The UN resident coordinator in Cuba, Francisco Pichon, said the humanitarian situation has reached a critical point following the US oil blockade imposed in January. He added that the population remains in need of urgent humanitarian aid despite an oil shipment from Russia in late March that the US administration chose not to interfere with.

Pichon explained that disruption of the country’s electricity system has further exacerbated the crisis, resulting in interruptions of essential services such as health care and water access. Electricity shortages have forced medical authorities to postpone over 96,000 surgeries and delayed immunization for thousands of children. Officials also noted that vulnerable groups, including elderly citizens, people with disabilities, and women, are the most affected by the humanitarian crisis.

Decreases in available energy, combined with the destruction from Hurricane Melissa, have significantly hindered humanitarian assistance from the UN and its partners. In response, the UN has created a targeted Action Plan to address the urgent needs of Cubans, focusing on delivering humanitarian aid in priority sectors such as health care, water, sanitation, and food security.

The Action Plan includes steps to transition toward sustainable energy sources and reduce oil dependence, such as the installation of solar power and the reinforcement of water pumping infrastructure.

Pichon said the UN continues to cooperate with national authorities and the private sector in Cuba to identify logistical solutions that guarantee the viability of aid operations, but that additional funding is still required to fill the $68 million gap in the UN budget.

Cuba has long experienced an economic crisis and energy shortage that have worsened over time due to US economic sanctions and oil embargo, which include the imposition of trade tariffs on third countries that send oil to the island nation. The blockade has triggered an energy emergency, given that Cuba currently relies on imported oil from Mexico and Venezuela.

The UN has condemned the US action, describing it as a “unilateral economic coercion” and a violation of international law.

Amid the tightening sanctions, Cuba has experienced repeated natural disasters, including hurricanes and earthquakes, resulting in significant infrastructure damage, destruction of homes, and the displacement of thousands.

From JURIST, April 7. Used with permission.

See our last report on the crisis in Cuba.

Photo: Виктор Пинчук via Wikimedia Commons

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Composite image via GIGA. Gen Z protesters in different countries use appropriated image from One Piece manga. Fair use rights asserted

“Every key climate indicator is flashing red,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. “Humanity has just endured the 11 hottest years on record. When history repeats itself 11 times, it is no longer a coincidence. It is a call to act.”

Most alarmingly, the analysis found that the Earth is now retaining more solar energy than it releases into space. Most of this trapped heat is being absorbed by the world’s oceans. Global ocean heat reached a record high in 2025, and that measure has risen twice as fast over the past 20 years as it did over the previous 40. Impacts of the current imbalance are likely to last centuries if not millennia. (TNH, DW, PRI, Scientific American)

Image: blende12/Pixabay

The retrial, opening this week at the Algiers Court of Appeals, comes after the Supreme Court overturned an appeal ruling against the defendants in November 2024. The Supreme Court found legal flaws in the Court of Appeal ruling, including fair trial violations, claims by the defendants that their confessions were obtained under torture, a lack of prosecution evidence, and significant due process hurdles, such as defense lawyers being unable to cross-examine prosecution witnesses.

Deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, Diana Eltahawy, commented: “The flawed investigation and grossly unfair trial that led to these callous death sentences are a stain on Algeria’s justice system. The new trial represents an important opportunity for the Algerian authorities to end the travesty of justice, redress past violations and ensure accountability without recourse to the death penalty.”

In August 2021, Algerian artist Djamel Ben Ismail was wrongly accused of starting the devastating wildfires that ravaged 18 provinces in Algeria that year, leading to the deaths of around 90 people. Ismail was subsequently tortured and murdered by angry locals, with graphic footage of the incident spreading through various social media platforms. In November 2022, an Algerian court handed down death sentences to 49 people for their roles in the gruesome murder, with 38 death sentences being upheld in October 2023.

Amnesty has criticized the prosecution of these defendants as a violation of the rule of law, stating that the convictions against at least 10 of the accused appear to have been politically motivated, as they were affiliated with the opposition Movement for the Self-determination of Kabylie (MAK), designated as a terrorist organization by authorities. Additionally, some defendants were tried in absentia, a violation of the right to be present at one’s trial. This is a direct contravention of Article 14(3)(d) of the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR), which guarantees the right to a fair trial, and Article 7 of the African Charter on Human & Peoples’ Rights, both of which Algeria is a party to.

As Algeria has not carried out any executions since 1993, the trials will be closely watched by international opponents of the death penalty.

From JURIST, March 2. Used with permission. Internal links added.

Map: Kabyle.com

The draft resolution urges states to fulfil their obligations in regard to climate change, in line with the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July 2024. These include the adoption of nationally determined contributions of atmospheric carbon to meet the Paris Agreement goal of limiting the global average temperature increase to well below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

The draft resolution also calls on UN member states to phase out fossil fuels, and to protect communities subject to forced displacement induced by climate change. This is a question of particular concern to Pacific island nations such as Vanuatu.

The draft resolution would also create an “International Register of Damage,” providing a transparent record of loss and damage linked to climate change, as Climate Home News reports. This echoes the ICJ’s advisory opinion that injured states may claim compensation for the non-compliance of climate change obligations.

Negotiations regarding the draft resolution are now underway. The UN General Assembly is expected to vote on the draft resolution at the end of March. Candy Ofime, climate justice researcher at Amnesty International, said: “This is a vital moment for states to show they stand on the side of climate justice—not delay, weaken, or turn away from their legal obligations and moral duty.”

