Much as it has dominated headlines throughout 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was the most highlighted issue at the annual United Nations General Assembly, which celebrated its 75th anniversary this year.
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Since March 2020, the world has been plagued with the Coronavirus. Although this has the world’s focus for more than half of this year, some leaders have been focused on climate change.
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Fatah and Hamas reached a deal on Palestinian elections at the Palestinian Consulate in Istanbul last week, according to Al Jazeera. This has raised hopes that the factions can unite after years of animosity, facing a shared issue as Israel continues to threaten annexation while it normalizes relations with Arab nations.
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According to CNN, Belarusian security forces arrested 33 Russian mercenaries on charges of terrorism and destabilization prior to the country’s contested election in August. The mercenaries work for Wagner, a private military firm known to be the righthand of the Russian military. Wagner is believed to be sponsored by St. Petersburg businessman and oligarch, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The BBC reports that the firm is also believed to be covertly overseen by Russia’s military intelligence service, the GRU.
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On September 27, Swiss voters rejected an initiative to limit the free movement of people from the European Union (EU). According to USA TODAY, 62 percent of voters rejected the proposal, while 38 percent were in favor of it.
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As schools have shut down, India is facing an increase in child sex trafficking, child labor, and forced child marriages. To cope with the pressures of the pandemic, families have no option but to send their children to work. Children across India are working in a broad spectrum of fields such as “carpet-weaving, garment-making, domestic service, agriculture, fisheries, and mining,” Reuters says. This issue was already prominent in India and is only worsened by the pandemic.
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After 10 days of intense negotiation, the Yemeni government coalition and Houthi rebels have agreed to release over 1,000 prisoners. The war between the two parties began in 2014, when a Houthi-led rebel group, backed by Iran, took control of the northern and western regions of Yemen, including the capital of Sanaa. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition intervened, displaying support for the internationally recognized Yemeni government headed by President Hadi. In recent months, the rebels have also intensified drone-strikes and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia.
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On September 27, the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh reached its highest level of violence since 2016. Reuters reports that the clashes have reignited concerns over stability in the South Caucasus, a popular corridor for oil and gas pipelines that supply the world market. The pipeline runs from the Shah Deniz gas field in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea to Turkey.
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On September 12, peace talks between the government of Afghanistan and the Taliban officially began in Doha, Qatar. For two decades, the Taliban and the Afghan government have been at war, with civilian casualties over 31,000 according to a study by Brown University. The peace talks follow an agreement between the Taliban and the U.S., which brought an end to the 18 year long conflict, reports DW.
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Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Bangkok last Saturday calling for democratic reforms. This comes after two months of demonstrations across the country. Protesters gathered at the Thammasat University campus and at Sanam Luang, a public square close to King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s official residence at the Grand Palace.
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