials at the White House and the Pentagon, including Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer, have urged Equatorial Guinea to rebuff Beijing’s overtures, according to U.S. officials. Michael M. Phillips reports for the Wall Street Journal. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]

Eswatini Updates (formerly Swaziland)

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• Al Jazeera (22/10/21): Eswatini bans protests as tensions flare amid pro-democracy calls - The ban comes as the absolute monarchy is gripped by a new round of deadly protests calling for democratic reforms. [protest-news, surveillance-and-cesorship-news, labor-news, leftist-news]
• Just Security (21/10/21): Eswatini’s government has directed the country’s main telecoms operator, MTN, to shut down Facebook in a bid to curb pro-democracy protests and demands for major constitutional reforms in the country which has the last absolute monarchy in Africa
• Just Security (15/10/21): In Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland), Africa’s last absolute monarchy, the military has been deployed to quash pro-democracy school protests. Anger has been building against King Mswati III for years as he has consistently ignored calls for democratic reforms
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Eswatini deploys army to quell pro-democracy school protests - Pro-democracy groups report several arrests amid protests in Africa’s last absolute monarchy. [socialist-news, protest-news]
• Democracy Now (6/7/21): Eswatini Protesters Killed, Tortured Amid Demands for End to Absolute Monarchy

Gabon Updates

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• Africa News (21/12/21): Gabon's football coach arrested for sexual abuse of under-age boys [!]
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Al Jazeera (15/9/21): UN withdraws Gabon peacekeepers from CAR over sex abuse claims - Gabonese defence ministry says a number of ‘exceptionally serious acts that go against military ethics and the honour of the armed forces’ reported in recent weeks.

Kenya Updates

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(wiki)

Maps:Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Africa News (29/12/21): Brawl erupts in Kenya parliament over political parties bill [!]
• Al Jazeera (22/12/21): ‘Heading into the worst’: How drought drives conflict in Kenya - Severe drought and hunger exacerbating conflict over dwindling natural resources along Kenya’s border with Uganda and South Sudan. [disaster-news, social-woes-news, climate-change-news] [!]
• Africa News (14/12/21): Kenyan court suspends government's Covid vaccine certificate plan [covid-news] [!]
• Africa News (14/12/21): Bobi Wine accuses president Museveni of house arrest [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Kenyan opposition leader Odinga announces fifth bid for president - Odinga says he is committed to building ‘democratic and progressive Kenya’ as battle for Kenyatta’s successor heats up. [politics-news] [!]
• The Elephant (10/12/21): Safeguarding Kenya’s Electoral Democracy in the Digital Age: Regulating Hate Speech and Incitement to Violence - The government may easily find itself turning to internet shutdowns to mitigate the perceived harm of inciteful rhetoric or to silence criticism. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, far-right-news] [!]
• The Guardian (4/12/21): Kenya: more than 20 drown as bus is swept away in flooded river - Vehicle travelling to wedding keels over and sinks in fast-flowing waters in Kitui County
• Africa Is a Country (19/11/21): Kenya is Europe’s dumpsite - On the back of a failed COP26 climate conference: how e-waste dumping by European countries in Africa contribute significantly to climate change. [neo-imperialism-news, industrial-failure-news]
• Africa News (25/11/21): Case closed: Kenya drops corruption charges against FA boss Nick Mwendwa [corruption-news]
• The Elephant (21/11/21): Punitive Government Policies Jeopardise Kenya’s Food Security - The government is criminalising Kenyan farmers and leaving the country’s food security at the mercy of multinational corporations [food-security-news, privatization-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): ‘We will all die’: In Kenya, prolonged drought takes heavy toll - Absence of rainfall pushes pastoralists and their livestock to the brink of disaster, with 2.4 million people predicted to struggle to find food [climate-change-news]
• Democracy Now (19/11/21): 18,000 Cut Off by Flooding in British Columbia; [2.4] Millions of Kenyans at Risk of Hunger Amid Drought [climate-change-news, social-woes-news]
• The Guardian (10/11/21): Family of Kenyan woman allegedly murdered by UK soldier to sue MoD - Agnes Wanjiru’s family instruct law firm to demand answers over her death
• Just Security (18/10/21): An alleged serial child killer who escaped from a Nairobi police station last week, was found by schoolchildren and then beaten to death by a mob in his hometown, following a national manhunt.
• Democracy Now (15/10/21): Kenyan Police Arrest Husband of Murdered, Record-Breaking Runner Agnes Tirop
• Just Security (14/10/21): A man who confessed to killing more than 10 children in Kenya has escaped from police cells in Nairobi
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): Kenya rejects ICJ’s verdict on Somalia maritime border row - Nairobi slammed the UN court after it gave Somalia control over an oil and gas rich chunk of the Indian Ocean.
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Top UN court sides with Somalia in sea border dispute with Kenya - ICJ rules largely in favour of Somalia in setting a maritime boundary in an area believed to be rich in oil and gas.
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): Kenya’s cynical offensive against the ICJ - Undermining international institutions comes at a price. [corruption-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/10/21): National media failing Kenyans on Pandora Papers - Kenyan media are doing a disservice to the public by framing the revelations as an issue of legality rather than ethics.
• Just Security (4/10/21): The family of Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta secretly owned a network of offshore companies for decades, according to the leaked Pandora Papers
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Just Security (20/9/21): A Kenyan judge has ruled that four police officers and a police informer have a case to answer in the killing of a human rights lawyer.
• The Guardian (15/9/21): Drought puts 2.1 million Kenyans at risk of starvation - National disaster declared as crops fail after poor rains and locusts, while ethnic conflicts add to crisis [food-security-news, climate-change-news]
• Workers World (6/8/21): Women’s League Convention of the Communist Party of Kenya holds inaugural meeting
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Kenya: One killed in protests over brothers’ deaths in custody - Violence broke out after the bodies of brothers, arrested on the charge of breaking COVID curfew, were discovered.
• The Moscow Times (19/7/21): Kenya’s Failed Sputnik V Deal Used Emirati Resale Scheme - Documents obtained by The Moscow Times show a failed agreement used the same controversial resale deal linked to a royal middleman in the United Arab Emirates.
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Fuel truck explosion kills several in Kenya - Many also injured as overturned petrol tanker explodes in west Kenya when crowds thronged to collect the spilling fuel
• The Guardian (16/7/21): Environment activist shot dead outside Nairobi home after death threats - Kenyan president condemns killing of Joannah Stutchbury, who protested against building in Kiambu forest
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Kenya’s constitutional struggle: From Mboya to Saba Saba to BBI - As another constitution overhaul is being attempted, Kenyans need to continue their struggle to preserve it.
• Al Jazeera (3/6/21): Qatar releases Kenyan man charged with ‘spreading disinformation’ - Bidali, a security guard who blogged about life as a migrant worker in Qatar, was charged with receiving payment ‘by a foreign agent’.
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Qatar charges Kenyan national over ‘spreading disinformation’ - Malcolm Bidali, a Kenyan security guard who blogged about life as a migrant worker, was arrested on May 5.
• Al Jazeera: Kenya says Dadaab, Kakuma refugee camps [housing around 430,000+ refugees] to close next year - The announcement follows a meeting between President Kenyatta and UN refugee agency chief Filippo Grandi.; 'Speaking to Al Jazeera earlier this month, residents in both camps had urged the Kenyan government to abandon its plans.'

Lesotho Updates

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• CPJ (14/12/21): Lesotho police arrest a radio presenter, suspend one station’s license, and raid another [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Africa News (1/12/21): Lesotho's former PM accused of murder
• The Guardian (1/9/21): Lesotho murder rate ranked sixth worst in world as judicial system breaks down - Killings of police officers in tiny mountain kingdom has added to sense of ‘lack of consequences’, say analysts

Madagascar Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Madagascar shipwreck death toll rises to 85 - Maritime authorities say 50 people have been rescued after boat sank with 138 people on board. [!]
• Al Jazeera (22/12/21): Madagascar police chief swims for 12 hours after helicopter crash - Serge Gelle, 57, swam to safety after his helicopter crashed while visiting the site of a shipwreck that killed dozens. [!]
• Africa News (17/12/21): Court in Madagascar convicts five people for plotting a coup [!]
• Africa News (16/12/21): Malagasy prosecutor seeks life imprisonment for five accused of coup attempt [!]
• Africa News (7/12/21): Madagascar: Trial of alleged masterminds of attempted coup begins
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Poverty, not climate breakdown, caused Madagascar’s food crisis, finds study - But scientists say ‘moral imperative’ remains to prepare vulnerable populations for increasingly extreme weather [social-woes-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news] - Illegal fishing and mining are a problem as well in Madagascar, where China is a major trade partner. "The Chinese use mercury for gold exploration even though it's prohibited," reports Volahery Andriamanantenansoa of the Center for Research and Support for Alternatives to Development—Indian Ocean. "The Malagasy government doesn't have the means to do anything about it." - But the principal mining interest China now has in Madagascar is rare earth minerals. Reducing the mining of these minerals in China itself, because of adverse effects on environment and health, Beijing is eager to find other sources of these critical inputs into high-tech products. In Madagascar, China expects to extract from 300-800 tons of rare earth minerals during the pilot phase of its extraction. But the removal of only one ton of such minerals generates 1,000 tons of contaminated water and 2,000 tons of toxic waste. Over the full lifetime of the project, which could be 40-50 years, that would total an astonishing 500 million tons of poisoned water and one billion tons of toxic waste. "This is simply catastrophic," Volahery says. The mining will have a devastating impact on the rich biodiversity of the region, adversely affect the tourism sector, and undermine key agricultural products like vanilla and coffee.
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• Democracy Now (26/8/21): Madagascar on Brink of World’s First “Climate Change Famine” [climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/7/21): ‘Nothing left’: A catastrophe in Madagascar’s famine-hit south - More than one million people need emergency food and nutrition assistance, with 14,000 already in ‘catastrophic conditions’.
• Al Jazeera (23/7/21): French person among 6 held over plot to kill Madagascar president - Public security minister says those arrested also included two Malagasy and two Malagasy and French bi-nationals.
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Madagascar says it foiled plot to kill President Andry Rajoelina - Foreign nationals among those arrested over plan to ‘kill and neutralise’ senior political figures, attorney general says.
• Democracy Now (25/6/21): Climate Crisis Pushes 1 Million People in Madagascar to “Edge of Starvation”
• Al Jazeera: Starving Malagasy forced to eat leaves, locusts for survival - Near-total disappearance of food sources has created a ‘full-blown nutrition emergency’ in southern Madagascar, World Food Programme warns.

Malawi Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• The Guardian (23/12/21): Mandatory Covid jabs in Malawi ‘violate human rights’, say civil society groups - Measure aimed at frontline workers to reduce spread of Omicron variant may increase unrest in country with low vaccine take-up, critics warn [covid-news]
• Africa News (26/11/21): Malawi: Police break protests against rising cost of living [protest-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, social-woes-news]
• The Guardian (26/11/21): Return to the refugee camp: Malawi orders thousands back to ‘congested’ Dzaleka - People who’ve integrated into society are expected to return to the country’s oldest refugee camp, as cost of living and anti-refugee sentiment rises [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Malawi’s ex-deputy speaker shoots himself dead in parliament - Clement Chiwaya, 50, killed himself inside the parliament building in Lilongwe.
• The Guardian (30/8/21): ‘Everything is changing’: the struggle for food as Malawi’s Lake Chilwa shrinks - Prof Sosten Chiotha taking samples from the dry bed of Lake Chilwa, Malawi. He says the lake is drying out more frequently as the climate crisis causes more extreme weather events - The livelihoods of 1.5 million people are at risk as the lake’s occasional dry spells occur ever more frequently [ climate-change-news]
• The Guardian (28/6/21): Malawi’s LBGTQ+ community celebrates first Pride parade - Homosexuality remains illegal in the country, where a conviction carries a jail term of up to 14 years
• Al Jazeera (19/5/21): Malawi destroys nearly 20,000 expired COVID-19 shots - Malawi burns 19,610 doses of expired AstraZeneca vaccines, saying the move would boost public confidence in jabs.

Mauritius Updates

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• Al Jazeera (3/8/21): Evidence points to secret Indian navy base on Mauritian island - Analysis of data suggests construction of airstrip and jetty for military use as India expands influence towards Africa.

Mozambique Updates

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(wiki, Insurgency in Cabo Delgado)

Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Moscow Times (24/12/21): Prigozhin Bankrolls New Movie About Russian ‘Instructors’ in Mozambique - “Granit” is the latest installment of films linked to Prigozhin that depict Russian mercenaries abroad. [russia-policy-news, media-news]
• Africa News (23/12/21): Remains of SA soldier killed in Mozambique handed over to family
• Africa Is A Country (17/12/21): Ignorance, denial and insurgency in Mozambique - A new and different state is necessary to manage the complex problems in the region, but is it possible under the current regime that has fed the conflict? [corruption-news, neo-imperialism-news, big-oil-news]
• Africa News (16/12/21): Mozambique: President Nyusi warns of restrictions to the unvaccinated [covid-news] [!]
• Africa News (13/12/21): Mozambique mobilizes young adults to get vaccinated against Covid-19 [covid-news]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): UK ‘embarrassed’ into funding Mozambique gas project, court hears - Friends of the Earth cites documents suggesting UK’s reputation could suffer if it pulled $1.15bn of promised support [big-oil-news, corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Elephant (26/11/21): Agricultural Productivity as Performance: A Tale of Two Mozambican Corridors - Agricultural corridors in Mozambique emerge when international funders and investors, national elites, local bureaucrats and smallholder farmers overstate the success of agricultural projects. [food-security-news, privatization-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Jacobin (12/11/15): The Worst Company in the World - Brazil’s Vale corporation masks brutal exploitation with the language of South-South solidarity. [capitalist-farce-news, labor-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi has appointed a new interior minister and minister for national defense, having sacked both previous ministers this week. Arsenia Felicidade Felix Massingue was appointed as the country’s first female interior minister and Cristóvão Artur Chume was appointed as the new minister for national defense.
• Just Security (11/11/21): Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi has sacked the country’s national defense minister, Jaime Augusto Neto, a day after Nyusi fired the interior minister, Amade Miquidade. “The president has not explained why he has fired the country’s top defense and security leaders. It’s believed that the decision has to do with the increased cases of kidnapping, murder, terrorism and corruption, as well as a rising number of road accidents,” Jose Tembe reports for BBC News.
• New York Times (10/11/21): Mozambique’s Former Finance Minister Will Face Corruption Charges in U.S. - A judge overturned the South African government’s decision to send the minister back to Mozambique, where civil society groups say his political clout will protect him. [us-policy-news, corruption-news, court-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (27/10/21): World Bank to support reconstruction plan for Cabo Delgado in Mozambique [neo-imperialism-news]
• CPJ (25/10/21): Mozambique police assault, repeatedly detain reporter Armando Nenane [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• Financial Times (19/10/21): Credit Suisse pays $475m in fines to settle Mozambique ‘tuna bonds’ case - Swiss bank reaches deal with four regulators over 2013 scandal as it struggles to draw line under past missteps [capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news] Paywall Summary (?): First, Credit Suisse is in trouble for corporate spying. Second, they're in trouble for a shady bond ordeal in Mozambique... and are paying Western finance regulators (ie SEC) for their crimes to the tune of several packages of hundreds of millions of dollars each. In Mozambique, they set up $2bn in bonds/loans using state guarantees and no Mozambique parliamentary approval; the purpose was allegedly for a "state tuna fishing fleet and [to] develop maritime security after the country discovered offshore natural gas", and companies ended up using these loans to buy boats from a Gulf shipbuilder, and kickbacks and corruption abounded with this money. Credit Suisse pleaded guilty to handling kickbacks. These loans were kept secret, and when discovered in 2016, they sunk the economy as donors cut off aid. The govt estimates this fallout put 1.9m+ Mozambicans into poverty.
• CPJ (8/10/21): Mozambique police beat and detain journalists covering demonstrations [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Financial Times (3/10/21): Rwanda flexes muscles in fight against terror in Mozambique - A rare dispatch from the frontline shows how Kigali has turned around conflict that held up Total LNG project Paywall Summary: Rwandan forces, who are well disciplined and professional by regional standards, have been highly effective at containing the local jihadist forces, opening the way for fossil fuel interests to continue multi-billion dollar project developments. Speculation abounds that Rwanda sent troops to Mozambique in return for French investment (French oil company Total has eyes on the largest of projects in Mozambique, a gas project valued at $20bn). Rwanda also has forces in South Sudan and the Central African Republic. These efforts come as Rwanda also pursues critics across the continent, killing and persecuting them.
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): In Mozambique, Kagame says Rwandan troops’ work not over - Rwandan president says his country’s force will help secure and rebuild Cabo Delgado areas destroyed by years-long armed campaign.
• Left Voice (16/9/21): How France and Total Are Militarizing Mozambique - Will the militarization of Cabo Delgado, Mozambique, where the French oil and gas giant Total has invested nearly 20 billion euros, overcome the Islamist insurgency? Is the country becoming the new Mali of southern Africa? [neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/8/21): Rwanda, Mozambique forces recapture port city from rebels - Mocimboa da Praia, home to one of Africa’s biggest natural gas projects, retaken from rebels, the Rwandan army says.
• The Economist World This Week (31/7/21): Soldiers from Botswana and South Africa arrived in Mozambique, where they will help the government battle jihadists who have overrun parts of the northern-most province of Cabo Delgado. They join 1,000 troops from Rwanda, who have already been involved in several firefights with the insurgents.
• Just Security (26/7/21): Fighting between Rwandan forces and insurgents linked to the Islamic State has broken out in Mozambique, fueling fears of escalating conflict in the country
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Rwanda deploys 1,000 soldiers to Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado - The government in Kigali says deployment at the request of the Mozambican authorities aimed at restoring state control in the conflict-hit province.
• Al Jazeera (23/6/21): Southern African nations agree to deploy forces to Mozambique - The SADC Standby Force will support Mozambique ‘to combat terrorism and acts of violent extremism’ in Cabo Delgado province.
• Al Jazeera (9/6/21): Dozens of children, mostly girls, abducted by Mozambique fighters - Report by Save the Children says 51 minors taken by armed groups in conflict-hit Cabo Delgado in 2020, a figure likely an underestimate.
• CounterPunch: Mozambique’s is a Continental Tragedy
• Democracy Now (3/29/21): Dozens Killed in Attacks in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Province [700,000 displaced due to fighting since 2017]
• Democracy Now (3/24/21): U.N. Warns 1 Million Could Be Displaced in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Region

Namibia Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• The Moscow Times (23/10/21): Namibia Halts Use of Sputnik Jabs After S.African HIV Fears
• Al Jazeera (21/9/21): Namibians protest as MPs to vote on German genocide deal - Germany in May described the killings of the Herero and Nama people more than a century ago as genocide for the first time.
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): In Namibia, nine senior government officials have died of COVID-19 over the last two weeks as hospitals have been overrun by new cases. Namibia now has one of the world’s highest infection rates.
• Left Voice (11/6/21): No, Germany Is Not Actually Recognizing the Genocide in Namibia - The German government has made international headlines with its public “gestures of reconciliation” for the genocide of tens of thousands of West Africans in the early 1900s. Representatives of the Herero and Nama peoples are rejecting the deal, saying it comes nowhere close to addressing the effects of Germany’s long history of colonial exploitation in the region.
• Al Jazeera: Namibia: Indigenous leaders want big oil out of Kavango Basin - ReconAfrica believes the Kavango Basin in Namibia and Botswana could generate billions of barrels of oil, but environmentalists and Indigenous leaders want the area to remain untouched.

Rwanda Updates

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• Africa News (24/12/21): Public buses in rwanda require passengers to present vaccination certificates [covid-news] [!]
• Africa News (20/12/21): DRC: At least four dead in Goma protests against alleged presence of Rwandan police [protest-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (4/12/21): Conservationists flew 30 white rhinos from South Africa to Rwanda. It was the largest such airlift aimed at protecting the endangered animals.
• Al Jazeera (16/11/21): At least 11 killed as CAR troops clash with rebels - Ouham-Pende prefect says Central African Republic forces exchanged fire with rebels who had ‘infiltrated’ a market near the town of Mann. [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Rwandan YouTube star jailed for ‘humiliating’ state officials - Dieudonne Niyonsenga, whose YouTube channel has more than 15 million views was sentenced to seven years in prison [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CPJ 3/11/21) Rwandan journalist Théoneste Nsengimana detained since October 13 [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): Six arrested in Rwanda for spreading rumours to cause ‘uprising’ - A YouTube channel owner and members of an opposition party are among those taken into custody. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Financial Times (3/10/21): Rwanda flexes muscles in fight against terror in Mozambique - A rare dispatch from the frontline shows how Kigali has turned around conflict that held up Total LNG project Paywall Summary: Rwandan forces, who are well disciplined and professional by regional standards, have been highly effective at containing the local jihadist forces, opening the way for fossil fuel interests to continue multi-billion dollar project developments. Speculation abounds that Rwanda sent troops to Mozambique in return for French investment (French oil company Total has eyes on the largest of projects in Mozambique, a gas project valued at $20bn). Rwanda also has forces in South Sudan and the Central African Republic. These efforts come as Rwanda also pursues critics across the continent, killing and persecuting them.
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): In Mozambique, Kagame says Rwandan troops’ work not over - Rwandan president says his country’s force will help secure and rebuild Cabo Delgado areas destroyed by years-long armed campaign.
• The Guardian (20/9/21): Rwandan court convicts Hotel Rwanda hero of terrorism charges - Paul Rusesabagina, an ex-hotel manager, was subject of a Hollywood film about the 1994 genocide
• Just Security (26/7/21): Fighting between Rwandan forces and insurgents linked to the Islamic State has broken out in Mozambique, fueling fears of escalating conflict in the country
• The Guardian (23/7/21): Rwandans have long been used to Pegasus-style surveillance - Information-gathering always was a speciality of President Paul Kagame. Modern technology has simply extended his remit
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Rwanda deploys 1,000 soldiers to Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado - The government in Kigali says deployment at the request of the Mozambican authorities aimed at restoring state control in the conflict-hit province.

South Africa Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Provinces (cr.);

Popular Front: (podcast) The South African Farmers Preparing for a Civil War - We speak to journalist and author James Pogue about his recent visit to South Africa, where he spent time with radicals to find out the real truth behind the farmer killings. He discovered many are preparing for what they think will soon be a new civil war...

Vox: (video) Why South Africa is still so segregated

Popular Front (2/8/21): A Violent Power Struggle in South Africa

• Pinned: Africa Is A Country (13/12/21): Not much to see here - Don’t get to excited by the local election results in South Africa. The party system is fragmenting but old apartheid divides persist. [electoral-news, analysis-news]
• Washington Post (31/12/21): Omicron has passed peak in South Africa, causing relatively few deaths and hospitalizations, authorities say - The number of infections fell by roughly 30 percent to just under 90,000 for the week ending Dec. 25, down from some 127,000 in the prior corresponding period, government data show. The number of hospital admissions has also been significantly lower over the past 1½ weeks. [covid-news] [!]
• Common Dreams (31/12/1): Tutu's Courage on Israeli Apartheid Is Played Down in American Media - Archbishop Desmond Tutu used his moral stature to call out and oppose Israeli apartheid, but the U.S. media is leaving it out. [media-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• WSWS (30/12/21): South African dairy workers at Clover Foods in sixth week of indefinite strike over pay, conditions and job losses [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Campaigners force Shell to halt oil exploration on South African coast - Court instructs company to stop tests along Wild Coast after concerns raised about wildlife and lack of consultation [big-oil-news, protest-news, court-news] [!]
• The Guardian (26/12/21): Archbishop Desmond Tutu, giant in fight against apartheid South Africa, dies at 90 - The Nobel laureate, often described as the moral conscience of his nation, died on Boxing Day in Cape Town [obituary-news] [!]
• Africa News (23/12/21): Remains of SA soldier killed in Mozambique handed over to family
• Democracy Now (23/12/21): South Africa Says Omicron Coronavirus Surge Has Peaked [covid-news]
• Africa News (17/12/21): South Africa rolls out vaccination pop up for undocumented migrants [covid-news, immigrant-news] [!]
• Africa News (18/12/21): Hike in Omicron cases crippling small businesses in South Africa [covid-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (16/12/21): U.K. and South Africa Set Coronavirus Records as Omicron Spreads Rapidly [covid-news]
• Just Security (15/12/21): A South African court has ruled that South Africa’s former President Jacob Zuma should return to prison as his medical parole was “unlawful.” Zuma was released on Sep. 5 for an undisclosed medical condition, having been jailed for failing to attend an inquiry into corruption during his presidency. The court also ruled that the time Zuma has spent out of prison should not be counted in his 15-month sentence BBC News reports. [court-news]
• Democracy Now (13/12/21): South African President Cyril Ramaphosa Tests Positive for COVID-19 [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (10/12/21): WHO Warns Rich Countries Against Vaccine Hoarding as Omicron Variant Spreads - In South Africa, coronavirus infections are up by more than 250% in a week — nearly all of them Omicron cases [covid-news]
• Africa News (8/12/21): South Africa: Govt will turn to alternative legislation to redistribute land- Justice Minister says [social-woes-news]
• CPJ (9/12/21): News crews harassed, reporter arrested during South Africa’s municipal elections [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): South African Activists, Community Members Protest Shell Oil Exploration on Pristine Coastline [protest-news, big-oil-news]
• The Majority Report (5/12/21): Travel Restrictions Punishing South Africa For Doing The Right Thing [covid-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (6/12/21): Mine deaths in South Africa rise for second consecutive year - Worker safety continues to deteriorate in South Africa’s mines. [labor-news, industrial-failure-news] [!]
• The Guardian (3/12/21): Shell to go ahead with seismic tests in whale breeding grounds after court win - Judgment rules company can blast sound waves in search for oil along South Africa’s eastern coastline [big-oil-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Africa News (3/12/21): Amazon Africa HQ site faces indigenous backlash - A legal battle is looming over plans to build Amazon's multi-million-dollar African headquarters on land cherished by South Africa's indigenous Khoi San people [indigenous-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• The Economist World This Week (4/12/21): Conservationists flew 30 white rhinos from South Africa to Rwanda. It was the largest such airlift aimed at protecting the endangered animals.
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Meanwhile COVID-19 cases in South Africa have nearly tripled in just three days, amid a fourth surge linked to the Omicron coronavirus variant. On Thursday South African scientists warned people with a previous coronavirus infection appear to have little immunity to Omicron and are highly susceptible to reinfection. [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (1/12/21): Omicron Detected in Europe Days Before South Africa Reported Variant; FDA Endorses Merck COVID Pill [covid-news]
• Common Dreams (29/11/21): Shell Slammed for Plan to Blast South African Coastline for Oil and Gas During Whale Season - "We cannot allow climate criminals, like Shell, to plunder in the name of greed," said Greenpeace [big-oil-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): ‘Finding scapegoats’: S Africa slams ‘unjustified’ travel bans - South African health minister says move by countries imposing restrictions on it because of a newly identified coronavirus variant is draconian. [covid-news]
• Common Dreams (26/11/21): 'It Was Entirely Avoidable': Rich Countries Blamed as New Covid Variant Sparks Global Alarm - "Allowing new variants to emerge and spread, 13 months into the vaccine era, is a policy choice by the rich world." [vaccine-ip-news, covid-news]
• Africa News (25/11/21): South Africa says NO to renewal of work permit for 250,000 Zimbabweans [labor-news, immigrant-news]
• Africa News (22/11/21): Mpho Phalatse to lead Johannesburg, as ANC left crushed
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Jacobin (15/11/21): How the Exploitation of Africa Helps Fuel Global Capitalism - The political and economic crises roiling countries like Sudan and Tunisia right now cannot be separated from the global institutions of capital and the cycles of indebtedness that they impose. [analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Democracy Now (11/11/21): F.W. de Klerk, South Africa’s Last Apartheid President, Dies at 85
• New York Times (10/11/21): Mozambique’s Former Finance Minister Will Face Corruption Charges in U.S. - A judge overturned the South African government’s decision to send the minister back to Mozambique, where civil society groups say his political clout will protect him. [us-policy-news, corruption-news, court-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news, indigenous-news] - One of the biggest proposed projects that China is spearheading on the continent is the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone in the Limpopo region of South Africa, which the government approved in 2016. Contracts have been awarded to a subsidiary of the Chinese firm Shenzhen Hoi Mor and nine other Chinese companies totally more than $10 billion in investments. This industrial development zone will center around processing minerals such as chrome, manganese, and iron as well as the manufacture of cement and steel. Providing power to the zone is a proposed 3.3-gigawatt coal-fired plant. - In South Africa, the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone will reportedly create as many as 53,000 jobs at the site plus many more in supporting industries. To get those jobs, the South African government has promised to apply special treatment such as tax-exemption and a waiver of import duties to the Chinese companies operating there, which means a considerable drop in government revenue. - In the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone in South Africa, for instance, "the sacred animals and trees of the Venda people will be destroyed when making way for this project," says David Tshidzumba. "They will exhume graves that are more than 60 years old, uproot trees sacred to indigenous people. Once you destroy the land, once you take away the water, we don't have a sense of belonging. It's not just heritage but also livelihood, our way of life."
• Jacobin (5/11/21): The ANC’s Control of South African Politics Is Over - South Africa’s municipal elections this week were nothing short of disastrous. South Africans are desperate for a political alternative to the African National Congress; if the Left doesn’t provide it, right-populists and ethnonationalists will. [corruption-news, analysis-news]
• PNN (3/10/21): IOF assault South Africa’s Counselor, olive harvesters near Bethlehem
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): The African National Congress, which has ruled South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994, suffered its biggest-ever electoral defeat, falling below 50% in a nationwide ballot for the first time. The elections were local ones, which typically produce a lower turnout of ANC supporters. But they suggest that the party may struggle to gain a majority at a general election in 2024. [electoral-news]
• Democracy Now (3/11/21): COP26: U.S. Joins 90 Nations in Pledge to Cut Methane Emissions; South Africa Coal Deal Announced
• Left Voice (23/10/21): Union Leadership Accepts Paltry Wage Deal Just as South African Metalworkers’ Strike Begins to Hurt the Capitalists - On Thursday, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) called off a major strike of at least 155,000 workers just as it was starting to gain momentum and was about to strike a major blow against the capitalists’ assault on the workers. [labor-news, union-news]
• The Moscow Times (18/10/21): S.Africa Rejects Russian Sputnik Vaccine Over HIV Fears
• Just Security (15/10/21): South African special forces freed three government ministers who were being held hostage in a hotel in Pretoria by veterans seeking compensation for fighting against apartheid. No shots were fired, but at least 56 people were arrested in the aftermath of the standoff. The veterans will likely face kidnapping charges according to police spokesperson Vish Naidoo.
• WSWS (14/10/21): South African metalworkers strike expands [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Democracy Now (14/10/21): Pressure Grows to Waive Patent Rights for COVID Vaccines and for U.S. to Release Moderna Recipe
• Breakthrough News (13/10/21): South Africa: Women Commune Leaders Arrested Amid Wider Repression of Shack Dwellers [social-woes-news]
• Left Voice (10/10/21): 160,000 Metalworkers in South Africa are On Strike for Higher Wages - Union metalworkers in South Africa, organized in NUMSA, are on an unlimited strike for an 8-percent wage increase. [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): South African car industry fears impact as union starts strike - Largest South African metalworkers union calls an indefinite strike after salary talks with employer bodies fail. [labor-news]
• Just Security (17/9/21): Zuma has lost his bid in the South Africa’s top court to have his 15-month jail sentence for failing to testify at a corruption inquiry overturned
• The Economist World This Week (4/9/21): Scientists in South Africa identified a new variant of covid-19 that seems to have mutated more rapidly than existing variants and spread to seven other countries in Africa, Europe and Asia. The variant appears to have changes associated with increased transmission and greater resistance to antibodies, but it is not clear whether it spreads more rapidly or evades the immune response generated by vaccines.
• The Guardian (5/9/21): Ex-South African leader Jacob Zuma leaves prison due to ill health - Zuma, who was ousted in 2017, served less than two months of a 15-month sentence for contempt of court
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (24/8/21): South Africa’s unemployment rate is now highest in the world - The unemployment rate, which includes people who have stopped looking for work, rose to 44.4 percent in the second quarter.
• Democracy Now (17/8/21): Johnson & Johnson Ships Millions of Vaccine Doses from South Africa to Europe
• Al Jazeera (13/8/21): Grief grips South African town after gruesome vigilante killings - Families of Black people killed in racial violence during unrest in Phoenix, South Africa are demanding justice
• Al Jazeera (10/8/21): South Africa court postpones Zuma corruption trial to September - Zuma is facing 18 charges including corruption and money laundering and has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
• The Economist World This Week (31/7/21): Soldiers from Botswana and South Africa arrived in Mozambique, where they will help the government battle jihadists who have overrun parts of the northern-most province of Cabo Delgado. They join 1,000 troops from Rwanda, who have already been involved in several firefights with the insurgents.
• On Labor (28/7/21): In international labor news, the South African Ministry of Public Service and Administration announced yesterday that a majority of public sector unions in the country signed a one-year interim deal on Monday to increase wages for the more than one million teachers, police officers, and nurses that they represent.
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• Just Security (23/7/21): South Africa’s state-owned firm Transnet has said that it has identified and isolated the source of the disruption to its IT systems, which impacted its container terminals.
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): South Africa unrest death toll jumps to more than 300 - Government says deaths from days of violence revised up to 79 in Gauteng province and 258 in KwaZulu-Natal.
• The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): The death toll from riots in South Africa that broke out after the imprisonment of Jacob Zuma, a former president, rose to at least 276. The deployment of soldiers has restored calm. Separately an inquiry recommended that, because of covid-19, local elections that were scheduled for October should be delayed.
• Just Security (22/7/21): South African state-owned logistics firm Transnet has been hit by a suspected cyber attack, impacting some operations at its largest port in Durban
• Al Jazera (20/7/21): The insurrection in South Africa is about more than freeing Zuma - The unrest was not a bread riot or a spontaneous uprising of the poor. It was a targeted violent campaign to undermine the president and extract political concessions from the government – and it may have already backfired.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): South African court postpones Zuma’s corruption trial to August - Former South African president, currently serving a 15-month prison term in a separate case, faces 16 charges.
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Zuma corruption trial resumes after deadly South Africa unrest - Former president, jailed over contempt of court, faces separate corruption charges stemming from a 1999 weapons sale.
• Just Security Early Edition (19/7/21): South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Friday that calm has been restored to most places in South Africa and the unrest that ripped through the country last week was stabilizing.
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa unrest was ‘instigated’ - In his first visit to an area affected by weeklong unrest, the South African president says ‘anarchy and mayhem’ will not be allowed to unfold in the country.
• Democracy Now (16/7/21): South Africa Sends 25,000 Troops into Street After Days of Protests and Unrest
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): South Africa deploys more than 20,000 troops as death toll tops 100 - South Africa calls up army reserves to assist police in quelling deadly unrest following the jailing of former President Jacob Zuma.
• The Guardian (15/7/21): South Africa: 10,000 troops deployed and reservists called up to quell unrest - Warnings of looming humanitarian crisis as looting and violence hits food, fuel and medicine chains
• The Guardian (14/7/21): Vigilante groups form in South Africa to tackle looting and violence - Officials warn citizens not to take law into own hands to protect homes and business from protests
• Democracy Now (13/7/21): 32 Killed Across South Africa in Protests That Erupted After Jailing of Former President; The Guardian (13/7/21): South Africa: more than 70 dead as unrest linked to Zuma jailing intensifies - Ramaphosa calls violence and protests worst since end of apartheid after 1,300 arrested
• Jacobin (12/7/21): The EFF Cannot Deliver Radical Change in South Africa - South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters positions itself as a radical party opposed to the ruling government. But its race-centric program overlooks the main source of oppression in postapartheid South Africa: capitalism.
• The Guardian (12/7/21): Troops called in after jailing of Zuma ignites violence and looting - Ex-president’s supporters loot shops and block highways as South Africa’s highest court rules on whether to uphold sentence
• The Guardian (11/7/21): South Africa violence spreads after jailing of Jacob Zuma - Looting in former president’s home province of KwaZulu-Natal spreads to economic hub of Johannesburg
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): Jacob Zuma turns himself in to South African police - Former president drops defiance to begin 15-month sentence for snubbing anti-corruption investigators.
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Former South African president Jacob Zuma sentenced to 15 months in prison - Zuma found to have been in contempt of court when he defied an order to appear at corruption inquiry
• The Guardian (27/6/21): South Africa tightens Covid rules as ‘devastating wave’ gathers pace - President announces new restrictions amid warnings surge across continent could be ‘worst yet’
• Democracy Now (22/6/21): South African President Blasts Big Pharma for Refusing to Share COVID-19 Vaccine Technology
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): SA minister Zweli Mkhize put on leave over corruption allegations - South African health minister placed on special leave amid claims over the ministry’s award of COVID-19-related contracts.
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): South Africa faces third COVID wave, returns to stricter lockdown - Four of the nation’s nine provinces, including Gauteng which boasts Johannesburg and Pretoria, are already battling a third wave of infections.
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Jacob Zuma pleads not guilty to arms deal corruption charges - The former South African president faces multiple charges relating to an arms deal in 1999 when he was deputy president.
• Left Voice (21/5/21): Dockworkers in South Africa Refuse to Offload Israeli Cargo Ship in Solidarity with Palestine - Dockworkers in the port city of Durban, South Africa have refused to offload an Israeli cargo ship in solidarity with Palestinians.
• The Economist World This Week (6/5/21): Ace Magashule, the secretary-general of South Africa’s ruling party, was suspended from it while he answers charges of graft. Mr Magashule was the focus of resistance to President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has pledged to fight what he called “corrosive corruption” within the party.
• Al Jazeera: The plight of South Africa’s informal coal miners - Thousands of informal miners in South Africa make a dangerous living by chipping away at abandoned mine shafts.
• Democracy Now (4/20/21): Wildfire at University of Cape Town Destroys Priceless South African Antiquities [2]

Tanzania Updates

Click Here Until You Can Use Ctrl+F (Else the search starts at top of page)

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Al-Monitor (17/12/21): Egypt builds industrial city in Tanzania - Egypt and Tanzania close ties are strengthened further by the inauguration of an Egyptian industrial city adjacent to the Tanzanian capital.
• Al Jazeera (24/11/21): Tanzania to allow students to attend school after giving birth - Government reverses controversial 2017 policy instituted by the country’s late leader, John Magufuli
• Jacobin (29/3/21): Tanzanian President John Magufuli Has Left a Sorry Legacy - After denying COVID existed in his country, Tanzanian president John Magufuli died earlier this month, likely from the coronavirus. It was a sorry end to a presidency that began with hopes that Magufuli would improve public services and clamp down on corruption among the political elite.
• Al-Monitor (19/11/21): Egypt coordinates with Tanzania as Ethiopian dam negotiations paused - Egypt ramps up coordination efforts with Tanzania amid fading hopes of resuming GERD negotiations.
• CPJ (7/10/21): Tanzania police arrest cartoonist, journalists on cybercrime and illegal assembly allegations [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CPJ (15/9/21): Tanzanian authorities suspend Raia Mwema newspaper for 1 month
• CPJ (10/9/21): Tanzania ruling party newspaper Uhuru returns after two-week suspension
• Al Jazeera (4/9/21): Tanzania main opposition party says several members arrested - Police detain nine party members and raid offices in Musoma to block planned symposium on constitutional change, Chadema says.
• Al Jazeera (31/8/21): Tanzania opposition leader Freeman Mbowe in court to face charges - The Chadema party chairman was charged with terror-related crimes after his arrest in July.
• Al Jazeera (25/8/21): Gunman kills several police near French embassy in Tanzania - President Hassan says gunman shot dead after killing three police officers and a private security officer in Dar es Salaam.
• The Guardian (17/8/21): Let’s heed the UN’s dire warning and stop the east African oil pipeline now - The fate of a planned line from Uganda to Tanzania will be the first test of whether anyone was listening to António Guterres’ call to end fossil fuels [climate-change-news, big-oil-news, bri-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Tanzania opposition leader court case postponed, protesters held - Police arrest supporters of detained opposition leader Freeman Mbowe, main opposition party Chadema says.
• Democracy Now (28/7/21): Tanzania Receives 1 Million J&J COVID Vaccines
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Tanzanian opposition leader to face ‘terrorism’ charges: Party - Chadema chairman Freeman Mbowe and 15 other members were rounded up in a crackdown denounced as a throwback to the oppressive rule of the country’s late leader.
• Al Jazeera (21/7/21): Tanzania’s Chadema party says leader Freeman Mbowe arrested - Freeman Mbowe and 10 other Chadema members were rounded up Mwanza before a planned conference to demand constitutional reforms, the party says.
• Democracy Now (3/22/21): Samia Suluhu Hassan Becomes Tanzania’s First Woman President
• Democracy Now (3/18/21): Tanzanian President John Magufuli, Who Denied COVID-19, Dies After Rumored Coronavirus Infection

Uganda Updates

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• The Economist (1/1/22): Middlemen are the invisible links in African agriculture - In Uganda they are traders, tricksters, moneylenders and marketmakers [fail-neoliberal-news, capitalist-farce-news, food-security-news]
• Wall Street Journal (27/12/21): Uganda Finds China’s Leverage Is in the Fine Print of Its Lending - A clause in an agreement with the African nation has stirred a flap over whether the country signed away financial control of Entebbe International Airport [china-policy-news, bri-news] Paywall Summary (?): opposition politicians in parliament found that all revenue+expenses 'incurred by the aiport operator would pass through accounts controlled by Export-Import Bank at a Kampala branch of South Africa's Standard Bank Group Ltd., itself partly owned by Beijing's biggest bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd.' Normally this power is reserved for the country's treasury and parliament, but now '"Ex-Im now has to approve any budget spending"'. Uganda's longtime president Museveni has gone on a $11bn 'borrowing spree', largely from China. Uganda has 4+ other loans from Ex-Im with similar terms, say opposition politicians. Escrow accounts, sometimes called DSRA, are unusual when a govt is the borrower, with the World Bank saying it doesn't use such for sovereign lending. Chinese govt lenders have been willing to extend repayment timetables, but not really open to forgiving debt.
• Ars Technica / Financial Times (21/12/21): The secret Uganda deal that has brought NSO to the brink of collapse - Things changed once US diplomats in Uganda got hacked by Pegasus. [cyber-security-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, us-policy-news, pegasus-news, big-tech-news] Paywall Summary (?): Technically unecessary summary (since the AT article is open), but what the heck. NSO's chief executive Hulio liked to fly around showing people how Pegasus could crack an iPhone, including in nations like Uganda and Rwanda. Recently, in Uganda, 11 American diplomats' and employees phones were hacked with this tool. What followed was the American-lead effort against NSO, including American blacklisting of the company, and fallen out of favor with Silicon Valley giants like Meta (Facebook) and Apple.
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Egypt inaugurates dams in Uganda - Seven dams and 27 underground wells were inaugurated by Egypt in Uganda alongside a large number of projects that serve to improve the quality of drinking water and provide water for agriculture. [infrastructure-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Presence of Uganda troops in DR Congo temporary: Tshisekedi - Earlier this month, Uganda and DRC launched a joint operation against the ADF, an armed group allied with ISIL. [!]
• Africa News (9/12/21): Ugandan, Congolese forces continue offensive operations in eastern DRC [!]
• Vox (4/12/21): Israeli spyware was used against US diplomats in Uganda - A hack targeting US officials is just the latest problem for NSO Group, the Israeli company behind Pegasus spyware. [cyber-security-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (1/12/21): After air raids, Uganda sends troops into DRC to hunt ADF - The neighbouring countries have launched a joint operation against the armed group which they accuse of massacring civilians.
• Just Security (30/11/21: The Ugandan military has launched air and artillery raids against the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in an operation agreed with Congolese forces
• Telesur (21/11/21): Uganda To Deploy Region-Backed Anti-Terrorist Actions - The Museveni administration is in talks with Democratic Republic of Congo in efforts to curtail the operations of the "Allied Democratic Forces," an affiliate of the Islamic State in central Africa. Note about Telesur
• Africa News (20/11/21): Uganda police kill 5, including cleric, after bomb blasts [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the suicide bombings in Uganda’s capital yesterday that killed three people and injured 33. Police blamed the Allied Democratic Forces, an Islamist insurgency group that has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. The Islamic State later claimed responsibility for the attack through its Amaq news agency
• The Guardian (15/11/21): Ugandan children held in prison for months after crackdown on opposition - Victims describe systematic physical abuse, denial of basic legal rights and appalling conditions [protest-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, law-enforcement-news]
• The Guardian (16/11/21): At least three killed in suicide bomb attacks in Ugandan capital, Kampala - Two explosions within minutes in attack blamed on Allied Democratic Forces extremist group
• Modern Diplomacy (9/11/21): Thousands flee DR Congo fighting for Uganda [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (1/11/21): Third Bomb Attack in Under a Week Kills Two Children in Uganda
• Al-Monitor (27/10/21): Egypt boosts medical cooperation with African Nile Basin countries - Egypt is expanding its influence in the Nile Basin region, through the establishment of medical and pharmaceutical centers, amid the stalled negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
• Just Security (26/10/21): Ugandan authorities have said that a suicide bomber was behind an explosion on a bus in the capital, Kampala, yesterday. The attacker was “on a wanted list” and was a member of the Islamist militant group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which operates from neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, a police spokesperson also said
• Just Security (25/10/21): An explosion at a bar in Uganda’s capital Kampala Saturday night has killed one person and injured three others. Three suspected bombers disguised themselves as customers before planting the explosives under a table, police said. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attack. “The explosion comes one week after the U.K. government issued an alert about terrorism in Uganda,” BBC News reports.
• Al Jazeera (2/9/21): Uganda: Top academic arrested over ‘espionage, illegal stay’ - Military says Lawrence Muganga, vice-chancellor of Victoria University, arrested on suspicion of espionage and illegal stay in the country.
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Uganda suspends more than 50 rights groups, citing non-compliance - Authorities say the decision was made because the NGOs failed to comply with legislation covering their activities.
• Just Security (18/8/21): Uganda has said that it has agreed to a request from the U.S. to take in temporarily 2,000 refugees from Afghanistan
• The Guardian (17/8/21): Let’s heed the UN’s dire warning and stop the east African oil pipeline now - The fate of a planned line from Uganda to Tanzania will be the first test of whether anyone was listening to António Guterres’ call to end fossil fuels [climate-change-news, big-oil-news, bri-news]
• The Guardian (20/7/21): Ugandan activists describe months of physical abuse in prison - Reports by supporters of opposition politician Robert Kyagulanyi will increase pressure on president over human rights
• Democracy Now (21/6/21): Japan, Uganda Impose New Measures Amid Mounting COVID Cases
• Al Jazeera (19/6/21): Uganda: Fueling anti-LGBTQI sentiment to stay in power - The Ugandan government continues to use anti-LGBTQI rhetoric and policies to rally support amid declining popularity.

Zambia Updates

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• New York Times (11/12/21): As Vaccines Trickle into Africa, Zambia’s Challenges Highlight Other Obstacles - Vaccinating Africa is critical to protecting the continent and the world against dangerous variants, but supply isn’t the only problem countries face. [healthcare-news, covid-news, anti-vaxx-news, logistics-news]
• Financial Times (10/11/21): Zambia’s new president tackles debt mountain and empty treasury - After bond default in 2020, Hichilema must reassure investors he can stabilise the copper-rich nation [neo-imperialism-news, china-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): FT reports after a long period of corruption under president Lungu (who defaulted last year), the new president Hichelma is trying to right the ship. To do so, Hichilema is (A) pursuing a strategy of "decentralization" (giving funding to local polities, as opposed to centralized organization from Lusaka), (B) pursuing an "anti-corruption" strategy (always a classic), (C) leaning on high copper prices (but it seems, not raising taxes) and "open[ing]" up the mining sector, and (D) turning to the IMF for a bailout fund, based on the aforementioned strategies and "cutting the deficit". The government is currently in $15bn in debt, with $6bn owed to China (double what Lungu had reported), with fears of other hidden debt. In such a strapped position, Lusaka has few good choices, and has had to turn to... the IMF! Ahh, a classic.
• South China Morning Post (29/9/21): China in Africa: Zambia’s Chinese debts nearly double the official count, study says - Zambia owed Chinese financiers US$6.6 billion as of August, not US$3.4 billion as reported by outgoing administration, China Africa Research Initiative says - The lack of full disclosure and transparency seen to complicate Zambia’s bid for debt relief from G20 countries and hopes of an IMF bailout
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Zambia Opposition Leader Wins Presidential Election in Landslide
• The Economist World This Week (12/8/21):Zambians voted in a presidential election on August 12th. Polls suggest that the incumbent, Edgar Lungu, would lose in a fair contest. But he has abused state resources to tilt the balance.
• Just Security (12/8/21): Zambians have started voting in tense presidential and legislative elections that President Edgar Lungu and his main rival Hakainde Hichilema have said are a test of the country’s reputation as a stable democracy.
• South China Morning Post (11/8/21): Zambian President Edgar Lungu banks on Chinese-backed projects to help his re-election - As Zambians prepare to head to the polls, Lungu unveils a new international airport terminal and reminds voters of his ‘legacy’ - The size of the country’s debt to China is not known, says academic, as Zambia defaults on loan repayments and Lungu is accused of mismanaging the economy [bri-news]
• The Economist World This Week (7/8/21): Zambia’s government deployed the army ahead of a general election. The ruling party has attempted to buy off or bully voters in a bid to defeat Hakainde Hichilema, an opposition candidate who could possibly win if the election were fair. It will not be.
• CPJ (2/8/21): Zambian radio station transmitter damaged in arson attack
• Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Zambia deploys army to curb violence ahead of elections - At least two people have been killed in pre-election violence in the Southern African country ahead of polls this month.
• CPJ (30/7/21): Zambian opposition supporters assault reporter from state media

Zimbabwe Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• WSWS (30/12/21): Zimbabwe teachers strike threat over pay and conditions [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Africa News (23/12/21): Cash shortage hits Zimbabwe banks as thousands stranded for Christmas [economic-news] [!]
• Africa News (16/12/21): Zimbabwe hit by exodus of health professionals [healthcare-news, labor-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Zimbabwe court drops case against investigative journalist - A high court drops two charges against Hopewell Chin’ono, but the reporter still faces trial over a tweet. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news] [!]
• Telesur (2/12/21): Zimbabwean Businesses Bear Brunt Of West-Imposed Sanctions - The UN Special Rapporteur Alena Douhan also highlighted the negative effects of the U.S.-led sanctions in a preliminary report released at the end of a 12-day visit to Zimbabwe. [us-policy-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (1/12/21): The hypocrisy of Emmerson Mnangagwa - We should not take the Zimbabwean president’s claim that he is working to further democracy and human rights in the country at face value.
• Africa News (25/11/21): South Africa says NO to renewal of work permit for 250,000 Zimbabweans [labor-news, immigrant-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (23/12/19): TMBS Doc: An Illicit History Of Robert Mugabe with Bill Fletcher Jr. [history-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news, labor-news, indigenous-news] - In some African countries, however, infrastructure is conspicuously absent from the picture. Zimbabwe, mostly smaller scale Chinese companies have been involved in the mining sector. But as Farai Maguwu of the Centre for Natural Resource Governance in Harare points out, the Chinese "don't build anything in the area. They simply dig and leave behind open pits. There's no investment in education or in road infrastructure, which they destroy using their machinery." - Conditions at those jobs vary. At one factory in Zimbabwe, Farai Maguwu reports, "workers allege that they are locked up during lunch hour. The Chinese say, 'if we leave you free, you will steal.' They are only released after lunch hour. We have also seen Chinese discharge firearms where workers are demanding a minimum wage." - In Zimbabwe, where the mining operations are smaller scale, the companies often have no physical address at all, not even a website. Still, they maintain close relations with the Zimbabwean government. In one case, the government sent out state security forces on behalf of a Chinese company to bulldoze a site in a community that clearly was opposed to coal mining. When the community continued to insist that the Chinese company leave, "the Chinese instructed the government that the community leader be put in jail and barred from visiting the community for four months," Farai Maguwu reports. - In another case, Maguwu asked the Zimbabwean parliament to investigate a Chinese company that was mining diamonds in partnership with the Zimbabwean defense industry. The Chinese were arguing that they were just in the "exploration" phase even though the same company "had mined in the country from 2011 to 2015 before the former president kicked them out," Maguwu added. "They returned in 2018. It doesn't make sense that they are now doing 'exploration.'" - Mining projects in Zimbabwe have involved the appropriation of communal land, including drilling in gravesites. "I don't think there is anywhere in the world where there has been such a blatant violation of cultural rights as is happening in Zimbabwe," says Farai Maguwu. At one granite stone mining site, the Chinese company Heijin told villagers that the operation would go forward because they didn't own the land. The Zimbabwean government, meanwhile, tried to downplay the number of villagers affected by the operation.
• Just Security (29/10/21): The U.N. special envoy on unilateral coercive measures has urged the U.S. to end sanctions against Zimbabwe which she said have worsened the country’s humanitarian crisis, and she urged dialogue to end the impasse between the U.S. and Zimbabwe. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (7/9/21): ‘No one may be compelled’: Zimbabwe unions go to court over Covid jabs - Firms accused of ‘rounding up workers like animals’ for compulsory vaccination as country acts to stop spread of virus [labor-news, covid-news]
• CPJ (31/8/21): Zimbabwe journalist Elizabeth Mashiri detained, charged for filming police clash with vendors
• The Guardian (10/8/21): ‘Our morgues are full’: Zimbabwe struggles with surge in Covid burials - Pressure on undertakers leads to widespread delays after record number of coronavirus infections and deaths last month
• The Guardian (8/8/21): UN condemns child marriage in Zimbabwe as girl dies after giving birth - Death of Memory Machaya, 14, who gave birth at church shrine, prompts outrage among citizens and activists
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Press freedom watchdog calls for release of Zimbabwean journalist - Detention of New York Times freelancer Jeffrey Moyo shows ‘Zimbabwe continues to violate the right to press freedom’, says Committee to Protect Journalists.
• CounterPunch (6/5/21): As Zimbabwe’s Workers Fight for Justice, It’s Time for a Fundamental Rethink of U.S. Policy

North Africa Updates

Algeria / Benin / Burkina Faso / Cameroon / Chad / Djibouti / Egypt / Eritrea / Ethiopia / Gambia / Ghana / Guinea / Guinea Bissau / Ivory Coast / Kenya / Libya / Mali / Mauritania / Morocco / Niger / Nigeria / Senegal / Sierra Leone / Somalia / South Sudan / Sudan / Togo / Tunisia / Uganda / Western Sahara (Morocco-occupied) (see also: France)

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(Insurgency in the Maghreb)

Big issues in North Africa are the rise of extremist groups, and weak and/or failed governments which struggle to resist rebels and/or extremists. This is not simply an endogenous conflict though - foreign actors and international deals are very much involved. French interest in the resources of its former colonies (such as Mali), French, Italian, Turkish, UAE, and Russian intervention in the post-Gaddafi Libya chaos, collusion between the Ethiopian government and Eritrea to target Tigray; tensions between Ethiopia and its downstream (Nile) neighbors, Egypt and Sudan, over its dam project. Many nations are beset with ethnic tensions, states cobbled together by a colonial legacy, fueled by the pillaging of nation's natural wealth by local elites, sold onto the global market.

Vox (20/6/18): (video) How Islamist militant groups are gaining strength in Africa

Wiki links: ECOWAS

Regional Updates

• Jacobin (30/12/21): Vaccine Apartheid Includes Dumping Expiring Vaccines on Africa - The Global North is responding to vaccine inequality by dumping near-expired doses on African countries without infrastructure to disseminate them in time. Those doses end up in the trash — and it’s the fault of rich countries. [covid-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• The Economist (1/1/22): Middlemen are the invisible links in African agriculture - In Uganda they are traders, tricksters, moneylenders and marketmakers [fail-neoliberal-news, capitalist-farce-news, food-security-news]
• Democracy Now (28/12/21): Israel Tests Fourth Vaccine Doses as COVID Surges in Largely Unvaccinated African Nations [covid-news]
• Foreign Affairs (23/12/21): China’s Soft-Power Advantage in Africa - Beijing Isn’t Just Building Roads—It’s Making Friends [china-policy-news, analysis-news, bri-news]
• Africa News (21/12/21): [Italian] MSC offers to buy [French] Bolloré's logistics branch in Africa [capitalist-farce-news]
• Al-Monitor (21/12/21): Drone sales could dampen Turkey’s African venture - Turkey has made major economic and diplomatic strides in Africa since the early 2000s, but growing military sales to African countries raise the specter of a risky shift.
• The Guardian (21/12/21): Shipwrecked refugee crossings leave 164 dead in Mediterranean, says UN - Attempted crossing from Libya to Europe surge as authorities carry out deadly crackdown on refugees [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/12/21): One-third of Arab world’s population suffers from hunger: UN - Nearly 70 million people also suffered from malnutrition in the Arab world last year, according to UN report. [social-woes-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (12/12/21): Al-Azhar ["Sunni Islam's highest religious authority"] rhetoric alarms LGBTQ community - Al-Azhar has in recent days stepped up its anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, following anti-gay comments by a prominent retired soccer star. [lgbtq-news, far-right-news] [!]
• Workers World (10/12/21): People of the Sahel oppose imperialism [neo-imperialism-news]
• Democracy Now (9/12/21): How Europe’s “Shadow Immigration System” Pays Libyan Militias to Jail Migrants in Brutal Conditions [immigrant-news, social-woes-news]
• The Elephant (3/12/21): China and Africa’s Debt Crisis - Ahead of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Tim Zajontz looks at the immense amounts of debt African governments owe Chinese lenders. This debt is central to capitalist accumulation and financial extraction from the African continent. Zajontz argues that Chinese capital is now pivotal to the global circuit of capital and China, just like other creditors, uses debt for the conquest of Africa and its resources. [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (30/11/21): Nurses Demand COVID-19 Vaccine Patent Waiver; China Pledges 1 Billion Doses for Africa [covid-news, healthcare-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): The children of West and Central Africa are the most recruited by armed groups in the world and also have the highest number of victims of sexual violence, a report from the U.N. Children’s Fund has said. Over the past five years, during which the region has seen increased conflicts, more than 21,000 children have been recruited by government forces and armed groups, says the report. In addition, more than 2,200 children in the region have been victims of sexual violence since 2016, and more than 3,500 children have been abducted, said the report. Sam Mednick reports for AP.
• New York Times (19/11/21): China’s Influence Looms Over Blinken’s Africa Visit - On a stop in Nigeria, the secretary of state said the U.S. would no longer treat African countries as pawns in a global game. But American competition with Beijing was hard to overlook. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Jacobin (15/11/21): How the Exploitation of Africa Helps Fuel Global Capitalism - The political and economic crises roiling countries like Sudan and Tunisia right now cannot be separated from the global institutions of capital and the cycles of indebtedness that they impose. [analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Jacobin (6/1/20): The Franc Zone, a Tool of French Neocolonialism in Africa - François Mitterrand warned that France would be irrelevant to twenty-first-century history unless it maintained its control of Africa. Its instrument for so doing is the CFA Franc — a colonial currency entrenching French rule more than fifty years after independence. [history-news, analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, economic-news]
• Jacobin (7/11/21): The CIA Undermined Postcolonial Africa From the Start - From undermining national liberation leaders to playing a central role in the assassination of Congolese radical Patrice Lumumba, not enough attention is paid to the CIA’s shameful role in Africa. A new book aims to correct that. [us-policy-news, dark-security-news, history-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/11/21): West Africa bloc ECOWAS imposes sanctions on Mali leaders - The move by ECOWAS comes after Mali’s transitional leaders said they would not be able hold elections on time. [economic-news]
• South China Morning Post (1/11/21): Will African conflicts threaten China’s business as usual approach? - Chinese investments in three countries – Ethiopia, Guinea and Sudan – could be threatened by wars and coups even though Beijing traditionally prefers to stay neutral - China’s vast range of infrastructure projects are particularly vulnerable to unrest and some observers believe there may be a long-term impact on investment [china-policy-news, bri-news]
• Jacobin (15/10/21): We Need Thomas Sankara’s Political Vision Today - Thomas Sankara, the socialist president of Burkina Faso, was assassinated 34 years ago today. With Global South debt levels at an all-time high, Sankara’s call for resistance to debt as a tool of neocolonial domination has never been more relevant. [leftist-news, analysis-news, history-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): WHO endorses use of world’s first malaria vaccine in Africa - World Health Organization’s director general hails ‘historic day’ in fight against parasitic disease
• Just Security (30/9/21): U.N. diplomats have said that Russia is holding up the appointment of independent experts to monitor implementation of sanctions on four African countries [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): France has said that a French air strike has killed a top Islamic State militant in the Sahel region. Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, the leader of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, “was neutralized by French forces,” French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on Twitter late yesterday [security-news, terrorism-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (15/9/21): Only 2% of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered in Africa [covid-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (24/8/21): An Insight into Russia’s Economic Presence in Africa
• Democracy Now (6/8/21): Africa COVID-19 Deaths Surged by 80% in Last Month as Delta Variant Spread
• The Economist (7/8/21): Refugees in east Africa go hungry as funds dry up - In Uganda, rations have been cut by 40%
• South China Morning Post (3/8/21): Pressure grows between African mineworkers and their Chinese bosses - Videos purporting to show violent confrontations circulate on social media, highlighting human side of China-Africa relations - Observers say a combination of cultural differences, management style and poor working conditions are to blame
• Democracy Now (19/7/21): Delta Variant Spreads Across Africa, Latin America, Where Vaccines Are Sorely Lacking
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): Africa Suffers Worst Week Since Start of COVID-19 Pandemic
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): France to pull more than 2,000 troops from Africa’s Sahel region - President Emmanuel Macron tells G5 summit that France will reduce its force to 2,500 to 3,000 troops over the long term.
• Democracy Now (2/7/21): WHO Warns Delta Coronavirus Variant Driving Massive Third Wave Across Africa
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Isis-linked groups open up new fronts across sub-Saharan Africa - Military victories combined with new alliances and shifts in strategy reinforce militants’ position across much of continent
• Democracy Now (15/6/21): COVID-19 Surges in Unvaccinated African Nations; Chile Locks Down Santiago Despite Vaccinations
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): Macron: Barkhane mission ending, French presence to stay in Sahel - French president says 5,100-strong Operation Barkhane to replaced by new mission supported by other partners.
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): WHO Warns of Surging COVID-19 Cases in Africa as Vaccine Shipments Come to “Near Halt”
• Democracy Now (28/5/21): African Nations Need 20 Million AstraZeneca Doses Within Weeks to Complete Vaccinations
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Plans to vaccinate people against covid-19 were set back in many African countries by the halting of vaccine exports from India, as it deals with its covid crisis. The Serum Institute of India, which was expected to supply most of Africa’s doses, has made no shipments to the continent since March and is not expected to resume them before October.
• Al Jazeera (10/5/21): The tripatriate alliance that is destabilisng the Horn of Africa - The common political vision of the leaders of Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia threatens to throw the region into turmoil.
• Al Jazeera: (27/4/21): Record 29 million in the Sahel in need of humanitarian assistance - UN officials say crisis is ‘unparalleled’, urge more funding to address humanitarian situation.; '“We’ve seen hunger jump by almost a third in West Africa – to the highest levels in the best part of a decade,” the statement quoted Chris Nikoi, a regional director of UN’s World Food Programme, as saying. He added that soaring food prices linked to the violence were driving hunger and malnutrition.'
• Al Jazeera: Sudan threatens legal action if Ethiopia dam filled without deal - Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas says Ethiopia rejected invitation to three-way summit to discuss stalled negotiations over GERD.

Algeria Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

CaspianReport (14/9/21): Algeria & Morocco: the world's most self-destructive rivalry

• Al-Monitor (3/11/21): Algeria accuses Morocco of fatal attack on three truck drivers - The Algerian presidency said the killing of the three Algerian truck drivers in a roadside bombing on Monday "will not go unpunished."
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): Algeria court jails brother of deposed President Bouteflika - Said Bouteflika sentenced to two years in prison for ‘obstructing the course of justice’, local media reports.
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Algerian whistleblower imprisoned after Spain deportation - Mohamed Abdellah had been in exile in Spain since 2019 when he fled Algeria after exposing alleged corruption but was sent back and is now imprisoned. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (4/10/21): Algeria has banned French military planes from its airspace, in the latest in the diplomatic discord between Algeria and France over visas and critical comments from French President Emmanuel Macron
• Al Jazeera (2/10/21): Algeria recalls ambassador to France for consultations - The two countries’ relations are tense following France’s decision to cut the number of visas it issues to Algerians.
• The Guardian (30/9/21): Macron in visa cuts row as Algeria summons French envoy - President accused of chasing rightwing votes by making sudden, tough gestures on immigration [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (22/9/21): Algeria closes airspace to all Moroccan planes - Presidency says the move comes ‘in view of the continued provocations and hostile practices on the Moroccan side’.
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): Algeria’s former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika dies at 84 - Veteran of Algeria’s war for independence ruled the North African country for two decades before his resignation in April 2019.
• CPJ (15/9/21): Algerian journalist Mohamed Mouloudj detained on charges of terrorism and spreading false news
• Modern Diplomacy (6/9/21): Why the Moroccan Elections Matters for the Geopolitical Reconfiguration of North Africa
• Al Jazeera (24/8/21): Algeria cuts diplomatic ties with Morocco over ‘hostile actions’ - Algeria’s Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra accuses Rabat of ‘hostile actions’ as Algiers breaks ties with its neighbour.
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Algeria blames Israel, Morocco for deadly wildfires - The Algerian president's office said two groups were responsible for starting the fires, one of which Algeria accused of receiving support from Israel and Morocco.
• CPJ (18/8/21): Algeria shuts down Lina TV for alleged licensing issue
• The Guardian (17/8/21): Algeria: 61 arrested after mob kills man falsely accused of starting deadly fires - The man had handed himself in to authorities, but was dragged out of a police van and set on fire
• CPJ (12/8/21): Algerian journalist Rabah Karèche sentenced to 1 year in prison on false news and anti-state charges
• The Guardian (11/8/21): Algeria declares three days of mourning as wildfire death toll reaches 69 - Scores of fires blaze across 17 provinces as calls made for aid convoys and Morocco and France offer help [climate-change-news]
• Democracy Now (11/8/21): Algerian Wildfires Kill 42 People as Severe Drought in Chile Threatens Crops and Water Supply
• New York Times (10/8/21): Algerian Soldiers Die Fighting Wildfires, President Says - At least 25 soldiers were killed saving residents from wildfires ravaging mountain forests and villages east of the capital, he said. The civilian death toll from the blazes rose to at least 17.
• Al-Monitor (7/8/21): Egypt, Algeria find common ground on Libyan crisis - Egypt and Algeria have been at odds over how to deal with the situation in Libya, but that may be changing.
• Jacobin (24/7/21): Algerians Toppled a President. Now They Are Fighting for Real Democracy. - Two years since millions-strong protests toppled Algeria’s longtime president, June’s regime-organized elections met with a massive popular boycott. For Algerians to really control their lives, the whole regime must go.
• Al Jazeera (27/7/21): Nigeria’s central bank halts sale of $5.7bn to money changers - The measure may lead to an initial depreciation in the naira’s value.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Algeria recalls envoy to Morocco in row over Western Sahara - Algeria’s foreign ministry says the move is linked to comments made by Morocco’s UN envoy on Algeria’s Kabylie region.
• The Guardian (30/6/21): Biafra separatist leader arrested and extradited to Nigeria - British national Nnamdi Kanu has been wanted since 2015 when he was charged with terrorism and incitement
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Coastguard seizes half a tonne of cocaine floating off Algeria coast - Fishermen alerted authorities to ‘suspicious’ items floating in the sea
• Al Jazeera (24/6/21): Algerian prime minister resigns following election results - President Abdelmadjid Tebboune accepts resignation of Abdelaziz Djerad and appoints him as caretaker prime minister.
• Al Jazeera (15/6/21): Algeria’s FLN wins most seats in parliament - The FLN party’s 105 seats were well short of the 204 needed to secure a majority in the 407-seat parliament.
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Western Sahara independence leader Brahim Ghali back in Algeria - Brahim Ghali returns to Algeria after stay in Spanish hospital that caused Spain-Morocco diplomatic row.
• Al Jazeera (22/5/21): Hundreds arrested as Algeria cracks down on protest movement - Crackdown intensifies on pro-democracy Hirak movement by authorities.
• Al Jazeera (9/5/21): Algeria to ban unauthorised protests - Critics say new measure aimed at suppressing the Hirak protest movement ahead of parliamentary polls in June. ([2] 12/5/21)

Benin Updates

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• Africa News (12/12/21): Sentencing of Benin's opposition leader sparks reactions [!]
• Africa News (11/12/21): Opposition leader in Benin sentenced to 20 years in jail [!]
• Africa News (10/12/21): Benin's opposition figure on trial for terrorism charges
• CPJ (8/12/21): In Benin, growing fears over law that can jail journalists for posting news online [survieillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (13/11/21): France formally handed back to Benin 26 precious artefacts, including statues and a royal throne, that it had taken when it colonised the west African country in the late 19th century. Other former colonial powers are also under pressure to return looted items. These include Britain, which holds more than 900 “Benin bronzes” that were taken from Nigeria.
• Al Jazeera (21/10/21): Benin’s parliament votes to legalise abortion - Under the new law, women can terminate a pregnancy within the first three months under certain conditions. [civil-rights-news]

Burkina Faso Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

The Michael Brooks Show (1/6/20): TMBS Doc: Thomas Sankara's Revolution [history-news, leftist-news, socialist-news, neo-imperialism-news]

• The Guardian (25/12/21): Burkina Faso declares two days of mourning after 41 militia members killed - The killings come amid escalating violence in the region, where a four-year Islamist insurgency has resulted in thousands of deaths [!]
• Africa News (16/12/21): New Burkinabe PM seeks to address terrorism, high cost of living
• Workers World (10/12/21): People of the Sahel oppose imperialism [neo-imperialism-news]
• Africa News (11/12/21): President of Burkina Faso appoints new prime-minister [politics-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Gunmen kill 14 gov’t-backed fighters in Burkina Faso ambush - Latest attack comes as Burkina Faso and Niger’s armies say they killed dozens of fighters in joint operation [!]
• Africa News (9/12/21): Burkina Faso: President Kabore accepts Prime minister's govt resignation - Burkina Faso's government resigned Wednesday night after several protests by the population denouncing its inability to fight recurrent jihadist attacks that plague the West African country every week. [protest-news]
• Workers World (30/11/21): Massive protests in Niger, Burkina Faso demand French military get out [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Left Voice (30/11/21): Another Attack on Protesters by French Troops in Africa, This Time Killing Three - Demonstrators demanding the departure of French troops from Operation Barkhane in the African Sahel region blocked a French army convoy last Saturday, and the soldiers and Nigerian police opened fire, killing three and injuring 17, 10 of them seriously. [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): French army convoy blocked by Burkinabe protesters reaches Niger - The stopping of the military convoy came amid growing anger over the inability of local and international forces to contain escalating violence
• Al Jazeera (27/11/21): Burkina Faso police fire tear gas at anti-government protest - Military police launch tear gas canisters to disperse about 100 protesters trying to march towards downtown Ouagadougou to protest the government’s failure to quell violence. [protest-news]
• Africa News (25/11/21): Burkina Faso : Opposition, business community protest internet suspension [surveillance-and-censorship-news, protest-news]
• Africa News (26/11/21): French military convoy to finally gain access in Burkina Faso
• Africa News (24/11/21): Burkina Faso: Chaos hits burial ceremony for 36 gendarmes killed in Inata
• Left Voice (24/11/21): Protests in Burkina Faso against French Troops - A French army convoy was attacked by demonstrators in Burkina Faso opposing the French military presence in the Sahel. While the French soldiers injured four protesters, the mobilization remains strong. French troops out of Africa! [neo-imperialism-news, protest-news]
• Africa News (21/11/21): Burkina Faso: Four wounded in protest against French army convoy [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Africa News (18/11/21): Burkina Faso President criticizes army 'dysfunctions' after deadly attack
• Africa News (20/11/21): Burkina Faso: French military convoy blocked by protesters [neo-imperialism-news, protest-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): The death toll of a weekend attack against a gendarmerie post in northern Burkina Faso has risen to at least 53, up from a previous estimate of 32. Al Jazeera reports.
• Democracy Now (17/11/21): Burkina Faso: Protesters Demand President Resign Amid Instability and After Deadly Militant Attack - Protesters on Tuesday also demanded the departure of French forces that patrol Burkina Faso, as well as neighboring Mali and Niger, whose presence they say leads to more attacks by insurgent groups. [neo-imperialism-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): A military attachment in Burkina Faso’s Sahel’s Soum province was attacked on Sunday by an unidentified armed group, with the death toll having now risen to 28 officers and four civilians, the Burkina Faso’s government has said. The provisional death toll is the larged recorded loss on Burkina Faso’s security forces during a single attack since Jihadi violence started in the country more than five years ago. Sam Mednick reports for AP.
• Jacobin (15/10/21): We Need Thomas Sankara’s Political Vision Today - Thomas Sankara, the socialist president of Burkina Faso, was assassinated 34 years ago today. With Global South debt levels at an all-time high, Sankara’s call for resistance to debt as a tool of neocolonial domination has never been more relevant. [leftist-news, analysis-news, history-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Burkina Faso opens trial on 1987 Sankara assassination - Ex-president among 14 who face charges in killing of former leader Thomas Sankara 34 years ago. [leftist-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): Burkina Faso’s government has said that at least 14 soldiers were killed and seven injured by extremists at the Yirgou military barracks in Burkina Faso’s Sanmatenga province yesterday.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Dozens killed in northern Burkina Faso rebel attack - At least 47 people, including 30 civilians and 14 soldiers, killed by rebels in Arbinda town, according to state media.
• Just Security (18/8/21): The trial of former Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré and 13 co-accused over the 1987 assassination of his predecessor Thomas Sankara will start on Oct. 11
• Al Jazeera (9/8/21): Several soldiers killed in northern Burkina Faso ambush - At least eight other soldiers were wounded in the attack near the country’s border with Mali, the government says.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Armed group attacks villages across northern Burkina Faso - An armed group stormed villages in the country’s north, killing at least 10 civilians and 15 soldiers.
• Al Jazeera (31/7/21): France clears extradition of Burkina Faso ex-president’s brother - Francois Compaore is wanted in his home country in connection with the 1998 murder of investigative journalist Norbert Zongo.
• Al Jazeera (22/6/21): Burkina Faso says 11 police officers killed in ambush, 4 missing - The officers came under attack during a relief mission in the northern town of Yirgou, security minister says.
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): Thousands flee after massacre in northern Burkina Faso - The government says 7,000 families have fled to Sebba after attackers killed 138 people in Solhan village.
• The Guardian (5/6/21): Suspected extremist attack on Burkina Faso village kills 130 people - Homes burned in Solhan village in one of worst attacks in country beset by jihadist violence; The Guardian (24/6/21): Burkina Faso says most of attackers in village massacre were children - More than 130 people were killed in attack carried out by mostly by children as young as 12
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Journalists in Burkina Faso blocked from accessing IDP [internally displaced people] sites - Government move causes concern about press freedom and the visibility of the country’s humanitarian crisis.
• Al Jazeera (7/5/21): Burkina Faso attacks displace thousands in 10 days: UN - Armed groups displace some 17,500 people in Burkina Faso in recent days, UNHCR says, in attempt to cause ‘mayhem’.
• Al Jazeera (4/5/21): Dozens killed in eastern Burkina Faso attack - Attack in Kodyel village in Komandjari province leaves at least 30 people dead, including children, after about 100 fighters entered on motorcycles and trucks.
• Al Jazeera: Spanish reporters, Irish campaigner killed in Burkina Faso ambush - Burkina government confirms deaths of three foreigners killed in attack on anti-poaching patrol in country’s east. [2]

Botswana Updates

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• The Guardian (29/11/21): Botswana upholds ruling decriminalising same-sex relationships - Court of appeal decision hailed as victory for LGBTQ+ community that could encourage other African countries to follow suit [lgbtq-news, court-news]
• Common Dreams (26/11/21): 'It Was Entirely Avoidable': Rich Countries Blamed as New Covid Variant Sparks Global Alarm - "Allowing new variants to emerge and spread, 13 months into the vaccine era, is a policy choice by the rich world." [vaccine-ip-news, covid-news]
• The Economist World This Week (31/7/21): Soldiers from Botswana and South Africa arrived in Mozambique, where they will help the government battle jihadists who have overrun parts of the northern-most province of Cabo Delgado. They join 1,000 troops from Rwanda, who have already been involved in several firefights with the insurgents.

Burundi Updates

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• Al Jazeera (25/12/21): I survived imprisonment in Burundi - And what I saw on the inside has made me that much more determined to fight for human rights in my country. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Africa News (21/12/21): Truth Comission describes 1972 events in Burundi as genocide [!]
• The Guardian (7/12/21): Dozens killed in fire at overcrowded Burundi prison - Inmate says police refused to open doors amid blaze that left 38 dead and 69 seriously hurt [!]
• Africa News (20/11/21): US ends sanctions against Burundi as activists slam decision [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/9/21): Arrest warrant issued for Burundi’s exiled opposition leader - Arrest warrant for Sinduhije relates to attacks, including grenade explosions and ambushes, that have killed dozens and injured several since the start of 2020.
• Al Jazeera (21/9/21): Burundi probes grenade blasts, pledges to stamp out ‘terrorists’ - Interior ministry says at least two people were killed when ‘still unidentified terrorists’ hurled grenades in two Bujumbura sites.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Burundi speaks up for Egypt in GERD crisis - Burundi has expressed support for Egypt in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam crisis.
• CPJ (12/8/21): When Burundian journalist Jean Bigirimana disappeared, his colleagues tried to solve the case

Cameroon Updates

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• Africa News (29/12/21): Forty-seven opposition supporters in Cameroon sentenced to prison [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (25/12/21): Central Africa: fighting kills six soldiers and 22 jihadists in Lake Chad region - Three-week operation by troops from Niger and Nigeria targeted area that has become a bolthole for Boko Haram and Isis-linked militants [!]
• Telesur (17/12/21): Water Scarcity Fuels Violence and Mass Displacement in Cameroon - Inter-community clashes broke out in Ouloumsa village after a dispute between herders, fishermen, and farmers over diminishing water resources. [climate-change-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Africa News (12/12/21): The uncertain future of children caught in conflict in Cameroon [!]
• Modern Diplomacy (11/12/21): Climate change fuels violence and mass displacement in Cameroon [climate-change-news, social-woes-news, food-security-news]
• Africa News (10/12/21): Thousands seek safety in Chad after Cameroon clashes [!]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news] - $1.3 billion port project in Cameroon
• The Guardian (14/10/21): Calls for calm in Cameroon after police officer lynched for killing five-year-old - Anger erupts after schoolgirl is shot by gendarme at a checkpoint in anglophone city of Buea
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): Right Livelihood Award Goes to Environmental Activists, Rights Defenders Across the Globe
• Al Jazeera (20/9/21): Rebel attacks kill 15 soldiers, civilians in western Cameroon - Government says armed ‘terrorists’ ambushed a convoy of elite rapid intervention forces in the northwest region on September 16.
• Just Security (26/7/21): At least six Cameroonian soldiers have been killed and four wounded during an attack by Islamist insurgents on an army outpost in the far north of the country, state media has said
• Bellingcat (16/7/21): How Schoolchildren Became Pawns in Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis

Chad Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Guardian (25/12/21): Central Africa: fighting kills six soldiers and 22 jihadists in Lake Chad region - Three-week operation by troops from Niger and Nigeria targeted area that has become a bolthole for Boko Haram and Isis-linked militants [!]
• Al Jazeera (18/12/21): Chad to deploy additional 1,000 UN peacekeepers to Mali - Deployment to reinforce numbers as France scales back its 5,000-strong regional counterterrorism mission. [!]
• Africa News (10/12/21): Thousands seek safety in Chad after Cameroon clashes [!]
• Africa News (30/11/21): Chad's military-led government issues amnesty to rebels and dissidents
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• CPJ (28/9/21): French police question journalist Thomas Dietrich over complaint by Chad official
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): Chad’s military ruler Mahamat Deby names transitional parliament - The so-called National Transitional Council ‘will act as a national assembly of transition’ ahead of elections, statement says.
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): Former U.S.-Backed Dictator of Chad, Hissène Habré, Dies
• Speak Out Now (13/5/21): Chad: French Africa Loses a Friend
• Al Jazeera (9/5/21): Chad military claims victory over northern rebels - The military and authorities have previously said they have defeated the FACT rebel group only for fighting to continue.
• Al Jazeera (8/5/21): Chad police use tear gas to disperse anti-military gov’t protests - Military authorities had banned the protest called by a coalition of opposition political parties and civil society organisations.
• Al Jazeera: Chad military council names transitional government - Military also announces the lifting of an overnight curfew introduced after President Idriss Deby’s shock death.
• Left Voice: Mass mobilizations in Chad against the Military Junta and French Imperialism - A week after the death of the dictator Idriss Déby, Chad’s military junta and France are confronted with massive mobilizations of the toiling masses.; 'On Tuesday, a week after the death of Chad’s dictator, Idriss Déby, and the formation of a Transitional Military Council (CMT) to lead the country, the opposition organized mobilizations throughout the country, particularly in the capital, N’Djamena. French president Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to Déby and endorsed his son, Mahamat Déby, to head the CMT. This lit the fuse, pushing the popular classes and the youth to the streets against “Françafrique” (French Africa) and the military dictatorship.; While Chad’s constitution states that the president of the National Assembly takes power if there is a presidential vacancy, Macron has reaffirmed France’s support for a dictatorial regime run with an iron fist.; ... “France and the United States, which have established military cooperation programs, could not be unaware that they were playing with fire. ... In their latest episode: Chadian soldiers committed rape in Niger.”'
• Democracy Now (4/28/21): [At least five, up to nine] Protesters Killed in Chad as Political Turmoil Deepens Following Death of President Déby [2]
• Al Jazeera: Who are Chad’s FACT rebels and what are their goals? - Fighters from the Libya-based Front for Change and Concord in Chad crossed into Chad last week with the aim of overthrowing President Idriss Deby. A look into the byzantine connections of Libyan civil war generals, France, Chad, Chadian rebels, and Russia; Also: Deby’s 37-year-old-son, four-star General Mahamat Idriss Deby, was swiftly named transitional leader at the helm of a military council, despite constitutional protocol saying that the speaker of the parliament should have taken power. The military also suspended the constitution and dissolved the government and parliament, but pledged to hold “free and democratic” elections after 18 months.
• Democracy Now (4/20/21): Chadian President Idriss Déby [leader for three decades] Killed on Frontlines of Fight Against Rebels [2]
• Al Jazeera: Chad military says it killed 300 rebels after attempted incursion [April 11] - Chad military says five government soldiers were also killed as it put down an armed rebellion in the country’s northwest [with rear base in Libya].; '[President] Deby, who seized power in 1990 as the head of an armed rebellion, is a staunch ally of France and the United States in the fight against armed groups in the arid Sahel region.'

Djibouti Updates

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• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Several killed in Djibouti as communal violence erupts - Police say at least three killed in the country’s capital following violence between Afar and Isse ethnic groups.

Egypt Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

CaspianReport (13/8/21): Egypt flexes military muscle at Ethiopia

• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): Palestine's Abbas despised by Arab world, says Egypt academic [!]
• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): Egypt releases Ola Qaradawi from jail [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Middle East Monitor (25/12/21): "I don't breath fresh air," Mahmoud Ezzat reveals prison violations [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (24/12/21): Refugees in Egypt: Sisi's political trump card [immigrant-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (24/12/21): Report: Egypt to receive advanced German anti-missile defence system [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Egypt supports Cyprus against Turkey - Egypt has criticized Turkey’s plan for a two-state peace deal on ethnically divided Cyprus [!]
• New York Times (20/12/21): Egypt Sentences 3 Human Rights Activists to Prison - The verdicts suggest that the government has not scaled back its crackdown on dissent, despite efforts to improve its image. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (17/12/21): Egypt builds industrial city in Tanzania - Egypt and Tanzania close ties are strengthened further by the inauguration of an Egyptian industrial city adjacent to the Tanzanian capital.
• Al-Monitor (18/12/21): Egypt, Turkey compete for military foothold in Kenya - Egypt and Turkey are vying for presence in Kenya, with both countries seeking to consolidate their relations at all economic, technological and industrial levels with the African country.
• Al-Monitor (18/12/21): Egypt ready to pump gas to Lebanon - While Syria says the Arab Gas Pipeline on its territory is set and ready, Egypt announces that it is ready to export natural gas to Lebanon in the first quarter of 2022. [big-oil-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Egypt inaugurates dams in Uganda - Seven dams and 27 underground wells were inaugurated by Egypt in Uganda alongside a large number of projects that serve to improve the quality of drinking water and provide water for agriculture. [infrastructure-news]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Al-Monitor (12/12/21): Al-Azhar ["Sunni Islam's highest religious authority"] rhetoric alarms LGBTQ community - Al-Azhar has in recent days stepped up its anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, following anti-gay comments by a prominent retired soccer star. [lgbtq-news, far-right-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (10/12/21): Lebanon's prime minister asks Egypt for gas as power crisis drags on - Egypt previously agreed to export natural gas to Lebanon via Jordan and Syria. [energy-news] [!]
• The Economist (9/12/21): The Muslim Brotherhood is tearing itself apart - Two leaders vie for control of the oldest Islamist movement
• CPJ (8/12/21): For families of Al-Jazeera journalists jailed in Egypt, an agonizing choice [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Egyptian court releases researcher Patrick Zaki - Zaki, who was arrested in Cairo in February 2020, will still have to face trial next year for ‘spreading fake news’. [court-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (30/11/21): Egyptian liberals outraged by lawyer's blasphemy indictment - The sentencing of lawyer and Islamic thinker Ahmed Abdo Maher to five years in prison over remarks defaming Islam has sparked controversy in Egypt, accentuating the divide between liberals and ultra-conservatives [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (29/11/21): Hossam Bahgat: Egyptian rights activist found guilty over tweet - Court fines Hossam Bahgat for ‘insulting’ the country’s electoral commission authority on social media [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (29/11/21): New Egyptian-Ethiopian escalation over Nile dam - Ethiopia has announced that it will soon finish construction work on the GERD, while Egypt has warned of the consequences of not reaching an agreement in the latest escalation between the two countries.
• Al-Monitor (19/11/21): Egypt coordinates with Tanzania as Ethiopian dam negotiations paused - Egypt ramps up coordination efforts with Tanzania amid fading hopes of resuming GERD negotiations.
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Qatar, Egypt agree to supply fuel and building materials to Gaza - Deal was reached in Oslo on Wednesday during meeting for international donor group for Palestinians.
• CPJ (17/11/21): Egypt sentences journalists Hisham Fouad and Hossam Moanis to 4 years in prison [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): Egypt’s treatment of refugees in question as Cairo deports Eritreans - Eight Eritreans were expelled in October after being in detention for two years without due legal process or access to the UNHCR; another 12 are thought to be at imminent risk. [immigrant-news]
• Common Dreams (14/11/21): As Climate Emergency Worsens, Freak Storm Sends Snow, Scorpion Plague on Egypt's Aswan - Egyptian climate scientists have no doubt that the Aswan storm was a manifestation of human-driven climate change, and they say that the old Egypt people grew up with is being altered. [climate-change-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): President Biden’s administration is looking to improve security, climate and economic cooperation with Cairo, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken kicking off the first set of strategic dialogue talks with Egypt since 2015 [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (6/11/21): Egypt avoids taking sides in Sudan crisis - While regional and international forces are pushing for a solution to the crisis in Sudan, Cairo is neutral between the civil and military components in an attempt to overcome the complexities of the political scene.
• Al-Monitor (5/11/21): Egypt, UAE play essential role in containing Sudan-Ethiopia crises - US fears state collapse, regional spillover in Horn of Africa
• Al-Monitor (3/11/21): Egypt explores water projects with Somalia - Egypt is in talks with Somalia on water management aid for the drought-stricken country as Cairo builds up its influence in the Horn of Africa.
• Al-Monitor (2/11/21): Egyptians want preacher who justified violence against women stopped - The statements of an Egyptian preacher who justified violence against women raised the ire of social media users and prompted activists to demand that he be prevented from appearing in the media. [civil-rights-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): The Central African Republic’s presidential guard opened fire on U.N. peacekeepers in the capital, wounding 10 of them, the U.N. mission said yesterday. One person was struck and killed by a U.N. vehicle as it fled the scene. The incident occurred on Monday after a civilian officer for the U.N. mission, known as MINUSCA, entered the security perimeters of the presidential residence, according to a MINUSCA spokesperson. MINUSCA has called the shooting of the unarmed Egyptian peacekeepers near the presidential palace “deliberate and unjustifiable.” A presidential spokesperson urged calm, saying it was “an incident that we are managing,” adding that “we deplore the death of this compatriot and we offer our most saddened condolences to the family,” Jean Fernand Koena reports for AP.
• Just Security (2/11/21): Egypt is expected to pass legislation which will expand the national security powers of the country’s president and military, just as Egypt’s authoritarian government appeared to relax its grip last week with the lifting of the longstanding state of emergency.
• Jacobin (31/10/21): The Egyptian Revolution Has Not Yet Been Defeated - Alaa Abd el-Fattah is one of the most famous of Egypt’s 60,000 political prisoners. His latest book, You Have Not Yet Been Defeated, is a damning indictment of the authoritarianism and violence of the Egyptian state.
• Al-Monitor (29/10/21): World Bank approves loan to Egypt, praises government for growth during pandemic - The loan accompanies various reforms, including actions to increase economic participation of women. Wow
• Al-Monitor (27/10/21): Threat forces Egyptian passenger plane bound for Moscow to return - EgyptAir flight MS729 was flying to Moscow, but shortly reversed course. Russia recently resumed flights to Egyptian resorts.
• Al-Monitor (27/10/21): Egypt boosts medical cooperation with African Nile Basin countries - Egypt is expanding its influence in the Nile Basin region, through the establishment of medical and pharmaceutical centers, amid the stalled negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
• Just Security (26/10/21): Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has announced the lifting of a yearslong nationwide state of emergency. The state of emergency allows Egyptian authorities to make arrests and search people’s homes without warrants. The measure has been in place since the April 2017 bombings of two Coptic Christian churches by an affiliate of the ISIS armed group that killed more than 40 people and wounded dozens more; Critics have called the move by el-Sisi a superficial change that will not fundamentally alter the repressive system in Egypt
• Al-Monitor (22/10/21): With Nile talks stalled, Ethiopia plans to fill dam, buy Turkish drones - Meanwhile, Sudan’s democratic transition faces ‘worst and most dangerous’ crisis.
• Al Jazeera (19/10/21): Greece pledges to link Egypt to European Union’s energy market - The connection would happen through an underwater cable that carries electricity across the Mediterranean sea. [energy-news]
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Ethiopia preps for third filling as Nile dam diplomacy stalls - Hope for negotiations on the crisis with Egypt and Sudan is fading as Ethiopia works toward the third-stage filling of its mega dam on the Blue Nile.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Judges postpone trials of three Egypt activists - Activists Alaa Abdel-Fattah, Mohamed Ibrahim, Yahia Hussein Abdel-Hadi appeared at the Emergency State Security Court in Cairo.
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): Italian court suspends long-awaited Regeni murder trial - The trial in absentia of four Egyptian officers halted as judge rules they may not have been formally made aware of charges over the abduction, torture and killing in Cairo of an Italian doctoral student.
• Al-Monitor (12/10/21): Sisi backs emergency measures by Tunisian president - The Egyptian president said the actions taken by his Tunisian counterpart, Kais Saied, will bring 'stability to Tunisia.'
• Al-Monitor (5/10/21): Are Brotherhood members forming terror cells in Sudan? - Sudanese security services have arrested members of an Islamic State-affiliated terrorist cell led by an Egyptian national, while Cairo wants to extradite them as part of a broader effort to extradite members of the Muslim Brotherhood who fled to Khartoum in 2013.
• Al-Monitor (2/10/21): Morocco flirts with Ethiopia amid stalled Nile dam talks - Morocco and Ethiopia ramping up cooperation in various fields as negotiations remain stalled over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and Egypt refuses to back Morocco on the Western Sahara issue.
• Al-Monitor (19/9/21): Islamic State leader in Sinai surrenders to Egyptian authorities - The surrender of Abu Hamza al-Qadi to an Egyptian tribal union linked to the government could be a major blow to the terrorist organization.
• Al Jazeera (14/9/21): Egypt begins trial of researcher Patrick George Zaki - The researcher and human rights activist faces up to five years in jail for ‘spreading false news’.
• CPJ (14/9/21): CPJ condemns Biden administration bypassing human rights conditions in military aid to EgyptCPJ condemns Biden administration bypassing human rights conditions in military aid to Egypt
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Egypt trains Sudanese police to counter Brotherhood plans - Cairo is training a number of Sudanese police officers on measures against the Muslim Brotherhood as Sudan accuses Brotherhood members of being behind the demonstrations and riots that have erupted in the country.
• CPJ (13/9/21): Egyptian journalist Hossam Bahgat is set to go on trial for a tweet
• Democracy Now (14/9/21): U.S. to Withhold 10% of $1.3 Billion in Military Aid to Egypt, Citing Human Rights [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (12/9/21): Egypt builds new water station outside Cairo as fears over Ethiopia dam persist - With negotiations over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam stalled, the Egyptian government is building a massive water treatment plant in Giza governorate in a bid to address water scarcity.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Burundi speaks up for Egypt in GERD crisis - Burundi has expressed support for Egypt in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam crisis.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Egypt establishes largest coronavirus vaccine factory in Middle East - Egypt is preparing to inaugurate the VACSERA factory complex in the 6th of October City, aiming to produce various types of vaccines in cooperation with major international companies.
• Al-Monitor (9/9/21): Three dead following building collapse near Cairo - Egypt has major problems with infrastructure safety and deadly incidents are not uncommon.

• The Guardian (7/9/21): Egypt accused of widespread state-sanctioned killings of dissidents - Analysis of alleged anti-terrorist shootouts reveals security forces routinely suppressing opposition, claims Human Rights Watch
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Egypt boots public servants from railways over Brotherhood links - Egyptian authorities blame Muslim Brotherhood-linked staff for a series of deadly rail accidents and have moved scores of them from operational roles.
• Jacobin (25/8/21): The Biden Administration Is Embracing Egypt’s Dictator Sisi - Joe Biden promised to end Donald Trump’s “love affair” with tyrants like the Egyptian ruler Sisi. But now he looks set to approve a super-sized military aid package that helps prop up Sisi’s regime. [us-policy-new]
• Just Security (24/8/21): Egypt has closed its main border crossing point with the Gaza Strip yesterday amid tensions with the territory’s militant Hamas rulers, officials have said.
• Al-Monitor (21/8/21): Egypt pledges support to Somalia, eyeing Horn of Africa influence - Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Roble held talks in Cairo with senior Egyptian officials at a time when Egypt is attempting to expand its influence in the Horn of Africa
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Egypt counters Turkey’s influence in Mali via Al-Azhar - Egypt seeks more influence in Mali through Al-Azhar, which is organizing a training program for a number of Malian imams in a bid to counter extremism.
• Al-Monitor (16/8/21): Egypt sends medical aid to Lebanon following fuel tank explosion - At least 28 people who were trying to obtain fuel died when a tank exploded in northern Lebanon, prompting angry locals to burn the house of the site owner.
• Al Jazeera (13/8/21): Attack kills eight Egyptian troops in Sinai - Armed group ISIL claims responsibility for the attack in a statement on an ISIL-affiliated website.
• Al-Monitor (12/8/21): Egypt enrolls Russian imams in 'fatwa training program' to combat Brotherhood - Egypt is helping Russia confront extremism, namely Muslim Brotherhood ideology, by training Russian imams in the Dar al-Ifta — including a 'fatwa training program.'
• Just Security (11/8/21): Top officials from the Department of Defense and State Department have voiced support for continuing the U.S. and Egyptian security relationship, as Congress debates restricting funds over concerns about human rights abuses and the Egyptian government’s crackdown on civil society. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (10/8/21): Cairo backs Tunisian president’s actions against Brotherhood - Egypt said it fully supports Tunisian President Kais Saied, who fired the prime minister, suspended parliament and took control over the executive power in the midst of a severe political and economic crisis raging the country.
• Al-Monitor (9/8/21): Egypt under fire for video of soldier shooting at sleeping target in Sinai - International law has rules for how to respond to enemy forces who are not engaged in combat.
• Al-Monitor (9/8/21): Egypt's president slices bread subsidies - A controversial decision by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to cut bread subsidies despite an earlier promise not to tamper with the price of subsidized loaves has raised concerns that this move may trigger a wave of unrest reminiscent of the bread riots of 1977.
• Al-Monitor (7/8/21): Egypt, Algeria find common ground on Libyan crisis - Egypt and Algeria have been at odds over how to deal with the situation in Libya, but that may be changing.
• Al-Monitor (2/8/21): Egyptian universities list suspected Muslim Brotherhood affiliates - Egypt’s parliament approved a new draft law to allow the nondisciplinary dismissal, or dismissal without judicial procedures, of public servants who are affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood.
• Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Egypt: Eight soldiers killed in Sinai ‘anti-terrorism’ operations - Egypt’s military says almost 90 fighters were killed in northern Sinai, where fighters loyal to ISIL operate.
• Just Security (28/7/21): Influential voices in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates [all nations which oppose the party which was overthrown by the president] are viewing the events in Tunisia, where the country’s president abruptly dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament Sunday night, as marking the death knell for political Islam in democracy
• Just Security (19/7/21): Biden’s Egypt Problem
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Esraa Abdelfattah: Egypt activist freed after nearly two years - Esraa Abdelfattah was arrested in October 2019 on charges of ‘spreading fake news’ and ‘collaborating with a terrorist group’.
• Al Jazeera (13/7/21): Questions after Egyptian workers killed in Cyprus fire - One week after wildfire devastated surrounding countryside – killing four people – residents of a Cypriot village are facing questions over the treatment of farm labourers.
• Middle East Monitor (13/7/21): Why did Putin turn against Sisi in the Renaissance Dam file? (via u/White_Mlungu_Capital on r/geopolitics)
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): Egypt upholds life sentences for 10 Muslim Brotherhood figures - Among those sentenced is the group’s leader, Mohamed Badie, on charges related to killing policemen and organising mass jail-breaks during Egypt’s 2011 uprising.
• Just Security (9/7/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has lifted a ban on charter flights to Egypt, six years after suspending them for national security concerns.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Saudi Arabia supports Egypt, Sudan ‘water rights’ in dam dispute - The expression of support by the kingdom comes a day after Ethiopia notified downstream nations that the second-phase filling at the dam had begun.
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Egypt angry as it says Ethiopia has resumed filling GERD - Egypt says unilateral move violates international laws and norms as tensions continue to rise over huge dam built on Nile’s main tributary.
• Al Jazeera (14/6/21): Egypt upholds death penalty for 12 Muslim Brotherhood members - Court decision marks end of a trial linked to a mass killing by security forces at a sit-in in Cairo in 2013
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Egypt’s intelligence chief holds talks with Hamas in Gaza Strip - After helping to broker Israel-Hamas ceasefire, Egypt looks to shore up truce and boost its role as mediator.
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Biden discusses Gaza ceasefire with Egypt’s President el-Sisi - Phone call between US president and Egyptian counterpart comes as Secretary of State Blinken is heading to region.
• Al Jazeera (23/6/21): Egypt arrests TikTok star after ‘human trafficking’ conviction - Police arrest female TikTok influencer Haneen Hossam, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for ‘human trafficking’.
• Jacobin (4/5/21): Egypt’s Al-Sisi Regime Is Still “Disappearing” Researchers Who Oppose Its Crimes - Last week it was announced that an Italian court will put Egyptian state security agents on trial for the 2016 kidnapping and murder of labor researcher Giulio Regeni. For years, Egypt's military regime has refused to cooperate with the investigation — and in recent months it has continued to “disappear” researchers who defend workers’ and women’s rights.
• Al Jazeera (4/5/21): Egypt to buy Rafale fighter jets worth $4.5bn from France - Human Rights Watch condemns deal saying Paris is only encouraging ‘ruthless repression’ in Egypt under President el-Sisi.
• Mother Jones (30/4/21): Biden Promised to Crack Down on Egypt’s Dictator. Why Is the President Still Sending Him Weapons? - During the campaign, Biden said there’d be “no more blank checks,” but the Egyptian government is still locking up journalists and political opponents.
• The Economist: Why Egypt’s trains keep crashing - It does not take a presidential committee to figure it out

Eritrea Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• South China Morning Post (28/11/21): China expands African reach as Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau join belt and road ahead of key regional forum - President Xi Jinping to deliver keynote speech via video link at Forum on China-Africa Cooperation ministerial meeting starting on November 29 - Eritrea deal cements China’s foothold in Horn of Africa and Red Sea, while Guinea-Bissau access will boost its maritime interests along West African coast [bri-news, china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): Egypt’s treatment of refugees in question as Cairo deports Eritreans - Eight Eritreans were expelled in October after being in detention for two years without due legal process or access to the UNHCR; another 12 are thought to be at imminent risk. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): US sanctions Eritrean army, ruling party over Ethiopia conflict - US says presence of Eritrean forces in Ethiopia ‘an impediment’ to ending conflict and increasing humanitarian access. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (25/8/21): The U.S. and E.U. are warnings about the recent influx of Eritrean troops into Ethiopia’s Tigray region.
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): US sanctions Eritrean general over rights abuses in Ethiopia - The US Department of the Treasury is blacklisting the Eritrean Defense Forces’ chief of staff for leading an entity it accuses of heinous abuses including massacres, rapes and executions. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/5/21): Eritrea’s Isaias meets Sudanese leaders amid Ethiopia tensions - Khartoum visit by Eritrean president comes amid strained relations between government of Ethiopia, a close ally, and Sudan.

Ethiopia Updates

(wiki)

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Maps: Basic (cr.); Ethnic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Popular Front (6/5/21): (podcast) On the Frontlines of the War in Tigray

CaspianReport (13/8/21): Egypt flexes military muscle at Ethiopia

• Workers World (16/12/21): Ethiopia: U.S. sanctions create misery and division [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Ethiopia gov’t says army will not go deeper into Tigray, for now - Federal troops ordered to maintain the areas they have won back recently from Tigrayan forces, government says. - Air raids in Tigray have continued. On Wednesday, an air raid hit a power substation in the regional capital, Mekelle, regional media and two humanitarian sources there told Reuters news agency. One source said colleagues had been in a hospital with injured workers from the substation. - The hit jeopardises power access in the northern region, already scant following 13 months of conflict with the federal government. Power across Mekelle had been off since the strike, the humanitarian sources told Reuters.
• CPJ (23/12/21): Ethiopia Insight reporter Ermias Tasfaye detained since November [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Intel: US concerned over Iran, Turkey, UAE-supplied drones in Ethiopia war - Ethiopia's government has rejected calls for a cease-fire after routing Tigray rebels with the help of high-tech foreign drones. [us-policy-news]
• Vice (22/12/21): We Talked to Survivors of Ethiopia’s Brutal Civil War - “They were sent to cleanse the Amhara ethnicity,” said a man whose brother and the brother’s entire family were murdered in what’s known as the Chenna massacre.
• Al Jazeera (22/12/21): Aid workers in Sudan warn of crisis as Ethiopia war continues - Humanitarians sound alarm over the growing humanitarian crisis amid difficulties to provide aid to those fleeing Ethiopia’s conflict. [social-woes-news, immigrant-news] [!]
• Popular Front (18/12/21): Battle on All Fronts in Ethiopia - In this episode we talk to journalist Sean Williams about the rapidly advancing war in Ethiopia, where several different ethnic militia groups are now advancing on the capital. [podcast-news] Interesting, in addition to basic reporting, they go over the media coverage and bias, a bit about foreign interests, and some of the history on the ground
• Africa News (21/12/21): Air strikes kill at least 28 people in Ethiopia's Tigray region
• Just Security (21/12/21): Tigrayan rebel troops are withdrawing from Tigray’s neighboring regions of Afar and Amhara, where fighting has displaced more than 300,000 people since July. In a two-page letter sent to U.N. Secretary General António Guterres, the leader of the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), Debretsion Gebremichael, said he hoped that bringing his troops back into the Tigray region would be a “decisive opening for peace.” “We decided to withdraw from these areas to Tigray. We want to open the door to humanitarian aid,” a spokesperson for the TPLF said. A spokesperson for Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said the TPLF’s announcement was a cover-up for military setbacks in the past weeks, adding that “there are still pockets in the Amhara region in which [the TPLF] remain as well as other fronts they are attempting to open the conflict.” Al Jazeera reports.
• New York Times (20/12/21): Foreign Drones Tip the Balance in Ethiopia’s Civil War - Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed pulled off a stunning reversal in the year-old conflict with the help of armed drones supplied by the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Iran.
• Africa News (20/12/21): Ethiopia: TPLF rebels announce retreat to Tigray from Amhara and Afar regions
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): U.N. Human Rights Council to Probe War Crimes in Ethiopia
• South China Morning Post (19/12/21): China votes ‘no’ on Tigray abuses probe by UN team, calls it interference in Ethiopia’s affairs - UN Human Rights Council meeting requested by EU voted to set up three-member team to investigate alleged abuses in the Ethiopian civil war - Just weeks before, Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated Beijing’s support for the Ethiopian government during an unscheduled stop in Addis Ababa [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (17/12/21): Ethiopia slams new probe proposal at UN rights body session - Ambassador Zembe Kebede accuses UN Human Rights Council of having been ‘hijacked’ and used as ‘instrument of political pressure’. [!]
• Al Jazeera (18/12/21): Ethiopia forces claim recapturing of towns from Tigray rebels - Gov’t says forces have retaken several towns from the TPLF including Kobo and Waldia in the north. [!]
• The Guardian (16/12/21): Torture, detentions and killings rife in western Tigray, report claims - Witnesses say Ethiopian government behind atrocities after it launched a military offensive last year
• Juts Security (16/12/21): Evidence is suggesting that Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed had been planning a military campaign in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region for months before war erupted a year ago. Ahmed won a Nobel Peace Prize for making peace with Isaias Afwerki, the authoritarian leader of Eritrea, but that prize then emboldened both leaders to secretly plot a war against their mutual foes in Tigray, according to current and former Ethiopian officials. Declan Walsh reports for the New York Times.
• Africa News (15/12/21): Sudanese army deployed along the disputed border with Ethiopia [!]
• CPJ (15/12/21): Ethiopia uses emergency law to ramp up arrests of journalists [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Telesur (14/12/21): UN: Drivers of Humanitarian Aids Trucks Held by Hijackers - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday that drivers of eighteen trucks of humanitarian aid are being hold by military groups in the Amhara region of northern Ethiopia. - "A group of armed individuals -- believed to be either from the Ethiopian National Defense Forces or an affiliated allied military force -- entered the Disaster Risk Management Committee compound in Kombolcha and took 18 WFP trucks by force," said Haq on Monday. Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): How armed drones may have helped turn the tide in Ethiopia’s war - Cheap and efficient drones are increasingly becoming decisive weapons in modern conflicts.
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): China's support for Ethiopian government complicates ties with Egypt - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Ethiopia to show his nation’s support for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government has put China’s relationship with Egypt to the test. [china-policy-news, bri-news]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Democracy Now (13/12/21): Tigrayan Forces Retake Control of UNESCO Town Lalibela as PM Abiy Ahmed Heads Back to Frontlines - Meanwhile, a new report by Human Rights Watch found Tigrayan rebels carried out dozens of civilian executions in August and September. The U.N. has said all parties to the conflict have committed violations of international human rights, some of which could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity
• The Guardian (12/12/21): Tigray rebels retake Ethiopian heritage town of Lalibela - Residents of Unesco-listed town, 400 miles north of Addis Ababa, say Tigrayan fighters have seized control
• CounterPunch (10/12/21): USA Loses Ethiopia; Biggest Strategic Blunder Since Loss of Iran Note: This is an interesting perspective, and worth considering... although some claims should be verified. Do note that the author is based in Eritrea however, a nation which was openly antagonistic to the TPLF and recently pillaging them.
• New York Times (10/12/21): Tigray Rebels Executed Dozens of Civilians, Report Says - The report from Human Rights Watch adds to the mounting violations committed by the warring parties since the conflict in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region began over a year ago. [!]
• CPJ (8/12/21): Ethiopia’s civil war dashes once-high hopes of press freedom [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Africa News (9/12/21): Life under rebel rule in an Ethiopian holy city
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Ethiopia’s PM Abiy to return to Addis Ababa from battlefront - Abiy claims first phase of the conflict against the Tigrayan forces completed, but says struggle ‘not yet finished’. [!]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): UN halts food aid in Ethiopia’s Kombolcha, Dessie after looting - Mass looting of WFP warehouses in the Amhara region prompts suspension of food distribution in two towns.It seems that Tigrayan forces, as well as some locals, the UN says, are responsible for the looting
• Wall Street Journal (7/12/21): Volunteer Fighters Raise Stakes in Ethiopia’s Bitter Conflict - Librarians, shopkeepers and even Olympic athletes join the effort as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed fights to slow the Tigrayan advance Paywall Summary (?): Thousands are answering the call across Ethiopia, and Tigrayans, WSJ reports, have done the same in the north; the mayor of Addis Ababa (the capitol) reports that 200k youths have joined vigilante defense groups, searching in the evening for suspected rebels and weapons. Analysts say these kinds of groups are harder to control, possibly fanning ethnic strife, with a possible repeat of the 1980s turmoil. TPLF rule (which ended after the 2018 elections) was characterized by crackdowns on pro-democracy protesters. The TPLF was instrumental in ending the Marxist regime from the 80s, and ushering in an era of "rapid ... economic growth and foreign investment". Some soldiers who had fought during this earlier era, now old people in their 50s and above, are volunteering and are again on the battlefield. The TPLF chalks its recent success up to new recruits and superior training, largely due to many holding (up until recently) senior roles in the Ethiopian armed forces. WSJ describes Abhiy as a "longtime U.S. ally".
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Ethiopia accuses US and allies of ‘destructive’ approach - Prime Minister’s spokesperson says accusations of illegal detentions by the government were ‘misguided’.
• Africa News (7/12/21): Ethiopia: Govt says forces have retaken two more cities in the North from TPLF rebels [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Ethiopian forces recapture two key towns from rebels, gov’t says - Ethiopia’s government says it has recaptured the strategic towns of Dessie and Kombolcha from Tigrayan rebels. [!]
• Workers World (1/12/21): On Ethiopia: ‘I’ve lost faith in everything “American”’
• Al-Monitor (3/12/21): Sudan-Ethiopia border dispute deepens internal chaos for both - The Ethiopia-Sudan border conflict has hit the headlines once again, with their armed forces renewing bloody clashes at a time when the two countries are going through unprecedented internal turmoil
• Africa News (3/12/21): Ethiopia shuts schools to aid harvest of fighters' crop fields - Reports
• Just Security (1/12/21): Ethiopian soldiers, supported by regional forces, have recaptured territory in the Amhara region from Tigray rebel fighters, the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed‘s office has said. Reuters reports.
• The Elephant (29/11/21): Abiy Has Lost His War but Ethiopia Could Reinvent Itself - The conflict has left a weakened nation and it has confronted all Ethiopians with one inescapable truth: they must acknowledge their diversity or risk disintegration.
• Al-Monitor (29/11/21): New Egyptian-Ethiopian escalation over Nile dam - Ethiopia has announced that it will soon finish construction work on the GERD, while Egypt has warned of the consequences of not reaching an agreement in the latest escalation between the two countries.
• Democracy Now (29/11/21): High Death Toll Reported as Ethiopian Soldiers Press Offensive in Afar Region - In Ethiopia, state media is reporting government forces gained control of the town of Chifra in the Afar region, days after broadcasting video of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, claiming victory from the frontlines of the year-long conflict with northern Tigrayan forces. Al Jazeera is reporting dead bodies covered the streets of Chifra after the latest fighting
• Just Security (29/11/21): At least 20 Sudanese troops have reportedly died following clashes with Ethiopian forces on the countries’ shared border. Sudanese soldiers fell into an ambush on Saturday after traveling across the Atbara river in response to shelling, Alrasheed Ali, a member of the border commission of Sudan’s southeastern Gadaref state, has said
• Al Jazeera (28/11/21): Sudan military says several soldiers killed in Ethiopian attack - Military sources tell Reuters at least six Sudanese soldiers were killed in an attack in a disputed border region
• Africa News (25/11/21): Ethiopia civil war: Thousands of protesters march on UK, US embassies in Addis
• Workers World (25/11/21): Shell-shocked in Amhara, Ethiopia: ‘I don’t even want to hear the word “America” ’
• The Guardian (26/11/21): Ethiopian PM on battlefront, says state-affiliated TV - Abiy Ahmed claims in the footage that the war was ‘being conducted with a high level of success’
• Just Security (23/11/21): Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed pledged yesterday to lead government soldiers from the front line in a war with advancing rebels. “Starting tomorrow, I will mobilize to the front to lead the defense forces,” Abiy said in a statement posted on Twitter. Erin Cunningham reports for the Washington Post.
• Africa Is a Country (11/11/21): The war in Ethiopia - Will Ethiopia’s civil war blow up its dream of a single state, and in the process, blow up Western notions of statebuilding?
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Thousands detained in Ethiopia crackdown, rights body says - The government-created Ethiopian Human Rights Commission says most of those detained since declaration of state of emergency are Tigrayans [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has criticized Western efforts to end the conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia and claimed that unnamed enemies were engaging in a “sophisticated narrative war.” The comments appeared to be a response to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s recent comments on the conflict [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Scores of children killed by starvation in Tigray, says health official - Research suggests terrible suffering amid communications and aid blockade affecting Ethiopian region
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): UN releases funds for Ethiopia aid as humanitarian crisis deepens - UN aid chief Martin Griffiths says he released $40m aimed at scaling up emergency operations in Ethiopia’s conflict-hit north, and as an early response to drought in the south.
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): US sanctions Eritrean army, ruling party over Ethiopia conflict - US says presence of Eritrean forces in Ethiopia ‘an impediment’ to ending conflict and increasing humanitarian access. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): Tigray rebels killed dozens of civilians: Ethiopia rights body - Ethiopian Human Rights Commission says rebels killed at least 184 people in Amhara region in July and August.
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Ethiopia’s Tigray is under a ‘systematic’ blockade: WHO chief - Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also said Tigrayans across the country were being profiled and arrested by the thousands.
• Democracy Now (11/11/21): Boeing Accepts Responsibility for Ethiopia Airlines 737 MAX Crash, Will Compensate Families
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Tigray rebels raped women in Ethiopia’s Amhara region: Amnesty - Amnesty International found evidence of brutal acts committed by TPLF fighters during an offensive in August. [crime-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Ethiopian authorities have detained more than 70 drivers working with the U.N., in addition to the 16 U.N. staff and dependents, according to an internal U.N. email.
• Al Jazeera (9/11/21): UN says 16 local staff detained in Ethiopia’s capital - UN says ‘actively working’ with federal government to secure release of Ethiopian staff, says ‘no explanation’ given for detentions
• Just Security (9/11/21): A TPLF spokesperson has said that their forces will keep marching towards the Ethiopian capital until the government lifts its blockade on the northern region. The spokesperson said that the rebels continued march was “not so much about Addis Ababa but our intention to arm-twist [Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed] to lift the blockade on our people.” “It is for Abiy to say yes to our demands…and put an end to the conflict,” the spokesperson said
• Just Security (9/11/21): Authorities in Ethiopia are allegedly targeting and arresting Tigrayans. Witnesses said Tigrayans were arrested in Addis Ababa, following the escalation over the last week that led to a state of emergency in the country. Ethiopia’s Human Rights Commission has said that authorities were arresting people based on ethnicity under the state of emergency, which gave authorities power to detain people “suspected of collaborating with terrorist groups.”
• Al Jazeera (7/11/21): Ethiopian government rallies protesters against Tigrayan rebels - Protesters at a pro-military rally in Addis Ababa pledge to defend the capital from advancing rebel groups.
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): Ethiopia’s Abiy urges ‘sacrifices’ as US orders staff out - Prime minister says Ethiopians must be ready to make ‘sacrifices’ to ‘salvage’ country as conflict with Tigrayan forces deepens.
• Democracy Now (8/11/21): U.S. Advises Citizens to Leave Ethiopia as Specter of All-Out War Increases
• Just Security (8/11/21): A newly-formed alliance of Ethiopian opposition factions set a goal on Friday of bringing down Ahmed by force or negotiation, to then form a transitional government.
• Just Security (8/11/21): Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has ordered citizens to sign up for military training and has given security forces authority to detain without a warrant anyone they suspect of cooperating with rebel forces, as the TPLF and other rebel groups advance on the capital
• Just Security (8/11/21): Rebels in Ethiopia are closing in on the country’s capital of Addis Ababa. As of Sunday morning, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) was around 200 miles from the capital with anywhere from days to weeks left to fight across hostile terrain to reach Addis Ababa
• Al-Monitor (5/11/21): Egypt, UAE play essential role in containing Sudan-Ethiopia crises - US fears state collapse, regional spillover in Horn of Africa
• Just Security (5/11/21): Nine anti-government factions in Ethiopia are to form an alliance against the Ethiopian government today
• Just Security (5/11/21): The new United Front of Ethiopian Federalist Forces seeks to “establish a transitional arrangement in Ethiopia” so that Ethiopia’s prime minister can go as soon as possible, organizer Yohanees Abraha, who is with the TPLF, has said.
• The Guardian (4/11/21): Ethiopia-Turkey pact fuels speculation about drone use in Tigray war - Reports say Ethiopia wants to buy Bayraktar TB2 drones after military cooperation agreement was signed with Ankara
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): Rebels from Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region captured two strategic towns and were poised to march on Addis Ababa, the capital. An allied rebel force, claiming to represent the Oromos, Ethiopia’s biggest ethnic group, said it had cut roads to Addis Ababa from the south. Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopia’s prime minister, declared a state of emergency and said Ethiopia would defeat the rebels with “the bones and blood of her children”. Tigrayans in the capital were rounded up and detained.
• CPJ (2/11/21): Ethiopian authorities detain two broadcast journalists [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (4/11/21): Facebook has removed a post from Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahemd for violating the company’s policies against inciting violence [big-tech-news] Using this tag because relevant, not because it's 'bad'
• Just Security (3/11/21): The U.N. human rights chief’s office is receiving ongoing reports of violations in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, including shelling and airstrikes causing civilian deaths, summary executions, large-scale displacement and a worsening humanitarian situation
• Just Security (3/11/21): Ethiopia has said that it is “extremely disappointed” about U.S. plans to withdraw a deal for duty-free exports to the United States. U.S. policymakers are planning to suspend duty-free rights for Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea under the African Growth and Opportunities Act to address concerns about human rights abuses. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): The joint investigation is a rare partnership that has raised eyebrows among Tigrayans, human rights groups and other observers, who have flagged concerns about its independence from government influence, however the U.N. has reaffirmed its impartiality.
• Just Security (3/11/21): Addis Ababa city officials have told the capital’s five million residents to register all firearms within two days and prepare to defend the city from Tigrayan forces.
• Democracy Now (3/11/21): Ethiopia Declares State of Emergency as Tigrayan Forces Advance [allegedly threatening to take the capitol Addis Ababa]; U.N. Report Details Mass Atrocities
• Just Security (1/11/21): Ethiopia’s government has accused Tigrayan rebel forces of killing 100 youths in Kombolcha, one of two towns the TPLF said it captured over the weekend. There was no immediate response from the TPLF. It has not been possible to verify accounts of the fighting around the town since communications to the area are down and journalists are barred
• Just Security (1/11/21): Ahmed’s appeal came after the TPLF said that it had made further territorial gains in the Amhara region, taking them closer to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. A TPLF spokesperson said that they had captured Kombolcha city and that their only aim was to break a siege of Tigray. The TPLF have also claimed that they have seized the nearby town of Dessie in the Amhara region. The Ethiopian government has denied the claim. “A spokesperson of the rebel Oromo Liberation Army also said they had taken Kemise city — about 50km (33 miles) from Kombolcha and 325km from Addis Ababa — and were fighting with government forces,” BBC News reports.
• Just Security (1/11/21): Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has urged his supporters to use any weapons they have to stop an advance by Tigrayan rebel forces
• The Guardian (30/10/21): Ethiopia: Tigrayan forces ‘seize strategic town in Amhara region’ - TPLF fighters say they have captured Dessie, the furthest south they have reached since July
• Just Security (29/10/21): An Ethiopian military airstrike yesterday on the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region has killed 10 people, including children, according to a doctor and a Tigray spokesperson
• Just Security (26/10/21): Facebook employees repeatedly sounded the alarm to curb the spread of posts inciting violence in “at risk” countries such as Ethiopia, but the social media giant did little in response, internal documents reveal. [big-tech-news]
• Al-Monitor (22/10/21): With Nile talks stalled, Ethiopia plans to fill dam, buy Turkish drones - Meanwhile, Sudan’s democratic transition faces ‘worst and most dangerous’ crisis.
• The Guardian (22/10/21): Ethiopian government airstrike on Tigray forces UN to abort flight in midair - UN says government was aware of plane carrying 11 aid workers as year-long conflict with TPLF escalates in Tigray and Amhara
• Democracy Now (21/10/21): Ethiopian Gov’t Continues Airstrikes in Tigray Amid Mounting Humanitarian Crisis
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Ethiopia preps for third filling as Nile dam diplomacy stalls - Hope for negotiations on the crisis with Egypt and Sudan is fading as Ethiopia works toward the third-stage filling of its mega dam on the Blue Nile.
• Just Security (20/10/21): Tigrayan forces have said that the capital of the Tigray region, Mekelle, has been hit by the second airstrike this week.
• Just Security (18/10/21): Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has said that Ethiopia needs to stop receiving food aid to avoid foreign pressure on the government, state-owned Ethiopia Television has reported.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Air strikes target capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray; 3 civilians dead - The raids, confirmed by two humanitarian workers, came days after a new military offensive was launched against Tigray forces.
• Just Security (13/10/21): Two senior U.N. officials have been recalled from Ethiopia after audio recordings containing criticisms of senior U.N. officials were released online. In the recording two women who say they work for the U.N., but do not give their names, tell a freelance journalist that some of the top U.N. officials globally are working with forces in the Tigray region in Ethiopia that are fighting Ethiopia’s government.
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Ethiopia army launches major attack on Tigray: Rebels - Government and allied forces launch coordinated offensive ‘on all fronts’, Tigray People’s Liberation Front says.
• Al Jazeera (9/10/21): Ethiopian troops intensify strikes against Tigray forces: Reports - Air and ground bombardment against Tigrayan forces has intensified in Amhara region, TPLF spokesman says.
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Facebook’s role in Myanmar and Ethiopia under new scrutiny - Whistleblower Frances Haugen adds to long-held concerns that social media site is fuelling violence and instability [big-tech-news]
• Just Security (7/10/21): More Qemant refugees in disputed territories in the Amhara region of Ethiopia, just south of Tigray, have accused the Ethiopian military and civilian mobs of ethnic cleansing.
• Just Security (7/10/21): The Ethiopian government used the state-owned Ethiopian Airlines, the country’s flagship commercial airline, to smuggle weapons to and from Eritrea during the civil war in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, according to a CNN investigation.
• Democracy Now (6/10/21): U.N. Rejects Expulsion of Top Officials from Ethiopia as Millions in Urgent Need of Humanitarian Assistance - According to a CNN report, Ethiopia also used its flagship commercial airline to transport weapons during the war in Tigray.
• Just Security (5/10/21): Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has begun a second five-year term, saying that the conflict in Tigray “has made us pay a heavy price,” and describing the Tigray forces as “hateful” towards Ethiopia
• Al-Monitor (2/10/21): Morocco flirts with Ethiopia amid stalled Nile dam talks - Morocco and Ethiopia ramping up cooperation in various fields as negotiations remain stalled over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and Egypt refuses to back Morocco on the Western Sahara issue.
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Ethiopia orders expulsion of 7 top UN officials for ‘meddling’ - The seven, including individuals from UNICEF and OCHA, have been declared ‘persona non grata’ and given 72 hours to leave the country, foreign ministry says.
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): U.N. Warns Tigray Blockade Leading to Famine, Dire Medical Shortages for Millions
• Al Jazeera (26/9/21): Sudan thwarts Ethiopian incursion amid protests in east - Sudan’s army said it repelled attempted incursion in the border area as angry protesters in eastern Sudan shut ports, roads.
• Al Jazeera (25/9/21): Witnesses accuse Tigray fighters of Kobo killings - Northern Ethiopia has been racked by more than 10 months of war that has left thousands dead.
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): Hundreds of aid trucks have failed to return from Tigray, UN says - Since July, 445 trucks have entered Ethiopia’s war-torn Tigray, but only 38 returned – hampering future aid deliveries.
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): US threatens new sanctions over conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray - Biden executive order raises spectre of further sanctions against parties prolonging fighting and humanitarian crisis. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/9/21): Probe in Ethiopia’s Tigray did not reach site of Axum attack: UN - UN human rights investigators unable to deploy to site of alleged massacre of several hundred people in holy city.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Burundi speaks up for Egypt in GERD crisis - Burundi has expressed support for Egypt in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam crisis.
• Just Security (9/9/21): Ethiopia has said today that rebels from the Tigray region in Ethiopia have been defeated in the adjacent Afar region and have withdrawn, while the Tigrayan forces said they had merely shifted troops to neighboring Amhara for an offensive there.
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): Over 120 killed in Ethiopia’s Amhara region, officials say - Tigrayan forces reject allegations by local officials in Amhara region they killed scores of villagers earlier this month.
• Democracy Now (7/9/21): Millions in Ethiopia’s Tigray Are on Brink of Famine, Warns World Food Programme
• Al Jazeera (31/8/21): US agency says Tigrayan forces looted aid warehouses - USAID’s Ethiopia director says TPLF has looted warehouses of the aid agency in recent weeks.
• Al Jazeera (26/8/21): More than 210 killed in violence in western Ethiopia: Commission - EHRC says rebel group killed 150 people in Oromia region last week, and 60 others were killed in reprisal attacks.
• Just Security (25/8/21): The U.S. and E.U. are warnings about the recent influx of Eritrean troops into Ethiopia’s Tigray region.
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): US sanctions Eritrean general over rights abuses in Ethiopia - The US Department of the Treasury is blacklisting the Eritrean Defense Forces’ chief of staff for leading an entity it accuses of heinous abuses including massacres, rapes and executions. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Turkey views ties with Ethiopia as key to influence in Africa - Turkey’s quest for normalization with Egypt and a new beginning with Sudan hinges on how far Ankara takes its relations with Ethiopia amid a simmering water dispute in the region over Ethiopia’s mega dam on the Nile.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Ethiopia: Several killed in Addis Ababa flash floods - Addis Ababa mayor urges residents to take precautions as more heavy rains are expected in coming days.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Erdoğan backs peaceful resolution to Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict - Turkish leader also tells Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed that Ankara is willing to mediate in Sudan border dispute.
• Bellingcat (17/8/21): Is Ethiopia Flying Iranian-Made Armed Drones?
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Ethiopia armed group says it has alliance with Tigray forces - The Oromo Liberation Army said it has struck a military alliance with the Tigray forces and the aim is to ‘overthrow this government militarily.
• The Guardian (10/8/21): Ethiopian PM urges civilians to join armed forces as war rages - Abiy Ahmed issues call for all eligible civilians to ‘show your patriotism’ amid fighting with Tigrayan forces
• Common Dreams (9/8/21): Over 100 Children Killed in Attacks Amid 'Disastrous' Tigray Conflict: UNICEF - The repudiation of the Thursday attacks comes amid "extensive, systematic destruction" of key infrastructure and ongoing conflict in northern Ethiopia.
• Al Jazeera (8/8/21): Sudan recalls ambassador to Ethiopia amid frayed ties - Khartoum’s decision comes days after Addis Ababa rejected Sudan’s offer to mediate in the ongoing conflict in Tigray.
• Al Jazeera (6/8/21): Amhara official says offensive against Tigray forces imminent - Move by Amhara forces would go against the Ethiopian govt’s command that all institutions respect a unilateral ceasefire.
• The Guardian (6/8/21): Ethiopia suspends aid groups for ‘spreading misinformation’ - Médecins Sans Frontières and Norwegian Refugee Council, active in war-torn Tigray, in talks over ban
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Residents say Tigray rebels take control of UNESCO site Lalibela - The development indicates rebels continuing a weeks-long push beyond Tigray that has, according to Ethiopian officials, displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians.
• The Guardian (2/8/21): Dozens of bodies found floating in river between Ethiopia’s Tigray and Sudan - Witnesses report some of the corpses had gunshot wounds or their hands tied amid escalating conflict in the region in recent weeks
• The Economist (31/7/21): In Ethiopia’s civil war, Tigrayan forces take the offensive - The conflict has entered its most dangerous phase yet
• Al Jazeera (29/7/21): Eritreans refugees demand protection amid Tigray war - Hundreds rally in the Ethiopian capital demanding protection for thousands of fellow Eritrean refugees stuck in Tigray camps.
• Just Security (30/7/21): Fighting has escalated in Ethiopia with intense fighting being reported in Ethiopia’s Amhara state, the latest sign that the war that erupted in the Tigray region is spreading.
• Just Security (28/7/21): The U.S. is “deeply concerned” about reported attacks against Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia’s Tigray region and is calling for the intimidation and attacks to stop, State Department spokesperson Jalina Porter said yesterday; The U.N. has said that the agency will “run out of food” in Ethiopia’s conflict hit Tigray region on Friday, while hundreds of thousands of people there face the world’s worst famine crisis in a decade
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Ethiopia: Somali region says hundreds ‘massacred’ by Afar militia - Fighters from the Afar region attacked and looted the town of Gedamaytu, also known as Gabraiisa, local officials say.
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Ethiopia’s Amhara rallies residents to fight Tigrayan forces - War set to expand in Ethiopia as Amhara regional president calls on all people of age who are armed to mobilise.
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Tigray: thousands flee in neighbouring region as conflict spreads - Official in Afar says Tigrayan forces have seized three districts in fight against Ethiopian military; The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): Rebel forces from Ethiopia’s northern region of Tigray launched attacks into the neighbouring Afar region, widening the country’s civil war. Observers believe the rebels are trying to sever Ethiopia’s main road and rail connection to the port of Djibouti.
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Ethiopia says second filling of Renaissance Dam complete - Latest phase a milestone in controversial Blue Nile hydropower project long opposed by downriver countries Egypt and Sudan.
• Just Security Early Edition (19/7/21): Forces in Ethiopia’s Tigray region have released around 1,000 captured government soldiers, the leader of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, Debretsion Gebremichael, has said.
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Ethiopia’s Tigray forces enter neighbouring Afar region - Ethiopia’s eight-month-old conflict expands as Tigrayan fighters cross into neighbouring Afar region.
• Al Jazeera (17/7/21): How the conflict in Tigray is fraying Ethiopia’s finances - The conflict in the north has cost $2.5bn, the dollar has sunk and international investors are staying away.
• The Economist (15/7/21): Why nerves are jangling on the border between Ethiopia and Sudan - Conflict over farmland in al-Fashaga threatens to spark a war
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Addis Standard news site suspended by Ethiopia’s media regulator - The regulator accused the site of advancing the agenda of a ‘terrorist’ group, in a move decried by media rights organisations.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Ethiopia regions send troops to back fight with Tigray rebels - The mobilisation follows Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s warning that his forces would repel any attacks by their enemies.
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): Ethiopia PM pledges to repel ‘enemies’ after Tigray rebel assault - Abiy says he remains committed to peace – even if it comes at a ‘cost’ – but the latest attacks will not go unanswered.
• Middle East Monitor (13/7/21): Why did Putin turn against Sisi in the Renaissance Dam file? (via u/White_Mlungu_Capital on r/geopolitics)
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): Fear pervades as Tigrayans rounded up after battlefield reversals - Lawyers say ethnic Tigrayans living outside embattled region are being arrested and their businesses shut amid eight-month conflict.
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): Rebels claim military gains in Ethiopia’s restive Tigray region - TPLF on Monday said Tigrayan forces controlled Korem, a town 170 kilometres (105 miles) south of the region’s capital Mekelle.
• Al Jazeera (11/7/21): Ethiopia’s Abiy Ahmed gets his Pyrrhic victory - Ethiopian PM has prevailed in his first electoral contest, but there is little to celebrate given the country’s dire state, analysts say.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Saudi Arabia supports Egypt, Sudan ‘water rights’ in dam dispute - The expression of support by the kingdom comes a day after Ethiopia notified downstream nations that the second-phase filling at the dam had begun.
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Egypt angry as it says Ethiopia has resumed filling GERD - Egypt says unilateral move violates international laws and norms as tensions continue to rise over huge dam built on Nile’s main tributary.
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): Over 400,000 in Tigray suffering famine now, with 1.8m on brink - Acting UN aid chief Ramesh Rajasingham says humanitarian situation in conflict-hit northern Ethiopian region has ‘worsened dramatically’ in recent weeks.
• The Guardian (2/7/21): Tigray ceasefire: aid workers demand telecoms be restored - Lack of phone and internet hampering humanitarian efforts in war-torn Ethiopian province, UN warns
• The Guardian (30/6/21): Ethiopian officials threaten to send troops back into Tigray - Warning comes less than 48 hours after unilateral ceasefire declared by Addis Ababa; Al Jazeera (30/6/21) Tigray forces regain ground, say ceasefire declaration a ‘joke’ - Spokesman says forces prepared to chase their opponents well beyond northern Ethiopian region.
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Tigray rebels vow to drive out ‘enemies’ despite ceasefire declaration - Celebrations on streets of Mekelle after soldiers and officials appointed by Ethiopian government flee city
• Al Jazeera (28/6/21): Ethiopia declares unilateral ceasefire in Tigray - The TPLF says it has retaken control of Tigray’s regional capital Mekelle after interim administration flees.
• The Guardian (28/6/21): Interim government of Tigray flees as rebels seize capital - Spokesperson for Tigray People’s Liberation Front says Mekelle is ‘under our control’
• The Economist World This Week (24/6/21): Ethiopians voted in a parliamentary election marred by the arrest of opposition leaders and the disenfranchisement of a fifth of voters. The election was not held in four of the country’s ten regions because of conflict or mishaps, such as misprinted ballot papers.
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Three aid workers found dead in Tigray, says Médecins Sans Frontières - MSF says it condemns attack on colleagues ‘in strongest possible terms’ after bodies found near car
• Al Jazeera (24/6/21): Civilians fear abductions as Sudan-Ethiopia border row deadlocked - Lack of clear demarcation in al-Fashaga has led to fighting between the two sides in recent months, as well as abduction and killing of civilians in border villages.
• Democracy Now (23/6/21): Air Raid in Tigray Kills Dozens, Adding to Conflict-Fueled Devastation; New York Times (23/6/21): Dozens Killed in Market Airstrike in Ethiopia, Officials Say - The attack hit a busy market in Tigray, where there has been fierce fighting as rebels say they are expanding their counterattack against Ethiopian government forces.
• The Economist (16/6/21): Ethiopia’s flawed elections risk dividing the country further - Opposition leaders are in jail and in many areas people cannot vote
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Ethiopians denounce US at pro-government rally in Addis Ababa - More than 10,000 protest US economic and security sanctions on Ethiopia over the conflict in Tigray.
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Ethiopia’s Tigray at ‘serious risk’ of famine, warns UN official - Mark Lowcock, in reported briefing to Security Council, calls for scaling up of assistance in next two months to prevent famine.
• New York Times (24/5/21): Changing Tack, U.S. Sanctions Ethiopia Over Abuses in Tigray War - The measures signal a tougher American approach to a war in which Ethiopian forces are accused of atrocities. Ethiopia accused the U.S. of “meddling.”
• Al Jazeera (22/5/21): Ethiopia awards telecom licence to Safaricom-led consortium - The consortium, which includes Vodafone and Vodacom, paid $850m for the licence, officials say.
• Al Jazeera (20/5/21): Ethiopia announces new date for twice-delayed national elections - June 21 polls seen as a key test of democratic reforms under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
• New York Times (20/5/21): Ethiopia Expels New York Times Reporter - The government gave no explanation for the expulsion of the reporter, Simon Marks, who had extensively reported about the war and human rights abuses in the Tigray region.
• Democracy Now (18/5/21): Eritrean Troops Disguised as Ethiopians Block Aid in Tigray as U.N. Warns Millions Face Hunger
• Al Jazeera (15/5/21): Ethiopia delays polls again amid security, logistical challenges - The election board says delays in opening polling stations and voter registration have pushed back the voting day.
• Al Jazeera: Death toll from clashes in Ethiopia’s Amhara may be 200: Official - Country’s chief ombudsman says up to 200 killed in this month’s violence, up from the 50 previously reported. [2]
• Democracy Now (4/16/21): Aid Groups Say Eritrean Troops Are Not Withdrawing from Tigray as Crisis Deepens
• Popular Front: (podcast) Ethiopia's Vicious War on Tigray
• World Socialist Web Site: Brutal conflict in Tigray threatens breakup of Ethiopia
• Democracy Now: Ethiopia Accused of Using Rape as a Weapon of War in Tigray as New Evidence Emerges of Massacres
• Democracy Now (3/24/21): Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed Acknowledges Eritrean Soldiers’ Involvement in Tigray Conflict

Libya Updates

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(wiki, Libyan Crisis)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

Libya Live Map

• Telesur (24/12/21): 70 Migrants Die From Drowning off Libyan Coast: UNICEF - So far this year, 31,456 migrants have been rescued and returned to Libya, while hundreds others died and went missing off the Libyan coast. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• The Guardian (22/12/21): Libyan presidential vote will not go ahead on Friday, officials confirm - Electoral body proposes one-month delay but it is unclear whether idea will be accepted by rival bodies jostling for power [!]
• Just Security (22/12/21): The U.N. Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has expressed concern about the security situation in Libya’s capital, Tripoli, where forces affiliated with different armed groups have been deployed. The current mobilization “creates tensions and increases the risk of clashes that could spiral into conflict,” UNSMIL said in a statement. UN News Centre reports.
• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Libya electoral commission dissolves poll committees - The move by Imad al-Sayeh, head of the High National Elections Commission, effectively postpones December 24 vote. [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Libya’s election committee has delayed publishing a list of presidential candidates for the country’s upcoming Dec. 24 elections, due to needing to settle outstanding legal issues
• Democracy Now (9/12/21): How Europe’s “Shadow Immigration System” Pays Libyan Militias to Jail Migrants in Brutal Conditions [immigrant-news, social-woes-news]
• Africa News (7/12/21): Jihadist-hit Niger urges crackdown on Libya arms traffic [!]
• Al Jazeera (2/12/21): Libyan court reinstates Saif Gaddafi as presidential candidate - A court in Sebha overturns the electoral commission’s decision to nullify Saif al-Islam’s candidacy for December polls
• Telesur (3/12/21): Gunmen Attack Four Libyan Election Centers - This African nation is scheduled to hold presidential elections on Dec. 24 and the parliamentary elections in January, with an aim to bring stability to the war-torn country. Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Libya gunmen attack court, stop Gaddafi son’s candidate appeal - The attack prevented Saif al-Islam Gaddafi from lodging an appeal against disqualification from next month’s presidential election
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): UN Libya envoy quits weeks before planned election - UN special envoy Jan Kubis’s resignation accepted a month before a scheduled presidential election in Libya.
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Ten people were found dead in the lower deck of a severely overcrowded wooden boat less than 30 miles off the coast of Libya, Doctors Without Borders has reported. According to survivors the deaths were due to suffocation after having spent 13 hours on the cramped lower deck, where there had been a strong smell of fuel. Lorenzo Tondo reports for the Guardian. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): The Speaker of Libya’s Parliament, Aguila Saleh, has announced his intention to run for president, joining Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of Libya’s former dictator, and Khalif Haftar, a powerful military commander.
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): NGOs condemn ‘rescue gap’ as 10 migrants die on boat off Libya - NGOs say the phasing out of state-run search and rescue operations has made migrants’ journeys in the Mediterranean more dangerous. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): A key Libyan military commander, Khalifa Hifter, has filed as a candidate in the country’s presidential elections next month. Sam Magdy reports for AP.
• Just Security (15/11/21): Seif al-Islam el-Qaddafi, son of former Libyan dictator Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi has announced that he will run for president in Libya’s coming election. Vivian Lee reports for the New York Times.
• Just Security (10/11/21): A U.S. judge is putting a lawsuit against Khalifa Hifter, a former Libyan warlord, on hold until after Libya’s election in which Hifter is expected to run for president [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (7/11/21): Libya’s PM and president in dispute over foreign minister’s suspension - Row deepens as Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh dismisses president’s decision to suspend Najla El-Mangoush
• Democracy Now (25/10/21): Refugees in Libya Camp Outside U.N. Office to Demand Evacuation
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• Just Security (13/10/21): Thousands of migrants are facing abuse, including torture, sexual violence, and beatings, at the hands of guards in immigration detention centers in Libya. The Associated Press has reported on conversations it has had with migrants detailing horrifying abuses endured in Libya, as well as the testimonies obtained by Médecins Sans Frontières
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Libyan detention centre guards kill six migrants amid crackdown - The IOM says overcrowding at a detention centre in Tripoli had led to chaos.
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Libyan legislative elections delayed until January: Parliament - Parliamentary spokesman says presidential poll in December is the priority, as legislative ballot postponed by 30 days.
• Al Jazeera (4/10/21): Libya’s migrant detentions tops 5,000 as crackdown continues - Amnesty International has called on Libyan authorities to release migrants and refugees including more than 200 children.
• Al Jazeera (4/10/21): Libya parliament adopts law on legislative elections - The new law comes before a planned national vote set for December 24 under a UN-led peace process for Libya.
• Al Jazeera (4/10/21): Libya’s warring sides may be guilty of war crimes: UN probe - The Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Libya says migrants and detainees were particularly exposed to violations.
• Al Jazeera (3/10/21): Libyan coastguard intercepts 500 migrants in latest clampdown - Libya has intensified sea interceptions amid a surge in attempts by migrants and refugees to reach Europe.
• Al Jazeera (3/10/21): Libya says ‘very modest start’ to withdrawal of foreign fighters - Libyan Foreign Minister Najla al-Mangoush’s remarks come before a conference on Libyan stability later this month.
• Al Jazeera (2/10/21): Libya detains 4,000 people in major anti-migrant crackdown - Hundreds of women and children among those detained during raids in Gargaresh town.
• Just Security (1/10/21): The U.N. Security Council has voted unanimously to extend the U.N. political mission in Libya until after the country’s critical presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for late December. “However, the U.N.’s most powerful body remained divided over the withdrawal of all mercenaries and foreign forces from the oil-rich North African nation and the mission’s leadership,” Edith M. Lederer reports for AP.
• Al Jazeera (22/9/21): Libya: Haftar stands down from military role before polls - Libyan media said move paves way for Haftar to run for president under controversial new law.
• The Moscow Times (15/9/21): Russia Blocks Extension of UN Mission to Libya – Diplomatic Sources
• Al-Monitor (13/9/21): Why has Turkey turned to Libya's Gadhafi family? - Realizing that its current allies are not sufficient to secure Turkey’s interests in Libya, Ankara is now seeking to include Gadhafi family members into its calculus.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Power struggle over oil threatens Libya's fragile transition process - Oil production shutdowns are increasingly likely as several players in the sector push their own agenda.
• Just Security (9/9/21): Khalifa Haftar, a Russian-backed warlord vying for power in Libya, has hired Lanny Davis, an ex-senior aide to former President Clinton, and former Republican lawmaker Robert Livingston to lead a $1 million effort to lobby President Biden’s administration for support, documents show
• Just Security (7/9/21): Libyan officials have said that they have released one of Muammar Gadhafi’s sons after more than seven years of detention in the Libyan capital of Tripoli.
• Just Security (3/9/21): Clashes broke out in Tripoli early on Friday between rival armed forces
• Just Security (11/8/21): A BBC investigation has revealed the scale of operations by a Russian mercenary group in Libya’s civil war, which includes links to war crimes and the Russian military
• Al-Monitor (7/8/21): Egypt, Algeria find common ground on Libyan crisis - Egypt and Algeria have been at odds over how to deal with the situation in Libya, but that may be changing.
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): 700 Refugees Rescued Off Coasts of Libya and Malta
• Just Security (30/7/21): Libya’s warring sides have announced that they have reopened the main coast road across the frontline, a key element of a ceasefire they agreed last year that has involved months of negotiations.
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): UN: Dozens presumed dead after boat capsizes off Libya coast - According to survivors, 20 women and two children were among those who drowned when their boat capsized, IOM says.
• Democracy Now (23/7/21): 20 Refugees Likely Dead After Mediterranean Shipwreck
• The Guardian (15/7/21): Fresh evidence of violence at Libyan detention centres as boats turned back - Amnesty International says sexual abuse and beatings rife at camps for those forcibly returned after trying to cross the Med
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): UN-backed Libya talks fail to reach consensus on elections - The Libyan Political Dialogue Forum discusses constitutional basis for elections but fails to reach agreement after five days of talks.
• Al Jazeera (1/7/21): Caught on camera: Libyan coastguard shoots at migrant boat - Sea rescue group witnesses Libyan authorities shoot at a crowded boat to stop it from crossing the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.
• Al Jazeera (20/6/21): Libya: Military movements banned after Haftar’s border takeover - The statement came after forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar said they have taken control of a border crossing with Algeria.
• Al Jazeera (20/6/21): Libya PM says key coastal road reopened ahead of peace talks - Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh declares the east-west highway open, but eastern forces are still blocking it on their side.
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): Libya’s top diplomat calls on Turkey to withdraw foreign fighters - Foreign Minister Najla al-Manqoush urges Turkey to comply with UN resolutions, expel foreign fighters from Libyan territory.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Several Europe-bound migrants drown off Libya coast [at least 11]: UN - IOM says ‘continuous loss of life calls for an urgent change in approach to the situation in Libya and the Central Med’.
• The Intercept: Friends of the Traffickers - Italy’s Anti-Mafia Directorate and the “Dirty Campaign” to Criminalize Migration
• Al Jazeera: Libya: Armed Haftar supporters prevent PM’s first meeting in east - PM Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh’s trip to Benghazi planned for Monday called off after gunmen stop delegation at the airport.
• Democracy Now (4/26/21): 130 Asylum Seekers Feared Dead in Shipwreck Off Libyan Coast; '2021 has seen at least twice as many deaths along the dangerous migration route as the same period last year'.
• Al-Monitor (8/5/20): Report: Child soldiers deployed to Libya by Turkish-backed Syrian National Army - An exclusive report, citing sources on the ground in Syria and Libya, says Syrian teenagers are being sent to Libya to take part in the civil war there.

Mali Updates

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(wiki, Mali War)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Africa News (30/12/21): Mali dialogue backs extending junta's mandate by five years
• Al Jazeera (30/12/21): Four soldiers killed in Mali attack, army says - A dozen more soldiers were seriously injured after their patrol was ambushed by fighters in western Mali. [!]
• Africa News (25/12/21): Malians 'welcome' deployment of Russian mercenaries in the country [russia-policy-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (23/12/21): Russian Guns-for-Hire Fill Void in Africa and Elsewhere as Western Militaries Pull Back - A mercenary deployment in Mali is triggering alarm among U.S. allies as Moscow denies being involved [neo-imperialism-news, us-policy-news, eu-policy-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Russia claims to have no knowledge of the presence of Russian paramilitaries ('Wagner group') in Mali, currently at around 300. According to Western officials, Mali is being charged $10m a month to Wagner, which, along with seeking profit from local resource exploitation, provides a cheap means for Kremlin intervention (such as in CAR). Following this pattern, Wagner-linked geologists reportedly prospected gold-mining regions after emissaries from Wagner's alleged owner, Prigozhin, met with Mali officials (which followed news that Paris planned to reduce its presence in the nation). Paris believes this is part of an effort to gain leverage with France to avoid holding elections. France has carried out the Barkhane mission here so far, with US logistical and intelligence support. Interesting sidenote: One of the sources they reference here is Erik Prince, founder of Blackwater, and a guy I wouldn't trust to hear from - there are other sources, but still, a little strange.
• Al Jazeera (18/12/21): Chad to deploy additional 1,000 UN peacekeepers to Mali - Deployment to reinforce numbers as France scales back its 5,000-strong regional counterterrorism mission. [!]
• Africa News (14/12/21): French troops leave Mali's Timbuktu after eight years
• Just Security (13/12/21): West African leaders have threatened further sanctions against Mali by the new year, unless Mali’s junta makes “concrete progress” toward holding democratic elections in February as previously promised
• Workers World (10/12/21): People of the Sahel oppose imperialism [neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Roadside bomb explosion kills UN peacekeepers in central Mali - Seven MINUSMA peacekeepers killed after a UN convoy hit an improvised explosive device, according to the mission. [!]
• Africa News (8/12/21): US returns over 900 stolen artefacts to Mali [us-policy-news] [!]
• The Guardian (4/12/21): Mali: militants fire on bus, killing at least 31 people - Insurgents shoot villagers going to a market on the same day UN peacekeeping convoy attacked, killing one person [!]
• Workers World (30/11/21): Massive protests in Niger, Burkina Faso demand French military get out [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Left Voice (30/11/21): Another Attack on Protesters by French Troops in Africa, This Time Killing Three - Demonstrators demanding the departure of French troops from Operation Barkhane in the African Sahel region blocked a French army convoy last Saturday, and the soldiers and Nigerian police opened fire, killing three and injuring 17, 10 of them seriously. [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Africa News (20/11/21): ECOWAS places sanctions on over 150 members of Malian government
• The Moscow Times (20/11/21): U.S. Warns Russia's Wagner Group Against Mali Meddling [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Workers World (16/11/21): Mali’s people mobilize against imperialism
• The Moscow Times (11/11/21): Moscow Vows Military Support for Mali, Denies Wagner Links [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): Mali’s Foreign Minister has said, during a trip to Moscow, that Mali may ask Russia for “help” given Mali’s current security situation. “We are now in such a difficult situation that we may turn to our friend (Russia) for help,” minister Abdoulaye Diop told a news conference. “The very existence of the Malian state is under threat,” he added. Reuters reports. [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/11/21): West Africa bloc ECOWAS imposes sanctions on Mali leaders - The move by ECOWAS comes after Mali’s transitional leaders said they would not be able hold elections on time. [economic-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): Ethiopia has said that it is “extremely disappointed” about U.S. plans to withdraw a deal for duty-free exports to the United States. U.S. policymakers are planning to suspend duty-free rights for Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea under the African Growth and Opportunities Act to address concerns about human rights abuses. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (29/10/21): Slavery is alive in Mali and continues to wreak havoc on lives - While slavery was abolished during colonial rule, local communities still place their descendants at society’s margins [social-woes-news]
• Al Jazeera (25/10/21): Mali expels ECOWAS envoy from the country - ECOWAS, West Africa’s main political and economic bloc, has been pressing Mali to respect its commitment to hold elections.
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• The Guardian (9/10/21): Colombian nun kidnapped by jihadists in Mali in 2017 is freed - Mali president’s office pays tribute to the courage of Gloria Cecilia Narváez as it confirms her release
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Mali accuses France of training ‘terrorists’ in the country - Prime minister Maiga says French troops created an enclave in northern Mali, and handed it over to ‘terrorist group’ Ansar al-Din.
• Al Jazeera (6/10/21): Several soldiers killed in central Mali attack - At least 16 soldiers killed and 10 more wounded near the village of Bodio, Mopti region, according to officials.
• Financial Times (30/9/21): Ivory Coast’s president warns against Russian security group’s involvement in Mali - Alassane Ouattara says hiring Wagner is not the answer in fight against Islamist insurgents Paywall Summary: not much to summarize, title says most if it. The reason that Mali is looking for Russian aid is, it seems, because France is winding down their operation there (perhaps in response to a recent coup in Mali), but jihadists still pose a threat. But Wagner (the Russian security group) is known for committing war crimes and atrocities, so they aren't exactly the people you want around.
• Al Jazeera (2/10/21): UN peacekeeper killed in blast in Mali’s troubled north - Four other members of the UN mission are injured in the attack that took place close to the country’s border with Algeria.
• Just Security (1/10/21): Mali received four helicopters, weapons and ammunition from Russia late yesterday, Malian Interim Defence Minister Sadio Camara has said. [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (30/9/21): UK joins calls on Mali to end alleged deal with Russian mercenaries - Mali’s military leaders under pressure to pull back from suspected agreement with Wagner Group [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has defended the Mali government’s right to hire a private Russian military company to help fight terrorists and has accused the French troops in Mali of failing to get rid of the terrorists in the region [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (20/9/21): France’s Armed Forces Minister arrived in Mali on Sunday to pressure the military junta in Mali to end talks to bring Russian mercenaries into the country and push it to keep a promise to return the country to constitutional order [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (14/9/21): Mali Junta in Talks for Russian Mercenaries – French Sources [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (27/8/21): Mali releases ex-interim president and PM from house arrest - Their detention by military officers in May marked Mali’s second coup since the overthrow of President Keita.
• Al Jazeera (26/8/21): Mali ex-PM Boubeye Maiga arrested over corruption claims - Lawyer for Boubeye Maiga says he was arrested for his role in purchase of presidential plane during rule of former President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Egypt counters Turkey’s influence in Mali via Al-Azhar - Egypt seeks more influence in Mali through Al-Azhar, which is organizing a training program for a number of Malian imams in a bid to counter extremism.
• Modern Diplomacy (12/8/21): Mali violence threatens country’s survivalMali violence threatens country’s survival
• Al Jazeera (9/8/21): At least 51 killed in Mali rebel attacks: Officials - Gunmen riding on motorbikes attacked several villages late on Sunday, ‘shooting at anything that moved’, officials said.
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): Man accused of trying to kill Mali president dies in custody - Suspect was arrested following the assassination attempt at Bamako’s Grand Mosque on Tuesday.
• The Guardian (20/7/21): Man attempts to stab Mali’s interim leader at Grand Mosque - Col Assimi Goïta escapes unharmed after incident during Eid al-Adha celebrations in Bamako
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Gunmen kidnap Chinese, Mauritanian workers in Mali - Assailants also destroyed equipment belonging to Chinese and Mauritanian construction companies.
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): France resumes joint military operations in Mali - France suspended the operations early last month following the West African country’s second coup in less than a year.
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Car bomb injures 13 UN peacekeepers in Mali - Attack occurs in Gao region where insurgents linked to al-Qaida and Islamic State are active
• Al Jazeera (11/6/21): Mali coup chief names new cabinet with army officers in key posts - Military officers receive the strategic ministries of defence, security and national reconciliation
• Al Jazeera (3/6/21): France halts joint army operations with Malian forces over coup - The temporary measure announced by the armed forces ministry is France’s strongest reaction yet to last week’s military coup in Mali.
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): ECOWAS suspends Mali over second coup in nine months - West African leaders condemn coup and call for a return to democracy, but stop short of imposing new sanctions. + attacks in otherwise safe southern Mali while the ECOWAS leaders met in Ghana
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Mali court appoints Assimi Goita as interim president - Coup leader’s appointment raises the stakes as West African leaders prepare to respond to the coup in Mali.
• World Socialist Web Site (25/5/21): Malian army detains president in French-backed coup aiming to strangle strikes [labor-news, union-news]
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Mali’s former coup leader takes power after president’s arrest - Colonel Assimi Goita says he acted after president and prime minister failed to consult him about a new government.
• Al Jazeera (24/5/21): Military ‘arrests Mali’s president, PM’ following gov’t reshuffle - President Ndaw, PM Ouane reportedly taken to a military base outside the capital Bamako. [labor-news, union-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/5/21): Mali to form new ‘broad-based’ transitional government - Prime Minister Moctar Ouane resigns but is immediately reappointed to carry out a cabinet reshuffle. [labor-news, union-news]
• New York Times (5/5/21): In Video, French Reporter Who Vanished in Mali Says He Was Kidnapped - In a short clip that circulated online, the journalist, Olivier Dubois, said he had been seized by a jihadist group linked to Al Qaeda and urged the French government to secure his release.
• Al Jazeera: Three UN peacekeepers wounded in northern Mali attack - Base housing Malian, French and UN troops in Tessalit was targeted, says the UN peacekeeping mission in the country.
• CounterPunch: The Clandestine War on Africa: France’s Endgame in Mali

Mauritania Updates

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• Africa News (13/12/21): Mauritania welcomes back Cuban doctors after terminating their contracts [healthcare-news]
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Greenpeace stops fish oil tanker in Channel in protest over African food insecurity - Fishmeal exports to EU from west Africa have grown sharply, depleting stocks and posing threat to livelihoods
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Gunmen kidnap Chinese, Mauritanian workers in Mali - Assailants also destroyed equipment belonging to Chinese and Mauritanian construction companies.

Morocco Updates

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(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (includes W. Sahara) (cr.)

CaspianReport (14/9/21): Algeria & Morocco: the world's most self-destructive rivalry

• The Guardian (26/12/21): Moroccan opposition leader Mehdi ben Barka was a spy, cold war files suggest - The activist who was murdered in Paris in 1965 was a hero of the global struggle against imperialism, but files from the Czechoslovak secret service cast doubt on his independence
• Democracy Now (9/12/21): Western Sahara Activists Accuse Moroccan Authorities of Brutality and Sexual Assault
• Just Security (24/11/21): Morocco and Israel have signed a defence memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Rabat. The MoU does not stipulate specific defence deals, but rather provides a legal and regulatory framework for such agreements in the future, a source has said. Reuters reports.
• Al-Monitor (3/11/21): Algeria accuses Morocco of fatal attack on three truck drivers - The Algerian presidency said the killing of the three Algerian truck drivers in a roadside bombing on Monday "will not go unpunished."
• Democracy Now (2/11/21): U.N. Security Council Extends Peacekeeping Mandate in Moroccan-Occupied Western Sahara
• CounterPunch (27/10/21): Political Islam and Democracy Crisis in North Africa
• Financial Times (12/10/21): How Morocco transformed itself into a carmaking hub - Lower labour costs and government policy have helped attract European auto groups [logistics-news, labor-news] Paywall Summary: A combination of smart government planning (and not necessarily tax breaks and investment incentives, but good policy, trade agreements, local staff training at technical institutes, and pubic investment in infrastructure such as ports and rail) and low labor costs (hold that thought) relative to Europe has helped establish Morocco as a manufacturing hub that rivals Eastern European nations and even Italy, with Morocco currently manufacturing about 400k cars annually, and planning to only increase that number. My comments: On the planning part, well, even as this appears another "capitalism success story", it is more so a counterexample to neoliberalism (that privatization and the free market are the most efficient thing on God's green earth), with the nice success of... govt policy (that isn't tax breaks/stupid incentives)! Further, the "low labor cost" thing reflects a more socialist tendency I have - "labor cost" is only a cost if the people making money aren't the people doing labor.
• Democracy Now (7/10/21): U.N. Appoints Envoy to Western Sahara After Two-Year Vacancy
• Al-Monitor (2/10/21): Morocco flirts with Ethiopia amid stalled Nile dam talks - Morocco and Ethiopia ramping up cooperation in various fields as negotiations remain stalled over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and Egypt refuses to back Morocco on the Western Sahara issue.
• New York Times (1/10/21): Nearly 60 Reported Dead in Effort to Reach Canary Islands - As the dangerous voyage from Western Africa to the Spanish archipelago has become a more popular migrant route to Europe, the death toll has risen sharply.
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Court Annuls Trade Deals Between EU and Occupied Western Sahara
• Al Jazeera (22/9/21): Algeria closes airspace to all Moroccan planes - Presidency says the move comes ‘in view of the continued provocations and hostile practices on the Moroccan side’.
• The Guardian (22/9/21): 11 men sentenced for kidnap and gang-rape of Moroccan girl - Khadija Okkarou had accused members of a ‘dangerous gang’ of kidnapping and torturing her for two months
• Al Jazeera (10/9/21): Moroccan king appoints Aziz Akhannouch as gov’t head - Akhannouch’s RNI emerged as the biggest party in Morocco’s parliamentary election, taking 102 of the 395 seats.
• New York Times (8/9/21): Islamists See Big Losses in Moroccan Parliamentary Elections - The moderate Justice and Development Party may have lost control of Parliament, according to early results, in the latest defeat for Islamists in the region.
• Liberation News (6/9/21): Moroccan political activists arrested during protests demanding democratization
• Modern Diplomacy (6/9/21): Why the Moroccan Elections Matters for the Geopolitical Reconfiguration of North Africa
• Al Jazeera (24/8/21): Algeria cuts diplomatic ties with Morocco over ‘hostile actions’ - Algeria’s Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra accuses Rabat of ‘hostile actions’ as Algiers breaks ties with its neighbour.
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Algeria blames Israel, Morocco for deadly wildfires - The Algerian president's office said two groups were responsible for starting the fires, one of which Algeria accused of receiving support from Israel and Morocco.
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Rights groups slam Spain over child deportations to Morocco - Spain urged to halt the repatriation of hundreds of unaccompanied minors who crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in May.
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Israel and Morocco sign three deals on historic visit - Moroccan FM tells visiting Israeli counterpart that their countries’ newly upgraded ties will bring economic benefits.
• Just Security (28/7/21): Moroccan authorities have arrested a Uyghur activist, Yidiresi Aishan, in exile because of a Chinese terrorism warrant distributed by Interpol, according to information from Moroccan police and a rights group that tracks people detained by China
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): France’s Macron among potential Pegasus spyware targets: Report - Phone number of French president was identified as potential target for surveillance on behalf of Morocco, report says.
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): “The Paris prosecutor’s office opened a probe on Tuesday into allegations by investigative news website Mediapart and two of its journalists that they had been spied on by Morocco using the Pegasus spyware at the heart of a global scandal,”
• Democracy Now (20/7/21): Morocco Sentences Journalist Omar Radi to 6 Years in Prison
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Algeria recalls envoy to Morocco in row over Western Sahara - Algeria’s foreign ministry says the move is linked to comments made by Morocco’s UN envoy on Algeria’s Kabylie region.
• Democracy Now (13/7/21): Press Freedom Groups Demand Release of Jailed Moroccan Journalist Soulaimane Raissouni
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Western Sahara independence leader Brahim Ghali back in Algeria - Brahim Ghali returns to Algeria after stay in Spanish hospital that caused Spain-Morocco diplomatic row.
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Spain deployed troops in its enclave of Ceuta, on the Moroccan coast, when 8,000 migrants breached border fences. Morocco did little to stop the influx. It is upset with Spain for accepting Brahim Ghali for covid-19 treatment. Mr Ghali leads Polisario, which fights for the independence of Western Sahara, a territory claimed by Morocco.
• Al Jazeera (20/5/21): Hundreds of children stranded at Spanish enclave of Ceuta - Humanitarian crisis unfolds in Spanish enclave after hundreds of unaccompanied minors cross from Morocco.
• Democracy Now (19/5/21): Humanitarian, Diplomatic Crisis Between Spain and Morocco Deepens as Spain Expulses 1000s from Ceuta
• Democracy Now (18/5/21): 5,000 Asylum Seekers Swim from Morocco to Spanish Enclave of Ceuta
• Democracy Now (13/5/21): Sahrawi Human Rights Activist Sultana Khaya and Sister Raped by Moroccan Agents
• Democracy Now (11/5/21): Moroccan Authorities Raid Home of Western Sahara Independence Activist Sultana Khaya

Niger Updates

• The Guardian (25/12/21): Central Africa: fighting kills six soldiers and 22 jihadists in Lake Chad region - Three-week operation by troops from Niger and Nigeria targeted area that has become a bolthole for Boko Haram and Isis-linked militants [!]
• Just Security (21/12/21): The French armed forces ministry has said that its forces have killed a leading member of the Islamic State in Niger, Soumana Boura. The French army said Boura was killed by an air strike by its “Operation Barkhane” unit that took place on Dec. 20. Reuters reports.
• Africa News (16/12/21): Niger: Thousands flee homes following threats from jihadist groups [!]
• Workers World (10/12/21): People of the Sahel oppose imperialism [neo-imperialism-news]
• Africa News (7/12/21): Jihadist-hit Niger urges crackdown on Libya arms traffic [!]
• Just Security (6/12/21): Extremist gunmen have attacked a military camp in Niger near its southeastern border with Burkina Faso, killing at least 12 soldiers, Niger’s interior ministry said yesterday. Dalatou Maman reports for AP.
• Workers World (30/11/21): Massive protests in Niger, Burkina Faso demand French military get out [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Left Voice (30/11/21): Another Attack on Protesters by French Troops in Africa, This Time Killing Three - Demonstrators demanding the departure of French troops from Operation Barkhane in the African Sahel region blocked a French army convoy last Saturday, and the soldiers and Nigerian police opened fire, killing three and injuring 17, 10 of them seriously. [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Guardian (27/11/21): Niger: two killed and 17 injured in clash with French military convoy - Force used against protesters who blocked vehicles amid rising anger over France’s presence in former colonies
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): French army convoy blocked by Burkinabe protesters reaches Niger - The stopping of the military convoy came amid growing anger over the inability of local and international forces to contain escalating violence
• Democracy Now (10/11/21): 25 Children Killed in Niger School Fire as Nation Grapples with Deadly Conflict on Southern Border
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news] - $7 billion oil pipeline in Niger,
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): More than a dozen killed in Niger gold mine collapse - At least 18 people killed and seven others injured in southern Niger after an artisanal mine collapsed, local mayor says. [industrial-failure-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): Niger says 11 soldiers killed, nine missing after gun assault - Unidentified men attacked the village of Dagne in a remote part of southwest Niger near the border with Mali, the government said.
• Al Jazeera (4/11/21): Nearly 70 dead in village attack in southwestern Niger - Government says 69 people were killed in latest violent incident in Niger’s ‘tri-border’ zone with Burkina Faso and Mali.
• Al Jazeera (25/8/21): Niger: At least 16 soldiers killed in Boko Haram attack - Nine other soldiers wounded in the attack in country’s Diffa region, defence ministry says.
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Dozens killed in Niger village attack - Assailants on motorbikes killed 37 people, including 14 children, in Tillaberi region, according to interior ministry.
• The Economist (14/8/21): Mohamed Bazoum, Niger’s new president, asks for help - Niger is caught between Islamic State and Boko Haram
• Al Jazeera (13/6/21): Niger: Attack on Seini Oumarou’s home kills guard - Two men on a motorbike attack home of Seini Oumarou, president of Niger’s National Assembly.

Nigeria Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• WSWS (30/12/21): Workers and poor in Otuasega, Niger Delta demand electricity and employment at Shell oil company [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Nigerian pilots’ wildcat strike ends [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (25/12/21): Central Africa: fighting kills six soldiers and 22 jihadists in Lake Chad region - Three-week operation by troops from Niger and Nigeria targeted area that has become a bolthole for Boko Haram and Isis-linked militants [!]
• Africa News (23/12/21): Rockets kill four in Nigeria ahead of President Buhari's visit [!]
• Just Security (22/12/21): Dozens of people have been killed in violence between farmers and herders in Nigeria’s central Nasarawa state, Nigeria’s president has said. “Local police said the violence broke out when armed Fulani herders attacked villagers from the Tiv ethnic group over the killing of a kinsman that they blamed on Tiv farmers,” Al Jazeera reports.
• Telesur (20/12/21): Death Toll Rises To 47 After Weekend Attacks in Nigeria - President Buhari said that security forces have turned the heat on terrorists "who are getting frustrated and are soft-targeting innocent citizens, looting their assets, burning their homes and killing them indiscriminately." [!]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Niger Delta residents protest against month-long oil spill - Locals take to the streets to demand action after the latest spill affecting fishing communities in southern Nigeria. [big-oil-news, protest-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (1/12/21): Dozens, including many children, die in Nigeria boat disaster - Local officials say at least 29 people, mostly children, drowned after an overloaded river boat capsized in Kano state.
• Africa News (1/12/21): Nigeria denies report of 'massacre' of #EndSARS protesters [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Democracy Now (29/11/21): Oil Well Rupture Leaves Niger Delta Residents Hungry and Homeless - The latest spill began in southern Bayelsa state on November 1st, after a high-pressure oil well ruptured, spewing noxious fumes into the air and sending yellow-brown clumps of waste into the nearby mangrove forests and surrounding river. Residents say the spill has killed off fish and other wildlife and forced them to evacuate their homes. [industrial-failure-news, big-oil-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/11/21): Horrors on the Plateau: Inside Nigeria’s farmer-herder conflict - The violence in central Nigeria is now one of the country’s deadliest security threats after Boko Haram in the northeast and banditry in the northwest [!]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (24/11/21): Nigeria plans $5.8bn in cash handouts to replace fuel subsidies - The government will give 5,000 naira ($12.20) each to as many as 40 million people every month starting in July. [social-woes-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): Secretary of State Antony Blinken has decided to take Nigeria off a list of countries accused of engaging in or tolerating religious persecution, leading to anger from Christian groups, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and former senior U.S. diplomats. Blinken’s decision was revealed last week before he visited Nigeria, where Muslim-Christian tensions have long flared. State Department officials have said that Blinken’s move followed the advice of various department sections, but critics are calling it political and designed to appease an important African partner. Nahal Toosi reports for POLITICO. [us-policy-news]
• Africa News (20/11/21): Nigeria: Railway workers suspend strike to demand better welfare [labor-news]
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Oxford University identifies 145 artefacts looted in Benin raid - Plundered items likely to be returned to Nigeria include plaques, bronze figures and musical instruments
• Just Security (17/11/21): A Nigerian government panel found that the Nigerian military shot and killed at least eleven peaceful protesters and wounded dozens of others during an Oct. 20, 2020 protest against police brutality in Lagos . The protest was aimed at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, a “notoriously corrupt police unit.” Ben Ezeamalu reports for the New York Times.
• CPJ (15/11/21): Nigerian journalist Luka Binniyat detained over complaint by Kaduna state official [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Jacobin (13/11/21): Remembering Nigeria’s Ogoni 9, Murdered for Their Organizing Against Shell - Oil giant Shell wrought devastation across Nigeria for years. In 1995, nine organizers from the Ogoni region were hanged after a campaign against the company. [big-oil-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Nigeria: Trial of separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu adjourned - Judge postpones trial of leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra group to January 19 and 20 next year. [court-news]
• CPJ (10/11/21): A Nigerian journalist took photos at the scene of killings his government denies. Then the harassment started [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news] - Big-ticket infrastructure projects include the $5.8 billion hydroelectric Mambilla Dam, a $2.8 billion gas pipeline, a $1.5 billion harbor complex, and a $200 million airport serving Abuja. - Reporters in Nigeria, for instance, have exposed the pollution connected to illegal logging, fishing, and mining done either by Chinese entities or by local actors who then sell to Chinese firms. The impacts include "increased flooding, erosion, the extinction of animals and plants," says Tijani Abdulkareem. "Illegal logging denies communities sources of food and livelihood." - In Jigawa, one of the poorest Nigerian states, Chinese businesses can with impunity seize land being farmed by community members because "local politicians who have been bribed don't care," notes Tijani Abdulkareem. "Most of the officials have been bribed. In these states where there is high state of banditry, a Chinese businessman can bribe to get whatever he wants." - The same applies to Nigerian businessmen who act on behalf of Chinese companies. One such businessman, nicknamed "Dan China," presided over illegal mines that extracted $278 billion in lead, zinc, tin, and other ores. "Protected by bribed security agents and local officials, Dan China allegedly smuggled the illegally mined ore to China via the port of Lagos," Abdulkareem recounts. In 2017, in an unusual anti-corruption effort, "the Nigerian government cracked down on one of the largest of these illegal mining operations at Kampanin Zurak, a rural area about 150 miles outside the state capital, Jos. During the raid, police arrested sixteen Chinese nationals working at the remote site."
• Just Security (5/11/21): Nigerian police have said that six people kidnapped from the University of Abuja earlier this week have been freed
• Just Security (2/11/21): Gunmen have kidnapped six people including four lecturers from the University of Abuja in Nigeria’s capital.
• CPJ (1/11/21): Nigerian police assault, detain journalists covering memorials marking Lekki Toll Gate killings [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/11/21): Nigeria: Several killed in Lagos building collapse - High-rise building under construction in Lagos collapses, with dozens feared trapped inside, rescue officials and construction workers say.
• Al Jazeera (22/10/21): Nigerian official says new leader of ISIL-linked group killed - Nigeria’s national security adviser says Malam Bako, leader of the Islamic State in West Africa Province, ‘taken out'.
• The Guardian (23/10/21): Nigeria: heavily armed men free inmates during attack on prison - Unconfirmed reports say nearly 1,000 inmates escaped from correctional facility in south-west of country
• Just Security (22/10/21): An armed gang attacked a passenger train in Nigeria on Wednesday, prompting the Nigeria Railway Corporation to indefinitely suspend train services on a major route linking the capital, Abuja, to the north-western state of Kaduna
• Al Jazeera (21/10/21): Nigerian separatist leader Kanu denies terrorism charges in court - Charges against British citizen Nnamdi Kanu include calling for secession and membership in an outlawed group.
• Democracy Now (21/10/21): Nigerian Protesters Demand Justice One Year After Deadly “End SARS” Protests
• Just Security (19/10/21): Nigerian troops have killed 24 suspected Islamist insurgents in two attacks in the northeast of the country and recovered some weapons, the Nigerian army has said.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Gunmen kill dozens in Nigeria’s troubled northwest - The attack took place in Nigeria’s Sokoto’s state, where bandits have been relocating to avoid security operations.
• Just Security (18/10/21): Criminal gangs in Nigeria are growing more brazen, as they gain ransom money from kidnappings, and are stealing heavy munitions and extorting the Nigerian government.
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): West Africa’s top ISIL leader is dead, says Nigerian army - Military commander claims Abu Musab al-Barnawi is dead, but the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) group has yet to confirm.
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): Gunmen raid Nigeria market, kill at least 20 people - Killings in Sokoto state come as armed gangs continue to wreak havoc in northwestern Nigeria.
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Nigeria forces rescue nearly 200 abducted victims in northwest - The 187 victims were freed in Zamfara state, where they had been seized in separate attacks, police say.
• Al-Monitor (2/10/21): Morocco flirts with Ethiopia amid stalled Nile dam talks - Morocco and Ethiopia ramping up cooperation in various fields as negotiations remain stalled over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and Egypt refuses to back Morocco on the Western Sahara issue.
• The Economist World This Week (2/10/21):Fighting between jihadist groups in Nigeria left dozens dead. Islamic State West Africa Province is gaining the upper hand over Boko Haram, which has spent a decade kidnapping schoolgirls and strapping bombs to children. The latest fight was over which group gets to “tax” fishermen.
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): ‘We are under bandits’: Dozens killed and abducted in Nigeria - Armed groups attack remote communities in Niger and Sokoto states, the latest incidents in a spiralling cycle of violence plaguing the country.
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Nigeria police arrest 57 in Shia procession, deny casualties - Banned Islamic Movement in Nigeria say eight members shot dead by police during Abuja procession.
• Al Jazeera (27/9/21): Dozens dead after deadly attacks in northeast Nigeria - State security commissioner says troops came under fire before forcing the assailants to withdraw.
• Al Jazeera (20/9/21): Suit claims BP trader sacked for raising Nigeria bribe concerns - A former oil trader for British energy giant BP is alleging he was fired for voicing concerns about bribes being paid in Nigeria to secure local contracts. [big-oil-news, corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): As Nigeria’s healthcare bleeds, striking doctors pledge to fight - Since August 2, thousands of resident doctors across [labor-news, healthcare-news]
• Just Security (17/9/21): After initially denying responsibility, Nigeria’s air force has admitted to conducting airstrikes in a village in northeast Nigeria where at least 10 civilians have been reported killed.
• Al Jazeera (13/9/21): Gunmen attack Nigerian prison; 240 inmates freed - Authorities appealed to the public to provide intelligence that will assist in recapturing the escapees.
• Just Security (10/9/21): The Nigerian army has said that its troops have arrested a high-profile member of the Boko Haram extremist group in the northern Borno State
• Democracy Now (2/9/21): Nigerian Officials Shut Down Zamfara Schools After Latest Mass Kidnapping
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): Gunmen seize over 70 high-school students in northwest Nigeria - Zamfara state police say rescue operation is ongoing to free 73 pupils abducted from school in Kaya village.
• Al Jazeera (27/8/21): Nigerian gunmen free dozens of kidnapped children - Six of the pupils died in captivity and another 15 escaped in June after more than 130 were captured by ‘bandits’.
• Just Security (24/8/21): Gunmen have killed two Nigerian military personnel and abducted another in an attack on an army training college in the northern Nigerian state of Kaduna today, a spokesperson for the Nigerian defense academy has said
• Al Jazeera (22/8/21): Nigeria: Bandits release 15 students after parents pay ransom - The students were among more than 100 taken on July 5 from the Bethel Baptist High School in northwest Nigeria.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Several killed in attack at Shell facility in Nigeria’s southeast - Police say the unclaimed attack was carried out on a convoy transporting workers to Shell oil and gas project, killing seven people.
• Just Security (12/8/21): Nigeria plans to soon lift its ban on Twitter, Nigerian Information Minister Lai Mohammed has told journalists, two months after Nigerian authorities blocked the social network when a tweet by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari was deleted
• The Guardian (11/8/21): Shell to pay $111m over decades-old oil spills in Nigeria - Company maintains oil spills in 1970 were caused by third parties during civil war [big-oil-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/8/21): Over 2m children go hungry in conflict-hit northeast Nigeria: NGO - Save the Children says 700,000 children under five are among the 2.3 million children affected by crisis.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Nigeria accused of ‘ruthless’ crackdown in restive southeast - Global rights watchdog Amnesty International says it documented use of excessive force and at least 115 killings by security forces this year in southeastern states.
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Nigerian doctors strike over pay, inadequate facilities - Doctors union says the strike is to push the government to honour an agreement on pay arrears, hazard allowance and insurance benefits.
• The Guardian (31/7/21): Out of control and rising: why bitcoin has Nigeria’s government in a panic - As leaders around the world grapple with cryptocurrencies, what happened when the African country tried to ban them?
• Just Security (30/7/21): U.S. lawmakers have put on hold a proposal to sell almost $1 billion worth of weapons to Nigeria over concerns about possible human rights abuses by the Nigerian government, sources familiar with the matter have said.
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Kidnappers release another 28 abducted children in Nigeria - The attackers stormed Bethel Baptist High School in Kaduna State on July 5, abducting 121 students from their dorms.
• Just Security (21/7/21): Police in Nigeria have said that they have freed 100 women and children, mainly mothers and nursing infants, who were seized by bandits on June 8 in the Zamfara state
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): ‘Bandits’ shoot down Nigeria fighter jet; pilot survives
• The Guardian (19/7/21): Outcry after Nigerian TV stations told to curb reporting of security issues - Regulator’s move comes amid fears that limited press freedoms are being eroded by the government
• The Guardian (9/7/21): Biafra separatist leader abducted by Nigeria from Kenya, say family - Relatives of British-Nigerian citizen Nnamdi Kanu accuse Nigeria of extraordinary rendition, aided by Kenyan authorities
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): Gunmen kidnap staff and a baby from hospital in Nigeria - Officials say attackers abducted up to eight people from a hospital in Kaduna State, northwest Nigeria.
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): 140 students missing after gunmen raid Nigerian school - Police said gunmen shooting wildly attacked the Bethel Baptist High School in the south of Kaduna state overnight.
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Nigerian government threatens to rein in press after Twitter ban - Government could determine code of conduct for journalists under plans criticised as ‘deeply disturbing’
• Al Jazeera (24/6/21): Northeast Nigeria conflict killed more than 300,000 children: UN - A study published by UNDP finds death toll caused by 12 years of violence is 10 times higher than previous estimates.
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (15/6/21): Surging inflation in Nigeria fuels crime wave, says World Bank - Africa’s biggest economy is gripped by soaring food prices, high unemployment and surging inflation – a cocktail that the World Bank warns is leading more Nigerians into criminal enterprises to make up for lost earnings.
• Al Jazeera (12/6/21): Nigeria: Police fire tear gas in ‘Democracy Day’ protests - Nationwide protests were called over bad governance, insecurity and recent Twitter ban, among other issues.
• Al Jazera (12/6/21): Gunmen storm villages, kill dozens in Nigeria’s Zamfara state - Assailants on motorbikes raided several villages in northern state, attacking farmers and pursuing those who attempted to flee, police and residents say.
• Democracy Now (7/6/21): Nigeria Bans Twitter After President’s Threatening Tweet Is Deleted
• Al Jazeera (5/6/21): Nigerians breaking Twitter ban rules could be prosecuted - Chief legal officer orders prosecution of anyone who refuses to follow the government’s block on social network.
• The Guardian (5/6/21): Cattle thieves kill 66 villagers in Nigeria - Police still searching for more bodies after gunmen on motorcycles attacked seven villages
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Dozens kidnapped from Islamic school in northern Nigeria - State government says about 200 children were in the school when gunmen on motorbikes attacked.
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram, a jihadist group that enslaves girls, reportedly died in Nigeria after blowing himself up to avoid capture by rival jihadists. Mr Shekau has been declared dead five times before, only to resurface. But this time the reports appear to be true.
• Al Jazeera (22/5/21): Nigeria’s army chief, 10 others killed in plane crash - The incident occurred as the plane was landing at Kaduna airport ‘due to inclement weather’, the army says.
• Al Jazeera (21/5/21): Nigerian army investigates reports of Boko Haram leader’s death - Local media reports citing intelligence sources say Abubakar Shekau was seriously hurt or killed after his fighters clashed with members of the ISWAP group.
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Nigeria said it would pull soldiers and armed helicopters from the north-east of the country, where they are fighting the jihadists of Boko Haram, to battle separatists in the south-east instead. Some criticised the move, saying it risks turning a political problem into an insurgency.
• Al Jazeera (9/5/21): Gunmen kill Nigerian police officers in southern oil hub: Police - Police stations and security checkpoints targeted in River State amid deteriorating security in the country.
• Al Jazeera: Three students abducted from Nigeria university found shot dead - Remains of the students found in a village close to Greenfield University, according to Kaduna state security official.; 'Headlines constitute the oxygen of the terrorists, and these bandits are terrorists,” Governor Nasir el-Rufai told Al Jazeera last month.'
• Al Jazeera: ‘It is really bad’: Nigerians go hungry as food inflation soars - ‘I can’t simply afford to give my children what they really need in terms of food,’ said Feyintola Bolaji, a mother of three in her 50s based in Nigeria’s southwestern city of Ibadan.

Senegal Updates

• Africa News (28/12/21): Senegal's first regional trains make first journey between Darkar and Diaminiado [rail-news] [!]
• Africa News (24/12/21): Senegal: Railway to open in Darkar on Monday amidst protests [rail-news, protest-news, social-woes-news]
• Africa News (30/11/21): Senegal president opposes halting financing of fossil fuel extraction [big-oil-news, china-policy-news]
• The Guardian (23/10/21): Two children among six killed by old landmine in Senegal - The six people were in a horse-drawn vehicle when it hit a landmine left over from an earlier conflict in the Casamance region
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Greenpeace stops fish oil tanker in Channel in protest over African food insecurity - Fishmeal exports to EU from west Africa have grown sharply, depleting stocks and posing threat to livelihoods

Sierra Leone Updates

• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Death toll in Freetown fuel tanker explosion rises to 131 - Dozens of wounded people are still being treated at hospitals, with 19 still in a critical condition, authorities say.
• Democracy Now (8/11/21): Sierra Leone Declares Three Days of Mourning After 100+ Die in Fuel Tanker Disaster
• The Economist (19/8/21): In Sierra Leone, a Chinese port-building plan raises ire - Many locals think China is hoovering up their country’s rich natural resources [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Campaigners hail historic Sierra Leone move to end death penalty - Lawmakers vote to abolish the death penalty more than 20 years after the country’s last execution.

