The Democratic Republic of Congo held a national day of remembrance this weekend for what it calls the “Genocost” – a term used to describe mass deaths linked to the exploitation of the country’s natural resources. Civil society workers participate in a burial of civilians killed during the clashes between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, at the Genocost cemetery, in Goma, North Kivu, on 2 September 2024. REUTERS - Arlette Bashizi President Félix Tshisekedi used the occasion to call on parliament to adopt a resolution recognising the violence in eastern Congo as genocide. "I solemnly call upon both houses of parliament to examine as soon as possible the adoption of an official resolution proclaiming the recognition of genocide committed on our territory," Tshisekedi said on Saturday. He said the deaths of thousands of civilians in the east of the country meet the legal definition of genocide under the 1948 UN convention. He also promised to take the campaign for recognition to international forums. The annual Genocost commemoration takes place every 2 August. It was first held three years ago. This year, a new memorial was opened near the National Museum in Kinshasa. Repeated conflict Eastern Congo, rich in minerals and bordering Rwanda, has faced repeated conflict since the Rwandan genocide in 1994. Violence has escalated again since early 2025. The term “Genocost” was first used in London in 2013 by a member of the Congolese Action Youth Platform ( CAYP ). It followed the UN’s Mapping Report , which documented large-scale crimes in eastern Congo dating back to 1996. The report said several neighbouring countries, including Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi, shared responsibility. For CAYP France , the creation of a national remembrance day is a major step. Gloria Menayame, a legal expert with the NGO, told RFI it was a “victory” but said more needs to be done. But, she also said that it "feels unfinished". "The adoption of the Genocost campaign is something we welcome," she said. "What we didn’t want was this partial appropriation that only takes what suits the authorities. There’s a lot of talk about international responsibility or the creation of an international tribunal. But they forget to put in place mechanisms to address crimes at the national level. We believe our government has the means, but lacks the will." Long road to recognition The idea of the Genocost began gaining support after 2013, as calls for reparations grew. Civil society groups pointed to a long history of resource-driven violence going back to colonial times. Supporters of the campaign renamed a square in Kinshasa “Genocost Square” and began holding events there every 2 August. The date marks the start of the Second Congo War in 1998. But the government only adopted the term officially in late 2022, after the M23 rebel group returned to action and tensions with Rwanda increased. One key aim of the campaign is the creation of an international criminal tribunal for the DRC. Tshisekedi also said he would raise the issue at the United Nations General Assembly in September. Theoretical issues Some legal experts say the Genocost concept remains controversial. Ithiel Batumike, a researcher at the Congolese think tank Ebuteli , told RFI the term is based on real anger and frustration over decades of violence, but it still needs to be defined more clearly in legal terms. "All Congolese believe it is time to stop this spiral of violence," he said. "The big questions all Congolese are asking themselves: 'Until when?' and 'Why does the international community act as if it doesn't see everything that is happening in Congo, when it is paying sustained attention to other crises where it has actually intervened to stop the massacres?'" Another issue is the role of Congolese leaders and military officials in the conflict. Menayame said some members of the Congolese government have been named in UN reports as being involved in crimes committed in the country. These include several generals active in conflict zones. She said their actions should not be ignored. © 2025 Copyright RFI

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra of Thailand had already been suspended after a leaked phone call that many say showed her selling out her country. The New York Times By Sui-Lee Wee and Muktita Suhartono August 2, 2025 Ms. Paetongtarn last month. In a leaked phone call, she appeared to disparage her country’s military and to take a deferential tone with Cambodia’s de facto leader, Hun Sen. Credit. Sakchai Lalit/Associated Press Nearly two thousand Thais rallied in Bangkok on Saturday for the second time in over a month to denounce their suspended prime minister, who they say sold out the nation and betrayed the army in a leaked phone conversation with Cambodia’s de facto leader. The turnout appeared to be lower than on June 28, when a coalition of antigovernment groups organized rallies that drew thousands of protesters. As of Saturday afternoon, more than 1,700 demonstrators had gathered at the Victory Monument, a war memorial in Bangkok, the police said. Still, Saturday’s demonstration added to the pressure on the suspended prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who was removed temporarily by the Constitutional Court last month because of the phone call. The court is deliberating whether to evict her from office permanently. The protest was also colored by a deadly five-day clash between Thailand and Cambodia that ended with a cease-fire on Monday. The brief military confrontation was the worst conflict between the countries in decades. The truce appeared to be holding, but longstanding tensions between the two countries have not been resolved . In Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, thousands marched in a rally calling for peace and for the return of 18 soldiers who were captured by Thailand after the cease-fire. Video footage showed demonstrators flooding a main road in the downtown area. The