Europe

EU expands migrant detention and deportation rules

The European Union took a significant step toward adopting a Trump-like approach to migration when the EuroParliament approved a new law expanding the power of security agencies to track, detain and deport migrants. Amnesty International criticized the revised “Return Regulation” as “punitive” and a threat to fundamental rights. The law also allows for people to be deported to countries other than their country of origin—a controversial policy used by the Trump administration. Greece, an EU member, is even working directly with US officials to ramp up deportations. (Photo: Sara Creta/TNH)

Europe

Podcast: the other Russia —from Tolstoy to Komyagin

Eclipsed from the headlines by the war in the Middle East, Russia launches a new offensive in Ukraine with an unprecedented wave of drone and missile strikes across the country—even hitting an historic monastery in Lviv. Meanwhile, two young Russian poets, Artyom Kamardin and Yegor Shtovba, remain imprisoned on “state subversion” charges related to public readings of anti-war poetry. They join other imprisoned anti-war poet-activists, such as Daria Kozyreva, and numerous artists and activists imprisoned for opposing the new dictatorship of Vladimir Putin. The recently passed Russian rocker Nikolay Komyagin, frontman for the post-punk band Shortparis, was also an icon of artistic resistance. Long known for their defiant sound, after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine they released the music video “Apple Orchard,” on an anti-war theme—getting them being blacklisted from major venues in Russia. In Episode 320 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg places these courageous voices in the context of a dissident tradition in Russia under the dictatorships of the czars, the Soviets, and now Putin—from Leo Tolstoy to Shortparis. (Composite image by CounterVortex from Ilya Efimovich Repin via Wikimedia Commons and Sasha Braulov via Instagram)

Europe

‘Invisible’ shipwrecks hide Mediterranean death toll

Italy, Tunisia and Malta are withholding information about the true death toll from stricken vessels carrying migrants in the central Mediterranean, according to an AP report. The beginning of 2026 has been the deadliest start to a year in the Mediterranean since the UN began keeping track in 2014, with nearly 700 lives lost to date. But phone calls from people looking for missing relatives, bodies washing ashore, and other clues suggest there have been numerous “invisible” shipwrecks, and the true toll is significantly higher. (Photo: US Navy via Wikimedia Commons)

Europe

Global commitment crucial for Ukraine justice: Amnesty International

On the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Amnesty International called on the international community to maintain a steadfast commitment to hold Russia accountable under international law for its crimes and aggression. The statement noted diminishing pressure on Russia, raising concerns about rights protections and prospects for peace in Ukraine. Amnesty’s senior director for research and advocacy Erika Guevara-Rosas commented that “commitments to justice and human rights are weakening as powerful actors grow emboldened to disregard international law and further erode the rules-based order.” (Photo of Russian embassy in London: Kwh1050 via Wikimedia Commons)

Europe

Belarus: renewed call to release political prisoners

Belarusian prisoner of conscience and opposition politician Mikalai Statkevich was released from imprisonment weeks after suffering a stroke. Following his release, Amnesty International reiterated the need for justice for victims of human rights violations in Belarus. Statkevich, imprisoned for his role in the 2020 post-electoral protests, was one of 52 Belarusian prisoners released in September following a deal with the US. Upon their release, Belarusian authorities attempted to deport the 52 former prisoners. While they were being brought to the Lithuanian border, Statkevich forced his way out of the bus, declaring, “I will keep fighting.” Statkevich was then detained again and transported to a penal colony. The stroke precipitated his release, but Amnesty stressed that being released due to failing health does not constitute justice. The Belarusian Human Rights Centre Viasna reports that 1,142 political prisoners remain incarcerated in Belarus. (Image: Monument to Belarusian political prisoners in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Source: Паўлюк Шапецька via Wikimedia Commons)

Europe

UN denounces Russian conviction of ICC prosecutor

UN human rights experts decried Russia’s conviction of nine International Criminal Court (ICC) officials, calling the ruling a “flagrant violation of international law.” After a trial held in absentia, the Moscow City Court sentenced Prosecutor Karim Khan and eight ICC judges under the Russian Criminal Code for “unlawfully prosecuting Russian citizens in The Hague,” and subsequently placed them on an international wanted list. Prosecutor Khan received a 15‑year prison term, with the others receiving sentences of between three and 15 years. The case concerns the arrest warrants issued by the ICC for President Vladimir Putin and one of his cabinet members on war crimes charges. (Photo: Wikipedia)