Somalia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• CPJ (31/12/21): Somaliland authorities arrest three journalists for critical reporting [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): United Nations: Somalia's deadly drought displaces over 2,000 more [social-woes-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Somalia president suspends prime minister over alleged corruption [!]
• Al Jazeera (25/12/21): Clashes in northeast Somalia force thousands to flee: Report - A local official says thousands of residents in Bosaso town have fled amid fighting between the two rival factions of security forces. [!]
• Common Dreams (14/12/21): Climate-Fueled Drought Pushing Millions 'to the Brink' in War-Torn Somalia - "You can run away from the fighting," said one local leader in central Somalia, "but you can't escape from the drought." [climate-change-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• Modern Diplomacy (22/11/21): Worsening drought affects 2.3 million people in Somalia [social-woes-news]
• Telesur (25/11/21): At Least 8 Killed In Car Bombing In Somali Capital - Somalia has lived in permanent chaos since 1991, when dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown, leaving this country without a government and in hands of Islamist militias and warlords. Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Al-Shabab suicide bomber kills prominent journalist in Mogadishu - Abdiaziz Mohamud, known for making programmes critical of the armed group, targeted while leaving restaurant in Somali capital. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): A team investigating the disappearance and subsequent death of a female Somali spy agent, Ikran Tahlil, has “found no evidence” that senior officials in Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency (Nisa) were culpable. Tahlil, who worked in the cyber-security department of the Nisa, went missing in June, and senior officials at Nisa were accused of being involved. The spy agency reported in September that Tahil had been killed by al-Shabab, however, the group has denied all involvement. BBC News reports.
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/11/21): AU troops sentenced to death for civilian killings in Somalia - Two soldiers sentenced to death and three others given 39-year prison terms each for killing seven civilians.
• Just Security (16/11/21): The U.N. Security Council has condemned the supply of weapons and ammunition to al-Shabab and other groups in Somalia in violation of a U.N. arms embargo and voted yesterday to extend the ban for a year
• Al Jazeera (4/11/21): Somalia gives African Union envoy seven days to leave country - Government accuses Simon Mulongo of engaging in activities incompatible with AU mission.
• Al-Monitor (3/11/21): Egypt explores water projects with Somalia - Egypt is in talks with Somalia on water management aid for the drought-stricken country as Cairo builds up its influence in the Horn of Africa.
• Just Security (29/10/21): The African Union mission in Somalia (Amisom) has denied it supported government troops in recent clashes with the Ahlu Sunna wal Jama’a Sufi militia in the central town of Guriel.
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Top UN court sides with Somalia in sea border dispute with Kenya - ICJ rules largely in favour of Somalia in setting a maritime boundary in an area believed to be rich in oil and gas.
• Al Jazeera (25/9/21): Suicide bomber kills at least eight in Somali capital - The attack targeting a convoy going into the presidential palace is claimed by the armed group al-Shabab.
• Al Jazeera (16/9/21): Somalia crisis deepens as president withdraws PM’s powers - In escalating row, President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed suspends Prime Minister Mohammed Hussein Roble’s power to hire and fire officials.
• Al Jazeera (14/9/21): Several civilians and soldiers killed in Mogadishu suicide attack - Al-Shabab armed group claims responsibility for latest attack in Somali capital.
• Al-Monitor (21/8/21): Egypt pledges support to Somalia, eyeing Horn of Africa influence - Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Roble held talks in Cairo with senior Egyptian officials at a time when Egypt is attempting to expand its influence in the Horn of Africa
• Al Jazeera (19/8/21): At least two killed in Mogadishu suicide attack - Two members of security forces killed and five other people wounded in the blast, which was claimed by the al-Shabab group.
• Just Security (12/8/21): The African Union’s peacekeeping mission in Somalia has said that it has started investigating reports that civilians were killed during a gunfight between its troops and al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab fighters on Tuesday.
• Democracy Now (26/7/21): U.S. Launches Second Drone Strike in Somalia in Under a Week
• Just Security Early Edition (21/7/21): The Pentagon yesterday confirmed U.S. forces were behind the single air strike on the al-Shabaab militant group near Galkayo in Somalia, the first such strike in the country since President Biden took office
• Just Security Early Edition (14/7/21): The U.S. is slowing its anti-terrorist campaign in Somalia as it weighs national security policies and grapples with former President Trump’s last-minute decision to withdraw roughly 650 U.S. special-operations and other troops from Somalia, where they had been training an elite local commando unit to fight al-Shabaab
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Mogadishu police chief survives al-Shabab attack, several killed - Suicide car bombing targeted a convoy carrying the Somali capital’s police commissioner, officials say.
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): At least 10 killed by al-Shabab suicide attack in Mogadishu - Dozens also injured after the attacker targets a tea shop in the Somali capital.
• Democracy Now (16/6/21): Bomb Blast Kills 15 People in Mogadishu
• Al Jazeera (6/6/21): Somaliland elections: Opposition parties win majority of seats - Two opposition parties in Somalia’s breakaway region announce political alliance, securing parliamentary majority.
• Al Jazeera: Bowing to pressure, Somali president drops bid to extend term (but will not be stepping aside) - After clashes in Mogadishu and political pressure, President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed promises to appear before parliament to debate extension proposal.
• Al Jazeera: Rival groups clash in Somali capital over president’s mandate - Gunfire erupts between security forces loyal to the president and others angered by his extended stay in power.

South Sudan Updates

• Financial Times (11/11/21): Swedish oil executives charged with complicity in Sudan war crimes - Lundin case is first prosecution of corporate bosses for such serious offences since Nuremberg trials [big-oil-news, war-crime-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): In 1999 Lundin, a fossil fuel corporation, wanted access to oil in what is now South Sudan (then the southern part of Sudan); to gain access, they enlisted the aid of the Sudanese government to act as security. To do so meant ripping up a peace accord, and they knowingly went forward with it, unleashing bloody conflict laced with crimes against humanity. In addition to the charges, Lundin will have to hand over $160m in assets (they're mostly involved in Norwegian oil development today, selling out of Sudan in 2003). Sweden has universal jurisdiction, which they've used in many war crimes cases, but this one is notable as it involves Swedish nationals. Note: While unrelated, this case brings to my attention a dimension of the conflict I was not aware of (that oil investment stirred conflict here in the 90s). Important to note is Chinese complicity in the violence here too; they had major oil investments in the country at the time, and sent soldiers to defend those oil fields and weapons to the Sudanese, thereby aiding the oppressors there (see wiki note) [china-policy-news].
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news, labor-news] - The experience in South Sudan, where China has been developing oil fields since the 1990s, has been similar. "The communities are supposed to benefit from the oil being produced in their area," observes Pach Ayuen Pach of the Heart of Mother Earth Foundation. "It's their right, but there are no good schools, no clean water, no roads, no hospitals, and nothing good for the community." - "The oil industry in South Sudan has left a landscape pocked with hundreds of open waste pits along with water and soil contaminated by toxic chemicals," he concludes. - The Chinese company has largely ignored the South Sudanese labor laws. So, for instance, workers labor nine hours a day, seven days a week, 30 days a month. "Employees have no option," he points out. "It is either work or a pay cut, or dismissal. People in this regard choose to work even if it is against their personal health." The food provided lacks vegetables aside from raw onions; accommodation for Sudanese workers is of lesser quality than where Chinese workers stay. Workers are entitled to a month off every three months but at half-pay, which discourages them from taking the time off
• Al Jazeera (9/11/21): Sudan court orders end to internet shutdown - Internet access in Sudan has largely been cut since a widely condemned military coup on October 25. [court-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (28/10/21): Sudan coup could offer boon for Moscow - Sudan's military coup could hurry along the process of Russia's deeper military involvement in the country. [russia-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (29/10/21): China urges Sudan’s warring factions to come to the table, pledges to protect Chinese interests - Beijing is closely watching developments and will ensure the safety and security of Chinese institutions and people in Sudan, the foreign ministry said - At least seven people have been killed in Sudan since Monday as people take to the streets to protest against the power grab [china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): U.N. Blames Climate Crisis for South Sudan’s Worst Flooding in 60 Years [climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (22/10/21): ‘Worst thing in lifetime’: South Sudan floods affecting 700,000 - The United Nations blames South Sudan’s worst floods in 60 years imperilling the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people on climate change. [climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): South Sudan flooding affects more than 600,000: UN - Torrential rains cause rivers to flow, deluging home and farms in eight of the country’s 10 states, UN agency says.
• Al Jazeera (23/9/21): South Sudan’s political elite plundering public coffers, says UN - The UN’s Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan says $73m have been diverted since 2018, with almost $39m stolen over a period of less than two months.
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Deadly fighting erupts between South Sudan party’s rival factions - VP Riek Machar denies claims by rivals earlier this week that they had deposed him as the head of SPLA-IO party.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): South Sudan’s Machar says ‘peace spoilers’ removed him from party - The country’s VP says those who announced his removal are no longer members of the movement’s military command council.
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): South Sudan’s Vice President Machar deposed by party - Machar was deposed following a three-day gathering of senior leaders in the country’s far north, the party’s military wing said.
• Just Security (21/7/21): Biden’s administration appears to be quietly giving up on the establishment of a war crimes court for South Sudan which would hold criminals accountable for atrocities committed against civilians during the country’s devastating 2013 civil war
• The Guardian (11/7/21): The light that failed: South Sudan’s ‘new dawn’ turns to utter nightmare

Sudan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (before split) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Africa News (31/12/21): Sudanese forces kill four, raid media house in Khartoum [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (31/12/21): UN food agency suspends North Darfur operation after attacks - Close to two million people expected to be affected by move after assault and looting on three WFP warehouses. [!]
• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): Sudan health ministry warns of scale of repression of protesters [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Protesters across Sudan demand 'civilian rule' - Rallies took place in several areas in Khartoum, Kasala, and Port Sudan in the country's east, as well as the northern city of Atbara, according to Anadolu Agency's correspondent on the ground. - During the rallies, protesters called for democratic civilian rule and decried a recent political deal between the military and Prime Minister, Abdalla Hamdok. - Internet services on Thursday were down in the capital and other areas prior to the demonstrations, as providers cut mobile services, with only landline connections remaining available. - The calls for protest were made by the Sudanese Professionals Association, which rejected the deal signed last month and called for full civilian rule. [union-news, labor-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, protest-news]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Sudanese authorities impose partial curfew in North Darfur [!]
• Africa News (30/12/21): Armed group in Darfur steals nearly 2,000 tons of food aid [!]
• Al Jazeera (30/12/21): Sudanese security forces kill four anti-coup protesters - Four protesters shot dead during the 11th day of major demonstrations in Sudan since the October 25 coup. [!]
• Jacobin (29/12/21): Sudan’s Military Rulers Are Hated by Their People but Coddled by the West - Two months since the October 25 coup, protesters are in the streets of Sudan demanding restored civilian rule. But military leaders’ success in “normalizing” ties with the US and Israel is helping to entrench them in power. [protest-news, us-policy-news]
• Africa News (29/12/21): At least 31 killed in Sudan gold mine collapse [industrial-failure-news]
• Middle East Monitor (26/12/21): Sudan says 58 policemen injured in protests [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (26/12/21):Sudan forces fire tear gas as protesters head to presidential palace [!]
• Africa News (25/12/21): Christmas day protest: Thousands of Sudanese march in Khartoum in anti-coup rallies [protest-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (25/12/21): Internet disconnected in Khartoum just before demonstrations [surveillance-and-censorship-news, protest-news, labor-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): ‘They won’t break us’: Sudanese protesters decry sexual attacks - Women take to streets to condemn sexual violence, after the UN said it had documented 13 instances of rape and gang rape during recent protests. [!]
• Democracy Now (23/12/21): U.N. Calls for Probe into Reports That Sudanese Security Forces Raped Anti-Coup Protesters
• Al Jazeera (22/12/21): Aid workers in Sudan warn of crisis as Ethiopia war continues - Humanitarians sound alarm over the growing humanitarian crisis amid difficulties to provide aid to those fleeing Ethiopia’s conflict. [social-woes-news, immigrant-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Two deaths, 13 rape allegations reported after Sudan protests - UN receives 13 allegations of rape by security forces during Sunday’s rally in Sudan, while medics report second death. [!]
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Hundreds of Thousands of Sudanese Protesters March Against Military Rule - They were met by heavy volleys of tear gas, stun grenades and live ammunition fired by Sudanese soldiers. Protesters also took to the streets in cities across Sudan, marking the third anniversary of the uprising that toppled longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir [protest-news]
• The Guardian (19/12/21): Sudan police fire teargas as anti-coup protesters stage mass rally - Thousands mark anniversary of revolt against Bashir regime with protest over military takeover [protest-news] [!]
• Africa News (15/12/21): Sudanese army deployed along the disputed border with Ethiopia [!]
• Africa News (13/12/21): Police fire tear gas at protesters in Khartoum as relentless demonstrations continue [protest-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (11/12/21): Sudanese demand freeze of international aid to the military - Sudanese protesters call on the international community to withhold development assistance from the coup plotters [protest-news]
• Africa Is A Country (6/12/21): Sudan’s revolution and counterrevolution - The best support that the Sudanese revolution can get from international allies is for them to reject and fight their own governments’ efforts to force a government of killers on Sudan for the second time. [labor-news, protest-news, leftist-news]
• The Guardian (9/12/21): Dozens die and thousands flee in West Darfur tribal fighting - Deadly clashes erupt in three separate areas with poor medical facilities as wider Darfur region slides into violence
• The Elephant (10/12/21): The Revolution Continues and Sudanese Women Are on the Front Lines of the Resistance - Sudanese women are well aware that their access to basic human rights and justice are conditioned upon the presence of a civil and democratic system of governance that respects women’s rights and humanity. Only under such a government can women be part of legal and political reform processes that will contribute to bringing about meaningful change.
• Just Security (9/12/21): The death toll from weekend clashes between Arabs and non-Arabs in Sudan’s western Darfur region has increased to at least 88 people, a Sudanese medical group said yesterday. “The fighting grew out of a financial dispute late Saturday between two individuals in a camp for displaced persons in the Kreinik area in West Darfur province. The following day, Arab militias known as janjaweed attacked the camp and surrounding villages,” AP reports.
• Al-Monitor (7/12/21): Sudan's prime minister halts government appointments - Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok decides to cancel all appointments across governmental positions in the wake of the Oct. 25 incidents. [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Sudan police fire tear gas as thousands protest against military - Demonstrators in different locations across Khartoum and other cities voice their rejection of the military deal reached last month. [protest-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (5/12/21): Tribal violence kills 24 in Sudan’s Darfur: Aid group - Deadly attack is the latest escalation of inter-communal violence to rock the conflict-stricken region. [!]
• Al-Monitor (3/12/21): Sudan-Ethiopia border dispute deepens internal chaos for both - The Ethiopia-Sudan border conflict has hit the headlines once again, with their armed forces renewing bloody clashes at a time when the two countries are going through unprecedented internal turmoil
• Just Security (1/12/21): Tens of thousands marched in Sudan’s capital, and other cities, yesterday against a military takeover that took place last month, with security forces firing tear gas at the anti-coup protesters. Ashraf Idris reports for AP. [protest-news]
• Africa News (30/11/21): Sudan: Security forces fire tear gas at protesters against post-coup deal
• Just Security (29/11/21): At least 20 Sudanese troops have reportedly died following clashes with Ethiopian forces on the countries’ shared border. Sudanese soldiers fell into an ambush on Saturday after traveling across the Atbara river in response to shelling, Alrasheed Ali, a member of the border commission of Sudan’s southeastern Gadaref state, has said
• Al Jazeera (28/11/21): Sudan military says several soldiers killed in Ethiopian attack - Military sources tell Reuters at least six Sudanese soldiers were killed in an attack in a disputed border region
• Al Jazeera (27/11/21): Reinstated Sudanese PM Hamdok dismisses police chiefs - Medics say dozens of people have been killed as security forces sought to crush weeks of anti-coup protests
• Financial Times (26/10/21): Sudan’s hopes of freedom must not be snuffed out - World needs to find a way to isolate Khartoum’s military while standing by the people [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news] Paywall Summary (?): An interesting article - FT observes that it was foolish for the West to think that the military elements which overthrew Bashir in 2019 had turned a leaf for democracy; now the world is reeling, with the US, for example, withholding around $700m in aid as a a result of the coup. They were too easy with giving money to the transition government, and dis-incentivized actually transitioning. Yet at the same time, due to IMF demands, income-support programmes weren't funded to help people deal with rising cost of living. FT suggests finding ways to fund people directly, rather than disbursing money to the transition government, such as M-Pesa. Side point from me: The IMF sucks, and as a consequence, has funneled money towards the army in the interim period (via the transition government) and actually cut support for working people, by demanding an end to fuel subsidies (for example).
• New York Times (26/11/21): Fresh Violence in Darfur Adds to Sudan’s Crises - At least 43 people have been killed in clashes in the area, the U.N. says, while the nation’s leaders are focused elsewhere, dealing with the fallout from a coup.
• Just Security (23/11/21): Sudan’s reinstated Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said, in an interview that aired yesterday, that he will have the authority to form his own independent government under the agreement he signed with Sudan’s military generals who overthrew him in a coup last month
• Africa Is a Country (8/11/21): Sudanese women on the front lines of the resistance - Sudanese women took part in the revolution in large numbers for the same reasons they are now part of the resistance against this treacherous coup: Their human rights are at stake.
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Sudan anti-coup protest death toll rises to 40 as teenager dies - Teenager succumbs to his wounds after being shot in head by live rounds days earlier, taking protest death toll to 40.
• Democracy Now (22/11/21): Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok Reinstated As Teenager Killed in Ongoing Anti-Coup Protests
• CPJ (19/11/21): Sudanese journalist Ali Farsab shot and detained while covering anti-coup protest [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (18/11/21): US envoy asks Israel to intervene in Sudan, says local press - According to Israeli reports, visiting US envoy to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield asked Defense Minister Benny Gantz to step in in Sudan [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (18/11/21): Sudan pro-democracy activists call for escalation after lethal crackdown - Demonstrations against military coup expected to continue after 15 protesters reportedly killed in a day
• Democracy Now (18/11/21): Sudanese Military Continue Deadly Crackdown on Protests, Bringing Death Toll Since Coup to 39
• Just Security (18/11/21): Sudan’s Finance Minister has said that it is “unrealistic” for the nation to return to its pre-coup transitional government, after the military seized control of the country last month.
• Just Security (18/11/21): Sudanese security forces killed at least fifteen protestors and wounded many others yesterday after firing into crowds demonstrating against the Oct. 25 military coup in the capital city of Khartoum.
• Jacobin (15/11/21): How the Exploitation of Africa Helps Fuel Global Capitalism - The political and economic crises roiling countries like Sudan and Tunisia right now cannot be separated from the global institutions of capital and the cycles of indebtedness that they impose. [analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Death toll from Sudan anti-coup protests rises, medics say - More than 200 people have been wounded in Sudan’s latest anti-coup protest, including 100 by ‘live bullets’, medics say
• Just Security (16/11/21): Sudanese authorities have released the bureau chief of Al Jazeera, El Musalmi El Kabbashi, two days after he was arrested in the midst of nationwide protests against the military coup in Sudan [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (13/11/21): Sudan security forces kill at least 5 as protesters defy shutdown - Teargas and live bullets used to break up demonstration in Khartoum against the military coup
• Financial Times (11/11/21): Swedish oil executives charged with complicity in Sudan war crimes - Lundin case is first prosecution of corporate bosses for such serious offences since Nuremberg trials [big-oil-news, war-crime-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): In 1999 Lundin, a fossil fuel corporation, wanted access to oil in what is now South Sudan (then the southern part of Sudan); to gain access, they enlisted the aid of the Sudanese government to act as security. To do so meant ripping up a peace accord, and they knowingly went forward with it, unleashing bloody conflict laced with crimes against humanity. In addition to the charges, Lundin will have to hand over $160m in assets (they're mostly involved in Norwegian oil development today, selling out of Sudan in 2003). Sweden has universal jurisdiction, which they've used in many war crimes cases, but this one is notable as it involves Swedish nationals. Note: While unrelated, this case brings to my attention a dimension of the conflict I was not aware of (that oil investment stirred conflict here in the 90s). Important to note is Chinese complicity in the violence here too; they had major oil investments in the country at the time, and sent soldiers to defend those oil fields and weapons to the Sudanese, thereby aiding the oppressors there (see wiki note) [china-policy-news].
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Sudanese Military Coup Leader Sworn In Amid Ongoing Protests
• Left Voice (9/11/21): Repression in Sudan: 119 Arrested at Teachers Demonstration Against the Coup - On Sunday, 119 protesters were arrested by the military at a demonstration of thousands outside the Ministry of Education building in Khartoum. They were demanding the ouster of newly appointed education officials who are close to the former Sudanese dictator. [labor-news, protest-news]
• The Guardian (7/11/21): Sudan: scores of teachers arrested as strike begins against coup - Union says teargas used against members outside education ministry building for Khartoum state [labor-news, protest-news]
• Al-Monitor (6/11/21): Egypt avoids taking sides in Sudan crisis - While regional and international forces are pushing for a solution to the crisis in Sudan, Cairo is neutral between the civil and military components in an attempt to overcome the complexities of the political scene.
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): Sudan activists announce strikes, reject power-sharing with army - Protest movement promises to continue demonstrating until a full civilian government is established to lead the transition. [labor-news]
• Democracy Now (8/11/21): Sudanese Soldiers Arrest Scores of Anti-Coup Protesters
• Just Security (8/11/21): Teachers in Sudan were sprayed with tear gas and arrested following two days of protests against the military coup. The teachers’ union said security forces used tear gas against teachers outside of the education ministry, and there were reports that some were taken into custody and transported to the military headquarters [labor-news]
• Al-Monitor (5/11/21): Egypt, UAE play essential role in containing Sudan-Ethiopia crises - US fears state collapse, regional spillover in Horn of Africa
• Al Jazeera (4/11/21): Sudan’s army chief orders release of 4 ministers detained in coup - The move comes as the UN is working to find a way out of a political impasse since the military seized power in late October.
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): America, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates called on the leaders of a military coup in Sudan to reinstate a civilian-led transitional government. The last two were a surprise: the coup leader, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was thought to have had the backing of Arab allies, including the UAE. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (30/10/21): Sudan democracy march: three protesters killed as security forces open fire - Pro-coup forces reportedly use live ammunition and teargas in Khartoum and Omdurman
• Left Voice (29/10/21): General Strike and Demonstrations in Sudan Point to How the Working Class Can Bring Down the Military - The coup in Sudan on October 25 is reactivating popular demonstrations. Several sectors of workers have already joined in a general strike, and a massive mobilization throughout the country is expected on Saturday. [labor-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): Sudan’s envoys to the U.S. and several other countries, including the E.U. and France, have been fired after condemning the military’s takeover, a military official has said.
• Just Security (29/10/21): Violent abductions by army officers are targeting Sudanese civilians who have opposed the coup, including politicians, journalists and activists. “In the space of barely a week, dozens of individuals selected by the army for detention, or who have spoken out against the coup, have been swept up, including ministers and journalists, as well as activists in the ‘resistance committees’ who have been involved in organising street protests,” the Guardian reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): The Sudanese military will appoint a technocrat prime minister to rule alongside it within a week, Gen Abdel-Fattah Burhanhan, the Sudanese general who seized power in the coup, has said
• Just Security (28/10/21): The World Bank halted disbursements for its operations in Sudan yesterday in response to the military coup. According to the Associated Press, the World Bank had allocated $2 billion for Sudan in May.
• Just Security (28/10/21): The African Union (AU) has suspended Sudan with immediate effect from all the AU’s activities until the civilian-led transitional authority is restored in Sudan
• Just Security (28/10/21): The Sudanese military “launched a new wave of arrests of opponents.” So far, at least twelve people have been killed and 150 more have been injured as cities around the country have been rocked by protests and other forms of civil disobedience since the coup on Monday.
• Al-Monitor (25/10/21): Turkey, Qatar express 'concern' over coup in Sudan - The Sudanese military has arrested civilians in the transitional government and seized power.
• Left Voice (27/10/21): Popular Mobilization in Sudan Is the Main Bulwark Against the Coup - In Sudan this past weekend, the military took power in a coup after months of divisions within the government. It could have major consequences for the region. [protest-news]
• Just Security (27/10/21): Sudan’s security forces have detained three prominent pro-democracy figures and critics of the apparent military coup, according to their relatives and other activists.
• Democracy Now (27/10/21): African Union Suspends Sudan After Military Coup - Meanwhile, deposed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was allowed to return home, according to his office, after being detained by the coup forces, sparking widespread protests.
• CPJ (26/10/21): Sudanese military forces arrest state television manager, pro-military protesters assault journalists after coup [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): “Troops are reported to have been going house to house in Khartoum arresting local protest organisers. The city’s airport is closed and international flights are suspended. The internet and most phone lines are also down. Central Bank staff have reportedly gone on strike, and across the country doctors are said to be refusing to work in military run hospitals except in emergencies,” [labor-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): Protests against yesterday’s military coup have continued in Khartoum, with the BBC reporting a higher number of “at least 10 people” reported killed and dozens injured, many of them as a result of soldiers opening fire on protesters
• Just Security (26/10/21): At least 7 people have been killed and 140 injured as thousands of people have gone into the streets to protest, in Khartoum and its twin city Omdurman.
• Just Security (26/10/21): The military has dissolved the committees managing Sudan’s trade unions, al-Burhan has announced. [labor-news]
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): Sudan’s Military Opens Fire on Protesters Opposing Coup - News outlets are reporting at least 10 protesters have been shot dead during today’s protests demanding an end to military rule.
• New York Times (25/10/21): The U.S. cut off aid to the Sudanese government after the coup. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): Hamdok is under pressure to release a statement in “support of the takeover,” but has refused to do so, Sudan’s Information Ministry has said
• Just Security (25/10/21): Large crowds of anti-military protesters are marching on the street of Sudan’s capital Khartoum, denouncing the overnight detentions of government members, according to images posted on social media; There have been reports of gunfire and injuries in clashes on the streets in Khartoum, involving thousands of people opposed to the apparent military coup.
• Democracy Now (25/10/21): Sudanese Military Dissolves Transitional Gov’t, Detains Prime Minister in Coup
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• Al-Monitor (22/10/21): With Nile talks stalled, Ethiopia plans to fill dam, buy Turkish drones - Meanwhile, Sudan’s democratic transition faces ‘worst and most dangerous’ crisis.
• The Guardian (21/10/21): Protesters take to the streets demanding full civilian rule in Sudan - Hundreds of thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators march in Khartoum and other cities
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Ethiopia preps for third filling as Nile dam diplomacy stalls - Hope for negotiations on the crisis with Egypt and Sudan is fading as Ethiopia works toward the third-stage filling of its mega dam on the Blue Nile.
• The Guardian (16/10/21): Thousands rally in Sudan’s capital to demand military rule - Protesters say they want the government of prime minister Abdalla Hamdok dismissed and replaced by the military
• Just Security (13/10/21): Sudan’s security service has put a travel ban on members of a task force overseeing the country’s transition to a democracy, government sources have said. The announcement comes as tensions between the military and civilian leaders in Sudan threaten to boil over following an alleged failed coup by troops still loyal to the ousted president Omar al-Bashir last month
• Al-Monitor (5/10/21): Are Brotherhood members forming terror cells in Sudan? - Sudanese security services have arrested members of an Islamic State-affiliated terrorist cell led by an Egyptian national, while Cairo wants to extradite them as part of a broader effort to extradite members of the Muslim Brotherhood who fled to Khartoum in 2013.
• Al Jazeera (4/10/21): Sudan warns medicine, fuel, wheat running out amid port blockade - Major disruption of crucial supplies comes as protesting Beja tribe from eastern Sudan blocks roads and forces Port Sudan to close. [protest-news]
• Al Jazeera (2/10/21): Sudan factions form new alliance as splits deepen - The ceremony included political parties, the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Mini Minawi and the Justice and Equality Movement of Gibril Ibrahim.
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Tear gas fired at thousands rallying for civilian rule in Sudan - Security forces fired tear gas to break up a demonstration in the capital attended by an estimated 20,000 people
• The Economist World This Week (2/10/21): Jihadists from a previously unknown group claimed that they had killed six intelligence officers in Sudan. The country’s transition to democracy is looking fragile, two years after the overthrow of Omar al-Bashir, a bloody dictator who ruled for 30 years.
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): Sudan: Five security forces killed in raid targeting ISIL cell - Security forces arrested ’11 foreign terrorists from different nationalities’ in Khartoum raid, the intelligence services says.
• Al-Monitor (28/9/21): Muslim Brotherhood blamed for failed military coup in Sudan - Khartoum witnessed an attempted coup, which highlights the urgent need to unify civil and military institutions following the fall of Omar al-Bashir’s regime. Note that a close ally of Sudan right now is... Egypt. No wonder that the MB is being blamed!
• Al Jazeera (27/9/21): Sudan protesters agree to resumption of oil exports - Sudan’s government reaches deal with tribal demonstrators in eastern Sudan after days of protests threatened energy supplies [protest-news, labor-news, big-oil-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/9/21): Sudan thwarts Ethiopian incursion amid protests in east - Sudan’s army said it repelled attempted incursion in the border area as angry protesters in eastern Sudan shut ports, roads.
• Just Security (23/9/21): Sudanese military leaders have blamed civilian politicians for the military coup that was thwarted earlier this week, saying that politicians had neglected public welfare while consumed by internal squabbles.
• Democracy Now (21/9/21): Sudan’s Government Says It Thwarted a Coup Attempt by Bashir Loyalists
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Egypt trains Sudanese police to counter Brotherhood plans - Cairo is training a number of Sudanese police officers on measures against the Muslim Brotherhood as Sudan accuses Brotherhood members of being behind the demonstrations and riots that have erupted in the country.
• Just Security (11/8/21): The Sudanese government will hand former President Omar al-Bashir over to the International Criminal Court along with other officials wanted over the Darfur conflict, Sudanese Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi has been quoted as saying in state media
• Al Jazeera (8/8/21): Sudan recalls ambassador to Ethiopia amid frayed ties - Khartoum’s decision comes days after Addis Ababa rejected Sudan’s offer to mediate in the ongoing conflict in Tigray.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Sudan sentences paramilitaries to death for killing protesters - The protesters, including four schoolchildren, were shot dead during a 2019 demonstration over food and fuel shortages.
• The Economist (15/7/21): Why nerves are jangling on the border between Ethiopia and Sudan - Conflict over farmland in al-Fashaga threatens to spark a war
• Middle East Monitor (13/7/21): Why did Putin turn against Sisi in the Renaissance Dam file? (via u/White_Mlungu_Capital on r/geopolitics)
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Saudi Arabia supports Egypt, Sudan ‘water rights’ in dam dispute - The expression of support by the kingdom comes a day after Ethiopia notified downstream nations that the second-phase filling at the dam had begun.
• The Economist World This Week (1/7/21): Sudan’s reform-minded government said it would send the former president, Omar al-Bashir, to the International Criminal Court ( ICC) at The Hague after a local trial. The ICC has accused him of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity said to have been committed in the Darfur region in 2003.
• Al Jazeera (24/6/21): Civilians fear abductions as Sudan-Ethiopia border row deadlocked - Lack of clear demarcation in al-Fashaga has led to fighting between the two sides in recent months, as well as abduction and killing of civilians in border villages.
• Al Jazeera (7/6/21): South Darfur: 36 killed, dozens wounded in tribal clashes - Officials say military forces were deployed to resolve the conflict between Fallata and Taisha tribes.
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Military chief says Sudan reviewing naval base deal with Russia - General Mohammed Othman al-Hussein says negotiations are under way with Russian officials ‘to serve Sudan’s interests’.
• Al Jazeera (5/5/21): Eritrea’s Isaias meets Sudanese leaders amid Ethiopia tensions - Khartoum visit by Eritrean president comes amid strained relations between government of Ethiopia, a close ally, and Sudan.
• VOA News (6/8/20): US Firm Secures Oil Deal with US-Backed Forces in Syria US Firm Secures Oil Deal with US-Backed Forces in Syria [us-policy-news, big-oil-news]
• Al-Monitor (8/5/20): Report: Child soldiers deployed to Libya by Turkish-backed Syrian National Army - An exclusive report, citing sources on the ground in Syria and Libya, says Syrian teenagers are being sent to Libya to take part in the civil war there.

Togo Updates

• CPJ (13/12/21): Togo journalists Ferdinand Ayité and Joël Egah detained over online broadcast [surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news]
• CPJ (22/9/21): ‘There is no private life’: Three Togolese journalists react to being selected for spyware surveillance

Tunisia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Middle East Monitor (24/12/21): Tunisia's Ennahda slams prison sentence against ex-President Moncef Marzouki [!]
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Ex-Tunisian President Marzouki sentenced to 4 years in absentia - Moncef Marzouki, who lives in France, rejects court ruling, says it was ‘issued by an illegitimate president who overturned the constitution’. [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Tunisian president to change constitution, organize early legislative elections - Tunisian President Kais Saied announced yet another set of measures for holding a referendum on constitutional reforms and parliamentary elections. [!]
• Just Security (17/12/21): Thousands of protesters have demonstrated in the capital today against Tunisian President Kais Saied, who seized power and suspended Tunisia’s parliament five months ago. The protest had been called to mark the anniversary of the uprising that toppled autocrat Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali a decade ago. Reuters reports.
• Africa News (15/12/21): Tunisia's labour union slams decision to extend suspension of parliament [union-news, labor-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Tunisian president announces constitutional referendum in 2022 - President Kais Saied says Tunisia will hold a referendum on a new constitution in July 2022, before general elections in December. [!]
• Africa News (10/12/21): Tunisia: LGBTQ+ activist attacked by police calls for justice [lgbtq-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• Africa News (9/12/21): One killed, 18 injured following fire at HQ of Tunisia's Ennahdha party - One person died and 18 others were injured including two leading figures from Tunisia's Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party in a fire at its headquarters Thursday, authorities and party members said. - Ennahdha said on Facebook that one of its "activists", a former receptionist born in 1970, had died in the blaze. - Tunisian media cited judiciary sources as saying the person had "set himself ablaze on the ground floor" of the building.
• Africa News (7/12/21): Tunisia: Enahdha party protests 'defamation' campaign [!]
• Al Jazeera (5/12/21): Tunisia’s UGTT union calls for early polls in absence of plan - The trade union expresses concern for the country’s democratic gains as President Kais Saied has failed to announce a political plan. [union-news, labor-news]
• Africa News (3/12/21): Tunisia: President Saied changes revolution commemoration date to December 17
• Left Voice (17/11/21): Waste Imperialism and the Trash Crisis in Tunisia - Sfax, Tunisia is drowning in garbage. This is a clear example of the inequities and destructiveness of waste management under capitalism. [capitalist-farce-news, industrial-failure-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Jacobin (15/11/21): How the Exploitation of Africa Helps Fuel Global Capitalism - The political and economic crises roiling countries like Sudan and Tunisia right now cannot be separated from the global institutions of capital and the cycles of indebtedness that they impose. [analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Tunisian labour union opposes parliament return, urges elections - General Labour Union says Tunisia’s suspended parliament should not be reinstated, calls for new legislative elections. [labor-news, union-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/11/21): Tunisians protest against President Saied’s power grab - Thousands of people gather near Tunisia’s suspended parliament to protest against President Saied’s power grab. [protest-news]
• Al-Monitor (13/11/21): Media freedom in Tunisia stirs wide debate - The closure by the Independent High Authority for Audiovisual Communication of four media institutions, under the pretext of benefiting from the influence of some parties and political figures for broadcasting without regularizing their situation, has stirred wide controversy and growing concern about the fate of media institutions in Tunisia [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Tunisia MP jailed for sexual harassment in landmark case - Zouhair Makhlouf’s case marks first time a high-profile figure has faced prosecution for sexual wrongdoing in Tunisia. [civil-rights-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Tunisia trade union calls for strike over death of protester - The powerful General Trade Union announces a day of mourning over the death of protesters and calls for an investigation into the incident. [labor-news, union-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): A tunnel from a house frequented by a known extremist has been discovered in Tunisia near the French ambassador’s residence.
• CPJ (27/10/21): Tunisia’s media regulator shuts down Nessma TV and al-Quran al-Kareem radio station over licensing issues [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CounterPunch (27/10/21): Political Islam and Democracy Crisis in North Africa
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Tunisia’s new government sworn in without parliamentary approval - The new Tunisian government, which includes 10 women, was sworn in amid controversy over its legitimacy, since it was not approved by parliament as stipulated in the constitution.
• Al-Monitor (18/10/21): Activists call Tunisia's first female prime minister mere distraction - Tunisia's president has appointed a female prime minister, a first in the Arab world, but he has been both cheered and accused of using her to deflect attention from his policies
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Tunisian court jails lawmaker over corruption charges - Mehdi Ben Gharbia is the latest opposition member to come under scrutiny amid growing concerns over civil rights.
• Al-Monitor (12/10/21): Sisi backs emergency measures by Tunisian president - The Egyptian president said the actions taken by his Tunisian counterpart, Kais Saied, will bring 'stability to Tunisia.'
• The Guardian (11/10/21): Tunisia: president appoints new government 11 weeks after power grab - Kais Saied will technically head administration after paring back powers of PM’s office
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): Thousands rally against Tunisia’s President Saied - Growing number of protesters raises possibility of Tunisia’s political divisions spiralling into street confrontations.
• Al-Monitor (9/10/21): Tunisian journalists behind bars reflect growing repression on media freedom - Tunisians have been concerned about the return of oppression and restriction on media freedoms following renewed military trials of civilians, arrests and attacks on journalists. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CPJ (7/10/21): Tunisian authorities arrest Zaytouna TV host Amer Ayad, confiscate channel’s equipment [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (3/10/21): Tunisia: Thousands rally in support of President Saied - Demonstrators waved Tunisian flags and carried placards critical of Ennahdha.
• Al Jazeera (1/10/21): Tunisia’s Ghannouchi says parliament in session, defying Saied - Rached Ghannouchi from the Ennahdha party urged lawmakers to resume work in defiance of the parliament freeze by President Kais Saied.
• Just Security (29/9/21): Tunisian President Kais Saied has today named Najla Bouden Romdhane, a little-known university engineer with World Bank experience, as Tunisia’s prime minister,
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Tunisian parties announce coalition to counter President Saied - Four parties announce coalition to oppose Saied’s move to seize governing powers.
• Al Jazeera (26/9/21): Hundreds of Tunisians protest President Saied’s ‘power grab’ - Protesters are calling on President Kais Saied to resign after he announced he would rule by decree.
• Al Jazeera (25/9/21): Over 100 Ennahdha members resign amid Tunisia’s political crisis - Senior party members cited Ennahdha’s failure to confront what they called an ‘imminent tyrannical danger’.
• Left Voice (22/9/21): Tunisia: Thousands Protest President Saied’s Power Grab - Protests in Tunis last Saturday mark the first major demonstration in Tunisia since President Kais Saied seized power and dismissed parliament in July.
• The Guardian (22/9/21): Tunisia’s president to ignore parts of the constitution and rule by decree - Kais Saied says he is preparing to change the political system, prompting opposition from rivals
• Just Security (22/9/21): A Tunisian military judge yesterday jailed two lawmakers from the Islamist Karama party amid growing concerns for human rights in Tunisia after the president seized governing powers in July
• Al Jazeera (19/9/21): Dueling Tunisian protests erupt over president’s power grab - Protesters angry at the Tunisian president’s seizure of broad powers faced off against his supporters.
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Tunisians stage protest over President Saied’s seizure of powers - First major demonstration in Tunis since President Kais Saied seized ruling powers and dismissed parliament in July.
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): Tunisian MP and president critic Makhlouf briefly detained - Opposition lawmaker Seif Eddine Makhlouf arrested by plain clothes officers as he attempted to attend a court hearing against himself.
• Al Jazeera (12/9/21): Tunisia president indicates plans to amend constitution - Kais Saied says the 2014 charter is ‘not eternal’ and can be amended within existing constitutional means.
• Just Security (10/9/21): Tunisian President Kais Saied plans to suspend the constitution and may amend the political system via a referendum, one of his advisers has said
• Al Jazeera (31/8/21): Tunisia issues arrest warrant for former presidential candidate - The announcement comes a day after Nabil Karoui and his brother were reportedly arrested in Algeria.
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): Tunisia’s President Kais Saied extends suspension of parliament - Saied also extended the suspension of the immunity of members of parliament a month after he dismissed country’s prime minister.
• Al-Monitor (21/8/21): Saudi Arabia sends oxygen tanks to Tunisia - The Saudi government also sent medical aid to Tunisia in July during the country's COVID-19 outbreak. Daily virus cases have since gone down in Tunisia.
• Al Jazeera (21/8/21): Tunisia: Former anti-corruption chief placed under house arrest - Chawki Tabib says he was informed by a police patrol outside his home that he was now under house arrest.
• Al-Monitor (10/8/21): Cairo backs Tunisian president’s actions against Brotherhood - Egypt said it fully supports Tunisian President Kais Saied, who fired the prime minister, suspended parliament and took control over the executive power in the midst of a severe political and economic crisis raging the country.
• CPJ (10/8/21): Demonstrators and security forces harass, obstruct journalists covering Tunisia protests
• Al-Monitor (6/8/21): Tunisia places senior Ennahda figure under house arrest - Anouar Maarouf, the former communications and technology minister, was reportedly informed by Tunisian authorities that he has been placed under house arrest.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Ennahdha signals shift in posture amid Tunisia political crisis - Largest force in Parliament shifts course, says president’s moves constitute opportunity for reform.
• Al-Monitor (4/8/21): UAE sends more medical aid to Tunisia to fight virus - The Emirati shipment followed the Tunisian president dismissing parliament and the prime minister last month in what critics have called a coup.
• The Guardian (4/8/21): Tunisia unions call for president to form new government - UGTT union body urges president, Kais Saied, to form government, nearly two weeks after he sacked PM
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Tunisia’s president fires ambassador to US, governor of Sfax - No explanation is given for fresh wave of dismissals by President Kais Saied who has been ruling by decree since late July.
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Tunisian presidency fires head of state TV, other top officials - The firing comes days after Tunisian President Kais Saied announced he was sacking the prime minister and suspending parliament.
• Al Jazeera (30/7/21): Tunisian MP critical of president arrested by security forces - Tunisia announces it is also investigating supporters of Ennahda party, which accused the president of a coup.
• Al-Monitor (28/7/21): Leading Tunisian Islamist party under investigation for alleged foreign funding - Tunisia's largest party, Ennahda, is accused of accepting funding from abroad for its political campaigns, as political turmoil continues in the North African country.
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Tunisia crisis prompts surge in foreign social media manipulation - Social media propaganda emanating from Saudi Arabia and the UAE seeks to justify the Tunisian president’s decision to sack the prime minister.
• Just Security (28/7/21): Influential voices in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates [all nations which oppose the party which was overthrown by the president] are viewing the events in Tunisia, where the country’s president abruptly dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament Sunday night, as marking the death knell for political Islam in democracy
• The Guardian (28/7/21): Tunisia in turmoil as president purges officials and seizes judicial power - Days after PM’s overthrow fears grow that Kais Saied will undo democratic gains achieved by Arab spring
• Just Security (27/7/21): Tunisia’s democracy is verging on collapse as Tunisia’s President Kais Saied takes control of the country.; Saied has imposed a month-long curfew and has banned gatherings of more than three people in public places.; Saied has been accused by Tunisia’s main political parties of staging a coup, while Saied says he acted in accordance with the constitution, as countries call for open dialogue to resolve any disputes
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): Protesters Denounce “Coup” as Tunisian President Expands Power Grab
• The Guardian (26/7/21): Celebrations after Tunisian president sacks prime minister, dissolves government – video
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): Tunisia police storm Al Jazeera office in Tunis - Security forces involved in the raid said they were carrying out instructions and asked all journalists to leave.
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Tunisia’s president accused of ‘coup’ after dismissing PM - Tunisian president sacked PM Hicham Mechichi and suspended parliament after day of anti-government protests.
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Tunisians protest as COVID surges, economy suffers - Police used pepper spray on protesters in Tunis who threw stones and demanded Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi quit, parliament be dissolved.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Tunisia health minister sacked as COVID-19 cases surge - The health ministry said earlier this month Tunisia’s health system had ‘collapsed’ under the weight of the coronavirus pandemic.
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): Tunisia’s healthcare system is collapsing as the North African nation logs nearly 10,000 positive tests a day.
• The Guardian (3/7/21): Scores dead as migrant boat sinks off Tunisia - Boat carrying migrants from Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea and Bangladesh was heading towards Italy from Libya when it sank
• Al Jazeera (13/6/21): Tunisians rally against police brutality in working class areas - Violent protests come after a widely circulated video showing police stripping and beating a young man emerged last week; Democracy Now (14/6/21): [hundreds of] Tunisian Protesters Call for an End to Police Brutality After Recent Killings of Civilians
• Al Jazeera (18/5/21): More than 50 migrants drown as boat capsizes off Tunisia’s coast - Boat carrying 90 people left Libya on Sunday and sank off Tunisia’s coast the following day.
• The Economist: Tunisians are rallying around Abir Moussi, a demagogue - She’s big on conspiracy theories, short on policies

Western Sahara Updates (Morocco-Occupied)

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (via Mauritania map) (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (includes Morocco) (cr.)

• Democracy Now (9/12/21): Western Sahara Activists Accuse Moroccan Authorities of Brutality and Sexual Assault
• Democracy Now (2/11/21): U.N. Security Council Extends Peacekeeping Mandate in Moroccan-Occupied Western Sahara
• Democracy Now (7/10/21): U.N. Appoints Envoy to Western Sahara After Two-Year Vacancy
• New York Times (1/10/21): Nearly 60 Reported Dead in Effort to Reach Canary Islands - As the dangerous voyage from Western Africa to the Spanish archipelago has become a more popular migrant route to Europe, the death toll has risen sharply.
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Court Annuls Trade Deals Between EU and Occupied Western Sahara
• Al Jazeera (6/8/21): Boat capsizes off Western Sahara, 42 migrants feared dead - According to aid agency Walking Across Borders, the dead likely included 30 women, eight children and four men.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Algeria recalls envoy to Morocco in row over Western Sahara - Algeria’s foreign ministry says the move is linked to comments made by Morocco’s UN envoy on Algeria’s Kabylie region.
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Western Sahara independence leader Brahim Ghali back in Algeria - Brahim Ghali returns to Algeria after stay in Spanish hospital that caused Spain-Morocco diplomatic row.
• Democracy Now (13/5/21): Sahrawi Human Rights Activist Sultana Khaya and Sister Raped by Moroccan Agents
• Democracy Now (11/5/21): Moroccan Authorities Raid Home of Western Sahara Independence Activist Sultana Khaya

Latin America + Caribbean Updates

Argentina / Barbados / Bolivia / Brazil / Chile / Colombia / Costa Rica / Cuba / Dominican Republic / Ecuador / El Salvador / Guatemala / Guyana / Haiti / Honduras / Jamaica / Mexico / Nicaragua / Panama / Paraguay / Peru / Venezuela

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Latin America is plagued by the destabilizing effect of the United States. We (the US) have too frequently supported autocratic leaders to supplant popular democratic movements (such as Pinochet in Chile), or trained death squads to counter grass-roots leftist movements (such as in Central America in the 80's), support we provide to this day (as brutal border control is electorally more palatable on the southern Mexican border as opposed to the southern US border). We actively intervened in countries to prevent leftist movements (such as Bay of Pigs in Cuba, or our invasion of the Dominican Republic in 1965 to prevent 'another Cuba'). Furthermore, our Drug War has done anything but fight drugs - no, by criminalizing this trade, we have given the trade to lawless tyrants. In this atmosphere - destabilized political institutions, strengthened law enforcement and militaries, forced neoliberal economic policies (see Costa Rica today), and a raging Drug War, people are pushed to flee - hence the migrant crisis. This is not to say that the US is the only ones with dirty hands, but that the US has sculpted boundary conditions which allows this to thrive.

Regional Updates

• The Guardian (24/12/21): Latin America urges US to reduce plastic waste exports to region - Study finds exports to region doubled in 2020 with practice predicted to grow as US invests in recycling plants [industrial-failure-news]
• RMTransit (29/4/21): The Fantastic Metros of Latin America [rail-news]
• Jacobin (12/12/21): In Latin America, the Long Shadow of Colombia’s Far-Right Is Receding - Led by former president Álvaro Uribe, Colombia’s far-right bloc has exported its politics across Latin America. Fortunately, thanks to inspiring street protests and an electoral challenge from the left, Colombia may not be a regional bastion of reaction for much longer. [history-news, militant-far-right-news, us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news, social-woes-news, privatization-news, analysis-news]
• Al Jazeera (30/11/21): Hunger increased by 30 percent in Latin America since 2019: UN - Latin America and the Caribbean is facing a critical situation in terms of food security, UN official says. [social-woes-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Russia Promises To Solve Sputnik V Delivery Delays
• Democracy Now (19/7/21): Delta Variant Spreads Across Africa, Latin America, Where Vaccines Are Sorely Lacking
• Democracy Now (30/4/21): Deaths Soar in Latin America; Brazil COVID Death Toll Tops 400,000
• Jacobin: Joe Biden’s Central America Plan Is a Cruel Joke - Joe Biden has pledged to pour money into Central America to address the root causes of migration. There’s just one problem: the aid dollars would be used to shore up the militarized, free-market model that is making people flee in the first place.

Argentina Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Pinned: Left Voice (11/11/21): How to Escape the Eternal Debt Trap - The fight against the foreign debt that strangles Argentina is at the center of the electoral campaign of the Workers Left Front — Unity (FIT–U). This article explains how imperialism uses the debt to subjugate the masses, and spells out a program in opposition. [economic-news, neo-imperialism-news, analysis-news]
• Telesur (31/12/21): Bahia Governor Accepts Argentine Aid Rejected By Bolsonaro - "It is unfortunate to see a President who does not help to reject help from others," said Workers' Party leader Lula da Silva. [disaster-news, fail-government-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (30/12/21): Argentine Government Headquarters on Alert Due to Bomb Threat - The fake threat coincided with the day on which Argentines celebrate one year of the approval of the law regulating the voluntary interruption of pregnancy until the 14th week of gestation. Note about Telesur [!]
• WSWS (28/12/21): Argentine petroleum workers strike to demand delivery of bonuses [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Left Voice (27/12/21): Labor Unions, Environmentalists, and Indigenous People Unite to Defeat Mining Interests in Argentina - A zoning law would have opened up the southern Argentinian province of Chubut to large-scale mining by multinational corporations. But the law was defeated in just five days by an alliance of environmentalists, workers, youth, and indigenous people. Their fight points the way forward for other movements around the world. [resource-news, labor-news, indigenous-news, good-news, capitalist-farce-news, industrial-failure-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Telesur (24/12/21): Argentina: President Fernandez Extends Ban On Layoffs - Thanks to Alberto Fernandez's non-orthodox economic policies, Argentina is currently undergoing a process of job recovery. [economic-news] Note about Telesur
• Jacobin (23/12/21): Teachers in Buenos Aires Are Striking Against Neoliberalism - Buenos Aires’s neoliberal government has used the pandemic to impose austerity on the city’s primary and secondary school teachers. Argentine teachers are fighting back with a campaign of rolling strikes. [union-news, labor-news, leftist-news] [!]
• CPJ (23/12/21): Argentine newspaper El Chubut offices torched, ransacked amid protests [!]
• Financial Times (23/12/21): IMF says Argentina bailout programme was ‘too fragile’ to succeed - Record $57bn loan was made on over-optimistic forecasts, internal report finds [economic-news, neo-imperialism-news] Paywall Summary (?): The incoming Peronists had canceled the loan, after $44bn had been disbursed, saying it was a favor for outgoing right-winger Macri and financed capital flight. The review by the IMF said the main issue was '"a lack of [investor] confidence in fiscal and external sustainability"'. Current economy minister of Argentina, Guzmán, says "'The Fund has recognised that the [bailout] money was used to pay debt which was unsustainable to private creditors,... it was basically a rescue for creditors who had come in to make a bet in 2016 and it was alsao used to finance the formation of assets abroad'".
• Democracy Now (17/12/21): Rohingya Genocide Survivor Testifies to Argentine Court in Universal Jurisdiction Case [court-news]
• Telesur (15/12/21): Argentina: Military Figures Arrested over Dictatorship Massacre - Among the five young people murdered was María Victoria "Vicky" Walsh (daughter of journalist Rodolfo Walsh). [court-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• RMTransit (29/4/21): The Fantastic Metros of Latin America [rail-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/12/21): ‘Headed for disaster’: Argentinians protest against IMF debt deal - Thousands gathered in Buenos Aires to protest against government’s bid to renegotiate its debts to the IMF. [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news, leftist-news, social-woes-news, economic-news]
• Telesur (6/12/21): Argentina Approves Russian Single-Dose Vaccine Sputnik Light - Russian authorities said that Argentina had approved Sputnik Light as a "stand-alone vaccine and booster dose" against COVID-19. [covid-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (1/12/21): Argentina: Macri Indicted and Banned from Leaving the Country - The former president of Argentina, Mauricio Macri (2015-2019), was indicted by his country's justice system in the case investigating the alleged spying on the relatives of the crew of the Navy submarine (ARA) San Juan, sunk in 2017. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (1/12/21): Argentina: 2 Intelligence Directors Prosecuted For Espionage - Diego Dalmau and Martin Coste are responsible for not controlling the intelligence activities carried out to spy on the ARA San Juan submarine crew's relatives. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (26/11/21): Kirchner Acquitted of Alleged Money Laundering in Argentina - According to the ruling released on Friday, Argentine Vice President Cristina Kirchner and her two children, Florencia and Máximo, were acquitted for the non-existence of a crime in a case investigating alleged money laundering. [corruption-news, court-news] Note about Telesur
• Financial Times (10/11/21): Argentina and the IMF: the looming clash over its $57bn bailout - Fears are growing that Buenos Aires will not be able to meet a $2.8bn repayment in March [neo-imperialism-news] Paywall Summary (?): Under pro-investor Macri (a Trump ally), under which the bailout was agreed, nearly all of the funds were disbursed ($44bn) by the time Macri left office, who then lost in 2019 in a blowout to Peronists due to the rage against his handling of the economy. Opponents of the bailout observe this pre-election disbursement (a way of ginning up the economy, and the current minister considering it a way of "financ[ing] Macri's campaign") along with the repayment period two years later, in 2022 or 2023, past an election and thus beyond the point of certainty, as suspect. Regarding this last observation, one of the main Peronist demands during negotiations has been pushing back the repayment timeline (wanting around 10 years) (the other is reducing surcharges on interest rates). Criticisms also point out that IMF payments reduce dollar reserves, causing a problem in its balance of payments (defenders of the IMF say these arguments "are completely irrelevant", and are raised only for political points at home). Now Argentina is cut off from most sources of international finance, and has therefore had to print money to fund its deficit, which has driven inflation to nearly 50% a year, and fuelled the price of the black market dollar (as a consequence of strict capital controls). To deal with this, ministers have ordered a price freeze of 1,400+ household items. So-called "hardliners" in the wing of vice-president Kirchner suggest that they will be shellacked in the elections for not providing social assistance, which was promised, and bowing to IMF demands. The patience of the IMF shareholders, including the IMF, is reportedly growing thin.
• Telesur (23/11/21): Argentina: Clarin Newspaper HQ Attacked with Molotov Cocktails - A group of hooded men threw Molotov cocktails at the headquarters of the Argentine newspaper Clarín early Monday morning. The newspaper called for the "urgent clarification and punishment" of those responsible, who were filmed by security cameras. Note about Telesur
• Speak Out Now (19/11/21): Legislative Elections in Argentina: Defeat of Peronism and Breakthrough of the Far Left [electoral-news, leftist-news]
• Telesur (16/11/21): Argentina Expects To Start Servicing The IMF Debt From 2026 - According to the Fernandez administration, debt service will occur once Argentina has reached fiscal balance, increased its monetary reserves, and lower the exchange rate. [neo-imperialism-news] Note about Telesur
• Left Voice (15/11/21): A Historic Result for the Left Front in Argentina: Almost 1.3 Million Votes and Four Seats in Congress - At the midterm elections on Sunday, the center-left government of Alberto Fernández suffered a defeat. The Left Front, a coalition of working-class socialist groups, had its best result ever, with 1,270,540 votes across the country. This is an inspiration for socialists around the world. [leftist-news, socialist-news, electoral-news]
• WSWS (5/11/21): Argentine judge indicts Spanish Franco-era minister on murder charges [court-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Telesur (28/10/21): Argentina: Court Hearing Against Ex-President Macri Is Suspended Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (16/10/21): Argentinian judge indicts Franco-era Spanish minister on homicide charges - Rodolfo Martín Villa, interior minister between 1976 and 1979, ‘played a key role in the repressive structures of the dictatorship’ [history-news, far-right-news, court-news]
• Just Security (8/10/21): An Argentinian court has dismissed a legal action against former Argentinian President Cristina Fernández, also the current vice president, which alleged that she sought to cover up the alleged involvement of Iranian operatives in a 1994 bombing that killed 85 people at a Jewish center in Buenos Aires.
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): Family of Argentinian Reporter Found Dead During 2019 Bolivian Coup Demands Probe
• The Guardian (21/9/21): Argentina to lift almost all Covid restrictions as cases and deaths fall - Masks will no longer be required outdoors as government says country could be at ‘end of pandemic’ [covid-news]
• Speak Out Socialists (19/9/21): Primaries in Argentina: Categorical defeat of the Alberto Fernández government and great election of the Left Unity Front [leftist-news, electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Argentina’s Fernandez reshuffles Cabinet after crisis week - President appoints Tucuman Provincial Governor Juan Manzur as Cabinet chief replacing Santiago Cafiero who was named foreign minister.
• Democracy Now (17/9/21): 10,000s March Against Unemployment, Poverty in Argentina Amid Mounting Political Crisis [social-woes-news, labor-news]
• Left Voice (15/9/21): Alejandro Vilcas, the Socialist Sanitation Worker in Argentina Fighting to Enter Congress - Socialist sanitation worker Alejandro Vilcas won 24 percent of the votes in the province of Jujuy, Argentina. He is fighting to enter Congress in November as national deputy. [socialist-news, electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/8/21): Argentina’s president charged with allegedly breaking quarantine - The case against Fernandez has grabbed headlines after Argentina imposed stricter lockdowns on the public.
• The Moscow Times (17/8/21): Argentine Health Minister Visits Russia to Discuss Vaccine Supplies – TASS
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Argentinians protest for more jobs, food amid economic crisis - About 42 percent of people in Argentina live below the poverty line amid an economic downturn worsened by COVID-19.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Argentina’s new pensions programme pays women for caregiving - A new government programme in Argentina aims to redress the gender wage retirement gap by boosting pension savings for women who worked as paid and unpaid caregivers. [civil-rights-news, economic-news, labor-news]
• The Economist (31/7/21): Argentina passes an affirmative-action law for trans people - It secures the country’s unlikely place as a global leader in trans rights
• The Guardian (29/7/21): House falls off cliff in Argentina as sea reclaims land – video
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Argentina threatens to cancel deal for Sputnik vaccine as Russia fails to deliver - Moscow owes 18.5m doses, leaving Argentina in a ‘very critical situation’ with only 12% fully vaccinated, leaked letter reveals
• Democracy Now (22/7/21): Argentina Issues Gender-Neutral ID Cards in First for Latin America
• Al Jazeera (21/6/21): Argentina, Mexico withdraw envoys over Nicaragua crackdown - Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s government has arrested 17 opposition figures this month, including five presidential hopefuls.
• World Socialist Web Site (30/5/21): Death of young student on hospital floor lays bare Argentina’s COVID-19 crisis
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): Argentina entered a nine-day lockdown. Cases are surging amid a slow take-up of the jab.
• Left Voice (24/5/21): Trotskyist Legislators in Argentina Under Attack for Defending Palestine - Last Wednesday, representatives of the Workers Left Front — Unity (FIT-U) in Argentina spoke out against the Israeli attack on Gaza. As a result, right-wing forces are attempting to defame them as "Nazis and antisemites." A broad petition rejects this reactionary campaign.
• Speak Out Socialists (6/5/21): Argentina: Healthcare Workers Strike Spreads and Winning Ground
• Democracy Now (4/5/21): Argentina Passes 3 Million Confirmed COVID-19 Cases as Brazil Delays Second Vaccine Doses [amid shortages]
• Al Jazeera (4/5/21): Argentina Supreme Court overrules president’s closure of schools - Judges reverse President Alberto Fernandez’s decree to close schools in Buenos Aires amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.

Barbados Updates

• Democracy Now (30/11/21): Barbados Removes British Monarch as Head of State, Becoming a Parliamentary Republic
• Democracy Now (25/10/21): Barbados Elects First-Ever President to Replace British Queen as Head of State

Bolivia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• New York Times (26/12/21): In Congo, Bolivia and Beyond, Where the Green Future Begins - The Times’s Race to the Future series is focused on the competition for electric-car resources that will shape the 21st century. [neo-imperialism-news, resource-news]
• Peoples Dispatch (1/12/21): Over 1.5 million Bolivians march in defense of democracy and President Arce’s government - President Luis Arce thanked Bolivian citizens for their overwhelming support, and promised to continue working to rebuild the country and the economy with the people [labor-news, union-news, indigenous-news]
• Telesur (2/12/21): Authorities Request Arrest of Bolivian Coup Leader Camacho - Former Bolivian legislator Lidia Patty said today that she would request to the Prosecutor's Office of La Paz the arrest of the governor of the department of Santa Cruz, Luis Fernando Camacho, for his alleged participation in the 2019 coup d'état. [far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (29/11/21): 'March For the Homeland' to Arrive In La Paz - Led by former President Evo Morales, the "March for the Homeland" began in the Oruro department on Tuesday. Since then, its members have traveled about 180 kilometers in different blocks. [indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (30/11/21): Thousands of Bolivians Rally in La Paz in Defense of Socialist President Luis Arce [protest-news, socialist-news, labor-news, indigenous-news]
• Telesur (26/11/21): Giant March Supporting Arce Advances Through Bolivian Highlands - "Long live our President Lucho! Fight, you are not alone!," thousands of Indigenous farmers and workers shout as they pass through the towns and cities. Note about Telesur
• Telesur (27/11/21): UN Recognizes Racism by 2019 Coup Promoters in Bolivia - De-facto authorities used discriminatory speeches in social networks against Indigenous peoples to restore the prominence of Catholicism in public life. [indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Jacobin (13/11/21): How the US War on Drugs Subverted Bolivian Democracy - It’s been two years since the right-wing coup against Evo Morales’s socialist government. One of his former ministers tells Jacobin about how the US war on drugs helped create a Bolivian military free from popular control. [analysis-news, us-policy-news, drug-news, leftist-news]
• Telesur (10/11/21): Bolivia: Indigenous Farmer Is Killed Amid Right-Wing Strike - "Once again, the racist hatred against our Indigenous brothers causes death and pain in the Bolivian people," former President Evo Morales tweeted. [indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (5/11/21): Bolivian Organizations Reject Call for Strike & Destabilization [labor-news] Note about Telesur
• CPJ (4/11/21): Bolivian journalists abducted, assaulted by armed men while covering land dispute
• The Guardian (29/10/21): Bolivia: fate of 11-year-old girl raped by family member sparks abortion debate - Religious groups seek to force girl to give birth as intervention of the Catholic church questioned
• The Intercept (20/10/21): Bolivian Government Says Haitian President’s Assassins Were Part of a Plot to Kill Its Own Leftist Leader - Citing a previous Intercept investigation, the Bolivian government said it has evidence of a plan to kill Luis Arce, a protégé of Evo Morales. [leftist-news, electoral-news, militant-far-right-news]
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): Family of Argentinian Reporter Found Dead During 2019 Bolivian Coup Demands Probe
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Bolivian coca leaf growers storm market after week-long dispute - Bolivian coca farmers seized control of the country’s main coca market after clashes with police in the capital, La Paz.
• Just Security (24/8/21): The genocide prosecution of Bolivia’s former interim president Jeanine Áñez is testing the country’s justice system.
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): Bolivian Wildfires Scorch Nearly 700,000 Acres as Ranchers and Farmers Drive Deforestation [climate-change-news]
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Mexico, Russia & Bolivia Send Aid to Cuba as U.S. Announces New Sanctions
• Democracy Now (18/6/21): Bolivian Ex-Defense Minister Plotted to Use U.S. Mercenaries to Launch Coup in 2020
• The Intercept (4/5/21): DOJ Threatened MIT Researchers With Subpoena in Collaboration With Bolivian Coup Regime - Emails to the analysts show the Trump administration’s complicity with a Bolivian criminal investigation

Brazil Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Telesur (31/12/21): Bahia Governor Accepts Argentine Aid Rejected By Bolsonaro - "It is unfortunate to see a President who does not help to reject help from others," said Workers' Party leader Lula da Silva. [disaster-news, fail-government-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Al Jazeera (29/12/21): In Pictures: Severe flooding in Brazil’s Bahia like ‘bombardment’ - A total of 116 cities in Brazil’s northeastern state of Bahia are in a state of emergency due to heavy rains. [disaster-news, industrial-failure-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (28/12/21): Brazil’s Bolsonaro sending aid to northeast amid deadly floods - Government allocating $35.5m in disaster aid after 20 killed, nearly 50,000 displaced by severe flooding in Bahia state. [disaster-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): At least 20 dead in flooding in Brazil’s Bahia state - ‘We’re living through the worst disaster that has ever occurred in the history of Bahia,’ said the state’s governor. [industrial-failure-news, disaster-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (27/12/21):Dams Burst After Torrential Rains in Brazil; U.S. Records Record High December Temperatures - In northeastern Brazil, authorities issued flash flood warnings after a pair of dams collapsed Saturday night amid heavy rainfall. Officials say the floods have driven over 35,000 people from their homes. Parts of Bahia state have received rainfall that is six times greater than the December average. [industrial-failure-news, disaster-news]
• Africa News (27/12/21): Devastating floods after two dams break in Brazil [industrial-failure-news] [!]
• Telesur (23/12/21): Sao Paulo Admits Responsibility in Paraisopolis Favela Deaths - Two years ago, the Military Police violently stormed a 5000-people funk party, firing tear gas canisters and pellet bullets. Nine people died as a consequence of the resulting stampede. Note about Telesur [!]
• Al Jazeera (17/12/21): Bolsonaro spread disinformation on Brazil’s voting system: Police - Brazilian president had a ‘direct’ role in spreading disinformation about the electoral process, a police report says. [voting-rights-news, far-right-news]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): Bolsonaro threatens to identify officials who approved Covid jabs for children - Brazilian president plans to reveal identities despite health officers receiving death threats [far-right-news, covid-news] [!]
• Telesur (14/12/21): Death Toll Rises To 10 In Brazil's Bahia State Flooding - The regional Civil Defense agency indicated that 220,297 people were affected by the rain and 51 cities declared an emergency situation [disaster-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• RMTransit (29/4/21): The Fantastic Metros of Latin America [rail-news]
• Telesur (10/12/21): Brazil: Over 2,000 People Displaced Due to Heavy Rains in Bahia - The Government of Bahia, Brazil decreed an emergency situation in 38 communities due to the 500 millimeters of rainfall recorded in the last three days. [!]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Anger as Jair Bolsonaro to allow unvaccinated visitors into Brazil - There are fears the decision will reverse the gains made by a successful vaccination campaign [far-right-news, covid-news] [!]
• Financial Times (6/12/21): Brazil emerges from Covid ‘nightmare’ through vaccination blitz - Brazilians largely welcome inoculations despite scepticism of leader Jair Bolsonaro [healthcare-news, covid-news] Paywall Summary (?): This past spring, Brazil went through a brutal COVID wave, and now has the 2nd highest death toll after the US, at 615k lives. Now things have relatively stabilized, and a contribution factor is Brazil's relatively high vaccination rate, with around 64% full vaccination. Plus, a World Bank/UN survey showed only 3% Brazilians didn't intend to get the jab (compare this to the wider Latin America + Caribbean region, with an average of 8%). Contrast this with Bolsonaro, a flagrantly anti-vax person and has pedaled conspiracy theories about the COVID vaccine and hydroxychloroquine, and who had stalled vaccine deals. What's the secret to the high vaccination rates? Strong trust in science and the public health system, which dishes out "tens of millions of injections every year against diseases such as influenza, yellow fever and meningitis, across a territory the size of a continent". Other state-run biomed establishments filled in the gaps that Bolsonaro left, working with China's Sinovac, for example, to get out vaccines. While the Sinovac vaccine has arond 50% efficacy (pretty low), it still served as a "vital bridge", and has since been overtaken by Pfizer and Oxford/AstraZeneca, the latter being produced in Rio de Janeiro. Currently, the government reports, a variety totalling 600m doses have been ordered. Still, some criticize the operation (the flaws largely due to Bolsonaro), and warn that the effort is not over. Easing vaccine production has been technology transfers from AstraZeneca, and the Butantan Institute (who partnered with Sinovac) will start making Sinovac's active pharmaceutical ingrediant (API) next year. Two notes: (1) This is largely due to a strong national healthcare program, and strong government responsibility for vaccines. Public healthcare is pretty good, look, it even supresses anti-vaxx sentiment! (2) The FT reporting here lets slip a little factoid - As the tech transfers between Brazilian producers and AstraZeneca show, sharing vaccine technology helps facilitate more production! Maybe IP walls aren't helpful at slowing pandemics and saving lives.
• Common Dreams (3/12/21): Does Brazil Proposal Hold Key to Ending Big Pharma's Stranglehold on Covid-19 Vaccines? - A proposal for the World Trade Organization to waive intellectual-property rights on pandemic-related pharmaceuticals is still languishing, owing to opposition from rich countries whose companies are reaping monopoly profits. Fortunately, a public-health bill in Brazil points the way to a promising bottom-up solution. [capitalist-farce-news, pharma-news, vaccine-ip-news, covid-news] It's worth pointing out that this bill was proposed by a Worker's Party (PT) Senator, former President Lula's party. Bolsanaro then mangled the bill, and sent it back to the Senate, where it appears to still be kicking around. While Brazil has a relatively high vaccination rate (FT (6/12/21) reports 64% full inoculation), the concern is that there is limited vaccine production, and if new strains emerge, the old vaccines won't hold up, and new ones will have to be produced.
• Telesur (6/12/21): 'Bolsonaro Never Again!' Thousands of Brazilians Shout Out - “We see that black women, women from poor neighborhoods, and Indigenous women are the ones who have been most affected… this government must be stopped," a gender activist stressed. [protest-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (2/12/21):Brazil: House Approves Creation of a Family Support Program - The Creation of a family support program (Auxilio Brasil) was approved by the Chamber of Lawmakers and already has expansion plans. This proposal offers the possibility of helping 20 million families. [legislation-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (30/11/21): Brazil To Remove Barriers To The Use Of Sputnik V Vaccine - Data from a recent World Bank's survey indicate that President Jair Bolsonaro's anti-vax discourse is not supported even among those who voted for him. [russia-policy-news, covid-news] Note about Telesur
• Financial Times (26/11/21): Petrobras doubles down on hydrocarbons as part of $68bn investment plan - State-controlled group to prioritise oil and gas exploration and production [big-oil-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): Petrobras, a corporation in which the Brazilian government has partial ownership and a majority vote, is planning on expanding its fossil fuel operations, primarily in "pre-salt" investments, which it says are less carbon intensive in their extraction and refinement, and therefore part of an "energy transition" (My translation: BS). They have been under increasing pressure from the Bolsonaro govt, and the chief executive was appointed in February after his predecessor was sacked by Bolsonaro.
• Al Jazeera (22/11/21): Bodies found in Brazil mangrove following police gun battle - At least eight bodies, some with signs of torture, found on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro following police operation. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• ZDNet (22/11/21): Data from millions of Brazilians exposed in Wi-Fi management software firm leak - The data includes full name, email address, full address, and taxpayer registration numbers [cyber-security-news]
• CounterPunch (17/11/21): What’s Driving Global Deforestation? Organized Crime, Beef, Soy, Palm Oil and Wood Products [capitalist-farce-news, food-security-news, climate-change-news, industrial-failure-news, crime-news]
• Democracy Now (19/11/21): Amazon Deforestation in Brazil Hits 15-Year Peak; Indigenous Groups in Ecuador Oppose Mining Plans [indigenous-news, climate-change-news]
• Jacobin (12/11/15): The Worst Company in the World - Brazil’s Vale corporation masks brutal exploitation with the language of South-South solidarity. [capitalist-farce-news, labor-news, analysis-news]
• Jacobin (12/11/21): Brazil’s Far-Right Government Is Using COP26 to Greenwash Its Image - Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro is trying to tone down his well-deserved reputation as a climate change denier. But the new proposals from his government serve the same purpose of blocking the radical measures we need to address the climate crisis. [far-right-news, climate-change-news]
• WSWS (12/11/21): Brutal repression against striking public employees in São Paulo, Brazil [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• New York Times (10/11/21): Bolsonaro Joins a Centrist Party in Brazil Ahead of 2022 Re-election Bid - President Jair Bolsonaro, who has not belonged to any political party for two years, is joining the centrist Liberals, they said on Wednesday. [far-right-news, politics-news]
• ZDNet (11/11/21): Brazil advances efforts to tackle electronic fraud - The Ministry of Justice will lead a special commission. [cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (8/11/21): Armed attack on Brazilian Amazon community while delegate at Cop26 - Witnesses say tents in forest in disputed area of Pará state set alight and residents beaten [far-right-news, labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/11/21): Nine firefighters killed in Brazil cave collapse - Twenty-six firefighters were on a training exercise in the Duas Bocas cave when its roof collapsed.
• ZDNet (1/11/21): Brazilian Supreme Court warns of prison sentences for mass messaging during elections - Electoral authorities reiterate consequences to politicians using illegal campaigning tactics through social networks during the race in 2022. [electoral-news]
• Just Security (1/11/21): Police in Brazil have killed 25 suspects as part of what authorities have called an unprecedented offensive against heavily armed bank robbers whose heists have brought several major cities to a standstill. The individuals were killed yesterday morning in the south-eastern state of Minas Gerais, where police claimed they had been poised to unleash an attack. The federal highway police, which took part in the mission, said the group had “a veritable military arsenal” including assault rifles, 50-caliber machine guns, explosives and bulletproof vests.
• Just Security (1/11/21): Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s security detail allegedly used violence against Brazilian reporters covering his trip to Rome for the G20 meeting, local media reported.
• Just Security (27/10/21): A Brazilian Senate committee in Brazil has voted in favor of recommending that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro face charges for how he has handled Covid-19. Seven out of eleven members voted to back a report that calls for the charges, including crimes against humanity. “The report’s recommendations must now be assessed by Brazil’s prosecutor-general, a Bolsonaro appointee who is expected to protect the president,” BBC News reports. [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (27/10/21): Brazilian Senators Back Report Accusing Bolsonaro of Crimes Against Humanity for Pandemic Response [far-right-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): Facebook and YouTube have removed from their platforms a video by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro in which the far-right leader made a false claim that Covid-19 vaccines were linked with developing AIDS [covid-news, big-tech-news] I label this "big tech" because it is, not because it is "bad"
• Jacobin (19/10/21): The Global Far Right Is Betting the House on Bolsonaro - Far-right organizations like Project Veritas in the US and the Vox party in Spain are increasingly looking to Latin America as the key to consolidating their international network. To prevent that from happening, Jair Bolsonaro must be stopped from winning — or stealing — Brazil's 2022 election. [far-right-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (20/10/21): A panel of Brazilian senators has concluded in a draft report that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro intentionally allowed Covid-19 to kill hundreds of thousands in a failed attempt to achieve herd immunity.; The draft report paints a devastating portrait of the neglect, incompetence, and anti-scientific denialism that many believe has defined the Bolsonaro administration’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic The draft report paints a devastating portrait of the neglect, incompetence, and anti-scientific denialism that many believe has defined the Bolsonaro administration’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic
• Democracy Now (18/10/21): Two Indigenous Children in Brazil Killed in Mining Dredge Used by Illegal Gold Miners [indigenous-news, industrial-failure-news]
• WSWS (16/10/21): GM workers in Brazil reject contract, continue strike in defiance of union and courts [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Just Security (15/10/21): The Itaipu hydroelectric dam located along the border of Brazil and Paraguay, sometimes described as one of the seven modern wonders of the world, is feeling the heat of the worst drought in Brazil in 90 years. Last year, the dam’s power output was at its lowest level since 1994, and Hugo Zarate, the plant’s superintendent, has said that production this year will likely be lower still, by about 15% [energy-news, climate-change-news]
• WSWS (14/10/21): São Paulo teachers and public employees strike against attack on pensions [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• ZDNet (13/10/21): Brazilian e-commerce firm Hariexpress leaks 1.75 billion sensitive files - The marketplace integrator serves some of the country's largest online retailers [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (12/10/21): Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro must be held criminally responsible for a “ruthless” assault on the Amazon that has exacerbated the climate emergency and imperilled humanity’s very survival, activists have argued in a petition to the International Criminal Court (ICC) [indigenous-news, climate-change-news, court-news]
• The Guardian (11/10/21): Bolsonaro blocks free tampons and pads for disadvantaged women in Brazil - Campaigners say president’s veto is ‘absurd and inhumane’ in country where period poverty keeps one in four girls out of school [civil-rights-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/10/21): ‘Horrific milestone’: Brazil surpasses 600,000 COVID deaths - President Bolsonaro continues to face widespread criticism and anger over his government’s handling of the pandemic. [covid-news]
• Workers World (7/10/21): 700,000 in the streets of Brazil demand ‘Bolsonaro out!’ [labor-news, protest-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): Rio police say €3m Nazi trove found at home of child sexual abuse suspect - More than 1,000 Nazi items discovered at 58-year-old’s home - Brazilian police investigating links to other far-right groups [far-right-news, crime-news]
• Financial Times (22/9/21): Brazil raises interest rates as it struggles to tame inflation - Central bank expects similar 100bp increase next month in battle against runaway prices Paywall Summary: driven by global commodities rally, worst-in-century drought (which drives up energy prices as hydro-energy declines), and a weakening currency (partly due to tensions between far-right president Bolsonaro and the supreme court, and concerns about the upcoming elections). FT notes parallels with Russian, Mexican, Chilean, Peruvian, and South Korean central bank rate policies. Unemployment remains elevated.
• Common Dreams (3/10/21): 50 Years Later, Finally Justice for Brazil's Indigenous Krenak People - "Justice, however slow, is being served," said Indigenous chief Geovani Krenak. "The spirit of our assassinated warriors, like my grandfather, welcomes this decision." [indigenous-news]
• The Guardian (3/10/21): Outcry in Brazil over photos of people scavenging through animal carcasses - Pictures of destitute Brazilians searching scraps for food lay bare scale of economic and social crisis
• The Guardian (2/10/21): Mass protests in Brazil call for Jair Bolsonaro’s impeachment - Crowds parade through cities as polling shows president’s ratings sinking to new depths
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (29/9/21): Brazil’s Bolsonaro complains about gas prices as inflation soars - Seven out of 10 Brazilians blame the government of President Jair Bolsonaro for their loss of purchasing power, according to a recent Datafolha poll.
• CPJ (29/9/21): São Paulo police arrest Brazilian sports blogger Paulo Cezar de Andrade Prado in defamation case
• ZDNet (16/9/21): Brazilian Senate overthrows presidential decision to limit content removal from social networks - The Federal Supreme Court suspended the effectiveness of Jair Bolsonaro's move after the decision announced by the head of the legislative branch. [tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (16/9/21): Brazil’s Top Court Delays Ruling on Case That Could Reshape Indigenous Sovereignty [indigenous-news, court-news]
• The Guardian (15/9/21): ‘Everyone’s fleeing’: Brazil cracks down on illegal mining in Amazon – for now - Government is determined to show the world a new, greener face, but activists are skeptical the clampdown will have lasting impact
• Democracy Now (13/9/21): 4,000 Indigenous Women Take to Streets of Brazil Ahead of High Court Ruling on Tribal Sovereignty [indigenous-news]
• The Guardian (10/9/21): Pfizer accused of holding Brazil ‘to ransom’ over vaccine contract demands - Leaked supply document reveals clauses to protect US pharma company from legal action in the event of serious side-effects [pharma-news, corruption-news]
• New York Times (9/9/21): Brazil’s President Bans Social Networks From Removing Some Posts - The new rules in Brazil appear to be the first national policy that restricts how tech companies can control their sites, analysts say. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (9/9/21): The Brazilian Supreme Court’s Chief Justice Luiz Fux has issued a sharp rebuttal to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro
• Al Jazeera (9/9/21): Brazil’s Bolsonaro to meet with truckers amid road blockades - Truckers are halting traffic on several Brazilian highways in support of Bolsonaro, despite his pleading them to stop.
• ZDNet (9/9/21): Brazilian senators unite against decision to limit content removal from social networks - The measure that edited the country's existing Internet legislation is seen as an "attack on democracy" [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (9/9/21): 17 Patients Die as Floods Hit Mexican Hospital; Record Drought Worsens Brazil’s Energy Crisis [energy-news, climate-change-news]
• Just Security (7/9/21): Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his allies could be preparing to mount a military coup in Brazil, according to an open letter from an influential group of former presidents, prime ministers and leading public figures on the left.
• The Guardian (5/9/21): Fears of violence on Brazil’s streets as millions rally to back Bolsonaro - His rural voters see the embattled president as a ‘messenger from God’. And this week they will march in the cities to support him
• The American Prospect (2/9/21): Why Pfizer’s Friends Want Biden to Intervene in Brazil - The pharma giant is trying to squash a bill that would expand vaccine access.
• The Guardian (30/8/21): Armed robbers take hostages in deadly bank raids in Brazil city - At least three people dead and trail of explosive booby traps left across Araçatuba in São Paulo state
• Democracy Now (30/8/21): Indigenous Groups Gather in Brazil’s Capital as High Court Nears Major Ruling on Land Rights
• The Intercept (28/8/21): Brazil’s Indigenous Groups Mount Unprecedented Protest Against Destruction of the Amazon - Brazil’s largest-ever Indigenous protest came amid efforts by Jair Bolsonaro and his allies to pave the way for industry in the Amazon.
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): Indigenous Groups Protest Against Bolsonaro in Brasília
• The Guardian (10/8/21): Bolsonaro’s ‘banana republic’ military parade condemned by critics - Armoured vehicles roll through streets of Brasília as congress prepares to vote on plans to change Brazil’s voting system
• Al Jazeera (9/8/21): Brazil Indigenous group sues Bolsonaro at ICC for ‘genocide’ - Far-right president has led ‘an explicit, systematic’ anti-Indigenous policy since taking office in 2019, group alleges.
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Brazil top justice orders Bolsonaro investigated for fraud claims - Supreme Court justice rules President Jair Bolsonaro to face probe for claims Brazil’s electoral system marred by fraud.
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Brazil judges push back against Bolsonaro’s election fraud claims - Brazilian electoral system is free of fraud, a group of 18 justices says, amid the president’s push to change the voting process.
• Al Jazeera (31/7/21): Brazil: Daily average COVID deaths drop below 1,000 - Brazil last registered a seven-day average of fewer than 1,000 COVID deaths in January at start of brutal second wave.
• The Moscow Times (30/7/21): Brazil to Cancel Orders for Russia’s Sputnik V Vaccine – Reuters
• Left Voice (30/7/21): Coldest Weather in Decades Hits Brazil — Climate Change Is to Blame - This month, on the heels of the country’s worst drought in a century, Brazil has experienced historic cold weather. The effects on agriculture could have negative consequences across the world.
• World Socialist Web Site (19/7/21): Railway workers strike in São Paulo amidst wave of transportation struggles
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Brazil’s Bolsonaro recovering, hopes to be ‘back in action soon’ - The Brazilian president tweeted a stern-faced photo of himself walking in hospital with a drip attached to his neck.
• The Guardian (11/7/21): Top rightwing Brazil newspaper demands removal of Bolsonaro - Call comes as outrage over Covid and corruption drags president’s ratings to lowest ever level
• Jacobin (9/7/21): Why Brazilian Workers Love Lula - Lula rose from humble origins to become a leftist icon, exuding working-class authenticity and successfully bringing working people into the country’s political life. And his story isn’t over: he could soon return to power.
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): Brazilians protest Bolsonaro’s handling of the COVID pandemic - Thousands demonstrate after Brazil’s top court authorises a probe into the president’s response to vaccine allegations.
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): Brazilians Call for Bolsonaro Impeachment as COVD Death Toll Tops 500K
• The Guardian Brazil suspends Covaxin contract after ‘serious accusations’ of irregularities - $324m deal to buy 20m doses of Indian jab has become a headache for Bolsonaro after sleaze allegations
• Democracy Now (30/6/21): COVID Surge Brings Indonesia to “Edge of Catastrophe”; Virus Lowered Brazil’s Life Expectancy
• Al Jazeera (29/6/21): Brazil issues fire ban, redeploys military to fight Amazon blazes - Similar orders did little in past years to stop deforestation and illegal logging in the critical Amazon rainforest.
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Brazil could have stopped 400,000 Covid deaths with better response, expert says - Epidemiologist behind study on scale of disaster says Jair Bolsonaro’s government is ‘entirely’ responsible
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Brazil’s inquiry into Covid disaster suggests Bolsonaro committed ‘crimes against life’ - Televised congressional investigation looks at political decisions that lead to crisis that has killed half a million
• The Guardian (23/6/21): Brazil police use teargas and rubber bullets against indigenous protesters
• New York Times (19/6/21): Brazil, Besieged by Covid, Now Faces a Severe Drought - Brazilians are paying more for electricity, dealing with the possibility of water rationing and expecting a destructive fire season in the Amazon in the worst dry spell in at least 90 years.
• The Guardian (19/6/21): Fresh protests in Brazil against Bolsonaro’s handling of Covid pandemic - Country’s death toll nears 500,000 as opposition to the president grows and vaccination rates remain low
• Democracy Now (18/6/21): Brazilian Senate Inquiry Reveals Bolsonaro Ignored Pfizer’s Offers to Supply COVID-19 Vaccines
• Jacobin (15/6/21): Belém’s Left-Wing Mayor Could Have a Winning Formula for the Brazilian Left - Last November, left candidate Edmilson Rodrigues defeated a Bolsonaro ally to become mayor of Belém in the Brazilian Amazon. The Belém experiment could be a chance to push back against a destructive far-right government that grossly mismanaged the pandemic.
• The Intercept (12/6/21): Bolsonaro Ramps Up Crackdown on Dissent With Tough Brazil Election Looming - From a dictatorship-era law to his campaign against the press, Brazil’s far-right president is ready to use his whole arsenal.
• The Guardian (7/6/21): Brazilian city shuts schools and transport as drug gangs avenge leader’s killing - Police station attacked and dozens of buses, public buildings, banks and personal vehicles damaged in Manaus after police shoot dead drug suspect
• World Socialist Web Site (5/6/21): Pandemic provokes wave of bus workers strikes across Brazil
• Al Jazeera (3/6/21): Toddler and man die as building collapses in Rio de Janeiro - Irregular construction of small homes built atop one another, common in the favelas, blamed for deadly collapse.
• Left Voice (30/5/21): Thousands in Brazil Take the Streets Against Bolsonaro - A day of marches against Bolsonaro, led primarily by youth, was held in various cities throughout Brazil on Saturday.; Democracy Now (1/6/21): Tens of Thousands March in Cities Across Brazil Demanding Impeachment of Jair Bolsonaro
• World Socialist Web Site (26/5/21): Bolsonaro prepares electoral coup amid Brazilian Congress probe of COVID-19 response
• The Intercept (27/5/21): Bolsonaro’s Environment Minister Bulldozed the Amazon. Now He’s Under Investigation for Corruption. - Brazil’s Supreme Court granted search warrants for the homes and financial records of Ricardo Salles, who accelerated deforestation during the Covid-19 pandemic.
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Police in Brazil searched the offices of the environment minister as part of an investigation into wood-smuggling. The supreme court ordered the suspension of the head of the environmental enforcement agency and several other officials. Under the government of Jair Bolsonaro, deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has reached a 12-year high.
• New York Times (6/5/21): Police Operation in Rio de Janeiro Leaves at Least 25 Dead - Police officials and human rights activists called Thursday’s operation in a district controlled by drug traffickers the deadliest in the city’s history.
• Democracy Now (4/5/21): Argentina Passes 3 Million Confirmed COVID-19 Cases as Brazil Delays Second Vaccine Doses [amid shortages]
• The Intercept (1/5/21): Brazil Seeks to Hold Bolsonaro Accountable for More Than 400,000 Covid-19 Deaths - A new commission is investigating Jair Bolsonaro’s response to the pandemic — and political foes are gathering strength.
• Democracy Now (4/28/21): Brazil Rejects Russia’s Sputnik V Vaccine - 'The maker of Sputnik V said the decision was politically motivated, pointing to a report earlier this year that said U.S. government officials pushed Brazil to turn down the vaccine.'
• Jacobin (24/4/21): The Brazilian Right Used Anti-Corruption to Push Its Agenda - Beginning in 2014, Brazil was consumed by a moralizing anti-corruption drive that helped right-wing forces oust the Workers’ Party and undermine Lula’s legacy. It took investigative journalism to unravel Lava Jato’s mythology. [far-right-news, labor-news, us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera: Brazilian Senate opens inquiry into Bolsonaro’s COVID handling - Investigation into President Jair Bolsonaro comes as Brazil is set to surpass 400,000 coronavirus deaths this week
• New York Times: Ravaged by Covid, Brazil Faces a Hunger Epidemic - Tens of millions of Brazilians are facing hunger or food insecurity as the country’s Covid-19 crisis drags on, killing thousands of people every day.
• World Socialist Web Site: Brazil’s defense minister issues threat over probe into Bolsonaro’s handling of COVID-19 pandemic
• World Socialist Web Site: Brazilian workers stage strikes and protests against COVID-19 pandemic and social crisis
• Democracy Now (4/16/21): Brazilian Senate Probes Bolsonaro’s Pandemic Response as Daily Death Toll Remains World’s Worst
• Democracy Now: Brazil in Crisis: COVID Deaths Soar & Hospitals Overflow Amid Unprecedented Political Upheaval
• Democracy Now (3/18/21): Brazil’s COVID-19 Cases and Deaths Hit New Highs, Pushing Hospitals to Brink of Collapse
• The Michael Brooks Show (27/8/19): An Illicit History Of Modern Brazil & Lula
• Jacobin (12/4/17) (OLD): The Ends of Lava Jato - Brazil's massive corruption scandals have turned the country's politics into a spectator sport. [corruption-news, far-right-news, court-news]

Chile Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Jacobin (23/12/21): How Chile’s Left Won - Gabriel Boric’s victory in Chile is a vindication of the mass movement that took to the streets in 2019 — and points toward a country ready to bury Pinochet’s legacy and neoliberalism for good. [leftist-news, electoral-news, analysis-news]
• Telesur (22/12/21): The Chilean State Violated the Rights of 846 Municipal Teachers - This case dates back to the Pinochet's dictatorship (1973-1990), when the administration of public education was transferred from the central government to subnational governments. Note about Telesur [!]
• Democracy Now (21/12/21): Gabriel Boric Win in Chile Is “Huge Victory” for Social Movements That Fought Off Far-Right Threat [leftist-news, electoral-news]
• The Majority Report (21/12/21): Chile’s New Leftist President Wants To Bury Neoliberalism A nice review of US intervention there around the Allende-Pinochet pivot [us-policy-news, socialist-news, leftist-news, history-news]
• AP News (19/12/21): Leftist millennial wins election as Chile’s next president [leftist-news, socialist-news, electoral-news]
• Left Voice (19/12/21): Boric’s Win in Chile’s Presidential Elections and the Fight for October’s Demands - Gabriel Boric’s wide margin of victory over José Antonio Kast in today’s Chilean presidential vote was a surprise. It was a rejection of the strengthening of the Right wing in the first round of the elections. Now that fight against the Right must move to the streets, where the demands from the October 2019 rebellion must be raised again. [elctoral-news, leftist-news, good-news, analysis-news]
• The Guardian (19/12/21): Leftist to become Chile’s youngest ever president after beating far-right rival - Former student leader Gabriel Boric claims 55.8% of votes counted to defeat far-right opponent José Antonio Kast - With Boric failing to gain ground across much of the country in the first-round vote on 21 November, which he lost to Kast by two percentage points, Cariola [Communist party congresswoman] was instrumental in overturning the deficit as part of a series of nationwide tours which sought to visit 1m homes the length of the country. - But on a sweltering day in Chile, voting was marred by public transport difficulties across the country, although the government claimed it had done everything in its power to guarantee voters could reach polling stations.
• Al Jazeera (16/12/21): Lucia Hiriart, widow of Chilean dictator Pinochet, dies at age 99 - Hiriart aroused strong reactions among Chileans for the perceived influence she had on Pinochet, who ruled for 17 years. [!]
• RMTransit (29/4/21): The Fantastic Metros of Latin America [rail-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): Chilean President Pinera signs same-sex marriage bill into law - The law ‘puts all love relationships between two people on an equal footing’, says Chilean President Sebastian Pinera. [lgbtq-news] [!]
• The Guardian (7/12/21): ‘A bit of hope’: Chile legalizes same-sex marriage - Vote seen as a blow to conservative presidential candidate José Antonio Kast, who won majority of votes in November’s first round [lgbtq-news, civil-rights-news] [!]
• The Intercept (1/12/21): Marco Rubio Met With Far-Right Chilean Candidate Tied to Military Dictatorship - José Antonio Kast’s father was in the Nazi army. Kast often speaks fondly of Chile’s former dictator Augusto Pinochet. [us-policy-news, far-right-news] [!]
• The Guardian (2/12/21): Chilean environmental activist who opposed dam projects found dead - Javiera Rojas remembered as ‘an emblematic activist who was dedicated to the process of resistance’
• Left Voice (1/12/21): Chilean Right-Wing Presidential Candidate Kast Visits the United States to Win the Backing of Imperialism - José Antonio Kast, a candidate for president of Chile in the final round of elections on December 19, is visiting the United States to convince Big Business in the belly of the imperialist beast to back his ultra-right program. - Kast, who has praised the Chilean dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973–90), will begin his tour in Washington, where he is slated to meet with Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), a supporter of Donald Trump [far-right-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Popular Front (8/11/21): Chile's Escalating Mapuche Conflict - Today we speak to Chilean filmmaker Pablo Sáez about the rapidly escalating armed conflict in the forests of Chile between the military and the indigenous Mapuche people. [indigenous-news, podcast-news, far-right-news]
• Telesur (23/11/21): Chilean Lawmakers Approve Equal Marriage Bill - On Tuesday, the Chilean Chamber of Deputies approved the bill that allows equal marriage, which passes to its final stage in the Senate. [lgbtq-news, legislation-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (25/11/21): Thousands of Women March in Chile Against Fascism - Thousands of women marched this Thursday in the Chilean capital as part of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, rejecting the "fascism" that, according to them, represents the far-right presidential candidate, José Antonio Kast. [civil-rights-news, protest-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• The Economist (20/11/21): Chile makes life harder for immigrants - Venezuelans are having a tough time. Haitians have it worse [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (22/11/21): Chile Presidential Runoff Will Pit Far-Right Populist Against Progressive Student Protest Leader [electoral-news, leftist-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The Chilean Senate has voted against removing Chilean President Sebastian Pinera over allegations of corruption, falling 29 votes short of the two-thirds supermajority required.
• Telesur (17/11/21): Four Venezuelans Died Due To Fire In A Chilean Migrant Shelter - "Although firefighters worked very hard, the fire spread quickly because the shelter's structure was antique," Talca Province Fire Brigade Commander Iturra stated. [immigrant-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• The Economist World This Week (13/11/21): Chile’s Chamber of Deputies approved impeachment proceedings against Sebastián Piñera, after leaked documents raised more questions about a mining deal that the president’s family signed during his first term in 2010 (he denies wrongdoing). But the opposition will struggle to obtain the two-thirds majority needed to impeach Mr Piñera formally in the Senate.
• Democracy Now (11/11/21): Chilean Lawmakers Advance Impeachment Effort Against President Piñera
• Telesur (9/11/21): Chile: Lower House Approves Political Trial Against Piñera - The Pandora Papers uncovered that the Chilean President carried out offshore financial operations and favored the sale of a mining company to a close friend. [corruption-news, leak-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (8/11/21): Chile: Carabinero Arrested For Sexual Assault On Colleague Note about Telesur
• Telesur (5/11/21): Chile: Carabineros Bullet Kills Citizen In His Backyard - The area where the assassination took place has been under military control since Oct. 12, when President Piñera decreed a local emergency state. Note about Telesur
• Telesur (5/11/21): 120 Migrants Deported Massively From Chile - Despite the criticism raised by human rights defenders, the Piñera administration continues its plan to deport 1,500 people by the end of the year. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (3/11/21): Chile: Indigenous Mapuche Killed in Incident With Armed Forces - Two Mapuche community members died on Wednesday in a confusing incident with the Armed Forces that has not yet been clarified, in the context of the state of emergency that is in force in the south of the country. [indigenous-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (3/11/21): Chile: Piñera Defends Pardon Granted to Pinochet Era Criminals - The far-right President argues that his pardon decree is lawful and does not generate impunity. [far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• Jacobin (2710/21): The Left Is Still Favored to Win Chile’s Presidency — But the Far Right Is Gaining Steam - With less than a month until Chile’s presidential election, hopes are high that leftist Gabriel Boric will win. But the collapse of the center right has unexpectedly allowed far-right nominee José Antonio Kast to surge. [far-right-news, electoral-news, leftist-news]
• Left Voice (26/10/21): Chile’s Version of Donald Trump Pulls Ahead in the Polls - José Antonio Kast is taking a page from the Republican playbook, with rants against "illegal immigrants" and appeals to "traditional values." The far-right politician is approaching the head of the pack in Chile’s elections next month. [far-right-news, electoral-news]
• The Guardian (25/10/21): Rightwing Chilean newspaper accused of ‘apology for Nazism’ over Göring article - Germany embassy condemns El Mercurio for Sunday piece and says ‘no room to justify or minimise his horrific role’ [far-right-news, media-news]
• Telesur (21/10/21): Chilean Navy Represses Fishermen Protest Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (20/10/21): Thousands Protest in Streets of Chile 2 Years After Historic Uprising and 1 Month Ahead of Elections [protest-news]
• Left Voice (20/10/21): Two Years After the Rebellion in Chile: Political Crisis, Constituent Assembly, and Elections - Two years ago, millions of people took to the streets of Chile. Today, the cost of living is rising, while the billionaires who own the country enrich themselves. Revolutionary socialists are campaigning in the elections to “retake the path of October” and advance toward a general strike. [leftist-news, labor-news]
• The Economist World This Week (16/10/21): Chile’s president, Sebastián Piñera, declared a state of emergency for 15 days in two southern regions. The army will be deployed to help local police, who have struggled to contain violent attacks by indigenous groups seeking to reclaim ancestral lands. A demonstrator died during a protest led by indigenous groups in Santiago. Chile is in the process of drafting a new constitution, which may decentralise power and expand indigenous rights. A far-right presidential candidate campaigning on a law-and-order platform is polling well in a tight race ahead of the election on November 21st, in which Mr Piñera cannot stand.
• The Guardian (13/10/21): Chile president Piñera faces impeachment after Pandora papers leak - Opposition politicians launch proceedings against Sebastián Piñera over possible irregularities in mining company sale [corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news, leak-news, leftist-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Chile declares state of emergency over Mapuche conflict - President Sebastian Pinera says troops are being sent to two southern regions hit by recent acts of violence. [indigenous-news]
• Jacobin (12/10/21): Camila Vallejo: Chile’s Left Needs to Be as Class-Conscious as the Right Is (Interview) - Chile’s Constitutional Convention promises to shift the balance of power in a society long prey to neoliberal dogmas. But as Communist MP Camila Vallejo tells Jacobin, the Chilean right will stop at nothing to defend ruling-class interests. [leftist-news, socialist-news, electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Chile’s billionaire president under scrutiny over Pandora leak - Papers gave details about a 2010 stake sale by Sebastian Pinera’s family in a mining project that activists objected to. [leak-news, capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news]
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Chile to Debate Expanded Abortion Access as Rallies Call for Reproductive Justice In Latin America
• Democracy Now (13/9/21): Chileans Commemorate Sep. 11, 1973, Coup That Overthrew Allende and Imposed Brutal Dictatorship
• The Guardian (10/9/21): Declassified documents show Australia assisted CIA in coup against Chile’s Salvador Allende - Former Liberal PM Billy McMahon approved spy agency request to conduct covert operations in Chile, a move later overturned by Gough Whitlam [history-news]
• The Guardian (7/9/21): Chile protest leader reveals he lied about having cancer - Efforts to rewrite constitution rocked after key figure Rodrigo Rojas Vade says on Instagram that he does not have leukaemia
• Democracy Now (11/8/21): Algerian Wildfires Kill 42 People as Severe Drought in Chile Threatens Crops and Water Supply
• South China Morning Post (4/8/21): Coronavirus: China’s Sinovac investing US$60 million in Chile vaccine facility - The plant will be built in the Santiago region in early 2022. Sinovac will also build a research and development centre in the northern region of Antofagasta - The Chilean government bet big on the Chinese company’s CoronaVac shot, with 19.6 million doses already delivered
• LaborNotes (27/7/21): Union Hopes High as Chileans Rewrite Anti-Labor Constitution
• France24 (1/8/21): Workers at world's biggest copper mine in Chile agree to strike (via u/DoremusJessup on r/labor) [labor-news]
• The Guardian (19/7/21): Gabriel Boric wins Chile presidential primary as protest generation takes centre stage - Former student leader becomes candidate for leftwing coalition and vows to fight Pinochet-era economics
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Son of Chile Indigenous leader killed in restive province - A rights group says the shooting of Ernesto Llaitul, 26, son of a Mapuche leader, would exacerbate the complex situation in the region.
• Democracy Now (6/7/21): Mapuche Leader Elisa Loncón to Lead Rewrite of Chile’s Pinochet-Era Constitution
• The Guardian (30/6/21): Fears for Chilean indigenous leader’s safety after police shooting - Alberto Curamil, an award-winning environmental activist, was seriously injured during a protest against the burning of a Mapuche home
• Democracy Now (15/6/21): COVID-19 Surges in Unvaccinated African Nations; Chile Locks Down Santiago Despite Vaccinations
• World Socialist Web Site (7/6/21): Chilean miners go out on indefinite strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Democracy Now (17/5/21): Chilean Voters Select Delegates to Draft New Constitution; New York Times (19/5/21): Progressives Won Chile’s Election. And They Won Big. - 'The independent, left and center-left candidates secured a combined 101 seats, more than two-thirds of the Constitutional Convention [of 155 - is it really more than 2/3? I think the author added wrong, here is their [1]]. They would have enough power to propose broad economic reforms to land and water rights, the pensions system and the exploitation of natural resources. Chile is one of the most unequal countries among advanced economies.'

Colombia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

News

• Telesur (31/12/21): Colombian Paramilitaries Invade Farmers Lands in Bolivar - On several occasions, the Agro-Mining Federation has denounced that paramilitary actions are carried out in complicity with local military and civil authorities. [militant-far-right-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (22/12/21): UN Confirms 73 Killings of Human Rights Defenders in Colombia - The highest number of murders by department was registered in the Cauca Valley, which was the epicenter of massive protests against President Ivan Duque. Note about Telesur [!]
• Juts Security (16/12/21): Colombia’s riot police should undergo a “profound transformation” to prevent the disproportionate use of force against peaceful protesters, the U.N. has said. In a report published yesterday, “the U.N. human rights agency blamed the country’s public force for 28 deaths during months of nationwide protests this year. They included 10 deaths linked to a specialized riot police unit that has been prohibited from carrying lethal weapons,” Samantha Schmidt and Diana Durán report for the Washington Post. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/12/21): Two police, attacker killed in bombings at airport in Colombia - Colombian authorities describe the attack in Cucuta, a city on the border with Venezuela, as a ‘terrorist’ act. [!]
• The Guardian (13/12/21): ‘A police massacre’: Colombian officers killed 11 during protests against police violence, report finds - Protesters against police brutality were met with more police brutality [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Jacobin (12/12/21): In Latin America, the Long Shadow of Colombia’s Far-Right Is Receding - Led by former president Álvaro Uribe, Colombia’s far-right bloc has exported its politics across Latin America. Fortunately, thanks to inspiring street protests and an electoral challenge from the left, Colombia may not be a regional bastion of reaction for much longer. [history-news, militant-far-right-news, us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news, social-woes-news, privatization-news, analysis-news]
• CPJ (10/12/21): Colombian legislature passes anti-corruption bill that threatens press freedom [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Colombia: Ex-soldiers take responsibility for killing 227 - Twenty-one former soldiers admit to participating in so-called ‘false positive’ killings, special tribunal says. [!]
• Telesur (8/12/21): Colombia: Indigenous Minga Announces March from Popayan to Cali - A two-day walk is expected, which should arrive in Cali on the occasion of World Human Rights Day. [indigenous-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (8/12/21): Anti-Corruption Bill Caps Press Freedom in Colombia - "Such legal initiatives are typical of authoritarian regimes that sow fear in whistleblowers," the Centre for Law, Justice, and Society Studies stated. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Bellingcat (6/12/21): Unravelling the Killing of Colombian Protester Lucas Villa [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Former Colombia FARC leader killed in Venezuela: Local media - Hernan Dario Velasquez was a negotiator in 2016 peace agreement, but announced three years later he had rearmed. [!]
• Telesur (4/12/21): Colombia: Activists Ask Reopening of Forced Disappearance Cases - A recent report exposed 8,288 victims of forced disappearance in the Meta, Guaviare, and Casanare departments between 1958 and 2016. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (2/12/21): Colombia: Piedad Cordoba Decries Persecution Towards Opposition - The social activist presented the grave human rights violations against Colombia's diverse array of political opponents. Note about Telesur [!]
• Democracy Now (1/12/21): U.S. Removes FARC From Terror Blacklist [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Colombia protesters faced ‘intentional’ police violence: Report - Amnesty International says over 100 people suffered eye injuries in security force crackdown on mass protests this year [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Telesur (23/11/21): We Suffer Paramilitary Violence: Colombian Indigenous Peoples - Confinement for fear of reprisals by armed groups was identified as the most common crime against Colombian Indigenous peoples this year. [indigenous-news, militant-far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (24/11/21): The U.S. is to drop the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) from a list of foreign terrorist organizations in a move intended to demonstrate U.S. support for a fragile five-year old peace agreement between rebels in Colombia and then-President Juan Manuel Santos. The officials said the move would come no later than Nov. 30, coinciding with the five-year anniversary of the historic peace accord. The FARC began to demobilize shortly after the signing of the accord, and have taken steps to transform their group into a political party, now called the Common People party. Vivian Salama and Juan Forero report for the Wall Street Journal. [us-policy-news]
• New York Times (18/11/21): Colombia Is the World’s Deadliest Place for Environmentalists [militant-far-right-news, capitalist-farce-news, protest-news, climate-change-news]
• Telesur (11/11/21): Colombian Constitutional Court Rejects Appeal by Alvaro Uribe - With this split decision, the Constitutional Court maintains the impeachment status of the former Colombian president. Note about Telesur
• Telesur (5/11/21): Colombian Black Leader Killed in Rio Raposo Community - At least 1,261 social leaders have been killed since 2016 due to the presence of paramilitary groups that remain active in rural areas. Note about Telesur
• Telesur (2/11/21): Colombian Gunmen Shot Two Youngsters To Death In Santander Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (3/11/21): Deadly landslide hits western Colombia: Authorities - At least 10 people were injured and 15 to 20 people were missing following the event in Narino province.
• Just Security (3/11/21): In an “unprecedented collaboration,” Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama have announced a chain of new protected marine areas that will create an “ocean highway” for species to swim more freely through waters threatened by overfishing and warming sea temperatures. [climate-change-news]
• Democracy Now (27/10/21): Colombian Indigenous Misak Leader Nazaria Calambás Murdered by Gunmen [indigenous-news]
• Telesur (25/10/21): Colombia: Two Massacres in Valle del Cauca in Less Than 24 Hours Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (25/10/21): ‘Nothing will change’: void left by Colombia cartel boss will quickly be filled, say experts - The capture of Ontoniel has been called a landmark victory against the drug trade. But he is ‘just one node of a network’ [crime-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): Colombian authorities have captured the country’s most-wanted drug trafficker, Dairo Antonio Úsuga, also known as “Otoniel.” Úsuga is the alleged leader of Clan del Golfo, a notorious drug trafficking group that dominates cocaine smuggling routes in the north of Colombia
• Just Security (22/10/21): The Department of Justice (DOJ) is charging three Colombians and two Venezuelans for an alleged Venezuelan bribery scheme, the DOJ has announced.
• The Guardian (19/10/21): Colombia found responsible for 2000 kidnap and torture of journalist - Inter-American court of human rights rules Colombia was ‘internationally responsible’ for violation of Jineth Bedoya’s rights
• Telesur (18/10/21): Massacre in Antioquia, Colombia: 5 Dead, Including 3 Venezuelans Note about Telesur
• Telesur (17/10/21): INDEPAZ Reports Murder of Two Social Activists in Colombia Note about Telesur
• Telesur (20/10/21): Four Colombians Gunned Down in Antioquia Note about Telesur
• The Intercept (20/10/21): Bolivian Government Says Haitian President’s Assassins Were Part of a Plot to Kill Its Own Leftist Leader - Citing a previous Intercept investigation, the Bolivian government said it has evidence of a plan to kill Luis Arce, a protégé of Evo Morales. [leftist-news, electoral-news, militant-far-right-news]
• In These Times (18/10/21): He Exposed Colombia’s Vaccine Contracts with Big Pharma. Then the Right Came for Him. - What the case of Camilo Enciso reveals about the power of pharmaceutical companies. [capitalist-farce-news, far-right-news, pharma-news]
• Liberation News (16/10/21): Colombian union leaders fighting Philip Morris greeted in NYC with solidarity
• Just Security (15/10/21): New Ruling Sheds Light on State-Paramilitary Cooperation in Colombia – and on the TVPA [capitalist-farce-news, crime-news, militant-far-right-news]
• The Guardian (13/10/21): Killing of two boys for alleged shoplifting shocks Colombia - Pair were taken away by armed men on motorbikes and later found shot dead on edge of town
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Colombia governor says he escaped two armed attacks in 24 hours - Governor of central Meta department says he was unharmed in attacks in region where dissident rebel fighters operate.
• The Guardian (9/10/21): Colombian nun kidnapped by jihadists in Mali in 2017 is freed - Mali president’s office pays tribute to the courage of Gloria Cecilia Narváez as it confirms her release
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Colombia troop deployment at Venezuela border raises questions - Move risks escalating tensions, analysts say, as two countries gradually reopen shared border after years-long closure.
• Al Jazeera (1/10/21): Colombia’s ELN rebels warn of ‘reprisals’ after commander killed - Experts say a rise in attacks likely after the top commander of the leftist ELN armed group died after Colombia military bombing.
• Just Security (1/10/21): “About 1,900 fighters belonging to Colombian rebel and crime groups are operating from Venezuela, where they plan attacks and participate in drug trafficking, the commander of Colombia’s armed forces said,” Reuters reports.
• On Labor (30/9/21): Also on Tuesday, thousands of union members took to the streets of Bogotá, Colombia to protest the roughly $4 billion tax reform package passed last month by the country’s Congress.
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): Top ELN rebel commander dies after bombing, Colombia gov’t says - ELN leader Angel Padilla Romero, known by alias Fabian, died in hospital after a military bombing, defence minister says.
• CPJ (28/9/21): Colombian journalist Marcos Efraín Montalvo shot and killed
• Left Voice (23/9/21): Indigenous Communities in Colombia Are Being Persecuted, Disappeared, and Displaced - Indigenous people in Colombia are being murdered, disappeared, and displaced. But the Duque government refuses to address their rights and prefers to stigmatize them. [indigenous-news]
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): Student Leader Assassinated in Colombia, Three Years After He Lost Eye in Police Shooting
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): As Colombian protests dissipate, activists hit by wave of arrests - Colombia’s Primera Linea protesters accuse authorities of using arrests, prosecutions to weaken the push for change.
• Al Jazeera (10/8/21): Colombia’s FARC rebels recruited more than 18,000 children: Court - Now-demobilised rebel group subjected child recruits to abuses across 20-year period, transitional justice court finds.
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Migrants stranded in northern Colombia struggling to survive - Colombia and Panama to hold a meeting on Monday to discuss the passage of thousands of migrants stranded in the border region.
• The Guardian (4/8/21): Colombian top general Mario Montoya faces murder charges in ‘false positives’ scandal - Uribe’s ‘hero of the homeland’ is alleged to have overseen the abduction and execution of up to 104 civilians – including five children
• The Guardian (2/8/21): Amnesty condemns Colombia police brutality after scores [at least 44] of protesters killed - ‘He died as he lived, resisting’, says mother of young artist killed in Cali, as report claims authorities used systematic ‘pattern of violence’ in city
• The Guardian (31/7/21): Floods block food from reaching thousands of refugees in Colombia - Families fleeing drug gangs and paramilitaries have been cut off, with government accused of being ‘incapable’ of protecting them
• Jacobin (31/7/21): Colombia’s Mercenary Industry is Behind the Haitian Coup - Almost every assassin involved in the murder of Haitian president Jovenel Moïse was Colombian. That’s no coincidence: if you want mercenaries for hire on the cheap, often trained by the US military, you can find them in spades in Colombia.
• Al Jazeera (30/7/21): Report reveals illegal detention and torture in Colombia protests - ‘These events are extremely serious and must be investigated diligently, independently and impartially,’ Amnesty International says.
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Colombian authorities say ex-FARC behind recent Duque attack - Authorities say they arrested 10 former Colombian FARC rebels based in Venezuela responsible for two attacks last month.
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): At least 70 arrested in latest round of Colombia protests - The demonstrations marked the end of a weeks-long pause in the unrest over taxes, police and poverty.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Colombia presents new tax reform to Congress amid more protests - The finance ministry says the bill will not affect most taxpayers, after a proposed increase in April drew protests.
• The Economist (10/7/21): A teachers’ union tries to keep Colombia’s schools closed - Pupils have endured one of the longest lockdowns anywhere
• Just Security (9/7/21): Colombia’s government confirmed late yesterday that six of the suspects it had been asked about were retired members of the Columbian military
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Colombia court accuses soldiers of killing 120 civilians - Peace court accuses 10 Colombian army members of murdering at least 120 civilians and falsely saying they were fighters.
• Al Jazeera (27/6/21): Colombia: Nine dead in separate attacks amid escalating violence - Three separate attacks come after helicopter carrying President Ivan Duque was fired at near border with Venezuela on Friday.
• BBC (25/6/21): Colombia President Iván Duque's helicopter hit by gunfire
• Labor Notes (24/6/21): Defying Police Violence, Strikers across Colombia Are Demanding Transformational Change
• Al Jazeera (22/6/21): In Pictures: Colombia protests sharpen Cali’s class war - At first, protesters saw the government as the enemy, but now they are facing wealthy, armed civilians.
• Democracy Now (22/6/21): Coronavirus Surges in Indonesia; Colombia Death Toll Passes 100,000
• Al Jazeera (16/6/21): Colombia investigating after car bomb injures 36 at military base - The defence ministry says two men drove a Toyota truck onto a military base in the city of Cucuta, near the border with Venezuela.
• Democracy Now (10/6/21): Rights Group Says Colombian Police Have Killed at Least 20 Anti-Government Protesters
• Democracy Now (7/6/21): Colombian Social Leader Who Co-Signed FARC Peace Agreement Assassinated
• Al Jazeera (6/6/21): Colombia to ‘modernise’ police after protest violence criticism - Security forces in Colombia have been accused of using excessive force during nationwide anti-government protests.
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Protesters back on the streets of Colombia amid stalled talks - Thousands are protesting across Colombia to demand a basic income, more opportunities for youth and an end to police violence.
• Democracy Now (1/6/21): Colombian Police Continue Deadly Crackdown on Anti-Government Protests
• Al Jazeera (1/6/21): Colombia extends border closure with Venezuela - The Colombian Foreign Ministry cites COVID for sealing the border, where violence has also broken out, until September 1.
• Al Jazeera (28/5/21): Four more Colombian protesters killed as death toll rises - Three of Friday’s deaths occurred in Cali, the nationwide epicentre of the month-long demonstrations.
• New York Times (27/5/21): Videos Show the Violent, and Deadly, Ways Colombian Police Quell Protests - An analysis of visual evidence from recent protests in Colombia shows egregious and indiscriminate use of force by officers toward civilians.
• Democracy Now (26/5/21): Protests Continue in Colombia as Strike Movement and Gov’t Indicate Progress in Ongoing Talks
• Workers World (24/5/21): Report from Colombia – National strike marches grow ever bigger
• Democracy Now (21/5/21): Amnesty Calls for U.S. to Stop Selling Weapons Used to Repress and Kill Protesters in Colombia
• Left Voice (19/5/21): The Struggle Continues in Colombia - Colombia's wave of protests continues unabated. This is a first hand account from a comrade living in Colombia.
• Democracy Now (17/5/21): Colombian Protests Call for End to State Violence After Suicide of Teen Sexually Abused by Police
• Al Jazeera (11/5/21): Cali emerges as epicentre of unrest in ongoing Colombia protests - On Sunday night, armed civilians attacked protesters who have blockaded main roads around the Colombian city.
• This article downplays the role of the trade unions, but take this with a grain of salt - the unions called the strike in the first place. World Socialist Web Site (7/5/21): Colombia’s mass protests continue amid reported “disappearance” of 379 demonstrators
• Left Voice (7/5/21): How Biden Funded Colombia’s Deadly Police Regime - Biden played a key role in empowering the ESMAD police force that is now being used to crush dissent in Colombia. This is all the more reason the U.S. Left must make solidarity with the Colombian working class a priority.
• Left Voice (4/5/21): Colombia Is Murdering Protesters [26 so far], But They Are Still Taking the Streets - Protesters in Colombia continue to take the streets against the Duque government despite brutal repression. Wednesday will be a national day of mobilizations. [US-trained ESMAD largely responsible for killings]
• Jacobin (4/5/21): Colombians Are in the Streets Against a Violent Neoliberal Order - What began as a massive general strike on April 28 is quickly becoming an open challenge to Colombia’s authoritarian neoliberal order
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): Colombian currency plunges on finance minister resignation report - The Colombian peso fell on reports that the country’s finance minister is resigning, the latest fallout from Colombian President Ivan Duque’s plans to raise taxes, which also sparked protests.
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): Colombia protests continue after government withdraws tax reform - Colombia’s finance minister has resigned, but experts say public anger goes beyond the widely-decried tax proposal.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): [protests successful!] Colombia’s president withdrawing tax reforms after mass protests - Right-wing President Ivan Duque’s proposed tax reforms drew widespread public anger and protests across Colombia.
• Al Jazeera: Thousands march in Colombia over tax proposals, rising insecurity - Strike [called by Colombia's biggest unions] went ahead despite calls for it to be postponed because of COVID-19, with riot police using tear gas to disperse the crowds.; '“They’re robbing us poor people, while they give everything to the rich.”'[2]
• Al Jazeera: More than 27,000 displaced in Colombia violence this year [so far] - Increase in displacement comes amid threats, murders and violence between armed groups, human rights ombudsman says.; at least five continuing conflicts
• Popular Front: (podcast) The Rise of Colombia's Cocaine Militias
• Democracy Now (4/23/21): Indigenous Governor Sandra Liliana Peña Killed in Cauca, Colombia
• Democracy Now (3/17/21): Colombian Journalist Accuses Paramilitaries of Rape, Torture in Testimony to Inter-American Court

Costa Rica Updates

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Maps: Basic (cr.);Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Telesur (15/11/21): Costa Rica: Five Mayors Were Detained on Corruption Charges - The Prosecutor's Office is investigating a criminal organization that has been bribing local officials to secure public works construction contracts. [corruption-news] Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Beyond Oil and Gas: Denmark and Costa Rica Lead New Push to Phase Out Fossil Fuels [big-oil-news, climate-change-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): In an “unprecedented collaboration,” Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama have announced a chain of new protected marine areas that will create an “ocean highway” for species to swim more freely through waters threatened by overfishing and warming sea temperatures. [climate-change-news]
• This article from the Economist is total propaganda, but reflects a common pattern - a country deeply in debt, needing an IMF loan, legally forced to adopt austerity policies that hurt the workers. They rightfully point out that structural issues are at fault for Costa Rica's shortcomings, but they don't look at the real issues - Capitalist exploitation and destructive policies from the United States. Sure, Costa Rica might have handled some things inefficiently, but that isn't the real problem. [1]

Cuba Updates

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Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Telesur (29/12/21): Mexico Authorizes Use of Cuban Vaccine Abdala Against COVID-19 - Mexico's Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks (Cofepris) authorized on Wednesday the emergency use of the Abdala vaccine, developed in Cuba, against covid-19. [covid-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (17/12/21): More than 100 House Democratic lawmakers have called on Biden to lift U.S. regulations on Cuba to help address “the worse economic and humanitarian crisis in recent history.” “The lawmakers, led by Democratic Reps. Jim McGovern (MA), Barbara Lee (CA), and Bobby Rush (IL), urged Biden in a letter to do away with specific licenses that are required to send medical supplies to Cuba as well as lift restrictions on banking and related financial transactions,” Joseph Choi reports for The Hill. [us-policy-news]
• Africa News (13/12/21): Mauritania welcomes back Cuban doctors after terminating their contracts [healthcare-news]
• CPJ (10/12/21): Unidentified attackers beat Cuban journalist Mabel Páez at her home [!]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Cuba dissident leader Yunior Garcia in Spain after crackdown - Founder of opposition group Archipelago was a central figure in major protests that rocked Cuba in July. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Left Voice (17/11/21): Cuba: With Repression and Intimidation, the Government of Díaz-Canel Discourages the “Civic March for Change” - In response to a protest called by a broad coalition of groups and individuals opposing the Cuban regime, the government issued a series of repressive measures to stop the demonstration, including prohibiting the protest and arresting its organizers. Against both the pro-imperialist far right and the disastrous policies of the government, we call for the freedom of organization and protest for the working and poor of Cuba. [leftist-news, analysis-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• In These Times (12/11/21): How to Democratize Cuba - Will the November 15 protests in Cuba provide a democratic opening? [leftist-news, analysis-news]
• The Guardian (15/11/21): Cuba democracy protests thwarted after rallies banned and leaders arrested - Authorities act swiftly to snuff out dissent after being caught off guard by demonstrations for change in July [protest-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Cuban state security agents are cracking down on dissent ahead of pro-democracy protest rallies planned for today. State security agents surrounded the home of leading activists yesterday, including the organiser of the rallies Yunior García. “The ruling Communist party has banned the protests, which it says are a US-backed attempt at overthrowing the government,” BBC News reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): Cuban opposition figure arrested ahead of banned protest - Guillermo Farinas was arrested on Friday, his family said, three days before opposition figures plan to hold a protest
• Just Security (11/11/21): Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez has accused the U.S. of coordinating a civil liberties protest that is set to take place on Nov. 15 in Cuba with the help of U.S.-based social media platform Facebook.
• Telesur (2/11/21): Mexican National Guard Kills A Cuban Migrant in Chiapas [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (19/10/21): One hundred days after nationwide demonstrations in Cuba, when dissidents and ordinary citizens turned out in mass to protest the Cuban government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, energy shortages and the economy, the extent of the government and police’s crackdown on the protest is becoming clear. According to a sweeping report released by Human Rights Watch, which provides the most detailed accounting yet of Cuba’s swift shutdown of dissent, many individuals arrested following the protests were subjected to beatings, humiliation and psychological abuse. “Massive sweeps by security forces in the hours and days after the protests saw more than 1,000 people detained. Even now, nearly 500 — the most political prisoners held in Cuba in at least two decades — remain behind bars and locked in murky legal proceedings, according to Cubalex, a nonprofit that has monitored the detentions,” Anthony Faiola and Ana Vanessa Herrero report for the Washington Post.
• The Guardian (12/10/21): Cuba denies opposition permission for march in Havana after July protests - Letter says protest planned for 15 November has ‘the open intention of changing the political system in Cuba’
• The Majority Report (11/10/21): What Is Really Happening In Cuba Today?
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Cuba begins commercial exports of its COVID-19 vaccines - The island nation has begun sending the homegrown, three-dose Abdala vaccine to Vietnam and Venezuela.
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Vietnam approves Abdala vaccine as president visits Cuba - Abdala becomes the eighth COVID-19 vaccine approved for use in Vietnam, which has one of the lowest inoculation rates in the region. [covid-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• Democracy Now (8/9/21): New Zealand Eases Restrictions; Cuba Rolls Out Vaccines for Children as Young as 2
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): U.S. & Cuba Pledge Vaccines for Vietnam, But Only Cuba Offers to Share Vaccine Technology [vaccine-ip-news]
• The Guardian (22/8/21): Cuba’s health system buckles under strain of overwhelming Covid surge - A lack of medical supplies is crippling the Covid response, amid an economic crisis sparked by the pandemic and US sanctions
• The Economist World This Week (21/8/21): The government of Cuba laid out laws tightening its control of social media. The sweeping decree forbids disseminating content that attacks “the constitutional, social and economic” rules of the state or that encourages demonstrations that threaten “public order”. It also provides a model form for the public to denounce offenders.
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Mexico, Russia & Bolivia Send Aid to Cuba as U.S. Announces New Sanctions
• Democracy Now (26/7/21): Mexico Sends Food and Medical Supplies to Cuba, Condemns U.S. Blockade
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Nearly 60 prosecuted over Cuba demonstrations, says top official - Hundreds were arrested during protests this month and many face charges of contempt, public disorder and vandalism.
• The Moscow Times (24/7/21): Russia Sends Aid to Cuba After Anti-Government Protests - Russia dispatched nearly 100 tons of humanitarian aid to Cuba, the Defense Ministry said Saturday, following unprecedented street protests over the communist country's worst economic crisis in decades.
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): ‘Just the beginning’: US imposes new sanctions on Cuba - The move signals the Biden administration is unlikely to soften the US approach towards Cuba anytime soon.
• Just Security Early Edition (15/7/21): The internet in Cuba has been turned back on, revealing scenes of the Cuban government’s crackdown on protesters.
• Democracy Now (15/7/21): Cuba Lifts Restrictions on Essential Goods Brought in by Travelers; Just Security Early Edition (15/7/21): Cuba’s president Miguel Díaz-Canel acknowledged yesterday the shortcomings in his government was to some extent to blame for protests
• The Guardian (13/7/21): At least 140 Cubans reportedly detained or disappeared after historic protests - Activists, protesters and journalists, including a reporter for one of Spain’s leading newspapers, reportedly in custody
• Vaush (12/7/21): (VIDEO) Western Media Is FREAKING OUT Over Cuban Protests
• Jacobin (12/7/21): The US Must End Its Brutal Sanctions Against Cuba, Not Intervene There - As protests break out in Cuba, some politicians are calling for US intervention. That would be a disaster. The best thing the United States can do to help the Cuban people is lift its brutal, inhumane embargo.
• Democracy Now (12/7/21): Thousands Take to Streets of Cuba to Protest Economic Crisis, Pandemic; World Socialist Web Site (12/7/21): Cuba sees largest protests in decades as economy deteriorates and COVID-19 pandemic worsens
• Al Jazeera (11/7/21): Thousands join rare anti-government protests in Cuba - Demonstrations come as Cuba is experiencing its toughest phase yet of the coronavirus crisis.
• Democracy Now (24/6/21): U.N. General Assembly Votes Overwhelmingly to Condemn U.S. Embargo on Cuba for 29th Time
• Democracy Now (22/6/21): Cuba Says Abdala Vaccine Shows 92% Efficacy Against COVID-19
• Democracy Now (21/6/21): Cuba’s Soberana 02 Vaccine Offers Hope as COVID Surges in Latin America, Brazil Tops 500,000 Deaths
• World Socialist Web Site (31/5/21): Two Cubans dead, 10 missing after raft capsizes off Key West as increasing numbers flee economic crisis
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Cuba: Dissident artist released from hospital after four weeks - Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, leader of the San Isidro protest movement, was admitted to hospital on May 2 after hunger strike.
• Democracy Now (13/5/21): Cuba Starts to Roll Out Two Domestic Vaccines; 'Late-phase clinical trials of the Soberana 02 and Abdala vaccines aren’t due to wrap up until at least June, but Cuban officials say the benefits of administering the vaccines now outweigh the risks.'
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Cuban dissident artist hospitalised amid hunger strike - Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, a leader of the San Isidro movement, went on hunger strike to protest against the seizure of his art.
• Al Jazeera: Cuba could be closing in on COVID vaccine sovereignty - The island is developing five experimental shots but two have reached final-stage trials.
• Al Jazeera (27/4/21): Mexican president thanks Cuban counterpart for COVID support - Cuba sent about 1,000 health workers to Mexico earlier in the pandemic to help bolster its healthcare system.

Dominican Republic Updates

• Telesur (17/12/21): Haitian Consulate Staff Arrested In The Dominican Republic - Williamson Jean and Jackson Lorrain were arrested on their way to a farm, where they hoped to deliver 11 passports and produce IDs for the hundreds of Haitian workers. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (15/12/21): Nine Dead After Plane Crash in The Dominican Republic - Nine people died Wednesday after a plane crashed at the international airport in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, the airline Helidosa Aviation Group confirmed. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (3/12/21): Dominican Republic Deports 800+ Haitian Women, 1 in 5 Pregnant - More than 800 Haitian women, including 165 pregnant, were deported from the Dominican Republic during November, local press reported [immigrant-news, social-woes-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (21/11/21): Dominican Republic Deport Over 1,500 Haitians - The Dominican Republic tries to stop immigration through actions such as the suspension of its visa program for Haitian students and the prohibition of public health care for undocumented citizens. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• On Labor (20/9/21): Looking beyond the United States, Mother Jones investigated working conditions on sugar plantations in the Dominican Republic, cataloging the “high human cost of America’s sugar habit.” The entire article is worth exploring, not least for its striking photojournalism, but one point in particular stands out. As one local priest and worker advocate noted, in these self-contained plantations “[t]he company is the judiciary. They are the police. They are the ones who rule over everyone’s life.” As American employers begin to show renewed interest in “factory towns”, it is worth examining how workers have experienced those settings—both here and abroad.

Ecuador Updates

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Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Financial Times (30/12/21): Ecuador’s president vows indigenous groups will not block mining projects - Guillermo Lasso dismisses environmental concerns about new ventures [labor-news, indigenous-news, resource-news, capitalist-farce-news, fail-neoliberal-news, drug-news, crime-news, leak-news, politics-news] Paywall Summary (?): Lasso raises ire against the indigenous grops, claiming they want to "sacrifice" the economy for their leaders' "political interests". After touting $30bn in projects, including mining, the constitutional court invalidated the environmental permit for some drilling. This raised the mining lobby's ire, and threatens a copper project between state company Enami and Canada's Cornerstone. In interview with FT, Lasso uses the "energy transition" (away from fossil fuels) to legitimize his projects. His party, CREO, holds less than 1/10 of the National Assembly, and hasn't been able to form a stable governing coalition. His tax reform has passed, and he wants to pass labor reform to make it "more flexible" (opposed by former president Correa's leftist UNES bloc and the indigenous party Pachakutik), and "facilitat[e] public-private partnerships". Lasso has been in a tight spot as the center-right PSC has broke from him, leaving him dependent on the indigenous Pachakutik party, itself, FT reports, fickle and divided. He has faced political difficulties there, as a leader of Pachakutik has accused him of tax fraud since the Pandora papers were released. Lasso also faces a drug/criminal violence problem, which has only grown.
• The Guardian (24/12/21): Latin America urges US to reduce plastic waste exports to region - Study finds exports to region doubled in 2020 with practice predicted to grow as US invests in recycling plants [industrial-failure-news]
• Telesur (16/12/21): US Ambassador Withdraws Visas From ‘Narco Generals’ in Ecuador - Michael Fitzpatrick's statements appeared as acts of policy interference that did not follow the appropriate diplomatic channels. [us-policy-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (13/12/21): Ecuador declares force majeure on all oil contracts - The clause is invoked to remove liability from failing to uphold contracts in the event of disasters. [big-oil-news, industrial-failure-news]
• Telesur (12/12/21): Bus Accident Leaves 18 People Dead in Ecuador - The accident occurred in the Huambi sector located in the Sucua community in the Morona Santiago province. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (11/12/21): Ecuadoreans Demand Justice for Their Disappeared Relatives - From January to August this year, there were 5,208 reports of missing people in the South American nation. At least 56 percent of the cases were women. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (8/12/21): Ecuadorean President Lasso Avoids 'Pandora Papers' Impeachment - Instead of pursuing an inquiry into the sending of his fortune to tax havens, legislators only decided to summon former bankcer Guillermo Lasso to appear before the plenary session to explain "a possible link with the Pandora Papers." [corruption-news, leak-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (4/12/21): Ecuador: Indigenous People Decry Lack of Response to Reforms - Deadlines for final negotiations on several social reforms have been fulfilled; however, President Guillermo Lasso has not given signs of further meetings. [indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Common Dreams (2/12/21): High Court Delivers 'Victory' for Rights of Nature Movement in Ecuador - "This is a good day for the species and fragile ecosystems of Ecuador." [court-news]
• Telesur (30/11/21): Ecuadorean President Lasso Enforces IMF-Style Tax Reform - While the Christian Social party denounced that the Lasso administration has dealt a very hard blow to the population, the Union for Hope party assures the new law is unconstitutional. [neo-imperialism-news, economic-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): Ecuador pardons some inmates after deadly prison riots - Ecuador is seeking to ease overcrowding in its prisons after gang-linked riots killed more than 300 people this year
• Telesur (19/11/21): President Lasso Renews 'State of Exception' in Ecuador - Ecuador has recorded the bloodiest massacres in its history. While 79 people were murdered in prisons in February, 118 inmates died in September. In both cases, Lasso vowed that the violent acts would never happen again. Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (19/11/21): Amazon Deforestation in Brazil Hits 15-Year Peak; Indigenous Groups in Ecuador Oppose Mining Plans [indigenous-news, climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): Ecuadorian court freezes ex-president’s bank account in probe - Court order freezes bank accounts of former President Rafael Correa and 19 others as part of a corruption investigation
• The Guardian (13/11/21): Ecuador: 68 inmates killed and 25 injured in latest prison massacre - Deaths at Litoral penitentiary part of wave of prison violence that has claimed more than 280 lives
• Left Voice (11/11/21): How to Escape the Eternal Debt Trap - The fight against the foreign debt that strangles Argentina is at the center of the electoral campaign of the Workers Left Front — Unity (FIT–U). This article explains how imperialism uses the debt to subjugate the masses, and spells out a program in opposition. [economic-news, neo-imperialism-news, analysis-news]
• Telesur (10/11/21): Lasso Does Not Allow Press In Dialogue With Indigenous Peoples - Despite President Lasso's recent conciliatory speeches, the Police prevented the entry into Quito of buses carrying Indigenous citizens who wished to participate in a peaceful mobilization. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (9/11/21): Lasso Pardons Indigenous Leader Ahead of Meeting With CONAIE - The release of Antonio Vargas and other Indigenous leaders comes two days before the Lasso administration holds negotiations with the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities. [indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (5/11/21): Ecuador: Constitutional Court Limits Emergency State's Duration - It also ruled that the Armed Forces will only mobilize together with the Police in justified operations and will respect citizens' right to protest peacefully. Note about Telesur
• Just Security (3/11/21): In an “unprecedented collaboration,” Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama have announced a chain of new protected marine areas that will create an “ocean highway” for species to swim more freely through waters threatened by overfishing and warming sea temperatures. [climate-change-news]
• Left Voice (28/10/21): Thousands in Ecuador Protest the Government’s Austerity Measures - Thousands have taken to the streets in Ecuador to protest increases in fuel prices and the government’s austerity measures. But the union and social movement leaderships are not putting forward a serious plan of struggle to defeat these plans through a real national strike. [labor-news, indigenous-news, protest-news]
• Democracy Now (27/10/21): Dozens Arrested as Protesters in Ecuador Condemn Fuel Price Hike, New Economic Policies [protest-news, indigenous-news, labor-news, energy-news]
• Telesur (26/10/21): Ecuador: National Strike Marches Face State Repression [protest-news, labor-news, indigenous-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (26/10/21): Indigenous lead protest against Ecuador economic policies - Protesters block roads, plan marches against rise in fuel prices, amid state of emergency. [protest-news, social-woes-news, indigenous-news]
• Telesur (23/10/21): Olympic Athlete Alex Quiñonez Shot to Death in Ecuador Note about Telesur
• Telesur (21/10/21): Ecuadorean Doctors Protest Against Precarious Labor Conditions [labor-news, healthcare-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (18/10/21): Ecuadorian Farmers Take Over The Roads In Guayas [protest-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (19/10/21): Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso has declared a state of emergency to confront drug trafficking and other crimes in Ecuador
• Democracy Now (19/10/21): Indigenous Amazonians Sue Ecuador to Halt Oil Drilling and Mining Plans [indigenous-news, big-oil-news]
• Democracy Now (12/10/21): Pandora Papers: Ecuador’s President Faces Probe over Use of Tax Havens [leak-news]
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Just Security (1/10/21): The police have entered a prison in Ecuador where more than 100 inmates died in battles between criminal drug cartels within the prison.
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): Ecuador Prison Riot Claims 116 Lives
• CPJ (22/9/21): Ecuadorian authorities raid office of journalist Fausto Chimbolema, confiscate equipment
• South China Morning Post (11/8/21): Human rights abuses claimed in hundreds of China belt and road projects - A report has identified rights allegations involving Chinese companies in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and Africa - Myanmar had the highest number of recorded cases, followed by Peru, Ecuador and Laos [bri-news]
• Just Security (28/7/21): An Ecuadorian court has ruled in favor of revoking the citizenship of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, according to a judgment published by the Judicial Branch of Ecuador
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Ecuador: At least 18 inmates die in two prison riots - The latest violence comes months after at least 79 inmates died in the country’s worst prison riots.
• CounterPunch (28/4/21): US Role Behind the Defeat of Ecuador’s Leftist Presidential Candidate
• Democracy Now (12/4/21): Conservative Ex-Banker Defeats Leftist Economist in Ecuadorian Presidential Election

El Salvador Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Guardian (24/12/21): Latin America urges US to reduce plastic waste exports to region - Study finds exports to region doubled in 2020 with practice predicted to grow as US invests in recycling plants [industrial-failure-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Abortion ban: El Salvador frees women jailed after miscarriages - The women had been jailed for terms ranging from six to 13 years under some of the region’s harshest anti-abortion laws. [civil-rights-news] [!]
• Telesur (10/12/21): US Targets Salvadorean Officials for Pacts With Gangs - U.S authorities imposed sanctions on Osiris Luna Meza, chief of the Salvadoran Penal System and Vice Minister of Justice and Public Security under the charges of negotiating a secret truce with gangs. [us-policy-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Just Security (9/12/21): The U.S. Treasury has accused El Salvador’s government of secretly negotiating a truce with imprisoned leaders of the country’s top criminal gangs. The deal aimed “to ensure that incidents of gang violence and the number of confirmed homicides remained low,” the Treasury said, adding that the deal also secured the gang’s political support for El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele’s ruling party in midterm elections earlier this year. The Treasury is “imposing sanctions on Osiris Luna, El Salvador’s Deputy Justice Minister and Prisons Director, and Carlos Marroquín, head of a welfare agency, for their participation in the secret negotiations,” Santiago Pérez reports for the Wall Street Journal. [us-policy-news, crime-news, corruption-news]
• The Guardian (2/12/21): El Salvador ‘responsible for death of woman jailed after miscarriage’ - Inter-American court of human rights orders Central American country to reform harsh policies on reproductive health
• Democracy Now (23/11/21): El Salvador President Plans “Bitcoin City” as Government Cracks Down on NGOs [cryptocurrency-news]
• Telesur (22/11/21): Top US Diplomat in El Salvador Leaves the Country - The U.S. Chargé d'Affaires expressed that there are no solid relations because El Salvador has no interest. [us-policy-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (18/11/21): Three MS-13 gang members were convicted of murder and racketeering charges yesterday at a federal court in New Jersey. The three El Salvadoran men committed the crimes related to murder, drug trafficking, witness tampering and extortion from September 2014 to October 2015, the Department of Justice press release stated. Brad Dress reports for The Hill. [crime-news, drug-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele had deployed military troops to patrol the streets in the capital city of San Salvador and other areas, in an effort to combat rising homicide rates in the country.
• ProPublica (9/11/21): The High Price of Doing Journalism in El Salvador - A reporter teams up with the American journalist who first broke the story of the El Mozote massacre, tracking El Salvador’s faltering efforts to hold the perpetrators accountable, in a new documentary from Retro Report and FRONTLINE. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (18/10/21): In El Salvador, thousands of people are protesting President Nayib Bukele’s government. The protestors took issue with Bukele’s turn to cryptocurrency and firing of Supreme Court justices. Bukele quickly dismissed the protests as a “failure” on Twitter. [protest-news, cryptocurrency-news]
• Democracy Now (1/10/21): Salvadorans Protest New Cryptocurrency, Power Grab by President Bukele
• The Guardian (21/9/21): Fears for democracy in El Salvador after president claims to be ‘coolest dictator’ - US diplomat raises concerns after Nayib Bukele makes outlandish claim on Twitter and replaces judges to permit future re-election
• Left Voice (17/9/21): El Salvador: Bitcoin Machines Burned and Thousands Take the Streets Against Authoritarian Government - On Wednesday, thousands took to the streets of El Salvador to protest President Nayib Bukele and his new Bitcoin law.
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): El Salvador protest breaks out against Bitcoin adoption - Angry protests, technological glitches and a dip in the cryptocurrency clouded the rollout of Bitcoin in El Salvador.
• Al Jazeera (7/9/21): Glitches, protests as Bitcoin becomes legal tender in El Salvador - Bitcoin is now officially legal tender in El Salvador, but the country’s landmark adoption of the world’s largest cryptocurrency got off to a less than auspicious start on Tuesday with protests and technical problems. [cryptocurrency-news]
• The Economist World This Week (4/9/21): El Salvador’s parliament, which is controlled by President Nayib Bukele, approved a law requiring judges over 60 or with more than 30 years of service to retire. Mr Bukele will probably replace them with loyalists, as he did after legislators in May dismissed five supreme court judges and the attorney-general.
• Al Jazeera (4/9/21): El Salvador court says presidents can serve two straight terms - Ruling paves the way for incumbent Nayib Bukele to stand for re-election in 2024.
• Democracy Now (3/9/21): Protests Mount as El Salvador Prepares to Adopt Bitcoin as Legal Tender [cryptocurrency-news]
• The Economist (25/8/21): Democracy is quickly eroding in Central America - Things are looking grim in El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua A bit of neoliberal propaganda, of course, but a nice review
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): El Salvador Expels Mexican Journalist Daniel Lizárraga Amid Crackdown on Dissent
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): El Salvador seizes opposition party assets in corruption probe - Conservative opposition ARENA party accused of embezzling funds from a donation from Taiwan between 2003 and 2004.
• Democracy Now (19/5/21): Allies of Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele Named in State Dept. Report on Drug Trafficking, Corruption; Al Jazeera (18/5/21): Five of Salvadoran president’s allies accused of corruption: US - The US State Department lists several politicians and officials in Guatamela, Honduras and El Salvador ‘credibly alleged’ to be corrupt.
• Democracy Now (18/5/21): “Trans People Don’t Exist in El Salvador”: Protesters Demand Passage of Gender Identity Law
• Al Jazeera (15/5/21): Ten bodies found on former El Salvador police officer’s property - Seven women and three children found buried on ex-policeman’s property after he was arrested for two other murders.
• The Economist World This Week (6/5/21): El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, once again displayed his authoritarian tendencies. The legislative assembly, which his party controls, sacked five Supreme Court judges and the attorney-general. Their replacements have links to Mr Bukele, who now controls all three branches of the state. American officials complained, but softly. President Joe Biden’s administration wants Central American governments to help it curb migration to the United States.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Victims renew calls for justice as El Mozote trial moves ahead - Recent hearings reveal new details about 1981 massacre of civilians in northeast El Salvador during country’s civil war.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Crisis brewing as El Salvador’s Congress votes out top judges - Rights advocates and political opposition decry the move as an attempt by President Nayib Bukele to cement his power.
• Democracy Now (4/28/21): Testimony in El Mozote Massacre Trial Highlights U.S. Cover-up of Mass Killings - '“sophisticated cover-up” of the events on behalf of the Reagan administration and the Salvadoran military junta.'

Guatemala Updates

• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Guatemala massacre victims’ community defies state of siege - Indigenous community members block roads calling for justice after children massacred amid bloody land dispute. [indigenous-news, protest-news]
• Popular Front (3/11/21): Indigenous Resistance to Mining Corruption in Guatemala - Today we speak to anthropologist Ben Chang about recent clashes in Guatemala between indigenous resistance movements and the police, over nickel ore mining corruption. [capitalist-farce-news, indigenous-news, podcast-news]
• Telesur (18/11/21): Guatemalan Police Burns 100 Houses Of Indigenous Farmers - The Giammattei administration alleged that the Police followed the protocols established by law for cases of illegal territories occupation. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Son of ex-Panama president extradited to US from Guatemala - The extradition is the latest tied to $788m in bribes Latin American construction giant Odebrecht admitted to paying.
• CPJ (28/10/21): Guatemalan police harass, raid homes of journalists covering protests in El Estor [indigenous-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Telesur (26/10/21): Guatemalan Police Raids Human Rights Defenders' Places [indigenous-news, protest-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): Guatemala Puts Town Under Martial Law as Indigenous Leaders Protest Mining Project [indigenous-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Democracy Now (12/10/21): Guatemalan Prosecutor in Landmark Ríos Montt Trial Is Transferred in Blow to Human Rights [corruption-news]
• Democracy Now (11/10/21): 126 People, Mostly Haitians, Found Locked in Shipping Container in Guatemala [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (3/9/21): Probe begins into alleged bribe involving Guatemala’s president - Anti-corruption prosecutors are investigating an alleged bribe from Russian businessmen to President Alejandro Giammattei. Context: corruption investigator Sandoval was ousted in July for investigations into elites such as Giammettei, he fled the country and there are now warrants for his arrest
• The Economist (25/8/21): Democracy is quickly eroding in Central America - Things are looking grim in El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua A bit of neoliberal propaganda, of course, but a nice review
• Just Security (1/9/21): Two former Guatemala generals – former generals Manuel Benedicto Lucas and Manuel Antonio Callejas – will stand trial on genocide charges for their role in the country’s civil war
• Al Jazeera (3/8/21): Guatemala appoints controversial new anti-corruption prosecutor - Move comes after sacking of former anti-corruption prosecutor spurred mass protests and international criticism.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): “People Are Outraged”: General Strike in Guatemala Denounces Corruption & Mishandling of Pandemic [labor-news]
• Just Security (30/7/21): Thousands of Guatemalans took to the streets in protest on Thursday to demand the resignation of Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei after the firing of a well-known anti-corruption prosecutor by Guatemala’s Attorney General Maria Porras last week
• The Moscow Times (28/7/21): Guatemala Cancels Order for Russian Vaccines
• Al Jazeera (27/7/21): US curbs work with Guatemala after anti-corruption leader removed - Juan Francisco Sandoval was sacked last week as the head of a prosecution unit charged with tackling corruption.
• Democracy Now (26/7/21): Protests Demand Resignation of Guatemalan President After Firing of Top Anti-Corruption Prosecutor
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Guatemalan anti-corruption prosecutor flees country after sacking - Juan Francisco Sandoval fled early on Saturday after being dismissed in a move that sparked international condemnation.
• Democracy Now (13/7/21): Guatemalan Protesters Demand Resignation of President over Mishandling of Pandemic
• Speak Out Socialists (26/6/21): June 27, 1954: A Bloody CIA-Sponsored Coup in Guatemala
• Democracy Now (14/6/21): Calls for Justice in Guatemala After Two Trans Activists Killed
• Democracy Now (7/6/21): VP Harris Visits Guatemala, Urging President Giammattei to Crack Down on Migration

Guyana Updates

• The Guardian (17/8/21): Exxon’s oil drilling gamble off Guyana coast ‘poses major environmental risk’ - Experts warn of potential for disaster as Exxon pursues 9bn barrels in sensitive marine ecosystem [climate-change-news, big-oil-news]
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.

Haiti Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Just Security (21/12/21): A group of Haitian migrants have filed a federal class action lawsuit against the U.S. government following their experience at the border in Del Rio, Texas, including interactions with Border Patrol agents on horseback. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (20/12/21): Hostages held in Haiti escaped by slipping past armed guards in the night - Twelve kidnapped in October, including an infant and small child, walked hours by moonlight to safety [!]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): Haiti truck blast: Death toll rises to 90, but still ‘incomplete’ - Deputy mayor of Cap-Haitien says death count ‘still unfortunately incomplete’ as several victims remain in hospital. [!]
• Telesur (17/12/21): Haitian Consulate Staff Arrested In The Dominican Republic - Williamson Jean and Jackson Lorrain were arrested on their way to a farm, where they hoped to deliver 11 passports and produce IDs for the hundreds of Haitian workers. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (16/12/21): Haiti: Transporters Get Compensation for Fuel Subsidies Removal - On Dec. 8, the Ariel administration eliminated fuel subsidies worth US$1.5 billion, causing the price of a gallon to rise to US$2.5 for gas and US$1.8 for diesel. Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (16/12/21): Haiti gang releases remaining kidnapped missionaries - Group of hostages, originally numbered 17 people, were abducted by a gang known as 400 Mawozo after visiting an orphanage [!]
• The Guardian (14/12/21): At least 60 people killed in Haiti fuel truck explosion - Total number of injured still not known after truck carrying gasoline overturned around midnight in the Sanmarie area [!]
• New York Times (12/12/21): Haiti’s Leader Kept a List of Drug Traffickers. His Assassins Came for It. - In the months before his murder, President Jovenel Moïse took a number of steps to fight drug and arms smugglers. Some officials now fear he was killed for it. [corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news, drug-news] Very interesting research here. They frame primarily along lines of drug trafficking, however their reporting touches on deeper structural issues - power of a wealthy elite for whom the drug business is another way to make money. Efforts by Moïse to nationalize various resources (such as ports) are interesting in this regard as well.
• Telesur (8/12/21): Haiti To Suppress Fuel Subsidies Gradually From Friday - "Since 2010, the State has lost over US$1.5 billion in subsidies for oil products. This year, the situation becomes unsustainable," Economy Minister Boisvert stated. [social-woes-news, energy-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Department of Homeland Security officials advised in August against deporting Haitians back to Haiti, fearing the deportations could violate U.S. human rights obligations, according to an internal warning sent to officials at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. Hamed Aleaziz reports for BuzzFeed News. [immigrant-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Three more hostages from a group of 17 Canadian and American missionaries and their children kidnapped in Haiti have been released, the American Christian charity they were with have said. The latest releases bring the total number of people freed to five. The organization did not provide the names or ages of those released, or the circumstances of their release, including whether a ransom had been paid. Oscar Lopez and Maria Abi-Habib report for the New York Times.
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Three more hostages released in Haiti, US missionary group says - The 400 Mawozo gang still holds 12 hostages, including children, kidnapped in October and is seeking ransom payments. [!]
• Telesur (3/12/21): 5 Haitians Shot Dead During Gang Clash In Martissant Town - The Grand Ravine and God Village gangs fought the Ti Bwa gang leaders, whom they accused of staying in their territory. Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (30/11/21):Advocates Say Haitian Refugees Face Neglect and Mistreatment at New Mexico ICE Jail [immigrant-news, us-policy-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Telesur (21/11/21): Dominican Republic Deport Over 1,500 Haitians - The Dominican Republic tries to stop immigration through actions such as the suspension of its visa program for Haitian students and the prohibition of public health care for undocumented citizens. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (22/11/21): Two of the 17 American and Canadian missionaries kidnapped in Haiti last month have been released. The two hostages who were released “are safe, in good spirits, and being cared for,” Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries said in a statement. The Haitian authorities confirmed the release but provided no further details. Widlore Mérancourt, Miriam Berger and Claire Parker report for the Washington Post.
• Telesur (18/11/21): Haiti: Ex-Officer Implicated In Moise's Murder Dies in Hospital - His death occurred the same day the Haitian Police reported it sent three agents to Turkey to extradite Samir Handal, a businessman who is also linked to President Moise's assassination. Note about Telesur
• Just Security (16/11/21): Turkish authorities have placed a man considered a suspect in the July 7 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in prison, Turkey’s state-run news agency has reported. The suspect, businessman Samir Handal, who was wanted on an Interpol notice, was detained at Istanbul Airport early on Monday. Handal had been transiting from the U.S. to Jordan. His arrest was announced by authorities in Haiti later on Monday. No indication has been given yet as to whether Haiti will seek Handa’s extradition. AP reports.
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Haitian gang leader says he will temporarily lift fuel blockades - Blockades have caused fuel shortages across Haiti, forcing hospitals, businesses and schools to limit operations.
• PINNED: In These Times (18/8/21): How Domestic Elites and Foreign Meddling Undermine Haitian Democracy - To understand the rise and fall of Jovenel Moïse, we must understand the forces that propped him up.
• Just Security (12/11/21): Border crossings by Haitian migrants into the U.S. fell by more than 90% in October [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): The U.S. government has pledged to strengthen Haiti’s National Police as Haiti struggles with a spike in gang-related violence and severe fuel shortages that have deepened its looming economic crisis [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (8/11/21): The Haitian gang that kidnapped 17 American and Canadian missionaries, including five children, has shown the U.S. proof that at least some of those kidnapped are still alive, a senior Biden administration official has said.
• Jacobin (28/10/21): Haitian Sugarcane Cutters Work as Indentured Servants in the Dominican Republic - Haitian workers, fleeing destitution, harvest 6,000 pounds of sugarcane a day for poverty wages in the Dominican Republic. Jacobin talked to some of them. [labor-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/10/21): Haiti gang leader demands PM resign amid harsh fuel shortages - Jimmy ‘Barbecue’ Cherizier said he would allow the safe passage of fuel trucks if Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigns.
• The Guardian (22/10/21): Aid to Haiti sent by sea to bypass rising gang violence - WFP carried out 18 voyages this month from Port-au-Prince to Miragoane, bypassing violent neighborhoods
• Just Security (22/10/21): Haiti’s national police chief Léon Charles resigned yesterday, according to local media.
• Telesur (23/10/21): Jamaica to Hand Over a Suspect in Moise’s Assassination Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (21/10/21): Haiti gang leader threatens to kill American missionary hostages - Officials have said 400 Mawozo gang is demanding $1m per hostage in ransom to release 17 members of missionary group.
• The Intercept (20/10/21): Bolivian Government Says Haitian President’s Assassins Were Part of a Plot to Kill Its Own Leftist Leader - Citing a previous Intercept investigation, the Bolivian government said it has evidence of a plan to kill Luis Arce, a protégé of Evo Morales. [leftist-news, electoral-news, militant-far-right-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): Local unions representing Haitian public transportation drivers, schools, and other businesses have gone on strike to protest the nation’s lack of security and the growing wave of kidnappings in the country. “This strike is our way of saying that we can’t take it anymore,” Diego Toussaint, a Haitian entrepreneur said [labor-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): The Haitian gang called 400 Mawozo that abducted the group is asking for $1 million each for their release, a total of $17 million, a top Haitian official said yesterday. Justice Minister Liszt Quitel said the FBI and Haitian police are in contact with the kidnappers and seeking the release of the missionaries as well as five children, one an 8-month baby and the others 3, 6, 14, and 15 years old. Quitel said negotiations could take weeks. “We are trying to get them released without paying any ransom. This is the first course of action. Let’s be honest: when we give them that money, that money is going to be used for more guns and more munitions,” he said
• The Guardian (18/10/21): Haitian prime minister forced to flee official ceremony after armed gangs appear - The incident highlights the deteriorating security conditions in Haiti’s capital
• Mother Jones (17/10/21): American Missionaries and Their Families Have Been Kidnapped in Haiti - “Port-au-Prince is posting more kidnappings in absolute terms than vastly larger Bogotá, Mexico City, and São Paulo combined.”
• Democracy Now (11/10/21): 126 People, Mostly Haitians, Found Locked in Shipping Container in Guatemala [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Haiti elections postponed indefinitely amid political crisis - Haiti’s prime minister dismisses electoral administration members, again casting the vote’s timeline into uncertainty.
• The Guardian (23/9/21): US envoy to Haiti resigns over ‘inhumane’ decision to deport migrants - Daniel Foote excoriates Washington in letter addressed to Antony Blinken for deporting hundreds from a border camp
• Just Security (22/9/21): The U.S. is preparing to nearly double the number of Haitians being deported from Texas starting today, raising alarm that the return of thousands of cash-strapped migrants will add a new dimension to the humanitarian crisis in Haiti. [immigrant-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/9/21):
• Democracy Now (22/9/21): Mexican Authorities Target Haitian Asylum Seekers Fleeing Dangerous Conditions in U.S. [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (21/9/21): U.S. Border Patrol Agents on Horseback Whip Haitian Asylum Seekers
• Just Security (20/9/21): Haitian officials have asked the U.S. to stop the deportation flights since Haiti is in crisis and cannot handle thousands of homeless deportees. [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (17/9/21): U.S. Resumes Deportation Flights to Haiti as 10,000 Haitian Asylum Seekers Cross Rio Grande [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/9/21): Haiti PM Henry replaces justice minister after sacking prosecutor - The reshuffle comes as attention turned to phone calls Henry made to suspect in President Jovenel Moise assassination.
• Democracy Now (15/9/21): Haitian Prime Minister Fires Prosecutor After He Seeks to Charge Henry in Killing of Jovenel Moïse
• Just Security (14/9/21): Haiti’s Office of Citizen Protection is demanding that Prime Minister Ariel Henry step down as authorities seek to interview him about telephone calls he allegedly had with a key suspect in former President Jovenel Moïse’s assassination
• Al Jazeera (19/8/21): Earthquake relief arrives in Haiti, gangs kidnap two doctors - Kidnapping prompts Port-au-Prince hospital to shut down for 2 days, further complicating relief efforts.
• Just Security (19/8/21): Tensions have been growing in Haiti over the slow pace of aid reaching victims following the earthquake over the weekend that killed more than 2,100 people, destroyed more than 7,000 homes and damaged more than 12,000, leaving about 30,000 families homeless
• Democracy Now (19/8/21): Death Toll from Haitian Earthquake Nears 2,200
• Democracy Now (18/8/21): Haiti Earthquake Death Toll Hits 2,000 as Survivors, Many Now Unhoused, Lashed by Tropical Storm
• Democracy Now (17/8/21): Tropical Storm Adds to Haiti’s Misery Two Days After Massive Earthquake Kills Over 1,400; Immigrant Advocates Denounce Biden Administration for Deporting Haitian Refugees
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Haiti’s Earthquake Death Toll Soars to 1,300 as Tropical Storm Barrels Toward Stricken Island
• Common Dreams (15/8/21): Over 700 Dead From Earthquake as Powerful Storm Heads Toward Haiti - "When it comes to medical needs, this is our biggest urgency," said Prime Minister Ariel Henry.
• The Guardian (14/8/21): Many feared dead as Haiti struck by 7.2-magnitude earthquake - Quake felt across the Caribbean revives memories of 2010 event when 200,000 are thought to have died
• Just Security (13/8/21): Haiti’s presidential election, which had been scheduled for September, have been pushed back to November 7
• Jacobin (31/7/21): Colombia’s Mercenary Industry is Behind the Haitian Coup - Almost every assassin involved in the murder of Haitian president Jovenel Moïse was Colombian. That’s no coincidence: if you want mercenaries for hire on the cheap, often trained by the US military, you can find them in spades in Colombia.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): Half of Burma Could Contract COVID, Pakistan Enacts New Restrictions, Haiti Hospitals Overwhelmed
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): Haiti Makes More Arrests in Moïse Assassination Probe
• The Guardian (23/7/21): Haiti: shots fired at Moïse’s funeral as protesters clash with police - Mourners and officials dive for cover as teargas and black smoke spread into ceremony
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Violence overshadows memorial service for slain Haitian president - Supporters of Jovenel Moise interrupted the mass as they cried out and accused Haiti’s elite of killing the president.
• Democracy Now (22/7/21): Four Colombian Mercenaries Tied to Moïse Assassination Were Trained at Fort Benning in U.S.
• Just Security (21/7/21): Haiti’s elections minister Mathias Pierre has said that the “big fishes” behind the assassination of Moïse still remain at large
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner has opened an investigation into Antonio Emmanuel Intriago Valera, the owner of a Miami-based security firm linked to the assassination of Haiti’s President Jovenel Moïse
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Interim Haitian Prime Minister Claude Joseph to step down - Joseph will cede power to Ariel Henry, who the international community recognised as ‘designated prime minister’.
• Just Security Early Edition (14/7/21): Haitians are apprehensive of foreign troops being sent to Haiti as the Haitian government seeks help from U.S. and U.N. troops
• Al Jazera (12/7/21): Haiti advocates reject US push for elections after Moise killing - Civil society activists say holding vote amid deep political instability is not the way out of Haiti’s current crisis.
• Democracy Now (12/7/21): Police Arrest Man Who Planned to Assume Haitian Presidency as More U.S. Ties Emerge
• The Guardian (10/7/21): Doubts raised about who was behind the assassination of Haiti’s president - Police claims that Jovenel Moïse was killed by a mainly Colombian hit squad thrown into doubt
• The Majority Report (9/7/21): (VIDEO) Haitian Revolution 2.0 Is The Only Thing That Can Save Haiti
• The Guardian (9/7/21): Alleged killers of Haiti president in country for three months, say authorities - Details emerge about foreign hit squad accused of being behind assassination of Jovenel Moïse
• Just Security (9/7/21): Colombia’s government confirmed late yesterday that six of the suspects it had been asked about were retired members of the Columbian military; Civilians are protesting the assassination of Moïse, with increasing anger at the foreign hit squad that Haiti’s police have said are responsible for the assassination.; The White House has offered assistance to Haiti and has renewed U.S. support for legislative and presidential elections in Haiti that had been scheduled for this September
• Just Security (9/7/21): To Save Haiti’s Democracy, Don’t Hold Elections
• Democracy Now (8/7/21): Haiti Declares “State of Siege” After Assassination of President Jovenel Moïse
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): Haitian President Jovenel Moïse Assassinated; New York Times (7/7/21): Haiti says four suspects in [president's] assassination have been killed and two arrested.
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): Hurricane Elsa heads to Haiti amid fears of floods and landslides - The storm already ripped off roofs, destroyed crops and downed trees and power lines in the eastern Caribbean on Friday.
• Al Jazeera (30/6/21): Haitian journalist, activist killed in Port-au-Prince shootings - Killings come amid a surge in gang violence in the Haitian capital that has displaced thousands in recent weeks.
• World Socialist Web Site (18/6/21): Child malnutrition and hunger skyrocket in Haiti as COVID-19 infections spike
• Democracy Now (10/6/21): India Logs Pandemic-High Daily Death Toll; COVID Surges in Haiti, Where 0% Are Vaccinated
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): Haiti postpones June 27 constitutional referendum - No new date was announced for the vote in the latest twist in the Caribbean nation’s political crisis as President Jovenel Moise continues to rule by decree.
• Democracy Now (4/23/21): Report: Haitian President Jovenel Moïse Sanctioned Attacks on Civilians
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): Haiti Has Yet to Receive a Single Vaccine Dose for Its 11 Million People

Honduras Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Telesur (11/12/21): Honduras Resumes Trial Against Guapinol River’s Defenders - The activists have been in preventive detention for more than two years on illegal deprivation of liberty and aggravated arson charges. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (10/12/21): Honduras: Hernandez to Complicate Incoming President Castro - The right-wing-controlled Congress received two bills: one seeking to establish "protections" for public officials and former high-level officials and another attempting to pre-define the 2022 national budget. [corruption-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Incoming Honduras gov’t to keep Taiwan ties for now: Officials - Comments come a day after Nicaragua broke off diplomatic relations with Taiwan to resume ties with China. [!]
• Telesur (2/12/21): Honduran President Hernandez Accepts Victory of Xiomara Castro - "The Nov. 28 elections took place in peace and order. I congratulate Castro and all our compatriots, whose civic display strengthened democracy," Hernandez stated. [electoral-news] Note about Telesur
• Jacobin (3/12/21): Washington Tried to Destroy Honduras’s Left. Now It’s Back in Power. - Xiomara Castro won Honduras’s presidency pledging to tax wealth, expand the welfare state, and end the country’s “failed neoliberal model.” Her win was also a defeat for the US, which backed a coup that overthrew her husband Manuel Zelaya 12 years ago. [us-policy-news, leftist-news]
• Popular Front (30/11/21): The Narco-Paramilitaries of Honduras - Today we speak to Jared Olson about the grip narco-paramilitaries have on the poor people of Honduras. [far-right-news, capitalist-farce-news, us-policy-news, podcast-news]
• Democracy Now (30/11/21): “A Moment of Hope”: Xiomara Castro’s Likely Win in Honduras Ends Years of Right-Wing Rule After Coup [electoral-news, leftist-news]
• Democracy Now (29/11/21): Opposition Leader Xiomara Castro Claims Victory After Record Turnout in Honduras Election [electoral-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): [In Honduras,] [Xiomara] Castro [de Zelaya] ["wife of a controversial former leftist president deposed by the military"] took a commanding early lead in the initial results from the Honduras election, however the final results will most likely take days to be announced. Live reporting on the election is provided by The New York Times. [electoral-news]
• The Guardian (24/11/21): ‘She’s the only option’: Hondurans hope Xiomara Castro can lead the nation in a new direction - Candidate would be the country’s first female president who vows to stop the violence and corruption causing many to flee [electoral-news, leftist-news]
• Telesur (15/11/21): UN Human Rights Office Warns Of Political Violence in Honduras - Over the last weekend, two candidates were assassinated in public events leading up to the November 28 elections. Note about Telesur
• The Intercept (6/11/21): Violent Infiltration - In Honduras Land Battles, Paramilitaries Infiltrate Local Groups — Then Kill Their Leaders [indigenous-news, labor-news, militant-far-right-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Telesur (14/11/21): Opposition Candidate Francisco Gaitan Shot to Death in Honduras - Gaitan's death occurs 15 days ahead of Nov. 28 elections in which 14 political parties will participate for the first time. Note about Telesur
• Just Security (5/11/21): An independent presidential candidate in Honduras has been arrested, along with his wife and mother-in-law, just weeks before Honduras holds presidential elections. Santos Rodríguez Orellana, a former army captain, was one of the first to publicly accuse President Juan Orlando Hernández’s brother of ties to drug trafficking. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CounterPunch (13/10/21): US Intervention and Capitalism Have Created a Monster in Honduras [us-policy-news, history-news, analysis-news, privatization-news, far-right-news, immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (12/10/21): Honduras: Mayoral Candidate & Daughter of Berta Cáceres Targeted Ahead of November Elections
• The Guardian (2/10/21): Fire devastates Honduras' Caribbean resort island of Guanaja - Blaze engulfs more than 200 houses and businesses, forcing hundreds of residents to flee
• Democracy Now (22/9/21): “Life Has Become Unlivable in Honduras”: How Corruption & Drug Trade Fueled Migration to U.S.
• The Economist (25/8/21): Democracy is quickly eroding in Central America - Things are looking grim in El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua A bit of neoliberal propaganda, of course, but a nice review
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Iran, Ghana Among Those Hit Hardest By Russia’s Vaccine Delivery Delays – BBC [Honduras mentioned as well]
• Democracy Now (21/7/21): Protesters Call for Release of Afro-Indigenous Garífuna Leaders in Honduras; State Department Bans Former Honduran President Lobo from Entering U.S.
• Democracy Now (6/7/21): U.S.-Trained Honduran Ex-Military Officer Found Guilty of Participating in Murder of Berta Cáceres
• Democracy Now (29/6/21): Human Rights Court Holds Honduran State Responsible for Killing of Trans Woman Vicky Hernández
• Democracy Now (24/3/21): Indigenous Environmental Activist Juan Carlos Cerros Escalante Shot Dead in Honduras

Jamaica Updates

• Telesur (23/10/21): Jamaica to Hand Over a Suspect in Moise’s Assassination Note about Telesur
• The Majority Report (21/8/21): The BRUTAL History Of Jamaica's Slave Trade w/ Tom Zoellner
• Democracy Now (15/7/21): Jamaica Seeks Reparations for Slavery from Britain
• The Michael Brooks Show (3/11/19): Illicit History - 6 - How The Drug Trade Replaced Socialism in Jamaica

Mexico Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

News

• Al Jazeera (30/12/21): Mexico’s central bank to launch digital currency by 2024 - The central bank considers the technology very important to financial inclusion, Mexico’s government wrote on Twitter. - But a senior central bank source, who requested anonymity, told the Reuters news agency on Thursday that the government announcement was “not official.” - Mexico’s central bank is legally independent of the government. [cryptocurrency-news]
• The Guardian (30/12/21): ‘It was civil war’: photographing Mexico’s women’s rights protests - Mahé Elipe captures the visceral anger as International Women’s Day protests turned into a violent clash with police [protest-news, civil-rights-news] [!]
• New York Times (30/12/21): Mexico says it will allow cruise ships with Covid outbreaks to dock. [covid-news] [!]
• Telesur (29/12/21): Mexico Authorizes Use of Cuban Vaccine Abdala Against COVID-19 - Mexico's Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks (Cofepris) authorized on Wednesday the emergency use of the Abdala vaccine, developed in Cuba, against covid-19. [covid-news] Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (27/12/21): Parents of 43 Missing Mexican Students Demand Answers in 2014 Disappearances
• The Guardian (24/12/21): Latin America urges US to reduce plastic waste exports to region - Study finds exports to region doubled in 2020 with practice predicted to grow as US invests in recycling plants [industrial-failure-news]
• The Majority Report (25/12/21): Chiapas Villages Are Being Attacked By Paramilitaries In Mexico [leftist-news]
• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Mexico’s lithium and the global race to lock in ‘white gold’ - A massive lithium deposit in Mexico’s Sonora state was exempt from AMLO’s drive to nationalise strategic minerals. [resource-news, china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (16/12/21): Protesters Demand Mexico Decriminalize Immigration to U.S. After Recent Death of 55 Migrants [immigrant-news, protest-news]
• Democracy Now (15/12/21): Mexican Families Remember Disappeared Loved Ones
• RMTransit (29/4/21): The Fantastic Metros of Latin America [rail-news]
• Telesur (13/12/21): Mexican Police Block Migrants Heading To The Guadalupe Basilica - The migrants arrived in Mexico's capital city with the intention of visiting this temple, which is a mass pilgrimage site for Catholic believers from around the world. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Democracy Now (10/12/21): Truck Carrying Asylum Seekers Crashes in [Chiapas] Mexico, Killing 54 and Injuring Over 100 [immigrant-news]
• Telesur (7/12/21): Mexico: Firework Explosion Injures 30 Citizens In Puebla - Preliminary investigations indicate the explosion was due to an escape in a clandestine gunpowder workshop. Note about Telesur [!]
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Gangsters use vehicles to ram into Mexico prison and free nine inmates - The armed group broke into the jail in Tula and opened fire, injuring a guard and a police office
• Telesur (1/12/21): Mexico Increases Workers’ Minimum Wage by 22 Percent - The Business Coordinating Council (CCE) declared the increment of the minimum daily wage by 22 percent for next year. [labor-news] Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Biden Administration to Reinstate and Expand Trump-Era “Remain in Mexico” Policy [us-policy-news, immigrant-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): Mexico has announced a joint plan with the U.S. to send development and agricultural aid to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, in an effort to stem the wave of migration. The joint plan did not contain any specific funding commitments, and the U.S. Agency for International Development called the plan “a new framework for development cooperation to address the root causes of irregular migration from northern Central America.” AP reports. [immigrant-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (1/12/21): The wife of Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman was sentenced yesterday to three years in prison and four years of supervised release, along with a forfeiture of $1.5 million, in connection with drug trafficking and money laundering charges related to her husband’s narcotics empire. Emma Coronel Aispuro pleaded guilty in June to the charges. Addressing the court, Coronel expressed remorse for her involvement with Guzman and the Sinaloa Cartel, and the harm she may have caused U.S. citizens. Maria Santana reports for CNN. [crime-news, drug-news]
• Telesur (29/11/21): Mexico Contains Advance Of Several Central American Caravan - While Mexican authorities use national guards to prevent the advance of asylum seekers, new migrant caravans continue to form in Central America. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Popular Front (5/10/21): Is a Civil War Coming to Chiapas? - We speak to journalist Janet Basurto about the increasing violence and formation of self-defence militias in the historic Chiapas region of Mexico. [podcast-news, indigenous-news]
• Telesur (26/11/21): AMLO Ends Mining Concessions in Mexico: 'They Just Speculated' - The President of Mexico reaffirmed his energy policy of not granting any more mining concessions in Mexico. Note about Telesur
• Jacobin (19/11/21): The Far Right Is Lurking Within Mexican Conservatism - As AMLO’s transformative social programs gather stream in Mexico, the country’s conservative opposition parties are making overtures to the far right. [far-right-news]
• Telesur (26/11/21): Attack On Feminist March Leaves 3 Deaths & 2 Injured in Mexico - Men with assault rifles and grenades opened fire against Guaymas City Mayor Karla Cordova, who had arrested members of criminal organizations last week. [civil-rights-news, crime-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (24/11/21): Mexico’s AMLO does U-turn on central bank job - In a surprise move that rattled markets, Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador proposed Victoria Rodriguez, a deputy finance minister, to replace his initial nominee for central bank governor, former finance minister Arturo Herrera. [economic-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Mexico allows some in migrant caravan to stay, others push to US - The caravan set off from southern Mexico in late October, with numbers dwindling amid gruelling conditions [immigrant-news]
• CPJ (17/11/21): Unidentified attackers shoot at car of Mexican journalist Beatriz Flores after she received threatening call
• Just Security (19/11/21): The North American Leaders’ Summit involving President Biden, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau focused on presenting a unified front rather than grappling with more controversial issues such as trade disputes or migrant policy. The leaders agreed to form a working group on regional supply chain issues and also agreed to limited vaccine sharing. Katie Rogers and Natalie Kitroeff report for the New York Times. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Mexico is sending at least 1,500 National Guard troops to Cancun following a rise in violence in the state of Quintana Roo, in the southeastern corner of the country. The announcement follows a rise in gang shootings in the area, including a Nov. 5 gang shooting at Puerto Morelos, south of Cancun, and a shootout in Tulum, close to Cancuun, on Oct. 20 which resulted in the deaths of an Indian woman and a German man. Reuters reports.
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Mexican environmental campaigner missing after attack on villagers - Irma Galindo Barrios, a member of the Mixtec people, was defending indigenous lands from illegal logging [climate-change-news, indigenous-news]
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Mexican Indigenous Land Protector Irma Galindo Barrios Missing for Over 2 Weeks [indigenous-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/11/21): Migrant caravan headed to US border amid Mexico tensions - The group has seen dwindling numbers amid harsh conditions and standoffs with Mexican authorities as it heads north. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/11/21): Mexico anti-money laundering chief resigns amid scandal - Authorities found $35,000 in cash on private plane carrying guests to Santiago Nieto’s wedding in Guatemala. [corruption-news]
• Telesur (9/11/21): US Extradites Mexican Former Governor Accused of Embezzlement - The embezzlement of millions of dollars in public funds that Duarte carried out would have been impossible without President Peña Nieto's knowledge and consent. [corruption-news, us-policy-news] Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (9/11/21): Fresh scrutiny for Mexico after arrest of suspect in NSO spyware case - Businessman allegedly used surveillance tool to spy on journalist, raising questions about authorities’ links to Israeli company [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (6/11/21): At least 19 killed as truck smashes into cars at toll booth in Mexico - The crash sparked an inferno that also injured at least three people on the highway between Mexico City and Puebla state
• Telesur (5/11/21):Central American Caravan Overwhelms Mexican National Guard - After unsuccessfully attempting to contain the migrants, the officers rushed into their vehicles to get away as quickly as possible from the site of the clashes. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (5/11/21): Press Freedom Tribunal in The Hague to Hold Governments Accountable for Journalist Killings [surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news]
• Telesur (2/11/21): Mexican National Guard Kills A Cuban Migrant in Chiapas [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (4/11/21): Protests in Mexico Call for Justice for Murders of Women and Transgender Community [protest-news, lgbtq-news]
• Telesur (1/11/21): Fuel Pipeline Explosion Leaves 15 Mexicans Injured in Puebla Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (1/11/21): Mexican journalist dies two days after being shot - Alfredo Cardoso was shot five times on Friday after being abducted from his home in violent southwestern Guerrero state.
• Democracy Now (1/11/21): Veteran Reporter Fredy López Arévalo Is at Least the Ninth Murdered Journalist in Mexico This Year
• Telesur (29/10/21): Mexican Journalist Is Shot To Death In Chiapas Note about Telesur
• Democracy Now (25/10/21): Thousands of Asylum Seekers Form Caravan in Southern Mexico, March Toward U.S. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (21/10/21): Shootout in Mexican tourist hotspot of Tulum leaves two women dead - Women killed were from Germany and India, believed to be caught in crossfire of clash between drug gangs
• Jacobin (19/10/21): AMLO Is Nationalizing Mexico’s Lithium Supply - In Mexico, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is attempting to transform the country’s overpriced energy industry by nationalizing lithium — a move essential to kicking out private mining and developing a robust and affordable public energy sector. [energy-news]
• Telesur (13/10/21): Mexico: PAN Leaders Prepare Vox-Style Far-Right Political Project [far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• CPJ (18/10/21): Breitbart reporter Gerry Aranda found dead in Mexico
• Just Security (15/10/21): Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Tuesday that a statue of Christopher Columbus, which was erected in 1877 and taken down last year by government officials “amid threats of further damage,” is being replaced by a pre-colonial Indigenous woman named “the Young Lady of Amajac
• Jacobin (14/10/21): The Official Narrative About Mexico’s Drug War Is All Wrong - From assumptions about drug traffickers and police and elected officials’ corruption to Mexicans’ economic incentives for selling drugs, the Mexican drug trade has been drenched in sensationalist and inaccurate mythology. We need to totally upend our understanding of it. [drug-news, crime-news]
• The Economist World This Week (16/10/21): The American government said it would open up land and ferry crossings at its borders with Canada and Mexico in November, but only to travellers who are vaccinated against covid-19. From January this will also apply to truckers and students from Canada and Mexico, who had been exempted from the ban on crossings.
• Labor Notes (13/10/21): Interview: A Mexican Auto Worker on the Fight for a Real Union at GM's Silao Plant [labor-news]
• Jacobin (11/10/21): In Oaxaca, Indigenous People Are the Vanguard - The southern Mexican state of Oaxaca is known for its tradition of left political militancy. And its indigenous people have often been at the vanguard of that struggle. [labor-news, leftist-news, indigenous-news, history-news, analysis-news]
• The Guardian (8/10/21): Mexico police intercept 652 Central American migrants in three cargo trucks - Discovery is one of biggest of US-bound migrants, with 90% Guatemalans and nearly 200 unaccompanied minors [immigrant-news]
• CPJ (1/10/21): Mexican journalist Manuel González Reyes shot dead in Cuernavaca
• The Economist World This Week (2/10/21):A judge in Mexico refused to issue arrest warrants for 31 scientists whom the country’s attorney-general wants to prosecute for mishandling funds. The lack of evidence for the charges, and the fact that the law was not in force at the time of the alleged crime, has led to accusations that the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador is trying to politicise public life.
• The Guardian (29/9/21): Amlo ridiculed for saying Mexico’s feminist movement began two years ago - Backlash after Mexican president bizarrely claims movement had been formed to oppose his administration [civil-rights-news]
• The Guardian (24/9/21): Prosecutors in Mexico seeking arrest warrants for more than 30 scientists - Scientific community is outraged, saying charges of organised crime are an attempt by Mexico’s president to silence them [science-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (22/9/21): Mexican Authorities Target Haitian Asylum Seekers Fleeing Dangerous Conditions in U.S. [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (21/9/21): 10 Women and Girls Killed Each Day in Mexico, Warns Amnesty International
• On Labor (19/9/21): Finally, looking beyond U.S. borders, international labor and human rights organizations, including the AFL-CIO and other major unions, are calling for FIFA to prioritize human and worker rights during preparations for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Preparations for the 2022 World Cup, hosted by Qatar, have been harshly criticized for unaddressed allegations of severe abuse – including thousands of deaths – of migrant workers, and serious criticism has been directed at FIFA and other governing bodies for their failure to take remedial action. [labor-news]
• The Guardian (8/9/21): Seventeen patients die after hospital in Mexico floods amid torrential rain - The victims, mostly suffering from Covid, died when the flood knocked out electricty to the hospital in Hidalgo state
• Democracy Now (8/9/21): 7.0 Earthquake Rattles Acapulco, Killing at Least One Person
• New York Times (7/9/21): Mexico’s Supreme Court Votes to Decriminalize Abortion - The ruling, which sets a precedent for the legalization of abortion nationwide, follows years of efforts by a growing women’s movement in Mexico.
• Democracy Now (7/9/21): Mexico City to Replace Columbus Monument with Statue of Indigenous Woman
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Mexico blocks new US-bound migrant caravan - Migration advocate slams swoop on caravan of about 400 people from Central America, Haiti and Venezuela as ‘cruel’ act. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (3/9/21): Mexico faces migration crises on northern, southern borders - Complicating Mexican officials’ efforts to address immigration issues is an ‘unusual avalanche’ of asylum seekers from Haiti.
• Democracy Now (31/8/21): Relatives of Mexico’s Disappeared Accuse Government of Failing to Act
• LaborNotes (30/8/21): Mexico’s Only Independent Farmworker Union Struggles On Despite Obstacles [labor-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Democracy Now (30/8/21): Mexican Authorities Attack Caravan of U.S.-Bound Asylum Seekers [immigrant-news]
• South China Morning Post (25/8/21): China has failed to cut its fentanyl trafficking, US congressional panel finds - ‘China remains the primary country of origin for illicit fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances,’ US-China Economic and Security Review Commission says - Rather than ship directly into US, Chinese manufacturers now send raw materials to Mexico, where cartels make the drug then deliver it across the border
• Al Jazeera (24/8/21): Mexico arrests drug cartel leader expelled by US - Eduardo Arellano Felix, known as ‘the doctor’, faces organised crime and drug charges in Mexico.
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): Death Toll from Tennessee Flash Floods Rises to 22; Hurricane Grace Kills at Least 8 in Mexico; Mexican Journalists Demand Justice for Slain Radio Reporter Jacinto Romero Flores
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Mexican radio journalist fatally shot in Veracruz state - At least a 141 journalists have been murdered in Mexico since 2000, according to monitoring group Article 19.
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (19/8/21): GM workers in Mexico reject union in win for US free trade pact - A previous vote at the General Motors plant in Silao in April was thrown out after Mexico found irregularities in the election held by the union, a chapter of the country’s largest syndicate, the Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM). [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Venezuela government, opposition launch talks in Mexico - Representatives of the two sides sign an agreement on Friday in Mexico City, officially inaugurating start of dialogue mediated by Norway.
• Left Voice (12/8/21): Mexico: AMLO Installs a Replica Aztec Temple While He Dispossesses Indigenous Communities - The Mexican government pays lip service to indigenous struggle, all while dispossessing indigenous communities.
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (12/8/21): Mexico hikes interest rates again in bid to tame inflation - Mexico’s central bank hiked interest rates for the second consecutive meeting as rising consumer prices threaten inflation expectations and the economic recovery.
• On Labor (12/8/21): The U.S. government and Tridonex, a Mexican auto parts maker, came to an agreement today to improve working conditions at its plant. This enforcement comes as an early test of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The company will now provide severance and backpay to at least 154 workers who were fired and “will support employees’ rights to determine union representation without coercion.” ... A telling example of such labor repression occurred in this same case last year, when a trade union lawyer was jailed for organizing workers at the plant. She was only released after agreeing to internal exile to another Mexican state and accepting a ban on appearing in labor court.
• Just Security (12/8/21): The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR) has raised concerns over a U.S. policy, under a Covid-19 expulsion order known as Title 42, to expel some asylum-seekers and migrants by flying them to southern Mexico.; The migrants and asylum-seekers being flown to southern Mexico by the U.S. are then being deported to their homelands by Mexican authorities, raising serious concerns about the treatment of vulnerable migrants needing humanitarian protection
• Democracy Now (12/8/21): U.N. Condemns U.S. Expulsion of Central American Asylum Seekers to Mexico
• Democracy Now (11/8/21): COVID-19 Surges in Mexico; Bangladesh Launches Rohingya Refugee Vaccination Drive
• The Intercept (10/8/21): DEA and ICE Award Mexican Police Commander Whose Unit Is Accused of Grisly Massacre - The commander was honored at a U.S. consulate for his “exceptional,” “outstanding,” and “continuous contributions” to law enforcement agencies.
• Al Jazeera (10/8/21): US to send more COVID-19 vaccines to Mexico amid Delta surge - The announcement comes as both the US and Mexico grapple with rising infections and slow vaccination rates. [us-policy-news]
• New York Times (10/8/21): Mexico’s President Defends News Anchor After Cartel Threat - President Andrés Manuel López Obrador came out in defense of a TV news anchor, Azucena Uresti, after she received a death threat, apparently from a powerful drug cartel.
• The Guardian (9/8/21): Mexican cartel threatens to kill TV news anchor over ‘unfair’ coverage - Members of Jalisco New Generation cartel circulate video threatening Milenio Television and anchor Azucena Uresti
• The Guardian (4/8/21): Mexico sues US gunmakers in unprecedented bid to stop weapons crossing border - Country seeking up to $10bn damages in Massachusetts lawsuit - US-made weapons used in cartel battles and attacks on civilians
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Mexico’s referendum on trying former presidents falls short - Only 7 percent of eligible voters participated in the referendum, far below the 40 percent threshold to make it binding.
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Mexico, Russia & Bolivia Send Aid to Cuba as U.S. Announces New Sanctions
• Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Mexico holds referendum on whether to investigate ex-presidents - Amid expectations of low turnout, critics slam vote promoted by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador as unnecessary.
• Just Security (30/7/21): The Mexican government is seeking to overhaul the Merida Initiative, a $3 billion U.S. aid program that’s been the centerpiece of security cooperation between the two nations for more than a decade, frustrated by the continued raging violence in Mexico
• CPJ (28/7/21): Mexican journalist Ricardo López shot and killed in Sonora
• Al Jazeera (27/7/21): ‘Long live peace:’ Mexican drug cartel factions announce truce - Three of the main factions in a decade-old turf war – the Metros, the Scorpions and the Reds – sign a truce agreement.
• Democracy Now (26/7/21): Mexico Sends Food and Medical Supplies to Cuba, Condemns U.S. Blockade
• Democracy Now (21/7/21): Veracruz Becomes Latest Mexican State to Decriminalize Abortion Before 12 Weeks of Pregnancy
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): ‘Shameful’: Mexican president decries alleged NSO spying - Some 15,000 Mexican cellphones appeared on the leaked list of surveillance, at least 50 people close to president.
• Just Security (12/7/21): Mexico’s Invisible Human Rights Crisis Intensifies
• Liberation News (9/7/21): Eyewitness: On the ground with militants of Mexico’s “Fourth Transformation”
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): Indigenous Land Defender Assassinated in Chiapas
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): Mexico water supply buckles on worsening drought, crops at risk - Weather forecasts warn of high temperatures portending crop damage and water supply shortages.
• Democracy Now (29/6/21): Mexican Supreme Court Decriminalizes Adult Use of Marijuana
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Eighteen bodies found after suspected drug cartel shootout in northern Mexico - The victims appear to members of the Sinaloa and Jalisco gangs fighting for control of the narcotics trade in Zacatecas state
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (24/6/21): Mexico’s central bank hikes rates, in surprise split decision - Banco de Mexico raised its key rate by a quarter point to 4.25 percent in response to a jump in inflation.
• Al Jazeera (21/6/21): Argentina, Mexico withdraw envoys over Nicaragua crackdown - Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s government has arrested 17 opposition figures this month, including five presidential hopefuls.
• Al Jazeera (21/6/21): AMLO to investigate US-Mexico border killings of innocents - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador says 15 bystanders were killed in weekend violence.
• Democracy Now (21/6/21): Authorities Uncover Likely Remains of Missing Indigenous Activist 3 Weeks After Disappearance
• On Labor (10/6/21): In the second request of its kind, the Office of United States Trade Representative (USTR) has asked that Mexico investigate alleged labor rights abuses in violation the newly signed USCMA agreement. Workers at a Tridonex auto-parts factory in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas were allegedly harassed and fired by management for organizing with an independent union, SNITIS, rather than the company-sponsored charro union aligned with their employer.
• The Intercept (7/6/21): Biden’s Border Agenda Collides With the Realities of Mexico’s Violence - In regions wracked by the drug war, the U.S. and Mexico remain hooked on militarization.
• Democracy Now (7/6/21): Mexican President’s Party to Lose Supermajority After Midterm Elections Marred by Violence; Al Jazeera (7/6/21): Mexico lower house polls show setback for AMLO’s ruling coalition - President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s coalition is set to fall short of the two-thirds majority necessary for big reforms.
• Left Voice (5/6/21): Socialists Should Not Support AMLO - This Sunday, midterm elections are taking place in Mexico. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, better known as AMLO, has been governing the country for three years. Despite his progressive image, he was a close ally of Trump. Certain socialists are nonetheless supporting AMLO.
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): 89 Politicians Killed in Run-up to Mexican Midterm Elections
• The Economist (27/5/21): Voters should curb Mexico’s power-hungry president - Andrés Manuel López Obrador pursues ruinous policies by improper means
• Al Jazeera (28/5/21): Illegal building threatens Mexico’s Teotihuacan ancient sites - Property owner operating with ‘total impunity’ in area where building is forbidden, zone’s head says.
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): In Mexico the police chief of Sinaloa state, the name of which is associated with a powerful drug cartel, was murdered by bandits who fired 200 bullets into his car.
• Democracy Now (27/5/21): Another Political Candidate Killed in Mexico Amid Surge of Pre-Election Assassinations Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Another candidate assassinated in Mexico ahead of June 6 vote - Alma Barragan was shot dead during a campaign event becoming the 34th murdered candidate this election season.
• Democracy Now (25/5/21): Mexico City Protesters Demand Vaccines for Students Before a Return to Classes
• Jacobin (20/5/21): AMLO Has a Project to Transform Mexico - Mexico is set to hold crucial midterm elections early next month. Though far from perfect, the governing MORENA party remains the Left’s best bet to transform the unequal, corruption-addled country that AMLO’s administration inherited three years ago.
• On Labor (13/5/21): Yesterday, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai formally requested Mexican authorities to investigate alleged labor rights abuses at a General Motors factory in the Mexican State of Guanajuato. The request comes in response to revelations from last month, when Mexican officials investigating possible improprieties in a ratification vote for the Silao-based factory’s collective bargaining agreement discovered that a number of workers’ ballots had been destroyed. The violations prompted congressional outrage, with three Democratic Congressmen writing to General Motors to express their concern. Brought under the freshly enacted United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), Tai’s request constitutes the first ever labor rights complaint filed by the United States under any trade agreement and is poised to set new case law under the revised NAFTA accord.
• On Labor (11/5/21): The AFL-CIO has filed the first labor rights petition against Mexico under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The petition alleges that auto parts company Tridonex in Matamoros, Mexico, blocked workers from electing a union of their choice.
• Democracy Now (11/5/21): Mother’s Day Marchers Demand Mexican Government Take Action to Find Missing Children
• Left Voice (8/5/21): Migration in the Time of Biden and AMLO: Imperialism and the Border - 18,000 migrant children detained in the United States in February. 170,000 Central Americans and Mexicans apprehended by border control in March. Behind these numbers, there are thousands of stories, marked by racism, xenophobia, and the outrage of different governments.
• Democracy Now (4/5/21): At Least 23 Killed in Mexico City Subway Disaster [2]
• Jacobin: At Mexico’s Tourist Resorts, Exploitation Is the Bottom Line - Every winter, thousands of North American tourists flock to sunny destinations in Mexico to be served by workers on poverty wages. The Mexican government has promoted tourism as a route out of poverty, but the profits from the industry are flowing away from local communities.
• The Economist: Mexico’s president is giving the armed forces new powers -- do note that the crime issues they talk about here are largely related to US policy and diplomatic bullying
• Left Voice: Two Thousand Migrants Missing in Mexico - According to a report by the Mexican Federation of Public Human Rights Organizations (FMOPDH), at least 2,000 migrants are missing in Mexican territory, while the government maintains 8,000 National Guard troops on the border.
• Al Jazeera (27/4/21): Mexican president thanks Cuban counterpart for COVID support - Cuba sent about 1,000 health workers to Mexico earlier in the pandemic to help bolster its healthcare system.
• Democracy Now (4/27/21): Refugees Stuck at U.S.-Mexico Border Demand Entry to Pursue Asylum Claims
• Al Jazeera: Drought in Mexico reaches critical levels as lakes dry up - Authorities fear that once-thriving bodies of water that served surrounding communities may turn into dusty plains.
• Al Jazeera: ‘I don’t feel safe’: Migrants face attacks, threats in Mexico - New report finds 492 attacks against migrants stuck at US-Mexico border or expelled from US to Mexico since January 21.
• Jacobin: The Mexican Right Is at War With AMLO - The Mexican right knows it's set to lose the upcoming midterm elections — that's why it's desperately trying to use the courts and the National Electoral Institute to wage war on President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's MORENA party.
• Jacobin (8/2/21): AMLO Cannot Build a Transformative Political Project Through Mexico’s Military - Andrés Manuel López Obrador has wagered that he needs the support of the military in order to execute his progressive agenda. But the Mexican army is a conservative organization looking after its own interests, and it is no substitute for the mass base that AMLO must mobilize if he is to achieve true transformation.
• Michael Brooks Show (5/12/19): Commentary: AMLO's First Year (TMBS 117)

Nicaragua Updates

• Just Security (13/12/21): China has donated one million Covid-19 vaccines to Nicaragua, days after Nicaragua cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favor of Beijing. BBC News reports. [china-policy-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (10/12/21): Nicaragua has cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favor of China. “In the world, there is only one China,” Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said in a televised address yesterday. “Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry expressed displeasure with the choice of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega to switch recognition to Beijing in a statement, and said it would immediately cease assistance programs and clear out its embassy in Managua,” Joyu Wang reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): Nicaragua detains former OAS ambassador, critic of Ortega - Edgard Parrales was picked up by unidentified men near his home in Managua, his wife and a rights observer say. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (19/11/21): Under fire for ‘sham’ vote, Nicaragua begins withdrawal from OAS - Organization of American States adopted resolution last week saying Nicaraguan elections lacked ‘democratic legitimacy’.
• Democracy Now (17/11/21): U.S. Bars Entry For Nicaraguan President Ortega and Other Officials Following Election [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): US slaps sanctions on Nicaragua officials, citing ‘sham’ election - US Treasury action sanctioned nine Nicaraguan officials and a public ministry over the November 7 election that saw President Daniel Ortega re-elected to a fourth term. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): Secretary of State Antony Blinken has issued a scathing rebuke against the “undemocratic” elections in Nicaragua. [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega Wins Fourth Term After Arresting Opponents, Crushing Dissent - Ortega blasted the U.S. government for supporting a coup attempt in 2018 and for continuing to interfere in Nicaragua. Many have also denounced ongoing and devastating U.S. sanctions on Nicaragua
• Left Voice (7/11/21): Nicaragua: An Orchestrated Election Day for President Ortega - Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega is seeking a fourth presidential term. The elections are taking place in the middle of a major national crisis, the division of the bourgeois opposition, and threats by U.S. imperialism. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (8/11/21): Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega quashed dissent to ensure a victory in the country’s election on Sunday. President Ortega detained challengers, shut down campaign events, and closed voting stations. This will be Ortega’s fourth consecutive term in office and suggests that the country is entering a new era of repression.
• Democracy Now (5/11/21): U.S. Sanctions Nicaraguan Gov’t as President Ortega Sidelines Opponents Ahead of Election [us-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): Opposition leaders in Nicaragua (at least, those who have not fled abroad) called on voters to boycott a presidential election on November 7th. Daniel Ortega, the autocratic president, is set to win another term after locking up plausible opponents. The EU called the election “fake”. [electoral-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (2/11/21): Facebook has said that it shut down a “troll farm — a coordinated effort to manipulate public discourse using fake accounts” — run by the Nicaraguan government to spread pro-government and anti-opposition messages.
• Just Security (22/10/21): Nicaragua’s national police have arrested two leaders of the country’s top private business association, just a day after a regional body, the Organization of American States Permanent Council, called for the immediate release of political prisoners in Nicaragua and expressed serious concern about the upcoming elections. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has called Roman Catholic bishops “terrorists” and has said that many countries would have arrested them
• Just Security (30/9/21): The U.S. government has pulled its defense attaché out of Nicaragua following comments complimentary of Nicaragua’s military that drew the ire of the political opposition
• Al Jazeera (9/9/21):Nicaragua orders arrest of prominent writer Sergio Ramirez - President Daniel Ortega has been accused of cracking down on critics, political opponents ahead of November elections.
• The Economist (25/8/21): Democracy is quickly eroding in Central America - Things are looking grim in El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua A bit of neoliberal propaganda, of course, but a nice review
• CPJ (27/8/21): Nicaraguan authorities charge journalist Carlos Fernando Chamorro with financial crimes
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Nicaragua police arrest editor of newspaper critical of Ortega - Arrest of La Prensa editor Juan Hollman Chamorro is latest in President Daniel Ortega’s crackdown on opposition figures.
• Just Security (9/8/21): The U.S. has placed visa restrictions on 50 immediate family members of Nicaraguan officials who have been involved in or benefited from Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s growing repression of opposition, the State Department has said. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (4/8/21): Candidate for Nicaragua vice-president placed under house arrest - In continuing government crackdown, complaint accuses Ortega opponent Berenice Quezada of ‘terrorism’ for criticising lack of freedom in the country
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): Nicaragua Arrests More Opposition Candidates; Ortega Accuses U.S. of Meddling
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Another Nicaraguan presidential hopeful arrested in crackdown - President Daniel Ortega faces international rebuke for cracking down on potential opponents ahead of November elections.
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): US imposes visa curbs on Nicaraguan officials amid crackdown - US imposes restrictions on 100 Nicaraguan officials it says are involved in government crackdown on political opponents and rights abuses.
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): More opposition leaders detained in Nicaragua crackdown - Rights groups accuse President Daniel Ortega of increasing authoritarianism amid wave of arrests before November polls.
• Al Jazeera (26/6/21): Nicaragua: Police arrest brother of opposition leader Chamorro - Pedro Joaquin Chamorro Barrios is among at least 20 Nicaraguans arrested this month in widening government crackdown.
• The Guardian (22/6/21): Top Nicaraguan journalist flees country amid escalating crackdown
• Al Jazeera (21/6/21): Argentina, Mexico withdraw envoys over Nicaragua crackdown - Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s government has arrested 17 opposition figures this month, including five presidential hopefuls.
• Al Jazeera (13/6/21): More opposition leaders arrested in widening Nicaragua crackdown - Critics accuse President Daniel Ortega of cracking down on opponents ahead of elections set for later this year.
• New York Times (6/6/21): Nicaragua’s Democracy Hangs by Thread as Crackdown Deepens - Under President Daniel Ortega, the country is a step away from becoming a one-party state. Money-laundering charges against his main rival have heightened concerns.
• Democracy Now (3/6/21): Nicaragua Police Arrest Opposition Leader and Likely Presidential Challenger Cristiana Chamorro

Panama Updates

• Al Jazeera (15/12/21): Another son of Panama’s ex-president pleads guilty to corruption - Ricardo Alberto Martinelli was extradited to the US last week from Guatemala in a case involving the Brazil-based company Odebrecht. [corruption-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (2/12/21): Son of Panama’s ex-president pleads guilty in US corruption case - Luis Enrique Martinelli pleaded guilty to money laundering in scheme involving Brazil conglomerate Odebrecht [corruption-news]
• Telesur (30/11/21): New Elections for President of Capac in Panama Dec 15 - Engineer Carlos Allen Arosema is postulated for the presidency of the guild of the Panamanian Chamber of Construction(Capac), next Dec. 15. Note about Telesur
• Jacobin (15/11/21): Panama’s Elites Denounce “Corruption” — But It’s Rooted in Their Economic Model - This fall, Panama has seen large “pro-democracy” and “anti-corruption” protests, backed by mainstream media and much of the country’s business elite. But corruption isn’t owed to a few “bad apple” politicians — it’s rooted in Panama’s ultra-privatized economy. [analysis-news, capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news, history-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Son of ex-Panama president extradited to US from Guatemala - The extradition is the latest tied to $788m in bribes Latin American construction giant Odebrecht admitted to paying.
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Panama’s ex-president gets second acquittal in phone-tapping case - Ricardo Martinelli was accused of wiretapping more than 150 people, including politicians and journalists. [pegasus-news, leak-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): In an “unprecedented collaboration,” Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama have announced a chain of new protected marine areas that will create an “ocean highway” for species to swim more freely through waters threatened by overfishing and warming sea temperatures. [climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): More than 91,000 migrants crossed perilous Darien Gap this year - Majority of those who took Panama’s dangerous jungle route in hopes of reaching North America are Haitians, IOM says. [immigrant-news]
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.