government said 10,000 had attended the march. During the call between Ms. Paetongtarn and Cambodia’s de facto leader, Hun Sen, which was to discuss escalating tensions on the border, the Thai prime minister appeared to disparage her own country’s powerful military and to take a deferential tone with Mr. Hun Sen. Sawang Tamtarachai, 69, a retiree who attended the protest on Saturday wearing a ribbon in red, white and blue, the colors of the Thai flag, said, “Sovereignty is something that you can’t negotiate.” “This is something that we can’t forgive,” he added, referring to Ms. Paetongtarn’s conduct. Although such protests are closely watched in Thailand, where public demonstrations have precipitated the downfalls of previous governments, a bigger concern for Ms. Paetongtarn is the looming Constitutional Court decision. Last month, it moved quickly to suspend her after agreeing to consider a complaint filed by 36 senators claiming that she had violated ethics standards in her conversation with Mr. Hun Sen. Ms. Paetongtarn is set to submit her written defense to the court on Monday. Protesters stood in 93-degree heat and called for Ms. Paetongtarn to step down immediately without waiting for the court’s decision. The demonstrations had the same nationalistic flavor as a protest in June, with many attendees carrying Thai flags, expressing support for the country’s troops and calling on the government to defend its sovereignty. Ms. Paetongtarn has also come under criticism for failing to lift the Thai economy, which lags behind those of most of its neighbors in Southeast Asia. Many Thais feel that Ms. Paetongtarn, the 38-year-old daughter of a former prime minister, is not experienced enough to tackle the cost-of-living crisis and the impact of President Trump’s tariff policy. After the leaked call, Ms. Paetongtarn’s approval rating plunged to 9.2 percent, from 30.9 percent a few months earlier, according to a survey conducted from June 19-25 by the National Institute of Development Administration, a graduate school in Thailand. More than 80 percent of people polled said that she should either resign or dissolve the House of Representatives to pave the way for a new prime minister or a general election, according to a separate survey by the institute conducted from July 4-7. Notably, a majority of those polled said that they would like to see the return of a former prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha , a general who seized power in a 2014 coup . The next few months will be a politically perilous time for the Shinawatras, the most influential family in Thai politics. Ms. Paetongtarn’s father, Thaksin Shinawatra, is also facing legal challenges. On Aug. 22, a court is set to rule on a criminal charge against Mr. Thaksin of insulting the monarchy, a case that could send him to prison for up to 15 years. Mr. Thaksin, who was ousted as prime minister in a coup in 2006, made a stunning return to Thailand in 2023 after 15 years in self-exile. He had been convicted in absentia on charges of corruption and abuse of power, and was promptly sentenced when he was back But he never spent a day in prison; instead, he was detained for six months in a V.I.P. hospital suite because his doctor said that he had various chronic diseases. That treatment has now come under legal scrutiny. The Supreme Court has been investigating whether the hospital stay was justified or whether it was a way to keep Mr. Thaksin out of prison. That verdict could also be issued this month. Kloy Janprasert, 63, a protester who said that she had been at the demonstration site on Saturday since 5 a.m., said the Shinawatras “have never done any good for us.” “I hate this clan,” she added. “I want them to perish from Thai soil.” © 2025 The New York Times Company

The Varakashi are using anonymous and fake accounts to mock, delegitimize and threaten opposition to the ruling ZANU PF party. Emmerson Mnangagwa at a Zanu PF conference in Masvingo. Photo by AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi / Alamy By Andrew Mambodiyami | New Zimbabwe Zimbabwe's brutal regime, under President Emmerson Mnangagwa, is using social media, particularly X, to smear and silence mostly female anti-government political activists and human rights defenders in the country. President Mnangagwa's army of paid pro-government social media trolls is known as the Varakashi --propaganda stormtroopers--with some using names of prominent people to open fake X accounts without their knowledge. One ghost X account uses the name of Zimbabwe's former vice president, Joice Mujuru. Even President Mnangagwa's spokesperson, George Charamba - who is also a senior government employee - runs two toxic ghost X accounts - @Jamwanda2 and @dhonzamusoro007 - which he uses to attack and post completely fabricated and malicious information about female human rights defenders and political activists in Zimbabwe. The first of these accounts was suspended in 2022 but was reinstated after Elon Musk acquired Twitter and renamed it X. In the past year there has been a proliferation of toxic X accounts in the country and they are flourishing. At times, these X accounts incite physical and sexual violence against female political and human rights activists. In one post, a ghost X account threatened a prominent human rights activist that "[I'm] waiting to rape you." The post drew outrage from X users, and it was later deleted. And in a study published in 2023 , Constance Kasiyamhuru from the University of Johannesburg in South Africa said the Varakashi in Zimbabwe operate mostly on Twitter/X to "shut down" the political opponents of the governing Zanu PF party. "Through trolling, name-calling, threats, mocking, mobbing, labelling, ridicule, casting aspersions, delegitimation, disinforming, and other strategies, Varakashi seek to regulate, censure, and 'discipline' anti- musangano [anti-ruling party] online discourse," Kasiyamhuru wrote. Tendai Ruben Mbofana, a Zimbabwe based social justice advocate