Day: March 16, 2026

ORBITAL DATA CENTERS IN LEGAL VACUUM

With a landmark filing to the Federal Communications Commission, SpaceX proposed a network of one million solar-powered satellites designed not for communication, but for computation. This “Orbital Data Center” system, bolstered by the recent SpaceX-xAI merger, aims to place massive AI server farms into outer space—opening a jurisdictional dilemma. We are witnessing the birth of “Digital Soil,” a new form of territory where power is exercised not by planting flags, but by controlling space-based data processing. For emerging economies and Global South democracies, the implications are severe. If orbital infrastructure becomes the backbone of global AI, exclusion from its governance will translate directly into a new form of digital dependency. In a commentary for JURIST website, Vishal Sharma of NALSAR University in Hyderabad argues that the United Nations must designate orbital strata as “International Data Commons” to ensure that the “Digital Soil” of our future remains a global public good.

Greater Middle East

Trump launches air-strikes on Yemen, Iraq

President Donald Trump ordered a series of air-strikes on Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, promising to use “overwhelming lethal force” until the Houthi rebels cease their attacks on shipping along a vital maritime corridor. Houthi authorities said 13 civilians were killed in the strikes. Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who control the capital, have said they will resume attacks on ships in the Red Sea in response to Israel’s renewed blockade on aid to Gaza. Following the January Hamas-Israel ceasefire, the Houthis had paused their campaign of attacks on shipping, which they depict as a gesture of solidarity with the Palestinians (although many targets are not linked to Israel). Days before the strikes on Sanaa, a US air-raid in Iraq’s Anbar province reportedly killed Abdallah Makki Muslih al-Rifai, the second-highest ranking ISIS leader. (Photo: CENTCOM)

North Africa

Tunisia: protest xenophobic attacks on Black Africans

Amnesty International called on Tunisia to put an immediate end to racist and xenophobic attacks targeting Black African migrants. The wave of violence began in early February and was exacerbated by a racially-charged speech by President Kais Saied at a National Security Council meeting. President Saied’s statements sparked street protests in Tunis, in defiance of an official ban on demonstrations. Activists also opposed a widening crackdown on dissent since Saied seized near-total powers in July 2021. The Tunisian National Salvation Front has vowed continued weekly protests. (Photo: Chahd Lina Belhadj/Meshkal)

Syria

Ten years after: the Syrian Revolution betrayed

Ten years after the Syrian Revolution began with peaceful anti-regime protests, the UN Human Rights Commission released a report finding that actions by the Assad regime and its Russian allies over the course of the Syrian war have likely constituted “crimes against humanity, war crimes and other international crimes, including genocide.” The UN and human rights groups have issued such findings repeatedly—to little media coverage. The charge of genocide officially requires the world to act under the Genocide Convention. But the world is no longer even paying attention. (Image: Delawer Omar)

Ethiopia: massacre sparks Oromo resistance

Oromo activists in Ethiopia launched a "fuel blockade," occupying roadways to halt shipment of oil through the country. The action was called following a massacre at the village of Moyale, near the Kenyan border. Troops gunned down nine unarmed residents,… Read moreEthiopia: massacre sparks Oromo resistance

Palestine

UN agency decries Israeli ‘apartheid regime’

A UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) report concludes that Israel is guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt" of apartheid policies against Palestinians.

NO WAY OUT

How Syrians are Struggling to Find an Exit

by Eleonora Vio, IRIN

Over the last five years, close to 4.8 million Syrians have fled the conflict in their country by crossing into Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. But as the war drags on, neighbors are sealing their borders. Forced from their homes by air-strikes and fighting on multiple fronts, the vast majority of Syrian asylum seekers now have no legal escape route.

Earlier this week, EU leaders reached a hard-won deal with Turkey aimed at ending a migration crisis that has been building since last year, and that in recent weeks has seen tens of thousands of migrants and refugees stranded in Greece. But the agreement turns a blind eye to the fact that even larger numbers of asylum seekers are stranded back in Syria, unable to reach safety.

Syrians hoping to apply for asylum in Europe first have to physically get there. EU member states closed their embassies in Syria at the start of the conflict, and even embassies and consulates in neighboring countries have been reluctant to process visa and asylum applications.

When Syria’s war erupted in March 2011, it was initially relatively easy for most refugees to leave the country. Those without the means to fly poured out in waves of tens of thousands across land borders into Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. But one by one, these exits have been restricted or closed off entirely.

Central America