Paraguay Updates

• WSWS (28/12/21): Uruguayan bus company workers reject proposed “pre-agreement” [labor-news, union-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Average of two girls aged 10 to 14 give birth daily in Paraguay, Amnesty finds - Longstanding plague of child abuse and extreme abortion laws fuel crisis, report says
• Al Jazeera (30/11/21): How Indigenous communities in Paraguay are fighting big soy - Amid pesticide contamination and land evictions, tribal leaders say their villages in Paraguay are at a crisis point. [indigenous-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• The Guardian (21/11/21): Indigenous community evicted as land clashes over agribusiness rock Paraguay - Police in riot gear tore down a community’s homes and ripped up crops, highlighting the country’s highly unequal land ownership [indigenous-news]
• Telesur (3/11/21): 700,000 Paraguayans At Risk Of Being Evicted By The Abdo Regime - Since the beginning of the year, 11 Indigenous communities have been forcibly evicted from lands claimed by private companies. [indigenous-news, privatization-news, capitalist-farce-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (15/10/21): The Itaipu hydroelectric dam located along the border of Brazil and Paraguay, sometimes described as one of the seven modern wonders of the world, is feeling the heat of the worst drought in Brazil in 90 years. Last year, the dam’s power output was at its lowest level since 1994, and Hugo Zarate, the plant’s superintendent, has said that production this year will likely be lower still, by about 15% [energy-news, climate-change-news]
• The Guardian (27/9/21): Paraguay on the brink as historic drought depletes river, its life-giving artery - Severe drought that began in late 2019 continues to punish the region while experts say climate change and deforestation may be intensifying the phenomenon [climate-change-news, infrastructure-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/8/21): Paraguay wildfires threaten Indigenous land and protected forests - ‘High temperatures, strong winds, low humidity’ create ideal conditions for wildfires across Paraguay. [indigenous-news, climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (30/7/21): Paraguay Indigenous community evicted in land dispute - Indigenous community Ka’a Poty 1 wants land back and compensation after armed police and guards allegedly burned homes. [indigenous-news]

Peru Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• WSWS (28/12/21): Peruvian air traffic controllers strike 72 hours for better conditions, protections from pandemic [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Telesur (27/12/21): Peru To Compensate Victims' Relatives of 2020 Police Brutality - The Justice Ministry decree sets a compensation of US$10,000 for the families of those who died in the Agrarian Strike which took place in La Libertad and Ica regions. Note about Telesur [!]
• Telesur (20/12/21): Hitmen Kill Amazon Indigenous Leader in Peru - Besides denouncing that the Police did not undertake an immediate pursuit of the murderers, villangers recalled that Antonio Yagkuag Baais had received death threats from human traffickers. [indigenous-news] [!]
• Telesur (17/12/21): Peru: Prosecutor Pursues Pedro Castillo over Alleged Corruption - State prosecutor (Abogado General del Estado), Daniel Soria, denounced this Friday the President of Peru, Pedro Castillo, before the Attorney General (Fiscal de la Nación) for the alleged crimes of illegal sponsorship and influence peddling. [corruption-news] Note about Telesur
• WSWS (17/12/21): Castillo government unleashes police against mining protest in Peru [indigenous-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, protest-news] Important Note about WSWS
• CPJ (10/12/21): Peruvian journalist receives threatening messages, demands to stop reporting on local officials [!]
• Telesur (7/12/21): Peruvian Congress Rejects Motion to Impeach President Castillo - The Peruvian Congress rejected the proposal to open an investigative process to impeach President Pedro Castillo. [leftist-news, politics-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Financial Times (7/12/21): ‘Too many mistakes’: Peru’s president threatened with impeachment after shaky start - Pedro Castillo’s popularity is falling as his young government lurches from crisis to crisis [leftist-news, far-right-news, politics-news] Paywall Summary (?): With approval ratings peaking at 40% in September and now down to 25%, Castillo's popularity has a lost majority even with rural and poor voters. Peru's constitution, FT reports, makes it very easy to impeach presidents, although it requires 2/3 majority in congress to remove from power. His government has been rocked with instability and accusations of graft, going through a new minister every two weeks. In addition are policy misteps - the ones that FT reports, not nationalizing natural gas reserves, and reverting on announcements to close four privately owned mines, are notably right-wing reversals. However, there is also sentiment that the ruling Lima elites are trying to undermine him, a working-class farmer and teacher. FT notes that this erratic government has had a negative impact on the economy, although a Citibank economists believes that impeachment will only make the situation worse. The article also raises the issues many leftist reformers face, and in my view one of the main issues with capitalism - capital flight. A note: Minister Durand of Women and Vulnerable Populations reports to Jacobin in an interview (6/12/21) it is difficult to enact many of the policies Castillo wanted (which is upsetting his electorate) while under the intense pressure of the right-wing.
• Telesur (7/12/21): Peru's Left Puts Aside Differences, Shows Support for Castillo - Peru is currently living a crucial moment as the legislature of the Andean country will decide on Tuesday whether to open a debate on a motion of vacancy (impeachment) against leftist president Pedro Castillo, who took office a little more than four months ago. [politics-news, leftist-news] Note about Telesur [!]
• Jacobin (6/12/21): Peru Minister: Our Socialist Government Is Under Attack. But We Can Still Win. - Peru’s socialist president, Pedro Castillo, came into office to fight neoliberalism, but his agenda has been derailed by the Right. One of his ministers tells Jacobin how the Castillo government can fight back and win power for ordinary Peruvians. [leftist-news, socialist-news, politics-news, analysis-news, covid-news, civil-right-news] Interesting interview, certainly worth reading. The reference that Peru is now at 70% vaccination is interesting - I couldn't find data to directly compare, but it does appear that Peru has high vaccination rates, which you can tell from here
• Telesur (6/12/21): Free Peru Party Won't Support Impeachment Against Castillo - "Our party has disagreements with President Castillo. However, we will not support a coup d'état attempt against him," Free Peru Secretary said. Note about Telesur
• Telesur (3/12/21): Peruvian TV Reports Possible Audio Leaks Against Pedro Castillo - America TV announced for this Sunday a new report on Castillo, which shows images of the exterior of the president's house, taken at night with an infrared camera, and a voice asking for support for Castillo's presidency. Note about Telesur
• Peoples Dispatch (27/11/21): Thousands march against right-wing maneuver to impeach President Pedro Castillo [leftist-news, protest-news]
• Telesur (28/11/21): Peru: 7.5 Magnitude Earthquake Affects at Least 90 People - The earthquake was also experienced in Ecuador's Guayaquil, Quevedo, Duran, Quito, and Cuenca localities, as well as, in Colombia. Note about Telesur
• Telesur (26/11/21): Peruvian Neo-Fascists Attack Ex-Presidential Candidate Lescano - "As I was closing my garage to enter my house, these people beat me with sticks, blow up my cell phone, and broke into my home," Yonhy Lescano condemned. [militant-far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (25/11/21): Peru: President Castillo To Boost Small Enterprises Development - "For over two years, our entrepreneurs have bravely fought the economic recession... Now, it is our turn to help them," he stated. [economic-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Peru opposition moves to impeach President Pedro Castillo - Castillo, who has seen his popularity plunge in recent months, dismissed the ‘political noise’.
• The Intercept (24/11/21): Peru Opens Criminal Probe Into Journalist Who Exposed Illegal Collusion With Witness - Ernesto Cabral of OjoPúblico, along with The Intercept Brasil, exposed Peruvian prosecutors’ misconduct in the sprawling Car Wash probe [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Telesur (19/11/21): Fujimori Dictatorship Advisor Montesinos Sentenced To 17 years - However, judges ruled that the punishment has been served given that he was imposed a 25-year sentence in 2001. [corruption-news] Note about Telesur
• Telesur (18/11/21): 'We Demand Justice', Victims of Fujimori's Mass Sterilizations - The Peruvian dictator sought to reduce poverty rates in his country by curbing the birth rate of low-income people. [far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• CPJ (12/11/21): Peru opens criminal investigation into Ojo Público’s Ernesto Cabral over corruption reporting [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Telesur (9/11/21): Peru: Defense Minister Resigns Amid Wrongdoing Allegations Note about Telesur
• Bloomberg (2/11/21): Peru to Deploy Troops in Lima After Rise in Disorder Nationwide ... "amid protests [against mining and oil companies] and a planned transport strike" [labor-news, indigenous-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/11/21): Peru confirms new moderate-left cabinet - Political infighting within Pedro Castillo’s ruling Marxist party did not prevent Congress from approving a new moderate cabinet. [leftist-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/10/21): Peru’s President Castillo swears in new prime minister - Left-wing former head of Congress Mirtha Vasquez following resignation of Guido Bellido after just two months in the job. [leftist-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): Abimael Guzman, head of Peruvian rebel group Shining Path, dies - Imprisoned rebel leader, who had been ill in recent months, died at the age of 86.
• CPJ (31/8/21): Peruvian journalist Carlos Yofré López convicted in one criminal defamation case, on trial in another
• The Economist World This Week (21/8/21): Peru’s foreign minister, Héctor Béjar, resigned after videos surfaced of him claiming the CIA, America’s intelligence agency, backed the Shining Path, a communist insurgency. Critics say Mr Béjar was one of several radical, inexperienced ministers chosen by the left-wing president, Pedro Castillo, who narrowly won an election in June. Mr Castillo must select a new foreign minister by the end of the month, when Congress will vote on whether to accept his cabinet.
• South China Morning Post (11/8/21): Human rights abuses claimed in hundreds of China belt and road projects - A report has identified rights allegations involving Chinese companies in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and Africa - Myanmar had the highest number of recorded cases, followed by Peru, Ecuador and Laos [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (2/8/21): Peru’s new FM aims to retain central bank head, calm markets - The former World Bank economist, sworn in late Friday, offers a counterbalance to Peru’s newly appointed left-wing gov’t.
• Democracy Now (29/7/21): Peru: Pedro Castillo Sworn In, Vows to Be Champion of the Poor
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): Peru opposition to lead Congress in setback for president-elect - On the eve of Pedro Castillo’s inauguration, he and his Free Peru party are dealt a political blow.
• The Guardian (19/7/21): Pedro Castillo makes unity plea after finally being named Peru’s next president - One-time teacher asks for ‘effort and sacrifice’ in first remarks after being confirmed as president-elect
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Former Peru dictator’s spymaster reappears in alleged plot to swing recount - Vladimiro Montesinos secretly recorded apparently suggesting bribes be paid to secure election for Keiko Fujimori
• Al Jazeera (26/6/21): Peru vote review to resume as country braces for protests - Supporters of presumed president-elect Pedro Castillo and right-wing Keiko Fujimori are taking to streets of Lima.
• Al Jazera (13/6/21): Peru’s Fujimori clings to fraud claim as Castillo nears win - Thousands of Keiko Fujimori’s supporters rally in Lima alleging fraud in Peru’s presidential runoff as vote counting nears an end.
• Left Voice (9/6/21): Castillo Wins Narrow Victory in Peruvian Elections - With 99.8 percent of the votes counted, Pedro Castillo, the teacher from Cajamarca, is ahead by almost 71,000 votes and looks poised to narrowly win the Peruvian elections.
• Democracy Now (8/6/21): Peruvian Presidential Candidate Fujimori Claims Electoral Fraud as Leftist Opponent Gains Lead
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Peru adjusts COVID-19 death toll, now highest per capita overall - A government review finds that 180,764 died from the disease – almost triple the previous official figure of 69,342.
• World Socialist Web Site (25/5/21): Amid raging pandemic, Peruvian police evict thousands of working class families
• Al Jazeera (24/5/21): At least 14 killed in Peru attack before presidential election - Deadly attack in remote region of Peru known for coca production comes less than two weeks before presidential runoff.
• Jacobin: With Pedro Castillo, Peru Has a Chance to Vanquish Fujimorismo

Venezuela Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); States (cr.); Topography (cr.); Vegetation (note the large 'savanna' in the middle is referred to as Llanos) (cr.); Agriculture, Industry, and Resources (cr.); Oil; (cr.)

News

• Law and Crime (29/12/21): ‘A Lie Totally Devoid of Reality’: Venezuelan Businessman Sues Fox News, Lou Dobbs, Sidney Powell Over ‘Egregious and ‘Sinister’ Claims Linked to 2020 Election [media-news, far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): How Venezuela this year almost doubled its oil output - Petroleos de Venezuela, known as PDVSA, won help from small drilling firms by rolling over old debts and later obtaining steady supplies of a key diluent from Iran. [big-oil-news]
• Financial Times (20/12/21): UK Supreme Court thwarts Maduro’s bid to control $1.9bn Venezuela gold - Opposition leader Juan Guaidó recognised as legitimate president with authority to appoint central bank members [court-news] Paywall Summary (?): Maduro wants to use the gold reserve money, under the aegis of the UN, to help with the COVID pandemic. Both Guaidó and Maduro have appointed bank boards to govern these assets, and the Supreme Court ruling means that so long as the UK recognizes Guaidó as the president of Venezuela (although, I should note, the term under which he is considered president will end this January), then the determinations about the assets made by Guaidó's board must be followed. The UK still has a de facto ambassador from the Maduro regime.
• Jacobin (12/12/21): In Latin America, the Long Shadow of Colombia’s Far-Right Is Receding - Led by former president Álvaro Uribe, Colombia’s far-right bloc has exported its politics across Latin America. Fortunately, thanks to inspiring street protests and an electoral challenge from the left, Colombia may not be a regional bastion of reaction for much longer. [history-news, militant-far-right-news, us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news, social-woes-news, privatization-news, analysis-news]
• Democracy Now (10/12/21): Venezuela’s Juan Guaidó, Who Led Failed Coup Efforts, Speaks at White House Democracy Summit - The Biden administration continues to recognize Guaidó as Venezuela’s leader. That’s despite his involvement in a failed coup attempt in 2019 and his failed bid in 2020 to storm parliament with a group of lawmakers in order to forcefully swear himself in as Venezuela’s leader. Guaidó was also linked to a failed coup plot in 2020 led by Venezuelan dissidents and an American mercenary company.
• Telesur (7/12/21): Venezuela: Five Candidates Run For Governor In Barinas State - The Socialist candidate Jorge Arreaza will compete against four candidates who have not been part of the Bolivian government. [electoral-news] It appears that the leading candidate in the Nov 21, Freddy Superlano (opposition), has been barred from the upcoming re-election; the Barinas election was tight, but seemed to favor Superlano Note about Telesur
• Wall Street Journal (5/12/21): Venezuela’s U.S.-Backed Opposition Movement in Danger of Breaking Up - Major faction in coalition led by Juan Guaidó withdraws and calls for new leadership after failure to unseat strongman Nicolás Maduro Paywall Summary (?): Julio Borges (leader of the center-right Justice First party), in exile in Colombia, called for an end to Guaidó's leadership of a movement that "calls itself an interim government, complete with a bureaucracy and diplomats"; he is also resigning as Guaidó's chief foreign diplomat, and says the interim government has to go, arguing that it has lost legitimacy with Venezuelans, "an assertion backed by polling". The interim government is mired, he argues, in allegations it mishandled billions of dollars ($10bn+) in Venezuelan state assets in the US and Colombia after Guaidó was deemed the legitimate ruler. WSJ reports that Guaidó currently polls at around 15%, tying him with Maduro, although this is in the wake of landslide electoral victory's for Maduro's party last month. The interim govt is supposed to protect the $10bn+ assets from both Maduro and creditors trying to recoup funds from the Caracas (Maduro) govt, assets including Citgo, Mono\acutem eros Colombo Venezolanos SA (a fertilizer plant in Colombia), and $1bn+ in gold in the Bank of England. Opposition lawmakers have reported attempts by Guaidó's party to loot the fertilizer plant company for personal gain. This all comes as Guaidó's term ends on January 5th, which is what nominally legitimates him as Venezuela's president (over Maduro). The West says it will continue to recognize him as such, but these developments may alter that course.
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Former Colombia FARC leader killed in Venezuela: Local media - Hernan Dario Velasquez was a negotiator in 2016 peace agreement, but announced three years later he had rearmed. [!]
• Common Dreams (1/12/21): 'Surreal': Biden Invites Venezuelan Coup Leader Juan Guaidó to US 'Summit for Democracy' - Critics slammed Biden's decision to invite the leader of an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the Venezuelan president to an ostensibly pro-democracy gathering. [us-policy-news]
• Reuters (30/11/21): Venezuela opposition leader urges unity ahead of governorship re-run [surveillance-and-censorship-news, electoral-news]
• Common Dreams (25/11/21): US Legal Observers Report 'Balanced and Transparent' Election Process in Venezuela - The federal government's "consistently false narrative of elections in Venezuela is formulated to legitimize the continuation of U.S. sanctions, which are violations of international law and amount to economic warfare," said the head of the National Lawyers Guild [electoral-news]
• New York Times (23/11/21): In Venezuela’s Flawed Vote, Maduro Shows One Way to Retain Power - European observers said the elections were neither free nor fair. They showed how President Nicolás Maduro’s government, however unpopular, can win by excluding and splitting opponents. [electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): Venezuela’s recent elections an improvement over past votes: EU - Head of EU observer mission says while ‘better conditions’ marked weekend vote, some problems persisted [electoral-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): The ruling Socialist government in Venezuela has claimed a landslide victory in local and state elections. The elections for the first time in four years included the participation of most of the country’s U.S.-backed opposition movement. However, “the results weren’t a surprise in a country where [President Nicolás] Maduro controls resources, access to the press and most of the members of the National Electoral Council,” Kejal Vyas and Juan Forero report for the Wall Street Journal. [electoral-news]
• Wall Street Journal (22/11/21): Venezuela’s Ruling Party Sweeps Local and Regional Elections - The opposition participated for the first time since 2017, but Maduro’s party won all but three of 23 state governorships Paywall Summary (?): WSJ notes that the opposition won a third of the 335 mayoral races, as well as governorship of the oil-rich Zulia state. The opposition's nominal position is that they knew they'd lose the election, but this is about taking baby-steps towards future elections that are More free and fair", based negotiations in Mexico, and with lifting US sanctions as leverage. Juan Guadó, recognized b the West as the rightful president, "acknowledged a new reality for the opposition", who said the opposition needs to unite in spite of fractures, engage in talks in Mexico with Maduro's aides, and "shoot for the next presidential elections", and acknowledged that democratic openings in the future would require progressively lifting sanctions. WSJ doesn't report any systemic fraud (although does not a notable irregularity regarding violence at one polling station, and opposition reports that polling stations stayed open too long), but instead argues that the elections were problematic due to controlled access to the press and of the National Electoral Council. They also report that polls show opposition has weak popular support. Further, Guaidó's term as head of congress expires on January 5th, which is the role which the US argues legitimizes him as president of Venezuela, highlighting the need in the opposition for new leadership (although the US says it will still recognize him into the future).
• Common Dreams (22/11/21): Five Reasons the Left Won in Venezuela - These elections should put the Biden administration on notice that continuing to support the MUD, and in particular, the fiction of Guaidó as "interim president," is a failed policy. [electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (22/11/21): Venezuela opposition says it must rebuild after electoral loss - About 42 percent of eligible voters cast ballots in Sunday’s vote, which saw Venezuelan opposition suffer heavy defeat. [electoral-news]
• Democracy Now (22/11/21): Venezuelan Regional Elections Hand Victory to Party of President Nicolás Maduro - Venezuelans took to the polls Sunday for regional elections, where President Nicolás Maduro’s political party and its allies won by a landslide. The elections had a turnout of around 42 percent. Opposition parties participated for the first time in four years — after boycotting the elections since 2018. The process Sunday was observed by dozens of international monitors, mostly from the European Union, fulfilling a demand from the opposition. It marked the first time EU monitors traveled to Venezuela in 15 years. This comes as Venezuela continues to face a brutal economic crisis exacerbated by U.S. sanctions, and as supporters of Maduro urge international forces to stop intervening in the country. [electoral-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has said that talks with the opposition will not restart until the U.S. releases the Venezuelan government envoy Alex Saab. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Bruce Bagley, a retired University of Miami professor, has been sentenced to six months in prison in a money laundering case connected to Venezuela. Bagely was the go-to academic expert on drug trafficking in Latin America, however a Manhattan federal judge yesterday sentenced Bagley “for his role in secretly laundering millions of dollars on behalf of some of the same bad guys he dedicated his life to studying,” Joshua Goodman reports for AP.
• Telesur (17/11/21): Four Venezuelans Died Due To Fire In A Chilean Migrant Shelter - "Although firefighters worked very hard, the fire spread quickly because the shelter's structure was antique," Talca Province Fire Brigade Commander Iturra stated. [immigrant-news, far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (12/11/21): A Venezuelan judge has granted a rare appeal to six U.S. oil executives who have been jailed in Venezuela for four years on corruption charges. The six men were arrested in 2017 in Venezuela and were convicted of embezzlement in 2020 in a trial marred by delays and irregularities. AP reports
• Just Security (4/11/21): The International Criminal Court (ICC) has opened an investigation into whether crimes against humanity were committed in Venezuela during the state’s repression of anti-government protests in 2017 - The ICC’s formal probe will be investigating claims that Maduro’s security forces participated in the torture and extrajudicial killings of political opponents.
• Al Jazeera (1/11/21): US judge dismisses most charges against Maduro ally Alex Saab - Judge keeps in place one charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering, which carries maximum 20-year prison sentence. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): An envoy for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will plead not guilty to money laundering charges he is facing in the U.S., his lawyer has said. Alex Saab, a Colombian businessman, is accused of using a low-income housing project in Venezuela to gain $350 million in personal wealth.
• Just Security (22/10/21): The Department of Justice (DOJ) is charging three Colombians and two Venezuelans for an alleged Venezuelan bribery scheme, the DOJ has announced.
• Just Security (21/10/21): Spain’s highest criminal court has agreed to extradite Venezuela’s former intelligence chief, Hugo Carvajal, to the U.S., where he faces drug trafficking charges
• CPJ (19/20/21): Venezuelan authorities issue arrest warrant for journalist Roberto Deniz, raid family home [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): Iran and Venezuela have announced plans to sign a 20-year cooperation agreement when Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro visits Tehran in the coming months.
• Democracy Now (19/10/21): Venezuelan President Maduro Says U.S. “Kidnapped” Diplomat Alex Saab
• Just Security (18/10/21): The U.S. has extradited Alex Saab, a top ally of Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro, leading to swift retaliation from the Venezuelan government. Saab, a Colombian businessman, had been detained in West Africa for over a year. His extradition to the United States on Saturday prompted Venezuela to re-apprehend six oil executives on house arrest in Venezuela, including five Americans, and call off negotiations with the U.S.-backed opposition party in Venezuela. Saab is the highest-level Maduro supporter to be extradited to the United States and faces money laundering charges in the Southern District of Florida
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): UN urges independent probe into death of ex-Venezuelan minister - Venezuela’s government says Raul Baduel, who served as defence minister under Hugo Chavez, died due to the coronavirus.
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (12/10/21): Venezuela burns through cash to shore up new bolivar - Venezuela’s central bank has injected around $40m per week into the exchange market after launching a new version of the bolivar with six fewer zeros.
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Colombia troop deployment at Venezuela border raises questions - Move risks escalating tensions, analysts say, as two countries gradually reopen shared border after years-long closure.
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): COVID Deaths in Russia Top 900/Day; Venezuela Accuses IMF of Withholding Pandemic Funds [covid-news]
• Just Security (1/10/21): “About 1,900 fighters belonging to Colombian rebel and crime groups are operating from Venezuela, where they plan attacks and participate in drug trafficking, the commander of Colombia’s armed forces said,” Reuters reports.
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Cuba begins commercial exports of its COVID-19 vaccines - The island nation has begun sending the homegrown, three-dose Abdala vaccine to Vietnam and Venezuela.
• Al Jazeera (16/9/21): Venezuela judiciary perpetuates rights abuses: UN investigators - New report says independence of judiciary has eroded, allowing abuses, including torture, to persist.
• CPJ (13/9/21): CPJ welcomes acquittal of Venezuelan journalist Braulio Jatar
• Just Security (10/9/21): The Spanish police said yesterday that it had arrested the former head of Venezuela’s military intelligence unit, Hugo Carvajal, who had been in hiding since a Spanish court approved his extradition to the U.S. almost two years ago
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Venezuela government signals ‘partial agreements’ at Mexico talks - President Maduro hopes Mexico City talks will help ease global sanctions while the opposition wants guarantees of free and fair regional elections.
• Al Jazeera (2/9/21): Venezuela opposition ends election boycott to run in local polls - The opposition parties announced they will participate in regional polls in a boost to President Maduro’s political legitimacy.
• Al Jazeera (26/8/21): Death toll rises to at least 20 in western Venezuela floods - More than 1,200 houses have been destroyed and 17 people missing as rescue workers search the wreckage in Merida state.
• Popular Front (17/8/21): BONUS: Paramilitary Gangs vs. Venezuelan Special Forces
• Left Voice (21/8/21): Maduro Sells Off Venezuela’s Oil Assets to Pay Foreign Debt - Venezuela’s government has sold off its state-owned shares in a Dominican refinery to pay off foreign debt bonds. That’s about $86 million going into the pockets of international creditors at a time when the country is facing one of the biggest economic, social, and health crises in its history. This is an open door to the further sale of state assets to pay off defaulted bonds and fraudulent foreign debt.
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Venezuela government, opposition launch talks in Mexico - Representatives of the two sides sign an agreement on Friday in Mexico City, officially inaugurating start of dialogue mediated by Norway.
• Just Security (26/7/21): Venezuela has said that a U.S. military plane violated its airspace along its border with Colombia in what it called a “flagrant provocation.”
• Just Security (22/7/21): Independent U.N. rights experts have warned that hundreds of Venezuelan cancer patients could die because they have been caught up in the excessively strict application of U.S. sanctions aimed at Venezuela and the state-owned oil company, Petroleum of Venezuela
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): UK government backs Guaido in Venezuela gold dispute - Release of nearly $2bn Venezuelan gold held by Bank of England hinges on who London recognises as the country’s leader.
• Al Jazeera (13/7/21): Venezuela arrests Freddy Guevara for ‘terrorism, treason’ - Arrest came as unidentified armed men threatened opposition leader Juan Guaido in the carpark to his home.
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Venezuelan police move in on gang-run Caracas neighbourhoods - After two days of heavy shootings in eastern Caracas, law enforcement agents enter the ‘Cota 905’ area.
• The Guardian (8/7/21): Venezuela: intense gun battles rage in Caracas between gangs and police
• Democracy Now (2/7/21): Venezuela Begins Administering Cuban-Made Abdala COVID-19 Vaccine
• The Guardian (21/6/21): ‘Latin America will never be the same’: Venezuela exodus reaches record levels - Country at a ‘tipping point’ that could affect wider region, experts warn, as ‘donor fatigue’ causes aid shortfall
• Democracy Now (17/6/21): Rep. Jim McGovern Calls on Biden to End U.S. Sanctions on Venezuela over “Needless Death”
• Democracy Now (11/6/21): Biden Says “No Strings Attached” to Vaccine Donations, But Venezuela Is Blocked from Getting Any
• Al Jazeera (1/6/21): Colombia extends border closure with Venezuela - The Colombian Foreign Ministry cites COVID for sealing the border, where violence has also broken out, until September 1.
• Al Jazeera (10/5/21): Pandemic fuels Venezuela’s worsening child labour crisis - Coronavirus quarantines coupled with mass migration due to deepening economic woes have boosted the number of children fending for themselves in Venezuela, child rights activists warn.
• The Economist World this Week (6/5/21): For the first time since 2005 members of the opposition in Venezuela were allowed onto the National Electoral Council. Nicolás Maduro, the dictator, wants to persuade the United States that his regime no longer deserves the sanctions imposed on it.
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): Venezuela to begin clinical trials of Cuba’s vaccine candidate - Venezuelan health minister says the nation hopes to produce enough doses of Cuban vaccine to inoculate four million people.; 'Alvarado spoke at Venezuela’s main airport in the capital Caracas, where he announced that the country had received another 50,000 Russian Sputnik V vaccines. He said the nation has now received a total of 1.48 million coronavirus vaccine doses.'
• Miami Herald (30/10/20): Venezuela coup plotters met at Trump Doral. Central figure says U.S. officials knew of plan.
• Popular Front (5/5/20): (podcast) Operation Gideon: The Disastrous US Mercenary Raid into Venezuela /papers/lab-publications (feat. Giancarlo Fiorella)
• Michael Brooks Show (14/3/20): (video) US Propaganda About Venezuela Debunked ft. Ahmed Kaballo (TMBS 129)
• Michael Brooks Show (24/11/19): (video) Warren Is Wrong On Bolivia And Wrong On Venezuela (TMBS 115)
• Jacobin (30/9/19): How Bernie Sanders Should Talk About Venezuela and US Intervention in Latin America - Bernie Sanders is repeatedly asked absurd questions by mainstream reporters about Venezuela. He should use such questions as an opportunity to talk about the long, bloody history of US intervention there and throughout Latin America. [Ben Burgis, Michael Brooks] [analysis-news, history-news, us-policy-news]
• Jacobin (24/5/19): Venezuela Was Supposed to Be Easy - After Juan Guaidó’s fumbling coup attempt in Venezuela, it appears advocates of regime change have fallen flat on their faces. But anti-imperialist mobilization is still as necessary as ever. [analysis-news, us-policy-news, history-news]
• The Majority Report (2/5/19): (video) Economist Explains How The U.S. Completely Ravaged Venezuela
• New York Times (17/10/18): A Tale of Three Presidents - Nicolás Maduro and Donald Trump have an authoritarian bent, as did Hugo Chávez, but the Chávez I knew also believed in social justice, equality and fundamental freedoms.
• Jacobin (14/5/17): Why Is Venezuela Spiraling Out of Control? - Opposition violence and the government’s increasing authoritarianism are both to blame. [history-news, analysis-news, us-policy-news]

Europe Updates

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Europe is seen by many American social democrats as the ideal. But taking a look at Europe shows it is anything but. The far-right is growing in Germany and France (and other places), violence is stirring again in Northern Ireland, far-right extremist politicians are cementing power in Eastern European nations (with the aid of Russia), and austerity politics have driven people to the brink. France is at the breaking point, with Macron unable to hand either the outrage of the left (such as the yellow jacket protests), and thus is unable to contain the conspiracies of the right - no, Macron even indulges in them, with bigoted anti-Islamic rhetoric. The real solution is to democratize the economy, and that such states as France and Germany, often hailed by American liberals as ideal, are at nearly the same breaking point as the US should indicate something deeper is wrong, and a welfare state is simply insufficient.

Regional Updates

• Financial Times (23/12/21): Covid lays bare staffing crisis in Europe’s hospitals - Chronic under-investment means workforce shortages are constraining intensive care provision [labor-news, healthcare-news, covid-news] Paywall Summary (?): In France, 7 of 13 regions have had to trigger hospital emergency plans. In Paris, 1k nursing jobs of 18k remain unfilled. Nationally, around 5% of nursing jobs were unfilled. In Germany, 'almost 90% of hospitals reported being unable to operate fully all their intensive care beds'. In Ireland, a poll found 2/3 of respondents 'had cared for patients who died of Covid-19 and 85% believed the experience had a negative psychological impact on them.' - in rural Ireland, staffing shortages are hitting the hardest. This has prompted meagre reform in France, but unlikely to be sufficient, in a system in which healthcare has been underfunded over time.
• The Guardian (22/12/21): Brussels launches legal action over Polish rulings against EU law - European Commission says it has ‘serious concerns’ about challenges by Warsaw’s constitutional tribunal [court-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (22/12/21): Oxfam Files Complaint Against Moderna; EU Approves Novavax COVID Vaccine [covid-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• The Guardian (21/12/21): Shipwrecked refugee crossings leave 164 dead in Mediterranean, says UN - Attempted crossing from Libya to Europe surge as authorities carry out deadly crackdown on refugees [immigrant-news]
• The Moscow Times (21/12/21): Gas Prices Hit Record High on Russian Supply Squeeze, Cold Snap [russia-policy-news, energy-news] [!]
• Africa News (20/12/21): EU cut ties with C. African Republic over links with Russian mercenaries [eu-policy-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (20/12/21): The [US] Senate will vote next month on legislation from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) to impose sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline as part of a deal that allowed Democratic lawmakers to clear dozens of Biden’s State and Treasury nominees. Jordain Carney reports for The Hill. [politics-news, us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/12/21): Ukraine’s president has received a renewed commitment from NATO that Ukraine could eventually join the military alliance, despite strong objections from Russia [ukraine-news, russia-news, russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): EU Halts C. Africa Army Training Over Wagner Influence [europe-policy-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• Common Dreams (14/12/21): In 'Huge Step' Toward Equality, Top EU Court Rules Same-Sex Parents Must Be Recognized Across Bloc - "If you are a parent in one country, you are parent in every country." [civil-rights-news, lgbtq-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): EU slaps sanctions on Russian mercenary group Wagner - EU accuses the group of human rights abuses and carrying out clandestine operations on the Kremlin’s behalf. [europe-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/12/21): President Biden has promised the leaders of Ukraine and nine eastern European NATO states support if Russia attacks Ukraine and has pledged to involve them in decisions about the region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Twitter that he and Biden also “discussed possible formats for resolving the conflict” in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have carved out a self-declared state. Andrew Roth reports for the Guardian. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (9/12/21): How Europe’s “Shadow Immigration System” Pays Libyan Militias to Jail Migrants in Brutal Conditions [immigrant-news, social-woes-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): A Belarusian who used to work as an air traffic controller at Minsk’s airport has defected to the E.U. and is providing detailed evidence on the Ryanair flight that was forced to land in Minsk earlier this year. The defector’s evidence supported the view that the flight was targeted for a fake bomb threat as part of an operation orchestrated by Belarus’s intelligence service to grab dissident journalist Roman Protasevich, European security officials have said. Andrew Higgins and Tomas Dapkus report for the New York Times.
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): Millions of EU gig workers could be heading for employee status - The European Union unveiled draft rules on Thursday that could see millions of gig workers classified as employees entitled to benefits. [labor-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): EU countries agree to take in 40,000 Afghan refugees - Group of 15 EU member states agree to resettle Afghans, with Germany accepting the bulk of new arrivals, commissioner says. [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (8/12/21): EU Stops Renting Residence From Former Myanmar Dictator’s Family
• Just Security (8/12/21): Australia has announced a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, following the announcement of the U.S. diplomatic boycott. New Zealand has said that it decided months ago that its diplomats would not be attending. In July, the European Parliament overwhelmingly passed a nonbinding resolution calling on diplomatic officials to boycott the Winter Olympics, however, an official response yesterday from the European Commission, the European Union’s executive arm, to a question about the boycott offered no support for the U.S. position. Steven Lee Myers and Steven Erlanger report for the New York Times.
• Financial Times (5/12/21): Elon Musk being allowed to ‘make the rules’ in space, ESA chief warns -Billionaire’s thousands of satellites risk crowding other operators out of low earth orbits [capitalist-farce-news, big-tech-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pretty much the title; Musk is currently sending about 100 satellites each month, with nearly 2,00 in low earth orbit (LEO), and monopolizing the desirable orbital planes, effectively "creating a Musk sovereignty in space". The concern is that a totally de-regulated space will lead to too many satellites in LEO, which could lead to collisions and catastrophic amounts of debris. Musk currently owns about half of satellites in the world. Starlink is currently approved for 30k satellites by US regulators, and Germany has recently applied for Starlink to be approved for another 40k satellites. Europe is concerned this will limit their capacity, and sees this as the United States trying to take up space.
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): More Protests Erupt as European Countries Tighten Vaccine Mandates [protest-news, covid-news]
• The Economist World This Week (4/12/21): The European Commission launched what it is calling its Global Gateway scheme, an attempt to rival China's Belt and Road Initiative. The idea is to use EU investment guarantees to help raise as much as €300bn ($340bn) of public and private investment in the developing world. Critics say this is mostly a repackaging of various existing schemes.
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Shell Pulls Out of Cambo Oil Field Project in Europe’s North Sea [big-oil-news]
• Just Security (3/12/21): The U.S., the U.K., Canada and the E.U. have imposed coordinated additional sanctions on Belarus, in relation to human rights abuses and a migrant crisis on Belarus’s border with the E.U., which is attributed to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. The sanctions blacklist entities and individuals that “support the regime and facilitate its repression,” Blinken said in a statement. They include targeting three aircraft as blocked property and designating 32 individuals and entities, including Belarusian state-owned enterprises and government officials. Laura Kelly reports for The Hill. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): The E.U. has proposed new measures that would extend the period that Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, E.U. member states bordering Belarus, would be able to detain asylum seekers while their applications are processed. Aid groups have warned that the rule changes may undermine the ability of migrants to seek refuge in the E.U., and would leave applicants in a state of limbo in increasingly unsafe conditions. Elian Peltier and Monika Pronczuk report for the New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (1/12/21): Omicron Detected in Europe Days Before South Africa Reported Variant; FDA Endorses Merck COVID Pill [covid-news]
• Common Dreams (28/11/21): EU Joins Rights Group in Condemning Israel's 'Day of Destruction' of Palestinian Homes - "Demolitions are illegal under international law and significantly undermine the prospects for peace."
• Just Security (30/11/21: Talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal recommenced yesterday, with optimistic statements being made by E.U., Iranian and Russian diplomats, despite skepticism about the likelihood of success.; Iran is “insisting on sanctions lifting” immediately, which may be a stumbling block to progress in the talks
• Just Security (29/11/21): The talks with Iran to revive the 2015 nuclear deal (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) will restart today, with the U.S. and allies “unsure how Tehran’s new government will approach negotiations, not optimistic about the prospects ahead and emphasizing that if diplomacy fails, the U.S. is ‘prepared to use other options,’” Nicole Gaouette, Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler report for CNN.
• Financial Times (18/11/21): CVC agrees €4.5bn deal to buy Unilever’s tea business - Private equity group wins auction for division that has been hit by changing consumer tastes [capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): CVC is a private equity group, and beat out rivales Advent and Carlyle. The business which is changing hands, called Ekaterra, generates around €2bn in annual revenue, although Unilever is keeping some of its tea division which generates around €1bn in sales, including in Indian and Indonesian businesses, where consumption is reportedly rising. Ekaterra is joined in the sale by brands such as Pukka, T2 and Tazo, which come with three large tea plantations in Africa. Those involved (although FT is a little ambiguous if they mean Unilever and/or CVC) have a history of labor and human rights abuses; current conditions are apparently pretty bad, a concern for the rival private equity groups. CVC believes improving on these dimensions will allow it to sell the businesses at a profit (Me: puke). Investors have been pressuring Unilever leadership to boost growth.
• Africa Is a Country (19/11/21): Kenya is Europe’s dumpsite - On the back of a failed COP26 climate conference: how e-waste dumping by European countries in Africa contribute significantly to climate change. [neo-imperialism-news, industrial-failure-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): The E.U. has given visas to Belarusian migrants fleeing repression, while seeking to rebuff Middle Eastern migrants coming through Belarus. Crossing from East to West of Belarus, the two groups briefly share the same fate, “but soon their lives diverge again: most Belarusians are quickly assured of staying in Lithuania and are allowed to move freely, while the others spend months detained in cramped containers, awaiting near-certain rejection of their asylum claims,” Anton Troianovski reports for The New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (21/11/21): EU could fund gas project linked to man charged over Maltese journalist’s murder - Melita pipeline would fuel Delimara power station, which Daphne Caruana Galizia was investigating when she was killed [big-oil-news, corruption-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): The U.S. has shared intelligence with its European allies that shows the build up of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine. The intelligence lays out a scenario where Russian troops would enter Ukraine from Crimea, the Russian border and via Belarus, with potentially 100,000 soldiers deployed in rough terrain and freezing conditions, people familiar with the conversations have said. Alberto Nardelli and Jennifer Jacobs report for Bloomberg. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Croatia violated rights of Afghan girl who was killed by train, court rules - Madina Hussiny, 6, died after police refused to let her family apply for asylum and made them walk back to Serbia [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (19/11/21): Lukashenko says troops may have helped refugees reach EU - Belarusian president reiterates denials he fomented border crisis as concerns grow for people’s wellbeing amid freezing winter conditions [immigrant-news]
• Ars Technica (18/11/21): Nvidia acquisition of Arm now under scrutiny by FTC - FTC highlights potential objections, adding to UK and European scrutiny of the deal. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• New York Times (17/11/21): The E.U. adopts new sanctions against Belarus.
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): Belarus Reduces Poland’s Oil Supplies for Unscheduled Maintenance [energy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): E.U. foreign ministers have imposed new sanctions against the government of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, specifically against “individuals and entities organizing or contributing to activities by the Lukashenko regime that facilitate illegal crossing of the E.U.’s external borders.” These sanctions follow previous sanctions against Lukashenko himself for engaging in election fraud in claiming reelection victory in August as well as harshly suppressing dissent in the aftermath of such election. Steven Erlanger reports for the New York Times. [immigrant-news, economic-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The European Court of Justice has ruled that a 2018 Hungarian law violated E.U. laws by criminalizing the act of helping migrants and refugees apply for asylum. The law, which the Hungarian government calls the “Stop Soros” act, remains in effect, but the E.U.’s highest court could impose financial penalties if far-right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his government do not amend the law. [far-right-news, immigrant-news]
• Jacobin (16/11/21): The Belarus Migrant Crisis Shows the Hollowness of European Humanitarianism - European authorities accuse Belarus’s Alexander Lukashenko of mounting “hybrid warfare” by letting thousands of migrants amass at the Polish border. But Poland’s nationalist government is also using the crisis to crack down on migrants — with the EU’s blessing. [immigrant-news, analysis-news, far-right-news]
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Germany suspends approval for Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline - Move follows mounting political pressure to scrap project in setback to Kremlin-backed project - Energy markets across Europe surged after the German energy regulator suspended its certification process [big-oil-news, energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): Many countries in Europe are imposing stricter restrictions for unvaccinated individuals as Covid-19 infections spike across the continent. In particular, Austria has limited the movement of all unvaccinated individuals over the age of twelve, restricting them to traveling for work and school, buying groceries, and medical care. Jason Horowitz reports for the New York Times. [covid-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): The E.U. has agreed to impose new sanctions against the authoritarian government in Belarus, in response to the migrant crisis at the Poland-Belarus border.
• Just Security (16/11/21): E.U. member states’ foreign ministers have agreed to impose sanctions on the Russian mercenary company Wagner Group. The mercenary group has been accused by the U.S. and some E.U. countries of being a proxy force for Russia’s Defense Ministry, and for seeking to profit from conflicts in Africa, Ukraine and the Middle East. The preliminary agreement to target Wagner officials and entities linked to the company with sanctions, comes after France has repeatedly said that Mali’s government appears close to inviting Wagner into the country. Laurence Norman and James Marson report for the Wall Street Journal. [russia-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (13/11/21): Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Ali Bagheri-Kani, visited European capitals ahead of talks with America and European powers aimed at resurrecting the nuclear deal that Iran signed in 2015. Mr Bagheri-Kani seemed to rule out any discussion of Iran’s nuclear activity at the talks, and said that instead they should focus on lifting sanctions. America, which walked away from the deal in 2018, disagrees.
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): The Kremlin has said that it was not consulted before Lukashenko raised the possibility of cutting natural gas flows to Europe, and that Russia is a reliable exporter that fulfils its obligations [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): Belarus’s leader Alexander Lukashenko has threatened to cut off gas supplies to Europe if sanctions are imposed on the country. [energy-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): Russia deployed strategic bombers to Belarus’s airspace yesterday, amid escalating tensions between Belarus and Poland at their border. “Russia’s Defense Ministry reported that two long-range Tu-22M3 bombers carried out patrols in the area and an inspection of the air-defense system of the Union State, an alliance that binds Russia and Belarus together in various areas ranging from the economy to defense,” Ann M. Simmons reports for the Wall Street Journal. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Russia is blaming the E.U. for the migrant crisis on the border between Belarus and Poland, and has sent bombers to overfly Belarus. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (9/11/21): Gazprom Starts Refilling European Gas Storage Sites [energy-news, big-oil-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): Co-ordinated action against the REvil has been announced by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Europol and the Romanian police, dealing a devastating blow to the cyber-crime gang. [crime-news, cyber-security-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Coronavirus Cases Surge to Record Highs Across Some European Nations [covid-news]
• The Guardian (3/11/21): Meat carcasses sent to EU for butchering amid UK worker shortage - Great Britain’s beef producers export to Ireland before reimporting, while pork processors consider the Netherlands
• Democracy Now (4/11/21): Russia Records Another Record Daily COVID-19 Death Toll - Cases are also surging across much of Europe. In the Netherlands, Prime Minister Mark Rutte has reintroduced face mask requirements for public spaces and will expand the “corona pass” program requiring proof of vaccination for museums, gyms, outdoor terraces and other public spaces. [covid-news]
• Financial Times (28/10/21): UK and European natural gas prices fall after Putin intervention - Russian president orders Gazprom to begin filling storage facilities in the region from November [energy-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): critics believe Putin is using this as leverage to increase the chance of Nord Stream 2 being approved. At the moment, the largest Gazprom storage site on the continent is less than 10% full, and the largest in Austria is about 20%.
• PNN (30/10/21): EU Spokesperson:settlement expansion are illegal under international law
• ZDNet (27/10/21): Nvidia faces European Commission in-depth investigation on Arm purchase - Initial concerns include chip makers have less access to Arm IP and Arm being refocussed to Nvidia products. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): The E.U. Commission suspended funding to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) programs in the Democratic Republic of Congo, following concerns over the WHO’s handling of a sexual abuse scandal
• Just Security (28/10/21): The E.U.’s top court has told Poland to pay a fine of €1m a day in a row over judicial reforms in Poland.
• Just Security (22/10/21): E.U. leaders are threatening to withhold billions of Euros from Poland, following Warsaw’s rejection of the supremacy of the E.U
• Al Jazeera (19/10/21): Greece pledges to link Egypt to European Union’s energy market - The connection would happen through an underwater cable that carries electricity across the Mediterranean sea. [energy-news]
• New York Times (18/10/21): Showdown Over Northern Ireland Has a Key Offstage Player: Biden - As the U.K. and the European Union begin their wrangling over details of trade with Northern Ireland, President Biden has more than a passing interest in the final result. [us-policy-news]
• The Economist (16/10/21): It is tempting to blame foreigners for Europe’s gas crisis - The main culprit is closer to home [energy-news]
• Democracy Now (15/10/21): U.K. and EU Nations Block COVID Vaccine Patent Waiver at World Trade Organization [vaccine-ip-news]
• Vice (14/10/21): Looks Like Facebook Found a Way to Bypass Europe’s Privacy Rules - The draft decision, if ratified, could upend the protections provided by GDPR, Europe’s gold-standard privacy protections. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Yahoo News (21/9/21): EU official says growing feeling in Europe that U.S.-trans Atlantic partnership is 'broken'
• Just Security (12/10/21): A Western Balkans group has called on the U.S. to commit to a stronger presence in the region amid “growing militancy of the government of Serbia.” [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Croatia, Greece, Romania illegally pushing refugees back: Report - EU members have denied people the right to seek asylum, Lighthouse Reports says, alleging physical abuse in some cases. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Polish court rules EU laws incompatible with its constitution - Country takes big step towards ‘legal Polexit’ against backdrop of rows between ruling nationalists and Brussels
• Just Security (7/10/21): Wooden barracks at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum were vandalized Tuesday with anti-Semitic inscriptions, the memorial has said.
• Just Security (7/10/21): Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak has said that certification of the Nord Stream 2 undersea gas pipeline, which is awaiting clearance from Germany’s regulator, could reduce the increasing gas prices in Europe [russia-policy-news, energy-news]
• Common Dreams (6/10/21): 'Historic Moment': EU Approves Call for Sweeping Ban on Facial Recognition Surveillance - "This is a huge win for all European citizens." [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): Nato expels eight members of Russia’s mission for spying - Russia rejects claim officers were secretly working as intelligence officers and warns of retaliation [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (6/10/21): Putin Blames Europe for Gas Price Crisis [russia-policy-news, big-oil-news, energy-news]
• Financial Times (6/10/21): Gas markets whipsaw after Russia offers to stabilise energy prices - UK gas contracts for November delivery soar almost 40 per cent before falling back after Putin’s comments [big-oil-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary: The LNG crisis has been kicking the world's a*s (Europe in particular (see briefing) as we come out of the pandemic and demand returns to normal, gas prices have been surging - but reassuring comments from Putin have stabilized prices. Russia claims (and Germany's Merkel sheepishly corroborates) that they aren't limiting supply - just fulfilling whatever contractual amounts are required. However, it appears that Putin may be leveraging the situation to expedite approval of the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline (Ukraine hates it, bc it bypasses Ukraine, and Ukraine makes a lot of money off of taxing gas transit. Everyone is crying "market manipulation", but uhhh... what are you gonna do about? Keep shutting those nuke plants down, Germany! That'll teach Putin a lesson. Oh yeah, there are concerns it will increase Europe's dependence on Russian energy... which isn't an ideal situation). The UK is also very vulnerable, as they don't have a lot of energy storage capacity - they basically need energy provided "just in time".
• Just Security (5/10/21): E.U. Parliament Lawmakers have acknowledged that the Pandora Papers highlight the failings of the E.U.’s tax haven list just as E.U. lawmakers plan to pare the list down
• The Moscow Times (4/10/21): Nord Stream 2 Operator Begins Filling Controversial Pipeline [big-oil-news, energy-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (1/10/21): Energy crunch: Natural gas prices in Europe hit record 100 euros - Natural gas prices in Europe hit a new record of 100 euros ($116), threatening to derail the economic recovery there. [energy-news]
• Just Security (1/10/21): Trade talks between Australia and the E.U. have been postponed amid the diplomatic row between Australia and France over the Aukus security partnership between the U.S., Australia and the U.K., which led Canberra to cancel a submarine deal with France.
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Yanis Varoufakis on Angela Merkel’s Legacy, European Politics & the “Sordid Arms Race” on the Seas
• On Labor (29/9/21): Amidst a recent wave of judicial rulings across multiple European countries classifying Uber drivers as employees, the European Commission—the executive arm of the European Union—is set to introduce a legislative initiative in December that will address the challenges created by platform work. [labor-news, big-tech-news]
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Court Annuls Trade Deals Between EU and Occupied Western Sahara
• Just Security (28/9/21): Europe needs to stop being naive when it comes to defending its interests and build its own military capacity, French President Emmanuel Macron has said, after Greece sealed a deal with France for French frigates worth about $3.51 billion
• ZDNet (27/9/21): Google commences appeal against European Commission €4.34 billion fine - The search giant is contending it has not abused its dominant market position to coerce smartphone manufacturers into installing Google Search and Chrome. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• The Guardian (27/9/21): EU lorry drivers will not help Britain ease its fuel crisis, union says - Official from Dutch-based FNV criticises visa plan as ‘dead end’ due to poor working conditions [labor-news]
• Ars Technica (23/9/21): European Union announces plans to require all mobile devices to use USB-C - Devices using only wireless charging would be exempt from the mandate.
• The Moscow Times (21/9/21): Gazprom Rejects Gas Transit Increase as Europe Faces Winter Fuel Crisis
• CounterPunch (17/9/21): Railways and Pipelines are Preferable to Nuclear Submarines [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, bri-news]
• Ars Technica (13/9/21): Ireland fails to enforce EU law against Big Tech - Irish regulator has not resolved 98% of 164 significant data protection complaints. [big-tech-news]
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Russia Says Divisive Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Complete [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): EMA, WHO Still Awaiting Sputnik V Data Before Approval
• EFF (3/9/21): Without Changes, Council of Europe’s Draft Police Surveillance Treaty is a Pernicious Influence on Latam Legal Privacy Frameworks
• Democracy Now (31/8/21): Over 500 Migrants Rescued in Mediterranean; EU Plans to Bar Entry to Afghan Refugees
• Jacobin (17/8/21): Europe Is Shamefully Shutting the Door to Afghan Refugees - After the Taliban seized Kabul, Emmanuel Macron led EU governments in declaring the need to “protect ourselves” from a fresh wave of refugees. The West’s intervention fueled chaos in Afghanistan. Now, it is punishing the victims.
• Democracy Now (17/8/21): Johnson & Johnson Ships Millions of Vaccine Doses from South Africa to Europe
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Belarus to close border as Lithuania turns away migrants - President Lukashenko says the migrants Lithuania turns away will not be allowed back into Belarus
• Democracy Now (3/8/21): Brutal Heat Wave Threatens to Topple Europe’s All-Time Temperature Record
• EFF (22/7/21): Council of Europe’s Actions Belie its Pledges to Involve Civil Society in Development of Cross Border Police Powers Treaty
• Just Security (21/7/21): U.S. and E.U. security officials are wary of NSO Group’s links to Israeli intelligence, despite the ability of its spyware technology to help combat terrorists and violent criminals
• The Hill (20/7/21): US won't block completion of Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): European Lawmakers Suspend Hungary’s Funding over Its Attacks on LGBTQ Rights
• The Guardian (7/7/21): EU urged to suspend funds to Hungary over ‘grave breaches of the rule of law’ - Action follows Viktor Orbán passing law banning LGBT content in schools and mishandling of EU funds
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): EU Bans Common Single-Use Consumer Plastics
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): EU border guards sent to Lithuania amid Belarus migrant crisis - A record number of migrants and refugees are entering EU member Lithuania from Belarus as tensions between Brussels and Minsk simmer.
• The Economist World This Week (1/7/21): Britain and the European Union agreed a truce in the “sausage war”. They delayed for three months a ban on some British meat products being sold in Northern Ireland, a consequence of the post-Brexit arrangement which in effect keeps the province in the EU’s single market and customs union.
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Macron, Merkel demand answers from US, Denmark on spying report - The French and German leaders say spying on allies is not acceptable after a Danish broadcaster alleged the US and Denmark eavesdropped on countries, including France, Germany and Norway.
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): Switzerland said it was walking away from years of negotiations on a new treaty with the EU aimed at harmonising dozens of messy individual deals on trade, investment and the movement of people.
• Democracy Now (25/5/21): European Union Sanctions Belarus over “Hijacking” of Ryanair Plane and “Kidnapping” of Journalist
• The Economist World this Week (6/5/21): The European Commission said it would put its efforts to secure the ratification of an investment deal with China on hold. The European Parliament is refusing to consider ratification until China lifts sanctions on several of its members, after the EU imposed sanctions on China for abuses against the Uyghurs.
• World Socialist Web Site (3/5/21): Amid COVID-19 pandemic, Germany, France [and Spain] spend billions on new [Eurozone] fighter jets [involving private contractors Airbus, Dassault, Thales]; 'Brushing aside the over 1 million European deaths from COVID-19 due to the European Union’s (EU) “herd immunity” policy with the claim there is no money to fund a scientific social distancing policy, they are preparing to instead spend hundreds of billions of euros on war planning.'

Albania Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Just Security (11/11/21): US Focus on `Open Balkan’ Economic Project Risks Open Season Instead [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• The Guardian (16/10/21): Four Russians found dead at Albanian resort - Police say tourists who had been staying in village of Qerret were aged between 31 and 60 years old
• Just Security (12/10/21): A Western Balkans group has called on the U.S. to commit to a stronger presence in the region amid “growing militancy of the government of Serbia.” [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera: Albania’s Socialists win election and third straight mandate - Edi Rama calls on parties to work with him to make Albania the ‘Balkan champion’ in tourism after clinching third term.
• Jacobin: In Albania, a New Left Is Challenging the Oligarchs’ Parties - Today’s Albanian election sees Edi Rama’s Partia Socialiste running for a third term, two years after a powerful student movement forced the sacking of half his cabinet. In one of Europe’s poorest countries, green shoots of protest are finally challenging the parties that led Albania to neoliberal capitalism.

Austria Updates

• Financial Times (30/12/21): Sebastian Kurz leaves politics to join tech investor Peter Thiel - Former Austrian chancellor takes up global strategist role at California-based investment company [far-right-news, big-tech-news] Paywall Summary (?): Thiel is a big tech right-winger, and Trump supporter. He helped found Palantir, which helps govts track people. The two have known each other for years.
• Jacobin (28/12/21): Meet the Communist Running Austria’s Second Largest City - This fall, the Communist Party won the local elections in Austria’s second largest city, Graz, for the first time in history. New mayor Elke Kahr told Jacobin what a proudly Marxist party can hope to achieve from city hall. [socialist-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (11/12/21): Austria’s Restrictions on the Unvaccinated Appear to Be Working - Covid-19 measures and a looming general vaccine mandate are persuading more to take the shot as Omicron spreads Paywall Summary (?): After a surge in cases, Austria imposed a lockdown and vaccine requirements - now cases are going down, vaccination rates are going up (up 2% since tightening restrictions, which seems to mean 15 November, 2021), and the lockdown is slowly being rolled back - Ausria has experienced the steepest fall in cases on the continent. A lockdown is in place on unvaccinated people since 15 November, and such lockdowns have been shown to increase willingness to get the shot. The booster rate is the 2nd highest in Europe after Hungary... quite interesting, given their far-right leadership, tbh (although Austria is also governed by the center-left Greens).
• The Guardian (11/12/21): Tens of thousands protest against compulsory Covid jabs in Austria - Crowds in Vienna demonstrate against mandatory vaccines and confinement orders for unvaccinated [protest-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): More Protests Erupt as European Countries Tighten Vaccine Mandates [protest-news, covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (2/12/21): Austrian Chancellor Schallenberg says he will step down - The chancellor announces resignation less than two months after taking office from his scandal-plagued predecessor, Sebastian Kurz
• Al Jazeera (3/12/21): Immigration hardliner Nehammer to take over as Austrian leader - Ruling conservative People’s Party nominates interior minister to succeed Alexander Schallenberg as chancellor after two-month stint
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Protests erupted in several European countries against fresh pandemic restrictions, as the continent battled another wave of infections. Rioting flared up in Rotterdam and The Hague after the Dutch government reintroduced lockdown measures. A big demonstration in Brussels turned ugly, causing the police to deploy water cannon. Marches also took place in Croatia, Italy and Switzerland. Austria reimposed a lockdown and made vaccinations mandatory for all its citizens from February, the first rich country to do so. [anti-vaxx-news, protest-news, covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Austrian far-right Freedom Party protests against COVID measures - Freedom Party supporters among thousands protesting in Vienna against COVID lockdown and mandatory vaccinations [covid-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): Austria has returned to a full national lockdown in an effort to curb rising Covid-19 infections. Tens of thousands of people protested in the capital Vienna over the weekend ahead of the lockdown. BBC News reports. [protest-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Austria has announced a full national Covid-19 lockdown starting on Monday, as Covid-19 cases surge in Europe. Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said the lockdown would last a maximum of 20 days and there would be a legal requirement to get vaccinated from Feb. 1 2022. BBC News responds. [covid-news]
• WSWS (15/11/21): New neo-Nazi weapons cache discovered in Austria [militant-far-right-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Democracy Now (15/11/21): Austria Enacts Lockdown for the Unvaccinated as Europe Becomes Pandemic’s Epicenter Again [covid-news]
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Coronavirus Cases Surge to Record Highs Across Some European Nations [covid-news]
• Left Voice (14/10/21): Austria’s Far-Right Chancellor Resigns Amid Corruption Scandal - He looks like an Austrian version of Patrick Bateman — straight out of a crossover between The Sound of Music and American Psycho. Sebastian Kurz, with his eerily perfect demeanor and luxurious hair, was a star at international events. But on Sunday, Kurz had to resign as Federal Chancellor of Austria. [far-right-news, labor-news]
• Financial Times (10/10/21): Austria’s Sebastian Kurz ‘triangulates’ to navigate corruption probe - Vienna’s conservative leader puts Green coalition partners in a bind ahead of no-confidence vote on Tuesday Paywall Summary: It looks like Kurz, while resigning over a Pandora-exposed corruption scandal, will be stepping down - however, he will act as an effective shadow chancellor. So he is still on the front foot. Things are still up in the air though - an election may be possible, and even the far right party hates him (for a "betrayal" in 2019). Further, he may be losing support amongst regional bosses. All this said, his fate will really be decided at the polls (it seems FT would say, at least).
• The Guardian (10/10/21): Sebastian Kurz departure is further blow to Europe’s centre-right - Resignation of Austrian chancellor follows Germany’s CDU crashing to its worst federal election result [right-news, politics-news, corruption-news]
• Financial Times (6/10/21): Austria’s chancellor named as suspect in corruption probe - Kurz hits back at ‘groundless accusations’ after police raids on Vienna ministries and offices Paywall Summary: Kurz, leader of the conservative People's Party, is being investigated (and not his first corruption scandal!) for fraudulently siphoning money to his media outlets. He says this is a leftist conspiracy theory... of course. It's questionable if the Green party will continue ruling in coalition with the People's party due to this. A prior ruling coalition with the right-wing Freedom party collapsed in 2019 due to a corruption scandal.
• Jacobin (27/9/21): The Communist Party Just Won the Elections in Austria’s Second-Biggest City [Interview] - In Sunday’s elections in Graz, Austria, the Communist Party romped to victory for the first time in history. Jacobin spoke to one of its winning candidates about how the party built a “red fortress” in the city.
• Jacobin (31/8/21): In Graz, Austria, Communists Have Built a Red Fortress - In Graz, Austria’s second-largest city, Communists have ridden a wave of working-class discontent to become the main challenger to the ruling conservatives.

Belgium Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• WSWS (30/12/21): Prison staff in Brussels, Belgium strike against overcrowding and overwork [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• ZDNet (20/12/21): Belgian Defense Ministry confirms cyberattack through Log4j exploitation - The Defense Ministry said it first discovered the attack on Thursday. [cyber-security-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (15/12/21): Belgium trial starts over death of 39 Vietnamese migrants in UK truck - The trial of 23 people in Bruges follows prison sentences handed down in Britain in January to seven men for manslaughter - The bodies of the 31 men and eight women were found in a refrigerated truck near London in October 2019 [crime-news, court-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Jacobin (12/12/21): A Party Fighting for Socialism Has to Put Workers Front and Center - [Interview] Polling at 20 percent, the Workers’ Party of Belgium is the fastest-growing force on the European left. Newly elected leader Raoul Hedebouw tells Jacobin how his comrades built an explicitly Marxist party with mass appeal. [leftist-news, electoral-news, socialist-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): More Protests Erupt as European Countries Tighten Vaccine Mandates [protest-news, covid-news]
• The Guardian (5/12/21): Belgian police fire water cannon at anti-lockdown protests - Two officers and four protesters hospitalised, and 20 people arrested, after clashes in Brussels [protest-news, covid-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Protests erupted in several European countries against fresh pandemic restrictions, as the continent battled another wave of infections. Rioting flared up in Rotterdam and The Hague after the Dutch government reintroduced lockdown measures. A big demonstration in Brussels turned ugly, causing the police to deploy water cannon. Marches also took place in Croatia, Italy and Switzerland. Austria reimposed a lockdown and made vaccinations mandatory for all its citizens from February, the first rich country to do so. [anti-vaxx-news, protest-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): Belgium and the Netherlands both saw protests turn violent over the weekend in response to tougher Covid-19 restrictions. In Belgium’s capital, Brussels, demonstrators clashed with police after tens of thousands of people marched through the city center, while in the Netherlands, rioting took place for the third night in a row. DW News reports. [covid-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, protest-news]
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Democracy Now (11/10/21): 70,000 March in Brussels Demanding Action on Climate Emergency [protest-news, climate-change-news]
• Just Security (1/10/21): Belgium will help provide funding for women in Poland to access abortions abroad
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Migrants in Brussels end mass hunger strike for legal status after 60 days - Supporters applaud as hundreds of undocumented people leave church where they had been camped
• The Guardian (20/7/21): Alarm grows over migrants’ hunger strike in Brussels - Belgian government under pressure to offer residence permits to hundreds of migrants on hunger strike
• Al Jazeera (17/7/21): Death toll rises to 183 in Germany and Belgium floods - Hundreds of people are missing or unreachable as several areas remained inaccessible due to high water levels and communication was still down in some places.
• The Guardian (16/7/21): Aftermath of Germany and Belgium floods – in pictures - At least 110 people have died in devastating floods across parts of western Germany and Belgium. Search and rescue operations are continuing with hundreds still unaccounted for
• The Guardian (15/7/21): Germany floods: Merkel voices horror at ‘catastrophe’ amid search for estimated 1,300 missing - Angela Merkel says her 'heart goes out' to flood victims after disaster leaves at least 59 dead
• Al Jazeera (20/6/21): Fugitive far-right Belgian soldier found dead - Jurgen Conings, 46, was on an anti-terrorism watch list and had threatened several people, hoarded heavy weaponry.
• Al Jazeera (19/5/21): Belgian manhunt for ‘far-right’ soldier enters second day - Jurgen Conings, 46, disappeared with weapons on Monday and left behind a letter threatening several figures.

Bosnia Updates

• WSWS (30/12/21): Lawyers in Bosnia and Herzegovina begin indefinite strike over new tax and financial arrangements [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Hungary’s leader denounced in Bosnia for anti-Muslim rhetoric - Orban’s spokesman said it would be a ‘challenge’ to integrate a country with two million Muslims into the EU. [far-right-news] [!]
• Just Security (10/12/21): The U.S. is determined to walk Bosnia “back from the cliff” amid secessionist threats from Serb nationalists and is exploring sanctions, according to senior adviser to Secretary of State Antony Blinken Derek Chollet. Julian Borger reports for the Guardian. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): Milorad Dodik, the Bosnian Serb leader accused of risking war by pursuing the breakup of Bosnia-Herzegovina, has dismissed the threat of western sanctions and has hinted that China and Russia would come to his assistance. Dodik said that he would not be deterred and that sanctions and cuts to E.U. funding would only force him to take up offers of investment from China and that he expected to see Russia’s leader “pretty soon.” Dodik also insisted his plans need not lead to the end of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Daniel Boffey reports for the Guardian.
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Croatia violated rights of Afghan girl who was killed by train, court rules - Madina Hussiny, 6, died after police refused to let her family apply for asylum and made them walk back to Serbia [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): US Focus on `Open Balkan’ Economic Project Risks Open Season Instead [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): U.S. officials have arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina in an effort to defuse tension and frustration with E.U. facilitated discussions with nationalist Serb leader Milorad Dodik. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/11/21): Flash floods in Bosnia prompt evacuations, power outages - Heavy rain causes severe flash flooding, evacuations and power outages in most of Bosnia’s capital, Sarajevo
• Just Security (2/11/21): The High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Christian Schmidt, has warned that the country is in imminent danger of breaking apart, and there is a “very real” prospect of a return to conflict. The Bosnian Serb leader, Milorad Dodik, is threatening to pull out of state-level institutions, including the national army built up with international assistance over the past quarter century, and reconstitute a Serb force. Dodik has also said that he would force the Bosnian army to withdraw from the Republika Srpska (the Serb half of Bosnia) by surrounding its barracks and that if the West tried to intervene militarily, he had “friends” who promised to support the Serb cause, a presumed reference to Serbia and Russia.
• Al Jazeera (22/10/21): Bosnian Serb police drill seen as separatist ‘provocation’ - Bosniak, Croat leaders call drills ‘a clear provocation’, but Serb officials say it has nothing to do with Bosnia’s deep political crisis. [far-right-news]
• Just Security (12/10/21): A Western Balkans group has called on the U.S. to commit to a stronger presence in the region amid “growing militancy of the government of Serbia.” [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (31/8/21): Croatian police accused of pushing Afghan refugees back to Bosnia - Danish Refugee Council documents 60 illegal pushbacks in August against families fleeing Taliban
• Al Jazeera (29/7/21): Croatia celebrates joining of controversial Adriatic Sea bridge - The China-led project has angered Bosnian officials, who argue it violates the state’s access to open waters.
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): Bosnia’s intelligence chief arrested over fraud allegations - Osman Mehmedagic arrested on accusations of money laundering and abusing his office to forge university diplomas.

Bulgaria Updates

• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Bulgaria: Centrist PP party seals coalition deal to form gov’t - Bulgaria’s parliament expected to vote on a new government after eight months of political deadlock. [politics-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (21/11/21): Bulgaria president Radev set to seal re-election: Exit polls - Election comes amid widespread discontent against high-level corruption that ended the decade-long rule of former premier Boyko Borissov in April. [electoral-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): The U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria has voiced “deep concern” over Bulgarian President Rumen Radev’s comments about Crimea belonging to Russia. In a presidential debate with his center-right opponent Anastas Gerdzhikov on Thursday, Radev said that the Crimean Peninsula was “currently Russian,” adding, “what else can it be?” “The United States, G-7, European Union, and NATO have all been clear and united in our position that, despite Russia’s attempted annexation and ongoing occupation, Crimea is Ukraine,” the U.S. Embassy said in a statement. AP reports. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (21/11/21): Bulgaria president Radev set to seal re-election: Exit polls - Election comes amid widespread discontent against high-level corruption that ended the decade-long rule of former premier Boyko Borissov in April. [electoral-news]
• Al-Monitor (19/11/21): Bulgaria accuses Turkey of election interference - Turkey has rejected accusations that it is helping Bulgarian politicians representing the country’s Turkish minority.
• Just Security (3/11/21): Bulgaria is deploying 350 troops and 40 army vehicles along its southern border with Turkey to help border police deal with a growing migrant influx, the Defense Ministry has said. [immigrant-news]
• Jacobin (14/7/21): Bulgaria’s “Anti-Party” Wants Even More Power for Corporate Lobbyists - Sunday’s Bulgarian general election saw victory for TV personality Slavi Trifonov’s “anti-party.” This celebrity vehicle talks of replacing corrupt parties with experts — rehashing pro-business dogmas that have already dominated Bulgaria for decades.
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): Bulgaria’s GERB party narrowly ahead in national vote: Exit polls - The centre-right GERB party of former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and a new populist party were neck-and-neck in exit polls.
• Al Jazeera (18/6/21): How Bulgaria hit rock bottom on press freedom - The space for independent media is shrinking as moguls monopolise the industry, but some are cautiously hopeful about the future.
• The Economist World This Week (5/6/21): America’s State Department imposed sanctions on one current and four former officials in Bulgaria, because of their involvement in “significant corruption”.

Bahrain Updates

• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Al-Monitor (22/11/21): Bahrain says it thwarted terror attack, seized weapons from Iran - The Bahraini Interior Ministry said the suspects were linked to terrorist groups in Iran
• Just Security (12/11/21): The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, the U.S., and Israel have launched joint naval exercises for the first time, U.S. and Israeli military officials have said. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): Bahrain has urged all citizens to leave Lebanon immediately. The announcement follows the escalation in regional tensions after the Lebanese information minister criticized Saudi Arabia’s role in the Yemen war. A similar announcement was made by the United Arab Emirates on Sunday. Al Jazeera reports.
• Al Jazeera (27/9/21): Bahrain authorities jailed hundreds of children: Report - Some 607 children endured various forms of physical abuse while held in Bahraini prisons over the past decade, new investigation reveals.
• The Guardian (24/8/21): Phones of nine Bahraini activists found to have been hacked with NSO spyware - Researchers say bloggers and members of secular leftwing political group among the victims [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Bahrain urged to investigate third prison death in months - Rights groups call on the government to launch an independent investigation into the death of 35-year-old Hasan Abdulnabi Manoor.
• Al Jazeera (30/7/21): Rights groups call on Bahrain to release prominent hunger striker - Activists say Abdul Jalil al-Singace suffers chronic illnesses and has faced ‘sustained medical negligence’ in jail.

Croatia Updates

• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Protests erupted in several European countries against fresh pandemic restrictions, as the continent battled another wave of infections. Rioting flared up in Rotterdam and The Hague after the Dutch government reintroduced lockdown measures. A big demonstration in Brussels turned ugly, causing the police to deploy water cannon. Marches also took place in Croatia, Italy and Switzerland. Austria reimposed a lockdown and made vaccinations mandatory for all its citizens from February, the first rich country to do so. [anti-vaxx-news, protest-news, covid-news]
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Croatia violated rights of Afghan girl who was killed by train, court rules - Madina Hussiny, 6, died after police refused to let her family apply for asylum and made them walk back to Serbia [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): US Focus on `Open Balkan’ Economic Project Risks Open Season Instead [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• CPJ (8/10/21): Croatian court injunction blocks news website H-alter from reporting on public childcare clinic [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Croatia, Greece, Romania illegally pushing refugees back: Report - EU members have denied people the right to seek asylum, Lighthouse Reports says, alleging physical abuse in some cases. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (31/8/21): Croatian police accused of pushing Afghan refugees back to Bosnia - Danish Refugee Council documents 60 illegal pushbacks in August against families fleeing Taliban
• Al Jazeera (29/7/21): Croatia celebrates joining of controversial Adriatic Sea bridge - The China-led project has angered Bosnian officials, who argue it violates the state’s access to open waters. [bri-news]

Cyprus Updates

• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Egypt supports Cyprus against Turkey - Egypt has criticized Turkey’s plan for a two-state peace deal on ethnically divided Cyprus [!]
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Erdogan vows response to Cyprus mosque arson attempt - The Turkish president said an attempt to burn down the mosque on the disputed island “will not go unanswered,” while the Cypriot press said the incident was not related to religious or ethnic strife. [!]
• Al-Monitor (9/11/21): UAE foreign minister visits Cyprus - The UAE has grown closer to Cyprus on energy and defense issues
• Al-Monitor (8/11/21): Israel to export border surveillance technology to Cyprus - Israel’s military has extensive experience with border security surveillance in the West Bank. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (5/10/21): Territorial spats reheat ahead of Turkey-Greece talks - Citing disputed territorial claims, the Turkish navy twice blocked research missions by a Greek Cypriot-contracted vessel as Turkey and Greece prepare for bilateral talks in Ankara on Oct. 6.
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Israel accuses Iran of attack attempt against Israelis in Cyprus - Nicosia says an armed individual was arrested after crossing from Turkish-controlled north
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Cyprus talks can only resume on a ‘two-state’ basis, Erdogan says - Turkish president reiterates Ankara’s support for self-declared TRNC in speech delivered on anniversary of 1974 invasion.
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Cyprus condemns TV attack by protesters opposed to COVID measures - Police make five arrests after the violence which followed a rally by thousands of protesters in the capital, Nicosia.
• Al Jazeera (13/7/21): Questions after Egyptian workers killed in Cyprus fire - One week after wildfire devastated surrounding countryside – killing four people – residents of a Cypriot village are facing questions over the treatment of farm labourers.
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Voters head to polls in Cyprus parliamentary election - Ultra-nationalists look to exploit the anti-establishment mood over the ‘golden passport’ corruption scandal.

Czech Republic Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Al Jazeera (17/12/21): New centre-right government takes office in Czech Republic - Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala inherits several big challenges, from soaring inflation to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. [politics-news] [!]
• The Guardian (28/11/21): Czech president swears in Petr Fiala as PM behind glass screen - Milos Zeman performs inauguration ceremony from cubicle after testing positive for coronavirus
• Al Jazeera (18/11/21): Czech Republic, Slovakia tighten restrictions as COVID cases soar - Two EU members will impose restrictions on unvaccinated people as Europe faces a rise in coronavirus infections. [covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): COVID-19 infections soar to record in Czech Republic - The surge comes amid a sluggish mass vaccination campaign and as neighbouring countries also face an uptick in cases. [covid-news]
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): Czech parties sign agreement to form centre-right government - Major step taken towards replacing the outgoing administration of Prime Minister Andrej Babis following October election. [politics-news]
• The Guardian (5/11/21): Czech PM to step down and signal end to political uncertainty - President to accept resignation of Andrej Babiš and ask centre-right leader to form new government
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Czech president cannot perform duties due to ill health: Official - Senate speaker says hospitalised President Milos Zeman unable to work, seeks to shift duties to other officials.
• New York Times (9/10/21): Populist Leader of Czech Republic Narrowly Defeated in Election - The results suggest that the populist wave in Eastern and Central Europe is receding, stalled by the growing unity of its opponents and a crisis of confidence after the defeat of the former U.S. president. [electoral-news, far-right-news, corruption-news]
• Jacobin (8/10/21): The Czech Left Is Being Punished for Its Disastrous Record in Government - Czech prime minister Andrej Babiš is a scandal-plagued, right-wing billionaire. In this weekend’s elections, the Czech Republic’s social democratic and communist parties are set to be punished for keeping his government in power. [fail-leftist-news, electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Czechs sign $630m deal for Israeli-made air defence system - Prague to aquire Spyder system made by weapons maker Rafael as part of military modernisation drive.
• Just Security (5/10/21): The Czech national police announced on Monday that they will “act upon” the Pandora Papers and investigate any Czech national named in the documents, including current billionaire Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, who is up for reelection this week
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): Czech vote: President plans to exploit powers to protect Babis - Milos Zeman, who backs the billionaire premier, has announced he will use his role to appoint the next PM. [electoral-news]
• Just Security (29/9/21): France is set to sell 52 Caesar artillery guns to the Czech Republic in a deal worth $301 million, an Armed Forces Ministry official said today.
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Three dead, dozens injured in Czech passenger train crash - High-speed train headed for Prague collides with a commuter train, killing both drivers and a female passenger.
• The Guardian (22/6/21): Death of Romany man knelt on by Czech police compared to that of George Floyd - Video footage challenges official claims that the cause of death was unrelated to man’s arrest
• New York Times: Czechs Blame 2014 Blasts at Ammunition Depots on Elite Russian Spy Unit - The unit has also been implicated in the 2018 nerve agent attack in Salisbury, England, on Sergei Skripal, a former Russian spy, and his daughter.

Denmark Updates

• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Omicron Drives Record Rates of Infection in Several European Countries [covid-news]
• Financial Times (22/12/21): Maersk to buy Hong Kong’s LF Logistics in $3.6bn deal - Deal part of Danish shipping group’s push into land-based distribution [logistics-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): Maersk trying to move into ecommerce and road and air freight, and is buying the 'contract logistics part of LF Logistics', based in Hong Kong and '78% owned by parent group Li & Fung with Singapore state-backed fund Temasek holding the rest'. 'LF Logistics operates 223 warehouses in 14 countries across Asia and works with fashion, retail and consumer goods multinationals in the region'. 'Li & Fung will retain LF's global freight management business'. This purchase is at a high valuation of LF, coming as Maersk is plumped with lots of cash (and little debt) amidst the global logistics crisis, which has been a boon for shipping companies. It's underlying EBITDA is $22bn-$23bn this year, 'up from $8.3bn last year'.
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Danish ex-minister jailed for separating asylum-seeking couples - Former immigration minister has been sentenced to 60 days in prison for separating underage asylum-seeking couples. [immigrant-news]
• New York Times (9/12/21): Danish Leader Is Questioned Over ‘Minkgate’ Cull Driven by Covid Fears - The prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said she did not know the government lacked legal authority to order the mass slaughter of 17 million minks after infected animals passed the virus to humans. [!]
• Jacobin (4/12/21): The Red-Green Alliance Won Copenhagen’s Election by Fighting for Affordable Housing - The left-wing Red-Green Alliance won November’s elections in Copenhagen with a tightly focused campaign on making housing affordable again, handing the city's Social Democrats their first defeat in over a century. [interview-news, leftist-news, electoral-news] [!]
• Jacobin (29/11/21): In Copenhagen, the Radical Left Just Beat the Danish Social Democrats for the First Time Ever - Recent elections in Denmark saw a sharp rise in vote share for the Red-Green Alliance, making it the biggest party in Copenhagen. The result shows that the ruling Social Democrats can’t keep letting down Danes who want action on the climate and soaring rents. [electoral-news, leftist-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (23/11/21): Greenland strips Chinese mining firm of licence to iron ore deposit - The move is a blow to attempts by Chinese companies to gain a foothold on the resource-rich Arctic island - General Nice, the first Chinese firm to have the right to exploit minerals in Greenland, lost its licence because of site inactivity and missing payments [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• The Guardian (17/11/21): Denmark accuses UK of breaking Brexit fishing deal over trawling ban - Exclusive: Danish minister says proposal to ban bottom trawling in Dogger Bank ‘a very big problem’
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Beyond Oil and Gas: Denmark and Costa Rica Lead New Push to Phase Out Fossil Fuels [big-oil-news, climate-change-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/11/21): Denmark Detains Russian Research Ship in Legal Dispute
• Jacobin (9/10/21): Why McDonald’s Workers Make $22 an Hour in Denmark — Matt Bruenig [labor-news]
• The Guardian (10/9/21): Denmark lifts all Covid restrictions as vaccinations top 80% - Scandinavian country declares it no longer considers coronavirus a ‘socially critical’ disease [covid-news]
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Danish military spots Iranian navy ships in Baltic Sea - Newly built destroyer and support vessel thought to be on way to Russian naval parade in St Petersburg
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Macron, Merkel demand answers from US, Denmark on spying report - The French and German leaders say spying on allies is not acceptable after a Danish broadcaster alleged the US and Denmark eavesdropped on countries, including France, Germany and Norway.

Estonia Updates

• Just Security (17/11/21): Estonia’s government has announced a snap military exercise that will include installing razor wire along its border with Russia. As the migrant crisis at the Poland-Belarus border intensifies, the government summoned 1,700 reserve soldiers for the exercise, which will include installing a razor wire barrier along 40 km of its border with Russia. The exercise was called to test rapid response of the national chain of command, according to the Estonian government. Reuters reports.

Finland Updates

• WSWS (30/12/21): 24-hour national port strike in Finland [labor-news, logistics-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Finnish PM apologises for staying out clubbing despite Covid exposure - Sanna Marin says she should have checked guidance given to her after her foreign minister tested positive [!]
• France 24 (3/12/21): Five arrested in Finland over far-right terror plot [militant-far-right-news] [!]
• CPJ (3/11/21): Finland charges 3 investigative journalists with revealing state secrets [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Jacobin (30/10/21): Finland’s Public Childcare System Puts the Rest of the World to Shame - In Finland, 70 percent of preschool children attend a full day care service supported by the government. There’s absolutely no reason why countries like the United States can’t do the same. [leftist-news, analysis-news]

France Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Regions (cr.)

• WSWS (30/12/21): HGV drivers at French company strike over unsafe working conditions [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Waste collection strike over working time continues in Toulouse, France [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Accident and emergency staff begin indefinite protest at Rouen University Hospital, France [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): French midwives and nursing assistants strike over pay and staffing levels - On Tuesday, nursing assistants at a respite home in the town of Fondettes also ended a four-day strike after they obtained the same 183-euro salary increase as medical staff were granted by last year’s Ségur healthcare review. [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Omicron Drives Record Rates of Infection in Several European Countries [covid-news]
• Jacobin (28/12/21): France’s Presidential Election Is a One-Sided Culture War - Emmanuel Macron has often warned that France shouldn’t imitate US-style culture wars. But ahead of April’s election, the liberal president and his far-right challengers are all obsessing about what they call an “Islamo-leftist” threat to French national identity. [!]
• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• Jacobin (27/12/21): For Emmanuel Macron, Liberalism Means Letting Armed Police Do Whatever They Like - The policing of protests in France has become so nakedly repressive that even the United Nations has denounced its excesses. But a new protocol shows that Emmanuel Macron’s administration has chosen to turn violent police tactics into the norm. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): French national jailed in Iran since 2020 goes on hunger strike - Benjamin Briere, 36, is being detained over alleged spying and propaganda against Iran – charges he rejects as fabricated. [!]
• Financial Times (23/12/21): Covid lays bare staffing crisis in Europe’s hospitals - Chronic under-investment means workforce shortages are constraining intensive care provision [labor-news, healthcare-news, covid-news] Paywall Summary (?): In France, 7 of 13 regions have had to trigger hospital emergency plans. In Paris, 1k nursing jobs of 18k remain unfilled. Nationally, around 5% of nursing jobs were unfilled. In Germany, 'almost 90% of hospitals reported being unable to operate fully all their intensive care beds'. In Ireland, a poll found 2/3 of respondents 'had cared for patients who died of Covid-19 and 85% believed the experience had a negative psychological impact on them.' - in rural Ireland, staffing shortages are hitting the hardest. This has prompted meagre reform in France, but unlikely to be sufficient, in a system in which healthcare has been underfunded over time.
• Democracy Now (22/12/21): Israel Rolling Out 4th Dose of COVID Vaccine; France Expected to Reach 100,000 New Cases Per Day [covid-news]
• Africa News (21/12/21): [Italian] MSC offers to buy [French] Bolloré's logistics branch in Africa [capitalist-farce-news]
• Democracy Now (21/12/21): Humanitarian Aid Group Says British and French Rescue Crews Let 27 Refugees Drown [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (21/12/21): The French armed forces ministry has said that its forces have killed a leading member of the Islamic State in Niger, Soumana Boura. The French army said Boura was killed by an air strike by its “Operation Barkhane” unit that took place on Dec. 20. Reuters reports.
• Not Just Bikes (17/12/21): How to (Quickly) Build a Cycling City - Paris [ civil-planning-news, rail-news, leftist-news, socialist-news] He doesn't explicitly say (because he's not a political channel), but the mayor of Paris (who Not Just Bikes seems to generally review favorably, observing that rather than wasting time on pilot projects that tell us what we already know, Paris just went for it) is of the Socialist Party - neat!
• Africa News (17/12/21): Court in Madagascar convicts five people for plotting a coup [!]
• Africa News (16/12/21): Malagasy prosecutor seeks life imprisonment for five accused of coup attempt [!]
• Just Security (15/12/21): Members of the public in Myanmar are urging targeted sanctions against oil and gas funds, the single largest source of foreign currency revenue in Myanmar. “But Western governments — most notably the United States and France — have refused to take that step amid lobbying from energy company officials and resistance from countries such as Thailand, which gets gas from Myanmar,” Kristen Gelineau, Victoria Milko and Lori Hinnant report for AP. Important context: see NYT article from (22/4/21) on Chevron lobbying against such sanctions [us-policy-news, big-oil-news]
• The Guardian (14/12/21): Paris taxi firm suspends use of Tesla Model 3 cars after fatal accident - Tesla denies any technical problem with the car as authorities investigate the accident which killed one person and injured 20 [!]
• Africa News (14/12/21): French troops leave Mali's Timbuktu after eight years
• Democracy Now (13/12/21): New Caledonia Votes to Remain French Territory in Referendum Boycotted by Independence Groups - Turnout was just over 40%. New Caledonia’s current president, Louis Mapou, is pro-independence and said the territory would continue to pursue the “path of emancipation.” The island territory was colonized by France in 1853.
• Workers World (10/12/21): People of the Sahel oppose imperialism [neo-imperialism-news]
• WSWS (30/11/21): Channel drowning survivor reveals UK, French police left them to die [immigrant-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• CPJ (9/12/21): Turkish President Erdoğan sues Greek and French outlets for alleged insults [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Man arrested in Paris over Jamal Khashoggi killing is released - Officials say Saudi national has ‘nothing to do with the case’ and arrest was a case of mistaken identity [!]
• Africa News (7/12/21): Madagascar: Trial of alleged masterminds of attempted coup begins
• The Guardian (7/12/21): French police arrest man in connection with Jamal Khashoggi killing - Police say man, named as Khalid Aedh al-Otaibi, was arrested as he was about to board flight from Paris to Riyadh
• Left Voice (7/12/21): A TERF-Far Right Alliance Has Launched a New Transphobic Onslaught - In view of the increasing number of reactionary articles in the press and other public statements of that ilk, this article proposes a short guide to survival in transphobic territory — with a focus on Britain, the United States, and France [far-right-news, civil-rights-news, lgbtq-news] [!]
• The Guardian (6/12/21): Investigation launched into brawl at French far-right rally - Dozens detained after protesters attacked at campaign rally for presidential candidate Éric Zemmour [far-right-news, protest-news] [!]
• The Guardian (5/12/21): UK takes part in huge French naval exercise to counter ‘emerging threats’ - France’s top naval commander cites ‘rapid rearmament’ of China and Russia as danger to maritime security [!]
• The Guardian (5/12/21): Far-right French presidential candidate put in headlock by protester at rally - Éric Zemmour formally declared his candidacy on Tuesday, highlighting his anti-migrant and anti-Islam views [far-right-news, protest-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (5/12/21): French far-right candidate Zemmour’s rally marred by fighting - Chairs were thrown at left-wing activists who stood up in ‘No to Racism’ t-shirts during Eric Zemmour’s campaign speech. [far-right-news, protest-news] [!]
• Left Voice (3/12/21): French Hospital Worker Makes the Call to Nationalize Healthcare under the Control of Workers - Speaking at a November 24 campaign rally for Anasse Kazib, the revolutionary rail worker running for president of France, a hospital laundry worker and local trade union leader makes a compelling case for nationalizing healthcare under the control of the workers who provide the actual care and services in hospitals, clinics, and elsewhere. [healthcare-news, labor-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (4/12/21): UAE signs $19 billion fighter jet deal with France - The sale of Dassault Rafale jets and Caracal helicopters marks Paris' largest foreign military sale to date
• Democracy Now (1/12/21): France Inducts Josephine Baker into Pantheon As Far-Right, Racist Pundit Announces Presidential Bid [far-right-news]
• Workers World (30/11/21): Massive protests in Niger, Burkina Faso demand French military get out [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Left Voice (30/11/21): Another Attack on Protesters by French Troops in Africa, This Time Killing Three - Demonstrators demanding the departure of French troops from Operation Barkhane in the African Sahel region blocked a French army convoy last Saturday, and the soldiers and Nigerian police opened fire, killing three and injuring 17, 10 of them seriously. [protest-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Popular Front (20/9/21): Corsica's FLNC Militants are Back - Today we speak to Corsican filmmaker Lionel Dumas about the reemergence of Corsica's separatist militant group, the FLNC. - The militants have stepped into the open again after local elections that garnered more than 70% of votes for Corsican nationalists, have been largely ignored by France. There are fears that renewed violence could return to the island of Corsica [podcast-news]
• Left Voice (26/11/21): Government Inflexibility Provokes General Strike in French Polynesia - For more than a week, especially in the Caribbean, France’s “overseas territories” have seen a wave of mobilizations against the government. On Wednesday, it spread to French Polynesia, in the Pacific. [labor-news, neo-imperialism-news, anti-vaxx-news] While I empathize with the anti-imperialist stance, it's hard to swing an explicitly anti-vaxx stance. Broadly speaking I think this is part of an anti-colonial reaction, but that doesn't downplay how corrossive anti-vaxx positions are
• WSWS (19/11/21): Rail and airport workers strike in France for wage increases [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (25/11/21): French fishers to block Channel tunnel in Brexit licences row - Members of industry association say large number of vehicles will be used to block key artery between nations
• Telesur (26/11/21): Anti-Vax Rioters Attack Policemen and Journalists in Martinique - Over the last week, Guadalupe and Martinique, two French overseas territories in the Caribbean, have witnessed armed incidents during protests against vaccination, fuel price increases, and low wages. [protest-news, anti-vaxx-news] Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (26/11/21): French ex-minister Nicolas Hulot accused of rape and sexual assault - Former environment minister denies allegations as four women come forward in TV documentary
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): At least 27 migrants drowned off the coast of France trying to reach Britain. It was the biggest single loss of life in the English Channel since such figures started to be recorded in 2014. The number of illegal Channel landings, orchestrated by criminal gangs, is already three times higher this year than in all of 2020. The British and French governments promised to step up their fight against people-traffickers. But it is not yet clear who will pay to patrol the waves. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): Martinique: Shots fired at police as anger rises over COVID curbs - Like its neighbour Guadeloupe, Martinique has seen protests against COVID-19 restrictions and vaccine mandates
• Left Voice (24/11/21): Protests in Burkina Faso against French Troops - A French army convoy was attacked by demonstrators in Burkina Faso opposing the French military presence in the Sahel. While the French soldiers injured four protesters, the mobilization remains strong. French troops out of Africa! [neo-imperialism-news, protest-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Thousands march in France protesting violence against women - Demonstrations come amid growing outrage over women killed by their partners and as French women are increasingly speaking out about sexual harassment and abuse [protest-news, civil-rights-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (2/12/19): The US Neocolonial Role In Africa ft. Milton Allimadi [us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Two people linked to France’s ultra-right movement have been arrested as part of an anti-terrorism probe, a judicial source has said. Reuters reports. [far-right-news]
• Jacobin (6/1/20): The Franc Zone, a Tool of French Neocolonialism in Africa - François Mitterrand warned that France would be irrelevant to twenty-first-century history unless it maintained its control of Africa. Its instrument for so doing is the CFA Franc — a colonial currency entrenching French rule more than fifty years after independence. [history-news, analysis-news, neo-imperialism-news, economic-news]
• The Economist World This Week (13/11/21): France formally handed back to Benin 26 precious artefacts, including statues and a royal throne, that it had taken when it colonised the west African country in the late 19th century. Other former colonial powers are also under pressure to return looted items. These include Britain, which holds more than 900 “Benin bronzes” that were taken from Nigeria.
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• The Guardian (12/11/21): Macron defence staffer allegedly raped after Élysée Palace party - French prosecutors investigate alleged assault of female soldier by colleague after party in July
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): French bishops agree to compensate thousands of sex abuse victims - Move comes a month after major report revealed mass abuse of children by church figures since the 1950s. [crime-news]
• Jacobin (6/11/21): The World’s Best Mayor Is a French Communist - Philippe Rio from Grigny, south of Paris, has been voted the world’s best mayor. He told Jacobin about the local social programs that have made his Communist administration a global success story. [socialist-news, leftist-news]
• Financial Times (5/11/21): Macron’s former aide Benalla found guilty of beating up protesters - Revelations by Le Monde triggered accusations of cover-up by France’s president and his team Paywall Summary (?): Benalla has had previous scandals as well, such as security contracts with oligarchs close to Putin in 2019. It seems Macron did some covering up, per reporting here
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): As world leaders debated net zero, Britain and France called a temporary truce in a furious row over the economically insignificant question of fishing rights in the English Channel. France had seized a British vessel after French fisherfolk complained that post-Brexit Britain was being slow to issue them with licences. The mackerel mêlée is certain to resume.
• Just Security (3/11/21): A tunnel from a house frequented by a known extremist has been discovered in Tunisia near the French ambassador’s residence.
• Just Security (3/11/21): France’s ambassador to Australia has criticized the Australian government’s leaking of text messages between French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Scott Morrison, saying the move is an “unprecedented new low” that raises questions over whether other countries can trust Australia
• Just Security (2/11/21): French President Emmanuel Macron has said that planned trade-related sanctions on the U.K., following a post-Brexit row over fishing rights, would be postponed so negotiators could focus on settling the argument
• Just Security (2/11/21): A 15-page confidential agreed communications timeline on the AUKUS pact and cancelled French submarine contract has been reported by The Australian newspaper. The Australian states that the timeline undermines claims from Biden that he did not know that Australia had not informed France earlier about the cancellation of the submarine contract. A text message sent from French President Emmanuel Macron to Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison two days before the announcement of the AUKUS pact has also been leaked. In the message, Macron asked Morrison whether to expect good or bad news on the submarine project, and the text appears to have been shared to reinforce Australia’s position that France was not blindsided about the contract’s cancellation. However, Morrison has been accused of putting his personal political interests ahead of healing Australia’s diplomatic rift with France, and it has been suggested that the documents were leaked by the Australian government. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (1/11/21): Biden has acknowledged that his administration’s handling of a submarine deal with Australia was “clumsy,” as he sought to repair relations with France following the AUKUS security pact between the U.S., U.K. and Australia [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (29/10/21): Macron’s fighting talk on fishing is driven by far-right election threats - Analysis: British government is not entirely innocent but Paris knows forceful rhetoric should only go so far [far-right-news, electoral-news]
• The Guardian (28/10/21): UK-France fishing reprisals threaten full post-Brexit trade war - No 10 threatens retaliation against French measures including port ban on British fishing boats
• Just Security (29/10/21): In a phone call French President Emmanuel Macron has told Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison that the scrapping of the submarine contract, following the AUKUS pact, “broke the relationship of trust” between France and Australia and said Canberra should propose “tangible actions” to heal the diplomatic rift.
• Just Security (29/10/21): France has said that it could stop British boats from landing if the dispute with the U.K. over fishing licences is not resolved by Tuesday. The comments come after a British trawler was seized by France and another fined during checks off Le Havre yesterday. The U.K. Environment Secretary George Eustice has said that the language used by French officials is“inflammatory” and has warned that the U.K. would respond if France went ahead with threats, saying “two can play at that game.”
• Just Security (29/10/21): President Biden will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in an opportunity to address France’s concerns after a dispute over the Australian submarine deal with Paris that fell through following the U.S., U.K. and Australia AUKUS pact [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (25/10/21): French grid: New nuclear reactors crucial for net-zero path - The findings come as Europe is engulfed in an energy crisis that exposes the region’s dependence on fossil fuel imports. [energy-news]
• Financial Times (23/10/21): Conservative billionaire Vincent Bolloré tightens grip on French media - Tycoon’s growing influence could shape the outcome of April’s presidential election, say analysts [media-news, far-right-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): Bolloré is has a reputation for buying out media outlets, driving out the "riff raff" (so to speak), and installing management that will cater to his tastes. This is generally mediated through his increasing control of Lagardère, a French/international media conglomerate. Falling under this wing has included media conglomerate Vivendi (and its pay-TV Canal Plus), Canal Plus's I-Télé (now rebranded as CNews, which follows in the steps of the US's Fox News, and a frequent source of Bolloré's replacement staff), along with Lagardère's Europe 1 Radio Station, Paris Match (magazine) and JDD (a weekly paper). All of these outlets have outsize political weight, for example, Paris Match is partially credited for "mainstreaming" now-President Macron when he was an outsider in 2017. It's in this context that the "news" of the article can be understood - JDD's editor Hervé Gattegno was just fired (a center-right person opposed to the far-right), and people close to him believe he was fired for publishing an editorial calling far-right Presidential candidate Eric Zemmour a "prophet of doom", enraging Bolloré. Zemmour, now the second most popular Presidential candidate for the upcoming elections, was launched as a star presenter at CNews. And while it's not an abberation that French media is largely owned by a small group of people (kinda like everywhere), what's increasingly notable is Bolloré's growing control over important media outlets and his active role in facilitating a far-right-favoring media narrative, which could have an outsize impact on the issues in the upcoming election.
• Jacobin (22/10/21): Paris’s Mayor, Anne Hidalgo, Is Running for President — but Her Socialist Party Is Dying - France’s Socialist Party has announced Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo as its candidate to take back the presidency. Yet far from reconnecting with working-class voters, her candidacy illustrates how France’s established parties have lost their roots. [leftist-news, electoral-news]
• The Moscow Times (18/10/21): Russian Prison Torture Whistleblower Seeks Asylum in France
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Macron decries ‘inexcusable’ Algerian protest massacre in Paris - France’s president told relatives, activists on the 60th anniversary of the 1961 protest in Paris by Algerians that ‘crimes’ were committed.
• WSWS (16/10/21): Regional authorities around Paris, France, demand police intervene to break Transdev bus drivers strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Just Security (14/10/21): France’s national intelligence and counterterrorism coordinator, Laurent Nuñez, has said that right-wing extremist movements in the U.S. such as QAnon have been influencing the French far right.
• Just Security (13/10/21): Éric Zemmour, a far-right author and television pundit who views himself as a defender of France’s Christian civilization (though he himself is Jewish) and channels an anti-establishment campaign similar to former President Trump, has experienced a meteoric rise in political popularity over the last few weeks even as he has not declared his candidacy for France’s presidential elections in April of next year. French President Emmanuel Macron has begun to criticize Zemmour, albeit indirectly, and the far-right Marine Le Pen now “finds herself in the unusual position of being outflanked on the right.” [far-right-news]
• The Guardian (12/10/21): Macron reveals €30bn plan to ‘reindustrialise’ France in likely re-election bid - French president uses speech to outline his plan for French innovation in 2030
• The Guardian (9/10/21): France calls on UK to ‘pay what it owes’ for policing Channel - Interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, says negotiations should begin for migration treaty between UK and EU [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Mali accuses France of training ‘terrorists’ in the country - Prime minister Maiga says French troops created an enclave in northern Mali, and handed it over to ‘terrorist group’ Ansar al-Din.
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Greece ratifies landmark intra-NATO defence pact with France - Athens hails security deal, saying it gives ‘new substance’ to defence of European interests in the Mediterranean. Context: this gives defense against NATO members (which the NATO treaty doesn't provide, obviously), which Greece wants, due to rising tensions with Turkey
• Just Security (6/10/21): Biden “had not been fully aware” of the negative impact on France of the Aukus pact and submarine deal, even after it was announced, the special presidential envoy for climate John Kerry has said I kinda want to call BS on this... or else our (the US) govt is hilariously incompetent
• Just Security (6/10/21): Macron said yesterday that he hoped to close a rift with Biden when the pair meet in Rome during the meeting of the Group of 20 (G20) countries at the end of the month, saying he wanted France and the U.S. to once again work together “in good faith.”
• Democracy Now (6/10/21): French Trade Unions Protest Against Low Pay, Pension & Unemployment Reforms [in nationwide strike] [labor-news]
• The Guardian (5/10/21): French Catholic church expresses ‘shame’ after report finds 330,000 children were abused - Church asks for forgiveness as it accepts findings of ‘appalling’ abuse by clergy and lay members over 70 years
• The Guardian (5/10/21): France threatens to cut UK and Jersey energy supply in fishing row - French government pushing EU to take stronger stance in dispute over access to Channel waters
• Just Security (5/10/21): A French child kidnap plot, the first time that conspiracy theorists in Europe have committed a crime linked to the QAnon-style web of false beliefs, including that government workers are running a child trafficking ring, has shown the global sway of the QAnon style beliefs
• Democraccy Now (5/10/21): Commission Estimates 330,000 Children Sexually Abused in French Catholic Church
• Just Security (4/10/21): Algeria has banned French military planes from its airspace, in the latest in the diplomatic discord between Algeria and France over visas and critical comments from French President Emmanuel Macron
• The Guardian (3/10/21): 3,000 paedophiles in French Catholic church since 1950s - inquiry head - Figure from head of commission investigating sexual abuse comes days before publication of report
• Al Jazeera (2/10/21): Algeria recalls ambassador to France for consultations - The two countries’ relations are tense following France’s decision to cut the number of visas it issues to Algerians.
• Speak Out Now (1/10/21): France: Public Transit Opening Up to Private Competition and Attacking Employees [labor-news]
• Just Security (1/10/21): Trade talks between Australia and the E.U. have been postponed amid the diplomatic row between Australia and France over the Aukus security partnership between the U.S., Australia and the U.K., which led Canberra to cancel a submarine deal with France.
• Just Security (1/10/21): Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was convicted of violating campaign finance laws on Thursday and sentenced to one year of house arrest
• The Guardian (30/9/21): Macron in visa cuts row as Algeria summons French envoy - President accused of chasing rightwing votes by making sudden, tough gestures on immigration [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (29/9/21): France is set to sell 52 Caesar artillery guns to the Czech Republic in a deal worth $301 million, an Armed Forces Ministry official said today.
• CPJ (28/9/21): French police question journalist Thomas Dietrich over complaint by Chad official
• Just Security (28/9/21): Europe needs to stop being naive when it comes to defending its interests and build its own military capacity, French President Emmanuel Macron has said, after Greece sealed a deal with France for French frigates worth about $3.51 billion
• The Guardian (28/9/21): Greece to buy French warships in multibillion-euro defence deal - Paris and Athens hail landmark accord aimed at defending shared interests in the Mediterranean
• Just Security (27/9/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has defended the Mali government’s right to hire a private Russian military company to help fight terrorists and has accused the French troops in Mali of failing to get rid of the terrorists in the region [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (23/9/21): Spyware ‘found on phones of five French cabinet members’ - Mediapart claims indicate that devices were targeted by NSO’s Pegasus spyware
• The Guardian (22/9/21): Aukus pact: France to send ambassador back to US after Macron-Biden call - US and Australia not going back on cancelled €56bn submarine contract despite talk with French leader
• Just Security (20/9/21): France’s Armed Forces Minister arrived in Mali on Sunday to pressure the military junta in Mali to end talks to bring Russian mercenaries into the country and push it to keep a promise to return the country to constitutional order [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): France recalls US and Australia envoys over submarine deal - France has recalled its ambassadors to US and Australia for consultations – an unprecedented move taken over a submarine deal.
• Left Voice (16/9/21): How France and Total Are Militarizing Mozambique - Will the militarization of Cabo Delgado, Mozambique, where the French oil and gas giant Total has invested nearly 20 billion euros, overcome the Islamist insurgency? Is the country becoming the new Mali of southern Africa? [neo-imperialism-news]
• The Guardian (16/9/21): France suspends 3,000 unvaccinated health workers without pay - Staff at hospitals and care homes had refused Covid jab despite warning by Macron of September deadline [healthcare-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): France has said that a French air strike has killed a top Islamic State militant in the Sahel region. Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, the leader of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, “was neutralized by French forces,” French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on Twitter late yesterday [security-news, terrorism-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): The Aukus pact has angered France, which has now lost a deal with Australia to build 12 submarines
• Speak Out Now (10/9/21): France: Public Transportation Workers Fight Back [labor-news, privatization-news]
• The Guardian (10/9/21): France’s former health minister charged over handling of Covid crisis - Agnès Buzyn accused of ‘endangering the lives of others’ after early statements minimised risk of pandemic
• The Guardian (9/9/21): France accuses Patel of blackmail in row over Channel migrants - Interior minister says UK plans to return boats of vulnerable people would not be accepted
• The Guardian (9/9/21): Syria cement plant at centre of terror finance investigation ‘used by western spies’ - Jordanian intelligence officer tells Guardian Lafarge factory was used by intelligence agencies to gather information on IS hostages
• Just Security (8/9/21): The trial of 20 men suspected of involvement in a jihadist rampage across Paris on Nov. 13, 2015, started Wednesday, with police mounting tight security around the Palais de Justice courthouse in central Paris.
• New York Times (8/9/21): Armed Thieves Steal Jewels From Bulgari Store in Paris - A suspect is in custody after seven robbers made off with jewelry with an estimated value of millions from the luxury jewelry store in central Paris.
• Al Jazeera (6/9/21): France’s Total signs mega oil and gas deals with Iraq - French energy giant Total signed some $27bn worth of oil and gas contracts with Iraq at a time when other big oil companies are looking to exit Iraq’s energy sector. [big-oil-news]
• Democracy Now (24/8/21): Legendary Black Performer Joséphine Baker to Be Buried in Paris’s Panthéon
• Democracy Now (18/8/21): Caldor and Dixie Fires Rage in Northern California; French Wildfire Displaces Thousands
• The Guardian (17/8/21): Let’s heed the UN’s dire warning and stop the east African oil pipeline now - The fate of a planned line from Uganda to Tanzania will be the first test of whether anyone was listening to António Guterres’ call to end fossil fuels [climate-change-news, big-oil-news, bri-news]
• Jacobin (8/8/21): Benoît Hamon to Jacobin: “French Democracy Is Unquestionably in Crisis” - Next year’s French election looks like it’ll be dominated by right-wing discourses around identity and immigration. Former Socialist candidate Benoît Hamon tells Jacobin how the Left can put inequality back on the agenda and win.
• Al Jazeera (31/7/21): France clears extradition of Burkina Faso ex-president’s brother - Francois Compaore is wanted in his home country in connection with the 1998 murder of investigative journalist Norbert Zongo.
• The Economist World This Week (31/7/21): The French parliament approved a sweeping bill that obliges people to show a covid-19 health pass when entering a restaurant or bar, or boarding a train or plane. Emmanuel Macron hopes the measures will prod people to get vaccinated; millions have signed up for a jab since he announced the legislation. More than 160,000 protesters took to the streets of Paris and other cities, decrying the bill as infringing on basic liberties.
• Just Security (27/7/21): The Cuban Embassy in Paris was attacked with gasoline bombs, Cuba’s Foreign Ministry has said.
• Democracy Now (26/7/21): France Approves COVID Health Pass; Germany Considers Restrictions for Unvaccinated People
• The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): France and Britain reached a deal to step up patrols in the English Channel to block a surge of migrants seeking to reach Britain. The number of migrants crossing this year has already exceeded the total of 8,461 for all of 2020.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): France’s Macron among potential Pegasus spyware targets: Report - Phone number of French president was identified as potential target for surveillance on behalf of Morocco, report says.
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): “The Paris prosecutor’s office opened a probe on Tuesday into allegations by investigative news website Mediapart and two of its journalists that they had been spied on by Morocco using the Pegasus spyware at the heart of a global scandal,”
• Left Voice (19/7/21): Railway Worker Anasse Kazib Calls for a Counteroffensive Against Macron’s Pension Reform - In a speech on July 12, French president Emmanuel Macron announced a new attempt to reform the pension system. Anasse Kazib, railway worker and Trotskyist presidential candidate, is calling for a counteroffensive.. This will require a massive strike as soon as possible — without waiting for Macron to move forward with his neoliberal agenda.
• The Guardian (14/7/21): France protests: clashes with police on Bastille Day amid anger at tighter Covid rules - Demonstrations in Paris and other cities over plan for mandatory vaccinations for health workers and vaccine pass for public places
• Jacobin (10/7/21): Emmanuel Macron Is Cracking Down on Environmental Activists - France's neoliberal president, Emmanuel Macron, promised to get tough on climate change. But this week's move to criminalize protests at airports shows his government would rather get tough on climate activists — the latest in Macron's attack on civil liberties.
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): France to pull more than 2,000 troops from Africa’s Sahel region - President Emmanuel Macron tells G5 summit that France will reduce its force to 2,500 to 3,000 troops over the long term.
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): France resumes joint military operations in Mali - France suspended the operations early last month following the West African country’s second coup in less than a year.
• The Guardian (2/7/21): France investigates fashion brands over forced Uyghur labour claims - Uniqlo France among four firms suspected of profiting from crimes against humanity in Xinjiang
• Workers World (29/6/21): Laid-off McDonald’s workers in France take over restaurant, feed the hungry
• The Economist World This Week (24/6/21): French voters delivered a rebuke to President Emmanuel Macron in the first round of regional elections. His party, La Republique en Marche, came a humiliating fifth. The result was also bad for his probable presidential rival next year, Marine Le Pen, an anti-immigrant populist.
• Workers World (18/6/21): 140 protests against racism, cops, far right sweep France
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): Macron: Barkhane mission ending, French presence to stay in Sahel - French president says 5,100-strong Operation Barkhane to replaced by new mission supported by other partners.
• Al Jazeera (7/6/21): France opens graft probe into Lebanon’s central bank chief - French prosecutors opened a preliminary investigation into money laundering allegations against Lebanon’s longtime central bank chief Riad Salameh, who is also accused of associating with an organised criminal group.
• World Socialist Web Site (3/6/21): French MBF metal workers on hunger strike against threatened plant closure
• Al Jazeera (3/6/21): France halts joint army operations with Malian forces over coup - The temporary measure announced by the armed forces ministry is France’s strongest reaction yet to last week’s military coup in Mali.
• New York Times (30/5/21): Iran Will Try French Citizen on Spying Charges - Benjamin Brière stands accused of flying a drone and taking photographs in a prohibited area. His lawyer said Iran would put him on trial for espionage, which can carry the death penalty.
• World Socialist Web Site (27/5/21): Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo sends police against striking waste workers
• New York Times (19/5/21): Thousands of French Police Protest in Call for More Protection - The protesters declared that police work has become increasingly dangerous because of the government’s failure to fix the country’s social problems.
• Al Jazeera (13/5/21): France asks police to ban pro-Palestinian protest in Paris - Activists had called the protest in the Barbes district of northern Paris to demonstrate against Israel’s bombardment of the Gaza Strip.; 'On Wednesday, French authorities arrested the president of Palestinian solidarity group Association France-Palestine Solidarite (AFPS), who was planning to organise a peaceful rally in Paris.'
• Democracy Now (12/5/21): French Court Tosses Lawsuit from Agent Orange Victim Against Chemical Companies
• Al Jazeera (11/5/21): France: Macron gov’t, soldiers clash over ‘civil war’ warning - Some military members claim French president has made concessions to ‘Islamism’ as they vow to ‘maintain order’ if war breaks out.
• World Socialist Web Site (7/5/21): Declaring that France must “live with the virus,” Macron ends limited lockdown
• The Economist World This Week (6/5/21): In a nasty row over post-Brexit fishing rights, France threatened to cut off the electricity supply to the island of Jersey, a British dependency that lies close to the French coast. Britain sent two navy vessels to Jersey to monitor a protest by a flotilla of French fishing boats.
• New York Times (5/5/21): In Video, French Reporter Who Vanished in Mali Says He Was Kidnapped - In a short clip that circulated online, the journalist, Olivier Dubois, said he had been seized by a jihadist group linked to Al Qaeda and urged the French government to secure his release.
• Al Jazeera (4/5/21): Egypt to buy Rafale fighter jets worth $4.5bn from France - Human Rights Watch condemns deal saying Paris is only encouraging ‘ruthless repression’ in Egypt under President el-Sisi.
• The Economist: Emmanuel Macron’s troubles open up space for Marine Le Pen - But they also bring greater scrutiny
• World Socialist Web Site (28/4/21): French officers back far-right generals’ letter threatening military coup; 'The political crisis is mounting in France since the April 21 publication of a letter by more than 20 retired generals, since signed by over 7,000 military personnel, threatening a coup d’état.'
• World Socialist Web Site: French retired army generals threaten a coup d’état
• Al Jazeera: Rambouillet: Woman stabbed to death in French police station - After the victim was killed, officers near the scene shot dead the attacker.

Germany Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Tribune (27/12/21): The Tribunite who Tried to Kill Hitler - During the Second World War, Jewish socialist Hilda Monte was forced into exile by the Nazi government — but the connections she made in Britain helped her to become one of the resistance’s most formidable operatives. [history-news, far-right-news, socialist-news]
• NBC News (30/12/21): Germany to pull the plug on 3 of its last 6 nuclear power plants - "For the energy industry in Germany, the nuclear phase-out is final," said Kerstin Andreae, the head of energy industry association BDEW. [nuclear-energy-news, big-oil-news]
• Democracy Now (28/12/21): New German Government Moves to Legalize Recreational Marijuana
• The Guardian (24/12/21): Polish deputy PM says Germany wants to turn EU into ‘fourth reich’ - Jarosław Kaczyński’s remarks in far-right newspaper are latest episode in Poland’s lengthy standoff with EU [far-right-news]
• Middle East Monitor (24/12/21): Report: Egypt to receive advanced German anti-missile defence system [!]
• Financial Times (23/12/21): Covid lays bare staffing crisis in Europe’s hospitals - Chronic under-investment means workforce shortages are constraining intensive care provision [labor-news, healthcare-news, covid-news] Paywall Summary (?): In France, 7 of 13 regions have had to trigger hospital emergency plans. In Paris, 1k nursing jobs of 18k remain unfilled. Nationally, around 5% of nursing jobs were unfilled. In Germany, 'almost 90% of hospitals reported being unable to operate fully all their intensive care beds'. In Ireland, a poll found 2/3 of respondents 'had cared for patients who died of Covid-19 and 85% believed the experience had a negative psychological impact on them.' - in rural Ireland, staffing shortages are hitting the hardest. This has prompted meagre reform in France, but unlikely to be sufficient, in a system in which healthcare has been underfunded over time.
• The Moscow Times (22/12/21): Germany Takes RT Off Air in Latest Media Row [!]
• Jacobin (21/12/21): In Berlin, Overworked Hospital Staff Went on Strike for a Month — and Won - The COVID-19 pandemic has heaped even more pressure on understaffed hospital wards. In Berlin, medics organized to do something about it, launching a monthlong strike that forced hospital management to guarantee minimum staffing levels. [healthare-news, labor-news, good-news] [!]
• Just Security (21/12/21): Russia has expelled two German diplomats in response to a German judge finding last week that the Kremlin engaged in “state terrorism” in ordering the murder of a Chechen rebel in Berlin in 2019. The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that it had expelled the diplomats after Germany ordered the expulsion of two Russian diplomats last week over the incident and “as a symmetric response to the aforementioned unfriendly decision by the German government.” Max Seddon and Guy Chazan report for the Financial Times. [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): Russia expels two German diplomats in tit-for-tat move - The step comes after Germany expelled two Russian envoys over a Moscow-linked murder of a Georgian citizen in Berlin. [russia-policy-news] [!]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): German rightwinger chosen as CDU leader by members - Non-binding vote comes as the conservative party looks for new direction after end of Merkel era [!]
• WSWS (16/12/21): Volkswagen to cut around 900 temporary jobs in Germany [labor-news, capitalist-farce-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (16/12/21): YouTube Again Blocks German-Language RT channel [!]
• Juts Security (16/12/21): A German court has sentenced a man to life in prison for driving into a carnival parade in the western German town of Volkmarsen last year, injuring dozens of people. Reuters reports. [court-news]
• Wall Street Journal (15/12/21): German Police Raid Antivaccine Extremists Suspected of Plot to Kill Politician - Officials are growing increasingly concerned about the radicalization of Covid-19 skeptics as the country considers a general vaccine mandate [anti-vaxx-news, militant-far-right-news] Paywall Summary (?): The raids happened in and around Dresden, Saxony. The target politician (it seems to be Saxony State Premier Michael Kretschmer) was involved in implementing COVID-19 restrictions. Police said they found weapons, such as crossbows, and "weapon parts".
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): Berlin Expels 2 Russian Diplomats Over 'State-Ordered Killing' [!]
• New York Times (15/12/21): Russian Is Convicted in Murder of Chechen Man in a Berlin Park - A German court ruled that the Russian state had orchestrated the attack, which strained ties between Berlin and Moscow. [crime-news, court-news] [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Ukraine’s new defense minister Oleksii Reznikov has blamed Germany for blocking the supply of weaponry to Kyiv through NATO. Reznikov has said that Berlin in the past month has vetoed Ukraine’s purchase of anti-drone rifles and anti-sniper systems via the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. Though, Germany subsequently relented on the first item, after deeming it non-lethal. “They are still building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and at the same time blocking our defensive weapons. It is very unfair,” Reznikov told the Financial Times. Roman Olearchyk in Kyiv and Ben Hall report for the Financial Times.
• ZDNet (10/12/21): German logistics giant Hellmann reports cyberattack - The billion-dollar company operates in 173 countries and offers logistics services for rail, seafreight, airfreight, and road transportation. [cyber-security-news, logistics-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): EU countries agree to take in 40,000 Afghan refugees - Group of 15 EU member states agree to resettle Afghans, with Germany accepting the bulk of new arrivals, commissioner says. [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (9/12/21): Olaf Scholz was sworn in as chancellor of Germany, ending the 16-year tenure of Angela Merkel. Mr Scholz, a Social Democrat, leads a three-party coalition, Germany’s first since the 1950s, which includes the Greens and the pro-enterprise Free Democrats. The parties have approved a detailed plan for governing, which includes a higher minimum wage and building more homes. First, however, they must contend with a fourth wave of covid-19.
• Jacobin (8/12/21): Germany’s New Government Is in Thrall to Neoliberal Hawks - Today, the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz became leader of Germany’s new government. But with fiscal hawk Christian Lindner in charge of the finance ministry, there’s little hope of Germany — or Europe — breaking free of neoliberal dogmas. [economic-news] [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Germany’s former Chancellor Angela Merkel has handed over the chancellery to her successor Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Lawmakers approved Scholz’s chancellorship largely along party lines in a secret-ballot poll, with 395 voting in favor and 303 against. Scholz is a Social Democrat with ambitions to revive progressive politics across Europe, and it is the first time in 16 years that Germany will have a center-left government led by a new chancellor. Katrin Bennhold reports for the New York Times. [politics-news]
• WSWS (6/12/21): 14,000 Airbus workers take part in “warning” strikes in Germany [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): More Protests Erupt as European Countries Tighten Vaccine Mandates [protest-news, covid-news]
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Four injured in Munich after second world war bomb explodes - Blast near busy German train station happened during drilling work on construction site, say police
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Amid Record COVID-19 Surge, Germany to Exclude Unvaccinated From Public Life [covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (30/11/21): German court jails ISIL member for life over Yazidi genocide - Frankfurt court rules in case concerning death of a five-year-old girl bought as a slave and left to die in the sun. [court-news]
• WSWS (29/11/21): The case of Nemi El-Hassan: German television channel sacks critical journalist [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• Left Voice (26/11/21): Germany’s New Government Promises Renewed Attacks on Pensions and Working Hours - Two months after the federal elections, the SPD, the Greens, and the FDP have agreed to form a new government. It promises some reforms, but also new neoliberal measures and increased militarism. [bad-government-news, privatization-news, busting-labor-news]
• Popular Front (27/10/21): Lina E and the Anti-Fascist Militant Case - Today we speak to journalist Conall Kearney about the ongoing case of Lina E, a 26-year-old woman accused of leading a militant leftist group that ambushed several neo-Nazis in Germany with hammers. [leftist-news, far-right-news, podcast-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): The German government has urged members of Congress not to sanction the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The pipeline would circumvent Ukrainian transit infrastructure and deliver Russian gas directly to Germany. President Biden has waived sanctions in response to the pipeline but dissatisfied Senate Republicans are pushing for new sanctions as an amendment to the annual defense bill. According to documents obtained by Axios the German government has argued that imposing sanctions would “weaken” U.S. credibility and “ultimately damage transatlantic unity.” Zachary Basu reports for Axios. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, energy-news]
• WSWS (26/11/21): More protest strikes in Germany’s public sector [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (26/11/21): Nursing staff in Germany on strike during contract negotiations for public sector workers [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Ars Technica (26/11/21): Tesla forced to turn down €1.1 billion in EU support for German battery plant - Delays to factory near Berlin left carmaker unable to meet EU state aid conditions.
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Two months after an election, a deal to form a new German government was unveiled. Olaf Scholz of the Social Democrats will lead a coalition with the Greens and the Free Democrats, a pro-business party. Mr Scholz will succeed Angela Merkel as chancellor in early December. The inclusion of the Greens has put climate change front and centre of the new government’s agenda. It also pledges to build 400,000 flats a year to ease a housing crisis. [politics-news]
• Telesur (18/11/21): Germany Denies Agreement to Receive Migrants From Belarus - The German humanitarian aid and cooperation would be carried out in accordance with "European values" and always on Belarusian territory. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (17/11/21): Cyber hackers thought to be behind attacks on governmental agencies in recent months have been linked to the Belarusian government. Researchers for the cybersecurity company Mandiant assessed with “high confidence” in a new report that the “Ghostwriter” information operations campaign was “aligned with Belarusian government interests.” Mandiant also linked another group of hackers – who have conducted cyber espionage against government and private sector entities in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine and Germany – to the Belarusian government. [cyber-security-news]
• WSWS (15/11/21): New neo-Nazi weapons cache discovered in Austria [militant-far-right-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Germany suspends approval for Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline - Move follows mounting political pressure to scrap project in setback to Kremlin-backed project - Energy markets across Europe surged after the German energy regulator suspended its certification process [big-oil-news, energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): A knife attack on a train in Germany on Nov. 6 which left several people injured is being invesitgated as possible terrorism, German prosecutors have said. “An initial evaluation of social media accounts of the suspect, who was arrested at the time, showed that an Islamist motive for the crime could not be excluded, said the prosecutors, adding they were looking at all possibilities,” Reuters reports.
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Coronavirus Cases Surge to Record Highs Across Some European Nations [covid-news]
• Just Security (8/11/21): A knife attack on Saturday on a high-speed train in Germany has left three people severely wounded. A 27-year-old Syrian man was arrested in Seubersdorf, where the train stopped after the attack, Bavarian state police have said.
• The Moscow Times (5/11/21): Russian Diplomat With FSB Links Found Dead Outside Berlin Embassy – Reports
• Left Voice (2/11/21): Gorillas Delivery Workers Go On Strike - Gig workers at Berlin’s food delivery service Gorillas have once again gone on strike, marking the third wave of mobilizations in the last year. While the workers are more experienced and better organized than ever, they face increasing pressure from management to give up on their demands. [labor-news]
• On Labor (1/11/21): Elsewhere in strikes, workers at seven Amazon warehouses in Germany will walk off the job today in an ongoing dispute over wages and work conditions. Specifically, Amazon has refused to recognize local sectoral bargaining agreements that cover retail and delivery workers. [labor-news]
• Left Voice (29/10/21): Will Berlin’s New Government Sabotage the Housing Referendum? - Last month Berliners voted overwhelmingly to expropriate big landlords in their city. Now the incoming government is trying to squash that decision by subjecting it to months of "expert analysis." [leftist-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): A German court has convicted a woman married to an Islamic State (ISIS) fighter for “‘crimes against humanity and attempted war crimes’ in the aiding and abetting of the murder of a 5-year-old Yazidi girl.”
• Just Security (25/10/21): German police have stopped more than 50 far-right vigilantes from trying to patrol the German-Polish border to stop migrants from entering Germany. The armed vigilantes responded to a call by the Third Way, a far-right party with suspected links to neo-Nazi groups, to stop illegal crossings. [militant-far-right-news]
• Vaush Pit (22/10/21): Germany, Die Linke, War in Donbas | Part 3 German Politics Arc Ft. Adam Something Adam Something feels Three Arrows didn't provide a complete picture in the last Vaush Pit segment [leftist-news, analysis-news, electoral-news]
• Just Security (20/10/21): Two German former soldiers have been detained on terrorism-related charges for allegedly trying to form a mercenary group of up to 150 members to fight in Yemen, the German Federal Public Prosecutor has said.
• The Economist (16/10/21): Germany’s workers are in the strongest position in 30 years - And they are demanding more pay [labor-news]
• Vaush Pit (11/10/21): THREE ARROWS Chat About Germany and Die Linke [analysis-news, history-news, leftist-news, far-right-news]
• Jacobin (10/10/21): Die Linke’s Defeat Is a Dire Warning for the Left - In September's German election, the socialist Die Linke party slumped to under 5 percent support. If the Left is to recover, it needs to show that it's still on the side of disenfranchised working-class voters. [leftist-news, electoral-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (6/10/21): The U.S. Army is investigating the raising of a Confederate flag at a U.S. military base in Germany earlier this week.
• Financial Times (1/10/21): German workers strike for higher pay as eurozone inflation surges - Economists fear further spiralling increases as 13-year high of 3.4% reached in September [labor-news] Paywall Summary: driven by rising energy costs (see briefing) and supply chain bottlenecks, inflation is reaching decade highs in Germany (and Europe more broadly). As a result, labor is pushing for higher wages to compensate for declining worker purchasing power. Neoliberal economists warn this could lead to an "inflation spiral" (a common scare tactic to suppress wages). There is also a so-called "labor shortage" - such as in transport. A point: Why the hell is Germany divesting from nuclear, and going into natural gas???
• Just Security (4/10/21): Iran has asked for the U.S. to unfreeze $10 billion of its funds as a condition for the resumption of nuclear deal talks, Iran’s foreign minister has said.; Germany has rejected Iran’s demands for the U.S. to unfreeze Iranian assets as a condition for nuclear talks to resume, Germany’s Foreign Ministry has said today.
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Yanis Varoufakis on Angela Merkel’s Legacy, European Politics & the “Sordid Arms Race” on the Seas
• The Moscow Times (29/9/21): Russia Threatens YouTube Block Over RT German Spat [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): ‘The Big Delete:’ Inside Facebook’s crackdown in Germany - Tech giant’s use of new ‘social harm’ policy to remove accounts spreading COVID-19 misinformation draws mixed response. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Left Voice (27/9/21): In Berlin, 56% Voted to Expropriate Big Landlords - On Sunday, 56% of Berliners voted in favor of expropriating housing companies that own more than 3,000 units in the city. But a militant campaign will be needed to implement the voters’ will. [electoral-news, leftist-news]
• Left Voice (27/9/21): German Elections: Merkel’s Conservatives Get Their Worst Result Ever - The elections on Sunday marked the end of Angela Merkel's 16 years as German chancellor. Her Christian-Democratic Union (CDU) suffered a historic defeat. The Social Democratic Party (SPD) got the most votes. The Greens and the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP) will likely form a new government with one of the two parties. The Left Party DIE LINKE lost half of its voters. [electoral-news]
• Democracy Now (27/9/21): Social Democrats to Form Coalition Gov’t in Germany After Edging Out Merkel’s Long-Standing Bloc
• Left Voice (25/9/21): A “Lefty” Guide to the German Elections - Tomorrow is Election Day in Germany. Here are some thoughts on how a leftist should approach the vote. [electoral-news]
• CPJ (22/9/21): German journalist Michael Trammer detained, charged with trespassing while covering environmental protesters
• Al Jazeera (21/9/21): Namibians protest as MPs to vote on German genocide deal - Germany in May described the killings of the Herero and Nama people more than a century ago as genocide for the first time.
• Just Security (17/9/21): China has denied a German warship on a mission to the contested South China Sea entry into a harbor, a German Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said
• Democracy Now (14/9/21): Pressure Mounts on Germany to Support COVID-19 Patent Waiver as WTO Panel Meets [vaccine-ip-news]
• The Economist World This Week (4/9/21): Germany’s election, to be held on September 26th, was poised on a knife-edge. Polls suggested stronger-than-expected support for the Social Democrats, whose candidate for chancellor, Olaf Scholz, performed well in the first of three televised debates with the candidates of the other two main parties: Annalena Baerbock for the Greens and Armin Laschet for the Christian Democrats, the party of Angela Merkel. Mr Laschet could be leading the party towards one of its worst-ever results.
• The Irrawaddy (2/9/21): German Food Giant Metro Ends Operations in Myanmar
• The Guardian (24/8/21): Police suspect poisoning at German university as students turn blue - Several people experience nausea and some watch their limbs change colour after using campus kitchens
• Early Edition (23/8/21):A firefight at the gates of Kabul’s international airport killed at least one Afghan soldier earlier today, German military officials have said.; A firefight at Kabul airport involving German and U.S. troops has erupted today, when Afghan guards who exchanged fire with an unidentified gunman
• The Moscow Times (22/8/21): Merkel Struggles to Reassure Ukraine on Nord Stream 2Merkel Struggles to Reassure Ukraine on Nord Stream 2
• AP News (11/8/21): Nationwide Train Strike Disrupts Travel Across Germany [labor-news]
• The Guardian (10/8/21): Nurse in Germany suspected of replacing Covid vaccines with saline solution - Authorities say about 8,600 people may have been affected
• Just Security (11/8/21): A British man has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for Russia
• Democracy Now (10/8/21): Germany Sets Up 30 [B]illion Euro Recovery Fund After Devastating Floods
• The Guardian (27/7/21): Smoke rises after explosion at German chemicals site – video [industrial-failure-news]
• The Guardian (26/7/21): Far-right accused of aiding German floods clear-up to win support - Investigation finds groups are claiming official organisations are failing in salvage operations
• The Guardian (19/7/21): German flood alert system criticised for ‘monumental failure’ - Questions raised over lack of warning as death toll passes 150 and villages are left without drinking water, power or gas
• Al Jazeera (17/7/21): Death toll rises to 183 in Germany and Belgium floods - Hundreds of people are missing or unreachable as several areas remained inaccessible due to high water levels and communication was still down in some places.
• Democracy Now (16/7/21): German Chancellor Confronted over Blocking Patent Waiver for COVID-19 Vaccines
• The Guardian (16/7/21): Aftermath of Germany and Belgium floods – in pictures - At least 110 people have died in devastating floods across parts of western Germany and Belgium. Search and rescue operations are continuing with hundreds still unaccounted for
• In These Times (15/7/21): "How Many More Have to Die?" Protesters March Against Vaccine Apartheid - Campaigners are targeting German Chancellor Angela Merkel—and the pharmaceutical companies she is protecting.
• The Guardian (15/7/21): Germany floods: Merkel voices horror at ‘catastrophe’ amid search for estimated 1,300 missing - Angela Merkel says her 'heart goes out' to flood victims after disaster leaves at least 59 dead
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Death toll rises in ‘devastating’ German floods - Record rainfall in western Germany caused rivers to burst their banks, destroying homes and killing several people.
• World Socialist Web Site (6/7/21): Food delivery workers in Berlin continue wave of strikes
• Jacobin (6/7/21): How Germany’s Far Right Is Building Up Anti-Immigrant Parties in the Balkans - When the far-right Alternative für Deutschland is reelected to the German parliament this fall, its party foundation will receive up to €80 million a year in state funding. The party already has nationalist and fascist allies across ex-Yugoslavia — and now, it will use federal funds to support their reactionary organizations.
• The Economist (3/7/21): German submarines are giving Turkey an edge over Greece - That may make the eastern Mediterranean less stable
• The Guardian (25/6/21): Three dead and 10 wounded in stabbing attack in Germany - Police said they arrested suspect after ‘major operation’ in southern town of Würzburg
• Payday Report (21/6/21): German Workers Strike Amazon on Prime Day
• Left Voice (11/6/21): No, Germany Is Not Actually Recognizing the Genocide in Namibia - The German government has made international headlines with its public “gestures of reconciliation” for the genocide of tens of thousands of West Africans in the early 1900s. Representatives of the Herero and Nama peoples are rejecting the deal, saying it comes nowhere close to addressing the effects of Germany’s long history of colonial exploitation in the region.
• World Socialist Web Site (10/6/21): Right-wing extremist network exposed in Frankfurt, Germany police special operations unit
• The Guardian (6/6/21): Angela Merkel’s CDU beats far right in crucial German state election - Conservative win in Saxony-Anhalt seen as last big test ahead of national election in September
• Left Voice (5/6/21): Germany Lets Far-Right Terrorism Flourish - Far-right terrorism is an ongoing phenomenon in Germany, with a new revelation every week about soldiers and cops. The government largely turns a blind eye, proposing as the solution to give the police even more funding.
• World Socialist Web Site (21/5/21): IG Metall cements wage differentials between east and west German workers
• World Socialist Web Site (18/5/21): Protests and strikes by hospital workers in Germany (Sana is a private hospital company)
• World Socialist Web Site (9/5/21): German government opposes lifting of patents on coronavirus vaccines
• Democracy Now (7/5/21): German Chancellor Angela Merkel Rejects Patent Waiver for COVID-19 Vaccines
• World Socialist Web Site: (3/5/21): Pressure from Berlin bus drivers halts [postpones] re-introduction of front boarding
• World Socialist Web Site: (3/5/21): German airline Lufthansa announces a further 10,000 job cuts
• World Socialist Web Site (30/4/21): Stop front boarding on Berlin buses—prepare strike action!
• Democracy Now (30/4/21): Germany Court Sides with Youth Climate Activists in Historic Ruling
• New York Times: German Intelligence Puts Coronavirus Deniers Under Surveillance - The country’s domestic intelligence agency says it will create a new department to deal with extremism among conspiracy theorists.
• Left Voice: 20,000 Protest in Berlin After the Rent Cap is Overturned - The only way to stop exploding rents is to put housing under public control by nationalizing Berlin’s biggest landlords
• Vice News: (video) Germany's Far Right is Surging
• World Socialist Web Site: Job cuts mount in German clinics and nursing homes despite the pandemic
• Left Voice: Workers at Continental in Hesse, Germany carry out 24-hour strike
• World Socialist Web Site: Germany’s Greens select Baerbock as chancellor candidate
• World Socialist Web Site: Hospitals in Germany on the brink of collapse
• The Guardian (14/3/21): Angela Merkel's CDU slumps to historic lows in former strongholds - State election results could be sign tide is turning against conservatives as country gears up for national poll

Greece Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

Popular Front (5/4/21): (podcast) Greece: 17N Hunger Strike, Police Brutality, and Renewed Political Violence

• WSWS (30/12/21): Workers at Greek National Social Security Agency strike following cancellation of leave [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Omicron Drives Record Rates of Infection in Several European Countries [covid-news]
• The Guardian (24/12/21): At least 13 dead after third migrant boat in three days sinks in Greek waters - People still missing despite major rescue effort as smugglers switch to more perilous route from Turkey [immigrant-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): With drones and thermal cameras, Greek officials monitor refugees - Athens says a new surveillance system will boost security, but critics raise alarm over its implications for privacy. [immigrant-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (23/12/21): 3 Dead, Dozens Missing After Boat Carrying Refugees Sinks in Aegean Sea [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (22/12/21): Dozens of refugees believed dead after boat sinks in Greek waters - 2021’s death toll from central Mediterranean crossings likely to hit 1,500 as coastguard says survivors unlikely [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Guardian (18/12/21): Boris Johnson’s zeal to return Parthenon marbles revealed in 1986 article - Unearthed Oxford Union article by prime minister made passionate case for sculptures’ repatriation to Athens [!]
• New York Times (14/12/21): Three were jailed in Greece after a principal was handcuffed over virus measures. [anti-vaxx-news, covid-news]
• CPJ (9/12/21): Turkish President Erdoğan sues Greek and French outlets for alleged insults [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• CPJ (8/12/21): New Greek criminal code amendment threatens journalists with jail for spreading ‘false’ information [far-right-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): Pope Francis Voices Support for Refugees in Trip to Greek Island of Lesbos [immigrant-news]
• Jacobin (5/12/21): How Greece’s Brutal Anti-Migrant Policies Became a Model for Britain - From criminalizing aid workers to barbed-wire prisons and pushbacks at sea, Greece's right-wing government is waging a war on migrants — and providing a model that Britain's Tory government is keen to follow. [immigrant-news, analysis-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (22/11/21): Greek Court Delays Trial of Humanitarians Facing “Trumped-Up” Charges for Helping Refugees [court-news, immigrant-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (18/11/21): Greece latest EU country to slap COVID curbs on unvaccinated - From next week, unvaccinated people will be largely barred from indoor spaces even if they test negative for COVID-19 [covid-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): A Greek trial for two dozen aid workers accused of espionage for their role in assisting migrants who arrived in Greece between 2016 and 2018 begins today. The conservative government in Greece, in line with an increasingly hostile climate in Europe towards migrants, is toughening its stance on migration and has indicated that it intends to avoid any repeat of the 2015-2016 crisis in which thousands of migrants arrived in Greece daily. Niki Kitsantonis reports for the New York Times. [immigrant-news, far-right-news]
• Left Voice (11/11/21): How to Escape the Eternal Debt Trap - The fight against the foreign debt that strangles Argentina is at the center of the electoral campaign of the Workers Left Front — Unity (FIT–U). This article explains how imperialism uses the debt to subjugate the masses, and spells out a program in opposition. [economic-news, neo-imperialism-news, analysis-news]
• WSWS (9/11/21): Brutal police killing of 18 year old Roma youth sparks protests [protest-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Just Security (5/11/21): Greece has been accused of the “biggest pushback in years” of a cargo ship carrying 382 migrants [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (29/10/21): Greece rescues cargo ship carrying 400 migrants and refugees - The Greek coastguard says the rescue operation was ‘one of the largest’ ever carried out in the Eastern Mediterranean. [immigrnat-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/10/21): Four people drown after boat carrying migrants sinks off Greece - One person still missing, 22 others rescued following incident near the Greek island of Chios in the Aegean Sea. [immigrant-news]
• Financial Times (19/10/21): Piraeus port deal intensifies Greece’s unease over China links - Beijing cements control of key EU infrastructure but locals say they have not seen the investment they expected [privatization-news, bri-news] Paywall Summary (?): Piraeus is Europe's 4th largest container port, and Chinese-state-backed group Cosco owns 51% of the port (due to acquisitions from 2008 to Aug 2016 to last month). Locals are upset that this transfer has continued, as such was conditioned on investing in local infrastructure, which hasn't turned up. The EU finds this all concerning, and analysts have noted this is a warning of the perils of privatization. The first stakes by Cosco were made when Greece was forced to privatize its assets in 2008 as part of neoliberal austerity measures - and it seems Europe is starting to regret being so punitive. For China, the port is important, linking Asia, Africa, and Europe.
• Al Jazeera (19/10/21): Greece pledges to link Egypt to European Union’s energy market - The connection would happen through an underwater cable that carries electricity across the Mediterranean sea. [energy-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): Protestors have interrupted an Olympic flame lighting ceremony in Greece to challenge China’s human rights violations. The protestors carried a Tibetan flag and a banner reading, “No Genocide Games.” The protestors also called out Beijing’s genocide of the Uyghurs and other Muslim and minority populations. The protestors were arrested by police on the scene.
• WSWS (13/10/21): Greek teachers and students strike against attacks on education and lack of protection from the coronavirus [privatization-news, labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Jacobin (12/10/21): Still Demoralized by Syriza, Greece’s Left Is Struggling to Rebuild - In Greece, the right-wing government’s authoritarian measures have sparked important social struggles. But after Alexis Tsipras’s dismal spell in government, the Left faces an uphill battle to overcome Syriza’s legacy and show that an alternative is possible. [socialist-news, leftist-news, social-woes-news, privatization-news, right-wing-news, electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Croatia, Greece, Romania illegally pushing refugees back: Report - EU members have denied people the right to seek asylum, Lighthouse Reports says, alleging physical abuse in some cases. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Greece ratifies landmark intra-NATO defence pact with France - Athens hails security deal, saying it gives ‘new substance’ to defence of European interests in the Mediterranean. Context: this gives defense against NATO members (which the NATO treaty doesn't provide, obviously), which Greece wants, due to rising tensions with Turkey
• Al-Monitor (5/10/21): Territorial spats reheat ahead of Turkey-Greece talks - Citing disputed territorial claims, the Turkish navy twice blocked research missions by a Greek Cypriot-contracted vessel as Turkey and Greece prepare for bilateral talks in Ankara on Oct. 6.
• The Guardian (28/9/21): Greece to buy French warships in multibillion-euro defence deal - Paris and Athens hail landmark accord aimed at defending shared interests in the Mediterranean
• Al Jazeera (14/9/21): Greece probes crash that killed witness in Netanyahu trial - A former official in Israel’s communications ministry was expected to testify on allegations ex-PM offered benefits to a company for positive media coverage.
• Democracy Now (26/8/21): Greek Prime Minister Urges Radical Action on Climate Crisis After Record Heat and Wildfires [climate-change-news]
• The Guardian (21/8/21): Greek minister defends wall on border with Turkey during Afghan crisis – video
• Democracy Now (20/8/21): Afghan Immigrants in Greece Demand Sanctuary for Refugees Fleeing Afghanistan
• The Moscow Times (11/8/21): Black Sea Oil Spill 400 Times Bigger Than Claimed, Russian Scientists Say [industrial-failure-news]
• Democracy Now (10/8/21): Greek Prime Minister Apologizes Amid Protests over Government’s Handling of Wildfires
• Democracy Now (9/8/21): Dixie Fire Explodes to Largest Single Fire in CA History; Wildfires Continue to Ravage Greece
• The Guardian (7/8/21): Greek firefighter killed and 20 injured as fires spread out of control - Homes, farms and businesses destroyed while Turkey also suffers devastating blazes
• The Guardian (6/8/21): Wildfires burn out of control in Greece and Turkey as thousands flee - Protracted heatwave continues as flames threaten populated areas, electricity installations and historic sites
• Democracy Now (5/8/21): Greek PM Blames Climate Change as Thousands Flee Wildfires Near Athens
• New York Times (4/8/21): A wildfire in Greece burned dozens of homes amid a searing heat wave.
• Al Jazeera (31/7/21): Dozen homes burn, five people hospitalised in Greece wildfire - Some 145 firefighters have been mobilised to extinguish fire near Patras, Greece’s third-largest city.
• The Guardian (1/7/21): Greek police arrest fugitive deputy leader of neo-Nazi group Golden Dawn - Christos Pappas has been on the run since he was sentenced to more than 13 years in jail in October 2020
• The Economist (3/7/21): German submarines are giving Turkey an edge over Greece - That may make the eastern Mediterranean less stable
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Greece accused of refugee ‘pushback’ after family avoid being forced off island - Story of Palestinians who hid on Samos to escape deportation to Turkey appears to be ‘proof’ that pushbacks continue, claim rights groups
• The Guardian (24/6/21): Greek police arrest Dutch journalist for helping Afghan asylum seeker - Ingeborg Beugel was detained for ‘facilitating the illegal stay of a foreigner’ and faces up to a year in jail
• The Guardian (23/6/21): Greek Orthodox priest held after acid attack puts bishops in hospital - Priest who faced defrocking for allegedly hiding cocaine under his cassock is detained as incident leaves church in shock
• Democracy Now (17/6/21): Greek Unions Strike Against Labor Reform Bill; The Guardian (17/6/21): Controversial new labour laws set to shake up working life in Greece - Critics claim employment law reforms will abolish eight-hour day and are ‘Thatcherite policies on steroids’
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Concrete walls and drones: Greek plans for refugee camps decried - Athens is investing in new technology to monitor camps [largely funded by EU institutions], but experts fear the moves will deepen divides.; the narrative here reminds me of this Zizek example
• World Socialist Web Site (12/5/21): Greek workers protest draconian employment legislation [imposed by the conservative New Democracy (ND) government; two national strikes took place a week prior to article publication]

Hungary Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Hungary’s leader denounced in Bosnia for anti-Muslim rhetoric - Orban’s spokesman said it would be a ‘challenge’ to integrate a country with two million Muslims into the EU. [far-right-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (16/12/21): Hungary seeks Iran’s help stopping Afghan migration to Europe - Hungary’s controversial Prime Minister Viktor Orban is a vocal critic of Muslim migration to Europe, and his government believes Iran can help stop the flow of people
• CPJ (13/12/21): Hungary’s Szabolcs Panyi on how Pegasus surveillance has hindered his reporting [surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news] [!]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The European Court of Justice has ruled that a 2018 Hungarian law violated E.U. laws by criminalizing the act of helping migrants and refugees apply for asylum. The law, which the Hungarian government calls the “Stop Soros” act, remains in effect, but the E.U.’s highest court could impose financial penalties if far-right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his government do not amend the law. [far-right-news, immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (11/11/21): Orbán rival promises new constitution if he defeats Hungary PM - Opposition leader Péter Márki-Zay says he will restore rule of law if he wins next April’s elections
• CPJ (9/11/21): Hungary’s Klubrádió owner András Arató on how the station is responding to the loss of its broadcast license [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (18/10/21): Opposition parties in Hungary are uniting around a single candidate to try and unseat far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the country’s elections next year. Peter Marki-Zay, a conservative small-town mayor who was once considered an outsider, won the second round of the primary with 57% of the vote. [far-right-news, electoral-news]
• Financial Times (7/10/21): The US right’s love affair with Hungary’s Orban - Budapest’s policies offer Republicans a blueprint for illiberal government [far-right-news, analysis-news] Paywall Summary: Orban has shown how to turn a Western democracy into a right-wing illiberalism - no wonder that American conservatives, from CPAC to Tucker Carlson to Trump to Pence, have lauded the reactionary. He has tilted the elections (so he can win a super-majority of 67% of seats with a minority 49% of the vote), he has rode rural resentment against "the Other" (ie LGBTQ+, immigrants, etc) and cosmpolitan centers of power (which often subsidize these heartlands) to electoral success, and he has set up a crony state where state resources are allocated to friends. It's a model of what the right can do in the US, so watch out!
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Russia’s Gazprom Inks 15-Year Gas Contract with Hungary - Deal between Moscow and Budapest has angered Ukraine and comes as gas prices in Europe hit record highs. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/7/21):Hungary’s opposition has called for ministerial resignations from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s far-right government over allegations it selected journalists, media owners and opposition political figures as potential targets for invasive Pegasus spyware sold by Israeli cyber firm NSO Group
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Thousands march for LGBTQ rights in Budapest’s biggest Pride - A group of about 200 counter-demonstrators along the route held banners reading ‘Stop LGBTQ paedophilia’.
• Just Security (23/7/21): Hungarian prosecutors have opened an investigation into suspected unlawful surveillance following multiple complaints in the wake of the allegations of the misuse of the Pegasus spyware sold by the Israeli surveillance company NSO Group
• Al Jazeera (21/7/21): Hungary announces referendum on controversial LGBTQ law - Prime Minister Viktor Orban calls public vote on new legislation in the wake of a legal challenge from the European Commission.
• Just Security Early Edition (19/7/21): The Pegasus spyware has been used in Hungary to monitor journalists and others who may challenge Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government.
• The Guardian (7/7/21): EU urged to suspend funds to Hungary over ‘grave breaches of the rule of law’ - Action follows Viktor Orbán passing law banning LGBT content in schools and mishandling of EU funds
• Democracy Now (16/6/21): Hungarian Lawmakers Advance Legislation Barring LGBTQ Content for Minors
• New York Times: Hungary Transfers 11 Universities to Foundations Led by Orban Allies - The transfer, accompanied by billions of euros in state assets, will enable the prime minister and his supporters to exert long-term influence.; 'Critics immediately denounced the move as a government handover of both public education and a vast network of public assets — including real estate and shares in Hungarian companies — to Mr. Orban and his supporters.; But going forward, any changes to the rules governing the foundations will require a two-thirds majority in Parliament. Practically speaking, this that means any effort to tinker with the new system of oversight will require the same level of political support as overhauling the Constitution.'

Iceland Updates

• The Economist World This Week (2/10/21):Iceland fell short of having Europe’s first parliament where women hold most of the seats, following a recount after its election. Women took almost 48% of the seats. The left-right coalition increased its governing majority.

Ireland Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2011) (cr.); Northern Ireland (cr.);

• Financial Times (23/12/21): Covid lays bare staffing crisis in Europe’s hospitals - Chronic under-investment means workforce shortages are constraining intensive care provision [labor-news, healthcare-news, covid-news] Paywall Summary (?): In France, 7 of 13 regions have had to trigger hospital emergency plans. In Paris, 1k nursing jobs of 18k remain unfilled. Nationally, around 5% of nursing jobs were unfilled. In Germany, 'almost 90% of hospitals reported being unable to operate fully all their intensive care beds'. In Ireland, a poll found 2/3 of respondents 'had cared for patients who died of Covid-19 and 85% believed the experience had a negative psychological impact on them.' - in rural Ireland, staffing shortages are hitting the hardest. This has prompted meagre reform in France, but unlikely to be sufficient, in a system in which healthcare has been underfunded over time.
• Financial Times (13/12/21): Sinn Fein’s housing policy drives record popularity - Support for the party once associated with the Troubles soars to historic highs [electoral-news, social-woes-news, economic-news, leftist-news] Paywall Summary (?): Sinn Fein, which emerged as the political wing of the IRA, has followed those roots as a pro-unification, working-class party with a focus on what is 'huring many of the country's 5m population, especially young people: unaffordable or unavailable housing', and it's paying off with a historic high support of 35%; it's 'far ahead' of its traditional rivals, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael (center-right), both can muster 20%, even beating them amongst middle-aged/middle-class voters. The current govt is a coaltion of the traditional parties (ie Fine Gael) and the Green party, even as Sinn Féin won the popular vote in last year's election. It's not popular with the wealthy, as it wants more social spending and to tax the rich, and the Troubles (and the role of the IRA) make it hard for many to vote for them. They are expected to win elections in Northern Ireland next May. One analyst notes that 'they're not just gaining at the expense of government parties, they're gaining at the expense of other opposition parties. It points to Sinn Féin's success in communicating a very clear policy on housing'. Many are suffering, most evident in the housing market, even as the economy booms.
• The Economist (4/12/21): The quest for respectability—and votes—has transformed Sinn Fein - It is on course to be the biggest party on both sides of the Irish border
• The Guardian (25/11/21): Google to pay £183m in back taxes to Irish government - Firm’s subsidiary in Ireland agrees to backdated settlement to be paid in addition to corporation tax for 2020 [big-tech-news, tax-news]
• The Guardian (7/11/21): British man appears in court in Ireland over threat to kill Labour MP - Daniel Weavers, 41, arrested following search of residential property in Cork
• The Guardian (3/11/21): Meat carcasses sent to EU for butchering amid UK worker shortage - Great Britain’s beef producers export to Ireland before reimporting, while pork processors consider the Netherlands
• Vice (14/10/21): Looks Like Facebook Found a Way to Bypass Europe’s Privacy Rules - The draft decision, if ratified, could upend the protections provided by GDPR, Europe’s gold-standard privacy protections. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Ars Technica (13/9/21): Ireland fails to enforce EU law against Big Tech - Irish regulator has not resolved 98% of 164 significant data protection complaints. [big-tech-news]
• Ars Technica (2/9/21): WhatsApp fined $267M for not telling users how it shared data with Facebook - Ireland levies fine for GDPR abuses after pressure from other European countries. [big-tech-news, cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (31/8/21): Ireland’s population passes 5m for first time since C19th famine - Population returns almost to level recorded after famine that killed 1m and forced millions more to emigrate
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Ireland recognises Israel’s ‘de facto annexation’ of Palestine - Gov’t now set to vote on amendment that, if passed, would expel the Israeli ambassador to Ireland and impose sanctions against Israel.
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): A cyber-attack forced the computer system for Ireland’s health service to be shut down. The government rejected demands to pay a $20m ransom to a criminal gang, thought to be from eastern Europe. Details of patients’ records were reportedly leaked online. Micheal Martin, the prime minister, said it was a “heinous attack”.
• Ars Technica (14/5/21): Ireland’s health care system taken down after ransomware attack - Doctors left unable to access patient records after "very sophisticated" attack.
• World Socialist Web Site: Irish police attack sacked Debenhams workers

Italy Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Omicron Drives Record Rates of Infection in Several European Countries [covid-news]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): Environmental activists ‘spat at by drivers’ at Rome protest - Protesters say they were slapped, kicked and spat at by angry drivers during roadblock in Italian capital [protest-news] [!]
• Africa News (21/12/21): [Italian] MSC offers to buy [French] Bolloré's logistics branch in Africa [capitalist-farce-news]
• Ars Technica (9/12/21): Amazon fined €1.1 billion by Italy for antitrust abuse - Investigators find online shopping giant unfairly promoted its logistics business. [antitrust-news, big-tech-news]
• Financial Times (22/11/21): KKR makes €33bn buyout offer for Telecom Italia - Deal would be among biggest private equity purchases of a European telecoms group [media-news] Paywall Summary (?): The company (Telecom Italia) has up-til-now been subject to a "tug of war" for control between French Vivendi and the US activist fund Elliott Management; Vivendi has signalled it will not sell its 24% stake. The company is considered politically important (especially given its primary network, or its Sparkle high-density cables), and the Italian government can block takeovers or asset sales, if not in national interest. KKR has been active in European telecoms, such as in Spain (MasMovil) and the UK (Hyperoptic), and was recently rejected in the Netherlands (KPN), and is part of a trend of private equity takeovers of European telecoms, usually involving breaking up the business to separate the network and consumer aspects of such businesses/services. My take: sounds bad!
• Al Jazeera (1/12/21): Italy accuses Egyptian security of Giulio Regeni’s murder - Italian parliamentary panel report says Egypt’s security apparatus was responsible for the 2016 killing of the student.
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Protests erupted in several European countries against fresh pandemic restrictions, as the continent battled another wave of infections. Rioting flared up in Rotterdam and The Hague after the Dutch government reintroduced lockdown measures. A big demonstration in Brussels turned ugly, causing the police to deploy water cannon. Marches also took place in Croatia, Italy and Switzerland. Austria reimposed a lockdown and made vaccinations mandatory for all its citizens from February, the first rich country to do so. [anti-vaxx-news, protest-news, covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): Italian antitrust watchdog fines Apple, Amazon more than $225M - The watchdog has ordered Amazon and Apple to end restrictions on sales competition and give resellers access in a ‘non-discriminatory manner’. [antitrust-news, big-tech-news]
• CPJ (19/11/21): Italian police increase protection of journalist Sigfrido Ranucci after assassination plot revealed [crime-news]
• The Hill (14/11/21): Italian authorities rescue 550 migrants amid storms [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): In 2018, a Chinese state-controlled company bought an Italian manufacturer of military drones and began transferring the company’s technical expertise and equipment to China. The technology had been used by the Italian military in Afghanistan, and the Italian and E.U. authorities had no knowledge of the move. Analysts have said that the takeover fits a pattern of Chinese state firms using ostensibly private shell companies as fronts to obtain companies with specific technologies that they then shift to new facilities in China. “Italian authorities are currently investigating the takeover of Alpi Aviation Srl by a Hong Kong-registered company that they say is a front for the Chinese state and was in the process of transferring the company’s technical and intellectual property to a new production site in China,” James Marson and Giovanni Legorano report for the Wall Street Journal.
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• The Guardian (5/11/21): Italian prosecutor’s claims against Guardian reporter flagged by human rights watchdog - Calogero Ferrara’s libel suits against Lorenzo Tondo marked as potential intimidation on Council of Europe ‘safety platform’ [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (1/11/21): Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s security detail allegedly used violence against Brazilian reporters covering his trip to Rome for the G20 meeting, local media reported.
• Labor Notes (28/10/21): Immigrant Textile Workers Win Long Strike Against 84-Hour Work Week in Italy [labor-news, immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (29/10/21): Ahead of G20, Protesters Demand Biden Make COVID-19 Vaccines Available to Poor Countries
• The Guardian (27/10/21): ‘Disgraceful’: Italy’s senate votes down anti-homophobic violence bill [lgbtq-news]
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): Rare Mediterranean Hurricane Strikes Italy; California Sees Record October Rainfall
• Al Jazeera (23/10/21): Italy’s Salvini in court for blocking Open Arms from docking - The head of the right-wing Lega party could face up to 15 years in prison if found guilty. [far-right-news, immigrant-news, court-news]
• Telesur (19/10/21): Center-Left Parties Win Elections in Major Italian Cities Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Tens of thousands demonstrate in Rome against fascism - The protest comes a week after extreme right-wing supporters broke into the headquarters of Italy’s oldest labour confederation. [far-right-news, labor-news, covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Italian captain given jail term for returning migrants to Libya - Giuseppe Sotgiu found guilty of violating international laws that forbid the forced return of people to countries where they are at risk. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (15/10/21): Italy using anti-mafia laws to scapegoat migrant boat drivers, report finds - A decades-long policy of criminalising asylum seekers is filling prisons with innocent men, according to analysis by rights groups [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): Italian court suspends long-awaited Regeni murder trial - The trial in absentia of four Egyptian officers halted as judge rules they may not have been formally made aware of charges over the abduction, torture and killing in Cairo of an Italian doctoral student.
• Left Voice (13/10/21): Rank-and-File Unions in Italy Take to the Streets, with Strikes and Demonstrations in Dozens of Cities - On Monday, October 11, workers from a number of unions in Italy took to the streets in dozens of cities to protest against the Draghi government and the bosses’ policies he is implementing. [labor-news]
• The Economist (9/10/21): The Northern League and the Brothers of Italy both wobble - Scandals and election woes on all sides Seems a bit optimistic...
• Al Jazeera (9/10/21): Clashes break out in Rome amid anger over COVID ‘green pass’ - Among the protesters were members of extreme right-wing groups who extended their arm in a ‘Roman’ fascist salute. [far-right-news, covid-news, protest-news]
• The Hill (7/10/21): Mussolini's granddaughter wins most votes in Rome city council elections [far-right-news, electoral-news]
• The Guardian (3/10/21): Eight killed after plane crashes into Milan office building - Small private plane crashed near a suburban subway station, killing all onboard
• Democracy Now (1/10/21): Youth Activists Rally in Milan to Demand Climate Justice Ahead of November’s COP26
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): Ex-Catalonia regional chief Puigdemont released from Italian jail - Judge on Sardinia rules Carles Puigdemont can go free ahead of an October 4 hearing on Spain extradition.
• The Guardian (23/9/21): Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont arrested in Sardinia - The former head of the autonomous government to appear in court on Friday to hear Spanish case for extradition for sedition
• The Guardian (11/8/21): Firefighters battle flames for 12 hours in worst night of southern Italy wildfires – video [climate-change-news]
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Alleged killing of migrant by far-right politician prompts Italy gun control row - Estimated 1.2m Italians who are not in police or the security forces own small guns, according to poll
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): MSF calls on Italy to release seized rescue vessel - Detention of ship that saved hundreds of migrants and refugees in June is politically motivated, medical charity says.
• The Guardian (1/7/21): Italian prisons under fire as video footage shows guards beating inmates - Italy’s justice minister orders an investigation after images from the 2020 incident are published
• The Guardian (28/6/21): Italian region bans farm work during hottest hours after Malian worker dies - Camara Fantamadi died after picking tomatoes in scorching sun – critics question if ban will be respected
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Italy’s Roma forced eviction crisis demands EU action - For Roma, Italy’s so-called ‘Nomad Emergency’ never really ended, it just became invisible.
• The Economist (22/5/21, published 20/5/21): Italy’s populist right looks menacing - Matteo Salvini’s Northern League could hook up with the more extreme Brothers of Italy
• Independent (17/5/21): Italian port workers refuse to load shipment of arms headed for Israel (date found here)
• Democracy Now (11/5/21): More Than 2,000 Refugees Arrive on Italy’s Lampedusa Island, Overwhelming Aid Workers
• The Intercept: Friends of the Traffickers - Italy’s Anti-Mafia Directorate and the “Dirty Campaign” to Criminalize Migration
• The Economist (Politics this Week, 1/5/21): Mario Draghi, the prime minister of Italy, laid out his government’s plans for rebuilding the economy after covid in the form of a €248bn ($300bn) spending package. Almost all the money will come from the EU, which has imposed some tough reform conditions. Fulfilling them will be tricky.
• Jacobin: Italy’s Amazon Strike Shows How Workers Across the Supply Chain Can Unite

Kosovo Updates

• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): Kosovo police clash with ethnic Serbs during smuggling raids - Belgrade and Pristina trade barbs after several injured in violent clashes in northern Kosovo.
• Just Security (12/10/21): A Western Balkans group has called on the U.S. to commit to a stronger presence in the region amid “growing militancy of the government of Serbia.” [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Court jails Serb former policeman for Kosovo killings - Pristina court jails Goran Stanisic for 20 years for partaking in the murder of 13 ethnic Albanians during Kosovo war.
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Kosovo, Serbia agree deal to end border tensions - Breakthrough negotiated in Brussels ends flare-up in hostilities triggered by dispute over vehicle licence plates.
• Al Jazeera (25/9/21): Kosovo gov’t offices targeted as tensions soar with Serbia - Kosovo PM accuses Serbia of trying to ‘provoke a serious international conflict’ after vehicle registration offices near border are attacked.
• Al Jazeera (20/9/21): Kosovo deploys police, Serbs protest amid border tension - Dispute about temporary licence plates erupts at border crossing as Kosovo moves to enforce tit-for-tat rule.
• Just Security (15/9/21): An ex-Kosovo pro-independence fighter has denied war crimes, as a special tribunal in The Hague investigating allegations of atrocities committed by Kosovo pro-independence fighters opened its first case today

Latvia Updates

• Just Security (2/12/21): The E.U. has proposed new measures that would extend the period that Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, E.U. member states bordering Belarus, would be able to detain asylum seekers while their applications are processed. Aid groups have warned that the rule changes may undermine the ability of migrants to seek refuge in the E.U., and would leave applicants in a state of limbo in increasingly unsafe conditions. Elian Peltier and Monika Pronczuk report for the New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Cyber hackers thought to be behind attacks on governmental agencies in recent months have been linked to the Belarusian government. Researchers for the cybersecurity company Mandiant assessed with “high confidence” in a new report that the “Ghostwriter” information operations campaign was “aligned with Belarusian government interests.” Mandiant also linked another group of hackers – who have conducted cyber espionage against government and private sector entities in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine and Germany – to the Belarusian government. [cyber-security-news]

Lithuania Updates

• Just Security (2/12/21): The E.U. has proposed new measures that would extend the period that Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, E.U. member states bordering Belarus, would be able to detain asylum seekers while their applications are processed. Aid groups have warned that the rule changes may undermine the ability of migrants to seek refuge in the E.U., and would leave applicants in a state of limbo in increasingly unsafe conditions. Elian Peltier and Monika Pronczuk report for the New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): China downgraded its diplomatic relations with Lithuania after the Baltic state allowed a Taiwanese trade office to open there using the name Taiwan instead of Taipei, the name often used by the island’s missions abroad. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Taiwan has opened a de facto embassy in Lithuania, in a diplomatic breakthrough for the island and brushing aside strong opposition from China to the move. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (17/11/21): Cyber hackers thought to be behind attacks on governmental agencies in recent months have been linked to the Belarusian government. Researchers for the cybersecurity company Mandiant assessed with “high confidence” in a new report that the “Ghostwriter” information operations campaign was “aligned with Belarusian government interests.” Mandiant also linked another group of hackers – who have conducted cyber espionage against government and private sector entities in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine and Germany – to the Belarusian government. [cyber-security-news]
• Telesur (9/11/21): Lithuania Declares State of Emergency in Border With Belarus - Lithuania's parliament on Tuesday declared a state of emergency in its border region with Belarus, the first time since the country's independence. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (1/10/21): China has reacted furiously to Lithuania’s government advising officials to stop using certain Chinese-made phones due to a hidden dormant censorship registry of 449 terms banned by the Chinese Communist Party in the phones.
• Just Security (22/9/21): Lithuania’s Defense Ministry has recommended that consumers avoid buying Chinese mobile phones and advised people to throw away the ones they have after a Lithuanian government report found the devices had built-in censorship capabilities
• Just Security (26/8/21): China has halted trade with Lithuania after the Baltic nation agreed to exchange diplomatic offices with Taiwan. China has suspended rail freight to Lithuania, according to Taiwan’s foreign affairs ministry, and reportedly halted export permits for the country’s producers
• South China Morning Post (18/8/21): China halts rail freight to Lithuania as feud deepens over Taiwan - Sources say state train operator CRCT has suspended transit of cargoes ‘until further notice’, though there has been no official confirmation - It comes amid a diplomatic row over decision to allow Taipei to open a ‘Taiwanese representative office’ in the Baltic state
• Just Security (10/8/21): China has demanded that Lithuania withdraw its ambassador in Beijing and said that it would recall China’s envoy to Vilnius in a row over Lithuania allowing Chinese-claimed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy there using its own name
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Belarus to close border as Lithuania turns away migrants - President Lukashenko says the migrants Lithuania turns away will not be allowed back into Belarus
• Just Security (9/7/21): Lithuania has started building a barrier along its border with Belarus to stop migrants illegally entering the country
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): EU border guards sent to Lithuania amid Belarus migrant crisis - A record number of migrants and refugees are entering EU member Lithuania from Belarus as tensions between Brussels and Minsk simmer.

Malta Updates

• Just Security (23/12/21): The State Department is barring two former Maltese government officials and their families from entering the country because they engaged in “corrupt acts” for personal benefit. The State Department said in its statement that the two former officials were bribed to award a government contract to a company for the construction of a power plant. Brad Dress reports for The Hill. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (21/11/21): EU could fund gas project linked to man charged over Maltese journalist’s murder - Melita pipeline would fuel Delimara power station, which Daphne Caruana Galizia was investigating when she was killed [big-oil-news, corruption-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): 700 Refugees Rescued Off Coasts of Libya and Malta
• The Guardian (29/7/21): Malta government bears responsibility for journalist’s murder, inquiry finds - Inquiry into death of Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017 says state had created a culture of impunity

Moldova Updates

• The Moscow Times (22/11/21): Russia’s Gazprom Threatens to Cut Off Gas to Moldova [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/11/21): Moldova will get 3bcm gas per year in new deal with Russia - Agreement follows protracted dispute after Russia’s Gazprom proposed a considerable price rise. [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Financial Times (29/10/21): Moldova presses EU for more help to avert crisis over Russia gas deal - Premier says country does not want to choose between cheaper supplies and closer ties to Brussels [energy-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The pro-EU PM of Moldova desperately wants a sign of help from Brussels, as the nation currently is facing the choice of affordable energy from Gazprom (with geopolitical costs) or unaffordable market energy (with a cost on the local people).
• Financial Times (26/10/21): Gazprom offered Moldova new gas deal in exchange for weaker EU ties - Russian group accused of using energy crunch to punish new pro-western government [energy-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): If you're shopping for LNG in Europe right now, you have two options - the steep liberalized 'free market' for energy, or you turn to Gazprom, a majority Russian state-owned energy corporation; An LNG contract with Gazprom just expired for Moldova, and so they (like the rest of Europe) are facing steep energy prices on the market. While Gazprom's new offer is a higher cost than their old contract, it seems it's still appealing - the problem is, as FT reports insiders say, that Russia is leveraging a Gazprom LNG deal to get Moldova to hold off on EU policy implementations. Notably, a pro-EU govt is currently in parliament, and Russia seeks to impede their turn to the West with certain concessions as a non-monetary cost to a Gazprom deal (although the Kremlin denies this); do note there is a pro-Kremlin reakaway statelet in Moldova, Transnistria, which Russia has soldiers stationed in (and through which Gazprom LNG flows). While the EU urges Moldova to turn a Gazprom deal down (and other European nations help hold Moldova's energy demands over at the moment), the price to do so is steep - Moldova can't afford market energy prices, and that means a cold winter for the 2.6m people of the nation.
• The Moscow Times (23/10/21): Gazprom Could Cut Gas to Moldova if Contract Not Signed [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/7/21): Pro-EU party in Moldova wins clear majority in snap election - PAS will get 63 seats in the 101-seat parliament for four-year terms, according to the Central Election Commission.
• Al Jazeera (11/7/21): Pro-EU party leads in Moldova parliamentary election: Early count - Preliminary election results show the president’s centre-right party leading with more than 44 percent of votes.
• Al Jazeera (11/7/21): Moldova votes in snap election amid corruption concerns - Voters are choosing a new parliament after the last one was dissolved by President Maia Sandu, who is against pro-Russian influence.