and writer, said the systematic deployment of online trolls - particularly targeting female human rights defenders and political activists - has become a chilling hallmark of repression in Zimbabwe. "These smear campaigns are not just personal attacks; they are part of a broader strategy to delegitimize our work, intimidate us into silence, and discredit our credibility in the eyes of the public," Mbofana said. He added that the abuse often takes on a deeply misogynistic tone, laced with gendered insults, threats of sexual violence, and false accusations designed to shame and isolate women. "It creates a climate of fear and forces many women out of digital spaces that should otherwise be used to amplify their voices and advocacy," he said. Sophia Gwasira, who was elected as the first female mayor for Mutare City in eastern Zimbabwe in August 2023, told Index on Censorship that the fear of being smeared and attacked on social media platforms by Zanu PF social media trolls was forcing many women to abandon opposition politics and activism. She said social media platforms were no longer safe places for women in opposition politics in Zimbabwe, with the attacks affecting both them and their families. "It's affecting us not only physically but emotionally too. We are trying to find ways of countering these attacks. But currently we don't have any protection from our own political parties or from the government," Gwasira said. But Gwasira said she will continue to fight for the people and, given the opportunity, she would contest the general elections slated for 2028. Gwasira and many other opposition mayors, MPs and councillors were recalled in late 2023 after her party, the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) was hijacked by President Mnangagwa's ruling party Zanu PF through its proxy, Sengezo Tshabangu. This forced the CCC leader Nelson Chamisa to abandon the opposition party and he took a sabbatical from party politics in January 2024. Promise Mkwananzi, spokesperson for opposition party Citizens Coalition for Change - which is still loyal to former leader Nelson Chamisa - told Index on Censorship that as opposition, they have been identifying and exposing some of these social media ghost accounts and to direct their members to counter the toxic narratives on X. "It must be noted also that these trolls are paid using taxpayers' money to denigrate women and bully voices of the alternative on social media," Mkwananzi said. But Mkwananzi was quick to add that his party will continue to fight and mobilise people for a better Zimbabwe. "We are also educating our members to be strong and to remain focused on recruiting mobilising, educating and radicalising the base." Although women are the main target, men critical of the ruling party are also targeted. "In my own experience, I have faced repeated, coordinated attacks on X, particularly from anonymous accounts believed to be run or supported by high-ranking government officials, including the president's spokesperson. These attacks are aimed at silencing dissent and discouraging public engagement. But we will not be silenced. If anything, these attacks only reinforce the urgency of our work," said Tendai Ruben Mbofana Mbofana. When President Mnangagwa seized power through a military coup from Zimbabwe's long-time dictator, Robert Mugabe in 2017, President Mnangagwa promised sweeping reforms; economic and political reforms, including upholding human rights and rule of law in the country. However, Zimbabwe has become worse under President Mnangagwa than Mugabe; political opponents to Zanu PF have been brutalised, tortured and killed and corruption is widespread. A recent report by Human Rights Watch said authorities in Zimbabwe have continued to restrict civic space and the rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly and the human rights, political and economic situation in Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate. Under the current constitution, President Mnangagwa's term of office - his second and last term - ends in 2028 but his party is now planning to amend the constitution to keep him in office till 2030. Meanwhile, Mnangagwa's Varakashi are flooding social media with messages in support of the extension of his term and touting his "achievements" so far. © 2025 New Zimbabwe

Toys and flowers are laid in memory of those killed in an attack in Kyiv, Ukraine. © UNOCHA/Viktoriia Andriievska 31 July 2025 I   Peace and Security At least 11 civilians were killed and over 130 injured in Russian strikes overnight in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in the country, HRMMU, reported on Thursday.  Among the confirmed dead is a six-year-old boy. At least 10 of the injured were children, the mission said , and news reports indicate that figure is rising. City-wide damage Russia reportedly launched 309 drones and eight cruise missiles during the night,  and despite air defences managing to destroy many of them, the damage across the capital was severe.   At least 27 locations across Kyiv were hit by the attack, with the heaviest damage seen in the Solomianskyi and Sviatoshynskyi districts, where UN rescue efforts are ongoing. In the Sviatoshynskyi district, a missile destroyed a section of a nine-story apartment building. In the Solomianskyi district, a five-story apartment building was severely damaged, and at least two people were killed. UN Ukraine reported that witnesses described shock at the strike, which happened so quickly that they did not have time to seek shelter. “Homes, businesses and public buildings are being destroyed, and it may take years to rebuild them. And each new attack compounds the psychological toll on people who have to spend night after night in shelters,” said Danielle Bell, Head of HRMMU. More than 100 buildings were reportedly damaged in the capital, including homes, schools, kindergartens, medical facilities and universities, according to news reports.   Unprecedented civilian toll This attack follows a wave of violence close and far from the frontline, including weekend assaults that killed at least 20 civilians and injured over 120, a prison attack on Monday  that killed 16 inmates, a hospital strike that killed three and the death of five civilians in the east on Tuesday. This violent pattern continues from June, when HRMMU reported that Russia launched 10 times more missile and loitering munitions attacks against Ukraine compared with June 2024, killing 232 and injuring 1,343. The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, stressed on social media that “international humanitarian law must be respected. All efforts must be taken to protect civilians. They are not a target.”   © 2025 United Nations

