Egypt

UN panel: Israel committed genocide in Gaza

A UN independent inquiry issued findings that Israel has committed the international crime of genocide amid its military operations in the Gaza Strip. A 72-page legal analysis from the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory found that Israeli forces have committed genocidal acts against Palestinians in Gaza, including killing or seriously harming members of the group, as well as inflicting conditions of life "calculated to bring about [Gazans'] physical destruction in whole or in part," and preventing births among the population. To support its conclusions, the commission cited the figure of 60,199 Palestinians killed since the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, the fact that life expectancy in Gaza has dropped precipitously from 75.5 to 40.5 years, and that 46% of Palestinians killed were women or children. The panel also noted direct attacks on maternity wards and clinics. (Photo: Jaber Jehad Badwan via Wikimedia Commons)

Podcast: Trump for War-is-Peace Prize

In Donald Trump's perverse ambition to win the Nobel Peace Prize, he is citing his supposed diplomatic victories in ending six conflicts: Armenia-Azerbaijan, Congo-Rwanda, Israel-Iran, India-Pakistan, Thailand-Cambodia and Egypt-Ethiopia. In Episode 292 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg examines each of these examples, and breaks down how claims to have won "peace" are either extremely overstated or (more often) total Orwellian jive. The implication that Russia-Ukraine will be next, as Putin escalates his aggression, puts a hideous crown on the irony. (Image via Twitter)

Sudan: RSF announce rival government

A coalition led by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has announced formation of a parallel government in Sudan, further cementing the country's territorial split between army-held and RSF-held regions. Paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo ("Hemedti") will head a 15-person council with Abdel Aziz al-Hilu, head of the SPLM-N rebel group, as deputy. The African Union urged member states to not recognize the new regime, which wants to rival the Port Sudan-based army-led transitional government. This effectively leaves the RSF-led regime in control of much of the south, the army in control of the north, and the center of the country contested. (Map: PCL)

Syria

Trump proclamation instates new travel ban

President Donald Trump issued a proclamation implementing a nearly full travel ban on nationals from a dozen countries, severely restricting potential entry into the United States. The proclamation is based on an executive order issued on Trump's first day in office that laid the foundation for the administration to enact extensive immigration controls. Commentators have harshly criticized the ban, pointing out that it disproportionately affects Muslim-majority and African countries. Amnesty International's secretary general Agnes Callamard lambasted Trump for the action, calling it "discriminatory, racist and downright cruel." The restrictions bear a striking resemblance to Trump's 2017 travel ban, which blocked travel to the United States from seven Muslim-majority countries. (Photo: Minneapolis protest of 2018 Supreme Court decision upholding Trump's first travel ban. Credit: Fibonacci Blue/Flickr)

Sudan marks two years of war —and another massacre

It was tragically appropriate that the second anniversary of Sudan's devastating civil war was marked by yet another massacre. At least 400 people were killed when the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) overran the Zam Zam displacement camp in North Darfur. They also executed 10 staff members in the camp's last remaining clinic, including medics and ambulance drivers. Eighty percent of the camp's original 500,000 population has escaped to the nearby government-held town of el-Fasher, although the RSF is believed to be trying to stop people—especially young men—from leaving. Sudan is recognized as the world's largest humanitarian crisis in a conflict marked by both sides' brutality and intransigence. An international conference held in London last week pledged millions of dollars in aid but made no progress on ending the war. Instead, regional powers, who hold the most sway over the military rivals (including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) disagreed on Sudan's political future. As splits sharpen, the RSF has declared that it is forming a rival government—deepening fears of the permanent division of the country. (Map via Radio Tamazuj)

Israel blocks Gaza aid, ceasefire teeters

Israel is imposing a total blockade on aid entering the Gaza Strip, raising fears of a return to violence, and of a rapid further deterioration in the dire humanitarian situation in the devastated enclave. The move is intended to pressure Hamas to accept a temporary extension of the first phase of the three-stage ceasefire deal. The second phase was supposed to see Israel and Hamas hammer out a plan for Gaza's post-war governance. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instead repeatedly expressed support for US President Trump's widely condemned proposal to expel the 2.1 million Palestinian residents of Gaza and take control of the territory. Arab leaders meeting in Cairo endorsed a $53 billion reconstruction and post-war governance plan as a counter-proposal to Trump's vision, but it was immediately rejected by the US and Israel. (Photo: Mohamed Soulaimane al-Astal/TNH)