Montenegro Updates

• The Moscow Times (23/10/21): Montenegro Grants Asylum to Tycoon Wanted in Russia for Murder
• Just Security (12/10/21): A Western Balkans group has called on the U.S. to commit to a stronger presence in the region amid “growing militancy of the government of Serbia.” [us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (3/10/21): Montenegro Holds Azerbaijan-Born Tycoon Wanted by Russia
• CPJ (9/9/21): N1 TV crew attacked and harassed at Montenegro protest
• The Guardian (5/9/21): Montenegro police teargas protesters against Serbian Orthodox church - Clashes during inauguration of Balkan state’s new church leader at historic monastery of Cetinje

Netherlands Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Just Security (23/12/21): Dutch prosecutors have demanded life sentences for three Russians and a Ukrainian charged with murder for their involvement in the shooting down of a passenger jet over Ukraine in 2014. Prosecutors “said the defendants, who are all at large, helped supply a missile system that Russian-backed separatists used to fire a rocket at Malaysia Airlines flight MH17,” Stephanie van den Berg reports for Reuters.
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Omicron Sends COVID Cases Surging, Prompts New Restrictions in Israel, U.K., the Netherlands [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): More Protests Erupt as European Countries Tighten Vaccine Mandates [protest-news, covid-news]
• Financial Times (29/11/21): Union accuses H&M of violating own policies in warehouse dispute - FNV says refusal to engage migrant workers breaches retailer’s supply chain commitments [labor-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pertaining to labor violations against migrant workers (largely from Poland, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Spain, and Lithuania) at a warehouse in Tilburg, run by the US-listed GXO Logistics. They filed a petition for their rights against GXO, and the Federation of Dutch Trade Unions (FNV) said the warehouse management refused to accept this, and GXO has told H&M (which says it supports workers right to freedom of association) only on some terms will it accept it. GXO says it allows workers to voice concerns through Works Councils, although FNV says these do not meet H&M's freedom of association requirements (to associate with any trade union). My view: This is quite reminiscent to me of Amazon, for example, sub-contracting labor to different sub-companies as a way to contain and manage labor issues... terrible but not surprising
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Protests erupted in several European countries against fresh pandemic restrictions, as the continent battled another wave of infections. Rioting flared up in Rotterdam and The Hague after the Dutch government reintroduced lockdown measures. A big demonstration in Brussels turned ugly, causing the police to deploy water cannon. Marches also took place in Croatia, Italy and Switzerland. Austria reimposed a lockdown and made vaccinations mandatory for all its citizens from February, the first rich country to do so. [anti-vaxx-news, protest-news, covid-news]
• Financial Times (15/11/21): Dutch government rushes to keep Shell in Netherlands - Last-ditch push to scrap dividend tax that has been cited by energy group as reason for planned UK move [capitalist-farce-news, tax-news] Paywall Summary (?): A motivating factor in Shell's switch was a dividend tax ("a 15% withholding tax"), and the caretaker government has scrambled to get rid of it in hopes of keeping Shell in the Netherlands. Shell plans to "shift its entire tax base to the UK". This tax limits its share buyback procedure. While they promised to scrap it in 2017 to the benefit of Unilever and Shell, but the protests of green and left parties got rid of it. Shell faces other pressures in the Netherlands, including a court ruling to make faster carbon emission cuts, and the Dutch pension fund ABP pulling out from fossil fuel investments. Shell shareholders will vote on the action on December 10.
• Reuters (20/11/21): Four in hospital after police fire on Dutch COVID-19 protesters [covid-news] (via u/JFMV763 on r/Libertarian) I quite disagree with how most people on r/Libertarian view COVID restrictions, although I do agree police shouldn't be firing on protesters)
• Just Security (22/11/21): Belgium and the Netherlands both saw protests turn violent over the weekend in response to tougher Covid-19 restrictions. In Belgium’s capital, Brussels, demonstrators clashed with police after tens of thousands of people marched through the city center, while in the Netherlands, rioting took place for the third night in a row. DW News reports. [covid-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, protest-news]
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Rotterdam police open fire as Covid protest turns violent - Warning shots fired as unrest breaks out over Dutch plans to restrict access for unvaccinated people to some venues [covid-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• New York Times (9/11/21): Dutch government rejects hundreds of millions of pieces of protective gear.
• The Guardian (12/11/21): Netherlands imposes lockdown measures as Covid cases hit new high - PM Mark Rutte announces first partial lockdown by a western European country since the summer [covid-news]
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (5/11/21): The Dutch Supreme Court has upheld part of a Russian appeal against a $50 billion arbitration award to former shareholders of bankrupted oil giant Yukos and quashed a lower court’s decision to uphold the award [big-oil-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/11/21): Russia Expels Second Foreign Reporter in 2 Months [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (3/11/21): Meat carcasses sent to EU for butchering amid UK worker shortage - Great Britain’s beef producers export to Ireland before reimporting, while pork processors consider the Netherlands
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): Netherlands’ Largest Pension Fund to Divest from Fossil Fuels
• Just Security (1/10/21): It has been reported that Dutch police have increased security around Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte after suspicious movements around him by people believed to be connected to the Netherlands’ notorious drug gangs
• The Guardian (25/9/21): Dutch protesters march through The Hague against ‘corona pass’ - Proof of vaccination or negative test made mandatory for public venues as social-distancing measures are lifted [covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (22/9/21): Border police can ethnically profile people, Dutch court rules - Hague District Court says that ethnicity can be used to single out passengers for checks, but activists pledge to appeal.
• The Guardian (1/9/21): Amsterdam police object to civilian observers – and call in their own - Team of civilians has been deployed to make sure random searches will not involve racial profiling [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/7/21): Death toll rises to 183 in Germany and Belgium floods - Hundreds of people are missing or unreachable as several areas remained inaccessible due to high water levels and communication was still down in some places.
• The Guardian (16/7/21): Aftermath of Germany and Belgium floods – in pictures - At least 110 people have died in devastating floods across parts of western Germany and Belgium. Search and rescue operations are continuing with hundreds still unaccounted for
• The Guardian (15/7/21): Germany floods: Merkel voices horror at ‘catastrophe’ amid search for estimated 1,300 missing - Angela Merkel says her 'heart goes out' to flood victims after disaster leaves at least 59 dead
• The Guardian (7/7/21): ‘An attack on us all’: European leaders condemn shooting of Dutch reporter - Politicians and press campaigners call for justice as Peter R de Vries fights for life in hospital; The Hill (15/7/21): Dutch crime reporter dies after shooting: report
• The Guardian (24/6/21): Greek police arrest Dutch journalist for helping Afghan asylum seeker - Ingeborg Beugel was detained for ‘facilitating the illegal stay of a foreigner’ and faces up to a year in jail
• Democracy Now (27/5/21): Dutch Court Orders Shell Oil Company to Halve Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2030
• World Socialist Web Site (3/5/21): Dutch caretaker government scraps partial lockdown as infections mount

North Macedonia Updates

• New York Times (9/9/21): Fire at North Macedonia Covid Hospital Kills at Least 14 - All were coronavirus patients being treated at a temporary hospital when the fire broke out. Its origins are being investigated.
• The Moscow Times (17/8/21): North Macedonia Expels Russian Diplomat

Norway Updates

• South China Morning Post (9/12/21): Dangerous data: Telenor’s irresponsible exit from Myanmar may put customers’ lives at risk - Norway’s Telenor selling its Myanmar arm to Lebanese M1 Group, which has cooperated with regimes in Sudan and Syria - Data of 18 million people, including call-data records, part of sale five months after military coup; means possibility of detention, torture, murder [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP Funny enough, there is a key detail they miss here - M1 Group is run by CEO Azmi Mikati, brother to Najib Mikati, Prime Minister of Lebanon, the latter who co-founded M1 with a third brother, Taha Mikati. Interestingly, in a recent Popular Front interview with a Lebanese researcher and writer (21/10/21), he reports that PM Mikati has ties to the Myanmar junta. That is, not only does M1 have a track record of human rights violations, but they have ties with the human rights violators in this case.
• Al-Monitor (26/11/21): Qatar releases two Norwegian journalists after detention - Qatari security forces detained two journalists working for Norway's state broadcaster whom Doha accused of trespassing on private property. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Irrawaddy (15/11/21): Junta-Linked Company in Bid to Take Stake in Telenor Myanmar
• Just Security (19/10/21): The attacker who killed five people last week in a town in Norway killed his victims using a “sharp object” and not a bow and arrow as had been widely reported, Norwegian police have announced.
• Jacobin (15/10/21): Norway Is Choosing Its Fossil Fuel Industry Over Climate Action - Climate scientists have called for Norway to stop drilling for gas and oil. But the Labor Party refuses to break its dependency on fossil fuel profits — and this week, it formed a government with neoliberal centrists rather than the ecosocialist left. [big-oil-news, labor-news]
• The Guardian (13/10/21): Norway bow and arrow attacks: Danish citizen charged as death toll reaches five - Police say suspect in his 30s lived in the town of Kongsberg, where the attacks took place
• Jacobin (27/9/21): A New Working-Class Party Is on the Rise in Norway - Norway’s billionaires spent the election campaign smearing the Red Party as totalitarian extremists. But the party kept its focus on working-class Norwegians’ material interests — and secured a historic electoral breakthrough. [leftist-news, electoral-news]
• Jacobin (15/9/21): In Norway, the Left Is Winning Back Power - Norway’s election this Monday brought defeat for the unpopular right-wing government. Now, Labor looks set to return to power — together with an emboldened radical left. [socialist-news, left-news, electoral-news]
• The Irrawaddy (15/9/21): Junta’s Demand to Spy on Customers Prompts Telenor to Leave Myanmar
• Democracy Now (14/9/21): Left-Leaning Coalition Wins Landslide Election in Norway After Climate-Focused Campaign [electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Venezuela government, opposition launch talks in Mexico - Representatives of the two sides sign an agreement on Friday in Mexico City, officially inaugurating start of dialogue mediated by Norway.
• The Irrawaddy (8/7/21): Norway’s Telenor Sells its Myanmar Telecoms Operation to Regime-Linked Partner

Poland Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• The Guardian (28/12/21): Polish court revives ‘highly flawed’ hydroelectric dam plan for Vistula River - Despite warnings that it would devastate rare wildlife habitats, the controversial project is back on the table [court-news] [!]
• The Guardian (27/12/21): Polish president vetoes media law criticised by US and EU - Law would have prevented companies outside the EEA from holding a controlling stake in Polish media companies [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (24/12/21): Polish deputy PM says Germany wants to turn EU into ‘fourth reich’ - Jarosław Kaczyński’s remarks in far-right newspaper are latest episode in Poland’s lengthy standoff with EU [far-right-news]
• Just Security (23/12/21): Military-grade Pegasus spyware from Israeli spyware firm NSO Group was used to hack the phone of an opposition lawyer and a prosecutor in Poland. According to the Citizen Lab Internet watchdog, the Pegasus software was used to hack the phone of Roman Giertych, a high-profile lawyer representing two Polish opposition figures, during the final weeks of a pivotal 2019 parliamentary election. Two years later, Ewa Wrzosek, a prosecutor who was challenging attempts by populist right-wing government to purge the judiciary, also had her phone hacked. “Citizen Lab could not say who ordered the hacks and NSO does not identify its clients…But both victims believe Poland’s increasingly illiberal government is responsible,” Frank Bajak and Vanessa Gera report for AP. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news]
• The Guardian (22/12/21): Brussels launches legal action over Polish rulings against EU law - European Commission says it has ‘serious concerns’ about challenges by Warsaw’s constitutional tribunal [court-news] [!]
• The Guardian (19/12/21): ‘We need free speech’: protests erupt across Poland over controversial media bill - The bill, yet to be signed into law, would tighten rules around foreign ownership of media [surveillance-and-censorship-news, protest-news] [!]
• CPJ (15/12/21): Polish court fines journalist Ewa Siedlecka for criminal defamation [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (3/12/21): Poland plans to set up register of pregnancies to report miscarriages - Proposed register would come into effect in January, a year after near-total ban on abortion [civil-rights-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): Meta (formerly known as Facebook) has said it has linked Belarus’s main security service, the KGB, to fake accounts on its social media platforms that criticized Poland during the two countries’ recent border standoff. [big-tech-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): The E.U. has proposed new measures that would extend the period that Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, E.U. member states bordering Belarus, would be able to detain asylum seekers while their applications are processed. Aid groups have warned that the rule changes may undermine the ability of migrants to seek refuge in the E.U., and would leave applicants in a state of limbo in increasingly unsafe conditions. Elian Peltier and Monika Pronczuk report for the New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (1/12/21): Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has said that he is ready to suspend Russian energy flows into Europe if Poland closes its border with Belarus, Russia’s RIA news agency has reported. Meanwhile, “the Polish Defense Minister said the Belarusian defense attaché had been summoned after lights set up by Polish soldiers near the town of Terespol were damaged by shots from air guns,” Reuters reports. [energy-news]
• David Pakman Show (21/11/21): Nationalists Shout "Death to Jews" While Burning Books About Jews [far-right-news]
• CPJ (23/11/21): Polish authorities detain, harass journalists covering refugee crossings from Belarus [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): Fake news on social media platforms, including Facebook, aggravated the migrant crisis on the border of Belarus and Poland. Promises of borders being opened were circulated on social media, and helped smugglers profit off of desperate people trying to reach Europe. Andrew Higgins, Adam Satariano and Jane Arraf report for the New York Times. [big-tech-news, immigrant-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Poland has accused Belarus today of trucking hundreds of migrants back to its border with Poland and pushing them to attempt to cross illegally, only hours after clearing camps at the frontier. Despite Belarus clearing the main camps yesterday and hundreds of Iraqis being sent home on repatriation flights, a Polish Border Guard spokesperson said that by yesterday evening Belarusian authorities were already trucking hundreds of migrants back and forcing them to try to cross in darkness. Reuters reports. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): The number of migrants camped out on the Belarusian side of Poland’s eastern border has fallen, in a tentative sign of a de-escalation in the standoff between the E.U. and Belarus. “Officials from Poland’s Interior Ministry say Belarusian officials have sent buses to collect people from the sprawling tent city along Poland’s border. Belarusian officials confirmed that they provided buses to move some migrants away from the border and would be giving them shelter in warehouses,” Natalia Ojewska reports for the Wall Street Journal. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Cyber hackers thought to be behind attacks on governmental agencies in recent months have been linked to the Belarusian government. Researchers for the cybersecurity company Mandiant assessed with “high confidence” in a new report that the “Ghostwriter” information operations campaign was “aligned with Belarusian government interests.” Mandiant also linked another group of hackers – who have conducted cyber espionage against government and private sector entities in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine and Germany – to the Belarusian government. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): In light of the skirmishes, Poland’s defense minister has warned that the crisis at the Belarusian border could continue indefinitely. “We have to prepare for the fact that the situation on the Polish-Belarusian border will not be resolved quickly. We have to prepare for months. I hope not for years,” Mariusz Błaszczak told Poland’s Radio Jedynka.
• Democracy Now (16/11/21): Polish Border Guards Fire Tear Gas and Water Cannons at Asylum-Seekers - In eastern Poland, border guards fired tear gas and water cannons Tuesday at hundreds of asylum-seekers who tried to push their way through a razor wire barrier erected along the Poland-Belarus border. Some of the refugees responded by throwing sticks, stones, and bottles at soldiers in riot gear. Many of the migrants have spent weeks enduring freezing temperatures in squalid camps hoping to reach the European Union to apply for asylum. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied stoking the migrant crisis on the Poland-Belarus border after accusations from Poland that the Russian leader is orchestrating the flow of migrants
• The Guardian (12/11/21): Team of 10 UK soldiers sent to Poland to assist on Belarus border - MoD says small team of military personnel deployed after agreement with Polish government
• New York Times (11/11/21): As Poland celebrates its Independence Day, far-right groups stage rallies across the country. [far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Poland-Belarus: Humanitarian fears grow as child reportedly dies - Poland must allow big NGOs to work on the ground given the scale of the crisis, say grassroots activists. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): E.U. officials are expressing support for Poland in the current border crisis with Belarus. Unlike in 2015, when a border crisis in the European Union divided members, this standoff has united many countries [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (11/11/21): Poland Increases Troops at Border Amid Reports of Migrant Deaths, Brutality by Belarusian Soldiers [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Poland is facing fresh attempts from migrants to breach its border with Belarus and now has 15,000 troops stationed at the border to repel them, Poland’s Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak has said. At least 2,000 migrants have become stranded at the border, at the center of an escalating international row.
• Just Security (10/11/21): Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of “masterminding” the migrant crisis on Belarus’s border with the E.U. At an extraordinary session of parliament on Tuesday evening, Morawiecki, squarely pointed the blame for the crisis at Moscow and Putin, calling the Russian leader an “enabler” of Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko. “The remarks are the most direct accusations against Russia yet in a crisis where the Kremlin has not played an overt role,” Andrew Roth reports for the Guardian. [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Poland Mobilizes Thousands of Troops to Belarus Border to Bar Entry to Refugees [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (8/11/21): Belarus escorts 1,000 migrants towards Polish border - Column of people including children led by border guards in escalation of deadly crisis [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (8/11/21): Polish Reproductive Rights Protesters Decry Death of Woman Denied Life-Saving Abortion [protest-news, civil-rights-news]
• Common Dreams (2/11/21): 'Her Heart Was Beating Too!' Protests Erupt in Poland After Woman Dies as Direct Result of Abortion Ban - Vigils and demonstrations followed death of 30-year-old woman known only as Izabela who was refused an abortion by doctors. [civil-rights-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): The E.U.’s top court has told Poland to pay a fine of €1m a day in a row over judicial reforms in Poland.
• The Guardian (22/10/21): More than 30,000 Polish women sought illegal or foreign abortions since law change last year - Tens of thousands have travelled to other European countries including England for legal terminations since near-total ban, campaigners say [civil-rights-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (22/10/21): E.U. leaders are threatening to withhold billions of Euros from Poland, following Warsaw’s rejection of the supremacy of the E.U
• Al Jazeera (19/10/21): Poland nearly doubles troop numbers on Belarus border - Almost 6,000 soldiers are now guarding Poland’s frontier with neighbouring Belarus following a surge in border crossings.
• The Guardian (15/10/21): Poland criticised over stranded migrants after seventh death at border - Identity documents suggest latest person to die was 24-year-old Syrian who arrived in Belarus last month [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (15/10/21): Poland’s parliament passed a new law allowing border guards to immediately expel migrants illegally crossing the border, potentially violating international law, which requires that anyone seeking international protection must be given access to the asylum process regardless of whether their border crossing was legal. President Andrzej Duda, an ally of the government, must sign the law for it to become effective
• Just Security (14/10/21): Poland plans to spend over 1.6 billion zlotys ($404 million) on building a wall on its border with Belarus, according to a draft bill, in a bid to stem the flow of migrants trying to cross. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Fearing ‘Polexit’, Poles join mass pro-EU rallies - Demonstrations in more than 100 towns and cities across Poland on Sunday as Brussels-Warsaw tensions simmer.
• CPJ (8/10/21): Polish authorities question reporter covering Belarus border area [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Polish court rules EU laws incompatible with its constitution - Country takes big step towards ‘legal Polexit’ against backdrop of rows between ruling nationalists and Brussels
• Just Security (7/10/21): Wooden barracks at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum were vandalized Tuesday with anti-Semitic inscriptions, the memorial has said.
• CPJ (6/10/21): Polish police search journalist’s home, seize equipment over alleged threats to legislator
• Common Dreams (3/10/21): When Will the US Acknowledge its Secret Torture Site in Poland? - Abu Zubaydah has been a prisoner at Guantánamo Bay for 15 years. He's asking the Supreme Court to allow his lawyers to depose the two men who oversaw his torture. [dark-security-news]
• The Guardian (1/10/21): Concerns grow over Poland’s treatment of migrants stuck at Belarus border - Warsaw defies critics to extend state of emergency as it seeks to portray migrants as dangerous
• Just Security (1/10/21): Belgium will help provide funding for women in Poland to access abortions abroad
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Poland illegally pushed asylum seekers back into Belarus: Amnesty - Group says its investigation proves Polish border forces violated rights of dozens of migrants and refugees. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (20/9/21): Poland vows to keep coalmine open despite €500,000-a-day ECJ fine - Warsaw argues suspension of operations at Turów on Czech border would put its energy security at risk [big-oil-news, climate-change-news, far-right-news]
• CPJ (17/9/21): Polish authorities charge 2 journalists with violating state of emergency in coverage of Belarus border area
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): Poland to build fence, double troop numbers on Belarus border - Poland says allowing the migrants to enter Polish territory would encourage further irregular migration.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Polish army deployed to Belarus border amid migrant surge - More than 900 Polish troops are involved in the operation, which comes after EU members accused Minsk of opening the gates.
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Poland to dismantle disciplinary chamber for judges after EU row - As threat of EU penalties looms, Warsaw pledges to scrap controversial chamber as part of upcoming judiciary reforms.
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Israel furious as Poland signs law to limit property claims - Israel recalls its top diplomat to Poland after president approves bill curbing World War II-era restitution claims.
• The Economist World This Week (12/8/21): Poland agreed to alter a body that disciplines judges after the EU’s highest court said it clashed with the bloc’s prohibition on political control of the judiciary. Separately, the ruling Law and Justice party moved ahead with a bill to bar foreign ownership of broadcast media. The European Commission called it a threat to media freedom.
• The Guardian (11/8/21): Polish parliament passes controversial new media ownership bill - Government wins vote despite losing majority after coalition partner walks out and widespread national protests
• Al Jazeera (10/8/21): Poland’s prime minister fires deputy as ruling coalition crumbles - Junior partner Accord’s criticisms of tax reforms seem to have brought matters to a head within United Right coalition.
• The Guardian (2/8/21): Belarus athlete who refused to fly home is granted Polish visa - Krystsina Tsimanouskaya filmed arriving at Polish embassy in Tokyo as husband flees to Ukraine
• Just Security (22/7/21): The foreign ministries of Ukraine and Poland have reacted bitterly to the U.S.- Germany deal, saying in a joint statement that the “resignation from attempts to stop the launch” of the pipeline creates a “political, military and energy threat for Ukraine and Central Europe, while increasing Russia’s potential to destabilize the security situation in Europe.”
• The Economist (1/5/21): Poland’s fragmented opposition lets the governing party run wild - Handouts and social conservatism keep the government popular

Portugal Updates

• WSWS (30/12/21): Portuguese logistics workers strike over pay [labor-news, logistics-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Omicron Drives Record Rates of Infection in Several European Countries [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (24/11/21): Portugal Shutters Last Coal-Fired Plant [energy-news]
• Jacobin (17/10/19): The Socialist Agronomist Who Helped End Portuguese Colonialism - Before his assassination in 1973, Amílcar Cabral was one of Africa’s leading anti-colonialists — a brilliant agronomist and socialist whose leadership of the armed struggle against Portuguese rule brought the empire to its knees. [socialist-news, history-news, analysis-news]
• The Rational National (10/11/21): Portugal's Socialist Party Passes AMAZING Pro-Worker Reforms [leftist-news, legislation-news]
• Al Jazeera (4/11/21): Portuguese president calls snap general election for January 30 - Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa’s move follows the minority government’s defeat in a key vote on the country’s budget.
• Telesur (1/11/21): Portugal: Subway Workers Go On Strike Amid Lisbon Web Summit [labor-news] Note about Telesur
• WSWS (28/10/21): Strikes erupt across Portugal as government fails to adopt budget [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (27/10/21): Portugal faces snap election as parliament rejects draft budget - Rejection of the government’s proposed budget after weeks of negotiations expected to trigger an early election
• Jacobin (16/10/21): Portugal Is the World’s Most Vaccinated Country Because Its Population Trusts Its Free Health Care System - Portugal has the world's highest COVID-19 vaccination rate, with 85 percent of the population fully vaccinated. Its success drew on a strong public information campaign — but it couldn’t have done it without a free national health care system that has won massive popular trust. [healthcare-news, leftist-news, covid-news]

Romania Updates

• WSWS (30/12/21): Romanian healthcare workers begin symbolic strike to demand pay rise [labor-news, healthcare-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (15/12/21): Romanian minister resigns over claims he faked education credentials - Florin Roman, the minister for innovation and digitalization, resigned after being on his post for less than a month [!]
• The Guardian (14/12/21): US condemns suspension of prominent Romanian judge for TikTok posts - Cluj-based judge Cristi Danileţ has been suspended over two videos he posted on platform last year [us-policy-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): After months of stalemate, Romania’s president asked Nicolae Ciuca, a former army general, to be prime minister, heading a coalition government comprising the Liberals and Social Democrats. With one of Europe’s lowest vaccination rates, the country is struggling to contain covid-19.
• Telesur (23/11/21): Romanian Parliament Elects New Leaders - Both chambers of Romania's Parliament elected new leaders on Tuesday. [electoral-news] Note about Telesur
• Al Jazeera (11/11/21): Fire at Romanian COVID-19 hospital kills two elderly patients - Deadly blaze at hospital in central city of Ploiesti marks fourth such incident at healthcare facilities within a year. [healthcare-news, covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/11/21): Morgues, hospitals struggle with COVID-19 deaths in Romania - ‘Wave of the unvaccinated’ grips Eastern European country, as misinformation swirls and public trust in government drops. [covid-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): The two individuals allegedly linked to REvil arrested by Romanian authorities were said by Europol to be behind more than 5,000 cyberattacks and are accused of having gained more than half a million Euros in ransomware payments made by victims. [crime-news, cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): Co-ordinated action against the REvil has been announced by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Europol and the Romanian police, dealing a devastating blow to the cyber-crime gang. [crime-news, cyber-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (21/10/21): Four-star Romanian general tasked with forming government - Nicolae Ciuca, the country’s defence minister and an Iraqi war veteran, now needs to get a nod from Parliament.
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Croatia, Greece, Romania illegally pushing refugees back: Report - EU members have denied people the right to seek asylum, Lighthouse Reports says, alleging physical abuse in some cases. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Romania’s parliament topples Citu’s minority government - No confidence motion filed after Prime Minister Florin Citu’s coalition unravelled last month over development fund dispute.
• New York Times (1/10/21): A fire kills seven people in a Romanian hospital’s Covid ward.
• Just Security (2/9/21): The Romanian government – a coalition of center-right parties in power since December – is on the brink of collapse, with one party drafting on Thursday a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Florin Cîțu

San Marino Updates

• Democracy Now (27/9/21): San Marino Votes to Legalize Abortion

Serbia Updates

• The Guardian (23/12/21): Rio Tinto puts Serbia lithium mine on hold - Chief executive seeks public dialogue, suggesting protests against Loznica project have hindered any ‘reasonable debate’ [resource-news, protest-news] [!]
• The Guardian (16/12/21): Rio Tinto plans for Serbia lithium mine suspended after protests - Local authorities put $2.4bn project on hold after scale of opposition shakes country’s government [capitalist-farce-news, protest-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (11/12/21): Thousands of Serbians block roads to protest lithium mine project - Protesters fear mining by multinational companies will cause huge damage to local environment. [protest-news]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): 1,000s Take to Streets in Serbia to Oppose Gov’t Deal For Rio Tinto Lithium Mine [protest-news, privatization-news, capitalist-farce-news] I believe there is also a Chinese mining company involved
• Al Jazeera (27/11/21): Serbian anti-mining activists block bridges, roads - Environmental groups are angry over a recent referendum reform and oppose a new expropriation law, which allows the acquisition of private land. [protest-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): US Focus on `Open Balkan’ Economic Project Risks Open Season Instead [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): Kosovo police clash with ethnic Serbs during smuggling raids - Belgrade and Pristina trade barbs after several injured in violent clashes in northern Kosovo.
• Just Security (12/10/21): A Western Balkans group has called on the U.S. to commit to a stronger presence in the region amid “growing militancy of the government of Serbia.” [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Court jails Serb former policeman for Kosovo killings - Pristina court jails Goran Stanisic for 20 years for partaking in the murder of 13 ethnic Albanians during Kosovo war.
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Kosovo, Serbia agree deal to end border tensions - Breakthrough negotiated in Brussels ends flare-up in hostilities triggered by dispute over vehicle licence plates.
• Al Jazeera (25/9/21): Kosovo gov’t offices targeted as tensions soar with Serbia - Kosovo PM accuses Serbia of trying to ‘provoke a serious international conflict’ after vehicle registration offices near border are attacked.
• Al Jazeera (20/9/21): Kosovo deploys police, Serbs protest amid border tension - Dispute about temporary licence plates erupts at border crossing as Kosovo moves to enforce tit-for-tat rule.
• Jacobin (6/7/21): How Germany’s Far Right Is Building Up Anti-Immigrant Parties in the Balkans - When the far-right Alternative für Deutschland is reelected to the German parliament this fall, its party foundation will receive up to €80 million a year in state funding. The party already has nationalist and fascist allies across ex-Yugoslavia — and now, it will use federal funds to support their reactionary organizations.

Slovakia Updates

• Al Jazeera (18/11/21): Czech Republic, Slovakia tighten restrictions as COVID cases soar - Two EU members will impose restrictions on unvaccinated people as Europe faces a rise in coronavirus infections. [covid-news]
• Financial Times (13/10/21): Slovakia’s central bank governor charged in corruption case - Peter Kazimir says he is not aware of violating any law Paywall Summary: It's not concretely clear what he is being charged for, but it appears to be some involvement with being a "courier" for a bribe. In broader context are police investigations into the relations of the corruption of political-economic elites in the murder of an investigative journalist (Jan Kuckiak, plus his fiancee) in 2018 (although it is not clear to me if FT is implying Kazimir's connection here, or just situating his corruption within this broader context of deep corruption). Pretty wild.

Slovenia Updates

• CPJ (9/9/21): Protesters against Slovenian COVID-19 response and vaccination storm headquarters of RTVS broadcaster

Spain Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

Behind the Insurrections (Behind the Bastards) (Podcast) (26/1/21): The Birth of Spanish Fascism, Part 1

• Al Jazeera (25/12/21): Spain declares 3-month La Palma volcano eruption officially over - The announcement comes after 10 days of quiet at Cumbre Vieja volcano on destruction-hit Spanish Canary Island. [disaster-news] [!]
• WSWS (17/12/21): PSOE-Podemos government arrests Cádiz workers as strikes spread in Spain [labor-news, capitalist-farce-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (12/12/21): Catalonia row deepens over family’s push for Spanish in school - Nationalists furious as court sides with family abused for seeking quarter of lessons in Spanish for their child [!]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Spanish village that dropped ‘Kill Jews’ name hit by antisemitic graffiti attack - Castrillo Mota de Judíos’ Sephardic centre was among four locations defaced in the ‘cowardly’ attack [racist-crime-news, militant-far-right-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): More Protests Erupt as European Countries Tighten Vaccine Mandates [protest-news, covid-news]
• The Guardian (6/12/21): Spain’s former king seeks immunity over claim he used spy agency to threaten ex-lover - Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein claims Juan Carlos directed campaign of harassment after affair ended [!]
• WSWS (5/12/21): Workers’ anger mounts at trade union sell-outs of strikes across Spain [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• Africa News (26/11/21): Thousands demonstrate in Madrid to call out violence against women [civil-rights-news, protest-news]
• Its Going Down (24/11/21): Class war in Cadiz: Armored Vehicles try to Suppress a Strike [busting-labor-news]
• Left Voice (20/11/21): Cádiz Metalworkers Strike Continues Amid Spain’s Police Repression - A strike by 20,000-plus metalworkers in the southwestern city of Cádiz in the Spanish State is in its fifth day, as the bosses have refused to meet union demands. Meanwhile, the “progressive” government of the Spanish Socialist Party and Podemos has unleashed the police on strikers [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Cuba dissident leader Yunior Garcia in Spain after crackdown - Founder of opposition group Archipelago was a central figure in major protests that rocked Cuba in July. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (16/11/21): Spanish Coast Guard Rescues More Refugees in Waters Near Canary Islands [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (15/11/21): Eight Refugees Found Dead, Dozens Others Rescued on Boat Near Canary Islands [immigrant-news]
• The Economist (13/11/21): How trains could replace planes in Europe - It won’t be easy [rail-news, infrastructure-news, analysis-news]
• Pinned: Jacobin (1/11/21): Spain’s Right-Wing Supreme Court Is Riding Roughshod Over Democracy - Podemos MP Alberto Rodríguez has been stripped of his seat in Congress following an unjustified assault conviction. His removal shows how a Supreme Court packed with right-wing judges is undermining Spain’s basic democratic standards. [far-right-news, court-news]
• WSWS (5/11/21): Argentine judge indicts Spanish Franco-era minister on murder charges [court-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Telesur (28/10/21): Unions Call for General Strike in Andalusia, Spain [labor-news, union-news] Note about Telesur
• CPJ (26/10/21): Spanish judge demands journalist Ignacio Escolar reveal his sources in a leak investigation [censorship-and-surveillance-news]
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): Extinction Rebellion Climate Protesters Block Busy Streets in New York, Madrid
• Telesur (13/10/21): Mexico: PAN Leaders Prepare Vox-Style Far-Right Political Project [far-right-news] Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (16/10/21): Argentinian judge indicts Franco-era Spanish minister on homicide charges - Rodolfo Martín Villa, interior minister between 1976 and 1979, ‘played a key role in the repressive structures of the dictatorship’ [history-news, far-right-news, court-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): Algerian whistleblower imprisoned after Spain deportation - Mohamed Abdellah had been in exile in Spain since 2019 when he fled Algeria after exposing alleged corruption but was sent back and is now imprisoned. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• New York Times (1/10/21): Nearly 60 Reported Dead in Effort to Reach Canary Islands - As the dangerous voyage from Western Africa to the Spanish archipelago has become a more popular migrant route to Europe, the death toll has risen sharply.
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): La Palma Residents Lock Down as Volcano Lava Reaches Atlantic Ocean
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): Ex-Catalonia regional chief Puigdemont released from Italian jail - Judge on Sardinia rules Carles Puigdemont can go free ahead of an October 4 hearing on Spain extradition.
• The Guardian (23/9/21): Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont arrested in Sardinia - The former head of the autonomous government to appear in court on Friday to hear Spanish case for extradition for sedition
• Democracy Now (22/9/21): At Least 8 Refugees Died at Sea Off Spanish Coast Since Sunday [immigrant-news]
• The Hill (19/9/21): Canary Island volcano eruption spurs mass evacuation
• The Guardian (14/9/21): Spain cuts soaring energy prices with emergency measures - Government expects to redirect €2.6bn from firms to consumers in next six months, with average monthly bill falling by 22% [energy-news]
• The Guardian (12/9/21): Spanish wildfires drive thousands from homes close to Costa del Sol - Firefighters battle to contain blazes in Andalucía as Spain drafts in military to help [climate-change-news]
• Just Security (10/9/21): The Spanish police said yesterday that it had arrested the former head of Venezuela’s military intelligence unit, Hugo Carvajal, who had been in hiding since a Spanish court approved his extradition to the U.S. almost two years ago
• The Guardian (8/9/21): Man ‘subjected to homophobic assault’ in Madrid says injuries were consensual - LGBTI protests against hate crime in Spain will still go ahead
• Jacobin (25/8/21): Spain’s Far-Right Vox Is Fighting a Culture War Against the Victims of Francoism - From exhuming Francisco Franco to funding efforts to identify his victims, Spain’s incumbent left-wing government has sought a reckoning with the country’s fascist past. But in the southern Andalusia region, the far-right Vox is driving a nationalist backlash.
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): More Than 50 Feared Dead After Boat Carrying Refugees Capsizes En Route to Canary Islands
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Rights groups slam Spain over child deportations to Morocco - Spain urged to halt the repatriation of hundreds of unaccompanied minors who crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in May.
• World Socialist Web Site (29/7/21): On far-right Vox party’s appeal, Spanish court rules lockdowns unconstitutional
• Al Jazeera (21/7/21): What is behind spate of racist attacks in Spain’s Murcia? - Media and institutional silence contribute towards climate of impunity, experts say, pointing to the rise of the far-right and the normalisation of xenophobic narratives.
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): In Spain’s strawberry fields, migrant women face sexual abuse - Farm bosses routinely sexually harass and exploit seasonal workers who pick the red fruit that lines shelves in European supermarkets, investigation reveals.
• The Guardian (6/7/21): Three arrested after gay man beaten to death in Galicia - Protests mounted across Spain after 24-year-old nursing assistant Samuel Luiz died following attack outside nightclub
• New York Times (22/6/21): Spain Pardons Jailed Catalan Separatist Leaders - A major step toward defusing tensions in a conflict that has long divided Spain prompted mixed reactions from an independence movement.
• Al Jazeera (18/6/21): Three people dead after boat capsizes near Spain’s Canary Islands - Two others, including a six-year-old girl, remain missing after boat carrying refugees runs aground.
• Al Jazeera (13/6/21): Spain’s right rallies against plan to pardon Catalan separatists - Right-wing opposition accuses leftist PM of caving in to pressure from separatist parties, which back the government.
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Western Sahara independence leader Brahim Ghali back in Algeria - Brahim Ghali returns to Algeria after stay in Spanish hospital that caused Spain-Morocco diplomatic row.
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Spain deployed troops in its enclave of Ceuta, on the Moroccan coast, when 8,000 migrants breached border fences. Morocco did little to stop the influx. It is upset with Spain for accepting Brahim Ghali for covid-19 treatment. Mr Ghali leads Polisario, which fights for the independence of Western Sahara, a territory claimed by Morocco.
• Al Jazeera (20/5/21): Hundreds of children stranded at Spanish enclave of Ceuta - Humanitarian crisis unfolds in Spanish enclave after hundreds of unaccompanied minors cross from Morocco.
• Democracy Now (19/5/21): Humanitarian, Diplomatic Crisis Between Spain and Morocco Deepens as Spain Expulses 1000s from Ceuta
• Democracy Now (18/5/21): 5,000 Asylum Seekers Swim from Morocco to Spanish Enclave of Ceuta
• This Economist World this Week (6/5/21): An election for the regional government of Madrid was a blow for Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sánchez. His Socialist party slumped to third place as the conservative People's Party triumphed. The result was even worse for Pablo Iglesias, the national leader of the radical-left Podemos; he had resigned as a deputy prime minister to run in the election, but his party came fifth. The pony-tailed Mr Iglesias said he would quit politics.
• World Socialist Web Site: Podemos, Spanish officials receive death threats signed by security forces; 'In recent weeks, these attacks have intensified. Podemos party headquarters in Cartagena was firebombed, its windows sprayed with obscene graffiti and the word “Rojos” (reds, a derogatory term used by fascists).'

Sweden Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Guardian (1/12/21): Security forces of Chechnya ‘behind attack on dissident blogger’ last year - Tumso Abdurakhmanov assault traced to Russia, says spy agency report examined by Swedish TV
• Al Jazeera (29/11/21): Sweden’s first female PM elected for a second time in a week - Magdalena Andersson will form a one-party, minority government, with a cabinet expected to be named on Tuesday. [electoral-news]
• Rose Wrist (29/11/21): FIRST WOMAN PRIME MINISTER... for 7 Hours? | Magdalena Andersson and Sweden Politics [politics-news, far-right-news, leftist-news]
• The Guardian (24/11/21): Sweden’s first female prime minister resigns after less than 12 hours - Magdalena Andersson quits on day one after the Green party withdraws support for her budget [politics-news]
• Financial Times (11/11/21): Swedish oil executives charged with complicity in Sudan war crimes - Lundin case is first prosecution of corporate bosses for such serious offences since Nuremberg trials [big-oil-news, war-crime-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): In 1999 Lundin, a fossil fuel corporation, wanted access to oil in what is now South Sudan (then the southern part of Sudan); to gain access, they enlisted the aid of the Sudanese government to act as security. To do so meant ripping up a peace accord, and they knowingly went forward with it, unleashing bloody conflict laced with crimes against humanity. In addition to the charges, Lundin will have to hand over $160m in assets (they're mostly involved in Norwegian oil development today, selling out of Sudan in 2003). Sweden has universal jurisdiction, which they've used in many war crimes cases, but this one is notable as it involves Swedish nationals. Note: While unrelated, this case brings to my attention a dimension of the conflict I was not aware of (that oil investment stirred conflict here in the 90s). Important to note is Chinese complicity in the violence here too; they had major oil investments in the country at the time, and sent soldiers to defend those oil fields and weapons to the Sudanese, thereby aiding the oppressors there (see wiki note) [china-policy-news].
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Swedish PM resigns, paving the way for potential female leader - Stefan Lofven resigns in long-planned move with Magdalena Andersson on track to become country’s first female PM.
• Al Jazeera (4/10/21): Swedish Prophet Muhammad cartoonist killed in car crash - Lars Vilks had lived under police protection since depicting Islam’s revered figure with the body of a dog in 2007.
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Police suspect foul play in Swedish apartment building explosion - Up to 20 people were injured as an explosion in Gothenburg set ablaze an apartment block in a central residential area.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Sweden’s Lofven re-elected PM in narrow parliamentary vote - Stefan Lofven restored as prime minister after weeks of turmoil since his resignation last month.
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Swedish opposition leader tasked with forming new government - Moderate Ulf Kristersson given three days to gain support before vote in parliament
• The Economist World This Week (24/6/21): Sweden’s prime minister, Stefan Lofven, lost a vote of confidence. He is allowed a week to cobble together a fresh coalition.
• CounterPunch (19/5/21): A Syndicalist Strategy for the Swedish Labour Market

United Kingdom Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Guardian (31/12/21): Giuffre lawyers seek details on Prince Andrew’s claimed inability to sweat - Royal’s legal team say some of the disclosure requests in Virginia Giuffre lawsuit are ‘overbroad and oppressive’ [epstein-news] [!]
• Jacobin (19/12/21): The Establishment Feared Corbyn’s Internationalism - Above all, the British establishment feared Jeremy Corbyn because he advocated forcefully for socialist internationalist foreign policy. This anti-imperialist politics was the first casualty of Keir Starmer's Labour Party leadership. [leftist-news, socialist-news, analysis-news]
• Tribune (27/12/21): The Tribunite who Tried to Kill Hitler - During the Second World War, Jewish socialist Hilda Monte was forced into exile by the Nazi government — but the connections she made in Britain helped her to become one of the resistance’s most formidable operatives. [history-news, far-right-news, socialist-news]
• WSWS (30/12/21): Refuse collection drivers and loaders in Eastbourne, UK to strike over pay and conditions [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Further stoppages by rail catering workers based in Scottish capital announced over management bullying and harassment [labor-news, logistics-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): London Underground drivers continue stoppages over Night Tube rostering [labor-news, logistics-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Strike by train staff at UK rail company over attacks on job role[labor-news, rail-news, logistics-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Financial Times (29/12/21): Tony Blair blocked action on Macpherson report on UK race relations - Private memos show Number 10 pushback thwarted plan by Jack Straw to launch white paper on improving race relations Paywall Summary (?): Part of a wider relunctance to review the issue in the wake of the [1993] Stephen Lawrence murder; his murderers were convicted in 2012, with initial investiagtions 'botched as a result of police racism and corruption', and the report showed examples of this racism. Investigations show Blair was concerned it would be a motivating force for rightwing media such as the Daily Telegraph newspaper.
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Omicron Drives Record Rates of Infection in Several European Countries [covid-news]
• The Moscow Times (27/12/21): BBC Russian Journalist Moves Abroad After ‘Foreign Agent’ Labeling [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (25/12/21): Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland reintroduce Covid restrictions as England delays - Physical distancing will be required in public places and there will be new limits on indoor gatherings from Boxing Day [covid-news] [!]
• The Guardian (25/12/21): One year on, most voters say Brexit has gone badly - An Opinium poll also found that 42% of people who voted Leave in 2016 had a negative view of how it had turned out - More than six out of 10 voters believe Brexit has either gone badly or worse than they expected – a year after the UK left the EU, according to an anniversary poll for the Observer. [!]
• The Guardian (24/12/21): UK hits new Covid record again with more than 120,000 daily cases - Data shows one in 35 people at home in England had Covid this week, rising to one in 20 in London [covid-news] [!]
• Just Security (23/12/21): Data from the U.K. has suggested that the risk of overnight hospitalization from the Covid-19 Omicron variant is 40% lower than the Delta variant. Researchers also found that those that test positive with Omicron are 25% less likely to attend hospital at all, though the reduction is only 11% for those who have neither been previously infected with Covid-19 nor vaccinated. However, as daily Covid-19 cases continue to increase exponentially, U.K. experts have warned that the high transmissibility of the Omicron variant means that the health service is still at risk of being overwhelmed. Ian Sample and Heather Stewart report for the Guardian. [covid-news, healthcare-news]
• Just Security (23/12/21): The Five Eyes intelligence alliance–which includes the U.S., U.K., Australia, New Zealand, and Canada–has warned that hackers are “actively exploiting” the recently uncovered vulnerability in Apache logging library log4j. “These vulnerabilities, especially Log4Shell, are severe,” the alliance warned in the joint alert, adding that the “vulnerabilities are likely to be exploited over an extended period.” Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [cyber-security-news]
• Democracy Now (21/12/21): Humanitarian Aid Group Says British and French Rescue Crews Let 27 Refugees Drown [immigrant-news]
• Financial Times (20/12/21): UK Supreme Court thwarts Maduro’s bid to control $1.9bn Venezuela gold - Opposition leader Juan Guaidó recognised as legitimate president with authority to appoint central bank members [court-news] Paywall Summary (?): Maduro wants to use the gold reserve money, under the aegis of the UN, to help with the COVID pandemic. Both Guaidó and Maduro have appointed bank boards to govern these assets, and the Supreme Court ruling means that so long as the UK recognizes Guaidó as the president of Venezuela (although, I should note, the term under which he is considered president will end this January), then the determinations about the assets made by Guaidó's board must be followed. The UK still has a de facto ambassador from the Maduro regime.
• The Guardian (20/12/21): Unite launches inquiry into building costs of Birmingham project - Following leaked accounts, union’s new general secretary says possible ‘significant loss’ must be investigated [union-news]
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Omicron Sends COVID Cases Surging, Prompts New Restrictions in Israel, U.K., the Netherlands [covid-news]
• The Guardian (18/12/21): Boris Johnson’s zeal to return Parthenon marbles revealed in 1986 article - Unearthed Oxford Union article by prime minister made passionate case for sculptures’ repatriation to Athens [!]
• The Guardian (18/12/21): Brexit minister’s shock resignation leaves Boris Johnson reeling - Lord Frost’s frustrated exit is yet another blow for PM struggling for control of his government [politics-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (16/12/21): UK warplane shoots down 'hostile' drone near US base in Syria - The latest drone incursion comes as indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran are on thin ice. [!]
• The Guardian (16/12/21): Four children killed in house fire in Sutton, south London - Firefighters faced an ‘intense blaze’ throughout the ground floor of the property, said London Fire Brigade [!]
• Al Jazeera (15/12/21): Behind the UK government’s false flag ‘free speech’ campaign - Government efforts to ‘defend’ free speech on campus are really not about censorship in UK universities [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (16/12/21): Don’t call it sleaze, call it corruption – why scandal haunts Boris Johnson’s government - The behaviour of Boris Johnson’s government does not bear comparison with the scandals that felled the Major administration – it is much, much worse. - From contracts for mates to flat makeovers and illicit parties, barely a day passes without a crisis at No 10. But using the tabloid language of the 90s doesn’t scratch the surface of this government’s sins [corruption-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (16/12/21): U.K. and South Africa Set Coronavirus Records as Omicron Spreads Rapidly [covid-news]
• South China Morning Post (15/12/21): Belgium trial starts over death of 39 Vietnamese migrants in UK truck - The trial of 23 people in Bruges follows prison sentences handed down in Britain in January to seven men for manslaughter - The bodies of the 31 men and eight women were found in a refrigerated truck near London in October 2019 [crime-news, court-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Financial Times (14/12/21): UK prime minister fails with plea for Conservative loyalty - Tory MPs’ defiance over Covid restrictions highlights growing anger at Johnson’s leadership [covid-news, politics-news] Paywall Summary (?): Johnson wanted to implement a COVID-19 vaccine certification to get into mass events, but 126 MPs, mostly Tories, voted against it (it did pass though). This all in the wake of scandals, such as with Owen Paterson and Christmas parties. This amidst the rise of Omicron.
• CPJ (10/12/21): UK ruling on extraditing Wikileaks’ Assange ‘seriously damages journalism’ - The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed deep disappointment at a British court’s decision to uphold the United States Justice Department’s appeal to extradite Julian Assange, which allows the U.S. to continue pursuing the extradition of the WikiLeaks founder, according to news reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (10/12/21): Former Conservative MP Andrew Griffiths raped his wife, court finds - Kate Griffiths, who succeeded her husband, supported journalists’ request to remove restriction on naming them [crime-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Boosters give up to 75 percent protection from mild Omicron: UK - Initial real-world data shows that booster COVID-19 jabs protect people against mild disease from the Omicron variant. [covid-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (10/12/21): WHO Warns Rich Countries Against Vaccine Hoarding as Omicron Variant Spreads - And the United Kingdom’s Health Security Agency said Thursday Omicron appears to be outcompeting Delta and is likely to become the dominant variant in Britain. [covid-news]
• Just Security (10/12/21): The Uyghur Tribunal, a U.K.-based panel of lawyers, academics and activists, has concluded that China’s policies regarding the treatment of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang amount to a form of genocide. The panel’s judgment “found that the Chinese government, through policies including what it described as forced birth control and sterilizations, intends to partially destroy the predominantly Muslim Uyghur community and its way of life; and that Chinese President Xi Jinping and other senior officials bore ‘primary responsibility for acts in Xinjiang,’” Sha Hu reports for the Wall Street Journal. [china-policy-news]
• WSWS (30/11/21): Channel drowning survivor reveals UK, French police left them to die [immigrant-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): UK ‘embarrassed’ into funding Mozambique gas project, court hears - Friends of the Earth cites documents suggesting UK’s reputation could suffer if it pulled $1.15bn of promised support [big-oil-news, corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Irrawaddy (9/12/21): UK Group Hands ICC Evidence of Crimes Against Humanity by Myanmar Regime [!]
• The Guardian (9/12/21): Record number of children in Britain arrested over terror offences - Home Office figures show 25 under-18s arrested in year to September, mostly in relation to far-right ideology [far-right-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (9/12/21): Pandemic restrictions were tightened in England as Omicron infections surged. The government advised people to work from home and ordered them to wear masks in more circumstances. Proof of vaccination or a negative covid test will be required to enter large venues. Meanwhile, the government struggled to explain why staffers held a party at 10 Downing Street in December 2020, when the rules stopped ordinary folk from meeting up. [covid-news]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Met police say they will not investigate Downing Street Christmas party - Force cites policy of not investigating past alleged breaches of Covid rules and lack of evidence [!]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Amid anger, UK’s Johnson apologises for Christmas party blunder - A leaked video appears to show prime minister’s team joking about holding celebrations last year, during lockdown. [!]
• The Majority Report (7/12/21): UK PM Boris Johnson Reacts To News Of Cocaine Use In Parliament’s Bathrooms [funny-news, corruption-news]
• Left Voice (7/12/21): A TERF-Far Right Alliance Has Launched a New Transphobic Onslaught - In view of the increasing number of reactionary articles in the press and other public statements of that ilk, this article proposes a short guide to survival in transphobic territory — with a focus on Britain, the United States, and France [far-right-news, civil-rights-news, lgbtq-news] [!]
• The Guardian (7/12/21): PM accused of lying after No 10 officials caught joking about Christmas party - Exchange between Ed Oldfield and Allegra Stratton took place last December days after alleged party took place [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): The U.K. Foreign Office’s handling of the evacuation from Afghanistan after the Taliban seized Kabul was dysfunctional and chaotic, a whistleblower has said. “Raphael Marshall said the process of choosing who could get a flight out was arbitrary and thousands of emails with pleas for help went unread. The then Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab was slow to make decisions, he added,” James Landale and Joseph Lee report for BBC News.
• The Guardian (6/12/21): Two Met police officers jailed over photos of murdered sisters - Deniz Jaffer and Jamie Lewis sentenced to two years and nine months for taking and sharing photos of Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• The Guardian (5/12/21): UK takes part in huge French naval exercise to counter ‘emerging threats’ - France’s top naval commander cites ‘rapid rearmament’ of China and Russia as danger to maritime security [!]
• Jacobin (5/12/21): How Greece’s Brutal Anti-Migrant Policies Became a Model for Britain - From criminalizing aid workers to barbed-wire prisons and pushbacks at sea, Greece's right-wing government is waging a war on migrants — and providing a model that Britain's Tory government is keen to follow. [immigrant-news, analysis-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• The Economist (4/12/21): The quest for respectability—and votes—has transformed Sinn Fein - It is on course to be the biggest party on both sides of the Irish border
• The Guardian (2/12/21): Labour’s main union backer says it will cut political funding - Exclusive: Sharon Graham, Unite’s boss, believes money would be better spent on union campaigns [labor-news, union-news]
• On Labor (1/12/21): Finally, on the other side of the Atlantic, the Guardian reports that staffers, lecturers, and administrators at fifty-eight universities across England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, represented by the University College Union, went on strike starting today, disrupting campus activities for more than a million students in the UK. The strike, which was authorized by the union’s members in September, is the latest in a bitter dispute between university administration and staffers over falling pay, unsafe workloads, and pension cuts. A poll conducted by the National Union of Students, a confederation of student unions in the UK, found that nearly 75 percent of college students backed the strike while less than 10 percent opposed it, and union reported this morning that “huge numbers” of staff and students have joined the picket lines, demanding fair pay, decent pensions, and improved working conditions. [labor-news]
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Ghislaine Maxwell accuser says she met Trump at 14 and flew with Prince Andrew - ‘Jane’, who did not accuse Trump or duke of misconduct, testifies in court she was introduced to former president by Jeffrey Epstein - This article contains depictions of sexual abuse [epstein-news, trump-news]
• Just Security (3/12/21): The U.S., the U.K., Canada and the E.U. have imposed coordinated additional sanctions on Belarus, in relation to human rights abuses and a migrant crisis on Belarus’s border with the E.U., which is attributed to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. The sanctions blacklist entities and individuals that “support the regime and facilitate its repression,” Blinken said in a statement. They include targeting three aircraft as blocked property and designating 32 individuals and entities, including Belarusian state-owned enterprises and government officials. Laura Kelly reports for The Hill. [us-policy-news]
• WSWS (16/11/21): Arriva bus drivers in North Wales strike against pay restraint [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (25/11/21): French fishers to block Channel tunnel in Brexit licences row - Members of industry association say large number of vehicles will be used to block key artery between nations
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): The British government sought to declare the whole of Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls the Gaza Strip, a terrorist organisation. Britain had already proscribed the group’s military wing.
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): At least 27 migrants drowned off the coast of France trying to reach Britain. It was the biggest single loss of life in the English Channel since such figures started to be recorded in 2014. The number of illegal Channel landings, orchestrated by criminal gangs, is already three times higher this year than in all of 2020. The British and French governments promised to step up their fight against people-traffickers. But it is not yet clear who will pay to patrol the waves. [immigrant-news]
• The Economist World This Week (20/11/21): Nine members of Insulate Britain, a green protest group, were jailed for three to six months for defying court injunctions not to block busy roads. The group’s zealous tactics have made life even more miserable for London’s already frustrated drivers. The judge said there was no alternative to prison for the nine, given their intention to keep flouting the injunctions. [protest-news]
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Oxford University identifies 145 artefacts looted in Benin raid - Plundered items likely to be returned to Nigeria include plaques, bronze figures and musical instruments
• Ars Technica (18/11/21): Nvidia acquisition of Arm now under scrutiny by FTC - FTC highlights potential objections, adding to UK and European scrutiny of the deal. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• The Guardian (17/11/21): Denmark accuses UK of breaking Brexit fishing deal over trawling ban - Exclusive: Danish minister says proposal to ban bottom trawling in Dogger Bank ‘a very big problem’
• Just Security (19/11/21): The U.K. is set to designate the Palestinian militant group Hamas as a terrorist organization, bringing the U.K.’s position on Hamas in line with the U.S. and E.U.. Stephen Farrell reports for Reuters.
• Just Security (18/11/21): British police have indicated that Emas Al Swealmeen, the man who set off an explosive device in a taxi outside of a Liverpool hospital earlier this week, had been purchasing components for the device for months.
• Just Security (18/11/21): American, British, and Australian officials have warned that hackers linked to the government of Iran are targeting critical sectors of the U.S. economy, including transportation, healthcare and public health [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The defense ministers of Ukraine and the U.K. have said that they are not trying to encircle or undermine Russia but are committed to Ukraine’s territorial integrity, amid concerns about Russian troop movements near Ukraine’s borders.
• The Guardian (17/11/21): British F-35 jet crashes into Mediterranean - Defence secretary says F-35 flights will continue, after pilot of RAF jet from HMS Queen Elizabeth carrier ejects during routine activity
• On Labor (15/11/21): Looking outside of the United States, the American Prospect reported today on a massive wave of strikes that Scottish rail workers, sanitation workers, school employees and others had planned to coincide with the COP26 climate conference held in Glasgow over the past two weeks. The workers, members of a variety of different U.K. unions, sought wage increases, improved working conditions, and the “restoration of public services that [had] been cut due to austerity.” Although the Scottish government managed to avert some of the strikes with a contract offer on the eve of the conference, some sanitation and railway workers went forward with their planned actions throughout the conference. The Prospect’s article is worth exploring in full for its in-depth, play-by-play narration of the collective bargaining process in the U.K. context. [labor-news, protest-news, climate-change-news]
• The Guardian (15/11/21): Liverpool hospital attack declared act of terror as man killed in blast is named - National terror threat raised as counter-terrorism police ‘strongly believe’ dead attacker to be Emad al-Swealmeen [militant-far-right-news ?]
• Just Security (15/11/21): An explosion yesterday morning outside Liverpool Women’s hospital in the northwest of the U.K. has been declared a terrorist incident by U.K. police.
• The Economist World This Week (13/11/21): The British government announced that National Health Service frontline staff in England will need to be vaccinated against covid-19 by April 1st. The latest government data show that 10% of all NHS employees are not fully jabbed. This week was the deadline for care staff to meet the requirement; around a quarter of those workers have not received their full dose. [covid-news]
• The Guardian (12/11/21): Team of 10 UK soldiers sent to Poland to assist on Belarus border - MoD says small team of military personnel deployed after agreement with Polish government
• Financial Times (12/11/21): Jes Staley exchanged 1,200 emails with Epstein that included unexplained phrases - Regulators flagged ‘snow white’ reference in messages between former Barclays boss and sex offender [corruption-news, epstein-news] Paywall Summary (?): While at JPMorgan, Staley worked as head of a bank of which Epstein was a client, initializing their relationship in the early 2000s. The nature of their relationship has been exposed in a cache of emails (ranging from 2008 to 2012) JPMorgan turned over to US regulators, showing their close relationship, and including several peculiar terms, such as "snow white". Staley visited Epstein in 2009 while in prison for procuring a child prostitute. While Staley says their relationship tapered off after 2013, he visited Epstein's private Caribbean island on his yacht in 2015, months before joining Barclays. Barclays had initially been warned about this situation, and the emails, around Dec 2019, but declined to take them seriously, taking Staley for his word that there was nothing serious between him and Epstein, saying he had been "sufficiently transparent".
• Common Dreams (12/11/21): Outrage as AstraZeneca Ditches Pledge Not to Profit From Publicly Funded Vaccine - "AstraZeneca's decision to start profiting from Oxford University's coronavirus vaccine mid-pandemic shows the utter folly of giving away publicly funded science to Big Pharma." [capitalist-farce-news, pharma-news, covid-news]
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): U.K. Prison Authorities to Allow Julian Assange to Get Married in Prison
• The Guardian (10/11/21): Family of Kenyan woman allegedly murdered by UK soldier to sue MoD - Agnes Wanjiru’s family instruct law firm to demand answers over her death
• The Guardian (10/11/21): Top UK court blocks legal action against Google over internet tracking - Campaigners sought to sue for £3bn damages on behalf of millions of iPhone users in England and Wales [big-tech-news, court-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Police Raid Glasgow Squat Housing Climate Activists Protesting COP26
• The Guardian (7/11/21): Northern Ireland: bus hijacked and set alight on outskirts of Belfast - Incident near Rathcoole in Newtownabbey sparks fresh fears of Brexit-related violence in region
• The Guardian (7/11/21): British man appears in court in Ireland over threat to kill Labour MP - Daniel Weavers, 41, arrested following search of residential property in Cork
• The Guardian (7/11/21): UK stop-and-search data ‘withheld to hide rise in discrimination’ - Figures delayed as police and borders bills pass through parliament [surveillance-and-censorship-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Democracy Now (8/11/21): 100,000+ People Take to Streets to Call Out Climate Inaction, COP26 Greenwashing [protest-news, climate-change-news]
• The Guardian (5/11/21): Eight police officers injured in clashes with protesters in Parliament Square - Anti-establishment Million Mask March group gathered to let off fireworks and demonstrate against the government
• The Guardian (4/11/21): Tories engulfed in sleaze crisis after U-turn and Owen Paterson resignation - Conservative MPs react with fury at ‘own goal’ after PM ditches bid to shield former minister from lobbying claims
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): As world leaders debated net zero, Britain and France called a temporary truce in a furious row over the economically insignificant question of fishing rights in the English Channel. France had seized a British vessel after French fisherfolk complained that post-Brexit Britain was being slow to issue them with licences. The mackerel mêlée is certain to resume.
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): America, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates called on the leaders of a military coup in Sudan to reinstate a civilian-led transitional government. The last two were a surprise: the coup leader, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was thought to have had the backing of Arab allies, including the UAE. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (3/11/21): Meat carcasses sent to EU for butchering amid UK worker shortage - Great Britain’s beef producers export to Ireland before reimporting, while pork processors consider the Netherlands
• The Guardian (2/11/21): Four more UK energy suppliers go bust amid high gas prices - Ofgem says latest collapses will leave about 24,000 households in need of a new supplier [energy-news]
• Democracy Now (4/11/21): World’s Most Polluting Nations Spend Twice as Much on Border Militarization Than Climate Crisis - Additionally, the world’s largest fossil fuel companies are employing the same companies that receive government contracts to militarize their borders. [dark-security-news, climate-change-news]
• Just Security (2/11/21): French President Emmanuel Macron has said that planned trade-related sanctions on the U.K., following a post-Brexit row over fishing rights, would be postponed so negotiators could focus on settling the argument
• The Guardian (1/11/21): Fears of Brexit violence as armed men hijack and torch bus in Northern Ireland - Loyalists reportedly claim attack in Newtownards in which driver was held at gunpoint, according to minister [militant-far-right-news]
• The Guardian (1/11/21): Barclays chief Jes Staley steps down after Epstein investigation - Executive plans to challenge findings of FCA inquiry and will be replaced by CS Venkatakrishnan [epstein-news]
• New York Times (31/10/21): U.K. Police Struggle to Curb Abuse of Women by Their Own Officers - Sexual misconduct by police officers has prompted outrage across Britain and led to increasing skepticism that departments can investigate or discipline employees who abuse women. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Financial Times (28/10/21): UK and European natural gas prices fall after Putin intervention - Russian president orders Gazprom to begin filling storage facilities in the region from November [energy-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): critics believe Putin is using this as leverage to increase the chance of Nord Stream 2 being approved. At the moment, the largest Gazprom storage site on the continent is less than 10% full, and the largest in Austria is about 20%.
• The Guardian (29/10/21): Macron’s fighting talk on fishing is driven by far-right election threats - Analysis: British government is not entirely innocent but Paris knows forceful rhetoric should only go so far [far-right-news, electoral-news]
• The Guardian (28/10/21): UK-France fishing reprisals threaten full post-Brexit trade war - No 10 threatens retaliation against French measures including port ban on British fishing boats
• Just Security (29/10/21): France has said that it could stop British boats from landing if the dispute with the U.K. over fishing licences is not resolved by Tuesday. The comments come after a British trawler was seized by France and another fined during checks off Le Havre yesterday. The U.K. Environment Secretary George Eustice has said that the language used by French officials is“inflammatory” and has warned that the U.K. would respond if France went ahead with threats, saying “two can play at that game.”
• Democracy Now (29/10/21): Protesters at Site of COP26 Climate Summit Demand Real Action to Limit Warming to 1.5°C
• Democracy Now (28/10/21): U.S. Pushes to Extradite WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange in London Court
• Just Security (27/10/21): The U.K. Home Secretary, Priti Patel, is under pressure to disclose whether the U.K.’s most sensitive national security secrets could be at risk after the disclosure that U.K. spy agencies have signed a cloud contract with Amazon Web Services (AWS). [cyber-security-news, privatization-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): The U.K.’s spy agencies, M15, M16 and GCHQ, have given a contract to Amazon Web Services (AWS) to host classified material in a deal aimed at boosting the use of data analytics and artificial intelligence for espionage. The high-security cloud system will also be used by other government departments, such as the Ministry of Defense, during joint operations. The agreement, estimated by industry experts to be worth £500m to £1bn over the next decade, was signed this year, according to sources familiar with the discussions. “Although AWS is a U.S. company, all the agencies’ data will be held in Britain, according to those with knowledge of the deal. Amazon will not have any access to information held on the cloud platform, those people said,” Helen Warrell and Nic Fildes report for the Financial Times. [big-tech-news, dark-security-news, cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen encouraged U.K. lawmakers yesterday to pass legislation to rein in social-media platforms. Haugen explained to a parliamentary committee considering the U.K. Online Safety Bill, which aims to curb harmful online content, that Facebook struggles to curb misinformation and hate speech in many languages and dialects, including British English [cyber-security-news, big-tech-news]
• Democracy Now (25/10/21): Barbados Elects First-Ever President to Replace British Queen as Head of State
• Just Security (22/10/21): The U.K. doctors’ union has accused U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government of being “willfully negligent” in its handling of the latest wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, as government ministers refuse to introduce mitigation measures, despite the country’s rising infection rates [labor-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (22/10/21): U.K. prosecutors have told a court that the man charged with stabbing and killing U.K. lawmaker Sir David Ames last week considered himself affiliated with the Islamic State and had been planning similar attacks for years. [far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (21/10/21): Nigerian separatist leader Kanu denies terrorism charges in court - Charges against British citizen Nnamdi Kanu include calling for secession and membership in an outlawed group.
• New York Times (18/10/21): Showdown Over Northern Ireland Has a Key Offstage Player: Biden - As the U.K. and the European Union begin their wrangling over details of trade with Northern Ireland, President Biden has more than a passing interest in the final result. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/10/21): U.K. Government officials have confirmed that the suspect, who is being held at a London police station under the Terrorism Act 2000, is Ali Harbi Ali, a British national of Somali heritage. Early investigations also revealed “a potential motivation linked to Islamist extremism,” according to the London Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Iranian court upholds new jail term for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe - The Iranian British woman was handed a new one-year jail sentence after spending five years in prison.
• The Guardian (15/10/21): MP David Amess dies after being stabbed at constituency meeting - Man arrested on suspicion of murder after Conservative MP attacked during regular surgery in Leigh-on-Sea in Essex
• Democracy Now (15/10/21): U.K. and EU Nations Block COVID Vaccine Patent Waiver at World Trade Organization [vaccine-ip-news]
• The Guardian (13/10/21): EU offers to scrap 80% of NI food checks but prepares for Johnson to reject deal - Maroš Šefčovič attempts to end tussle at press conference but ‘big gap’ remains to UK’s demands [brexit-news, logistics-news]
• The Guardian (12/10/21): Fire breaks out at tower block in south-west London - Woman and child taken to hospital as 70 firefighters are sent to blaze in Battersea
• Just Security (12/10/21): The U.K. government failed to act quickly enough in its initial response to Covid-19, enabling the virus to spread rapidly through communities and resulting in thousands of deaths, U.K. lawmakers have said in a damning report published today. The report from the British Parliament’s Health and Social Care, and Science and Technology committees said that the U.K.’s Covid-19 response was slow and “reactive,” and that the initial policy at the start of the pandemic of trying to manage the spread of the virus, rather than stop it spreading altogether, with the aim of achieving herd immunity, was one of the biggest failures of the U.K. government’s approach.
• Democracy Now (12/10/21): Parliamentary Report: COVID-19 Response Was One of Biggest Public Health Failures in U.K. History [covid-news, healthcare-news]
• Democracy Now (12/10/21): Greenpeace Installs Statue of Boris Johnson Splattered in Oil Outside 10 Downing St.
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): UK police drop probe into Prince Andrew sexual abuse claim - London’s Metropolitan Police will take ‘no further action’ against royal following review prompted by US lawsuit. [epstein-news]
• Jacobin (10/10/21): Keir Starmer Cares More About Driving Out Socialists Than Winning Power - When Keir Starmer ran for Labour leader last spring, he promised to unite the party. In reality, he has worked tirelessly to silence socialists, while doing nothing to take the fight to the Tories. [labor-news, politics-news, electoral-news]
• Financial Times (9/10/21): EU’s Northern Ireland concessions do not go far enough, UK to warn - Brexit minister will say free circulation of food products across the Irish Sea falls short of British demands Paywall Summary: Because Northern Ireland and Ireland can't have a hard border (due to Good Friday agreement, would stoke tensions a la "the Troubles", etc), the EU-UK border has been fuzzily placed in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, resulting in things like the prospect of chilled meat sales from Great Britain being banned in Northern Ireland. This has stoked a lot of tension itself between the EU and the UK. The EU has offered some concessions, but the UK Brexit minister has said it's not enough. The UK could (and has threatened to) suspend the protocols using Article 16, which allows either the UK or EU to suspend the rules in a situation of large scale emergency. If invoked, Article 16 would result in negotiations and possible sanctions.
• The Guardian (9/10/21): France calls on UK to ‘pay what it owes’ for policing Channel - Interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, says negotiations should begin for migration treaty between UK and EU [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Greenpeace stops fish oil tanker in Channel in protest over African food insecurity - Fishmeal exports to EU from west Africa have grown sharply, depleting stocks and posing threat to livelihoods
• ZDNet (7/10/21): Former Kent police officer sentenced for downloading child sex abuse material - The disgraced officer has avoided jail. [crime-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Financial Times (6/10/21): Gas markets whipsaw after Russia offers to stabilise energy prices - UK gas contracts for November delivery soar almost 40 per cent before falling back after Putin’s comments [big-oil-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary: The LNG crisis has been kicking the world's a*s (Europe in particular (see briefing) as we come out of the pandemic and demand returns to normal, gas prices have been surging - but reassuring comments from Putin have stabilized prices. Russia claims (and Germany's Merkel sheepishly corroborates) that they aren't limiting supply - just fulfilling whatever contractual amounts are required. However, it appears that Putin may be leveraging the situation to expedite approval of the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline (Ukraine hates it, bc it bypasses Ukraine, and Ukraine makes a lot of money off of taxing gas transit. Everyone is crying "market manipulation", but uhhh... what are you gonna do about? Keep shutting those nuke plants down, Germany! That'll teach Putin a lesson. Oh yeah, there are concerns it will increase Europe's dependence on Russian energy... which isn't an ideal situation). The UK is also very vulnerable, as they don't have a lot of energy storage capacity - they basically need energy provided "just in time".
• The Guardian (5/10/21): France threatens to cut UK and Jersey energy supply in fishing row - French government pushing EU to take stronger stance in dispute over access to Channel waters
• Just Security (5/10/21): The U.K. military has started driving fuel trucks in southern England amid a gas station crisis in the country
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (4/10/21): UK plans fossil fuel-free power grid by 2035 using nuclear energy - Fossil fuels will no longer be used to generate power by the middle of the next decade as the United Kingdom’s government tackles climate change and an energy supply crunch. [energy-news]
• New York Times (4/10/21): Military Personnel in U.K. Begin Driving Fuel Trucks to Stem Shortage - A top government official said that supplies were improving but that wider disruptions could continue as the holiday season approaches.
• Al Jazeera (3/10/21): UK rejects ‘uncontrolled immigration’ despite labour shortages - PM Boris Johnson defends his country’s choice to leave the EU as a lack of workers threatens to upend the Christmas season.
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Prince Andrew can review Epstein estate deal, accuser says - Virginia Giuffre, an American, sued the United Kingdom’s Prince Andrew claiming that Jeffrey Epstein recruited her for sex with the prince when she was a teen. Andrew has denied the allegations. [epstein-news]
• The Guardian (30/9/21): UK joins calls on Mali to end alleged deal with Russian mercenaries - Mali’s military leaders under pressure to pull back from suspected agreement with Wagner Group [russia-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (2/10/21): British motorists endured petrol queues. One cause was a shortage of lorry drivers to deliver the stuff, exacerbated by Brexit, which has made it harder and less attractive for foreign drivers to work in Britain. Another cause was panic-buying. Despite government assurances that there was plenty of fuel in depots, drivers flocked to fill their tanks. Other European countries also had fuel-supply problems, but Britain’s were especially severe.
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (29/9/21): Energy crunch: Three more UK power firms collapse - Record prices for natural gas have pushed three more United Kingdom energy firms out of business. [energy-news]
• The Guardian (27/9/21): EU lorry drivers will not help Britain ease its fuel crisis, union says - Official from Dutch-based FNV criticises visa plan as ‘dead end’ due to poor working conditions [labor-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): China has condemned the U.K. for sailing a warship down the sensitive Taiwan strait
• The Guardian (25/9/21): Starmer faces wave of anger over Labour conference chaos - Labour leader bids to stem damage after defeat on rules as deputy Rayner furious over unnecessary conflict
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): Petrol stations close in UK amid shortage of truck drivers - Government urges Brits against panic buying as lack of hauliers stretches supply chains to breaking point.
• The Guardian(24/9/21): Tory donor’s oil firm admits employees paid bribes to get contracts - Petrofac made admission as part of deal to end four-year corruption investigation by Serious Fraud Office [corruption-news, big-oil-news]
• Just Security (22/9/21): U.K. counterterrorism police have charged a third man in the attempted assassination of Sergei Skripal in 2018
• Just Security (16/9/21): The Aukus pact has angered France, which has now lost a deal with Australia to build 12 submarines
• Just Security (16/9/21): China has condemned the agreement [US, UK, Australia partnership "Aukus"] as “extremely irresponsible” and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said it “seriously undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race.” [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/9/21): China’s new ambassador to the U.K. was banned from the U.K.’s Parliament yesterday, in the latest mark of mounting tensions between Beijing and London.
• The Guardian (15/9/21): US, UK and Australia forge military alliance to counter China - Aukus partnership will enable Australia to have nuclear-powered submarines for the first time [us-policy-news]
• CPJ (14/9/21): BBC news crew threatened by COVID-19 protesters in UK
• The Economist World This Week (11/9/21): The British government announced plans for a radical overhaul of how social care and health care are financed. It includes a new levy of 1.25% on both workers’ earnings and employers’ payroll taxes. Separately, the government was reportedly planning to turn back migrant boats in the English Channel, following a surge of crossings from France.
• The Guardian (10/9/21): Prince Andrew served with lawsuit from Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre - A US court document showed paperwork was filed at Royal Lodge and a response is due by 17 September
• The Guardian (9/9/21): France accuses Patel of blackmail in row over Channel migrants - Interior minister says UK plans to return boats of vulnerable people would not be accepted
• The Guardian (1/9/21): British journalist killed by armed robbers in Ghana - Syed Taalay Ahmed, who worked for Muslim Television Ahmadiyya International, was ambushed in Tamale
• Just Security (30/8/21): Dozens of Afghan interpreters who worked for the British Army have been told by the Home Office that they will not be allowed into the U.K. because they are a “danger to [national] security,”
• The Guardian (29/8/21): Spate of attacks across UK sparks fear among LGBTQ+ community - Hate crimes related to sexual orientation and gender identity have increased year on year since 2015 [lgbtq-news]
• Democracy Now (24/8/21): Extinction Rebellion Launches New Resistance Campaign with London Direct Action Protests
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Nepalese Gurkhas end hunger strike over UK military pensions - Veterans call off ‘fast unto death’ strike after 13 days as British officials agree to talks over pension rights grievances.
• Democracy Now (20/8/21): Extinction Rebellion U.K. Stages Die-in, Blocks Entry to ExxonMobil Facility
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): UK announces plan to resettle 20,000 refugees from Afghanistan - The scheme will give priority to women, girls and minorities considered ‘most at risk’ under Taliban rule.
• Democracy Now (12/8/21): U.K. Judge Says U.S. Can Expand Scope of Appeal Arguments Against Julian Assange
• Just Security (11/8/21): A British man has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for Russia
• World Socialist Web Site (29/7/21): UK teachers’ pay freeze meets no opposition from unions
• The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): France and Britain reached a deal to step up patrols in the English Channel to block a surge of migrants seeking to reach Britain. The number of migrants crossing this year has already exceeded the total of 8,461 for all of 2020.
• The Guardian (21/7/21): UAE linked to listing of hundreds of UK phones in Pegasus project leak - Member of the House of Lords and Briton once detained in UAE among those appearing in database
• The Guardian (21/7/21): UK says it wants to substantially rewrite Northern Ireland Brexit protocol - Blueprint for alternative arrangement published as sources say protocol was flawed at conception
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): UK government backs Guaido in Venezuela gold dispute - Release of nearly $2bn Venezuelan gold held by Bank of England hinges on who London recognises as the country’s leader.
• The Guardian (14/7/21): Northern Ireland victims’ families condemn plan to end Troubles prosecutions - Relatives express anger at what they say is an effective amnesty for perpetrators of atrocities
• Democracy Now (12/7/21): Racist Trolls Attack England Soccer Team’s Black Players After Loss to Italy in Euro 2020
• The Guardian (5/7/21): Chinese-owned firm acquires UK’s largest semiconductor manufacturer - Tory MP Tom Tugendhat raises concerns about deal in light of global computer chip shortage
• The Guardian (3/7/21): Union candidate warns Keir Starmer not to ditch leftwing policies - Steve Turner, contender in Unite’s election of a general secretary, says Labour leader must ‘keep promises’
• The Economist World This Week (1/7/21):
• World Socialist Web Site (29/6/21): UK rail workers strike against pay restraint and inferior terms and conditions
• Democracy Now (24/6/21): Britain Disputes Russia’s Claim of Naval Confrontation in Waters Near Russian-Annexed Crimea; The Guardian (24/6/21): Britain acknowledges surprise at speed of Russian reaction to warship - Kremlin summons UK ambassador as Boris Johnson says HMS Defender’s deployment ‘wholly appropriate’
• Democracy Now (18/6/21): British Lockdown to Continue Until July 19 as Delta Coronavirus Variant Drives Surge of Cases
• The Economist World This Week (19/6/21): Boris Johnson postponed the final lifting of covid restrictions in England for what had been labelled “Freedom Day”. Cases of the Delta (Indian) variant are rising. Britain’s prime minister hopes that by July 19th two-thirds of the population will be fully vaccinated and restrictions can at last end. Meanwhile, it was reported that care-home staff will have to be vaccinated if they want to keep their jobs.
• The Economist (17/6/21): Brexit faces problems at the Northern Irish border - Britain’s uneasy relationship with the EU will get worse before it gets better
• The Guardian (14/6/21): Irish-language row threatens to derail Northern Ireland government - Standoff between DUP and Sinn Féin blocking ratification of Arlene Foster’s designated successor
• Democracy Now (14/6/21): U.K. Delays Reopening as Moscow Sees New Surge in Cases; India Moves to Reopen as Infections Drop
• Democracy Now (3/6/21): British Royal Family Had Ban on Hiring People of Color, Foreigners Other Than as Domestic Workers
• Al Jazeera (27/5/21): Russia says it expelled British warship from waters near Crimea - Incident last October saw Russian navy and air force confront British destroyer, security official claims.
• Democracy Now (14/5/21): U.K. Court Delivers Prison Sentence to Ex-Diplomat Who Has Reported on Persecution of Julian Assange
• New York Times (8/5/21): Scotland Election Results Complicate Hopes for Independence Referendum - The Scottish National Party fell short of an outright majority, though pro-independence parties appeared to retain control of Scotland’s Parliament.
• Jacobin (8/5/21): Keir Starmer Is Responsible for Labour’s Electoral Disaster - Keir Starmer has tried to blame yesterday’s election disaster on Jeremy Corbyn. But it’s Starmer whose leadership has hollowed out the party, refused to offer a compelling vision for change, and left many with little reason to vote Labour.
• Al Jazeera: Manchester United fans invade stadium in protest against owners - Anti-Glazer movement has gained momentum following the club’s failed attempt to join a breakaway Super League.
• World Socialist Web Site: UK to send largest Carrier Strike Group since Falklands/Malvinas war to South China Sea (propaganda heads up: Uyghur cultural genocide downplaying)
• The Economist (Politics this Week, 1/5/21): Arlene Foster said she would step down as Northern Ireland’s first minister (or premier) in June following a revolt against her leadership in her Democratic Unionist Party. Its members have become increasingly agitated by the post-Brexit deal for Northern Ireland, which in effect creates a border for goods crossing from mainland Britain.
• World Socialist Web Site: UK Prime Minister Johnson demanded “no more f***ing lockdowns, let the bodies pile high in their thousands!”
• Al Jazeera: UK race report attempted to normalise white supremacy: UN experts - UN working group slams controversial report commissioned by the government, but PM Johnson stands by findings.
• Popular Front: (podcast) Loyalist Paramilitaries Threaten Northern Ireland's Good Friday Agreement
• World Socialist Web Site: Rioting in Northern Ireland manipulated by Stormont and Westminster
• Democracy Now (4/9/21): Unionists Riot in Belfast as Brexit Stokes Northern Ireland Divisions

Eurasia Updates (largely, fmr USSR)

Afghanistan / Armenia / Azerbaijan / Belarus / Georgia / Kazakhstan / Kyrgyzstan / Russia / Tajikistan / Turkmenistan / Uzbekistan / Ukraine

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After the fall of the USSR, liberals were quick to privatize nearly everything. In some areas of the region this meant oligarchs cementing power, in others it meant strongmen taking power. In either case, with few exceptions, democracy was totally stifled. And even in those places - such as Poland - where democracy initially was fairly successful, the instabilities of capitalism have resulted in the right of far-right extremism and a turn towards tyranny. In the wake of this all, Russia's Putin sews war and conflict, while playing a delicate balancing act at home - the real power lies in the hands of the oligarchs, who own the capital of Russia, but as they stand divided, Putin is able to wield a volatile form of power by establishing a stasis amongst them. In Central Asia (ie Kazakhstan, etc), China and Russia are increasingly brushing up against one another.

Regional Updates

• Al-Monitor (18/9/21): Iran joins China, Russia in Shanghai Cooperation Organization - Iran has been upgraded to permanent member status in the Eurasian alliance, of which Turkey is also a partner.
• Just Security (16/9/21): Members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia-led security bloc that includes some countries adjacent or close to Afghanistan, have no plans to host Afghan refugees, bloc member Kazakhstan has said [russia-policy-news, immigrant-news]
• Just Security (26/8/21): Russia is to supply further weapons to Central Asian countries bordering Afghanistan [russia-policy-news]

Belarus Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Moscow Times (27/12/21): Belarus Jails Russian National for 11 Years in Protest Crackdown – Reports [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• New York Times (14/12/21): Belarus Opposition Leader Is Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison - The activist Sergei Tikhanovsky planned to challenge the country’s authoritarian leader, Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, in a presidential election last year. He was arrested before the vote and his wife stepped in. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (9/12/21): A Belarusian who used to work as an air traffic controller at Minsk’s airport has defected to the E.U. and is providing detailed evidence on the Ryanair flight that was forced to land in Minsk earlier this year. The defector’s evidence supported the view that the flight was targeted for a fake bomb threat as part of an operation orchestrated by Belarus’s intelligence service to grab dissident journalist Roman Protasevich, European security officials have said. Andrew Higgins and Tomas Dapkus report for the New York Times.
• The Moscow Times (8/12/21): Belarus Charges Dissident Blogger’s Russian Girlfriend With ‘Inciting Hatred’ [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (6/12/21): Ukraine has denied accusations from Belarus that a Ukrainian military helicopter flew about 0.6 miles into its territory on Saturday.
• Just Security (2/12/21): Meta (formerly known as Facebook) has said it has linked Belarus’s main security service, the KGB, to fake accounts on its social media platforms that criticized Poland during the two countries’ recent border standoff. [big-tech-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): The E.U. has proposed new measures that would extend the period that Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, E.U. member states bordering Belarus, would be able to detain asylum seekers while their applications are processed. Aid groups have warned that the rule changes may undermine the ability of migrants to seek refuge in the E.U., and would leave applicants in a state of limbo in increasingly unsafe conditions. Elian Peltier and Monika Pronczuk report for the New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (1/12/21): Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has said that he is ready to suspend Russian energy flows into Europe if Poland closes its border with Belarus, Russia’s RIA news agency has reported. Meanwhile, “the Polish Defense Minister said the Belarusian defense attaché had been summoned after lights set up by Polish soldiers near the town of Terespol were damaged by shots from air guns,” Reuters reports. [energy-news]
• CPJ (29/11/21): Freelance journalist Andrey Kuznechyk detained in Belarus [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): Belarus’s oldest newspaper, Nasha Niva, has been banned after the government accused the publication of extremism. Yuras Karmanau reports for AP. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): The E.U. has given visas to Belarusian migrants fleeing repression, while seeking to rebuff Middle Eastern migrants coming through Belarus. Crossing from East to West of Belarus, the two groups briefly share the same fate, “but soon their lives diverge again: most Belarusians are quickly assured of staying in Lithuania and are allowed to move freely, while the others spend months detained in cramped containers, awaiting near-certain rejection of their asylum claims,” Anton Troianovski reports for The New York Times. [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (19/11/21): Lukashenko says troops may have helped refugees reach EU - Belarusian president reiterates denials he fomented border crisis as concerns grow for people’s wellbeing amid freezing winter conditions [immigrant-news]
• Telesur (18/11/21): Germany Denies Agreement to Receive Migrants From Belarus - The German humanitarian aid and cooperation would be carried out in accordance with "European values" and always on Belarusian territory. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• New York Times (17/11/21): The E.U. adopts new sanctions against Belarus.
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): Belarus Reduces Poland’s Oil Supplies for Unscheduled Maintenance [energy-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): EU Border Migrant Crisis Complicates Russia-Belarus Alliance - An already carefully balanced and contradictory relationship is now even more complex. [russia-policy-news, analysis-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Ukraine should set aside money to build a fence on its borders with Belarus and Russia to prevent a possible influx of illegal migrants, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy said today. Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets report for Reuters. [immigrant-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Poland has accused Belarus today of trucking hundreds of migrants back to its border with Poland and pushing them to attempt to cross illegally, only hours after clearing camps at the frontier. Despite Belarus clearing the main camps yesterday and hundreds of Iraqis being sent home on repatriation flights, a Polish Border Guard spokesperson said that by yesterday evening Belarusian authorities were already trucking hundreds of migrants back and forcing them to try to cross in darkness. Reuters reports. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Belarusian officials yesterday cleared encampments near the country’s border with Poland, temporarily reducing tension between the two countries. Thousands of migrants, who had previously been living in these camps in “frigid and increasingly squalid conditions,” are now being housed in a giant warehouse. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Hundreds of Iraqis who have camped for weeks at Belarus’s borders with the E.U. checked in for a flight back to Iraq on Thursday, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry has said. Charlotte Bruneau reports for Reuters. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): The number of migrants camped out on the Belarusian side of Poland’s eastern border has fallen, in a tentative sign of a de-escalation in the standoff between the E.U. and Belarus. “Officials from Poland’s Interior Ministry say Belarusian officials have sent buses to collect people from the sprawling tent city along Poland’s border. Belarusian officials confirmed that they provided buses to move some migrants away from the border and would be giving them shelter in warehouses,” Natalia Ojewska reports for the Wall Street Journal. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): E.U. foreign ministers have imposed new sanctions against the government of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, specifically against “individuals and entities organizing or contributing to activities by the Lukashenko regime that facilitate illegal crossing of the E.U.’s external borders.” These sanctions follow previous sanctions against Lukashenko himself for engaging in election fraud in claiming reelection victory in August as well as harshly suppressing dissent in the aftermath of such election. Steven Erlanger reports for the New York Times. [immigrant-news, economic-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/11/21): All Roads Lead to Belarus on Iraq 'Package Deals' [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Cyber hackers thought to be behind attacks on governmental agencies in recent months have been linked to the Belarusian government. Researchers for the cybersecurity company Mandiant assessed with “high confidence” in a new report that the “Ghostwriter” information operations campaign was “aligned with Belarusian government interests.” Mandiant also linked another group of hackers – who have conducted cyber espionage against government and private sector entities in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine and Germany – to the Belarusian government. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): In light of the skirmishes, Poland’s defense minister has warned that the crisis at the Belarusian border could continue indefinitely. “We have to prepare for the fact that the situation on the Polish-Belarusian border will not be resolved quickly. We have to prepare for months. I hope not for years,” Mariusz Błaszczak told Poland’s Radio Jedynka.
• Jacobin (16/11/21): The Belarus Migrant Crisis Shows the Hollowness of European Humanitarianism - European authorities accuse Belarus’s Alexander Lukashenko of mounting “hybrid warfare” by letting thousands of migrants amass at the Polish border. But Poland’s nationalist government is also using the crisis to crack down on migrants — with the EU’s blessing. [immigrant-news, analysis-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): The E.U. has agreed to impose new sanctions against the authoritarian government in Belarus, in response to the migrant crisis at the Poland-Belarus border.
• Just Security (15/11/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied stoking the migrant crisis on the Poland-Belarus border after accusations from Poland that the Russian leader is orchestrating the flow of migrants
• The Moscow Times (12/11/21): 2 Russian Paratroopers Die in Belarus Drills Jump [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (11/11/21): Russia’s Aeroflot Denies Transporting Migrants to Belarus
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Belarusian airline stops flying Middle East citizens from Turkey - State-owned carrier Belavia bars Syrians, Yemenis and Iraqis from boarding flights at Ankara’s request as the migrant crisis grows. [immigrant-news]
• The Moscow Times (12/11/21): Russian Paratroopers Land in Belarus as Tensions Simmer Over Migrant Crisis [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Poland-Belarus: Humanitarian fears grow as child reportedly dies - Poland must allow big NGOs to work on the ground given the scale of the crisis, say grassroots activists. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): Belarus’s leader Alexander Lukashenko has threatened to cut off gas supplies to Europe if sanctions are imposed on the country. [energy-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): Russia deployed strategic bombers to Belarus’s airspace yesterday, amid escalating tensions between Belarus and Poland at their border. “Russia’s Defense Ministry reported that two long-range Tu-22M3 bombers carried out patrols in the area and an inspection of the air-defense system of the Union State, an alliance that binds Russia and Belarus together in various areas ranging from the economy to defense,” Ann M. Simmons reports for the Wall Street Journal. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): E.U. officials are expressing support for Poland in the current border crisis with Belarus. Unlike in 2015, when a border crisis in the European Union divided members, this standoff has united many countries [immigrant-news]
• Telesur (9/11/21): Lithuania Declares State of Emergency in Border With Belarus - Lithuania's parliament on Tuesday declared a state of emergency in its border region with Belarus, the first time since the country's independence. [immigrant-news] Note about Telesur
• Just Security (10/11/21): Poland is facing fresh attempts from migrants to breach its border with Belarus and now has 15,000 troops stationed at the border to repel them, Poland’s Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak has said. At least 2,000 migrants have become stranded at the border, at the center of an escalating international row.
• Just Security (10/11/21): Russia is blaming the E.U. for the migrant crisis on the border between Belarus and Poland, and has sent bombers to overfly Belarus. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of “masterminding” the migrant crisis on Belarus’s border with the E.U. At an extraordinary session of parliament on Tuesday evening, Morawiecki, squarely pointed the blame for the crisis at Moscow and Putin, calling the Russian leader an “enabler” of Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko. “The remarks are the most direct accusations against Russia yet in a crisis where the Kremlin has not played an overt role,” Andrew Roth reports for the Guardian. [immigrant-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Poland Mobilizes Thousands of Troops to Belarus Border to Bar Entry to Refugees [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (8/11/21): Belarus escorts 1,000 migrants towards Polish border - Column of people including children led by border guards in escalation of deadly crisis [immigrant-news]
• CPJ (4/11/21): Belarus journalists charged, detained over alleged Facebook interactions with banned outlets [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/11/21): Putin Vows to Back Lukashenko Against 'Interference' [russia-policy-news]
• CPJ (21/10/21): Belarus police raid Novy Chas newspaper, interrogate at least 2 journalists [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (14/10/21): Poland plans to spend over 1.6 billion zlotys ($404 million) on building a wall on its border with Belarus, according to a draft bill, in a bid to stem the flow of migrants trying to cross. [immigrant-news]
• The Moscow Times (13/10/21): Belarus to Recognize Banned Media Outlets’ Readers as 'Extremist' [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (6/10/21): Russian Paper’s Belarus Branch Disbands After Journalist’s Arrest [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Irrawaddy (5/10/21): Yangon Businessman Acts as Go-Between for Belarus Arms Sales to Myanmar Military
• The Moscow Times (4/10/21): Pro-Government Reporter Detained in Moscow, Held in Belarus – Activists
• The Guardian (1/10/21): Concerns grow over Poland’s treatment of migrants stuck at Belarus border - Warsaw defies critics to extend state of emergency as it seeks to portray migrants as dangerous
• Just Security (1/10/21): Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said that hundreds of people have been detained following a shooting incident in Minsk in which an IT worker and a KGB officer died, the state news agency has reported
• Al Jazeera (30/9/21): Poland illegally pushed asylum seekers back into Belarus: Amnesty - Group says its investigation proves Polish border forces violated rights of dozens of migrants and refugees. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (30/9/21): A man shot dead by Belarusian security forces in a raid on an apartment block was an employee of EPAM Systems, a U.S.-based software firm, the company has said.
• Just Security (16/9/21): A series of hacks on Belarus’s government by pro-democracy activists has uncovered details of apparent abuses by security forces, exposed police informants and collected personal data on top officials including a son of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
• Just Security (10/9/21): Russia and Belarus have launched the active phase of a vast military exercise involving 200,000 personnel, which is taking place on Russia’s and Belarus’s western flanks and is due to run until next Thursday.
• Just Security (10/9/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko have agreed to deepen the economic ties between their countries.
• New York Times (6/9/21): Belarus Opposition Leader Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison - The convictions of Maria Kolesnikova, a fierce opponent of President Aleksandr Lukashenko, and a colleague are part of a crackdown on dissent following a disputed election last year.
• Just Security (1/9/21): Russia is expected to soon deliver a huge military hardware consignment to Belarus
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): Poland to build fence, double troop numbers on Belarus border - Poland says allowing the migrants to enter Polish territory would encourage further irregular migration.
• CPJ (18/8/21): Belarus authorities search homes of 6 current and former BelaPAN employees, 3 remain in detention
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Polish army deployed to Belarus border amid migrant surge - More than 900 Polish troops are involved in the operation, which comes after EU members accused Minsk of opening the gates.
• CPJ (12/8/21): Belarusian journalist Syarhey Hardzievich jailed for insulting president, police
• Just Security (10/8/21): President Biden’s administration has imposed another round of sanctions on Belarus; Biden issued a sweeping executive order yesterday targeting those in the Belarusian regime involved in the repression of human rights and democracy [us-policy-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (7/8/21): China’s great game in Afghanistan won’t be a duplication of the past
• Modern Diplomacy (30/7/21): Russia’s ‘Great Game’ in Central Asia Amid the US Withdrawal from Afghanistan (via u/theoryofdoom on r/geopolitics)
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Belarus to close border as Lithuania turns away migrants - President Lukashenko says the migrants Lithuania turns away will not be allowed back into Belarus
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Belarus Protest Leader Kolesnikova Goes on Trial
• Democracy Now (4/8/21): Ukraine Probe Death of Belarusian Activist
• The Moscow Times (3/8/21): Missing Belarus Activist Found Hanged in Ukraine
• The Guardian (2/8/21): Belarus athlete who refused to fly home is granted Polish visa - Krystsina Tsimanouskaya filmed arriving at Polish embassy in Tokyo as husband flees to Ukraine
• Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Belarus Olympic athlete says taken to airport against her wishes - Sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya asks the IOC for help, accusing her national team of trying to remove her from Japan.
• Just Security (21/7/21): Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has said that she has asked U.S. officials to impose further sanctions on Belarus, specifically on companies in Belarus’s potash, oil, wood and steel sectors
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Belarus arrests 3 journalists in media crackdown - Belarusian authorities raid offices of independent newspaper Regionalnaya Gazeta and arrest three journalists.
• Just Security Early Edition (15/7/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russia’s government to help Belarus weather western sanctions
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Belarus police raid homes of journalists in continuing crackdown - The latest searches extend what rights activists say is a crackdown on opponents of longtime President Alexander Lukashenko.
• Just Security (9/7/21): Lithuania has started building a barrier along its border with Belarus to stop migrants illegally entering the country
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): EU border guards sent to Lithuania amid Belarus migrant crisis - A record number of migrants and refugees are entering EU member Lithuania from Belarus as tensions between Brussels and Minsk simmer.
• Al Jazeera (25/6/21): Belarus moves Roman Protasevich, Sofia Sapega to house arrest - Critics warn move does not mean freedom for detained activist and his Russian partner.
• New York Times (1/6/21): Anti-Government Activist in Belarus Stabs Himself in Courtroom - Before his apparent suicide attempt, Stepan Latypov said he had been tortured and his family threatened, amid President Alexander G. Lukashenko’s efforts to stifle dissent.
• New York Times (23/5/21): Belarus Forces Down Plane to Seize Dissident; Europe Sees ‘State Hijacking’ - The dissident, Roman Protasevich, co-founded a Telegram channel that is a popular opposition outlet in Belarus. The plane was flying from Athens to Lithuania when it was forced down.
• Al Jazeera: Belarus leader to amend emergency power transfer to empower son - Alexander Lukashenko to change law so that national security council, where his son plays prominent role, assumes power in event of a president’s death while in office.

Georgia Updates

• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): Russia Wants NATO to Ditch Plans for Ukraine and Georgia Membership [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Georgia’s jailed ex-leader Saakashvili ends 50-day hunger strike - Former President Mikheil Saakashvili agrees to end strike after authorities offer to move him to a military hospital.
• The Moscow Times (19/11/21): Georgia Hunger-Striking Ex-Leader Risks Dying Without Transfer – Doctor
• Al-Monitor (12/11/21): Turkey, Georgia run joint drill at border - Georgia has grown closer to Turkey and Azerbaijan in the Caucasus.
• The Moscow Times (9/11/21): Georgia Ex-President Saakashvili Says Abused in Prison, Fears for Life
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): Georgian protesters rally in support of jailed Saakashvili - State security service says protests are part of a planned coup devised by former president.
• The Moscow Times (29/10/21): Hunger-Striking Saakashvili a Headache for Georgian Government - Even weakened and behind bars, the former president has managed to place himself again at the center of Georgian politics.
• Just Security (19/10/21): Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has signed an agreement to continue U.S. support for Georgia’s military for six years [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): Tens of thousands in Georgia demand Saakashvili’s release - Protesters demand release of Georgian ex-president and opposition leader, imprisoned upon return from exile in Ukraine.
• The Moscow Times (3/10/21): Georgia Ruling Party Leads Polls, Opposition Alleges Fraud
• Al Jazeera (1/10/21): Georgia arrests ex-President Saakashvili after return from exile - The arrest comes after Saakashvili returned from eight years in exile and a day before key municipal elections in Georgia.
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-foreign-policy-news]
• The Guardian (14/7/21): Georgia TV stations protest over far-right attacks on journalists - Broadcasts suspended after violence at Pride event with journalists calling PM a homophobe
• Al Jazeera (11/7/21): Thousands rally in Georgia after death of TV cameraman - Alexander Lashkarava was one of dozens of journalists beaten up while covering attacks on LGBTQ activists last week.

Kazakhstan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Just Security (24/11/21): Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have held military drills near Kazakhstan’s border with Afghanistan, imitating a response to an incursion, the Uzbek defense ministry has said. Reuters reports.
• CPJ (20/10/21): Kazakh outlet HOLA News reports website blocks after Pandora Papers coverage [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): Members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia-led security bloc that includes some countries adjacent or close to Afghanistan, have no plans to host Afghan refugees, bloc member Kazakhstan has said [russia-policy-news, immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (6/9/21): Prominent campaigner for Uyghur rights in Xinjiang barred from Kazakhstan - Dual US and Russian national Gene Bunin has documented the plight of Muslim minorities in China’s western regions
• Al Jazeera (26/8/21): Dozens wounded by blasts at Kazakh military facility - At least 60 admitted to hospital after blasts at a military facility storing engineering-purpose explosives.
• OpenDemocracy (30/6/21): Kazakhstani couriers are pushing back against the gig economy - Workers pushed into unstable jobs by the pandemic are fighting against repressive local rules to set up their own trade union (via u/burtzev on r/labor)
• RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty (21/5/21): Kazakh Builders Form Union In Test Of Government's Labor Reforms (via u/RedditGreenit on r/labor)

Kyrgyzstan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Financial Times (21/12/21): Kyrgyzstan says it seized mine over alleged environmental and safety breaches - Bishkek justifies taking control of Kumtor, the country’s most valuable asset, from Canadian owner [economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): Also they fined the company $3bn. Due both to '"systemic violations" of environmental law by Centerra Gold and its "predatory" attitudes towards natural resources'. Kumtor produces around 500k ounces of gold a year, the commodity contributing the most to the nation's GDP. Current president Jarapov, a nationalist, has been calling for this for a decade. The mine produces half of Centerra's annual revenue. To access the gold, large amounts of ice had to be removed (them glaciers!). Centerra is sueing, and saying third-party assessors aren't being allowed by the government.
• Jacobin (28/11/21): In Kyrgyzstan, Business Elites Buy Seats in Parliament - Today Kyrgyzstan voted in repeat elections after the previous results were cancelled due to protests. But new leader Sadyr Japarov’s promise to fix its corrupt politics masks his continuation of the neoliberal dogmas that made the ex-Soviet republic an oligarchs’ playground. [capitalist-farce-news, electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/11/21): Kyrgyzstan holds parliamentary vote amid rising tensions - Vote expected to favour allies of President Sadyr Japarov, who has cemented his grip since coming to power last year. [electoral-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Kyrgyzstan detains 15 in ‘coup plot’ before vote - Security services say those detained were planning to make hundreds of young people protest against the vote result
• CPJ (10/8/21): Kyrgyzstan parliament approves ‘false information’ bill
• Bellingcat (2/8/21): Is Climate Change Heating up Central Asia’s Border Disputes? Clues from Satellite Imagery
• The Moscow Times (2/8/21): Ex-President Brought Back to Kyrgyzstan in Graft Probe – Gov't
• CPJ (23/7/21): CPJ joins statement calling on Kyrgyz authorities to investigate death of journalist Azimjon Askarov
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): Kyrgyzstan moves to nationalise gold mine run by Canadian company - Tensions between Kyrgyzstan and Canada’s Centerra Gold simmer as the president, a longtime critic of foreign ownership, effectively brings the Kumtor mine back into state’s hands.
• Al Jazera (14/5/21): Kyrgyz leader signs law threatening Kumtor gold mine takeover - Move allows gov’t to take control of the country’s largest gold mine if Centerra Gold violates environmental standards.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Kyrgyzstan says ceasefire with Tajikistan holding after clashes - Kyrgyz interior ministry said casualties on its side had risen to more than 160, with 34 deaths – 31 of whom were civilians.
• Al Jazeera: Kyrgyzstan says 31 killed in clashes at Tajikistan border - Meanwhile, Tajikistan has yet to officially acknowledge any deaths from the clashes, which have raised fears of a larger conflict.
• Al Jazeera: Kyrgyzstan says ceasefire agreed with Tajikistan after clashes - Outbreak of heavy fighting involving neighbouring countries’ militaries raised fears of escalating into a wider conflict.; 'Border disagreements between the three countries that share the fertile Fergana Valley – Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan – have their roots in border demarcations during the Soviet Union.'
• The Economist: Kyrgyzstan votes for strongman rule - The new president wins worryingly wide powers

Russia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); European Russia Map (cr.);

Vox: (video) From spy to president: The rise of Vladimir Putin

Pinned: Foreign Policy (6/7/21): Russia’s Wagner Group Doesn’t Actually Exist - And that makes it all the more challenging to get to grips with.

Relevant tags: russia-policy-news

Russia Live Map

• WSWS (30/12/21): Gig economy taxi drivers strike in Tomsk, Russia [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (30/12/21): Biden and Putin exchange warnings during phone call amid rising Ukraine tensions - Talks represent pair’s second conversation this month - Russia massing tens of thousands of troops near border [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• The Guardian (29/12/21): Russian court orders closure of another human rights group - Memorial Human Rights Centre liquidated a day after its sister group, Memorial, in assault on civil liberties [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Russian court orders closure of country’s oldest human rights group - Supreme court ruling on Memorial is watershed moment in Vladimir Putin’s crackdown on independent thought [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (27/12/21): BBC Russian Journalist Moves Abroad After ‘Foreign Agent’ Labeling [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (27/12/21): Belarus Jails Russian National for 11 Years in Protest Crackdown – Reports [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (25/12/21): Insulting Prophet Muhammad violates religious freedom, Russia's President Putin says [!]
• The Moscow Times (25/12/21): Russia Completes 10,000-Troop Drills Near Ukraine [russia-policy-news] [!]
• The Hill (25/12/21): Russia blocks website of group that tracks political arrests [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (24/12/21): Prigozhin Bankrolls New Movie About Russian ‘Instructors’ in Mozambique - “Granit” is the latest installment of films linked to Prigozhin that depict Russian mercenaries abroad. [russia-policy-news, media-news]
• The Moscow Times (24/12/21): Russia Deploys ‘Defensive’ Mercenaries to Eastern Ukraine – Reuters
• The Moscow Times (24/12/21): Putin Hails Multiple Launch Test of Hypersonic Missile [!]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Russia says Molotov cocktail thrown at its Ukraine consulate - Russia summons Ukrainian official and demands an apology over the ‘act of terrorism’ against its consulate in Lviv city.
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Russian court fines Alphabet’s Google [$98m] and Meta [$27.15m] Platforms - Rulings mark first time Moscow has exacted a percentage of a company’s annual Russian turnover, greatly increasing fine. I'd speculate that Russia is trying to incentivize these platforms to leave Russia, which would give the Kremlin (via the watchdog Roskomnadzor) more control over local internet [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (23/12/21): Dutch prosecutors have demanded life sentences for three Russians and a Ukrainian charged with murder for their involvement in the shooting down of a passenger jet over Ukraine in 2014. Prosecutors “said the defendants, who are all at large, helped supply a missile system that Russian-backed separatists used to fire a rocket at Malaysia Airlines flight MH17,” Stephanie van den Berg reports for Reuters.
• The Moscow Times (22/12/21): Abramovich Settles Claim with ‘Putin’s People’ Author Belton Over Chelsea Buyout Allegations [!]
• The Moscow Times (22/12/21): Germany Takes RT Off Air in Latest Media Row [!]
• Bellingcat (17/11/21): Inside Wagnergate: Ukraine’s Brazen Sting Operation to Snare Russian Mercenaries [analysis-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (21/12/21): Gas Prices Hit Record High on Russian Supply Squeeze, Cold Snap [russia-policy-news, energy-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (21/12/21): Russia Allows Police to Search Homes, Cars Without Warrants [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (21/12/21): Russia has expelled two German diplomats in response to a German judge finding last week that the Kremlin engaged in “state terrorism” in ordering the murder of a Chechen rebel in Berlin in 2019. The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that it had expelled the diplomats after Germany ordered the expulsion of two Russian diplomats last week over the incident and “as a symmetric response to the aforementioned unfriendly decision by the German government.” Max Seddon and Guy Chazan report for the Financial Times. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (20/12/21): Public Procurement Kickbacks Total One-Third of Russia’s Budget Revenue – Survey [capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): Russia expels two German diplomats in tit-for-tat move - The step comes after Germany expelled two Russian envoys over a Moscow-linked murder of a Georgian citizen in Berlin. [russia-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (20/12/21): Russian with Kremlin ties charged by US with insider trading - Authorities charged Vladislav Klyushin and four others with gleaning material nonpublic information about company performance announcements and trading ahead of the news. [us-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (20/12/21): The [US] Senate will vote next month on legislation from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) to impose sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline as part of a deal that allowed Democratic lawmakers to clear dozens of Biden’s State and Treasury nominees. Jordain Carney reports for The Hill. [politics-news, us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (20/12/21): Russia has said today that it urgently needs a response from the U.S. on its sweeping security demands and has warned of a possible Russian military response unless it sees political action addressing its concerns. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/12/21): Russia Sharply Hikes Rates in Desperate Battle With Inflation - The Central Bank has raised interest rates to their highest level in four years as inflation threatens fragile pandemic recovery. [economic-news] [!]
• Just Security (17/12/21): A Ukrainian soldier has been killed in fighting with pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian army has said. “Kyiv has been battling a pro-Moscow insurgency in two breakaway regions bordering Russia since 2014, when the Kremlin annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. The Ukrainian army said separatists had targeted its positions with grenade launchers and mortars,” Agence France-Presse reports. [ukraine-news, russia-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/12/21): Ukraine’s president has received a renewed commitment from NATO that Ukraine could eventually join the military alliance, despite strong objections from Russia [ukraine-news, russia-news, russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/12/21): A former defense contractor has been arrested for an alleged attempt to send information to Russia, the Justice Department (DOJ) has said. John Murray Rowe Jr. is charged with attempting to communicate national defense information to aid a foreign government, the DOJ said. Rowe was a test engineer for nearly 40 years for multiple defense contractors. According to an affidavit, “he was terminated from employment for multiple security violations, including inquiring about obtaining a security clearance from the Russian government,” Jordan Williams reports for The Hill.
• The Moscow Times (17/12/21): Russia Claims Sputnik V ‘Robust’ Against Omicron as Independent Study Shows No Antibody Response [covid-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (16/12/21): Fraud Conviction Appears to Reveal Russian Troop Deployment in East Ukraine
• The Moscow Times (16/12/21): YouTube Again Blocks German-Language RT channel [!]
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): EU Halts C. Africa Army Training Over Wagner Influence [europe-policy-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): Berlin Expels 2 Russian Diplomats Over 'State-Ordered Killing' [!]
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): Russia Detains Coal Tycoon Over Deadly Siberia Mine Blast [!]
• The Moscow Times (15/12/21): Russia Sentences Ingushetia Land Swap Protest Leaders to Long Prison Terms [protest-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news]
• New York Times (15/12/21): Russian Is Convicted in Murder of Chechen Man in a Berlin Park - A German court ruled that the Russian state had orchestrated the attack, which strained ties between Berlin and Moscow. [crime-news, court-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (14/12/21): Famed Russian Rights Group That Investigated Soviet-Era Crimes Faces Closure Under Putin - The foundation Memorial began amid Mikhail Gorbachev’s glasnost-era reforms [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Paywall Summary (?): Not much else to say, pretty bleak, and using the "foreign agent" laws (ie if you get any funding from abroad, then you are subject to draconian laws (like stamping all of your content with the label "foreign agent") which usually end up getting you wiped out). Gorbachev and one of this year's Nobel Laureates, Muratov, spoke out against the case.
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): EU slaps sanctions on Russian mercenary group Wagner - EU accuses the group of human rights abuses and carrying out clandestine operations on the Kremlin’s behalf. [europe-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (13/12/21): Russian Teenager 'Self-Detonates' at Historic Convent's Orthodox School
• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): Putin Says Conflict in Eastern Ukraine 'Looks Like Genocide'
• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): 3 in 4 Ukrainians Say Russia Is ‘Hostile State’ – Survey [!]
• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): Russia Wants NATO to Ditch Plans for Ukraine and Georgia Membership [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (10/12/21): Russia’s Foreign Ministry has accused Ukraine of “provocation” over an incident involving a Ukrainian warship which headed towards the Kerch Strait, a strait which separates Russia and the annexed Crimean peninsula, the state-owned RIA news agency has reported. Ukraine dismissed the complaints as part of a Russian “information attack” on Kyiv. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (10/12/21): President Biden has promised the leaders of Ukraine and nine eastern European NATO states support if Russia attacks Ukraine and has pledged to involve them in decisions about the region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Twitter that he and Biden also “discussed possible formats for resolving the conflict” in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have carved out a self-declared state. Andrew Roth reports for the Guardian. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (9/12/21): Russia’s Billionaires Amass Extra $145Bln in 2021 - Combined net worth jumps 30%, as wider population sees stagnant living standards. [capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news, covid-news] [!]
• Just Security (9/12/21): The U.S. has threatened Russia with harsh economic sanctions if it were to launch a military offensive against Ukraine, however threats to squeeze Russia’s economy is a tactic which has had a mixed record in the past. Patricia Cohen provides analysis for the New York Times. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): Putting additional U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine is “not on the table,” Biden told reporters yesterday. The NATO obligation to provide defense support to its members “does not extend to … Ukraine,” Biden added. Biden said that it would “depend upon what the rest of the NATO countries were willing to do as well,” but rejected the idea that the U.S. would “unilaterally use force to confront Russia” if it were to invade Ukraine. Morgan Chalfant reports for The Hill [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (8/12/21): Russia Blocks TOR Anonymity Service [surveillance-and-censorship-news, open-tech-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Russian rocket blasts off carrying Japanese billionaire to ISS - Fashion tycoon Yusaku Maezawa has set out 100 tasks to complete on board, including hosting a badminton tournament in orbit. [!]
• the Moscow Times (8/12/21): Yandex Named Most Likely Search Engine to Promote Conspiracy Theories – Study - More than half of all search results for some terms resulted in pro-conspiracy theory websites — a greater share than at any other major search engine. [big-tech-news, far-right-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (8/12/21): Russia Jails TikToker for Damaging FSB Car During Navalny Protests [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Google has announced that it is pursuing litigation to disrupt a botnet run by operators based out of Russia. “Google filed a lawsuit in the Southern District of New York on Tuesday against two Russian nationals, Dmitry Starovikov and Alexander Filippov, and more than a dozen other unnamed individuals for allegedly creating and running the ‘Glupteba’ botnet,” Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [cyber-security-news, big-tech-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): President Biden warned Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday in a two-hour secure video conference that a Russian invasion of Ukraine would result in heavy economic penalties for Moscow and lead NATO to reposition its troops in Europe. During the meeting, Biden reiterated that measures imposed in response to any Russian invasion would go well beyond the West’s response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea seven years ago and an invasion could end Russia’s hopes of completing the Nord Stream II gas pipeline to Europe. U.S. officials have said that Putin gave no indication of his ultimate intent during the call. David E. Sanger and Michael Crowley report for the New York Times. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (7/12/21): Gunman Kills 2 in Shooting at Moscow Government Building [!]
• Democracy Now (7/12/21): Biden Meets Putin as Russian Troops Mass on Ukraine Border [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): A Russian government-linked hacking group which was behind the SolarWinds hack has only intensified its hacking efforts in the year since, research by cybersecurity group Mandiant has found [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Officials and experts are saying that there are several indicators fueling concerns that the Russian troops near the Ukrainian border may this time be a genuine indicator of Russian intentions to take military action against Ukraine. “Putin has deployed more than 90,000 troops along Russia’s border with Ukraine, matching the force that he sent and withdrew in the spring. But whereas those troops maneuvered in open daylight, now they have mostly been far less showy, moving under the cover of darkness. And Moscow’s rhetoric has noticeably hardened in recent months, saying it will not accept what it sees as a deepening of ties between Ukraine and the West,” Matthew Bodner, Dan De Luce and Alexander Smith report for NBC News. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Biden will make clear to Putin that there would be “very real costs” should Russia take military action against Ukraine, a senior administration official has said. “The official said that the U.S. believes Russia is putting in place the capacity to engage in military action but is unclear whether Putin has decided to carry out the plans,” Shannon Pettypiece reports for NBC News. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (6/12/21): U.S. intelligence has found that the Kremlin is planning a multi-front offensive into Ukraine, involving up to 175,000 troops, as soon as early next year, according to U.S. officials and an intelligence document obtained by The Washington Post. “The Russian plans call for a military offensive against Ukraine as soon as early 2022 with a scale of forces twice what we saw this past spring during Russia’s snap exercise near Ukraine’s borders,” said an administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Shane Harris and Paul Sonne report for the Washington Post. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): India says deliveries of Russian S-400 defence system have begun - New Delhi says it has started receiving parts of missile defence system in a deal that prompted threats of US sanctions. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (3/12/21): Gazprom Gains Control of Russia’s Top Social Network - VK's CEO has also resigned as part of sweeping changes that boost Kremlin's control of VKontakte
• The Moscow Times (3/12/21): Russia Briefly Bans Etsy Over Knockoff Designer Goods – Kommersant [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (1/12/21): Russia, Southeast Asian States Kick Off First Naval Drills Off Indonesia [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Security forces of Chechnya ‘behind attack on dissident blogger’ last year - Tumso Abdurakhmanov assault traced to Russia, says spy agency report examined by Swedish TV
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Biden and Putin Expected to Hold Talks Over Escalating Tension on Russia-Ukraine Border [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (2/12/21): Russia Expels Some US Ambassadors as Blinken Warns Russia Against Invading Ukraine [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): Russia has said that it has arrested three suspected Ukrainian intelligence agents including one accused of planning to carry out an attack using two homemade bombs which had been smuggled over the border, allegations that Kyiv has dismissed. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (1/12/21): Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has said that he is ready to suspend Russian energy flows into Europe if Poland closes its border with Belarus, Russia’s RIA news agency has reported. Meanwhile, “the Polish Defense Minister said the Belarusian defense attaché had been summoned after lights set up by Polish soldiers near the town of Terespol were damaged by shots from air guns,” Reuters reports. [energy-news]
• The Moscow Times (30/11/21): Russia Developing AI ‘Minority Report’ Protest Detector – Kommersant [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (26/11/21): Russian Covid Pass Protesters Try to Storm Regional Legislature [anti-vaxx-news]
• The Moscow Times (29/11/21): Russian Journalists Barred from Siberian Mine Disaster Survivors — Novaya Gazeta [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (30/11/21: Talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal recommenced yesterday, with optimistic statements being made by E.U., Iranian and Russian diplomats, despite skepticism about the likelihood of success.; Iran is “insisting on sanctions lifting” immediately, which may be a stumbling block to progress in the talks
• Just Security (30/11/21: Russia has carried out another successful test launch of its Zircon hypersonic cruise missile. The missile, which has been hailed by Putin as part of a new generation of unrivaled arms systems, was fired from a warship in the White Sea and hit a naval target more than 400 kilometers (250 miles) away, the Russian Defense Ministry said. Reuters reports. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (25/11/21): Another Ex-Navalny Coordinator Leaves Russia after Ally Jailed for ‘Extremism’ [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (25/11/21): Russian Communist Lawmaker Stripped of Immunity in Elk Poaching Probe [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (25/11/21): Putin Sacks Russian Prisons Chief After Torture Leak Scandal
• The Moscow Times (26/11/21): More Than 50 Reported Dead in Siberia Coal Mine Accident [industrial-failure-news]
• The Moscow Times (23/11/21): Russia Acquits First Jehovah’s Witness After Top Court Bans Prosecuting Prayers
• Just Security (24/11/21): Russia has demanded that 13 foreign tech companies, including U.S. firms, set up offices in Russia by the end of the year or face potential restrictions and bans. Google, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok are among the tech entities that must comply with the demand from the state communications regulator Roskomnadzor, which was issued Monday after a new Russian law took effect in July mandating that social media platforms with more than 500,000 daily users set up a physical presence in the country. Alexander Marrow and Gleb Stolyarov report for Reuters. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): Large biomanufacturing companies are being targeted by hackers potentially tied to Russia, researchers from the Bioeconomy Information Sharing and Analysis Center (BIO-ISAC) disclosed yesterday. BIO-ISAC said that the effort involves a type of malware labeled “Tardigrade” that was first detected following a ransomware attack on an unnamed major biomanufacturing facility this spring. The same malware was found at a second biomanufacturing facility last month. Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): The Kremlin has rebutted growing U.S. warnings about a buildup of Russian troops and military assets at Russia’s border with Ukraine that could be used to attack Ukraine, accusing Washington of seeking to destabilize the region
• Common Dreams (22/11/21): The High Stakes of the U.S.-Russia Confrontation Over Ukraine - Americans should beware of romanticizing the "old" Cold War as a time of peace, simply because we somehow managed to dodge a world-ending nuclear holocaust. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (22/11/21): Rights Groups Decry Russian Deportations of Central Asian Activists [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): The U.S. has shared intelligence with its European allies that shows the build up of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine. The intelligence lays out a scenario where Russian troops would enter Ukraine from Crimea, the Russian border and via Belarus, with potentially 100,000 soldiers deployed in rough terrain and freezing conditions, people familiar with the conversations have said. Alberto Nardelli and Jennifer Jacobs report for Bloomberg. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (18/11/21): Russia Fines Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Novaya Gazeta Over ‘Foreign Agent’ Tags [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): Russia’s Top Court Bans Prosecuting Jehovah’s Witnesses for Group Prayer [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): Russian Music Channel Fined for 'Gay Propaganda' at Awards Show [surveillance-and-censorship-news, lgbtq-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): EU Border Migrant Crisis Complicates Russia-Belarus Alliance - An already carefully balanced and contradictory relationship is now even more complex. [russia-policy-news, analysis-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/11/21): U.S. Adds Russia to Religious Freedom Blacklist [us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/11/21): Ukraine Border Service Says No Sign of Russian Troops
• Just Security (19/11/21): Ukraine should set aside money to build a fence on its borders with Belarus and Russia to prevent a possible influx of illegal migrants, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy said today. Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets report for Reuters. [immigrant-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): A Russian internet entrepreneur has ended a four-year legal battle against Buzzfeed that was initiated in response to Buzzfeed’s publication of the Steele dossier. A similar defamation suit made by three other Russian tycoons remains on appeal after being dismissed by a New York judge in March. Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.
• Just Security (18/11/21): Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has imposed sanctions on 28 employees of Russia’s special services. The individuals will be banned for three years from using their assets in Ukraine, transferring capital, transiting goods or taking part in privatization auctions, according to the decree published on the presidential website. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (17/11/21): The defense ministers of Ukraine and the U.K. have said that they are not trying to encircle or undermine Russia but are committed to Ukraine’s territorial integrity, amid concerns about Russian troop movements near Ukraine’s borders.
• Just Security (17/11/21): A former U.S. Marine serving a nine-year jail sentence in Russia for allegedly assaulting police officers has ended a hunger strike after nearly a week due to health complications. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (17/11/21): Russia, however, pushed back against U.S. claims that the anti-satellite missile test produced dangerous space debris.
• South China Morning Post (14/11/21): Russia begins missile supplies to India despite US sanctions risk - A Russian military official said the first unit of the S-400 air defence missile system would arrive in India by the end of this year - The supplies put India at risk of sanctions from the US under a 2017 US law aimed at deterring countries from buying Russian military hardware [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Germany suspends approval for Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline - Move follows mounting political pressure to scrap project in setback to Kremlin-backed project - Energy markets across Europe surged after the German energy regulator suspended its certification process [big-oil-news, energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): E.U. member states’ foreign ministers have agreed to impose sanctions on the Russian mercenary company Wagner Group. The mercenary group has been accused by the U.S. and some E.U. countries of being a proxy force for Russia’s Defense Ministry, and for seeking to profit from conflicts in Africa, Ukraine and the Middle East. The preliminary agreement to target Wagner officials and entities linked to the company with sanctions, comes after France has repeatedly said that Mali’s government appears close to inviting Wagner into the country. Laurence Norman and James Marson report for the Wall Street Journal. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/11/21): The U.S. has condemned a Russian anti-satellite missile test yesterday which caused crew members on the International Space Station to seek shelter in their spacecraft; The test marked the first time that Russia demonstrated an ability to strike down a satellite using a missile launched from Earth [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied stoking the migrant crisis on the Poland-Belarus border after accusations from Poland that the Russian leader is orchestrating the flow of migrants
• Just Security (15/11/21): Russia is positioning troops 125 miles from the Ukrainian border, while “America is warning its European allies that it considers an invasion a genuine possibility.” [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (12/11/21): 2 Russian Paratroopers Die in Belarus Drills Jump [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (11/11/21): Russia Jails Former Navalny Regional Head on ‘Extremist’ Charges [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (11/11/21): Russia’s Aeroflot Denies Transporting Migrants to Belarus
• The Moscow Times (11/11/21): Moscow Vows Military Support for Mali, Denies Wagner Links [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (12/11/21): Russia Adds Founder of Prisoners’ Rights NGO to Wanted List [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (12/11/21): Russian Paratroopers Land in Belarus as Tensions Simmer Over Migrant Crisis [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): The Kremlin has dismissed the Bloomberg report which suggested that the U.S. is worried that Russia will launch an attack on Ukraine
• Just Security (12/11/21): The Kremlin has said that it was not consulted before Lukashenko raised the possibility of cutting natural gas flows to Europe, and that Russia is a reliable exporter that fulfils its obligations [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (10/11/21): New Russian Prison Torture Video Surfaces From Bombshell Leak [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• The Moscow Times (10/11/21): Cargo Ship Runs Aground on Russia's Far East Coast
• The Moscow Times (9/11/21): A Flurry of Prosecutions for Racy Photos Reflects Russia’s Intensifying Embrace of ‘Traditional Values’
• Just Security (10/11/21): Russia is blaming the E.U. for the migrant crisis on the border between Belarus and Poland, and has sent bombers to overfly Belarus. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of “masterminding” the migrant crisis on Belarus’s border with the E.U. At an extraordinary session of parliament on Tuesday evening, Morawiecki, squarely pointed the blame for the crisis at Moscow and Putin, calling the Russian leader an “enabler” of Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko. “The remarks are the most direct accusations against Russia yet in a crisis where the Kremlin has not played an overt role,” Andrew Roth reports for the Guardian. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): A former U.S. Marine jailed in Russia for drunk driving has declared a hunger strike to protest his treatment in prison
• The Moscow Times (9/11/21): Shuttered Russian Underground Crematorium Found Burning Human Remains – Reports
• The Moscow Times (9/11/21): Gazprom Starts Refilling European Gas Storage Sites [energy-news, big-oil-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (9/11/21): Russia Labels Main LGBT Group 'Foreign Agent' [surveillance-and-censorship-news, lgtbq-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): CIA Director Willaims Burns held a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week, to convey “serious” U.S. concerns about Russia’s military buildup along the Ukrainian border and to attempt to determine Russian intentions, two sources have said [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (9/11/21): Coronavirus Cases Surge to Record Highs Across Some European Nations [covid-news]
• Just Security (8/11/21): Paul Whelan, a jailed former U.S. Marine convicted by Russia of spying, will continue to fight for his transfer to the U.S. from Russia despite losing a court appeal today, Interfax news agency has quoted his lawyer as saying.
• The Moscow Times (5/11/21): Dozens Arrested at Banned Moscow Nationalist March
• The Moscow Times (5/11/21): Russian Ambulance Workers Stage Mass Walkout Against Mandatory Vaccination – Reports [covid-news]
• The Moscow Times (5/11/21): Russian Diplomat With FSB Links Found Dead Outside Berlin Embassy – Reports
• Just Security (5/11/21): The Dutch Supreme Court has upheld part of a Russian appeal against a $50 billion arbitration award to former shareholders of bankrupted oil giant Yukos and quashed a lower court’s decision to uphold the award [big-oil-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/11/21): Russia Expels Second Foreign Reporter in 2 Months [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (4/11/21): Denmark Detains Russian Research Ship in Legal Dispute
• The Moscow Times (4/11/21): Putin Vows to Back Lukashenko Against 'Interference' [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (4/11/21): Russian source for Steele’s Trump dossier arrested by US authorities - Five-page indictment released by justice department accuses analyst Igor Danchenko of lying to FBI
• The Moscow Times (3/11/21): Ukraine Denies Russian Military Buildup on Border as Defense Minister Quits [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (3/11/21): At Least 5 Dead in Cargo Plane Crash Over Siberia
• Al Jazeera (3/11/21): Russia has 90,000 troops near Ukraine border, Kyiv says - Ukrainian defence ministry says Moscow has left military units along the frontier after recent training exercises. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (2/11/21): Jailed Russian Ex-Journalist Safronov Faces New Treason Charges – Lawyer
• Democracy Now (4/11/21): Russia Records Another Record Daily COVID-19 Death Toll - Russia continues to battle a worsening coronavirus wave, setting a new daily record Thursday with nearly 1,200 deaths. Russia is in the middle of what authorities are calling a “non-working week” in an attempt to keep people home and curb infections. [covid-news]
• Just Security (4/11/21): Putin has said that deliveries of Zircon hypersonic missiles to the country’s navy will begin in 2022. Putin’s televised remarks come a month after Russia’s defense ministry said it successfully tested a hypersonic missile for the first time.
• Just Security (4/11/21): A study of weapons and ammunition used in the war in Ukraine has shown a panoply of Russian-supplied arms that has helped fuel the war. A new report, one of the most comprehensive to date on the issue, funded by the E.U. and the German government has offered a fine-grained view of illicit weapons transfers in Ukraine. Earlier analyses have also concluded that Russia is sending arms to the war in Ukraine, however the new report is the first to focus on actual armaments which had been taken from captured or killed separatist fighters or positions they had occupied. [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/11/21): Moldova will get 3bcm gas per year in new deal with Russia - Agreement follows protracted dispute after Russia’s Gazprom proposed a considerable price rise. [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (1/11/21): Russia’s Excess Death Toll Passed 720K Before Brutal Fourth Wave [covid-news]
• The Moscow Times (1/11/21): Russian Tycoon Oleg Tinkov Pays $500M to End U.S. Tax Dispute [us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (1/11/21): Satellites Detect Massive Russia Methane Leak – Bloomberg
• Financial Times (28/10/21): UK and European natural gas prices fall after Putin intervention - Russian president orders Gazprom to begin filling storage facilities in the region from November [energy-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): critics believe Putin is using this as leverage to increase the chance of Nord Stream 2 being approved. At the moment, the largest Gazprom storage site on the continent is less than 10% full, and the largest in Austria is about 20%.
• The Moscow Times (29/10/21): Veteran Communist Party Lawmaker Detained for Illegal Hunting [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (29/10/21): Russia Sentences Blogging Couple to Prison for X-Rated Cathedral Photo Op [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (29/10/21): Russian Urban Exploration Blogger Gets Prison Sentence for Sharing State Secrets [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (27/10/21): Threat forces Egyptian passenger plane bound for Moscow to return - EgyptAir flight MS729 was flying to Moscow, but shortly reversed course. Russia recently resumed flights to Egyptian resorts.
• Al Jazeera (28/10/21): Moscow partially shuts down as Russia sees record COVID cases - Moscow shuts down non-essential services for 11 days to fight the surge in COVID-19 infections. [covid-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): U.S. prosecutors have alleged that Vladimir Dunaev, a Russian man extradited from South Korea, was part of a transnational criminal group that stole millions of dollars using a malicious software called Trickbot [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): The U.S. embassy in Moscow could stop performing most functions next year unless there is progress with Russia on increasing the number of visas for diplomats, a U.S. official has warned. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Veteran Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Junta
• The Moscow Times (27/10/21): Ukraine Destroys Pro-Russian Artillery in Its First Use of Turkish Drones
• Jacobin (27/10/21): In Russia, Communists Are Standing Up Against Putin’s Fraud - In Russia’s general election, the Communist Party surged to a strong second place. But the party’s rise has also made it a target for Vladimir Putin’s government — including through Putin's massive interference in the electoral process. [socialist-news, electoral-news]
• The Moscow Times (26/10/21): Russia Sentences Jehovah's Witnesses to Lengthy Prison Terms
• Democracy Now (25/10/21): Russia’s intelligence agency has launched another campaign to pierce thousands of U.S. government, corporate, and think-tank computer networks, Microsoft officials and cybersecurity experts have warned [cyber-security-news, russia-policy-news]
• Financial Times (22/10/21): Russian mercenaries leave trail of destruction in the Central African Republic - Mineral-rich country is ‘perfect laboratory’ for Wagner group as Kremlin extends influence in Africa [russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The Russian mercenary Wagner group is committing war crimes and atrocities throughout Africa, most notably in the CAR, but have had presence in Sudan, Mozambique, Libya and Madagascar - and now are about to be deployed in Mali, in the wake of French drawdown (yet the French are protesting the move...). Notably, while they do terrible things in the CAR, the people there are reported to see the diminished French influence as a silver lining - they really don't like France. It seems that Russia uses Wagner as a way to establish presence without a direct connection (its not the Russian army, its Wagner!), and also it's kind of cheap - they are hired to go there, and often get "paid" by seizing local resources (ie mines in CAR). Their clientele so far seems to be strongmen looking for support in their effort to stay in power. They more-or-less act like a vigilante force, with very little oversight by the local government - no surprise, since they are typically invited in when the local military is impotent to handle their problems in the first place. While there are mixed reports, the Kremlin (Russia) reports in the CAR that the Russian presence is only there for training purposes.
• The Moscow Times (22/10/21): 15 Dead in Fire at Russian Explosives Factory
• The Moscow Times (23/10/21): Namibia Halts Use of Sputnik Jabs After S.African HIV Fears
• The Moscow Times (23/10/21): Russia Puts Torture Video Whistleblower on Wanted List
• The Moscow Times (23/10/21): Montenegro Grants Asylum to Tycoon Wanted in Russia for Murder
• The Moscow Times (21/10/21): Four Russians Detained in Turkey on Military Espionage Charges
• The Moscow Times (21/10/21): Steam Leak Detected at Russian Nuclear Plant [energy-news]
• Just Security (21/10/21): Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has been awarded the prestigious European human rights Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in recognition of his work in defense of human rights.
• Just Security (21/10/21): A hacking tool linked to a Russian crime ring is believed to have been used in ransomware attack that disrupted programming at Sinclair Broadcast Group. [cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (19/10/21): FBI raids Washington mansion linked to Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska - US agents conduct search at property in capital’s north-west - Putin associate sanctioned by US treasury department in 2018
• The Moscow Times (19/10/21): Russian Police Detain, Return Dagestani Women Fleeing Abuse
• Just Security (20/10/21): Russia scrambled two fighter jets to escort a pair of U.S. strategic bombers over the Black Sea, Russia’s Defense Ministry has said. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): A group of 10 naval vessels from China and Russia sailed through a strait separating Japan’s main island and its northern island of Hokkaido yesterday, the Japanese government has said. “The government is closely watching Chinese and Russian naval vessels’ activities around Japan like this one with high interest,” Japanese Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihiko Isozaki told a regular news conference [russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (18/10/21): Russia Labels 2 More Media Outlets 'Foreign Agents'
• The Moscow Times (18/10/21): Russian Prison Torture Whistleblower Seeks Asylum in France
• The Moscow Times (18/10/21): Russian 12-Year-Old Opens Fire at Middle School
• The Moscow Times (18/10/21): S.Africa Rejects Russian Sputnik Vaccine Over HIV Fears
• Just Security (18/10/21): Russia’s Defense Ministry has claimed that it prevented a U.S. Navy destroyer from entering its waters in the Sea of Japan on Friday [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (16/10/21): Four Russians found dead at Albanian resort - Police say tourists who had been staying in village of Qerret were aged between 31 and 60 years old
• The Moscow Times (16/10/21): Abuse Claims Spark Riot at Russian Prison [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• The Economist (16/10/21): It is tempting to blame foreigners for Europe’s gas crisis - The main culprit is closer to home [energy-news]
• The Moscow Times (15/10/21): Most Russians Oppose Same-Sex Relationships – Poll [lgbtq-news]
• The Guardian (15/10/21): Masked men storm Moscow screening of film about Stalin-era famine
• The Moscow Times (14/10/21): Putin Says Talk of Succession 'Destabilizes' Russia
• The Moscow Times (13/10/21): 5 Million Russian Citizens Left Russia Under Putin - Young, well-educated Russians are seeking a better life abroad.
• The Economist (11/10/21): Russian elections once again had a suspiciously neat result - Opponents were jailed and barred. For good measure, the authorities cheated at the polls too [electoral-news, corruption-news]
• The Moscow Times (11/10/21): Navalny Says Added to Prison's ‘Terror’ Watch List
• The Moscow Times (10/10/21): Actor Killed During Performance at Bolshoi Theater
• The Guardian (10/10/21): At least 16 dead after plane carrying skydivers crashes in central Russia - Six people in ‘very serious condition’ after being rescued from wreckage of aircraft in Tatarstan
• The Moscow Times (8/10/21): Russia Seeks to Prosecute U.S. Diplomats for Stealing Backpack
• Just Security (8/10/21): Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov have won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for their fights to defend freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia respectively. The Nobel committee called the pair “representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal.” Ressa, who co-founded the news site Rappler, was commended for using freedom of expression to “expose abuse of power, use of violence and growing authoritarianism in her native country, the Philippines.” Muratov, the co-founder and editor of independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, has for decades defended freedom of speech in Russia under increasingly challenging conditions, the Nobel committee said.
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): COVID Deaths in Russia Top 900/Day; Venezuela Accuses IMF of Withholding Pandemic Funds [covid-news]
• The Moscow Times (7/10/21): Russian Inflation Continues Climbing, Sets New 5-Year High - Prices have risen by 7.4% over the last year — almost twice the government’s target. [economic-news]
• Just Security (7/10/21): Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak has said that certification of the Nord Stream 2 undersea gas pipeline, which is awaiting clearance from Germany’s regulator, could reduce the increasing gas prices in Europe [russia-policy-news, energy-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): Nato expels eight members of Russia’s mission for spying - Russia rejects claim officers were secretly working as intelligence officers and warns of retaliation [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (6/10/21): Russian Paper’s Belarus Branch Disbands After Journalist’s Arrest [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (6/10/21): Putin Blames Europe for Gas Price Crisis [russia-policy-news, big-oil-news, energy-news]
• Financial Times (6/10/21): Gas markets whipsaw after Russia offers to stabilise energy prices - UK gas contracts for November delivery soar almost 40 per cent before falling back after Putin’s comments [energy-news, big-oil-news, russia-policy-news] Paywall Summary: The LNG crisis has been kicking the world's a*s (Europe in particular (see briefing) as we come out of the pandemic and demand returns to normal, gas prices have been surging - but reassuring comments from Putin have stabilized prices. Russia claims (and Germany's Merkel sheepishly corroborates) that they aren't limiting supply - just fulfilling whatever contractual amounts are required. However, it appears that Putin may be leveraging the situation to expedite approval of the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline (Ukraine hates it, bc it bypasses Ukraine, and Ukraine makes a lot of money off of taxing gas transit. Everyone is crying "market manipulation", but uhhh... what are you gonna do about? Keep shutting those nuke plants down, Germany! That'll teach Putin a lesson. Oh yeah, there are concerns it will increase Europe's dependence on Russian energy... which isn't an ideal situation). The UK is also very vulnerable, as they don't have a lot of energy storage capacity - they basically need energy provided "just in time".
• The Moscow Times (5/10/21): 'Unprecedented' Video Leak Shows Rampant Torture at Russian Prisons – NGO
• Just Security (5/10/21): Facebook has complied with Russian demands to delete some content that Moscow deems illegal but could still face a significant fine as it was slow to do so [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Financial Times (23/9/21): US arrests finance chief of Russian natural gas group Novatek - Mark Gyetvay indicted on tax charges connected to $93m in offshore accounts [us-policy-news, big-oil-news] Paywall Summary: Not too much to summarize here... notably he is a US citizen (and Russian passport carrier), which Russia has stated limits their ability to intervene.
• Financial Times (30/9/21): Ivory Coast’s president warns against Russian security group’s involvement in Mali - Alassane Ouattara says hiring Wagner is not the answer in fight against Islamist insurgents Paywall Summary: not much to summarize, title says most if it. The reason that Mali is looking for Russian aid is, it seems, because France is winding down their operation there (perhaps in response to a recent coup in Mali), but jihadists still pose a threat. But Wagner (the Russian security group) is known for committing war crimes and atrocities, so they aren't exactly the people you want around.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Russia has said that it has successfully test launched a Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic cruise missile from a submarine for the first time, a weapon President Vladimir Putin has lauded as part of a new generation of unrivalled arms systems
• Just Security (4/10/21): The Pandora Papers also reveal how U.S. sanctions imposed on Russian oligarchs hit their targets
• CPJ (4/10/21): Russian journalist Igor Kuznetsov detained, charged with inciting mass disturbances in Telegram chats
• The Moscow Times (4/10/21): Pro-Government Reporter Detained in Moscow, Held in Belarus – Activists
• The Moscow Times (4/10/21): Nord Stream 2 Operator Begins Filling Controversial Pipeline [big-oil-news, energy-news]
• The Moscow Times (3/10/21): Montenegro Holds Azerbaijan-Born Tycoon Wanted by Russia
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Jacobin (2/10/21): Russia Has a New Socialist Movement - The big winner in Russia's recent election was the Communist Party, which jumped to almost 20 percent support. The party is today being transformed by a new wave of democratic socialist activists opposed to Vladimir Putin’s rule. [leftist-news, socialist-news, labor-news]
• CPJ (1/10/21): Russian authorities harass family of exiled journalist Roman Dobrokhotov
• Just Security (1/10/21): Mali received four helicopters, weapons and ammunition from Russia late yesterday, Malian Interim Defence Minister Sadio Camara has said. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (1/10/21): Russia Makes Covering Military Corruption News Grounds for ‘Foreign Agent’ Status [media-news]
• The Moscow Times (1/10/21): Russia Urges Taliban, Tajikistan to Avoid Clashes [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (30/9/21): UK joins calls on Mali to end alleged deal with Russian mercenaries - Mali’s military leaders under pressure to pull back from suspected agreement with Wagner Group [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (30/9/21): Russian Editor of Investigative Outlet Charged With Illegal Border Crossing
• Just Security (30/9/21): U.N. diplomats have said that Russia is holding up the appointment of independent experts to monitor implementation of sanctions on four African countries [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (30/9/21): Two human rights groups, one media outlet, and 22 individuals, have been labeled as “foreign agents” by Moscow’s Justice Ministry, as Russia advances its crackdown on domestic opposition
• Just Security (30/9/21): Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan praised ties with Russia during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday. Putin and Erdogan discussed weapon deals, trade, and a nuclear reactor Russia is building in Turkey during their meeting, as Erdogan made clear that he had access to Russia as an alternative partner to the U.S. for trade and military deals. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (30/9/21): The U.S. is intensifying talks to use Russian bases in neighboring countries to Afghanistan for “over the horizon” counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): Right Livelihood Award Goes to Environmental Activists, Rights Defenders Across the Globe
• The Moscow Times (29/9/21): Russia Labels More Independent Media Outlets, Activists ‘Foreign Agents’
• The Moscow Times (29/9/21): Russia Threatens YouTube Block Over RT German Spat [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (29/9/21): Putin’s Top Candidates Won’t Take Parliament Seats
• Ars Technica (29/9/21): Russia arrests cybersecurity expert on treason charge - Ilya Sachkov is founder of Group-IB, which specializes in ransomware attack prevention. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (29/9/21): The United States has deported a convicted Russian hacker to Russia in a rare extradition
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Two Killed in Ukraine Separatist East
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Russia’s Gazprom Inks 15-Year Gas Contract with Hungary - Deal between Moscow and Budapest has angered Ukraine and comes as gas prices in Europe hit record highs.
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Russia Reports New Daily Covid Death Record
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Police Search Communist Party Offices as Online Voting Controversy Continues - The Communist Party is challenging the results of Russia’s State Duma elections.
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Russian Investigators Open New Case Against Navalny
• The Moscow Times (27/9/21): Five Bodies Found at Helicopter Crash Site in Kamchatka — TASS
• The Moscow Times (27/9/21): Free Speech a ‘Core Value,’ YouTube CEO Says After Blocking Russian Opposition Videos [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has defended the Mali government’s right to hire a private Russian military company to help fight terrorists and has accused the French troops in Mali of failing to get rid of the terrorists in the region [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): Turkish President Recip Tayyip Erdoğan defended his government’s decision to buy another Russian air defense system despite pressure from the United States and NATO [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): Russian fighter jets were scrambled to escort a U.S. Air Force plane that reportedly approached Russian airspace over the Pacific Ocean, Russian state news agency TASS said yesterday [us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (24/9/21): Russia Bans Church of Scientology With ‘Undesirable’ Tag
• The Moscow Times (24/9/21): Russia Sentences 4 Jehovah’s Witnesses to Long Jail Terms
• The Moscow Times (23/9/21): Navalny Accuses Google, Apple of Becoming Putin's 'Accomplices' [ big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, electoral-news]
• The Economist (25/9/21): How Russia’s election was fixed - As if by magic, Vladimir Putin has another new, obedient parliament [electoral-news]
• The Moscow Times (23/9/21): Losing Russian Parliamentary Candidates Join Forces Against Controversial E-Voting
• The Moscow Times (22/9/21): Military Transport Plane Vanishes Off Radars in Eastern Russia
• Just Security (22/9/21): Suggestions of possible Russian involvement in an attempted assassination of a Ukrainian presidential aide “have nothing to do with reality,” a Kremlin spokesperson has said [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/9/21): U.K. counterterrorism police have charged a third man in the attempted assassination of Sergei Skripal in 2018
• Just Security (22/9/21): President Biden’s administration has for the first time blacklisted a cryptocurrency exchange, SUEX OTC, to combat ransomware, heralding a new approach to firms found handling illicit payments. The Russian-owned cryptocurrency exchange was blacklisted for allegedly helping launder ransomware payments. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (22/9/21): Russia’s chief of general staff, Valery Gerasimov, and his U.S. counterpart, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, met in Helsinki today to discuss risk mitigation in military activities, the RIA news agency has reported
• The Moscow Times (21/9/21): Communist Party Rallies in Moscow After Remote Vote Upsets [protest-news, electoral-news]
• The Moscow Times (21/9/21): Gazprom Rejects Gas Transit Increase as Europe Faces Winter Fuel Crisis [energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (21/9/21): Statisticians Claim Half of Pro-Kremlin Votes in Duma Elections Were False - Russia’s opposition has claimed the vote was the country’s most fraudulent in recent history. [electoral-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (21/9/21): Economy Contradicts Democracy: Russian Markets Boom Amid Political Sabotage [economic-news]
• Just Security (21/9/21): The elections in Russia have been criticized by opposition parties and independent observers of mass fraud, ballot stuffing and tampering
• The Moscow Times (20/9/21): 6 Dead in Russian University Shooting
• The Moscow Times (20/9/21): Russian Opposition Politician Loses Vote Marred by Doppelgangers
• Just Security (20/9/21): France’s Armed Forces Minister arrived in Mali on Sunday to pressure the military junta in Mali to end talks to bring Russian mercenaries into the country and push it to keep a promise to return the country to constitutional order [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (20/9/21): Russia’s ruling United Russia party, which supports Russian President Vladimir Putin, will retain its majority in parliament after a three-day election, despite losing around one fifth of its support, partial results from today show; Democracy Now (20/9/21): Russian Parliamentary Election Hands Victory to Putin as Critics Allege Voting Fraud
• Al-Monitor (18/9/21): Iran joins China, Russia in Shanghai Cooperation Organization - Iran has been upgraded to permanent member status in the Eurasian alliance, of which Turkey is also a partner.
• The Moscow Times (18/9/21): Telegram Messenger Blocks Navalny Bot During Russian Election [tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CounterPunch (17/9/21): Railways and Pipelines are Preferable to Nuclear Submarines [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, bri-news]
• Just Security (17/9/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia needs to work with the Taliban government in Afghanistan and that that world powers should consider unfreezing Afghanistan’s assets. [russia-policy-news]
• Vox (17/9/21): Apple shut down a voting app in Russia. That should worry everyone. - Critics say Apple is not keeping its promise to hold fast when faced with government pressure. [Google also took down the app, but Apple has interesting other concerns related] [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/9/21): Russia Starts Blocking Google Docs After Navalny Shares Anti-Kremlin Vote Strategy – Monitor
• The Moscow Times (16/9/21): Police Station Bombed in Southern Russia’s Voronezh
• The Moscow Times (16/9/21) Breakaway Ukrainian Region to Bus Russian Passport Holders to the Polls
• Just Security (16/9/21): Members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia-led security bloc that includes some countries adjacent or close to Afghanistan, have no plans to host Afghan refugees, bloc member Kazakhstan has said [russia-policy-news, immigrant-news]
• The Moscow Times (15/9/21): Russia Blocks Extension of UN Mission to Libya – Diplomatic Sources
• The Moscow Times (15/9/21): WHO Suspends Sputnik V Approval Process Over Manufacturing Breaches - Russia’s bid to have its coronavirus vaccine approved by either the WHO or EMA has ran into multiple problems. [covid-news]
• The Moscow Times (14/9/21): Mali Junta in Talks for Russian Mercenaries – French Sources [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (14/9/21) Russia Fines Facebook, Twitter Over Banned Content [big-tech-news]
• The Moscow Times (13/9/21): 4 Killed in Siberia Plane Crash
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Russia Kicks Off Arctic Military Drills to Secure Sea Route [logistics-news]
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Russian Soldier Killed in Syrian Patrol Blast
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Russia Says 2 Militants Killed in Anti-Terror Raid
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Russia Says Divisive Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Complete [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Pussy Riot’s Maria Alyokhina Sentenced Over Navalny Protest Calls
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): EMA, WHO Still Awaiting Sputnik V Data Before Approval [covid-news]
• Just Security (10/9/21): Russia is going to equip its military base in Tajikistan, which neighbors Afghanistan, with 30 new tanks by the end of the year
• Just Security (10/9/21): Russia and Belarus have launched the active phase of a vast military exercise involving 200,000 personnel, which is taking place on Russia’s and Belarus’s western flanks and is due to run until next Thursday.
• Just Security (10/9/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko have agreed to deepen the economic ties between their countries.
• The Moscow Times (9/9/21): Russia’s Inflation Hits New 5-Year High Ahead of Parliamentary Polls
• The Moscow Times (8/9/21): Deadly Apartment Block Explosions Rock 2 Russian Cities
• The Guardian (8/9/21): Russia’s emergencies minister dies during Arctic training exercise - Yevgeny Zinichev, a former KGB officer and Putin bodyguard, died ‘trying to save life of cameraman’
• Just Security (7/9/21): Russia’s FSB security service has accused Ukrainian military intelligence of organizing an attack on a gas pipeline on Russian-annexed Crimea after Moscow arrested a Crimean Tatar leader over the incident
• The Moscow Times (6/9/21): Russia Blocks Navalny Voting Strategy Website Ahead of Election
• The Moscow Times (6/9/21): Russia Hands Tajik Opposition Activist 40-Year Ban
• Al-Monitor (3/9/21): Is Moscow using the S-400 against Turkey? - Ankara denies the suggestion from Moscow that a second batch of S-400s is headed for Turkey and says it is an effort to stall Turkey’s talks with the United States and Europe.
• The Moscow Times (3/9/21): Russian Ultra-Nationalist Who Campaigned Against Sushi Ad’s Black Model Arrested – Reports
• The Moscow Times (2/9/21): Russia Accuses Google, Apple of Election Interference
• The Irrawaddy (1/9/21): Myanmar Junta’s Vice Chairman Heads to Russia
• Just Security (1/9/21): Russia is expected to soon deliver a huge military hardware consignment to Belarus
• The Moscow Times (31/8/21): Russian Sushi Chain Pushes Back Against Racist Attacks
• The Moscow Times (30/8/21): Russian Sushi Chain Apologizes for Ad Featuring Black Man
• The Moscow Times (27/8/21): Russia’s Excess Death Toll Hits 600K - A Delta variant sweeping across the country and low vaccination rates resulted in more than 2,000 extra fatalities a day during July. [covid-news]
• Just Security (26/8/21): Russia is to supply further weapons to Central Asian countries bordering Afghanistan [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow times (25/8/21): 2 in 5 Russians Can’t Afford Necessities – Poll
• The Moscow Tmes (25/8/21): Wildfires in Russia Spread to Central Regions [climate-change-news]
• Al Jazeera (25/8/21): Alexey Navalny gives first interview from prison camp - Navalny says he is forced to watch state television in prison and decries ‘culture of snitching’ and constant control.
• Modern Diplomacy (24/8/21): An Insight into Russia’s Economic Presence in Africa
• The Moscow Times (20/8/21): Leaked Sputnik V Report Shows More Inconsistencies in Clinical Trial Data - Findings outlined in a 136-page study report into vaccine’s development show different data from developer’s public statements.
• The Moscow Times (19/8/21): Advanced MiG-29 Fighter Crashes in Southern Russia, Killing Pilot – Reports
• The Moscow Times (17/8/21): Argentine Health Minister Visits Russia to Discuss Vaccine Supplies – TASS
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-foreign-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (17/8/21): North Macedonia Expels Russian Diplomat
• The Moscow Times (17/8/21): 3 Dead After Russian Military Transport Plane Prototype Crashes Near Moscow
• Just Security (16/8/21): Russia will evacuate some of its embassy’s roughly 100 staff
• The Moscow Times (14/8/21): Russia Says All 8 Die in Water-Bomber Plane Crash in Turkey
• The Moscow Times (13/8/21): Russian Jehovah’s Witness Jailed for ‘Bible Talk’
• The Moscow Times (13/8/21): Russia Blames Azerbaijan for Breach of Karabakh Truce in Post-Ceasefire First
• The Guardian (13/8/21): BBC condemns ‘assault on media freedom’ as Russia expels reporter - State media call Sarah Rainsford’s expulsion a response to alleged UK barriers for Russian journalists
• Democracy Now (13/8/21): China Closes Shipping Terminal over Single COVID-19 Case; Russia Logs Record Death Toll
• The Moscow Times (12/8/21): Bus Explosion Kills One, Injures at Least 15 in Russian City of Voronezh
• Al-Monitor (12/8/21): Egypt enrolls Russian imams in 'fatwa training program' to combat Brotherhood - Egypt is helping Russia confront extremism, namely Muslim Brotherhood ideology, by training Russian imams in the Dar al-Ifta — including a 'fatwa training program.'
• South China Morning Post (12/8/21): China-Russia railway bridge on track for first test run - It is expected to be fully operational next year and likely to boost trade between the neighbours as they face growing pressure from the West - Bridge will connect the countries across the Heilong River, and Russian Railways official says it will mainly be used to transport coal and iron ore [bri-news]
• The Moscow Times (12/8/21): Two Opposition Activists Handed 10-Year Prison Sentences
• The Guardian (12/8/21): Russia detains head of hypersonic research facility in treason case - Alexander Kuranov is suspected of passing secret information to a foreign citizen
• Al Jazeera (12/8/21): Helicopter with 16 people on board crashes in Russia’s Kamchatka - Conflicting reports emerged as to how many people survived and how many remain missing after Mi-8 helicopter came down in Lake Kuril.
• Just Security (12/8/21): Russian authorities have announced a new criminal charge against Kremlin-critic Alexei Navalny, which would keep the opposition leader in prison for an additional three years – until well after Russia’s presidential election in 2024.
• Just Security (12/8/21): Russia will give Tajikistan $1.1 million to build a new outpost on the Tajik-Afghan border, a senior Russian diplomat has been quoted as saying today, amid growing instability in Afghanistan.
• The Moscow Times (11/8/21): Black Sea Oil Spill 400 Times Bigger Than Claimed, Russian Scientists Say [industrial-failure-news]
• Just Security (11/8/21): A BBC investigation has revealed the scale of operations by a Russian mercenary group in Libya’s civil war, which includes links to war crimes and the Russian military; A British man has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for Russia
• The Moscow Times (10/8/21): Navalny Allies Face Fresh Criminal ChargesNavalny Allies Face Fresh Criminal Charges
• Just Security (10/8/21): Chinese and Russian military forces are conducting joint military exercises in northwestern China; Russia has showcased its new arms at a drill with soldiers from Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan near the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border.
• The Moscow Times (10/8/21): Russia Adds Popular YouTuber to ‘Terrorist and Extremist’ List
• Just Security (9/8/21): A Moscow court on Friday sentenced one of the most prominent U.S. investors based in Russia to a five-year, six-month suspended term after an embezzlement conviction; Paul Whelan, a U.S. citizen detained in Russia, has been released from solitary confinement and was able to speak with his parents, his brother David Whelan has told CNN; Russia is expanding its military construction plans on the Kuril islands, planning to build 51 more pieces of military infrastructure, the state TASS news agency has quoted Russia’s defense ministry as saying today
• The Moscow Times (9/8/21): Oxygen Failure at Russian Coronavirus Hospital Leaves 9 Dead
• The Moscow Times (5/8/21): Russia’s Excess Death Toll Passes 530K As Delta Variant Hits Hard - June saw a surge in nationwide fatalities as Moscow introduced mandatory vaccinations.
• The Moscow Times (5/8/21): Russia-Led Drills Begin on Afghanistan Border - The Russian military's chief of staff arrived in Central Asia Thursday as Russia held military drills in two ex-Soviet countries bordering Afghanistan where Kabul is struggling to contain a ferocious Taliban offensive.
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Russia Promises To Solve Sputnik V Delivery Delays
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Russia Sees Record Wildfire Spread as Siberian Blazes Rage On
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Russia Has Earned $300M on Vaccine Exports So Far, Lags China - In the first five months of 2021, Russia sold more vaccines abroad than in the last three years combined.
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Iran, Ghana Among Those Hit Hardest By Russia’s Vaccine Delivery Delays – BBC
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Mexico, Russia & Bolivia Send Aid to Cuba as U.S. Announces New Sanctions
• South China Morning Post (2/8/21): China-Russia military drill expected to focus on security in Central Asia - Chinese analyst says exercise is not aimed at the US and other Western nations - It will run for five days from next week with more than 10,000 soldiers taking part
• Al-Monitor (2/8/21): Russia tries to compete with US in Mideast weapons market - Russia's prospects in the Middle East arms market will depend on its ability to master fast production of the latest models of military equipment. [weapons-security-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (30/7/21): Russia’s ‘Great Game’ in Central Asia Amid the US Withdrawal from Afghanistan (via u/theoryofdoom on r/geopolitics)
• The Moscow Times (30/7/21): Brazil to Cancel Orders for Russia’s Sputnik V Vaccine – Reuters
• The Moscow Times (29/7/21): Russia Fines Google For Breaching Data Storage Law
• Democracy Now (29/7/21): U.S. and Russia Hold Nuclear Talks in Geneva
• The Moscow Times (28/7/21): Guatemala Cancels Order for Russian Vaccines
• The Moscow Times (26/7/21): Russia Blocks 49 Navalny-Linked Websites, Allies Say
• The Moscow Times (24/7/21): Russia Sends Aid to Cuba After Anti-Government Protests - Russia dispatched nearly 100 tons of humanitarian aid to Cuba, the Defense Ministry said Saturday, following unprecedented street protests over the communist country's worst economic crisis in decades.
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• Just Security (23/7/21): Russia is to help Tajikistan build a new outpost on the Tajik-Afghan border, a senior Russian diplomat said, amid worsening conflict in Afghanistan
• The Guardian (23/7/21): Russia names local Bellingcat reporting partner a ‘foreign agent’ - Move by justice ministry against the Insider seen as revenge for helping reveal Kremlin’s role in assassination attempts
• The Moscow Times (23/7/21): Russia on Track to Deliver Fighter Jets to Myanmar – Reports
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Argentina threatens to cancel deal for Sputnik vaccine as Russia fails to deliver - Moscow owes 18.5m doses, leaving Argentina in a ‘very critical situation’ with only 12% fully vaccinated, leaked letter reveals
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Danish military spots Iranian navy ships in Baltic Sea - Newly built destroyer and support vessel thought to be on way to Russian naval parade in St Petersburg
• Just Security (21/7/21): Russia deployed tanks near Afghanistan’s border with Tajikistan yesterday as it prepares for military exercises with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan over the next month, according to state media outlet TASS Russian News Agency; Russia will reinforce its military base in Tajikistan with 17 infantry fighting vehicles; Russia is cooperating closely with Myanmar to supply military hardware, including aircrafts, the Interfax news agency has reported, citing Alexander Mikheev, the head of Russian state arms trader Rosoboronexport; Russian President Vladimir Putin has hailed Russia’s air power as a prototype of a new fighter jet that features stealth capabilities and other advanced characteristics was unveiled yesterday
• Democracy Now (21/7/21): Record-Breaking Wildfires Continue to Rage in Siberia, Western U.S., Releasing Toxic Fumes
• The Hill (20/7/21): US won't block completion of Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline
• The Guardian (20/7/21): ‘Everything is on fire’: Siberia hit by unprecedented burning - Locals fear for their health and property as smoke from raging forest fires shrouds an entire region of eastern Russia
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): Russia and Uzbekistan are to hold joint military drills near the Afghan border in Uzbekistan from July 30 to Aug. 10, the Interfax news agency has said, citing Russia’s armed forces; In addition, “on Monday, Russia’s armed forces said Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan would hold military drills 20 km (12 miles) from the Afghanistan border in Tajikistan from Aug. 5-10,” Reuters reports.
• Just Security Early Edition (19/7/21): Russia’s President Vladimir Putin offered President Biden the use of Russian military bases in Central Asia for information gathering from Afghanistan; Russia has said it has successfully tested a Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic cruise missile, which has previously been praised by Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of a new generation of missile systems without equal in the world
• Just Security Early Edition (15/7/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russia’s government to help Belarus weather western sanctions
• Just Security Early Edition (16/7/21): Russia has banned an investigative news outlet on national security grounds.; Proekt has said today that it is closing down a U.S.-registered legal entity but would find a way to continue its investigations into Russia’s elite.
• Democracy Now (15/7/21): Russia Deploys Military to Battle Siberian Wildfires Amid Record Heat
• Middle East Monitor (13/7/21): Why did Putin turn against Sisi in the Renaissance Dam file? (via u/White_Mlungu_Capital on r/geopolitics)
• Just Security (9/7/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has lifted a ban on charter flights to Egypt, six years after suspending them for national security concerns.
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Russian plane crashes, all 28 on board feared dead - Wreckage found in Kamchatka Peninsula after plane went down while preparing to land in poor visibility.
• Democracy Now (30/6/21): Russia Tests Missiles in Crimea After Start of Ukraine-NATO’s Black Sea Military Drill
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Russian police raid journalists probing government corruption - Proekt website editors raided as they prepared to publish allegations against Putin’s interior minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev
• Democracy Now (29/6/21): Moscow Storms Break Russia’s Record-Setting June Heat Wave
• Al Jazeera (28/6/21): Ukraine, US launch Black Sea drills despite Russian protest - Major exercise involving thousands of troops, dozens of ships comes days after Russian incident with a British destroyer off Crimea.
• New York Times (27/6/21): Russian Mercenaries Are Driving War Crimes in Africa, U.N. Says - An investigative report says that Russian operatives in the Central African Republic who had been billed as unarmed advisers are actually leading the fighting, including massacres of civilians.
• Al Jazeera (25/6/21): Russia launches Mediterranean drills amid rift with UK - The drills come days after Moscow claimed it fired warning shots at a British warship on the Black Sea.
• Democracy Now (24/6/21): Britain Disputes Russia’s Claim of Naval Confrontation in Waters Near Russian-Annexed Crimea; The Guardian (24/6/21): Britain acknowledges surprise at speed of Russian reaction to warship - Kremlin summons UK ambassador as Boris Johnson says HMS Defender’s deployment ‘wholly appropriate’
• The Irrawaddy (21/6/21): Myanmar Junta Chief Visits Moscow for Security Conference
• Jacobin (17/6/21): Incredibly, Joe Biden’s Russia Policy Is Reasonable
• Democracy Now (14/6/21): U.K. Delays Reopening as Moscow Sees New Surge in Cases; India Moves to Reopen as Infections Drop
• The Economist World This Week (5/6/21): Russia’s upper house of parliament approved a law barring members of “terrorist” and “extremist” organisations from holding elective office. Vladimir Putin’s government routinely applies those labels to peaceful dissident groups, such as the supporters of Alexei Navalny, the main opposition leader, who is in prison on bogus charges.
• Al Jazeera (2/6/21): Military chief says Sudan reviewing naval base deal with Russia - General Mohammed Othman al-Hussein says negotiations are under way with Russian officials ‘to serve Sudan’s interests’.
• Al Jazeera (27/5/21): Russia says it expelled British warship from waters near Crimea - Incident last October saw Russian navy and air force confront British destroyer, security official claims.
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Russia’s Navalny says he faces three new criminal probes - New investigations could result in a longer sentence for the Kremlin critic, his allies fear.
• The Irrawaddy (19/5/21): Notorious Myanmar Arms Broker Joins Military Leaders on Russia Trip
• Democracy Now (11/5/21): At Least Nine Killed in School Shooting in Central Russia
• New York Times (5/5/21): 80,000 Russian Troops Remain at Ukraine Border as NATO Holds Exercise - Biden administration officials said they saw the sustained deployment as a message from Moscow that it could match the number of troops taking part in the exercise.
• Al Jazeera: Navalny ends hunger strike after being seen by civilian doctors - Jailed Russian opposition figure announces gradual end to hunger strike protest via Instagram as he thanks supporters.
• Al Jazeera: Russia to pull back troops from Ukraine border - Defence minister’s announcement comes after fears in Ukraine and the West that Moscow had been attempting to provoke hostilities.
• Democracy Now (4/22/21): Hundreds Arrested in Russia During Pro-Navalny Protests [2]
• Democracy Now (4/19/21): Alexei Navalny Transferred to Hospital as Health Deteriorates; Russia Expels 10 U.S. Diplomats in Retaliation for U.S. Sanctions [2]

Tajikistan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• The Moscow Times (22/11/21): Rights Groups Decry Russian Deportations of Central Asian Activists [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): U.S. trained Afghan pilots and other personnel have taken a U.S. brokered flight from Tajikistan to the UAE. The pilots had fled to Tajikistan with their aircrafts during the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
• Just Security (28/10/21): China is to finance the construction of an outpost for a special forces unit of Tajikistan’s police near the Tajik-Afghan border, the Tajikistan’s parliament has said. No Chinese troops will be stationed at the facility, a parliament spokesperson said. “The plan to build the post comes amid tension between the Dushanbe government and Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers,” Reuters reports. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (4/10/21): Kabul could face an electricity blackout as the Taliban rulers haven’t paid Central Asian electricity suppliers or resumed collecting money from consumers.
• The Moscow Times (1/10/21): Russia Urges Taliban, Tajikistan to Avoid Clashes [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/9/21): Russia is going to equip its military base in Tajikistan, which neighbors Afghanistan, with 30 new tanks by the end of the year
• The Moscow Times (6/9/21): Russia Hands Tajik Opposition Activist 40-Year Ban
• Just Security (2/9/21): The U.S. will help build a new facility for border guards in Tajikistan along the frontier with Afghanistan and Uzbekistan to better respond to security threats,
• South China Morning Post (18/8/21): China conducts anti-terror drill with Tajikistan, as Afghan spillover worries grip central Asia - Central Asian nations bordering Afghanistan rendered particularly vulnerable to rising instability there, while China is wary of any impact on Xinjiang - The joint drills show mutual determination to combat terrorism and effectively respond to terrorist threats, China’s public security minister said
• Just Security (12/8/21): Russia will give Tajikistan $1.1 million to build a new outpost on the Tajik-Afghan border, a senior Russian diplomat has been quoted as saying today, amid growing instability in Afghanistan.
• Just Security (11/8/21): Taliban militants have taken control of Afghanistan’s borders with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Russia’s Kommersant daily has reported, citing Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu
• Just Security (10/8/21): Russia has showcased its new arms at a drill with soldiers from Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan near the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border.
• The Moscow Times (5/8/21): Russia-Led Drills Begin on Afghanistan Border - The Russian military's chief of staff arrived in Central Asia Thursday as Russia held military drills in two ex-Soviet countries bordering Afghanistan where Kabul is struggling to contain a ferocious Taliban offensive.
• Bellingcat (2/8/21): Is Climate Change Heating up Central Asia’s Border Disputes? Clues from Satellite Imagery
• Just Security (23/7/21): Tajikistan has said that it is ready to take in up to 100,000 refugees from neighboring Afghanistan; Russia is to help Tajikistan build a new outpost on the Tajik-Afghan border, a senior Russian diplomat said, amid worsening conflict in Afghanistan
• Just Security (22/7/21): Tajikistan, Afghanistan’s neighbor, has held its largest ever military exercise today, involving the nation’s entire army as Tajikistan President Emomali Rakhmon urged vigilance amid fighting in Afghanistan
• Just Security (21/7/21): Russia deployed tanks near Afghanistan’s border with Tajikistan yesterday as it prepares for military exercises with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan over the next month, according to state media outlet TASS Russian News Agency; Russia will reinforce its military base in Tajikistan with 17 infantry fighting vehicles
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): Russia and Uzbekistan are to hold joint military drills near the Afghan border in Uzbekistan from July 30 to Aug. 10, the Interfax news agency has said, citing Russia’s armed forces; In addition, “on Monday, Russia’s armed forces said Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan would hold military drills 20 km (12 miles) from the Afghanistan border in Tajikistan from Aug. 5-10,” Reuters reports.
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): More than 300 Afghans flee into Tajikistan as Taliban advances - Tajikistan border guards say the refugees ‘fled from the Taliban to save their lives’.
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Tajikistan earthquake kills 5, damages dozens of homes - The magnitude 5.9 quake struck 27km (17 miles) east of Rasht district, authorities say.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Kyrgyzstan says ceasefire with Tajikistan holding after clashes - Kyrgyz interior ministry said casualties on its side had risen to more than 160, with 34 deaths – 31 of whom were civilians.
• Al Jazeera: Kyrgyzstan says 31 killed in clashes at Tajikistan border - Meanwhile, Tajikistan has yet to officially acknowledge any deaths from the clashes, which have raised fears of a larger conflict.
• Al Jazeera: Kyrgyzstan says ceasefire agreed with Tajikistan after clashes - Outbreak of heavy fighting involving neighbouring countries’ militaries raised fears of escalating into a wider conflict.; 'Border disagreements between the three countries that share the fertile Fergana Valley – Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan – have their roots in border demarcations during the Soviet Union.'

Turkmenistan Updates

• The Moscow Times (22/11/21): Rights Groups Decry Russian Deportations of Central Asian Activists [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]

Uzbekistan Updates

• The Irrawaddy (9/12/21): Uzbek Plane Supplies Myanmar Junta with Banknote Paper [economic-news]
• CPJ (8/12/21): Uzbek blogger Fatima Jurayeva allegedly beaten while investigating state electricity company [!]
• Just Security (24/11/21): Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have held military drills near Kazakhstan’s border with Afghanistan, imitating a response to an incursion, the Uzbek defense ministry has said. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (25/10/21): Uzbekistan Leader Scores Crushing Win in 'Not Competitive' Vote
• The Moscow Times (21/10/21): Four Russians Detained in Turkey on Military Espionage Charges
• CPJ (21/10/21): RFE/RL’s staff receive death threats ahead of Uzbekistan presidential election
• Just Security (13/9/21): The fate of 46 aircraft, including A-29 light attack planes and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, that the pilots flew to Uzbekistan continues to remain in doubt. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (31/8/21): Uzbekistan is warning the United States that U.S.-trained Afghan pilots who fled to the Central Asian country may face expulsion and is urging the U.S. to extract those Afghan pilots to a different country to avoid clashes between Uzbekistan and the Taliban,
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Afghan military jet shot down by Uzbek air defences - Plane downed in Uzbekistan’s southernmost Surxondaryo province as Afghan gov’t collapses and Taliban seize Kabul.
• Just Security (11/8/21): Taliban militants have taken control of Afghanistan’s borders with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Russia’s Kommersant daily has reported, citing Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu
• Just Security (10/8/21): Russia has showcased its new arms at a drill with soldiers from Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan near the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border.
• The Moscow Times (5/8/21): Russia-Led Drills Begin on Afghanistan Border - The Russian military's chief of staff arrived in Central Asia Thursday as Russia held military drills in two ex-Soviet countries bordering Afghanistan where Kabul is struggling to contain a ferocious Taliban offensive.
• Just Security (21/7/21): Russia deployed tanks near Afghanistan’s border with Tajikistan yesterday as it prepares for military exercises with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan over the next month, according to state media outlet TASS Russian News Agency
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): Russia and Uzbekistan are to hold joint military drills near the Afghan border in Uzbekistan from July 30 to Aug. 10, the Interfax news agency has said, citing Russia’s armed forces; In addition, “on Monday, Russia’s armed forces said Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan would hold military drills 20 km (12 miles) from the Afghanistan border in Tajikistan from Aug. 5-10,” Reuters reports.

Ukraine Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Popular Front: (podcast) The Rise of Ukraine's Azov Battalion - We speak to journalist Michael Colborne about the rise of the Azov Battalion, a neo-fascist militia in Ukraine that now has a column of tanks and is a member of the National Guard.