Workers constructing a temporary learning shelter for children in Myanmar's Sagaing region after a devastating earthquake in the region. © UNICEF/Minzayar Oo By Vibhu Mishra 31 July 2025 I Peace and Security As Myanmar reels from deadly floods, renewed fighting and widespread displacement, the United Nations warned on Thursday that urgent humanitarian needs are going unmet due to escalating violence and blocked access. Farhan Haq, UN Deputy Spokesperson, stressed the need for unimpeded relief operations and a peaceful path out of crisis. “ The UN remains concerned by ongoing violence in Myanmar, including aerial bombardment hitting civilians and civilian infrastructure, ” he said, at the regular press briefing in New York. “ Civilians and humanitarian workers must be protected. ” His remarks come as monsoon rains and flooding – worsened by Cyclone Wipha – swept through parts of the country, further straining regions already destabilized by conflict and a devastating earthquake in March. Millions forced to flee The crisis left more than 3.3 million people internally displaced, with another 182,000 seeking refuge abroad since the military coup  in February 2021, according to the latest UN figures. In addition, over 1.2 million – mostly members of the minority Muslim Rohingya community – were forced to flee the country, driven by waves of violence. The largest exodus took place in August 2017, when nearly one million Rohingya fled brutal violence and attacks by security forces, likened to a “ textbook example of ethnic cleansing ” by then UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein. Disasters and fighting has forced millions across Myanmar to flee their homes in search of safety. Many shelter in IDP camps like this one in central Myanmar. © UNICEF/Nyan Zay Htet Floods, landslides upend lives In the flood-affected areas of Bago, Kayin and Mon states, more than 85,000 people have been affected, with homes destroyed, roads cut off and emergency services overstretched. Relief partners report significant shortages of food, safe drinking water and medical supplies. In Taungoo district (Bago) alone, three flood-related deaths have been confirmed, while six more people reportedly died in a landslide in Shan state. “ The pathway out of the deteriorating situation in Myanmar requires an end to the violence and unimpeded access for relief workers and supplies, ” Mr. Haq stressed, noting that health systems are also under acute strain. Disease outbreaks rising A humanitarian bulletin  from the World Health Organization ( WHO )-led Health Cluster warns that floodwaters are driving spikes in acute watery diarrhoea, dengue and malaria. There are deep concerns over outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles, and polio is increasing due to low immunization rates and poor hygiene conditions in overcrowded camps. WHO has verified 27 attacks on healthcare facilities so far this year, with other monitoring groups reporting over 140 additional incidents. Meanwhile, severe funding shortages – exacerbated by cuts in United States funding – have forced the suspension of services at 65 health facilities and 38 mobile clinics across Myanmar. Services at a further 28 mobile clinics have been scaled down. Hakha, the capital of Chin state in Myanmar. © OCHA/Eva Modvig Elections under military cannot be credible The political context remains grim. Since the February 2021 military coup, which overthrew the elected government and imprisoned top leaders  including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar has seen a steady escalation of armed conflict and repression. The junta’s plans to hold elections have drawn deep concern, including from the UN. “ The Secretary-General reiterates his concern over the military’s plan to hold elections amid ongoing conflict and human rights violations, and without conditions that would permit the people of Myanmar to freely and peacefully exercise their political rights, ” said Mr. Haq. He recalled Security Council Resolution 2669, adopted in 2022, which called for the immediate release of all arbitrarily detained prisoners, including President Win Myint and Aung San Suu Kyi; upholding democratic institutions and processes; and pursuing in constructive dialogue and reconciliation in accordance with the will and interests of the people of Myanmar. Commitment to stay and deliver Despite the volatility and access constraints, UN agencies remain committed to reaching affected populations. As of July, nearly 306,000 people had received health services in 59 earthquake-hit townships – just 67 per cent of the target population, reflecting the limited funding and security challenges faced by aid workers. “ The United Nations is committed to staying and delivering in Myanmar, ” Mr. Haq affirmed, “ and to working with all stakeholders, including ASEAN and other regional actors, to attain sustainable peace. ” © 2025 United Nations