Europe

Danish veterans stage silent protest at US embassy

Hundreds of Danish veterans and supporters staged a silent march from the historic Kastellet fortress to the US Embassy in Copenhagen as part of a “No Words” mobilization to protest recent US rhetoric that organizers said demeans Denmark’s combat contributions alongside American forces. Organizers also linked the march to the status of Greenland, upholding the right of self-determination for the Danish island territory. Recent demands by President Donald Trump for US annexation of Greenland, and comments seeming to question the courage of Danish soldiers, have stirred a sense of betrayal for many in Denmark, particularly those who fought alongside US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. (Image: No Words)

Planet Watch

Dutch court orders climate measures for Bonaire

The Hague District Court ruled that the Netherlands has failed to meet its international obligations on climate change. The court ordered the government to adopt adequate measures to better protect Bonaire, a Dutch Caribbean island, within 18 months. The court concluded that the government had violated the rights of the residents of Bonaire under the European Convention of Human Rights. The recent advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice significantly influenced the Dutch court in determining the state’s obligations in regard to climate change. (Photo: Dialogue Earth)

Europe

Arrests as French farmers protest EU-Mercosur trade deal

UN experts cautioned against the escalating use of arrests and criminal proceedings against agricultural trade union activity in France, after authorities detained 52 farmers during peaceful protests in Paris. Union leaders and members of the Confédération Paysanne held protests in opposition to the EU-Mercosur Deal, signed in December 2024 but still pending ratification, which would reduce tariffs and more deeply link the European market with the bloc of South American nations. Participants unfurled banners in offices of the Agriculture Ministry in protest of the agreement. Protesters included a large delegation from the French overseas regions of Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Reunion and Mayotte, all of which have denounced unfair import costs imposed upon them by the government. Three key spokespersons were among those arrested. (Photo: UN Human Rights Council via Twitter)

Planet Watch

Climate change drives Trump’s Greenland gambit

European troops landed in Greenland amid tense talks between the country’s autonomous government, officials from Denmark, and the United States. President Trump has continued to insist the two-million-square-kilometer Arctic island should belong to the United States—despite pre-existing security agreements and a (previously) strong relationship with Denmark that grants the US significant military access to the territory. Beyond Trump’s ego, there are reasons related to climate change that explain why Greenland is becoming of political interest. The territory’s strategic location has become even more so in recent years as the Greenland ice sheet and surrounding sea ice have retreated significantly: The ice sheet lost 105 billion tonnes in 2024-25, according to scientists. This has disastrous implications—ice helps cool the planet, and its melt will lead to rising seas. But it also allows ships and submarines more freedom of movement, making military planners nervous. (Photo: Pixabay)

Planet Watch

Greenland party leaders reject US annexation

Greenland party leaders issued a joint statement asserting that the autonomous territory rejects US calls for acquisition. Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and four other party leaders stated: “We don’t want to be Americans, we don’t want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders.” But President Trump commented that same day that the US is “going to do something on Greenland, whether they like it or not.” Reacting to the dispute, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that the US is exempting itself from the international rules it had long promoted until just recently. Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said that the “fate of Greenland will be decided by Greenlanders and the Kingdom of Denmark.” NATO official Gunther Fehlinger went further, warning that if the US annexed Greenland, all its bases in Europe would be “confiscated.” (Photo: Peter Prokosch)

Europe

UN condemns Russian missile attacks on Ukraine

UN Secretary General António Guterres issued a statement strongly condemning Russian missile and drone attacks in Ukraine following Moscow’s firing of its medium-range nuclear-capable “Oreshnik” ballistic missile. The Oreshnik strike near the western city of Lviv was part of a wave of overnight Russian missile and drone attacks against Ukrainian targets that left millions without power. This was the second time Russia used the experimental hypersonic Oreshnik missile over the course of the Ukraine war, following a strike on Dnipro in November 2024. But this time the strike came far from the frontline, and near the border with NATO member Poland. (Map: PCL)