Vox (6/2/18): Why Ukraine is trapped in endless conflict

• The Moscow Times (25/12/21): Russia Completes 10,000-Troop Drills Near Ukraine [russia-policy-news] [!]
• The Moscow Times (24/12/21): Russia Deploys ‘Defensive’ Mercenaries to Eastern Ukraine – Reuters
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Russia says Molotov cocktail thrown at its Ukraine consulate - Russia summons Ukrainian official and demands an apology over the ‘act of terrorism’ against its consulate in Lviv city.
• Just Security (23/12/21): Dutch prosecutors have demanded life sentences for three Russians and a Ukrainian charged with murder for their involvement in the shooting down of a passenger jet over Ukraine in 2014. Prosecutors “said the defendants, who are all at large, helped supply a missile system that Russian-backed separatists used to fire a rocket at Malaysia Airlines flight MH17,” Stephanie van den Berg reports for Reuters.
• Bellingcat (17/11/21): Inside Wagnergate: Ukraine’s Brazen Sting Operation to Snare Russian Mercenaries [analysis-news, russia-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): Ukraine accuses former president Poroshenko of treason - Ukrainian authorities accuse Petro Poroshenko of having helped pro-Russian separatists sell coal to Kyiv. [!]
• Just Security (20/12/21): Russia has said today that it urgently needs a response from the U.S. on its sweeping security demands and has warned of a possible Russian military response unless it sees political action addressing its concerns. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/12/21): A Ukrainian soldier has been killed in fighting with pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian army has said. “Kyiv has been battling a pro-Moscow insurgency in two breakaway regions bordering Russia since 2014, when the Kremlin annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. The Ukrainian army said separatists had targeted its positions with grenade launchers and mortars,” Agence France-Presse reports. [ukraine-news, russia-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/12/21): Ukraine’s president has received a renewed commitment from NATO that Ukraine could eventually join the military alliance, despite strong objections from Russia [ukraine-news, russia-news, russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/12/21): Fraud Conviction Appears to Reveal Russian Troop Deployment in East Ukraine
• Just Security (13/12/21): Ukraine’s new defense minister Oleksii Reznikov has blamed Germany for blocking the supply of weaponry to Kyiv through NATO. Reznikov has said that Berlin in the past month has vetoed Ukraine’s purchase of anti-drone rifles and anti-sniper systems via the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. Though, Germany subsequently relented on the first item, after deeming it non-lethal. “They are still building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and at the same time blocking our defensive weapons. It is very unfair,” Reznikov told the Financial Times. Roman Olearchyk in Kyiv and Ben Hall report for the Financial Times.
• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): Putin Says Conflict in Eastern Ukraine 'Looks Like Genocide'
• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): 3 in 4 Ukrainians Say Russia Is ‘Hostile State’ – Survey [!]
• The Moscow Times (10/12/21): Russia Wants NATO to Ditch Plans for Ukraine and Georgia Membership [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (10/12/21): Russia’s Foreign Ministry has accused Ukraine of “provocation” over an incident involving a Ukrainian warship which headed towards the Kerch Strait, a strait which separates Russia and the annexed Crimean peninsula, the state-owned RIA news agency has reported. Ukraine dismissed the complaints as part of a Russian “information attack” on Kyiv. Reuters reports.
• Pinned: Popular Front (8/12/21): Is Russia About to Invade Ukraine? - We speak to independent Ukrainian journalist Illia Ponomarenko about the tense situation right now between Ukraine and Russia. Will Putin invade? [russia-policy-news, podcast-news, capitalist-farce-news] If you see around (8/11/21), the Kyiv Post, a big newspaper in the country (and oldest English-language in Ukraine), was suspended due to the conflicting interests of the oligarch who owned it and the independence of its journalists, and on (12/11/21) said journalists announced they would form a new outlet, the Kyiv Independent. On this podcast, Jake speaks with a reporter from that outlet, Illia Ponomarenko, to get a reporter's insight into developments on the ground. He reports that the Kremlin-backed Donbas largely have low morale, and are in it because they need a paycheck, that the coup allegations from Zelensky (26/11/21) were probably made up, that protests occur almost daily in Kyiv, how scary the threat of Russian invasion is, but reasons why an invasion is unlikely right now.
• Just Security (10/12/21): President Biden has promised the leaders of Ukraine and nine eastern European NATO states support if Russia attacks Ukraine and has pledged to involve them in decisions about the region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Twitter that he and Biden also “discussed possible formats for resolving the conflict” in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have carved out a self-declared state. Andrew Roth reports for the Guardian. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Financial Times (9/12/21): US places visa restrictions on Isabel dos Santos for alleged corruption - Africa’s richest woman among those targeted in measures unveiled by Biden administration [corruption-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Not much beyond the title - two other officials close with the previous Angolan administration (dos Santos was a key player in the prior Angolan administration) were also targeted, along with several other people around the world. Another notable was Tupytsky in Ukraine, the former head of the constitutional court and oversaw 2020 rulings that "threatened to neuter anti-corruption institutions and, in turn, delayed disbursement from a $bn IMF lifeline".
• Just Security (9/12/21): The U.S. has threatened Russia with harsh economic sanctions if it were to launch a military offensive against Ukraine, however threats to squeeze Russia’s economy is a tactic which has had a mixed record in the past. Patricia Cohen provides analysis for the New York Times. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): The final elements of a U.S. $60 million security assistance package, including small arms and ammunition, which is designed to bolster Ukraine’s self-defense capability, is set to arrive in Ukraine this week. Biden approved the package on Sep. 1 when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the White House. Oren Liebermann reports for CNN. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): Putting additional U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine is “not on the table,” Biden told reporters yesterday. The NATO obligation to provide defense support to its members “does not extend to … Ukraine,” Biden added. Biden said that it would “depend upon what the rest of the NATO countries were willing to do as well,” but rejected the idea that the U.S. would “unilaterally use force to confront Russia” if it were to invade Ukraine. Morgan Chalfant reports for The Hill [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): The Russian government said Putin warned Biden during the video conference that Western military activity in and around Ukraine was approaching a “red line” threatening Russia’s security. The Kremlin statement said Putin had stressed that Russia should not be held responsible for tensions because NATO was making “dangerous attempts to take over Ukrainian territory and increasing its military potential” on Russia’s borders. “Therefore, Russia is seriously interested in getting reliable guarantees fixed in law to rule out the eastward expansion of NATO and the location in countries neighboring Russia of offensive weapons systems,” the statement added. The White House said President Biden did not make any guarantees to limit NATO expansion. BBC News reports. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): President Biden warned Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday in a two-hour secure video conference that a Russian invasion of Ukraine would result in heavy economic penalties for Moscow and lead NATO to reposition its troops in Europe. During the meeting, Biden reiterated that measures imposed in response to any Russian invasion would go well beyond the West’s response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea seven years ago and an invasion could end Russia’s hopes of completing the Nord Stream II gas pipeline to Europe. U.S. officials have said that Putin gave no indication of his ultimate intent during the call. David E. Sanger and Michael Crowley report for the New York Times. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (7/12/21): Biden Meets Putin as Russian Troops Mass on Ukraine Border [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Officials and experts are saying that there are several indicators fueling concerns that the Russian troops near the Ukrainian border may this time be a genuine indicator of Russian intentions to take military action against Ukraine. “Putin has deployed more than 90,000 troops along Russia’s border with Ukraine, matching the force that he sent and withdrew in the spring. But whereas those troops maneuvered in open daylight, now they have mostly been far less showy, moving under the cover of darkness. And Moscow’s rhetoric has noticeably hardened in recent months, saying it will not accept what it sees as a deepening of ties between Ukraine and the West,” Matthew Bodner, Dan De Luce and Alexander Smith report for NBC News. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Biden will make clear to Putin that there would be “very real costs” should Russia take military action against Ukraine, a senior administration official has said. “The official said that the U.S. believes Russia is putting in place the capacity to engage in military action but is unclear whether Putin has decided to carry out the plans,” Shannon Pettypiece reports for NBC News. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (6/12/21): Ukraine has denied accusations from Belarus that a Ukrainian military helicopter flew about 0.6 miles into its territory on Saturday.
• Just Security (6/12/21): U.S. intelligence has found that the Kremlin is planning a multi-front offensive into Ukraine, involving up to 175,000 troops, as soon as early next year, according to U.S. officials and an intelligence document obtained by The Washington Post. “The Russian plans call for a military offensive against Ukraine as soon as early 2022 with a scale of forces twice what we saw this past spring during Russia’s snap exercise near Ukraine’s borders,” said an administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Shane Harris and Paul Sonne report for the Washington Post. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Biden and Putin Expected to Hold Talks Over Escalating Tension on Russia-Ukraine Border [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (2/12/21): Russia Expels Some US Ambassadors as Blinken Warns Russia Against Invading Ukraine [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): Russia has said that it has arrested three suspected Ukrainian intelligence agents including one accused of planning to carry out an attack using two homemade bombs which had been smuggled over the border, allegations that Kyiv has dismissed. Reuters reports.
• Financial Times (22/11/21): IMF releases funds for Ukraine as Russian troop build-up continues - Financial cushion for Kyiv as US and European officials fear threat of impending invasion [neo-imperialism-news] Paywall Summary (?): This money ($700m) is the 2nd tranche of a $5bn standby arrangement negotiated last spring. This follows up $2.7bn IMF allocation of special drawing rights (SDR), and €600m from the EU last month. IMF disbursement has been slowed to Ukraine, as the required reforms (see (22/5/20)) have been impeded by constitutional court rulings initiated by pro-Russian (opposition) parties last fall which weakened the newly established (and IMF required) anti-corruption institutions. To get around this, Zelensky's ruling majority improved the independence of said anti-corruption institutions and the central bank. Large financing has been required of Western institutions to shore up Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression, and the current disbursment seems to be motivated by the escalating threats on the border (see briefing).
• Financial Times (22/5/20) (OLD): IMF agrees $5bn loan for Ukraine - Deal comes hours after president signs law safeguarding the clean-up of country’s banking sector [neo-imperialism-news] Paywall Summary (?): After an initial COVID battering and a deep recession, Ukraine needed some financing. To get this standby arrangement from the IMF, Zelensky's government had to first pass reforms to clean up banking (so maybe not the worst IMF deal). Basically a bunch of oligarchs (including Zelensky-backer Kolomoisky) ran some banks very poorly, so they got nationalized in 2016 when a $5.5bn hole was found. This bill will prevent them from taking control of those assets again, or obtaining compensation through the court system (which is "notoriously corrupt"). Upon agreeing with the IMF, this will, FT reports, "unlock billions of dollars of additional funding from the EU, the World Bank and other international financial institutions".
• Financial Times (26/11/21): Ukraine has uncovered Russian-backed coup plot, says president - Volodymyr Zelensky says plans were being made to unseat him as early as next week Paywall Summary (?): In addition to what is covered in the Guardian (26/11/21) (that Ukrainians are allegedly plotting with Russians, and aim to get Ukraine's richest oligarch Rinet Akhmetov involved), FT reports some interesting context. Akhmetov supported pro-Russian former president Yanukovich (who was ousted in 2014, now in exile in Russia), and while initially a vigorous supporter of Zelensky (who, during the election campaign, was an outsider comedian), has since turned on him. FT reports this is because Zelensky has been going after oligarch control of the nation, and so Akhmetov has turned on him. [russia-policy-news]
• The Guardian (26/11/21): Ukraine has uncovered Russian-linked coup plot, says president - Volodymyr Zelenskiy says there is evidence of ‘coup d’état’ being planned for early December
• Just Security (23/11/21): The U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria has voiced “deep concern” over Bulgarian President Rumen Radev’s comments about Crimea belonging to Russia. In a presidential debate with his center-right opponent Anastas Gerdzhikov on Thursday, Radev said that the Crimean Peninsula was “currently Russian,” adding, “what else can it be?” “The United States, G-7, European Union, and NATO have all been clear and united in our position that, despite Russia’s attempted annexation and ongoing occupation, Crimea is Ukraine,” the U.S. Embassy said in a statement. AP reports. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): Two refitted former U.S. Coast Guard patrol boats intended to bolster the Ukrainian navy have arrived at a Ukrainian port, the Ukrainian navy has said. Reuters reports. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): President Biden’s administration is weighing sending military advisers and new equipment including weapons to Ukraine, as Russia builds up forces near the border, multiple sources have said. The proposed lethal aid package from the U.S. to Ukraine could include air defense systems, new Javelin anti-tank and anti-armor missiles as well as mortars, according to the sources. “But others in the administration are concerned that sending stingers and helicopters could be seen by Russia as a major escalation. And while they are prepared to send some military advisers into the region, it is unclear whether any would go into Ukraine itself, the people said,” Natasha Bertrand, Jim Sciutto and Katie Bo Lillis report for CNN. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): The Kremlin has rebutted growing U.S. warnings about a buildup of Russian troops and military assets at Russia’s border with Ukraine that could be used to attack Ukraine, accusing Washington of seeking to destabilize the region
• Common Dreams (22/11/21): The High Stakes of the U.S.-Russia Confrontation Over Ukraine - Americans should beware of romanticizing the "old" Cold War as a time of peace, simply because we somehow managed to dodge a world-ending nuclear holocaust. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): The U.S. has shared intelligence with its European allies that shows the build up of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine. The intelligence lays out a scenario where Russian troops would enter Ukraine from Crimea, the Russian border and via Belarus, with potentially 100,000 soldiers deployed in rough terrain and freezing conditions, people familiar with the conversations have said. Alberto Nardelli and Jennifer Jacobs report for Bloomberg. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/11/21): Ukraine Border Service Says No Sign of Russian Troops
• Just Security (19/11/21): Ukraine should set aside money to build a fence on its borders with Belarus and Russia to prevent a possible influx of illegal migrants, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy said today. Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets report for Reuters. [immigrant-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has imposed sanctions on 28 employees of Russia’s special services. The individuals will be banned for three years from using their assets in Ukraine, transferring capital, transiting goods or taking part in privatization auctions, according to the decree published on the presidential website. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (17/11/21): Cyber hackers thought to be behind attacks on governmental agencies in recent months have been linked to the Belarusian government. Researchers for the cybersecurity company Mandiant assessed with “high confidence” in a new report that the “Ghostwriter” information operations campaign was “aligned with Belarusian government interests.” Mandiant also linked another group of hackers – who have conducted cyber espionage against government and private sector entities in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine and Germany – to the Belarusian government. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The defense ministers of Ukraine and the U.K. have said that they are not trying to encircle or undermine Russia but are committed to Ukraine’s territorial integrity, amid concerns about Russian troop movements near Ukraine’s borders.
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Germany suspends approval for Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline - Move follows mounting political pressure to scrap project in setback to Kremlin-backed project - Energy markets across Europe surged after the German energy regulator suspended its certification process [big-oil-news, energy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Russia is positioning troops 125 miles from the Ukrainian border, while “America is warning its European allies that it considers an invasion a genuine possibility.” [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (12/11/21): Staff of Shuttered Kyiv Post Announce ‘Independent’ Relaunch Effort [media-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): The Kremlin has dismissed the Bloomberg report which suggested that the U.S. is worried that Russia will launch an attack on Ukraine
• The Guardian (8/11/21) Ukrainian English-language newspaper Kyiv Post suspends publication - Journalists on publication release statement saying that all employees were ‘immediately’ fired [capitalist-farce-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, media-news]
• The Moscow Times (3/11/21): Ukraine Denies Russian Military Buildup on Border as Defense Minister Quits [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (3/11/21): Russia has 90,000 troops near Ukraine border, Kyiv says - Ukrainian defence ministry says Moscow has left military units along the frontier after recent training exercises. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (4/11/21): A study of weapons and ammunition used in the war in Ukraine has shown a panoply of Russian-supplied arms that has helped fuel the war. A new report, one of the most comprehensive to date on the issue, funded by the E.U. and the German government has offered a fine-grained view of illicit weapons transfers in Ukraine. Earlier analyses have also concluded that Russia is sending arms to the war in Ukraine, however the new report is the first to focus on actual armaments which had been taken from captured or killed separatist fighters or positions they had occupied. [russia-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Veteran Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Junta
• The Moscow Times (27/10/21): Ukraine Destroys Pro-Russian Artillery in Its First Use of Turkish Drones
• The Moscow Times (21/10/21): Four Russians Detained in Turkey on Military Espionage Charges
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Ukraine to produce Turkish armed drones: Minister - Ukraine has previously used the Turkish armed drones against pro-Russian separatists in the country’s east.
• CPJ (5/10/21): Ukrainian state bank personnel seize journalists’ equipment, delete footage
• Just Security (5/10/21): Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office has sought to justify his use of offshore companies as protecting him against pro-Russian forces. The files in the Pandora Papers claim that Zelenskyy, who was elected president of Ukraine in 2019, and his partners established a network of offshore companies back in 2012. According to the findings, “two of the offshore companies belonging to Zelenskyy’s partners were used to buy three lavish properties in central London…An adviser to Zelenskyy’s chief of staff said on Monday that the president had created the offshore companies to ‘protect’ the group’s incomes against the ‘aggressive actions’ of the ‘corrupt’ government of then pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych,” Al Jazeera reports.
• The Moscow Times (28/9/21): Two Killed in Ukraine Separatist East
• Democracy Now (23/9/21): Adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Survives Assassination Attempt
• Just Security (22/9/21): Suggestions of possible Russian involvement in an attempted assassination of a Ukrainian presidential aide “have nothing to do with reality,” a Kremlin spokesperson has said [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (20/9/21): Ukraine began joint military exercises with U.S. and other NATO troops today [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/9/21): Two Ukraine soldiers die in clashes with separatists - The Ukrainian army is locked in a conflict with breakaway fighters in Donetsk and Lugansk that erupted after Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula in 2014.
• Just Security (9/9/21): Shelling from rebel held areas in the east of Ukraine has wounded at least six troops and disrupted railway services, while the Russian-backed separatists said two civilians had been wounded in shelling from the Ukrainian side. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/9/21): Russia’s FSB security service has accused Ukrainian military intelligence of organizing an attack on a gas pipeline on Russian-annexed Crimea after Moscow arrested a Crimean Tatar leader over the incident
• The Moscow Times (22/8/21): Merkel Struggles to Reassure Ukraine on Nord Stream 2
• Democracy Now (4/8/21): Ukraine Probe Death of Belarusian Activist
• The Moscow Times (3/8/21): Missing Belarus Activist Found Hanged in Ukraine
• Just Security (22/7/21): The foreign ministries of Ukraine and Poland have reacted bitterly to the U.S.- Germany deal, saying in a joint statement that the “resignation from attempts to stop the launch” of the pipeline creates a “political, military and energy threat for Ukraine and Central Europe, while increasing Russia’s potential to destabilize the security situation in Europe.”
• Just Security (21/7/21): Officials from Biden’s administration have quietly urged their Ukrainian counterparts to withhold criticism of a forthcoming agreement between the U.S. and Germany involving the Nord Stream 2 pipeline
• The Hill (20/7/21): US won't block completion of Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline
• World Socialist Web Site (5/7/21): Far-right thugs attack prominent Ukrainian journalist Ruslan Kotsaba
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): ‘Mockery’: Backlash after Ukraine women troops march in heels - Defence ministry images showing women soldiers practising for parade in heels prompt a torrent of criticism.
• Al Jazeera (28/6/21): Ukraine, US launch Black Sea drills despite Russian protest - Major exercise involving thousands of troops, dozens of ships comes days after Russian incident with a British destroyer off Crimea.
• Ars Technica (18/6/21): Ukraine arrests ransomware gang in global cybercriminal crackdown - Arrests of Cl0p hacker group members adds to pressure on other countries to follow suit.
• New York Times (5/5/21): 80,000 Russian Troops Remain at Ukraine Border as NATO Holds Exercise - Biden administration officials said they saw the sustained deployment as a message from Moscow that it could match the number of troops taking part in the exercise.
• World Socialist Web Site: Ukrainian President Zelensky deepens alliance with far right
• Just The Issues (video) The Ukraine Crisis Explained | Just the Issues (via u/JustTheIssues on r/labor)

East Asia Updates

China / Hong Kong / Japan / Mongolia / North Korea / Philippines / South Korea / Taiwan / Tuvalu

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Coming Soon

• South China Morning Post (19/11/21): South China Sea: 300 Chinese ‘maritime militia’ vessels in Spratly Islands at any time, says US report - Chinese boats receive US$3,700 government fuel subsidy a day for operating in disputed waters, says CSIS report - Researcher disputes that the crews are militia, saying most Chinese fisherman do not have military training [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (5/11/21): The U.S. Navy has sacked three top crew members aboard the nuclear submarine, USS Connecticut, that crashed into an underwater mountain (a “seamount”) when operating in the South China Sea last month [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (2/11/21): A U.S. nuclear-powered submarine that struck an underwater object in early October hit an uncharted underwater mountain, an investigation has found. The USS Connecticut had been operating in the contested waterway when it struck the object on Oct. 2, forcing it to head from the South China Sea to Guam for repairs [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (8/10/21): A nuclear powered U.S. navy attack submarine has struck an object while submerged in international waters in the South China Sea, officials have said.
• Just Security (11/8/21): The U.S.-led annual Southeast Asia Cooperation and Training (SEACAT) military exercises have started in Singapore and online [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (7/6/21): Asia Pacific sees sharp rise in Covid infections as Delta strain threatens new wave - From South Korea to Australia, authorities are struggling to contain the highly transmissible coronavirus strain that has caused a surge in UK, Europe and US
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Cases of covid-19 continued to spread across Asia, from Nepal, which has been hit by India’s surge, to Taiwan, which has had few cases so far. New infections are mounting in Thailand, Malaysia and elsewhere in South-East Asia.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): China’s carrier group conducts exercises in South China Sea - Announcement comes after Beijing criticised the US for sending Navy ships into the strategic area.
• World Socialist Web Site: UK to send largest Carrier Strike Group since Falklands/Malvinas war to South China Sea (propaganda heads up: Uyghur cultural genocide downplaying)

China Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

CaspianReport (31/8/21): How China became the world’s factory

Important Note on South China Morning Post

NPC Observer

Relevant tags: bri-news, china-policy-news;

• CNBC (31/12/21): China warns Walmart over alleged removal of Xinjiang-sourced products from stores [china-policy-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (31/12/21): Beijing Fell Short on Trade Deal Promises, Creating Dilemma for Biden - China missed targets for buying U.S. goods, but retaliating could come at a cost to American companies and consumers [us-policy-news, china-policy-news, economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): China was supposed to purchase around $200bn of American exports, and fell short, forcing Biden to have to come up with some sort of response, which isn't aided by his lack of clear policy here, falling 17% short for agriculture, 41% on manufacturing, and 62% on energy, and likely 32% for service exports.
• Washington Post (30/12/21): Locked down in China’s Xi’an amid coronavirus outbreak, residents subsist on deliveries of vegetables [social-woes-news, covid-news]
• South China Morning Post (31/12/21): China’s tax evaders to be ‘severely punished’ as Beijing pushes for ‘common prosperity’ - Authorities will carry out more spot inspections and give greater exposure to tax crimes to help compliance - China’s small firms, individually-owned businesses and manufacturers are also in line for tax cuts in 2022 [tax-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): Activists denounce China’s secret residential surveillance system - Campaigners say China has ‘systematised arbitrary and secret detention’ by holding thousands of people under ‘Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location’. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• The Guardian (27/12/21): China anger after space station forced to move to avoid Elon Musk Starlink satellites - China said its space station deployed prevention collision avoidance control measures in July and October and called on the US to ‘bear responsibility’ [us-policy-news]
• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• The Irrawaddy (27/12/21): China Provides Submarine to Myanmar Junta [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (27/12/21): Shenzhen party boss takes over as acting governor of Guangdong province - Promotion is expected to pave the way for Wang Weizhong, 59, to become a full member of the policymaking Central Committee - As China’s top exporter, southern province will be under pressure to keep its economy on a steady course next year, observer says Important Note on SCMP [!]
• South China Morning Post (27/12/21): SpaceX Starlink satellites twice came too close, China tells UN chief - All parties to Outer Space Treaty must remember pledge to act responsibly, China tells UN secretary general in diplomatic note - SpaceX says its Starlink satellites are equipped with autonomous orbit-changing features to avoid collisions [us-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Guardian (26/12/21): China replaces Xinjiang party boss associated with Uyghur crackdown - It is not known if Chen Quanguo’s replacement by Guangdong governor Ma Xingrui signals fresh approach
• South China Morning Post (25/12/21): Xinjiang Communist Party boss and US sanctions target Chen Quanguo to leave post - State news agency Xinhua reports Chen Quanguo will be moving on to another role and replaced by Guangdong governor Ma Xingrui - Chen has been accused by the West of being behind widespread human rights abuses against Uygurs, but is tipped for further promotion Important Note on SCMP
• The Guardian (24/12/21): China to equip and train Solomon Islands police after anti-China unrest - Pacific Island nation to host six Chinese officers as well as receiving shields, helmets and batons, says government [china-policy-news]
• The Guardian (24/12/21): Chinese officials face punishment over Covid lockdown in Xian - Disciplinary body says people to be held accountable for failing in efforts to prevent and control outbreak [covid-news]
• Foreign Affairs (23/12/21): China’s Soft-Power Advantage in Africa - Beijing Isn’t Just Building Roads—It’s Making Friends [china-policy-news, analysis-news, bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (23/12/21): Myanmar Junta Pushing China to Restart Stalled Infrastructure Projects [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• The Guardian (23/12/21): Intel apologises to China over Xinjiang products and labour directive - US chipmaker responds to backlash after telling its suppliers to avoid region at centre of human rights abuse allegations [china-policy-news]
• New York Times (23/12/21): Fury in China After an Outspoken Teacher Disappears - Supporters of Li Tiantian believe that local officials may have sent her to a psychiatric hospital, a longstanding way of stifling and discrediting dissent.[surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (23/12/21): China has defended its education exchange programs after a Harvard University professor was convicted earlier this week of lying to U.S. federal authorities and Harvard about his affiliation with China. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian declined to comment specifically on Charles Lieber’s case but reiterated China’s objection to the “repression of scientists and damage to normal China-U.S. scientific and technological exchange.” Joseph Choi reports for The Hill. [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (22/12/21): China’s economic downturn ramps up urgency for Beijing to keep market expectations in check - China’s GDP growth seen weakening to 2.9 per cent in first-quarter 2022, Nomura economist forecasts - Beijing is urged to be cautious in introducing policies that have a contractionary effect [economic-news] Important Note on SCMP
• ZDNet (22/12/21): Chinese regulators suspend Alibaba Cloud over failure to report Log4j vulnerability - Alibaba Cloud has been suspended from their information-sharing partnership with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology for six months. [cyber-security-news] [!]
• Just Security (21/12/21): China is expanding its grip on data about the world’s cargo flows, sparking concerns in Washington and among industry officials that Beijing could exploit logistics information for commercial or strategic advantage. China’s control over the flow of goods and information, including cargo that never touches its shores, gives Beijing privileged insight into world commerce and potentially the means to influence it, say cargo-industry officials. Shipping data has become a valuable commodity in light of shortages plaguing many industries and global backlogs in ports. Daniel Michaels reports for the Wall Street Journal. [logistics-news, china-policy-news]
• Wall Street Journal (8/12/21): Beijing Reins In China’s Central Bank - The PBOC was never independent but it has tried to establish good communication with markets. Xi Jinping’s financial shake-up is changing that. [economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): WSJ reports that the PBOC under governor Zhou Xiaochuan strained to become increasingly independent, and managed to achieve some autonomy and legitimacy in the eyes of the market. However, since retiring, the PBOC has been under increasing pressure, with "discipline inspectors" visiting the bank's headquarters. Beijing is trying to address concerns over lax regulations and 'overreliance on deb-tfuled property investments' (ie the Evergrande debacle), all amidst concerns of a slower-than-expected economic growth. This breach of autonomy was indicated recently by easing of bank's reserve requirements, which allows for more cash for lending. This follows comments from Premier Li Keqiang, contradicting earlier signals that no such changes would be made - indicating the Party increasingly is calling the shots at PBOC. If I read correctly, it seems there is agreement between the PBOC and the Party over the need to crackdown on such issues as property lending.
• Just Security (20/12/21): A set of documents reviewed by the New York Times have revealed how the Chinese government, in its global online campaign to improve its image and undercut accusations of human rights abuses, manipulates Facebook and Twitter. The documents, which were part of a request for bids from contractors, reveal “in stark detail how Chinese officials tap private businesses to generate content on demand, draw followers, track critics and provide other services for information campaigns. That operation increasingly plays out on international platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which the Chinese government blocks at home,” Muyi Xiao, Paul Mozur and Gray Beltran report for the New York Times. [big-tech-news, china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (19/12/21): China votes ‘no’ on Tigray abuses probe by UN team, calls it interference in Ethiopia’s affairs - UN Human Rights Council meeting requested by EU voted to set up three-member team to investigate alleged abuses in the Ethiopian civil war - Just weeks before, Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated Beijing’s support for the Ethiopian government during an unscheduled stop in Addis Ababa [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Guardian (19/12/21): Peng Shuai appearance fails to address concerns for tennis star’s wellbeing, says WTA - Peng retracts sexual assault claims in first foreign media interview - Women’s tennis governing body still wants ‘full and fair’ investigation' [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (17/12/21): China coal mine accident: 2 killed and 1 trapped in flooded pit but 20 rescued - The operation to save the men began in Shanxi province on Wednesday with hundreds working to drain the coal mine - Seven suspects have been detained and the mine owner is reported to have fled as authorities vow to crack down on illegal digging operations [industrial-failure-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• South China Morning Post (10/12/21): Tibet railway in focus as China vows change for landlocked Nepal, in move sure to worry India - China will help Nepal realise its dream of becoming a ‘land-linked country’, Foreign Minister Wang Yi tells post-quake reconstruction conference - US$8 billion cross-border railway from south Tibet to Kathmandu is key project in China’s belt and road plan in South Asia and a strategic worry for India [china-policy-news, rail-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (16/12/21): China’s internet censors are taking down top influencers for not being good enough socialists - Luo Changping’s Weibo account, with 2 million followers, was closed in October after he was arrested for posting ‘insults’ about Chinese soldiers portrayed in a movie - Top influencers, even if they are individuals or private firms, must abide by the law and ‘vigorously promote core socialist values’, the internet watchdog said [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Financial Times (14/12/21): US to blacklist eight more Chinese companies including dronemaker DJI - American investors will be barred from taking stakes in groups accused of involvement in Xinjiang abuses [us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Not much to add here.
• South China Morning Post (15/12/21): Apple blocks mainland Chinese users from seeing some geographic information on its Compass app - The changes came with Apple’s latest software updates, including iOS 15.1, which was released in China in late October, and watchOS 8.3, released this week - Under Chinese law, foreign organisations must acquire a licence from the State Council and the Chinese military to carry out surveying and mapping activities [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (15/12/21): Foreign influencers used to whitewash Xinjiang abuses: Report - Think tank says Beijing using foreign social media creators to ‘neutralise critical reporting’ of treatment of Uighurs. [china-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (15/12/21): The House has voted unanimously to ban imports from China’s Xinjiang region over concerns about human rights abuses and the use of forced labor [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): How armed drones may have helped turn the tide in Ethiopia’s war - Cheap and efficient drones are increasingly becoming decisive weapons in modern conflicts.
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): China's support for Ethiopian government complicates ties with Egypt - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Ethiopia to show his nation’s support for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government has put China’s relationship with Egypt to the test. [china-policy-news, bri-news]
• Just Security (14/12/21): Documents from Huawei Technologies suggest that the Chinese tech giant played a broader role in tracking China’s populace than the company previously acknowledged. A review by the Washington Post of more than 100 Huawei PowerPoint slides, many marked “confidential” though they were at one point posted to a public-facing website, “show Huawei pitching how its technologies can help government authorities identify individuals by voice, monitor political individuals of interest, manage ideological reeducation and labor schedules for prisoners, and help retailers track shoppers using facial recognition. ‘Huawei has no knowledge of the projects mentioned in the Washington Post report,’ the company said in a statement,” Eva Dou reports for the Washington Post. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (12/12/21): China’s Alibaba accused of firing female employee who alleged colleague sexually assaulted her - Woman reportedly says she has ‘not made any mistakes’ and will challenge dismissal after e-commerce firm claimed she spread false information [civil-rights-news] [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): China has donated one million Covid-19 vaccines to Nicaragua, days after Nicaragua cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favor of Beijing. BBC News reports. [china-policy-news, covid-news]
• Just Security (13/12/21): The U.S. has imposed extensive human rights-related sanctions on dozens of people and entities tied to China, Myanmar, North Korea, and Bangladesh, and has added Chinese artificial intelligence company SenseTime Group to an investment blacklist. Canada and the U.K. joined the U.S. in imposing sanctions related to human rights abuses in Myanmar. China’s embassy in Washington denounced the U.S. move as “serious interference in China’s internal affairs.” Daphne Psaledakis and David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis report for Reuters. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (9/12/21): China: editorial says Communist party members must have three children - Article that says ‘no party member should use any excuse’ to have only one or two children goes viral then disappears
• Just Security (10/12/21): The Uyghur Tribunal, a U.K.-based panel of lawyers, academics and activists, has concluded that China’s policies regarding the treatment of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang amount to a form of genocide. The panel’s judgment “found that the Chinese government, through policies including what it described as forced birth control and sterilizations, intends to partially destroy the predominantly Muslim Uyghur community and its way of life; and that Chinese President Xi Jinping and other senior officials bore ‘primary responsibility for acts in Xinjiang,’” Sha Hu reports for the Wall Street Journal. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/12/21): Nicaragua has cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favor of China. “In the world, there is only one China,” Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said in a televised address yesterday. “Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry expressed displeasure with the choice of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega to switch recognition to Beijing in a statement, and said it would immediately cease assistance programs and clear out its embassy in Managua,” Joyu Wang reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• The Economist (11/12/21): In word and deed, China is easing economic policy - Both the central bank’s actions and the Politburo’s words point to modest easing - So are China’s policymakers easing or not? The short answer is yes, they are indeed easing. But not without qualms and qualifications. They want to stabilise growth. But they do not want to revive speculation, especially in property. Their expansionary actions are therefore accompanied by a lot of clarificatory and cautionary chitter-chatter. [china-policy-news, economic-news]
• The Economist (11/12/21): The economics of a new China-Laos train line - Why connectivity matters [bri-news]
• Wall Street Journal (9/12/21): U.A.E. Shut Down China Facility Under U.S. Pressure, Emirates Says - Construction rattled relations between Washington and Gulf ally over concerns that Beijing was building military facility [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The UAE said, while carrying out the order, it didn't believe the facility was for military uses, which the Chinese Cosco shipping conglomerate "operates a commecial container terminal". The UAE is close with the US on several issues, such as the Abraham Accords, a diplomatic operation involving Arab-Israeli reconciliation and diplomacy, as well as a planned $23bn sale of 50 US F-35 5th generation fighter jets, 18 Reaper drones "and other advanced munitions".
• ProPublica (8/12/21): China Unleashed Its Propaganda Machine on Peng Shuai’s #MeToo Accusation. Her Story Still Got Out. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): A new report by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has said that China is “the world’s biggest captor of journalists,” with at least 127 reporters currently detained. The report said “China was conducting an ‘unprecedented campaign of repression’ worldwide against journalism. China has justified the arrests of reporters and citizen journalists by accusing them of provoking trouble,” BBC News reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): A member of Bloomberg News’s bureau in Beijing has been detained in China since late last year, with no information forthcoming on her case. Haze Fan was last seen on Dec. 7 2020, while being escorted from her apartment building by plainclothes security officials. Chinese officials said at the time that Fan was detained by the Beijing National Security Bureau on suspicion of national security law violations. Madeleine Lim reports for Bloomberg News. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Australia has announced a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, following the announcement of the U.S. diplomatic boycott. New Zealand has said that it decided months ago that its diplomats would not be attending. In July, the European Parliament overwhelmingly passed a nonbinding resolution calling on diplomatic officials to boycott the Winter Olympics, however, an official response yesterday from the European Commission, the European Union’s executive arm, to a question about the boycott offered no support for the U.S. position. Steven Lee Myers and Steven Erlanger report for the New York Times.
• Ars Technica (7/12/21): Report: Apple CEO Tim Cook engineered a secret $275 billion deal with China - Apple invested heavily in Chinese tech to prevent hostile regulations. [big-tech-news]
• Financial Times (7/11/21): Beijing seeks to orchestrate slow-motion collapse for Evergrande - Officials face challenge untangling heavily indebted group while minimising damage to property sector [economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): Evergrande recently set up a risk management committee, and state (central and regional) representatives just took a majority of seats on it (four of seven), which the FT reports shows the government effectively taking control of events at Evergrande. The idea is to "find third parties, espcially state-owned developers, to take over its [Evergrande's] development projects" (it's a real-estate developer that's $300bn in the hole right now), and effectively end Evergrande, reports a Beijing-based consultant, saying this is how the government has managed such situations in the past three to four years (such as with HNA). Evergrande "is the second-largest developer by sales in the world's second-largest economy, where the property sector is estimated to account for about one-third of total-economic output".
• Just Security (7/12/21): Microsoft has announced that a federal court has granted a request to allow Microsoft to seize websites being used by a Chinese-based hacking group that is targeting organizations in the U.S. and 28 other nations. “The hacking group, which Microsoft has dubbed ‘Nickel,’ was observed to be targeting think tanks, human rights organizations, government agencies and diplomatic organizations for intelligence gathering purposes,” Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): U.S. diplomats are to boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (6/12/21): The governing body of tennis, the International Tennis Federation, has not followed the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) in suspending tournaments in China because it “does not want to punish a billion people.” The WTA has halted tournaments in China because of continued concern for Chinese player Peng Shuai, who accused a top Chinese government official of sexual assault. BBC Sport reports.
• The Economist (4/12/21): China says it is more democratic than America - Western dysfunction tempts the Communist Party to make risky boasts
• Telesur (3/12/21): Historic China-Laos Railway Commences Operations - The China-Laos Railway, a landmark project of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, started operation on Friday. [bri-news] Note about Telesur
• The Elephant (3/12/21): China and Africa’s Debt Crisis - Ahead of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Tim Zajontz looks at the immense amounts of debt African governments owe Chinese lenders. This debt is central to capitalist accumulation and financial extraction from the African continent. Zajontz argues that Chinese capital is now pivotal to the global circuit of capital and China, just like other creditors, uses debt for the conquest of Africa and its resources. [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (4/12/21): America’s air-force secretary said his country was engaged in an “arms race” with China in the development of hypersonic weapons. He said this did not necessarily involve boosting their number, but rather their quality. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has said that China tested such technology this year, calling it close to a “Sputnik moment”. This is pretty scary rhetoric [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (1/12/21): WTA suspends tournaments in China amid concern for Peng Shuai - Association questions whether player is allowed to speak freely - Peng made allegations against a former senior Chinese official [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• South China Morning Post (2/12/21): Beijing asks Democratic Republic of Congo to help gain release of kidnapped Chinese miners - Foreign Minister Wang Yi makes the request of his DRC counterpart at a meeting on the sidelines of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation - Two Chinese citizens were killed and five kidnapped in a militia attack on a gold mine on November 21 [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (1/12/21): South China Sea: Beijing demanded Indonesia stop oil and natural gas drilling during stand-off - In a letter to Indonesia’s foreign ministry, Chinese diplomats told Jakarta to halt drilling at the Natunas rig because it was taking place in Chinese territory - An Indonesian lawmaker said Beijing also protested against the Garuda Shield military exercises with the US that took place during the stand-off [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (3/12/21): Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai has “reconfirmed” that she is safe and well given the “difficult situation” she is in, in a second call with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the organization has said. Peng publicly accused a former top Communist Party official, Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli, of coercing her into sex at his home three years ago in a since-deleted social media post dated November 2. Amy Woodyatt, Ben Morse, Nectar Gan, Emmet Lyons and Alicia Lloyd report for CNN.
• Just Security (3/12/21): Twitter has shut down thousands of state-linked accounts in China that seek to counter evidence of human rights abuses in Xinjiang. The accounts were part of what experts have described as a propaganda operation, which used photos and images, shell and potentially automated accounts, and fake Uyghur profiles, to disseminate state propaganda and fake testimonials about their happy lives in Xinjiang. Helen Davidson reports for the Guardian. [big-tech-news]
• Just Security (3/12/21): The U.S. annual defense bill (the National Defense Authorization Act or NDAA), which sets the policy agenda and authorizes funding for the Pentagon, is also stalled in the Senate in part because of a disagreement over Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL)’s push to include an amendment that would place more import restrictions on Chinese goods manufactured by Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities in China’s Xinjiang province [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/12/21): The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which would stop the importation to the U.S. of products connected to abuses of Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities in China’s Xinjiang region, is stuck in Congress after passing the Senate unanimously in July. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman reportedly told co-sponsor of the bill Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) to slow down the approval of the bill, indicating that President Biden’s administration prefers a more targeted approach to determining which goods are the products of forced labor. Josh Rogin provides analysis for the Washington Post. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): Meta (formerly Facebook) has announced that it has removed hundreds of accounts, pages and groups linked to a Chinese effort to spread disinformation claiming that the U.S. is pressurizing the World Health Organization to blame the Covid-19 pandemic on China. Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [big-tech-news]
• Caspian Report (19/10/21): Why China cannot abandon communism
• The Guardian (29/11/21): Leaked papers link Xinjiang crackdown with China leadership - Secret documents urge population control, mass round-ups and punishment of Uyghurs
• David Pakman Show (30/10/21): Legitimate Reasons to Criticize China
• South China Morning Post (29/11/21): China’s super app WeChat allows more direct links from competitors under pressure from Beijing - Users will be able to open external links during one-to-one chats, and can open external shopping links shared in group chats - WeChat, which has 1.25 billion monthly active users, said it would develop new functions so users can manage the links they receive [big-tech-news, antitrust-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (28/11/21): China expands African reach as Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau join belt and road ahead of key regional forum - President Xi Jinping to deliver keynote speech via video link at Forum on China-Africa Cooperation ministerial meeting starting on November 29 - Eritrea deal cements China’s foothold in Horn of Africa and Red Sea, while Guinea-Bissau access will boost its maritime interests along West African coast [bri-news, china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Democracy Now (30/11/21): Nurses Demand COVID-19 Vaccine Patent Waiver; China Pledges 1 Billion Doses for Africa [covid-news, healthcare-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• Just Security (30/11/21: The Pentagon is to focus on building bases in Guam and Australia to better prepare the U.S. military to counter China, a senior defense official has said. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (30/11/21: A newly published cache of documents directly links top Chinese leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, to the crackdown on Uyghur Muslims and other minorities in China. The documents, which were passed to the independent Uyghur Tribunal in the U.K., include speeches and statements from Chinese Communist Party leaders, which analysts say prove senior government leaders called for measures that led to mass internment and forced labor in the Xinjiang province. BBC News reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (30/11/21: Security officials in China’s Henan province, one of China’s largest provinces, have commissioned a surveillance system that they want to use to track journalists and international students among other “suspicious people.” A July 29 tender document details plans for a system that can compile files on people of interest coming to Henan using 3,000 facial recognition cameras that connect to national and regional databases. The contract was awarded in September to Chinese technology company Neusoft, which was due to complete construction of the system within two months. It is not known whether the system is currently being used. Reuters reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): Taiwan’s air force scrambled fighter jets yesterday to warn away 27 Chinese aircraft that entered its air defense zone, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said. The latest Chinese mission included 18 fighters jets plus five nuclear-capable H-6 bombers, as well as, unusually, a Y-20 aerial refueling aircraft, the Taiwan ministry said. Reuters reports. [china-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): China downgraded its diplomatic relations with Lithuania after the Baltic state allowed a Taiwanese trade office to open there using the name Taiwan instead of Taipei, the name often used by the island’s missions abroad. [china-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Global tennis stars voiced concern about a Chinese peer, Peng Shuai, who had accused a former vice-premier of China of sexual abuse. The allegation was scrubbed from the Chinese internet. Chinese media released videos of Ms Peng and an email purportedly by her retracting it. But doubts persisted about her well-being. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): A U.S. warship sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait today as part of what the U.S. military calls routine activity but which will likely add to Beijing’s perception that Washington is trying to stir regional tensions. The Navy said that the warship conducted a “routine Taiwan Strait transit” through international waters in accordance with international law. Reuters reports. [us-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (23/11/21): Chinese-Owned Banana Plantations Fueling Exploitation in Myanmar [bri-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (22/11/21): Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu fined by China’s competition watchdog - Tech firms ordered to pay $3.4m for 43 antitrust violations amid crackdown on monopolies. [antitrust-news] Wow, a whole $3.4m! Sure that'll hurt!
• New York Times (20/11/21): How Hunter Biden’s Firm Helped Secure Cobalt for the Chinese - The president’s son was part owner of a venture involved in the $3.8 billion purchase by a Chinese conglomerate of one of the world’s largest cobalt deposits. The metal is a key ingredient in batteries for electric vehicles. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (22/11/21): Chinese Tennis Star Peng Shuai Appears in Videos and Photos As Concerns Over Safety Remain [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): Peng Shuai said she was safe and well in a video call on Sunday with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach, the IOC has said. “She explained that she is safe and well, living at her home in Beijing, but would like to have her privacy respected at this time,” a statement from the IOC said. “She prefers to spend her time with friends and family right now…Nevertheless, she will continue to be involved in tennis,” the statement added. BBC News reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): China’s hypersonic weapons test from July included technological advances that allowed it to fire a missile mid-flight over the South China Sea as it approached its target, travelling at least five times the speed of sound. No country has previously demonstrated this technology, with China’s test catching Pentagon scientists and U.S. intelligence agencies off guard. Demetri Sevastopulo reports for the Financial Times. [china-policy-news]
• The Michael Brooks Show (6/6/19): First Wave Of African Liberation & Neo-Colonization ft. Milton Allimadi (TMBS 92) [history-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• South China Morning Post (19/11/21): South China Sea: 300 Chinese ‘maritime militia’ vessels in Spratly Islands at any time, says US report - Chinese boats receive US$3,700 government fuel subsidy a day for operating in disputed waters, says CSIS report - Researcher disputes that the crews are militia, saying most Chinese fisherman do not have military training [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Democracy Now (19/11/21): Chinese Tennis Star Peng Shuai Has Not Been Seen In Weeks After Posting About Assault by Politician - Concerns are mounting for Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai, who mysteriously disappeared from public view after she accused a top Chinese politician of sexual assault. 35-year-old Peng made the accusation against former vice premier Zhang Gaoli in a social media post on November 2 and has not been seen since. Censors deleted the post from social media platform Weibo within 30 minutes of its publication and Chinese authorities have since dodged or denied the issue. The Women’s Tennis Association threatened to cut ties with China, and say an email published by Chinese state media, purportedly written to the WTA by Peng, was a fraud. Tennis’s biggest names, including Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams, have tweeted out messages of support with the hashtag #WhereIsPengShuai.
• Just Security (19/11/21): The Biden administration added more U.S. troops to Taiwan over the past few months, according to newly published Defense Department data. There are now nearly 40 troops on the island, making the U.S. footprint on the island nearly twice as big as last year. The U.S. troops are there to train Tawainese troops and protect the de facto U.S. embassy on the island. However, the small but steadily growing U.S. footprint on Taiwan “could represent increased concern in the White House and Pentagon over the island’s fate,” Jack Detsch reports for Foreign Policy. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): China is making an example of the Chinese journalist jailed after reporting on the Covid-19 pandemic in Wuhan, her former lawyer has said. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): China’s hypersonic missile test from the summer went “around the world,” Gen. John Hyten, outgoing vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has said. The missle “went around the world, dropped off a hypersonic glide vehicle that glided all the way back to China, that impacted the target in China,” Hyten told CBS News. Hyten also said that he is “very concerned” about China’s military buildup. CBS News reports.
• The Guardian (17/11/21): Chinese vessels use water cannon to block Philippines vessels from disputed shoal - Philippines voices its ‘outrage and condemnation’, saying actions by coastguard in South China Sea were illegal [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Just one day after a meeting between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the two countries have announced an agreement easing restrictions on foreign journalists operating in the U.S. and China
• Just Security (16/11/21): President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping held virtual talks yesterday in an attempt to reduce tensions between the two countries. Throughout the virtual meeting the two leaders engaged in “healthy debate,” but there were no breakthroughs, according to a senior administration official. Officials also dismissed the notion that the summit was intended to ease the increasingly tense relationship between China and the U.S. on issues including trade, military aggression towards Taiwan and human rights. Analysis of what was discussed at the virtual meeting is provided by Kevin Liptak reporting for CNN. [us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): In 2018, a Chinese state-controlled company bought an Italian manufacturer of military drones and began transferring the company’s technical expertise and equipment to China. The technology had been used by the Italian military in Afghanistan, and the Italian and E.U. authorities had no knowledge of the move. Analysts have said that the takeover fits a pattern of Chinese state firms using ostensibly private shell companies as fronts to obtain companies with specific technologies that they then shift to new facilities in China. “Italian authorities are currently investigating the takeover of Alpi Aviation Srl by a Hong Kong-registered company that they say is a front for the Chinese state and was in the process of transferring the company’s technical and intellectual property to a new production site in China,” James Marson and Giovanni Legorano report for the Wall Street Journal.
• Al Jazeera (11/11/21): China’s Evergrande repays bondholders: Source - Reports of coupon payments by troubled property giant ease fears of destabilising default [economic-news]
• Financial Times (11/11/21): Swedish oil executives charged with complicity in Sudan war crimes - Lundin case is first prosecution of corporate bosses for such serious offences since Nuremberg trials [big-oil-news, war-crime-news, capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): In 1999 Lundin, a fossil fuel corporation, wanted access to oil in what is now South Sudan (then the southern part of Sudan); to gain access, they enlisted the aid of the Sudanese government to act as security. To do so meant ripping up a peace accord, and they knowingly went forward with it, unleashing bloody conflict laced with crimes against humanity. In addition to the charges, Lundin will have to hand over $160m in assets (they're mostly involved in Norwegian oil development today, selling out of Sudan in 2003). Sweden has universal jurisdiction, which they've used in many war crimes cases, but this one is notable as it involves Swedish nationals. Note: While unrelated, this case brings to my attention a dimension of the conflict I was not aware of (that oil investment stirred conflict here in the 90s). Important to note is Chinese complicity in the violence here too; they had major oil investments in the country at the time, and sent soldiers to defend those oil fields and weapons to the Sudanese, thereby aiding the oppressors there (see wiki note) [china-policy-news].
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Biden and Xi Jinping to Hold Virtual Summit Amid Ongoing Tensions
• Just Security (12/11/21): Chinese officials are working to get Uyghurs in foreign countries deported back to China. The officials are creating visa problems for Uyghurs and coercing them to become informants, according to documents submitted by Uyghur representatives to the International Criminal Court (ICC). This is the third attempt to have Chinese authorities investigated by the ICC. The ICC rejected previous complaints because China is outside its jurisdiction but asked for further evidence. Helen Davidson reports for the Guardian.
• Just Security (12/11/21): President Biden has signed legislation that will prevent companies deemed security threats from receiving new equipment licenses from U.S. regulators. The Secure Equipment Act is the latest effort to target Chinese telecom and tech companies, such as Huawei and ZTE Corp, and prevent their technology from entering the American communications network. The law requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to not approve or authorize any application for equipment that poses “an unacceptable risk to national security.” The FCC previously approved more than 3,000 applications by Huawei since 2018 [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): A high-level meeting of the Chinese Communist Party today has declared Chinese President Xi Jinping’s undisputed rule of “decisive significance” for China’s history, helping clear the way for Xi to obtain a near-inevitable third term that would extend his rule until at least 2027 [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (9/11/21): China delivers new warship to Pakistan Navy in ‘important milestone’ - It’s the largest and most advanced Chinese warship to be exported so far, according to the shipbuilder - Type 054A/P frigate was commissioned in Shanghai and is the first of four being built under a 2017 deal [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (10/11/21): China’s Eastern Theater Command yesterday night launched combat readiness drills near the Taiwan Strait, as a U.S. congressional delegation arrived in Taiwan, and Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense has reported that six Chinese warplanes have flown into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): China has criticized the use of a U.S. Navy aircraft to fly U.S. lawmakers to Taiwan for a routine trip this week, describing the visit as “sneaky.” [us-policy-news]
• Common Dreams (9/11/21): Corruption and Environmental Damage: Chinese Fossil Fuel Investments in Africa - African countries need investments, China needs raw materials, and African activists are fed up with the resulting corruption and environmental damage. [bri-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): China’s armed forces are capable of blockading Taiwan’s key harbors and airports, the island’s defense ministry has said. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): Satellite images appear to show that Beijing has built mockups of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier and destroyer in a northwestern desert in China
• South China Morning Post (7/11/21): Beijing sends 16 fighter jets towards Taiwan - Sorties come a day after European Parliament group ends three-day visit to the island - Taiwanese air force issues radio warnings and activates monitoring systems, defence ministry says [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): US court convicts Chinese intelligence agent of spying - Xu Yanjun was found guilty on two counts of conspiring and attempting to commit economic espionage, and three counts relating to trade secret theft.
• Just Security (8/11/21): A meeting of hundreds of members of China’s political elite, which is expected to further consolidate the power of Chinese President Xi Jinping, has commenced in Beijing.
• Wired (5/11/21): Ignore China’s New Data Privacy Law at Your PerilThe Personal Information Protection Law gives authorities the power to impose huge fines and blacklist companies. But the biggest impact may be felt outside the country. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, cyber-security-news]
• South China Morning Post (5/11/21): Chinese LGBT support group shuts down operations - LGBT Rights Advocacy China has suspended its activities indefinitely and closed its social media account amid an ongoing tightening of social controls - The group, which provided legal support in high-profile campaigns, says it looks forward to the ‘clouds dispersing’ one day [lgbtq-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (5/11/21): China arrests ex-secret police boss on corruption charges - Sun Lijun, a former vice-minister of public security, was formally arrested on suspicion of taking bribes, the state prosecutor said - Probe lasting 17 months indicates complexity of case involving man with ‘hugely inflated political ambitions’ and secret stash of ‘confidential materials’ Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (5/11/21): Chinese state firm weighs bid to acquire Alibaba’s SCMP - The South China Morning Post is Hong Kong’s most prominent English-language newspaper. [media-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (5/11/21): A Chinese citizen journalist who has been jailed for her coverage of China’s initial response to Covid-19 in Wuhan is close to death after going on a hunger strike, her family have said, sparking fresh calls for her release. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): A Chinese tennis star, Peng Shuai, posted a message on social media accusing a former deputy prime minister, Zhang Gaoli, of assaulting her sexually. Censors quickly moved to suppress online discussion of the case. [civil-rights-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (3/11/21): India ramps up Himalayan border security after clashes with China - New Delhi deploys cruise missiles, howitzers, choppers and Israeli-made drones along the treacherous mountain ranges. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (4/11/21): China is expanding its nuclear arsenal faster than expected, the Pentagon has said in a new report. The Pentagon’s report states that “Beijing likely intends to have 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030, including 700 ‘deliverable’ warheads by 2027, far outpacing the Defense Department’s previous estimates
• Just Security (3/11/21): American universities and research institutes are saying that the U.S.’s dominance in science and technology could be undermined by stricter U.S. visa requirements for Chinese students. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): China has accused the U.S. of a “lack of transparency and responsibility” regarding an accident in the South China Sea involving a Navy submarine last month. [us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (1/11/21): Will African conflicts threaten China’s business as usual approach? - Chinese investments in three countries – Ethiopia, Guinea and Sudan – could be threatened by wars and coups even though Beijing traditionally prefers to stay neutral - China’s vast range of infrastructure projects are particularly vulnerable to unrest and some observers believe there may be a long-term impact on investment [china-policy-news, bri-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (30/10/21): Chinese city boss removed from provincial role after summer’s devastating floods - Xu Liyi, Zhengzhou’s party chief, as been removed from the top decision-making body in Henan province - The change has not been officially linked to the floods, which killed at least 292 people in the city and prompted an investigation into the disaster response Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (29/10/21): China urges Sudan’s warring factions to come to the table, pledges to protect Chinese interests - Beijing is closely watching developments and will ensure the safety and security of Chinese institutions and people in Sudan, the foreign ministry said - At least seven people have been killed in Sudan since Monday as people take to the streets to protest against the power grab [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (29/10/21): Evergrande staves off second default in a week by paying US$45.2 million in overdue coupon before grace period runs out - Evergrande paid US$45.2 million of coupon due on its 9.5 per cent, US$951 million bond that matures on March 29, 2024, according to sources - Evergrande missed the payment on September 29, and was given 30 days to comply before bondholders are entitled to declare it in default Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (29/10/21): The U.S. Senate has unanimously passed the Secure Equipment Act, which will “further crack down on the use of telecommunications products from companies deemed to be a national security threat, such as those based in China.” [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): The U.S. is committed to helping Taiwan defend itself, the top U.S. representative in Taiwan, Sandra Oudkirk has said, amid heightened tensions between Taipei and Beijing [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): The second most senior U.S. general, outgoing Vice Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General John Hyten, has said that the pace at which China’s military is developing capabilities is “stunning,” while U.S. development suffers from “brutal” bureaucracy. [us-policy-news, security-news]
• Democracy Now (29/10/21): China Won’t Commit to New Emissions Targets Ahead of COP26 Climate Summit
• Just Security (28/10/21): China is to finance the construction of an outpost for a special forces unit of Tajikistan’s police near the Tajik-Afghan border, the Tajikistan’s parliament has said. No Chinese troops will be stationed at the facility, a parliament spokesperson said. “The plan to build the post comes amid tension between the Dushanbe government and Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers,” Reuters reports. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): China has said that Taiwan has no right to join the U.N. after Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicated U.S. support for the move. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has confirmed the presence of U.S. military trainers in Taiwan. Tsai made the remarks during an interview with CNN. Tsai would not say exactly how many U.S. military personnel are on the island at present but said it was “not as many as people thought,” adding that “we have a wide range of cooperation with the U.S. aiming at increasing our defense capability.” [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (28/10/21): Top U.S. General Compares Chinese Hypersonic Missile Test to “Sputnik Moment”
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Veteran Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Junta
• Just Security (27/10/21): The U.S. support’s Taiwan’s inclusion in the U.N. system, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said, a move that is likely to anger China [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/10/21): The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has revoked the authorization for China Telecom’s U.S. subsidiary to operate in the U.S. [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (25/10/21): China harasses Malaysian oil and gas vessels on a ‘daily’ basis, Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative says - Moves by Chinese coastguard and maritime militia said to be focused on Luconia Shoals, where Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas company is exploring a gas field - AMTI says civilian vessels there have been targeted daily for the past two years, and similar tactics now being used against Indonesian drillers in Natuna Sea [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki has clarified that there was no change in Taiwan policy after President Biden said that the U.S. would come to Taiwan’s defense if it were attacked by China [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/10/21): President Biden has said that the U.S. would come to Taiwan’s defense and has a committed to defend the island China claims as its own, forcing the White House to clarify that U.S. policy on the subject has not changed. [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (19/10/21): China sends in 100 rocket launchers to fortify border with India - Both sides send more supplies to high-altitude areas as winter approaches and boundary talks falter - PLA has the edge but weather is the real enemy, analyst says [china-policy-news]
• Financial Times (19/10/21): Piraeus port deal intensifies Greece’s unease over China links - Beijing cements control of key EU infrastructure but locals say they have not seen the investment they expected [privatization-news, bri-news] Paywall Summary (?): Piraeus is Europe's 4th largest container port, and Chinese-state-backed group Cosco owns 51% of the port (due to acquisitions from 2008 to Aug 2016 to last month). Locals are upset that this transfer has continued, as such was conditioned on investing in local infrastructure, which hasn't turned up. The EU finds this all concerning, and analysts have noted this is a warning of the perils of privatization. The first stakes by Cosco were made when Greece was forced to privatize its assets in 2008 as part of neoliberal austerity measures - and it seems Europe is starting to regret being so punitive. For China, the port is important, linking Asia, Africa, and Europe.
• The Guardian (20/10/21): China Evergrande shares fall sharply after $2.6bn asset sale falls through - ‘No guarantee’ Chinese property giant can meet its $305bn debts, starting with a deadline on Monday that could trigger default [economic-news]
• South China Morning Post (20/10/21): Death toll rises to 3 in China building explosion - Gas leak suspected to be behind the blast in Shenyang, provincial capital of Liaoning - Fire and rescue crews are on the scene as video released online shows smoke gushing from a building
• Just Security (20/10/21): Authorities in the northeastern Chinese city of Jilin are hunting for a North Korean defector who escaped from prison Monday night
• Just Security (19/10/21): A group of 10 naval vessels from China and Russia sailed through a strait separating Japan’s main island and its northern island of Hokkaido yesterday, the Japanese government has said. “The government is closely watching Chinese and Russian naval vessels’ activities around Japan like this one with high interest,” Japanese Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihiko Isozaki told a regular news conference [russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): Protestors have interrupted an Olympic flame lighting ceremony in Greece to challenge China’s human rights violations. The protestors carried a Tibetan flag and a banner reading, “No Genocide Games.” The protestors also called out Beijing’s genocide of the Uyghurs and other Muslim and minority populations. The protestors were arrested by police on the scene.
• Just Security (18/10/21): China tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile in August that circled the globe before speeding towards its target, according to people familiar with the test. “The missile missed its target by about two-dozen miles, according to three people briefed on the intelligence. But two said the test showed that China had made astounding progress on hypersonic weapons and was far more advanced than U.S. officials realized,” Demetri Sevastopulo and Kathrin Hille report for the Financial Times.
• Just Security (18/10/21): An American warship and a Canadian warship sailed through the Taiwan strait last week, the U.S. military has said, a move condemned by China amid heightened tensions between China and Taiwan [us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (18/10/21): Chinese Authorities Sentence More Hong Kong Democracy Campaigners to Prison
• Democracy Now (18/10/21): China Denies Report It Tested Nuclear-Capable Hypersonic Missile [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (15/10/21): Chinese media returns fire in info war with video of ‘captured Indians’ - Global Times journalist posts undated video on Twitter, calling PLA ‘the most civilised military force in treating prisoners of its enemies’ - Indian media had reported that 200 Chinese soldiers were detained near the disputed border – which a later report said was untrue [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (15/10/21): China and Bhutan reach deal on border talks ‘in test for India’ - Beijing and Thimphu agree on road map but give no details of the steps ahead - China’s move could be an attempt to hit back at countries that have accused it of aggression in the area, analyst says [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/10/21): LinkedIn has announced that it will be shutting down its professional networking service in China later this year due to “a significantly more challenging operating environment and greater compliance requirements.” LinkedIn, which is owned by Microsoft, has indicated that it would offer a new app for the Chinese market. In China, where Twitter and Facebook have been blocked for years and Google exited more than a decade ago, the departure of LinkedIn ends “one of the most far-reaching experiments by a foreign social network in China.” [big-tech-news]
• South China Morning Post (14/10/21): US raises concerns over Chinese construction at Cambodian naval base - Phnom Penh spokesman denies it is a facility for China’s military after American embassy calls for transparency - It comes after a CSIS report says satellite images show three new buildings have gone up and a road is being built [us-policy-news, china-policy-news] I don't care for the PRC, but imagine if they had military bases all over South America, and then started warning about the US building a harbor in Belize
• CPJ (14/10/21): China to ban private investment in the nation’s news industry
• Financial Times (12/10/21): Xi Jinping gambles on economic tumult to cement his legacy - Chinese president sees Evergrande crisis and power crunch as chances to enact tough reforms [china-policy-news, economic-news] Paywall Summary: Xi, harnessing the post-COVID recovery and potentially the first leader in a long time to have three terms, appears to face three goals: (1) pursuing "common prosperity", which FT makes out to be an effort to reduce inequality. (2) dealing with the Evergrande and real estate. The bubble appears to be about to pop, and Evergrande doesn't appear capable of paying its massive $300bn debt, threatening financial shockwaves within China; it could be forced to sell its massive amounts of land, which would sink land value in China - this could force nationalization, FT reports. (3) FT reports that the recent energy shortage issue China has been facing is a partly a function of "bad planning", yet part of its effort to obtain a greener grid. In the short term, it's not clear how to resolve this one, but long term FT seems to imply better planning is needed. Breakthrough!
• South China Morning Post (13/10/21): Intel sets up global video unit in China as it eyes huge volume of data and country’s IoT drive - The increasing deployment of cameras, for security and surveillance usage to broader areas like retail and manufacturing, has led to an explosion of video data - The IoT video business unit is the first time Intel has headquartered a business division in China [surveillance-and-censorship-news, big-tech-news]
• The Guardian (27/9/21): China to clamp down on abortions for ‘non-medical purposes’ - Policy uses women as tool for economic goals and could endanger their lives, says rights group
• Just Security (12/10/21): China’s military has said that it has carried out beach landing and assault drills in the province directly across the sea from Taiwan, though it did not link the military exercises with the current tensions between Beijing and Taipei.
• Just Security (12/10/21): The Pentagon’s ex-chief of software officer has said he resigned in protest at the slow pace of technological transformation in the U.S. military, compared to the fast pace in China [cyber-security-news, us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (12/10/21): Heavy Flooding in China Kills 15, Destroys 20,000 Homes
• Just Security (11/10/21): Talks between Indian and Chinese military commanders to solve a protracted standoff on a stretch of disputed Himalayan border have broken down. “Thousands of Indian and Chinese troops have been locked in a high-altitude face-off in India’s Ladakh region since last year, despite the two militaries holding more than a dozen rounds of talks to diffuse the situation. On Sunday, commanders met for the 13th time, with Indian officials emphasising that the confrontation had been triggered by ‘unilateral attempts of the Chinese side to alter the status quo,’ India’s defence ministry said in a statement,” Devjyot Ghoshal and Gabriel Crossley report for Reuters
• Just Security (11/10/21): On Saturday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for unification between China and Taiwan. [china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (11/10/21): Taiwan Vows Not to Bow to Pressure from China as Tension Escalates [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (10/10/21): Is there a dark side to China’s high-speed rail network? - Researchers say bullet trains could mean lower economic activity in some western parts of the country - The conclusion is based on analysis of satellite data showing changes in night light [rail-news]
• South China Morning Post (10/10/21): Five dead, thousands displaced in floods in China’s Shanxi province - Persistent downpours have brought five times the usual amount of rain to the normally arid area - Dams have collapsed, and coal mines have closed, adding fuel supply fears [energy-news]
• The Guardian (8/10/21): China orders coalmines to raise production to address power crunch - Record high prices and shortages of electricity have crippled industrial output [energy-news]
• Just Security (8/10/21): A nuclear powered U.S. navy attack submarine has struck an object while submerged in international waters in the South China Sea, officials have said.
• Just Security (8/10/21): CIA Director William Burns is establishing a major organization within the CIA focused on China
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): WSJ: U.S. Military Secretly Training Taiwanese Forces for Possible Conflict with China [us-policy-news]
• Financial Times (6/10/21): South Korea’s global battery dominance [about half of global production] raises supply chain risks - Industry alarmed by reliance on imports, particularly from China, as electric vehicles take off [logistics-news] Paywall Summary: Local political interest in industrial investment to manufacture more parts locally, as well as the (harder?) problem of finding chemical/material alternatives to to the raw material imports (ie rare earth metals) from nations like China.
• CPJ (6/10/21): Journalists’ profiles must be restored on LinkedIn’s China site, CPJ says
• Financial Times (6/10/21): Power crunch in China and India stokes global growth anxiety - Two big Asian economies drive worldwide GDP expansion but coal shortages are hammering output [energy-news] Paywall Summary: Both nations have the two highest economic growth rates in the world (the US trails in 3rd place), and thus their growth has a major impact on global economic health. India's dependence on coal has actually increased, and they have less than a week's worth of coal reserves! They may soon face electricity rationing as seen in China. Three factors contributing to Chinese shortages are (1) local efforts to comply with Beijing's emission targets, (2) shortage of coal supply amidst a green transition effort and (3) price caps on electricity result in demand unaffected by coal's market costs. China is trying to avoid the inflationary impact though, and is trying innovative ways of factoring in increased energy costs while avoiding a full domestic exposure to market pressures.
• South China Morning Post (6/10/21): Xinjiang exports rattled by coronavirus outbreaks in Central Asia as risks from US sanctions loom - The share of exports in Xinjiang’s gross domestic product is declining, from 9.2 per cent in 2019 to 6.84 per cent in the first half of 2021 - Lacklustre export data has stoked worry about the impact of US sanctions, but virus outbreaks in Central Asia pose a bigger threat [us-policy-news, mass-oppression-news]
• Just Security (6/10/21): Taiwan’s Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng has said that China will be capable of mounting a full scale invasion of Taiwan by 2025 and that tensions between Taiwan and China are at their worst in 40 years.
• Democracy Now (6/10/21): China-Taiwan Tensions Mount as Biden Reaffirms U.S.-Sino Commitment to Diplomatic Agreement [us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (5/10/21): US suspends shipping of nuclear materials to China’s CGN amid arms build-up concerns - The order covers radioactive materials and deuterium for China’s largest state-owned nuclear company, its subsidiaries and related entities - CGN was placed on a US blacklist in August 2019 for allegedly making efforts to acquire advanced US technology and material for diversion to military uses [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (5/10/21): China’s missing #MeToo and labour activist pair held by police, family told - Rights campaigner and journalist Sophia Huang Xueqin disappeared in September along with labour activist Wang Jianbing - Guangzhou police confirmed they had been detained but refused to disclose on what charges and where, according to a family member [civil-rights-news, labor-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): Malaysia has said that it has summoned China’s ambassador to protest against the “presence and activities” of Chinese vessels in Kuala Lumpur’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): China is developing a sweeping new plan to restrain the algorithms that power tech platforms, to ensure that internet platforms’ automated processes are fair, transparent, and in line with Communist Party ideology
• Just Security (5/10/21): A Chinese ex-detective in exile has exposed the torture methods used by Chinese officials in Xinjiang to force Uyghurs and other minorities to confess
• Just Security (5/10/21): In anticipation of further aggression from China, Taiwan is preparing to repel any strike and has asked Australia to increase intelligence sharing and security cooperation Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu has said
• Financial Times (4/10/21): China unloads Australian coal despite import ban amid power shortage - Factories face energy rationing, threatening economic growth and global supply chain [energy-news, big-oil-news, china-policy-news] Paywall Summary: Last year, China effectively banned Australian coal imports (which had ranged from 35m-50m tonnes/year, valued at around $40bn/year). Now coal prices have spiked, and limited Australian coal imports have been let through, although sourcing from Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Mongolia has been encouraged. Further, recent loosening of coal restrictions in China seems to contradict recent goals announced by president Xi Jinping to tamp down on fossil fuels; this loosening a result of the frustrating energy pressures that threaten to slow down economic growth.
• Financial Times (21/9/21): BlackRock [around $400m total] and HSBC [around $31m total] funds boosted Evergrande holdings as crisis loomed - Investors added to bond holdings in Chinese property developer while prices began sliding Paywall Summary: Most of Evergrande's ~$300bn debt was traded domestically, with only limited international market exposure. Other investment specialists had hundreds of millions invested as well (such as Ashmore and UBS).
• Just Security (4/10/21): In a show of force, China sent nearly 100 fighter jets and bombers into Taiwan’s air defense zone over the weekend.
• Just Security (4/10/21): The U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai is to warn China today that it is not complying with former President Trump’s Phase One trade deal. [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (4/10/21): China’s plan to block export of ‘core’ data raises questions over implementation - A draft regulation by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology seeks to protect core domestic technology data from leaving China’s borders - The proposed rules, which define data according to their level of importance, lack clarity, experts said [cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Taiwan reports record Chinese incursions into its air defence zone - Defence ministry says it detected at least 56 flights hours after US urged Beijing to cease ‘provocative’ activity [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (3/10/21): Chinese planes fly over Taiwan defence zone in second day of record show of force - Taipei says 39 Chinese fighter jets crossed into its defence zone in two sorties, following a 38-plane incursion on Friday
• The Economist (2/10/21): Limiting access to abortions won’t solve China’s population woes - The latest government guidelines are another attempt to interfere with family planning
• Just Security (1/10/21): China has appointed a new governor for its Xinjiang region, where the ruling Communist Party is accused of carrying out mass detentions and other abuses against Uyghur Muslims and other minority groups. A former vice governor, Erkin Tuniyaz, is an ethinc Uyghur, who “gained some notoriety for delivering a vociferous defense of Chinese policies in the northwestern region, particularly the use of facilities critics call detention centers but which China says are intended for vocational training and deradicalization and turning the region’s residents away from terrorism and extremism,” Associated Press reports.
• Just Security (1/10/21): China has marked its National Day of the People’s Republic of China with a large air inclusion near Taiwan, forcing Taiwan’s air force to scramble aircraft to warn away the 25 Chinese aircraft, including two nuclear-capable H-6 bombers.
• Just Security (1/10/21): China has reacted furiously to Lithuania’s government advising officials to stop using certain Chinese-made phones due to a hidden dormant censorship registry of 449 terms banned by the Chinese Communist Party in the phones.
• Just Security (1/10/21): China levelled serious allegations against a once senior Chinese law-enforcement official who was ejected from the Communist Party yesterday. Sun Lijun, as vice minister of public security, had wide-ranging connections throughout the legal system as well as connections with high-profile alleged corruption cases in Hong Kong and internationally.
• South China Morning Post (30/9/21): India counters China in Sri Lanka with US$700 million port deal - A new terminal will be built next to a US$500-million Chinese-run jetty, in what local authorities call the largest investment ever in the country’s port sector - India’s Adani Group will hold a 51 per cent controlling stake in the joint venture known as the Colombo West International Terminal
• The Guardian (30/9/21): China owed $385bn – including ‘hidden debt’ from poorer nations, says report - AidData finds 42 low-to-middle income countries with ‘belt and road’ exposure exceeding 10% of GDP [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (30/9/21): Evergrande appeases high-yield onshore investors with partial cash repayment as some local governments bar property-for-debt swap - The troubled developer said it has repaid 10 per cent of the principal and interest to investors in so-called wealth management products on Thursday - The balance remains in huge uncertainty as some local governments have banned its proposal to swap debt for properties
• South China Morning Post (30/9/21): China power crisis: Guangdong raising electricity prices for industrial users by 25 per cent in peak hours - Move by southern manufacturing hub could trigger other provinces to raise power prices in the coming weeks, but households and non-industrial businesses may stay exempt - Coal shortage and attempts to meet carbon emissions targets have resulted in power-rationing measures being imposed in most of China’s provincial jurisdictions [energy-news]
• Just Security (30/9/21): A Hong Kong public broadcaster, Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), has reportedly been told by the government that it must support Hong Kong and Chinese interests, including the national security law that has been used to silence pro-democracy voices [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (30/9/21): China has opposed a Philippines-led push for a review of the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between the Philippines and the U.S., Manila’s Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has said
• South China Morning Post (29/9/21): China in Africa: Zambia’s Chinese debts nearly double the official count, study says - Zambia owed Chinese financiers US$6.6 billion as of August, not US$3.4 billion as reported by outgoing administration, China Africa Research Initiative says - The lack of full disclosure and transparency seen to complicate Zambia’s bid for debt relief from G20 countries and hopes of an IMF bailout
• Just Security (29/9/21): China is currently building a new 315m aircraft carrier, which will be the same size as the latest U.S. Ford class with a matching electromagnetic catapult for launching jets.
• South China Morning Post (28/9/21): China power crisis: thermal coal inventory nears record low as country suffers worst outages in a decade - State media now says 20 out of 31 provincial jurisdictions have implemented electricity-rationing measures since mid-September - Total coal inventory at China’s major power-generation groups is just 11.31 million tonnes – enough to meet demand for only about two weeks
• ZDNet (27/9/21): FCC details $1.9 billion program to rip out Huawei and ZTE gear in the US - Carriers with under 10 million customers as well as some schools, libraries, and health care providers can apply for FCC funding to dispose of Chinese-vendor network equipment from October 29. [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (27/9/21): China electricity shortage: industrial production grinds to halt and traffic lights fail amid rationing - Half of China’s provincial jurisdictions mandate rationing of electricity, but poor communication and unclear timeline leave angry public in the dark - One local government warns that entire power grid at risk of collapse if electricity is not rationed [energy-news, infrastructure-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): China has condemned the U.K. for sailing a warship down the sensitive Taiwan strait
• South China Morning Post (22/9/21): Fears in China for missing #MeToo activist and labour rights campaigner - Friends have not been able to contact Sophia Huang and Wang Jianbing since Sunday, when they were planning to leave Guangzhou for Shenzhen - Huang had been going to fly from Hong Kong to London to study [labor-news, civil-rights-news]
• New York Times (24/9/21): China frees 2 jailed Canadians after the U.S. agrees to release a Huawei executive.
• South China Morning Post (24/9/21): Police detain HNA’s founder Chen Feng, CEO Adam Tan days after breaking one of China’s biggest conglomerates into four units - HNA Group’s founder Chen Feng and chief executive Adam Tan Xiangdong have been detained by police, the company said - The bankruptcy restructuring of HNA Group is proceeding in a stable and orderly manner, the company said
• Ars Technica (24/9/21): Bitcoin outlawed in China as country bans all cryptocurrency transactions - Move comes as government seeks to limit fallout of looming real estate collapse. [cryptocurrency-news]
• Just Security (23/9/21): Taiwan’s air force scrambled jets today to warn off 19 Chinese aircraft that entered Taiwan’s air defense zone, Taiwan’s defense ministry has said
• The Nation (22/9/21): China Is Dismantling Hong Kong’s Unions - Empowered workers would be a threat to the Chinese Communist Party. [labor-news]
• South China Morning Post (22/9/21): China Evergrande ‘resolves’ interest payment due on smaller of two bonds as it fights to avert debt default - The beleaguered developer’s onshore unit said it had reached a ‘resolution’ affecting holders of 4 billion yuan (US$618 million) of notes due on Thursday - The unexpected move may help avert a default that could spill over to hurt the credibility of the world’s second-largest capital market
• South China Morning Post (22/9/21): Ant Group microcredit service Huabei feeds vast consumer data to China’s central bank - Consumer credit data gathered by Huabei are now included in the financial credit information database run by the People’s Bank of China - Sharing Huabei’s data with China’s central bank forms part of Ant Group’s rectification measures, which are based on targets set by financial regulators
• South China Morning Post (22/9/21): Taiwan announces its application to join Pacific trade pact CPTPP days after Beijing’s request - The announcement comes days after Beijing made a similar request to be a member of the pact - Economic Minister Wang Mei-hua and the island’s top trade negotiator John Deng are expected give details of the application on Thursday
• Just Security (22/9/21): Lithuania’s Defense Ministry has recommended that consumers avoid buying Chinese mobile phones and advised people to throw away the ones they have after a Lithuanian government report found the devices had built-in censorship capabilities
• Democracy Now (22/9/21): Chinese City of 10 Million Goes into Partial Shutdown After Single COVID Case Confirmed [covid-news]
• Left Voice (21/9/21): China’s Evergrande: A Serious Crisis, But Hardly an Asian Lehman Brothers - The Evergrande Group, a giant Chinese real estate developer, is on the brink of default. For the Chinese bureaucracy, the crisis is not only an “opportunity to regulate the sector,” as some would have us believe. But it is too early to declare this a Chinese version of the 2008 Lehman Brothers collapse, since the Chinese government will not likely wait for things to reach that level. [economic-news]
• Ars Technica (21/9/21): China to stop building coal plants in developing nations - President Xi Jinping announces a necessary step to controlling global emissions. [energy-news, bri-news]
• Speak Out Now (19/9/21): 2008 Again? Chinese Real Estate Colossus Evergrande on the Verge of Collapse [economic-news]
• Al-Monitor (18/9/21): Iran joins China, Russia in Shanghai Cooperation Organization - Iran has been upgraded to permanent member status in the Eurasian alliance, of which Turkey is also a partner.
• South China Morning Post (18/9/21): China launches naval and air drills as US warship transits Taiwan Strait - PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command slams repeated ‘provocative actions’, as USS Barry marks ninth transit of Taiwan Strait by American warships this year - Taiwan plans to spend US$8.7 billion over the next five years on domestically produced arms, including missiles capable of striking mainland China [us-policy-news]
• CounterPunch (17/9/21): Railways and Pipelines are Preferable to Nuclear Submarines [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, bri-news]
• South China Morning Post (17/9/21): WeChat begins to open its ‘walled garden’ to rivals by allowing links in one-to-one chats, heeding Beijing’s order - WeChat users can now access external links in the one-to-one chat channels after they upgrade the app to the latest version - The crackdown on link-blocking is part of a six-month internet clean-up campaign by MIIT which began in July [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• Just Security (17/9/21): India has told China that the two countries’ relations will only improve when both countries pull their troops back from a confrontation on their disputed Himalayan border, Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has said
• Just Security (17/9/21): China has denied a German warship on a mission to the contested South China Sea entry into a harbor, a German Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said
• Just Security (17/9/21): China has applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a key Asia-Pacific trade pact, as it attempts to strengthen its position in the region
• Just Security (17/9/21): Indonesia has deployed five navy vessels, assisted by an air patrol, around its Natuna islands in the South China Sea, after Chinese and U.S. vessels were detected in nearby international waters [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (17/9/21): US sanctions seven Hong Kong-based companies over Iran, Hezbollah - The Treasury Department says Morteza Minaye Hashemi, who lives in China, had funnelled money to Iran’s Qods Force and Hezbollah - Two Chinese nationals Yan Su Xuan and Song Jing are accused of helping Hashemi establish bank accounts and serving as straw owners for his companies [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/9/21): Three killed, dozens injured as earthquake hits China’s Sichuan - Rescue under way after shallow tremor struck not far from Chongqing in the early hours of the morning.
• Just Security (16/9/21): China has condemned the agreement [US, UK, Australia partnership "Aukus"] as “extremely irresponsible” and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said it “seriously undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race.” [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (16/9/21): Chinese Court Rejects Landmark #MeToo Case, But Survivor Vows to Appeal
• Just Security (15/9/21): China’s new ambassador to the U.K. was banned from the U.K.’s Parliament yesterday, in the latest mark of mounting tensions between Beijing and London.
• The Guardian (15/9/21): US, UK and Australia forge military alliance to counter China - Aukus partnership will enable Australia to have nuclear-powered submarines for the first time [us-policy-news]
• The Economist (7/9/21): A coup in Guinea adds fuel to aluminium’s red-hot rally - But developments in China, not Africa, could matter more for the metal’s price
• South China Morning Post (12/9/21): Guinea coup adds to growing knots in China’s belt and road plans - It is the latest in a series of recent military takeovers in a strategic region for Chinese trade ambitions - China is a key player in the Guinean economy, buying most of its bauxite and with a key stake in its iron ore reserves [bri-news]
• South China Morning Post (11/9/21): Regional stability ‘at risk’ from China’s growing use of military drones - Three Chinese unmanned aerial vehicles spotted near Japan last month highlighted the increased focus on the technology - But Beijing is not alone in developing and deploying drones in the region and experts say an arms race could follow [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): DR Congo president seeks review of mining contracts with China - Democratic Republic of the Congo is seeking what it says is a fairer share of its vast mineral wealth. [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (9/9/21): China sells oil reserves to lower prices in unprecedented move - China made an unprecedented intervention in global oil markets on Thursday, selling reserves in a bid to lower prices as energy costs surge in the country. [big-oil-news]
• Democracy Now (9/9/21): Super Typhoon Chanthu Hurtles Toward Philippines and Southeast China
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): Tiananmen vigil group leaders arrested in Hong Kong raids - Police had demanded the group hand over information on finances, supporters as part of a national security investigation.
• The Guardian (8/9/21): Chinese celebrities warned over morality in cultural crackdown - Entertainment industry told to ‘oppose decadent ideas of money worship and hedonism’
• The Guardian (6/9/21): Prominent campaigner for Uyghur rights in Xinjiang barred from Kazakhstan - Dual US and Russian national Gene Bunin has documented the plight of Muslim minorities in China’s western regions
• Al Jazeera (7/9/21): K-pop crackdown: China social media giant bans BTS fan account - China social media giant Weibo banned a fan account for South Korean K-pop band BTS for 60 days, citing illegal fundraising.
• South China Morning Post (5/9/21): Chinese military sends 19 aircraft into Taiwan’s air defence zone - PLA deploy fighters, bombers and anti-submarine plane on latest in series of such missions - Unclear what prompted the activity, which comes more than two months after the last such large-scale sortie
• South China Morning Post (2/9/21): China vows ‘protection’ of small businesses, with US$46 billion worth of new loans on tap - China is again granting financial institutions billions in cheap capital to be loaned out – a strategy employed last year when 1.8 trillion yuan worth of such ‘relending funds’ were offered - Move is in line with Beijing’s ‘cross-cyclical’ economic policy offering support for essential parts of the economy rather than massive stimulus
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Israel opens Chinese-run terminal at Haifa port - Biden's CIA director raised concerns about Beijing's growing investment in Israel, according to a report. [bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (1/9/21): China’s Point Man on Talks Between Myanmar Govt, Ethnic Armies Made Quiet Visit
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (1/9/21): In groundbreaking move, Didi employees to get a union - The move, which will help part-time drivers who lack access to most benefits, may curry favour with Beijing. [labor-news]
• The South China Morning Post (1/9/21): PhD student researching Chinese labour movements ‘detained for subversion of state power’ - Posts appealing for the release of Fang Ran, a postgraduate at the University of Hong Kong, say he was taken away by agents in the mainland city of Nanning - Fang’s disappearance has heightened concerns among Hong Kong-based academics working on sensitive topics [labor-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Irrawaddy (30/8/21): China Opens Rail Line With Access to Indian Ocean via Myanmar [bri-news]
• Just Security (30/8/21): China’s defense ministry on Sunday protested the passage of USS Kidd guided-missile destroyer and coastguard cutter Munro through the Taiwan strait on Friday [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (30/8/21): China forbids minors from gaming more than three hours per week - Tencent and NetEase can only offer online gaming to minors from 8pm to 9pm (00:00 to 01:00 GMT) on Fridays, weekends and holidays.
• CPJ (26/8/21): Chinese journalist Zhang Zhan hospitalized after her health declines in prison
• Just Security (26/8/21): China has halted trade with Lithuania after the Baltic nation agreed to exchange diplomatic offices with Taiwan. China has suspended rail freight to Lithuania, according to Taiwan’s foreign affairs ministry, and reportedly halted export permits for the country’s producers
• South China Morning Post (25/8/21): China has failed to cut its fentanyl trafficking, US congressional panel finds - ‘China remains the primary country of origin for illicit fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances,’ US-China Economic and Security Review Commission says - Rather than ship directly into US, Chinese manufacturers now send raw materials to Mexico, where cartels make the drug then deliver it across the border
• CPJ (24/8/21): Chinese authorities detain, indict 11 people for contributing to The Epoch Times
• South China Morning Post (20/8/21): China’s military nuclear orders rise fourfold in push to catch up with US - Main contractor for China’s nuclear projects given almost US$2.65 billion in new military contracts in first seven months of the year - Increasing nuclear capability is a natural course of action in the face of challenge posed by the US and its strategy of suppression, military analyst says
• ZDNet (18/8/21): Citizen Lab finds Apple's China censorship process bleeds into Hong Kong and Taiwan - Despite Apple not having any legal obligation to perform political censorship in Taiwan, it has done so anyway. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• South China Morning Post (18/8/21): China halts rail freight to Lithuania as feud deepens over Taiwan - Sources say state train operator CRCT has suspended transit of cargoes ‘until further notice’, though there has been no official confirmation - It comes amid a diplomatic row over decision to allow Taipei to open a ‘Taiwanese representative office’ in the Baltic state
• South China Morning Post (18/8/21): China conducts anti-terror drill with Tajikistan, as Afghan spillover worries grip central Asia - Central Asian nations bordering Afghanistan rendered particularly vulnerable to rising instability there, while China is wary of any impact on Xinjiang - The joint drills show mutual determination to combat terrorism and effectively respond to terrorist threats, China’s public security minister said
• The Guardian (17/8/21): Let’s heed the UN’s dire warning and stop the east African oil pipeline now - The fate of a planned line from Uganda to Tanzania will be the first test of whether anyone was listening to António Guterres’ call to end fossil fuels [climate-change-news, big-oil-news, bri-news]
• Just Security (17/8/21): A Chinese woman says China has a secret detention camp in Dubai which gold Uyghurs
• Just Security (17/8/21): Chinese fighter jets, anti-submarine aircraft and combat ships conducted assault drills near Taiwan on Tuesday, with the People’s Liberation Army saying the exercise was necessary to safeguard the country’s sovereignty
• Just Security (16/8/21): The Chinese embassy appears to have no plans to evacuate embassy personnel
• South China Morning Post (15/8/21): Why China is making a big play for Congolese cobalt – and other critical minerals - A number of Chinese companies have interests in DRC operations mining primary commodities for electric vehicle batteries - The US needs to rethink supply chains if it is to be competitive in the future green economy, analyst says [bri-news]
• Democracy Now (13/8/21): China Closes Shipping Terminal over Single COVID-19 Case; Russia Logs Record Death Toll
• The Irrawaddy (12/8/21): Chinese-Made COVID-19 Vaccines to go on Sale in Myanmar
• South China Morning Post (12/8/21): Beijing hints that its Big Tech antitrust scrutiny could be permanent with new five-year blueprint - New five-year rule of law blueprint calls for stronger antitrust law enforcement - China’s antitrust law enforcement is understaffed at the moment, an official said an in interview this year
• South China Morning Post (12/8/21): China-Russia railway bridge on track for first test run - It is expected to be fully operational next year and likely to boost trade between the neighbours as they face growing pressure from the West - Bridge will connect the countries across the Heilong River, and Russian Railways official says it will mainly be used to transport coal and iron ore [bri-news]
• Jacobin (12/8/21): Kim San, Martyr of Korean Socialism [history-news]
• The Economist World This Week (12/8/21): China announced new rules for karaoke parlours, to come into effect on October 1st. Songs that applaud violence, obscenity or crime, or threaten national unity, will be banned.
• The Irrawaddy (11/8/21): China Starts Calling Myanmar Junta “Government” [bri-news]
• Just Security (10/8/21): Chinese and Russian military forces are conducting joint military exercises in northwestern China; China has demanded that Lithuania withdraw its ambassador in Beijing and said that it would recall China’s envoy to Vilnius in a row over Lithuania allowing Chinese-claimed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy there using its own name
• South China Morning Post (10/8/21): Laos’ China-funded belt and road railway: Thailand licks its lips, but fears for Luang Prabang’s World Heritage Site - Laos section of pan-Asia rail route linking Kunming in China to Singapore expected to boost trade and tourism - But critics say Laos could struggle to repay Chinese debt; that only a fraction of the population will benefit; and that overtourism could threaten Luang Prabang’s world heritage status [bri-news]
• The Guardian (9/8/21): China court upholds death sentence against Canadian Robert Schellenberg - Ruling comes as verdict expected in trial of fellow Canadian Michael Spavor
• Modern Diplomacy (7/8/21): China’s great game in Afghanistan won’t be a duplication of the past
• South China Morning Post (6/8/21): China’s SMIC pushes ahead ‘as planned’ with new chip plants in Beijing, Shenzhen amid US trade restrictions - SMIC’s new chip fabrication plant in Shenzhen is expected to start commercial operations next year, while the Beijing facility will go online in 2024 - The Shanghai-based semiconductor giant has budgeted US$4.3 billion in total capital expenditure this year
• South China Morning Post (6/8/21): Biden administration shrugs off pressure to remove Trump-era China trade war tariffs - More than 30 organisations signed a letter to Biden officials imploring them to work with China towards the eventual goal of ‘full removal of tariffs’ - ‘We are conducting a robust, strategic review of our economic relationship with China to create effective policy,’ says US Trade Representative’s office
• CPJ (5/8/21): Human rights reporter Zhou Weilin sentenced to 3.5 years in Chinese prison
• Democracy Now (5/8/21): Over Half of China’s Provinces Log New COVID Cases; Tokyo Olympics Registers Worst Daily Toll
• South China Morning Post (4/8/21): Coronavirus: China’s Sinovac investing US$60 million in Chile vaccine facility - The plant will be built in the Santiago region in early 2022. Sinovac will also build a research and development centre in the northern region of Antofagasta - The Chilean government bet big on the Chinese company’s CoronaVac shot, with 19.6 million doses already delivered
• South China Morning Post (4/8/21): Taiwan plans to ban workers in key tech roles from visiting mainland China - The new rules are prompted by growing concerns about illicit tech transfers and mean individuals and businesses will need permission to go to the mainland - Change covers those with access to core technology and government contractors working in fields such as defence, foreign affairs and intelligence
• South China Morning Post (3/8/21): Pressure grows between African mineworkers and their Chinese bosses - Videos purporting to show violent confrontations circulate on social media, highlighting human side of China-Africa relations - Observers say a combination of cultural differences, management style and poor working conditions are to blame
• South China Morning Post (3/8/21): China and India agree to withdraw soldiers near site of deadly border clash - Soldiers will move away from the area at the Himalayan border where at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed in June 2020 - The development comes after New Delhi and Beijing issued a statement describing the 12th round of talks between their military officials as ‘constructive’
• The Guardian (2/8/21): China floods death toll rises to 302 with 50 people still missing - Authorities in Henan province more than triple the confirmed number of people killed in disaster
• South China Morning Post (2/8/21): China-Russia military drill expected to focus on security in Central Asia - Chinese analyst says exercise is not aimed at the US and other Western nations - It will run for five days from next week with more than 10,000 soldiers taking part
• Al Jazeera (29/7/21): Croatia celebrates joining of controversial Adriatic Sea bridge - The China-led project has angered Bosnian officials, who argue it violates the state’s access to open waters.
• Just Security (30/7/21): The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has stopped processing registrations of U.S. initial public offerings and other sales of securities by Chinese companies while it designs new guidance for disclosing to investors the risk of a new regulatory crackdown by Beijing
• Just Security (29/7/21): China offered the Taliban a warm welcome yesterday, declaring that the group would play “an important role in the process of peaceful reconciliation and reconstruction” of Afghanistan, as Chinese officials began two days of talks with a delegation of Taliban leaders in Tianjin, China; An outspoken Chinese billionaire has been sentenced to 18 years in prison by a Chinese court
• Just Security (28/7/21): Satellite imagery appears to show that China is building a new network of silos for launching nuclear missiles [in Xinjiang], a new report from researchers at the Federation of American Scientists has said.; Moroccan authorities have arrested a Uyghur activist, Yidiresi Aishan, in exile because of a Chinese terrorism warrant distributed by Interpol, according to information from Moroccan police and a rights group that tracks people detained by China
• Just Security (27/7/21): China appears to be digging a new field of what appears to be 110 silos for launching nuclear missiles, the second such field discovered by analysts studying commercial satellite images in recent weeks
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): U.S. Sends Over 2 Dozen F-22 Fighter Jets to Guam as Tensions Rise with China
• The Guardian (26/7/21): Foreign journalists harassed in China over floods coverage - Reporters confronted in street and accused of ‘smearing China’ amid increasing sensitivity to any negative portrayals of China
• Just Security (23/7/21): A Chinese prosecutor has been indicted in a federal U.S. case charging nine people with illegally acting as foreign agents in an effort to force immigrants from China to return there to be punished
• The Irrawaddy (23/7/21): Myanmar Junta Implementing China’s BRI Projects by Stealth
• The Guardian (22/7/21): China floods: aluminium alloy plant explodes in Henan province – video
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Flood toll rises in central China, as tens of thousands evacuated - The weather bureau raises a storm alert for four cities in the north of Henan to the highest level as record-breaking rain triggers heavy floods.; The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): Flooding caused by torrential rain forced the evacuation of more than 200,000 people in China’s central province of Henan. In three days a year’s worth of rain fell on the city of Zhengzhou, filling underground railway tunnels. Hundreds of commuters who had been trapped on trains in water over their waists were eventually rescued; 12 of them died.
• Just Security (21/7/21): Hackers working for the Chinese government compromised more than a dozen U.S. pipeline operators nearly a decade ago in 2011, President Biden’s administration revealed yesterday
• Democracy Now (21/7/21): “Once in a 1,000 Years” Rains and Flooding Kill at Least 25 People in China
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Army issues dam warning as deadly storm hits central China - Several people killed and thousands evacuated in Henan province as torrential rains cause floods.
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): The U.S., E.U., NATO, U.K. and other world powers yesterday accused the Chinese government of a broad array of malicious cyber activities, including the attack on Microsoft’s email server software earlier this year and condoning other attacks.; Chinese authorities have criticized the “groundless” claims that it carried out a major cyber attack against Microsoft.; The Justice Department has accused three Chinese state security officials of coordinating a vast hacking campaign to steal sensitive and secret information from government entities, universities and corporations around the world.
• Just Security Early Edition (19/7/21): The U.S. imposed sanctions on Friday against seven Chinese officials in relation to Beijing’s crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong
• The Guardian (18/7/21): Tensions remain high as hopes dashed for breakthrough in China and India stalemate - Military build-up continues ‘like never before’ on both sides of 2,100-mile border despite high-level talks
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Gunmen kidnap Chinese, Mauritanian workers in Mali - Assailants also destroyed equipment belonging to Chinese and Mauritanian construction companies.
• Just Security Early Edition (16/7/21): The U.S. Air Force is sending more than two dozen F-22 fighter jets (Raptors) to a military exercise in the western Pacific this month amid tensions with China.
• Just Security Early Edition (16/7/21): President Biden’s administration has issued a business advisory warning U.S. businesses about risks to their operations and activities in Hong Kong.; The U.S. is preparing to impose sanctions today on several Chinese officials over Beijing’s crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong, sources have said; China has responded to the reports of further U.S. sanctions by saying that the U.S. should stop interfering in Hong Kong.
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): China military ‘drove away’ US warship in South China Sea - US move comes on the anniversary of a tribunal ruling that says Beijing has no claims over the South China Sea.
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): US set to add more Chinese companies to blacklist over Xinjiang - At least 14 Chinese companies are set to be added as early as Friday to the Entity List over reported abuses of Muslim Uighurs.
• The Guardian (5/7/21): Chinese-owned firm acquires UK’s largest semiconductor manufacturer - Tory MP Tom Tugendhat raises concerns about deal in light of global computer chip shortage
• The Economist (3/7/21): China’s next aircraft-carrier will be its biggest - The Chinese navy is fast learning how to use them
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): U.S. & Japan Held Secret War Games & Military Exercises Targeting China
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): China Marks 100th Anniversary of Chinese Communist Party
• Al Jazeera (23/6/21): China condemns US as warship transits Taiwan Strait again - US Navy says its guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur conducted a routine transit through the sensitive waterway.
• The Economist World This Week (19/6/21): China passed a law allowing its government to retaliate against sanctions imposed on it by other countries. Individuals or entities involved in implementing such sanctions could be put on a blacklist and have their assets in China seized.
• Democracy Now (17/6/21): Chinese Military Sends Record 28 Warplanes into Airspace Controlled by Taiwan
• Democracy Now (11/6/21): Amnesty International Accuses China of Crimes Against Humanity in Xinjiang
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): Chinese Authorities Ban Hong Kong Vigil Commemorating Tiananmen Massacre, Arrest Organizer
• The Economist World This Week (5/6/21): A Chinese blogger, Qiu Ziming, was sentenced to eight months in prison for “picking quarrels and causing trouble”. His offence related to his posts suggesting that China had under-reported the number of its soldiers killed in border clashes with India last year.
• Democracy Now (1/6/21): China to Allow Married Couples to Have Up to Three Children as Birth Rate Continues to Fall
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Philippines protests China’s ‘illegal’ South China Sea presence - Manila lodges diplomatic protest against the ‘incessant and prolonged’ presence of Chinese vessels near Thitu Island.
• Al Jazeera (28/5/21): US bans imports from Chinese fishing fleet over labour practices - Officials say this is the first US ban on imports from an entire fishing fleet, as opposed to individual vessels.
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): China responded angrily to an American call for more investigations into the origin of the coronavirus. A foreign ministry spokesman accused America of smearing China and of ignoring the possibility that the virus originated in the United States.
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): Twenty-one competitors in a 100km ultra-marathon in a mountainous area of western China were killed by extreme weather, including hail.
• Democracy Now (25/5/21): Daniel Ellsberg Leaks Documents Showing U.S. Military Sought Nuclear Strike on China in 1958
• World Socialist Web Site (6/5/21): Chinese defense minister visits Sri Lanka amid rising geopolitical tension
• Economist (Politics this Week 1/5/21): China began construction of an orbiting space station with the launch of Tianhe (“harmony of the heavens”), the first of three planned modules. When finished in 2022, the station will be a fifth the size of the existing International Space Station.
• Jacobin: Demanding an End to Uyghur Oppression - We can oppose the saber-rattling and militarism of the US’s China hawks without downplaying the oppression of the Uyghur people.
• Al Jazeera: Mind the gap: China’s north-south economic divide seen worsening - Nomura estimates that northern China’s share of the national economy shrank to 35.2 percent last year from 42.9 percent in 2012.
• World Socialist Web Site: [15-year-old] Chinese truck driver driven to suicide by exploitative conditions
• Al Jazeera: ‘Terminator of drones’: China unveils stealth-detecting radars - Country’s first portable and ‘multipurpose’ radar can be carried by a single soldier and can detect small and low-flying targets.
• Labor Notes: China: Leader of Delivery Riders Alliance Detained, Solidarity Movement Repressed (via u/burtzev on r/labor)
• Bloomberg: Secrecy and Abuse Claims Haunt China’s Solar Factories in Xinjiang (via u/Strongbow85 on r/labor)

Hong Kong Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Al Jazeera (30/12/21): Hong Kong police charge two ex-Stand News editors with sedition - Charges come a day after the shutdown of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy Stand News outlet and the arrest of some of its staff. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Hong Kong police arrest six people from independent outlet Stand News - Reports say editors, board members and a pop singer were held in early morning sweep as 200 officers raid news outlet’s office [surveillance-and-censorship-news, media-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Two more Tiananmen Massacre monuments taken down in Hong Kong - Lingnan University dismantles Tiananmen Massacre relief, while another piece, Goddess of Democracy, was removed from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (23/12/21): The Pillar of Shame, a famous statue at the University of Hong Kong commemorating the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, has been removed. The statue was one of the few remaining public memorials in Hong Kong commemorating the incident where pro-democracy protesters were killed by Chinese authorities. The university said in a statement today that “the decision on the aged statue was based on external legal advice and risk assessment for the best interest of the university.” BBC News reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (20/12/21): Pro-Beijing candidates have claimed a victory in Hong Kong’s Legislative Council election, the first such election since China made sweeping controversial changes to the city’s electoral systems [surveillance-and-censorship-news, electoral-news]
• The Guardian (20/12/21): UN-backed investigator into possible Yemen war crimes targeted by spyware - Analysis of Kamel Jendoubi’s mobile phone reveals he was targeted in August 2019 [surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news] [!]
• The Guardian (20/12/21): Pro-Beijing candidates sweep Hong Kong ‘patriots’-only elections - Legislative elections marred by record low turnout following crackdown on political dissent [surveillance-and-censorship-news, electoral-news] [!]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): Hong Kong ‘patriots’ election casts doubt over democracy as city enters new era - Critics describe Sunday’s vote as ‘illegitimate’ as Beijing tightens its crackdown on dissent and pro-democracy movement is wiped out [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (15/12/21): Fire traps hundreds of people at Hong Kong World Trade Centre – video [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai and seven other pro-democracy activists have been sentenced to up to 14 months in prison. The individuals were charged with organizing, taking part in, and inciting participation in a banned vigil last year for victims of China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Reuters reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai and two other prominent activists have been convicted in Hong Kong for inciting and taking part in a vigil to mark the Tiananmen massacre last June. The trio had contested their charges, arguing during their trial that they had lit candles during the vigil in a personal capacity, and had not “incited” others to join the unauthorized rally. BBC News reports. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): Tony Chung, a young activist who called for Hong Kong’s independence from China, was sentenced to three years and seven months in prison today after pleading guilty to secession under Hong Kong’s national security law. His crime involved Facebook posts and speech, however, the judge said he had played an active role as an organizer and added “fuel to the flames” of secession. Shibani Mahtani and Theodora Yu report for the Washington Post. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): After crackdown, Hong Kong’s low paid face hurdles to organising - Beijing’s clampdown on dissent in city has silenced unions and politicians that traditionally supported workers’ rights. [labor-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CPJ (15/11/21): Hong Kong refuses visa renewal for Economist correspondent Sue-Lin Wong [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Suspected foreign government-backed hackers infected websites belonging to a Hong Kong-based media outlet and a pro-democracy group to install malware on visitors’ Apple devices and spy on them, Google researchers have said. “Google’s Threat Analysis Group discovered the watering hole attack in August, which relied on a previously unreported backdoor, or zero-day flaw. [cyber-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/11/21): Hong Kong ‘Captain America’ protester sentenced for slogans - Ma Chun-man sentenced to more than five years in prison for chanting pro-independence slogans during demonstrations. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Hong Kong prosecutors cited comments made by former U.K. Foreign Minister Dominic Raab in their ruling to deny bail for the head of the Hong Kong Apple Daily newspaper. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (5/11/21): Chinese state firm weighs bid to acquire Alibaba’s SCMP - The South China Morning Post is Hong Kong’s most prominent English-language newspaper. [media-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): A Hong Kong activist who had been trying to seek asylum at the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong has been found guilty of secession by a court in Hong Kong.
• Just Security (1/11/21): The trial of eight pro-democracy activists, including Apple Daily newspaper founder Jimmy Lai, who were charged over their roles in an unauthorized Tiananmen Square vigil last year has begun. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (26/10/21): A Hong Kong court has convicted activist Ma Chun-man of inciting secession based on his use of pro-independence slogans at protests. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (26/10/21): Amnesty International to Close Hong Kong Office, Citing Fear of Reprisal from Beijing [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): Hong Kong marathon runners were told to cover up “political” slogans and tattoos, before being allowed to compete in the sporting event. “According to local media reports, runners reported being told to cover up or remove slogans, including idioms like ‘add oil’ – a phrase which was widely heard during the 2019 protests but is also a ubiquitous term of encouragement.
• Democracy Now (18/10/21): Chinese Authorities Sentence More Hong Kong Democracy Campaigners to Prison
• Just Security (1/10/21): Police in Hong Kong have halted a four-person pro-democracy protest on China’s National Day.
• Just Security (30/9/21): A Hong Kong public broadcaster, Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), has reportedly been told by the government that it must support Hong Kong and Chinese interests, including the national security law that has been used to silence pro-democracy voices [china-policy-news]
• The Nation (22/9/21): China Is Dismantling Hong Kong’s Unions - Empowered workers would be a threat to the Chinese Communist Party. [labor-news]
• South China Morning Post (17/9/21): US sanctions seven Hong Kong-based companies over Iran, Hezbollah - The Treasury Department says Morteza Minaye Hashemi, who lives in China, had funnelled money to Iran’s Qods Force and Hezbollah - Two Chinese nationals Yan Su Xuan and Song Jing are accused of helping Hashemi establish bank accounts and serving as straw owners for his companies [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/9/21): Nine Hong Kong activists and ex-lawmakers have been handed jail sentences of up to 10 months over their roles in last year’s banned Tiananmen Square candlelight vigil commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): Tiananmen vigil group leaders arrested in Hong Kong raids - Police had demanded the group hand over information on finances, supporters as part of a national security investigation.
• The South China Morning Post (1/9/21): PhD student researching Chinese labour movements ‘detained for subversion of state power’ - Posts appealing for the release of Fang Ran, a postgraduate at the University of Hong Kong, say he was taken away by agents in the mainland city of Nanning - Fang’s disappearance has heightened concerns among Hong Kong-based academics working on sensitive topics [labor-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Democracy Now (1/9/21): Court Gives Jail Time to 7 Prominent Pro-Independence Activists in Hong Kong
• ZDNet (18/8/21): Citizen Lab finds Apple's China censorship process bleeds into Hong Kong and Taiwan - Despite Apple not having any legal obligation to perform political censorship in Taiwan, it has done so anyway. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (18/8/21): Four Hong Kong students arrested for ‘advocating terrorism’ - Student union had expressed ‘deep sadness’ over death of a man who attacked a police officer
• RTHK.HK (10/8/21): PTU disbands after govt, state media accusations
• New York Times (2/8/21): He Sang 2 Songs at an Election Rally. Hong Kong Says He Violated the Law. - Anticorruption officials arrested Anthony Wong Yiu-ming, a Cantopop singer, who has publicly supported the Chinese territory’s pro-democracy opposition.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): First Protester Tried Under Hong Kong’s National Security Law Receives 9 Years
• CPJ (21/7/21): Hong Kong police arrest former Apple Daily executive editor Lam Man-chung
• Al Jazeera (23/6/21): First trial under Hong Kong’s national security law under way - Tong Ying-kit pleads not guilty to charges of ‘secession’ and ‘terrorism’ for riding his motorbike into a group of police officers.
• The Guardian (17/6/21): Hong Kong police arrest editor-in-chief of Apple Daily newspaper in raids - Ryan Law among five directors detained under national security legislation imposed by Beijing
• The Economist World This Week (12/6/21): A few, small scattered protests took place in Hong Kong to mark the anniversary on June 4th of the bloody suppression of the pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square in 1989. The city’s government banned the usual commemorative gathering in a park which in previous years had attracted thousands of people. It cited reasons related to the pandemic.
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): Chinese Authorities Ban Hong Kong Vigil Commemorating Tiananmen Massacre, Arrest Organizer
• Al Jazeera (27/5/21): Hong Kong threatens bankers with jail time over Lai accounts - Bankers at HSBC and Citi ignoring the directive will be ‘liable on indictment to a fine and to imprisonment for seven years’, according to letters seen by Bloomberg News.
• New York Times (28/5/21): From Protester to Prisoner: How Hong Kong Is Stifling Dissent - Many of the city’s democracy activists face jail terms amid a broad campaign to subdue opposition.
• The Economist World This Week (6/5/21): Joshua Wong, a democracy activist in Hong Kong, was sentenced to another ten months in prison, this time for taking part in an annual vigil marking the Tiananmen Square massacre. The vigil was banned last year, ostensibly because of covid-19. Mr Wong is already serving time for separate charges. Three others were also sentenced. The vigil is banned again this year.
• Democracy Now (4/16/21): Hong Kong Sentences Jimmy Lai, Other Pro-Democracy Activists to 8-18 Months in Prison

Japan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Behind the Bastards (21/9/21): Part One: The Slavery Loving Fascist who Built Modern Japan - A great series delineating the connection between Japan's fascist imperialist past with its current ultra-conservative one-party state

• South China Morning Post (30/12/21): Suspect in Japan clinic fire that killed 25 dies in hospital - Morio Tanimoto had been in critical condition due to carbon monoxide poisoning from the December 17 blaze in Osaka - Some people saw the 61-year-old placing a paper bag containing a flammable liquid next to a heater, which he then kicked over to ignite Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Common Dreams (28/12/21): 'Alarming' Levels of 'Forever Chemicals' Found in Water Near US Bases in Okinawa - "The U.S. military is supposedly there to protect people. It does the opposite." [industrial-failure-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Japan’s Kishida advances $940bn budget aimed at pandemic recovery - Th[e] record spend[ing] comes despite public debt that is more than twice the size of the country’s $5 trillion economy. [economic-news]
• Just Security (21/12/21): Japan has executed three death row inmates, marking the first executions Japan has carried out since 2019 and the first under Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Junko Ogura, Mayumi Maruyama and Sophie Jeong report for CNN.
• The Intercept (20/12/21): U.S. Military Hid Fuel Pipeline Flaws From Public in Okinawa - A leaked report that shows the military knew for years about dangers to civilian areas follows disclosures of toxic PFAS contamination hidden from the Senate. [us-policy-news] [!]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): Osaka building fire: fears 27 people have died in Japan blaze - Footage shows firefighters at eight-storey building that housed mental health services [!]
• Financial Times (13/12/21): Japan’s first female trade union head was urged by men to turn down job - Tomoko Yoshino vows to raise pressure on corporate Japan to promote women’s progress [labor-news, union-news, civil-rights-news] Paywall Summary (?): She is now president of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo). She said the opposition was countered by enormous support for her from the female membership. FT reports that sexists thought she, as a woman, would be incapable of sufficiently fighting for higher wages during today's difficult times. The government apparently supports wage increases and might block investment tax credits for large companies that don't raise pay; usually the response happens around March. Japan has a terrible gender gap ranking (the worst of advanced economies, 120th out of 156 countries).
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Russian rocket blasts off carrying Japanese billionaire to ISS - Fashion tycoon Yusaku Maezawa has set out 100 tasks to complete on board, including hosting a badminton tournament in orbit. [!]
• Financial Times (10/11/21): Japanese PM Kishida appoints pro-China ally as foreign minister -Yoshimasa Hayashi also expected to deepen US links and adopt more assertive regional role, analysts say Paywall Summary (?): Kishida also unveiled a plan to distribute $880 in cash to people in an upcoming economic package. Despite Hayashi's reported "pro-China stance", he is expected to strike a nuanced balance between the two powers. Hayashi is part of Kishida's own political faction, who give each other their support in trade for positions, including many allies of former prime minister Shinzo Abe. Kishida hopes to boost the economy up ahead of upper house elections next summer, and the government is likely going to subsidize projects for TSMC (in partnership with Sony) to open $7bn of fabrication infrastructure in Japan.
• The Irrawaddy (19/11/21): Myanmar Junta Blocks Japanese Envoy From Meeting Suu Kyi
• New York Times (19/11/21): Japan approves a $490 billion economic stimulus package as the pandemic’s effects linger.
• South China Morning Post (20/11/21): Japan confirms Chinese naval ship sailed in its waters for first time in 4 years - The defence ministry said the vessel transited Japan’s waters earlier this week off its southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima - Officials said Tokyo conveyed concern about the survey ship’s action to Beijing through diplomatic channels [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (18/11/21): The vice Foriegn Ministers of Japan and South Korea pulled out of a joint press conference yesterday with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, after a disagreement over the Takeshima/Dokdo islands, which are administered by South Korea but claimed by Japan. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (1/11/21): Japan’s ruling party, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), held on to its majority but lost seats in Sunday’s elections for the lower house of parliament. [electoral-news]
• Just Security (1/11/21): A 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in the Japanese capital Tokyo after a knife attack on a train left at least 17 people injured Sunday evening. Witnesses have said that the suspect was wearing a costume that appeared to depict the character of the Joker from the Batman franchise.
• Just Security (25/10/21): Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) has conducted its first nationwide military exercise in nearly thirty years.
• Just Security (19/10/21): A group of 10 naval vessels from China and Russia sailed through a strait separating Japan’s main island and its northern island of Hokkaido yesterday, the Japanese government has said. “The government is closely watching Chinese and Russian naval vessels’ activities around Japan like this one with high interest,” Japanese Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihiko Isozaki told a regular news conference [russia-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (13/10/21): Japan’s ruling party has made an unprecedented pledge to double defense spending, underscoring the nation’s haste to increase its military capabilities to deter China’s military in the disputed East China Sea
• Just Security (12/10/21): Media in South Korea and North Korea have reacted angrily after a report about a seafood curry in Japan that includes mounds of rice shaped to resemble the Takeshima islands, which Koreans refer to as Dokdo
• Financial Times (26/9/21): Young Japanese MPs revolt in world’s fastest ageing society - New generation sees the race to replace Suga as a chance to change how politics is conducted Paywall Summary: young people are highly under-represented in Japan's parliament (around 9% are under-40s). Notably, the candidate de facto supported by the young wing of the LDP (the ruling party - Japan is basically a one party state), Taro Kono, didn't become prime minister.
• Democracy Now (29/9/21): Fumio Kishida, from Ruling Party Establishment, Set to Become Next Japanese Prime Minister
• Just Security (13/9/21): Japan and Vietnam have signed a defense transfer deal, under which Japan can now give Vietnam defense equipment and technology
• South China Morning Post (11/9/21): Regional stability ‘at risk’ from China’s growing use of military drones - Three Chinese unmanned aerial vehicles spotted near Japan last month highlighted the increased focus on the technology - But Beijing is not alone in developing and deploying drones in the region and experts say an arms race could follow [us-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (4/9/21): Japan recalled 1.6m doses of the Moderna vaccine after finding stainless-steel particles in vials made in Spain. The drugmaker said that the particles were not “an undue risk” to patient safety. Two people died after receiving the Moderna jab, though the deaths are thought to be unrelated. [covid-news]
• Democracy Now (3/9/21): Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga Resigns After Critics Blast His Response to COVID-19
• PNN (18/8/21): Japan Contributes US$ 3.7 million in Food Assistance for Palestine refugees in the Gaza
• Democracy Now (18/8/21): Tokyo Extends State of Emergency; Thai Protesters Demand PM Step Down for Mishandling COVID
• The Guardian (14/8/21): Heavy rain triggers floods and landslides in Japan – video
• Jacobin (12/8/21): Kim San, Martyr of Korean Socialism
• Democracy Now (9/8/21): Nagasaki Marks 76th Anniversary of U.S. Nuclear Attack
• Democracy Now (6/8/21): Hiroshima Marks 76th Anniversary of U.S. Nuclear Attack
• Democracy Now (5/8/21): Over Half of China’s Provinces Log New COVID Cases; Tokyo Olympics Registers Worst Daily Toll
• Democracy Now (4/8/21): COVID Death Toll in Indonesia Tops 100,000; Tokyo Reports Record Daily Cases
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): Tokyo Reports Record Number of COVID Cases as It Hosts Olympics
• Democracy Now (22/7/21): Tokyo Olympic Committee Fires Director of Opening Ceremony over Holocaust Joke
• Democracy Now (19/7/21): COVID Cases on the Rise Among Olympic Athletes Days Ahead of Tokyo Opening Ceremony
• The Economist World This Week (15/7/21): A state of emergency came into effect in Tokyo. Pandemic restrictions were reintroduced and will remain in place throughout the forthcoming Olympic games. Restaurants and bars must shut early and may not serve alcohol. No commercial events may be held near the stadiums. All spectators have now been banned from Olympic stadiums in and close to Tokyo.
• Democracy Now (8/7/21): Japan Declares Virus Emergency Through Tokyo Olympics as Global COVID-19 Deaths Pass 4 Million
• The Guardian (7/3/21): At least two people dead and 19 missing after Japan landslide - Several houses were obliterated and others buried in the mudslide, which followed days of heavy rain
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): U.S. & Japan Held Secret War Games & Military Exercises Targeting China
• The Irrawaddy (28/6/21): Ex-Japanese Minister’s Firm Partners With Myanmar Military-Linked Company
• Democracy Now (23/6/21): Japan Restarts First Nuclear Reactor in Over 3 Years Amid Widespread Opposition
• Democracy Now (21/6/21): Japan, Uganda Impose New Measures Amid Mounting COVID Cases
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): America warned its citizens not to travel to Japan, after an increase in the number of covid-19 cases there. A survey suggested that 80% of Japanese believe the Olympic games, which are due to begin in Tokyo in July, should be postponed again or cancelled.
• The Economist: Japan’s answer to Fukushima’s nuclear wastewater: Get in the sea - It will be treated before being released. But locals are sceptical

South Korea Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

What could have been: People's Republic of Korea - the short-lived provisional government following WWII, based on a network of people's committees. The United States shortly outlawed the PRK, establishing a dictatorship (South Korea), and the Soviet Union co-opted the structures to form North Korea.

• Washington Post (31/12/21): South Koreans counting down to first legal drink at midnight on New Year’s foiled by coronavirus curfew [covid-news]
• WSWS (30/12/21): South Korean parcel delivery workers threaten strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• New York Times (27/12/21): South Korea approves Pfizer’s coronavirus pill for emergency use. - It is the first pill approved in the nation to treat symptoms of the coronavirus. [covid-news] [!]
• 23/12/21): Park Geun-hye to receive pardon for corruption as South Korean president - Moon Jae-in, her successor, will reportedly free Park from 22-year sentence three months ahead of presidential election [!]
• Financial Times (16/12/21): South Korean companies met Myanmar officials despite coup censure - Samsung and LG representatives joined regime civil servants at event organised by Korean embassy [capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): This despite condemnation of the February coup from South Korean persident Jae-in, and efforts to economically isolate them (such as some US sanctions). Critics view this as these companies shaking the "junta's blood-soaked hands". The meeting was held at a hotel in Yangon, Myanmar which is controlled by Posco and leased by the junta-linked Myanmar Quartermaster General's Office (one of the South Korean companies represented).
• Just Security (13/12/21): Australia has signed a contract worth about $717 million to buy self-propelled howitzers from South Korea. The contract marks the latest step in Australia’s effort to overhaul its military and broaden its military cooperation, as it seeks to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region. David Winning reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• The Economist (9/12/21): Many North Korean women outearn their husbands, but still do the chores - Women trade; men do badly paid state jobs This is a pretty stunning article. The Economist writes about North Korea almost like it's a normal country, just very poor. Pretty intriguing!
• The Guardian (7/12/21): South Korea hospitals under intense pressure amid record 7,175 Covid cases in a day - Rise in infections attributed to young people who have yet to be fully vaccinated and older citizens who have not received boosters [covid-news, healthcare-news] [!]
• Liberation News (6/12/21): Korean workers struggle for democracy: Eyewitness report from a PSL delegate to the People’s Democracy Party [!]
• Just Security (23/11/21): Chun Doo-hwan, the military leader who seized power in South Korea in a coup and ruled with an iron fist for most of the 1980s, has died aged 90 at his home in Seoul. Choe Sang-Hun reports for the New York Times.
• Just Security (18/11/21): The vice Foriegn Ministers of Japan and South Korea pulled out of a joint press conference yesterday with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, after a disagreement over the Takeshima/Dokdo islands, which are administered by South Korea but claimed by Japan. [us-policy-news]
• ZDNet (10/11/21): A stalker's wishlist: PhoneSpy malware destroys Android privacy - A new surveillance campaign has revealed widespread infection on Android devices. [cyber-security-news]
• ZDNet (4/11/21): Google to allow alternative in-app payment systems in South Korea - Google will follow South Korea's recently passed laws and allow developers to add alternative payment systems to their apps. [big-tech-news]
• South China Morning Post (26/10/21): Samsung boss Lee Jae-yong convicted, fined for anaesthetic misuse - Multi-billionaire Lee Jae-yong, vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics, was fined US$60,000 by a Seoul court for illegally using propofol - An overdose of the drug, which is normally used as a medical anaesthetic, was given as the cause of pop star Michael Jackson’s death in 2009
• ZDNet (24/10/21): Large DDoS attack shuts down KT's nationwide network - Users of KT's network were unable to access the internet for around 40 minutes, which the telco said was caused by a 'large-scale DDoS attack'. [cyber-security-news]
• The Economist (21/10/21): Samsung Electronics wants to dominate cutting-edge chipmaking - The South Korean dynasty’s third generation is taking on TSMC and Intel. Can it succeed? [big-tech-news]
• Just Security (21/10/21): South Korea has launched its first homegrown rocket, stepping up the country’s ambitions in space as an arms race also heats up between North Korea and South Korea
• Truthout (19/10/21): Half a Million South Korean Workers Walk Off Jobs in General Strike [labor-news, capitalist-farce-news, history-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): South Korea opened its largest ever defense exposition today, showing off its next-generation fighter jet, drones, and other technology in an effort to boost exports following the Covid-19 pandemic
• The Economist (16/10/21): South Korea’s ruling party bets on an anti-establishment figure - Lee Jae-myung, its candidate for president, presents himself as a man of the people [leftist-news, politics-news]
• Just Security (12/10/21): Media in South Korea and North Korea have reacted angrily after a report about a seafood curry in Japan that includes mounds of rice shaped to resemble the Takeshima islands, which Koreans refer to as Dokdo
• Just Security (11/10/21): South Korea has charged 15 individuals in a sexual abuse case as its military grapples with mistreatment of female and trans soldiers
• Financial Times (6/10/21): South Korea’s global battery dominance [about half of global production] raises supply chain risks - Industry alarmed by reliance on imports, particularly from China, as electric vehicles take off [logistics-news] Paywall Summary: Local political interest in industrial investment to manufacture more parts locally, as well as the (harder?) problem of finding chemical/material alternatives to to the raw material imports (ie rare earth metals) from nations like China.
• Working Class History (29/6/21): E53-56: The Gwangju uprising, 1980 [podcast-news, history-news, labor-news]
• Al-Monitor (30/9/21): Iran's supreme leader issues ban on Samsung, LG appliances - Khamenei's directive came after the two South Korean giants were about to make a comeback into their lucrative Iranian market following their brief sanctions-triggered departure.
• Just Security (30/9/21): North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ordered officials to restore communication lines with South Korea in early October to “promote peace,” while criticizing the U.S. for its “hostile policy” towards North Korea
• Democracy Now (15/9/21): South and North Korea Both Fire Ballistic Missiles as Tensions Mount on Peninsula
• Labor Notes (7/9/21): President of South Korea's Militant Union Federation Arrested for Organizing a Rally
• The Economist World This Week (4/9/21): South Korea’s government proposed a budget in which it plans to spend a record 604trn won ($520bn). Most of that will go on welfare programmes to help reduce inequality, as well as job creation. The debt-to-GDP ratio will subsequently hit 50.2%, also a record.
• Just Security (3/9/21): South Korea is developing a three-ton surface-to-surface ballistic missile as powerful as a tactical nuclear warhead
• Ars Technica (31/8/21): South Korea law forces Google and Apple to open up app store payments - App store owners won't be able to lock developers into their 30 percent fees.
• Just Security (27/8/21): South Korea has designated Afghans who supported its operations in Afghanistan as “persons of special merit” instead of refugees in an apparent effort to defuse anti-migrant sentiment.
• Ars Technica (13/8/21): Samsung’s leader is out of jail, allowing US factory plans to move forward - Samsung heir served 18 months in prison for capital flight and perjury. [us-policy-news]
• Jacobin (12/8/21): Kim San, Martyr of Korean Socialism
• Just Security (10/8/21): South Korea and the U.S. will begin preliminary military drills today, despite warnings from North Korea that the military exercises would negatively impact any thawing of relations between North and South Korea, the Yonhap news agency reported yesterday.; Kim Yo-jong, a key adviser and sister to the North Korean ruler Kim Jong-un, has called Seoul’s authorities “treacherous” over South Korea’s “dangerous” joint military exercises with the U.S., warning that the U.S. and South Korea would “face greater security threats” as a result
• Democracy Now (28/7/21): North and South Korea Restore Communications Hotline
• World Socialist Web Site (9/7/21): Hyundai and GM Korea autoworkers vote to strike
• World Socialist Web Site (18/6/21): South Korean union reaches sellout agreement to force striking delivery workers back on the job
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): Protests grow in South Korea over Japan’s Fukushima water plan - Fishing communities worry water will contaminate the seas despite promises it will be cleaned of radioactive substances. A lot of interesting geopolitics at play over this issue reviewed in the article
• Al Jazeera: Big tax hit: Samsung’s Lee family to pay $10.8bn inheritance fee - The tax bill following the death of Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee is one of the world’s largest ever.

Taiwan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• Wall Street Journal (18/12/21): Taiwan Voters Back Ruling Party in Referendum, Removing Obstacle to U.S. Trade Deal - The Democratic Progressive Party supports closer ties with Washington at the expense of Beijing [elctoral-news] Paywall Summary (?): Four questions were put to voters in this vote, and a big one was a proposal to ban imports of 'pork containing trace amounts of the additive ractopamine'; the ruling DPP prevailed on this question (the proposal failed), as well as the other three (although it's not clear from the article what the position of the DPP is on these positions/how the votes went, except for the one on pork, although it seems the DPP supports a controversial nuke plant (it's controversial because Taiwan is in the seismically-active "Ring of Fire", but supporters say it is necessary for a stable transition to green energy, in the context of blackouts this summer - one company, the world's most important chip maker, TSMC, consumes about 5% of Taiwan's electricity)). The pro-US perspective was concerned voters would support the proposal, which would cause issues for trading US pork, due to safety concerns about ractopamine - the issue has raised a lot of protests.
• Just Security (10/12/21): Nicaragua has cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favor of China. “In the world, there is only one China,” Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said in a televised address yesterday. “Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry expressed displeasure with the choice of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega to switch recognition to Beijing in a statement, and said it would immediately cease assistance programs and clear out its embassy in Managua,” Joyu Wang reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• South China Morning Post (5/12/21): Thailand seizes US$88 million of crystal meth bound for Taiwan - The drug was seized by customs officials late on Friday, hidden in powder form inside 161 white silicon slabs in packages destined for Taiwan - Thai Customs Director-General Patchara Anuntasil said Thai and Taiwanese authorities were both investigating [drug-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Just Security (29/11/21): Five House members met with the Taiwanese president last Friday, despite objections from China [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): Taiwan’s air force scrambled fighter jets yesterday to warn away 27 Chinese aircraft that entered its air defense zone, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said. The latest Chinese mission included 18 fighters jets plus five nuclear-capable H-6 bombers, as well as, unusually, a Y-20 aerial refueling aircraft, the Taiwan ministry said. Reuters reports. [china-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): China downgraded its diplomatic relations with Lithuania after the Baltic state allowed a Taiwanese trade office to open there using the name Taiwan instead of Taipei, the name often used by the island’s missions abroad. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): A U.S. warship sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait today as part of what the U.S. military calls routine activity but which will likely add to Beijing’s perception that Washington is trying to stir regional tensions. The Navy said that the warship conducted a “routine Taiwan Strait transit” through international waters in accordance with international law. Reuters reports. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Taiwan has unveiled its new upgraded F-16 fighter jets that it says would be at the heart of the island’s defense in the event of an air attack from China. Eric Cheung and Will Ripley report for CNN.
• Just Security (19/11/21): The Biden administration added more U.S. troops to Taiwan over the past few months, according to newly published Defense Department data. There are now nearly 40 troops on the island, making the U.S. footprint on the island nearly twice as big as last year. The U.S. troops are there to train Tawainese troops and protect the de facto U.S. embassy on the island. However, the small but steadily growing U.S. footprint on Taiwan “could represent increased concern in the White House and Pentagon over the island’s fate,” Jack Detsch reports for Foreign Policy. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): Taiwan has opened a de facto embassy in Lithuania, in a diplomatic breakthrough for the island and brushing aside strong opposition from China to the move. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (17/11/21): Biden has said that the U.S. does not endorse Taiwan’s independence and has reiterated that the U.S. is not changing its “one China” policy. Biden clarified that the U.S. abides by the Taiwan Relations Act and its commitment to provide Taiwan with arms for its defense. “It’s independent. It makes its own decisions,” Biden added. “I said that they have to decide — ‘they’ — Taiwan. Not us. And we are not encouraging independence, we’re encouraging that they do exactly what the Taiwan Act requires,” Biden told reporters. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): China’s Eastern Theater Command yesterday night launched combat readiness drills near the Taiwan Strait, as a U.S. congressional delegation arrived in Taiwan, and Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense has reported that six Chinese warplanes have flown into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): China has criticized the use of a U.S. Navy aircraft to fly U.S. lawmakers to Taiwan for a routine trip this week, describing the visit as “sneaky.” [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): China’s armed forces are capable of blockading Taiwan’s key harbors and airports, the island’s defense ministry has said. [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (7/11/21): Beijing sends 16 fighter jets towards Taiwan - Sorties come a day after European Parliament group ends three-day visit to the island - Taiwanese air force issues radio warnings and activates monitoring systems, defence ministry says [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (29/10/21): The U.S. is committed to helping Taiwan defend itself, the top U.S. representative in Taiwan, Sandra Oudkirk has said, amid heightened tensions between Taipei and Beijing [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): China has said that Taiwan has no right to join the U.N. after Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicated U.S. support for the move. [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has confirmed the presence of U.S. military trainers in Taiwan. Tsai made the remarks during an interview with CNN. Tsai would not say exactly how many U.S. military personnel are on the island at present but said it was “not as many as people thought,” adding that “we have a wide range of cooperation with the U.S. aiming at increasing our defense capability.” [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/10/21): The U.S. support’s Taiwan’s inclusion in the U.N. system, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said, a move that is likely to anger China [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki has clarified that there was no change in Taiwan policy after President Biden said that the U.S. would come to Taiwan’s defense if it were attacked by China [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/10/21): President Biden has said that the U.S. would come to Taiwan’s defense and has a committed to defend the island China claims as its own, forcing the White House to clarify that U.S. policy on the subject has not changed. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (18/10/21): An American warship and a Canadian warship sailed through the Taiwan strait last week, the U.S. military has said, a move condemned by China amid heightened tensions between China and Taiwan [us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): Fire in Taiwan’s Kaohsiung city kills at least 46, wounds over 40 - ‘Fierce’ blaze in the 13-floor building in Yancheng district broke out early morning, with witnesses reporting hearing an explosion.
• Just Security (12/10/21): China’s military has said that it has carried out beach landing and assault drills in the province directly across the sea from Taiwan, though it did not link the military exercises with the current tensions between Beijing and Taipei.
• Just Security (11/10/21): On Saturday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for unification between China and Taiwan. [china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (11/10/21): Taiwan Vows Not to Bow to Pressure from China as Tension Escalates [china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): WSJ: U.S. Military Secretly Training Taiwanese Forces for Possible Conflict with China [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (6/10/21): Taiwan’s Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng has said that China will be capable of mounting a full scale invasion of Taiwan by 2025 and that tensions between Taiwan and China are at their worst in 40 years.
• Democracy Now (6/10/21): China-Taiwan Tensions Mount as Biden Reaffirms U.S.-Sino Commitment to Diplomatic Agreement [us-policy-news, china-policy-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): In anticipation of further aggression from China, Taiwan is preparing to repel any strike and has asked Australia to increase intelligence sharing and security cooperation Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu has said
• Just Security (4/10/21): In a show of force, China sent nearly 100 fighter jets and bombers into Taiwan’s air defense zone over the weekend.
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Taiwan reports record Chinese incursions into its air defence zone - Defence ministry says it detected at least 56 flights hours after US urged Beijing to cease ‘provocative’ activity [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (3/10/21): Chinese planes fly over Taiwan defence zone in second day of record show of force - Taipei says 39 Chinese fighter jets crossed into its defence zone in two sorties, following a 38-plane incursion on Friday
• Just Security (1/10/21): China has marked its National Day of the People’s Republic of China with a large air inclusion near Taiwan, forcing Taiwan’s air force to scramble aircraft to warn away the 25 Chinese aircraft, including two nuclear-capable H-6 bombers.
• Just Security (27/9/21): China has condemned the U.K. for sailing a warship down the sensitive Taiwan strait
• South China Morning Post (25/9/21): Taiwan’s Eric Chu wins KMT leadership race as party sticks with island-centric position - The 60-year-old ex-vice-premier trounced his challenger and mainland-centric ideologist Chang Ya-chung by more than 85,000 votes to win the party’s top post - Chu has vowed to return the century-old party to power in the 2024 presidential election
• Just Security (23/9/21): Taiwan’s air force scrambled jets today to warn off 19 Chinese aircraft that entered Taiwan’s air defense zone, Taiwan’s defense ministry has said
• South China Morning Post (22/9/21): Taiwan announces its application to join Pacific trade pact CPTPP days after Beijing’s request - The announcement comes days after Beijing made a similar request to be a member of the pact - Economic Minister Wang Mei-hua and the island’s top trade negotiator John Deng are expected give details of the application on Thursday
• South China Morning Post (18/9/21): China launches naval and air drills as US warship transits Taiwan Strait - PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command slams repeated ‘provocative actions’, as USS Barry marks ninth transit of Taiwan Strait by American warships this year - Taiwan plans to spend US$8.7 billion over the next five years on domestically produced arms, including missiles capable of striking mainland China [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/9/21): Taiwan Fighter jets have practiced road landings in a drill practicing skills that would be needed in the event of an attack from China
• South China Morning Post (5/9/21): Chinese military sends 19 aircraft into Taiwan’s air defence zone - PLA deploy fighters, bombers and anti-submarine plane on latest in series of such missions - Unclear what prompted the activity, which comes more than two months after the last such large-scale sortie
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): India and Taiwan Roll Out Domestically Produced COVID Vaccines Despite Lack of Trial Data
• ZDNet (18/8/21): Citizen Lab finds Apple's China censorship process bleeds into Hong Kong and Taiwan - Despite Apple not having any legal obligation to perform political censorship in Taiwan, it has done so anyway. [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (17/8/21): Chinese fighter jets, anti-submarine aircraft and combat ships conducted assault drills near Taiwan on Tuesday, with the People’s Liberation Army saying the exercise was necessary to safeguard the country’s sovereignty
• Just Security (10/8/21): China has demanded that Lithuania withdraw its ambassador in Beijing and said that it would recall China’s envoy to Vilnius in a row over Lithuania allowing Chinese-claimed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy there using its own name
• South China Morning Post (4/8/21): Biden administration approves its first arms sale to Taiwan - The potential US$750,000 deal includes 40 new M109 self-propelled howitzers and almost 1,700 kits to convert projectiles into more precise GPS-guided munitions - The proposed sale would improve Taiwan’s capability to blunt a Chinese land invasion
• South China Morning Post (4/8/21): Taiwan plans to ban workers in key tech roles from visiting mainland China - The new rules are prompted by growing concerns about illicit tech transfers and mean individuals and businesses will need permission to go to the mainland - Change covers those with access to core technology and government contractors working in fields such as defence, foreign affairs and intelligence
• Al Jazeera (23/6/21): China condemns US as warship transits Taiwan Strait again - US Navy says its guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur conducted a routine transit through the sensitive waterway.
• New York Times (19/6/21): The United States sends 2.5 million doses of Moderna’s vaccine to help Taiwan battle its first major outbreak.
• Democracy Now (17/6/21): Chinese Military Sends Record 28 Warplanes into Airspace Controlled by Taiwan
• The Guardian (11/6/21): Taiwan factory forces migrant workers back into dormitories amid Covid outbreak - Manufacturer ASE defends imposing rules that do not apply to the broader community in Taiwan, drawing accusations of discrimination
• Al Jazeera (28/5/21): Fake news alert: Taiwan fights disinformation as COVID surges - Researchers say China is behind much of the disinformation, which authorities worry will put lives at risk.
• New York Times (27/5/21): Taiwan Prays for Rain and Scrambles to Save Water - Some of the island’s lakes and reservoirs have nearly run dry. And water restrictions have forced many residents to modify how they shower, wash dishes and flush.
• Democracy Now (27/5/21): Australia Orders Coronavirus Lockdown for 7 Million; Taiwan Battles Its Worst COVID Outbreak
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): In Taiwan Tsai Ing-wen, the president, urged people to stop panic buying and stay calm, after new restrictions came into force to curb an outbreak of locally transmitted cases. Masks have to be worn everywhere and shops must keep customers’ contact details.
• Speak Out Socialists: Drought in Taiwan [worst in 56 years] – Part of the Global Catastrophe; 'In 2020, no typhoons made landfall on Taiwan, and combined with a weak monsoon season, much of Taiwan is in a drought, particularly the central and southern areas. Taiwan normally experiences an average of 3-4 typhoon landfalls per year, which contribute a significant amount of rainfall.; However, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has been largely unaffected by water rationing despite a 15% water supply reduction. The chip manufacturing process consumes large amounts of water. TSMC has resorted to transporting truckloads of water from parts of Taiwan less-affected by the drought to its facility in Hsinchu.'

Tuvalu Updates

• Democracy Now (10/11/21): “We Will Not Stand Idly By”: Tuvalu Minister Delivers Speech Knee-Deep in Rising Sea Water [climate-change-news]

South Asia Updates (Oceana)

Afghanistan / Australia / Bangladesh / Bhutan / Cambodia / East Timor / India / Indonesia / Laos / Malaysia / Maldives / Myanmar / Nepal / New Zealand / Pakistan / Papua New Guinea / Philippines / Singapore / Sri Lanka / Thailand / Vietnam

Back to Top

Coming Soon

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• Wall Street Journal (20/12/21): Himalayan Glaciers Are Melting at Furious Rate, New Study Shows - An analysis of almost 15,000 ice sheets in the region shows they are shrinking 10 times faster now than in previous centuries [climate-change-news, food-security-news] Paywall Summary (?): This is having knock-on effects of disasters such as flooding and avalanches throughout South Asia, leading to agricultural disruptions that could impact hundreds of millions of people. Scientists say that the Himalayan glaciers aren't just changing fast - they're changing faster than other comparable glaciers, and evidence increasingly ties the phenomena to greenhouse-gas emissions (the faster melting in Himalayas though may due to regional changes, such as shifts in the monsoon... (I must note that this itself may be a consequence of greenhouse-gas emissions)). The "faster than centuries" estimate based off of a study from Dr. Carrivick using satellite imagery of the debris trail glaciers leave behind as they slowly grind through valleys, giving an estimate of the "span of ice sheet coverage", and compared with present ice cover. Shrinking glaciers threatens agriculture, as glacial meltwater feeds major rivers in the region, and smaller glaciers leads to reduced availability for agriculture, along with heightened avalanche probability. WSJ reports from the journal The Cryosphere that between 1994 and 2017, "the Earth lost enough ice to cover the state of Michigan with a sheet 100 meters thick".
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• South China Morning Post (19/11/21): South China Sea: 300 Chinese ‘maritime militia’ vessels in Spratly Islands at any time, says US report - Chinese boats receive US$3,700 government fuel subsidy a day for operating in disputed waters, says CSIS report - Researcher disputes that the crews are militia, saying most Chinese fisherman do not have military training [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Just Security (11/8/21): The U.S.-led annual Southeast Asia Cooperation and Training (SEACAT) military exercises have started in Singapore and online [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (26/7/21): COVID Cases Skyrocket in Southeast Asia, with Children Making Up 12.5% of Indonesian Death Toll
• The Guardian (7/6/21): Asia Pacific sees sharp rise in Covid infections as Delta strain threatens new wave - From South Korea to Australia, authorities are struggling to contain the highly transmissible coronavirus strain that has caused a surge in UK, Europe and US
• The Guardian (13/6/21): Factory workers making goods for the west bear brunt of virus surge in south-east Asia - Migrant labourers tell of being forced to isolate in brutal conditions as Covid wave grips region
• The Economist World This Week (20/5/21): Cases of covid-19 continued to spread across Asia, from Nepal, which has been hit by India’s surge, to Taiwan, which has had few cases so far. New infections are mounting in Thailand, Malaysia and elsewhere in South-East Asia.

Bangladesh Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): At least 32 dead in Bangladesh ferry fire - Incident happened early on Friday near the southern rural town of Jhalokati, 250km south of the capital, Dhaka [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): The U.S. has imposed extensive human rights-related sanctions on dozens of people and entities tied to China, Myanmar, North Korea, and Bangladesh, and has added Chinese artificial intelligence company SenseTime Group to an investment blacklist. Canada and the U.K. joined the U.S. in imposing sanctions related to human rights abuses in Myanmar. China’s embassy in Washington denounced the U.S. move as “serious interference in China’s internal affairs.” Daphne Psaledakis and David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis report for Reuters. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/12/21): Bangladesh protests US sanctions against RAB, security chiefs - Seven people, including Bangladesh’s national police chief, have been sanctioned by Biden’s administration over alleged rights abuses. [protest-news, us-policy-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CPJ (10/12/21): Bangladeshi journalist Golam Sarwar attacked, harassed following 2020 abduction [!]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Bangladesh sentences 20 to death for student murder - Abrar Fahad, 21, was beaten to death by fellow students at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in 2019. [!]
• Al Jazeera (25/11/21): Bangladesh begins moving Rohingya to remote island amid criticism - More than 2,000 Rohingya are set to be transferred to Bhashan Char island in the Bay of Bengal, amid claims of forced relocations [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Bangladesh sentences former chief justice to 11 years in jail - Surendra Kumar Sinha headed the Supreme Court when it ruled in 2017 that parliament could not sack judges, a move hailed by lawyers.
• The Guardian (31/10/21): Hindu-Muslim violence crosses border from Bangladesh to India - Footage shared on social media blamed for igniting violence between communities that left seven dead, buildings torched and many living in fear
• Al Jazeera (22/10/21): Seven killed in Rohingya refugee camp attack: Bangladesh police - Police say at least seven people killed in attack on Islamic seminary in a refugee camp on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.
• NewsClick (23/10/21): Tripura: Right-wing Mobs vandalise Mosques in Response to the Attack on Minority Hindus in Bangladesh - Section 144 has been imposed in the state and some Muslim families have been forced to flee their homes. [far-right-news]
• Just Security (19/10/21): Hundreds of people have protested in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, calling for an end to the religious violence that has gripped the country since last Friday
• Just Security (19/10/21): Bangladesh has arrested 450 people for attacks and violence against Hindus, Bangladeshi police have said. The arrests follow some of the worst religious unrest for over a decade in the Muslim-majority nation.
• The Guardian (16/10/21): Six dead after violence erupts during Hindu festival in Bangladesh - Dozens of temples attacked over claims a Qur’an was desecrated
• Just Security (15/10/21): According to a leaked copy of an agreement between the U.N. and Bangladesh which allows the international body to have “unhindered access” to Bhasan Char, an island in Bangladesh where the Bangladeshi government has moved about 19,000 Rohingya refugees, provides no guarantee that the refugees will be allowed to move freely to the mainland. Along with past statements by refugees and rights groups claiming that some refugee relocations were involuntary, the revelation will likely only intensify criticism of Bhasan Char as an “island jail.” Refugees have insisted that they be granted freedom of movement between the “remote and flood-prone island” and the “sprawling mainland camps” near the port town of Cox’s Bazar.
• CPJ (6/10/21): Bangladesh authorities detain sister of exiled journalist Kanak Sarwar
• Al Jazeera (3/10/21): Bangladesh arrests five over the killing of Rohingya activist - Mohibullah, who was in his late 40s, was killed by unknown gunmen in a camp in Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday night.
• The Guardian (29/9/21): Prominent Rohingya leader shot dead in Bangladesh refugee camp - Mohib Ullah had been in talks with other refugee leaders in Kutupalong when he was killed by unidentified assailants
• CPJ (28/9/21): Bangladesh authorities order banks to disclose information on 12 journalists’ accounts
• CPJ (21/9/21): Bangladesh authorities charge 3 journalists under Digital Security Act
• Al Jazeera (31/8/21): Six sentenced to death in Bangladesh for killing LGBTQ activists - Court orders the death penalty for members of a banned group for the brutal murders five years ago. [lgbtq-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/8/21): 21 dead, dozens missing after boat sinks in Bangladesh - Passenger vessel reportedly collided with a sand-laden cargo ship on a lake in the town of Bijoynagar in eastern Bangladesh.
• New York Times (11/8/21): Bangladesh ends a strict lockdown even as cases rise.
• Democracy Now (11/8/21): COVID-19 Surges in Mexico; Bangladesh Launches Rohingya Refugee Vaccination Drive
• CPJ (5/8/21): Bangladesh authorities harass, threaten two Rohingya journalists [surveillance-and-censorship-news, corruption-news]
• Left Voice (5/8/21): Bangladesh: Government Reopens Textile Factories As Delta Rages - Millions of workers in Bangladesh must return to their jobs in textile factories due to the reopening ordered by the government. This involves 4,500 textile factories employing 4 million workers. In the meantime, the cases of Covid-19 continue to grow, with the added factor of the Delta variant.
• The Guardian (4/8/21): Workers return to Bangladesh’s garment factories despite record Covid deaths - Hundreds of thousands flock to cities as government allows manufacturers to reopen, with exporters citing fears Western brands would divert orders
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Bangladesh evacuates 10,000 Rohingya after deadly landslides - Rohingya from refugee camps as well as local residents moved to safer areas in Cox’s Bazar after 14 killed in landslides and flash floods.
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): Six Rohingya Refugees Die in Mass Flooding at Cox’s Bazar Refugee Camp
• CPJ (26/7/21): Bangladesh authorities detain journalist Mohammad Akhtaruzzaman under Digital Security Act
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Bangladesh plans to vaccinate Rohingya against COVID: Official - The initial focus to be on some 50,000 Rohingya above the age of 55, to be vaccinated with the help of UN agencies, says an official.
• Al Jazeera (10/7/21): Bangladesh factory owner charged with murder after 52 die in fire - Seven others also detained over the massive fire that broke out at a food processing site where safety regulations were allegedly breached.
• New York Times (9/7/21): Dozens Die as Another Factory Fire Strikes Bangladesh - The blaze, at a seven-story building where fruit drinks, packing materials and plastic packaging were made, burned for nearly 24 hours.
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): Bangladesh sees record 201 single-day COVID deaths as cases surge - A total of 11,162 people diagnosed with the disease in 24 hours, taking the total tally to 9,77,568, officials said on Wednesday.
• The Guardian (29/6/21): Bangladesh troops to enforce lockdown as Covid death toll hits record high - Most people will be confined to homes and public transport closed, leaving thousands of migrant workers stranded
• Al Jazeera (28/6/21): Bangladesh probes deadly Dhaka building explosion - At least seven people killed and dozens of others wounded as the blast rips through a multistorey building.
• Democracy Now (28/6/21): Bangladesh, Australia, South Africa Among Nations Ordering New Restrictions Amid Surge in Cases
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Bangladesh detains popular preacher in ‘anti-terrorism’ case - Police say Amir Hamza arrested in a raid at his home in Kushtia on charges of inciting ‘militants’.
• Democracy Now (24/5/21): Bangladeshi Journalist Rozina Islam, Who Reported on Corruption, Granted Bail After Arrest
• World Socialist Web Site: Bangladeshi police gun down six construction workers [at coal-fired SS Power Plant ... during worker demonstrat[ion] for regular payment of wages and against harsh working conditions (see below)]; 'four workers died on the spot'; ''over 50 workers were injured in the police assault'; police attempt cover-up, but officers' testimonies conflict; The Hasina government is confronting a wave of protests by workers across a range of sectors, including the jute and garment industries, in response to low wages and rising COVID-19 infections.
• Al Jazeera: Protesters shot dead by police at Bangladesh power plant - The incident took place on Saturday as [2,000] workers were demanding a pay rise at a Chinese-backed coal-fired power plant.[2]

Bhutan Updates

• Wall Street Journal (20/12/21): Himalayan Glaciers Are Melting at Furious Rate, New Study Shows - An analysis of almost 15,000 ice sheets in the region shows they are shrinking 10 times faster now than in previous centuries [climate-change-news, food-security-news] Paywall Summary (?): This is having knock-on effects of disasters such as flooding and avalanches throughout South Asia, leading to agricultural disruptions that could impact hundreds of millions of people. Scientists say that the Himalayan glaciers aren't just changing fast - they're changing faster than other comparable glaciers, and evidence increasingly ties the phenomena to greenhouse-gas emissions (the faster melting in Himalayas though may due to regional changes, such as shifts in the monsoon... (I must note that this itself may be a consequence of greenhouse-gas emissions)). The "faster than centuries" estimate based off of a study from Dr. Carrivick using satellite imagery of the debris trail glaciers leave behind as they slowly grind through valleys, giving an estimate of the "span of ice sheet coverage", and compared with present ice cover. Shrinking glaciers threatens agriculture, as glacial meltwater feeds major rivers in the region, and smaller glaciers leads to reduced availability for agriculture, along with heightened avalanche probability. WSJ reports from the journal The Cryosphere that between 1994 and 2017, "the Earth lost enough ice to cover the state of Michigan with a sheet 100 meters thick".
• South China Morning Post (15/10/21): China and Bhutan reach deal on border talks ‘in test for India’ - Beijing and Thimphu agree on road map but give no details of the steps ahead - China’s move could be an attempt to hit back at countries that have accused it of aggression in the area, analyst says [china-policy-news]

Cambodia Updates

• WSWS (30/12/21): Terminated workers at Cambodia’s largest casino protest [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Who is Hun Manet? PM’s son anointed as Cambodia’s next leader - The Bristol University and West Point graduate is the oldest of Hun Sen’s six children and has been groomed to succeed his father [!]
• South China Morning Post (11/12/21): US envoy in Cambodia says ‘concerned’ about possible Chinese military facility at Ream naval base - ‘We are concerned by the possibility of a PRC military facility,’ State Department envoy Derek Chollet said, referring to China by its official name - His visit to Phnom Penh came days after the United States ordered an arms embargo on Cambodia, citing deepening Chinese military influence, amid other factors [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• South China Morning Post (10/12/21): Put US weapons in warehouses or destroy them, Cambodia tells military after arms embargo - Prime Minister Hun Sen also downplayed the quality of American weaponry, saying ‘a lot of those who use US arms lost wars’ - The move came after Washington imposed an arms embargo over Phnom Penh’s close ties with China [us-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• South China Morning Post (9/12/21): US imposes arms embargo on Cambodia over Chinese military influence - Human rights abuses and corruption were also cited as reasons for the restrictions - Washington and Beijing are jostling for position in Southeast Asia, where Cambodia has become one of China’s most important allies [us-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• South China Morning Post (7/12/21): Cambodia welcomes Myanmar foreign minister, day after Aung San Suu Kyi sentencing drew global condemnation - Wunna Maung Lwin held talks on Tuesday with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who earlier said junta officials should be invited to Asean meetings - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has seen divisions emerge between members over its diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis in Myanmar since the coup Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (2/12/21): Hun Sen, Cambodian leader for 36 years, backs son to succeed him - Prime minister says he supports his 44-year-old son Hun Manet to take over leadership through an election [corruption-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/11/21): Thailand refugee deportations trigger condemnation, defiance - Thailand has returned a number of Cambodian opposition activists in a move condemned by the UN refugee agency and rights groups. [immigrant-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Reuters (10/11/21): U.S. issues Cambodia corruption advisory, sanctions officials over navy base [us-policy-news] (via u/Renxer0002 on r/Libertarian) There is a strong geopolitical dimension here, the US is kinda upset about Cambodian deals with China... ofc. The Ream Naval Base discussed here has been the site of US and Cambodian joint training and naval exercises under the CARAT program
• CPJ (1/10/21): Cambodia sentences journalist Youn Chhiv to 1 year in prison
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Cambodia union leader faces court verdict as crackdown continues - Rong Chhun is accused of ‘incitement’ and faces up to two years in prison if convicted. [busting-labor-news]
• Just Security (17/8/21): The former head of state of Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge regime argued before an appeals court Tuesday that his genocide conviction should be overturned, calling into question evidence presented at his original trial before an international tribunal
• CPJ (16/8/21): Cambodian authorities force reporters to delete photos, video of protest

India Updates

(wiki)

For some updates on the Farmer's Protests, see here

Maps: Basic + States (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Notes: ([27/8/21] conversion rate) $1 ~= 74.14 rupees; lakh = 100,000 (1 lakh rupees = $1349); crore = 10 million (1 crore rupees = $134,880); lakh crore = 1 trillion (1 lakh crore rupees = $13.5 billion); "The Centre" refers to the govt of India, the central government, what Americans have in mind when we refer to the "federal govt" in the US

• NewsClick (31/12/21): Karnataka: Fear of Intimidation Grips Christian Community Post Anti-Conversion Law Passage - A 75-page report titled "Criminalising Practice of Faith- A Report" by PUCL Karnataka on hate crimes against Christians in the state cites 39 violent instances between January to November 2021 across the state. [militant-far-right-news] [!]
• NewsClick (31/12/21): Nagaland Political Parties, Tribal Groups ‘Aghast’ at AFSPA Extension - Naga People’s Front, Naga Students Federation, Naga Hoho and Rising People’s Party denounce the BJP government’s decision. [!]
• NewsClick (31/12/21): Bihar: Farmers Continue Protests as Fertiliser Shortage Persists Into Rabi Season - As per reports reaching here, farmers have been protesting against the shortage of fertiliser and black marketing in Araria, Madhepura, Supaul, East Champaran, and other districts. [food-security-news, protest-news] [!]
• NewsClick (31/12/21): Yogi Govt Hikes pay of Part-Time Instructors, Cooks; Union Terms its Poll ‘Gimmick’ - The UP Anganwadi Karmchari Union has said that the chief minister is silent on its key demands. [!]
• WSWS (30/12/21): Haryana childcare workers demand higher wages - Anganwadi (childcare) workers demonstrated and blocked traffic on the Chandigarh-Kharar highway in Chandigarh, Haryana state on December 21 over the late payment of salaries and for a wage increase. Traffic was blocked, causing long queues of vehicles stretching almost 4 kilometres. [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Punjab university teachers continue strike action [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Tamil Nadu overhead tank operators and conservancy workers demand permanency [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): India: New Delhi police arrest protesting doctors - The protest was a part of the ongoing national indefinite strike that began on December 21 to oppose suspension of postgraduate medical admissions, which is causing extra workloads. Resident doctors from several states across India walked out on December 6 over the issue. [healthcare-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, protest-news, labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (30/12/21): Six rebels, Indian soldier killed in Kashmir: Police - Kashmiri rebel groups have been fighting Indian forces for more than 30 years, demanding freedom or merger with neighbouring Pakistan. [!]
• NewsClick (30/12/21): Haryana: Khattar’s ‘Gift’ Not Enough, Anganwadi Workers’ Strike to Continue, Says Union - Waged since December 8, the strike action has resulted in the operations of almost 26,000 Anganwadi centres in 22 districts across the state to come to a grinding halt. [labor-news] [!]
• Washington Post (29/12/21): Opinion: In India, calls for Muslim genocide grow louder. Modi’s silence is an endorsement. [militant-far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (29/12/21): Christians on edge in India’s Karnataka ruled by Modi’s BJP - At least 42 attacks on Christians and their places of worship recorded this year in southern state as it mulls a controversial anti-conversion law. [far-right-news] [!]
• NewsClick (28/12/21): 2021: The Year of Evictions - Families rendered homeless amidst a raging Covid-19 pandemic and sometimes even during the monsoon season [housing-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• NewsClick (28/12/21): UP Elections: Promise to Double Farmers' Income Shattering, Suicide Spree Continues - In Banda district of Bundelkhand, young farmers Ram Ruchi and Pramod Patel, trapped in a debt cycle, committed suicide this year. [social-woes-news] [!]
• NewsClick (28/12/21): DJB: Unions Demand Roll-Back of Action Against Meter Readers, Blame IT Major for Billing Faults - DJB union held a demonstration on Tuesday, alleging that water billing discrepancies in the national capital were due to the revenue management system being currently managed by Wipro. [labor-news] [!]
• New York Times (28/12/21): A lengthy doctors’ strike over understaffing sparks chaos at New Delhi hospitals. [healthcare-news, labor-news, covid-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Financial Times (27/12/21): India cracks down on operations of Mother Teresa’s charity [called 'Missionaries of Charity' (MoC)] - Refusal to renew foreign-funding licence comes as Hindu nationalists step up efforts to rein in Christian groups [far-right-news] Paywall Summary (?): Hindu nationalists claim Christians are using the charity to convert Hindus and weaken their majority. MoC can still operate, just not recieve foreign funding, on which it relies. MoC denies allegation of forced conversions - its bank accounts appear not to have been frozen, contrary to rumor (based on govt and MoC reporting). Modi has for years squeezed foreign-funded NGOs/charities, even freezing bank accounts (such as Greenpeace and Amnesty International). This amidst ongoing pressure on the small Christian community from Hindu right-wingers.
• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): Foxconn delays reopening its India iPhone plant - The state government asked Foxconn to review services provided to workers including power backup, food, water at hostels. [labor-news] [!]
• NewsClick (27/12/21): Bihar: Faulty Boiler, Negligent Management Behind Blast That Killed 7 Workers and Injured 10 - The factory management has been accused of neglecting the workers' complaints about the faulty boiler and also failed to obtain a no-objection certificate from the district fire department. [industrial-failure-news, labor-news] [!]
• The Guardian (27/12/21): Jesus statue smashed in spate of attacks on India’s Christian community - Amid growing intolerance to India’s Christian minority, several Christmas events were targeted by Hindu right wing groups [militant-far-right-news] [!]
• NewsClick (25/12/21): TMC’s Sweep in Kolkata Troubling, but Signals Political Realignment - TMC has won a scarcely believable percentage of votes, but a political realignment is in the works, with Left Front reclaiming title of main opposition player, pushing BJP down further. [politics-news]
• NewsClick (25/12/21): TN This Week: MSMEs Strike Against Price Hike; Rameswaram Fishermen Protest Detention by Lankan Navy - The number of omicron variant infections in Tamil Nadu has increased to 34 with the first patient being discharged last week. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (23/12/21): TN: Underpaid and Exploited Foxconn Workers Burst in Protest After Workers Fell ill - Though food poisoning and hospitalisation of 159 workers are reasons behind the protests, the simmering anger over poor working conditions and exploitations are considered to be the cause behind the spontaneous protests. [labor-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, media-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• NewsClick (25/12/21): UP: Far From Doubling Income, Suicide Woes Shadow Engulf Farmers - The Centre has on many occasions announced to double the farmer’s income but the reality on the ground paints a different picture. Suffocated under a cycle of debt, some of them are allegedly taking the extreme step. [fail-government-news, social-woes-news, food-security-news] [!]
• NewsClick (23/12/21): How Did Uttarakhand Govt Allow Calls for Muslim Genocide in Haridwar? - A ‘Dharma Sansad’ held between December 17-19 was a platform for Hindutva 'leaders’ to spew hate speech and call for communal violence. [militant-far-right-news]
• NewsClick (23/12/21): Kolkata Civic Polls: TMC Under Scanner as Victims of Violence Move HC, Seek Re-election - Candidates and leaders from all three main opposition parties, CPI(M), BJP and Congress, have moved the Calcutta HC seeking re-poll and probe into alleged poll violence and vote rigging. [voting-rights-news]
• NewsClick (23/12/21): Maharashtra: Another Victory for Peasants as MVA Govt Forced to Take Back Anti-Farmer Bills - After the Modi government was forced to repeal the three farm laws, the MVA government has decided to withdraw the proposed Bills that are listed for legislative business during the ongoing Assembly session. [privatization-news, labor-news, good-news]
• WSWS (23/12/21): Indian army deployed to break Jammu and Kashmir power workers’ strike [privatization-news, labor-news, busting-labor-news, far-right-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Powerful blast at Indian court building kills at least two - Investigation launched after explosion hits a judicial complex in Ludhiana, a city in India’s northern Punjab state.
• NewsClick (23/12/21): Civilian, Policeman Killed in two Separate Attacks in Kashmir - Two attacks were carried out by militants within a span of 30 minutes in Srinagar and Anantnag. [!]
• The Irrawaddy (22/12/21): India Reaches Out to Myanmar Junta [!]
• NewsClick (22/12/21): Bihar: Chowkidars Tasked With Implementing Liquor Ban Hounded by Mafia, Stage Protests - In dry Bihar, chowkidars, who are unarmed, are scared as they face direct threats and attacks from powerful people involved in illicit liquor trade–the liquor mafia–across the state after their names are revealed to the latter by the police [!]
• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Apple supplier’s factory in southern India to remain shut - Management has shut the factory for a week after workers protested over a food poisoning incident which sent 150 workers to hospital. [big-tech-news, labor-news] [!]
• NewsClick (21/12/21): J&K Power Employees Bag Midnight Victory After Strike; Electricity Restored in UT - The indefinite strike was called off at midnight on Tuesday following the administration and union representatives reaching an agreement. [labor-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Indian man fined for wanting Modi’s face cut from vaccine drive - India’s PM Narendra Modi is the focus of a huge advertising blitz touting his government’s triumphs in fighting COVID despite nearly 500,000 deaths. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• NewsClick (21/12/21): TMC Sweeps KMC Polls Amid Rigging Allegations; Left Vote Share Higher Than BJP - Left Front regained some of its vote share at 11% compared with Assembly polls, ending ahead of BJP, which lost 20% vote share. [voting-rights-news, electoral-news] [!]
• NewsClick (21/12/21): Chennai Eviction Drive Leaves Hundreds Homeless - As part of the beautification drive, 57 families were evicted from Kolathur and another 77 at Thousand Lights. [housing-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (20/12/21): Himalayan Glaciers Are Melting at Furious Rate, New Study Shows - An analysis of almost 15,000 ice sheets in the region shows they are shrinking 10 times faster now than in previous centuries [climate-change-news, food-security-news] Paywall Summary (?): This is having knock-on effects of disasters such as flooding and avalanches throughout South Asia, leading to agricultural disruptions that could impact hundreds of millions of people. Scientists say that the Himalayan glaciers aren't just changing fast - they're changing faster than other comparable glaciers, and evidence increasingly ties the phenomena to greenhouse-gas emissions (the faster melting in Himalayas though may due to regional changes, such as shifts in the monsoon... (I must note that this itself may be a consequence of greenhouse-gas emissions)). The "faster than centuries" estimate based off of a study from Dr. Carrivick using satellite imagery of the debris trail glaciers leave behind as they slowly grind through valleys, giving an estimate of the "span of ice sheet coverage", and compared with present ice cover. Shrinking glaciers threatens agriculture, as glacial meltwater feeds major rivers in the region, and smaller glaciers leads to reduced availability for agriculture, along with heightened avalanche probability. WSJ reports from the journal The Cryosphere that between 1994 and 2017, "the Earth lost enough ice to cover the state of Michigan with a sheet 100 meters thick".
• South China Morning Post (20/12/21): India: arrests made after protest over food poisoning at Apple supplier Foxconn site in Chennai - 22 men arrested, around 70 women released; all had been detained for blocking road after food poisoning at Apple supplier Foxconn dormitories - India among nations increasingly important to contract manufacturers supplying US brands trying to minimise effects of China-US trade war [labor-news, protest-news, capitalist-farce-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• New York Times (19/12/21): 2 Lynchings Reported at Sikh Temples in India - Enraged mobs attacked men they linked to acts of sacrilege, one at the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine for Sikhs. [!]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): Apple asks India’s antitrust watchdog to dismiss apps market case - The watchdog reviewed allegations that Apple hurts competition by forcing app developers to use its proprietary system. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news] [!]
• NewsClick (18/12/21): TN This Week: Bank Strike Successful, 3 School Students Die in Wall Collapse - 3,000 women workers of Foxconn blocked the Chennai-Bengaluru highway after the health of 8 workers affected by food poisoning was not disclosed. [labor-news, privatization-news] [!]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): North Shropshire byelection: Liberal Democrats win former safe Tory seat in blow to Johnson - Helen Morgan wins seat held by Conservatives for almost 200 years in byelection called after Owen Paterson resigned [electoral-news] [!]
• The Guardian (17/12/21): Pegasus spyware ‘found on phone of jailed critic of Narendra Modi - 'Analysis of Rona Wilson’s phone found evidence it was infected with NSO Group spyware three months before arrest [surveillance-and-censorship-news, far-right-news, pegasus-news]
• The Guardian (10/12/21): How a terrorism law in India is being used to silence Modi’s critics - The BJP government is exploiting a terrorism prevention law to intimidate dissenters from lawyers, journalists, priests, poets to Kashmiri civilians [far-right-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• NewsClick (16/12/21): Modi Govt cut 22% Tribal Funds of Madhya Pradesh, Diverted to PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana - The matter came to the fore after a BJP member of Lok Sabha from MP's Balaghat, Dhal Singh Bisen, filed a question over the funds allocated to Madhya Pradesh for tribal welfare in the last five years. [indigenous-news, fail-government-news, far-right-news] [!]
• NewsClick (16/12/21): 2-Day Bank Strike: Unions Warn of Indefinite Stir if Centre Refuses to Budge on Privatisation - Demonstrations, public meetings, rallies held across major cities against Banking Bill; at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, public sector bank officers, employees and customers held a protest. [labor-news, privatization-news] [!]
• NewsClick (15/12/21): New Report Documents Organised Violence Against Christian Prayer Meetings in Karnataka - The PUCL report alleged that in most cases, the police had failed to offer protection to the victims even in cases where intelligence reports had warned of possibilities of violence. [militant-far-right-news] [!]
• NewsClick (15/12/21): UP: Over 10,000 Employees of 900 Banks to Observe two-day Strike Against Privatisation - The bank employees’ union alleged that the corporate houses were eyeing Rs 157 lakh crore of the public's hard earned money, which is in the deposits of nationalised banks. [labor-news, privatization-news] [!]
• Just Security (14/12/21): Indian troops have killed a suspected rebel during a gun battle in Kashmir. Fighting between Indian security forces and rebels broke out in the early hours today in the Surankote area of Jammu region’s Poonch district, where a small group of armed fighters are believed to be holed up, a police official has said. Al Jazeera reports.
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Indian police officers killed in Kashmir rebel attack - At least a dozen officers wounded in the attack in Srinagar, according to authorities, hours after two suspected rebels were killed by police. [!]
• NewsClick (11/12/21): Celebrations Begin as Punjab, Haryana Farmers Head Home After 'Victory' - The Samyukt Kisan Morcha had decided to suspend the farmers' movement against the three contentious farm laws and announced that farmers would go back home on December 11 from the protest sites on Delhi's borders. [good-news]
• The Irrawaddy (10/12/21): India’s Dilemma Over Ties With Myanmar Military
• Jacobin (8/12/21): The Indian Farmers’ Movement Has Shown Us How to Fight Narendra Modi - A heroic struggle has stopped Narendra Modi's government from ramming through regressive farm laws. Modi is still deeply entrenched in power, but the farmers have shown that mass mobilization can pose a bigger challenge to his rule than parliamentary games. [labor-news, far-right-news]
• South China Morning Post (8/12/21): India’s chief of defence staff Bipin Rawat among 13 dead in helicopter crash - Bipin Rawat had a four-decade military career that included overseeing forces in Indian-administered Kashmir and along the Line of Actual Control bordering China - PM Narendra Modi described him as a ‘patriot’ who contributed to modernising India’s armed forces and security apparatus Important Note on SCMP [!]
• NewsClick (8/12/21): TN: Monsoon Hits Rubber Plantation Workers, Govt Relief Remains Elusive - More than 30,000 rubber rubber plantation workers in Kanyakumari district are left jobless due to incessant rains for the past three months. No government relief has been extended so far to the workers. [labor-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Indian activist Sudha Bharadwaj gets bail in caste violence case - Court grants bail in Bhima-Koregaon case more than three years after 60-year-old activist was arrested under the ‘draconian’ UAPA. [court-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): India: Hindu groups continue to disrupt Muslim prayers in Gurgaon - For more than two months now, Hindu vigilantes have tried to stop the minority community from offering their prayers outside Indian capital. [far-right-news] [!]
• NewsClick (7/12/21): Christians New Target of VHP, Bajrang Dal in Madhya Pradesh - Right-wing groups have either targeted missionary schools and churches or lodged FIRs against Christians in the last two months. [militant-far-right-news] [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Indian and Russian officials rejected U.S. pressure to downgrade their close defense ties yesterday, as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in New Delhi and agreed to extend military technical cooperation for another decade. At the summit, “both sides said they were proceeding with delivery of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia to India despite the threat of U.S. sanctions on India. Agreements signed also included a contract for a joint venture in India to manufacture more than 600,000 Russian-designed AK-203 assault rifles, which will replace the INSAS model used by the Indian military for three decades,” Rajesh Roy, Jeremy Page and Ann M. Simmons report for the Wall Street Journal. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): Funerals Held for 15 Civilians Killed by Security Forces in India’s Nagaland State
• Just Security (6/12/21): Russia and India are expected to reinforce their defense ties this week during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India. The summit today in Delhi between Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also “comes as the U.S. considers whether to impose sanctions on India over its purchase from Russia of the S-400 surface-to-air missile system, delivery of which is now under way,” Jeremy Page and Rajesh Roy and Ann M. Simmons report for the Wall Street Journal. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): India says deliveries of Russian S-400 defence system have begun - New Delhi says it has started receiving parts of missile defence system in a deal that prompted threats of US sanctions. [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• NewsClick (6/12/21): TN: Dismayed Transport Workers to Intensify Protest Seeking Wage Talks - The CITU has decided to step up the workers’ struggle seeking the commencement of the 14th wage talks, which have been pending since September 2019 [labor-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (5/12/21): Indian villagers protest, set fire to army vehicles after troops mistakenly kill 14 civilians - Nagaland state’s top elected official Neiphiu Rio ordered an investigation probe into the killings after Indian forces mistook a group of labourers for militants - Locals in Nagaland have frequently accused forces of wrongly targeting innocent locals in their counter-insurgency operations against rebel groups [protest-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• New York Times (5/12/21): Anger Spreads in Northeastern India After Security Forces Kill 14 Civilians - Eight mine workers were shot in a mistaken ambush by soldiers seeking insurgents, and six protesters died later in clashes with government forces, stoking fears of further violence in the restive region [!]
• Al Jazeera (5/12/21): Nagaland: Violence after India forces ‘mistakenly’ kill civilians - A protester killed in fresh violence in Mon district a day after 13 civilians were allegedly killed by security forces in Nagaland state. [!]
• NewsClick (4/12/21): Union Fears Air India Employees Will Suffer Hardship, Loss After Disinvestment - Madras HC has issued notices to the major stakeholders in the Air India disinvestment process after Air Corporation Employees Union filed a writ petition to restrain the Centre from proceeding further. [labor-news, privatization-news] [!]
• The Guardian (4/12/21): New city, old schism: Hindu groups target Gurgaon’s Muslim prayer sites - The dwindling number of places available for the metropolis’s Muslims are becoming religious battlefields [!]
• NewsClick (3/12/21): West Bengal: Construction Workers Hold Protest Rallies Across State During 2-Day Strike - Workers demand strengthening of welfare boards, no tinkering with cess and are opposed to merger of the Act concerned with the labour codes [labor-news]
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Chronicling Four Decades of Separatist Activity by Manipur’s PLA in Myanmar
• The Economist (27/11/21): Narendra Modi’s secret weapon: a useless opposition - A weak Congress party and disunited smaller opponents keep the BJP in power [politics-news] A bit of neoliberal propaganda in reference to the farm bills, but what do you expect? :P
• NewsClick (29/11/21): J&K: Land Stripped Away from Farmers in Pulwama - The administration under Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha approved the transfer of state land for various purposes including over 65 acres in favour of the CRPF, on October 28
• NewsClick (28/11/21): System Became Necessity Despite Extensive Healthcare Networks - The pandemic has laid bare the healthcare crisis and revealed how Nagaon would have been better off with a hospital like AIIMS there [healthcare-news] [!]
• Jacobin (28/11/21): The Indian Farmers’ Movement Has Shattered Narendra Modi’s Strongman Image - After a yearlong battle, Indian farmers have forced Narendra Modi to repeal his neoliberal farm laws. The movement that took on Modi and won is a powerful blow against India’s ruling Hindu nationalists. [labor-news, far-right-news]
• On Labor (24/11/21): Earlier this week, Bloomberg reported that India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi planned to defer implementation of controversial deregulatory labor reforms until after local elections next year. As a policy matter, the reforms would make it easier for employers to fire workers, while making it much more difficult for trade unions to be registered and to call strikes. The decision therefore likely reflects the political judgment that pre-election implementation would be electorally costly for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. The Modi government had already postponed implementation of these labor codes several times. The policy reversal comes less than a week after Prime Minister Modi announced that his government would repeal three agriculture laws that had been the target of sustained, widespread farmer protests. [labor-news, electoral-news, far-right-news]
• NewsClick (25/11/21): Workers' Strike Brings Industrial Areas in Delhi NCR Almost to a Halt - Led by the 12 Central Trade Unions, the striking workers flayed both the Delhi government and the Centre for their policies purportedly shifting the labour regimes in favour of the employers. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (26/11/21): Protests Across Kerala Against Price Rise - Two-day protest meetings and demonstrations were held across Kerala on the call of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Tuesday demanding the Union government to lower fuel taxes and bring down prices of essential commodities [social-woes-news, protest-news]
• NewsClick (26/11/21): Protests, Clashes Erupt in Parts of Srinagar After Killing of 3 Suspected Militants - Many eyewitnesses have accused the J&K Police of killing the suspected militants without giving them a chance to surrender.
• WSWS (25/11/21): Tens of thousands of transport workers enter fourth week of indefinite strike in India [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Strong 6.1 magnitude earthquake hits India-Myanmar border region - Tremors felt as far away as Kolkata, India but there were no immediate reports of damage
• CPJ (24/11/21): At least 5 journalists injured amid clashes over local elections in Tripura, India
• NewsClick (24/11/21): Myanmar in Indian Foreign Policy’s Blindspot - Even if normative concerns do not drive Indian foreign policy, Myanmar is key to India’s Look/Act East policy and its plans for its North-eastern states.
• Just Security (23/11/21): India’s anti-terrorism agency has arrested Khurram Parvez, a prominent human rights activist in Indian-administered Kashmir. “The arrest of Parvez marks an escalation in the crackdown in Kashmir that has swept up activists, journalists, and even political leaders seen as critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which controversially revoked the region’s semi autonomous status in 2019, leading to protests,” Niha Masih, Gerry Shih and Shams Irfan report for the Washington Post. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• NewsClick (23/11/21): As Excess Rain Destroys Kharif Harvest, Debt-Ridden UP Farmers Await Loss Compensation - Climate excesses that brought havoc to the Kharif harvest have further amplified the anger and disappointment of UP farmers with the Yogi Adityanath government. [climate-change-news, food-security-news]
• NewsClick (20/11/21): 'World Bank Agenda Instrumental in Poor Eviction in Cities' - The new DMK government in Tamil Nadu has released a draft policy on Resettlement and Rehabilitation, which gives legitimacy and structure to an ongoing process of uprooting urban poor and relocating them to far off places. [neo-imperialism-news, social-woes-news]
• NewsClick (19/11/21): BIG VICTORY FOR FARMERS! Modi Govt Forced to Withdraw 3 Farm Laws - The move comes ahead of the UP and Punjab Assembly elections, and after a year of valiant struggles across the country, which saw over 700 farmers losing their lives [labor-news, good-news, privatization-news, far-right-news, food-security-news]
• Left Voice (19/11/21): In Victory for Year-Long Farmers’ Protests, Modi Announces Repeal of Agricultural Laws - In a victory for the protests that have raged for over a year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that the government will repeal the three farm laws. The fight to protect farmers’ and workers’ rights needs to continue, striking at the heart of capitalist production. [labor-news, good-news, privatization-news, far-right-news, food-security-news]
• NewsClick (18/11/21): Demands Raised to Clear Rs 5000 Cr Pending Wages, Increase Allocations as NREGA Runs out of Funds - The funds running out in the middle of the financial year has come as a big blow to about five crore workers employed by the scheme nationwide. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (18/11/21): Opposing Nagarnar Steel Plant Privatisation, Workers Ask Govt to ‘Think About the Youth of Bastar Region’ - Thursday marked the end of a two-day protest programme in the national capital that saw the participation of over 200 hundred steelworkers; the demonstration was called by AITUC-affiliated Samyukt Ispat Mazdoor Sangathan. [privatization-news, protest-news, labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Five suspected rebels killed in Kashmir amid escalating violence - The five were killed in two separate operations in the Kulgam district on Wednesday.
• NewsClick (17/11/21): Bihar: Opposition Disappointed Over no Action Plan Against Liquor Mafia - Contrary to the expectation that a concrete action plan will be announced for the crackdown against the liquor mafia by Nitish Kumar at a much-hyped review meeting on the liquor ban on November 16, the meeting ended like a usual official meet [corruption-news]
• Democracy Now (19/11/21): Delhi School Shutdown Expanded As Toxic Haze Blankets Indian Capital
• Just Security (19/11/21): Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the repeal of three controversial farm laws after a year of protests. Farmers have been saying that the laws would allow the entry of private players in farming and that will hurt their income. Modi’s announcement marks a major change in the stance of the Indian government, who had been steadfastly insisting that the laws were good for farmers and that there was no question of reversing them. BBC News reports. [labor-news, privatization-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): Four people were killed by Indian security forces in Kashmir following a raid on a shopping complex on Monday. The Indian police described the four people as being “terrorist supporters.” The deaths have fueled outraged protests and rising tensions, with fears that violence could continue to escalate in the region. Sameer Yasir reports for the New York Times.
• NewsClick (16/11/21): Upaid Salaries Push Hindu Rao Hospital Staff to Strike Work Amid Dengue, Malaria Surge - The employees, who will strike for three hours every day until their salaries are paid on time, have threatened to go on a complete strike from November 18. [labor-news]
• South China Morning Post (14/11/21): Russia begins missile supplies to India despite US sanctions risk - A Russian military official said the first unit of the S-400 air defence missile system would arrive in India by the end of this year - The supplies put India at risk of sanctions from the US under a 2017 US law aimed at deterring countries from buying Russian military hardware [russia-policy-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (14/11/21): Chabahar Port and India-Afghanistan trade
• CPJ (16/11/21): Indian journalist Avinash Jha’s body found in Bihar
• Just Security (16/11/21): Hindu extremists in India have attacked the home of a Muslim ex-foreign minister who recently published a book in which he compared Hindu nationalists under Prime Minister Narendra Modi to terrorist groups such as the Islamic State. Al Jazeera reports. [militant-far-right-news]
• Democracy Now (15/11/21): Schools Close in New Delhi Due to Toxic Air Quality [industrial-failure-news]
• Democracy Now (15/11/21): Journalist and Minority Shia Muslims Killed in Afghanistan Blasts - In related news, Indian officials are accusing Pakistan of blocking a request to allow 50,000 tons of wheat and medicine to be transported to Afghanistan
• NewsClick (13/11/21): SGPGI Lucknow Employees Start Indefinite Strike Over Salary - The employees have demanded salaries as per the 7th Pay Commission and on par with their AIIMS, New Delhi, counterparts. [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): India: Border state ambush kills five soldiers, two civilians - Suspected rebels have ambushed a convoy of India’s paramilitary soldiers in northeastern state of Manipur, officials say
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): Dozens of Maoist rebels killed in India gun battle - Three special commandos also wounded in the hours-long clash in the dense forests of Gadchiroli district
• NewsClick (11/11/21): Modi Govt Trying to Exempt Hazardous oil Rigs From Green Clearances - Policy reforms to dilute the environmental regime for hydrocarbon industries will help private players more as attempts are underway to weaken oil and natural gas PSUs. [privatization-news, energy-news, big-oil-news, industrial-failure-news]
• Al-Monitor (12/11/21): UAE, Saudi Arabia look to strengthen trade with India - The two richest states in the Persian Gulf region find themselves locked in competition to maximize opportunities for stronger economic ties to Indian markets.
• CPJ (12/11/21): Indian police open terror investigation into 5 journalists [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• WSWS (11/11/21): Tens of thousands of Maharashtra state transport workers continue strike in defiance of court orders [labor-news, privatization-news, far-right-news] Important Note about WSWS
• NewsClick (10/11/21): UP: Shahjahanpur ASHA Workers Beaten By Cops, Union Threatens to Boycott Vaccination Drive - Contrary to the police statement, ASHA workers claimed that they were detained when they were marching towards the rally where CM was addressing the gathering, and released after the CM concluded his visit. [labor-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/11/21): Two killed as spate of targeted attacks continues in Kashmir - A local Muslim worker and a police officer killed by suspected rebels – the latest in a series of such attacks that began last month.
• NewsClick (9/11/21): Yet Another Eviction Drive in Assam - Authorities will begin to remove people from the reserve forest in Hojai.
• NewsClick (9/11/21): Bihar: Left Parties Demand Resignation of Prohibition Minister After Spurious Liquor Claims Lives in 4 Districts - Flourishing illicit and spurious liquor trade is not possible without patronage and support of a powerful liquor nexus, and as a result, illicit liquor has become a synonym for the death of the poor in Bihar, left leaders claim
• South China Morning Post (8/11/21): People rescued, evacuated in India’s manufacturing hub Chennai as heavy rains flood city - Relief centres and medical camps opened, food distributed - Downpours expected to continue over next four days Important Note on SCMP
• Financial Times (6/11/21): Humiliating cricket defeat exposes India’s Hindu-Muslim divide - Ruling party accused of fomenting religious enmity to deflect attention from sputtering economy [far-right-news] Paywall Summary (?): FT reports that while the only Muslim Indian player did just as badly against Pakistan as the other players, he is taking all of the ire. In addition, people are getting sacked from government, expelled from college, and even detained (for sedition and terrorism) jobs for celebrating Pakistan's Cricket win. FT notes that most BJP-governed states (BJP the ruling Hindu-supremacist party) have banned interfaith marriages, in fear of so-called "love jihad" (the plot being to erode Hindu numerical majority... yes, pretty far-right conspiracy), as well as restricting economic domains that Muslims thrive in, as well as using colonial-era laws to harass Muslims. With elections coming up in Uttar Pradesh, a BJP stronghold and the nation's largest state, tensions will only ramp up. Additionally, anti-Muslim actions can help curry favor in the state machinery, accelerating Muslim discrimination.
• NewsClick (6/11/21): elhi Govt Extends Free Ration Till May 2022; Kejriwal Urges PM Modi to do Same - The Delhi govt’s decision came a day after Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey said the Centre had no proposal to extend distribution of free ration through the PMGKAY beyond November 30.
• New York Times (6/11/21): A fire in Covid intensive care ward kills 11 people in India.
• Just Security (8/11/21): Police in India are looking for “fake news” spreaders after anti-Muslim attacks.
• Al Jazeera (3/11/21): India ramps up Himalayan border security after clashes with China - New Delhi deploys cruise missiles, howitzers, choppers and Israeli-made drones along the treacherous mountain ranges. [china-policy-news]
• NewsClick (2/11/21): Frequent Floods and Landslides in Kerala Raise Concerns - Extreme weather events in Kerala over the last few years have raised concerns about changing rainfall patterns and highlighted the necessity of long-term solutions like the state government’s Room for Pamba project. [climate-change-news]
• NewsClick (2/11/21): Normalising Extrajudicial Killings in UP: How Absence of FIRs Against the Police Resulted in Destruction of Evidence - People’s Watch (PW), one of India’s leading human rights organisations, seeks to hold the State accountable for human rights violations and advance a human rights culture in society. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Democracy Now (4/11/21): WHO Approves Emergency Use of India’s 2-Shot Coronavirus Vaccine Covaxin [covid-news]
• Jacobin (1/11/21): Kerala’s Communists Are Showing India a Path Out of Poverty - India’s neoliberal turn has had a devastating impact on farming communities. But in Kerala, a Communist-led government has sponsored highly successful agricultural cooperatives that promote solidarity over competition. [leftist-news, socialist-news, food-security-news]
• NewsClick (1/11/21): J&K: Protest Held to Demand Withdrawal of Sedition Charges Against Kashmiri Students - NC protests in Srinagar; PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti writes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging his intervention in the case of three students in Agra. [protest-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (31/10/21): Hindu-Muslim violence crosses border from Bangladesh to India - Footage shared on social media blamed for igniting violence between communities that left seven dead, buildings torched and many living in fear
• NewsClick (29/10/21): 'We Stand Vindicated’, say Farm Unions as Police Starts Removing Barricades at Protest Sites - Any decision to entirely clear both carriageways of roads or march towards Delhi will be taken by SKM, said a farmer leaders, as Delhi Police removed barricades in Tikri and Ghazipur following SC orders. [labor-news]
• CPJ (28/10/21): India Today parent company sues media watchdog NewslaundryIndia Today parent company sues media watchdog Newslaundry [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): India has successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of 5,000km (3,125 miles) from an island off its east coast
• NewsClick (27/10/21): Tamil Nadu PSU Workers Protest Unilateral Bonus Announcement - The public sector workers had demanded a bonus of 25%. [labor-news]
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Veteran Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Junta
• Breakthrough News (27/10/21): Rooting for Pakistan in a cricket match? Off to jail, says BJP in Kashmir [surveillance-and-censorship-news, far-right-news]
• Just Security (27/10/21): Two U.S. senators have urged Biden to waive sanctions against India over its purchase of Russia’s S-400 air defense system, saying sanctions against India would endanger growing cooperation [us-policy-news]
• Jacobin (26/10/21): In India, Communists Are Leading the Fight Against COVID-19 - India’s right-wing government has been criminally negligent in its management of the pandemic, with deadly results. But communists and their allies have stepped in to provide relief to tens of thousands of suffering people [leftist-news, privatization-news, social-woes-news]
• NewsClick (26/10/21): 4.5 Crore Cases Pending in Indian Courts Amid Lack of Judges, Overcrowded Prisons - Between 2019 and 2020, pending cases increased by 20% in High Courts and 13% in subordinate courts.
• NewsClick (24/10/21): Centre in HC Defends IT Rule Requiring WhatsApp to Trace Originator of Message - In its plea, WhatsApp had said that the traceability requirement forced it break end-to-end encryption and thus infringe upon the fundamental rights to privacy and free speech of the hundreds of millions of citizens using its platform to communicate privately and securely. [cyber-security-news, big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (23/10/21): Will India be sanctioned over the S-400 Air Defense System? [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• NewsClick (23/10/21): Tamil Nadu Fishermen Demand end to Dispute With Sri Lanka Navy - There has been a rise in incidents of Lankan naval personnel attacking Indian fishermen along the Gulf of Mannar.
• NewsClick (23/10/21): In Name of ‘Survey’, [BJP-led] Karnataka Govt Uses Intelligence Wing to Surveil Churches - Karnataka’s Intelligence Department issued a ‘most confidential’ order to top police and intelligence officials to gather information on ‘authorised and unauthorised’ churches. [far-right-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• NewsClick (21/10/21): Barricades Put up by Delhi Police, not Farmers, Says BKU After SC Order on Protests - Whether Delhi or Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, nowhere have farmers barricaded any roads, says farmer leader. [labor-news]
• South China Morning Post (19/10/21): China sends in 100 rocket launchers to fortify border with India - Both sides send more supplies to high-altitude areas as winter approaches and boundary talks falter - PLA has the edge but weather is the real enemy, analyst says [china-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/10/21): Floods, landslides kill more than 150 in India and Nepal - Several days of significant flooding and devastating landslides sweep away roads and houses in the two nations.
• CPJ (20/10/21): Jammu and Kashmir authorities detain one journalist; at least two others still in custody [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (20/10/21): Thousands of farmers in Myanmar have fled to India after the military junta seized power in the February coup
• NewsClick (18/10/21): Gujarat: Two Migrant Workers Killed as Fire Engulfs Packaging Unit in Surat - While one of the migrant workers died due to severe burn injuries trapped in the basement, another lost his life as he attempted to escape from a higher floor.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): At least 35 killed by floods, landslides in India’s Kerala state - Search and rescue operations continue on Monday as thousands remain stranded in parts of the coastal area, while many others are still missing.
• NewsClick (18/10/21): Lakhimpur Killings: Thousands of Farmers Squat on Rail Tracks, Demand BJP Minister’s Ouster - ‘Rail roko’ call by SKM affects over 290 trains across states, more than 40 trains cancelled. [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Sri Lankan fishermen launch flotilla protesting Indian poaching - Boats flying black flags and carrying opposition legislators demand that government block Indian trawlers.
• Just Security (18/10/21): The expulsion by the Indian state of longtime residents on government land has been heavily criticized, with videos and descriptions of the violence against resident shaving shocked much of India when they went viral last month [far-right-news]
• Just Security (18/10/21): Militants are targeting minority civilians in Kashmir, stoking fears of a return to the violent past of the Muslim-majority enclave in India
• CPJ (15/10/21): Jammu and Kashmir authorities detain, question 5 journalists; hold Salman Shah, Suhail Dar [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• South China Morning Post (15/10/21): Chinese media returns fire in info war with video of ‘captured Indians’ - Global Times journalist posts undated video on Twitter, calling PLA ‘the most civilised military force in treating prisoners of its enemies’ - Indian media had reported that 200 Chinese soldiers were detained near the disputed border – which a later report said was untrue [china-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (15/10/21): China and Bhutan reach deal on border talks ‘in test for India’ - Beijing and Thimphu agree on road map but give no details of the steps ahead - China’s move could be an attempt to hit back at countries that have accused it of aggression in the area, analyst says [china-policy-news]
• NewsClick (14/10/21): UP Farmer Unions Begin Indefinite Strike in Sitapur, Demand MoS Ajay Mishra’s Suspension - Farmer leaders say that the probe into the Lakhimpur Kheri violence cannot be rightly done till the accused’s father Ajay Mishra resigns from his post of MoS Home Affairs. [labor-news]
• Common Dreams (13/10/21): After Docs 'Show What We Feared' About Amazon's Monopoly Power, Warren Says 'Break It Up' - Leaked documents reveal the e-commerce company's private-brands team in India "secretly exploited internal data" to copy products from other sellers and rigged search results. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• NewsClick (13/10/21): Coal Crisis Result of Govt's Incompetence, Lack of Planning: CPI(M) - The CPI(M) alleged that the government sought to deny its role in the massive shortfall in electricity generation that has hit the country. [socialist-news, energy-news, logistics-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): India: Adani Ports to shun cargo from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran - Decision follows seizure of three tonnes of heroin from two containers at Mundra port off India’s western coast in Gujarat state last month.
• NewsClick (12/10/21): Several States Reel Under Power Cuts, Blackouts Due to Shortage in Coal Supply - Power plants temporarily shut in Pune, scale down generation in some states. Govt asks CIL to augment supply during Durga Puja. [energy-news]
• Just Security (11/10/21): Five Indian soldiers have been killed in a gun battle with militants fighting against Indian rule in the region of Kashmir, officials have said.
• Just Security (11/10/21): Talks between Indian and Chinese military commanders to solve a protracted standoff on a stretch of disputed Himalayan border have broken down. “Thousands of Indian and Chinese troops have been locked in a high-altitude face-off in India’s Ladakh region since last year, despite the two militaries holding more than a dozen rounds of talks to diffuse the situation. On Sunday, commanders met for the 13th time, with Indian officials emphasising that the confrontation had been triggered by ‘unilateral attempts of the Chinese side to alter the status quo,’ India’s defence ministry said in a statement,” Devjyot Ghoshal and Gabriel Crossley report for Reuters
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): India police arrest Ajay Mishra’s son over killing of farmers - Junior home minister’s son is accused of running over a group of protesting farmers in Uttar Pradesh. [crime-news]
• Left Voice (10/10/21): Air India Falls Victim to Modi’s Privatization Spree - The sale of Air India to Tata Group sets the stage for the Modi government to privatize further public assets and infrastructure, and is yet another attack on the Indian working class. [privatization-news]
• NewsClick (9/10/21): Service Professionals Protest Against Gig Firm Over Low Income, Poor Working Conditions - Hundreds of service professionals working as ‘expert beauticians’ with the Urban Company staged a protest on Friday at the Gurugram office of the firm; solidarity for them poured in from across the country. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (9/10/21): Protests Across West Bengal Against Lakhimpur Kheri Violence - Left leaders have condemned the incident where an SUV belonging to a Union minister’s son mowed down four farmers in UP's Lakhimpur Kheri. [labor-news, protest-news, leftist-news]
• NewsClick (9/10/21): RSS-linked Accounts Promote Hate Speech, ‘Anti-Muslim Narrative’ in India: Facebook Whistleblower - One of Frances Haugen’s main claims on Facebook’s work in India is that pages associated with the RSS promoted ‘fear mongering, anti-Muslim narratives.’ [big-tech-news, media-news, far-right-news]
• NewsClick (8/10/21): Bihar: Protests Intensifying Against Land Acquisitions for Patna Metro Rail Project - The first protest started last Tuesday as people opposed their forced eviction, followed by a protest against land acquisition for the metro depot on Thursday and Friday. [social-woes-news]
• The Irrawaddy (8/10/21): Indian Arms Exporter Ships Air-Defense Weapons to Myanmar’s Junta
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): Gunmen Kill 2 School Teachers in Kashmir Amid Mounting Attacks on Civilians
• NewsClick (7/10/21): Bengals’ Largest Solar Power Plant Allegedly Being Looted After Govt Sealed it - After the solar plant being non-operational for last eight to nine months, parts of the plant and its equipment are being robbed by local mafia [corruption-news, crime-news, energy-news]
• NewsClick (7/10/21): West Bengal: Major Gains Made by Workers Through CITU-led Festive Bonus Movement - The yearly bonus during the festive season took a blow due to the pandemic, and the workers are fighting to reclaim it this year. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (6/10/21): Prominent Kashmiri Pandit Among 3 Shot Dead in J&K - The killers are suspected to be members of LeT offshoot TRF, according to the police.
• Financial Times (6/10/21): Power crunch in China and India stokes global growth anxiety - Two big Asian economies drive worldwide GDP expansion but coal shortages are hammering output [energy-news] Paywall Summary: Both nations have the two highest economic growth rates in the world (the US trails in 3rd place), and thus their growth has a major impact on global economic health. India's dependence on coal has actually increased, and they have less than a week's worth of coal reserves! They may soon face electricity rationing as seen in China. Three factors contributing to Chinese shortages are (1) local efforts to comply with Beijing's emission targets, (2) shortage of coal supply amidst a green transition effort and (3) price caps on electricity result in demand unaffected by coal's market costs. China is trying to avoid the inflationary impact though, and is trying innovative ways of factoring in increased energy costs while avoiding a full domestic exposure to market pressures.
• CPJ (5/10/21): Indian journalist Raman Kashyap killed amid Uttar Pradesh clashes
• NewsClick (5/10/21): Journalists Stage Protest in Delhi, Demand Release of Siddique Kappan - The Kerala journalist, who was on his way to cover the Hathras rape case, has been in jail for one year now. [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Indian shop workers – most of them women – win the right to sit - Tamil Nadu becomes second Indian state to enshrine the ‘right to sit’ in law, citing health risks for retail workers, who are mostly women. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (5/10/21): UP: Yogi Govt 'Suppressing' Lakhimpur Violence Truth: Jayant Chaudhary - The Rashtriya Lok Dal leader called for President’s Rule in Uttar Pradesh; Condemns clampdown on Opposition leaders. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, labor-news, far-right-news]
• CounterPunch (4/10/21): Why Did a US Envoy Meet With the Head of a Fascist Militia in India? [us-policy-news, far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (3/10/21): India farmers killed after violence erupts during protest - At least eight people, including four farmers, killed after violence erupted during a protest against farm laws. [labor-news, privatization-news]
• South China Morning Post (30/9/21): India counters China in Sri Lanka with US$700 million port deal - A new terminal will be built next to a US$500-million Chinese-run jetty, in what local authorities call the largest investment ever in the country’s port sector - India’s Adani Group will hold a 51 per cent controlling stake in the joint venture known as the Colombo West International Terminal
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): Right Livelihood Award Goes to Environmental Activists, Rights Defenders Across the Globe
• NewsClick (29/9/21): PM Modi’s Digital Health Mission Might put Personal Data at Risk, Lead to Exclusion - Healthcare professionals and experts have raised concerns about the impact of the digital health mission’s framework on data privacy and access to health. [healthcare-news]
• NewsClick (29/9/21): 75% COVID-19 Patients Were Overcharged by Hospitals, Nearly Half of Them Died: Survey - Many of these patients or their families faced a financial crisis, were forced to sell off jewelry, and borrow from relatives or even take out loans from money lenders to settle the bills, the Jan Aarogya Abhiyan said. [healthcare-news, privatization-news]
• NewsClick (27/9/21): Bharat Bandh: Highways, Rail Tracks, Toll Plazas Blocked as Protesters Take to Streets - Despite heavy security bandobast, various sections join farmers’ strike against farm laws in Punjab, Haryana, UP, MP among others. The bandh is being backed by non-BJP parties. [labor-news, protest-news]
• NewsClick (26/9/21): Ground Down by Hardship, Farmers Ready for Historic Bandh on Sept 27 - Since last year, farmers have been fighting for the withdrawal of three farm laws passed by the Modi government. [labor-news, privatization-news]
• NewsClick (25/9/21): Assam Police Firing: Citizens Hold Protest in Guwahati Despite Police Pressure - The police made attempts to disrupt a protest meet that was scheduled a day after the horrific video of the police firing at lone protesters at a village during an eviction drive emerged online.
• NewsClick (25/9/21): Bharat Bandh: ‘We are Sitting in Protest for 10 Months and PM is Dining in America’, Say Angry Punjab Farmers - Rural Youth, Women, Workers and even gurudwara granthis are gearing up to make SKM’s call for Bharat Bandh on Sept 27 ‘Historic’ in Punjab [labor-news, privatization-news]
• NewsClick (24/9/21): From Remote Villages to Metro Cities, Scheme Workers Strike Work for Regularisation of Services - Led by the Joint Platform of Scheme Workers Federations, ASHAs, along with workers engaged in anganwadis, mid-day meal scheme and National Health Mission also demanded a legislation on ‘right to universal healthcare’. [healthcare-news, labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): Indian photographer in video stomps on man shot by Assam police - Muslims protesting against government’s forced displacement fired at by policemen, killing at least two and wounding many.
• NewsClick (24/9/21): ASHA, Anganwadi Workers in UP Join Nationwide Protest - The protesters demanded job regularisation, provident fund and a minimum salary of Rs 21,000 [labor-news]
• The Guardian (24/9/21): Notorious gangster gunned down in courtroom in India - Attackers dressed as lawyers opened fire and killed Jitendra Gogi before police shot them dead
• CPJ (24/9/21): Mob in Uttar Pradesh locked journalists in room with plan to light them on fire
• NewsClick (24/9/21): Lakhs of Govt. Scheme Workers On Strike Today - They have written to PM Modi, asking for better wages and risk allowance as frontline workers. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (23/9/21): Assam: Muslim Peasants Cultivating Land for Decades Evicted in Darrang Dist, 3 Reportedly Killed in Firing - The demolition of houses and displacement of about 5,000 people stem from the BJP government’s plan to start an ‘agricultural project’ in Gorukhuti
• NewsClick (22/9/21): Bonded Labour: What is it and Why Does it Persist in India? - Why does Bonded Labour exist in India despite progressive legislation and constitutional rights?
• NewsClick (21/9/21): Farmers’ Protest Spreads to Avadh and Purvanchal - Only Kisan Mahapanchayats can Expose BJP Exploitation, Tikait tells farmers’ rally in Sitapur [labor-news, protest-news, privatization-news]
• Just Security (21/9/21): Nearly three metric tons of heroin with a street value of $2.7 billion from Afghanistan have been seized from Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat in a major bust, officials have said. [drug-news]
• NewsClick (20/9/21): Sand Mining Behind Bridge Collapses in Uttarakhand - Powerful politicians turn against those who take action against illegal mining, but locals are blowing the lid off vested interests behind rampant mining and bending of rules. [industrial-failure-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• NewsClick (18/9/21): Why is the Indian State Increasingly Relying on Internet Shutdowns? - As the Indian state adopts the suspension of the internet once again, this time in Haryana, for controlling law and order. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (17/9/21): India has told China that the two countries’ relations will only improve when both countries pull their troops back from a confrontation on their disputed Himalayan border, Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has said
• NewsClick (15/9/21): Farmers Clash With Police in Nalanda Over Fertiliser Shortage - The incident was the first violent protest against the state government over the fertiliser shortage. [labor-news, protest-news, food-security-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• NewsClick (15/9/21): Opposition in Kerala in Disarray After the Left’s Historic Election Win - The Congress in Kerala, which had been plagued by defections to the BJP before the assembly elections, is now ridden with infighting. The Muslim League is mired in one controversy after another. The Left’s historic election win has left the opposition in Kerala in complete disarray. [electoral-news, leftist-news, socialist-news]
• NewsClick (14/9/21): Bihar: Patna HC Directs Sanitation Workers to End Strike, Govt Told to Meet Demands Within 8 Weeks - Garbage heaps have been mounting in the past eight days when thousands of sanitation workers went on strike, demanding job regularisation, end to pay disparity, among other things. [labor-news]
• NewsClick (14/9/21): Farmers' Protests: NHRC Notices to 4 Govts, Police Chiefs Over Allegations of 'Adverse Impact' - The human rights panel said it had received complaints alleging “adverse impact” on the industrial units, seriously effecting more than 9,000 micro, medium and large companies. [privatization-news, labor-news]
• CPJ (13/9/21): Indian finance authorities raid offices of Newslaundry and Newsclick websites
• NewsClick (13/9/21): Punjab Bus Strike: Contractual Staff Threaten to Block National Highways on Sept. 15 - At least 2,400 buses of both the Punjab Roadways (PUNBUS) and PEPSU Road Transport Corporation (PRTC) have been staying off the road since September 6, after the contractual employees of these state-owned bus services declared an indefinite strike. [labor-news]
• Reuters (2/9/21): EXCLUSIVE Apple hit with antitrust case in India over in-app payments issues [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (9/9/21): Ford Motor Company bails on India, will shut car factories there - Ford is shutting its car factories in India after Ford India racked up more than $2bn in losses over the past decade.
• Al Jazeera (9/9/21): Kashmir villages facing submergence as India plans Himalayan dam - The government says at least 52 villages, a total of 3,700 families, will likely lose homesteads to make way for Ujh multipurpose project.
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): Indian police raid homes, question four journalists in Kashmir - Kashmiri journalists say harassment and threats by police increased after India revoked Kashmir’s semi-autonomous status in 2019.
• NewsClick (7/9/21): Bihar: 30,000 Sanitation Workers on Strike as Talks With Govt Fail - Demands include equal pay for equal work, regularisation of their jobs and an end to outsourcing work [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/9/21): US academic conference on ‘Hindutva’ targeted by Hindu groups - ‘Dismantling Global Hindutva’ organisers and speakers face harassment and intimidation by Hindu right-wing groups in the US and India.
• Al Jazeera (6/9/21): India denying subsidised food grains to millions of its poor - A faulty public distribution system based on a 2011 census excludes the country’s most vulnerable reeling under a pandemic.
• NewsClick (2/9/21): Companies Go Scot-Free Despite Breach of Customer Data - Byju’s, Bigbasket, Air India, Paytm, MobiKwik, Zee5, Nykaa and others reported data breaches or exposed servers.
• Neoliberal propaganda alert (Case Study): The Economist (28/8/21): India’s government wants to monetise state-owned assets
• NewsClick (1/9/21): Tamil Nadu Trade Unions say NMP Will Increase Unemployment in State - Four airports, Nilgiri Mountain Railway and projects in VOC Port are among the assets to be monetised in the state. [labor-news, privatization-news]
• NewsClick (31/8/21): Goa Govt Went Ahead with Land Ownership Bill Despite Objections by Revenue, Finance Depts: RTI - Revenue Minister Jeniffer Monserratte and Revenue Secretary Sanjay Kumar had put up a file noting that the Bill has "not been administratively approved", says RTI.
• NewsClick (30/8/21): BSNL Employees to Stage 3-Day Dharna in Delhi Against Privatisation: Employee Unions - The demonstration call came days after a nationwide protest was staged by the BSNL employees against the Central Government’s latest move to put its assets up for “monetisation”. [labor-news, privatization-news]
• NewsClick (30/8/21): UP: About 45,000 MGNREGA Workers to Reach Lucknow on Sept 1 Protesting Against Low Wages, Regularisation - 'About 45,000 contractual workers have been working under MGNREGA for the last 14 years and most of them are in a vulnerable situation due to the negligence of the government. Many workers are committing suicide due to financial constraints or due to a lack of medical care...' [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (29/8/21): India: Four charged with rape, murder of nine-year-old girl - Child was allegedly sexually assaulted by a priest and three workers after she went to a crematorium to fetch water.
• NewsClick (26/8/21): Asset Monetisation: Left Parties Slam Modi Govt’s ‘Scandalous’ Plan to 'Sell' India's Assets - The NMP is aimed to fatten the "bottom line of chosen business" houses and would not contribute significantly to the creation of new assets, said CPI(M). [privatization-news]
• NewsClick (24/8/21): Chief of Lashkar Offshoot, aide Killed in Srinagar Encounter - TRF chief Mohammad Abbas Sheikh and his second-in-command Saqib Manzoor were on the J&K Police most-wanted list
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): India and Taiwan Roll Out Domestically Produced COVID Vaccines Despite Lack of Trial Data
• NewsClick (22/8/21): Gujarat Anti-Conversion Law Takes Hit: Are UP, MP Next? - The Gujarat HC has leaned towards protecting constitutional rights. States yet to enact such a law will hopefully stay their hand.
• NewsClick (21/8/21): Punjab: Farmers Block Rail Tracks, Highway in Jalandhar for 2nd Day, Seek Higher Cane Prices - As many as 50 trains cancelled, while 54 have either been diverted or short-terminated, said officials.
• NewsClick (20/8/21): TN: Workers at Vantec Logistics to Begin Sit-In Protest Against Lay Off - The company had laid off 49 workers in February 2021 after eight rounds of talks on an annual wage hike for the year 2019 had failed.
• Democracy Now (18/8/21): India Bans Single-Use Plastics, But New Law Contains Major Loopholes
• CPJ (17/8/21): Jammu and Kashmir police assault journalists covering religious procession
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): India evacuates 170 people from Afghanistan, including ambassador - Nearly 200 personnel of Indian mission in Afghanistan evacuated in three days, alongside Indian civilians working in the country.; NewsClick (17/8/21): India Announces Emergency E-visa for Afghans as Taliban Seizes Power - All Afghans, irrespective of their religion, can apply for the 'e-Emergency X-Misc Visa' online.
• NewsClick (13/8/21): Twitter ‘Beholden’ to Govt, Interfering in India's Political Process, says Rahul Gandhi - “It is a biased platform. It's something that listens to what the government of the day says,” the Congress leader said in a video post. [big-tech-news]; NewsClick (14/8/21): Twitter Unlocks Accounts of Congress Party, Rahul Gandhi - Congress party and some of its leaders, accusing the microblogging site of ‘bias’, ran the hashtag "Speak Up against Twitter's hypocrisy".
• CPJ (13/8/21): Indian journalist Manish Kumar Singh found dead in Bihar state
• NewsClick (11/8/21): Police Arrest Journalist in Kashmir, Allege 2 Grenades Recovered from Him - Adil Farooq was arrested after a grenade blast at Lal Chowk, but it is not clear whether his arrest is linked to the explosion.
• NewsClick (9/8/21): Two Suspected Militants Killed in an Encounter in Kashmir - According to security officials, the militancy that was earlier a South Kashmir phenomenon, is now becoming a cause of concern across the union territory.
• CPJ (9/8/21): Indian journalist stabbed to death in Andhra Pradesh [killed by local police officer]
• NewsClick (7/8/21): Oil Tankers’ Strike Called Off After Hundreds of Fuel Pumps Run Dry Across South Bengal - The tankers' association at IOC's Mourigram depot in Howrah had gone on strike over reduction in fuel transportation rates as a new tender was floated and termination of services of 60 tankers.
• CPJ (6/8/21): Kashmir police raid homes of journalist Qazi Shibli and his family members
• NewsClick (4/8/21): BJP's Declared Donations More Than Three Times Aggregate Sum for 5 Major Parties: ADR - According to the report, the BJP declared a donation of Rs 4.80 lakh from the Amravati Municipal Corporation. 'It raises questions on the legality of the contribution made by a municipal corporation which is a governing body (whose mayor and deputy mayor are from BJP) to a political party,' the poll rights group said.
• South China Morning Post (3/8/21): China and India agree to withdraw soldiers near site of deadly border clash - Soldiers will move away from the area at the Himalayan border where at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed in June 2020 - The development comes after New Delhi and Beijing issued a statement describing the 12th round of talks between their military officials as ‘constructive’
• Al Jazeera (3/8/21): Evidence points to secret Indian navy base on Mauritian island - Analysis of data suggests construction of airstrip and jetty for military use as India expands influence towards Africa.
• The Guardian (3/8/21): Third day of protests in Delhi over alleged rape of nine-year-old girl - Hundreds take to streets of Indian capital after latest case of sexual violence
• NewsClick (31/7/21): Farmers Continue to Innovate With Their Protests - The farmers’ satyagrah that has been going on in India is unique in terms of its political nature.
• Al Jazeera (27/7/21): India’s Assam to deploy 4,000 commandos after border killings - At least 6 Assam policemen were killed and more than 60 others were injured during clashes at Assam’s border with Mizoram.
• NewsClick (27/7/21): Punjab Roadways Contract Workers Protest, Demand Regularisation of Services - In addition to regularisation, a slew of demands have been raised by the protesting workers including the coverage of workers under the Punjab Pension Scheme, loan waiver of Punbus and allotment of Dearness Allowance to drivers and conductors.
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): Five policemen killed in clashes between two Indian states - More than 50 people are reported hurt as the leaders of Assam and Mizoram blame each other for the deadly violence.
• NewsClick (26/7/21): 'Modi Govt Using Unethical Ways to Prevent Defence Factory Employees' Strike' - The Narendra Modi-led BJP government has decided to corporatise the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), an umbrella body that oversees the 41 ordnance factories across the country.
• Jacobin (25/7/21): Tata Motors Is Everything Wrong With Indian Capitalism - The megacorporation Tata has shaped Indian capitalism for 150 years. Underpinning its success has been brutally suppressing worker organizing and wielding the oppressive caste system against it.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Frantic search for survivors as India’s flood death toll tops 100 - Heavy rains in western Maharashtra state triggered landslides and flooding, killing more than 100 people and causing widespread destruction.
• NewsClick (24/7/21): Workers Against Privatisation of Bengal Chemicals, India's First Pharma Concern - BCPL’s products — Bengal Chemical Pheneol, naphthalene balls, Cantharidine hair oil, Kalmegh and Aqua Ptychotis —still command a market share through the company’s own retail outlets opened recently.
• NewsClick (24/7/21): Oil Spill from ONGC Pipeline in Assam Damages Farmland, Locals Fear Worse - A large amount of crude oil has spilt over and affected around 20 bighas of paddy farmland before ONGC could plug the leakage.
• NewsClick (23/7/21): Corporatisation of Defence Factories: Risking National Security? - The Narendra Modi-led BJP government has decided to corporatise 246-year-old Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), an umbrella body that oversees the 41 ordnance factories across the country
• Democracy Now (23/7/21): Indian Farmworkers Renew Protests Against Neoliberal Agricultural Reforms
• The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): India has suffered some 4m excess deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, around ten times more than official figures show. A government study found that more than two-thirds of Indians had covid-19 antibodies, again suggesting that official figures vastly understate the scale of the pandemic.
• Just Security (22/7/21): A top Indian newspaper has been raided by Indian tax authorities after months of critical coverage of the Indian government response to the Covid-19 pandemic
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Mosque in Indian capital’s Rohingya camp bulldozed: Refugees - Rohingya living in a camp at New Delhi’s Madanpur Khader area accuse authorities of demolishing the makeshift mosque.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): India’s PM Modi accused of ‘treason’ over Pegasus spyware scandal - Opposition accuses Modi of compromising national security following revelations that dozens of Indians were potential targets of snooping by Israeli-made spyware.
• Democracy Now (20/7/21): Report: COVID Death Toll in India May Be Over 4 Million
• NewsClick (20/7/21): Pegasus: Surveillance May Have Played Role in Toppling Karnataka Govt, Says Report - The report is based on The Wire’s review of records of numbers that were of interest to an Indian client of Israel’s NSO group.
• NewsClick (20/7/21): Pegasus Project: Rail Union Leader, Ambedkarite, Ex-JNU Students, Tribal Activists in Snooping Net, Says Report - Shiv Gopal Mishra, Ashok Bharti, Bela Bhatia, Umar Khalid, Saroj Giri among more names in list of those whose phones may have been tracked.
• NewsClick (20/7/21): Health Workers Begin Indefinite Strike against UP Govt's New Transfer Policy amid Pandemic - While many health workers have died due to Covid-19, a majority of the survivors are suffering from post-Covid symptoms as the government tries to transfer them to different districts ahead of the third wave.
• EFF (20/7/21): India’s Draconian Rules for Internet Platforms Threaten User Privacy and Undermine Encryption [cyber-security-news, tech-news, far-right-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• NewsClick (18/7/21): 40 Journalists Among Around 300 Indians Who May Have Been Spied Upon Using Pegasus Spyware - The names of journalists, activists, ministers and judges figure in a database of those who may have been targeted with the Pegasus spyware. Only governments can purchase this spyware.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Landslides kill several in India’s Mumbai after monsoon rains - Deaths caused by mudslides and a wall collapse following heavy rain in the country’s most populous city, Mumbai.
• The Guardian (18/7/21): Tensions remain high as hopes dashed for breakthrough in China and India stalemate - Military build-up continues ‘like never before’ on both sides of 2,100-mile border despite high-level talks
• NewsClick (17/7/21): MP: Workers on Hunger Strike for Reopening Mill Allege Intimidation by District Admin - A small police camp has been installed barely a few meters away from the protest site by the district administration and a recorded statement is being played on loop in a bid to end the strike, claimed protesters.
• NewsClick (17/7/21): Farmers Demand Release of Arrested Protesters Facing Sedition Charges in Haryana - This is the first time that the sedition law has been invoked against farmers who have been protesting against the three farm laws for the last eight months.
• The Guardian (14/7/21): Hunger sweeps India in Covid’s shadow as millions miss out on rations - Desperation grows for those unable to access subsidised food, as worst hunger in two decades reported
• NewsClick (13/7/21): Why Punjab is Facing an Unprecedented Power Crisis - Nobody gained from the Punjab government’s power policies except private power companies, and consumers and farmers are paying the price for the mismanagement.
• NewsClick (12/7/21): Punjab: BJP Leaders 'Detained' by Protesting Farmers in Patiala Released After HC Order - The farmers alleged BJP workers used inappropriate language against the protesters and a security personnel of BJP leader Bhupesh Aggarwal allegedly brandished a pistol at them.
• NewsClick (10/7/21): BSNL: Salary Delays Continue, Employees to Stage Hunger Strike in Protest - 'Failure of the management', and 'conscious roadblocks' by Modi government are behind the prevailing conditions at BSNL, a union leader alleged.
• NewsClick (10/7/21): ‘Anti-National Policies’: Central Trade Unions Call for Protest on July 23 against Privatisation of Defence Production - The trade unions are protesting the Centre’s plan to corporatise the Ordnance Factories Board while implementing an ordinance that prohibits defence sector employees from striking.
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): Two Indian soldiers among several killed in Kashmir gunbattles - Eight suspected rebels also killed as disputed region marks the fifth anniversary of the killing of popular rebel commander Burhan Wani.
• NewsClick (7/7/21): Punjab: Police use Teargas, Water Cannons on Schoolteachers Protesting for Regularisation - When scores of protesting teachers, including women, tried to force their way through barricades, the Chandigarh Police used water cannons and teargas shells to prevent them from heading towards the CM’s residence.
• NewsClick (7/7/21): Huge Victory for 580 Sanitation Workers in Mumbai After 22 Years of Struggle - The industrial court has finally ordered the Municipal Council of Greater Mumbai to clear all arrears to the sanitation workers, recognising their status as permanent workers in the municipal council.
• NewsClick (7/7/21): Punjab: PWD Workers Threaten to Shut Water Supply Across State If Demands Remain Unmet - The workers have been protesting over a series of demands including regularisation of contractual workers, a revised salary, implementation of old pension scheme and others.
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): 84-Year-Old Indian Priest and Activist Dies in Police Custody
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Why did India open a backchannel to the Taliban? - Recent developments in the region forced India to rethink its approach to the armed group.
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Twitter loses immunity in India over user-generated content - Statement in court is the first time Modi’s government has officially said that Twitter has lost its immunity.
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): Pakistan NSA accuses India of orchestrating Lahore bomb attack - Moeed Yusuf says India’s RAW agency planned last month’s deadly bombing outside the residence of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed.
• The Intercept (3/7/21): Hindu Vigilantes Work With Police to Enforce “Love Jihad” Law in North India - Hindu nationalist groups in Uttar Pradesh are using an anti-conversion law to violently break up interfaith couples and legitimate an anti-Muslim conspiracy theory.
• The Economist (3/7/21): Tamil Nadu’s leader offers something India’s does not: competence - What M.K. Stalin lacks in charisma he compensates for with pragmatism
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): With 2% convictions, India’s terror law more a ‘political weapon’ - Critics say UAPA is being used as ‘political weapon to silence’ activists and to ‘demonise Muslims and Kashmiris as terrorists’.
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): Millions in India’s northern states sizzle in severe heatwave - Heatwave pushes temperature to a nine-year high in New Delhi as monsoon rains run behind schedule.
• The Economist World This Week (1/7/21): India’s government, which is seeking more control of online content, piled pressure on Twitter. In the latest of many twists, the social-media company was accused of treason for carrying a map that placed territory claimed by India outside its borders.
• Al Jazeera (28/6/21): India says two drones intercepted over Kashmir army base - Incident reported a day after suspected explosives-laden drones were used to attack an airbase in the disputed region.
• Al Jazeera (27/6/21): Indian air force base in Kashmir hit by explosions - Indian police suspect explosive-laden drones were used to attack an air force base in Jammu city.
• World Socialist Web Site (18/6/21): Indian chemical factory explosion (7/6/21) and fire kill 18
• Democracy Now (14/6/21): U.K. Delays Reopening as Moscow Sees New Surge in Cases; India Moves to Reopen as Infections Drop; Fire at New Delhi Rohingya Refugee Camps Leaves Hundreds Without Shelter
• Democracy Now (10/6/21): India Logs Pandemic-High Daily Death Toll; COVID Surges in Haiti, Where 0% Are Vaccinated
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Pakistan PM: Relations with India would be ‘betrayal’ to Kashmir - PM Khan said normalisation of ties with India would mean ignoring the struggle of Kashmiris.
• NewsClick (28/5/21): Citing Pandemic, UP Govt Extends ESMA Third Time in a Row; Unions Threaten Strike - Contractual doctors, ASHA workers, teachers associations among others condemn “dictatorial” decision, vow to go ahead with protests
• World Socialist Web Site (26/5/21): Hyundai and Renault-Nissan forced to shut Indian plants due to worker unrest over lack of COVID-19 protections
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): India police visit Twitter offices after BJP tweet flagged - Police visit Twitter offices to serve notice to its country managing director after social media giant tags BJP spokesman’s post as ‘manipulated media’.
• On Labor (24/5/21): A union representing workers at Renault-Nissan’s plant in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu has called for a strike this Wednesday, Reuters reports. Hyundai Motor employees in the region have already stopped work and are staging a sit-in protest. The region, India’s auto-manufacturing hub, has been devastated by COVID-19. These factories were exempted from a state-wide, mandatory lockdown. Workers allege that Renault-Nissan has flouted health protocols, putting their lives and their families’ lives at risk. A petition before the Madras High Court to halt operations is currently pending.
• NewsClick (22/5/21): Air India Says 4.5 Million Users' Data Stored over Ten Years Breached in Cyber Attack - Personal data – including name, date of birth, contact information, passport information, ticket information and credit card data – which was registered between 2011 and February this year of a certain number of Air India's passengers has been leaked.
• NewsClick (22/5/21): COVID-19: Congress Claims over 1.2 Lakh People Died in March-April in MP, Govt. Suppressing Data - Addressing an online press conference, Nath claimed that there had been 1,27,503 deaths during March and April in the state.
• News Click (20/5/21): ASHAs to Stage One-Day Nationwide Strike on May 24 - The health sector ‘volunteers’ are demanding regularisation in the workforce along with safety gears; about 80 ASHAs succumbed to COVID-19 in April-May this year, says a trade unionist.
• Democracy Now (20/5/21): India Sets New Record High for Daily Coronavirus Deaths
• NewsClick (18/5/21): Haryana: Muslim Man Killed, Kin Alleges Communal Lynching, Cops Say Old Enmity - Asif Khan was beaten to death, family claims he was asked to chant "Jai Sri Ram"
• NewsClick (18/5/21): Private Hospitals Account for Negligible Share of Vaccination in Rural Areas - In the most rural districts of eight states, 97% of the total 15.1 lakh vaccine doses administered was done in government centres.; 'Private vaccination centres in rural areas account for less than 5% of the doses administered even though the Centre’s current vaccination policy allows 25% of the total doses produced domestically to be procured by the private sector, according to a report in the Times of India.'
• Democracy Now (18/5/21): India Reports Deadliest Day of Pandemic as Cyclone Compounds Coronavirus Crisis; Al Jazeera (18/5/21): 21 dead, many missing as Cyclone Tauktae batters COVID-hit India - At least 21 dead and 96 missing after monster cyclone slams into western India, compounding misery amid a devastating coronavirus surge.
• NewsClick India (15/5/21): Delhi Police Arrests 15 People, Lodges 17 FIRs Over Posters Critical of PM Modi - The posters questioned the government on exporting COVID vaccines at a time of domestic shortage.
• NewsClick (15/5/21): Farm Laws: Farmer Unions to Observe May 26 as ‘Black Day’ as Protest Completes 6 Months - The farming community along with common citizens would hoist black flags on their homes, tractors and vehicles and burn the effigy of PM Modi in villages, farmer leaders said.
• Democracy Now (14/5/21): India to Make Russia’s Sputnik V Vaccine Available Amid Devastating COVID-19 Toll
• Democracy Now (11/5/21): Bodies of Indian COVID-19 Victims Found on Banks of Ganges River
• Al Jazeera (5/5/210: Ashraf Sehrai: Pro-freedom Kashmir leader dies in detention - Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai, a prominent Kashmir resistance leader, who was detained last year, dies inside hospital in Jammu city.
• Democracy Now (4/5/21): India’s Official COVID-19 Caseload Tops 20 Million
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): India COVID cases soar as oxygen, vaccine shortages continue - India reports more than 300,000 daily cases as the head of the Serum Institute warns of a months-long vaccine shortfall.
• Al Jazeera: India: Modi’s ruling BJP loses crucial West Bengal state election - Mamata Banerjee is set to be the chief minister of West Bengal for the third time after her TMC party won a two-thirds majority. [2]
• Democracy Now (30/4/21): India COVID Cases Continue to Soar as Arundhati Roy Decries “Crime Against Humanity”
• Jacobin: India Is In a Horrendous COVID Crisis. It’s Modi’s Fault. - The horrific COVID crisis in India isn’t just the result of rich countries’ criminal hoarding of vaccines and intellectual property — it’s the fault of Narendra Modi’s far-right government, which has prioritized private profits over public health.
• The New Indian Express (23/4/21): Modi govt's vaccine policy allowing Serum Institute [a private firm] to earn 'super profits': Experts - The latest pricing announcement makes it clear that the company is now looking to earn a greater margin on the vaccine, originally developed by AstraZeneca-Oxford University.
• The Economist: Why Narendra Modi’s party is pulling out all the stops to win in West Bengal
• Al Jazeera: India nears 200,000 COVID deaths, daily cases fall, army steps in - Army to provide oxygen and retired medical staff as India nears bleak milestone and new daily cases fall which experts blame on drop in testing. [2]
• NewsClick (India): As Union Government Fails, Kerala Shows How to Combat Pandemics and Protect Health of Citizens - As India struggles with the unprecedented scale of the current nation-wide COVID-19 infection wave.
• Jacobin (17/4/21): Farmers Are Leading India’s Biggest Social Movement in a Generation - Ongoing protests by Indian farmers are the biggest challenge Narendra Modi’s right-wing government has faced since coming to power. We can get a clearer picture of this movement and its prospects for success by comparing it to the major struggles of India's past.
• NewsClick (India) Farmers’ Movement Completes 5 Months Amid COVID Surge and Govt Apathy - Protest sites at Delhi’s borders are witnessing crowds again as farmers have started returning after the harvesting season.
• NewsClick (India) Farmers’ Movement Completes 5 Months Amid COVID Surge and Govt Apathy Protest sites at Delhi’s borders are witnessing crowds again as farmers have started returning after the harvesting season.
• NewsClick (India) Farmers’ Movement Completes 5 Months Amid COVID Surge and Govt Apathy Protest sites at Delhi’s borders are witnessing crowds again as farmers have started returning after the harvesting season.
• Democracy Now (4/26/21): India Reports 5th Day of Record COVID Cases as Calls Mount in U.S. to Share Excess Vaccines
• NewsClick (India): ‘Please Help': Big and Small Delhi Hospitals Appeal Amid Severe Oxygen Crisis - Several hospitals, having not received oxygen refill for hours, are being forced to advise patients to shift to other hospitals.
• NewsClick (25/4/21): At Centre’s Request, Twitter Removes over 50 Tweets Critical of Govt’s Handling of COVID-19 Crisis - Many of these tweets -- that are still visible to the Twitter users outside India -- seem to have used hashtags that call for resignation of the PM or have called second wave a #ModiMadeDisaster. [2]
• Democracy Now (4/23/21): India Posts World Record Coronavirus Case Count for Second Consecutive Day; India hospital fire death toll rises to 14 + more news [2]
• Democracy Now (4/22/21): India Reports Over 315,000 COVID-19 Infections, the Single Worst Daily Toll of Pandemic
• Al Jazeera: Disruption in oxygen supply kills 22 COVID patients in India - At least 22 dead at public hospital in Maharashtra state’s Nashik city when their oxygen supply ran out after a leak in the tank, official says.
• Al Jazeera: Non-stop cremations cast doubt on India’s counting of COVID dead - Several major cities are reporting far larger numbers of cremations and burials under coronavirus protocols than official death tolls.
• Democracy Now (4/20/21): Migrant Workers Flee India’s Capital Ahead of Lockdown as Coronavirus Cases Soar
• World Socialist Web Site: India hit by tsunami of COVID-19 infections as daily new cases surpass 250,000 [Despite this, India’s far-right Narendra Modi-led government has refused to take any measures to curb the spread of the pandemic.]
• Al Jazeera: India: Oxygen shortage in Maharashtra [India's richest state, but with much inequality] as COVID cases soar - Maharashtra state grapples with oxygen and hospital bed shortages as COVID-19 cases spread to remote corners.
• Al Jazeera: New Indian coal power plants planned despite climate risk: Report - Draft electricity policy shows India considering coal due to it being the ‘cheapest source of generation’: Reuters.
• Democracy Now (4/16/21): India Reports Record 217,000 New Cases as Millions Gather for World’s Largest Pilgrimage
• Counter Punch: Biden Aligning With the Wrong Side in India
• Labor Notes (2/4/21): Indian Farmers' Uprising Against Corporatization Has Blocked Delhi Highways for Four Months
• NewsClick (3/3/21): Unions Fear Privatisation of Ports Pose Threat to Employment and National Security
• The Intercept (27/2/21): India Targets Climate Activists With the Help of Big Tech
• NewsClick (26/2/21): First Farmers’ Mahapanchayat in Eastern UP Sees Huge Response
• Worker's World (22/2/21): India: Rail roko protest and growing state-sanctioned terror
• NewsClick (India) (21/2/21): Farmer Protests: Busting the Myth of Modi’s Omniscience