Deusdedit Ruhangariyo Special to ICT Credit: House of uncontacted Ayoreo, discovered when road was bulldozed through their land. The next day the bulldozer returned and flattened the house. PARAGUAY: Shrinking Gran Chaco Deforestation in Paraguay’s Gran Chaco, driven by agribusiness and infrastructure projects, threatens the Indigenous Ayoreo people. Many live in isolation, at risk of losing their land and traditions while facing exposure to deadly diseases, experts warn,  Mongabay  reported on March 21. A global coalition of Indigenous rights advocates is urging the Paraguayan government and international community to take stronger action. In February, the International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact visited northern Paraguay to assess the situation. The findings were alarming.  “At any moment, our Ayoreo brothers and sisters in isolation are going to come out,” said Rocío Picaneré of the Ayoreo Native Council of Eastern Bolivia. “And why is this happening? Because we treat the forest like a supermarket, and the forest is being cleared every day.” The International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact, comprising 21 Indigenous and civil society organizations, focuses on threats to uncontacted peoples in the Amazon, Brazilian Cerrado, and Gran Chaco. The Gran Chaco spans about 65 million hectares (160 million acres) across Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil and Bolivia. It is South America’s second-largest forest and has experienced severe deforestation, losing 5.3 million hectares (13.1 million acres) from 2001 to 2021. The Ayoreo, living semi-nomadically in the Paraguayan and Bolivian Gran Chaco, are believed to be the last uncontacted people in South America outside the Amazon. Their last known contact with outsiders was in 2004, when 17 Ayoreo-Totobiegosode were forced from the forest due to encroaching cattle ranching. In 2021, some secretly met with relatives, expressing concern over rapid deforestation. The International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact warned that more Ayoreo may soon emerge unless deforestation stops. The territory they inhabit once exceeded 1.1 million hectares (2.7 million acres) but has drastically shrunk. “We’re trying to defend the life and food of our brothers and sisters, who are still maintaining their natural way of life in the forest,” said Tagüide Picanerai of the Payipie Ichadie Totobiegosode Organization. “We’re calling attention to this and urge the authorities to help us.” The coalition urged Paraguay to reassess land-use policies and the impact of agrochemicals on Indigenous communities. Pesticides and fertilizers contaminate drinking water and harm wildlife. Additionally, road construction projects, including the 2,200-km (1,360-mi) Bi-Oceanic Corridor and a 220-km (137-mi) highway connecting Bolivia and Paraguay, could further disrupt the region. “The deforestation from construction is only a small part of the profound changes [roads] will bring,” stated the International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact. The uncontacted Ayoreo lack immunity to common diseases. In 1989, after missionaries forcibly brought several Ayoreo out of isolation, many died from a tuberculosis-like lung disease. Similar illnesses affected those who emerged in 2004. The International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact warned Paraguay lacks the resources to handle potential health crises if more Ayoreo make contact. The Paraguayan Indigenous Institute, responsible for Indigenous affairs, declined to comment. The Ayoreo began negotiating for land titles and protections in 2016 but abandoned talks in 2021 due to a lack of progress. That same year, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights urged Paraguay to halt deforestation and prevent outsiders from entering Ayoreo land. However, most measures remain unimplemented. The International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact called for urgent action. “We raise our alarm at the magnitude of the loss of the Chaco forests and their cultures and call for urgent action to safeguard the rights of the Indigenous population and recover the lost forests.” © 2025 ICT News

By  Jon Wertheim ,  Aliza Chasan , Michael Gavshon, Nadim Roberts, Elizabeth Germino The Skyvan airplane is grounded at the former Navy School of Mechanics, or ESMA. Today, the British-made Skyvan airplane, now 50 years old, is grounded for good at the former Navy School of Mechanics, or ESMA, in Buenos Aires. The facility, once a death camp, is now a museum and a memorial to the 30,000 citizens tortured and murdered during Argentina's dictatorship.  The Skyvan, and other planes like it, was where many of the "disappeared" spent their last moments before being  thrown to their deaths . The Skyvan might have been lost in the contrails of history if not for the curiosity of Italian documentary photographer, Giancarlo Ceraudo. "It's very important for the memory for the next generation, you know? This is real. This is evidence," Ceraudo said. "This was an instrument of death, but now [it] is a witness." Searching for an instrument of death Ceraudo, on assignment in Buenos Aires in 2003, heard about the death flights of the 1970s. The flights were a key part of the Argentine military junta's campaign against dissidents and perceived opponents, including activists, union members and college students. If there were flights, Ceraudo reasoned, then there were planes, and surely there were pilots. But where were they? In his search for the planes and the pilots, he turned to one of Argentina's most well-known and intrepid journalists, Miriam Lewin. As a young student activist in 1977, Lewin was kidnapped, tortured and sexually abused. She was then taken to ESMA. Lewin had seen other prisoners taken to the basement there and given what they were told was a vaccine. Only years later did she learn that it was a sedative, and that those drugged prisoners were put on planes, flown over the ocean and stripped of their clothes before being flung to their deaths. "Death flights allowed them to disappear the bodies of the disappeared," Lewin said in an interview. "No trail, no clues whatsoever that could incriminate them." Lewin was among the few who survived Argentina's notorious death camps, though she never knew why. She later became a leading investigative journalist in Argentina, known for unearthing the crimes of the dictatorship.  