The Amnesty statement called governments out for weakening global action on climate, denouncing the recent rescission of the 2009 Endangerment Finding and removal of greenhouse gas regulations by the administration of US President Donald Trump. The administration described the deregulation as “restoring the American Dream” by saving over $1.3 trillion, and making commutes and business operations more affordable for American citizens.

The Trump administration reportedly urged other governments to pressure Vanuatu to withdraw its draft resolution. According to Al Jazeera, a cable sent by the US Department of State indicated the administration’s “strong objection” to the draft resolution and described the ICJ opinion as “misguided claims of international legal obligations.” Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu’s environment minister, reposted Al Jazeera’s article on X (formerly Twitter).

Prompt government actions are urgently necessary to achieve the Paris Agreement goal. A November 2025 report predicted that even if governments realize their “highest possible ambition,” the global average temperature will still have peaked at 1.7°C above pre-industrial levels for 40 years before declining to 1.2°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.

From JURIST, Feb. 14. Used with permission.

See our last reports on the UN climate process, and the World Court advisory opinion.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

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The court concluded that the government has violated the right to private and family life of the residents of Bonaire under Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR).

In regard to mitigation, the court found that while the Dutch Climate Act sets a goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, neither the act nor its 2023 amendment set intermediate emissions-reduction targets. Both parties agreed that there was less than a 5% likelihood that the Netherlands could reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 43% compared to 2019 by 2030. Given the failure to quantify its remaining emission allowance, the court concluded that the Netherlands’ mitigation measures do not satisfy its convention and treaty obligations.

The court also noted the lack of a climate adaptation plan, sufficient scientific research, and adequate financial resources for Bonaire. These inadequacies persist despite the government’s acknowledgment that Bonaire is particularly vulnerable to climate change.

In addition, the ruling found that the government did not provide sufficient procedural safeguards to Bonaire residents, including access to information and public participation.

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. In its judgment, the Dutch court affirmed that the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement are legally binding on the Netherlands, alongside other regional and international human rights treaties. These treaty obligations include the duty to contribute equitably to the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Apart from the right to private and family life, the court also held that the lack of adaptation measures for Bonaire, contrasting comparable measures already in place for the European Netherlands, amounted to discrimination against residents of Bonaire. This, the court found, violates Article 14 of the ECHR and Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 to the Convention. According to Greenpeace, this ruling marks the first time that a court has recognized a state’s failure to develop climate policies for a municipality as discrimination.

Greenpeace brought the class action on behalf of approximately 26,000 residents on Bonaire. Responding to the ruling, Marieke Vellekoop, director of Greenpeace Netherlands, said that incoming prime minister Rob Jetten must now allocate funding for the mandated climate measures on Bonaire.

From JURIST, Jan. 29. Used with permission.

See our last reports on Bonaire, the UN climate process, and climate change litigation.

See also our podcast on the World Court advisory opinion.

Photo: Dialogue Earth

On Feb. 4, the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) is due to expire. If it does, it will mark the first time since the early 1970s that there will be no legally binding limits on US and Russian strategic nuclear forces without another agreement being under negotiation. (Chatham House)

Founded in 1945 by Albert Einstein, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and University of Chicago scientists who helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan Project, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists created the Doomsday Clock two years later, setting the hands at seven minutes of midnight. (BAS)

Image: misucell.com

Greenland is also home to around 31.4 billion barrels of oil, which the territory gave up trying to extract in 2021, citing the global climate crisis. Potentially even more significant are large volumes of untapped critical minerals—necessary to power the technology needed for the transition away from fossil fuels. China currently controls most of the global market, and a White House document released this week explicitly framed critical minerals as vital to US national security.

From The New Humanitarian, Jan. 16. Slightly editied. Internal links added.

Photo: Pixabay

The memorandum orders all executive departments and agencies to cease participation in and funding for 31 UN organizations and 35 other intergovernmental bodies that the administration says operate contrary to US interests. “Many of these bodies promote radical climate policies, global governance, and ideological programs that conflict with US sovereignty and economic strength,” reads a White House fact sheet accompanying the memorandum.

The White House said the withdrawals will end American taxpayer funding for entities that “advance globalist agendas over US priorities.”

Among the targeted organizations are bodies focused on climate, gender equality, migration, democracy promotion, and international law, including the UN Entity for Gender Equality & the Empowerment of Women, the International Law Commission and the International Institute for Democracy & Electoral Assistance.

The action follows a review ordered earlier this year of all intergovernmental organizations to which the United States belongs or provides funding.

UN climate chief Simon Stiell called the withdrawal “a colossal own goal” that will leave the US “less secure and less prosperous.”

“While all other nations are stepping forward together, this latest step back from global leadership, climate cooperation and science can only harm the US economy, jobs and living standards,” Stiell said in a statement.

Stiell noted that 194 countries affirmed at last year’s COP30 climate summit that the global energy transition is “irreversible,” and said the doors remain open for the US to rejoin in the future.

The memorandum follows Trump’s withdrawals from the Paris Climate Agreement, the World Health Organization and the UN Human Rights Council.

From JURIST, Jan. 8. Used with permission.

See our last report on the UN climate process.

Photo: CounterVortex