Scroll.in (14/2/21): Delhi police arrest climate activist [Disha Ravi] for drafting farm protest document tweeted by Greta Thunberg (via @JoshuaPotash RT of @rupikaur_)

• Al Jazeera (13/2/21): BJP deploys its majoritarian tactics against India's farmers (by Alioorvanand)
• NewsClick (13/2/21): Farm Laws: Once 'Invisible', Women are Now the Spine Holding the Protests Together
• Democracy Now (11/2/21): "'You Guys Are Not Immune': Modi Government Cracks Down on Independent Media Amid Farmer Protests"
• Speak Out Now (4/12/20): Workers in India Conduct World’s Biggest General Strike

East Timor

• Democracy Now (12/11/21): East Timor Massacre Remembered: U.S.-Armed Indonesian Troops Killed 270 Timorese 30 Years Ago Today [history-news, us-policy-news, analysis-news]

Indonesia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• New York Times (30/12/21): Indonesia Accepts Stranded Refugee Boat After Vowing to Turn It Away - The boat was being towed ashore with more than 100 Rohingya refugees on board. Indonesia initially said it would turn the vessel away, but relented under pressure from rights groups. [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Guardian (29/12/21): Indonesia says it will push back Rohingya refugees adrift on leaking boat - Around 120 Muslim refugees were trying to reach Malaysia when their vessel reportedly foundered off the coast of Aceh, Sumatra [immigrant-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (26/12/21): Indonesia’s internet law on trial after Surabaya woman’s Instagram post sparks criminal defamation battle - Stella Monica Hendrawan, 26, has spent two years trying to clear her name after she was charged with defamation under Indonesia’s ITE law - Critics say the 2008 law is flawed and open to misuse as a way to silence criticism and stifle free speech – even President Joko Widodo wants it revised [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• New York Times (15/12/21): Boat Carrying Indonesian Migrants Sinks Near Malaysia, Killing at Least 18 - The vessel capsized near a beach town in the South China Sea, leaving several others missing, officials said. [immigrant-news] [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Indonesia today, as he begins his Southeast Asia visit aimed at strengthening ties in the Indo-Pacific. Humeyra Pamuk reports for Reuters. [us-policy-news]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): An Indonesian court has sentenced an Islamic militant to life in prison after finding him guilty of making bombs used in a 2005 market attack that killed 22 people. Niniek Karmini reports for AP. [militant-far-right-news, court-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Indonesian court delivers victory for Indigenous rights in Papua - Judge in West Papua Province declines to reinstate permits for palm oil companies to exploit ancestral lands. [indigenous-news, capitalist-farce-news, court-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): 15 Dead, Dozens Missing as Indonesian Volcano Erupts
• The Moscow Times (1/12/21): Russia, Southeast Asian States Kick Off First Naval Drills Off Indonesia [russia-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (1/12/21): South China Sea: Beijing demanded Indonesia stop oil and natural gas drilling during stand-off - In a letter to Indonesia’s foreign ministry, Chinese diplomats told Jakarta to halt drilling at the Natunas rig because it was taking place in Chinese territory - An Indonesian lawmaker said Beijing also protested against the Garuda Shield military exercises with the US that took place during the stand-off [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• EFF (22/11/21): Indonesian Court Allows Internet Blocking During Unrest, Tightening Law Enforcement Control Over Users’ Communications and Data [surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): East Timor Massacre Remembered: U.S.-Armed Indonesian Troops Killed 270 Timorese 30 Years Ago Today [history-news, us-policy-news, analysis-news]
• The Hill (13/11/21): Indonesia's largest oil refinery on fire, forcing evacuation of residents [industrial-failure-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): President Biden’s administration is weighing the sale of armed drones to Indonesia, amid concerns over human rights abuses in Indonesia and the country’s past purchases of Russian equipment, according to government and defense industry officials. [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (25/10/21): China harasses Malaysian oil and gas vessels on a ‘daily’ basis, Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative says - Moves by Chinese coastguard and maritime militia said to be focused on Luconia Shoals, where Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas company is exploring a gas field - AMTI says civilian vessels there have been targeted daily for the past two years, and similar tactics now being used against Indonesian drillers in Natuna Sea [china-policy-news]
• Jacobin (29/9/21): Indonesia Still Hasn’t Escaped Suharto’s Genocidal Legacy - The US-backed Indonesian dictator Suharto was responsible for some of the twentieth century’s worst crimes. More than two decades after Suharto’s death, his regime’s brutal legacy is still holding back democracy in Indonesia. [history-news, us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (18/9/21): Islamic State affiliate leader killed in raid, says Indonesian military - Central Sulawesi province’s military chief says Ali Kalora of East Indonesia Mujahideen shot during gun battle with security forces
• Just Security (17/9/21): Indonesia has deployed five navy vessels, assisted by an air patrol, around its Natuna islands in the South China Sea, after Chinese and U.S. vessels were detected in nearby international waters [us-policy-news]
• New York Times (16/9/21): Indonesian President Found to Be Negligent Over Jakarta Pollution - A court ruled in a lawsuit that President Joko Widodo and six other top officials had neglected to fulfill citizens’ rights to clean air and ordered them to improve the air quality in the capital.
• Just Security (14/9/21): Indonesia’s elite counterterrorism squad arrested last Friday a convicted militant and suspected leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, an al-Qaida-linked group that has been blamed for a string of past bombings and attacks, Indonesia’s police said yesterday
• The Guardian (8/9/21): Fire at prison in Indonesia kills at least 40 people - Kompas TV showed footage of firefighters trying to put out huge flames from the top of a building in Banten province in western Java
• The Economist World This Week (12/8/21): Indonesia’s army said it would no longer force female recruits to undergo “virginity tests”. The tests had been intended to ensure that women in uniform were “moral”. Critics pointed out that they were invasive, humiliating and deterred women from serving. They also conveyed no information about a question the army should not have been asking in the first place.
• The Guardian (5/8/21): Indonesia Covid deaths pass 100,000 as Delta overwhelms hospitals - Frustrations with government response and anti-vaxxers as country struggles to cope with variant
• Democracy Now (4/8/21): COVID Death Toll in Indonesia Tops 100,000; Tokyo Reports Record Daily Cases
• The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): The head of America’s Centres for Disease Control said that the Delta variant of covid-19 had spread rapidly, warning that infections were surging among the unvaccinated. The wave of Delta cases has caught many countries off guard, not least Indonesia, the new focus of concern in Asia. Hospitalisations there have overwhelmed the health system. Only 8% of Indonesians are fully vaccinated.
• Democracy Now (30/6/21): COVID Surge Brings Indonesia to “Edge of Catastrophe”; Virus Lowered Brazil’s Life Expectancy
• Al Jazeera (25/6/21): Over a dozen [Sinovac] vaccinated doctors dead amid Indonesia COVID surge
• Democracy Now (22/6/21): Coronavirus Surges in Indonesia; Colombia Death Toll Passes 100,000
• The Guardian (8/6/21): Troubled waters: what’s causing the mystery foam in a Jakarta canal? - The froth has spilled out of a canal in Marunda repeatedly over recent years, but the exact cause is unknown
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Indonesia releases seized Iranian tanker after four months - Iranian ship was seized because of the suspected illegal transfer of oil in Indonesian waters.
• Economist (Politics this Week 1/5/21): An Indonesian general died in a shoot-out with separatists in Papua province, in Indonesia's half of the island of New Guinea. Gusti Putu Danny Karya Nugraha was the first Indonesian general ever to be killed in action.

Laos Updates

• The Economist (11/12/21): The economics of a new China-Laos train line - Why connectivity matters [bri-news]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• Telesur (3/12/21): Historic China-Laos Railway Commences Operations - The China-Laos Railway, a landmark project of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, started operation on Friday. [bri-news] Note about Telesur
• The Irrawaddy (23/11/21): Chinese-Owned Banana Plantations Fueling Exploitation in Myanmar [bri-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/10/21): Laos police net meth pills, crystal meth in record drug bust - Police in Laos seize 55 million meth pills and 1.5 million tonnes of crystal meth in Asia’s biggest drug bust. [drug-news, crime-news]
• South China Morning Post (10/8/21): Laos’ China-funded belt and road railway: Thailand licks its lips, but fears for Luang Prabang’s World Heritage Site - Laos section of pan-Asia rail route linking Kunming in China to Singapore expected to boost trade and tourism - But critics say Laos could struggle to repay Chinese debt; that only a fraction of the population will benefit; and that overtourism could threaten Luang Prabang’s world heritage status [bri-news]

Malaysia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): ‘Where’s the help?’: Malaysia PM under fire after deadly floods - Worst flooding since 2014 left at least 48 people dead, five missing as the country seeks funding develop a plan to adapt to climate change. [disaster-news, climate-change-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (23/12/21): Malaysia’s ex-PM Mahathir discharged from hospital after ‘medical investigations’ - Political legend was premier twice and became the longest-serving prime minister in the country when he retired in 2003 - The 96-year-old has had many health scares, including two heart bypasses, but was active in politics after the operations Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (22/12/21): Death toll from Malaysia’s worst floods in years rises to 27 - Floodwaters have swamped cities, cut off roads and displaced an estimated 70,000 people in Malaysia. [disaster-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Death Toll from Super Typhoon Rai Rises to 375 in Philippines; Floods Kill 8 in Malaysia [disaster-news]
• Al Jazeera (19/12/21): Floods in Malaysia displace more than 21,000 after heavy rains - Malaysian PM says rainfall on Friday and Saturday was equivalent to total monthly amount in normal conditions. [disaster-news] [!]
• New York Times (15/12/21): Boat Carrying Indonesian Migrants Sinks Near Malaysia, Killing at Least 18 - The vessel capsized near a beach town in the South China Sea, leaving several others missing, officials said. [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• South China Morning Post (9/12/21): Secret plot to invade Malaysia’s Sabah with Sulu militia hatched in southern Philippines: security source - Secret meeting of 19 mayors discussed recruiting 600 men to invade the state on Borneo island and spies to scope out coastal towns, though no one has infiltrated yet - Responding to the report, Malaysia’s police chief Acryl Sani said there is no confirmation on the intended plan and the security in Sabah was ‘under control’ Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Appeals court upholds former Malaysian PM Najib’s 1MDB conviction - Najib Razak had appealed sentence claiming he did not know origin of money that ended up in his personal bank accounts. [corruption-news, court-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (7/12/21): Appeal court verdict looms for Malaysia’s Najib after failed bid to stall 1MDB-linked case - Malaysia’s Court of Appeal will decide whether to uphold a conviction against former PM Najib Razak, after dismissing an application to introduce new evidence - The eleventh-hour tactics employed by Najib’s defence team have raised eyebrows within Malaysia’s legal community, with some suggesting they were improper Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Barisan Nasional, Malaysia’s ruling coalition, triumphed in elections in Malacca, a bellwether state south of Kuala Lumpur. The result is seen as a vote of approval for Ismail Sabri Yaakob, the new prime minister, who is likely to call a general election next year. [electoral-news]
• South China Morning Post (23/11/21): US investigators question migrant workers from tyre-maker Goodyear Malaysia over labour practices - The move follows initial allegations by 185 workers from Nepal, India and Myanmar in 2019 and 2020, where they detailed unpaid wages, wrongful deductions and threats - Malaysian authorities say they have opened a probe into Goodyear, which is partly owned by the nation’s largest fund manager, over labour trafficking [labor-news, us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (25/10/21): China harasses Malaysian oil and gas vessels on a ‘daily’ basis, Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative says - Moves by Chinese coastguard and maritime militia said to be focused on Luconia Shoals, where Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas company is exploring a gas field - AMTI says civilian vessels there have been targeted daily for the past two years, and similar tactics now being used against Indonesian drillers in Natuna Sea [china-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Australian police seize record $140m heroin shipment - The 450-kg (990-pound) shipment was detected in a sea freight container of ceramic tiles sent from Malaysia. [drug-news, crime-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): Malaysia has said that it has summoned China’s ambassador to protest against the “presence and activities” of Chinese vessels in Kuala Lumpur’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) [china-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin Steps Down Amid Criticism of Pandemic Response
• Al Jazeera (13/8/21): Malaysian PM seeks opposition backing in U-turn to stay in power - Muhyiddin admits for the first time he does not have a majority and promises political reforms as he seeks opposition support.
• South China Morning Post (11/8/21): Human rights abuses claimed in hundreds of China belt and road projects - A report has identified rights allegations involving Chinese companies in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and Africa - Myanmar had the highest number of recorded cases, followed by Peru, Ecuador and Laos [bri-news]
• The Economist World This Week (7/8/21): Muhyiddin Yassin, Malaysia’s prime minister, lost his majority in Parliament when 11 lawmakers from a coalition partner withdrew their support. Mr Muhyiddin has clung on to power despite a slim majority by forestalling a vote of confidence. He has promised to reconvene Parliament in September and face a no-confidence motion then.
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Malaysia deploys riot police as MPs attempt march to parliament - Monday’s session was cancelled over COVID infections with the fragile government under pressure over its handling of the pandemic.
• Al Jazeera (31/7/21): Malaysia: Hundreds take to the streets in anti-government protest - Demonstraters demand embattled PM Muhyiddin Yassin resign over the handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): Malaysia doctors strike, parliament meets as COVID strain shows - Thousands of doctors working on contract walk out, with months of lockdown doing little to curb the outbreak. [labor-news]
• The Economist (3/7/21): Malaysia’s democracy gets a boost from an unlikely quarter - The country’s constitutional monarch intervenes in a debate about reopening Parliament
• The Economist World This Week (5/6/21): Hishammuddin Hussein, Malaysia’s foreign minister, said his country would summon China’s ambassador, after 16 Chinese air-force planes were seen approaching Malaysia’s airspace over the South China Sea, where the countries’ territorial claims overlap. The foreign ministry described the incident as a “serious threat to national sovereignty”. Chinese officials described the flights as “routine”.
• New York Times (25/5/21): Malaysia Train Collision Injures More Than 200 People - A light rail train carrying passengers in Kuala Lumpur collided in a tunnel with an empty train on a test run. Officials promised a full investigation. [my emphasis - note, no deaths]

Maldives Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Democracy Now (7/5/21): Former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed Injured in Bomb Attack

Myanmar Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Ethnic, cr: Al Jazeera); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Myanmar Live Map

• AP News (30/12/21): Myanmar military reverts to strategy of massacres, burnings (via hu/Grouchy_Energy_1394 on r/alltheleft) [!]
• New York Times (30/12/21): Indonesia Accepts Stranded Refugee Boat After Vowing to Turn It Away - The boat was being towed ashore with more than 100 Rohingya refugees on board. Indonesia initially said it would turn the vessel away, but relented under pressure from rights groups. [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Guardian (29/12/21): Indonesia says it will push back Rohingya refugees adrift on leaking boat - Around 120 Muslim refugees were trying to reach Malaysia when their vessel reportedly foundered off the coast of Aceh, Sumatra [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (29/12/21): Student Activist Dies in Myanmar Junta Custody [!]
• New York Times (24/12/21): Worldly, Charming, and Quietly Equipping a Brutal Military - A Burmese-Irish family said all the right things, even as it helped Myanmar’s rulers avoid sanctions scrutiny in buying airplanes, defense radar and more. Summary (from a friend): Basically the man in the article, the scion of the long time business family Kyaw Thaungs [best known for their charitable foundation, and deliberately (it seems) obscured these connections] is one of the main procurers for military equipment and civilian aircrafts used by the military for transportation from European maufacturers. Many of the aircrafts and coastal systems he procured were used in the Rohingya ethnic cleansing. He owns the KT group conglomerate.
• The Irrawaddy (28/12/21): Myanmar Regime Forces Continue Assault on Sagaing Village [!]
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Myanmar massacre: two Save the Children staff among dead - Charity says the two men, both new fathers, were killed in massacre of more than 30 people blamed on junta troops [!]
• The Irrawaddy (27/12/21): China Provides Submarine to Myanmar Junta [china-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/12/21): UN ‘horrified’ by massacre of dozens of civilians in Myanmar - The United Nations calls for a ‘thorough and transparent investigation’ into the incident that killed at least 35 people. [!]
• Al Jazeera (25/12/21): Charity says two Myanmar staff missing in deadly burning attack - Save the Children says two of its staff are missing and their private vehicle was among several that were found burned. [!]
• The Guardian (25/12/21): Myanmar: more than 30 people killed in Kayah state - Human rights group says burnt bodies of dozens killed by the military found near Hpruso town
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Myanmar army air raids send hundreds fleeing into Thailand - About 4,200 people have crossed into Thailand after the government in Myanmar conducted air attacks on a rebel-held area. [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (23/12/21): Myanmar Junta Pushing China to Restart Stalled Infrastructure Projects [bri-news, china-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (23/12/21): Senior Junta Commander Sent to Lead Offensive in Restive Southeastern Myanmar [!]
• The Irrawaddy (23/12/21): Myanmar Civil Servant Murdered in Rakhine State
• The Irrawaddy (23/12/21): Myanmar Junta Police Arrest Muslim Teen After Civil Servant’s Murder [!]
• The Irrawaddy (23/12/21): Myanmar Regime Airstrikes Break International Law: NUG [!]
• The Irrawaddy (22/12/21): India Reaches Out to Myanmar Junta [!]
• Al Jazeera (22/12/21): One dead, dozens missing after landslide at Myanmar jade mine - About 200 rescuers join search for missing miners at Hpakant site, with some using boats to search for victims in a nearby lake. [!]
• The Irrawaddy (22/12/21): Junta Airstrikes Kill Over Ten People and Displace Hundreds in Upper Myanmar [!]
• The Irrawaddy (22/12/21): Five Civilians Tortured to Death by Myanmar Regime [!]
• Just Security (22/12/21): Myanmar’s oldest rebel force, the Karen National Union (KNU), is requesting international help to establish a “no-fly zone” near the Thai border, warning of a “high possibility” of military airstrikes on civilians near the border. There has been an escalation in fighting recently between the Myanmar army and the KNU, prompting thousands of people to seek refuge in Thailand. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (22/12/21): The bodies of at least nine people have been found in Myanmar’s central region following a suspected air raid by the military. According to news reports, only two of the victims were members of an anti-coup self-defense force, while the rest were villagers, including two children. Al Jazeera reports.
• The Irrawaddy (21/12/21): Global Clothing Factory Deal Ditched in Protest at Myanmar Junta [!]
• The Irrawaddy (21/12/21): Myanmar Junta Seizes Around 300 Mandalay Gem Traders [!]
• The Irrawaddy (21/12/21): A Dozen Junta Troops Killed in Landmine Blast in Myanmar’s Capital, Civilian Fighters Say [!]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): Luxury jewellers risk funding military abuses in Myanmar: Report - Global Witness says international jewellers must review their supply chains to ensure they are not funding conflict, corruption or state oppression in Myanmar. [capitalist-farce-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (21/12/21): Scores of Myanmar Junta Troops Die in Failed Attack on MNDAA Base, Kokang Fighters Say [!]
• The Irrawaddy (20/12/21): Myanmar Junta Arrests Almost 100 Urban Resistance Fighters Over Last Six Weeks [!]
• The Irrawaddy (20/12/21): Thousands Flee Into Thailand as Myanmar Junta Shells Villagers [immigrant-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (20/12/21): Nine Civilians Killed by Regime Airstrikes in Upper Myanmar [!]
• Just Security (20/12/21): The Myanmar military carried out a series of mass killings of civilians in July that resulted in the deaths of at least 40 men, a BBC investigation has found. The killings occurred in four separate incidents in Kani Township – an opposition stronghold in Sagaing District in Central Myanmar. It is thought that the killings were a collective punishment for attacks by militia groups demanding a return to democracy following the Feb. 1 military coup. Rebecca Henschke, Kelvin Brown and Ko Ko Aung report for BBC World Service.
• Financial Times (16/12/21): South Korean companies met Myanmar officials despite coup censure - Samsung and LG representatives joined regime civil servants at event organised by Korean embassy [capitalist-farce-news] Paywall Summary (?): This despite condemnation of the February coup from South Korean persident Jae-in, and efforts to economically isolate them (such as some US sanctions). Critics view this as these companies shaking the "junta's blood-soaked hands". The meeting was held at a hotel in Yangon, Myanmar which is controlled by Posco and leased by the junta-linked Myanmar Quartermaster General's Office (one of the South Korean companies represented).
• The Irrawaddy (17/12/21): Myanmar Junta Forces See Heavy Casualties in Lay Kay Kaw Clashes [!]
• Democracy Now (17/12/21): Rohingya Genocide Survivor Testifies to Argentine Court in Universal Jurisdiction Case [court-news]
• The Irrawaddy (16/12/21): Hotelier Uses Ties to Myanmar Junta Chief to Build Hospitality Empire [capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news] [!]
• The Irrwaddy (16/12/21): Myanmar Junta Seizes Civilian Justice Minister’s Home [!]
• The Irrawaddy (16/12/21): Villagers Flee Myanmar Junta Raids Near Thai Border [!]
• The Irrawaddy (15/12/21): Myanmar Junta-Appointed Ministers’ Motorcade Attacked in Yangon [!]
• The Irrawaddy (15/12/21): Myanmar Military, KNU Troops Clash in Karen State Town [!]
• The Irrawaddy (15/12/21): Mandalay Resistance Fighters Claim to Have Killed Two Myanmar Troops [!]
• The Irrawaddy (15/12/21): Myanmar Civilian Forces Claim Dozens of Junta Troops Killed in Mine Attacks, Ambushes [!]
• Just Security (15/12/21): Members of the public in Myanmar are urging targeted sanctions against oil and gas funds, the single largest source of foreign currency revenue in Myanmar. “But Western governments — most notably the United States and France — have refused to take that step amid lobbying from energy company officials and resistance from countries such as Thailand, which gets gas from Myanmar,” Kristen Gelineau, Victoria Milko and Lori Hinnant report for AP. Important context: see NYT article from (22/4/21) on Chevron lobbying against such sanctions [us-policy-news, big-oil-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/12/21): Myanmar shadow government approves crypto as official currency - National Unity Government says it will allow use of Tether as it tries to fund ‘revolution’ against military government. - Tether can be transferred in a similar way to other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, making it hard for governments and other authorities to track or prevent payments. - However, its value is officially pegged to the US dollar and so remains stable, unlike most other cryptocurrencies. I wouldn't say Bitcoin transactions are hard to track, but the USD pegging means this sounds less stupid than what is happening in El Salvador [cryptocurrency-news, economic-news]
• The Irrawaddy (14/12/21): Myanmar Junta Forces Raid KNU-Controlled Town; Democracy Activists Feared Arrested [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (14/12/21): Myanmar Junta Claims to Have Killed 8 Resistance Fighters in Mandalay Raids [!]
• The Irrawaddy (14/12/21): Around 100 Village Homes Burn in Myanmar Junta Raid [!]
• CPJ (14/12/21): DVB reporter Aung San Lin arrested in Myanmar [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (14/12/21): Photojournalist in Myanmar dies in military custody a week after arrest - Soe Naing was arrested in Yangon while taking photos of a ‘silent strike’ protest against military rule [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Cost of war: Myanmar rebels crowdfund resistance to military coup - National Unity Government has launched fundraising schemes to support its campaign to overthrow the military government. - The financial needs of the NUG’s revolution are considerable. The parallel government has pledged to provide “continuous support” in the form of $60 payments to some 200,000 striking civil servants, but estimated in August that about 410,000 government employees were still refusing to work. - A retired UN humanitarian worker with more than a decade of experience working in Myanmar told Al Jazeera that one diplomat he spoke to expressed concern that supplying weapons could contribute to a “situation like Syria or Afghanistan” developing. But the aid worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Myanmar was a “vastly different context” with the public almost completely united against the coup leaders. [labor-news, analysis-news]
• CPJ (13/12/21): Myanmar authorities sentence Kanbawza Tai News journalists to 3 years in prison [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (13/12/21): Three Junta Motorboats Sunk in Upper Myanmar [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): The U.S. has imposed extensive human rights-related sanctions on dozens of people and entities tied to China, Myanmar, North Korea, and Bangladesh, and has added Chinese artificial intelligence company SenseTime Group to an investment blacklist. Canada and the U.K. joined the U.S. in imposing sanctions related to human rights abuses in Myanmar. China’s embassy in Washington denounced the U.S. move as “serious interference in China’s internal affairs.” Daphne Psaledakis and David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis report for Reuters. [us-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (10/12/21): India’s Dilemma Over Ties With Myanmar Military
• The Irrawaddy (10/12/21): Myanmar Unanimously Defies Junta With Silent Strike [protest-news, labor-news, economic-news]
• The Irrawaddy (10/12/21): Myanmar Resistance Claims to Kill Around 80 Junta Troops [!]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• South China Morning Post (9/12/21): Dangerous data: Telenor’s irresponsible exit from Myanmar may put customers’ lives at risk - Norway’s Telenor selling its Myanmar arm to Lebanese M1 Group, which has cooperated with regimes in Sudan and Syria - Data of 18 million people, including call-data records, part of sale five months after military coup; means possibility of detention, torture, murder [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP Funny enough, there is a key detail they miss here - M1 Group is run by CEO Azmi Mikati, brother to Najib Mikati, Prime Minister of Lebanon, the latter who co-founded M1 with a third brother, Taha Mikati. Interestingly, in a recent Popular Front interview with a Lebanese researcher and writer (21/10/21), he reports that PM Mikati has ties to the Myanmar junta. That is, not only does M1 have a track record of human rights violations, but they have ties with the human rights violators in this case.
• CPJ (8/12/21): How Myanmar became the world’s second-worst jailer of journalists [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (9/12/21): Uzbek Plane Supplies Myanmar Junta with Banknote Paper [economic-news]
• The Irrawaddy (9/12/21): UK Group Hands ICC Evidence of Crimes Against Humanity by Myanmar Regime [!]
• The Irrawaddy (9/12/21): Nearly 500 Clashes Between Myanmar Junta Troops and Karen Rebels Recorded in Two Months [!]
• ZDNet (9/12/21): Meta expands ban on Myanmar military after $150 billion lawsuit - Meta said it will now "remove Pages, Groups and accounts representing military-controlled businesses." It made similar comments after the coup in February. [big-tech-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (8/12/21): EU Stops Renting Residence From Former Myanmar Dictator’s Family
• The Irrawaddy (8/12/21): Facebook Extends Ban on Myanmar Military-Linked Firms [big-tech-news] [!]
• The Irrawddy (8/12/21): Myanmar Junta Sentences Ousted NLD Chief Minister to Four Years in Prison [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Soldiers have been accused of killing 13 people from a village in central Myanmar, 11 of whose burned bodies were discovered yesterday. “The incident occurred near the city of Monywa, after local militias opposing military rule carried out at least two bomb attacks on a military convoy. Locals say soldiers then swept through nearby villages, rounding up and killing six men and five teenagers. The military junta is yet to comment on the incident,” BBC News reports.
• South China Morning Post (7/12/21): Cambodia welcomes Myanmar foreign minister, day after Aung San Suu Kyi sentencing drew global condemnation - Wunna Maung Lwin held talks on Tuesday with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who earlier said junta officials should be invited to Asean meetings - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has seen divisions emerge between members over its diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis in Myanmar since the coup Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Irrawaddy (7/12/21): Ignoring Junta’s Request, UN Delays Myanmar Ambassador Replacement [!]
• The Irrawaddy (7/12/21): Five-year-old Girl Killed by Myanmar Junta Forces [!]
• The Irrawaddy (7/12/21): Three Myanmar Police Killed on Yangon-Mandalay Highway: Resistance [!]
• Workers Today (7/11/21): Communist Party of Burma is getting ready for the People's War against the illegal junta government ([Propaganda Outlet] via Popular Front) [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Myanmar’s deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi faces two years in jail after her four-year sentence on charges of incitement and breaking Covid-19 rules, issued yesterday, was halved by the country’s military, state media has reported. Helen Regan reports for CNN. The idea being to make it look like the military is being magnanimous... obviously though they are awful
• The Guardian (6/12/21): Rohingya sue Facebook for £150bn over Myanmar genocide - Victims in US and UK legal action accuse social media firm of failing to prevent incitement of violence [big-tech-news, social-woes-news]
• The Irrawaddy (6/12/21): Female Journalist Seriously Injured After Myanmar Regime Forces Drive Truck into Protest [!]
• The Irrawaddy (6/12/21): Protester Narrowly Escapes Myanmar Junta Bullets [!]
• The Irrawaddy (6/12/21): Myanmar Junta Sparks Outrage by Ramming Peaceful Protesters [protest-news] [!]
• The Irrawaddy (6/12/21): Resistance Groups Attack Myanmar Junta After Yangon Protest Killings [!]
• Just Security (6/12/21): At least three people are feared dead after an army vehicle plowed into a peaceful march by anti-government protestors in Yangon, Myanmar’s biggest city, witnesses have said. Yesterday’s march was one of at least three held in Yangon, and similar rallies were reported in other parts of the country a day ahead of the expected verdict against Suu Kyi. Grant Peck reports for AP.
• Just Security (6/12/21): A court in Myanmar has sentenced ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four years on charges of inciting public unrest and breaching Covid-19 protocols. The sentence is the first in a series of rulings that Suu Kyi is facing that together entail a possible maximum imprisonment of 102 years on a total of 11 charges. “This ridiculous ruling is a travesty of justice,” Charles Santiago, a Malaysian legislator and chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Parliamentarians for Human Rights, said in a statement. Sui-Lee Wee reports for the New York Times.
• Al Jazeera (5/12/21): ‘Humans are for the grave’: Karen face Myanmar military violence - After post-coup protests this year, the Tatmadaw carried out air raids in Karen State. As some rebuild their homes in the jungle, others join a wider call for resistance. [!]
• The Irrawaddy (1/12/21): Young but Determined Female Medics in Myanmar Junta Jail [!]
• The Irrawaddy (1/12/21): Myanmar Junta Charges Two Leading Medics With Corruption [!]
• The Irrawaddy (3/12/21): Myanmar Junta Killed Around 100 Children Since Coup: NUG - At least 89 women have been killed by regime forces, the NUG’s ministry reported this week.
• The Irrawaddy (1/12/21): Five Striking Myanmar Government Staff Seized in Mandalay [busting-labor-news]
• The Irrawaddy (1/12/21): Myanmar’s Ousted NLD Says Over 570 Members Arrested by Junta So Far
• The Irrawaddy (1/12/21): Cambodia, ASEAN and Myanmar [!]
• The Irrawaddy (1/12/21): Myanmar Regime Troops Kill Five Displaced Civilians: Resistance
• Democracy Now (2/12/21): Burmese Military Helicopters Attack Villagers in Region Where Resistance to Coup Remains Strong
• Just Security (2/12/21): The killing of at least 65 protesters in Myanmar’s biggest city on March 14 was planned and premeditated, Human Rights Watch has said in a report released today. The report accuses “security forces of deliberately encircling and using lethal force against crowds in Yangon’s working class neighborhood of Hlaing Tharyar that were demonstrating against the military’s Feb. 1 seizure of power,” AP reports.
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Scores of Villagers Flee Junta Airstrikes in Upper Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Over 50 Top Officials From Myanmar’s Ousted NLD Govt Face Long Jail Terms
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Veteran NLD Leader Dies a Month After Release from Myanmar Junta Detention [obituary-news]
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Myanmar Junta Charges NLD Members With Terrorism
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Myanmar Regime Jails Former Election Commission Head
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Kokang Army Claims to Have Killed 198 Myanmar Junta Soldiers
• The Irrawaddy (30/11/21): Chronicling Four Decades of Separatist Activity by Manipur’s PLA in Myanmar
• Just Security (30/11/21: A junta court in Myanmar has postponed until Dec. 6 the verdict in the incitement trial of ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Agence France-Presse reports.
• The Guardian (26/11/21): Myanmar junta accused of forcing people to brink of starvation - Advisory group say military has destroyed supplies, killed livestock and cut off roads used to transport food since February coup [social-woes-news]
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Myanmar Junta Sacked Generals Who Served as Minsters During NLD Govt
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Shoppers Boycott Myanmar Plaza After Attack on Anti-Regime Protest
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Chin State Town Blames Myanmar Junta for Arson Attacks
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Thousands Flee as Myanmar Regime Resumes Raiding Resistance Groups
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Heavy Fighting Reported Between Myanmar Junta and Northern Shan Armed Group
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Over 20 Anti-Coup Activists Sentenced to Death by Myanmar Junta [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Thai Forces Kill Drug Couriers, Seize 1.8 Million Meth Pills Near Myanmar Border [drug-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Strong 6.1 magnitude earthquake hits India-Myanmar border region - Tremors felt as far away as Kolkata, India but there were no immediate reports of damage
• The Irrawaddy (23/11/21): Myanmar Civilian Govt’s Bond Sale Raises Over $6 Million in Under 12 Hours
• The Irrawaddy (23/11/21): Almost 200 Myanmar Junta-Appointed Administrators Killed Since Coup
• NewsClick (24/11/21): Myanmar in Indian Foreign Policy’s Blindspot - Even if normative concerns do not drive Indian foreign policy, Myanmar is key to India’s Look/Act East policy and its plans for its North-eastern states.
• The Irrawaddy (22/11/21): Around 120 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Magwe Region: Resistance
• The Irrawaddy (23/11/21): Chinese-Owned Banana Plantations Fueling Exploitation in Myanmar [bri-news, neo-imperialism-news]
• The Irrawaddy (19/11/21): Myanmar Junta Soldiers’ Gang Rape Victim Reveals Her Ordeal
• The Irrawaddy (19/11/21): Thailand’s Deputy PM Says he had Constructive Talks With Myanmar Coup Leader
• The Irrawaddy (19/11/21): Myanmar Junta Blocks Japanese Envoy From Meeting Suu Kyi
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Myanmar students boycott classes following school reopening - Schools reopened on November 1, but with high security risks and an unwillingness to support the leadership, few students are attending. [protest-news]
• Democracy Now (17/11/21): Burmese Coup Leaders Levy New Charges Against Aung San Suu Kyi; Freed U.S. Reporter Speaks Out
• The Irrawaddy (16/11/21): Myanmar Resistance Claims to Have Killed More Than 70 Junta Troops in Two Days
• The Irrawaddy (15/11/21): Myanmar Junta Continues to Seize Homes of Those With Ties to NLD, NUG
• The Irrawaddy (15/11/21): Junta-Linked Company in Bid to Take Stake in Telenor Myanmar
• Just Security (16/11/21): Myanmar’s ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi is to face new electoral fraud and abuse of power charges, state media has announced. Suu Kyi, who was arrested during the February military coup, is currently facing 11 criminal cases with maximum sentences that total more than a century in jail. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (15/11/21): Dany Fenster, a U.S. journalist detained in Myanmar and sentenced to 11 years in prison, has been freed and will soon return home, according to the U.S. Embassy in Burma. Fenster, who was the managing editor of the online magazine Frontier Myanmar, had been detained in Yangon’s Insein prison since his arrest in May. His release was negotiated following a trip to Myanmar by Bill Richardson, a former U.S. diplomat. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Myanmar military accused of blocking aid to displaced civilians - Fortify Rights says Myanmar army may have committed war crimes in arresting aid workers and destroying food stocks.
• The Irrawaddy (11/11/21): Myanmar Junta Loses 1,300 Soldiers Killed Over Last Month: NUG
• The Irrawaddy (12/11/21): Tens of thousands Flee Myanmar Junta Raids in Upper Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (12/11/21): Resistance Groups Claim to Have Killed 90 Myanmar Junta Troops in Two Days
• Just Security (12/11/21): U.S. journalist Danny Fester has been sentenced to 11 years in prison in Myanmar after being found guilty of incitement for allegedly spreading false or inflammatory information, contacting illegal organizations and violating visa regulations, his lawyer has said [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (11/11/21): The U.N. Security Council also expressed “deep concern” over clashes between junta troops and fighters from a major militant group in the Rakhine state in Myanmar. The clashes, reported by a rebel spokesperson, broke a ceasefire that had kept the peace in the western region since a military coup in February. The Council also warned that “recent developments pose particular serious challenges for the voluntary, safe, dignified, and sustainable return of Rohingya refugees and internally displaced persons.”
• The Irrawaddy (10/11/21): Over 100 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (9/11/21): Over 80 Myanmar Junta-Appointed Local Officials Resign
• Democracy Now (10/11/21): U.S. Journalist Faces Terrorism and Sedition Charges in Burma - The U.N. is urging Burma’s military to give the agency access to over 3 million people in need of life-saving humanitarian aid amid ongoing violence following the February 1 military coup, a growing economic crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Irrawaddy (9/11/21): China-Backed Myanmar Infrastructure Project Leaves Farmers Landless [bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (8/11/21): Electricity Office in Myanmar Capital Targeted With Bomb Blast
• The Irrawaddy (8/11/21): Around 150 Junta Troops Killed By Myanmar Resistance Over Weekend
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): Official Myanmar records mistaken about detained US reporter - Danny Fenster is among about 100 journalists who have been detained since February, when the military ousted the democratically-elected government.
• Just Security (8/11/21): Bill Richardson, a veteran U.S. diplomat, has visited Myanmar to meet with the leaders of February’s military coup [us-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (5/11/21): Low-Profile Junta Crony Imports and Makes Arms for Myanmar’s Military
• The Irrawaddy (5/11/21): Mytel CFO Most Prominent Victim So Far as Myanmar Military-Linked Firms Targeted
• The Irrawaddy (5/11/21): Almost 100 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed in Two Days: Resistance
• The Irrawaddy (3/11/21): Myanmar Junta Raids Rebel Group’s Office Near Thai Border
• The Irrawaddy (3/11/21): Thousands Flee Homes as Myanmar Junta Steps Up Attacks
• Just Security (4/11/21): A U.S. journalist, who has been jailed in Myanmar for the past five months, was denied bail yesterday by a Myanmar court. The court also added a new charge against Danny Fenster, who has already been charged with incitement for allegedly spreading false or inflammatory information and with violating the Unlawful Associations Act for alleged links to illegal opposition groups, his lawyer said
• Just Security (2/11/21): A digital campaign by resistance groups against the military junta in Myanmar has contributed to a small but steady stream of military defectors to the groups. “Since the military seized power in a coup on Feb. 1, opposition groups say more than 2,500 police and soldiers have defected. They claimed numbers have risen modestly since early September, when a rival shadow administration called the National Unity Government, formed by ousted civilian leaders in hiding, declared support for an armed struggle against the regime. Defense analysts say defections don’t appear to threaten the military’s cohesion, but signal weak morale that could frustrate part of the junta’s strategy to gain full control of the country,”
• Democracy Now (2/11/21): Burmese Military Forces Accused of Torture and Attacks on Civilians
• The Irrawaddy (29/10/21): Another 25 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed in Upcountry Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (28/10/21): 40 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Upcountry Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (28/10/21): Mandalay Office of Myanmar’s Ousted NLD Bombed
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Local Official Shot Dead in Myanmar Capital
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Veteran Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Junta
• The Irrawaddy (26/10/21): 1,000 Flee Myanmar Junta Artillery Strikes
• The Irrawaddy (26/10/21): Myanmar Regime’s Gagging of Suu Kyi Lawyers Against the Law
• Just Security (26/10/21): U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met yesterday with representatives of Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG), set up by opponents of army rule, the White House has said. [us-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (25/10/21): Myanmar Junta Supporters Hold Rallies in Military-Dominated Cities
• The Irrawaddy (25/10/21): Junta Forces Suffer Heavy Losses in Weekend Resistance Attacks Across Myanmar
• The Guardian (22/10/21): UN fears new atrocity in Myanmar as troops gather in restive northern states - UN special rapporteur on Myanmar, Tom Andrews, says the world should be prepared for ‘even more mass atrocity crimes’
• The Irrawaddy (21/10/21): Myanmar Resistance Gives Telecoms Firms Three Days to Restore Internet
• The Irrawaddy (19/10/21): New Crony Brokers Israeli Aircraft Parts for Myanmar Air Force
• The Irrawaddy (20/10/21): Thousands of Civilians Displaced by Myanmar Military Raids Hit by Floods
• The Irrawaddy (18/10/21): Anti-Regime Protesters Arrested After Attack by Myanmar Junta Troops
• The Irrawaddy (18/10/21): Myanmar Capital Hit by Another Bomb Blast at Local Administration Office
• Just Security (20/10/21): Thousands of farmers in Myanmar have fled to India after the military junta seized power in the February coup
• Just Security (18/10/21): Myanmar is to release over 5,000 prisoners held in jail for protesting against the military’s coup in February This is just something they do every now and then to try and relieve international pressure
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): No invitation for Myanmar military gov’t leader at ASEAN summit - Min Aung Hlaing snubbed as concerns rise over military government’s commitment to defusing bloody crisis.
• Just Security (14/10/21): Myanmar’s military junta will not allow a special envoy for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to meet deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi because she is currently facing court charges, a military spokesperson has said
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): ‘A living hell’: Churches, clergy targeted by Myanmar military - Rights groups say Christians, a minority in the mainly Buddhist country, are being swept up in the military crackdown on resistance.
• The Irrawaddy (13/10/21): Two Power Plants in Myanmar’s Biggest City Shut Amid Coup’s Financial Fallout [energy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (13/10/21): Myanmar’s Detained President Exposes Illegality of Coup in Court Testimony
• Left Voice (12/10/21): “In Myanmar the Working Class Stood up to the Military Junta and We Are Still Fighting”: Interview with a Burmese Activist - An interview with Thinzar Shunlei Yi, a Burmese grassroots activist, about the situation in Myanmar eight months after the coup. [labor-news, leftist-news]
• The Irrawaddy (12/10/21): Low-Profile Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Military’s Weapons
• The Irrawaddy (11/10/21): Yangon Rocked by Multiple Blasts as Myanmar Junta Chief Visits to Bolster Security Efforts
• The Irrawaddy (11/10/21): Some 90 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed During Intense Weekend Fighting
• The Irrawaddy (8/10/21): Indian Arms Exporter Ships Air-Defense Weapons to Myanmar’s Junta
• The Irrawaddy (8/10/21): Junta Deploys Thousands of Reinforcements to Upper Myanmar For Clearance Operations
• The Guardian (7/10/21): Facebook’s role in Myanmar and Ethiopia under new scrutiny - Whistleblower Frances Haugen adds to long-held concerns that social media site is fuelling violence and instability [big-tech-news]
• The Irrawaddy (6/10/21): Five Police Hurt as Another Explosion Strikes Regime Target in Myanmar’s Capital
• The Irrawaddy (6/10/21): Over 40 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed in Ambush
• The Irrawaddy (5/10/21): Yangon Businessman Acts as Go-Between for Belarus Arms Sales to Myanmar Military
• The Irrawaddy (5/10/21): Notorious Myanmar Military Commander to Lead Clearance Operations
• The Irrawaddy (4/10/21): Some 100 Junta Troops Killed in a Day in Clashes Across Myanmar
• The Guardian (1/10/21): Aung San Suu Kyi appears in closed court on corruption charges - Allegations are among most serious of those filed against ousted leader by Myanmar’s military junta
• The Irrawaddy (1/10/21): Karen Armed Group Ambushes Myanmar Junta Regional Commander
• Just Security (1/10/21): Myanmar’s military-installed government has defended its 4-month detention of a U.S. journalist.
• The Irrawaddy (1/10/21): Thousands Flee Clashes Between Myanmar Junta and Karenni Resistance
• The Irrawaddy (30/9/21): Around 60 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Fighting With Resistance Forces
• Just Security (30/9/21): Myanmar’s currency has lost more than 60% of its value since the beginning of September.
• The Guardian (29/9/21): Prominent Rohingya leader shot dead in Bangladesh refugee camp - Mohib Ullah had been in talks with other refugee leaders in Kutupalong when he was killed by unidentified assailants
• The Irrawaddy (29/9/21): Myanmar Junta Jails NLD Lawmaker and Civilians For Anti-Regime Protests
• The Irrawaddy (29/9/21): Myanmar Junta Accused of Targeting Civilians with Landmines
• The Irrawaddy (28/9/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Ambushed in Shan State
• The Irrawaddy (27/9/21): Over 30 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Fierce Weekend Fighting
• The Irrawaddy (27/9/21): Myanmar Junta Kills Dozens in Latest Surge of Violence Against Civilians
• Just Security (27/9/21): Myanmar’s military launched air strikes over the weekend after clashes with fighters opposed to the junta in the Sagaing region in northwest Myanmar, and phone lines and the internet were also severed in some districts.
• The Irrawaddy (24/9/21): Beijing Tells Regime It Fears Attack on Its Oil, Gas Pipelines in Myanmar [big-oil-news, bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (24/9/21): Myanmar Junta Torches Village Twice in Two Days
• The Irrawaddy (24/9/21): Fears of More Atrocities as Myanmar Junta Blocks Internet in Parts of Chin, Magwe
• The Irrawaddy (24/9/21): Woman Hospitalized After Being Beaten by Myanmar Junta Forces
• The Irrawaddy (23/9/21): Thirty Myanmar Police, Troops Defect in Chin State Since War Declaration Against Junta
• Just Security (23/9/21): Andrews said that the relatives, including children as young as 20 weeks old, of those targeted for arrest are being abducted by the junta in Myanmar as a means to force targets to hand themselves in.
• Just Security (23/9/21): Facebook has been ordered by a federal judge to hand over information about posts removed by the social media company in 2018 for promoting violence against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (22/9/21): Myanmar Junta Offers COVID-19 Vaccines to Arakan Army
• The Irrawaddy (22/9/21): Myanmar Regime Forces Kill Family of Four in Mandalay Region
• The Irrawaddy (20/9/21): Regime’s Military Reinforcements Arrive in Upper Myanmar as Clashes Escalate
• The Irrawaddy (20/9/21): Rohingya Armed Groups Active Again in Western Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (20/9/21): Agreement Moves Myanmar’s Kyaukphyu Port Project a Step Forward [bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (20/9/21): Residents of Town in Myanmar’s Chin State Flee Junta Artillery Barrage
• The Irrawaddy (20/9/21): Myanmar’s Suu Kyi Denies False Reports That She Opposes Armed Resistance to Junta.
• The Irrawaddy (17/9/21): Myanmar Military Launches Artillery Strike Near Kachin Armed Group’s HQ
• The Irrawaddy (17/9/21): Military-Backed Myanmar Beer Warehouse Bombed in Monywa
• The Irrawaddy (17/9/21): Myanmar Junta Arrests Two More Journalists
• The Irrawaddy (16/9/21): Over 20 Myanmar Military Soldiers Killed in Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (16/9/21): Youth Killed, Several Detained as Myanmar Junta Forces Raid Yangon Neighborhoods
• The Irrawaddy (15/9/21): Myanmar Military Regime Accuses Resistance Fighters of Bago Bank Heist
• The Irrawaddy (15/9/21): Myanmar Junta Cuts Internet Access in Anti-Regime Resistance Strongholds
• The Irrawaddy (15/9/21): Junta’s Demand to Spy on Customers Prompts Telenor to Leave Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (14/9/21): Over 1,700 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed in Past Three Months, Civilian Govt Says
• The Irrawaddy (13/9/21): Nearly 50 Myanmar Junta Forces Killed in Two Raids by Civilian Fighters in Chin, Magwe
• The Irrawaddy (13/9/21): Over 80 Myanmar Military-Owned Telecom Towers Destroyed Nationwide
• The Irrawaddy (13/9/21): Myanmar Junta Kills At Least 12 Civilians Over Weekend
• Al Jazeera (13/9/21): Myanmar dissidents face fear and uncertainty in Thailand - Myanmar dissidents who fled army crackdown are living in hiding in Thailand as they try to seek humanitarian protection in third countries.
• The Irrawaddy (10/9/21): Myanmar Rock Singer Ito Arrested for Alleged Anti-Regime Activities
• The Irrawaddy (10/9/21): Junta Troops Killed in Civilian Attacks Across Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (10/9/21): Myanmar Military Tells Muslims Not to Contact Arakan Army
• The Irrawaddy (8/9/21): Myanmar Military Telecom Towers Attacked by Resistance Fighters
• Just Security (7/9/21): Myanmar’s shadow government has declared war on the ruling military junta in the country and has called for an armed revolt, sparking an escalation of fighting in parts of Myanmar
• Just Security (7/9/21): A court in Myanmar has extended for two weeks the pre-trial detention of Danny Fenster, a U.S. journalist in Myanmar who was arrested in May as he was about to board a flight to go to the U.S.
• Just Security (7/9/21): Myanmar’s military junta has released the controversial Buddhist monk Ashin Wirathu, known for his nationalist and anti-Muslim rhetoric.
• The Irrawaddy (7/9/21): Thai Police Under Orders to Arrest Members of Myanmar’s Shadow Govt
• The Irrawaddy (6/9/21): 11 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed in Weekend Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (6/9/21): Myanmar Junta Steps Up Arrests of Striking Civil Servants
• The Irrawddy (3/9/21): Myanmar Junta Soldiers Shoot Dead Pregnant Woman
• The Irrawaddy (2/9/21): Ethnic Armed Group Captures Strategic Hill From Myanmar Junta Forces
• The Irrawaddy (2/9/21): German Food Giant Metro Ends Operations in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (2/9/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Burn Donated Food for IDPs
• The Irrawaddy (2/9/21): High-Profile Monk Accompanies Myanmar Junta Deputy Chief on Russia Trip
• The Irrawaddy (1/9/21): Myanmar Junta’s Vice Chairman Heads to Russia
• The Irrawaddy (1/9/21): China’s Point Man on Talks Between Myanmar Govt, Ethnic Armies Made Quiet Visit
• The Irrawaddy (1/9/21): 100 Senior NLD Leaders Arrested and Charged Since Myanmar Junta’s Coup
• The Irrawaddy (1/9/21): More than 30,000 Villagers Flee Myanmar Junta Raids
• The Irrawaddy (31/8/21): Junta Raids Resistance Base in Southern Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (31/8/21): 15 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Reported Killed in Shan State
• The Irrawaddy (31/8/21): Myanmar Army Truck Blasted in Yangon; Soldier Injured
• The Irrawaddy (30/8/21): Myanmar Regime Forces Loot and Vandalize Villages in Chin State
• The Irrawaddy (30/8/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Die in Weekend Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (30/8/21): Myanmar’s Commercial Capital Yangon and Mandalay Rocked by Bomb Blasts
• The Irrawaddy (30/8/21): China Opens Rail Line With Access to Indian Ocean via Myanmar [bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (30/8/21): Gunmen Steal More Than $60,000 From Bank in Myanmar’s Yangon
• The Irrawaddy (27/8/21): Striking Cops Form Shadow Police Force to Oppose Myanmar Junta
• The Irrawaddy (27/8/21): Myanmar Military Mobilizes Troops in Karen State
• The Irrawaddy (27/8/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Sick with COVID-19 After Sagaing Raids: Resistance
• The Irrawaddy (25/8/21): Over 400,000 Myanmar Civil Servants Still on Strike Against Military Regime
• The Irrawaddy (25/8/21): Myanmar Seizes Around 150 Civilians in 10 Days
• The Irrawaddy (24/8/21): Tens of Thousands Flee Myanmar Regime Forces’ Raids in Sagaing, Magwe
• The Irrawaddy (24/8/21): Around 30 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Magwe Ambush
• The Irrawaddy (24/8/21): Myanmar Junta Cuts Internet Access in Hpakant
• The Irrawaddy (23/8/21): 2,000 Myanmar Junta Soldiers and Police Join Civil Disobedience Movement
• The Irrawaddy (23/8/21): Rohingya in Western Myanmar Starving as Aid Blocked
• The Irrawaddy (23/8/21): Myanmar Regime Soldiers Commit Arbitrary Killings, Looting During Raids
• CPJ (23/8/21): Journalists Htet Htet Khine and Sithu Aung Myint arrested in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (20/8/21): Myanmar Junta Abducts Wife of Absent NLD Ward Chairman
• The Irrawaddy (20/8/21): Myanmar Regime Troops Detain Youths and Loot Shops in Night Raids
• The Irrawaddy (20/8/21): 50 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Killed in Landmine Attacks
• The Irrawaddy (20/8/21): Myanmar Junta Confiscates Radios to Silence Shadow Government Broadcasts
• The Irrawaddy (19/8/21): Around 40 Myanmar Junta Troops Abandon Posts with Weapons
• The Irrawaddy (18/8/21): Myanmar Resistance Landmines Kill Junta Troops After Attack on Power Line
• Just Security (18/8/21): The death toll since the military coup in Myanmar has surpassed 1,000 the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners, an activist group which has been recording killings by security forces, has said
• The Irrawaddy (17/8/21): Civilian Fighters, KIA Troops Kill Six Myanmar Junta Soldiers in Mandalay Region
• The Irrawaddy (17/8/21): Myanmar Junta’s Coup Gives Greenlight to Timber Traffickers
• Just Security (17/8/21): Two senior commanders of the Karen National Defense Organization (KNDO) have admitted that security forces under their control detained and then killed 25 men in June in its territory near Myanmar’s border with Thailand
• The Irrawaddy (16/8/21): Myanmar Rebels Damage Aircraft During Airbase Attack
• The Irrawaddy (16/8/21): Four Myanmar Police Officers Shot Dead on Train in Yangon
• The Irrawaddy (16/8/21): More Than 40 Junta Troops Killed Across Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (13/8/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Sagaing and Kayah
• The Irrawaddy (12/8/21): Chinese-Made COVID-19 Vaccines to go on Sale in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (12/8/21): US holds Talks Over US$50 Million Aid Package to Myanmar [us-policy-news]
• South China Morning Post (11/8/21): Human rights abuses claimed in hundreds of China belt and road projects - A report has identified rights allegations involving Chinese companies in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and Africa - Myanmar had the highest number of recorded cases, followed by Peru, Ecuador and Laos [bri-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (11/8/21): The Economic Fallout of Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (11/8/21): China Starts Calling Myanmar Junta “Government” [bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (10/8/21): Myanmar Military Conducts Raids in Yangon as Anti-Junta Attacks Pick Up
• The Irrawaddy (10/8/21): Myanmar Military Shells Kachin Civilians
• The Irrawaddy (10/8/21): More Than 740 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in July: NUG
• The Irrawaddy (9/8/21): Myanmar Military and Ethnic Armed Groups Clash Close to Border With China
• The Irrawaddy (9/8/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Kayah State Firefight
• New York Times (6/8/21): Myanmar Ambassador, Who Opposed Coup, Is Target of Assassination Plot - Federal prosecutors in Manhattan said two Myanmar citizens living in New York plotted over the past month to attack and potentially kill the country’s ambassador to the United Nations.
• The Irrawaddy (6/8/21): Myanmar Junta Pushing Ahead with China-Backed Kyaukphyu SEZ and Port[bri-news]
• The Irrawaddy (6/8/21): Myanmar Junta Informants and Officials Killed in Yangon Attacks
• The Irrawaddy (5/8/21): Kayah Forces Claim Successful Attacks on Myanmar Junta Troops
• The Irrawaddy (4/8/21): Myanmar Junta Uses Artillery on Civilians in Kachin State
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Head of Burmese Military Junta Names Himself Prime Minister
• The Irrawaddy (2/8/21): COVID-19 Unmasks Myanmar Regime’s Callousness and Incompetence
• The Irrawaddy (2/8/21): Civilian Killed by Myanmar Military Artillery Strike
• Bullshit Alert: Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Min Aung Hlaing promises Myanmar multi-party elections in 2023 - Six months after seizing power, coup leader pledges to hold elections in two years and cooperate with ASEAN on finding a political solution to Myanmar’s crisis.
• The Irrawaddy (30/7/21): Myanmar Junta Sells Off $90m Since Coup
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): Half of Burma Could Contract COVID, Pakistan Enacts New Restrictions, Haiti Hospitals Overwhelmed
• Just Security (28/7/21): U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has decried the actions of Myanmar’s military rulers and urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) to keep demanding an end to the violence
• The Irrawaddy (28/7/21): Two Killed as Myanmar Junta Forces Open Fire on Mandalay Protest Column
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Protest erupts at Myanmar’s Insein prison amid COVID outbreak - Anti-military government chants heard from inside the notorious colonial-era jail, which is used to hold opponents of the February coup
• The Irrawaddy (23/7/21): Myanmar Junta Implementing China’s BRI Projects by Stealth
• The Moscow Times (23/7/21): Russia on Track to Deliver Fighter Jets to Myanmar – Reports
• The Irrawaddy (23/7/21): Displaced Myanmar Civilians Denied UN Aid
• Just Security (21/7/21): Russia is cooperating closely with Myanmar to supply military hardware, including aircrafts, the Interfax news agency has reported, citing Alexander Mikheev, the head of Russian state arms trader Rosoboronexport
• Just Security (19/7/21): New Just Security Series: Beyond the Myanmar Coup
• The Irrawaddy (19/7/21): Around 5,000 Sagaing Villagers Flee Myanmar Junta Raid
• Just Security (14/7/21): Beyond the Coup in Myanmar: The Tatmadaw Must Be Hit Where it Hurts – Its Wallet
• The Irrawaddy (14/7/21): Crematoriums Overflow in Myanmar’s Biggest City as COVID Deaths Spike Amid Oxygen Shortage
• The Irrawaddy (14/7/21): No Security Present When Myanmar Military Raided Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s House
• The Irrawaddy (13/7/21): Aung San Suu Kyi Faces 75 Years in Prison as Myanmar Junta Brings Fresh Charges
• The Irrawaddy (12/7/21): Myanmar Suffering From Severe Shortage of Medical Oxygen as COVID-19 Cases Spike
• The Irrawaddy (10/7/21): Myanmar’s Third Wave of COVID-19 Spreads to Almost 90% of Townships
• The Irrawaddy (8/7/21): Norway’s Telenor Sells its Myanmar Telecoms Operation to Regime-Linked Partner
• The Irrawaddy (7/7/21): Over 40 Myanmar Junta Troops Reported Killed in Sagaing
• The irrawaddy (7/7/21): Tabayin Villagers Cannot Count Dead Amid Myanmar Junta Attacks
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): Myanmar military kills at least 25 people in raid on central town - Residents tell Myanmar media killings in Sagain region came amid confrontation with armed opponents to the coup.
• The Irrawaddy (2/7/21): Myanmar Junta Invites Bids for New Solar Power Projects - 'The military regime is seeking tenders to implement 12 solar power projects to raise foreign currency, with some 40 firms including Thai and Chinese companies planning to make bids.'
• The Irrawaddy (2/7/21): Four Myanmar Civilians [including a NLD member] Tortured to Death in Junta Custody
• The Irrawaddy (1/7/21): Rival Armed Groups Fight Over Territorial Dispute in Myanmar’s Shan State
• The Irrawaddy (30/6/21): Myanmar Junta Frees Political Prisoners and Journalists
• Al jazeera (29/6/21): Myanmar army ‘tightens grip’ on multibillion jade trade: Report - Coup leader General Min Aung Hlaing’s son implicated in the importation of dynamite used in open pit jade mines.
• The Irrawaddy (28/6/21): Ex-Japanese Minister’s Firm Partners With Myanmar Military-Linked Company
• The Irrawaddy (28/6/21): Arakan Army Seizes Weapons From Regime’s Police Force in Rakhine
• The Guardian (27/6/21): US journalist says he was tortured during detention in Myanmar - Nathan Maung says security forces punched, slapped and beat him, and kept him blindfolded for over a week
• Al Jazeera (24/6/21): UN says 230,000 displaced by Myanmar fighting - Myanmar has been in crisis since a February 1 coup overthrew elected government, prompting nationwide anger.
• The Irrawaddy (23/6/21): Around 30 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Sagaing
• The Irrawaddy (22/6/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Battle Civilian Resistance Fighters in Mandalay
• The Irrawaddy (21/6/21): Myanmar Junta Chief Visits Moscow for Security Conference
• The Irrawaddy (21/6/21): Myanmar Junta Kills 13 Civilians Over Weekend
• Al Jazera (19/6/21): UN stops short of calling for global arms embargo against Myanmar - Special envoy Christine Schraner Burgener warns that ‘the risk of a large-scale civil war is real’ in the country following February 1 military coup.
• The Irrawaddy (18/6/21): Myanmar Military Truck With Soldiers on Board Blown Up in Yangon
• Al Jazeera (15/6/21): ‘Our only option’: Myanmar civilians take up arms for democracy - Civilian forces are training with ethnic armed groups and setting up cells in the cities, but face a formidably armed military.
• The Guardian (14/6/21): Trial of Aung San Suu Kyi to begin in Myanmar after military coup - Former leader faces raft of charges including that she improperly imported walkie-talkies and flouted coronavirus restrictions
• The Irrawaddy (13/6/21): Striking Myanmar Medics Face up to Six Years in Jail
• The Irrawaddy (11/6/21): Bomb Explodes at Chinese-Backed Factory in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (10/6/21): Chinese Foreign Minister Assures Myanmar Junta It Has Beijing’s Support
• The Irrawaddy (10/6/21): Ethnic Karen Armed Group in Myanmar to Abide by Ceasefire Agreement
• The Irrawaddy (10/6/21): Ten Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Sagaing Region Ambush
• The Irrawaddy (9/6/21): Kayah Rebel Army Backs Civilian Resistance Against Regime
• Democracy Now (9/6/21): U.N. Warns of Mass Deaths and Suffering After Military Attacks Displace 100,000 in Eastern Burma
• The Irrawaddy (8/6/21): Myanmar’s Parallel Govt's Rohingya Policy Angers Rakhine Groups
• Al Jazeera (5/6/21): Several killed as Myanmar forces fight villagers in delta region - State media says clashes at Ayeyarwady region village left three dead, while local media say up to 20 civilians killed. fighting the government with crossbows and catapults
• The Irrawaddy (5/6/21): More Than Half of Myanmar’s Chin State Under COVID Lockdown
• The Irrawaddy (4/6/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Shoot and Arrest Young People in Yangon
• The Irrawaddy (2/6/21): Thai Court Hands Jail Sentences to Myanmar Journalists Fleeing Junta
• The Irrawaddy (1/6/21): Myanmar Regime Isolates Western Town of Paletwa Following Bomb Blasts
• The Irrawaddy (1/6/21): Suspected Myanmar Military Informants Killed in Kale
• The Irrawaddy (1/6/21): Five Accused of Being Myanmar Junta Informants Found Dead in Magwe
• The Irrawaddy (30/5/21): Ethnic Shanni Military Leader Assassinated by Junta: Group Claims
• Left Voice (30/5/21): “Workers’ Rights and Democracy is Not Something to be Taken for Granted”: An Interview With Myanmar Activist in Korea, Yan Kyaw Moe. - Left Voice interviewed activist Yan Kyaw Moe about the political situation in Myanmar, uprisings by students and workers against the military coup, and how migrant workers abroad are supporting the movement at home.
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Myanmar shadow government allies with rebels against military - Rebel Chin National Front signs an agreement with the National Unity Government to ‘demolish the dictatorship’ and restore federal democracy following February’s coup.
• The Irrawaddy (28/5/21): Nearly 20,000 Displaced in Upper Myanmar Amid Junta Forces’ Raids
• The Irrawaddy (27/5/21): Total, Chevron Suspend Some Payments to Myanmar Junta-Linked Energy Firm - 'JFM said the latest decision leaves intact the vast majority of payments to the junta facilitated by Total, which include the state’s share of gas revenue, royalties and cost recovery from the Yadana gas field operation and corporate income tax from MGTC.'
• The Irrawaddy (26/5/21): More Than 70,000 People Displaced as Fighting Rages in Eastern Myanmar
• Mother Jones (25/5/21): An Assassination in Myanmar…and Preparing for a Civil War - “Nobody knew what happened to him. He just disappeared.”
• The Irrawaddy (25/5/21): Myanmar Junta’s Troops Loot Villages Abandoned Due to Firefights
• Democracy Now (25/5/21): U.S. Journalist Jailed in Burma After Reporting on Military Coup; The Irrawaddy (25/5/21): US Journalist Seized at Myanmar Airport
• The Irrawaddy (24/5/21): Myanmar Coup Leader Vows to Protect China-Backed Enterprises
• Democracy Now (24/5/21): Deposed Burmese Leader Aung San Suu Kyi Appears in Court for First Time Since February 1 Coup
• The Irrawaddy (23/5/21): Around 40 Myanmar Junta Troops Killed in Kayah State
• The Irrawaddy (21/5/21): Myanmar Junta to Dissolve National League for Democracy
• The Irrawaddy (21/5/21): Explosions Rock Myanmar’s Business Hub; Kill Security Forces
• The Irrawaddy (19/5/21): Notorious Myanmar Arms Broker Joins Military Leaders on Russia Trip
• The Irrawaddy (18/5/21): Local Official of Myanmar Regime Shot Dead in Downtown Yangon
• The Irrawaddy (18/5/21): KIA Attacks Seven Tankers Supplying ‘Aviation Fuel’ for Regime [carrying fuel imported from China]
• Notice: oil sanctions are not part of these sanctions (see here for more); Global Witness (17/5/21): Global Witness welcomes new sanctions by US, UK and Canada on Myanmar military
• The Irrawaddy (17/5/21): Myanmar Regime Air Base Hit by Rockets: Military
• The Irrawaddy (14/5/21): Armed Revolution Spreads in Myanmar's Central Regions and on Chin Hills
• The Irrawaddy (14/5/21): Fighting Between KIA and Junta Forces Intensifies in northern Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (12/5/21): Myanmar Junta Thugs Beat and Arrest [around 30] Mandalay Protesters
• The Irrawaddy (12/5/21): Tamu Defense Force Kills at Least 15 Myanmar Junta Troops
• The Irrawaddy (10/5/21): Three More People Killed by Myanmar Junta Troops in Sagaing, Yangon
• The Irrawaddy (7/5/21): Civilian Resistance Forces Kill at Least 16 of Myanmar Junta’s Troops
• The Irrawaddy (6/5/21): Nearly 200 Myanmar Troops Killed in Clashes With Karen Forces
• The Irrawaddy (6/5/21): Over Eighty Airmen Leave Air Force as Myanmar Military Casualties Rise
• The Irrawaddy (6/5/21): Deadly Attack on Pipeline Station Spotlights China’s High Stakes in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy (5/5/21): Myanmar Junta Forces Open Fire on Villagers Protesting School Reopening
• The Irrawaddy (5/5/21): Chin Resistance Fighters Kill Nine Myanmar Junta Soldiers
• The Irrawaddy (5/5/21): Ethnic Chinese Woman Waiting for COVID-19 Jab Shot Dead by Myanmar Junta Troops
• The Irrawaddy (5/5/21): Myanmar’s Shadow Government Forms People’s Defense Force
• The Irrawaddy (4/5/21): Myanmar Junta Troops Die in Chin State Clashes
• The Irrawaddy (4/5/21): Myanmar Junta Tells Striking Medics to Leave Yangon HIV Center
• The Irrawaddy (4/5/21): Anti-Regime Civilian Fighters Attack Myanmar Junta Forces in Magwe Region
• The Irrawaddy (4/5/21): NLD MP Killed by Explosion in Myanmar’s Bago Region
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): At least 8 reported killed in Myanmar anti-coup protests - Largest protests in days draw brutal response from security forces with deaths reported across the country.
• The Irrawaddy (3/5/21): Kachin Independence Army Shoots Down Myanmar Military Helicopter
• The Irrawaddy (3/5/21): China Donates 500,000 COVID-19 Vaccines to Myanmar Junta; 'Anti-Chinese sentiment has risen dramatically in Myanmar after China repeatedly blocked attempts by the United Nations Security Council to take action against the coup leaders.'
• Democracy Now: (3/5/21): Burmese Forces Kill at Least 8 Anti-Coup Protesters as Organizers Call for “Spring Revolution”
• The Irrawaddy (29/4/21): Myanmar Regime Files High Treason, Other Charges Against Detained Protest Leader
• The Irrawaddy (29/4/21): Myanmar Military Air Bases Attacked in Magwe and Meiktila
• The Irrawaddy (29/4/21): Myanmar Regime Aircraft Bomb Kachin Villagers [for six days, according to Kachin Baptist Convention]
• Jacobin (17/4/21): Australia’s Government Is Refusing to Support Myanmar’s Anti-Coup Movement - For Australia’s conservative government, keeping Myanmar open for businesses is more important than justice for massacred anti-coup protesters.
• In These Times: Myanmar Workers Face Down a Military Dictatorship - Members of the Federation of General Workers Myanmar share their stories of resistance following the coup d’etat of February 1.
• The Irrawaddy (28/4/21): US Senators Call for Sanctions on Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise; 'The U.S senators said that history shows that when the previous junta was in place in the 1990s, “gas revenues from Total and Chevron helped them to withstand international sanctions as their [financial] reserves dwindled”. ... A New York Times report revealed that Chevron has intensively lobbied the State Department and key congressional offices against sanctions, warning that they might disrupt its joint ventures in Myanmar.'
• New York Times: (22/4/21) Chevron Lobbies [lobbyists including former State Department officials] to Head Off New Sanctions on Myanmar - The oil company is arguing against efforts to restrict its involvement in a gas operation in Myanmar that provides funding for the junta there.; 'This year, Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise is expected to collect at least $536 million worth of gas and revenue from the operation of the Yadana field. Additionally, Chevron and its partners in the Yadana project pay taxes to the government in Naypyidaw to be able to operate in Myanmar — at least $120 million in 2018. ... After taxes and other payments to the Myanmar government, Chevron has been netting annual profits of $100 million to $150 million from its stake in Yadana and a pipeline company that transports the gas from Myanmar to Thailand, experts at EarthRights estimated.' (more context)
• The Irrawaddy (28/4/21): Civilian Resistance Fighters Kill Three Myanmar Regime’s Troops, [one mutineer defending protest camp died]
• The Irrawaddy (28/4/21): Protesters in Myanmar’s Biggest City [Yangon] Return With ‘Guerrilla-Style’ Tactics; 'In the 57 days between Feb. 1 and March 29, around 210 anti-regime protesters, residents and bystanders were killed by the regime’s police and soldiers in the commercial capital. On March, 29, regime forces even used heavy explosives in cracking down on an anti-regime protest in Yangon’s South Dagon Township, killing at least 15 protesters.' 'When asked about the risk of being shot or arrested, the protester said, “We are scared as we can’t defend ourselves from them anymore. But, we will have to live a lifetime of fear if we stay at home. So, we decided to fight,” he said.'
• The Irrawaddy: Thousands Flee as Myanmar Junta Planes Bomb Kachin Villages
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Military Launches Air Raid in Karen State [2]
• The Irrawaddy: Fighting Resumes in Chin State After Talks with Myanmar Military Fail
• The New York Times (23/4/21): How Generals Plot Together, in Myanmar and Thailand - An unholy alliance between the two military governments will delay a return to democracy in both countries.
• Al Jazeera: Military coup clouds control over jade, gems in Myanmar - Opposition to the military’s coup has boosted ethnic armed groups, creating a new challenge to its lucrative jade and gems business.
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Regime Steps Up Arrests of Doctors as Strike Movement Takes Toll
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Junta Turns Auspicious New Year into Nightmare of Bloodshed
• The Irrawaddy: Who’s Who in Myanmar’s National Unity Government
• The Irrawaddy: Bomb Blasts Injure at Least Three Myanmar Regime Troops in Yangon
• The Irrawaddy: Prominent Anti-Regime Protest Leader Run Over, Dragged Away by Myanmar Junta Forces
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Regime Arrests About 36 Protest Leaders, Celebrities, and Activists in a Single Day
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Military Suffers Heavy Casualties in Fierce Fighting With Ethnic Armed Groups
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Military Blames ‘Rioters’ for Arson Attacks
• The Irrawaddy: Watchman Reportedly Tortured to Death by Myanmar Regime Troops
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Troops Sustain Heavy Casualties as Kachin Keep Control of Strategic Base
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Military Artillery Kills Kachin Civilians
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar’s Informal Financial Service Providers Take Advantage of Post-Coup Banking Crisis
• The Irrawaddy: Death Toll in Myanmar Regime’s Latest Massacre Rises as Details Emerge
• The Irrawaddy: Resistance Forces Kill At Least 18 Myanmar Soldiers in Sagaing Border Town
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Security Forces Shoot Dead Striking Policeman in Sagaing Region
• The Irrawaddy: Easter Sunday Sees Myanmar Death Toll at Hands of Military Regime Topping 560
• The Irrawaddy: Russia Plots Its Next Moves on the Myanmar Chessboard
• The Irrawaddy: Shadow Government Outlines Federal Union Plan for Myanmar’s Future
• Democracy Now (3/29/21): Burmese Forces Kill Over 100 People in Deadliest Day of Post-Coup Crackdown
• Democracy Now (3/15/21): Burma Sees Deadliest Day of Anti-Coup Protests as U.S. Grants TPS Status to Burmese Nationals
• Democracy Now: Burmese Protesters Continue to Demand Democracy as Authorities “Shoot to Kill” in Sweeping Crackdown
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Regime Steps Up Violence to Tackle General Strike
• Democracy Now: Second Official from Suu Kyi’s Party Dies in Burma as Security Forces Continue Deadly Crackdown
• Myanmar Now: A day after the regime murdered dozens of their comrades, defiant protesters return to the streets - Demonstrators in Yangon blocked off streets with sandbag barricades to delay the advance of soldiers and police
• The Irrawaddy: More Than 100 Myanmar Police Officers Join Anti-Regime Movement
• The Irrawaddy: 115 Information Ministry Staff Refuse to Work for Myanmar Junta
• The Irrawaddy: Another Bloody Day in Myanmar: At Least 28 Protesters Slain by Military
• Myanmar Now: Police major becomes first high-ranking officer to join anti-coup resistance; '“I also want to tell my fellow officers to do what you believe is right,” he added.'

• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar’s Bloody Sunday Sees Highest Death Toll So Far at Hands of Security Forces

• The Irrawaddy: Hundreds Arrested As Myanmar Security Forces Launch Nationwide Crackdown on Regime Protests
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar’s Anti-Regime Protesters Urge Asian Counterparts to Unite for General Strike [via "Milk Tea Alliance"]
• The Irrawaddy: Millions in Myanmar Join Nationwide General Strike Against Military Regime
• The Irrawaddy: China Warns West Over Myanmar Coup, ‘Interference’
• The Irrawaddy: Millions Expected to Join General Strike in Myanmar on Monday to Oppose Regime (2/21/21)
• The Irrawaddy: Myanmar Army Unit Accused of Rohingya Atrocities Used in Deadly Crackdown: UN
• The Irrawaddy: Two Civilians Killed by Myanmar Security Forces in Mandalay (2/20/21)
• The Irrawaddy: CDM Movement Unmasks China’s Meddling in Myanmar
• The Irrawaddy: Defying Myanmar Military Regime in Harmony: Gen Z and Other Main Forces
• Al Jazeera: How Myanmar's popular uprising aims to topple military rulers (by Joshua Carroll)
• CPJ: Irrawaddy Editor Aung Zaw speaks to Fears of a Post Coup Media Crackdown in Myanmar (by Shawn Crispin)
• The Irrawaddy: Doctors in Civil Disobedience Movement Put Pressure on Myanmar Military Regime
• Myanmar Now: 'Skeletons covered in skin': inside Myanmar's labour camps (by Swe Win)

Nepal Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Provinces (cr.);

• Wall Street Journal (20/12/21): Himalayan Glaciers Are Melting at Furious Rate, New Study Shows - An analysis of almost 15,000 ice sheets in the region shows they are shrinking 10 times faster now than in previous centuries [climate-change-news, food-security-news] Paywall Summary (?): This is having knock-on effects of disasters such as flooding and avalanches throughout South Asia, leading to agricultural disruptions that could impact hundreds of millions of people. Scientists say that the Himalayan glaciers aren't just changing fast - they're changing faster than other comparable glaciers, and evidence increasingly ties the phenomena to greenhouse-gas emissions (the faster melting in Himalayas though may due to regional changes, such as shifts in the monsoon... (I must note that this itself may be a consequence of greenhouse-gas emissions)). The "faster than centuries" estimate based off of a study from Dr. Carrivick using satellite imagery of the debris trail glaciers leave behind as they slowly grind through valleys, giving an estimate of the "span of ice sheet coverage", and compared with present ice cover. Shrinking glaciers threatens agriculture, as glacial meltwater feeds major rivers in the region, and smaller glaciers leads to reduced availability for agriculture, along with heightened avalanche probability. WSJ reports from the journal The Cryosphere that between 1994 and 2017, "the Earth lost enough ice to cover the state of Michigan with a sheet 100 meters thick".
• South China Morning Post (10/12/21): Tibet railway in focus as China vows change for landlocked Nepal, in move sure to worry India - China will help Nepal realise its dream of becoming a ‘land-linked country’, Foreign Minister Wang Yi tells post-quake reconstruction conference - US$8 billion cross-border railway from south Tibet to Kathmandu is key project in China’s belt and road plan in South Asia and a strategic worry for India [china-policy-news, rail-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera (20/10/21): Floods, landslides kill more than 150 in India and Nepal - Several days of significant flooding and devastating landslides sweep away roads and houses in the two nations.
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Nepalese Gurkhas end hunger strike over UK military pensions - Veterans call off ‘fast unto death’ strike after 13 days as British officials agree to talks over pension rights grievances.
• Al Jazeera (21/5/21): As COVID wave rages in Nepal, hospitals run out of beds, oxygen - Record numbers of infections and deaths sweep Nepal, prompting fears its second wave may be worse than India’s.
• Al Jazeera (22/5/21): Nepal president dissolves parliament, new election in November - Presidency says neither caretaker prime minister nor opposition leader were able to demonstrate a majority to form a new government.
• Democracy Now (4/5/21): Nepal’s COVID-19 Crisis Becomes “Unmanageable” Amid Exponential Rise in Cases

Pakistan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (shown without Gilgit-Baltistan, not my map) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): 360 tonnes of Saudi aid arrives in Afghanistan from Pakistan [social-woes-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (31/12/21): Four soldiers killed in raid on Pakistan Taliban hideout - The military said on Friday that security forces raided two hideouts in a former Taliban stronghold near Afghanistan. [!]
• WSWS (30/12/21):Islamabad police attack federal government workers [protest-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news, labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (30/12/21): Pakistan: Islamabad teachers oppose reforms to remove them from federal government service [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Financial Times (28/12/21): Imran Khan pushes austerity measures to revive $6bn IMF package - Pakistan’s PM to introduce contentious bill as economy faces soaring prices and inflation [neo-imperialism-news, social-woes-news] Paywall Summary (?): This would 'cut development spending, end subsidies for areas including electricity and gas and remove sales tax concessions on raw materials and pharmaceuticals' (the latter which critics say disproportionatley will hurt the poorest); these measures are required to get the next IMF instalment of $1bn, after stalling for a year. As inflation has soared, the central bank has raised interest rates, now at 9.75%. The IMF is also seeking a bill to give the central bank more autonomy from the govt; critics say it will make the bank unaccountable.
• CPJ (20/12/21): Photographer Faysal Mujeeb beaten, detained by Pakistan Rangers while covering political party event [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• The Guardian (18/12/21): Pakistan: explosion at Karachi bank leaves at least 15 dead - Blast at branch in industrial area of city also leaves 16 injured as cause is investigated
Al Jazeera (11/12/21): Pakistani Taliban kill police officer guarding polio jab team - Attack in northwest Pakistan comes after end of one-month ceasefire between the armed group and the government. [militant-far-right-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (8/12/21): Isis-K escalates terror attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan in show of resistance against Taliban - Regional chapter of Islamic State becoming stronger; ‘may try to capture territory from Taliban if its numbers keep growing’, says analyst - But experts also say Isis-K unlikely to directly threaten China although it could target Chinese assets in Pakistan to fuel tension between the allies [militant-far-right-news] Important Note on SCMP
• The Guardian (9/12/21): Pakistani Taliban declare end to month-long ceasefire with government - Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan accuse state of breaching terms including a prisoner release agreement [!]
• Just Security (6/12/21): A mob killing of a Sri Lankan man accused of blasphemy in Pakistan has sparked protests in both Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Priyantha Diyawadanage, 48, a factory manager in the city of Sialkot, was beaten to death on Friday and his body set alight. More than 100 people have been arrested so far, said Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, who condemned the vigilante violence and described the incident as a “day of shame” for his country. BBC News reports.
• South China Morning Post (4/12/21): Pakistan arrests dozens for killing Sri Lankan factory manager accused of blasphemy - The factory manager was beaten to death and set alight by a mob of up to 900 people in Punjab province on Friday - Prime Minister Imran Khan called it a ‘day of shame for Pakistan’ while Sri Lankan officials expressed shock and called for the punishment of those involved Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Guardian (3/12/21): Man tortured and killed in Pakistan over alleged blasphemy - Government accused of having emboldened extremists after lynching of Sri Lankan in Sialkot [militant-far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (22/11/21): IMF revives $6BN bailout for Pakistan’s economy - Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund reached a deal after several months of talks to relax the package’s terms and conditions [neo-imperialism-news]
• CPJ (16/11/21): Journalist and activist Muhammad Zada Agra fatally shot in Pakistan
• Just Security (18/11/21): Pakistan has passed new anti-rape legislation under which sex offenders convicted of multiple rapes could face chemical castration [crime-news, legislation-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Afghan FM confirms Kabul ‘mediating’ talks between Pakistan, TTP - A one-month ceasefire agreed during talks requested by both parties, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi says.
• Modern Diplomacy (14/11/21): Chabahar Port and India-Afghanistan trade
• Democracy Now (15/11/21): Journalist and Minority Shia Muslims Killed in Afghanistan Blasts - In related news, Indian officials are accusing Pakistan of blocking a request to allow 50,000 tons of wheat and medicine to be transported to Afghanistan
• South China Morning Post (9/11/21): China delivers new warship to Pakistan Navy in ‘important milestone’ - It’s the largest and most advanced Chinese warship to be exported so far, according to the shipbuilder - Type 054A/P frigate was commissioned in Shanghai and is the first of four being built under a 2017 deal [china-policy-news] Important Note on SCMP
• The Guardian (9/11/21): ‘Imran Khan is crushing the poor’: anger rises as inflation grips Pakistan - Economic meltdown heaps pressure on Pakistani PM, with record inflation bringing threat of unrest [economic-news, social-woes-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): The Pakistani government and the armed militant group the Pakistani Taliban, the Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have agreed to a one-month ceasefire while negotiations are underway to end years of fighting.
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): Pakistan lifts ban on far-right TLP behind anti-France protests - The development follows last week’s deal between the government and the TLP that the party would halt its march to Islamabad. [far-right-news]
• The Guardian (2/11/21): ‘We will be homeless’: Lahore farmers accuse ‘mafia’ of land grab for new city - The futuristic Ravi Riverfront City development, championed by Imran Khan’s government, has been met with determined opposition [capitalist-farce-news, food-security-news, corruption-news, social-woes-news]
• Just Security (2/11/21): Pakistani officials have reopened a key national highway that supporters of the banned militant Islamist group Tehreek-e-Labaik (T.L.P.) have occupied for days, following a secret pact between the government and the group.
• Al Jazeera (27/10/21): Four Pakistani police killed in violence at far-right TLP protest - Clashes broke out at a rally of the banned TLP group which is demanding the release of its imprisoned leader. [far-right-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• The Irrawaddy (27/10/21): Veteran Arms Dealer Continues to Supply Myanmar Junta
• Just Security (27/10/21): Unidentified gunmen have attacked a police patrol overnight in northwest Pakistan, killing four before fleeing the scene, a police official has said
• Just Security (25/10/21): Pakistan’s government has released 350 activists of the far-right Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) religious group, the country’s interior minister has said. The announcement came as protests demanding the release of the group’s chief entered their fourth day. “Hundreds of TLP protesters remain encamped on the main highway on Monday near the town of Muridke, about 20km (12 miles) north of Pakistan’s second-biggest city, Lahore, as negotiations between the party’s leadership and a government committee continue,” Asad Hashim reports for Al Jazeera.
• Just Security (25/10/21): The Pakistani government is providing intelligence and technical support to help the Taliban fight the Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K) in Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (23/10/21): More clashes as banned TLP continues protest in Pakistan - The group said five supporters died in the clashes while at least two police officials were also killed. [far-right-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/10/21): Attack on security vehicle in northwest Pakistan kills 4 - No immediate claim of responsibility for the attack that happened in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on the Afghan border.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Police targeted in southwest Pakistan bombing - At least one police officer killed and 17 other people hurt in attack on truck carrying security personnel in Quetta.
• Just Security (14/10/21): More than 3 million Afghan refugees are trying to reach Iran and Pakistan and the displacement of ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan may escalate tensions to a critical level, a Russian-led security bloc has said today [immigrant-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): India: Adani Ports to shun cargo from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran - Decision follows seizure of three tonnes of heroin from two containers at Mundra port off India’s western coast in Gujarat state last month.
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): TV journalist killed in targeted attack in southern Pakistan - Armed ethnic Baloch separatist group claims responsibility for attack on the journalist’s vehicle using a magnetic explosive device.
• The Guardian (10/10/21): Pakistani nuclear weapons scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan dies aged 85 - PM pays tribute to ‘national icon’ who turned country into atomic power but later admitted smuggling nuclear secrets [obituary-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): Pakistan earthquake: at least 20 dead after powerful 5.7 magnitude tremor - Homes collapsed after the quake struck 100km east of Quetta in Balochistan, and officials fear the death toll could rise
• Just Security (4/10/21): Pakistan has said that the Pakistani Taliban have killed four Pakistani soldiers and one policeman near the Afghan border.
• Just Security (4/10/21): The publication of the Pandora Papers has sparked calls for the resignation of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): Pakistani soldier killed in cross-border fire from Iran: Army - ‘Terrorists’ attacked a post from Iranian territory, killing one soldier and injuring another, Pakistan’s military said.
• Just Security (29/9/21): Pakistan’s military has said that Pakistani security forces have killed 10 militants, including four insurgent commanders, in a shootout in Pakistan’s northwest
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Pakistan’s dependence on natural gas is turning into a nightmare - A surge in global gas prices is forcing Pakistan to pay top dollar or forego spot shipments it needs to tide over winter.
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Several soldiers killed in southwestern Pakistan suicide bombing - At least three soldiers killed and 15 others wounded near Quetta in Balochistan province, police said.
• Just Security (1/9/21): Pakistan’s counter-terrorism police say 11 militants of the Islamic State group were killed in a raid in southwestern Baluchistan province before dawn on Tuesday.
• Al Jazeera (27/8/21): Pakistan chemical factory fire kills more than a dozen workers - The fire broke out inside a chemical factory in Mehran Town, a congested Karachi neighbourhood. [industrial-failure-news]
• Al Jazeera (21/8/21): At least two killed in suicide bombing in southwest Pakistan - Police say two children killed, three wounded in a bomb attack targeting a vehicle carrying Chinese nationals in Gwadar. [bri-news]
• The Guardian (20/8/21): Protests in Pakistan erupt against China’s belt and road plan - Demonstrations shut down Gwadar, where Chinese are blamed for lack of water and electricity and threat to local fishing [bri-news]
• The Guardian (19/8/21): Hundreds of men in Pakistan investigated over mass sexual assault on woman - Lahore police open case against 300-400 unidentified people captured on video
• Al Jazeera (19/8/21): Deadly blast hits Ashura procession in Pakistan - At least three killed and 50 others wounded when a blast ripped through a Shia Muslim procession in Punjab province.
• Just Security (19/8/21): Pakistan has fenced off its border with Afghanistan, with the border now being guarded by Taliban fighters standing alongside Pakistani soldiers.
• Just Security (18/8/21): Pakistan is divided over the success of the Taliban in Afghanistan, with many celebrating, while others fear Taliban victory will embolden Islamic militant organizations operating in Pakistan.
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Thousands of Afghans enter Pakistan via Chaman border crossing - Medical patients and freed Afghan Taliban prisoners among thousands entering Pakistan from Afghanistan.
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Grenade Attack Kills 12 People in Karachi, Pakistan
• The Guardian (12/8/21): Pakistan police drop blasphemy charges against eight-year-old - ating in madrassa library, was youngest Pakistani to be charged for the crime
• Al Jazeera (12/8/21): Pakistan blames India, Afghanistan for deadly bus bombing - Foreign minister says bombing that killed 13 people last month was a suicide attack ‘planned’ with Afghan, Indian intelligence support. [bri-news]
• Just Security (12/8/21): Some Afghans are blaming neighboring Pakistan for the Taliban’s recent successes, pointing to the Taliban’s use of Pakistani territory, including for training fighters and receiving treatment in Pakistani hospitals.
• CPJ (10/8/21): Pakistani journalists with BOL News assaulted covering hotel gathering during COVID-19 lockdown
• CPJ (10/8/21): Pakistan authorities detain, investigate journalists Amir Mir and Imran ShafqatPakistan authorities detain, investigate journalists Amir Mir and Imran Shafqat
• The Guardian (9/8/21): Eight-year-old becomes youngest person charged with blasphemy in Pakistan - Hindu boy faces possible death penalty after being accused of intentionally urinating in a madrassa library; Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Troops deployed in Pakistan town after mob attacked Hindu temple - Statues damaged, temple’s main door burned down by mob that said a Hindu boy, granted bail on Wednesday, committed blasphemy.
• Al Jazeera (9/8/21): Roadside blast kills two policemen in southwest Pakistan - At least two policemen killed and nearly 21 others wounded in an explosion in Quetta, capital of Balochistan province. [bri-news]
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): Half of Burma Could Contract COVID, Pakistan Enacts New Restrictions, Haiti Hospitals Overwhelmed
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): PM Imran Khan’s party wins Pakistan-administered Kashmir polls - Ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf wins majority of seats in legislative assembly election, preliminary results say.
• Just Security (26/7/21): Forty-six Afghan soldiers have sought refuge in Pakistan after losing control to Taliban insurgents of military positions across the border, Pakistan’s army has said today
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): Pakistan’s government has said that it is probing whether a mobile phone number once used by Prime Minister Imran Khan was part of a surveillance hacking attempt using the Pegasus software
• The Guardian (17/7/21): Daughter of Afghan envoy abducted and ‘severely tortured’ in Pakistan - Silsila Alikhil, 26, was badly beaten and held for over five hours in Islamabad, according to diplomatic sources
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Pakistan rejects allegations of ‘air support’ to Afghan Taliban - Afghanistan’s First Vice President had accused Pakistani forces of supporting Taliban after it took control of a key border crossing.
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): Pakistan bus ‘blast’ kills at least 12, including nine Chinese - Bus plunges into a ravine in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province after explosion, with Pakistan citing ‘mechanical failure’ but China referring to an ‘attack’.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Pakistan rejects naming of PM Khan as press freedom ‘predator’ - Khan’s government rejects a Reporters Without Borders report, which lists him as one of the world’s 37 worst rulers when it comes to press freedom.
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): Pakistan NSA accuses India of orchestrating Lahore bomb attack - Moeed Yusuf says India’s RAW agency planned last month’s deadly bombing outside the residence of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed.
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): Pakistan’s Khan backs China on Uighurs, praises one-party system - Imran Khan repeats his country’s support for the Chinese government regarding its policies in Muslim-majority Xinjiang province.
• Al Jazeera (9/6/21): Two Pakistani police officers protecting polio jab team shot dead - Attackers flee the scene on a motorcycle after attacking police officers in the district of Mardan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
• Al Jazeera (7/6/21): Many killed as two trains collide in southern Pakistan: Officials - At least 25 passengers killed after two express trains collide in Sindh province, the Associated Press reports, citing police and rescue officials.
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Pakistani journalist Mir ‘taken off air’ after military outburst - Geo News’s Hamid Mir called out the military at a protest against an attack on another journalist last week.
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Pakistan PM: Relations with India would be ‘betrayal’ to Kashmir - PM Khan said normalisation of ties with India would mean ignoring the struggle of Kashmiris.
• Al Jazeera (5/5/21): Pakistan wants the IMF to ease ‘tough conditions’ on $6bn loan - Pakistan entered a $6bn loan agreement with the IMF in 2019, but the country’s new finance minister said the targets attached to the loan designed to raise taxes and rein in government spending are ‘tough’.
• The Economist: Pakistan’s religious extremists are holding the government to ransom - Imran Khan is struggling with a dilemma of his own making
• Al Jazeera: Pakistan: Several killed in explosion at Quetta hotel - Car laden with explosives blows up in parking area of Serena Hotel, killing at least four and wounding 12.
• New York Times: Pakistani Journalist Is Shot After Criticizing the Military
• Democracy Now (4/21/21): Prominent Pakistani Journalist [and military critic] Absar Alam Shot and Injured
• World Socialist Web Site: Pakistan: Unions shut down Balochistan government workers’ strike as state threatens crackdown

Mongolia Updates

• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Mongolia edges towards autocracy - The consolidation of power in the hands of the MPP is pushing the country towards a hybrid single-party regime.

North Korea Updates

What could have been: People's Republic of Korea - the short-lived provisional government following WWII, based on a network of people's committees. The United States shortly outlawed the PRK, establishing a dictatorship (South Korea), and the Soviet Union co-opted the structures to form North Korea.

• Juts Security (16/12/21): North Korea has publicly executed at least seven people in the past decade for watching or distributing K-pop videos from South Korea, according to a human rights report released yesterday. Choe Sang-Hun reports for the New York Times. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (15/12/21): Kim Yong Ju, the brother of North Korea’s founder, Kim Il Sung, has died aged 101. Kim Yong Ju was praised for “accelerating socialist construction and developing the Korean-style state social system,” North Korean state media has reported. Timothy W Martin reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• Just Security (13/12/21): The U.S. has imposed extensive human rights-related sanctions on dozens of people and entities tied to China, Myanmar, North Korea, and Bangladesh, and has added Chinese artificial intelligence company SenseTime Group to an investment blacklist. Canada and the U.K. joined the U.S. in imposing sanctions related to human rights abuses in Myanmar. China’s embassy in Washington denounced the U.S. move as “serious interference in China’s internal affairs.” Daphne Psaledakis and David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis report for Reuters. [us-policy-news]
• The Economist (9/12/21): Many North Korean women outearn their husbands, but still do the chores - Women trade; men do badly paid state jobs This is a pretty stunning article. The Economist writes about North Korea almost like it's a normal country, just very poor. Pretty intriguing!
• Just Security (4/11/21): North Korea has the capacity to make more base ingredients for nuclear bombs than previously believed, new research from Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation has found.
• Just Security (20/10/21): Authorities in the northeastern Chinese city of Jilin are hunting for a North Korean defector who escaped from prison Monday night
• Just Security (19/10/21): North Korea has conducted its first test in two years of a submarine-launched ballistic missile.
• Just Security (12/10/21): Media in South Korea and North Korea have reacted angrily after a report about a seafood curry in Japan that includes mounds of rice shaped to resemble the Takeshima islands, which Koreans refer to as Dokdo
• Just Security (12/10/21): North Korea showed off its growing arsenal of missiles in one of its largest-ever exhibitions of military gear, as the country’s leader Kim Jong-un said in a speech at the event that he did not believe U.S. assertions that the U.S. harbored no hostile intent towards North Korea
• Just Security (7/10/21): A U.N. rights investigator has called for U.N. sanctions against North Korea for its nuclear and missile programs to be eased, to help address the risk of starvation faced by the most vulnerable in the country.
• Just Security (1/10/21): North Korea has test-launched a newly developed anti-aircraft missile, the latest test in a recent flurry of weapons tests, even as North Korea declared earlier this week its openness to dialogue with South Korea.
• Just Security (30/9/21): North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ordered officials to restore communication lines with South Korea in early October to “promote peace,” while criticizing the U.S. for its “hostile policy” towards North Korea
• Just Security (29/9/21): North Korea has claimed that it successfully tested a new hypersonic missile called Hwasong-8 yesterday.
• Just Security (17/9/21): New satellite images have revealed that North Korea is expanding a facility capable of enriching uranium for nuclear weapons, changes that could allow North Korea to increase production of weapons-grade nuclear material by as much as 25 percent
• Democracy Now (15/9/21): South and North Korea Both Fire Ballistic Missiles as Tensions Mount on Peninsula
• The Guardian (13/9/21): North Korea says it has test-fired long-range cruise missile - US says weapon, claimed to have flown 1,500km, poses ‘threats’ to country’s neighbours and beyond
• Just Security (9/9/21): North Korea has foregone its usual muscle flexing in its latest military parade, celebrating the 73rd anniversary of North Korea’s founding, which did not feature major military hardware or a speech from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
• Just Security (3/9/21): In a speech to the North Korean Politburo, Kim Jong-Un urged officials to address the country’s food shortage, brought on by a combination of drought and torrential monsoon rains
• Just Security (30/8/21): North Korea appears to have resumed operation of its plutonium-producing reactor at Yongbyon
• Jacobin (12/8/21): Kim San, Martyr of Korean Socialism [note: died far before North Korea was even a thing, just putting here because he was Korean]
• Just Security (10/8/21): South Korea and the U.S. will begin preliminary military drills today, despite warnings from North Korea that the military exercises would negatively impact any thawing of relations between North and South Korea, the Yonhap news agency reported yesterday.; Kim Yo-jong, a key adviser and sister to the North Korean ruler Kim Jong-un, has called Seoul’s authorities “treacherous” over South Korea’s “dangerous” joint military exercises with the U.S., warning that the U.S. and South Korea would “face greater security threats” as a result
• Democracy Now (28/7/21): North and South Korea Restore Communications Hotline
• The Economist World This Week (19/6/21): North Korea’s dictator, Kim Jong Un, warned that the country faced food shortages, which he blamed on flooding, covid-19 and sanctions.

Papua New Guinea Updates

• The Guardian (9/12/21): Villagers file human rights complaint over plan for giant PNG goldmine - Frieda River mine proposed by Chinese-owned PanAust sparks appeal to government in Australia where company is registered [neo-imperialism-news, capitalist-farce-news, indigenous-news]

Philippines Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• The Guardian (23/12/21): Typhoon Rai: more than 3m people directly affected in Philippines - Some areas still cut off a week after disaster, with power outages and shortages of food and clean water [disaster-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Death Toll from Super Typhoon Rai Rises to 375 in Philippines; Floods Kill 8 in Malaysia [disaster-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/12/21): ‘Complete carnage’: Hundreds dead in typhoon-hit Philippines - At least 208 dead and 52 missing after Typhoon Rai carves trail of destruction in Philippines. [disaster-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (18/12/21): Pleas for help in Philippines after killer Typhoon Rai leaves island province ‘levelled to the ground’; at least 33 dead - Typhoon Rai slammed into the Philippines’ southeastern coast on Thursday, leaving a path of destruction - Thousands of military, police, coastguard and fire personnel have joined search and rescue efforts [disaster-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Just Security (14/12/21): Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has withdrawn his candidacy for a Senate seat, according to a statement on Twitter from a spokesperson for the Philippine’s election commission. Al Jazeera reports.
• WSWS (14/12/21): Philippine Supreme Court upholds anti-democratic Anti-Terrorism Law [far-right-news, court-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• Africa News (10/12/21): Filipino protesters destroy Duterte effigy at march in Manila [!]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• South China Morning Post (9/12/21): Secret plot to invade Malaysia’s Sabah with Sulu militia hatched in southern Philippines: security source - Secret meeting of 19 mayors discussed recruiting 600 men to invade the state on Borneo island and spies to scope out coastal towns, though no one has infiltrated yet - Responding to the report, Malaysia’s police chief Acryl Sani said there is no confirmation on the intended plan and the security in Sabah was ‘under control’ Important Note on SCMP [!]
• CPJ (9/12/21): Jesus Malabanan, reporter who covered Duterte drug war, killed in the Philippines [!]
• Just Security (3/12/21): The Court of Appeals in the Philippines has allowed journalist Maria Ressa to travel to Norway to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, after the Philippines government sought to block her from attending the ceremony. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (30/11/21): Duterte’s chosen successor abandons Philippines presidential race - Senator Christopher Go, who had been given little chance of success, withdraws saying it is ‘not yet my time’.
• The Economist (27/11/21): How many people have been killed in Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs? - Thousands of people have been killed during drugs raids in the Philippines [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• South China Morning Post (19/11/21): Philippine church leader Apollo Carreon Quiboloy charged with child sex trafficking by US prosecutors - Apollo Carreon Quiboloy is accused of running a sex-trafficking operation that threatened victims as young as 12 with ‘eternal damnation’ and physical abuse - The 71-year-old self-proclaimed ‘Appointed Son of God’ is a long-time friend and spiritual adviser of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte [crime-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera (19/11/21): ICC halts probe into Duterte’s ‘war on drugs’ after gov’t request - Court says it temporarily suspended investigative activities while it assesses scope and effect of Philippine government’s deferral request
• South China Morning Post (18/11/21): Filipino protesters carry ‘Marcos is no hero’ and ‘never again’ banners to mark late dictator’s burial anniversary - Around 100 activists gather at entrance of cemetery for national heroes, where Ferdinand Marcos was buried in 2016 after his 1989 death in Hawaii - They ‘hope message reverberates’ because another Marcos – the former leader’s son, Marcos Jnr – is standing in next year’s presidential election [protest-news, far-right-news] Important Note on SCMP
• The Guardian (17/11/21): Chinese vessels use water cannon to block Philippines vessels from disputed shoal - Philippines voices its ‘outrage and condemnation’, saying actions by coastguard in South China Sea were illegal [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): Former Filipino boxing champion turned senator Manny Pacquiao has said that he will seek corruption charges against some of his former political allies within President Rodrigo Duterte’s government if he wins the Philippine presidential election next year.
• Just Security (17/11/21): The Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law has filed a petition to disqualify Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son of the former strongman of the country, from the Philippines presidential race due to his past convictions for tax evasion. Al Jazeera reports.
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Philippines President Duterte to run for Senate in 2022 vote - The move ends the speculation that Duterte would run for vice president against his daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio.
• The Guardian (13/11/21): Daughter of Philippine leader Duterte to run for vice-president - Sara Duterte will stand alongside son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 2022 elections in move that has alarmed rights activists [corruption-news, far-right-news]
• CPJ (1/11/21): Journalist Orlando Dinoy shot and killed in the Philippines
• Just Security (1/11/21): Philippines forces have killed a key rebel commander, Jorge Madlos (who used the nom de guerre Ka Oris) who was for many decades a leading figure and spokesman for the communist fighters in the southern Philippines’s mountainous hinterlands. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzan described the rebel’s death as a major blow to the already-battered New People’s Army guerrilla group
• Just Security (29/10/21): Philippine forces have killed one of the country’s most-wanted Muslim militant leaders and his wife. Salahuddin Hassan, the head of the militant group Daulah Islamiya, and his wife were aligned with the Islamic State group and were blamed for deadly bombings, other killings and extortion in the south for more than a decade, the military said. Army and police forces raided a hideout of the militant group, and assault rifles, ammunition and rebel documents were seized by troops, regional military commander Maj. Gen. Juvymax Uy said.
• South China Morning Post (20/10/21): Philippines denies gas deal involving Rodrigo Duterte ally Dennis Uy was corrupt - The energy ministry said the sale of an oil and gas concession to Udenna Corp was ‘above board’ and a corruption complaint was speculative and malicious - Uy, the biggest contributor to Duterte’s presidential campaign in 2016, has rapidly expanded his business interests since then [corruption-news, big-oil-news]
• Just Security (13/10/21): The race to replace Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is beginning to heat up in the Philippines after Duterte set aside the notion that he would seek to continue to hold power as Vice President. Among the candidates are serving Vice President Leni Robredo, who has criticized Duterte’s violent drug war for years; Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son of the late dictator of the Philippines who brutally suppressed dissent in the Philippines for nearly two decades; Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao, one of the greatest boxers of all time and a supporter of some of the more controversial moves made by Duterte such as his reintroduction of capital punishment; Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, a former actor and the mayor of the Manila who has pitched himself as a unifying candidate; and Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Duterte’s pick for Philippine National Police Chief, which left Dela Rosa responsible for enforcing hard-line, anti-drug police strategies.
• The Hill (10/10/21): Philippines consulate fumes over nurse's death in Times Square
• On Labor (8/10/21): Today, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Maria Ressa, a journalist and human rights activist in the Philippines who has helped uncover corruption in Rodrigo Duterte’s regime. Ressa was arrested and convicted by the Duterte government for “cyberlibel,” which many have seen as a pretext to stifle her oppositional campaigns. Countless Human rights activists, lawyers and labor leaders have been arrested and assassinated under the Duterte regime, including 35-year old trade union leader Dandy Miguel who was killed earlier this year after making a complaint to the Commission of Huma Rights about extrajudicial killings. [labor-news, media-news]
• Just Security (8/10/21): Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov have won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for their fights to defend freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia respectively. The Nobel committee called the pair “representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal.” Ressa, who co-founded the news site Rappler, was commended for using freedom of expression to “expose abuse of power, use of violence and growing authoritarianism in her native country, the Philippines.” Muratov, the co-founder and editor of independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, has for decades defended freedom of speech in Russia under increasingly challenging conditions, the Nobel committee said.
• Just Security (5/10/21): The son and namesake of the late Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos has announced that he will run for president in the Philippine’s elections next year.
• Al Jazeera (2/10/21): Philippine President Duterte announces ‘retirement from politics’ - Not eligible to run again for top job, Philippine president backs out of a plan to run for vice president in next year’s elections.
• The Economist World This Week (2/10/21):Manny Pacquiao, a senator in the Philippines and a world-champion boxer, announced his retirement from the sport and his intention to run for president. The Philippine constitution limits presidents to a single term but Rodrigo Duterte, the combative incumbent, will still be on the ticket; he has said he will run for vice-president.
• Just Security (30/9/21): China has opposed a Philippines-led push for a review of the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between the Philippines and the U.S., Manila’s Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has said
• Just Security (16/9/21): The Philippines will not cooperate with a formal investigation launched by the ICC into possible crimes against humanity committed in Duterte’s “war on drugs,” a presidential legal spokesperson has said.
• Common Dreams (15/9/21): ICC Approves Probe Into 'Drug War' Atrocities Carried Out by Duterte Regime - "Duterte along with his co-accused henchmen of the war on drugs will be facing justice."
• Democracy Now (9/9/21): Super Typhoon Chanthu Hurtles Toward Philippines and Southeast China
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): Philippines health workers protest as COVID strains hospitals - Healthcare workers demand better wages and benefits as rising COVID-19 infections strain Philippine hospitals. [healthcare-news, covid-news, labor-news]
• The Guardian (21/8/21): Raging Delta variant takes its toll as Philippines runs out of nurses - Bad pay and conditions at home and demand for Filipino nursing skills overseas have left the country with a soaring death rate
• Jacobin (12/8/21): Australia Is Enabling State Violence in the Philippines - Australia has a long history of meddling in the affairs of its Pacific neighbors. In the Philippines, right-wing strongman Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs” amounts to state terror — which Australia's government has enthusiastically supported through military aid and legal advice. [busting-labor-news, corruption-news, dark-security-news, capitalist-farce-news, indigenous-news, australian-imperialism-news]
• The Guardian (11/8/21): Magnitude 7.1 earthquake strikes Philippines - Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology says damage and aftershocks expected
• The Economist (31/7/21): Philippine President Duterte has shown how not to handle China - Appeasement has brought few benefits and undercut a regional approach [bri-news]
• Just Security (30/7/21): The Philippines is restoring a key military agreement with the U.S. that makes it easier for U.S. forces to move in and out of the country, signaling to China a renewed commitment to the 70-year-old U.S.-Philippine alliance
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): Filipino Police Shot Dead Activists Who Spray-Painted “Oust Duterte” Sign
• Al Jazeera (3/7/21): Thousands flee as Philippine volcano erupts, spewing toxic gas - Taal volcano has been belching sulphur dioxide for several days, creating a thick haze and prompting health warnings.
• Al Jazeera (25/6/21): US approves possible sale of F-16s, missiles to the Philippines - Manila looking to buy 12 F-16 aircraft worth $2.43bn as well as tactical munitions.
• The Guardian (22/6/21): 'Get vaccinated or I will have you jailed': Duterte – video
• New York Times (17/6/21): Ex-Mayor on Duterte’s ‘Narco Politician’ List Is Killed - The death came three days after the International Criminal Court’s departing chief prosecutor requested a full investigation into the bloody war on drugs in the Philippines.
• Democracy Now (15/6/21): ICC Prosecutor Seeks Probe of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte over Drug War Killings
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Philippines protests China’s ‘illegal’ South China Sea presence - Manila lodges diplomatic protest against the ‘incessant and prolonged’ presence of Chinese vessels near Thitu Island.
• Al Jazeera (18/5/21): Duterte bans Philippines cabinet from speaking on South China Sea - Gag order comes after key ministers criticised Beijing over the presence of Chinese vessels in the disputed waterway.
• Al Jazeera: Duterte ‘reluctant’ to confront China over South China Sea row - Philippine president says Manila owes Beijing a ‘debt of gratitude’ but insists he will not compromise country’s sovereignty.; 'He said late on Wednesday that while the Philippines is indebted to its “good friend” China for many things, including free COVID-19 vaccines, his country’s claims to the waterway “cannot be bargainable”.'
• Democracy Now (4/13/21): COVID-19 Cases Surge in the Philippines as Duterte Appears in Public for First Time in Two Weeks

Singapore Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Just Security (4/11/21): Singapore is preparing to execute an intellectually disabled man who trafficked a small amount of heroin into the country more than a decade ago. Rights advocates have argued that the sentence is out of step with human rights norms and that Nagaenthran Dharmalingam has an IQ of 69, a level recognized as an intellectual disability.
• ZDNet (26/10/21): Third-party data breach in Singapore hits healthcare provider - Fullerton Health says its third-party vendor, which platform facilitates appointment booking, had suffered a security breach first detected on October 19 that compromised patients' personal data, including name and contact details as well as bank account information. [cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (6/10/21): ‘Dystopian world’: Singapore patrol robots stoke fears of surveillance state - Trial of robots to police ‘undesirable’ behaviour such as smoking or breaching social-distancing rules [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Singapore passes foreign interference law allowing authorities to block internet content - Experts have raised alarm the bill is a tool to crush dissent, with media watchdog saying it carries ‘the seeds of the worst totalitarian leanings’ [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Crew evacuated after explosion on container ship off Colombo [Sri Lanka] - A Singapore-flagged container was anchored off Colombo when a container caught fire on Friday.
• The Economist: Singapore’s ruling clique loses its reputation for predictability - Rules define the country, but not who gets to lead it

Sri Lanka Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• WSWS (30/12/21): Sri Lankan railway station masters protest over long-outstanding claims [rail-news, labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• South China Morning Post (24/12/21): Sri Lanka to pay off US$251 million oil debt to Iran – with Ceylon tea - The first-of-its-kind barter deal will allow sanctions-hit Tehran to avoid having to use scarce hard currency to pay for imports of the widely consumed staple - Ceylon tea made up nearly half of Iranian consumption in 2016, but the proportion has declined in recent years
• Just Security (6/12/21): A mob killing of a Sri Lankan man accused of blasphemy in Pakistan has sparked protests in both Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Priyantha Diyawadanage, 48, a factory manager in the city of Sialkot, was beaten to death on Friday and his body set alight. More than 100 people have been arrested so far, said Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, who condemned the vigilante violence and described the incident as a “day of shame” for his country. BBC News reports.
• CPJ (2/12/21): Sri Lanka army soldiers attack Tamil journalist covering commemoration for civil war dead [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• WSWS (3/12/21): Sri Lankan public sector workers hold nationwide protests to demand higher wages [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (29/11/21): Over 50,000 Sri Lankan health workers strike for higher pay and allowances [labor-news, healthcare-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (23/11/21): Sri Lanka: Several killed after boat capsizes off eastern coast - Four children were among the dead, according to security and health officials
• Just Security (24/11/21): The trial of 25 men accused of masterminding the 2019 Easter bombings in Sri Lanka has begun. “The bombings, which targeted three hotels and three churches. killed 267 people and injured about 500. More than 23,000 charges have been filed against the suspects, and 1,215 witnesses have been called to testify,” BBC News reports.
• Left Voice (19/11/21): Workers in Sri Lanka Strike Against the Government - On Monday and Tuesday, Sri Lankan workers mobilized to confront the aggressive authoritarianism of the country’s president and the government’s new offensive against the working class. [labor-news]
• Just Security (5/11/21): Press Freedom Tribunal in The Hague to Hold Governments Accountable for Journalist Killings [surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news]
• WSWS (4/11/21): Sri Lankan power, port and petroleum workers protest against privatisation [labor-news, protest-news, logistics-news, energy-news, privatization-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (1/11/21): Power workers demonstrate against Sri Lankan government’s privatisation deal [labor-news, privatization-news, big-oil-news] Important Note about WSWS
• NewsClick (23/10/21): Tamil Nadu Fishermen Demand end to Dispute With Sri Lanka Navy - There has been a rise in incidents of Lankan naval personnel attacking Indian fishermen along the Gulf of Mannar.
• Al Jazeera (20/10/21): Sri Lanka reverses organic farming drive as tea suffers - Government backs down from ambitious plans to become the world’s first completely organic farming nation, reversing ban on fertiliser imports. [food-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Sri Lankan fishermen launch flotilla protesting Indian poaching - Boats flying black flags and carrying opposition legislators demand that government block Indian trawlers.
• The Economist (16/10/21): A rush to farm organically has plunged Sri Lanka’s economy into crisis - The ruling Rajapaksas have strong ideas and expect everyone to adopt them [food-security-news]
• WSWS (14/10/21): The lessons of Sri Lanka’s ongoing three-month teachers’ strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): Sri Lanka drops charges against ex-navy chief over 11 killings - Probe against Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda was part of a case that cast a spotlight on extrajudicial killings during the nation’s 37-year ethnic war.
• WSWS (13/10/21): Sri Lankan health workers join national stoppage [labor-news, healthcare-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Sri Lanka probes president’s niece over Pandora Papers claims - Opposition cries foul, saying probe would amount to cover-up by Rajapaksa family, which has been in powerful in the island nation for decades. [leak-news, crime-news]
• South China Morning Post (30/9/21): India counters China in Sri Lanka with US$700 million port deal - A new terminal will be built next to a US$500-million Chinese-run jetty, in what local authorities call the largest investment ever in the country’s port sector - India’s Adani Group will hold a 51 per cent controlling stake in the joint venture known as the Colombo West International Terminal
• Al Jazeera (24/9/21): Sri Lanka arrests Tamil MP for commemorating separatist rebel - Opposition legislator Selvarajah Kajendran arrested for remembering a rebel who died campaigning for the minority community.
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): Anger as Sri Lanka court returns elephants to alleged traffickers - Court returns more than a dozen elephants in government custody to people who captured them or those who bought the animals from them.
• Al Jazeera (15/9/21): Sri Lankan prison minister resigns after alleged inmate threats - Lohan Ratwatte was accused of entering a prison north of Colombo and attempting to force confessions from Tamil inmates at gunpoint.
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (10/9/21): Sri Lanka central bank chief steps down as reserve crisis deepens - Sri Lanka’s central bank chief to step down amid dwindling foreign exchange reserves, looming debt repayments and the economic fallout of an extended COVID-19 lockdown.
• Just Security (3/9/21): New Zealand police kill an “violent extremist” Sir Lankan national after he stabbed 6 in an ISIS-inspired attack
• CPJ (27/8/21): Sri Lankan journalist Keerthi Ratnayake detained under anti-terror act
• CPJ (25/8/21): Sri Lanka police repeatedly interrogate journalist Punniyamoorthy Sasikaran
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): Sri Lanka Locks Down for 10 Days Amid Worst COVID-19 Surge of Pandemic
• CPJ (11/8/21): Sri Lankan authorities interrogate journalist Punniyamoorthy Sasikaran
• Hiru News (4/8/21): Teacher protest intensifies - 44 arrested and subject to antigen tests
• The Economist (15/7/21): Sri Lanka’s Rajapaksa dynasty is not as secure as it appears - The family that runs everything is running out of cash
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): Sri Lanka’s Rajapaksa family tightens grip with ministerial picks - President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appoints younger brother Basil as finance minister, consolidating power among family members currently ruling the country.
• Democracy Now (3/6/21): Sri Lanka Faces Devastating Oil Spill from Sinking Cargo Ship
• Democracy Now (2/6/21): Sri Lanka Shoreline Coated in Plastic Debris from Sinking, Burning Cargo Ship
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Sri Lanka launches probe after burning ship pollutes beaches - Colombo says it has started a criminal investigation after the ship swamped the country’s coast with microplastics.
• World Socialist Web Site (29/5/21): Sri Lankan president imposes strikes ban on state-sector workers
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Crew evacuated after explosion on container ship off Colombo - A Singapore-flagged container was anchored off Colombo when a container caught fire on Friday.
• Jacobin (14/5/21): Australia Is Supporting the Oppression of Tamils in Sri Lanka - In May 2009, Sri Lankan forces massacred 150,000 Eelam Tamils trapped in the island’s north. The slaughter was part of an ongoing campaign of ethnic cleansing. But the Australian government has whitewashed those atrocities and helped equip Sri Lanka’s state security forces.
• World Socialist Web Site (6/5/21): Chinese defense minister visits Sri Lanka amid rising geopolitical tension
• World Socialist Web Site (3/5/21): Sri Lanka: Alton workers’ action committee defends victimised colleagues
• World Socialist Web Site (29/4/21): Sri Lankan government detains Muslim parliamentarian and bans burqa
• Al Jazeera: Sri Lanka cabinet approves proposed ban on burqas in public - Citing national security concerns, the Buddhist-majority island nation’s cabinet clears proposal to ban full-face veils in public.

Thailand Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• South china Morning Post (31/12/21): Thai farmers fear loss of land to industrial zone linked to China’s belt and road - The Eastern Economic Corridor, which includes a high-speed railway line and an airport, aims to lure investors and generate jobs - But residents say authorities did not consult them on the plans, and that the project will ruin the environment and livelihoods that rely on farming and fishing [bri-news, rail-news, social-woes-news, housing-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Myanmar army air raids send hundreds fleeing into Thailand - About 4,200 people have crossed into Thailand after the government in Myanmar conducted air attacks on a rebel-held area. [immigrant-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (23/12/21): Thailand seizes US$30 million of crystal meth hidden in punch bags bound for Australia - More than 193kg (425lbs) of the drug was hidden among Thai-made training equipment, which aroused suspicion because it is not in high demand in Australia - Australia consumes around 11 tons of methamphetamine per year, so there’s a market for it, said customs officer [drug-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Irrawaddy (20/12/21): Thousands Flee Into Thailand as Myanmar Junta Shells Villagers [immigrant-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (17/12/21): Coronavirus: Thai prisoners riot to demand better Covid-19 medical treatment - Some 400 inmates at Krabi’s main provincial prison became violent, setting fire to bedding; around 200 were later found to be infected with coronavirus - Thailand’s 300,000-strong prison population has reportedly had 86,432 cases of coronavirus, including 185 deaths [covid-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Irrawaddy (16/12/21): Villagers Flee Myanmar Junta Raids Near Thai Border [!]
• Just Security (15/12/21): Members of the public in Myanmar are urging targeted sanctions against oil and gas funds, the single largest source of foreign currency revenue in Myanmar. “But Western governments — most notably the United States and France — have refused to take that step amid lobbying from energy company officials and resistance from countries such as Thailand, which gets gas from Myanmar,” Kristen Gelineau, Victoria Milko and Lori Hinnant report for AP. Important context: see NYT article from (22/4/21) on Chevron lobbying against such sanctions [us-policy-news, big-oil-news]
• The Economist (11/12/21): The economics of a new China-Laos train line - Why connectivity matters [bri-news]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• South China Morning Post (8/12/21): Thai tycoon jailed for poaching protected animals in case that sparked public outrage - Construction magnate Premchai Karnasuta was sentenced to nearly three and half years for shooting and cooking a black panther and other animals over a campfire - This is a rare case of a wealthy Thai serving time for wrongdoing. The public has grown weary of repeated examples of the rich flouting the law with impunity Important Note on SCMP [!]
• South China Morning Post (5/12/21): Thailand seizes US$88 million of crystal meth bound for Taiwan - The drug was seized by customs officials late on Friday, hidden in powder form inside 161 white silicon slabs in packages destined for Taiwan - Thai Customs Director-General Patchara Anuntasil said Thai and Taiwanese authorities were both investigating [drug-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• The Guardian (25/11/21): Apple tells Thai activists they are targets of ‘state-sponsored attackers’ - At least 17 people including protest leaders have received alerts about devices possibly being compromised [surveillance-and-censorship-news, big-tech-news]
• The Irrawaddy (26/11/21): Thai Forces Kill Drug Couriers, Seize 1.8 Million Meth Pills Near Myanmar Border [drug-news]
• The Guardian (23/11/21): Thai student accused of mocking king with crop top protest denied bail - Lawyers say judgment demonstrates increasingly harsh stance taken by authorities over lese-majesty law [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (24/11/21): Thailand refugee deportations trigger condemnation, defiance - Thailand has returned a number of Cambodian opposition activists in a move condemned by the UN refugee agency and rights groups. [immigrant-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Irrawaddy (19/11/21): Thailand’s Deputy PM Says he had Constructive Talks With Myanmar Coup Leader
• Democracy Now (16/11/21): Thai Protesters Call for Reforms to Monarchy After Court Rules Against Activists [protest-news]
• The Guardian (10/11/21): Thai court rules calls for curbs on monarchy are ‘abuse of freedoms’ - Constitutional court’s ruling in case against three protest leaders is denounced as ‘judicial coup’
• Al Jazeera (6/11/21): Thai protesters recount alleged torture under police custody - Human Rights Watch say new allegations are a worrying shift in the police response to the country’s pro-democracy movement. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): In Bangkok, Thai police are brutalising child protesters - The Thai government needs to radically rethink its approach to ongoing protests in the country.
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Bangkok on alert as deadly floods hit a third of Thailand - Barriers set up to protect Bangkok as severe flooding kills six and affects about 70,000 homes in Thailand.
• The Guardian (21/9/21): Top Thai union leader ‘targeted’ with jail for rail safety campaign - Case is ‘major blow’ in country with weak workers’ rights and puts trade deals in question, says Human Rights Watch [union-news, labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/9/21): Myanmar dissidents face fear and uncertainty in Thailand - Myanmar dissidents who fled army crackdown are living in hiding in Thailand as they try to seek humanitarian protection in third countries.
• The Irrawaddy (7/9/21): Thai Police Under Orders to Arrest Members of Myanmar’s Shadow Govt
• Al Jazeera (4/9/21): Thai PM Prayuth survives vote of no confidence, rallies planned - Prayuth received 264 votes in favour and 208 against, as pro-democracy protesters plan more demonstrations.
• Al Jazeera (2/9/21): Thailand: Thousands join Bangkok rally demanding PM’s resignation - Demonstrators blame Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha for the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic,
• ZDNet (30/8/21): Bangkok Airways apologizes for passport info breach as LockBit ransomware group threatens data leak - The company said that it discovered a "cybersecurity attack which resulted in unauthorized and unlawful access to its information system" on August 23. [cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (26/8/21): Thai police chief accused of killing suspect in custody is arrested - Manhunt for Thitisan Utthanaphon followed allegation he tortured suspect to death to extort money
• Democracy Now (18/8/21): Tokyo Extends State of Emergency; Thai Protesters Demand PM Step Down for Mishandling COVID
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Thai protesters clash with police at anti-PM rally in Bangkok - At least three protesters injured when Thai police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at a Bangkok rally amid record number of COVID cases.
• South China Morning Post (10/8/21): Laos’ China-funded belt and road railway: Thailand licks its lips, but fears for Luang Prabang’s World Heritage Site - Laos section of pan-Asia rail route linking Kunming in China to Singapore expected to boost trade and tourism - But critics say Laos could struggle to repay Chinese debt; that only a fraction of the population will benefit; and that overtourism could threaten Luang Prabang’s world heritage status [bri-news]
• The Guardian (7/8/21): Thailand protesters clash with riot police over handling of Covid - Activists in Bangkok forced back with teargas and rubber bullets as they demand Thai PM’s resignation
• Al Jazeera (29/7/21): Hospitals in Thailand short of beds as COVID cases soar: Ministry - The Southeast Asian country is struggling to contain its latest outbreak driven by the highly contagious Delta variant.
• The Irrawaddy (24/7/21): Thai Govt Must Take Responsibility for Vaccine Debacle
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Police clash with protesters demanding Thailand PM’s resignation - Police use rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannon to disperse demonstrators in Bangkok.
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): Blast at Thai factory kills one, mass evacuation under way - Thousands evacuated after a blast and fire at a plastics manufacturing factory amid the risk of further explosions.
• The Irrawaddy (2/6/21): Thai Court Hands Jail Sentences to Myanmar Journalists Fleeing Junta
• Democracy Now (30/4/21): Thousands Flee into Thailand as Burmese Junta Launches Airstrikes Near Border
• The Economist (8/4/21): Thailand’s democracy protests are dwindling - But public displeasure with the government has not dissipated
• The New York Times (23/4/21): How Generals Plot Together, in Myanmar and Thailand - An unholy alliance between the two military governments will delay a return to democracy in both countries.
• Democracy Now (4/22/21): Human Rights Watch Condemns Thai Crackdown, Detention of Activists Who Insult the Monarchy

Vietnam Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Administrative (cr.);

• Modern Diplomacy (28/12/21): World Bank Loan Will Support Vietnam’s Economic Recovery [neo-imperialism-news]
• South China Morning Post (16/12/21): Vietnam jails activist known for anti-China, pro-environment stance for 10 years - Do Nam Trung is the fourth dissident jailed by the communist regime in three days - Vietnam’s government has moved quickly to stifle dissent, targeting activists with large followings on Facebook [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• South China Morning Post (15/12/21): Belgium trial starts over death of 39 Vietnamese migrants in UK truck - The trial of 23 people in Bruges follows prison sentences handed down in Britain in January to seven men for manslaughter - The bodies of the 31 men and eight women were found in a refrigerated truck near London in October 2019 [crime-news, court-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Just Security (15/12/21): Pham Doan Trang, a Vietnamese activist known for her writing on women’s empowerment and environmental issues, has been sentenced to nine years in prison for disseminating anti-state propaganda. Trang denied all charges. Chris Humphrey reports for the Washington Post. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Economist (11/12/21): South-East Asia is awash in drugs - The coup in Myanmar has helped cartels ramp up production - In 2019 the UN reckoned that the regional market was worth $60bn. [drug-news]
• South China Morning Post (17/11/21): Vietnam police summon beef noodle seller after ‘Salt Bae’ parody video; Bui Tuan Lam was ‘just attracting customers’ - Da Nang cook’s film comes days after top Vietnamese official To Lam was caught on camera eating gold-encrusted steak at ‘Salt Bae’s’ London restaurant - It is unclear if police summons is because of the video; the cook has previously criticised his country’s authorities online Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Iran frees Vietnamese tanker seized after US navy confrontation - The IRGC said it had thwarted an attempt by the US navy to ‘steal’ Iranian oil by force in October.
• Just Security (4/11/21): Vietnam has been in talks with Iranian authorities over the seizure last month of a Vietnamese oil tanker off the Iranian coast, in an effort to guarantee the safety of the crew, Vietnam has said today. Talks had taken place on a diplomatic level “to verify information and settle the incident to ensure safety and humane treatment for Vietnamese citizens,” a Vietnam Foreign Ministry spokesperson told a regular briefing.
• Just Security (4/11/21): U.S. and Iranian officials have both said that Iran seized an oil tanker in the Sea of Oman last month after an encounter with the U.S. Navy, but the two sides have given “widely differing accounts of whose tanker it was and what, exactly, had happened.” Iranian officials and a statement by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said that the United States had seized a tanker carrying Iranian oil on Oct. 24 and that an assault by Iranian commandos had taken the tanker back. “Two U.S. officials…said that Iran had seized a Vietnamese-flagged tanker, the MV Southys. A U.S. Navy destroyer, The Sullivans, arrived to monitor the seizure but took no action and was not threatened by approaching Iranian speedboats, one of the officials said. John F. Kirby, the chief Pentagon spokesperson, denied Iran’s allegations that the United States had seized the merchant vessel, whose nationality he declined to identify,” Farnaz Fassihi and Eric Schmitt report for The New York Times. [us-policy-news]
• CPJ (1/11/21): CPJ condemns harsh prison sentences handed to 5 journalists in Vietnam [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• CPJ (26/10/21): CPJ joins letter calling for release of Vietnamese journalist Pham Doan Trang [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (11/10/21): Vietnam’s staff-starved factories implore employees to come back - Millions of workers who fled virus outbreak are too scared to return to make the world’s winter clothes and Christmas gifts.
• Financial Times (7/10/21): Migrant exodus sparks worries over Ho Chi Minh City labour squeeze - Workers rush to leave Vietnam trading hub after coronavirus restrictions lifted [logistics-news, labor-news] Paywall Summary: Reporting on the apparent exodus of workers from Ho Chi Minh City, usually a hub of laborers in the nation, which has encouraged manufacturers to set up shop in the city. Strict COVID laws (aimed at limiting the spread of the virus in the city of 10 million) reduced productive capacity, and now that the restrictions are easing, people appear to be leaving, which is concerning logisticians. FT doesn't really detail WHY the laborers are leaving though... why??
• Al Jazeera (28/9/21): Cuba begins commercial exports of its COVID-19 vaccines - The island nation has begun sending the homegrown, three-dose Abdala vaccine to Vietnam and Venezuela.
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Vietnam approves Abdala vaccine as president visits Cuba - Abdala becomes the eighth COVID-19 vaccine approved for use in Vietnam, which has one of the lowest inoculation rates in the region. [covid-news, vaccine-ip-news]
• Just Security (13/9/21): Japan and Vietnam have signed a defense transfer deal, under which Japan can now give Vietnam defense equipment and technology
• The Guardian (8/9/21): ‘Hunger was something we read about’: lockdown leaves Vietnam’s poor without food - Vietnam was a Covid success story but the latest lockdown, with people unable to leave the house even for food, is leaving tens of thousands hungry
• Democracy Now (12/5/21): French Court Tosses Lawsuit from Agent Orange Victim Against Chemical Companies

Mid East Updates

Afghanistan / Algeria / Armenia / Azerbaijan / Bahrain / Cyprus / Egypt / Iran / Iraq / Israel / Jordan / Kuwait / Lebanon / Libya / Morocco / Oman / Palestine / Qatar / Saudi Arabia / Sudan / Syria / Tunisia / Turkey / United Arab Emirates / Yemen

The Mid East is extremely complex, but we can simplify by identifying three poles of power - Turkey, Gulf states, and Iran. The Gulf states are generally interested in supporting dictators and warlords, often secular (such as Haftar in Libya and al-Sisi in Egypt), and oppose political Islam (such as the Muslim Brotherhood), which often hews to more liberal political philosophy. Turkey generally supports what might be called Islamic Republicanism or just Republicanism, such as the Tripoli government in Libya. And Iran generally supports militant Islamic groups or Shia groups, such as Bashar Al-Assad and the Houthis in Yemen.

In this matrix many of the conflicts can be understood, along with more "local" actors, such as Israel and the Kurds ("local" is an enormous over-simplification, but I digress). For example, Libya can be seen as a conflict of Gulf (Haftar) vs Turkey (Tripoli), Syria a conflict of Iran (Al-Assad) vs Turkey vs the Kurds (a people long oppressed by Turkey), and Yemen a conflict of Iran vs the Gulf, although to say that, for example, there are not Gulf interests in Syria would be incorrect. This is just a gross oversimplification.

This already complex web is further enhanced by foreign interests in the region. For example, the US backs Tripoli (along with Turkey), and France backs Haftar (along with the Gulf). These foreign interventions, often for either gepolitical or resource (oil) motivations, further complicate an already complex situation.

Back to Top

• Al Jazeera (16/12/21): One-third of Arab world’s population suffers from hunger: UN - Nearly 70 million people also suffered from malnutrition in the Arab world last year, according to UN report. [social-woes-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (12/12/21): Al-Azhar ["Sunni Islam's highest religious authority"] rhetoric alarms LGBTQ community - Al-Azhar has in recent days stepped up its anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, following anti-gay comments by a prominent retired soccer star. [lgbtq-news, far-right-news] [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Militant groups increasingly are acquiring armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), ranging from sophisticated Iranian-built models which are capable of long-distance flights to cheaper, off-the-shelf models operated by remote control and modified to carry small but powerful explosives. The proliferation of armed UAVs, particularly among paramilitary groups with close ties to Iran, has been described as a growing threat in the Middle East and beyond by officials and analysts. Joby Warrick, Souad Mekhennet and Louisa Loveluck report for the Washington Post.
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Israeli firm’s spyware linked to attacks on websites in UK and Middle East - Canada-based researchers say new evidence suggests Candiru’s software used to target critics of autocratic regimes [cyber-security-news]
• CounterPunch (27/10/21): Political Islam and Democracy Crisis in North Africa
• Jacobin (8/8/21): The Remaking of the Arab Working Class - Once powerful Arab left-wing movements took a battering in recent decades, but they’ve reemerged since 2011 to play a vital role in struggles for freedom and social justice. Rebuilding strong labor organizations is crucial for democracy in the Middle East.
• The American Prospect (9/8/21): The Truth About Intervening Powers in the Middle East - And the title ‘biggest meddler’ goes to … the UAE, not Iran.
• Al-Monitor (2/8/21): Russia tries to compete with US in Mideast weapons market - Russia's prospects in the Middle East arms market will depend on its ability to master fast production of the latest models of military equipment. [weapons-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (19/6/21): US pulls antimissile batteries from Middle East: Report - As tensions ease with Iran, Biden administration moves to put US forces on more normal footing, Wall Street Journal reports.
• Al Jazeera (9/5/21): US Navy seizes huge weapons cache in Arabian Sea
• Al Jazeera: UAE wealth fund eyes $1BN gas deal as ties with Israel deepen - The United Arab Emirates’ Mubadala Investment Co, a sovereign wealth fund with $232bn in assets, plans to buy a stake in an Israeli natural gas field for $1.1bn – a deal that would rank as the biggest since the Abraham Accords were signed last year.