When Ceraudo first contacted her about finding the death flight planes, she was skeptical. Lewin was focused on finding the people who went missing, not the tools used to make them vanish.  "And he said, 'I come from a different culture. In Rome, when they are digging a tunnel to extend the subway lines, they find a plate or a sculpture and they stop everything for, like, three years,'" Lewin said. By finding the plane, they could unearth an irrefutable piece of evidence from the horrors of Argentina's dictatorship.  How the infamous plane was found Lewin and Ceraudo began their search by poring over military records, hunting down sources and combing the internet for clues. They discovered that in the 1970s, the Argentine military purchased five Skyvans — workhorse planes used for transporting cargo and troops, and used for parachuting. Two of the planes were shot down by the British during the Falklands war. Argentina's surrender in that conflict ended the dictatorship in 1983.  The rest of the planes were sold off. One went to the United States, where it was used for skydiving excursions and for delivering mail.  Lewin and Ceraudo discovered the plane in Fort Lauderdale. The owner provided them with all of the plane's technical logs, which detailed every journey the plane had ever flown.  They brought the logs back to Argentina to decipher them. They asked experts for help, but even decades after the dictatorship ended, people were afraid. Lewin and Ceraudo eventually tracked down a source who explained the highly suspicious journeys in the logs, tracing a route over the middle of the ocean. The departure and arrival points were the same. "He looks at them and goes, 'Oh gosh. This is gold,'" Lewin said. It was the first time the death flights could be documented and proven. Finding bodies of the victims Finding the logs was one thing, but Lewin and Ceraudo were determined to solve one of the most notorious and heinous abductions of Argentina's dictatorship. The mothers of the Plaza de Mayo are a group of mothers who marched and protested outside the Presidential Palace demanding to know the fates of their missing sons and daughters. They became the most potent symbol of resistance against the dictatorship, and soon they became targets themselves. In December 1977, a group of 12 mothers and their supporters, including two French nuns, were meeting at the Holy Cross Church in Buenos Aires when they were hauled away and taken to ESMA. They were seen by fellow prisoners being tortured, then never seen again.  One of the mothers, Azucena Villaflor, had been searching in vain for her son. Villaflor's daughter, Cecilia de Vincenti, always hoped her mother would return. "In reality, we didn't know what happened. Every single day we thought she was coming back," de Vincenti said. "Every day we lived like this." Her mother was among those taken on a death flight.  Days after the Holy Cross kidnapping victims were last seen, a storm washed up six bodies some 250 miles from Buenos Aires. Authorities in the nearby town secretly buried the remains in a common grave, but a local doctor issued death certificates, noting the victims had suffered multiple blunt force traumas.  "This means that they were compatible with those bodies having fallen from height," Lewin said. In the years after democracy was restored in Argentina, forensic anthropologists began unearthing evidence of the dictatorship's crimes. In 2005, bodies in that common grave were exhumed and identified. Five were identified as victims of the Holy Cross kidnapping. Azucena Villafor was one of them.  "The mothers and the nuns fought death just as they fought when they were looking for their children," de Vincenti said. "The ocean brought them back as proof that the military was trying to disappear them." Uncovering damning evidence  Lewin and Ceraudo began building a timeline for the days after the 12 were kidnapped from the Holy Cross church. They looked at the plane logs and found a four-hour flight over the Atlantic the night of Dec. 14, 1977. What's more, the log contained the names of the pilots. For Lewin, this was the jackpot.  "I thought that no one would deny what happened back then," she said. "Seeing that proof, seeing that horrible proof of a group of women being thrown alive into the ocean, being mothers and nuns, right? Innocent people, completely innocent people." The pilots of those deadly flights were hiding in plain sight. Two of them were flying international commercial routes for Argentina's state airline.  Lewin and Ceraudo's investigation became critical evidence used by prosecutors in the arrest of the two pilots. In 2017, an Argentine court convicted 48 people linked to ESMA for crimes against humanity. The pilots who flew the Skyvan PA-51 death flights were sentenced to life in prison. Bringing the plane back to ESMA Forty years after the end of the dictatorship, many of the disappeared remain unaccounted for and many crimes remain unresolved. The Argentine government and human rights organizations estimate that between 15,000 to 30,000 people were killed or "disappeared" during the dictatorship. After finding the plane and the pilots, Miriam and Giancarlo still had one final goal: to bring the plane home to Argentina so it could serve as irrefutable evidence of the horrors of Argentina's dictatorship. "Questioning, denying, or even vindicating what happened in those years will lead us into darkness again," Lewin said. "We always said, 'never again.'" The plane used to make some of them disappear was brought back to Argentina in June of 2023.  Lewin, who knows she could have easily been a victim of the death flights, has always asked herself why she survived. Her investigation provided an answer. "There was a purpose to my survival," she said, "to get justice." Copyright ©2025 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.

