Conflict

2021November 2021International News

Arab League Representatives Hopeful About Lebanese Peace Negotiations

General Hossam Zaki, secretary of the Arab League, arrived in Beirut on November 8 to hold talks with the Lebanese government. Al Jazeera reports that the talks were meant to resolve the current rift between the Saudi Arabian government and Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi. Kordahi previously criticized Saudi Arabia’s actions in Yemen against Houthi rebels in a pre-recorded interview released on October 26. Al Jazeera continues that Kordahi sympathized with the Houthi rebels, an Iran-backed group fighting in Yemen and Saudi Arabia, claiming that they were “defending themselves… against an external aggression.”

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2021Analysis

A Looming Humanitarian Crisis Hands Turkey Bargaining Power in Europe

Following the Taliban’s capture of Afghanistan’s capital city, Kabul, on August 15, countries around the world are bracing for another mass migration of refugees. However, some leaders of Western European countries, such as, Germany and France—two of the most sought-after destinations by asylum seekers—are refusing to allow another migrant wave that resembles the Syrian refugee crisis in 2015.

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International NewsAsia

Religious Tensions Flare in Northern India and Bangladesh

On October 26, Hindu nationalist mobs attacked Muslim-owned businesses, homes, and a mosque in the small northeast Indian state of Tripura, reports BBC News. Viral videos show Muslims being attacked and the mosque being set on fire. Videos also show members of the Hindu nationalist group Vishwa Hindu Parishad marching through Muslim neighborhoods and chanting insults against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad.

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October 2021Frozen ConflictsConflict and Security

FOCUS on Frozen Conflicts: Israel-Palestine

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict made recent headlines in May after Israeli forces launched devastating airstrikes on Gaza. This latest Gaza war was sparked after Israeli Defense Forces raided one of the holiest sites in Islam, the Al Aqsa Mosque, during the holy month of Ramadan. Israeli forces dispersed worshippers with flashbangs and rubber bullets, wounding nearly 300 people, reports The Guardian.

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October 2021Frozen ConflictsConflict and Security

FOCUS on Frozen Conflicts: Ukraine-Russia

Seven years ago, Russia annexed Crimea in southern Ukraine, sparking the largest security crisis in Europe since the end of the Cold War. Today, this conflict continues to simmer, with over 10,000 killed and 24,000 injured, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. Eastern Europe is no stranger to uncertainty, but the situation in Ukraine presents a serious obstacle to peace in the region and has left the country in a precarious state of limbo. 

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October 2021Frozen ConflictsConflict and Security

FOCUS on Frozen Conflicts: Taiwan-China

Taiwan’s defense minister, former Taiwanese general Chiu Kuo-cheng, made headlines recently when he stood before the Legislature Yuan and predicted that China would launch a full-scale invasion of Taiwan by 2025. According to ABC News, the Chinese government in the past few weeks has sent more than 150 military aircraft to fly through Taiwan’s air defense zone in an attempt at intimidation.

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October 2021Frozen ConflictsFocusConflict and Security

FOCUS on Frozen Conflicts: North and South Korea

Tensions are mounting on the Korean Peninsula as North and South Korea find each other in an arms race. As a frozen conflict with its origins in the Korean war—which has not yet formally ended—both sides are attempting to resume peace talks while balancing strategic interests in the region. In 2018, both Koreas began re-establishing dialogue towards denuclearization and keeping regional peace.

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October 2021International NewsAfrica

Tigray Conflict Escalates Amid New Offensive and Famine Warnings

Ethiopian troops have launched a new offensive to regain control of the restive Tigray region from ethnic separatists. According to The New York Times, the October offensive comes as a result of months of planning and has seen the use of airstrikes and foreign-made drones made in China, Iran, and Turkey. Government forces are also enlisting the help of anti-Tigrayan militias, although troops from neighboring Eritrea are currently uninvolved. 

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