Afghanistan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Afghanistan Live Map

• Washington Post (31/12/21): Parents selling children shows desperation of Afghanistan - Arranging marriages for very young girls is common in the region. The groom’s family pays money to seal the deal, and the child usually stays with her parents until she is at least around 15. Yet with many unable to afford even basic food, some say they’d allow prospective grooms to take very young girls or are even trying to sell their sons. - Buying boys is believed to be less common than girls, and when it does take place, it appears to be cases families without sons buying infants. In her despair, Guldasta thought perhaps such a family might want an 8-year-old. [social-woes-news, economic-news, us-policy-news (due to the sanctions! :( )]
• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): 360 tonnes of Saudi aid arrives in Afghanistan from Pakistan [social-woes-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (30/12/21): U.S. Sanctions Push Iran and Afghanistan’s Taliban Together - Bitter foes find common cause under economic pressure, though water supply and drug smuggling sustain border tensions [economic-news, social-woes-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): In addition to sanctions, Tehran has warmed up to the Taliban due to its larger fear of the Islamic State, although Iranian-backed Shia militias (such as Fatemiyoun) are causing trouble for this arrangement. A dam in Nimroz (Afghanistan) is blocking water that would otherwise go to Iran. Iran has imported $45m in goods via western Afghanistan, which is a 20% increase from the same period last year. Otherwise, the title says it all.
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Taliban Fire Warning Shots at Dozens of Women Protesters in Kabul [protest-news]
• The Intercept (28/12/21): Humanitarian Exemptions to Crushing U.S. Sanctions Do Little to Prevent Collapse of Afghanistan’s Economy - More Afghan people may die from sanctions than from 20 years of war. [us-policy-news, social-woes-news, disaster-news, neo-imperialism-news, economic-news]
• Democracy Now (28/12/21): Afghan Taliban Bans Women from Road Trips Without Male Escort [civil-rights-news]
• CPJ (27/12/21): Afghan TV station owner Aref Noori detained by Taliban-affiliated militia [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (25/12/21): ‘No need’: Taliban dissolves Afghanistan election commission - Taliban government scraps the panel that supervised polls during the previous Western-backed administration. [voting-rights-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Wall Street Journal (23/12/21): U.N. Plans $8 Billion Fund to Restart Afghanistan’s Economy - Plan would move beyond a purely humanitarian mission to rebuilding governing systems and social services [economic-news, social-woes-news] Paywall Summary (?): The economy has shrunk at least 40% since the Taliban takeover, and the US has frozen around $9bn in Afghan centrla-bank assets. Alongside this are crippling sanctions that have frozen the banking system, and many people, especially public workers, haven't been paid in months, all amidst inflation. The World Food Program warms of "an avalanche of hunger and destitution". Already international donors have forked over around $1bn for emergency purposes, which helped provide food for nearly 7mil people in November. But the UN wants to go beyond basic aid to trying to rebuild livelihoods, sustaining schools and hospitals and paying workers there, and helping others in the economy. This isn't simply of moral obligation, but to avoid an economic implosion with a subsequent refugee crisis. The other aim is to avoid enriching the Taliban. The US Treasury lifted some sanctions, allowing more aid to flow into education and civil service, as well as humanitarian aid. The Taliban is trying to raise income with customs and other levies in an effort to pay government employees. Afghanistan is in debt around $100m+ to central Asian nations and Iran for electricity, and is at risk of being cut off and without power during the winter. And the central bank money is tied up in litigation related to the 9/11 attacks.
• Salon (23/12/21): Mainstream media forgets the Afghan people, as U.S. sanctions create risk of famine - When the U.S. military finally pulled out, it was a big story. But the plight of the Afghan people definitely isn't [media-news, fail-biden-policy-news, social-woes-news]
• Just Security (23/12/21): A suicide bomber has been killed while trying to enter a passport office in Kabul, a spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry has said. Several people were injured in the blast, according to unconfirmed reports. “Large crowds of Afghans have been thronging outside the passport office in a bid to get travel documents in recent days after the service was restarted after weeks of suspension. Officials said that Thursdays are reserved as a special day for Taliban officials to visit the passport office to make travel documents,” Reuters reports.
• Just Security (23/12/21): Two of the Treasury Department licenses create a formal exemption for U.S. officials and certain international organizations, such as the U.N., who are engaged in permitted official business with the Taliban. A third license gives non-governmental organizations protection from U.S. sanctions on the Taliban and the Haqqani Network for work on certain activities, including humanitarian projects. Daphne Psaledakis and Jonathan Landay report for Reuters. [us-policy-news]
• Common Dreams (22/12/21): 'Let Us Eat': Kabul Protesters Demand Release of Frozen Afghan Assets - "This money belongs to the people and should be freed," one demonstrator insisted. - On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury Department took a series of steps to enable the flow of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, issuing three general licenses allowing financial transactions involving the Taliban and the Afghan militant group Haqqani Network if the money is used to meet certain basic societal needs. [us-policy-news, social-woes-news, protest-news]
• The Economist (19/12/21): Afghanistan’s health-care system is crumbling - Staff have gone unpaid for months and essential supplies are running out [healthcare-news, economic-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• Just Security (21/12/21): More than 29,000 Afghan evacuees still remain on U.S. military bases, in part, due to a shortage of affordable housing and the Covid-19 pandemic. Around 2,900 Afghans are also still overseas at a handful of U.S. military posts, waiting for a flight to the United States. Nahal Toosi reports for POLITICO. [immigrant-news]
• CPJ (20/12/21): Afghan journalist Jawed Yusufi beaten, stabbed in Kabul [!]
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Islamic Countries Pledge Humanitarian Trust Fund for Afghanistan
• Just Security (17/12/21): About 62,000 Afghan interpreters and others who have applied for visas to seek shelter in the U.S. after working alongside U.S. forces still remain in Afghanistan, a State Department official has said. [afghanistan-news, us-policy-news]
• Juts Security (16/12/21): The Taliban believes that women “must have the right to education and to work,” and are committed to continuing talks with the U.S. and international community, the spokesperson for the Taliban’s political office in Doha has told NPR. During the wide-ranging interview, the spokesperson also discussed efforts to resume operations at Kabul’s international airport, and expressed support for the protection of Afghanistan’s cultural heritage. However, “when asked about what the Taliban are doing to address the many problems facing Afghanistan, he deflected responsibility, saying, ‘in reality, we did not create these problems. These problems came from the outside,’” Fatma Tanis and Hannah Bloch report for NPR.
• Al Jazeera (14/12/21): Afghan central bank moves to stabilise collapsing currency - Afghanistan’s central bank issued a statement on Tuesday saying that it had held a number of meetings with key players to halt the fall in the afghani. [social-woes-news, economic-news]
• CPJ (14/12/21): Taliban official and bodyguards beat, detain journalist Sayed Rashed Kashefi [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Just Security (14/12/21): The new Taliban administration in Afghanistan, devoid of international recognition and cut off by the U.S. from the global financial system, is struggling to revive a devastated economy. Combined with the worst drought in decades, and the suspension of many foreign-aid projects, a crisis in Afghanistan is looming and millions of Afghans could face starvation in coming months. “We are on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe that is preventable,” the United Nations Special Representative to Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, has said. Yaroslav Trofimov reports for the Wall Street Journal. [social-woes-news, economic-news]
• Just Security (14/12/21): None of the military personnel involved in the botched 29 Aug. drone strike that killed 10 civilians in Kabul, Afghanistan will face any kind of punishment, the Pentagon has said [us-policy-news, dark-security-news]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Since Kabul fell to the Taliban in August, Iran has deported hundreds of thousands of Afghans and has been unwilling to consider asylum applications. Iranian authorities are deporting between 2,500 and 4,000 Afghans every day, compounding an already-tense situation at the Afghan-Iranian border. Sune Engel Rasmussen and Aresu Eqbali report for the Wall Street Journal. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Donors have agreed to transfer $280 million from a frozen trust fund to the World Food Program (WFP) and UNICEF to support nutrition and health in Afghanistan [neo-imperialism-news, food-security-news]
• Telesur (10/12/21): Afghanistan: Two Blasts Rock Western Part of Kabul City - While no group has claimed responsibility for the explosions so far, they could have been carried out by ISIS-K, which has intensified its military actions against the Talkiban over the last months. Note about Telesur [!]
• South China Morning Post (8/12/21): Isis-K escalates terror attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan in show of resistance against Taliban - Regional chapter of Islamic State becoming stronger; ‘may try to capture territory from Taliban if its numbers keep growing’, says analyst - But experts also say Isis-K unlikely to directly threaten China although it could target Chinese assets in Pakistan to fuel tension between the allies [militant-far-right-news] Important Note on SCMP
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): EU countries agree to take in 40,000 Afghan refugees - Group of 15 EU member states agree to resettle Afghans, with Germany accepting the bulk of new arrivals, commissioner says. [immigrant-news] [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): The U.K. Foreign Office’s handling of the evacuation from Afghanistan after the Taliban seized Kabul was dysfunctional and chaotic, a whistleblower has said. “Raphael Marshall said the process of choosing who could get a flight out was arbitrary and thousands of emails with pleas for help went unread. The then Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab was slow to make decisions, he added,” James Landale and Joseph Lee report for BBC News.
• Just Security (6/12/21): Afghanistan is on the brink of a mass starvation as the humanitarian situation worsens in the country, four months after the Taliban took control. An estimated 22.8 million people in Afghanistan — more than half the country’s population — are expected to face potentially life-threatening food insecurity this winter. Christina Goldbaum reports for the New York Times. [social-woes-news]
• Al Jazeera (4/12/21): Aid cut-off may kill more Afghans than war - Urgent action is needed by the international community to prevent catastrophic hunger in Afghanistan. [!]
• Financial Times (1/12/21): Afghanistan economic meltdown one of worst in history, UN says - Humanitarian catastrophe exacerbated by cash and liquidity crisis since Taliban takeover [economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): The UN forecasts a GDP contraction of 20%, one of the worst in history. This is in the wake of COVID, droughts, and of course, the Taliban take over, which is itself hampering the economy by preventing nearly half of the population (women) from working (costing an estimated $1bn, or 5%, of GDP). The economy relies on foreign aid, and state assets have been frozen by the West following the Taliban takeover; the result is an inability to pay workers and even keep hopsitals open, with 39m rquiring food asssistance and a quarter facing emergency food situations. An analyst notes that unlike comparable meltdowns in Lebanon and Venezuela, there is no economic backstop here - the former has some funds coming in from remittances and the latter has funds from oil. "Afghanistan is almost in a class by itself". A professor argued that even if all assets were now unfrozen and humanitarian aid even tripled, it wouldn't be enough to avoid the crisis that's coming.
• Al Jazeera (3/12/21): Taliban bans forced marriage of women in Afghanistan - Taliban chief in a decree says women should not be considered ‘property’ and must consent to marriage
• Just Security (3/12/21): Lawyers for different groups of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks are considering make claims against the $7 billion in Afghan central bank funds deposited at the New York Federal Reserve — money the Taliban now claims is theirs. Various lawsuits that groups of Sept. 11 attack victims filed against al-Qaeda and others they said provided support to the terrorists, like the Taliban, obtained default judgments against the defendants years ago, which at the time seemed merely symbolic given the inability to obtain the money awarded. However, the Taliban’s military takeover of Afghanistan has raised the possibility that the victim groups could try and seize the Afghan government funds in New York. Charlie Savage reports for the New York Times.
• Just Security (30/11/21: More than 100 former members of the Afghan security forces in four Afghan provinces have been killed or disappeared by the Taliban in the first two and a half months of the Taliban’s rule, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch. The deaths are part of a string of assassinations and summary executions, largely considered revenge killings, since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. Sharif Hassan reports for The New York Times.
• Popular Front (14/9/21): What the Hell is "ISIS-K"? - Today we speak to researcher Blake Vincent about "ISIS-K", a momentary mainstream media fascination as the US left Afghanistan. These are the real details about "ISIS-K" / the Islamic State in Afghanistan / the Islamic State Khorasan Province. [militant-far-right-news, podcast-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): Undercover Taliban agents spent years infiltrating Afghan government ministries, universities, businesses and aid organizations, to then step out of the shadows and help the Taliban seize control as the U.S. forces withdrew from Afghanistan. “We had agents in every organization and department,” Mawlawi Mohammad Salim Saad, a senior Taliban leader who directed suicide-bombing operations and assassinations inside Kabul, said. “The units we had already present in Kabul took control of the strategic locations,” he added. Yaroslav Trofimov and Margherita Stancati report for the Wall Street Journal.
• CPJ (24/11/21): Journalist Ahmad Baseer Ahmadi severely beaten in Afghanistan
• Just Security (24/11/21): Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have held military drills near Kazakhstan’s border with Afghanistan, imitating a response to an incursion, the Uzbek defense ministry has said. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (24/11/21): The Taliban has expanded its shadowy war against the Islamic State branch in Afghanistan, deploying more than 1,300 additional fighters to Afghanistan’s eastern Nangahar province in the past month. “Taliban night raids against suspected Islamic State-Khorasan members are also on the rise, and many of the hundreds arrested have disappeared or turned up dead, according to Jalalabad residents and Taliban fighters,” Susannah George reports for the Washington Post.
• Just Security (23/11/21): The U.N. has pushed for urgent action to prop up Afghanistan’s banks, warning that a spike in people who are unable to repay loans as well as lower deposits and a cash liquidity crunch could cause the financial system to collapse within months. In a report on Afghanistan’s banking and financial system, the U.N. Development Program said that the economic cost of a banking system collapse – and consequent negative social impact – “would be colossal.” Michelle Nichols reports for Reuters.
• Just Security (22/11/21): One of Afghanistan’s most prominent psychiatrists, who was abducted by armed men in September, has been found dead, his family has confirmed. Haroon Janjua reports for the Guardian.
• Just Security (22/11/21): The Taliban have banned women from appearing in television dramas in Afghanistan. Female journalists and presenters also have been ordered to wear headscarves on screen, although the guidelines do not say which type of covering to use. BBC News reports.
• Just Security (18/11/21): The last group of Afghan refugees housed at the Fort Lee military base in Virginia has been resettled, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced. “Overall, more 25,000 evacuees have been resettled as of Wednesday, DHS said, while a remaining 45,000 await resettlement at seven additional bases in Virginia, Indiana, New Mexico, Texas and Wisconsin,” Jordan Williams reports for The Hill. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (18/11/21): The U.N. envoy for Afghanistan has told the U.N. Security Council that the country is on the brink of a “humanitarian catastrophe.” Deborah Lyons pointed to food scarcity and Afghanistan’s collapsing economy, and warned that extremism could arise in Afghanistan due to the current conditions. Lyons said that the regional and global community must continue to help Afghanistan as it heads into the winter. Mychael Schnell reports for The Hill. [social-woes-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/11/21): Afghan FM confirms Kabul ‘mediating’ talks between Pakistan, TTP - A one-month ceasefire agreed during talks requested by both parties, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi says.
• Modern Diplomacy (14/11/21): Chabahar Port and India-Afghanistan trade
• Democracy Now (15/11/21): Journalist and Minority Shia Muslims Killed in Afghanistan Blasts - In related news, Indian officials are accusing Pakistan of blocking a request to allow 50,000 tons of wheat and medicine to be transported to Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (13/11/21): Afghanistan: Deadly explosion hits mainly Shia suburb of Kabul - Explosion goes off in a minivan in Dasht-e Barchi area in the west of Afghan capital, officials say.
• Al-Monitor (11/11/21): Iran deports thousands of Afghan refugees, UN agency says - In the last week of October, Iran sent back more than 28,000 Afghans who fled across the border. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): A bomb exploded in a mosque in eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province during today’s prayers, wounding at least 15 people. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. The Islamic State group militants have been waging a campaign in the province, conducting nearly daily shootings and bombings targeting Taliban fighters. However, previous attacks on mosques by the Sunni militant group since the Taliban takeover have struck Shi’ite mosques and the attack today targeted a mosque. which was frequented by Sunni Muslims. AP reports.
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Aid group says 4,000-5,000 Afghans crossing into Iran daily - Norwegian Refugee Council says as many as 300,000 Afghans have crossed the border since the Taliban took power in August [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): U.S. trained Afghan pilots and other personnel have taken a U.S. brokered flight from Tajikistan to the UAE. The pilots had fled to Tajikistan with their aircrafts during the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
• Just Security (9/11/21): The Pentagon has said that it has not located an Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) safe house in Kabul that prompted an erroneous drone strike on Aug. 29. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (5/11/21): Women’s rights activist shot dead in northern Afghanistan - Frozan Safi, 29, is believed to be the first women’s rights defender to be killed since Taliban return to power
• Just Security (8/11/21): The Taliban have appointed 44 members to key local government roles in Afghanistan, including provincial governors and police chiefs, as the Taliban struggle to quell security threats and achieve economic stability in Afghanistan
• CPJ (2/11/21): Journalists shot, beaten, and detained in Afghanistan [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (4/11/21): The U.S. drone strike that killed aid worker Zemari Ahmadi and nine of his family members, including seven children, did not violate the laws of war, a Pentagon internal review has concluded. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): The Taliban has banned the use of foreign currencies in Afghanistan, in a move that could further disrupt the country’s economy which is on the brink of collapse. The U.S. dollar has been used widely in Afghanistan’s markets and dollars often are used for trade in areas bordering Afghanistan’s neighbors such as Pakistan. “The economic situation and national interests in the country require that all Afghans use Afghani currency in their every trade,” the Taliban said. “Anyone violating this order will face legal action,” a statement from Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said. BBC News reports.
• Just Security (3/11/21): At least 25 people were killed and more than 50 wounded from the attack in the military hospital, a Taliban security official has said. Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam reports for Reuters. - ISIS-K has claimed responsibility for the attack on the hospital.
• Just Security (2/11/21): The Afghan capital of Kabul has been rocked by two explosions and gunfire at the site of a military hospital, with at least 15 people having been killed. - There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the explosions in Kabul, however the official Bakhtar news agency has quoted witnesses saying a number of Islamic State fighters entered the hospital and clashed with security forces.
• Democracy Now (2/11/21): U.N. Warns Afghanistan Faces World’s Worst Humanitarian Crisis Amid Mounting Hunger
• Just Security (1/11/21): Some former members of the U.S.-trained Afghan Security Forces are now joining the Islamic State after being left behind by the U.S. withdrawal and hunted down by Taliban forces
• The Guardian (30/10/21): Gunmen kill at least three at Afghan wedding to stop music being played - Killers said they were Taliban but government denies responsibility and says two of them have been arrested [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (29/10/21): As US freezes funds, a harsh winter awaits cash-strapped Afghans - With $9.5bn in assets and loans frozen and limits imposed on bank withdrawals, a humanitarian crisis unfolds in Afghanistan. [energy-news, social-woes-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): China is to finance the construction of an outpost for a special forces unit of Tajikistan’s police near the Tajik-Afghan border, the Tajikistan’s parliament has said. No Chinese troops will be stationed at the facility, a parliament spokesperson said. “The plan to build the post comes amid tension between the Dushanbe government and Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers,” Reuters reports. [china-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): The Taliban has allowed teenage girls to return to secondary schools in some provinces in Afghanistan, but there is still significant uncertainty on what this means for education policy under the Taliban going forward. This trend is particularly visible in the northern provinces, “where women have long played a more prominent role in society than in the Taliban’s southern heartland.” Many parents have continued to keep their daughters at home out of fear of the Taliban as well as concern about the value of education for them given that the Taliban has so far excluded women from government and most public-facing jobs.
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• Financial Times (25/10/21): Isis-K insurgency jeopardises Taliban’s grip on Afghanistan - New rulers accused of betraying Islam by jihadis intent on creating ideologically pure caliphate Paywall Summary (?): The Taliban, as the governing group of Afghanistan, has been forced to negotiate with powers such as the US, Russia, and China, trying to appear more progressive than they did back in their previous tenure. This has pushed IS-K to call them out as traitors, and have committed terrorist attacks throughout the nation. This conflict undermines their claim that when they came to power, there would be peace - and the Taliban is ill-equipped, FT reports, to deal with a terrorist outfit like IS-K. There is, they note, a lot of flux between the two groups, and factionalism within the Taliban as well. FT reports analyst suggestions that the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is supporting IS-K to pressure the Taliban for help (although one questions what this "source" is... ), or that US intelligence agencies, warlords, or former Afghan army members support them. Note the latter feels quite speculative... but it is the FT reporting, so who knows
• Just Security (27/10/21): A top Pentagon official has testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Islamic State in Afghanistan could be ready to attack the West within six months.
• Democracy Now (27/10/21): Afghanistan Heading Toward Collapse as Half the Country Faces Acute Food Insecurity
• CPJ (25/10/21): Taliban fighter beats freelance journalist Sadaqat Ghorzang at Afghanistan-Pakistan border crossing [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): The Biden administration is taking an unprecedented step to resettle the 55,600 Afghan evacuees into permanent homes from the U.S military bases where they’ve been housed.
• Just Security (25/10/21): Millions of Afghans will face starvation this winter unless urgent action is taken, the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) has warned. “More than half the population — about 22.8 million people — face acute food insecurity, while 3.2 million children under five could suffer acute malnutrition, the WFP said,” BBC News reports.
• Just Security (25/10/21): The Pakistani government is providing intelligence and technical support to help the Taliban fight the Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K) in Afghanistan
• Just Security (22/10/21): The U.N. launched a large-scale Covid-19 vaccination effort in Afghanistan last week, after receiving approval from the Taliban
• Just Security (22/10/21): The Taliban have placed further restrictions on female city government employees in Kabul. In a sign that the Taliban will continue to restrict women’s rights, Neamatullah Barakzai, the Taliban’s head of public awareness for the Kabul municipality, said many female city employees will not report to their jobs while officials prepare a new plan regarding women working in government offices. Barakzai said the order does not include women in the health and education sectors, and that all female government employees will continue to receive their salaries
• CPJ (21/10/21): Taliban fighters assault at least 3 journalists covering women’s protest in Afghanistan [surveillance-and-censorship-news, civil-rights-news]
• Just Security (21/10/21): The Taliban commander who used to run Taliban suicide-bombing squads in Kabul is now a police chief for one of Kabul’s districts, one of thousands of former Taliban fighters thrown into mundane jobs as the new government struggles to stay on its feet in Afghanistan.
• Just Security (19/10/21): The Taliban have ordered technocrats from the former Afghan government to return to work to help run the country and address the crisis facing the economy.
• Just Security (19/10/21): U.N. agencies are to launch a polio vaccination campaign in Afghanistan with the Taliban’s permission. “The campaign, slated to start Nov. 8, will mark the first polio immunization drive since the Taliban took control of the country in August — and the first in more than three years to reach all children in Afghanistan, according to a news release from UNICEF, the U.N. children’s agency,” Claire Parker reports for the Washington Post.
• Democracy Now (18/10/21): Death Toll in ISIS-K Mosque Attack in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Rises to 47
• Democracy Now (18/10/21): U.S. to Compensate Afghan Families over August Drone Strike That Killed 10 Civilians
• Democracy Now (15/10/21): Bomb Attack on Mosque in Afghanistan’s Kandahar Province Kills at Least 32
• Just Security (14/10/21): More than 3 million Afghan refugees are trying to reach Iran and Pakistan and the displacement of ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan may escalate tensions to a critical level, a Russian-led security bloc has said today [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (14/10/21): Afghan refugees accuse Turkey of violent illegal pushbacks - Migrants, many fleeing the Taliban regime, claim they are being beaten, harassed and turned back by Turkish border forces [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (13/10/21): The E.U. has pledged 1 billion Euros ($1.15 billion) in aid for Afghanistan “to avert a major humanitarian and socioeconomic collapse,” the bloc’s chief Ursula von der Leyen said at a Group of 20 (G-20) summit focused on the humanitarian and security situations in Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): India: Adani Ports to shun cargo from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran - Decision follows seizure of three tonnes of heroin from two containers at Mundra port off India’s western coast in Gujarat state last month.
• Just Security (12/10/21): U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has urged the international community to inject liquidity into the Afghan economy by releasing humanitarian and other funds through U.N. agencies, a U.N. Development Programme trust fund, and NGOs.
• Just Security (11/10/21): The Taliban have announced that the U.S. has agreed to provide Afghanistan with humanitarian aid, without recognizing the Taliban as the country’s legitimate government
• The Guardian (8/10/21): Shia mosque bombing kills dozens in Afghan city of Kunduz - Large number of worshippers killed or wounded during Friday prayers in blast claimed by ISKP
• Democracy Now (7/10/21): U.N. to Pay Salaries of Aid Workers in Afghanistan
• Just Security (4/10/21): Pakistan has said that the Pakistani Taliban have killed four Pakistani soldiers and one policeman near the Afghan border.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Kabul could face an electricity blackout as the Taliban rulers haven’t paid Central Asian electricity suppliers or resumed collecting money from consumers.
• Just Security (4/10/21): The Taliban have also said that they raided a hideout of the Islamic State group north of Kabul on Friday, killing and arresting an unspecified number of militants.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Gunmen killed two Taliban fighters and two civilians, and injured two other civilians, on Saturday in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, a Taliban official has said.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Following the bomb blast in Kabul, Taliban spokesperson, Mujahid, has said today that Taliban forces raided an Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISKP),operations center in the northern Kabul neighborhood of Khair Khana
• Al Jazeera (4/10/21): Taliban killed 13 members of Hazara ethnic group: Report - At least 13 members of the Hazara group, including 11 former government forces, were killed in Daykundi, Amnesty says.
• Democracy Now (4/10/21): Kabul Blast Kills Five People as Afghan Humanitarian Crisis Grows
• CPJ (30/9/21): Gunmen forcibly enter office of Salam Watandar broadcaster in Afghanistan
• Just Security (1/10/21): The Taliban have displaced hundreds of families belonging to Afghanistan’s Shiite Hazara community in central Afghanistan, reinforcing fears of renewed persecution against a minority that suffered under Taliban rule in the past
• The Moscow Times (1/10/21): Russia Urges Taliban, Tajikistan to Avoid Clashes [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (30/9/21): A flight carrying more than 100 U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents, who had been evacuated from Afghanistan on a private charter flight, has now departed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) bound for the U.S., the UAE foreign ministry has said
• Just Security (30/9/21): There is a “real possibility” that al Qaeda or ISIS could reconstitute in Afghanistan as soon as in 6 months, Milley said during his testimony yesterday.
• Just Security (30/9/21): Both McKenzie and Austin said that the Doha agreement made by former President Trump with the Taliban in February 2020 hastened Afghanistan’s collapse to the Taliban.
• Democracy Now (30/9/21): Pentagon Knew U.S. Drone Strike in Kabul Missed Target, Hit Civilians Weeks Before Public Admission
• Just Security (29/9/21): The Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday denied U.S. landing rights for a charter plane carrying more than 100 Americans and U.S. green card holders evacuated from Afghanistan, organizers of the flight have said
• Common Dreams (27/9/21): Critics Fume as ICC Excludes US From Probe Into Afghan War Crimes - "Allowing powerful states to get away with multi-year, multi-continent torture against so many feeds impunity for all." [us-policy-news, dark-security-news, corruption-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): The Taliban government’s Defense Minister Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqoob, has issued a stern warning against Taliban foot soldiers having too much fun in Kabul and has told them to stop taking selfiesThe Taliban government’s Defense Minister Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqoob, has issued a stern warning against Taliban foot soldiers having too much fun in Kabul and has told them to stop taking selfies
• Just Security (27/9/21): A series of killings of religious figures associated with Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) in Afghanistan are highlighting the ongoing power struggle between ISKP and the Taliban
• Just Security (23/9/21): A spate of attacks from Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISISK) killed at least five people in Nangarhar province yesterday, the latest outbreak of violence in an area where ISISK is mounting a challenge to the Taliban’s rule.
• CPJ (22/9/21): Afghan journalist Mohammad Ali Ahmadi shot and injured in Kabul
• Popular Front (6/9/21): On the Ground in the Taliban's Afghanistan
• Just Security (21/9/21): Nearly three metric tons of heroin with a street value of $2.7 billion from Afghanistan have been seized from Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat in a major bust, officials have said. [drug-news]
• Democracy Now (20/9/21): Women and Girls Increasingly Left Out of Education, Public Life in Afghanistan After Taliban Takeover
• Democracy Now (20/9/21): Pentagon Admits Drone Strike Killed Afghan Civilians as Victims’ Families Demand Probe
• Just Security (20/9/21): ISIS-K has claimed responsibility for a series of deadly blasts targeting the Taliban in Jalalabad over the weekend
• Just Security (20/9/21): The CIA warned that children were possibly present in the vehicle seconds before the U.S. missile that killed 10 civilians in Kabul was launched, according to sources familiar with the matter
• Just Security (20/9/21): A report from the New York Times on the Panjshir region of Afghanistan, previously a stronghold of resistance against the Taliban, has revealed claims of massacres, ethnic cleansing and false charges from the Taliban
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Afghanistan: Several dead as blasts rock Jalalabad and Kabul - There has been no claim of responsibility for series of explosions, which left at least seven dead.
• The Guardian (17/9/21): 'Tragic mistake': Pentagon admits Kabul strike killed 10 civilians – video
• Just Security (17/9/21): Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia needs to work with the Taliban government in Afghanistan and that that world powers should consider unfreezing Afghanistan’s assets. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): The Afghan man who was killed in a U.S. drone strike last month in Kabul has been praised by his coworkers in a U.S. humanitarian organization
• Just Security (16/9/21): Members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia-led security bloc that includes some countries adjacent or close to Afghanistan, have no plans to host Afghan refugees, bloc member Kazakhstan has said [russia-policy-news, immigrant-news]
• Just Security (14/9/21): At least 20 civilians have been killed by the Taliban in Afghanistan’s Panjshir Valley, which has seen fighting between the Taliban and opposition forces
• Just Security (14/9/21): Thousands of Afghans have protested against the Taliban in the southern city of Kandahar today after about 3,000 families were told to vacate a residential army colony, according to a government official and local footage
• CPJ (13/9/21): Afghan photographer Morteza Samadi detained by Taliban since September 7
• Democracy Now (14/9/21): Donors Pledge $1.2B in Aid to Afghanistan as U.N. Warns of Looming Humanitarian Catastrophe
• Just Security (13/9/21): Female students in Afghanistan can continue with their university studies, but classes must now be segregated, and head coverings are mandatory, the Taliban Higher Education Minister Abdul Baqi Haqqani announced on Sunday
• Just Security (13/9/21): Russia is planning to soon send food and medicine as humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, the RIA news agency has cited Russia’s foreign ministry as saying today [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (13/9/21): Taliban fighters are tightening the group’s grip in the rebellious Panjshir region of Afghanistan with killings and food control, witness have said.
• Just Security (13/9/21): The fate of 46 aircraft, including A-29 light attack planes and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, that the pilots flew to Uzbekistan continues to remain in doubt. [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (13/9/21): Taliban Government Orders Segregated Schools and Dress Codes for Women
• The Guardian (11/9/21): US drone strike mistakenly targeted Afghan aid worker, investigation finds - Zemari Ahmadi, who died alongside nine others had no connection to terrorism, a New York Times investigation suggested
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Afghan crisis exposes rifts across Iran's political spectrum - At the two ends of Iran's political spectrum angry voices are being heard in a fierce battle over the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan, and especially the question of support for resistance forces in Panjshir Valley.
• Al Jazeera (9/9/21): Taliban accused of torturing journalists for covering protests - Reports show the armed group being violent and intimidating journalists, despite their free-press pledge.
• Just Security (9/9/21): China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has announced that China is offering at least $31m worth of emergency aid, including Covid-19 vaccines to Afghanistan.
• Just Security (8/9/21): Hundreds of men and women protested in the streets of Kabul Tuesday in support of resistance fighters in the Panjshir province after the Taliban claimed victory, taking control of the area Monday
• Just Security (8/9/21): The Taliban yesterday announced the formation of a new acting government in Afghanistan, with a permanent leadership soon expected – tops posts went to veterans of the group who led the 20-year war against U.S.-NATO forces, former Guantánamo inmates, members of a U.S.-designated terror group and subjects of United Nations sanctions lists, and a member of the FBI’s “most-wanted” list, though no women or members of Afghanistan’s recently ousted leaderships were chosen, contradicting the Taliban’s early vows and defying the demands of the international community for an “inclusive” government.
• The Guardian (7/9/21): The Taliban are showing us the dangers of personal data falling into the wrong hands - Digital ID systems are a powerful development tool, providing a legal identity to millions, but their misuse can be deadly [surveillance-and-censorship-news, tech-news, international-news]
• Democracy Now (7/9/21): 90% of Afghanistan’s 2,300 Healthcare Centers May Soon Be Forced to Close, Warns WHO
• Al Jazeera (6/9/21): Taliban claims victory in Panjshir as it calls to end war: Live - The group’s spokesman says it has taken control of the last holdout province, but opposition forces vow to continue fighting.
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Afghanistan: Panjshir forces claim hundreds of Taliban captured - Taliban reportedly meets stiff resistance after pushing deep into Afghanistan’s holdout Panjshir Valley.
• The Guardian (5/9/21): Taliban break up Afghan women’s rights march with gunfire - Militia members fire shots into air and demonstrator says they also used teargas and stun guns
• Just Security (3/9/21): Thousands of Taliban fighters are still taking on resistance forces in Afghanistan’s northern Panjshir Valley, the last province resisting the group’s takeover
• Just Security (3/9/21): A family member of the Afghan civilians killed during U.S. drone strikes on Sunday has insisted that despite U.S. claims to the contrary, there were no explosives in the car targeted by the drone but that there were children in it, contending that if there was explosive the damage caused to the car’s surroundings would have been much worse
• Democracy Now (3/9/21): Humanitarian Flights to Afghanistan Resume as U.N. Warns of Widespread Hunger
• Just Security (2/9/21): Thousands of Afghan evacuees being brought to the U.S. will arrive without visas as “humanitarian parolees,” lacking a path to legal U.S. residency as well as the benefits and services offered to traditional refugees
• Just Security (1/9/21): Taliban fighters escorted clusters of Americans to the gates at Kabul airport in a secret negotiated arrangement with the U.S. military,
• Just Security (1/9/21): Heavy fighting erupted in Panjshir Valley through Tuesday night, with 17 resistance fighters and 41 Taliban fighters killed
• Just Security (31/8/21): Less than 200, closer to 100, Americans who want to leave remain in Afghanistan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. This goes against previous reassurances by President Biden that the U.S. will maintain a military presence in Kabul until the last remaining American who wants to leave Afghanistan has been evacuated
• Just Security (31/8/21): An Afghan refugee backlash is looming in the U.S., particularly among Republicans who intend to discredit the Biden administration’s withdrawal and make it an issue in the 2022 midterm elections
• Just Security (31/8/21): Taliban forces clashed with anti-Taliban militia fighters in the Panjshir on Monday night, with eight Taliban fighters killed
• Just Security (31/8/21): Uzbekistan is warning the United States that U.S.-trained Afghan pilots who fled to the Central Asian country may face expulsion and is urging the U.S. to extract those Afghan pilots to a different country to avoid clashes between Uzbekistan and the Taliban,
• Democracy Now (31/8/21): Taliban Celebrate as Last U.S. Troops Leave Afghanistan
• Just Security (30/8/21): President Biden has given the Pentagon the “green light” to strike any targets affiliated with ISIS-K, without first seeking White House approval; The U.S. also retaliated Saturday with an “over-the-horizon” strike that killed what Pentagon officials are calling two “ISIS-K planners and facilitators” in Jalalabad, the eastern Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan, though they refused to confirm whether those individuals had any role in orchestrating the Kabul airport attack
• Just Security (30/8/21): Several rockets were fired at Kabul airport on Monday, with at least one intercepted by the airport’s missile defense system
• Just Security (30/8/21): Dozens of Afghan interpreters who worked for the British Army have been told by the Home Office that they will not be allowed into the U.K. because they are a “danger to [national] security,”
• Just Security (30/8/21): Hundreds of students and alumni of the American University of Afghanistan were sent home as they tried to flee the country Sunday amid evacuations
• Just Security (30/8/21): The Taliban have directed farmers to stop cultivating opium poppies, causing prices of raw opium, which is processed into heroin, to soar across the country
• Just Security (30/8/21): Five Taliban fighters killed a popular folk singer on Thursday, one of his sons said
• Just Security (30/8/21): Taliban forces raided the Afghan National Security Directorate and the Ministry of Communications when they first stormed Kabul – their aim was to secure the files of Afghan intelligence officers and their informers, and to obtain the means of tracking the telephone numbers of Afghan citizens
• Al-Monitor (30/8/21): Turkey won't accept 'refugee burden' from Afghanistan - Turkey, which already hosts more than 300,000 Afghans, has warned it doesn't have the resources to accept additional migrants from the war-torn country.
• Democracy Now (30/8/21): Up to 10 People Killed in U.S. Strike in Kabul, Rockets Fired at Airport as Withdrawal Deadline Nears
• Just Security (27/8/21): South Korea has designated Afghans who supported its operations in Afghanistan as “persons of special merit” instead of refugees in an apparent effort to defuse anti-migrant sentiment.
• Democracy Now (27/8/21): At Least 110 Killed as Suicide Bombers Strike Crowds Outside Kabul Airport - Thirteen U.S. troops were among the dead. The Taliban reports 28 of its members were killed. Scores of people were wounded. The militant group ISIS-K — which is an archrival of the Taliban — claimed responsibility.
• CPJ (26/8/21): Taliban fighters beat and whip journalists in Afghanistan
• The Guardian (26/8/21): Islamic State affiliate is prime suspect for Kabul airport suicide bombing - Analysis: Group known as Islamic State Khorasan Province, or Isis-K, poses ‘acute’ and ‘persistent’ threat, says US
• Democracy Now (26/8/21): U.S. Begins Final Phase of Kabul Evacuations as Withdrawal Deadline Looms; U.S. Embassy Warns of ISIS Plot to Attack Kabul Airport
• Just Security (25/8/21): Reps. Seth Moulton, (D-MA) and Peter Meijer (R-MI) traveled to Kabul “in secret” yesterday on an unauthorized oversight mission of the evacuation efforts, drawing criticism from officials in President Biden’s administration.
• Just Security (25/8/21): The Taliban have overtaken and ransacked multiple U.N. compounds in Afghanistan, reportedly forcing one office to provide food to fighters, according to an internal U.N. report.
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): Taliban Blocks Afghans from Accessing Kabul Airport
• Al Jazeera (24/8/21): Iran resumes a crucial lifeline to Afghanistan: Fuel - Taliban told Iran to continue exports of petroleum products which the latter had paused over safety concerns.
• CPJ (24/8/21): Taliban raids homes of 2 more journalists in Afghanistan
• Just Security (24/8/21): CIA Director William J. Burns held a secret meeting in Kabul yesterday with the Taliban’s de facto leader Abdul Ghani Baradar in the highest-level face-to-face encounter between the Taliban and President Biden’s administration since the militants seized Kabul, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter.; The Taliban have issued a death sentence for the brother of an Afghan translator who helped U.S. troops, accusing him of helping the U.S. and providing security to his brother, according to letters obtained by CNN.; The WHO has warned of food shortages in Afghanistan as early as September without urgent aid funding, as key deliveries have been held up due to restrictions at Kabul airport
• Just Security (23/8/21): Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan has warned that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) poses a threat to the U.S. evacuations efforts in Kabul; A firefight at the gates of Kabul’s international airport killed at least one Afghan soldier earlier today, German military officials have said.; A firefight at Kabul airport involving German and U.S. troops has erupted today, when Afghan guards who exchanged fire with an unidentified gunman
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): Chaos and Desperation Reign at Kabul Airport as Afghans Try to Evacuate Taliban Takeover
• Al Jazeera (22/8/21): Taliban says hundreds of fighters heading to take Panjshir Valley - Anti-Taliban leader Ahmad Massoud calls for talks but says forces ready to fight if Taliban attempts to take stronghold
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Qatar’s Taliban efforts position Doha as a key mediator: Analysts - Qatar is well-positioned to be the first contact point for regional and international players who want to engage the Taliban.
• Just Security (20/8/21): The Taliban are hunting for people they believe worked with and fought alongside U.S. and NATO forces – raiding houses, setting up checkpoints and threatening to kill relatives of “collaborators” – the consequences when found have at times been fatal so far; A bipartisan group of 55 senators – led by Sens. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) – sent a letter to Biden Wednesday calling for him to “immediately evacuate” Afghans who are eligible for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) from the country, along with their families.; “The Biden administration is so concerned about the weapons that launching airstrikes against the larger equipment, such as helicopters, hasn’t been ruled out, officials told Reuters.
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Taliban responsible for massacre of nine Hazara men: Amnesty - ‘Cold-blooded brutality’ of killings is a ‘horrifying indicator of what Taliban rule may bring’, Agnes Callamard says.
• Democracy Now (20/8/21): Pentagon Boosts U.S. Troop Levels in Kabul as Chaotic Evacuations Follow Taliban Takeover; Taliban Says It Executed Former Islamic State Leader Abu Omar Khorasani
• CPJ (19/8/21) Taliban take 2 female state TV anchors off-air in Afghanistan, beat at least 2 journalists
• Just Security (19/8/21): Witnesses are reporting that Taliban guards are beating Afghans who make their way to Kabul's airport, including Afghans who have been approved to be evacuated with the U.S; A total of twelve people have been killed in and around Kabul airport since the Taliban took control of Kabul on Sunday, Taliban and NATO officials have said; Pakistan has fenced off its border with Afghanistan, with the border now being guarded by Taliban fighters standing alongside Pakistani soldiers.
• Just Secrity (19/8/21): Biden insisted during the interview with ABC News that the chaos and turmoil in Kabul was unavoidable and refused to acknowledge any mistakes in the withdrawal
• Just Security (19/8/21): The Taliban have imposed a curfew in the eastern Afghan city of Khost, following protests there and in two other cities in which demonstrators carried the flag of the fallen republic.; The Taliban is ramping up its social media presence, denying longtime bans by the platform
• Democracy Now (19/8/21): Two Die as Taliban Open Fire on Independence Day Celebration; Biden: U.S. May Stay in Afghanistan Beyond Aug. 31
• Just Security (19/8/21): Iran closed its border to Afghanistan yesterday, as thousands of Afghan nationals sought to flee the country following the Taliban's takeover.
• Just Security (18/8/21): Taliban fighters in Jalalabad have fired into a crowd and beat protesters during an outpouring of public anger at their rule, resulting in at least three people being killed and more than a dozen injured; The Taliban have responded to public protests in Kabul against their rule with force; Reports are emerging of the Taliban beating and whipping Afghans, especially women and children, seeking to flee Kabul.
• Just Security (18/8/21): Classified intelligence assessments over the summer painted an increasingly grim picture of a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and warned of a rapid collapse of the Afghan military, even as President Biden and his advisers continued to publicly say that a collapse was unlikely to happen quickly; Up to 15,000 Americans remain in Afghanistan after Taliban takeover, officials from President Biden’s administration have told Senate staffers, two aides have said.
• Just Security (18/8/21): The Taliban are strengthening their control over Kabul with access to Kabul airport remaining near-impossible for the thousands of Afghans seeking to leave the country; Thousands of Afghan civilians who risked their lives to assist the U.S. military in Afghanistan, many of them working as interpreters alongside American soldiers in combat, are trapped in Afghanistan; Multiple U.S. federal agencies that operated in Afghanistan and worked with Afghan citizens have been hastily purging their websites, removing articles and photos that could endanger the Afghan civilians who interacted with them and now fear retribution from the Taliban
• Just Security (18/8/21): Uganda has said that it has agreed to a request from the U.S. to take in temporarily 2,000 refugees from Afghanistan
• Just Security (18/8/21): Pakistan is divided over the success of the Taliban in Afghanistan, with many celebrating, while others fear Taliban victory will embolden Islamic militant organizations operating in Pakistan.
• South China Morning Post (18/8/21): China conducts anti-terror drill with Tajikistan, as Afghan spillover worries grip central Asia - Central Asian nations bordering Afghanistan rendered particularly vulnerable to rising instability there, while China is wary of any impact on Xinjiang - The joint drills show mutual determination to combat terrorism and effectively respond to terrorist threats, China’s public security minister said
• CPJ (18/8/21): Taliban militants raid homes of at least 4 media workers in Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (18/8/21): US freezes Afghan central bank’s assets of $9.5bn - Any central bank assets that the Afghan government has in the US will not be available to the Taliban, the gov’t said.
• Left Voice (17/8/21): U.S. Military Left behind Biometric Tracking Technology. The Taliban Is Already Using It to Track Afghans - The U.S. military helped design and build technology to identify Afghan civilians and collaborators who worked with the fallen government, U.S. forces, or NGOs. With the U.S. withdrawal and fall of the government, the Taliban has these data now.
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Thousands of Afghans enter Pakistan via Chaman border crossing - Medical patients and freed Afghan Taliban prisoners among thousands entering Pakistan from Afghanistan.
• South China Morning Post (17/8/21): Taliban’s haul of US weapons may add to problems in region, analysts say - Insurgents seized guns, ammunition, helicopters and combat aircraft from Afghan forces - Chinese military researcher says some of it could help fuel expansion of extremist and terrorist groups
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): UK announces plan to resettle 20,000 refugees from Afghanistan - The scheme will give priority to women, girls and minorities considered ‘most at risk’ under Taliban rule.
• Common Dreams (17/8/21): Investors in US Weapon-Makers Only Clear Winners of Afghan War - "The military-industrial complex got exactly what it wanted out of this war."
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): India evacuates 170 people from Afghanistan, including ambassador - Nearly 200 personnel of Indian mission in Afghanistan evacuated in three days, alongside Indian civilians working in the country. - The foreign ministry said it would expedite the repatriation of the country’s Hindu and Sikh communities, a move criticised by the opposition parties and activists as discriminatory.
• Just Security (17/8/21): An estimated 10,000 American citizens remain trapped in and around Kabul with no ability to safely get to the airport, and although congressional offices in Washington are scrambling to help, the Biden administration is dropping the ball.; Afghans who helped the U.S. and its allies remain in limbo as evacuation plans are upended amid nations’ shock at the Taliban’s unprecedented gains.; The U.S. military will provide two additional facilities in the United States to house Afghan SIV applicants, their families and other individuals at risk, following approval by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to a request made by the State Department; Democratic congressional staffers on a call yesterday with the White House shortly after President Biden’s speech on Afghanistan said they were disappointed by the administration few new details on its plans for evacuating Afghans.
• Liberation News (17/8/21): More than 71,000 Civilians Were Killed in the U.S. War in Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Afghan military jet shot down by Uzbek air defences - Plane downed in Uzbekistan’s southernmost Surxondaryo province as Afghan gov’t collapses and Taliban seize Kabul.
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Taliban blocks off Kabul airport as Afghans try to flee - Taliban sets up cordon, fires warning shots to block off Kabul airport as volatile crowd tries to flee.
• Just Security (16/8/21): At least five people have been killed in Kabul airport today as thousands of people swarm the passenger terminal and try to forcibly enter planes leaving the Afghan capital.; Footage appears to show Afghan civilians clinging to the side of a U.S. military aircraft as it prepares to take off from Kabul’s international airport; Russia will evacuate some of its embassy’s roughly 100 staff; The Chinese embassy appears to have no plans to evacuate embassy personnel
• New York Times (15/8/21): Kabul falls to the Taliban as the Afghan government collapses and the president flees.; Democracy Now (16/8/21): Taliban Takes Control of Afghanistan After 2 Decades of U.S. Occupation
• Al Jazeera (15/8/21): Photos: Taliban takes control of Afghan presidential palace - Taliban fighters have entered Afghanistan’s presidential palace hours after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country [to Uzbekistan].
• Al Jazeera (15/8/21): ‘Unpatriotic’: Afghans slam President Ghani’s swift departure - President Ashraf Ghani fled the country as the Taliban entered the capital Kabul after capturing major cities within a week.
• Al Jazeera (15/8/21): Afghanistan: Mapping the advance of the Taliban - An animated map showing how and when the Taliban captured 26 out of the country’s 34 provincial capitals in just 10 days.
• Al Jazeera (15/8/21): Taliban capture Afghanistan’s Jalalabad, cut off Kabul from east - Taliban capture of Jalalabad effectively leaves Kabul as the last major urban area under government control.
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): US sending more troops to Afghanistan for personnel drawdown - US President Joe Biden says his administration warned Taliban against any action putting US personnel at risk. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/8/21): Taliban captures Afghan commander Ismail Khan after fall of Herat - The ‘Lion of Herat’ returned to the front lines in the western city last month amid the growing threat from the Taliban.
• Democracy Now (13/8/21): U.S. Begins Evacuating Afghanistan Embassy Staff as Taliban Seize Kandahar and Herat - In Afghanistan, the Taliban has seized control of Kandahar and Herat, the country’s second- and third-largest cities. Taliban forces have also overrun Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital of Helmand province in the south. It’s one of 17 provincial capitals now under Taliban control
• Just Security (12/8/21): The Afghan government has offered the Taliban a share in power over Afghanistan so long as the rising violence in the country comes to a hold, an Afghan government source has told Al Jazeera; Some Afghans are blaming neighboring Pakistan for the Taliban’s recent successes, pointing to the Taliban’s use of Pakistani territory, including for training fighters and receiving treatment in Pakistani hospitals.; Russia will give Tajikistan $1.1 million to build a new outpost on the Tajik-Afghan border, a senior Russian diplomat has been quoted as saying today, amid growing instability in Afghanistan.
• Democracy Now (12/8/21): Taliban Seizes 10th Provincial Capital in a Week
• Just Security (11/8/21): The Taliban overtook three further Afghan provincial capitals yesterday, effectively cutting off the main highway connecting the country’s capital with northern Afghan provinces.; The Biden administration is preparing for Kabul to fall within 90 days based on U.S. military assessments, far sooner than feared only weeks ago, according to current and former U.S. officials familiar with the matter; The capture of the Afghan city of Pul-e-Khumri, 140 miles north of Kabul, has given the insurgents control of a strategic road junction linking Kabul to the north and west, according to insurgents and local officials.; Taliban militants have taken control of Afghanistan’s borders with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Russia’s Kommersant daily has reported, citing Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu
• Al Jazeera (10/8/21): Infographic: Taliban captures eight Afghan provincial capitals - Taliban seizes control of eight provincial capital cities in five days in a lightning offensive across Afghanistan
• Just Security (9/8/21): At least 27 children have been killed and 136 injured across three provinces in Afghanistan over the past three days, the U.N.’s children’s agency, UNICEF, has said today.; The Taliban have seized the city of Taloqan, the capital of the Takhar province in northeastern Afghanistan, marking the fifth provincial capital to fall under the Taliban’s control in just a matter of days.
• The Guardian (9/8/21): Taliban capture sixth provincial capital in northern Afghanistan - Fighters overrun Aibak without meeting resistance, leaving pro-government forces in region cut off
• CPJ (9/8/21): Suspected Taliban militants kill 1 Afghan journalist, kidnap another
• The Guardian (8/8/21): Taliban seize symbolic victory with capture of Kunduz - Insurgent group takes control of first major city amid lightening offensive across Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Kabul blast claimed by Taliban kills Afghan air force pilot - Officials said Afghan air force pilot Hamidullah Azimi died when a sticky bomb attached to his vehicle detonated.
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Sheberghan: Taliban captures second Afghan provincial capital - Deputy governor says Taliban captured Sheberghan, less than a day after taking over Zaranj in Nimruz province.
• CPJ (6/8/21): Taliban fighters shoot at car carrying Afghan journalists, briefly abduct them
• New York Times (6/8/21): Taliban Capture Afghan Provincial Capital in a Symbolic Victory - Zaranj, on the Afghanistan-Iran border, was the first provincial capital to be captured by the insurgents since the Biden administration said it would completely withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan. - The Taliban also took responsibility for the assassination on Friday of a senior government official in Kabul. Dawa Khan Meenapal, the head of the government’s media and information center, was gunned down in a targeted attack.
• The Guardian (4/8/21): Taliban suicide-bomb attack targets defence minister’s Kabul home - Islamist group escalates insurgency with assault on Green Zone in Afghan capital
• The Guardian (3/8/21): Taliban on brink of taking key Afghan city as residents told to flee - Officials confirm all but one district of Lashkar Gah is under hardline Islamists’ control after fierce fighting
• Al Jazeera (3/8/21): Huge blast hits Afghan capital Kabul near defence minister’s home - Afghanistan’s Defence Minister says he is safe after explosion near his home, but continuing gunfire reported in Kabul.
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Taliban Launches Attacks on Three Afghan Provincial Capitals
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Taliban accused of ‘massacring civilians’ in Afghan border town - The US and the UK accuse the Taliban of killing dozens of civilians in possible ‘war crimes’ in Spin Boldak, south Afghanistan.
• The Guardian (1/8/21): Resurgent Taliban escalates nationwide offensive in Afghanistan - Afghan forces defend western city of Herat and Lashkar Gah in south as Kandahar airport hit by rockets
• The Economist World This Week (31/7/21): Civilian casualties from armed conflict in Afghanistan rose by nearly 50% during the first half of the year compared with the same six months last year, according to the UN. By early September, the last American soldier will have left Afghanistan (except for a few hundred to guard the airport and American embassy).
• Just Security (30/7/21): The Taliban offensive this spring included more than two dozen insider attacks during a 90-day period ending June 30.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): Dozens [at least 80] Killed in Flash Floods in Rural Afghanistan
• Just Security (29/7/21): China offered the Taliban a warm welcome yesterday, declaring that the group would play “an important role in the process of peaceful reconciliation and reconstruction” of Afghanistan, as Chinese officials began two days of talks with a delegation of Taliban leaders in Tianjin, China
• Just Security (26/7/21): At least four air strikes were carried out Wednesday and Thursday, including some in Kandahar, one U.S. official has said; Forty-six Afghan soldiers have sought refuge in Pakistan after losing control to Taliban insurgents of military positions across the border, Pakistan’s army has said today
• Just Security (23/7/21): The U.S. military carried out two strikes against the Taliban in support of Afghan forces in the Kandahar province which were targeted at capturing equipment, defense officials have said; A Taliban spokesperson has said that strikes were carried out by the U.S. on Wednesday night on the outskirts of the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, killing three Taliban fighters and destroying two vehicles; Tajikistan has said that it is ready to take in up to 100,000 refugees from neighboring Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (21/7/21): Taliban seek to cut off Afghan population centres: Top US general - Taliban fighters have encircled 17 provincial capitals, outcome of Afghanistan peace talks uncertain, Mark Milley says.
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): Russia and Uzbekistan are to hold joint military drills near the Afghan border in Uzbekistan from July 30 to Aug. 10, the Interfax news agency has said, citing Russia’s armed forces; In addition, “on Monday, Russia’s armed forces said Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan would hold military drills 20 km (12 miles) from the Afghanistan border in Tajikistan from Aug. 5-10,” Reuters reports.
• Democracy Now (20/7/21): Rockets Land Near Afghan Presidential Palace During Outdoor Eid Prayers
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Erdogan calls for US support for Turkey to protect Kabul airport - Turkey could run Afghan capital’s airport if US meets conditions on logistics and financing, President Erdogan says.
• Democracy Now (19/7/21): Thousands of Families Displaced Amid Heightened Violence in Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Afghanistan recalls envoy, diplomats from Pakistan over abduction - Afghanistan withdraws diplomats in response to the kidnapping of the ambassador’s daughter in Pakistan.
• The Guardian (17/7/21): Daughter of Afghan envoy abducted and ‘severely tortured’ in Pakistan - Silsila Alikhil, 26, was badly beaten and held for over five hours in Islamabad, according to diplomatic sources
• Just Security Early Edition (16/7/21): Afghans who helped U.S. troops are to be airlifted out of the country.
• Just Security Early Edition (16/7/21): The Taliban have reached a ceasefire deal in western Afghanistan, the provincial governor for the Badghis province has said. Fighters from the Taliban have recently secured complete control over all the districts in Badghis province.
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Pakistan rejects allegations of ‘air support’ to Afghan Taliban - Afghanistan’s First Vice President had accused Pakistani forces of supporting Taliban after it took control of a key border crossing.
• The Hill (16/7/21): Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer killed in Afghanistan
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Taliban offer 3-month ceasefire in return for prisoner release - The spokesman for the Afghan government’s negotiating team in Doha said the offer from the armed group was a ‘big demand’.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Taliban targeting Afghanistan’s crucial power, IT infrastructure - The Afghan IT sector, one of the few success stories from the war-ravaged nation, now threatened by continued conflict.
• The Guardian (15/7/21): Afghanistan’s neighbours step up efforts to prevent civil war - Rapid Taliban advances lead to meeting in Uzbekistan of over a dozen leaders and foreign ministers
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): More than 300 Afghans flee into Tajikistan as Taliban advances - Tajikistan border guards say the refugees ‘fled from the Taliban to save their lives’.
• The Guardian (14/7/21): Taliban claim Afghan border crossing with Pakistan in major gain - Militants say they have made what could be their most significant advance in a nationwide offensive
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): Afghan gov’t delegation meets Taliban in Iran - Tehran hosts the first significant peace talks in months in a previously unannounced meeting that comes as US forces leave.
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): Iran Hosts Intra-Afghan Talks Amid Taliban Advances, U.S. Withdrawal
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Why did India open a backchannel to the Taliban? - Recent developments in the region forced India to rethink its approach to the armed group.
• The Guardian (7/7/21): Taliban strike key Afghan city as US speeds up withdrawal - Insurgents attack western city of Qala-i-Naw, seizing police headquarters before being pushed back by special forces
• Democracy Now (2/7/21): U.S. Troops Withdraw from Bagram Airbase as Afghanistan’s Future Hangs in the Balance
• Al Jazeera (29/6/21): Afghanistan: Taliban fighters launch attack on Ghazni - Fighting with government forces in central Afghan city comes as foreign troops continue withdrawal from the country.
• Al Jazeera (25/6/21): Taliban gains drive Afghanistan gov’t to arm local volunteers - Desperate government launches ‘National Mobilisation’, which aims to arm local volunteers and resurrect militia groups to take on Taliban.
• Al Jazeera (22/6/21): Taliban captures Afghanistan’s main Tajikistan border crossing - Some security forces abandon their posts and flee across the frontier as the Taliban seizes Shir Khan Bandar crossing.
• New York Times (20/6/21): Taliban Enter Key Cities in Afghanistan’s North After Swift Offensive - The setbacks come at a harrowing moment for Afghanistan, just as American and international troops are set to leave the country in coming weeks.
• Al Jazeera (12/6/21): Seven killed in twin van bomb blasts in Afghanistan’s Kabul - Six others wounded in bombings that struck western Kabul neighbourhood largely populated by members of the the ethnic Hazara minority.
• Democracy Now (10/6/21): 10 Killed in Afghanistan as ISIS Attacks Mine-Clearing Charity
• Al Jazeera (1/6/21): Several killed as blasts rock Afghanistan capital Kabul - Government official says at least 10 killed and 12 wounded in bomb attacks, with no claim of responsibility yet.
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Several killed as roadside bomb targets minibus in Afghanistan - The vehicle was bringing staff and students to Alberoni University in northern Afghanistan, the interior ministry says.
• Democracy Now (17/5/21): Blast in Afghan Mosque Kills 12 as Fighting Intensifies Between Taliban and Gov’t Forces
• Al Jazeera (8/5/21): Blast kills dozens near school in Afghan capital Kabul - At least 150 people, many of them young women, were injured in the attack in a Shia neighbourhood of the city.; at least 85 killed ([2] 10/5/21)
• Al Jazeera (4/5/21): Fighting erupts in Afghanistan after US pullout deadline - The Taliban armed group launches assaults across Afghanistan after a missed US deadline to withdraw troops.
• Al Jazeera (2/5/21): Afghanistan: Roaring tanker fire kills 7, injures 14 in Kabul - Blaze tears through dozens of fuel tankers, destroys homes and knocks out electricity to much of the capital.; '“The first explosion sounded like a mine explosion,” he said. “There were flames shooting from one truck and then a second truck exploded, and a third.” He estimated as many as 100 trucks may have ignited.'
• Al Jazeera: Suicide bombing kills over 20 in Afghanistan’s Logar province - The truck bomb in the provincial capital of Pul-e Alam also wounded more than 90 people, interior ministry says. [2]
• CounterPunch: Almost Everything Biden Said About Ending the Afghanistan War Was a Lie

Armenia Updates

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Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Just Security (14/12/21): Turkey and Armenia will appoint special representatives to discuss steps to normalize their diplomatic ties, Turkey’s foreign minister has said. AP reports.
• Just Security (17/11/21): A number of Armenian troops were killed during a clash between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces at the border yesterday. Later in the day, the two sides agreed to a ceasefire brokered by Russia. Armenia has asked Russia, an ally with historical ties to the former Soviet republic, for help in defending its territory. BBC News reports. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/11/21): Armenia Announces Russia-Mediated Truce With Azerbaijan [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Armenia and Azerbaijan on Sunday accused each other of opening fire near the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Agence France Press reports.
• Just Security (14/10/21): Armenia told judges at the World Court in The Hague today that Azerbaijan promotes ethnic hatred against Armenians and asked the court to stop what Armenia’s lawyers called a cycle of violence and hatred.
• The Guardian (26/8/21): Mass brawl breaks out in Armenian parliament – video Mass brawl breaks out in Armenian parliament – video
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-foreign-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (13/8/21): Russia Blames Azerbaijan for Breach of Karabakh Truce in Post-Ceasefire First
• Just Security (29/7/21): Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has proposed that Russian border outposts be stationed along the length of Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan after a rise in tensions between the two countries
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Ceasefire called after Armenian soldiers killed in clashes - Incident was one of the deadliest since a six-week war between ethnic Armenian forces and Baku over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
• Al Jazeera (23/7/21): Azerbaijan jails 13 Armenian military personnel for six years - Azerbaijan’s serious crimes court says those sentenced will be deported after serving their prison terms.
• The Guardian (17/7/21): Armenia polls upheld by court as opposition loses appeal - Verdict endorses victory of acting prime minister Nikol Pashinyan’s party in last month’s parliamentary vote
• The Guardian (12/6/21): Azerbaijan swaps 15 Armenian PoWs for map of landmines - 2020 war over Nagorno-Karabakh region left minefields that have continued to inflict casualties, including three recent deaths
• Al Jazeera (27/5/21): Azerbaijan captures six Armenian soldiers as border tensions rise - Azerbaijan accuses the Armenian soldiers of trying to cross into its territory in the Kelbajar border region.
• The Economist: Turkey and Armenia show no signs of reconciling - The genocide a century ago is just one source of contention
• Al Jazeera: Armenian PM Pashinyan resigns to trigger snap election - Nikol Pashinyan calls early election due to criticism over his handling of last year’s Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Azerbaijan Updates

(wiki)

Maps Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Just Security (17/11/21): A number of Armenian troops were killed during a clash between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces at the border yesterday. Later in the day, the two sides agreed to a ceasefire brokered by Russia. Armenia has asked Russia, an ally with historical ties to the former Soviet republic, for help in defending its territory. BBC News reports. [russia-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/11/21): Armenia Announces Russia-Mediated Truce With Azerbaijan [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (15/11/21): Armenia and Azerbaijan on Sunday accused each other of opening fire near the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Agence France Press reports.
• Al-Monitor (15/10/21): Turkey agrees to import more gas from Azerbaijan - Turkish officials have expressed a desire to increase strategic cooperation with their Caucasian ally in the past year. [energy-news]
• Just Security (14/10/21): Armenia told judges at the World Court in The Hague today that Azerbaijan promotes ethnic hatred against Armenians and asked the court to stop what Armenia’s lawyers called a cycle of violence and hatred.
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): Azerbaijan, Iran agree to mend ties ‘through dialogue’ - Relations between Baku and Tehran soured in recent weeks over allegations Israel’s military was active in Azerbaijan.
• The Moscow Times (3/10/21): Montenegro Holds Azerbaijan-Born Tycoon Wanted by Russia
• Al-Monitor (30/9/21): Iranian military to hold drill over Azerbaijani objections - President Ilham Aliyev criticized a planned military exercise close to the Iran-Azerbaijani border.
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-foreign-policy-news]
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (13/8/21): Russia Blames Azerbaijan for Breach of Karabakh Truce in Post-Ceasefire First
• Just Security (29/7/21): Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has proposed that Russian border outposts be stationed along the length of Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan after a rise in tensions between the two countries
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Ceasefire called after Armenian soldiers killed in clashes - Incident was one of the deadliest since a six-week war between ethnic Armenian forces and Baku over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
• Al Jazeera (23/7/21): Azerbaijan jails 13 Armenian military personnel for six years - Azerbaijan’s serious crimes court says those sentenced will be deported after serving their prison terms.
• The Guardian (12/6/21): Azerbaijan swaps 15 Armenian PoWs for map of landmines - 2020 war over Nagorno-Karabakh region left minefields that have continued to inflict casualties, including three recent deaths
• Al Jazeera (27/5/21): Azerbaijan captures six Armenian soldiers as border tensions rise - Azerbaijan accuses the Armenian soldiers of trying to cross into its territory in the Kelbajar border region.

Iran Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Iran Live Map

• Wall Street Journal (30/12/21): U.S. Sanctions Push Iran and Afghanistan’s Taliban Together - Bitter foes find common cause under economic pressure, though water supply and drug smuggling sustain border tensions [economic-news, social-woes-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): In addition to sanctions, Tehran has warmed up to the Taliban due to its larger fear of the Islamic State, although Iranian-backed Shia militias (such as Fatemiyoun) are causing trouble for this arrangement. A dam in Nimroz (Afghanistan) is blocking water that would otherwise go to Iran. Iran has imported $45m in goods via western Afghanistan, which is a 20% increase from the same period last year. Otherwise, the title says it all.
• Al Jazeera (30/12/21): Iran launches rocket into space as nuclear talks continue - Iran uses satellite carrier rocket to send three research devices into space, state media reports, as talks to revive nuclear deal continue in Vienna. [!]
• WSWS (30/12/21): Protests by workers and pensioners across Iran over low pay and pensions [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Iran, Iraq move closer to construct cross-border railway [rail-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (28/12/21): Iran orders crypto-mining ban to prevent winter blackouts - The ban is the second time this year that Iran ordered a shutdown of authorised cryptocurrency mining centres to ease the strain on the country’s power plants. [cryptocurrency-news, energy-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (27/12/21): Iran and Iraq again agree to connect their railway networks - Both countries pledged to build the Basra-Shalamcheh railway years ago but have yet to do so. [rail-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Iraq court rejects Iran-backed parties' appeal against election vote - Iraq's Supreme Court on Monday rejected appeals lodged by Iran-backed Shia factions against the results of a parliamentary election, the chief judge said, derailing their attempt to overturn the vote in which they performed poorly, reports Reuters. [court-news, electoral-news]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Iran to announce new ambassador in Yemen after predecessor's death
• Al Jazeera (27/12/21): French national jailed in Iran since 2020 goes on hunger strike - Benjamin Briere, 36, is being detained over alleged spying and propaganda against Iran – charges he rejects as fabricated. [!]
• South China Morning Post (24/12/21): Sri Lanka to pay off US$251 million oil debt to Iran – with Ceylon tea - The first-of-its-kind barter deal will allow sanctions-hit Tehran to avoid having to use scarce hard currency to pay for imports of the widely consumed staple - Ceylon tea made up nearly half of Iranian consumption in 2016, but the proportion has declined in recent years
• Al-Monitor (23/12/21): US Navy seizes thousands of guns bound for Yemen’s Houthis - The US military said the boat, which was carrying the AK-47 cache, came from Iran [us-policy-news] [!]
• Defense One (22/12/21): Don’t Attack Iran - Those who advocate strikes against nuclear sites are underestimating the risks and overestimating the benefit.
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Israel knows attacking Iranian nuke program will bring war with Hezbollah - Israeli leadership is coping not only with the question of military preparedness for the possibility of attacking the Iranian nuclear program, but also with the implications of such an attack on Israel’s homeland security, its economy and its growth. [!]
• Wall Street Journal (21/12/21): Iran’s Top Diplomat to Houthi-Controlled Yemen Dies of Covid-19 - Hassan Irloo was smuggled into Yemen in 2020 and named ambassador to parts of the country controlled by Houthis Paywall Summary (?): Iran blames unnamed countries for delaying Irloo's return, although clearly a jab at Saudi Arabia, who had various terms and negotiations with the Houthis to secure Irloo's ride home, due to Riyadh's air blockade of Sana'a, Yemen's capital (which the Houthis control) (see WSJ reporting on the negotiations, (18/12/21, 17/12/21). He had been announced as stable as recently as Saturday.
• Wall Street Journal (18/12/21): Iran’s Top Diplomat in Yemen Leaves the Country - Hassan Irloo was smuggled into Yemen last year and named Iran’s ambassador to parts of the country controlled by the Houthis Paywall Summary (?): An Iraqi plane picked him up. The Saudis cast this as a sign of friction between the Houthis and Tehran (Tehran dismisses this); the Houthis + Tehran claim it is because he needs COVID-19 treatment (turned out the latter, at very least, was true). Irloo is a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp. It's not clear if Houthis had releases Saudi hostages, as requested by Riyadh (see 17/12/21).
• Wall Street Journal (17/12/21): Yemen’s Houthis Seek Departure of Top Iranian Diplomat - Rebel group asked Saudi Arabia to allow ambassador to leave, in a move seen in Riyadh as sign of rift between Houthis and Tehran Paywall Summary (?): Last year, the ambassador was smuggled in, which Saudis 'see' to indicate strain between the two allies. WSJ reports there are local concerns that ambassador Hassan Irloo, while helpful in planning, adds to perceptions in Yemen that the Houthis are beholden to Tehran. The Saudis won't allow an Iranian plane to do the retrieval, only a Omani or Iraqi one, and require freeing some high-profile Saudi hostages in return. Irloo allegedly has COVID-19 and needs to get out, although WSJ reports local skepticisim this is true (soon to be proven true though).
• Just Security (21/12/21): Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard staged a major military exercise across Iran’s south yesterday, amid heightened tensions over Tehran’s nuclear program and the recent pausing of negotiations in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear deal. The Guard’s aerospace division, ground troops and naval forces joined in the five-day drill, with maritime forces set to maneuver in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state TV reported. Amir Vahdat reports for AP.
• Al-Monitor (16/12/21): Hungary seeks Iran’s help stopping Afghan migration to Europe - Hungary’s controversial Prime Minister Viktor Orban is a vocal critic of Muslim migration to Europe, and his government believes Iran can help stop the flow of people
• Al-Monitor (16/12/21): Unprecedented drought pushes Iran's southeast to brink - A new, grim estimate says Iran's already underdeveloped Sistan-Baluchistan province will have to brace not only for a worsening water crisis but for ripple effects as well, including severe economic and social repercussions. [social-woes-news, climate-change-news, disaster-news]
• Juts Security (16/12/21): The announcement of Iran’s latest concession comes as diplomats send mixed signals on the progress of talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran
• Juts Security (16/12/21): Iran has agreed to replace surveillance cameras at a key site that manufactures advanced uranium centrifuges. However, Iran continues to block inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, from viewing the videos which the cameras produce and from replacing the full memory cards in cameras at other sites. Steven Erlanger reports for the New York Times.
• Al Jazeera (15/12/21): Iran allows IAEA to reinstall cameras at Karaj nuclear facility - IAEA to not have access to the recordings from the cameras, which will be installed ‘after technical reviews by Iranian experts’. [!]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Omani military leader visits Iran - Oman, a member o[f] the GCC, maintains good relations with Iran. [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): How armed drones may have helped turn the tide in Ethiopia’s war - Cheap and efficient drones are increasingly becoming decisive weapons in modern conflicts.
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Iranian teachers demand better pay in nationwide strikes - The strikes come as the teachers accuse the government and parliament of failing them. - Last week, a senior and well-known member of the teachers union, Rasoul Bodaghi, was beaten and arrested at his home in Tehran. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, union-news, labor-news]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Since Kabul fell to the Taliban in August, Iran has deported hundreds of thousands of Afghans and has been unwilling to consider asylum applications. Iranian authorities are deporting between 2,500 and 4,000 Afghans every day, compounding an already-tense situation at the Afghan-Iranian border. Sune Engel Rasmussen and Aresu Eqbali report for the Wall Street Journal. [immigrant-news]
• Al-Monitor (10/12/21): BBC calls for Iran to stop 'campaign of harassment' against staff - The British broadcaster has publicly called out Iran for cross-border threats and harassment of its journalists and their family members. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (9/12/21): US to warn UAE banks, firms against sanctioned Iran dealings - The Wall Street Journal reports that US officials will warn petrochemical companies, private firms and banks of "extreme risk" for noncompliance. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): The U.S. Navy has seized 171 surface-to-air missiles, eight anti-tank missiles, and 1.1 million barrels of petroleum products worth $261 million from two Iranian ships in the Arabian Sea in three separate instances since 2019 [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/12/21): A growing number of former Israeli security officials are publicly blaming Tel Aviv for opposing the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, while warning that economic sanctions against Iran are not slowing its nuclear progress. Shira Rubin reports for the Washington Post.
• Just Security (9/12/21): The Biden administration is moving to tighten enforcement of sanctions against Iran, according to senior State and Treasury Department officials. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Militant groups increasingly are acquiring armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), ranging from sophisticated Iranian-built models which are capable of long-distance flights to cheaper, off-the-shelf models operated by remote control and modified to carry small but powerful explosives. The proliferation of armed UAVs, particularly among paramilitary groups with close ties to Iran, has been described as a growing threat in the Middle East and beyond by officials and analysts. Joby Warrick, Souad Mekhennet and Louisa Loveluck report for the Washington Post.
• Just Security (7/12/21): Israel carried out an airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia today, causing a fire in a container storage area, Syrian state media has reported. “A Syrian military source told Sana news agency that warplanes flying over the Mediterranean Sea fired several missiles at the port’s container yard overnight. No casualties were reported. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said the target was an Iranian weapons shipment. Israel’s military has not commented,” BBC News reports.
• Just Security (6/12/21): The national security adviser of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has made a rare trip to meet his Iranian counterpart and Iran’s hard-line president in Tehran today. The UAE has long viewed the Islamic Republic in Iran as its main regional threat, and the rare visit comes as the UAE and Saudi Arabia are both negotiating with Iran amid efforts in Vienna to save the 2015 nuclear deal. Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell report for AP.
• Just Security (3/12/21): Negotiations to revive the 2015 nuclear deal hit another roadblock yesterday following a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that Iran is continuing to expand its uranium enrichment.
• Al-Monitor (30/11/21): Iran's crackdown risks blinding protesters - Amid rising alarm about protesters held incommunicado, medics and activists fear injury and even permanent blindness from birdshot fired by security forces. [protest-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Just Security (30/11/21: Talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal recommenced yesterday, with optimistic statements being made by E.U., Iranian and Russian diplomats, despite skepticism about the likelihood of success.; Iran is “insisting on sanctions lifting” immediately, which may be a stumbling block to progress in the talks
• Just Security (29/11/21): Israel and Iran are now targeting ordinary civilians through large scale cyber operations. “In recent weeks, a cyberattack on Iran’s nationwide fuel distribution system paralyzed the country’s 4,300 gas stations, which took 12 days to have service fully restored. That attack was attributed to Israel by two U.S. defense officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity…It was followed days later by cyberattacks in Israel against a major medical facility and a popular LGBTQ dating site, attacks Israeli officials have attributed to Iran,” Farnaz Fassihi and Ronen Bergman report for The New York Times. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (29/11/21): Iran has announced further advances in its uranium enrichment, which reduces the amount of time Tehran would need to develop a nuclear weapon, if it chooses to do so. Nicole Gaouette, Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler report for CNN.
• Just Security (29/11/21): The talks with Iran to revive the 2015 nuclear deal (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) will restart today, with the U.S. and allies “unsure how Tehran’s new government will approach negotiations, not optimistic about the prospects ahead and emphasizing that if diplomacy fails, the U.S. is ‘prepared to use other options,’” Nicole Gaouette, Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler report for CNN.
• Al-Monitor (26/11/21): Iran riot police 'forcibly' sweep water protest site - During the pre-dawn raid in the city of Esfahan, baton-wielding security forces set protest tents on fire and pushed farmers out of the dried river basin, the site of more than two weeks of public demonstrations. [protest-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): The head of the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) left Tehran late yesterday after failing to reach a deal to allow IAEA inspectors to gain access to a factory involved in centrifuge production for the Iranian nuclear program. The factory in Karaj has resumed production of key centrifuge components for enriching uranium without IAEA monitoring. Diplomats have said that the talks between the IAEA and Iran are ongoing. Laurence Norman reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• Al-Monitor (22/11/21): Bahrain says it thwarted terror attack, seized weapons from Iran - The Bahraini Interior Ministry said the suspects were linked to terrorist groups in Iran
• Al-Monitor (22/11/21): Water protests spread in Iran - Farmers in a second province in Iran protest the water crisis in their region [protest-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Iran’s IRGC seizes foreign tanker for smuggling diesel - The Revolutionary Guards say the unnamed foreign ship was carrying 150,000 litres of diesel
• Al-Monitor (19/11/21): Thousands of Iranians protest water scarcity in Isfahan - The demonstrations in Isfahan follow widespread protests over water shortages in the oil-rich southwestern Khuzestan province in July [protest-news, climate-change-news]
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): Oil pipeline reportedly explodes in Iran's Khuzestan region - Tasnim news agency reported the blast "caused small tremors" but no casualties. [industrial-failure-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): The U.S. has indicted two Iranian nationals for interfering in the 2020 presidential elections, and has sanctioned six Iranian officials for their role in the alleged plot. According to the Treasury Department, state-sponsored Iranian cyber actors conducted wide-ranging disinformation operations in an attempt to influence American voters and undermine voter confidence in the electoral process. The two Iranians charged by the Department of Justice are still at large and presumed to be based in Iran. Mark Hosenball and Sarah N. Lynch report for Reuters. [cyber-security-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): An armed drone strike against a U.S. military base in southern Syria last month was conducted by Iran as retaliation for Israeli airstrikes in Syria, according to various U.S. and Israeli officials
• Just Security (18/11/21): Iran has increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to 60%, a level considered highly enriched and close to the 90% required for nuclear weapon development capabilities, the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has reported. Kiyoko Metzler reports for AP.
• Just Security (18/11/21): American, British, and Australian officials have warned that hackers linked to the government of Iran are targeting critical sectors of the U.S. economy, including transportation, healthcare and public health [cyber-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/11/21): UN experts call on Iran to repeal ‘anti-abortion’ population law - New legislation puts more restrictions on already limited abortions, outlaws voluntary sterilisations and discourages contraceptives. [civil-rights-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The Pentagon has accused Iran of “unsafe and unprofessional” conduct after an Iranian helicopter approached the USS Essex in the Gulf of Oman last week. Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told reporters that the Iranian helicopter flew approximately 25 yards off the port side of USS Essex and circled the ship three times.
• Just Security (17/11/21): Iran has resumed production of equipment for advanced centrifuges at a site the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been unable to monitor or gain access to for months, according to diplomats
• Al-Monitor (15/11/21): IRGC Syria commander removed 'upon request from Assad' - The future of Iran’s presence in Syria seems to be dividing the Syrian leadership.
• Al Jazeera (14/11/21): Two major quakes hit southern Iran one minute apart; one dead - The powerful tremors were also felt in nearby provinces, as well as in Dubai.
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Iran frees Vietnamese tanker seized after US navy confrontation - The IRGC said it had thwarted an attempt by the US navy to ‘steal’ Iranian oil by force in October.
• The Economist World This Week (13/11/21): Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Ali Bagheri-Kani, visited European capitals ahead of talks with America and European powers aimed at resurrecting the nuclear deal that Iran signed in 2015. Mr Bagheri-Kani seemed to rule out any discussion of Iran’s nuclear activity at the talks, and said that instead they should focus on lifting sanctions. America, which walked away from the deal in 2018, disagrees.
• Al-Monitor (11/11/21): Iran deports thousands of Afghan refugees, UN agency says - In the last week of October, Iran sent back more than 28,000 Afghans who fled across the border. [immigrant-news]
• CPJ (11/11/21): Iranian photojournalist Rahil Mousavi arrested on unspecified charges [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): The FBI has warned U.S. companies that Iranian hackers have searched cybercriminal websites for sensitive data stolen from American and foreign organizations that could be used in future efforts to hack those organizations
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): Aid group says 4,000-5,000 Afghans crossing into Iran daily - Norwegian Refugee Council says as many as 300,000 Afghans have crossed the border since the Taliban took power in August [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Iraqi officials are struggling to contain Iran-backed militias, with Sunday’s drone attack on Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s residence highlighting the enduring threat the paramilitary groups pose. U.S. officials have said an unspecified Iran-backed Iraqi militia was likely behind the attack, although the militias have denied responsibility. Iran also has disavowed the attack and sent a top general to Baghdad to ease tensions.
• Just Security (9/11/21): Iran’s military warned off U.S. drones trying to approach Iranian war games near the mouth of the Gulf, Iranian state broadcaster IRIB has said. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (9/11/21): Iraqi officials are blaming an Iran-backed militia group for the attempted assassination of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.
• Just Security (8/11/21): Iran’s judicial authorities have banned an Iranian daily newspaper for publishing a front-page graphic that appeared to show Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s hand drawing the poverty line in Iran, amid widespread anger over the nation’s cratering economy. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (8/11/21): Iran’s military has begun its annual war games in a coastal area of the Gulf of Oman, state TV has reported, less than a month before the upcoming nuclear talks in Vienna.
• Just Security (8/11/21): Iran is claiming to have nearly doubled its stockpile of enriched uranium in less than a month ahead of the resumption of talks to restart the 2015 nuclear deal
• Just Security (4/11/21): Vietnam has been in talks with Iranian authorities over the seizure last month of a Vietnamese oil tanker off the Iranian coast, in an effort to guarantee the safety of the crew, Vietnam has said today. Talks had taken place on a diplomatic level “to verify information and settle the incident to ensure safety and humane treatment for Vietnamese citizens,” a Vietnam Foreign Ministry spokesperson told a regular briefing.
• Just Security (4/11/21): U.S. and Iranian officials have both said that Iran seized an oil tanker in the Sea of Oman last month after an encounter with the U.S. Navy, but the two sides have given “widely differing accounts of whose tanker it was and what, exactly, had happened.” Iranian officials and a statement by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said that the United States had seized a tanker carrying Iranian oil on Oct. 24 and that an assault by Iranian commandos had taken the tanker back. “Two U.S. officials…said that Iran had seized a Vietnamese-flagged tanker, the MV Southys. A U.S. Navy destroyer, The Sullivans, arrived to monitor the seizure but took no action and was not threatened by approaching Iranian speedboats, one of the officials said. John F. Kirby, the chief Pentagon spokesperson, denied Iran’s allegations that the United States had seized the merchant vessel, whose nationality he declined to identify,” Farnaz Fassihi and Eric Schmitt report for The New York Times. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (4/11/21): Iran has announced that it will resume multilateral talks in Vienna on reviving a nuclear deal on Nov. 29.
• CPJ (1/11/21): Iranian journalist Manoochehr Aghaei begins 8-month prison sentence [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (29/10/21): US unveils sanctions targeting Iran's drone program - The Treasury Department issued fresh sanctions on Friday targeting individuals and companies the United States says are supporting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ drone program. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (28/10/21): Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Loavrov has told Afghanistan’s neighboring countries to refuse to host U.S. or NATO military forces [russia-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (28/10/21): Iran to Rejoin Talks to Restore Nuclear Deal Abandoned by Trump
• New York Times (26/10/21): Iranian Motorists Hit With Cyberattack at Filling Stations - Iranian news agencies reported that a cyberattack of unidentified origin had sabotaged a payment system. [cyber-security-news]
• Just Security (25/10/21): The head of the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said in an interview that the program’s monitoring in Iran is “no longer intact” after Tehran did not repair cameras at a key nuclear facility.
• The Guardian (23/10/21): New Iranian regional governor slapped in face at inauguration - Attack on Brig Gen Abedin Khorram in East Azerbaijan province an unusual breach of security in Islamic Republic
• Just Security (19/10/21): Iran and Venezuela have announced plans to sign a 20-year cooperation agreement when Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro visits Tehran in the coming months.
• Al-Monitor (18/10/21): Turkey’s spy bust escalates rivalry with Iran - Iran and Turkey are increasingly rivals in the Caucasus and in Iraq.
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Iranian warship fends off pirate attack in Gulf of Aden - Pirates on five boats attacked two Iranian oil tankers but were repelled by army vessels, authorities said.
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Iranian court upholds new jail term for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe - The Iranian British woman was handed a new one-year jail sentence after spending five years in prison.
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Iran’s ex-central bank chief and officials sentenced to prison - The judiciary said the officials’ illegal distribution scheme hurt the country’s economy at a time of special hardship under US pressure. [crime-news, economic-news]
• Just Security (14/10/21): More than 3 million Afghan refugees are trying to reach Iran and Pakistan and the displacement of ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan may escalate tensions to a critical level, a Russian-led security bloc has said today [immigrant-news]
• Wired (14/10/21): A Telegram Bot Told Iranian Hackers When They Got a Hit - APT35 may not be the most dangerous group out there, but they've got a new phishing trick. [cyber-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (13/10/21): Azerbaijan, Iran agree to mend ties ‘through dialogue’ - Relations between Baku and Tehran soured in recent weeks over allegations Israel’s military was active in Azerbaijan.
• Al Jazeera (12/10/21): India: Adani Ports to shun cargo from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran - Decision follows seizure of three tonnes of heroin from two containers at Mundra port off India’s western coast in Gujarat state last month.
• Just Security (12/10/21): Iran has started a massive two-day air defense drill in the country’s central desert, Iran state TV has reported.
• Just Security (12/10/21): Suspected Iran-linked hackers have targeted dozens of defense technology and maritime transportation firms, successfully breaching a small number, Microsoft announced yesterday [cyber-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): Iran’s nuclear chief reports jump in 20 percent enriched uranium - Head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran says Iran has produced over 120kg of 20 percent enriched uranium.
• Just Security (8/10/21): Iranian state TV has reported that speedboats belonging to Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard intercepted U.S. vessels in the Persian Gulf. Footage was aired by the Iranian report showing at least one vessel with the U.S. flag and several personnel on board as at least two speedboats appear to be chasing it. A U.S. Navy spokesperson said he was not aware of any such encounter at sea over the past days.
• Al-Monitor (6/10/21): Kurdish party in Iran claims killing of Iranian intelligence operative - The news comes at a time of high tension between Kurdish groups and the Islamic Republic.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Iran has asked for the U.S. to unfreeze $10 billion of its funds as a condition for the resumption of nuclear deal talks, Iran’s foreign minister has said.; Germany has rejected Iran’s demands for the U.S. to unfreeze Iranian assets as a condition for nuclear talks to resume, Germany’s Foreign Ministry has said today.
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Israel accuses Iran of attack attempt against Israelis in Cyprus - Nicosia says an armed individual was arrested after crossing from Turkish-controlled north
• Al-Monitor (30/9/21): Iranian military to hold drill over Azerbaijani objections - President Ilham Aliyev criticized a planned military exercise close to the Iran-Azerbaijani border.
• Al-Monitor (30/9/21): Iran's supreme leader issues ban on Samsung, LG appliances - Khamenei's directive came after the two South Korean giants were about to make a comeback into their lucrative Iranian market following their brief sanctions-triggered departure.
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): Pakistani soldier killed in cross-border fire from Iran: Army - ‘Terrorists’ attacked a post from Iranian territory, killing one soldier and injuring another, Pakistan’s military said.
• Just Security (28/9/21): Unidentified aircraft hit a base run by Iranian-backed militias in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al Zor near the Iraqi border, residents and military sources have said.
• Al-Monitor (27/9/21): Two dead after fire at Iranian military facility - The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps did not say what caused the fire.
• Just Security (27/9/21): Iran has failed to fully honor two terms of the nuclear monitoring deal struck two weeks ago, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has said.
• Al-Monitor (18/9/21): Iraqi Sunnis look to KRG for safety as militias concerns fester - As attacks believed to be by Iran-linked armed groups continue amid questions over how long US forces will retain a presence in Iraq, Sunni Arabs are again seeking safety in the Kurdistan Region of the country.
• Al-Monitor (18/9/21): Iran joins China, Russia in Shanghai Cooperation Organization - Iran has been upgraded to permanent member status in the Eurasian alliance, of which Turkey is also a partner.
• Wired (17/9/21): A New App Helps Iranians Hide Messages in Plain Sight - Nahoft uses encryption to turn chats into a random jumble of words, and it works even when the internet doesn’t. [tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• South China Morning Post (17/9/21): US sanctions seven Hong Kong-based companies over Iran, Hezbollah - The Treasury Department says Morteza Minaye Hashemi, who lives in China, had funnelled money to Iran’s Qods Force and Hezbollah - Two Chinese nationals Yan Su Xuan and Song Jing are accused of helping Hashemi establish bank accounts and serving as straw owners for his companies [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): Israel’s navy has stepped up its activities in the Red Sea “exponentially” in the face of growing Iranian threats to Israeli shipping, the country’s recently retired navy commander, Vice Adm. Eli Sharvit, has said.
• Just Security (16/9/21): Hezbollah has begun to bring Iranian fuel into Lebanon via Syria today. The Shi’ite Muslim group says that fuel supplied should ease a crippling energy crisis in Lebanon, but opponents are warning it risks provoking U.S. sanctions
• Just Security (16/9/21): Iran has acknowledged that it removed several surveillance cameras installed by the U.N. nuclear inspectors at a centrifuge assembly site that came under a mysterious attack earlier this year.
• Just Security (15/9/21): Iranian security guards physically harassed several female U.N. atomic agency inspectors at a nuclear facility over the past few months, diplomats have said
• Al-Monitor (15/9/21): Gantz says Israel could accept new nuclear deal with Iran - Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz also said Israel wants to see a “viable US-led plan B” if talks between Tehran and world powers fall through.
• Al-Monitor (15/9/21): Iranian nuclear negotiator replaced by hardline protege - The appointment of the hardline figure Ali Bagheri Kani at the foreign ministry has raised questions about ongoing negotiations over the 2015 nuclear deal.
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Iran’s intelligence accused of killing Kurdish political activist - Yasser Mangouri’s family was informed of his death more than 50 days into his summoning in the northwestern city of Piranshahr.
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Iranian security official tells Iraq to expel Iranian Kurdish groups - Iranian officials have been criticizing Kurdish parties from Iran who have a presence in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, where they are regularly targeted by the Iranian military.
• Just Security (14/9/21): Iran has come within roughly a month of having enough material to fuel a single nuclear weapon, experts studying new data contained in reports last week by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have said.
• CPJ (13/9/21): Iranian photojournalist Majid Saeedi arrested while covering Afghan refugee camps
• Democracy Now (13/9/21): Iran and U.N. Atomic Watchdog Reach Deal to Resume Monitoring of Nuclear Sites
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Afghan crisis exposes rifts across Iran's political spectrum - At the two ends of Iran's political spectrum angry voices are being heard in a fierce battle over the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan, and especially the question of support for resistance forces in Panjshir Valley.
• Al-Monitor (7/9/21): Iranian commander warns Iraqi Kurdish government about harboring opposition - The IRGC's rare warning has fueled fears about civilian casualties in the Kurdish villages stretching on the Iran-Iraq border.
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Iranian man 'lashed to death' over alcohol possession - While the family released videos of the victim's body with lash marks, authorities claim his death was caused by deteriorating health.
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Iranian tanker carrying fuel for Lebanon to dock in Syria - Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah promised Iranian vessels would bring fuel to Lebanon amid its harrowing energy crisis.
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Iranian forces battle group in Kurdistan province - Iran has fought Kurdish-Iranian groups recently.
• CPJ (1/9/21): Iran arrests financial reporter Amir-Abbas Azarmvand on security charges
• The Guardian (31/8/21): Iran investigates Evin prison guards after abuse video leak - Six guards facing criminal cases after footage showed widespread abuse of detainees at Tehran facility
• Al Jazeera (27/8/21): Lebanon’s Hezbollah agrees to third shipment of Iranian fuel - Hassan Nasrallah agrees to new shipment to ease shortages in the country, but critics warn the move risks sanctions.
• Al-Monitor (25/8/21): Iran authorities embarrassed by hacked CCTV prison videos - The hacked videos that show various moments of abuse continue to trickle in and have drawn a rare apology from the country's top prison official
• Al Jazeera (24/8/21): Iran resumes a crucial lifeline to Afghanistan: Fuel - Taliban told Iran to continue exports of petroleum products which the latter had paused over safety concerns.
• Just Security (24/8/21): Syrian army units aided by pro-Iranian militias have staged a major assault on an opposition enclave in the southern border city of Deraa al Balaad in a bid to retake the last opposition stronghold in southern Syria, residents, army and opposition sources have said.
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Turkey’s Sinjar strikes carry stern messages to Tehran, Baghdad - As the United States braces to withdraw its combat forces from Iraq, the country’s Kurdistan Region is emerging as the scene of a mounting struggle for control between Turkey and Iran.
• Just Security (19/8/21): Iran closed its border to Afghanistan yesterday, as thousands of Afghan nationals sought to flee the country following the Taliban's takeover.; An Iranian fuel tanker will be setting sail towards Lebanon "within hours," the leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group has said today, warning Israel and the United States not to intercept the shipment
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Iran ramps up uranium enrichment as nuclear talks stall - The UN International Atomic Energy Agency also has concluded that Iran is continuing to produce uranium metal in violation of the 2015 nuclear deal.
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-foreign-policy-news]
• Bellingcat (17/8/21): Is Ethiopia Flying Iranian-Made Armed Drones?
• Just Security (17/8/21): On 14 August 2021, the International Atomic Energy Agency “verified … that Iran had used 257 g of uranium enriched up to 20% U-235 in the form of UF4 (uranium tetrafluoride) to produce 200 g of uranium metal enriched up to 20% U-235,” saying that this was step three in a four-step plan by Iran.
• LeftCom (10/8/21): Iranian Oil Workers Strike Update
• The Guardian (14/8/21): Iran to impose six-day lockdown to combat coronavirus ‘fifth wave’ - All bazaars, markets and public offices to be shut, as well as movie theatres, gyms and restaurants
• Al-Monitor (13/8/21): Intel: US sanctions oil broker linked to Iran’s Quds Force [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (11/8/21): Iran judiciary rules in favor of notorious ex-prosecutor - Apart from his notoriety as the "butcher of the free media," Saeed Mortazavi has been implicated in multiple controversial cases, from torture and murder to corruption and embezzlement.
• CPJ (10/8/21): Two Kurdish Iranian journalists sentenced to 2.5 years in jail, 90 lashesTwo Kurdish Iranian journalists sentenced to 2.5 years in jail, 90 lashes
• Al-Monitor (6/8/21): Raisi ready to support ‘any diplomatic plan’ that lifts sanctions on Iran - Meanwhile, Israeli prime minister is ready to "send a message" to Iran in response to drone attack on Israeli-managed ship that killed two.
• The Moscow Times (4/8/21): Iran, Ghana Among Those Hit Hardest By Russia’s Vaccine Delivery Delays – BBC
• Democracy Now (4/8/21): Ebrahim Raisi Becomes New Iranian President, Vows to Fight U.S. Sanctions
• The Guardian (3/8/21): Iranian-backed forces suspected of tanker hijacking off UAE coast - Panama-registered Asphalt Princess was reportedly seized by eight to nine armed individuals
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Iran Denies Responsibility For Attack on Israel-Linked Oil Tanker
• ZDNet (29/7/21): Hackers used never-before-seen wiper in recent attack on Iranian train system - SentinelOne analysts were able to recreate the July 9 attack and identify the threat actor behind it.
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Two reported dead in attack on Israeli-operated ship near Oman - Iran was suspected in the attack on the UAE-bound Mercer Street, which is connected to an Israeli billionaire businessman.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): U.S. Weighing New Sanctions on Iran as Nuclear Deal Hangs in Balance
• Al-Monitor (27/7/21): Iran protests gain momentum despite deadly crackdown - The protests that rocked the oil-rich province of Khuzestan have spread to other areas despite the government's iron-fist response and severe internet disruptions.
• Just Security (27/7/21): Iran has said that its security forces have arrested a network of agents working for Israel and that it has seized a cache of weapons it said were intended for use during recent unrest and protests sparked by water shortages in Iran, state media has reported
• The Guardian (23/7/21): Iran accused of using unlawful force in water protest crackdown - Amnesty says security forces used live ammunition on protesters while officials blame ‘opportunists’
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Rouhani says Iran water protesters have right to demonstrate - President intervenes after days of protests over shortages in Khuzestan province that have left three dead
• The Guardian (22/7/21): Danish military spots Iranian navy ships in Baltic Sea - Newly built destroyer and support vessel thought to be on way to Russian naval parade in St Petersburg
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Iran opens oil terminal to bypass strategic Strait of Hormuz - New terminal located near Jask port on Gulf of Oman, allowing ships headed into Arabian Sea and beyond to avoid narrow strait.
• Al Jazeera (21/7/21): Violence escalates in water-shortage protests in Iran’s Khuzestan - Six nights of protests over water shortages have turned deadly, with three civilians and one police officer killed.
• Al Jazera (20/7/21): Iran locks down capital amid COVID surge ahead of Eid holiday - Six-day lockdowns imposed ahead of Eid al-Adha holiday as Delta variant drives Iran’s fifth major wave of infections.
• Al Jazeera (17/7/21): Two killed [shot] in Iran’s Khuzestan water crisis protests - Officials blame rioters for the deaths that occurred in the Khuzestan province town of Shadegan.
• Left Voice (15/7/21): Iranian Oil Workers Organize the Country’s Biggest Strikes since the Iranian Revolution - For almost a month, Iranian oil workers, along with workers in other industries, have organized demonstrations and wildcat strikes in response to a dire economic and health crisis accentuated by U.S. sanctions.
• The Guardian (13/7/21): Four alleged Iranian spies charged in plot to kidnap US-based journalist and critic - Members allegedly explored ways to spirit journalist away by speedboat in scheme that reads like ‘far-fetch movie plot’, FBI says
• The Guardian (10/7/21): ‘Cyber-attack’ hits Iran’s transport ministry and railways - Message boards in train stations show cancellations though rail operator denies disruptions
• The Economist World This Week (10/7/21): Iran told the International Atomic Energy Agency, the world’s nuclear watchdog, that it had begun the process of producing enriched uranium metal, which can be used in reactors—or to make bombs. European powers called Iran’s action “a serious violation” of the multinational nuclear accord they signed in 2015. America, which left the pact in 2018, is trying to revive it.
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): Afghan gov’t delegation meets Taliban in Iran - Tehran hosts the first significant peace talks in months in a previously unannounced meeting that comes as US forces leave.
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): Iran Hosts Intra-Afghan Talks Amid Taliban Advances, U.S. Withdrawal
• Al Jazeera (6/7/21): Iran says Israel attacked Karaj site to thwart nuclear talks - Gov’t blames Israel for June attack, accuses it of trying to derail negotiations in Vienna that could see harsh US sanctions lifted.
• Al Jazeera (5/7/21): Iran’s only nuclear plant back online after two-week shutdown - Bushehr plant manager says power generation resumed and asks Iranians to minimise electricity consumption.
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): U.N. Sec.-Gen. Guterres Urges U.S. to Lift Sanctions on Iran
• Center for Human Rights in Iran (29/6/21): (via On Labor)
• Democracy Now (29/6/21): Iranian-Backed Militia Strikes Back After Biden Orders Bombings in Iraq and Syria
• The Guardian (27/6/21): US strikes hit Iran-backed militia facilities in Iraq and Syria - Pentagon says air strikes were in response to drone attacks against US personnel in Iraq
• New York Times (23/6/21): Iran Atomic Agency Says It Thwarted Attack on a Facility - The attack was said to have been carried out by a small drone against a manufacturing center used in the production of centrifuges.
• Democracy Now (23/6/21): U.S. Gov’t Seizes PressTV.com and Other Websites Linked to Iran
• Al Jazeera (20/6/21): Iran’s only nuclear power plant undergoes emergency shutdown - Official says temporary shutdown for repairs started on Saturday and could last up to four days, possibly causing power outages.
• The Guardian (19/6/21): Iran’s president-elect, Ebrahim Raisi, is hardliner linked with mass executions - Raisi has been accused of systematically sending as many as 3,000 people to slaughter in late 80s
• New York Times (11/6/21): Iran Pays Delinquent U.N. Dues, Getting Its Vote Back - The $16.2 million was drawn from Iranian money in a Korean bank that had been frozen by U.S. sanctions but was freed to pay the dues — apparently a conciliatory signal by the Biden administration.
• The Economist World This Week (12/6/21): Iran held a presidential debate in which Mohsen Mehralizadeh, a former provincial governor, pointed out the obvious: the regime has rigged the ballot in order to ensure that Ebrahim Raisi, the head of Iran’s judiciary and a staunch hardliner, wins the election on June 18th.
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): US sanctions Iran-based money network funding Yemen’s Houthis - Action comes as US also lifts sanction on three former Iranian government officials and two companies.
• Democracy Now (10/6/21): U.S. to Keep Trump-Era Sanctions on Iran Even If Nuclear Deal Is Restored
• New York Times (2/6/21): Fires Sink Iran’s Largest Warship and Ravage Big Refinery - The double fire raised suspicions that Iran was once again a sabotage target, as diplomacy to resurrect the nuclear deal advanced.
• Al Jazeera (29/5/21): Indonesia releases seized Iranian tanker after four months - Iranian ship was seized because of the suspected illegal transfer of oil in Indonesian waters.
• New York Times (30/5/21): Iran Will Try French Citizen on Spying Charges - Benjamin Brière stands accused of flying a drone and taking photographs in a prohibited area. His lawyer said Iran would put him on trial for espionage, which can carry the death penalty.
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): Iran reached a deal with the International Atomic Energy Agency to extend for a month an agreement that allows international monitors to inspect its nuclear programme. The head of the agency said he was very concerned about Iran’s claim to be enriching uranium to a purity level of 60%, a level only countries that are making bombs attempt to reach.
• Democracy Now (27/5/21): Iran Nuclear Deal Talks Offer Hope as IAEA Head Expresses Concern over Uranium Enrichment
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Iran’s Guardian Council disqualifies most presidential hopefuls - Seven candidates have been allowed to run in Iran’s presidential elections on June 18, and none of them is a prominent reformist or pragmatist.
• Al Jazeera (19/5/21): Agreement on restoring Iran’s nuclear deal ‘within reach’ - Negotiators hope next round of talks in Vienna will lead to US lifting sanctions and Iran returning to full compliance.
• Al Jazeera (15/5/21): Conservative Ebrahim Raisi tops Iran’s presidential candidates - Moderates protest systematic ‘removal’ of reformist candidates as conservatives and hardliners dominate the field.
• Al Jazeera (12/5/21): Iran’s Mahmoud Ahmadinejad registers to run for president – again - Ultraconservative Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who served as president from 2005 to 2013, enters this year’s race.
• New York Times (10/5/21): U.S. Vessel Fires Warning Shots at Iranian Patrol Boats - The incident, in the Strait of Hormuz, was the third time in just over a month that vessels from the two countries have come dangerously close.
• Al Jazeera (27/4/21): [In second encounter this month] US Navy says it fired warning shots at Iranian vessels in Gulf - United States says Iranian IRGC vessels came close to US Navy and Coast Guard ships on Monday evening.
• Al Jazeera: Iran, US warships in tense Middle East encounter - Iran has not commented on the incident in Persian Gulf, the first such encounter since last April.
• Al Jazeera: Leaked Javad Zarif recording stirs hot political debate in Iran - Zarif’s comments on power struggles within the Iranian establishment have proven controversial.

Iraq Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Iraq Live Map

• WSWS (30/12/21): Protests by lecturers and engineering graduates in southern Iraq [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Iran, Iraq move closer to construct cross-border railway [rail-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Iraq announces complete withdrawal of int'l coalition forces [!]
• Al-Monitor (27/12/21): Iran and Iraq again agree to connect their railway networks - Both countries pledged to build the Basra-Shalamcheh railway years ago but have yet to do so. [rail-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Protesters close Baghdad's Green Zone ahead of verdict on vote results [protest-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (27/12/21): Iraqi Kurds Hold Funerals for Family Members Who Drowned Crossing English Channel [immigrant-news]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Iraq court rejects Iran-backed parties' appeal against election vote - Iraq's Supreme Court on Monday rejected appeals lodged by Iran-backed Shia factions against the results of a parliamentary election, the chief judge said, derailing their attempt to overturn the vote in which they performed poorly, reports Reuters. [court-news, electoral-news]
• Middle East Monitor (25/12/21): Suicides surge in Iraq in 2021 [!]
• Al Jazeera (24/12/21): Governor of Iraq’s Najaf province resigns after mass protests - Louai al-Yasseri’s resignation follows harsh criticism from prominent Shia leader Moqtada al-Sadr. [protest-news, corruption-news, politics-news]
• Al-Monitor (20/12/21): Iraqi air force strikes Islamic State targets - Iraq has bombed Islamic State targets in the eastern Diyala province for the second month in a row. [!]
• Al Jazeera (19/12/21): Rockets fired at Baghdad’s Green Zone: Iraqi military - One rocket destroyed by air defence sysem and another landed near a national monument, damaging two cars, Iraq’s military says. [!]
• Al-Monitor (17/12/21): Eight dead after flooding in Iraqi Kurdistan - A heavy rainstorm hit the regional capital of Erbil [disaster-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (13/12/21): Turkey targets PKK-linked Yazidis inside Iraq - A local Yazidi armed group linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party and affiliated with the government-incorporated Popular Mobilization Units has been targeted as part of stepped-up Turkish cross-border operations. [!]
• Just Security (10/12/21): The U.S.-led global coalition against the Islamic State (IS) has ended its combat mission in Iraq. However, the 2,500 troops currently in the country will, at the Iraqi government’s invitation, remain to “advise, assist and enable” Iraqi security forces. BBC News reports. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): Turkey hits PKK targets in Iraq after three of its troops killed - A PKK attack killed three Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq, prompting a retaliatory air attack, Turkey says. [!]
• Al-Monitor (8/12/21): Iraq blames militias for Basra explosion that killed four - The Basra explosion caused by a booby-trapped motorcycle was aimed to assassinate an Iraqi investigative officer in charge of the militia's illegal activities in the province. [!]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Basra explosion: Several killed as blast rocks Iraqi city - Iraqi military says a motorcycle rigged with explosives caused the blast which killed at least four people and wounded four others. [!]
• Al-Monitor (1/12/21): How Mosul’s liberators became occupiers - Civilians in the Iraqi city of Mosul complain about the power of the militias who freed them from the clutches of the Islamic terror group IS, but turned to occupier later on [!]
• CPJ (2/12/21): Iraqi police arrest Al-Ahd TV reporter Hamid Majed after luring him to police station [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (3/12/21): Islamic State carries out another attack on Iraqi Kurdish forces - The Islamic State has attacked the security forces in Iraqi Kurdistan in recent days.
• Just Security (3/12/21): Ritscher also told the U.N. Security Council that evidence has shown that IS committed crimes against humanity and war crimes at a prison in the northern city of Mosul, Iraq, where at least 1,000 mostly Shia Muslim prisoners were systematically killed seven years ago. Al Jazeera reports.
• Just Security (3/12/21): Three villagers and 10 Kurdish soldiers have been killed in an attack by Islamic State (IS) militants on a village in northern Iraq, officials in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region have said. Reuters reports
• Al Jazeera (30/11/21): German court jails ISIL member for life over Yazidi genocide - Frankfurt court rules in case concerning death of a five-year-old girl bought as a slave and left to die in the sun. [court-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/11/21): Five Peshmerga killed in ISIL attack in Iraq’s Diyala - Armed group ISIL still poses a threat in several provinces in Iraq with hit-and-run attacks, kidnappings, and roadside bombs.
• Just Security (18/11/21): Hundreds of Iraqis who have camped for weeks at Belarus’s borders with the E.U. checked in for a flight back to Iraq on Thursday, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry has said. Charlotte Bruneau reports for Reuters. [immigrant-news]
• The Moscow Times (16/11/21): All Roads Lead to Belarus on Iraq 'Package Deals' [immigrant-news]
• CPJ (16/11/21): Iraqi Kurdish security forces raid, close office of news website Gav News in Duhok [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Belarusian airline stops flying Middle East citizens from Turkey - State-owned carrier Belavia bars Syrians, Yemenis and Iraqis from boarding flights at Ankara’s request as the migrant crisis grows. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): Iraqi officials are struggling to contain Iran-backed militias, with Sunday’s drone attack on Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s residence highlighting the enduring threat the paramilitary groups pose. U.S. officials have said an unspecified Iran-backed Iraqi militia was likely behind the attack, although the militias have denied responsibility. Iran also has disavowed the attack and sent a top general to Baghdad to ease tensions.
• Just Security (9/11/21): Iraqi officials are blaming an Iran-backed militia group for the attempted assassination of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.
• Just Security (8/11/21): Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has been targeted in an assassination attempt by drones at his residence. The explosive-laden drone attacked the prime minster’s residence in Baghdad early Sunday, in what Iraqi security officials said was an assassination attempt. Six of al-Kadhimi’s security detail members were injured in the attack, but “al-Kadhimi, who addressed the nation on television shortly after the attack, said he wasn’t hurt. The attack followed threats against al-Kadhimi from an Iran-backed militia leader, though the armed groups denied responsibility and no one immediately claimed the attack,” Ghassan Adnan and Jared Malsin report for the Wall Street Journal.
• Al Jazeera (5/11/21): Protests against Iraq election results turn violent - Supporters of political parties that suffered losses in last month’s polls clash with security forces outside Baghdad’s Green Zone.
• Al-Monitor (4/11/21): Islamic State attack sparks sectarian bloodletting in Iraq’s Diyala - An Islamic State attack has triggered a crescendo of acts of violence against and displacement of Sunnis in Iraq’s Diyala province, which borders Iran and has long suffered the presence of cells operating in its dense orchards and parts of the Hamrin Mountains.
• Al-Monitor (1/11/21): Iraq arrests alleged Islamic State fighters after deadly attack - The Islamic State killed two Kurdistan Region soldiers and 12 civilians in recent attacks in northern Iraq.
• Al-Monitor (28/10/21): Iraq sends troops to Diyala after attack by Islamic State - The Iraqi government is seeking to prevent both further attacks by the terrorist group and outbreaks of sectarian violence.
• Just Security (27/10/21): An attack in Iraq has killed 11 people and wounded 13 people, local security sources have said. The attack on a village in eastern Iraq has been blamed on the Islamic State group. One security source said that civilians were among those killed by small arms fire in the village, which is home to many members of the security service
• Just Security (20/10/21): Iraqis have protested recent parliamentary elections and demand a recount due to “fraud.” Several hundred supporters of Iraq’s Hashd al-Shaabi, a pro-Iranian former paramilitary force, gathered on a Baghdad street leading to the entrance of the Green Zone which is where the U.S. embassy, other diplomatic missions and government offices are located. The protesters denounced U.N. officials responsible for monitoring the elections and helping to prevent voter fraud.
• Just Security (19/10/21): Iraq has detained the mastermind allegedly behind a deadly 2016 suicide car bombing in a Baghdad shopping center, which killed around 300 people and wounded 250.
• Just Security (12/10/21): Early results in Iraq’s parliamentary elections show losses for Iran-allied militia parties while populist Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr leads with early elections returns
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Muqtada al-Sadr set to win Iraq vote, former PM al-Maliki second - Initial results show that Muqtada al-Sadr’s party has increased the number of seats it holds in parliament, according to initial results. [electoral-news]
• The Guardian (11/10/21): Iraq captures alleged Islamic State finance chief in operation abroad - Sami Jasim al-Jaburi was sought by US and location of ‘complex external operation’ has not been named
• Democracy Now (11/10/21): Record Low Turnout Reported for Iraq’s Parliamentary Elections [electoral-news]
• Just Security (5/10/21): The Turkish Defense Ministry has said that its troops have captured a major base belonging to Kurdish militants in northern Iraq.
• Al Jazeera (1/10/21): Iraqis march in Baghdad to mark protests anniversary - Iraqis commemorate the victims of a crackdown against protesters demanding an overhaul of Iraq’s ruling class, days before a new parliamentary vote.
• Just Security (28/9/21): Unidentified aircraft hit a base run by Iranian-backed militias in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al Zor near the Iraqi border, residents and military sources have said.
• Al-Monitor (23/9/21): Iraq conducts airstrikes against ‘terrorists’ near Kirkuk - The Islamic State is still active in Iraq, despite losing its territory in 2017.
• CPJ (23/9/21): Iraqi Kurdish court extends journalist Omed Baroshky’s prison sentence by 1 year
• Al-Monitor (18/9/21): Iraqi Sunnis look to KRG for safety as militias concerns fester - As attacks believed to be by Iran-linked armed groups continue amid questions over how long US forces will retain a presence in Iraq, Sunni Arabs are again seeking safety in the Kurdistan Region of the country.
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Iranian security official tells Iraq to expel Iranian Kurdish groups - Iranian officials have been criticizing Kurdish parties from Iran who have a presence in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, where they are regularly targeted by the Iranian military.
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): Iraq’s Erbil airport targeted in drone attack: Kurdish officials - No reports of casualties in attack on airport in northern Iraq, which serves as base for US-led coalition forces.
• Jacobin (11/9/21): 9/11 Was a Disaster for the People of Iraq - The Bush administration was already planning to invade Iraq before 9/11, but the attacks supplied the necessary pretext. The catastrophic war that followed turned Iraq into an ungovernable wasteland. [dark-security-news, big-oil-news, us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (7/9/21): Iranian commander warns Iraqi Kurdish government about harboring opposition - The IRGC's rare warning has fueled fears about civilian casualties in the Kurdish villages stretching on the Iran-Iraq border.
• Al Jazeera (6/9/21): France’s Total signs mega oil and gas deals with Iraq - French energy giant Total signed some $27bn worth of oil and gas contracts with Iraq at a time when other big oil companies are looking to exit Iraq’s energy sector. [big-oil-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Suspected ISIL attack kills at least 12 Iraqi police near Kirkuk - Authorities say the deadly attack south of Kirkuk city took place just after midnight.
• Al-Monitor (30/8/21): Muqtada al-Sadr reverses decision to stay out of Iraqi elections - After his withdrawal from October elections due to public anger against the ministers of health and electricity — both loyal Sadrist officials — the head of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, decides to participate in the vote after all.
• Democracy Now (27/8/21): 12 Million in Iraq and Syria at Risk from Drought Fueled by Climate Crisis [climate-change-news]
• Al-Monitor (24/8/21): Turkey strikes PKK targets in Iraq's Kurdistan region - Turkey has bombed suspected hideouts of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party in Iraqi Kurdistan, reportedly destroying ammunition depots, caves and other hideouts.
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Turkey’s Sinjar strikes carry stern messages to Tehran, Baghdad - As the United States braces to withdraw its combat forces from Iraq, the country’s Kurdistan Region is emerging as the scene of a mounting struggle for control between Turkey and Iran.
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Turkish airstrikes claim Yazidi lives in Iraq’s Sinjar - Turkish airstrikes hit makeshift hospital in the predominantly Yazidi Sinjar region of Iraq on Tuesday.
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Three Turkish soldiers killed in explosion in northern Iraq - The attack took place on Sunday in a region where Turkey was carrying out a cross-border operation.
• Al-Monitor (12/8/21): Water protests erupt in Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Much of the Middle East is suffering from water scarcity issues amid extremely high temperatures in the summer.
• Al-Monitor (7/8/21): Feud between Iraqi Sunni leaders could undercut bloc ahead of elections - Speaker of parliament and leader of the Advancement alliance Mohammed al-Halbusi has accused the leader of al-Azm alliance, Khamis al-Khanjar, of selling Sunni land.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): U.S. Will Return 17,000 Looted Archaeological Treasures to Iraq
• Popular Front (29/7/21): (podcast) A Year Inside the PKK
• Just Security Now (29/7/21): At least two rockets have hit Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone earlier today, however the rockets did not cause any casualties, Iraqi security sources have said
• Democracy Now (27/7/21): U.S. Troops to Remain in Iraq, But Biden Says “Combat Mission” Is Ending
• Al-Monitor (26/7/21): Amid Iranian gas shortage, Iraq searches for alternatives - Iran's dilapidated gas infrastructure has limited its transfers to Iraq, adding to Iraq's own energy crisis.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Coalition says Iraq base housing US troops hit in drone attack - No casualties reported in the attack that took place days before the meeting between Iraqi PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi and US President Joe Biden in Washington.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Iraqi PM announces arrests over suicide bombing claimed by ISIL - Mustafa al-Kadhimi announces arrest of ‘terror cell’ behind deadly attack in Baghdad, which left 35 dead.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Cash-strapped Lebanon signs fuel deal with Iraq to ease crisis - Lebanon to pay for 1 million tonnes of fuel oil a year in goods and services, helping ease its power shortage, according to new deal.
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): A U.S. drone attack targeted a truck belonging to Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, an Iran-backed militia group in eastern Syria on Sunday, two Iraqi militia officials have said.
• Al Jazeera (19/7/21): Iraq: Roadside bomb kills 20 in Baghdad - It was the third time this year that a bomb hit a market in the densely populated neighbourhood.
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Iraq PM announces arrests for murder of prominent analyst Hashemi - Friday’s announcement marks the first reported arrests made over a killing that shocked the country.
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): Dozens dead as fire rips through Iraq COVID ward - Officials fear death toll could rise after blaze at coronavirus isolation ward at hospital in southern city of Nasiriya.; The Guardian (13/7/21): Rising public anger over Iraq’s healthcare system after ward fire that kills 92 - Nasireyah residents demand officials resign as death toll rises from Covid hospital inferno
• The Guardian (11/7/21): ‘They will never let go’: Isis fighters regroup in the heart of Iraq - Iraqi special forces hunt Isis in lowlands south of Kirkuk, where the militants keep on the move, seeking to regain territorial control
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): Basra protests erupt as power cuts hit scorching Iraq - Fears of violent demonstrations across Iraq’s southern cities rise as cuts deprive thousands of power to run hospitals, businesses and homes.
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): Rockets fired at US embassy in Iraq after series of attacks - Rocket and drone raids come after a series of attacks targeting the US military in Iraq and Syria this week.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Barrage of rockets fired at airbase housing US troops in Iraq - At least two people wounded as 14 rockets hit Ain al-Asad airbase in western Iraq.
• Democracy Now (28/6/21): Iraq Condemns Violation of Sovereignty After U.S. Launches Airstrikes in Iraq and Syria
• The Guardian (27/6/21): US strikes hit Iran-backed militia facilities in Iraq and Syria - Pentagon says air strikes were in response to drone attacks against US personnel in Iraq
• Jacobin (18/6/21): Turkey Is Waging a Brutal Campaign in Iraqi Kurdistan - In its latest assault against the Kurds, Erdoğan’s Turkey is targeting civilians and refugees along the Iraq border — a brutal campaign to stamp out democracy and self-determination in Kurdistan.
• Democracy Now (26/5/21): Iraqi Security Forces Kill Protester at Rally Demanding Accountability for Murdered Activists
• Al Jazeera (9/5/21): Activist’s killing triggers protests in Iraq’s Karbala [city] ([2] 10/5/21)
• Al Jazeera (8/5/21): Iran-backed PMFs are destabilising Iraq’s disputed regions - These groups are undermining efforts to improve Erbil-Baghdad [Erbil is capital of Iraqi Kurdistan] relations and reestablish security in the north.
• Al Jazeera: Fire tears through Baghdad COVID hospital - Blaze broke out in a hospital for coronavirus patients after an oxygen cylinder exploded.; 82 dead [2][3]
• The American Prospect (25/3/21): How the Pentagon Accidentally Funnels Millions to Iraqi Militia Groups It’s Also Fighting: Leaked documents reveal that the defense contractor Sallyport enriched companies connected to Iranian-backed death squads.

Israel Updates

(News regarding Palestine/Israel conflict in the Palestine section)

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.), Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Jerusalem (cr.); Old Jerusalem (cr.); West Bank Restrictions and encroaching Israeli settlements (cr.)

Israel/Palestine Live Map

The PALESTINOW site is down! It's back up

• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): Israel signs deal with US to purchase helicopters, Boeing aircrafts [us-policy-news] [!]
• PALESTINOW (31/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, 940 Buildings Demolished, Fundraising, Evidence Refusal, Military Exercise, Palestinian Kidnapped [!]
• Common Dreams (31/12/1): Tutu's Courage on Israeli Apartheid Is Played Down in American Media - Archbishop Desmond Tutu used his moral stature to call out and oppose Israeli apartheid, but the U.S. media is leaving it out. [media-news, us-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (31/12/21): Israeli troops kill Palestinian in occupied West Bank - The Palestinian health ministry says the man, identified as Amir Atef Reyan from Qarawet Bani Hassan, died from his wounds. [!]
• New York Times (30/12/21): Israel approves a 4th dose of Covid vaccine for those with compromised immune systems. [covid-news] [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Tensions as Israel demolishes E. Jerusalem homes - 'I provided all the documents that may stop the demolition but they still went through with it' [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Israeli settlers attack Palestinian village in Nablus [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Israeli soldiers watch as settlers open fire at Sheikh Jarrah homes [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Court turns down request to demolish 41 Arab homes in Israel [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): PA: Israel agree to reunion of 1,000 Palestinian families [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): PA president asks Israel to strengthen him politically in return for halting ICC probe
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Clashes erupt in East Jerusalem as Israel razes Palestinian homes [!]
• Left Voice (30/12/21): Israel Will Now Officially Shoot to Kill Palestinian Rock Throwers - It has recently come to light that the Israeli Defense Forces, the military branch of the repressive Zionist state, has changed its Rules of Engagement to allow soldiers to kill unarmed Palestinians with abandon. In Israel, the war crimes just keep racking up.
• Left Voice (29/12/21): Israeli Army Uses Live Ammunition to Repress Palestinian Revolt in West Bank - After provocations by Israeli settlers claiming territories in the West Bank, the Israeli army violently repressed the Palestinian mobilization over Christmas weekend. At least seven demonstrators were shot and wounded, and dozens were repressed.
• Middle East Monitor (29/12/21): Israel minister threatened by extremist settlers [!]
• PALESTINOW (29/12/21): Continuing violations, Demolition of sports club, Printing house fined, Palestinian House demolished, Palestinians arrested, Palestinians injured, Farms demolished, Unemployment in Gaza [!]
• Middle East Monitor (29/12/21): Israel impose high taxes, demolish shops to weaken Jerusalemite traders [!]
• Al-Monitor (29/12/21): Israeli contractor working on Gaza security wall injured by gunfire - Palestinian farmers were also injured by Israeli military artillery fire in response to the shooting. [!]
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Mahmoud Abbas Meets Israeli Defense Minister
• PNN (28/12/21): IOF detain 13 Palestinians, injure another in West Bank raids [!]
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Israeli airstrike sets port of Latakia ablaze, says Syrian media - Second attack on cargo hub this month reported to have caused ‘significant material damage’ [!]
• PNN (28/12/21): Israeli Army gives Soldiers Free-hand to fire Palestinians
• Middle East Monitor (28/12/21): Israel demolishes Palestinian house in Jerusalem, displaces 23 people [!]
• Democracy Now (28/12/21): Israel Tests Fourth Vaccine Doses as COVID Surges in Largely Unvaccinated African Nations [covid-news]
• Al Jazeera (28/12/21): Israeli air raid targets key Syrian port of Latakia: State media - Attack caused ‘significant material damage’, but no casualties were reported, SANA news agency says. [!]
• PNN (27/12/21): Displacing 16 people, Israeli occupation municipality demolishes Palestinian-owned building in occupied Jerusalem [!]
• Al-Monitor (27/12/21):Tensions flair at Homesh West Bank outpost, following killing of Israeli - Following the killing last week of Yehuda Dimentman, tensions are rising at the ruins of the Homesh West Bank outpost, demolished in the 2005 Gaza disengagement. [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Israel demolishes 10 Palestinian commercial properties in Jerusalem [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Israeli forces attack peaceful protesters [!]
• Democracy Now (27/12/21): Israel Plans to Double Population of Illegal Settlements in Occupied Golan HeightsIsrael Plans to Double Population of Illegal Settlements in Occupied Golan Heights
• PALESTINOW (27/12/21): Palestinians injured, Palestinians kidnapped, No access to health care, Attack on Burqa, Call for interrogation, Brutal repression of prisoners, School children injured, House Governor stormed [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Israeli forces destroy Gaza strawberry fields - 5 acres of strawberry field located in the north near the Israeli border, destroyed after tanks and bulldozers entered the Gaza Strip during an Israeli incursion [!]
• Middle East Monitor (26/12/21): 3 Israeli Mossad officers commit suicide in one year [!]
• PNN (26/12/21): 247 Palestinians injured in a fresh Israeli attack on Burqa [!]
• Middle East Monitor (25/12/21): Israeli settler runs over, kills elderly Palestinian woman in West Bank [!]
• PALESTINOW (25/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Palestinian Cities Stormed, Palestinian Woman Killed, Palestinians Injured, Hamas Leader Assassination Threat, Wanted Palestinians Handed Over to PA [!]
• PNN (24/12/21): Israeli settler runs over, kills middle-aged Palestinian woman in occupied West Bank [!]
• Telesur (23/12/21): Palestinian Young Man Killed by Israeli Soldiers in West Bank - Mohammed Abbas was shot in the back by Israeli soldiers on the outskirts of the al-Ama'ri refugee camp. Note about Telesur [!]
• PALESTINOW (23/12/21): Burglary of Palestinian homes, Palestinians kidnapped, Ceasefire, Isolation of Palestinian female prisoners, Hunger strikers, 19 years incarceration, Palestinian killed, Palestinian land taken [!]
• Al-Monitor (23/12/21): Scandal threatens political ambitions of former Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen - Revelations over an alleged liaison with a married woman could threaten whatever political ambitions former Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen was harboring [!]
• Defense One (22/12/21): Don’t Attack Iran - Those who advocate strikes against nuclear sites are underestimating the risks and overestimating the benefit.
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Israel knows attacking Iranian nuke program will bring war with Hezbollah - Israeli leadership is coping not only with the question of military preparedness for the possibility of attacking the Iranian nuclear program, but also with the implications of such an attack on Israel’s homeland security, its economy and its growth. [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Palestinian killed by Israeli forces after alleged car attack - There have been several violent incidents between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem and the West Bank in recent weeks. [!]
• PNN (22/12/21): Israel Occupying Forces Target Al-Hadidya Community with Demolition Orders [!]
• Democracy Now (22/12/21): Israel Rolling Out 4th Dose of COVID Vaccine; France Expected to Reach 100,000 New Cases Per Day [covid-news]
• Just Security (22/12/21): A former Israeli intelligence chief has said that Israel assisted the U.S. during the January 2020 assassination of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, the first public acknowledgment of Israel’s role in the assassination. [us-policy-news]
• Ars Technica / Financial Times (21/12/21): The secret Uganda deal that has brought NSO to the brink of collapse - Things changed once US diplomats in Uganda got hacked by Pegasus. [cyber-security-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, us-policy-news, pegasus-news, big-tech-news] Paywall Summary (?): Technically unecessary summary (since the AT article is open), but what the heck. NSO's chief executive Hulio liked to fly around showing people how Pegasus could crack an iPhone, including in nations like Uganda and Rwanda. Recently, in Uganda, 11 American diplomats' and employees phones were hacked with this tool. What followed was the American-lead effort against NSO, including American blacklisting of the company, and fallen out of favor with Silicon Valley giants like Meta (Facebook) and Apple.
• Al-Monitor (21/12/21): Palestinian family refuses $5 million offer by settlers for Sheikh Jarrah home - A Palestinian family in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, which faces daily harassment and attacks by settlers, was offered $5 million to vacate their home, so that settlers can move in. [!]
• PALESTINOW (21/12/21): Palestinian Homes Attacked, Photographer Attacked, Palestinians Arrested, Palestinians Attacked, Palestinian Kidnapped, Students Arrested, Illegal Settlers [!]
• PNN (20/12/21): Israeli settlers attack a house east of Tulkarem [!]
• PNN (20/12/21): Israel issues eviction order against a Palestinian family in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah, seizes land [!]
• Democracy Now (20/12/21): Omicron Sends COVID Cases Surging, Prompts New Restrictions in Israel, U.K., the Netherlands [covid-news]
• PALESTINOW (19/12/21): Illegal Outpost, Attack Illegal Settlers, Palestinians Arrested, Call for Lynch Attacks, Mosques Ask for Help, Palestinian Woman Shot, Palestinian Kidnapped [!]
• Al Jazeera (17/12/21): Settlers attack Palestinian villages after West Bank killing - Attacks by Jewish settlers come a day after Palestinian gunmen killed an Israeli man in the occupied West Bank. [!]
• PALESTINOW (17/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Hizma Entrance Closed, Houses Invaded, Settlers Violence, Refugee Camp Attacked, Racism, One-State Solution [!]
• PALESTINOW (18/12/21): Aid for Gaza, Palestinian women kidnapped, Children injured, Palestinian cars attacked, Harsh siege, Palestinians injured [!]
• PALESTINOW (16/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, House Evacuation, Houses Demolition, Palestinians Kidnapped, Roadblocks, Palestinians Injured, Child Shot, New Law [!]
• PALESTINOW (15/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Palestinians Arrested, Sheikh Raed Salah, Apartheid, Storming Birzeit University, Laws Against Palestinians, Invaded Gaza, Confiscated Land Worked [!]
• Al Jazeera (16/12/21): Syrian soldier killed in Israeli missile attack: State media - Air defences downed most of the missiles, and the attack caused some material losses, according to state media. [!]
• PNN (15/12/21): Israel demolishes Palestinian houses in Jerusalem [!]
• The Hill (10/12/21): Trump accuses former ally Netanyahu of disloyalty: 'F--- him' [trump-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Washington Post says Israeli air raids targeted Syrian chemical sites - The newspaper reports that June 8 airstrikes in Damascus and Homs targeted military sites linked to Syria's former chemical weapons program. [!]
• PALESTINOW (14/12/21): Jamil Mohammad al-Kayyal shot dead, Palestinians arrested, Apartheid, Raed Salah released, House demolition, Palestinians attacked, Palestinians kidnapped, Palestinians injured [!]
• Just Security (14/12/21): It is unlikely that the first delivery of refueling tankers to Israel from the U.S. will be ready until late 2024, despite Israeli requests that the Biden administration speed up the delivery. The tankers could prove critical for Israel to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities and the Israeli defense minister, Benny Gantz, made the request last week when he met with Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III and other senior U.S. officials in Washington. David E. Sanger, Ronen Bergman and Helene Cooper report for the New York Times.
• PALESTINOW (12/12/21): Hunger striker, Sovereign Palestine, Cut down trees, Resistance fighters, Ground grab, Torture, Ban Hamas by UK, Local elections [!]
• PNN (12/12/21): Settlers attack vehicles for Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Palestinian killed by Israeli forces after West Bank arrest raid - Jamil al-Kayyal, 31, was killed after Israeli forces raided the Ras al-Ain area in Nablus, Palestinian sources say. [!]
• PALESTINOW (13/12/21): Palestinians killed Lebanon, Demolish own house, Gaza fence, Arrests, Palestinians killed, Re-arrest, Palestinians kidnapped [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has become the first Israeli leader to make an official visit to the United Arab Emirates, after flying to Abu Dhabi to meet the de facto Emirati leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed
• PALESTINOW (11/12/21): Hunger striker, Palestinian cars destroyed, Electricity grid destroyed, Palestinian killed, Well occupied, Fishermen kidnapped, Details massacre [!]
• The Guardian (12/12/21): Tel Aviv: poverty and eviction in the world’s most expensive city - Residents of Givat Amal Bet neighbourhood forced out to make way for further gentrification [privatization-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Israeli troops kill Palestinian man during West Bank protest: PA - Palestinian healthy ministry says the victim succumbed to his wounds after being shot in the head by Israeli forces in the village of Beita [!]
• PALESTINOW (10/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Sheikh Jarrah Neighborhood Attacked, Civilians Shot, Racist Graffiti, Palestinians Kidnapped [!]
• The Intercept (9/12/21): Israel Killed Up to 192 Palestinian Civilians in May 2021 Attacks on Gaza - More than 70 percent of the Israeli attacks that killed civilians in Gaza had no corresponding reports of militants hit alongside them. [!]
• Just Security (9/12/21): A growing number of former Israeli security officials are publicly blaming Tel Aviv for opposing the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, while warning that economic sanctions against Iran are not slowing its nuclear progress. Shira Rubin reports for the Washington Post.
• Common Dreams (9/12/21): New Interactive Map Gives Ground-Level Look at High Civilian Toll of Israel's Gaza War - "Our latest study corroborates what we have found with other large-scale conflicts in Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere: Even technologically advanced militaries kill large numbers of civilians when attacks focus on urban centers." [!]
• PALESTINOW (9/12/21): Students kidnapped, Palestinians arrested, Palestinians injured, Racism, Olive trees cut down [!]
• PALESTINOW (8/12/21): Palestinians kidnapped, Journalists travel ban, Prisoner visit ban, Stables demolished, Al-Aqsa Mosque break-in, Dutch court verdict, House looted after Facebook post [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Israel has announced the completion of an enhanced security barrier around the Gaza Strip designed to prevent militants from sneaking into Israel. AP reports.
• Just Security (8/12/21): A 14-year-old Palestinian girl has stabbed an Israeli woman near a contested East Jerusalem neighborhood, in the fourth lone wolf attack to take place in Jerusalem in the past three weeks. Shira Rubin reports for the Washington Post.
• Al-Monitor (7/12/21): Ex-ally drops bomb at Netanyahu trial - Nir Hefetz, who was a close associate of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, claimed at his trial that the premier had endangered Israel’s security. [court-news, corruption-news] [!]
• PALESTINOW (7/12/21): Protecting Mosque, Palestinian Teen Killed, Prisoners Attacked, Tents Seized, House Stormed, Houses Demolished, Palestinians Arrested [!]
• PNN (7/12/21): IOF demolition of Palestinian-owned structures reported in Bethlehem,Hebron & Jerusalem [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Israel carried out an airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia today, causing a fire in a container storage area, Syrian state media has reported. “A Syrian military source told Sana news agency that warplanes flying over the Mediterranean Sea fired several missiles at the port’s container yard overnight. No casualties were reported. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said the target was an Iranian weapons shipment. Israel’s military has not commented,” BBC News reports.
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): Israeli Forces Kill West Bank Palestinian Teen, After Fatal Shooting of Palestinian in Jerusalem
• Just Security (6/12/21): Violent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces erupted on the weekend, after a Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli border police after he stabbed an Israeli man in the Old City of Jerusalem on Saturday afternoon, according to Israeli police reports. Shira Rubin reports for the Washington Post.
• PALESTINOW (6/12/21): Demolish own house, Hunger strikers, House raided, Activist released, Murderers praised, Palestinians kidnapped, Fishermen attacked [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Israel delays major settlement plan for occupied East Jerusalem - A Jerusalem district planning and building committee decides against the proposal, citing the need for an environmental study. [!]
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Israeli left opposes Omicron phone tracking - After being criticized by human rights groups, Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz has stopped the Shin Bet's tracking of Omicron-infected Israelis. [covid-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, leftist-news] [!]
• PALESTINOW (4/12/21): Palestinian shot dead, Palestinians shot at, Stables demolished, Electricity and water network destroyed, Journalist attacked, Palestinians arrested, Palestinians injured [!]
• PNN (4/12/21): Israeli forces kill wounded Palestinian man at point-blank after stabbing incident [!]
• Vox (4/12/21): Israeli spyware was used against US diplomats in Uganda - A hack targeting US officials is just the latest problem for NSO Group, the Israeli company behind Pegasus spyware. [cyber-security-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news] [!]
• PNN (5/12/21): Palestinian prisoner Kayed al-Fasfous set free after 131 days of hunger strike [!]
• Al Jazeera (4/12/21): Israeli wounded in East Jerusalem stabbing, assailant killed - Surveillance video shows attacker stabbing Jewish man and then trying to knife Israeli police in the occupied city. [!]
• PALESTINOW (2/12/21): Seized land, Demolish own house, Material confiscated, Palestinians arrested, Al-Bireh raided, Harassment
• PALESTINOW (3/12/21): Torture, Hunger striker, Wall demolished, Discrimination, Palestinian injured, Peace activist kidnapped, Girl like father in prison, Money laundering crimes, Houses attacked
• PNN (1/12/21): The occupation breaks into Khirbat al-Ras al-Ahmar
• PNN (1/12/21): Occupation Arrests Palestinian Citizens and Breaks into Several Houses in Hebron
• PALESTINOW (1/12/21): Stop construction of houses, Destruction house, Palestinian mothers in prison, Gaza water crisis, Palestinian kidnapped, Palestinians injured, US aid
• Just Security (2/12/21): Rights groups are saying that Israel failed to investigate shootings that killed more than 200 Palestinians and wounded thousands at violent protests along the Gaza frontier in recent years. Joseph Krauss reports for AP.
• PALESTINOW (27/11/21): Call for Facebook review, Forced to demolish, Illegal settlements, Journalists injured, Right to resist, Teen gets 10 years in prison, House arrest for governor, Palestinians arrested [!]
• Al-Monitor (29/11/21): Israel approves $2.4 billion purchase of US CH-53 helicopters - Israel is seeking to replace its fleet of heavy-lift helicopters over the next few years. [us-policy-news]
• PALESTINOW (30/11/21): Resolution 181, Travel Ban, Refusal of Entry, Call Resolution, Workshop Demolished, Suppression Protest, Palestinians Injured, Palestinians Kidnapped
• PNN (29/11/21): Israeli president storms al-Ibrahimi mosque in Hebron
• PNN (29/11/21): IOF injure dozens of Palestinians in Bethlehem
• Common Dreams (28/11/21): EU Joins Rights Group in Condemning Israel's 'Day of Destruction' of Palestinian Homes - "Demolitions are illegal under international law and significantly undermine the prospects for peace."
• PNN (28/11/21): Occupation forces assault protesters demonstrating against Israeli president’s planned visit to Hebron
• Just Security (29/11/21): There has been a dramatic increase in Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank in recent months. Violent incidents against Palestinians are up nearly 150% in the past two years, according to data presented by the Israeli military at a defense ministry meeting this month, while a U.N. agency separately has found that 115 Palestinians have been beaten or otherwise attacked by settlers since the start of the year, resulting in four fatalities. Steve Hendrix reports for the Washington Post.
• Just Security (29/11/21): Israel and Iran are now targeting ordinary civilians through large scale cyber operations. “In recent weeks, a cyberattack on Iran’s nationwide fuel distribution system paralyzed the country’s 4,300 gas stations, which took 12 days to have service fully restored. That attack was attributed to Israel by two U.S. defense officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity…It was followed days later by cyberattacks in Israel against a major medical facility and a popular LGBTQ dating site, attacks Israeli officials have attributed to Iran,” Farnaz Fassihi and Ronen Bergman report for The New York Times. [cyber-security-news]
• PNN (22/11/21): IOF detain 13 Palestinians, assault others in West Bank
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Hundreds protest in Jordan against water-energy deal with Israel - Critics say the deal leaves Jordan dependent on Israel without providing a solution to the country’s water problems. [protest-news]
• PNN (22/11/21): Settlers attack with stones Palestinian vehicles near Nablus, Hebron
• PNN (20/11/21): IOF hands over body of slain Palestinian child
• PALESTINOW (20/11/21): Palestinians injured, truce revised, Hamas banned by UK, Car tires punctured, Village attacked, Woman’s body released
• PALESTINOW (26/11/21): Illegal Settlement, Palestinians Attacked, Hunger Strikers, Vigil, Roads Closed, Tractor Confiscated, Governor Interrogation, Palestinians Kidnapped, Labeling Illegal Settlement Products
• PNN (24/11/21): Three Palestinians injured, one critical, in Israeli settler attacks east of Ramallah
• PNN (24/11/21): Israel approves building of new settlement neighborhood north of Jerusalem
• Just Security (24/11/21): Apple Inc. has sued the Israeli spyware group NSO Group, alleging the company misused Apple’s products and services. “The lawsuit alleges that NSO Group engaged in ‘concerted efforts in 2021 to target and attack Apple customers, Apple products and servers and Apple through dangerous malware and spyware,’ and seeks to bar NSO Group from using Apple’s products,” Robert McMillan reports for the Wall Street Journal. [big-tech-news, court-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): Morocco and Israel have signed a defence memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Rabat. The MoU does not stipulate specific defence deals, but rather provides a legal and regulatory framework for such agreements in the future, a source has said. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (24/11/21): An Israeli air strike in Syria killed two people and wounded seven others, including six soldiers, today, Syrian state media has said. The air strike is the fourth Israeli attack reported by Syria this month. Reuters reports.
• Just Security (24/11/21): An Israeli air strike in Syria killed two people and wounded seven others, including six soldiers, today, Syrian state media has said. The air strike is the fourth Israeli attack reported by Syria this month. Reuters reports.
• Democracy Now (23/11/21): Israel Arrests Relatives of Palestinian Man Behind Jerusalem Attack
• Just Security (23/11/21): One of Israel’s former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s closest advisers testified against him yesterday in a long-running corruption case. Prosecutors are arguing that Netanyahu accepted expensive gifts from wealthy businessmen in exchange for official favors and offered two media moguls regulatory and financial benefits in exchange for positive press coverage. Thomas Grove reports for the Wall Street Journal. [corruption-news]
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Israel returns wrong body to killed Palestinian teenager’s family - The mix-up draws attention to Israel’s policy of withholding bodies of Palestinians who allegedly carried out attacks.
• PALESTINOW (19/11/21): Medical Neglect, Denied from tilling land, Students attacked, Palestinians kidnapped, Extreme poverty, Palestinian injured, Farmers attacked
• Al-Monitor (18/11/21): US envoy asks Israel to intervene in Sudan, says local press - According to Israeli reports, visiting US envoy to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield asked Defense Minister Benny Gantz to step in in Sudan [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (18/11/21): Journalists covering Netanyahu trial harassed, attacked - Supporters of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu harassed two journalists who came to cover his trial and struck one of them with a cane
• PALESTINOW (18/11/21): EU Really Shocked?, Seize Land, Students Attacked, Demolish Houses, Palestinians Arrested, Illegal Photographing, Military Exercises
• Common Dreams (18/11/21): 'Morally Repugnant': Video Shows Israeli Troops Waking, Photographing Palestinian Kids - One Israeli human rights group said the incident illustrates "how arbitrarily the routine of the lives of Palestinians living under occupation is disrupted, and how easily soldiers violate their rights."
• The Guardian (18/11/21): Israel defence minister’s housekeeper charged with spying - Benny Gantz’s cleaner contacted Iran-linked hackers and offered to infect minister’s computer with malware
• PNN (17/11/21): Israeli occupation police shoot and kill Palestinian teenager in occupied Jerusalem
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): Suspected Israeli airstrikes hit Syria for third time this month - The missiles allegedly targeted an empty building near the capital, Damascus, according to Syrian state media
• PALESTINOW (16/11/21): Human rights NGOs, Qadiri attacked, Sheep farm dismantling, Settlement terror, Palestinian kidnapped, Palestinians injured, Olive trees set on fire
• Just Security (19/11/21): A leading Israeli politician’s campaign lobbying against the reopening of a U.S. consulate for Palestinians in East Jerusalem has been amplified on Facebook by a network of fake accounts, according to research by the Israeli disinformation research company FakeReporter. Olivia Solon reports for NBC News. [big-tech-news, far-right-news, media-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): An armed drone strike against a U.S. military base in southern Syria last month was conducted by Iran as retaliation for Israeli airstrikes in Syria, according to various U.S. and Israeli officials
• The Guardian (16/11/21): Israeli firm’s spyware linked to attacks on websites in UK and Middle East - Canada-based researchers say new evidence suggests Candiru’s software used to target critics of autocratic regimes [cyber-security-news]
• PNN (16/11/21): IOF kill Palestinian during clashes in northern occupied Jordan Valley
• PALESTINOW (17/11/21): Appeal dismissed, Palestinian shot dead, Buildings demolished, Olive trees uprooted, Palestinian Students attacked, Palestinians injured, Palestinians kidnapped
• PALESTINOW (15/11/21): Hunger strikers, Prisoners attacked, Palestinians arrested, Land theft, Free Palestinian T-shirt banned in UK, Palestinians injured, Palestinians kidnapped
• PALESTINOW (14/11/21): Hebron Arrest Campaign, Palestinians Arrested, Hunger Strike, Mother Palestinian Dies, Trees Uprooted, Palestinian Threatens, Palestinians Injured
• PNN (14/11/21): Israel uses settler violence to take over West Bank land, says Israeli rights group
• Just Security (16/11/21): Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared in court today for a high-profile corruption case against him. A one-time confidant of Netanyahu was meant to take the stand against Netanyahu, however the testimony was delayed until next week after a legal challenge from Netanyahu’s lawyers. Ilan Ben Zion reports for AP.
• Just Security (16/11/21): A Palestinian man was shot and killed today by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian health officials. The Israeli military stated that troops came under fire overnight while attempting to arrest two people in the area, and that troops shot at a passing vehicle after an explosive device was thrown at them. AP reports.
• Just Security (16/11/21): The chair of a group of more than 300 former generals and top security officials in Israel has expressed his support for the U.S. reopening a consulate for Palestinians in Jerusalem.
• PALESTINOW (12/11/21): Palestinians Attacked, Spyware NSO, Sebastia Invaded, Palestinians Arrested, Store Destroyed, Palestinians Injured, Al-Aqsa Mosque
• PALESTINOW (13/11/21): Hunger striker, Palestinian woman beaten, Palestinians injured, Trees uprooted, Palestinians kidnapped
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Palestinian Prisoner Ends Hunger Strike, 5 Others Continue Protest Against Detention Without Charge
• Just Security (12/11/21): A senior Palestinian official has said that the phones of three high-ranking Palestinian diplomats were hacked by the Pegasus spyware made by the private Israeli firm NSO Group [surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, the U.S., and Israel have launched joint naval exercises for the first time, U.S. and Israeli military officials have said. [us-policy-news]
• PALESTINOW (10/11/21): Relying on Resistance, Drone Downed, Provocation Palestinians, Houses Demolished, Hate Graffiti, Toxins Sprayed, Palestinians Wounded, Palestinians Kidnapped
• PNN (9/11/21): Israeli settlers vandalize Palestinian vehicles in al-Bireh
• PNN (9/11/21): Israel demolishes three Palestinian houses west of Bethlehem
• PALESTINOW (9/11/21): Hebron Outpost, Palestinians Injured, Stop Building Houses, Vehicles Attacked, Military Maneuver, Watching, Hacked, NGOs, Fishing Boats Attacked
• Al-Monitor (8/11/21): Israel to export border surveillance technology to Cyprus - Israel’s military has extensive experience with border security surveillance in the West Bank. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): Israeli air raids hit Syria, two soldiers wounded: State media - Syria’s military says Israeli air raids on central and western provinces wound two soldiers and cause material damage, state media reports.
• Just Security (9/11/21): The Israeli government continues to consider NSO Group’s software a crucial element of its foreign policy and is lobbying Washington to remove the company from its blacklist and to lift the sanctions against the company, two senior Israeli officials have said
• The Guardian (8/11/21): Palestinian activists’ mobile phones hacked using NSO spyware, says report - Investigation finds rights activists working for groups accused by Israel of being terrorist were previously targeted by NSO spyware [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• PALESTINOW (7/11/21): Child Killed, Attack Repelled, Palestinians Injured, Road Collapsed, Gaza Power Plant Troubled, Torture, Cement in Well
• PNN (6/11/21): Settlers attempt to destroy children’s playing ground in a village southwest of Hebron
• PALESTINOW (6/11/21): Hunger striker, Palestinian NGOs, Access blocked, Demolition houses, Petition rejected, Jenin storms
• Just Security (8/11/21): Israeli officials have said that the U.S. should open its consulate for Palestinians in the West Bank instead of in Jerusalem [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (8/11/21): Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has sought to distance the Israeli government from NSO Group, saying that the blacklisted Israeli company “has nothing to do with the policies of the Israeli government.” [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Secular Talk (4/11/21): Trump Says Israel 'Rightfully' Owned Congress | The Kyle Kulinski Show [trump-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/11/21): Israeli forces kill Palestinian boy in occupied West Bank - Mohammed Daadas, 13, dies in hospital after being shot by Israeli troops during protests against illegal settlements.
• PNN (3/10/21): IOF assault South Africa’s Counselor, olive harvesters near Bethlehem
• PNN (4/10/21): Israeli occupation forces demolish mosque in Nablus-district town
• PALESTINOW (4/11/21): Gaza Farmers Under Tear Gas, Interrogation of Hunger Striker, Demolition of House, Demolition of Shops, Palestinian NGOs, Palestinians Kidnapped
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): The Knesset in Israel narrowly approved the government’s budget for 2021, a big victory for the new prime minister, Naftali Bennett. Had it failed, yet another general election would have been called.
• PALESTINOW (3/11/21): Hunger Striker, Hackers, Demolish Cemetery, Sheikh Jarrah, Aid PA, Balfour Declaration, Palestinians Kidnapped [lgbtq-news]
• PALESTINOW (2/11/21): Professor Arrested, Gaza Raid, Clinic Removal, Palestinian Land Seized, Al-Aqsa Mosque Break-in, Water Tank Stolen, Palestinians Kidnapped
• Al-Monitor (2/11/21): Israel demolishes Muslim cemetery near Al Aqsa Mosque to build park - The Israeli authorities have bulldozed parts of the Yusufiya cemetery near Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem to build a park.
• Just Security (4/11/21): President Biden’s administration has placed the Israeli spyware company NSO Group, and another Israeli company, Candiru, on a U.S. blacklist after it determined that the companies acted “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the U.S.” The U.S. Department of Commerce issued a statement saying that the action is a part of the administration’s “efforts to put human rights at the center of U.S. foreign policy, including by working to stem the proliferation of digital tools used for repression.” [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): Syria’s military has said that Israel carried out an air raid that hit a military post on the outskirts of the capital of Damascus today, causing material damage. The air raid is the second Israeli attack to target areas near the capital in four days.
• Just Security (2/11/21): Israel has begun authorizing plans to build more than 1,300 homes for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank; however, Palestinians and rights groups said these new homes would meet only a fraction of the need in the area under Israeli control, which covers 60% of the West Bank.
• Democracy Now (3/11/21): Sheikh Jarrah Families Reject Israeli Deal That Would Diposess Them of Their Homes
• PALESTINOW (1/11/21): Hunger strikers, Demolition Palestinian House, Disrespect, Child injured, Child kidnapped, House raids, Ibrahimi Mosque closed
• PALESTINOW (30/10/21): ‘Save Our Sons’, Palestinians Wounded, Doctors Not Going to Prisoners, Jenin Invaded, Palestinian Shot at, Questionable Interrogation Technique, Palestinians Arrested
• Al Jazeera (30/10/21):a Syria says Israel fired missiles towards Damascus suburbs - Two Syrian soldiers were injured in an unusual daytime Israeli missile attack on Damascus, Syrian state TV has reported.
• PNN (30/10/21): EU Spokesperson:settlement expansion are illegal under international law
• PALESTINOW (29/10/21): Cemetery Demolition, Destruction of village for 194th time, Settlement Units, Demolition orders, NGOs, Power cut, No prisoner visit
• PALESTINOW (28/10/21): 34 Palestinian Women in Prison, Houses Searched, Village Invaded, Attack on Fishing Boats, Palestinians Kidnapped
• Telesur (28/10/21): Israel To Cut Power To Palestinians Over Unpaid Debt Note about Telesur
• PALESTINOW (27/10/21): Farmers attacked, Gaza young man arrested, Buildings destroyed, Palestinians arrested, Red Cross team attacked, Palestinian in wheelchair kidnapped, Palestinians kidnapped
• Just Security (27/10/21): An Israeli committee, the Defense Ministry’s higher planning council, is expected today to approve 2,800 new settler homes in the occupied West Bank, a day after the Biden administration issued its strongest condemnation yet of Israeli settlement construction
• Al Jazeera (26/10/21): US says it ‘strongly’ opposes Israel’s settlement expansion plans - In rare criticism of Israeli government, Biden administration slams plans to build thousands of settlement units.
• Just Security (26/10/21): Syria has accused Israel of carrying out an attack in the south of Syria.
• Just Security (26/10/21): Israel is sending an envoy to Washington amid a deepening rift with President Biden’s administration following Israel’s outlawing of six Palestinian rights groups. “Israel last week designated the prominent Palestinian human rights groups as terrorist organizations, sparking international criticism and repeated assertions by Israel’s top strategic partner, the United States, that there had been no advance warning of the move….The State Department has said it would seek more information on the decision. Joshua Zarka, a senior Israeli Foreign Ministry official, told Israeli Army Radio the envoy would ‘give them all the details and to present them all the intelligence’ during his visit in the coming days. Zarka said he personally updated U.S. officials on Israel’s intention to outlaw the groups last week, and said he believed Washington wanted a more thorough explanation of the decision,” Tia Goldenberg reports for AP. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (25/10/21): Israel holds largest-ever military drill with UAE participation - While UAE aircraft are not flying, the country’s air force chief is expected to arrive on Tuesday.
• Al-Monitor (22/10/21): Palestinian Islamic Jihad announces end to hunger strike - Israeli officials are disputing the militant group's claim that prison authorities have met the Palestinians' demands.
• The Intercept (22/10/21): Palestinian Rights Groups That Document Israeli Abuses Labeled “Terrorists” by Israel - Israel designated six leading Palestinian human rights groups “terrorist organizations,” but refused to reveal any evidence to prove the accusation. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• PNN (23/10/21): Palestinian injured, cars vandalized in an Israeli settler attack north of Ramallah
• PALESTINOW (23/10/21): Garbage Truck Stolen, Farmers in Trouble, Palestinians Arrested, Settlement Plans, Roads Destroyed, Palestinians Injured, Palestinian Home Demolished, NGOs Linked to Resistance
• Al-Monitor (23/10/21): Palestinian olive season begins with settler attacks, arson - Palestinians are once again having to defend their own olive trees during harvesting season from Israeli settler vigilantism while Israeli soldiers stand by.
• Al-Monitor (21/10/21): 15 spies for Israel's Mossad arrested, reports Turkish press - Turkey's Sabah newspaper reported that a 15-member spy network was arrested on Oct. 15 in an operation carried out across four Turkish provinces.
• The Irrawaddy (19/10/21): New Crony Brokers Israeli Aircraft Parts for Myanmar Air Force
• Al Jazeera (19/10/21): Violent Israeli raids in occupied East Jerusalem wound dozens - Dozens wounded and arrested in Israeli raids on Palestinians at Damascus Gate and in surrounding areas.
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Israel regularizes status of 4,000 West Bank Palestinians - Defense Minister Benny Gantz decided to legalize the status of some 4,000 Palestinians who live in the West Bank but are not properly registered.
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Settler attacks wreak havoc on Palestinians during olive harvest - Israeli settlers are committing violent, daily attacks against Palestinians harvesting their olive trees for the season.
• Middle East Monitor (15/10/21): Israeli settlers hang and torture Palestinian teen with fire, human rights group reveals
• Just Security (18/10/21): The Israeli military has said that it has reprimanded an officer who was found to have used excessive force against protesters in the occupied West Bank, including pushing a 65-year-old Israeli peace activist to the ground
• Just Security (18/10/21): Syria has accused Israel of assassinating a high-ranking Syrian official.
• PNN (14/10/21): IOF shot dead Palestinian young man in Beit Jala
• Just Security (14/10/21): Syria has reported that Israeli air forces launched strikes in areas close to the historic Syrian town of Palmyra in the central province of Homs, targeting Iran-backed militia
• Just Security (13/10/21): There is “no way” for the U.S. to reopen a consulate in Jerusalem, the Israeli Justice Minister Gideon Saar has said during a public conference. [us-policy-news]
• Common Dreams (12/10/21): 'A Huge Deal': Amazon, Google Workers Demand Companies Sever Ties With Israeli Military - "We cannot look the other way as the products we build are used to deny Palestinians their basic rights, force Palestinians out of their homes, and attack Palestinians in the Gaza Strip." [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, labor-news]
• Al-Monitor (12/10/21): Year of changes place Abraham Accords supporters on rockier ground - The Abraham Accords did much to sideline the Palestinian issue, but the current Israeli government is increasingly communicating with the Palestinian Authority and President Mahmoud Abbas.
• PNN (10/10/21): Israeli settlers attack farmers harvesting olives near Nablus
• PNN (10/10/21): Israel razes Muslim grave in East Jerusalem cemetery
• Common Dreams (8/10/21): Facebook Suppressed Content Highlighting Israeli Abuses of Palestinians: Report - "Instead of respecting people's right to speak out, Facebook is silencing many people arbitrarily and without explanation, replicating online some of the same power imbalances and rights abuses we see on the ground." [big-tech-news]
• PNN (7/10/21): Palestinian prisoner continues hunger strike for 77 days
• PNN (7/10/21): Israel plans to build 10,000 new settler units in West Bank: Report
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Israeli settlers take over home in Jerusalem’s Silwan - Settlers take over an apartment in Palestinian neighbourhood as the Jerusalem municipality hands out demolition orders.
• Al Jazeera (5/10/21): Czechs sign $630m deal for Israeli-made air defence system - Prague to aquire Spyder system made by weapons maker Rafael as part of military modernisation drive.
• Democraccy Now (5/10/21): Masked Jewish Settlers Attack Palestinians in “Pogrom” as Settler Violence Surges
• Just Security (4/10/21): The Palestinian president yesterday hosted two Israeli Cabinet ministers for a meeting, in a new sign of slowly improving ties between Israel and Palestine.
• PNN (4/10/21): Israeli settlers steal their crops in lands near settlements : Palestinians say
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Israel accuses Iran of attack attempt against Israelis in Cyprus - Nicosia says an armed individual was arrested after crossing from Turkish-controlled north
• PNN (3/10/21): Palestinian prisoners to begin protest measures in response to Israeli repression
• PNN (30/9/21): Israeli troops kill young Palestinian man in nighttime West Bank raids
• PNN (30/9/21): Israeli police kills Palestinian woman in Jerusalem
• PNN (30/9/21): Israeli forces shoots dead Palestinian bird hunter east Gaza border
• PNN (29/9/21): Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails go on hunger strike, boycott courts
• Al Jazeera (26/9/21): Palestinian MP Khalida Jarrar released from Israeli prison - Jarrar, a left-wing figure and member of the now-defunct PLC, was released by Israeli authorities on Sunday.
• The Guardian (26/9/21): Five Palestinians shot dead in gun battles with Israeli troops in West Bank - Two Israeli soldiers were also seriously wounded after violence erupted when troops tried to arrest suspected Hamas militants
• Left Voice (24/9/21): House Votes $1 Billion for Israeli War Machine Without Opposition from AOC - Last night, with the help of DSA-endorsed Representatives Jamaal Bowman and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the House of Representatives approved $1 billion in new funding for Israeli "Iron Dome" missile interceptors.
• Democracy Now (24/9/21): Rep. Tlaib Condemns U.S. Support for Israeli War Crimes & Abuses as House Approves Military Funding
• PNN (24/9/21): Palestinian Killed by IOF Gunfire in the West Bank
• Just Security (22/9/21): Democratic lawmakers yesterday removed $1 billion in military funding for Israel to replenish its “Iron Dome” missile-defense system from a federal government funding bill after objections from liberals in the House of Representatives [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/9/21):
• Al Jazeera (19/9/21): Israel carries out mass arrests of Palestinians after jailbreak - Arrest campaign started after the escape of six high-profile Palestinian security prisoners from Gilboa prison.
• PNN (19/9/21): Israeli settlers, forces assault civilians in Hebron
• Just Security (20/9/21): Israeli security forces have captured the last two Palestinians who escaped with four others from an Israeli maximum-security prison on Sept. 6.
• PNN (17/9/21): Israeli settler stabs Palestinian bus driver in Jerusalem
• Just Security (16/9/21): Israel’s navy has stepped up its activities in the Red Sea “exponentially” in the face of growing Iranian threats to Israeli shipping, the country’s recently retired navy commander, Vice Adm. Eli Sharvit, has said.
• Al-Monitor (15/9/21): Gantz says Israel could accept new nuclear deal with Iran - Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz also said Israel wants to see a “viable US-led plan B” if talks between Tehran and world powers fall through.
• PNN (15/9/21): Zubeidi was severely beaten after his arrest, suffers broken ribs, says commission
• PNN (15/9/21): Two thirds of the Palestinian detainees at the Israeli Etzion facility are minors
• Al Jazeera (14/9/21): Greece probes crash that killed witness in Netanyahu trial - A former official in Israel’s communications ministry was expected to testify on allegations ex-PM offered benefits to a company for positive media coverage.
• Democracy Now (14/9/21): Israel Bombs Gaza Strip for Third Consecutive Night Amid Palestinian Rocket Fire
• Common Dreams (13/9/21): Israel Unveils New Armed Robot Amid Outcry Over 'Death Machines' - "DSEI is a vicious example of everyday militarism."
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (13/9/21): UAE looks to grow Israel economic ties to $1 trillion over decade - The UAE’s economy minister said on Monday that the country is looking to strengthen its business ties with Israel to $1 trillion over the next decade.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Palestinian shot dead after attempted stabbing in Jerusalem's Old City - Israeli police said the man tried to stab police officers stationed outside Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Rocket fired into Israel after two Palestinian escapees caught - Two of the six escaped prisoners were caught in the northern city of Nazareth. Israeli forces previously searched the homes of the prisoners' families, according to Palestinian media.
• PNN (11/9/21): Israeli warplanes attack Gaza Strip, cause damage but no injuries
• PNN (10/9/21): Video: Palestinian doctor shot dead by Israeli occupation police in Jerusalem
• PNN (10/9/21): Two of Gilboa Prison breakers caught by IOF
• Just Security (9/9/21): At least 100 Palestinians have been injured after tear gas, rubber-coated bullets and live ammunition were fired by Israeli soldiers at protests in the occupied West Bank, the Palestine Red Crescent has said.
• Just Security (9/9/21): Pressure is building around Israel’s prison system after fires broke out at several facilities and the government searched for six Palestinian escapees who tunneled out of a high-security facility two days earlier.
• Just Security (7/9/21): Israel’s military has said that it has launched airstrikes earlier today on what it said was a Hamas military site in the Gaza Strip, after incendiary balloons were sent into Israeli territory
• The Guardian (6/9/21): Six Palestinian militants escape high-security Israeli prison – video
• Al-Monitor (3/9/21): Israeli military: Missile fired from Syria toward Israel exploded over sea - Syria also reported Israeli airstrikes near Damascus
• Democracy Now (3/9/21): Israeli Soldiers Kill 1 Palestinian, Wound 15 Others at Protest Against Gaza Blockade
• PNN (2/9/21): Israeli navy targets Gaza fishermen offshore Gaza, injures one
• Just Security (2/9/21): Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday said Biden’s plan to reopen a consulate in Jerusalem is a “bad idea,” arguing that such a move could destabilize Israel’s new government under Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Israel opens Chinese-run terminal at Haifa port - Biden's CIA director raised concerns about Beijing's growing investment in Israel, according to a report. [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): Building materials allowed into Gaza after Israeli assault in May - While dozens of truckloads of construction materials were allowed into the besieged enclave, rights group says ‘more expansive opening’ is needed.
• Just Security (1/9/21): Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank overnight
• Just Security (30/8/21): Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told President Biden during their White House meeting Friday that he won’t publicly campaign against a U.S. return to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal,
• Al Jazeera (30/8/21): Israeli police officer shot at Gaza border protest dies - Dozens of Palestinians were wounded, and two later died, in protests against the crippling Israeli blockade of Gaza.
• Al-Monitor (30/8/21): Gantz announces $155M loan for PA following Abbas meeting - Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz and PA President Mahmoud Abbas held rare face-to-face talks in Ramallah on Aug. 29.
• Al Jazeera (29/8/21): Israel bombs Hamas sites in Gaza after protests - Palestinians say they are resuming the demonstrations to press Israel to ease restrictions on the enclave.
• Al Jazeera (28/8/21): Palestinian boy dies after being shot by Israeli forces in Gaza - Hassan Abu al-Neil, 12, dies of wounds a week after he was shot by Israeli forces during protests at the Gaza border.
• Democracy Now (27/8/21): Israeli Forces Fire Live Rounds and Tear Gas at Palestinians Protesting Gaza Blockade
• Just Security (25/8/21): A Palestinian man has died today from a bullet wound suffered during clashes with Israeli forces last week along Gaza’s border fence over the weekend, Palestinian health officials have said.
• Just Security (25/8/21): Hamas-backed Palestinian activists in the Gaza Strip have launched a new wave of incendiary balloons into Israel, following a night of airstrikes from Israel into Gaza
• Al Jazeera (25/8/21): Palestinians in Gaza resume protests against Israeli blockade - Israeli forces fire live rounds, tear gas as hundreds of Palestinians demand Israel ease its crippling blockade of Gaza.
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): Israel’s New PM Naftali Bennett Pushes Hard-Line Positions Ahead of Meeting Biden
• PNN (24/8/21): A Palestinian teenager was killed by IOF east of Nablus
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): Israel bombs Hamas sites in Gaza over fire balloons: military - Palestinians say the balloons aim to pressure Israel to ease restrictions on the besieged territory under Israeli blockade.
• PNN (22/8/21): Disabled man injured by IOF soldiers near Bethlehem
• PNN (22/8/21): Israeli occupation fighter jets attack targets in the center of Gaza after 41 Palestinians injured at at Gaza border
• PNN (22/8/21): Occupation forces demolish two homes in Umm al-Fahm
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Algeria blames Israel, Morocco for deadly wildfires - The Algerian president's office said two groups were responsible for starting the fires, one of which Algeria accused of receiving support from Israel and Morocco.
• Al Jazeera (19/8/21) Syria says its air defences intercepted Israeli missiles - Air raids came after Lebanese media outlets had reported low-flying Israeli jets over Beirut.
• PNN (19/8/21): Two Palestinians say they were severely beaten by Israeli soldiers during detention
• PNN (19/8/21): Israeli settlers brutally stab Palestinian worker in Jerusalem
• Democracy Now (19/8/21): Israeli Authorities Demolish Palestinian Kindergarten
• Al-Monitor (17/8/21): Israeli defense minister thanks Palestinian president for sending firefighters to Jerusalem - The cooperation on fighting the wildfires in Jerusalem is not the only recent evidence Israeli-Palestinian relations may be improving.
• Al-Monitor (17/8/21): Syria reports new Israeli missile attack - The news followed Iran's Lebanese ally Hezbollah firing rockets at Israel earlier this month
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Israeli firefighters battle blaze near Jerusalem for third day - Rescue Service says 110 firefighting teams accompanied by eight aircraft working to combat the raging wildfire.
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Rocket fired at Israel from Gaza; first since May assault - The rocket fire could jeopardise three months of relative calm since Israel attacked Gaza over 11 bloody days.
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Israeli Soldiers Raid Jenin Refugee Camp, Fatally Shoot Four Palestinians ["It came hours after Israeli troops clashed with Palestinian gunmen during a late-night arrest raid in the occupied West Bank" - Just Security (17/8/21)]
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Israel furious as Poland signs law to limit property claims - Israel recalls its top diplomat to Poland after president approves bill curbing World War II-era restitution claims.
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Secretive Israel-UAE oil deal endangers prized Eilat corals - Environmental groups worry about the risk supertankers might pose to Eilat’s fragile coral ecosystems. [climate-change-news]
• PNN (14/8/21): UN experts condemn Israel’s raid of DCIP office in West Bank
• PNN (14/8/21): In two weeks, Israel demolished 57 Palestinian-owned structures in occupied territories : UN
• Just Security (13/8/21): Israel has said that it downed on Wednesday a drone belonging to the Lebanese Hezbollah group that crossed into Israeli airspace from Lebanon
• Al Jazeera (13/8/21): Israeli forces attack worshippers at Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron - Palestinians performed the Friday prayer in front of the mosque to protest against an Israeli construction plan.
• Democracy Now (13/8/21): Israel to Resume Building Illegal Settlements in Occupied West Bank
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Israel and Morocco sign three deals on historic visit - Moroccan FM tells visiting Israeli counterpart that their countries’ newly upgraded ties will bring economic benefits.
• PNN (10/8/21): East Jerusalem’s Silwan neighborhood targeted with the demolition of a building
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Israel attacks Hamas sites in Gaza in response to fire balloons - Palestinians say the balloons aim to pressure Israel to ease restrictions on the coastal enclave that were tightened in May.
• Al-Monitor (6/8/21): Hezbollah escalates border conflict with rocket attacks into Israel - Some Lebanese politicians lamented that the rockets put Lebanon at risk of war and videos of civilians attempting to stop Hezbollah from firing more went viral
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Israeli jets launch air raids on southern Lebanon - Hezbollah-run station confirms two air raids outside the town of Mahmoudiya, near the Lebanese-Israeli border.
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Israeli artillery shells Lebanon after rockets fired over border - Rocket sirens were heard in several northern Israeli communities, close to the frontier with Lebanon.
• Al-Monitor (3/8/21): Israeli budget approved in victory for Arab coalition party - The big winner of the approval of Israel’s 2021 state budget is the leader of the Arab coalition party Ra’am, Mansour Abbas.
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Israeli court adjourns appeal against Sheikh Jarrah expulsions - Palestinian families reject court proposal to stay in homes as ‘protected tenants’ if they recognise Israeli ownership.
• PNN (1/8/21): 16 Palestinian prisoners remain on hunger strike against unfair detention in Israel
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Two reported dead in attack on Israeli-operated ship near Oman - Iran was suspected in the attack on the UAE-bound Mercer Street, which is connected to an Israeli billionaire businessman.
• Al Jazeera (30/7/21): Israeli forces wound more than 250 Palestinian protesters - Palestinian Red Crescent says most injuries sustained in Beita village in the north of the occupied West Bank.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): Israeli Soldiers Kill 20-Year-Old Palestinian at Funeral for Slain 12-Year-Old
• PNN (26/7/21): Israel launches airstrikes on Gaza, damage reported
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Israel halves Gaza fishing zone over incendiary balloon fires - Israeli firefighters say they extinguished brush blazes in three points in a small area in the Eshkol region.
• Democracy Now (22/7/21): Israel Asks U.S. States to Probe Ben & Jerry’s for Violating Anti-BDS Laws
• Just Security (21/7/21): U.S. and E.U. security officials are wary of NSO Group’s links to Israeli intelligence, despite the ability of its spyware technology to help combat terrorists and violent criminals
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Syrian air defences ‘intercept’ Israeli attack over Aleppo - Israeli air attacks reportedly targeted Iranian Revolutionary Guard bases and a weapons plant in al-Safirah area of Aleppo.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Israel shells Lebanon after rockets fired over border - Lebanon’s army says Israel fired 12 artillery shells at the Wadi Hammoul area, causing no damage or casualties.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Palestinians condemn ‘raiding’ of Al-Aqsa by Israeli forces - Palestinians accuse Israeli forces of launching tear gas, rubber bullets at Palestinians as Israeli settlers enter Al-Aqsa compound.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Israeli spyware used to target journalists, activists: Report - The reports say ‘authoritarian governments’ abused software sold by private Israeli firm to hack cellphones worldwide.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Palestine runs dry: ‘Our water they steal and sell to us’ - Israeli authorities refuse to grant licenses to Palestinian water authorities to operate freely in areas under complete Israeli security control.
• Democracy Now (14/7/21): U.N. Rapporteur Says Israeli Settlements Constitute War Crimes, Calls for International Action
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): Israel Continues Demolition of Palestinian Homes in Occupied West Bank
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): Palestinian prisoner ends 65-day hunger strike after release - Ghadanfar Abu Atwan released from Israeli custody and transferred to the Istishari Hospital in the occupied West Bank.
• The Guardian (6/7/21): Israeli PM suffers setback in vote on Arab citizenship rights law - Parliament fails to renew law barring Arab citizens from extending citizenship rights to spouses
• The Majority Report (4/7/21): (VIDEO) Could Netanyahu Exit Give Israeli Left An Opening? w/ Haggai Matar
• The Guardian (1/7/21): Israel hits Gaza with airstrikes after more incendiary balloon launches - Hamas, the Islamist group that runs Israeli-blockaded Gaza, said the strikes hit training sites
• Al Jazeera (1/7/21): Israeli military’s TikTok attempt to make propaganda cool - Israeli military uses pop music, trendy hashtags and interactive games to convey its messages to over 100,000 followers.
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): Report: Palestinian Authority Asks Israel for Munitions to Quell West Bank Protests
• Democracy Now (30/6/21): Israel’s Foreign Minister Inaugurates Embassy in UAE
• Al Jazeera (29/6/21): Demolitions begin in occupied East Jerusalem’s Silwan - Israeli forces demolish a butcher’s shop and use tear gas to push back residents and activists.
• Democracy Now (23/6/21): At Least 3 Arab Israeli Journalists Have Come Under Attack in Past Month
• Al Jazeera (18/6/21): Israeli forces attack Al-Aqsa protesters during Prophet rally - At least 47 Palestinians also hurt by tear gas, rubber bullets near the town of Beita in the occupied West Bank, says Palestine Red Crescent.
• Democracy Now (18/6/21): Israel Bombs Gaza Strip in Second Breach of Ceasefire That Capped Deadly May Assault
• The Guardian (15/6/21): Israel carries out Gaza Strip airstrike after militants release incendiary balloons - Fragile truce under threat after attack on the Palestinian enclave and violence amid Jewish ultranationalists parade through East Jerusalem
• Al Jazeera (14/6/21): New Israeli gov’t approves right-wing march through Jerusalem - Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh describes the planned march as ‘a provocation of our people’.
• New York Times (13/6/21): Israel’s Parliament Approves New Government, Ousting Netanyahu; Democracy Now (14/6/21): New Israeli Gov’t Coalition Ousts Benjamin Netanyahu After 12 Years as Prime Minister
• Democracy Now (11/6/21): Shocking Video Shows Israeli Guards Brutally Assaulting Palestinian Prisoners
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): Israeli court postpones Silwan forced displacement hearing - The Ghaith and Abu Nab families are among hundreds of Palestinians threatened with the forcible expulsion from their homes from Silwan.
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): Israel to allow right-wing march through Jerusalem’s Old City - Statement from Netanyahu’s office says march to go ahead ‘in a format’ to be agreed between police and organisers.
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): Israel to allow right-wing march through Jerusalem’s Old City - Statement from Netanyahu’s office says march to go ahead ‘in a format’ to be agreed between police and organisers.
• Democracy Now (7/6/21): Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Blames Looming Ouster on “Biggest Election Fraud in History”
• Al Jazeera (5/6/21): Al Jazeera denounces Israeli assault and arrest of its journalist - Media network condemns Givara Budeiri’s arrest, says ‘systematic targeting’ of its journalists violates ‘all international conventions’.
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): U.N. Says 200,000 Gazans Need Aid as U.S. Affirms “Ironclad” Support for Israel After Deadly Assault
• Democracy Now (3/6/21): Right-Wing Pro-Settlement Millionaire Naftali Bennett Poised to Head New Israeli Government
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Israeli far-right leader Bennett joins anti-Netanyahu coalition - Bennett’s move could end Netanyahu’s 12-year rule in country that has seen four elections in two years.
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Ireland recognises Israel’s ‘de facto annexation’ of Palestine - Gov’t now set to vote on amendment that, if passed, would expel the Israeli ambassador to Ireland and impose sanctions against Israel.
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Israeli court delays ruling on expulsion of families in Silwan - An Israeli court ruled to forcibly displace seven Palestinian families in Silwan in favour of Jewish settlers in 2020.
• The Intercept (26/5/21): Israeli Police Target Palestinian Journalists at Al Aqsa Mosque - Journalists at the Jerusalem holy site documented police arbitrarily denying access, delivering beatings, and firing on reporters with rubber-coated bullets.
• Democracy Now (26/5/21): Blinken Says U.S. Will Reopen Jerusalem Consulate, Pledges Aid for Gaza as U.S. OKs New Arms Sales to Israel; Israel Arrests Hundreds of Palestinians; UNRWA Head Apologizes for Remarks on Israeli Assault
• World to Win (24/5/21): (video) General Strike of Palestinian Workers shows the way forward (via u/bolshevikpaddy on r/labor)
• The Intercept (24/5/21): Israeli Police Round Up Palestinian Protesters Out of Global Spotlight - “This is what we warned about. Israel will target us all when you stop looking.”
• PNN (24/5/21): Knesset to introduce more Racial Laws to legalize Settlements and annex Lands
• Al Jazeera (20/5/21): Israel and Hamas agree Gaza ceasefire after 11 days of fighting - Israel and Hamas agree ceasefire to halt 11-day conflict amid international pressure to end the fighting.
• Y Net News (18/5/21): Employers threaten to fire Arab workers participating in general strike - Management of Rambam hospital in Haifa sends letters asking staff not to join action, while Education Ministry asks for names of teachers in Arab communities who choose to participate; 'We cannot sit quietly by,' says teacher (via u/AlarmingAffect0 on r/labor)
• Al Jazeera (18/5/21): Israel shells Lebanon as Biden backs Gaza ceasefire – Live - US president expresses support for a ceasefire in third call with Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu since May 10.
• Al Jazeera (14/5/21): Lebanese protester killed by Israeli troops at border - UNIFIL says it has launched an investigation into the incident, and increased its presence at the border alongside the Lebanese army.
• Democracy Now (14/5/21): Eight Killed in Israel by Palestinian Rocket Fire as Military Chief Threatens “Gaza Will Burn”
• Democracy Now (13/5/21): Chanting “Death to Arabs,” Israeli Mobs Attack Arab-Owned Businesses and Assault Driver
• Democracy Now (6/5/21): Israel’s Yair Lapid Given Chance to Form Coalition Government After PM Netanyahu Fails
• Al Jazeera (5/5/21): One killed in Israeli attack on Syria’s Latakia, state media says - SANA said 6 others were wounded and a civilian plastics factory was hit during the pre-dawn attack in northwest Syria.
• Al Jazeera: Israel’s Netanyahu booed by bereaved protesters at stampede site - The Israeli PM calls for a day of mourning on Sunday as he announces an investigation into the stampede that killed 45 people.
• CounterPunch: Extremism is on the Rise in Israel
• Democracy Now (30/4/21): 44 Ultra-Orthordox Jews Die in Stampede at Religious Site; 'And yet the government still authorized this year’s event, raising questions about its culpability and whether its reliance on ultra-Orthodox political parties had trumped concerns for public safety.' [2]
• Economist (Politics this Week 1/5/21): In Israel Benny Gantz, the leader of the Blue and White party, was appointed justice minister after Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, tried to slide a member of his own party, Likud, into the position. Mr Netanyahu’s move was deemed illegal by the attorney-general, as it violated the coalition agreement with Mr Gantz. The appointment is a sensitive issue: Mr Netanyahu is on trial for corruption.
• Democracy Now (29/4/21): Israel Faces Call to Free Alaa al-Rimawi, Palestinian Journalist on Hunger Strike
• Democracy Now (4/27/21): Human Rights Watch Says Israeli Authorities Committed Crimes of Persecution and Apartheid; 'The HRW report follows a conclusion reached by Israeli rights group B’Tselem, which published a study last January that found Palestinians, divided into four tiers of inferior treatment, are denied the right to self-determination.' [2]
• Liberation News: Exposing Israel’s vaccine apartheid in West Bank & Gaza

Jordan Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Democracy Now (6/12/21): In Jordan, a court sentenced five senior health officials to three years in prison Sunday, over the deaths of 10 COVID patients after a state hospital experienced an oxygen shortage in March. The deaths triggered anti-government protests across Jordan.
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Hundreds protest in Jordan against water-energy deal with Israel - Critics say the deal leaves Jordan dependent on Israel without providing a solution to the country’s water problems. [protest-news]
• CPJ (22/11/21): Syrian journalist Ibrahim Awad arrested, held in refugee camp in Jordan [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Telesur (28/10/21): Jordan, Syria, Lebanon Reach Agreement on Lebanon Energy Supply Note about Telesur
• Just Security (4/10/21): Syria’s President Bashar Assad called Jordan’s King Abdullah II yesterday, the first conversation between the two leaders after a decade of strain over Syria’s civil war.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Jordan’s King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein has secretly spent more than $100m on a property empire in the U.K. and U.S., according to the leaked Pandora Papers
• Mother Jones (3/10/21): Largest-Ever Leak of Offshore Files Reveals the Secret Finances of Hundreds of Billionaires and World Leaders - Based on 11.9 million records, the “Pandora Papers” expose hidden holdings of global elites from Putin to Shakira.
• Just Security (10/9/21): A Jordanian court has upheld the convictions of two former senior officials on sedition and other charges connected to an alleged plot against the kingdom involving the half-brother of King Abdullah II.
• The Guardian (9/9/21): Syria cement plant at centre of terror finance investigation ‘used by western spies’ - Jordanian intelligence officer tells Guardian Lafarge factory was used by intelligence agencies to gather information on IS hostages
• The Economist (15/7/21): Jordan’s jailing of a courtier exposes fissures in the kingdom - Some Bedouin tribes may be changing allegiance
• Al Jazeera (12/7/21): Jordan sentences two ex-officials over royal ‘sedition’ plot - Court sentences Bassem Awadallah, Sharif Hassan bin Zaid to 15 years in jail on charges of destabilising the monarchy.
• Labor Notes (3/5/21): Jordanian Teachers Union [represented around 140,000 teachers] Leaves Behind Legacy of Wins [outlawed and dissolved by government in July 2020]

Kuwait Updates

• Al Jazeera (28/12/21): Kuwait names cabinet with opposition MPs, new finance minister - PM Sheikh Sabah Al Khaled Al Hamad Al Sabah’s new cabinet represents Kuwait’s fourth government over the last year and a half. [!]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Al-Monitor (8/11/21): Yet another Kuwaiti government resigns - For the second time this year, a Kuwait government has submitted its resignation to the emir.
• Al Jazeera (14/10/21): HRW urges Kuwait to overturn transgender woman’s conviction - Maha al-Mutairi has been sentenced to two years in prison for ‘imitating the opposite sex’ online. [lgbtq-news]

Lebanon Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

Lebanon Live Map

• Al Jazeera (29/12/21): Lebanon seizes 9 million amphetamine pills headed for Gulf - The interior minister says the plot to smuggle Captagon pills from Lebanon foiled, amid a diplomatic rift with Gulf countries. [drug-news] [!]
• Just Security (23/12/21): A U.S. man allegedly working as a diplomat for the U.S. consulate in Lebanon has been arrested in Turkey on suspicion of selling a fake passport for $10,000 to a Syrian national
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Israel knows attacking Iranian nuke program will bring war with Hezbollah - Israeli leadership is coping not only with the question of military preparedness for the possibility of attacking the Iranian nuclear program, but also with the implications of such an attack on Israel’s homeland security, its economy and its growth. [!]
• Al-Monitor (18/12/21): Egypt ready to pump gas to Lebanon - While Syria says the Arab Gas Pipeline on its territory is set and ready, Egypt announces that it is ready to export natural gas to Lebanon in the first quarter of 2022. [big-oil-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (10/12/21): Lebanon's prime minister asks Egypt for gas as power crisis drags on - Egypt previously agreed to export natural gas to Lebanon via Jordan and Syria. [energy-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (9/12/21): Dangerous data: Telenor’s irresponsible exit from Myanmar may put customers’ lives at risk - Norway’s Telenor selling its Myanmar arm to Lebanese M1 Group, which has cooperated with regimes in Sudan and Syria - Data of 18 million people, including call-data records, part of sale five months after military coup; means possibility of detention, torture, murder [surveillance-and-censorship-news] Important Note on SCMP Funny enough, there is a key detail they miss here - M1 Group is run by CEO Azmi Mikati, brother to Najib Mikati, Prime Minister of Lebanon, the latter who co-founded M1 with a third brother, Taha Mikati. Interestingly, in a recent Popular Front interview with a Lebanese researcher and writer (21/10/21), he reports that PM Mikati has ties to the Myanmar junta. That is, not only does M1 have a track record of human rights violations, but they have ties with the human rights violators in this case.
• Just Security (9/12/21): Lebanese authorities have freed Nada Homsi, a freelance U.S. journalist who was detained in Beirut last month. “The release came just hours after two international human rights groups called her detention arbitrary and demanded that she be set free. Homsi…said after her release that her arrest was part of an intimidation campaign used by Lebanon’s security agencies against foreign journalists,” Bassem Mroue reports for AP. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (6/12/21): Powerful associations and relatives of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have developed a multibillion-dollar operation making and selling captagon, an illegal, addictive amphetamine. A New York Times investigation has found that much of the production and distribution, which has turned Syria into the world’s newest narcostate, is overseen by the Fourth Armored Division of the Syrian Army, an elite unit commanded by Maher al-Assad, the president’s younger brother. Major players also include businessmen with close ties to the government, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and other members of President al-Assad’s extended family. Ben Hubbard and Hwaida Saad report for the New York Times. [drug-news]
• Al-Monitor (3/12/21): Lebanon's information minister resigns amid Gulf row - George Kordahi's resignation comes a day before French President Emmanuel Macron is scheduled to visit Saudi Arabia
• Africa News (29/11/21): Lebanese block a highway with burning tires during a protest in Beirut [protest-news]
• CPJ (29/11/21): Lebanese journalist Radwan Mortada sentenced to 13 months in prison [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Popular Front (21/10/21): Looking into the Beirut Gun Battle - Today we're speaking to Lebanese researcher and writer Joey Ayoub about last weeks deadly gun battle that broke out in Beirut, Lebanon. [podcast-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): The U.N. has repeatedly ignored requests from bereaved families to provide information to help the official investigation into the Beirut port blast which killed 219 people last year
• The Irrawaddy (15/11/21): Junta-Linked Company in Bid to Take Stake in Telenor Myanmar
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): UN rep slams Lebanon central bank chief over economic crisis - A UN expert blasted the country’s banking sector for failing to recognize its role in the country’s crippling economic crisis. [capitalist-farce-news, economic-news, analysis-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): No longer a ‘cash cow’, Saudi squeezes Lebanon’s ruined economy - Saudi Arabia’s blanket ban on Lebanese imports is another blow to Lebanon’s crippled economy, and some fear the squeeze could get worse.
• Al Jazeera (3/11/21): Fired staff at Lebanese daily demand unpaid salaries - Employees at the English-language daily were not told when they will receive months of unpaid salaries after they were let go. [media-news, labor-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): Bahrain has urged all citizens to leave Lebanon immediately. The announcement follows the escalation in regional tensions after the Lebanese information minister criticized Saudi Arabia’s role in the Yemen war. A similar announcement was made by the United Arab Emirates on Sunday. Al Jazeera reports.
• Just Security (1/11/21): Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi has said that “resignation is out of the question” after his previous remarks about the Yemen war sparked diplomatic tensions with Saudi Arabia
• Al Jazeera (29/10/21): Saudi Arabia bans all imports from Lebanon, expels ambassador - The moves come days after footage emerged of Lebanon’s information minister criticising the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
• Telesur (28/10/21): Jordan, Syria, Lebanon Reach Agreement on Lebanon Energy Supply Note about Telesur
• Just Security (29/10/21): The Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on two Lebanese businessmen and a lawmaker, “saying they have profited from corruption while the country struggles through its worst economic crisis in modern history,” [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (26/10/21): Lebanon charges 68 in relation to shooting at Hezbollah protest - Six people were killed at a protest against the Beirut port explosion investigation
• Just Security (19/10/21): Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, declared yesterday that his militant group has 100,000 trained fighters. Nasrallah’s speech, his first since seven people were killed in gun battles on the streets of Beirut last Thursday, appeared to be meant as a deterrent to domestic foes. “It is difficult to verify the 100,000 fighters figure as Hezbollah is largely secretive. If true, it would be larger than the size of Lebanon’s armed forces, estimated at about 85,000,” Sarah El Deeb reports for AP.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Hezbollah accuses Lebanese Forces of killing its supporters - Nasrallah accuses Christian Lebanese Forces of shooting its members after several people died in clashes last week.
• Democracy Now (15/10/21): Lebanon Holds Day of Mourning After Beirut Violence Leaves Seven Dead
• Al-Monitor (14/10/21): Six killed in shooting at Hezbollah protest over Beirut explosion probe - Hezbollah blamed the Christian political party the Lebanese Forces for the attack
• Democracy Now (14/10/21): Heavy Gunfights in Beirut Follow Shooting at Protest Which Killed at Least 5 People
• CPJ (13/10/21): Supporters of Lebanese president storm Al-Sharq office in Beirut
• Just Security (12/10/21): The probe into the catastrophic Beirut blast was frozen today after two politicians wanted for questioning filed a new complaint against Bitar, the lead investigator, a judicial source has said. This is the second time in less than three weeks that the investigation has been paused.
• Just Security (12/10/21): Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, has continued criticizing Tarek Bitar, the judge appointed to lead investigations into the deadly Aug. 4, 2020, Beirut blast in Lebanon
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): ‘Unprecedented’ hunger in Lebanon as fuel crisis hikes food costs - Families skip meals and forgo staples as Lebanon’s paralysing fuel crisis causes food prices to skyrocket.
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Fire at Lebanon’s Zahrani oil facility extinguished - The fire broke out on Monday morning and took more than three hours to contain and extinguish.
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): Lebanon electricity back online after army supplies fuel - Energy Minister Walid Fayad says grid is back up and running, returning to ‘normal’ as it was before fuel ran out at two key power stations. [energy-news]
• Al Jazeera (9/10/21): Fuel shortage forces shutdown of main Lebanese power plants - Deir Ammar and Zahrani power plants stop functioning as a result of running out of diesel, prompting sporadic protests. [energy-news]
• Al-Monitor (4/10/21): Turkish company again stops supplying Lebanon with electricity - Lebanon is in the midst of a debilitating electricity, fuel and economic crisis.
• Democracy Now (1/10/21): Protesters Demand Accountability After Officials Suspend Probe into 2020 Beirut Port Blast
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): US issues Hezbollah-related sanctions in coordination with Qatar - Coordinated US-Qatari measures target ‘major’ Hezbollah financing network in Arabian Peninsula, US Treasury says. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (21/9/21): Lebanon’s inflation rate is worse than Zimbabwe’s and Venezuela’s - Lebanon’s annual inflation rate is the highest in the world, according to Bloomberg data.
• South China Morning Post (17/9/21): US sanctions seven Hong Kong-based companies over Iran, Hezbollah - The Treasury Department says Morteza Minaye Hashemi, who lives in China, had funnelled money to Iran’s Qods Force and Hezbollah - Two Chinese nationals Yan Su Xuan and Song Jing are accused of helping Hashemi establish bank accounts and serving as straw owners for his companies [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (16/9/21): Hezbollah has begun to bring Iranian fuel into Lebanon via Syria today. The Shi’ite Muslim group says that fuel supplied should ease a crippling energy crisis in Lebanon, but opponents are warning it risks provoking U.S. sanctions
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Lebanon forms new government - The formation of a new government led by Prime Minister Najib Mikati brings to an end a 13-month gridlock in Lebanon.
• Al-Monitor (9/9/21): Lebanon won't deport six detained Syrian refugees - Five of the six men are from Syria's Daraa province, where government forces and rebels have clashed in recent months.
<
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Iranian tanker carrying fuel for Lebanon to dock in Syria - Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah promised Iranian vessels would bring fuel to Lebanon amid its harrowing energy crisis.
• Al Jazeera (27/8/21): Lebanon’s Hezbollah agrees to third shipment of Iranian fuel - Hassan Nasrallah agrees to new shipment to ease shortages in the country, but critics warn the move risks sanctions.
• Just Security (19/8/21): An Iranian fuel tanker will be setting sail towards Lebanon “within hours,” the leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group has said today, warning Israel and the United States not to intercept the shipment
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Protesters block roads, rocket shot at gas station as Lebanon crisis continues - Lebanon is experiencing severe fuel, medicine and water shortages and politicians are still unable to form a new government.
• Al-Monitor (16/8/21): Egypt sends medical aid to Lebanon following fuel tank explosion - At least 28 people who were trying to obtain fuel died when a tank exploded in northern Lebanon, prompting angry locals to burn the house of the site owner.
• Al Jazeera (15/8/21): Fuel tanker explodes in Lebanon’s Akkar, at least 20 killed - Lebanese Red Cross says its teams have transported 20 dead bodies and seven injured people to hospitals in Akkar.
• Just Security (13/8/21): Israel has said that it downed on Wednesday a drone belonging to the Lebanese Hezbollah group that crossed into Israeli airspace from Lebanon
• Al Jazeera (12/8/21): Lebanon: Politicians blast central bank for ending fuel subsidies - Lebanon’s central bank on Wednesday announced it is ending fuel subsidies – a move that was highly anticipated and is likely to send prices soaring, heaping even more pain on economically ravaged households.
• Al Jazeera (9/8/21): Lebanon’s worsening fuel crisis spurs violence, leaves three dead - Lebanon has faced months of severe shortages that have prompted long lines at petrol stations and violent conflicts between people desperate for fuel.
• Al-Monitor (7/8/21): Fires continue in Lebanon amid regional outbreak - Large wildfires have affected Turkey, Syria and European countries recently.
• Al-Monitor (6/8/21): Hezbollah escalates border conflict with rocket attacks into Israel - Some Lebanese politicians lamented that the rockets put Lebanon at risk of war and videos of civilians attempting to stop Hezbollah from firing more went viral
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Dozens hurt in Beirut clashes on port explosion anniversary - Memorials turned into protests on the one-year anniversary marking enormous explosion that devastated Lebanon’s capital.
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Israeli jets launch air raids on southern Lebanon - Hezbollah-run station confirms two air raids outside the town of Mahmoudiya, near the Lebanese-Israeli border.
• The Hill (4/8/21): Biden pledges $100 million in aid to Lebanon on anniversary of Beirut blast
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Israeli artillery shells Lebanon after rockets fired over border - Rocket sirens were heard in several northern Israeli communities, close to the frontier with Lebanon.
• Democracy Now (4/8/21): Lebanon Marks One Year Since Blast at Port of Beirut Killed 218
• Al Jazeera (1/8/21): Gunmen attack funeral of Hezbollah commander in Lebanon - Hezbollah says at least two people killed in the attack in Kaldeh, as the army deploys to contain sectarian tensions.
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Forest fires rage in Lebanon, Syria and Turkey - At least four people were killed in the fires
• Al Jazeera (26/7/21): Lebanon: Najib Mikati named new prime minister-designate - The billionaire businessman is now tasked with forming a reformist government for a possible third stint as PM.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Cash-strapped Lebanon signs fuel deal with Iraq to ease crisis - Lebanon to pay for 1 million tonnes of fuel oil a year in goods and services, helping ease its power shortage, according to new deal.
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Israel shells Lebanon after rockets fired over border - Lebanon’s army says Israel fired 12 artillery shells at the Wadi Hammoul area, causing no damage or casualties.
• The Economist World This Week (15/7/21): With the country mired in an economic crisis, two of Lebanon’s main power plants shut down, taking the entire national grid offline and leaving most Lebanese without electricity. The power plants unexpectedly found that their fuel supply had been cut off.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Lebanon: PM-designate Saad Hariri resigns as crisis escalates - Citing key differences with the country’s president, Lebanon’s Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri steps down.
• Al Jazeera (13/7/21): Lebanese riot police clash with families of Beirut blast victims - Angry protesters surrounded the interior minister’s residence in Beirut as explosion investigation continues to stall.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Qatar to provide aid for Lebanese troops as crisis deepens - The Gulf country says it will donate 70 tonnes of food a month to Lebanon’s armed forces to help cope with the worst economic crisis in decades.
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): Lebanon on Brink of Economic Collapse as People Face Hunger, Poverty and Political Uncertainty
• Al Jazeera (30/6/21): Lebanon approves $556M in cash payments for struggling families - The subsidy would give eligible families much-needed relief in the Middle East nation in the throes of an economic meltdown.
• Al Jazeera (29/6/21): Lebanon hikes fuel prices by more than a third as consumers reel - Lebanon’s energy ministry dealt a serious blow to the already besieged pocketbooks of the country’s struggling consumers on Tuesday by raising fuel prices by more than 35 percent.
• Al Jazeera (27/6/21): Several injured in Lebanon protests over plunging currency - Dozens of angry Lebanese took to the streets to denounce the pound’s depreciation and ‘difficult living conditions’.
• Al Jazeera (22/6/21): Lebanon raises price of bread for the fifth time in a year - For the fifth time this year, Lebanon raised the price of subsidised bread as the country’s political, financial and economic crises deepen with no resolution in sight.
• Al Jazeera (7/6/21): France opens graft probe into Lebanon’s central bank chief - French prosecutors opened a preliminary investigation into money laundering allegations against Lebanon’s longtime central bank chief Riad Salameh, who is also accused of associating with an organised criminal group.
• Al Jazera (3/6/21): Lebanon’s central bank U-turns after dollar withdrawal backlash - Lebanon’s central bank chief on Thursday sought to reassure depositors that their money was safe and would be returned after reversing a Wednesday decision to stop dollar withdrawals.
• Al Jazeera (27/5/21): Lebanon’s central bank won’t pay for subsidised medicines - Lebanon’s central bank said it will not eat into its mandatory foreign exchange reserves to cover the cost of subsidised medical goods.
• Al Jazeera (18/5/21): Israel shells Lebanon as Biden backs Gaza ceasefire – Live - US president expresses support for a ceasefire in third call with Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu since May 10.
• Al Jazeera (14/5/21): Lebanese protester killed by Israeli troops at border - UNIFIL says it has launched an investigation into the incident, and increased its presence at the border alongside the Lebanese army.
• Al Jazeera (11/5/21): Turkish firm tells Lebanon to fix debts or face power cuts - Karadeniz says it will shut down supplies unless Beirut halts legal action to seize its power barges and sorts out arrears.
• Popular Front: (podcast) From Bad to Worse for the People of Lebanon
• Al Jazeera: Lebanon faces tough Ramadan amid ‘insane’ food prices - Food prices across Lebanon are soaring as the country goes through its worst economic crisis in decades.; the same money that could once pay for fruit, rice, vegetables, meat, and milk can now only buy the milk

Oman Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.), Pop. density from 2000 (cr.)

• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Omani military leader visits Iran - Oman, a member o[f] the GCC, maintains good relations with Iran. [!]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Al-Monitor (13/8/21): Intel: US sanctions oil broker linked to Iran’s Quds Force [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Two reported dead in attack on Israeli-operated ship near Oman - Iran was suspected in the attack on the UAE-bound Mercer Street, which is connected to an Israeli billionaire businessman.
• Al Jazeera (25/5/21): Protests in Oman over economy, jobs continue for third day - Protesters stage sit-ins in several cities as Oman’s ruler promises to address grievances.

Palestine Updates

(wiki); Israel

Maps: Basic (listed as "Occupied territories" of Israel) (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Jerusalem (cr.); Old Jerusalem (cr.); West Bank Restrictions and encroaching Israeli settlements (cr.)