Right to Fair Trial and Choice of Counsel Denied People hold up a sign that reads “A country badly governed” during a march against rising fuel prices and the end of street vending in Luanda, Angola, June 17, 2023. © 2023 ROGERIO/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock By Human Rights Watch (Johannesburg) – Nearly 200 people convicted in  Angola a year ago after unfair trials are still imprisoned and waiting for their appeals to be heard, Human Rights Watch said today.  On July 30, 2024, the Saurimo District Court in Lunda Sul province found 198 defendants guilty for their alleged participation in protests in support of regional autonomy in the country’s eastern provinces. The court sentenced them to between four and eight years in prison plus fines. “The Angolan authorities should respect the internationally protected right to a fair trial and ensure that defendants’ rights are protected,” said  Ashwanee Budoo-Scholtz , deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The serious irregularities in the trial process and the unnecessary delay in hearing the appeals indicate that the government is using its institutions to suppress dissent.” Human Rights Watch, in June and July 2025, remotely interviewed 20 people from the provinces of Lunda Sul, Lunda Norte, Moxico, and Cuando Cubango, including lawyers, community leaders, protest participants, human rights defenders, journalists, and a member of parliament.  In October 2023, the   Lunda Tchokwe Protectorate Movement , which advocates political autonomy for eastern Angola, held largely peaceful protests in four cities in Lunda Norte (north) and Lunda Sul (south) provinces. During and after the protests, Angolan police   responded with excessive force, including tear gas and beatings, and arrested dozens of participants and bystanders.  A mass trial took place in July 2024. Despite the generally peaceful demonstrations, the authorities  charged the defendants with rebellion, criminal association, disobeying orders to disperse, participation in riots, and damage to public property. The  court found that the defendants had disobeyed police orders to disperse and threw stones, bottles, and sticks at the police, which injured three police officers and damaged several vehicles. The trial did not meet basic due process or fair trial standards, Human Rights Watch said. A lawyer attending the trials said that defendants did not have   access to legal counsel of their choice and some were forced to accept court-appointed lawyers. The   trial was held in a makeshift courtroom inside the Luzi district prison center and was closed to the public and journalists. Several protest participants and bystanders told Human Rights Watch that only after some unidentified individuals joined the peaceful protests and the police reacted with violence, did the course of the protest change. The lawyer attending the trials said that for one province, there was “only [one] lawyer representing more than 140 detainees in that province” and that “all others were forced to accept lawyers they didn’t even know, who did not fight for their release.” He said that these lawyers “simply went along with whatever the public prosecutor and the judge imposed.”A lawyer involved in the cases said that “there are still some protesters arrested since 2023 who have not been tried or sentenced. That alone is a gross abuse of pretrial detention. The arrests did not follow legal procedures, and the ongoing detentions are excessive.” Article 67 of the Angolan  Constitution guarantees all defendants the right to a defense, to appeal, and to have legal representation. Angola is also a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, both of which guarantee the right to due process, including legal counsel of their choosing, and to a fair trial.  Human Rights Watch has previously  documented several instances in which Angolan police used excessive force against peaceful protesters. The local human rights organization  Movimento Mudei also found a consistent pattern of arbitrary arrests, prolonged pretrial detention, and trials of the defendants that fell far short of Angola’s constitutional provisions and international legal standards. “The Angolan authorities should abide by Angola’s international legal obligations and end the security forces’ use of excessive force against demonstrators,” Budoo-Scholtz said. “For people who were wrongfully charged and convicted, the authorities should quash their cases and ensure their immediate release from prison.” © 2025 Human Rights Watch

By Brendan Hughes, July 29th, 2025. Teresa Carson and William Marchant, ICRIR. An investigations body set up under the controversial Legacy Act has appealed for witnesses over two separate deaths during the Troubles. It is the first public appeal for information by the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR) since it began operating in May 2024. Teresa Carson, 47, was found dead at a roadside in west Belfast in 1974.William Marchant, a member of the UVF, died aged 39 after being shot by the IRA in Belfast in 1987. Posters and leaflet drops will be organised as part of the appeals for witnesses.ICRIR assistant commissioner Amanda Logan said any information would be treated in the "strictest confidence" and could be "vital to finding the truth for the families". "We have always underlined the commission's unwavering commitment to helping families find the unvarnished truth and this is at the centre of our witness appeals," she said. "These families have waited many years for answers and we at the commission are committed to doing everything we can to support them." What is the ICRIR? The ICRIR was established to investigate deaths during Northern Ireland's decades-long conflict known as the Troubles. But some victims' groups have called for it to be scrapped, arguing it is not sufficiently independent. The body was set up under the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act. The legislation was passed by the Conservative government in 2023 despite opposition from Labour, Stormont parties, several victims' groups and the Irish government. It introduced a ban on inquests and civil actions related to incidents during the Troubles. The act's most controversial element - the offer of conditional immunity to suspects in exchange for co-operating with the ICRIR - was disapplied following legal action by bereaved families. The Labour government plans to repeal the Legacy Act, but retain the ICRIR. Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn described this as a "pragmatic decision". The ICRIR has said that as of July, 200 people had approached the commission to begin investigations. About 30 cases so far have been listed on its website as moving to an "information recovery" phase. Who was Teresa Carson? Teresa Carson was found dead in the early hours of 24 November 1974 at the side of the Glen Road in west Belfast, close to the junction with Shaws Road. It is believed the 47-year-old attended St John's Gaelic Athletic Club Social Club on Whiterock Road the previous evening and was a witness to a robbery at the club. She was last seen in the grounds of the club shortly after midnight on 24 November getting into a white car. Who was William Marchant? William Marchant, known to his family as Billy and more widely as Frenchie, was a leading member of loyalist paramilitary group the UVF. He was shot by the IRA outside the offices of the Progressive Unionist Party on the Shankill Road in west Belfast on 28 April 1987. The 39-year-old later died at the Mater Hospital. A brown Datsun Bluebird car with the registration YOI 2557 was used in the attack. The car had been hijacked earlier in the day after a family was held at gunpoint overnight at Tullymore Gardens in west Belfast. It is believed to have been driven away from the scene on Shankill Road via Bellevue Street and was found on fire later that evening on Springfield Avenue. Copyright 2025 BBC.