Amnesty: release all Gaza hostages, Palestinian detainees

Amnesty International called for the immediate release of both Israeli and foreign civilians held hostage by Hamas, and of all Palestinians arbitrarily detained by Israel. The organization said that the release of hostages and prisoners should not be conditional upon the result of the next phase of ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel. There are at least 59 hostages remaining in Gaza, the majority of whom are Israelis. Meanwhile, there are more than 4,000 Palestinians held in detention in Israel without charge or trial, which Amnesty called a violation of international law. (Photo: We Are All Hostages)

Egypt: crackdown on ‘Joint Revolution’ activists

Amnesty International called on the Egyptian government to release dozens of arbitrarily detained activists currently awaiting "unlawful" prosecution. The charges brought against them include disseminating "false news," promoting "terrorist organizations," and involvement in anti-government protests. Amnesty found that they were targeted for posting about their discontent with economic conditions in the country on a Facebook page and Telegram channel called "Revolution of the Joints." Nearly 60 people have "disappeared" after posting or sharing social media content demanding an end to corruption and rights abuses under the authoritarian regime of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. (Image: Egyptian Front for Human Rights)

Gaza ceasefire: the sobering reality

With the sounds of war starting to fall silent in the Gaza Strip after 470 days of brutal Israeli military assault and siege, a tiny crack of hope has opened for the Palestinian residents of the enclave that they will be able to gather the shattered pieces of their lives and begin the daunting task of rebuilding. But whether the deal reached by Israel and Hamas will lead to a decisive end to the war remains entirely unclear. Under a Trump administration that promises to be even more staunchly pro-Israel than the Biden administration, it's difficult to imagine Palestinians seeing anything resembling their aspirations for a state being met—or justice and accountability for the crimes committed over the past 15 months. (Photo: Rita Baroud/TNH)

Sudan war drives continued refugee exodus: UN

The war in Sudan is driving continued refugee flight, leading to a deepening humanitarian crisis in the greater region, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported. The agency said that more than 3 million people have fled Sudan, seeking safety in neighboring countries, since the war began in April 2023. The refugees are faced with challenges of food shortages and continued rights violations such as killings, sexual violence and looting, as well as natural disasters such as flooding. In October, around 60,000 Sudanese escaping the escalated fighting in Darfur arrived in Chad, which is facing a resource shortage due to its increasing refugee population, now at over 1.1 million. The refugees there face an overwhelmed healthcare system, scarce food, and no education for their children who have already been out of school for two years. (Map: PCL)

Meloni maneuvers to save offshore migrant camp plan

Italy's right-wing government, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, issued a decree aimed at bypassing judicial obstacles to a controversial deal with Albania to hold and process the claims of asylum-seekers intercepted at sea by Italian forces. The move came days after a special immigration court in Rome ruled that the first group of 12 migrants sent to the repurposed military camp at Gjader, Albania, must be returned to Italy. The court found that the migrants' countries of origin—Egypt and Bangladesh—are "unsafe," making their offshore detention illegal. Meloni's decree asserts the executive alone has the power to make such determinations, setting the stage for a showdown between her government and the judiciary. (Photo: Melting Pot Europa)

Regional powers vie in Somalia

Tensions are ratcheting up in the Horn of Africa over the deployment of Egyptian troops to Somalia. Ethiopia, Somalia's neighbor, isn’t happy. It has soldiers in Somalia acting as a buffer against al-Shabab insurgents, but now Mogadishu has asked them to withdraw. High-stakes strategic interests are at play. Ethiopia and Egypt have been locked in a long-standing dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which Egypt regards as an existential threat. Meanwhile, landlocked Ethiopia has also enraged Somalia over its determination to find a port to lease. It has turned to the breakaway region of Somaliland, dangling the prospect of recognizing its independence—an absolute red line for Mogadishu. The new defense agreement between Egypt and Somalia has underlined just how serious the tensions are. Egypt is planning to send 5,000 soldiers to Somalia to join a new-look African Union force, with a separate 5,000 stationed on the Ethiopian border. (Map: PCL)