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Showing posts from December 15, 2019

Toward a Landmine-Free World

Conference Marks 20 Years of the Mine Ban Treaty  Today the Fourth Review Conference of the international Mine Ban Treaty opens in Oslo, Norway. A total of 164 states have joined the treaty, committing to cease production , use, and transfer of antipersonnel mines, to destroy their stockpiles, clear mine-affected areas, and assist mine survivors.   It is worth celebrating the significant steps states have taken over the past 20 years to alleviate the suffering caused by antipersonnel mines through this treaty. Since the Mine Ban Treaty entered into force on March 1, 1999, 27 additional countries have joined , including many that possessed large stockpiles of or were significantly contaminated by landmines. New use of antipersonnel mines has decreased dramatically due to stigma created by the ban treaty. In 2018 , only Myanmar , which has not joined the treaty, used antipersonnel mines . More than 50 states previously produced antipersonnel mines, but 41 have ceased produ

Focus - Jihadists still spreading terror in northern Syria

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In north-eastern Syria, have the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces been abandoned by their Western allies, notably the US? Up until October and Donald Trump's decision to pull out nearly all US Special Forces and troops from the area, Washington and the FDS carried out daily operations against the Islamic State group. But as Turkey becomes the major player in northern Syria, the jihadists are regaining strength and are still spreading death and terror. An estimated 10,000 jihadists are currently in Kurdish prisons, but are ready to take up arms again. Our team on the ground reports. Source: https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20191220-focus-northern-syria-jihadists-terror-islamic-state-group-sdf-qamishli-turkey-prisons

Iraqi Kurdistan independence referendum: Seven key points

Iraqi Kurds are being given the chance to decide on whether they want independence or to remain part of Iraq as they head to the polls on Monday. Kurds are expected to overwhelmingly vote in favour of separating from Iraq. 1 When does polling start? Voting will begin at 8am and will conclude at 6pm on Monday 25 September. 2 What's the question? Voters will be asked: “Do you want the Kurdistan Region and Kurdish areas outside of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to become an independent state?" 3 Can any Iraqi vote? Only Iraqi Kurds are eligible to vote. 4 What's the electoral roll? Approximately 5 million Kurds in Iraq are registered to vote. 5 Can Kurds abroad vote? Iraqi Kurdish diaspora began casting their votes online on Saturday. . 6 Is all of Iraq voting? Iraqi Kurdish cities such as Erbil, Dahok, Sulemanyia and Halabja are participating in the vote as well as the highly contested city of Kirkuk - which

Landmines Spreading Across Myanmar: Monitoring Report

Yangon – The use of landmines has been reported in four more townships in Myanmar due to the ongoing clashes between Myanmar’s military and the Arakan Army (AA), according to the 2019 report by the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. Paletwa Township in Chin State and Maungdaw, Kyaukphyu and Buthidaung in Rakhine State now have landmines, according to the report. “There were previously no landmines in those four townships. But they are on the list now. It is hard to make comparisons because we get information from different sources each year. But more people have definitely been injured by mines this year than the previous year,” said regional coordinator Dr. Yeshua Moser-Puangsuwan of the monitoring agency at the launch of the report in Yangon on Friday. Mines, casualties and suspected hazardous areas have also been reported in Minbya, Mrauk-U, Myebon, Ponnagyun and Rathedaung townships in northern Rakhine State, sai

Global death toll of landmines rises due to mines laid by militants

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OSLO (Reuters) - The global casualty toll of landmines doubled in 2018 from a 2013 low due to conflicts in Afghanistan, Syria and Mali and mostly due to the increased use of improvised landmines set by militant groups such as Islamic State. FILE PHOTO: A member of the Mines Advisory Group (MAG) demining team searches for landmines in Khazer, Iraq December 1, 2016. REUTERS/Khalid al Mousily/File Photo Representatives from affected nations, non-governmental organizations and donor countries are gathered in Oslo this week to discuss how to achieve the stated aim of making the world free of landmines in 2025. Landmines killed or injured some 6,897 people in 2018, according to the Landmine Monitor report by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. Some 71% of the casualties were civilians, and of these, over half were children, it said. In 2018, most casualties were due to improvised explosive devices (IEDs) laid by non-state groups, the report add

Drone attacks hit three government-run oil, gas facilities

In Syria, near-simultaneous attacks carried out by drones hit three government-run oil and gas installations in different parts of central Homs province. State TV and the Oil Ministry today said no one claimed responsibility for the attacks. Syria has suffered fuel shortages since earlier this year amid Western sanctions blocking imports, and because most of the country's oil fields are controlled by Kurdish-led fighters in the country's east. The city of Homs and its suburbs have been fully under Syrian government control since 2017. However, some parts of the province near the border with Jordan remain in rebel hands. Before the Syrian conflict erupted in 2011, the country exported around half of the 350,000 barrels of oil it produced per day. Now its production is down to around 24,000 barrels a day, covering only a fraction of domestic needs. In September, a drone and missile attack in Saudi Ar

