Palestine
Holy Family Catholic Church

UN condemns attack on Gaza Catholic church

UN Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres strongly condemned a deadly Israeli artillery strike that damaged Gaza’s Holy Family Catholic Church, calling the attack “unacceptable” and reiterating calls for an immediate ceasefire and the release of all hostages. The strike killed three civilians and injured several others, including parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli, according to the Vatican. The Holy Family Church, Gaza’s only Catholic parish, had served as a refuge for displaced civilians since the onset of the war, and held up to 600 people when it was struck by tank fire. (Photo: By Dan Palraz/Wikipedia)

Palestine
Gaza

EU in ‘cruel and unlawful betrayal’ of Gaza

At a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels, the bloc opted not to take punitive action against Israel over widespread evidence of war crimes and atrocities committed in Gaza. For weeks, the EU had been discussing a range of potential actions, including: suspending its free trade agreement with Israel, an arms embargo, banning the import of products from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, and ending visa-free travel for Israeli citizens. Instead of taking any of these measures—which advocates argue are necessary to avoid complicity in serious violations of international law—EU ministers pointed to an aid deal for Gaza struck days earlier as justification for inaction. The details of that deal remain vague, and it has so far shown little on-the-ground impact. Amnesty International assailed the apparent quid pro quo as a “cruel and unlawful betrayal” of the Gazans. (Photo: Mohammed Zaanoun/TNH)

Syria
Suwayda

Syria: Israel intervenes amid Druze-Bedouin fighting

Days of clashes between Bedouin tribes and local fighters in the predominantly Druze city of Suwayda in southern Syria left some 300 dead before a ceasefire was brokered by the government. Amid the fighting, Israeli warplanes bombed Syrian government tanks as they advanced on Suwayda, and also struck military targets around Damascus. Some 1,000 Israeli Druze also amassed on the Purple Line, separating Israeli-controlled and Syrian-controlled territory in the Golan Heights, saying they were prepared to cross over to protect their brethren in Suwayda. IDF Brig. Gen. (res.) Amal As’ad, a prominent member of Israel’s Druze community, accused Syrian transitional president Ahmed al-Sharaa of seeking to “eliminate the Druze,” and criticized Israel for seeking peace with Damascus even amid the attacks. (Map: Google)

Syria
Latakia

Syria: demand accountability in killings of Alawites

Amnesty International urged Syria’s transitional president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, to ensure the publication of all the findings of a fact-finding committee’s investigation into the targeted killings of members of Syria’s Alawite minority. The fact-finding committee was established in March, as al-Sharaa pledged to hold perpetrators accountable following mass killings in the coastal provinces of of Latakia and Tartous. The killings, which followed insurgent attacks on security forces in the region, appear to have been carried out by Sunni militias aligned with Syria’s transitional government. (Map: Google)

Palestine
Gaza

Podcast: Orwell in Gaza

Amid starvation and horrifically escalating atrocities in Gaza, Israel announces plans to build a giant concentration camp on the ruins of Rafah, an evident preparation for forced “transfer” of the Palestinian population from the Strip entirely—an idea Trump enthusiastically embraces. On the West Bank, amid growing settler attacks, more Palestinian land is enclosed behind separation walls built to protect Israeli settlements. Amid all this, Benjamin Netanyahu (wanted for war crimes by the ICC) meets with Trump in Washington to openly discuss the “transfer” plan—and announces that he has nominated the American president for the Nobel Peace Prize. In Episode 286 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg argues that Trump could in fact get get the Nobel prize while facilitating genocide in Gaza and instating a mass detention state in the US—a fitting inauguration of the fascist world order. (Photo: Jaber Jehad Badwan via Wikimedia Commons)

Europe
Russian tank

ECHR: a decade of Russian war crimes in Ukraine

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) found that Russia has committed grave violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) in Ukraine—not just since the massive invasion of 2022, but since the conflict began in 2014. Judges at the ECHR rendered a series of decisions related to consolidated complaints brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands. Among the named violations of IHL are the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, multiple violations of the Geneva Conventions and other human rights treaties, application of “extremism laws” against religious communities, and interference with freedom of speech and the press. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Europe
Zaporizhzhya

UN condemns Russian attacks on Ukraine nuclear plant

UN Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres strongly condemned Russia’s largest yet wave of drone and missile attacks in Ukraine, especially noting strikes that disrupted the power supply to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), endangering nuclear safety. Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also warned of the persisting “extremely fragile” situation at Europe’s largest nuclear facility. Russia’s latest air-strike against the ZNPP marked the ninth time power was broken off to the plant since the war began in February 2022. Although external power has been restored, Grossi cautioned that the situation remains unsafe. (Photo: Wikipedia)

Syria
Syria

US removes sanctions amid Syria transition

President Donald Trump signed an executive order that terminates the majority of US sanctions imposed on Syria and associated designated persons. Lifting of the sanctions will represent a significant opportunity for the ravaged Syrian economy. Sanctions against people and entities tied to the ousted Bashar Assad regime, terrorist organizations, and human rights abusers will remain in place. While the Syrian government welcomed the relief, the United Nations expressed the need for “genuine political inclusion” during Syria’s political transition. Critics have recently questioned the “promise of real change” in the country after the establishment of an electoral process that does not allow for a direct public vote to seat the new People’s Assembly. (Image of Free Syria flag via Wikimedia Commons)

Europe
Russian tank

Europe, Ukraine to establish tribunal for crime of aggression

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset agreed to establish a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. The agreement, supported by all 46 Council of Europe member states, will establish a tribunal to address crimes of aggression in response to Russia’s ongoing invasion. The crime of aggression refers to the decision by a state leader to wage a war that may violate Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, which prohibits the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. The tribunal’s jurisdiction may also extend to Russian allies participating in the conflict. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Palestine
Gaza

UN warns of ‘weaponized hunger’ in Gaza

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) announced that the recent killing of Palestinians trying to receive food from aid hubs may constitute a war crime, warning of a policy of “weaponized hunger” in the Gaza Strip. Jonathan Whittall, the head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Gaza and the West Bank, reported that more than 400 people have now died in the process of trying to reach food distribution points. “We see a chilling pattern of Israeli forces opening fire on crowds gathering to get food,” Whittall said, adding that “Israel’s militarized humanitarian assistance mechanism is in contradiction with international standards on aid distribution.” (Photo: Maan News Agency)

Africa
Central African Republic

Convictions in CAR war crimes case

Amnesty International welcomed the conviction by the Central African Republic’s Special Criminal Court of six former combatants for war crimes and crimes against humanity, calling the decision “a breakthrough in the fight against impunity in the country.” However, Amnesty said that the trial in the NdĂ©lĂ© 2 case was “tarnished” by the fact that four out of six defendants were convicted in absentia. (Map via Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection)

Southeast Asia
Sittwe

Burma’s military accused of starving Rohingya

Dozens of internally displaced Rohingya in Burma’s Rakhine state have died of starvation this year, according to a report released by the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK). Nearly 150,000 Rohingya have been confined to internment camps in the state since 2012, relying on humanitarian assistance to survive. Tens of thousands are experiencing starvation as a result of a trade blockade and severe humanitarian access restrictions imposed by the ruling junta in response to escalating clashes with the Arakan Army (AA), an ethnic Rakhine militia. The AA has also been accused of atrocities against Rohingya living in areas under its control. (Photo: BROUK)