Tag: land

Mexico

Chiapas: Zapatistas expand autonomous territory

EZLNIn a communiqué entitled "And We Break the Siege," signed by Insurgent Subcomandander Moisès, the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) in Mexico's southern state of Chiapas announced an expansion of their zone of autonomous self-governing territory. The statement said the EZLN has created seven new "Caracoles" (regional self-governing bodies) and four new Zapatistas Rebel Autonomous Municipalities (MAREZ). These 11 new bodies add to the five Caracoles and 27 MAREZ already in existence, bringing to 43 the number of self-governing territories within the Zapatista autonomous zone. The new rebel entities are within the "official" municipalities of Ocosingo, San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chilón. Tila, Amatenango del Valle, Motozintla and Chicomuselo. The Zapatistas have named their new campaign of expanding their territory in Chiapas "Samir Flores Soberanes," after the indigenous leader who was assassinated in Morelos state this year. (Photo via Solidarity)

The Andes

Indigenous target in Colombia human rights crisis

LatakiaAmnesty 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)

The Andes
ADEPCOCA

Internecine cocalero violence in Bolivia

tankThe 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)

Planet Watch
Chad

UN report on climate change calls for urgent action

ZaporizhzhiaUN Secretary-General António 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)

The Amazon

Brazil: garimpeiros kill indigenous leader

IranUN Secretary-General António Guterres urged both Iran and Israel to exercise "maximum restraint" amid a sudden escalation between the two states following Israeli attacks on Iran's nuclear installations. Condemning the Israeli strikes, the statement from the secretary-general's office expressed concerns about a wider conflagration throughout the Middle East, warning that "a descent into deeper conflict" would be "a situation that the region can hardly afford." (Map: PCL)

East Asia
Ji Sizun

China: justice sought in death of ‘barefoot lawyer’

GazaAmid growing warnings of starvation, the Israeli military allowed humanitarian aid into Gaza for the first time in more than 11 weeks. The first trucks were permitted to pass through the Kerem Shalom crossing after the UK, France and Canada threatened to sanction Israel if it did not allow in assistance. UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher welcomed the move, but said it was a "drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed." In an open letter issued the same day the first trucks were allowed in, nearly a dozen international aid and human rights groups warned that a US-backed organization set up to take over aid distribution in Gaza is "a dangerous, politicized sham." They charged that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has been launched without Palestinian involvement, while the population in Gaza remains under siege. (Photo: Maan News Agency)

The Amazon

Brazil: Yanomami lands overrun by illegal miners

TogolandThe Court of Justice of the West African regional bloc ECOWAS ordered the government of Ghana to pay $75,000 in damages to 30 members of the Homeland Study Group Foundation (HSGF) over their prolonged unlawful detention. The court, based in Nigeria, found that Ghanaian authorities violated the applicants' human rights by detaining them for extended periods—some for over a year—without trial or due process. The HSGF members were arrested in May 2019 under Ghana's Prohibited Organizations Decree, which outlaws groups deemed a threat to national security. The HSGF advocates for the independence of Western Togoland, an ethnically distinct region that was separated from what became the adjoining nation of Togo at the end of the colonial era and attached to Ghana. (Photo: ISS Africa) 

The Amazon

Amazon destruction jumps under Bolsonaro

ZimbabweSome of the world's poorest countries, including nations grappling with protracted humanitarian crises, are among those most affected by President Donald Trump's new trade tariffs regime, which has compounded pre-existing economic strains and debt woes. Among the worst effects will likely be felt in Africa, where Trump's decision has created an "inexplicably cruel situation," according to the Center for Global Development (CGD). "It is hard to fathom that the administration set out to destabilize poor African countries and unclear what they hope to gain," wrote CGD researchers. The tariffs have effectively tanked the African Growth & Opportunity Act (AGOA), which allowed duty-free imports to the US for 32 countries and was credited with helping economic growth. Amid existential financial worries in the international aid sector—triggered by Trump's closure of USAID—economists have also raised the possibility of a global trade war, with far-reaching ramifications for inflation and the cost of living worldwide. (Photo: Down To Earth)

East Asia

Protest shakes Hong Kong… and Wuhan: solidarity?

GYBOIn Episode 271 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg takes heart in the simultaneous protests in Israel and Gaza—against Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas, respectively, and both calling for a halt to the bombardment. Despite the obvious forces pitting these protesters against each other, the potential for conscious unity between them represents a real glimmer of hope. Listen on SoundCloud or via Patreon. (Image: Gaza Youth Breaks Out)

Southeast Asia

Vietnam: ‘free trade’ advances; free speech retreats

tankThe European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (EuroJust) announced that the United States is withdrawing from the International Center for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression (ICPA), created to hold Russia accountable for its invasion and seizure of territory in Ukraine. The organization was launched by EuroJust in 2023 to assist Ukraine in prosecuting parties responsible for orchestrating the crime of "aggression" against Ukraine, facilitating information-sharing across international law enforcement and judicial bodies. The Biden administration collaborated with the organization by providing monetary support and appointing US prosecutors to help with the work of the ICPA. The funding cut-off comes as the White House has shifted course in US foreign policy on Ukraine, with President Donald Trump insisting on brokering a bilateral peace deal with Russia, regardless of the wishes of the Ukrainian government. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Central America

Central America climate crisis fuels migration

PDVSAPresident Donald Trump announced that the US government is revoking concessions granted to energy giant Chevron to pump and export Venezuelan oil. The move, which reverses a 2022 decision by Biden to allow the company to bring Venezuelan oil to US markets by exempting it from economic sanctions, removes one of the South American country's few economic lifelines at a time of deepening crisis. In his post on TruthSocial, Trump claimed that the Venezuelan government had failed to keep up its side of the original bargain to meet "electoral conditions." He also charged that the "regime has not been transporting the violent criminals they sent into our Country…back to Venezuela at the rapid pace that they had agreed to." (Photo: Luis Ovalles via Dialogo Americas)