Month: April 2021

Israel Reportedly Attacks Iranian Ship in Red Sea

Israel has informed the United States that it is behind Tuesday’s attack on an Iranian reconnaissance ship in the Red Sea, the New York Times reported on Wednesday. According to several reports, Israel’s commando naval forces struck the Iranian vessel, called Saviz, off the shores of Eritrea, responding to last month’s two incidents in which Israeli-owned cargo ships were targeted in the Persian Gulf by Iranian missiles. On Wednesday, Tehran’s foreign ministry issued its first official comment, acknowledging the ship was hit but adding that only minor damage was sustained and that no one onboard was hurt. The latest incident is a noticeable escalation in the ongoing hostile naval exchanges between the two enemy nations. In March, two separate commercial vessels owned by Israeli shipping magnates were hit by Iranian missiles, causing limited damage. Israel, meanwhile, has over the years reportedly sabotaged dozens of Iranian ships it has suspected of illegally carrying arms and oil to Syria and other neighboring countries.

Tensions Mount in North Africa After Dam Talks End in Failure

Northeast Africa is edging toward a dangerous new reality, after the past week’s talks in Kinshasa between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan, which the sides called the last chance to resolve their Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam dispute, petered out with no agreed-upon settlement. Khartoum and Cairo, who fear mass droughts, floods and famine once upstream Ethiopia begins filling its massive Blue Nile reservoir, both accused Addis Ababa of negotiating in bad faith and sabotaging the meetings. Sudan on Tuesday warned it would now “consider all possible options to protect its citizens,” while last week Egyptian President Abdel Fatah a-Sisi threatened that Ethiopia’s conduct would lead to “regional instability.” The mammoth construction, already finished and operational, has been the center of controversy for nearly a decade, as Ethiopia’s neighbors have demanded a contract brokered by the US, UN and EU that would regulate and oversee the dam’s activity. Ethiopia has explained that the GERD will finally provide electricity to its still mostly off-the-grid population.

‘Constructive’ Vienna Meetings Spur Hope for Parties to Iran Nuclear Deal

The remaining parties to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which was aimed at halting Iran’s nuclear activities in return for global sanction relief, met on Tuesday in Vienna for what both sides called “constructive” talks. British, Chinese, French, German and Russian officials who met with Iran’s representatives hope to bring Tehran back into compliance with the largely aborted deal, while the Islamic Republic has demanded that new sanctions, re-imposed by former President Donald Trump after he quit the pact in 2018, be lifted first. European mediators on Tuesday shuttled between Iran’s negotiators and the United States envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, also present in the Austrian capital, as Tehran has so far refused a direct face-to-face with Washington officials. While both sides tempered expectations in the days leading up to the Vienna summit, State Department spokesman Ned Price noted Tuesday’s indirect back and forth was a “welcome … constructive … potentially useful step.”

Ecologistes et islamistes: l’alliance verte

Lorsque l’on s’inquiète du péril de l’islamo-gauchisme, on aurait grand tort de ne regarder que du côté de la France Insoumise.

Ils partagent une couleur : le vert. Mais pas seulement. Ils partagent aussi une approche totalitaire de la société.

Les uns veulent nous soumettre à la Nature. Les autres veulent nous soumettre à Allah et aux préceptes du Coran.

What is behind the sharp drop in deaths in Burkina Faso’s war?

The decline in conflict-related fatalities raises many questions, especially since the number of attacks against civilians, battles between armed actors and other acts of violence has remained the same.

For months, Belko Dialo’s* hometown of Djibo in the restive north of Burkina Faso was blockaded by armed groups that largely cut off its connection with the capital, Ouagadougou.

Mozambique to probe human rights violations in war on terror

Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi said Wednesday that alleged human rights violations by members of the Security and Defence Forces (FDS) in the fight against terrorism will not be tolerated.

“Human rights violations will be thoroughly investigated and appropriate measures will be taken,” he said.

Holdout rebels, sidelined victims, and other hurdles to peace in Darfur

A peace agreement last year between armed groups and Sudan’s transitional government was heralded as a landmark moment, coming as the country charts a new course following the ouster amid mass protests of long-serving ruler Omar al-Bashir.

But in the western region of Darfur – one of several areas covered by the deal – resistance is coming from a major rebel group that refused to sign, as well as conflict-affected communities whose members complain that their voices have not been heard.

In Bid to Boost Its Profile, ISIS Turns to Africa’s Militants

Violence by Islamist extremists in Africa reached a record high last year. Now, the Islamic State is using those attacks to project an image of strength.

The Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate has fallen, its fighters have dispersed and its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, has been killed.