UN extends South Sudan arms embargo despite appeals from African Union, Russia and China
Russia’s deputy UN ambassador Anna Evstigneeva accused the United States of ignoring all the positive achievements in South Sudan and focusing on sanctions “which they present as a sort of panacea for all of the country’s problems.”
Kenyan police advance team to Haiti returns to Nairobi as international mission is delayed
The officials arrived in Haiti on Tuesday, met the Haitian police on Thursday and the transitional presidential council on Friday. The United States has agreed to contribute $300 million to a multinational force that will include 1,000 Kenyan police officers and others drawn from Jamaica, the Bahamas, Antigua and Barbuda and other countries.
UN refugee camps have makings of prisons, but ongoing law reforms in Kenya may catapult it to a refugee rights champion
While the Kenyan government has not yet addressed citizenship rights for refugees, it has shown signs of adopting more progressive refugee policies in recent years. Together with the UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR) and its development partners, it has drafted a multi-year, multi-million dollar ‘Shirika Plan’, which aims to transform Kenya’s sprawling camp-cities into self-reliant open settlements, where refugees can live, work, and set up businesses among their local hosts.
‘You have guns, you don’t need a salary’ mantra sowed in national army by past regimes makes it difficult for UN forces to repulse Congo rebels
Criminality continues to bedevil the Congolese military, a major flaw that is cited in nearly every report of the UN Group of Experts on the DRC since 2011. Congolese security forces set up illegal roadblocks to extort citizens. They parcel off and control fiefdoms. They sell weapons to whomever is willing to pay, including the very forces they are fighting. They make deals with shadowy businessmen to pilfer minerals into neighbouring countries. These practices have long been the norm.
More EU countries recognise independent Palestinian state as anchor of lasting ME peace
European countries have approached the issue differently. Some, like Sweden, recognised a Palestinian state a decade ago, while France is not planning to do so unless it can be an effective tool to make progress towards peace.
Latest IOM report says 281 million people migrate annually and the long, dangerous journeys drive prosperity
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed noted, the issue of regular pathways has become a controversial topic in some regions due to the political atmosphere surrounding migration and the proliferation of toxic misinformation campaigns.
Haiti transition council announces national police will head security mission expected to deploy soon
Kenya has offered 1,000 officers to lead the force, although their deployment has been repeatedly delayed by legal challenges despite construction on a base to house them underway. Kenyan President William Ruto is visiting Washington this week to meet with US President Joe Biden. The two are expected to speak about Haiti.
Gaza genocide: ICC chief prosecutor puts his office back on collision course with America
Just months after being appointed to a nine-year term in The Hague, Khan shifted the ICC’s investigation in Afghanistan away from US forces to focus on the alleged crimes of the Taliban and local ISIS militants. The move drew criticism from human rights organisations and was seen by some as an attempt to win over Washington.
Explainer: Why ICC prosecutor’s office is zeroing in on Israeli PM Netanyahu and Hamas leaders
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said in October last year the court had jurisdiction over any potential war crimes carried out by Hamas fighters in Israel and by Israelis in the Gaza Strip.
Somalia’s letter to Security Council calls for termination of UN political mission in Mogadishu
The current mandate of the mission, known as UNSOM, expires October 31 and Fiqi asked for “the swift conclusion of the necessary procedures for the termination of the mission by the end of the mandate.”