Taliban: Intra-Afghan Talks Only After Troop Withdrawal Deal Signed With US

ISLAMABAD - The Taliban Friday ruled out participation in intra-Afghan negotiations until the United States signs an agreement with the insurgent group on the complete withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan.   U.S. chief peace negotiator Zalmay Khalilzad paused peace talks with Taliban interlocutors in Qatar a week ago to give them time to consult with their leadership on reducing insurgent violence. The temporary suspension came a day after the Taliban attacked the largest U.S.-run military base, Bagram, north of the Afghan capital of Kabul. However, the Taliban indicated Friday it does not intend to stop hostilities until securing a foreign troop withdrawal deal with the U.S. “Intra-Afghan negotiations will begin only after an agreement with America on the withdrawal of all foreign troops from Afghanistan is signed,” tweeted Suhail Shaheen, who speaks for the Taliban negotiating team.   But top U.S. defense officials Friday gave no indication they were pr

700 Islamic State terrorists arrested in Afghanistan over past six months

The government said today that it has arrested or surrounded up to 700 Islamic State group terrorists and family members in eastern Afghanistan over the past six months. An official said, most of the arrested IS members are from Pakistan, Jordan and Central Asian countries. Source: http://newsonair.com/News?title=700-Islamic-State-terrorists-arrested-in-Afghanistan-over-past-six-months&id=376463

Tatmadaw, ethnic armed groups urged to stop using landmines

An international anti-landmine group on Thursday urged the Tatmadaw (military) and the ethnic armed groups to improve the chances for peace by ending the use of landmines. Yeshua Moser-Puangsuwan, research coordinator of the Landmine and Cluster Munitions Monitor, stressed that even after the fighting stops, the threat of active landmines remains. “If the Tatmadaw and the ethnic armed groups stopped using landmines, that will be advantageous for the peace processes,” he told a news briefing in Yangon. “The attacks may be halted but the mines will be left behind and remain a threat to people.” he said. The group reported that from January 2018 to November 2019, 3800 people lost hands or legs or suffered other injuries from landmines in the country. But the group said the casualty figures could be higher since landmine clearance services have only limited access to the victims. Most of the victims are ordinary villagers, followed by migrants

UN Making Progress on South Sudan’s Landmines Threat

In South Sudan, since 2004, the United Nations has destroyed over a million explosive devices, including landmines and cluster munitions, scattered across the country from decades of conflict.  The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) says the unexploded ordnance poses a threat to farmers and villagers, but they expect to clear the remaining explosives within six years.  Sheila Ponnie reports from Magwa County, South Sudan. Source: https://www.voanews.com/episode/un-making-progress-south-sudans-landmines-threat-4126176

Exiled Catalan separatists can take up EU seats

Two former Catalan separatist leaders, Carles Puigdemont and Toni Comin, will be allowed to take up their seats in the EU Parliament. A Spanish court had disqualified them despite their election in May. The fugitive former Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont and former Catalan Health Minister Toni Comin can take up their seats as European lawmakers, the EU's top court ruled Friday, just a day after ruling the same for another jailed separatist. Spain's judiciary disqualified Puigdemont and Comin from taking up their seats in the EU Parliament due to their role in organizing an unauthorized independence referendum in 2017 — despite the fact that they won elections for the positions in May. Read more:   Catalan protesters: 'We want to make a point' But on Friday, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) annulled the Spanish government's claim that "the applicants were not officially declared as elected" and referred the matter back t

Afghanistan: The Missing Peace – Part IV: Aid sector prepares for peace

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Rudaw English correspondent Robert Edwards was in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul when the US-Taliban peace process collapsed in September.  He and a team of Afghan filmmakers documented the hopes and fears of the city’s war-weary population, spoke to those involved in peace talks, and to those who will live with the consequences.  Now, as the peace process gets back on track, this new documentary and six-part written series explores a city anxious for peace – but terrified of the cost. Read part I , part II , and part III * Part IV: Aid sector prepares for peace The United Nations compound in the centre of Kabul, where many Western embassies are also housed, is a gigantic concrete sprawl. The monotonous grey is broken only by the occasional mural championing press freedoms or condemning child marriage. It is a place of straight lines, procedures, spreadsheets, and cleanliness – so unlike the tangled, complicated world that is Afghanistan just feet a