Haiti chaos: what’s causing it, and can it be stopped?
12/3/2024: Ongoing violence in the impoverished Caribbean nation continues to escalate. What is the background to the conflict and what hurdles does the UN response team face?
Source: DW
Ukraine war is changing the global arms trade
10/3/2024: Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine has driven new arms purchasing in Europe in dramatic fashion, with US manufacturers being the main beneficiaries, according to a new study from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. From 2019 to 2023, the amount of arms imported by European countries doubled compared with the previous five years.
Source: DW
Sudan’s war risks creating the world’s largest hunger crisis
6/3/2024: Following her visit to South Sudan, the World Food Programme's Executive Director, Cindy McCain, has compared the crisis in the region with the Darfur emergency 20 years ago. Right now, 90 per cent of people facing emergency levels of hunger in Sudan are stuck in areas that are largely inaccessible to food aid because of the relentless violence and interference by the warring parties.
Source: World Food Programme
ICC issues arrest warrants for Russian commanders for alleged war crimes
5/3/2024: The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against two commanders of the Russian Armed Forces, each allegedly responsible for the war crimes of directing attacks at civilian objects in Ukraine. Amnesty International calls on the international community to ensure that Mr Kobylash or Mr Sokolov are immediately arrested if they leave Russia.
Source: Amnesty International
Joint NGOs call on UN to urge a ceasefire in Gaza
29/2/2024: Leading non-governmental humanitarian agencies have appealed to the UN to demand an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This move followed a stark warning given to the UN Security Council that at least 576,000 people in the Gaza Strip are facing famine-like conditions.
Source: Oxfam International
Somalia-Turkey pact inflames maritime spat with Ethiopia
26/2/2024: The recent Turkey-Somalia defence and economic cooperation agreement comes amid growing frustration over Ethiopia's maritime deal with Somaliland. The future of maritime security in the Horn of Africa rests on the delicate balance between safeguarding legitimate interests and respecting territorial integrity.
Source: DW
As conflicts spiral, five ideas to bolster the UN’s peace commission
21/2/2024: The UN Peacebuilding Commission is a small agency working with conflict-affected countries to map out solutions to secure sustainable peace. It operates separately from peacekeeping missions, which are mandated by the Security Council. The Commission could play a part in any moves to strengthen the UN peacebuilding architecture.
Source: The New Humanitarian
Why fighting is flaring in eastern DRC, threatening regional stability
20/2/2024: Background notes on the escalating violent clashes between the Democratic Republic of Congo's army and M23 rebels in eastern Congo. The fighting has increased the risk of an all-out conflict between Congo and Rwanda that could suck in neighbours and regional forces including South Africa, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania and Malawi.
Source: The East African
Myanmar’s military abuses against civilians intensify
30/1/2024: Governments that provide arms or materiel to the military junta in Myanmar risk being complicit in war crimes, according to Human Rights Watch. The campaign group says that sanctions have been inconsistent and that governments in the region have turned a blind eye to the junta's rights violations.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Mali’s peace deal ends
26/1/2024: In recent months there has been a surge in attacks by armed Islamist groups across Mali. Meanwhile, UN peacekeepers, deployed since 2013, are withdrawing at the request of the junta. With the end of a 2015 peace agreement, the threat to civilians across Mali remains grave.
Source: Human Rights Watch