Israel/Palestine Live Map

The PALESTINOW site is down! It's back up

• PALESTINOW (31/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, 940 Buildings Demolished, Fundraising, Evidence Refusal, Military Exercise, Palestinian Kidnapped [!]
• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): Palestine's Abbas despised by Arab world, says Egypt academic [!]
• Al Jazeera (31/12/21): Israeli troops kill Palestinian in occupied West Bank - The Palestinian health ministry says the man, identified as Amir Atef Reyan from Qarawet Bani Hassan, died from his wounds. [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Tensions as Israel demolishes E. Jerusalem homes - 'I provided all the documents that may stop the demolition but they still went through with it' [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Israeli settlers attack Palestinian village in Nablus [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Israeli soldiers watch as settlers open fire at Sheikh Jarrah homes [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Court turns down request to demolish 41 Arab homes in Israel [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): PA: Israel agree to reunion of 1,000 Palestinian families [!]
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): PA president asks Israel to strengthen him politically in return for halting ICC probe
• Middle East Monitor (30/12/21): Clashes erupt in East Jerusalem as Israel razes Palestinian homes [!]
• Left Voice (30/12/21): Israel Will Now Officially Shoot to Kill Palestinian Rock Throwers - It has recently come to light that the Israeli Defense Forces, the military branch of the repressive Zionist state, has changed its Rules of Engagement to allow soldiers to kill unarmed Palestinians with abandon. In Israel, the war crimes just keep racking up.
• Left Voice (29/12/21): Israeli Army Uses Live Ammunition to Repress Palestinian Revolt in West Bank - After provocations by Israeli settlers claiming territories in the West Bank, the Israeli army violently repressed the Palestinian mobilization over Christmas weekend. At least seven demonstrators were shot and wounded, and dozens were repressed.
• PALESTINOW (29/12/21): Continuing violations, Demolition of sports club, Printing house fined, Palestinian House demolished, Palestinians arrested, Palestinians injured, Farms demolished, Unemployment in Gaza [!]
• Middle East Monitor (29/12/21): Israel impose high taxes, demolish shops to weaken Jerusalemite traders [!]
• Al-Monitor (29/12/21): Israeli contractor working on Gaza security wall injured by gunfire - Palestinian farmers were also injured by Israeli military artillery fire in response to the shooting. [!]
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): Mahmoud Abbas Meets Israeli Defense Minister
• PNN (28/12/21): IOF detain 13 Palestinians, injure another in West Bank raids [!]
• PNN (28/12/21): Israeli Army gives Soldiers Free-hand to fire Palestinians
• Middle East Monitor (28/12/21): Israel demolishes Palestinian house in Jerusalem, displaces 23 people [!]
• PNN (27/12/21): Displacing 16 people, Israeli occupation municipality demolishes Palestinian-owned building in occupied Jerusalem [!]
• Al-Monitor (27/12/21):Tensions flair at Homesh West Bank outpost, following killing of Israeli - Following the killing last week of Yehuda Dimentman, tensions are rising at the ruins of the Homesh West Bank outpost, demolished in the 2005 Gaza disengagement. [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Israel demolishes 10 Palestinian commercial properties in Jerusalem [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Israeli forces attack peaceful protesters [!]
• PALESTINOW (27/12/21): Palestinians injured, Palestinians kidnapped, No access to health care, Attack on Burqa, Call for interrogation, Brutal repression of prisoners, School children injured, House Governor stormed [!]
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Israeli forces destroy Gaza strawberry fields - 5 acres of strawberry field located in the north near the Israeli border, destroyed after tanks and bulldozers entered the Gaza Strip during an Israeli incursion [!]
• PNN (26/12/21): 247 Palestinians injured in a fresh Israeli attack on Burqa [!]
• Middle East Monitor (25/12/21): Israeli settler runs over, kills elderly Palestinian woman in West Bank [!]
• PALESTINOW (25/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Palestinian Cities Stormed, Palestinian Woman Killed, Palestinians Injured, Hamas Leader Assassination Threat, Wanted Palestinians Handed Over to PA [!]
• PNN (24/12/21): Israeli settler runs over, kills middle-aged Palestinian woman in occupied West Bank [!]
• Telesur (23/12/21): Palestinian Young Man Killed by Israeli Soldiers in West Bank - Mohammed Abbas was shot in the back by Israeli soldiers on the outskirts of the al-Ama'ri refugee camp. Note about Telesur [!]
• PALESTINOW (23/12/21): Burglary of Palestinian homes, Palestinians kidnapped, Ceasefire, Isolation of Palestinian female prisoners, Hunger strikers, 19 years incarceration, Palestinian killed, Palestinian land taken [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Palestinian killed by Israeli forces after alleged car attack - There have been several violent incidents between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem and the West Bank in recent weeks. [!]
• PNN (22/12/21): Israel Occupying Forces Target Al-Hadidya Community with Demolition Orders [!]
• Al-Monitor (21/12/21): Palestinian family refuses $5 million offer by settlers for Sheikh Jarrah home - A Palestinian family in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, which faces daily harassment and attacks by settlers, was offered $5 million to vacate their home, so that settlers can move in. [!]
• PALESTINOW (21/12/21): Palestinian Homes Attacked, Photographer Attacked, Palestinians Arrested, Palestinians Attacked, Palestinian Kidnapped, Students Arrested, Illegal Settlers [!]
• PNN (20/12/21): Israeli settlers attack a house east of Tulkarem [!]
• PNN (20/12/21): Palestinian house, vehicles targeted in settler attack in northern West Bank [!]
• PNN (20/12/21): Israel issues eviction order against a Palestinian family in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah, seizes land [!]
• PALESTINOW (19/12/21): Illegal Outpost, Attack Illegal Settlers, Palestinians Arrested, Call for Lynch Attacks, Mosques Ask for Help, Palestinian Woman Shot, Palestinian Kidnapped [!]
• Al Jazeera (17/12/21): Settlers attack Palestinian villages after West Bank killing - Attacks by Jewish settlers come a day after Palestinian gunmen killed an Israeli man in the occupied West Bank. [!]
• PALESTINOW (17/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Hizma Entrance Closed, Houses Invaded, Settlers Violence, Refugee Camp Attacked, Racism, One-State Solution [!]
• PALESTINOW (18/12/21): Aid for Gaza, Palestinian women kidnapped, Children injured, Palestinian cars attacked, Harsh siege, Palestinians injured [!]
• PALESTINOW (16/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, House Evacuation, Houses Demolition, Palestinians Kidnapped, Roadblocks, Palestinians Injured, Child Shot, New Law [!]
• PALESTINOW (15/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Palestinians Arrested, Sheikh Raed Salah, Apartheid, Storming Birzeit University, Laws Against Palestinians, Invaded Gaza, Confiscated Land Worked [!]
• PNN (15/12/21): Israel demolishes Palestinian houses in Jerusalem [!]
• PALESTINOW (14/12/21): Jamil Mohammad al-Kayyal shot dead, Palestinians arrested, Apartheid, Raed Salah released, House demolition, Palestinians attacked, Palestinians kidnapped, Palestinians injured [!]
• PALESTINOW (12/12/21): Hunger striker, Sovereign Palestine, Cut down trees, Resistance fighters, Ground grab, Torture, Ban Hamas by UK, Local elections [!]
• PNN (12/12/21): Settlers attack vehicles for Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): Palestinian killed by Israeli forces after West Bank arrest raid - Jamil al-Kayyal, 31, was killed after Israeli forces raided the Ras al-Ain area in Nablus, Palestinian sources say. [!]
• PALESTINOW (13/12/21): Palestinians killed Lebanon, Demolish own house, Gaza fence, Arrests, Palestinians killed, Re-arrest, Palestinians kidnapped [!]
• PALESTINOW (11/12/21): Hunger striker, Palestinian cars destroyed, Electricity grid destroyed, Palestinian killed, Well occupied, Fishermen kidnapped, Details massacre [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Israeli troops kill Palestinian man during West Bank protest: PA - Palestinian healthy ministry says the victim succumbed to his wounds after being shot in the head by Israeli forces in the village of Beita [!]
• PALESTINOW (10/12/21): Palestinians Arrested, Sheikh Jarrah Neighborhood Attacked, Civilians Shot, Racist Graffiti, Palestinians Kidnapped [!]
• The Intercept (9/12/21): Israel Killed Up to 192 Palestinian Civilians in May 2021 Attacks on Gaza - More than 70 percent of the Israeli attacks that killed civilians in Gaza had no corresponding reports of militants hit alongside them. [!]
• Common Dreams (9/12/21): New Interactive Map Gives Ground-Level Look at High Civilian Toll of Israel's Gaza War - "Our latest study corroborates what we have found with other large-scale conflicts in Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere: Even technologically advanced militaries kill large numbers of civilians when attacks focus on urban centers." [!]
• PALESTINOW (9/12/21): Students kidnapped, Palestinians arrested, Palestinians injured, Racism, Olive trees cut down [!]
• PALESTINOW (8/12/21): Palestinians kidnapped, Journalists travel ban, Prisoner visit ban, Stables demolished, Al-Aqsa Mosque break-in, Dutch court verdict, House looted after Facebook post [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Israel has announced the completion of an enhanced security barrier around the Gaza Strip designed to prevent militants from sneaking into Israel. AP reports.
• Just Security (8/12/21): A 14-year-old Palestinian girl has stabbed an Israeli woman near a contested East Jerusalem neighborhood, in the fourth lone wolf attack to take place in Jerusalem in the past three weeks. Shira Rubin reports for the Washington Post.
• PALESTINOW (7/12/21): Protecting Mosque, Palestinian Teen Killed, Prisoners Attacked, Tents Seized, House Stormed, Houses Demolished, Palestinians Arrested [!]
• PNN (7/12/21): IOF demolition of Palestinian-owned structures reported in Bethlehem,Hebron & Jerusalem [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Republican senators have introduced legislation which aims to disrupt the Palestinian Authority’s policy of paying a salary to families of alleged Palestinian terrorists who are killed or imprisoned by Israeli forces, so-called “martyr payments.” [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (6/12/21): Israeli Forces Kill West Bank Palestinian Teen, After Fatal Shooting of Palestinian in Jerusalem
• Just Security (6/12/21): Violent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces erupted on the weekend, after a Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli border police after he stabbed an Israeli man in the Old City of Jerusalem on Saturday afternoon, according to Israeli police reports. Shira Rubin reports for the Washington Post.
• PALESTINOW (6/12/21): Demolish own house, Hunger strikers, House raided, Activist released, Murderers praised, Palestinians kidnapped, Fishermen attacked [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Israel delays major settlement plan for occupied East Jerusalem - A Jerusalem district planning and building committee decides against the proposal, citing the need for an environmental study. [!]
• PALESTINOW (4/12/21): Palestinian shot dead, Palestinians shot at, Stables demolished, Electricity and water network destroyed, Journalist attacked, Palestinians arrested, Palestinians injured [!]
• PNN (4/12/21): Israeli forces kill wounded Palestinian man at point-blank after stabbing incident [!]
• PNN (5/12/21): Palestinian prisoner Kayed al-Fasfous set free after 131 days of hunger strike [!]
• PALESTINOW (2/12/21): Seized land, Demolish own house, Material confiscated, Palestinians arrested, Al-Bireh raided, Harassment
• PALESTINOW (3/12/21): Torture, Hunger striker, Wall demolished, Discrimination, Palestinian injured, Peace activist kidnapped, Girl like father in prison, Money laundering crimes, Houses attacked
• PNN (1/12/21): The occupation breaks into Khirbat al-Ras al-Ahmar
• PNN (1/12/21): Occupation Arrests Palestinian Citizens and Breaks into Several Houses in Hebron
• PALESTINOW (1/12/21): Stop construction of houses, Destruction house, Palestinian mothers in prison, Gaza water crisis, Palestinian kidnapped, Palestinians injured, US aid
• Just Security (2/12/21): Rights groups are saying that Israel failed to investigate shootings that killed more than 200 Palestinians and wounded thousands at violent protests along the Gaza frontier in recent years. Joseph Krauss reports for AP.
• PALESTINOW (30/11/21): Resolution 181, Travel Ban, Refusal of Entry, Call Resolution, Workshop Demolished, Suppression Protest, Palestinians Injured, Palestinians Kidnapped
• PALESTINOW (27/11/21): Call for Facebook review, Forced to demolish, Illegal settlements, Journalists injured, Right to resist, Teen gets 10 years in prison, House arrest for governor, Palestinians arrested [!]
• Al Jazeera (29/11/21): Palestine: Femicide highlights need for domestic violence law - The killing of a 30-year-old mother in occupied Ramallah by her husband has caused an uproar among Palestinians.
• PNN (29/11/21): Israeli president storms al-Ibrahimi mosque in Hebron
• PNN (29/11/21): IOF injure dozens of Palestinians in Bethlehem
• Common Dreams (28/11/21): EU Joins Rights Group in Condemning Israel's 'Day of Destruction' of Palestinian Homes - "Demolitions are illegal under international law and significantly undermine the prospects for peace."
• PNN (28/11/21): Occupation forces assault protesters demonstrating against Israeli president’s planned visit to Hebron
• Just Security (29/11/21): There has been a dramatic increase in Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank in recent months. Violent incidents against Palestinians are up nearly 150% in the past two years, according to data presented by the Israeli military at a defense ministry meeting this month, while a U.N. agency separately has found that 115 Palestinians have been beaten or otherwise attacked by settlers since the start of the year, resulting in four fatalities. Steve Hendrix reports for the Washington Post.
• PNN (22/11/21): IOF detain 13 Palestinians, assault others in West Bank
• PNN (22/11/21): Settlers attack with stones Palestinian vehicles near Nablus, Hebron
• PNN (20/11/21): IOF hands over body of slain Palestinian child
• PALESTINOW (20/11/21): Palestinians injured, truce revised, Hamas banned by UK, Car tires punctured, Village attacked, Woman’s body released
• PALESTINOW (26/11/21): Illegal Settlement, Palestinians Attacked, Hunger Strikers, Vigil, Roads Closed, Tractor Confiscated, Governor Interrogation, Palestinians Kidnapped, Labeling Illegal Settlement Products
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): The British government sought to declare the whole of Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls the Gaza Strip, a terrorist organisation. Britain had already proscribed the group’s military wing.
• PNN (24/11/21): Three Palestinians injured, one critical, in Israeli settler attacks east of Ramallah
• PNN (24/11/21): Israel approves building of new settlement neighborhood north of Jerusalem
• Democracy Now (23/11/21): Israel Arrests Relatives of Palestinian Man Behind Jerusalem Attack
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Israel returns wrong body to killed Palestinian teenager’s family - The mix-up draws attention to Israel’s policy of withholding bodies of Palestinians who allegedly carried out attacks.
• PALESTINOW (19/11/21): Medical Neglect, Denied from tilling land, Students attacked, Palestinians kidnapped, Extreme poverty, Palestinian injured, Farmers attacked
• PALESTINOW (18/11/21): EU Really Shocked?, Seize Land, Students Attacked, Demolish Houses, Palestinians Arrested, Illegal Photographing, Military Exercises
• Common Dreams (18/11/21): 'Morally Repugnant': Video Shows Israeli Troops Waking, Photographing Palestinian Kids - One Israeli human rights group said the incident illustrates "how arbitrarily the routine of the lives of Palestinians living under occupation is disrupted, and how easily soldiers violate their rights."
• PNN (17/11/21): Israeli occupation police shoot and kill Palestinian teenager in occupied Jerusalem
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Qatar, Egypt agree to supply fuel and building materials to Gaza - Deal was reached in Oslo on Wednesday during meeting for international donor group for Palestinians.
• PALESTINOW (16/11/21): Human rights NGOs, Qadiri attacked, Sheep farm dismantling, Settlement terror, Palestinian kidnapped, Palestinians injured, Olive trees set on fire
• Just Security (19/11/21): The U.K. is set to designate the Palestinian militant group Hamas as a terrorist organization, bringing the U.K.’s position on Hamas in line with the U.S. and E.U.. Stephen Farrell reports for Reuters.
• Just Security (19/11/21): A leading Israeli politician’s campaign lobbying against the reopening of a U.S. consulate for Palestinians in East Jerusalem has been amplified on Facebook by a network of fake accounts, according to research by the Israeli disinformation research company FakeReporter. Olivia Solon reports for NBC News. [big-tech-news, far-right-news, media-news, us-policy-news]
• PNN (16/11/21): IOF kill Palestinian during clashes in northern occupied Jordan Valley
• PALESTINOW (17/11/21): Appeal dismissed, Palestinian shot dead, Buildings demolished, Olive trees uprooted, Palestinian Students attacked, Palestinians injured, Palestinians kidnapped
• Al-Monitor (16/11/21): Human rights organizations call on Hamas to halt death sentences against Israeli agents, drug dealers - The military judiciary in the Gaza Strip announced this month new death sentences against collaborators with Israel and drug dealers, amid calls by human rights organizations to stop these illegal and nonhumanitarian sentences.
• PALESTINOW (15/11/21): Hunger strikers, Prisoners attacked, Palestinians arrested, Land theft, Free Palestinian T-shirt banned in UK, Palestinians injured, Palestinians kidnapped
• PALESTINOW (14/11/21): Hebron Arrest Campaign, Palestinians Arrested, Hunger Strike, Mother Palestinian Dies, Trees Uprooted, Palestinian Threatens, Palestinians Injured
• PNN (14/11/21): Israel uses settler violence to take over West Bank land, says Israeli rights group
• Just Security (16/11/21): A Palestinian man was shot and killed today by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian health officials. The Israeli military stated that troops came under fire overnight while attempting to arrest two people in the area, and that troops shot at a passing vehicle after an explosive device was thrown at them. AP reports.
• Just Security (16/11/21): The chair of a group of more than 300 former generals and top security officials in Israel has expressed his support for the U.S. reopening a consulate for Palestinians in Jerusalem.
• PALESTINOW (12/11/21): Palestinians Attacked, Spyware NSO, Sebastia Invaded, Palestinians Arrested, Store Destroyed, Palestinians Injured, Al-Aqsa Mosque
• PALESTINOW (13/11/21): Hunger striker, Palestinian woman beaten, Palestinians injured, Trees uprooted, Palestinians kidnapped
• Democracy Now (12/11/21): Palestinian Prisoner Ends Hunger Strike, 5 Others Continue Protest Against Detention Without Charge
• Just Security (12/11/21): A senior Palestinian official has said that the phones of three high-ranking Palestinian diplomats were hacked by the Pegasus spyware made by the private Israeli firm NSO Group [surveillance-and-censorship-news, pegasus-news]
• PALESTINOW (10/11/21): Relying on Resistance, Drone Downed, Provocation Palestinians, Houses Demolished, Hate Graffiti, Toxins Sprayed, Palestinians Wounded, Palestinians Kidnapped
• PNN (9/11/21): Israeli settlers vandalize Palestinian vehicles in al-Bireh
• PNN (9/11/21): Israel demolishes three Palestinian houses west of Bethlehem
• PALESTINOW (9/11/21): Hebron Outpost, Palestinians Injured, Stop Building Houses, Vehicles Attacked, Military Maneuver, Watching, Hacked, NGOs, Fishing Boats Attacked
• The Guardian (8/11/21): Palestinian activists’ mobile phones hacked using NSO spyware, says report - Investigation finds rights activists working for groups accused by Israel of being terrorist were previously targeted by NSO spyware [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• PALESTINOW (7/11/21): Child Killed, Attack Repelled, Palestinians Injured, Road Collapsed, Gaza Power Plant Troubled, Torture, Cement in Well
• PNN (6/11/21): Settlers attempt to destroy children’s playing ground in a village southwest of Hebron
• PALESTINOW (6/11/21): Hunger striker, Palestinian NGOs, Access blocked, Demolition houses, Petition rejected, Jenin storms
• Just Security (8/11/21): Israeli officials have said that the U.S. should open its consulate for Palestinians in the West Bank instead of in Jerusalem [us-policy-news]
• CPJ (5/11/21): Palestinian security forces arrest freelance journalist Naseem Mualla [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/11/21): Israeli forces kill Palestinian boy in occupied West Bank - Mohammed Daadas, 13, dies in hospital after being shot by Israeli troops during protests against illegal settlements.
• PNN (3/10/21): IOF assault South Africa’s Counselor, olive harvesters near Bethlehem
• PNN (4/10/21): Israeli occupation forces demolish mosque in Nablus-district town
• PALESTINOW (4/11/21): Gaza Farmers Under Tear Gas, Interrogation of Hunger Striker, Demolition of House, Demolition of Shops, Palestinian NGOs, Palestinians Kidnapped
• PALESTINOW (3/11/21): Hunger Striker, Hackers, Demolish Cemetery, Sheikh Jarrah, Aid PA, Balfour Declaration, Palestinians Kidnapped [lgbtq-news]
• PALESTINOW (2/11/21): Professor Arrested, Gaza Raid, Clinic Removal, Palestinian Land Seized, Al-Aqsa Mosque Break-in, Water Tank Stolen, Palestinians Kidnapped
• Al-Monitor (2/11/21): Israel demolishes Muslim cemetery near Al Aqsa Mosque to build park - The Israeli authorities have bulldozed parts of the Yusufiya cemetery near Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem to build a park.
• CPJ (2/11/21): Hamas security forces arrest journalist Alaa al-Mashrawi in Gaza [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (2/11/21): Israel has begun authorizing plans to build more than 1,300 homes for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank; however, Palestinians and rights groups said these new homes would meet only a fraction of the need in the area under Israeli control, which covers 60% of the West Bank.
• Democracy Now (3/11/21): Sheikh Jarrah Families Reject Israeli Deal That Would Diposess Them of Their Homes
• PALESTINOW (1/11/21): Hunger strikers, Demolition Palestinian House, Disrespect, Child injured, Child kidnapped, House raids, Ibrahimi Mosque closed
• PALESTINOW (30/10/21): ‘Save Our Sons’, Palestinians Wounded, Doctors Not Going to Prisoners, Jenin Invaded, Palestinian Shot at, Questionable Interrogation Technique, Palestinians Arrested
• PNN (30/10/21): EU Spokesperson:settlement expansion are illegal under international law
• PALESTINOW (29/10/21): Cemetery Demolition, Destruction of village for 194th time, Settlement Units, Demolition orders, NGOs, Power cut, No prisoner visit
• PALESTINOW (28/10/21): 34 Palestinian Women in Prison, Houses Searched, Village Invaded, Attack on Fishing Boats, Palestinians Kidnapped
• Telesur (28/10/21): Israel To Cut Power To Palestinians Over Unpaid Debt Note about Telesur
• PALESTINOW (27/10/21): Farmers attacked, Gaza young man arrested, Buildings destroyed, Palestinians arrested, Red Cross team attacked, Palestinian in wheelchair kidnapped, Palestinians kidnapped
• Just Security (27/10/21): An Israeli committee, the Defense Ministry’s higher planning council, is expected today to approve 2,800 new settler homes in the occupied West Bank, a day after the Biden administration issued its strongest condemnation yet of Israeli settlement construction
• Al Jazeera (26/10/21): US says it ‘strongly’ opposes Israel’s settlement expansion plans - In rare criticism of Israeli government, Biden administration slams plans to build thousands of settlement units.
• Just Security (26/10/21): Israel is sending an envoy to Washington amid a deepening rift with President Biden’s administration following Israel’s outlawing of six Palestinian rights groups. “Israel last week designated the prominent Palestinian human rights groups as terrorist organizations, sparking international criticism and repeated assertions by Israel’s top strategic partner, the United States, that there had been no advance warning of the move….The State Department has said it would seek more information on the decision. Joshua Zarka, a senior Israeli Foreign Ministry official, told Israeli Army Radio the envoy would ‘give them all the details and to present them all the intelligence’ during his visit in the coming days. Zarka said he personally updated U.S. officials on Israel’s intention to outlaw the groups last week, and said he believed Washington wanted a more thorough explanation of the decision,” Tia Goldenberg reports for AP. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (22/10/21): Palestinian Islamic Jihad announces end to hunger strike - Israeli officials are disputing the militant group's claim that prison authorities have met the Palestinians' demands.
• The Intercept (22/10/21): Palestinian Rights Groups That Document Israeli Abuses Labeled “Terrorists” by Israel - Israel designated six leading Palestinian human rights groups “terrorist organizations,” but refused to reveal any evidence to prove the accusation. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• PNN (23/10/21): Palestinian injured, cars vandalized in an Israeli settler attack north of Ramallah
• PALESTINOW (23/10/21): Garbage Truck Stolen, Farmers in Trouble, Palestinians Arrested, Settlement Plans, Roads Destroyed, Palestinians Injured, Palestinian Home Demolished, NGOs Linked to Resistance
• Al-Monitor (23/10/21): Palestinian olive season begins with settler attacks, arson - Palestinians are once again having to defend their own olive trees during harvesting season from Israeli settler vigilantism while Israeli soldiers stand by.
• Al Jazeera (19/10/21): Violent Israeli raids in occupied East Jerusalem wound dozens - Dozens wounded and arrested in Israeli raids on Palestinians at Damascus Gate and in surrounding areas.
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Israel regularizes status of 4,000 West Bank Palestinians - Defense Minister Benny Gantz decided to legalize the status of some 4,000 Palestinians who live in the West Bank but are not properly registered.
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Settler attacks wreak havoc on Palestinians during olive harvest - Israeli settlers are committing violent, daily attacks against Palestinians harvesting their olive trees for the season.
• Middle East Monitor (15/10/21): Israeli settlers hang and torture Palestinian teen with fire, human rights group reveals
• Just Security (18/10/21): The Israeli military has said that it has reprimanded an officer who was found to have used excessive force against protesters in the occupied West Bank, including pushing a 65-year-old Israeli peace activist to the ground
• PNN (14/10/21): IOF shot dead Palestinian young man in Beit Jala
• Just Security (13/10/21): There is “no way” for the U.S. to reopen a consulate in Jerusalem, the Israeli Justice Minister Gideon Saar has said during a public conference. [us-policy-news]
• Common Dreams (12/10/21): 'A Huge Deal': Amazon, Google Workers Demand Companies Sever Ties With Israeli Military - "We cannot look the other way as the products we build are used to deny Palestinians their basic rights, force Palestinians out of their homes, and attack Palestinians in the Gaza Strip." [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, labor-news]
• Al-Monitor (12/10/21): Year of changes place Abraham Accords supporters on rockier ground - The Abraham Accords did much to sideline the Palestinian issue, but the current Israeli government is increasingly communicating with the Palestinian Authority and President Mahmoud Abbas.
• EFF (12/10/21): Why Is PayPal Denying Service to Palestinians? [big-tech-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• PNN (10/10/21): Israeli settlers attack farmers harvesting olives near Nablus
• PNN (10/10/21): Israel razes Muslim grave in East Jerusalem cemetery
• Common Dreams (8/10/21): Facebook Suppressed Content Highlighting Israeli Abuses of Palestinians: Report - "Instead of respecting people's right to speak out, Facebook is silencing many people arbitrarily and without explanation, replicating online some of the same power imbalances and rights abuses we see on the ground." [big-tech-news]
• PNN (7/10/21): Palestinian prisoner continues hunger strike for 77 days
• PNN (7/10/21): Israel plans to build 10,000 new settler units in West Bank: Report
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Israeli settlers take over home in Jerusalem’s Silwan - Settlers take over an apartment in Palestinian neighbourhood as the Jerusalem municipality hands out demolition orders.
• Democraccy Now (5/10/21): Masked Jewish Settlers Attack Palestinians in “Pogrom” as Settler Violence Surges
• Just Security (4/10/21): The Palestinian president yesterday hosted two Israeli Cabinet ministers for a meeting, in a new sign of slowly improving ties between Israel and Palestine.
• PNN (4/10/21): Israeli settlers steal their crops in lands near settlements : Palestinians say
• The Guardian (4/10/21): Israel accuses Iran of attack attempt against Israelis in Cyprus - Nicosia says an armed individual was arrested after crossing from Turkish-controlled north
• PNN (3/10/21): Palestinian prisoners to begin protest measures in response to Israeli repression
• PNN (30/9/21): Israeli troops kill young Palestinian man in nighttime West Bank raids
• PNN (30/9/21): Israeli police kills Palestinian woman in Jerusalem
• PNN (30/9/21): Israeli forces shoots dead Palestinian bird hunter east Gaza border
• PNN (29/9/21): Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails go on hunger strike, boycott courts
• Al Jazeera (26/9/21): Palestinian MP Khalida Jarrar released from Israeli prison - Jarrar, a left-wing figure and member of the now-defunct PLC, was released by Israeli authorities on Sunday.
• The Guardian (26/9/21): Five Palestinians shot dead in gun battles with Israeli troops in West Bank - Two Israeli soldiers were also seriously wounded after violence erupted when troops tried to arrest suspected Hamas militants
• Left Voice (24/9/21): House Votes $1 Billion for Israeli War Machine Without Opposition from AOC - Last night, with the help of DSA-endorsed Representatives Jamaal Bowman and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the House of Representatives approved $1 billion in new funding for Israeli "Iron Dome" missile interceptors.
• Democracy Now (24/9/21): Rep. Tlaib Condemns U.S. Support for Israeli War Crimes & Abuses as House Approves Military Funding
• PNN (24/9/21): Palestinian Killed by IOF Gunfire in the West Bank
• Just Security (22/9/21): Democratic lawmakers yesterday removed $1 billion in military funding for Israel to replenish its “Iron Dome” missile-defense system from a federal government funding bill after objections from liberals in the House of Representatives [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (22/9/21):
• Al Jazeera (19/9/21): Israel carries out mass arrests of Palestinians after jailbreak - Arrest campaign started after the escape of six high-profile Palestinian security prisoners from Gilboa prison.
• PNN (19/9/21): Israeli settlers, forces assault civilians in Hebron
• Just Security (20/9/21): Israeli security forces have captured the last two Palestinians who escaped with four others from an Israeli maximum-security prison on Sept. 6.
• PNN (17/9/21): Israeli settler stabs Palestinian bus driver in Jerusalem
• Just Security (16/9/21): Israel’s navy has stepped up its activities in the Red Sea “exponentially” in the face of growing Iranian threats to Israeli shipping, the country’s recently retired navy commander, Vice Adm. Eli Sharvit, has said.
• Al-Monitor (15/9/21): Gantz says Israel could accept new nuclear deal with Iran - Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz also said Israel wants to see a “viable US-led plan B” if talks between Tehran and world powers fall through.
• PNN (15/9/21): Zubeidi was severely beaten after his arrest, suffers broken ribs, says commission
• PNN (15/9/21): Two thirds of the Palestinian detainees at the Israeli Etzion facility are minors
• Al Jazeera (14/9/21): Greece probes crash that killed witness in Netanyahu trial - A former official in Israel’s communications ministry was expected to testify on allegations ex-PM offered benefits to a company for positive media coverage.
• Democracy Now (14/9/21): Israel Bombs Gaza Strip for Third Consecutive Night Amid Palestinian Rocket Fire
• Common Dreams (13/9/21): Israel Unveils New Armed Robot Amid Outcry Over 'Death Machines' - "DSEI is a vicious example of everyday militarism."
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (13/9/21): UAE looks to grow Israel economic ties to $1 trillion over decade - The UAE’s economy minister said on Monday that the country is looking to strengthen its business ties with Israel to $1 trillion over the next decade.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Palestinian shot dead after attempted stabbing in Jerusalem's Old City - Israeli police said the man tried to stab police officers stationed outside Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
• Al-Monitor (10/9/21): Rocket fired into Israel after two Palestinian escapees caught - Two of the six escaped prisoners were caught in the northern city of Nazareth. Israeli forces previously searched the homes of the prisoners' families, according to Palestinian media.
• PNN (11/9/21): Israeli warplanes attack Gaza Strip, cause damage but no injuries
• PNN (10/9/21): Video: Palestinian doctor shot dead by Israeli occupation police in Jerusalem
• PNN (10/9/21): Two of Gilboa Prison breakers caught by IOF
• Just Security (9/9/21): At least 100 Palestinians have been injured after tear gas, rubber-coated bullets and live ammunition were fired by Israeli soldiers at protests in the occupied West Bank, the Palestine Red Crescent has said.
• Just Security (9/9/21): Pressure is building around Israel’s prison system after fires broke out at several facilities and the government searched for six Palestinian escapees who tunneled out of a high-security facility two days earlier.
• Just Security (7/9/21): Israel’s military has said that it has launched airstrikes earlier today on what it said was a Hamas military site in the Gaza Strip, after incendiary balloons were sent into Israeli territory
• The Guardian (6/9/21): Six Palestinian militants escape high-security Israeli prison – video
• Al-Monitor (3/9/21): Israeli military: Missile fired from Syria toward Israel exploded over sea - Syria also reported Israeli airstrikes near Damascus
• Democracy Now (3/9/21): Israeli Soldiers Kill 1 Palestinian, Wound 15 Others at Protest Against Gaza Blockade
• PNN (2/9/21): Israeli navy targets Gaza fishermen offshore Gaza, injures one
• Just Security (2/9/21): Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday said Biden’s plan to reopen a consulate in Jerusalem is a “bad idea,” arguing that such a move could destabilize Israel’s new government under Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Israel opens Chinese-run terminal at Haifa port - Biden's CIA director raised concerns about Beijing's growing investment in Israel, according to a report. [bri-news]
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): Building materials allowed into Gaza after Israeli assault in May - While dozens of truckloads of construction materials were allowed into the besieged enclave, rights group says ‘more expansive opening’ is needed.
• Just Security (1/9/21): Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank overnight
• Just Security (30/8/21): Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told President Biden during their White House meeting Friday that he won’t publicly campaign against a U.S. return to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal,
• Al Jazeera (30/8/21): Israeli police officer shot at Gaza border protest dies - Dozens of Palestinians were wounded, and two later died, in protests against the crippling Israeli blockade of Gaza.
• Al-Monitor (30/8/21): Gantz announces $155M loan for PA following Abbas meeting - Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz and PA President Mahmoud Abbas held rare face-to-face talks in Ramallah on Aug. 29.
• Al Jazeera (29/8/21): Israel bombs Hamas sites in Gaza after protests - Palestinians say they are resuming the demonstrations to press Israel to ease restrictions on the enclave.
• Al Jazeera (28/8/21): Palestinian boy dies after being shot by Israeli forces in Gaza - Hassan Abu al-Neil, 12, dies of wounds a week after he was shot by Israeli forces during protests at the Gaza border.
• Democracy Now (27/8/21): Israeli Forces Fire Live Rounds and Tear Gas at Palestinians Protesting Gaza Blockade
• Just Security (25/8/21): A Palestinian man has died today from a bullet wound suffered during clashes with Israeli forces last week along Gaza’s border fence over the weekend, Palestinian health officials have said.
• Just Security (25/8/21): Hamas-backed Palestinian activists in the Gaza Strip have launched a new wave of incendiary balloons into Israel, following a night of airstrikes from Israel into Gaza
• Al Jazeera (25/8/21): Palestinians in Gaza resume protests against Israeli blockade - Israeli forces fire live rounds, tear gas as hundreds of Palestinians demand Israel ease its crippling blockade of Gaza.
• Democracy Now (25/8/21): Israel’s New PM Naftali Bennett Pushes Hard-Line Positions Ahead of Meeting Biden
• PNN (24/8/21): A Palestinian teenager was killed by IOF east of Nablus
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): Israel bombs Hamas sites in Gaza over fire balloons: military - Palestinians say the balloons aim to pressure Israel to ease restrictions on the besieged territory under Israeli blockade.
• PNN (22/8/21): Disabled man injured by IOF soldiers near Bethlehem
• PNN (22/8/21): Israeli occupation fighter jets attack targets in the center of Gaza after 41 Palestinians injured at at Gaza border
• PNN (22/8/21): Occupation forces demolish two homes in Umm al-Fahm
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Algeria blames Israel, Morocco for deadly wildfires - The Algerian president's office said two groups were responsible for starting the fires, one of which Algeria accused of receiving support from Israel and Morocco.
• Al Jazeera (19/8/21) Syria says its air defences intercepted Israeli missiles - Air raids came after Lebanese media outlets had reported low-flying Israeli jets over Beirut.
• PNN (19/8/21): Two Palestinians say they were severely beaten by Israeli soldiers during detention
• PNN (19/8/21): Israeli settlers brutally stab Palestinian worker in Jerusalem
• Democracy Now (19/8/21): Israeli Authorities Demolish Palestinian Kindergarten
• Al-Monitor (17/8/21): Israeli defense minister thanks Palestinian president for sending firefighters to Jerusalem - The cooperation on fighting the wildfires in Jerusalem is not the only recent evidence Israeli-Palestinian relations may be improving.
• Al-Monitor (17/8/21): Syria reports new Israeli missile attack - The news followed Iran's Lebanese ally Hezbollah firing rockets at Israel earlier this month
• Al Jazeera (17/8/21): Israeli firefighters battle blaze near Jerusalem for third day - Rescue Service says 110 firefighting teams accompanied by eight aircraft working to combat the raging wildfire.
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Rocket fired at Israel from Gaza; first since May assault - The rocket fire could jeopardise three months of relative calm since Israel attacked Gaza over 11 bloody days.
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Israeli Soldiers Raid Jenin Refugee Camp, Fatally Shoot Four Palestinians ["It came hours after Israeli troops clashed with Palestinian gunmen during a late-night arrest raid in the occupied West Bank" - Just Security (17/8/21)]
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Israel furious as Poland signs law to limit property claims - Israel recalls its top diplomat to Poland after president approves bill curbing World War II-era restitution claims.
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Secretive Israel-UAE oil deal endangers prized Eilat corals - Environmental groups worry about the risk supertankers might pose to Eilat’s fragile coral ecosystems. [climate-change-news]
• PNN (14/8/21): UN experts condemn Israel’s raid of DCIP office in West Bank
• PNN (14/8/21): In two weeks, Israel demolished 57 Palestinian-owned structures in occupied territories : UN
• Just Security (13/8/21): Israel has said that it downed on Wednesday a drone belonging to the Lebanese Hezbollah group that crossed into Israeli airspace from Lebanon
• Al Jazeera (13/8/21): Israeli forces attack worshippers at Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron - Palestinians performed the Friday prayer in front of the mosque to protest against an Israeli construction plan.
• Democracy Now (13/8/21): Israel to Resume Building Illegal Settlements in Occupied West Bank
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Israel and Morocco sign three deals on historic visit - Moroccan FM tells visiting Israeli counterpart that their countries’ newly upgraded ties will bring economic benefits.
• PNN (10/8/21): East Jerusalem’s Silwan neighborhood targeted with the demolition of a building
• Al Jazeera (7/8/21): Israel attacks Hamas sites in Gaza in response to fire balloons - Palestinians say the balloons aim to pressure Israel to ease restrictions on the coastal enclave that were tightened in May.
• Al-Monitor (6/8/21): Hezbollah escalates border conflict with rocket attacks into Israel - Some Lebanese politicians lamented that the rockets put Lebanon at risk of war and videos of civilians attempting to stop Hezbollah from firing more went viral
• Al Jazeera (5/8/21): Israeli jets launch air raids on southern Lebanon - Hezbollah-run station confirms two air raids outside the town of Mahmoudiya, near the Lebanese-Israeli border.
• Al Jazeera (4/8/21): Israeli artillery shells Lebanon after rockets fired over border - Rocket sirens were heard in several northern Israeli communities, close to the frontier with Lebanon.
• Al-Monitor (3/8/21): Israeli budget approved in victory for Arab coalition party - The big winner of the approval of Israel’s 2021 state budget is the leader of the Arab coalition party Ra’am, Mansour Abbas.
• Al Jazeera (2/8/21): Israeli court adjourns appeal against Sheikh Jarrah expulsions - Palestinian families reject court proposal to stay in homes as ‘protected tenants’ if they recognise Israeli ownership.
• PNN (1/8/21): 16 Palestinian prisoners remain on hunger strike against unfair detention in Israel
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Two reported dead in attack on Israeli-operated ship near Oman - Iran was suspected in the attack on the UAE-bound Mercer Street, which is connected to an Israeli billionaire businessman.
• Al Jazeera (30/7/21): Israeli forces wound more than 250 Palestinian protesters - Palestinian Red Crescent says most injuries sustained in Beita village in the north of the occupied West Bank.
• Democracy Now (30/7/21): Israeli Soldiers Kill 20-Year-Old Palestinian at Funeral for Slain 12-Year-Old
• PNN (26/7/21): Israel launches airstrikes on Gaza, damage reported
• Al Jazeera (25/7/21): Israel halves Gaza fishing zone over incendiary balloon fires - Israeli firefighters say they extinguished brush blazes in three points in a small area in the Eshkol region.
• Democracy Now (22/7/21): Israel Asks U.S. States to Probe Ben & Jerry’s for Violating Anti-BDS Laws
• Just Security (21/7/21): U.S. and E.U. security officials are wary of NSO Group’s links to Israeli intelligence, despite the ability of its spyware technology to help combat terrorists and violent criminals
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Syrian air defences ‘intercept’ Israeli attack over Aleppo - Israeli air attacks reportedly targeted Iranian Revolutionary Guard bases and a weapons plant in al-Safirah area of Aleppo.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Israel shells Lebanon after rockets fired over border - Lebanon’s army says Israel fired 12 artillery shells at the Wadi Hammoul area, causing no damage or casualties.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Palestinians condemn ‘raiding’ of Al-Aqsa by Israeli forces - Palestinians accuse Israeli forces of launching tear gas, rubber bullets at Palestinians as Israeli settlers enter Al-Aqsa compound.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Israeli spyware used to target journalists, activists: Report - The reports say ‘authoritarian governments’ abused software sold by private Israeli firm to hack cellphones worldwide.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Palestine runs dry: ‘Our water they steal and sell to us’ - Israeli authorities refuse to grant licenses to Palestinian water authorities to operate freely in areas under complete Israeli security control.
• Democracy Now (14/7/21): U.N. Rapporteur Says Israeli Settlements Constitute War Crimes, Calls for International Action
• Democracy Now (9/7/21): Israel Continues Demolition of Palestinian Homes in Occupied West Bank
• Al Jazeera (9/7/21): Palestinian prisoner ends 65-day hunger strike after release - Ghadanfar Abu Atwan released from Israeli custody and transferred to the Istishari Hospital in the occupied West Bank.
• The Guardian (6/7/21): Israeli PM suffers setback in vote on Arab citizenship rights law - Parliament fails to renew law barring Arab citizens from extending citizenship rights to spouses
• The Majority Report (4/7/21): (VIDEO) Could Netanyahu Exit Give Israeli Left An Opening? w/ Haggai Matar
• The Guardian (1/7/21): Israel hits Gaza with airstrikes after more incendiary balloon launches - Hamas, the Islamist group that runs Israeli-blockaded Gaza, said the strikes hit training sites
• Al Jazeera (1/7/21): Israeli military’s TikTok attempt to make propaganda cool - Israeli military uses pop music, trendy hashtags and interactive games to convey its messages to over 100,000 followers.
• Democracy Now (1/7/21): Report: Palestinian Authority Asks Israel for Munitions to Quell West Bank Protests
• Democracy Now (30/6/21): Israel’s Foreign Minister Inaugurates Embassy in UAE
• Al Jazeera (29/6/21): Demolitions begin in occupied East Jerusalem’s Silwan - Israeli forces demolish a butcher’s shop and use tear gas to push back residents and activists.
• Democracy Now (23/6/21): At Least 3 Arab Israeli Journalists Have Come Under Attack in Past Month
• Al Jazeera (18/6/21): Israeli forces attack Al-Aqsa protesters during Prophet rally - At least 47 Palestinians also hurt by tear gas, rubber bullets near the town of Beita in the occupied West Bank, says Palestine Red Crescent.
• Democracy Now (18/6/21): Israel Bombs Gaza Strip in Second Breach of Ceasefire That Capped Deadly May Assault
• The Guardian (15/6/21): Israel carries out Gaza Strip airstrike after militants release incendiary balloons - Fragile truce under threat after attack on the Palestinian enclave and violence amid Jewish ultranationalists parade through East Jerusalem
• Al Jazeera (14/6/21): New Israeli gov’t approves right-wing march through Jerusalem - Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh describes the planned march as ‘a provocation of our people’.
• New York Times (13/6/21): Israel’s Parliament Approves New Government, Ousting Netanyahu; Democracy Now (14/6/21): New Israeli Gov’t Coalition Ousts Benjamin Netanyahu After 12 Years as Prime Minister
• Democracy Now (11/6/21): Shocking Video Shows Israeli Guards Brutally Assaulting Palestinian Prisoners
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): Israeli court postpones Silwan forced displacement hearing - The Ghaith and Abu Nab families are among hundreds of Palestinians threatened with the forcible expulsion from their homes from Silwan.
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): Israel to allow right-wing march through Jerusalem’s Old City - Statement from Netanyahu’s office says march to go ahead ‘in a format’ to be agreed between police and organisers.
• Al Jazeera (8/6/21): Israel to allow right-wing march through Jerusalem’s Old City - Statement from Netanyahu’s office says march to go ahead ‘in a format’ to be agreed between police and organisers.
• Democracy Now (7/6/21): Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Blames Looming Ouster on “Biggest Election Fraud in History”
• Al Jazeera (5/6/21): Al Jazeera denounces Israeli assault and arrest of its journalist - Media network condemns Givara Budeiri’s arrest, says ‘systematic targeting’ of its journalists violates ‘all international conventions’.
• Democracy Now (4/6/21): U.N. Says 200,000 Gazans Need Aid as U.S. Affirms “Ironclad” Support for Israel After Deadly Assault
• Democracy Now (3/6/21): Right-Wing Pro-Settlement Millionaire Naftali Bennett Poised to Head New Israeli Government
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Israeli far-right leader Bennett joins anti-Netanyahu coalition - Bennett’s move could end Netanyahu’s 12-year rule in country that has seen four elections in two years.
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Ireland recognises Israel’s ‘de facto annexation’ of Palestine - Gov’t now set to vote on amendment that, if passed, would expel the Israeli ambassador to Ireland and impose sanctions against Israel.
• Al Jazeera (26/5/21): Israeli court delays ruling on expulsion of families in Silwan - An Israeli court ruled to forcibly displace seven Palestinian families in Silwan in favour of Jewish settlers in 2020.
• The Intercept (26/5/21): Israeli Police Target Palestinian Journalists at Al Aqsa Mosque - Journalists at the Jerusalem holy site documented police arbitrarily denying access, delivering beatings, and firing on reporters with rubber-coated bullets.
• Democracy Now (26/5/21): Blinken Says U.S. Will Reopen Jerusalem Consulate, Pledges Aid for Gaza as U.S. OKs New Arms Sales to Israel; Israel Arrests Hundreds of Palestinians; UNRWA Head Apologizes for Remarks on Israeli Assault
• World to Win (24/5/21): (video) General Strike of Palestinian Workers shows the way forward (via u/bolshevikpaddy on r/labor)
• The Intercept (24/5/21): Israeli Police Round Up Palestinian Protesters Out of Global Spotlight - “This is what we warned about. Israel will target us all when you stop looking.”
• PNN (24/5/21): Knesset to introduce more Racial Laws to legalize Settlements and annex Lands
• Al Jazeera (20/5/21): Israel and Hamas agree Gaza ceasefire after 11 days of fighting - Israel and Hamas agree ceasefire to halt 11-day conflict amid international pressure to end the fighting.
• Y Net News (18/5/21): Employers threaten to fire Arab workers participating in general strike - Management of Rambam hospital in Haifa sends letters asking staff not to join action, while Education Ministry asks for names of teachers in Arab communities who choose to participate; 'We cannot sit quietly by,' says teacher (via u/AlarmingAffect0 on r/labor)
• Al Jazeera (18/5/21): Israel shells Lebanon as Biden backs Gaza ceasefire – Live - US president expresses support for a ceasefire in third call with Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu since May 10.
• Al Jazeera (14/5/21): Lebanese protester killed by Israeli troops at border - UNIFIL says it has launched an investigation into the incident, and increased its presence at the border alongside the Lebanese army.
• Democracy Now (14/5/21): Eight Killed in Israel by Palestinian Rocket Fire as Military Chief Threatens “Gaza Will Burn”
• Democracy Now (13/5/21): Chanting “Death to Arabs,” Israeli Mobs Attack Arab-Owned Businesses and Assault Driver
• Democracy Now (6/5/21): Israel’s Yair Lapid Given Chance to Form Coalition Government After PM Netanyahu Fails
• Al Jazeera (5/5/21): One killed in Israeli attack on Syria’s Latakia, state media says - SANA said 6 others were wounded and a civilian plastics factory was hit during the pre-dawn attack in northwest Syria.
• Al Jazeera: Israel’s Netanyahu booed by bereaved protesters at stampede site - The Israeli PM calls for a day of mourning on Sunday as he announces an investigation into the stampede that killed 45 people.
• CounterPunch: Extremism is on the Rise in Israel
• Democracy Now (30/4/21): 44 Ultra-Orthordox Jews Die in Stampede at Religious Site; 'And yet the government still authorized this year’s event, raising questions about its culpability and whether its reliance on ultra-Orthodox political parties had trumped concerns for public safety.' [2]
• Economist (Politics this Week 1/5/21): In Israel Benny Gantz, the leader of the Blue and White party, was appointed justice minister after Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, tried to slide a member of his own party, Likud, into the position. Mr Netanyahu’s move was deemed illegal by the attorney-general, as it violated the coalition agreement with Mr Gantz. The appointment is a sensitive issue: Mr Netanyahu is on trial for corruption.
• Democracy Now (29/4/21): Israel Faces Call to Free Alaa al-Rimawi, Palestinian Journalist on Hunger Strike
• Democracy Now (4/27/21): Human Rights Watch Says Israeli Authorities Committed Crimes of Persecution and Apartheid; 'The HRW report follows a conclusion reached by Israeli rights group B’Tselem, which published a study last January that found Palestinians, divided into four tiers of inferior treatment, are denied the right to self-determination.' [2]
• Liberation News: Exposing Israel’s vaccine apartheid in West Bank & Gaza

Qatar Updates

News

Qatar was recently blockaded (and now being un-blockaded) by the Gulf states (ie Saudi Arabia, UAE), and any fellow Americans might recall the reasoning for this had something to do with them collaborating with... Iran, right? Well, that's not the case actually. Qatar's closest geopolitical ally is Turkey (and see the Mid East section to see how Turkey/Qatar is part of one of three poles of power), and themselves have strong ties with the Muslim Brotherhood. In fact, the Qatari government funds Al Jazeera (wiki), a news source I often reference (not because I'm a fan of Qatari politics, but because they are pretty good at broad world news coverage). The Gulf states are not a big fan of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) (wiki), because their (often) brand of Islamic democracy is a threat to their rule as monarchs. While Qatar is also a monarchy, they saw alignment with the MB as a way to strengthen their geopolitical hand while the Arab Spring (wiki) was at its peak. Ahhh, perhaps you can start to put the pieces together why the Gulf states don't like Qatar, and Turkey gets along with Qatar... and also why the Iranian connection (as far as it exists) is really a minor issue for Qatar.

• Juts Security (16/12/21): A Qatari feminist activist has been missing since mid-October and human rights groups are demanding Qatari authorities show proof of life, amid growing fears that she has been killed or detained. Noof al-Maadeed fled Qatar two years ago, after alleged attempts on her life. She recently returned to Qatar after being given reassurances by the authorities that she was safe. Ruth Michaelson reports for the Guardian. [civil-rights-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Al-Monitor (12/12/21): Al-Azhar ["Sunni Islam's highest religious authority"] rhetoric alarms LGBTQ community - Al-Azhar has in recent days stepped up its anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, following anti-gay comments by a prominent retired soccer star. [lgbtq-news, far-right-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Turkish firms eye boon in deepening bilateral ties with Qatar - Qatar is already the second-largest foreign investor in Turkey, with major stakes in banking, shipping, retail, and the financial sector. [!]
• Al-Monitor (8/12/21): Turkey's good relations with Qatar may not be enough for Erdogan - Erdogan’s Qatar visit failed to produce agreements that could help the ailing Turkish economy, but he wants to maintain Turkey’s partnership with Qatar, including military ties, while making efforts to reconcile with Gulf rivals.
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Saudi Arabia’s MBS on first visit to Qatar since end of blockade - Trip by Crown Prince Mohammed comes after Saudi Arabia and allies took steps to end a years-long blockade of Qatar in early 2021
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Erdogan says Turkey seeks to clear up 'misunderstandings' with Gulf states - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the remarks ahead of a two-day visit to Qatar
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): No sign of increased Qatari aid to Turkey after Erdogan visit - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani signed 15 agreements to boost economic ties. [economic-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (26/11/21): Qatar releases two Norwegian journalists after detention - Qatari security forces detained two journalists working for Norway's state broadcaster whom Doha accused of trespassing on private property. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): Qatar employed a former CIA officer to help spy on rival teams and key soccer officials who were responsible for picking the host of the FIFA 2022 World Cup in 2010, an investigation by The Associated Press has found. Alan Suderman reports for AP. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/11/21): Qatar, Egypt agree to supply fuel and building materials to Gaza - Deal was reached in Oslo on Wednesday during meeting for international donor group for Palestinians.
• Al-Monitor (25/10/21): Turkey, Qatar express 'concern' over coup in Sudan - The Sudanese military has arrested civilians in the transitional government and seized power.
• Democracy Now (4/10/21): Qatar Holds First-Ever Legislative Election in Poll That Excludes Many from Voting
• Al Jazeera (29/9/21): US issues Hezbollah-related sanctions in coordination with Qatar - Coordinated US-Qatari measures target ‘major’ Hezbollah financing network in Arabian Peninsula, US Treasury says. [us-policy-news]
• On Labor (19/9/21): Finally, looking beyond U.S. borders, international labor and human rights organizations, including the AFL-CIO and other major unions, are calling for FIFA to prioritize human and worker rights during preparations for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Preparations for the 2022 World Cup, hosted by Qatar, have been harshly criticized for unaddressed allegations of severe abuse – including thousands of deaths – of migrant workers, and serious criticism has been directed at FIFA and other governing bodies for their failure to take remedial action. [labor-news]
• Al Jazeera (15/9/21): Qatar resumes aid to thousands of Gaza families - Gulf state Qatar has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to Gaza since 2014. UN says new funding amounts to $40m.
• The Economist (11/9/21): Qatar’s unique role in Afghanistan - America’s ignominious exit from Kabul has been a diplomatic boon for tiny Qatar
• Just Security (8/9/21): U.S. authorities are investigating whether payments by Raytheon Technologies Corp. to a Qatar Armed Forces contractor may have been bribes intended for a member of the country’s ruling royal family, [corruption-news, capitalist-farce-news, dark-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/8/21): Qatar receives first batch of US-made F-15 combat planes - Rollout took place in a ceremony at Boeing’s headquarters in the US. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (26/8/21): Qatar has failed to explain up to 70% of migrant worker deaths in past 10 years – Amnesty - World Cup host has not properly investigated fatalities, rights group says, citing concerns over heat stress and safety
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Qatar’s Taliban efforts position Doha as a key mediator: Analysts - Qatar is well-positioned to be the first contact point for regional and international players who want to engage the Taliban.
• Al Jazeera (20/8/21): Hamas hails resumption of Qatari payments to Gaza - Qatar has provided hundreds of millions of dollars to Gaza’s poorest families in recent years.
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Qatar appoints first ambassador to Saudi Arabia since rift - Bandar Mohamed al-Attiyah previously acted as Qatar’s ambassador to Kuwait, a mediator in a years-long regional row.
• Al Jazeera (14/7/21): Qatar’s hotels accused of hospitality workers abuses - UK-based NGO Business and Human Rights Resource Centre finds Qatar’s hotel brands are failing to protect hospitality workers, as the Qatari government encourages workers to report abuses.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Qatar to provide aid for Lebanese troops as crisis deepens - The Gulf country says it will donate 70 tonnes of food a month to Lebanon’s armed forces to help cope with the worst economic crisis in decades.
• Al Jazeera (3/6/21): Qatar releases Kenyan man charged with ‘spreading disinformation’ - Bidali, a security guard who blogged about life as a migrant worker in Qatar, was charged with receiving payment ‘by a foreign agent’.
• Al Jazeera (30/5/21): Qatar charges Kenyan national over ‘spreading disinformation’ - Malcolm Bidali, a Kenyan security guard who blogged about life as a migrant worker, was arrested on May 5.

Saudi Arabia Updates

• Middle East Monitor (31/12/21): 360 tonnes of Saudi aid arrives in Afghanistan from Pakistan [social-woes-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (29/12/21): U.N. Envoy Warns of Civilian Toll as Saudi-Led War on Yemen Escalates
• Al Jazeera (26/12/21): Saudi-led coalition hits Yemen rebel camp in capital Sanaa - Coalition says the attack was a response to ‘an attempt to transfer weapons’ by the Yemeni rebel group. [!]
• Middle East Monitor (23/12/21): Saudi Arabia building own ballistic missiles with Chinese aid: Report [china-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Saudi-led coalition says air raids hit military camp in Sanaa - Coalition says it destroyed drone and weapons stores in air raids on military camp in Yemeni capital Sanaa. [!]
• Just Security (22/12/21): The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen has said that it helped get Irloo out of Yemen before he died, rejecting Iran’s accusation. The coalition said in a statement it had facilitated Irloo’s repatriation and arranged for an Iraqi medical plane to fly him from Sana’a to Basra, Iraq. Reuters reports.
• Wall Street Journal (21/12/21): Iran’s Top Diplomat to Houthi-Controlled Yemen Dies of Covid-19 - Hassan Irloo was smuggled into Yemen in 2020 and named ambassador to parts of the country controlled by Houthis Paywall Summary (?): Iran blames unnamed countries for delaying Irloo's return, although clearly a jab at Saudi Arabia, who had various terms and negotiations with the Houthis to secure Irloo's ride home, due to Riyadh's air blockade of Sana'a, Yemen's capital (which the Houthis control) (see WSJ reporting on the negotiations, (18/12/21, 17/12/21). He had been announced as stable as recently as Saturday.
• Wall Street Journal (18/12/21): Iran’s Top Diplomat in Yemen Leaves the Country - Hassan Irloo was smuggled into Yemen last year and named Iran’s ambassador to parts of the country controlled by the Houthis Paywall Summary (?): An Iraqi plane picked him up. The Saudis cast this as a sign of friction between the Houthis and Tehran (Tehran dismisses this); the Houthis + Tehran claim it is because he needs COVID-19 treatment (turned out the latter, at very least, was true). Irloo is a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp. It's not clear if Houthis had releases Saudi hostages, as requested by Riyadh (see 17/12/21).
• Wall Street Journal (17/12/21): Yemen’s Houthis Seek Departure of Top Iranian Diplomat - Rebel group asked Saudi Arabia to allow ambassador to leave, in a move seen in Riyadh as sign of rift between Houthis and Tehran Paywall Summary (?): Last year, the ambassador was smuggled in, which Saudis 'see' to indicate strain between the two allies. WSJ reports there are local concerns that ambassador Hassan Irloo, while helpful in planning, adds to perceptions in Yemen that the Houthis are beholden to Tehran. The Saudis won't allow an Iranian plane to do the retrieval, only a Omani or Iraqi one, and require freeing some high-profile Saudi hostages in return. Irloo allegedly has COVID-19 and needs to get out, although WSJ reports local skepticisim this is true (soon to be proven true though).
• Just Security (21/12/21): Saudi-led coalition forces have carried out an airstrike on an airport in the Yemini capital of Sana’a. Rebel forces in Yemen have controlled Sana’a for more than six years. The coalition claimed that the airport’s facilities were being used to launch cross-border attacks, and that it urged U.N. aid workers who have been using the airport for humanitarian operations to evacuate the area before the strike was carried out. BBC News reports.
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Al-Monitor (8/12/21): Turkey's good relations with Qatar may not be enough for Erdogan - Erdogan’s Qatar visit failed to produce agreements that could help the ailing Turkish economy, but he wants to maintain Turkey’s partnership with Qatar, including military ties, while making efforts to reconcile with Gulf rivals.
• ZDNet (9/12/21): Saudi human rights activist files lawsuit against former US intelligence operatives for hacking scandal - The Justice Department faced criticism in September for only fining the three former US intelligence operatives after they broke multiple US laws through their offensive hacking of protesters and journalists for the UAE. [us-policy-news, court-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news, corruption-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (8/12/21): Saudi Arabia’s MBS on first visit to Qatar since end of blockade - Trip by Crown Prince Mohammed comes after Saudi Arabia and allies took steps to end a years-long blockade of Qatar in early 2021
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Man arrested in Paris over Jamal Khashoggi killing is released - Officials say Saudi national has ‘nothing to do with the case’ and arrest was a case of mistaken identity [!]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Camels enhanced with Botox barred from Saudi beauty contest - Dozens of animals disqualified after owners manipulate their looks with hormones, fillers and facelifts [!]
• Common Dreams (8/12/21): Senate Dems Help Torpedo Resolution That Would Have Blocked $650 Million Arms Sale to Saudi Arabia - "My simple question is, why in the world would the United States reward a regime that has caused such pain in Yemen with more weapons," Sanders asked after the vote. "The answer is we should not." [us-policy-news] [!]
• The Guardian (7/12/21): French police arrest man in connection with Jamal Khashoggi killing - Police say man, named as Khalid Aedh al-Otaibi, was arrested as he was about to board flight from Paris to Riyadh
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Erdogan says Turkey seeks to clear up 'misunderstandings' with Gulf states - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the remarks ahead of a two-day visit to Qatar
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Saudi-led coalition bombs Sanaa after Houthi attacks - The coalition conducts attacks in Yemen after Houthis launch ballistic missiles and drones into Saudi Arabia. [!]
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Saudi Arabia intercepts ballistic missile over Riyadh - Yemen’s war is heating up again with new Saudi airstrikes in Sanaa, Marib and Hodeida. [!]
• Common Dreams (2/12/21): New Report Urges Biden to Stop Arms Sales Fueling Saudi 'Devastation' of Yemen - "It's time for the Biden administration to cut off this support as a way to change Saudi conduct and relieve the suffering of the Yemeni people caused by Saudi actions." [us-policy-news] [!]
• CounterPunch (3/12/21): This Must End: Saudi Warplanes Carpet-Bomb Yemen With US Backing [us-policy-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Groups Call on U.N. to Relaunch Yemen War Crimes Probe Which Ended Amid Saudi and UAE Pressure
• Just Security (1/12/21): Saudi Arabia used “incentives and threats” to shut down a U.N. investigation of human right violations committed by all sides in the Yemen conflict, according to sources. The U.N. human rights council voted in October against extending the independent war crimes investigation. “Speaking to the Guardian, political officials and diplomatic and activist sources with inside knowledge of the lobbying push described a stealth campaign in which the Saudis appear to have influenced officials in order to guarantee defeat of the measure,” Stephanie Kirchgaessner reports for the Guardian. [corruption-news]
• Al-Monitor (30/11/21): Houthi forces: Saudi artillery kills civilian - The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen also said it bombed a training camp used by the Iran-backed forces
• Just Security (24/11/21): Recovery in war-torn Yemen is possible if the conflict between the pro-government Saudi-led coalition and Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels ends now, according to a new U.N. Development Program report. The report argues that extreme poverty in Yemen could be eradicated within a generation, or by 2047, if the fighting ceases. UN News Centre reports. [economic-news, social-woes-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): A Saudi-led coalition has launched air attacks on Iranian-backed Houthi rebel targets in Yemen’s capital city of Sana’a. Saudi state television reported that civilians were asked to avoid gathering or going near the “legitimate” Houthi targets, and residents reported explosions across the city. The Saudi-led military alliance said that it had destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile launch site in overnight strikes in the city. Reuters reports.
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Houthis say drone attacks target several Saudi cities - Saudi-led coalition later said it attacked 13 targets in Yemen during a military operation against the group
• Just Security (19/11/21): Three senators have made a bipartisan push to block a proposed $650 million weapons sale to Saudi Arabia. Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Mike Lee (R-UT) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced a joint resolution against the proposed arms sale in light of Riyadh’s role in Yemen’s civil war [dark-security-news, us-policy-news]
• The Intercept (11/11/21): The Main Driver of Inflation Is a Murderous Maniac in Riyadh - Saudi Arabia is withholding oil production because Biden won’t meet with Mohammed bin Salman after the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the president suggested. [big-oil-news, capitalist-farce-news, energy-news, economic-news, analysis-news, us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (12/11/21): UAE, Saudi Arabia look to strengthen trade with India - The two richest states in the Persian Gulf region find themselves locked in competition to maximize opportunities for stronger economic ties to Indian markets.
• Al Jazeera (10/11/21): No longer a ‘cash cow’, Saudi squeezes Lebanon’s ruined economy - Saudi Arabia’s blanket ban on Lebanese imports is another blow to Lebanon’s crippled economy, and some fear the squeeze could get worse.
• Just Security (5/11/21): President Biden’s administration has approved a potential $650 million sale of arms to Saudi Arabia. This would be Biden’s first major arms sale to Saudi Arabia. During his campaign, Biden promised he would make Saudi Arabia a “pariah,” however, he has since been criticized for failing to hold the country accountable for the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and for other human rights abuses [us-policy-news]
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): America, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates called on the leaders of a military coup in Sudan to reinstate a civilian-led transitional government. The last two were a surprise: the coup leader, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was thought to have had the backing of Arab allies, including the UAE. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (1/11/21): Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi has said that “resignation is out of the question” after his previous remarks about the Yemen war sparked diplomatic tensions with Saudi Arabia
• Al Jazeera (29/10/21): Saudi Arabia bans all imports from Lebanon, expels ambassador - The moves come days after footage emerged of Lebanon’s information minister criticising the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
• The Guardian (27/10/21): Biden’s $500m Saudi deal contradicts policy on ‘offensive’ weapons, critics say [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/10/21): The daughter of the former top Saudi intelligence official Saad Aljabri has said that representatives of the Saudi government attempted to lure her to the same consulate where the journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in Istanbul, as part of a series of threats against her and her family.
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Coalition ‘kills 160’ Yemen rebels as Marib battle intensifies - Saudi-led coalition says it has killed scores of Houthi rebels in air raids as warring sides battle near strategic city.
• Just Security (18/10/21): Biden is failing to impose any implications on Saudi Arabia for its human rights abuses, despite coming into office calling the country a “pariah,” advocates and regional experts have said
• Just Security (13/10/21): The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Iran-aligned group Houthis in Yemen has destroyed two explosive-laden boats used in an attempted attack by the group in the Red Sea, Saudi state TV has said
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): U.N. Agency to Close Probe into Yemen War After Pressure from Saudis and Allies
• Just Security (7/10/21): A Saudi Arabian court has upheld a 20-year prison term, followed by a 20 year travel ban, imposed on a Saudi aid worker who had criticized the Saudi government on Twitter, drawing a rebuke from the U.S. - Al-Sadhan’s identity may have been leaked to Saudi authorities by two Twitter employees who have been accused in a federal case and FBI investigation as spying for Saudi Arabia [surveillance-and-censorship-news, big-tech-news]
• Democracy Now (24/9/21): House Approves Amendment Ending U.S. Support for Saudi-Led Bombing of Yemen
• ProPublica (12/9/21): Long-Secret FBI Report Reveals New Connections Between 9/11 Hijackers and Saudi Religious Officials in U.S. - “This validates what we have been saying,” says an attorney for families of 9/11 victims who are suing the Saudi government over alleged support of the 2001 terrorist attacks.
• The Intercept (11/9/21): 9/11 and the Saudi Connection - Mounting evidence supports allegations that Saudi Arabia helped fund the 9/11 attacks. [us-policy-news, dark-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): US pulls missile defences in Saudi Arabia amid Yemen attacks - While tens of thousands of American forces remain across the Arabian Peninsula as a counterweight to Iran, Gulf Arab nations worry about the US’s future plans. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Saudi forces intercept three ballistic missiles, blame Houthis - Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis say the rebels fired three ballistic missiles at cities in the kingdom’s east and south.
• Democracy Now (1/9/21): New Saudi Labor Rules Put Hundreds of Yemenis at Risk of Deportation [labor-news]
• Al-Monitor (31/8/21): Drone attack on Saudi airport injures 8 - The second attack on the Abha airport in 24 hours injured several people, state-run media outlets reported.
• Al-Monitor (21/8/21): Saudi Arabia sends oxygen tanks to Tunisia - The Saudi government also sent medical aid to Tunisia in July during the country's COVID-19 outbreak. Daily virus cases have since gone down in Tunisia.
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Canada violating int’l law by selling arms to Saudis: Report - Weapons could be used in the conflict in Yemen, say rights groups, which are urging Ottawa to cancel exports to the Gulf kingdom.
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Qatar appoints first ambassador to Saudi Arabia since rift - Bandar Mohamed al-Attiyah previously acted as Qatar’s ambassador to Kuwait, a mediator in a years-long regional row.
• Al Jazeera (8/8/21): Saudi Arabia’s first wind farm begins electricity production - Dumat al-Jandal, the region’s largest wind farm, has been connected to the grid and began producing carbon-free electricity.
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Tunisia crisis prompts surge in foreign social media manipulation - Social media propaganda emanating from Saudi Arabia and the UAE seeks to justify the Tunisian president’s decision to sack the prime minister.
• Just Security (28/7/21): Influential voices in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates [all nations which oppose the party which was overthrown by the president] are viewing the events in Tunisia, where the country’s president abruptly dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament Sunday night, as marking the death knell for political Islam in democracy
• ZDNet (22/7/21): Saudi Aramco denies breach after hackers hawk stolen files - A group called ZeroX said it had stolen data ranging from 1993 to 2020 about multiple refineries in Saudi Arabia.
• Just Security Early Edition (19/7/21): Israel secretly authorized a group of cyber-surveillance firms, including NSO Group, to work for the government of Saudi Arabia despite international condemnation of the kingdom’s abuse of surveillance software and even after the killing of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Oil producers reach deal on output, ending UAE-Saudi standoff - The close Gulf allies have been publicly at loggerheads over how quickly to increase output amid global pandemic recovery.
• Just Security (14/7/21): Biden’s administration is taking a softer stance towards the Saudi Arabia leader Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as the administration rolls out the red carpet for Prince bin Salman’s younger brother, the Deputy Defense Minister, Prince Khalid bin Salma.
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Saudi-UAE: Despite turmoil geopolitical goals remain steadfast - The cause of the current rift between the Gulf heavyweights is more profound than mere economics, analysts say.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Saudi Arabia supports Egypt, Sudan ‘water rights’ in dam dispute - The expression of support by the kingdom comes a day after Ethiopia notified downstream nations that the second-phase filling at the dam had begun.
• Democracy Now (7/7/21): White House Quietly Hosts Brother of Mohammed bin Salman
• Democracy Now (23/6/21): NYT: Saudi Men Involved in Jamal Khashoggi’s Murder Were Trained by U.S. Group
• Democracy Now (17/6/21): Saudi Arabia Beheads Man Accused of Joining Anti-Government Uprising as Teenager

Syria Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000 - perhap outdated since Civil War) (cr.)

Live Syrian Civil War Map

News

Major Combatants in Syrian Civil War:

• Assad and Iranian satellites - This is the "government" of Syria, centered at Damascus, backed by Russia. We all know they are terrible. Ties with Hezbollah of Lebanon, and of course, Israel is not a huge fan.
• Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) (Kurdish) - includes groups such as the People's Protection Units (YPG), alleged to BE the PKK (a militant group aiming for Kurdish autonomy in Turkey, listed as a terrorist group by most western countries), although more it's the case that there are fluid ties (from my understanding, the PKK is something like the IRA in Northern Ireland, except a bit more socialist and politically focused); ostensibly backed by the US, but this support is increasingly tenuous. Cutting deals with Assad is not out of the question (such as their oil trade), but obviously skeptical of close collaboration
• Syrian National Army (SNA) (Turkey-backed) (also called the FSA) - a haphazard militia of anti-Assad/anti-Kurd soldiers in northwestern Syria (protected and aided by their collaborator Turkey). They do terrible things, facilitate drug trade, likely ties with Turkish mob and intelligence. Lots of infighting between factions/brigades within SNA. They have, in collaboration with Turkey, sent child soldiers in other conflicts abroad, such as Azerbaijan and Libya
• Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - a Turkish backed Islamist extremist group (with Al-Qaeda geneology). They control much of the Idlib region (northwest Syria). Despite shared ally in Turkey, often in conflict with the SNA
• Daraa Rebels - The origin point of the Syrian opposition movement (that resulted in the current civil war). I'm not sure entirely the leadership here, but it's an interesting situation. As Daraa is on the border of Israeli-controlled Golan heights, Russia made sure that Iranian-backed Assad didn't fully occupy Daraa (as that would be too much of an agitation for Israel). So Daraa is in a strange limbo
• IS - largely defeated a couple of years ago, it seems to be resurfacing to some extent. Not sure exactly the full extent.

Syria News

• Middle East Monitor (29/12/21): ISIS claims killing Kurdish militia leader in Syria's Deir ez-Zor [!]
• Al-Monitor (29/12/21): Syrian authorities seize large shipment of captagon and hashish - Captagon is an amphetamine that is widely used in Syria, including by armed groups. [drug-news]
• Middle East Monitor (28/12/21): US forces harass regime forces in northeastern Syria [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (28/12/21): Israeli airstrike sets port of Latakia ablaze, says Syrian media - Second attack on cargo hub this month reported to have caused ‘significant material damage’ [!]
• Al Jazeera (28/12/21): Israeli air raid targets key Syrian port of Latakia: State media - Attack caused ‘significant material damage’, but no casualties were reported, SANA news agency says. [!]
• Democracy Now (27/12/21): Israel Plans to Double Population of Illegal Settlements in Occupied Golan HeightsIsrael Plans to Double Population of Illegal Settlements in Occupied Golan Heights
• Just Security (23/12/21): A U.S. man allegedly working as a diplomat for the U.S. consulate in Lebanon has been arrested in Turkey on suspicion of selling a fake passport for $10,000 to a Syrian national
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Currency crisis threatens Turkey's Syria strategy - Turkey’s economic turmoil might challenge Ankara's grip over opposition-held areas in Syria, where in-house rivalries among the armed factions over financial resources have escalated. [!]
• Al-Monitor (16/12/21): UK warplane shoots down 'hostile' drone near US base in Syria - The latest drone incursion comes as indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran are on thin ice. [!]
• Democracy Now (16/12/21): Syrian Conflict Has Stripped Civilians of Access to Healthcare, Created Humanitarian Disaster [social-woes-news, healthcare-news]
• Al Jazeera (16/12/21): Syrian soldier killed in Israeli missile attack: State media - Air defences downed most of the missiles, and the attack caused some material losses, according to state media. [!]
• Al-Monitor (15/12/21): Syrians resort to ancient bread-making methods in Idlib's food crisis - Displaced Syrians in Idlib are replacing bakery bread with handmade bread, turning to traditional methods during the area's food shortage. [social-woes-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Washington Post says Israeli air raids targeted Syrian chemical sites - The newspaper reports that June 8 airstrikes in Damascus and Homs targeted military sites linked to Syria's former chemical weapons program. [!]
• Al-Monitor (13/12/21): Islamic State attacks government, Russian forces in Syrian desert - Russia also carried out airstrikes in the eastern Deir ez-Zor province, where the Islamic State has been particularly active recently. [russia-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (13/12/21): US-backed SDF forces carry out deadly operation in eastern Syria - US-backed Kurdish forces say operation in Deir Az Zor targeted ISIL fighters but SANA news agency says civilians killed in raid. [us-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): U.S. forces carried out a “large airborne operation” and “kidnapped a number of civilians” at dawn today, Syrian state news agency SANA has reported. The American forces landed in the town of Busayra, east of Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria, the news agency reported. There was no immediate confirmation of the report. Reuters reports. [dark-security-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (13/12/21): A single top secret U.S. strike cell sidestepped safeguards and repeatedly killed civilians, as it launched tens of thousands of attacks against the Islamic State in Syria. People working in the strike cell, which was called Talon Anvil and worked around the clock between 2014 to 2019, have said that it circumvented rules imposed to protect noncombatants, and alarmed its partners in the military and the CIA by killing people who had no role in the conflict. CIA officers reported their concerns to the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Inspector General and the DoD’s leadership, but never saw evidence that these concerns were taken seriously, a former CIA officer has said. Talon Anvil also clashed with Air Force intelligence teams, pushing Air Force analysts of drone footage to say that they saw evidence such as weapons that could legally justify a strike. Dave Philipps, Eric Schmitt and Mark Mazzetti report for the New York Times. [dark-security-news, us-policy-news]
• Africa News (8/12/21): US and Kurdish forces hold joint military exercise in north-eastern Syria [us-policy-news] [!]
• Just Security (7/12/21): A U.S. airstrike targeting an al-Qaida leader in northern Syria wounded a family of six, including a 10-year-old child who suffered serious head injuries. The U.S. drone targeted a man on a motorcycle who Ahmad Qassim was trying to overtake in the car he was driving with his wife and four children. The U.S. military has said that it conducted a strike from a remotely piloted MQ-9 aircraft Friday near the city of Idlib targeting “a senior al-Qaeda leader and planner.” An initial review of this strike indicated the potential for possible civilian casualties, which “was immediately self-reported to U.S. Central Command,” a spokesperson said. The spokesperson added that the military is “initiating a full investigation of the allegations and will release the results when appropriate.” Bassem Mroue reports for AP. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (7/12/21): Israel carried out an airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia today, causing a fire in a container storage area, Syrian state media has reported. “A Syrian military source told Sana news agency that warplanes flying over the Mediterranean Sea fired several missiles at the port’s container yard overnight. No casualties were reported. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said the target was an Iranian weapons shipment. Israel’s military has not commented,” BBC News reports.
• Just Security (6/12/21): Powerful associations and relatives of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have developed a multibillion-dollar operation making and selling captagon, an illegal, addictive amphetamine. A New York Times investigation has found that much of the production and distribution, which has turned Syria into the world’s newest narcostate, is overseen by the Fourth Armored Division of the Syrian Army, an elite unit commanded by Maher al-Assad, the president’s younger brother. Major players also include businessmen with close ties to the government, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and other members of President al-Assad’s extended family. Ben Hubbard and Hwaida Saad report for the New York Times. [drug-news]
• Al-Monitor (3/12/21): Oil workers killed in Islamic State attack in Syria - Syrian state media said IS fighters ambushed buses carrying the employees in the eastern Deir ez-Zor province
• Al Jazeera (30/11/21): German court jails ISIL member for life over Yazidi genocide - Frankfurt court rules in case concerning death of a five-year-old girl bought as a slave and left to die in the sun. [court-news]
• Al Jazeera (27/11/21): Turkish lira crisis hits Idlib in Syria - Turkey’s currency crisis spills over into opposition-held Syrian city that adopted the lira more than a year ago [economic-news]
• CPJ (22/11/21): Syrian journalist Ibrahim Awad arrested, held in refugee camp in Jordan [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (22/11/21): Kurdish-led forces in charge of prisons in north-east Syria housing about 10,000 men with alleged links to ISIS are releasing prisoners in exchange for money under a “reconciliation” scheme. According to interviews with two freed men and official documents, Syrian men imprisoned without trial can pay an $8,000 fine to be freed. As part of the deal, the released prisoners sign a declaration promising not to rejoin any armed organizations and to leave the parts of north and east Syria under control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. Bethan McKernan and Hussam Hammoud report for the Guardian.
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Omar Souleyman: singer held by Turkey over alleged militant links is freed - Syrian questioned by police after reports he has ties to banned Kurdish People’s Protection Units [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Intercept (18/11/21): The U.S.-Led Bombings That Ended the ISIS “Caliphate” Killed Scores of Civilians - The aerial campaign in eastern Syria dislodged the terrorist group from the final patch of land it controlled but cost an untold number of lives [us-policy-news, dark-security-news]
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): Suspected Israeli airstrikes hit Syria for third time this month - The missiles allegedly targeted an empty building near the capital, Damascus, according to Syrian state media
• The Guardian (17/11/21): Syrian musician Omar Souleyman held on terrorism charges in Turkey - Arrest relates to alleged membership of Kurdistan Workers’ party, which is proscribed by Turkey and the west [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): An armed drone strike against a U.S. military base in southern Syria last month was conducted by Iran as retaliation for Israeli airstrikes in Syria, according to various U.S. and Israeli officials
• Al Jazeera (16/11/21): Syrian president abolishes position of Grand Mufti - Al-Assad issues decree effectively sacking Syria’s Grand Mufti Ahmad Hassoun, the highest Islamic authority in Syria.
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): Turkey's war of attrition against Syria's Kurds - Alongside shelling and drones, Turkey is weaponizing water supplies in northeast Syria, turning an already horrible situation into a nightmare
• Al-Monitor (15/11/21): IRGC Syria commander removed 'upon request from Assad' - The future of Iran’s presence in Syria seems to be dividing the Syrian leadership.
• Common Dreams (14/11/21): 'Infuriating' Report Reveals 'Breathtaking Cover-Up' of US Airstrike That Killed Syrian Civilians - "This NYT report on the cover-up of U.S. war crimes in Syria should make your blood boil. The U.S. wantonly kills civilians, covers it up, and then tells other countries how 'democracy' works." [us-policy-news, dark-security-news]
• Al Jazeera (11/11/21): Five members of family killed in air raid on Syria’s Idlib - Three children aged one, two and eight were killed in a Russian air raid on a farm in Syria’s northwest, say rescue workers [russia-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Belarusian airline stops flying Middle East citizens from Turkey - State-owned carrier Belavia bars Syrians, Yemenis and Iraqis from boarding flights at Ankara’s request as the migrant crisis grows. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (10/11/21): The foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus yesterday, “sending the clearest signal yet that the Arab world is willing to re-engage with strongman Bashar Assad,” Albert Aji and Bassem Mroue report for AP.
• Al Jazeera (8/11/21): Israeli air raids hit Syria, two soldiers wounded: State media - Syria’s military says Israeli air raids on central and western provinces wound two soldiers and cause material damage, state media reports.
• Just Security (5/11/21): Press Freedom Tribunal in The Hague to Hold Governments Accountable for Journalist Killings [surveillance-and-censorship-news, court-news]
• Al-Monitor (4/11/21): Why are Turkish-allied formations collapsing in Syria? - Factions pulling out of the recently formed Syrian Liberation Front raise questions about the future of Turkish-backed rebel groups.
• Just Security (3/11/21): Syria’s military has said that Israel carried out an air raid that hit a military post on the outskirts of the capital of Damascus today, causing material damage. The air raid is the second Israeli attack to target areas near the capital in four days.
• Al-Monitor (1/11/21): Syrian jihadi group cracks down on last pocket of rivals in Idlib - Hayat Tahrir al-Sham , which controls Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, is waging a war against the jihadi Jundallah group, which it sees as an extremist organization that exposes the Islamic State’s ideology and harbors jihadists that HTS is chasing.
• Al Jazeera (30/10/21):a Syria says Israel fired missiles towards Damascus suburbs - Two Syrian soldiers were injured in an unusual daytime Israeli missile attack on Damascus, Syrian state TV has reported.
• Telesur (28/10/21): Jordan, Syria, Lebanon Reach Agreement on Lebanon Energy Supply Note about Telesur
• Al-Monitor (28/10/21): Syrian teachers demand better salaries in rebel-held areas - Teachers have been protesting in the areas controlled by the Turkish-backed Syrian opposition in northwestern Aleppo, as they demand an increase in their monthly salaries amid the crumbling Turkish lira. [labor-news]
• Al-Monitor (26/10/21): Turkish-backed factions outmaneuver Syrian jihadist group in Idlib - The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army in north Syria announced a series of mergers recently, derailing plans by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham to seek rapprochement with some of the factions affiliated with the Syrian National Army
• Just Security (26/10/21): Syria has accused Israel of carrying out an attack in the south of Syria.
• Al Jazeera (23/10/21): US kills senior al-Qaeda leader in Syria with drone strike - The strike comes two days after an American outpost in southern Syria was attacked. Note that this is based on official US reporting... I'm increasingly skeptical
• Al-Monitor (21/10/21): 24 put to death in Syria over wildfires - Syria experienced deadly forest fires this year and last alongside other Middle Eastern, North African and Southern European countries along the Mediterranean Sea.
• Al-Monitor (21/10/21): Protests break out in Syrian city controlled by jihadist faction - Protests erupted in Idlib against the Syrian Salvation Government, affiliated with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, amid high inflation and deteriorating living conditions.
• Just Security (21/10/21): The Syrian government is siphoning off millions of dollars of foreign aid by forcing U.N. agencies to use a lower exchange rate, according to new research from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the Operations & Policy Center, and the Center for Operational Analysis and Research.
• Just Security (21/10/21): A little-known group called Saraya Qasiyoun has claimed responsibility for the roadside bombing in Damascus yesterday that killed at least 14 people.
• Just Security (21/10/21): Syrian government forces shelled a marketplace and roads in the town of Ariha in the Idlib region, the last major section of Syria still held by rebels, killing at least 13 people, including children, yesterday.
• Just Security (21/10/21): A U.S. military base in Syria has been the target of a “deliberate and coordinated” attack involving both drones and indirect fire. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (19/10/21): Syrian Kurdish forces 'fully prepared' for possible Turkish attack - Turkey has threatened to launch a military operation against the SDF in the wake of attacks carried out by the latter in north Syria.
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Suspected Turkish drone strike targets three people in Syrian Kurdish town - Turkey's latest strike comes on the four-year anniversary of the Kurdish fighters' capture of Raqqa from the Islamic State.
• Just Security (20/10/21): A bomb attack on a military bus in central Damascus has killed 14 people, Syrian state media has reported. Two explosive devices attached to the vehicle blew up as it passed under Jisr al-Rais bridge during the morning rush hour, media reported. Soon after the blast, Syrian army shellfire reportedly killed at least 10 people in the opposition-held northwest of the country. No group has yet said it was behind the bombing, but suspicion will fall on Islamic State, which has attacked military vehicles in the east of the country this year.
• Just Security (18/10/21): Syria has accused Israel of assassinating a high-ranking Syrian official.
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Syrian government shelling of rebel-held Idlib kills 4 - Attacks come after repeated violations of a truce reached in March last year.
• Just Security (14/10/21): Syria has reported that Israeli air forces launched strikes in areas close to the historic Syrian town of Palmyra in the central province of Homs, targeting Iran-backed militia
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): Car bomb kills several in Syria’s Afrin - At least four people killed and several others wounded in car bomb attack in Afrin, according to reports.
• Just Security (4/10/21): Syria’s President Bashar Assad called Jordan’s King Abdullah II yesterday, the first conversation between the two leaders after a decade of strain over Syria’s civil war.
• Democracy Now (4/10/21): 3 Million in Northern Syria Face Water Shortages After Decade of War
• Just Security (28/9/21): Unidentified aircraft hit a base run by Iranian-backed militias in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al Zor near the Iraqi border, residents and military sources have said.
• The Moscow Times (26/9/21): Russia Raids Kill 11 Pro-Turkish Fighters in Syria – Monitor [russia-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (24/9/21): UN says at least 350K killed in Syria’s war, 'certainly an undercount' - The United Nation's human rights office on Friday updated the death toll from Syria's civil war for the first time since August 2014.
• Just Security (21/9/21): A drone strike has killed at least one person in a rebel-controlled area of northwestern Syria
• Just Security (20/9/21): Since January more than 70 people have been killed inside northeast Syria’s al-Hol camp, with many of the killings being blamed on Islamic State women
• Al-Monitor (17/9/21): Turkey faces gathering storm in Syria - Erdogan’s choices limited as Russian-backed Syrian forces increase attacks, weigh final assault on Idlib [russia-policy-news]
• Al Monitor (16/9/21): Turkey-backed Syrian opposition groups merge under new banner - A group of factions affiliated with the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army have formed a new alliance known as the Syrian Liberation Front intended to end the power struggle between Turkey’s allied factions in northern Syria.
• Just Security (16/9/21): Hezbollah has begun to bring Iranian fuel into Lebanon via Syria today. The Shi’ite Muslim group says that fuel supplied should ease a crippling energy crisis in Lebanon, but opponents are warning it risks provoking U.S. sanctions
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Turkish-backed Syrian forces intensify attacks on US-aligned Syrian Kurdish group - The Turkish army and its allied Syrian factions have recently increased attacks against the Syrian Democratic Forces in northeast Syria.
• Modern Diplomacy (14/9/21): HTS enters Turkey’s plot against the Kurds
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): Attack on Turkish troops in Syria kills two soldiers - Three other soldiers were wounded in an attack targeting Turkish forces in Idlib province.
• The Moscow Times (10/9/21): Russian Soldier Killed in Syrian Patrol Blast
• Democracy Now (10/9/21): Syrian Army Enters Daraa, Birthplace of Uprising Against Assad a Decade Ago
• The Guardian (9/9/21): Syria cement plant at centre of terror finance investigation ‘used by western spies’ - Jordanian intelligence officer tells Guardian Lafarge factory was used by intelligence agencies to gather information on IS hostages
• Al Jazeera (8/9/21): Several civilians killed in Syrian government attacks in Idlib - Syrian Civil Defence says a medical centre in rebel-held Idlib province was targeted by government shelling.
• Al-Monitor (9/9/21): Lebanon won't deport six detained Syrian refugees - Five of the six men are from Syria's Daraa province, where government forces and rebels have clashed in recent months.
• Al-Monitor (9/9/21): Jihadist group in Idlib bans pro-opposition news channel - Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has banned the pro-opposition Orient News channel from media coverage in Idlib, raising fears about the state of press freedom in Syria’s Idlib. [media-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (8/9/21): Syrian tribe forms Shura Council in Idlib with blessing from jihadist group - Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Idlib demanded all the tribes in the areas it controls to coordinate with it to form separate Shura councils, with the aim of controlling the decisions taken by these tribes and expanding its popular base.
• Al-Monitor (7/9/21): Amnesty report says Syrian refugees return to torture, rape - The report documented human rights violations carried out by Syrian intelligence officers against 66 Syrians who returned to the war-torn country, including 13 children.
• Just Security (3/9/21): Syria says it has shot down Israeli missiles which were approaching capital Damascus on Friday
• Al-Monitor (3/9/21): Israeli military: Missile fired from Syria toward Israel exploded over sea - Syria also reported Israeli airstrikes near Damascus
• Just Security (2/9/21): A Russian-brokered cease-fire took effect Wednesday in a volatile southern city in Syria
• Al-Monitor (2/9/21): Iranian tanker carrying fuel for Lebanon to dock in Syria - Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah promised Iranian vessels would bring fuel to Lebanon amid its harrowing energy crisis.
• Al Jazeera (1/9/21): Truce reached in Syria’s Deraa after months of fighting: Reports - A three-day ceasefire came into effect after weeks of intense attacks by pro-government forces on rebels in Deraa City.
• Al-Monitor (31/8/21): Two killed in southern Syria explosion - There have been a few unclaimed attacks in government-held parts of Syria recently.
• Al Jazeera (30/8/21): Disaster looms in Syria as Euphrates dwindles - Experts warn of an impending humanitarian catastrophe in northeast Syria, where waning river flow is rapidly waning. [climate-change-news]
• Al-Monitor (30/8/21): Syrian security personnel killed in drive-by shooting - Syrian government and rebel news outlets did not identify the perpetrators of the attack.
• Democracy Now (27/8/21): 12 Million in Iraq and Syria at Risk from Drought Fueled by Climate Crisis [climate-change-news]
• Al-Monitor (26/8/21): Protests against Turkish-backed local councils in northern Syria expand over bad services - Protests in the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army areas in northern Syria broke out due to the deteriorating services offered by some local councils, including electricity provided by a Turkish power company.
• Al-Monitor (25/8/21): Blast at jihadist training camp in Syria's Idlib kills 10 - The explosion near the town of Hasano occurred as fighters were reportedly attending a training on mortars.
• Al-Monitor (25/8/21): Jihadi group in Syria’s Idlib faces criticism over unfair trials, death sentences - Hayat Tahrir al-Sham issued death sentences against two young men who have been detained in the organization’s prisons on charges of collaborating with the US-led international coalition.
• Al-Monitor (24/8/21): Syrian jihadist group expands control in areas outside Idlib - The government run by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Idlib imposed more measures to isolate its areas of influence in northwestern Syria. [labor-news]
• Just Security (24/8/21): Syrian army units aided by pro-Iranian militias have staged a major assault on an opposition enclave in the southern border city of Deraa al Balaad in a bid to retake the last opposition stronghold in southern Syria, residents, army and opposition sources have said.
• Al-Monitor (23/8/21): Syrian jihadis hail Taliban ‘conquest’ despite their own effort to rebrand - The Taliban's rapid takeover of Afghanistan was widely welcomed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which offered sweets in the streets of Idlib
• Al Jazeera (23/8/21): Deadly siege: Syrians trapped in Deraa after regime attacks - Considered the birthplace of the 2011 uprising, Deraa was attacked last month by the Syrian military and Iran-backed militias.
• Just Security (23/8/21): A fighter jet with the U.S.-led coalition shot down a drone in eastern Syria on Saturday after the unmanned aircraft was deemed a threat, U.S. military officials have said
• Democracy Now (23/8/21): UNICEF Says Fighting in Syria Is Increasingly Killing Children
• Al-Monitor (21/8/21): Syrian government, Kurds discuss plans for oil trade - The Qatirji company and Syrian Democratic Forces are discussing the possibility of increasing oil shipments between SDF-controlled areas to government-held areas
• Al Jazeera (21/8/21): Children killed in Syria’s Idlib amid displacement crisis - Russian-backed Syrian government forces launch attacks on villages in southern Idlib, activists and residents say. [russia-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (20/8/21): Turkish airstrike kills members of US-backed Kurdish force in Syria - A Turkish airstrike has killed four members of a US-backed Syrian Kurdish force. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (19/8/21) Syria says its air defences intercepted Israeli missiles - Air raids came after Lebanese media outlets had reported low-flying Israeli jets over Beirut.
• Just Security (19/8/21): Turkey-backed Syrian forces and Syrian Kurdish fighters shelled one another’s positions in northern Syria yesterday, resulting in the deaths of at least five people dead and wounding more than a dozen
• Al-Monitor (17/8/21): Syria reports new Israeli missile attack - The news followed Iran's Lebanese ally Hezbollah firing rockets at Israel earlier this month
• Al-Monitor (13/8/21): Drug use surges in opposition-controlled areas in northwest Syria - Security forces in the countryside of Aleppo are combating the spread of narcotic substances, amid growing demands for cooperation by the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army factions.
• Al Jazeera (8/8/21): Four children killed in northwest Syria government shelling - Five others were injured after gov’t shelling struck residential neighbourhoods in the village of Qastoun.
• Al-Monitor (7/8/21): How Syrian jihadi group is laundering money in Idlib - Hayat Tahrir al-Sham leaders in Idlib are investing their money in various economic sectors, as part of money laundering operations to control resources and economic activity in their areas of control.
• Al-Monitor (4/8/21): Syrian government forces clash with opposition in Daraa - Is war returning to Daraa?
• Al-Monitor (4/8/21): Explosion on bus carrying soldiers in Damascus kills one - Syria's state news agency said the blast was the result of an electrical issue, but a pro-rebel outlet said a Syrian al-Qaeda affiliate was behind the bombing.
• Al-Monitor (29/7/21): Syrian jihadi group in Idlib boasts about new, advanced weapons - Hayat Tahrir al-Sham leader has recently boasted about his group’s growing weapons arsenal and military capabilities, as the Syrian government forces escalate their attacks on Idlib.
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Forest fires rage in Lebanon, Syria and Turkey - At least four people were killed in the fires
• Just Security (30/7/21): Syria’s Bashar al-Assad government has attacked a former opposition stronghold [Deraa city] with missiles and artillery shelling in an attempt to crush a simmering insurrection in the area.; Following the shelling from Assad’s forces, Syrian rebels attacked Syrian army checkpoints in the southern province of Deraa in the biggest flare-up of violence since government forces retook the restive region three years ago, rebels, residents and the army have said.; Reports have said that at least three civilians were killed, as well as eight government troops and five rebel fighters, in the recent clashes between Syrian government forces and opposition fighters in the country’s southern province of Daraa
• Just Security (29/7/21): President Biden’s administration has announced its first sanctions on Syria, targeting prison facilities and officials who run them, as well as armed groups, focusing on human rights abuses
• Al Monitor (22/7/21): Turkish-backed rebels leave trail of abuse and criminality in Syria’s Afrin - The serene topography of the Syrian enclave of Afrin belies the power vacuum and violence now afflicting many of the territories under the control of Turkish-backed forces in the war-torn country’s northeast.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Two Turkish soldiers killed in attack in northern Syria: Ministry - Turkish defence ministry says two soldiers were killed and two injured in attack on armoured vehicle in northern Syria.
• Al Jazeera (22/7/21): Syrian gov’t shelling in Idlib kills seven members of same family - Military has stepped up bombing of rebel-held northwest since President al-Assad was sworn in for a new term last week.
• Just Security (22/7/21): Syria’s air defenses intercepted an Israeli attack on the al Qusair area in Homs early today, Syrian state media has reported
• Just Security Early Edition (20/7/21): A U.S. drone attack targeted a truck belonging to Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, an Iran-backed militia group in eastern Syria on Sunday, two Iraqi militia officials have said.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Syrian air defences ‘intercept’ Israeli attack over Aleppo - Israeli air attacks reportedly targeted Iranian Revolutionary Guard bases and a weapons plant in al-Safirah area of Aleppo.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Turkey says mass grave found in Syria’s Afrin - Governor of Turkey’s bordering Hatay province says a mass grave was found with 61 bodies in the Ankara-held Afrin area.; Justice for Kurds (20/7/21): Syrian Kurds decry Turkish claims of mass grave in Afrin [evidence it was a prior cemetary from deaths from 2018 Turkish bombings]
• The Guardian (3/7/21): Six children killed in Syria shelling - Artillery fired from government-controlled area kills eight civilians and injures others in Idlib province
• Democracy Now (29/6/21): Iranian-Backed Militia Strikes Back After Biden Orders Bombings in Iraq and Syria
• The Guardian (27/6/21): US strikes hit Iran-backed militia facilities in Iraq and Syria - Pentagon says air strikes were in response to drone attacks against US personnel in Iraq
• The Guardian (23/6/21): Assad forces’ shelling in Syria causes 5,000 civilians to flee - At least 31 people killed since start of June amid government attacks on Idlib area
• Democracy Now (21/6/21): MSF Warns Access Urgently Needed to Bring Aid to Syria’s Idlib Region
• The Guardian (12/6/21): At least 18 die as hospital hit in shelling of Syrian city - Children and hospital staff killed in attack on northern city Afrin, which is held by Turkish-backed rebels
• Al Jazeera (5/5/21): One killed in Israeli attack on Syria’s Latakia, state media says - SANA said 6 others were wounded and a civilian plastics factory was hit during the pre-dawn attack in northwest Syria.
• Al Jazeera: Oil tanker off Syrian coast hit in suspected drone attack - Firefighters extinguish blaze in a tanker near Baniyas refinery after a suspected drone attack, Syria’s oil ministry says.
• Popular Front: (podcast) BONUS: Debunking NYT's Afrin Propaganda

Switzerland Updates

• Africa News (21/12/21): [Italian] MSC offers to buy [French] Bolloré's logistics branch in Africa [capitalist-farce-news]
• Jacobin (20/12/21): In Switzerland, Construction Workers Are Refusing to Shoulder the Costs of the Crisis - Workers on Switzerland’s construction sites have been particularly hard-hit by the pandemic. Bosses’ efforts to use the crisis to undermine established labor rights have prompted an impressive wave of resistance. [labor-news, busting-labor-news, union-news, capitalist-farce-news] [!]
• The Economist World This Week (27/11/21): Protests erupted in several European countries against fresh pandemic restrictions, as the continent battled another wave of infections. Rioting flared up in Rotterdam and The Hague after the Dutch government reintroduced lockdown measures. A big demonstration in Brussels turned ugly, causing the police to deploy water cannon. Marches also took place in Croatia, Italy and Switzerland. Austria reimposed a lockdown and made vaccinations mandatory for all its citizens from February, the first rich country to do so. [anti-vaxx-news, protest-news, covid-news]
• Financial Times (19/10/21): Credit Suisse pays $475m in fines to settle Mozambique ‘tuna bonds’ case - Swiss bank reaches deal with four regulators over 2013 scandal as it struggles to draw line under past missteps [capitalist-farce-news, corruption-news] Paywall Summary: First, Credit Suisse is in trouble for corporate spying. Second, they're in trouble for a shady bond ordeal in Mozambique... and are paying Western finance regulators (ie SEC) for their crimes to the tune of several packages of hundreds of millions of dollars each. In Mozambique, they set up $2bn in bonds/loans using state guarantees and no Mozambique parliamentary approval; the purpose was allegedly for a "state tuna fishing fleet and [to] develop maritime security after the country discovered offshore natural gas", and companies ended up using these loans to buy boats from a Gulf shipbuilder, and kickbacks and corruption abounded with this money. Credit Suisse pleaded guilty to handling kickbacks. These loans were kept secret, and when discovered in 2016, they sunk the economy as donors cut off aid. The govt estimates this fallout put 1.9m+ Mozambicans into poverty.
• Al Jazeera (27/9/21): Switzerland says resounding ‘yes’ to same-sex marriage - Swiss backed proposal, which also allows couples to adopt, by a nearly two-thirds majority in a referendum on Sunday. [lgbtq-news]
• Democracy Now (3/8/21): Zürich Protesters Block Entrances to Swiss Banks That Finance Climate Crisis
• The Economist World this Week (29/5/21): Switzerland said it was walking away from years of negotiations on a new treaty with the EU aimed at harmonising dozens of messy individual deals on trade, investment and the movement of people.

Turkey Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

News

Ruled by Islamist (and de-secularizing) Erdogan, Turkey is increasingly autocratic (ruled almost like a mafia), exaggerating its religious/ethnic oppressive tendencies (largely against Kurds, but remember Armenia), and becoming more flippant - see Imperial Japan/Manchukuo for something that seems similar. Clasically engaged in suppressing Kurdish Autonomous movements such as the PKK (wiki) (which they have managed to be regarded as terrorists by the West), plays an increasingly interventionist role in the Middle East. Their most visible campaign is in northern Syria, where they support the rebels (amongst which are Al-Qaeda-linked militias) and the region is governed with a criminal and mob-like style, an underworld with links to Turkey itself (31/7/21). They then deploy these Syrian forces (not Turkish!) into their other exploits around the Middle East, namely in Nagorno-Karabakh (the contested territory between Armenia and Turkey-aligned Azerbaijan, the latter now controlling the territory), and Libya, where they back the Tripoli government (the UN-backed one) against warlord Haftar (himself backed by Gulf states (Saudi Arabia, UAE) and Egypt, along with Russia and France). Add on top of this with Erdogan's authoritarian style, and mishandling of the economy. Turkey has quite a bit of leverage over Europe right now as well - millions of refugees (largely Syrian) are kept in Turkey as per an agreement between the EU and Turkey. Their Mediterranean axis can also be understood through an even older context, their rivalry with Greece, combined with the discovery of natural gas in the sea, with disputes over islands, and notably, Cyprus.

Turkey got into this insane situation part due to their own shamelessness, part due to bastard American foreign policy. Turkey was goaded into the Syrian civil war by the US, a nation which was arming the Kurds in Syria (who the Turks are not big fans of - as demonstrated by their constant oppression, persecution, and killing of Kurds), who have ties with the PKK, moves which they protested - but had little leverage at the time. To gain leverage over the US, Turkey has been cozying up with Russia, procuring the S-400 AA weapons system, which NATO (the US) considers a security concern (they don't want Russian tech scanning American jet planes). All of this while Russia and Turkey are exchanging artillery fire in Syria, and likely doing so in Libya as well. Good pals. The whole situation is profoundly bad for Turkey, it seems. In fewer words, it appears Turkey (and Erdogan in particular) have made a few too many deals with the devil.

• The Economist (1/1/22): Turkey’s public-private partnerships are pricier than promised - The lira’s woes raise the bill for Erdogan’s big projects [fail-neoliberal-news, capitalist-farce-news]
• Al-Monitor (28/12/21): Turks keep holding on to dollars as mistrust in Erdogan lingers - Ankara’s currency-defense scheme has stopped the lira’s nosedive for now, but there is no tangible sign that a return to the lira has begun to reverse the alarming dollarization in the country. [!]
• Al-Monitor (28/12/21): Turkish government probes city of Istanbul employees for alleged terror links - The municipal government of Turkey’s largest city is run by the Republican People’s Party, which stands in opposition to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. [!]
• Financial Times (27/12/21): Turkish regulator files criminal complaints over lira’s moves - Allegations of exchange rate manipulation in social media posts during market gyrations [surveillance-and-censorship-news, economic-news] Paywall Summary (?): FT warns this move, targetting 26 people including journalists and economists (and former central bank govs), could 'chill criticism of the government's unorthodox economic policies'. Last week, it appears the central bank expended $5.9bn to buy up lira and shore it up, which the finance minister denies (saying it was the people selling their dollars after Erdogan's 'promise').
• Middle East Monitor (22/12/21): Erdogan rules out early elections in Turkey
• Just Security (23/12/21): A U.S. man allegedly working as a diplomat for the U.S. consulate in Lebanon has been arrested in Turkey on suspicion of selling a fake passport for $10,000 to a Syrian national
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Currency crisis threatens Turkey's Syria strategy - Turkey’s economic turmoil might challenge Ankara's grip over opposition-held areas in Syria, where in-house rivalries among the armed factions over financial resources have escalated. [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Bread prices ring alarm bells in Turkey - For low-income households, bread and its price have become all the more important now that their purchasing power has melted amid the slump of the Turkish lira and surging inflation. [economic-news, social-woes-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (22/12/21): Egypt supports Cyprus against Turkey - Egypt has criticized Turkey’s plan for a two-state peace deal on ethnically divided Cyprus [!]
• Al-Monitor (21/12/21): Drone sales could dampen Turkey’s African venture - Turkey has made major economic and diplomatic strides in Africa since the early 2000s, but growing military sales to African countries raise the specter of a risky shift.
• Al-Monitor (21/12/21): Turkish telecommunications satellite launches into space - Turkey's President thanked SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who launched the rocket, for not succumbing to “pressure of the anti-Turkey lobbies" [big-tech-news]
• Al Jazeera (21/12/21): Turkish lira rockets after Erdogan’s promise to protect deposits - Turkey’s lira makes gains after the Turkish president unveils a plan to guarantee local currency deposits against market fluctuation. [economic-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (18/12/21): Egypt, Turkey compete for military foothold in Kenya - Egypt and Turkey are vying for presence in Kenya, with both countries seeking to consolidate their relations at all economic, technological and industrial levels with the African country.
• Al-Monitor (16/12/21): Tumbling lira favors foreigners seeking real estate in Turkey - The freefall of Turkey's currency has provided new opportunities for foreigners looking to get into the country's real estate market. [capitalist-farce-news, economic-news]
• The Guardian (16/12/21): Erdoğan intervenes after Turkish lira sinks to lowest level against dollar - Turkey’s president to hike minimum wage by 50% with other measures to come in attempt to stabilise currency [economic-news] [!]
• WSWS (15/12/21): The issues in the Turkish health care workers national strike [healthcare-news, labor-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): How armed drones may have helped turn the tide in Ethiopia’s war - Cheap and efficient drones are increasingly becoming decisive weapons in modern conflicts.
• Just Security (14/12/21): Turkey and Armenia will appoint special representatives to discuss steps to normalize their diplomatic ties, Turkey’s foreign minister has said. AP reports.
• Al-Monitor (13/12/21): Turkey targets PKK-linked Yazidis inside Iraq - A local Yazidi armed group linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party and affiliated with the government-incorporated Popular Mobilization Units has been targeted as part of stepped-up Turkish cross-border operations. [!]
• Al-Monitor (13/12/21): Turkey cracks down on independent journalists once again - Hours after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called social media a threat to democracy, Antalya police raided local YouTubers and journalists. [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (9/12/21): Turkey arrests dozens of foreign Islamic State suspects - Ankara has made sweeping arrests of suspected Islamic State militants.
• Al-Monitor (9/12/21): Kurdish politician's plight highlights Turkey's indifference to critically ill inmates - Aysel Tugluk, who defended PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan in his trial decades ago, is now suffering from advanced dementia behind bars, despite widespread calls for her release. [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (10/12/21): Turkish firms eye boon in deepening bilateral ties with Qatar - Qatar is already the second-largest foreign investor in Turkey, with major stakes in banking, shipping, retail, and the financial sector. [!]
• Al-Monitor (8/12/21): Turkey's good relations with Qatar may not be enough for Erdogan - Erdogan’s Qatar visit failed to produce agreements that could help the ailing Turkish economy, but he wants to maintain Turkey’s partnership with Qatar, including military ties, while making efforts to reconcile with Gulf rivals.
• Al Jazeera (9/12/21): Turkey hits PKK targets in Iraq after three of its troops killed - A PKK attack killed three Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq, prompting a retaliatory air attack, Turkey says. [!]
• CPJ (9/12/21): Turkish President Erdoğan sues Greek and French outlets for alleged insults [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (8/12/21): Ankara keeps jailed Kurdish leader from seeing lawyers, family - Jailed Kurdistan Workers Party leader Abdullah Ocalan was banned from all outside contact reportedly for “chatting with his fellow inmates.” [surveillance-and-censorship-news] [!]
• Financial Times (5/12/21): Turkish opposition leader helps shape unlikely alliance to challenge Erdogan - Kemal Kilicdaroglu’s CHP and rival parties have set aside deep differences and joined forces in push to oust president [politics-news] Paywall Summary (?): The usually mild-mannered Kilicdaroglu is acting increasingly bold, emboldened by polls showing a united opposition could, at the moment, oust Erdogan. The opposition is an "improbable alliance of nationalists, Kurds, leftists, rightwingers, secularists and religious conservatives", and the party Kilicdaroglu leads was that founded by the Ataturk, the secularist who founded Turkey, although its nationalist vein has alienated Kurds and secularism bothers conservatives (such as those that support Erdogan and his party the AKP, with a recent survey showing 70% of AKP voters saying they were fearful of a CHP-coalition government); Kilicdaroglu, FT reports, is emerging now as the unlikely "architect" of this grouping, an alliance that started in 2017 in a united "no" vote against an Erdogan power grab to abolish the parliamentary system, giving the president (Erdogan) even more control; however, they narrowly lost. Still, the organization here has started to pay off, with success in mayoral elections in Ankara and Istanbul, "ending 25 years of dominance by Erdogan and his allies over Turkey's two biggest cities". While Erdogan tries to pry apart the alliance along its obvious faultlines, they have hung together on a shared interest in a return to parliamentism and a shared concern over the economy, which Erdogan is dangerously mishandling, leading to awful inflation over the past couple of years. The CHP also has some policies which stir unease internationally, such as reconciliation with Syrian dictator Assad, with the aim to return the 3.6m refugees from there. There are still some issues within the opposition alliance, things could go either way.
• Al-Monitor (7/12/21): Turkey’s health care workers go on strike - Left out of a bill that gave doctors a raise, Turkey’s nurses and other health care workers are going on strike as Turkey reports 20,000 daily cases of COVID-19. [labor-news, healthcare-news]
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Erdogan says Turkey seeks to clear up 'misunderstandings' with Gulf states - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the remarks ahead of a two-day visit to Qatar
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Erdogan vows response to Cyprus mosque arson attempt - The Turkish president said an attempt to burn down the mosque on the disputed island “will not go unanswered,” while the Cypriot press said the incident was not related to religious or ethnic strife. [!]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): No sign of increased Qatari aid to Turkey after Erdogan visit - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani signed 15 agreements to boost economic ties. [economic-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Turkish opposition leader barred from data center as mistrust in data grows - Turkey’s official inflation figures have fueled tensions between the government and the opposition amid growing doubts over the credibility of the data. [surveillance-and-censorship-news, economic-news] [!]
• The Guardian (29/11/21): Trucks overturn and buildings collapse as extreme winds hit Turkey – video [!]
• Financial Times (26/11/21): Turkish anger grows as Erdogan’s ‘economic war’ hits cost of living - Public patience with president’s policy wears thin as prices soar and ruling party MP suggests people should eat less [social-woes-news, economic-news, leftist-news] Paywall Summary (?): Some in the opposition believe this isn't just stupidity, but a calculated move to, as Erdogan himself put it, develop a competitive exchange rate as a way to opne up "strong investment, production, and employment", an appalling calculus given the nation's dependence on imports, which means a devalued lira leads to increased cost of living. There is speculation that the ruling AKP and MHP alliance might collapse (or if defections from the AKP itself induce collapse) before the 2023 elections. Small protests have begun to emerge, some organized by the Turkish Communist party. The opposition is concerned Erdogan may screw with, delay, or even cancel the 2023 elections.
• Al-Monitor (4/12/21): Turkish police arrest alleged members of far-left organization - Lawyers have accused Turkish authorities of unjustly detaining people for alleged Revolutionary Peoples’ Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) links [lefist-news, surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (2/12/21): Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced a loyalist as Turkey’s new finance minister, after the incumbent minister resigned over clashes with Erdogan’s unconventional economic policies that have intensified a currency crisis in Turkey.
• Just Security (1/12/21): Turkey’s lira has plummeted to a record low after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended his policy of demanding lower interest rates despite rising inflation. Erdogan said he hoped interest rates would continue to fall until Turkey’s next national election in 2023, sparking another selloff of the lira. “The president holds the unconventional view that cutting interest rates is the best way to stop soaring inflation and spur economic growth,” Jared Malsin reports for the Wall Street Journal. [economic-news]
• Al Jazeera (27/11/21): Turkish lira crisis hits Idlib in Syria - Turkey’s currency crisis spills over into opposition-held Syrian city that adopted the lira more than a year ago [economic-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Turkish court rules to keep Osman Kavala in jail - Turkey risks further tensions with European allies after court rules to keep philanthropist in jail during trial. [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (26/11/21): Turkish police detain opposition figure - Metin Gurcan, a founding member of Turkey's Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA), has been detained by the Turkish police, joining a number of political opponents and critics who have been accused of “political espionage” in recent years [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al Jazeera (26/11/21): Turkish police fire tear gas at women protesters in Istanbul - March for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women confronted by riot police. [protest-news, civil-rights-news]
• Al-Monitor (19/11/21): Bulgaria accuses Turkey of election interference - Turkey has rejected accusations that it is helping Bulgarian politicians representing the country’s Turkish minority.
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Omar Souleyman: singer held by Turkey over alleged militant links is freed - Syrian questioned by police after reports he has ties to banned Kurdish People’s Protection Units [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Telesur (18/11/21): Haiti: Ex-Officer Implicated In Moise's Murder Dies in Hospital - His death occurred the same day the Haitian Police reported it sent three agents to Turkey to extradite Samir Handal, a businessman who is also linked to President Moise's assassination. Note about Telesur
• The Guardian (17/11/21): Syrian musician Omar Souleyman held on terrorism charges in Turkey - Arrest relates to alleged membership of Kurdistan Workers’ party, which is proscribed by Turkey and the west [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (19/11/21): The Turkish lira plummeted against the dollar yesterday, reaching a record low. The currency crisis is roiling the Turkish economy and threatening the rule of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey for nearly twenty years. Jared Malsin and Anna Hirtenstein report for the Wall Street Journal.
• Just Security (16/11/21): Turkish authorities have placed a man considered a suspect in the July 7 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in prison, Turkey’s state-run news agency has reported. The suspect, businessman Samir Handal, who was wanted on an Interpol notice, was detained at Istanbul Airport early on Monday. Handal had been transiting from the U.S. to Jordan. His arrest was announced by authorities in Haiti later on Monday. No indication has been given yet as to whether Haiti will seek Handa’s extradition. AP reports.
• Al-Monitor (12/11/21): Turkey, Georgia run joint drill at border - Georgia has grown closer to Turkey and Azerbaijan in the Caucasus.
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Belarusian airline stops flying Middle East citizens from Turkey - State-owned carrier Belavia bars Syrians, Yemenis and Iraqis from boarding flights at Ankara’s request as the migrant crisis grows. [immigrant-news]
• The Guardian (12/11/21): Turkey jails Kurdish politician’s wife over miscarriage form typo - Başak Demirtaş and her doctor sentenced over ‘falsified’ medical report on her miscarriage [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• The Guardian (4/11/21): Ethiopia-Turkey pact fuels speculation about drone use in Tigray war - Reports say Ethiopia wants to buy Bayraktar TB2 drones after military cooperation agreement was signed with Ankara
• Al-Monitor (4/11/21): Turkey terminates post of several honorary consuls critical of government - The Turkish Foreign Ministry’s termination of posts for nine consul generals, including those from Belgium, Austria, Sweden and the UK, are attributed to some of the consuls’ criticism of government policies and their political links with opposition parties.
• Al-Monitor (4/11/21): Why are Turkish-allied formations collapsing in Syria? - Factions pulling out of the recently formed Syrian Liberation Front raise questions about the future of Turkish-backed rebel groups.
• CPJ (3/11/21): CPJ, other groups call on Turkey to release imprisoned journalist Nedim Türfent [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Al-Monitor (2/11/21): Ankara faces new calls to release philanthropist Osman Kavala - On the fourth year of his imprisonment, Turkish philanthropist Osman Kavala issued a statement from prison, expressing hope that others will face a fairer trial.
• Just Security (1/11/21): President Biden has told Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan that his request for F-16 fighter jets must go through a U.S. process, while raising the issue of human rights and concerns about Turkey’s possession of a Russian missile system. [us-policy-news, security-news]
• Al-Monitor (28/10/21): Syrian teachers demand better salaries in rebel-held areas - Teachers have been protesting in the areas controlled by the Turkish-backed Syrian opposition in northwestern Aleppo, as they demand an increase in their monthly salaries amid the crumbling Turkish lira. [labor-news]
• The Moscow Times (27/10/21): Ukraine Destroys Pro-Russian Artillery in Its First Use of Turkish Drones
• Al-Monitor (25/10/21): Turkey, Qatar express 'concern' over coup in Sudan - The Sudanese military has arrested civilians in the transitional government and seized power.
• Al-Monitor (26/10/21): Turkish-backed factions outmaneuver Syrian jihadist group in Idlib - The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army in north Syria announced a series of mergers recently, derailing plans by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham to seek rapprochement with some of the factions affiliated with the Syrian National Army
• The Guardian (25/10/21): Turkey backs down on threat to expel foreign ambassadors - President Erdoğan de-escalates diplomatic spat after declaring 10 envoys ‘persona non grata’
• Just Security (25/10/21): The Turkish lira has weakened by 1.6% to a record low against the dollar following Erdoğan’s comments that he had ordered the expulsion of the ambassadors
• Al-Monitor (22/10/21): With Nile talks stalled, Ethiopia plans to fill dam, buy Turkish drones - Meanwhile, Sudan’s democratic transition faces ‘worst and most dangerous’ crisis.
• The Guardian (23/10/21): Turkey threatens to eject 10 western diplomats over support for activist - President Erdoğan says ambassadors from US, Europe and elsewhere are not welcome after call for freeing of Osman Kavala
• The Moscow Times (21/10/21): Four Russians Detained in Turkey on Military Espionage Charges
• Al-Monitor (21/10/21): 15 spies for Israel's Mossad arrested, reports Turkish press - Turkey's Sabah newspaper reported that a 15-member spy network was arrested on Oct. 15 in an operation carried out across four Turkish provinces.
• Al-Monitor (19/10/21): Syrian Kurdish forces 'fully prepared' for possible Turkish attack - Turkey has threatened to launch a military operation against the SDF in the wake of attacks carried out by the latter in north Syria.
• WSWS (20/10/21): Tram, subway workers strike in Izmir, Turkey’s third-largest city Important Note about WSWS
• Al-Monitor (20/10/21): Suspected Turkish drone strike targets three people in Syrian Kurdish town - Turkey's latest strike comes on the four-year anniversary of the Kurdish fighters' capture of Raqqa from the Islamic State.
• Just Security (19/10/21): Turkish prosecutors have ordered the arrest of 158 suspects, including 33 serving soldiers, in an operation targeting people allegedly linked to the U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen who Turkey says was behind a 2016 failed coup
• Al-Monitor (18/10/21): Turkey’s spy bust escalates rivalry with Iran - Iran and Turkey are increasingly rivals in the Caucasus and in Iraq.
• Al Jazeera (18/10/21): Turkey’s lira sinks to new low with little reprieve in sight - The lira has lost 20 percent of its value this year, and analysts see little relief in sight given expectations for an interest rate cut later this week.
• Al-Monitor (15/10/21): Turkey agrees to import more gas from Azerbaijan - Turkish officials have expressed a desire to increase strategic cooperation with their Caucasian ally in the past year. [energy-news]
• The Guardian (14/10/21): Afghan refugees accuse Turkey of violent illegal pushbacks - Migrants, many fleeing the Taliban regime, claim they are being beaten, harassed and turned back by Turkish border forces [immigrant-news]
• Al-Monitor (14/10/21): Turkey’s vulnerable lira plunges to record low after central bank sackings - In a midnight decree, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan rid the central bank of key bureaucrats who opposed his calls for lower interest rates ahead of next Thursday’s key meeting. [economic-news]
• Al-Monitor (13/10/21): Jailing of terminally ill Gulen disciple stirs hearts across Turkey's ideological divide - Ayse Ozdogan, an imprisoned end-stage cancer patient, has been denied release, despite a recommendation by a government-run hospital.
• Just Security (13/10/21): Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said that Turkey will “do what is necessary for its security,” following what Turkey has said is a rise in cross-border attacks by the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish Yekîneyên Parastina Gel (YPG) militia. Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan also said on Monday that an attack that Ankara blamed on the YPG that killed two Turkish police was “the final straw” and that Turkey was determined to eliminate threats originating in northern Syria
• WSWS (12/9/21): Mitsuba auto parts workers occupy factory in Turkey to oppose sackings [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al-Monitor (12/10/21): Erdogan-linked foundation faces fresh barrage of accusations of nepotism, abuse - A whistleblower has made claims that, in addition to hundreds of job hirings made at TUGVA's request, the organization was also allocated over 1,000 government-owned buildings to use as dormitories for its members [corruption-news]
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Ukraine to produce Turkish armed drones: Minister - Ukraine has previously used the Turkish armed drones against pro-Russian separatists in the country’s east.
• Al-Monitor (8/10/21): Istanbul’s war on street waste collectors threatens migrants - Police raids on the unregulated recycling sector are targeting some of the poorest members of Turkish society, including undocumented refugees with few other options to survive
• Al-Monitor (6/10/21): Tensions between Erdogan and opposition-run Istanbul municipality turn violent - The standoff between the municipality and police sparked violence at the historic ferry dock.
• Al Jazeera (7/10/21): Greece ratifies landmark intra-NATO defence pact with France - Athens hails security deal, saying it gives ‘new substance’ to defence of European interests in the Mediterranean. Context: this gives defense against NATO members (which the NATO treaty doesn't provide, obviously), which Greece wants, due to rising tensions with Turkey
• Al-Monitor (5/10/21): Territorial spats reheat ahead of Turkey-Greece talks - Citing disputed territorial claims, the Turkish navy twice blocked research missions by a Greek Cypriot-contracted vessel as Turkey and Greece prepare for bilateral talks in Ankara on Oct. 6.
• Just Security (5/10/21): The Turkish Defense Ministry has said that its troops have captured a major base belonging to Kurdish militants in northern Iraq.
• Al-Monitor (4/10/21): Turkish company again stops supplying Lebanon with electricity - Lebanon is in the midst of a debilitating electricity, fuel and economic crisis.
• Al-Monitor (30/9/21): Turkish students continue protests despite arrests, Erdogan’s accusations - University students in Turkey continue their protests for access to dorms and affordable rentals, despite police pressure and Erdogan’s denial of a dorm problem.
• Just Security (30/9/21): Five Turkish generals working on Syria-related operations are seeking to resign
• Just Security (30/9/21): Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan praised ties with Russia during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday. Putin and Erdogan discussed weapon deals, trade, and a nuclear reactor Russia is building in Turkey during their meeting, as Erdogan made clear that he had access to Russia as an alternative partner to the U.S. for trade and military deals. [russia-policy-news]
• Just Security (27/9/21): Turkish President Recip Tayyip Erdoğan defended his government’s decision to buy another Russian air defense system despite pressure from the United States and NATO [russia-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• The Moscow Times (26/9/21): Russia Raids Kill 11 Pro-Turkish Fighters in Syria – Monitor [russia-policy-news]
• CPJ (24/9/21): Turkish government official sues 3 newspapers for covering corruption allegations made in parliament
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (23/9/21): Turkey: Surprise rate cut sends lira to a new record low - Turkey’s central bank slashed interest rates by a full percentage point to 18 percent – taking the markets by surprise and sending the lira to a new record low.
• CPJ (22/9/21): Turkish court sentences 5 journalists to prison over alleged role in 2016 coup
• Al-Monitor (21/9/21): Turkish university students camp in parks to protest rent hikes - Citing trouble finding affordable housing ahead of the fall semester, student groups across Turkey are organizing campout events in protest of rising rental prices. [social-woes-news, protest-news]
• Ars Technica (18/9/21): Google is getting caught in the antitrust net - One case in Turkey cuts to the heart of the search giant’s power. [big-tech-news, antitrust-news]
• Al-Monitor (17/9/21): Turkey faces gathering storm in Syria - Erdogan’s choices limited as Russian-backed Syrian forces increase attacks, weigh final assault on Idlib [russia-policy-news]
• Al Monitor (16/9/21): Turkey-backed Syrian opposition groups merge under new banner - A group of factions affiliated with the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army have formed a new alliance known as the Syrian Liberation Front intended to end the power struggle between Turkey’s allied factions in northern Syria.
• Al-Monitor (14/9/21): Turkish-backed Syrian forces intensify attacks on US-aligned Syrian Kurdish group - The Turkish army and its allied Syrian factions have recently increased attacks against the Syrian Democratic Forces in northeast Syria.
• Modern Diplomacy (14/9/21): HTS enters Turkey’s plot against the Kurds
• Al-Monitor (13/9/21): Why has Turkey turned to Libya's Gadhafi family? - Realizing that its current allies are not sufficient to secure Turkey’s interests in Libya, Ankara is now seeking to include Gadhafi family members into its calculus.
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): Attack on Turkish troops in Syria kills two soldiers - Three other soldiers were wounded in an attack targeting Turkish forces in Idlib province.
• Al-Monitor (3/9/21): Is Moscow using the S-400 against Turkey? - Ankara denies the suggestion from Moscow that a second batch of S-400s is headed for Turkey and says it is an effort to stall Turkey’s talks with the United States and Europe.
• Al-Monitor (1/9/21): Turkey’s record growth rate belies murky economic prospects - Eager to woo back disgruntled voters, Erdogan appears bent on stimulating economic growth at the risk of stoking Turkey’s currency troubles.
• Al-Monitor (30/8/21): Turkey won't accept 'refugee burden' from Afghanistan - Turkey, which already hosts more than 300,000 Afghans, has warned it doesn't have the resources to accept additional migrants from the war-torn country.
• Popular Front (29/7/21): A Year Inside the PKK
• Al-Monitor (24/8/21): Turkey strikes PKK targets in Iraq's Kurdistan region - Turkey has bombed suspected hideouts of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party in Iraqi Kurdistan, reportedly destroying ammunition depots, caves and other hideouts.
• The Guardian (21/8/21): Greek minister defends wall on border with Turkey during Afghan crisis – video
• Al-Monitor (20/8/21): Turkish airstrike kills members of US-backed Kurdish force in Syria - A Turkish airstrike has killed four members of a US-backed Syrian Kurdish force. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (19/8/21): Turkey’s Sinjar strikes carry stern messages to Tehran, Baghdad - As the United States braces to withdraw its combat forces from Iraq, the country’s Kurdistan Region is emerging as the scene of a mounting struggle for control between Turkey and Iran.
• CPJ (19/8/21): Turkish journalist Aydın Taş found dead in Ankara
• Just Security (19/8/21): Turkey-backed Syrian forces and Syrian Kurdish fighters shelled one another’s positions in northern Syria yesterday, resulting in the deaths of at least five people dead and wounding more than a dozen
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Turkish airstrikes claim Yazidi lives in Iraq’s Sinjar - Turkish airstrikes hit makeshift hospital in the predominantly Yazidi Sinjar region of Iraq on Tuesday.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Erdogan says Turkish contacts with UAE have made progress - Turkish president meets UAE National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan for talks.
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Turkey views ties with Ethiopia as key to influence in Africa - Turkey’s quest for normalization with Egypt and a new beginning with Sudan hinges on how far Ankara takes its relations with Ethiopia amid a simmering water dispute in the region over Ethiopia’s mega dam on the Nile.
• Al-Monitor (18/8/21): Egypt counters Turkey’s influence in Mali via Al-Azhar - Egypt seeks more influence in Mali through Al-Azhar, which is organizing a training program for a number of Malian imams in a bid to counter extremism.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Erdoğan backs peaceful resolution to Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict - Turkish leader also tells Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed that Ankara is willing to mediate in Sudan border dispute.
• Modern Diplomacy (17/8/21): Russia Derails South Caucasus Path to Peace [russian-foreign-policy-news]
• CPJ (16/8/21): Mob attacks journalists covering Istanbul protest and police beat, detain two reporters
• Al Jazeera (16/8/21): Three Turkish soldiers killed in explosion in northern Iraq - The attack took place on Sunday in a region where Turkey was carrying out a cross-border operation.
• Democracy Now (16/8/21): Death Toll in Turkey Floods Hits 70, with Dozens Still Missing
• Al Jazeera (15/8/21): Turkey evacuates flood victims as death toll hits 62 - The Turkish disaster control agency says 52 people were killed in the province of Kastamonu, nine in Sinop and one in Bartin.
• The Moscow Times (14/8/21): Russia Says All 8 Die in Water-Bomber Plane Crash in Turkey
• The Guardian (14/8/21): Flooding death toll passes 44 in Turkey’s Black Sea region - People thought to be trapped in collapsed buildings in Bozkurt as rescuers search for survivors
• Al-Monitor (13/8/21): 38 dead as floods ravage Turkey's northern coast - The floods in Turkey's Black Sea region forced more than 1,700 people to evacuate, many of whom are now sleeping in student dorms.
• CPJ (12/8/21): Turkish commentator Emre Erciş shot in leg in Istanbul
• Al Jazeera (12/8/21): Turkey detains dozens after Syrian shops attacked - Unrest breaks out in Ankara after a Turkish national was stabbed to death in a fight between locals and migrants.
• Al Jazeera (11/8/21): Floods hit Turkey’s north after south ravaged by wildfires - The floods are the most recent disasters experts say are connected to climate change to hit Turkey in recent weeks. [climate-change-news]
• Al-Monitor (10/8/21): Ill-conceived borrowing scheme costs Turkey double - The cost of Ankara’s domestic borrowing in hard currency and gold is estimated to have hit nearly 32% per annum amid the slump of the Turkish lira, more than doubling the cost of borrowing in liras.
• Modern Diplomacy (9/8/21): Turkey’s Political Games on Graves - As they point out, Turkey has a history of framing cemeteries and mass graves from other events as the work of their opponents to de-legitimize (and even sometimes Turkey themselves had a hand at play in the graves)
• The Guardian (6/8/21): Wildfires burn out of control in Greece and Turkey as thousands flee - Protracted heatwave continues as flames threaten populated areas, electricity installations and historic sites
• Al-Monitor (3/8/21): Turkish inflation climbs to two-year high, likely delaying interest rate cut - Turkey’s annual inflation rose higher than expected in July to 18.95%, just shy of the Central Bank’s key interest rate, reducing prospects for an early interest rate cut this summer.
• The Guardian (3/8/21): Anger in Turkey grows over government’s handling of wildfires [burning over 7 times more land than the average by this point of the year] - Response of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling party seen by many as out of touch as blazes rage for seventh day, [lacking water-dropping aircraft required to fight these fires, with aid coming from Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, and Iran, and soon EU help] [climate-change-news, corruption-news]
• The Guardian (2/8/21): Turkey appeals for help to fight wildfires as heatwave continues - Wildfires break out across much of southern Europe, with temperature reaching 45C in Greece
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): Eight Die in Southwestern Turkey as 100 Wildfires Burn
• The Economist (31/7/21): Prices in Turkey are surging. But by how much? - Depending on whom you ask, inflation is either around 17% or 40%
• Al Jazeera (31/7/21): Turkish officials deny ethnic motive in murder of seven Kurds - Prosecutors in Konya say initial evidence points to long-running feud, but victims’ family say attack was racist.
• Al-Monitor (30/7/21): Forest fires rage in Lebanon, Syria and Turkey - At least four people were killed in the fires
• Popular Front (29/7/21): (podcast) A Year Inside the PKK
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Fresh refugee arrivals in Turkey renew anti-migrant sentiments - A growing number of Afghans are arriving in Turkey, putting pressure on Brussels-Ankara deal on migrants.
• Al-Monitor (27/7/21): Turkish soldier in Iraq killed fighting PKK - The deadly attack took place in the autonomous Kurdistan Region near the Turkish border, and followed the deaths of two Turkish soldiers in Syria over the weekend.
• Al Monitor (22/7/21): Turkish-backed rebels leave trail of abuse and criminality in Syria’s Afrin - The serene topography of the Syrian enclave of Afrin belies the power vacuum and violence now afflicting many of the territories under the control of Turkish-backed forces in the war-torn country’s northeast.
• Al Jazeera (24/7/21): Two Turkish soldiers killed in attack in northern Syria: Ministry - Turkish defence ministry says two soldiers were killed and two injured in attack on armoured vehicle in northern Syria.
• The Guardian (24/7/21): Turkey’s labourers take to TikTok to show millions their harsh work conditions – video
• Al Jazeera (23/7/21): Eight missing after boat carrying migrants sinks off Turkey - Turkish naval ships and an aircraft have been deployed as part of search and rescue efforts.
• CPJ (21/7/21): Police fire tear gas, rubber bullets into crowd of journalists in Istanbul
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Cyprus talks can only resume on a ‘two-state’ basis, Erdogan says - Turkish president reiterates Ankara’s support for self-declared TRNC in speech delivered on anniversary of 1974 invasion.
• Al Jazeera (20/7/21): Erdogan calls for US support for Turkey to protect Kabul airport - Turkey could run Afghan capital’s airport if US meets conditions on logistics and financing, President Erdogan says.
• Al Jazeera (15/7/21): Turkey says mass grave found in Syria’s Afrin - Governor of Turkey’s bordering Hatay province says a mass grave was found with 61 bodies in the Ankara-held Afrin area. Justice for Kurds (20/7/21): Syrian Kurds decry Turkish claims of mass grave in Afrin [evidence it was a prior cemetary from deaths from 2018 Turkish bombings]
• World Socialist Web Site (10/7/21): Thousands of Turkish electricity workers launch wildcat strike wave
• The Economist (3/7/21): German submarines are giving Turkey an edge over Greece - That may make the eastern Mediterranean less stable
• Al Jazeera (1/7/21): Turkey women protest withdrawal from gender protection treaty - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has annulled Turkey’s ratification of the Istanbul Convention.
• World Socialist Web Site (18/6/21): Kurdish HDP member brutally murdered in far-right attack on party offices in Turkey
• Jacobin (18/6/21): Turkey Is Waging a Brutal Campaign in Iraqi Kurdistan - In its latest assault against the Kurds, Erdoğan’s Turkey is targeting civilians and refugees along the Iraq border — a brutal campaign to stamp out democracy and self-determination in Kurdistan.
• World Socialist Web Site (10/6/21): Turkish mobster Peker extends accusations to NATO’s Syria, Libya wars
• Al Jazeera (3/6/21): Turkey’s lira hits new low as investors lose faith - The Turkish central bank’s current governor, Sahap Kavcioglu, sought to reassure big foreign investors that worries about premature rate cuts were unjustified.
• Al Jazeera (31/5/21): Turkey captures nephew of US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen - Selahaddin was brought back to Turkey by agents from the National Intelligence Organisation, Turkish media said.
• Al Jazeera (28/5/21): Turkish prosecutors seek jail for Istanbul mayor Imamoglu - Indictment calls for a four-year sentence over claims Imamoglu insulted election officials after cancelled vote.
• New York Times (18/5/21): Claims From an Organized Crime Boss Rock Turkey’s Government - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, already hampered by an economic crisis and a surge in coronavirus cases, is now battling allegations of corruption in his ranks.
• Al Jazeera (11/5/21): Turkish firm tells Lebanon to fix debts or face power cuts - Karadeniz says it will shut down supplies unless Beirut halts legal action to seize its power barges and sorts out arrears.
• World Socialist Web Site (4/5/21): Thousands of Istanbul electricity workers launch wildcat strike
• Al Jazeera (3/5/21): Libya’s top diplomat calls on Turkey to withdraw foreign fighters - Foreign Minister Najla al-Manqoush urges Turkey to comply with UN resolutions, expel foreign fighters from Libyan territory.
• Al Jazeera: Turkey’s central bank hikes inflation forecast to 12.2 percent - In a quarterly inflation report, the central bank’s new governor raised the inflation forecast from 9.4 percent and promised to keep tight policies until price pressures subside.
• The Economist: Turkey and Armenia show no signs of reconciling - The genocide a century ago is just one source of contention
• Democracy Now (4/28/21): Turkey Orders Coronavirus Lockdown - 'Turkey reported over 37,000 new infections over the past day, the fourth-highest daily caseload in the world.'
• Al Jazeera: (4/26/21) - Turkish lira dips to near record low on rate cut, US concerns - Investors fear premature interest rate cuts and chill in US relations, pushing the lira to near its record low.
• Al Jazeera: (4/26/21) - Turkey orders 532 arrests over Fethullah Gulen links - Investigation being conducted in 62 provinces as part of a sustained crackdown against the network of US-based preacher, state media says
• Al Jazeera: Biden tells Erdogan he plans to recognise Armenian ‘genocide’ - In a phone call, the two reportedly discussed what will be a first for a US president: calling the 1915 mass killings a ‘genocide’.
• Al-Monitor (8/5/20): Report: Child soldiers deployed to Libya by Turkish-backed Syrian National Army - An exclusive report, citing sources on the ground in Syria and Libya, says Syrian teenagers are being sent to Libya to take part in the civil war there.

United Arab Emirates Updates (UAE)

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Washington Post (21/12/21): A UAE agency put Pegasus spyware on phone of Jamal Khashoggi’s wife months before his murder, new forensics show - The new analysis challenges NSO claims that the murdered journalist’s wife, Hanan Elatr, ‘was not a target’ [surveillance-anc-ensorship-news, pegasus-news] [!]
• Financial Times (14/12/21): UAE suspends talks with US over purchase of F-35 fighter jets - Abu Dhabi halts $23bn deal after concerns about restrictions from Washington on use of warplanes [us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The sale was agreed to under the Trump administration, following accords by Abu Dhabi to normalize relations with Israel. The suspension comes as the Emirates are wary of American restrictions on use of the planes, as well as American pressure on the UAE's relationship with China (its biggest trade partner) and Chinese companies, such as Huawei. This comes a week after a €17bn+ deal with France for 80 jets and 12 helicopters. Abu Dhabi, reportedly, is uneasy about accepting American restrictions on equipment use while there is concern of a weakening American presence in the region - "is it worth the trade off?" so to speak.
• Al-Monitor (14/12/21): Gulf states back Egypt in Nile river dam dispute with Ethiopia - The Gulf Cooperation Council also launched a political consultation mechanism with Egypt, according to Egyptian media.
• Just Security (13/12/21): Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has become the first Israeli leader to make an official visit to the United Arab Emirates, after flying to Abu Dhabi to meet the de facto Emirati leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed
• Al-Monitor (9/12/21): US to warn UAE banks, firms against sanctioned Iran dealings - The Wall Street Journal reports that US officials will warn petrochemical companies, private firms and banks of "extreme risk" for noncompliance. [us-policy-news]
• Wall Street Journal (9/12/21): U.A.E. Shut Down China Facility Under U.S. Pressure, Emirates Says - Construction rattled relations between Washington and Gulf ally over concerns that Beijing was building military facility [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): The UAE said, while carrying out the order, it didn't believe the facility was for military uses, which the Chinese Cosco shipping conglomerate "operates a commecial container terminal". The UAE is close with the US on several issues, such as the Abraham Accords, a diplomatic operation involving Arab-Israeli reconciliation and diplomacy, as well as a planned $23bn sale of 50 US F-35 5th generation fighter jets, 18 Reaper drones "and other advanced munitions".
• Al-Monitor (8/12/21): Turkey's good relations with Qatar may not be enough for Erdogan - Erdogan’s Qatar visit failed to produce agreements that could help the ailing Turkish economy, but he wants to maintain Turkey’s partnership with Qatar, including military ties, while making efforts to reconcile with Gulf rivals.
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Erdogan says Turkey seeks to clear up 'misunderstandings' with Gulf states - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the remarks ahead of a two-day visit to Qatar
• Al-Monitor (7/12/21): UAE switches to Saturday-Sunday weekend, shorter workweek - The move means the United Arab Emirates will share a weekend with the Americas, Europe, and much of Africa and Asia. Many Middle Eastern states retain the Islamic workweek. [!]
• Just Security (6/12/21): The national security adviser of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has made a rare trip to meet his Iranian counterpart and Iran’s hard-line president in Tehran today. The UAE has long viewed the Islamic Republic in Iran as its main regional threat, and the rare visit comes as the UAE and Saudi Arabia are both negotiating with Iran amid efforts in Vienna to save the 2015 nuclear deal. Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell report for AP.
• Al-Monitor (4/12/21): UAE signs $19 billion fighter jet deal with France - The sale of Dassault Rafale jets and Caracal helicopters marks Paris' largest foreign military sale to date
• The Guardian (19/11/21): Work on ‘Chinese military base’ in UAE abandoned after US intervenes – report - Satellite images reportedly detected construction of secret facility at Khalifa port amid growing US-China rivalry [china-policy-news, us-policy-news]
• Just Security (17/11/21): The U.S. is moving forward with the $23 billion sale of 50 F-35 stealth fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Mira Resnick has said. Resnick also told reporters that even though the U.S. intends to proceed with the deal, there has to be a clear understanding of “Emirati obligations,” without elaborating on the nature of those obligations. Reuters reports. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (12/11/21): UAE, Saudi Arabia look to strengthen trade with India - The two richest states in the Persian Gulf region find themselves locked in competition to maximize opportunities for stronger economic ties to Indian markets.
• Just Security (12/11/21): The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, the U.S., and Israel have launched joint naval exercises for the first time, U.S. and Israeli military officials have said. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (9/11/21): UAE foreign minister visits Cyprus - The UAE has grown closer to Cyprus on energy and defense issues
• Just Security (10/11/21): U.S. trained Afghan pilots and other personnel have taken a U.S. brokered flight from Tajikistan to the UAE. The pilots had fled to Tajikistan with their aircrafts during the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
• Just Security (10/11/21): The foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus yesterday, “sending the clearest signal yet that the Arab world is willing to re-engage with strongman Bashar Assad,” Albert Aji and Bassem Mroue report for AP.
• Al-Monitor (5/11/21): Egypt, UAE play essential role in containing Sudan-Ethiopia crises - US fears state collapse, regional spillover in Horn of Africa
• The Economist World This Week (6/11/21): America, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates called on the leaders of a military coup in Sudan to reinstate a civilian-led transitional government. The last two were a surprise: the coup leader, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was thought to have had the backing of Arab allies, including the UAE. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): Bahrain has urged all citizens to leave Lebanon immediately. The announcement follows the escalation in regional tensions after the Lebanese information minister criticized Saudi Arabia’s role in the Yemen war. A similar announcement was made by the United Arab Emirates on Sunday. Al Jazeera reports.
• Al Jazeera (25/10/21): Israel holds largest-ever military drill with UAE participation - While UAE aircraft are not flying, the country’s air force chief is expected to arrive on Tuesday.
• The Guardian (5/10/21): Dubai ruler hacked ex-wife using NSO Pegasus spyware, high court judge finds - Sheikh Mohammed used spyware on Princess Haya and five associates in unlawful abuse of power, judge rules
• The Guardian (14/9/21): US charges American mercenary hackers over their work in UAE - Three former US intelligence operatives accused of helping UAE spy on enemies [dark-security-news, cyber-security-news, us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera / Bloomberg (13/9/21): UAE looks to grow Israel economic ties to $1 trillion over decade - The UAE’s economy minister said on Monday that the country is looking to strengthen its business ties with Israel to $1 trillion over the next decade.
• Al Jazeera (18/8/21): Erdogan says Turkish contacts with UAE have made progress - Turkish president meets UAE National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan for talks.
• Just Security (17/8/21): A Chinese woman says China has a secret detention camp in Dubai which gold Uyghurs
• Al Jazeera (14/8/21): Secretive Israel-UAE oil deal endangers prized Eilat corals - Environmental groups worry about the risk supertankers might pose to Eilat’s fragile coral ecosystems. [climate-change-news]
• Al-Monitor (4/8/21): UAE sends more medical aid to Tunisia to fight virus - The Emirati shipment followed the Tunisian president dismissing parliament and the prime minister last month in what critics have called a coup.
• The Guardian (3/8/21): Iranian-backed forces suspected of tanker hijacking off UAE coast - Panama-registered Asphalt Princess was reportedly seized by eight to nine armed individuals
• Al Jazeera (28/7/21): Tunisia crisis prompts surge in foreign social media manipulation - Social media propaganda emanating from Saudi Arabia and the UAE seeks to justify the Tunisian president’s decision to sack the prime minister.
• Just Security (28/7/21): Influential voices in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates [all nations which oppose the party which was overthrown by the president] are viewing the events in Tunisia, where the country’s president abruptly dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament Sunday night, as marking the death knell for political Islam in democracy
• The Moscow Times (9/7/21): A Royal Mark Up: How an Emirati Sheikh Resells Millions of Russian Vaccines to the Developing World - The Moscow Times investigated a deal between Russia and a minor Dubai royal to supply poor countries with Sputnik V — at high prices.
• Democracy Now (23/7/21): Protesters Condemn UAE Plan to Extradite Ex-Guantánamo Prisoner, Demand Justice for All Detainees
• The Moscow Times (19/7/21): Kenya’s Failed Sputnik V Deal Used Emirati Resale Scheme - Documents obtained by The Moscow Times show a failed agreement used the same controversial resale deal linked to a royal middleman in the United Arab Emirates.
• Mother Jones (20/7/21): Top Trump Adviser Arrested and Charged With Secretly Lobbying for the UAE - Tom Barrack, head of Trump’s inaugural committee, is accused of obstructing justice and lying to the feds.
• Al Jazeera (18/7/21): Oil producers reach deal on output, ending UAE-Saudi standoff - The close Gulf allies have been publicly at loggerheads over how quickly to increase output amid global pandemic recovery.
• Al Jazeera (16/7/21): Saudi-UAE: Despite turmoil geopolitical goals remain steadfast - The cause of the current rift between the Gulf heavyweights is more profound than mere economics, analysts say.
• Al Jazeera (7/7/21): Fire erupts on ship at Dubai port after explosion that rocks city - No reports of casualties at Jebel Ali Port, one of world’s largest, as authorities say fire is under control.
• Democracy Now (30/6/21): Israel’s Foreign Minister Inaugurates Embassy in UAE
• Law and Crime: Biden Admin Moves Ahead with Trump-Era Arms Deal with the UAE—and Inherits a Lawsuit to Block It

Yemen Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (perhaps outdated since civil war) (cr.)

• Democracy Now (29/12/21): U.N. Envoy Warns of Civilian Toll as Saudi-Led War on Yemen Escalates
• Middle East Monitor (27/12/21): Iran to announce new ambassador in Yemen after predecessor's death
• Al Jazeera (26/12/21): Saudi-led coalition hits Yemen rebel camp in capital Sanaa - Coalition says the attack was a response to ‘an attempt to transfer weapons’ by the Yemeni rebel group. [!]
• Al-Monitor (23/12/21): US Navy seizes thousands of guns bound for Yemen’s Houthis - The US military said the boat, which was carrying the AK-47 cache, came from Iran [us-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (23/12/21): Saudi-led coalition says air raids hit military camp in Sanaa - Coalition says it destroyed drone and weapons stores in air raids on military camp in Yemeni capital Sanaa. [!]
• Democracy Now (22/12/21): U.N.’s World Food Programme Forced to Cut Back Yemen Aid Due to Funds Shortage [social-woes-news]
• Wall Street Journal (21/12/21): Iran’s Top Diplomat to Houthi-Controlled Yemen Dies of Covid-19 - Hassan Irloo was smuggled into Yemen in 2020 and named ambassador to parts of the country controlled by Houthis Paywall Summary (?): Iran blames unnamed countries for delaying Irloo's return, although clearly a jab at Saudi Arabia, who had various terms and negotiations with the Houthis to secure Irloo's ride home, due to Riyadh's air blockade of Sana'a, Yemen's capital (which the Houthis control) (see WSJ reporting on the negotiations, (18/12/21, 17/12/21). He had been announced as stable as recently as Saturday.
• Wall Street Journal (18/12/21): Iran’s Top Diplomat in Yemen Leaves the Country - Hassan Irloo was smuggled into Yemen last year and named Iran’s ambassador to parts of the country controlled by the Houthis Paywall Summary (?): An Iraqi plane picked him up. The Saudis cast this as a sign of friction between the Houthis and Tehran (Tehran dismisses this); the Houthis + Tehran claim it is because he needs COVID-19 treatment (turned out the latter, at very least, was true). Irloo is a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp. It's not clear if Houthis had releases Saudi hostages, as requested by Riyadh (see 17/12/21).
• Wall Street Journal (17/12/21): Yemen’s Houthis Seek Departure of Top Iranian Diplomat - Rebel group asked Saudi Arabia to allow ambassador to leave, in a move seen in Riyadh as sign of rift between Houthis and Tehran Paywall Summary (?): Last year, the ambassador was smuggled in, which Saudis 'see' to indicate strain between the two allies. WSJ reports there are local concerns that ambassador Hassan Irloo, while helpful in planning, adds to perceptions in Yemen that the Houthis are beholden to Tehran. The Saudis won't allow an Iranian plane to do the retrieval, only a Omani or Iraqi one, and require freeing some high-profile Saudi hostages in return. Irloo allegedly has COVID-19 and needs to get out, although WSJ reports local skepticisim this is true (soon to be proven true though).
• Just Security (21/12/21): Saudi-led coalition forces have carried out an airstrike on an airport in the Yemini capital of Sana’a. Rebel forces in Yemen have controlled Sana’a for more than six years. The coalition claimed that the airport’s facilities were being used to launch cross-border attacks, and that it urged U.N. aid workers who have been using the airport for humanitarian operations to evacuate the area before the strike was carried out. BBC News reports.
• Al-Monitor (19/12/21): 5 killed by stray bullets from soccer celebration in war-ravaged Yemen - Yemen's winning West Asian Junior Cup 2021 has brought rare joy to all Yemenis, but the joy is mixed with sorrow at civilian casualties from celebratory stray bullets. [!]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Clashes between Yemeni government forces and Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacking the key Yemeni city of Marib have killed a senior military commander. “Maj. Gen. Nasser al-Zubiani, who headed military operations of the government’s armed forces, was killed on the front line in the Balaq mountain range, south of the city of Marib, said two officials, speaking on condition of anonymity,” Samy Magdy reports for AP.
• Common Dreams (8/12/21): Senate Dems Help Torpedo Resolution That Would Have Blocked $650 Million Arms Sale to Saudi Arabia - "My simple question is, why in the world would the United States reward a regime that has caused such pain in Yemen with more weapons," Sanders asked after the vote. "The answer is we should not." [us-policy-news] [!]
• Al Jazeera (7/12/21): Saudi-led coalition bombs Sanaa after Houthi attacks - The coalition conducts attacks in Yemen after Houthis launch ballistic missiles and drones into Saudi Arabia. [!]
• Al Jazeera (6/12/21): Yemen replaces central bank governor, deputy amid currency crash - Yemen is split between an internationally recognised government in the south, backed by a Saudi-led military coalition, and the Iran-aligned Houthi movement that controls most of the north. Each side has a central bank with opposing policies. [economic-news] [!]
• Al-Monitor (6/12/21): Saudi Arabia intercepts ballistic missile over Riyadh - Yemen’s war is heating up again with new Saudi airstrikes in Sanaa, Marib and Hodeida. [!]
• Common Dreams (2/12/21): New Report Urges Biden to Stop Arms Sales Fueling Saudi 'Devastation' of Yemen - "It's time for the Biden administration to cut off this support as a way to change Saudi conduct and relieve the suffering of the Yemeni people caused by Saudi actions." [us-policy-news] [!]
• CounterPunch (3/12/21): This Must End: Saudi Warplanes Carpet-Bomb Yemen With US Backing [us-policy-news] [!]
• Democracy Now (3/12/21): Groups Call on U.N. to Relaunch Yemen War Crimes Probe Which Ended Amid Saudi and UAE Pressure
• Just Security (1/12/21): Saudi Arabia used “incentives and threats” to shut down a U.N. investigation of human right violations committed by all sides in the Yemen conflict, according to sources. The U.N. human rights council voted in October against extending the independent war crimes investigation. “Speaking to the Guardian, political officials and diplomatic and activist sources with inside knowledge of the lobbying push described a stealth campaign in which the Saudis appear to have influenced officials in order to guarantee defeat of the measure,” Stephanie Kirchgaessner reports for the Guardian. [corruption-news]
• Al-Monitor (30/11/21): Houthi forces: Saudi artillery kills civilian - The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen also said it bombed a training camp used by the Iran-backed forces
• Just Security (24/11/21): Recovery in war-torn Yemen is possible if the conflict between the pro-government Saudi-led coalition and Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels ends now, according to a new U.N. Development Program report. The report argues that extreme poverty in Yemen could be eradicated within a generation, or by 2047, if the fighting ceases. UN News Centre reports. [economic-news, social-woes-news]
• Just Security (24/11/21): The number of displaced people in camps in Yemen’s Marib province has risen nearly 10-fold since September, with over 45,000 people fleeing their homes, the U.N. migration agency said today. The Houthi rebels have been conducting an offensive in the oil-rich region. Reuters reports. [social-woes-news]
• Democracy Now (23/11/21): Senators Move to Block Biden’s Planned $650M Weapons Sale to Saudi Arabia [us-policy-news]
• Democracy Now (23/11/21): Yemeni Protesters Condemn U.S. Support for Saudi-Led War and Blockade [protest-news]
• Just Security (23/11/21): A Saudi-led coalition has launched air attacks on Iranian-backed Houthi rebel targets in Yemen’s capital city of Sana’a. Saudi state television reported that civilians were asked to avoid gathering or going near the “legitimate” Houthi targets, and residents reported explosions across the city. The Saudi-led military alliance said that it had destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile launch site in overnight strikes in the city. Reuters reports.
• Al Jazeera (20/11/21): Houthis say drone attacks target several Saudi cities - Saudi-led coalition later said it attacked 13 targets in Yemen during a military operation against the group
• Al-Monitor (18/11/21): US sanctions senior Houthi leader over Yemen extortion campaign - The US Treasury sanctioned the senior Houthi leader for "assets confiscated by Houthi opponents. [us-policy-news]
• Al-Monitor (17/11/21): UN urges Yemen's Houthis to release detained staff - The United States has also called on the Houthis to release Yemeni employees of the US government [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (14/11/21): Yemen’s Houthis re-enter Hodeidah after gov’t-allied forces leave - Pro-government forces have withdrawn from the port city, saying they were redeploying in accordance with a 2018 ceasefire deal.
• Al Jazeera (12/11/21): Belarusian airline stops flying Middle East citizens from Turkey - State-owned carrier Belavia bars Syrians, Yemenis and Iraqis from boarding flights at Ankara’s request as the migrant crisis grows. [immigrant-news]
• Just Security (12/11/21): Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen breached the compound in Sanaa that housed the American Embassy and detained Yemeni security employees of the U.S. government, the State Department has said.
• The Guardian (9/11/21): Car bombing kills pregnant Yemeni journalist in Aden – reports - Gulf-based TV journalist Rasha Abdullah Al Harazi was killed and her husband injured, according to witnesses and medical sources [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (5/11/21): At least 200 fighters were killed in clashes between Yemen’s government and Houthi rebels in and around the strategic central province of Marib over the last two days, security officials have said.
• Al-Monitor (2/11/21): Houthis advance in Yemen’s embattled Marib - The Iran-backed Houthi forces have claimed responsibility for a deadly missile attack in Marib province earlier this week.
• Just Security (1/11/21): At least 10 civilians, including children, were killed and 25 wounded when two ballistic missiles from Yemen’s Houthi rebels struck a religious school and a mosque in the central province of Marib yesterday, according to officials
• Just Security (1/11/21): At least eight people have been killed by a car bomb in Yemen’s southern city of Aden on Saturday, officials said.
• Democracy Now (20/10/21): Over 10,000 Children Have Been Killed or Injured in Yemen Conflict; U.N. Calls for Marib Ceasefire
• Just Security (20/10/21): Two German former soldiers have been detained on terrorism-related charges for allegedly trying to form a mercenary group of up to 150 members to fight in Yemen, the German Federal Public Prosecutor has said.
• Al Jazeera (17/10/21): Coalition ‘kills 160’ Yemen rebels as Marib battle intensifies - Saudi-led coalition says it has killed scores of Houthi rebels in air raids as warring sides battle near strategic city.
• Just Security (15/10/21): Fighting between Yemeni government forces and Houthi rebels in the oil-rich central province of Marib killed at least 140 fighters according to statements by tribal leaders and security officials. In recent weeks, the Shiite Houthis, backed by Iran, have escalated the fight in Marib and launched cross-border attacks on Saudi Arabia, which is leading a military coalition fighting with the Yemeni government against the Houthis.
• Just Security (15/10/21): Ramesh Rajasingham, the U.N. deputy humanitarian chief, issued a dire warning yesterday about the state of Yemen, saying that its economy was collapsing, the already horrific humanitarian situation was worsening, and the civil war was becoming more violent. More than 20 million Yemenis, representing two-thirds of the population, require humanitarian assistance, and aid agencies are beginning to run out of money.
• CPJ (14/10/21): Houthis detain journalist Youness Abdelsalam in Yemen since August [surveillance-and-censorship-news]
• Just Security (13/10/21): The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Iran-aligned group Houthis in Yemen has destroyed two explosive-laden boats used in an attempted attack by the group in the Red Sea, Saudi state TV has said
• Al Jazeera (11/10/21): ‘Looming disaster’: Oil ship leak threatens millions of Yemenis - Houthi rebels have been accused by opponents of delaying a solution to the stricken oil tanker crisis in an attempt to gain politically. [industrial-failure-news]
• Al Jazeera (10/10/21): Several killed in Yemen blast targeting Aden governor - Governor Ahmed Lamlas and Agriculture Minister Salem al-Suqatri survive car bomb that killed at least six people.
• Democracy Now (8/10/21): U.N. Agency to Close Probe into Yemen War After Pressure from Saudis and Allies
• Just Security (4/10/21): Clashes among separatists in the port city of Aden in South Yemen have killed at least 10 people, including four civilians, security officials have said
• Just Security (4/10/21): Houthi rebels in Yemen fired three ballistic missiles on the government-held city of Marib on Sunday, wounding 32 people and killing two children aged 2 and 4.
• Just Security (29/9/21): Two days of fierce clashes between Yemeni government forces and Houthi rebels over Marib, an energy-rich central city in Yemen, have killed more than 130 fighters, mostly rebels, officials said yesterday.
• Just Security (28/9/21): Security forces of Yemen’s internationally recognized government have violently dispersed thousands of protesters decrying deteriorating economic conditions in a southwestern province, wounding at least seven people, officials have said.
• Just Security (24/9/21): Clashes between Yemen’s Houthi rebels and pro-government forces this week have killed 35 individuals from both sides, tribal leaders and security officials have said.
• Just Security (23/9/21): The head of the U.N. food agency, the World Food Program, has warned that 16 million people in Yemen “are marching toward starvation” and that food rations for millions in the nation will be cut in October unless new funding is provided
• Al Jazeera (18/9/21): Yemen rebels say nine executed over political leader’s killing - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and former US President Donald Trump were tried in absentia and also sentenced to death.
• Just Security (14/9/21): Thousands of civilians have been displaced in Yemen’s Marib region after a Houthi rebel offensive that began this month saw the group take control of a key district in the south of the Marib and are now threatening to take control over Marib, the last government stronghold.
• Al Jazeera (11/9/21): Yemen gov’t says Houthis hit Red Sea aid port - There has been no claim of responsibility for the attack on the al-Makha port on Yemen’s western coast.
• Just Security (9/9/21): A U.N. panel has said that at least 18,000 Yemeni civilians have been killed or wounded by airstrikes since the country’s war escalated in 2015
• Al Jazeera (5/9/21): Saudi forces intercept three ballistic missiles, blame Houthis - Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis say the rebels fired three ballistic missiles at cities in the kingdom’s east and south.
• Democracy Now (1/9/21): New Saudi Labor Rules Put Hundreds of Yemenis at Risk of Deportation [labor-news]
• The Guardian (29/8/21): Missile and drone attack kills at least 30 in south Yemen - At least three explosions took place at al-Anad airbase, officials said
• Foreign Affairs (19/8/21): The Shattering of Yemen - Why Ending the War Is More Difficult Than Ever
• Just Security (9/8/21): The chief negotiator for Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement said on Sunday it would be futile to hold talks with the U.N.’s new special envoy for Yemen without movement on the group’s key conditions under stalled peace efforts
• Al Jazeera (9/8/21): US announces $165M in humanitarian aid to Yemen - Support aims to prevent the ‘very real threat’ of famine in Yemen, the United States special envoy says, amid an ongoing effort to end the war. [us-policy-news]
• Al Jazeera (8/7/21): In Pictures: The grim battle for key Yemeni city of Marib - The main hospital in Marib has been overwhelmed by dozens of wounded fighters a day for months.
• Al Jazeera (10/6/21): US sanctions Iran-based money network funding Yemen’s Houthis - Action comes as US also lifts sanction on three former Iranian government officials and two companies.
• The Economist (8/5/21): Houthi rebels look to take Marib, prolonging Yemen’s war - The battle, like the war, could be long and bloody
• Democracy Now (3/24/21): One-Quarter of Civilians Killed in Yemen from 2018-2020 Were Children
• Democracy Now (3/17/21): New Report Details Horrific Blaze That Killed Dozens of [Mostly Ethiopian, see massacres of Tigrayan people] Refugees at Yemeni Migrant Jail
• CounterPunch: Starving Yemen

Arctic Updates

Greenland / Russia / United States + Canada

Back to Top

Coming Soon

• Left Voice: US Troop Build Up Threatens Resource War in the Arctic - The U.S. military has announced its intention to expand its presence in the Arctic. This perfectly highlights why the fight against climate change must be anti-imperialist.

Greenland Updates

• Democracy Now (20/8/21): Rain Falls on Greenland’s Highest Peak for First Time on Record Amid Record Temperatures [climate-change-news]

Oceana Updates

Australia / Fiji Updates / Kirabati / Micronesia / New Zealand / Samoa / Solomon Islands

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.

Australia Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Basic (cr.); Pop. density (2000) (cr.); Provinces (cr.)

• Washington Post (31/12/21): New virus infections driven by omicron soar in Australia - New coronavirus infections soared again in Australia on Friday to a record of more than 32,000, just days after surpassing 10,000 for the first time. - Experts say the explosion is being driven by the highly contagious omicron variant and a recent relaxation of restrictions in Sydney and other areas. [covid-news] [!]
• WSWS (30/12/21): Junior doctors at hospitals in Victoria mount class action [healthcare-news, labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• The Guardian (27/12/21): How Australia’s far right uses cryptocurrencies to monetise hate online - As cryptocurrencies become mainstream and frictionless, extremists are finding new ways to fundraise [cryptocurrency-news, far-right-news] [!]
• Jacobin (15/12/21): Australia Has Rolled Workers’ Rights Back to the 1800s - The Australian High Court has just ruled that, if an employment contract says you are a casual worker, then you must be a casual worker — even if you work regular, ongoing hours. The decision is a massive blow to workers’ rights. [labor-news] [!]
• South China Morning Post (23/12/21): Thailand seizes US$30 million of crystal meth hidden in punch bags bound for Australia - More than 193kg (425lbs) of the drug was hidden among Thai-made training equipment, which aroused suspicion because it is not in high demand in Australia - Australia consumes around 11 tons of methamphetamine per year, so there’s a market for it, said customs officer [drug-news] Important Note on SCMP [!]
• Just Security (23/12/21): The Five Eyes intelligence alliance–which includes the U.S., U.K., Australia, New Zealand, and Canada–has warned that hackers are “actively exploiting” the recently uncovered vulnerability in Apache logging library log4j. “These vulnerabilities, especially Log4Shell, are severe,” the alliance warned in the joint alert, adding that the “vulnerabilities are likely to be exploited over an extended period.” Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [cyber-security-news]
• Jacobin (21/12/21): Powershop’s Sellout Shows the Free Market Won’t Stop Climate Change - The Australian green energy provider Powershop launched in 2012 with the support of a range of environmental NGOs. Last month, Shell bought the company and took over its clients. [climate-change-news, capitalist-farce-news] [!]
• The Guardian (15/12/21): New Zealand has adopted a radical rezoning plan to cut house prices – could it work in Australia? - Councils won’t be able to block townhouses or apartments under a sweeping reform aimed at improving affordability – but will it work? And could the idea cross the Tasman? [housing-news, social-woes-news, policy-news]
• Jacobin (17/12/21): Only a Democratic Overhaul Can Put an End to the Corruption of Australia’s Political Class - Every month, it seems a new corruption scandal emerges in Australian politics. These improprieties are not exceptions to the norm, they are the natural outcome of a two-party system that serves the wealthy elite. [politics-news, corruption-news]
• Just Security (13/12/21): Australia has signed a contract worth about $717 million to buy self-propelled howitzers from South Korea. The contract marks the latest step in Australia’s effort to overhaul its military and broaden its military cooperation, as it seeks to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region. David Winning reports for the Wall Street Journal.
• WSWS (9/12/21): Australia: Sydney rail workers hold 24-hour strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• The Guardian (8/12/21): Facebook posts allegedly by Queensland prison officers call for violence against ‘maggot’ inmates - Greens MP Michael Berkman demands an inquiry into comments he says are dehumanising [law-enforcement-oversteps-news] [!]
• Just Security (8/12/21): Australia has announced a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, following the announcement of the U.S. diplomatic boycott. New Zealand has said that it decided months ago that its diplomats would not be attending. In July, the European Parliament overwhelmingly passed a nonbinding resolution calling on diplomatic officials to boycott the Winter Olympics, however, an official response yesterday from the European Commission, the European Union’s executive arm, to a question about the boycott offered no support for the U.S. position. Steven Lee Myers and Steven Erlanger report for the New York Times.
• WSWS (7/12/21): Australia: NSW teachers hold first strike in ten years [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS [!]
• WSWS (1/12/21): FedEx locks out Australian workers fighting for improved wages and conditions [busting-labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Common Dreams (29/11/21): New Research Finds Climate Emergency the 'Overwhelming Factor' Behind Australian Bushfires - "It is now clear that human-induced climate change is creating ever more dangerous conditions for fires in Australia." [climate-change-news]
• Democracy Now (30/11/21): Majority of Australian Parliament Workers Face Bullying, Sexual Harassment or Assault
• Just Security (30/11/21: The Pentagon is to focus on building bases in Guam and Australia to better prepare the U.S. military to counter China, a senior defense official has said. [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (27/11/21): Australia’s spy agency predicted the climate crisis 40 years ago – and fretted about coal exports - In a taste of things to come, a secret Office of National Assessment report worried the ‘carbon dioxide problem’ would hurt the nation’s coal industry [history-news, big-oil-news, dark-security-news]
• Jacobin (22/11/21): Corruption and Patronage Are the Norm in the Australian Labor Party - Earlier this year, disgraced former MP Adem Somyurek joined the long list of Labor politicians to be investigated for corruption. Somyurek was no outlier — the nepotism and cronyism he practiced are just part of the day-to-day running of the Australian Labor Party. [corruption-news, politics-news]
• The Guardian (25/11/21): Police called to remove union officials from Amazon warehouse in Sydney - The Transport Workers Union said it was investigating reports that Amazon Flex workers’ cars were dangerously overloaded [union-news, busting-labor-news]
• Reuters (24/11/21): Australia to deploy police, military to Solomon Islands as protests spread [protest-news]
• The Guardian (18/11/21): Anti-vaxxers using bribery and fake certificates to avoid vaccination, Australian government warned - Pharmacists and aged care providers tell MPs of tactics being employed to escape public health laws including ‘no jab, no job’ [corruption-news, anti-vaxx-news]
• Jacobin (17/11/21): Far-Right and Fascist Organizations Are Leading Australia’s Anti-Vax Movement - In Australia, a growing protest movement is challenging public health measures intended to counter COVID-19. Although its organizers claim to be defenders of freedom, it’s clear that far-right and fascist groups are at the heart of this movement. [far-right-news, covid-news, anti-vaxx-news]
• Common Dreams (17/11/21): Two Climate Activists Halt Operations at World's Largest Coal Port - "It is now our duty to defend the biosphere that gives us life and to every person that Australia has forgotten and ignored," said Hannah Doole of the campaign group Blockade Australia [climate-change-news, protest-news] [for 11 straight days!]
• Just Security (10/11/21): The former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating has denounced the U.S., U.K. and Australian pact to help Australia build nuclear-powered submarines. Keating described the AUKUS security pact as “like throwing a handful of toothpicks at the mountain,” declaring Australia should avoid being drawn into a war with China. [us-policy-news]
• Jacobin (2/11/21): Australia’s Largest Retail Union Colludes With Bosses to Exploit Workers - The Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association organizes retail workers across Australia. Under its hard-right social conservative leadership, the association cooperates with employers to enrich its top officials at workers’ expense. [labor-news, union-news, corruption-news]
• Democracy Now (4/11/21): World’s Most Polluting Nations Spend Twice as Much on Border Militarization Than Climate Crisis - Additionally, the world’s largest fossil fuel companies are employing the same companies that receive government contracts to militarize their borders. [dark-security-news, climate-change-news]
• Just Security (3/11/21): France’s ambassador to Australia has criticized the Australian government’s leaking of text messages between French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Scott Morrison, saying the move is an “unprecedented new low” that raises questions over whether other countries can trust Australia
• Just Security (2/11/21): A 15-page confidential agreed communications timeline on the AUKUS pact and cancelled French submarine contract has been reported by The Australian newspaper. The Australian states that the timeline undermines claims from Biden that he did not know that Australia had not informed France earlier about the cancellation of the submarine contract. A text message sent from French President Emmanuel Macron to Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison two days before the announcement of the AUKUS pact has also been leaked. In the message, Macron asked Morrison whether to expect good or bad news on the submarine project, and the text appears to have been shared to reinforce Australia’s position that France was not blindsided about the contract’s cancellation. However, Morrison has been accused of putting his personal political interests ahead of healing Australia’s diplomatic rift with France, and it has been suggested that the documents were leaked by the Australian government. [us-policy-news]
• Just Security (29/10/21): In a phone call French President Emmanuel Macron has told Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison that the scrapping of the submarine contract, following the AUKUS pact, “broke the relationship of trust” between France and Australia and said Canberra should propose “tangible actions” to heal the diplomatic rift.
• Just Security (29/10/21): President Biden will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in an opportunity to address France’s concerns after a dispute over the Australian submarine deal with Paris that fell through following the U.S., U.K. and Australia AUKUS pact [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (26/10/21): Staff at Tasmanian youth detention centre allegedly covered up child sexual abuse, inquiry hears - Calls for centre to be closed urgently after concerns for safety of children went unaddressed for decades
• WSWS (25/10/21): Australia: 3,000 FedEx drivers hold 24-hour national strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (21/10/21): Australia: Sydney rail workers strike for 24 hours [labor-news, privatization-news] Important Note about WSWS
• WSWS (21/10/21): Australia: 2,000 StarTrack workers hold second 24-hour strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• Al Jazeera (16/10/21): Australian police seize record $140m heroin shipment - The 450-kg (990-pound) shipment was detected in a sea freight container of ceramic tiles sent from Malaysia. [drug-news, crime-news]
• The Guardian (13/10/21): More than a quarter of new Sydney apartment blocks have defects, report suggests - Researchers say NSW apartment hunters have been ‘flying blind’ in a regulatory environment that shifts all the risk onto unit buyers [privatization-news, industrial-failure-news]
• The Guardian (11/10/21): Human remains found in NSW river confirmed to be missing Indigenous man - Police say remains found last week belong to 22-year-old Moree man missing since he was seen entering the Gwydir River in June [indigenous-news]
• The Guardian (8/10/21): Less than 0.1% of NSW health staff have quit due to Covid vaccination mandates - NSW health department says that 136 staff members have resigned ‘due to their position on Covid-19 vaccination’ [covid-news, healthcare-news, labor-news]
• Just Security (7/10/21): The Australian government announced on Wednesday that it would stop processing asylum-seekers at detention centers in Papua New Guinea, a practice that has been criticized by human rights groups. Instead, Australia plans to send all asylum-seekers to the island Nauru. Human rights groups have criticized the policy and believe that detaining migrants offshore is a violation of international rights law.
• Just Security (5/10/21): In anticipation of further aggression from China, Taiwan is preparing to repel any strike and has asked Australia to increase intelligence sharing and security cooperation Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu has said
• Financial Times (4/10/21): China unloads Australian coal despite import ban amid power shortage - Factories face energy rationing, threatening economic growth and global supply chain [energy-news, big-oil-news, china-policy-news] Paywall Summary: Last year, China effectively banned Australian coal imports (which had ranged from 35m-50m tonnes/year, valued at around $40bn/year). Now coal prices have spiked, and limited Australian coal imports have been let through, although sourcing from Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Mongolia has been encouraged. Further, recent loosening of coal restrictions in China seems to contradict recent goals announced by president Xi Jinping to tamp down on fossil fuels; this loosening a result of the frustrating energy pressures that threaten to slow down economic growth.
• Just Security (1/10/21): Trade talks between Australia and the E.U. have been postponed amid the diplomatic row between Australia and France over the Aukus security partnership between the U.S., Australia and the U.K., which led Canberra to cancel a submarine deal with France.
• Just Security (30/9/21): CNN announced that it will stop publishing content on Facebook in Australia. “The decision comes after the country’s highest court ruled that media companies are liable for comments people post under articles on the platform…CNN asked Facebook to offer a Page-wide setting to turn off comments in Australia, according to a CNN source. Instead, Facebook provided instructions for how the media organization could disable comments post by post.”
• Just Security (29/9/21): Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne raised the case of WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during Payne’s visit to Washington D.C. this month
• The Guardian (23/9/21): Arrest footage and teargas raise concerns about Victoria police’s use of force to quell protests - Video of a man being thrown to the ground by an officer at Melbourne’s Flinders St Station sparks internal investigation [covid-news, law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Jacobin (20/9/21): Call Center Workers in Australia Are Unionizing to Demand Better Pay and Conditions - In Australia, call center work is notoriously precarious, atomized, and poorly paid. Through a rank-and-file union drive, hundreds of workers across over 90 workplaces are organizing to change that. [labor-news]
• CNN (18/9/21): Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters clash with police in Australia [protest-news, covid-news]
• The Guardian (15/9/21): ‘Despicable’: Sydney police stop Muslim mourners from watching funerals from cars - NSW police say people were in breach of public health orders as four men arrested at Rookwood cemetery [law-enforcement-oversteps-news]
• Al Jazeera (17/9/21): France recalls US and Australia envoys over submarine deal - France has recalled its ambassadors to US and Australia for consultations – an unprecedented move taken over a submarine deal.
• Just Security (16/9/21): The Aukus pact has angered France, which has now lost a deal with Australia to build 12 submarines
• Just Security (16/9/21): China has condemned the agreement [US, UK, Australia partnership "Aukus"] as “extremely irresponsible” and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said it “seriously undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race.” [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (15/9/21): US, UK and Australia forge military alliance to counter China - Aukus partnership will enable Australia to have nuclear-powered submarines for the first time [us-policy-news]
• The Guardian (10/9/21): Declassified documents show Australia assisted CIA in coup against Chile’s Salvador Allende - Former Liberal PM Billy McMahon approved spy agency request to conduct covert operations in Chile, a move later overturned by Gough Whitlam [history-news]
• Democracy Now (9/9/21): COVAX Cuts 2021 Vaccine Forecast; Australia Joins Call for Waiver on Vaccine Patents
• New York Times (21/8/21): In Melbourne, Australia, a protest against Covid restrictions turned violent.
• Jacobin (12/8/21): Australia Is Enabling State Violence in the Philippines - Australia has a long history of meddling in the affairs of its Pacific neighbors. In the Philippines, right-wing strongman Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs” amounts to state terror — which Australia's government has enthusiastically supported through military aid and legal advice. [busting-labor-news, corruption-news, dark-security-news, capitalist-farce-news, indigenous-news, australian-imperialism-news]
• Democracy Now (11/8/21): Australia Will Pay Reparations to Indigenous People Taken from Their Families as Children
• Jacobin (7/8/21): How Australia Won Universal Health Care — And How Workers Saved It With a General Strike - In 1974, the Whitlam Labor government introduced Australia’s first universal health care system. Despite its flaws, Medibank was a huge step forward — and Australia’s unions organized a general strike to defend it against conservative attacks.
• The Guardian (2/8/21): Tesla big battery fire in Victoria under control after burning more than three days - Investigations into the cause of the blaze that began during testing on Friday can now begin [industrial-failure-news]
• The Economist World This Week (24/7/21): New South Wales, Australia’s most populous state, reported its biggest rise in infections for 15 months.
• World Socialist Web Site (21/7/21): US cables show reliance on trade unions to suppress working-class unrest in Australia
• The Guardian (14/7/21): Legal threat stops work on mine project in Tasmania’s Tarkine - Majority Chinese-owned company MMG says ‘unwarranted legal threats’ forced it to ‘pause’ work on proposed tailings dam site
• Al Jazeera (2/7/21): Rosebery mine: Protests in Australia over MMG waste storage plan - Conservationists stage protest against plan by a China-owned firm to build a mining waste facility in Tasmania’s Tarkine rainforest.
• The Economist World This Week (1/7/21): Australia’s states closed their borders as new clusters of the Delta variant emerged across the country. Around 80% of Australians are now living under restrictions and their “travel bubble” with New Zealand has been suspended. Just 5% of the population has been vaccinated.
• Jacobin (28/6/21): Workers in Australia Launched a Strike Against General Mills. They Just Won. - Australia's General Mills strikers have showed us how to fight back — and win — during a "recovery" that's benefiting the superrich far more than ordinary workers.
• Al Jazeera (24/6/21): Australia official tests positive for COVID as new cases surge - New South Wales reported at least 11 new cases overnight as state premier hints at possible new lockdown if rise continues.
• Democracy Now (28/5/21): Australian Court Rules Government Has Duty to Protect Young People from Climate Disaster
• Democracy Now (27/5/21): Australia Orders Coronavirus Lockdown for 7 Million; Taiwan Battles Its Worst COVID Outbreak
• World Socialist Web Site (25/5/21): State by-election result deepens Australian Labor Party crisis
• Jacobin (14/5/21): Australia Is Supporting the Oppression of Tamils in Sri Lanka - In May 2009, Sri Lankan forces massacred 150,000 Eelam Tamils trapped in the island’s north. The slaughter was part of an ongoing campaign of ethnic cleansing. But the Australian government has whitewashed those atrocities and helped equip Sri Lanka’s state security forces.
• World Socialist Web Site (3/5/21): Australia: Liberals [conservative party] survive Tasmanian election due to near-record low Labor vote
• World Socialist Web Site (29/4/21): Australian government upgrades northern military bases following “drums of war” call
• Jacobin (17/4/21): Australia’s Government Is Refusing to Support Myanmar’s Anti-Coup Movement - For Australia’s conservative government, keeping Myanmar open for businesses is more important than justice for massacred anti-coup protesters.

Samoa Updates

(wiki)

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• South China Morning Post (30/7/21): Samoa’s new PM Mataafa confirms cancellation of US$100 million China-funded port - The island nation’s first female leader said Beijing’s interest in the Pacific had grown as Washington effectively ‘moved out’ of the region - China’s proposed construction of a wharf in Vaiusu Bay had played a part in the April 9 disputed election [bri-news]
• Just Security (26/7/21): The former prime minister of Samoa has conceded defeat in an election held in April today, ending months of political instability and his 22 years in power
• Democracy Now (26/5/21): Samoa in Political Turmoil as First Elected Woman Prime Minister Shut Out of Parliament

Fiji Updates

• Just Security (29/11/21): Fiji will contribute 50 troops to an Australian-led peacekeeping force in the Solomon Islands after anti-government rioting erupted last week in parts of the capital of Honiara, Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has said. Agence France-Presse and Reuters report.

Kirabati Updates

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• The Guardian (15/11/21): Kiribati to open one of world’s largest marine protected areas to commercial fishing - The Phoenix Islands Protected Area is about the size of California and has been fully closed to commercial fishing since 2015 [privatization-news]

Micronesia Updates

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.

New Zealand Updates

(wiki)

Maps: Pop. density (2000) (cr.)

• Jacobin (19/12/21): Socialists and Trade Unionists Led the Fight for Electoral Reform in New Zealand - Before 1993, elections in New Zealand used a first-past-the-post system that marginalized the Left and helped unpopular governments keep a parliamentary majority. A broad campaign led by the labor movement and socialists took up the fight for democratic reform — and won. [housing-news, social-woes-news, leftist-news] [!]
• Just Security (23/12/21): The Five Eyes intelligence alliance–which includes the U.S., U.K., Australia, New Zealand, and Canada–has warned that hackers are “actively exploiting” the recently uncovered vulnerability in Apache logging library log4j. “These vulnerabilities, especially Log4Shell, are severe,” the alliance warned in the joint alert, adding that the “vulnerabilities are likely to be exploited over an extended period.” Maggie Miller reports for The Hill. [cyber-security-news]
• The Guardian (15/12/21): New Zealand has adopted a radical rezoning plan to cut house prices – could it work in Australia? - Councils won’t be able to block townhouses or apartments under a sweeping reform aimed at improving affordability – but will it work? And could the idea cross the Tasman? [housing-news, social-woes-news, policy-news]
• Democracy Now (10/12/21): New Zealand Aims to Phase Out Cigarette Use with Sweeping Anti-Tobacco Legislation
• Just Security (8/12/21): Australia has announced a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, following the announcement of the U.S. diplomatic boycott. New Zealand has said that it decided months ago that its diplomats would not be attending. In July, the European Parliament overwhelmingly passed a nonbinding resolution calling on diplomatic officials to boycott the Winter Olympics, however, an official response yesterday from the European Commission, the European Union’s executive arm, to a question about the boycott offered no support for the U.S. position. Steven Lee Myers and Steven Erlanger report for the New York Times.
• WSWS (3/12/21): New Zealand rail union enters talks ahead of national strike [labor-news] Important Note about WSWS
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Solomon Islands unrest: New Zealand to send dozens of peacekeepers - New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern says she is ‘deeply concerned by the recent civil unrest and rioting in Honiara’
• Vice (9/11/21): QAnon and Trump-Flag Waving Anti-Vaxxers Tried to Storm New Zealand’s Parliament - “If we don’t have guns, shoot them up with a triple dose of Pfizer.” [far-right-news]
• The Guardian (29/10/21): Facebook trained its AI to block violent live streams after Christchurch attacks - Leaked papers detail emergency exercise that followed 2019 mass murder in New Zealand
• Just Security (1/10/21): A law has been passed in New Zealand which makes planning a terrorist attack a crime.
• Democracy Now (8/9/21): New Zealand Eases Restrictions; Cuba Rolls Out Vaccines for Children as Young as 2
• Just Security (3/9/21): New Zealand police kill an “violent extremist” Sir Lankan national after he stabbed 6 in an ISIS-inspired attack
• The Guardian (31/8/21): Unstoppable movement: how New Zealand’s Māori are reclaiming land with occupations - Since 1975, Māori have been able to reclaim land through a tribunal – but its reach is limited and now they are exploring other options [indigenous-news]
• Democracy Now (18/8/21): New Zealand Orders Lockdown After ID’ing One COVID Case
• Democracy Now (2/8/21): New Zealand Apologizes for Anti-Migrant Raids in 1970s
• World Socialist Web Site (31/7/21): Union sells out New Zealand bus drivers
• Al Jazeera (27/7/21): New Zealand nurses mull new offer after strike over pay, hours - Bosses offer new deal after burned out and stressed nurses threaten strike over increasing workload and low pay. [labor-news]
• Stuff - Dominion Post Wellington bus drivers to strike on Friday, forcing mass cancellations (via u/alllie on r/labor)

Solomon Islands Updates

• Financial Times (27/12/21): China-Taiwan geopolitical rivalry fuels tensions in Pacific Islands - Dilemma over whether to recognise Taipei or Beijing feeds into underlying domestic conflicts [china-policy-news, us-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): Pacific island nations (10 recognize China, 4 recognize Taiwan, both offering rewards for allegiance) control 28% of global sovereign ocean territory, overlapping with important trade lanes. China has given grants of $145m in 2018 to these nations, and the US fears Beijing might get deepwater prots in the region, 'with potential military utility', harrying access of Australia from the US west coast. Local politicians debate over the need for Chinese-funded ports, which come with debt (generally, it's a large market and source of aid); other political elements local to different natures is at play as well. The Western alliance is a cobble of the US, Australia, Taiwan, and France.
• The Guardian (24/12/21): China to equip and train Solomon Islands police after anti-China unrest - Pacific Island nation to host six Chinese officers as well as receiving shields, helmets and batons, says government [china-policy-news]
• The Guardian (1/12/21): Solomon Islands unrest: New Zealand to send dozens of peacekeepers - New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern says she is ‘deeply concerned by the recent civil unrest and rioting in Honiara’
• Just Security (29/11/21): Fiji will contribute 50 troops to an Australian-led peacekeeping force in the Solomon Islands after anti-government rioting erupted last week in parts of the capital of Honiara, Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has said. Agence France-Presse and Reuters report.
• The Guardian (26/11/21): Solomon Islands PM blames violent anti-government protests on foreign interference - Comments come as Australian police and defence force personnel begin taking control of capital Honiara
• Reuters (24/11/21): Australia to deploy police, military to Solomon Islands as protests spread [protest-news]

---------------------

Financial Times (29/12/21): Chinese loans deter poor nations from seeking debt relief says Paris Club chair - Head of creditor body says bilateral borrowing risks disrupting efforts to ease pandemic-hit finances [bri-news, europe-policy-news, us-policy-news, neo-imperialism-news, china-policy-news] Paywall Summary (?): In the pool of nations concerned, 2/3 of bilateral debt is Chinese, and nations are preferring to talk to the Chinese rather than Western financial institutions. As the pandemic has driven up public spending (and thus debt), the Paris Club/G20 launched the Debt Service Suspension Initative (DSSI) to postpone interest payments to bilateral creditors (ie another country that lent money to a second country) (commercial creditors are supposed to offer similar leniance, although no country has asked their institutions to do so, so far). Countries are still expected to pay off the deferred debt within 4-6 years. While they planned on $20bn in debt relief in just 2020, only $12.7bn has been deferred so far in total, with, guess who, China making the biggest contribution to DSSI (as a creditor), with $5.7bn deferred payments. The article really doesn't lend much hard evidence towards the title, only quoting the chair of the Paris Club as evidence (tbh this feels like China fearmongering). Other factors they list for the lower-than-expected deferments are increased liquidity of global markets due to leading central banks, higher commodity prices, and liquidity injection this summery by the IMF.

Democracy Now (23/12/21): Daily Headlines:

• WHO Warns Blanket Booster Programs Divert Vaccine Supply, Prolonging Pandemic [covid-news]

Democracy Now (13/12/21): Daily Headlines:

• Over Half a Billion People Faced Extreme Poverty Due to Healthcare Costs During Pandemic [social-woes-news, healthcare-news, covid-news]

Common Dreams (26/11/21): 'It Was Entirely Avoidable': Rich Countries Blamed as New Covid Variant Sparks Global Alarm - "Allowing new variants to emerge and spread, 13 months into the vaccine era, is a policy choice by the rich world." [vaccine-ip-news, covid-news]

Democracy Now (8/11/21): 100,000+ People Take to Streets to Call Out Climate Inaction, COP26 Greenwashing [climate-change-news, protest-news]

Just Security (26/10/21): Facebook’s own researchers have repeatedly warned that the company is ill-equipped to address issues such as hate speech and misinformation in languages other than English. According to internal Facebook documents, which are part of disclosures made to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and provided to Congress in redacted form by Haugen’s legal counsel, Facebook’s moderation teams are often not equipped to handle all languages and dialects spoken in many of countries the company refers to as “at risk.” This means that a large amount of hate speech and misinformation still slips through, potentially making users in some of the most politically unstable countries more vulnerable to real-world violence. [cyber-security-news, big-tech-news]

Democracy Now (22/10/21): Just 14% of Vaccines Pledged to Poorer Nations Have Been Delivered as Rich Countries Hoard Doses

Common Dreams (21/10/21): Leaked Docs Reveal Fossil Fuel-Soaked Nations Lobbying to Sabotage Climate Action - "They are using every opportunity to protect their corporate interests and continue with business as usual while the planet burns." [climate-change-news, leak-news, corruption-news]

The Economist (16/10/21): The IMF decides to keep its boss - But not everyone is happy

Just Security (12/10/21): The executive board of the International Monetary Fund has said that it has full confidence in Kristalina Georgieva as its managing director. The announcement puts to an end weeks of uncertainty while the board investigated Georgieva’s role in a data-manipulation scandal at the World Bank, where she had been chief executive, including trying to boost China’s standing in a high-profile World Bank report.

Democracy Now (12/10/21): Daily Headlines:

• WHO: Climate Change Is “The Single Biggest Health Threat Facing Humanity” [climate-change-news]
• Wealthy Nations Denounced for Hoarding COVID-19 Vaccines [covid-news, vaccine-ip-news]

Al Jazeera (8/10/21): Nearly 140 countries reach deal on 15% corporate minimum tax - The deal is an attempt to address the ways globalisation and digitalisation have changed the world economy [economic-news, tax-news].

Jacobin (7/10/21): CIA Op or Not, the Pandora Papers Are a Big Deal - There’s good reason to speculate that the Pandora Papers, the massive leak exposing the tax-dodging practices of the global superrich — which includes plenty of Russians and Chinese, but almost no Americans — is a CIA plant. Nevertheless, it’s a newsworthy story that deserves the attention it’s gotten. NOTE: this article is a little "Grayzone" for me, but still, worth considering, with respect to the alleged under-representation of Americans in the leak.

Just Security (5/10/21): An international coalition undertook a coordinated arrest of two “prolific” hackers involved in ransomware attacks last week.

Just Security (5/10/21): A trust industry in South Dakota and other U.S. states is sheltering assets of millionaires and billionaires by promising high levels of concealment, rivalling or surpassing the services offered in overseas tax havens. [revealed in Pandora Papers]

The Guardian (30/9/21): China owed $385bn – including ‘hidden debt’ from poorer nations, says report - AidData finds 42 low-to-middle income countries with ‘belt and road’ exposure exceeding 10% of GDP [bri-news, china-policy-news]

The Guardian (24/9/21): Global climate strike: thousands join coordinated action across world

Democracy Now (23/9/21): WHO Slashes Recommended Limits for Air Pollution, Which Kills 7 Million People Per Year

Democracy Now (23/9/21): Biden Pledges More Vaccine Donations as Poorer Nations Demand Patent Waivers for COVID-19 Shots

Democracy Now (21/9/21): Wealthy Nations on Track to Waste 100 Million COVID-19 Vaccine Doses This Year

CounterPunch (17/9/21): Railways and Pipelines are Preferable to Nuclear Submarines [us-policy-news, russia-policy-news, bri-news]

Just Security (16/9/21): The U.N. Commissioner for Human Rights has called for a moratorium on artificial intelligence (AI) tools that breach human rights, at least until stronger safeguards are in place internationally [ai-tech-news]

The Moscow Times (15/9/21): WHO Suspends Sputnik V Approval Process Over Manufacturing Breaches - Russia’s bid to have its coronavirus vaccine approved by either the WHO or EMA has ran into multiple problems.

Democracy Now (15/9/21): Biden Calls for Vaccinating 70% of World in One Year as WHO Slams Ongoing Vaccine Inequity

Democracy Now (13/9/21): Global Witness: Record Number of Environmental Activists Killed in 2020 [indigenous-news, protest-news, climate-change-news]

The Moscow Times (10/9/21): EMA, WHO Still Awaiting Sputnik V Data Before Approval

Just Security (10/9/21): The U.N. has confirmed that unidentified hackers breached its computer systems in April and that the U.N. has had off fend off related hacks in months since.

Democracy Now (9/9/21): Daily Headlines:

• WHO Calls for Halt to COVID Booster Shots in 2021, Says Vaccines Should Go to Poorer Countries
• COVAX Cuts 2021 Vaccine Forecast; Australia Joins Call for Waiver on Vaccine Patents

The Economist World This Week (4/9/21): Scientists in South Africa identified a new variant of covid-19 that seems to have mutated more rapidly than existing variants and spread to seven other countries in Africa, Europe and Asia. The variant appears to have changes associated with increased transmission and greater resistance to antibodies, but it is not clear whether it spreads more rapidly or evades the immune response generated by vaccines.

Democracy Now (31/8/21): U.N. Hails End to Worldwide Use of Toxic Leaded Gasoline

Democracy Now (26/8/21): Carbon Dioxide Levels Soared Above 412 Parts Per Million in 2020, Highest in Human History [climate-change-news]

Democracy Now (24/8/21): WHO Calls for Two-Month Pause on Booster Shots Amid Stark Vaccine Inequity

Democracy Now (12/8/21): WHO Warns World Could Log 100 Million More COVID-19 Cases by 2022; White House Asks OPEC to Pump More Oil

South China Morning Post (11/8/21): Human rights abuses claimed in hundreds of China belt and road projects - A report has identified rights allegations involving Chinese companies in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and Africa - Myanmar had the highest number of recorded cases, followed by Peru, Ecuador and Laos [bri-news]

ISIS Live Map

Democracy Now (28/6/21): Millions Worldwide Celebrate LGBTQ Pride, Defying Police Harassment

Democracy Now (21/6/21): Over 82 Million People Were Forcibly Displaced in 2020

Democracy Now (4/21/21): Journalists in Over 100 Countries Have Been Blocked from Reporting on Pandemic; 250 NGOs Call on Wealthy Countries to Fund Hunger Relief as 270 Million Face Acute Food Insecurity

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