Maurice Kamto, a high-profile critic of Cameroon's long-running President Paul Biya has been excluded by electoral authorities from the list of approved candidates able to run in the 12 October presidential vote. Cameroonian politician Maurice Kamto, newly nominated African Movement for New Independence and Democracy (MANIDEM) presidential candidate, looks on during a press conference in Yaounde on 19 July 2025. © AFP By RFI Maurice Kamto, 71, had officially submitted his candidacy last week, one of 83 names put forward to the electoral council. He sought to run as the candidate for the African Movement for New Independence and Democracy (MANIDEM).  But his name was not among the 13 candidates on the provisional list issued Saturday by the national electoral council. Kamto came second to President Paul Biya in the 2018 presidential election, representing the Cameroon Renaissance Movement ( MRC ). Elecam  rejected his candidacy for the 12 October election, saying that another individual was already running under the banner of the Manidem party. Controversy The decision has generated some controversy in Cameroon . Since Sunday, the hypothesis of a plot to oust the main rival of incumbent President Paul Biya, has emerged. This particularly implicates Dieudonné Yebga, the man presented by Elecam as the other candidate nominated by Manidem, whose nomination allegedly prompted the body to disqualify Kamto. According to RFI's correspondent in Yaoundé , audio recordings lend credence to the theory of a plot to remove the Manidem candidate from the presidential race. Although yet to be verified, the messages have gone viral online. Tensions Some observers also fear backlash in the current context of the electoral campaign, like members of the United Nations Department of Safety and Security . "In case of the rejection of certain candidates in this election, it is possible there will be protests in the centre of Yaoundé and near the seat of Elecam," the  Department had warned on Friday in a statement. President Biya, 92-year-old, has been in power since 1982 and is seeking an eighth term in office. Among the candidates approved to run in the election are former prime minister Bello Bouba Maigari, an ally of Biya's for nearly 30 years, and Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who resigned as employment minister in early June to submit his candidacy. The definitive list of candidates is supposed to be announced in the coming days after any challenges to the provisional list are considered. © 2025 Copyright RFI

Although the court acknowledged that 83-year-old genocide and war crimes convict’s condition is “precarious” and he does not have long to live, it insisted that he is getting high-quality medical care in detention in the Netherlands. Milica Stojanovic, July 29, 2025 Ratko Mladic in court in The Hague in November 2017. Photo: EPA-EFE/PETER DEJONG/POOL. The United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals in The Hague on Tuesday denied wartime Bosnian Serb military chief Ratko Mladic’s request for early release on humanitarian grounds. The president of the IRMCT, Judge Graciela Gatti Santana, noted in her decision that “uncontradicted medical opinions indicate that Mladic is nearing the end of his life”, and that his current condition “which requires dependency on others for activities of daily living, is precarious”. But she stated that “Mladic continues to receive very comprehensive and compassionate care, as amply supported by medical reports”. Gatti Santana added that information she has “demonstrates that the compelling humanitarian circumstances invoked by Mladic as a basis for his release are not substantiated”. “Mladic does not suffer from an acute terminal illness which could justify his release, and the current arrangements in the UNDU [United Nations Detention Unit] and the JCvSZ [Justitieel Centrum voor Somatische Zorg, the prison hospital] provide him with high-quality care tailored to his specific conditions,” she explained. In June, Mladic’s lawyers have made an urgent request to the IRMCT to release the wartime Bosnian Serb military chief on humanitarian grounds because he has already been transferred to palliative care and only has months to live. Calling for the 83-year-old genocide and war crimes convict to be given provisional release or conditional early release, the motion argued that “Mladic’s limited life expectancy is a central humanitarian issue that should be given decisive weight”. Mladic was convicted under a final verdict in June 2021 of the genocide of Bosniaks from Srebrenica, the persecution of Bosniaks and Croats across the country during the war, terrorising the population of Sarajevo with a campaign of shelling and sniping during the siege of the city, and taking UN peacekeepers hostage. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. During his time in custody in the Netherlands, Mladic has had several serious medical problems and has suffered two strokes and a heart attack. His lawyers have repeatedly claimed that he has not been getting proper treatment and that his health problems have been underestimated. The UN court has repeatedly declined requests for him to be hospitalised for treatment. Copyright BIRN 2015

U.S.-backed talks to end the border war, in which militaries have killed dozens of people and displaced hundreds of thousands, began on Monday in Malaysia. The New York Times July 28, 2025 By Sui-Lee Wee and Edward Wong Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia, center, Prime Minister Hun Manet of Cambodia, left, and Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai, taking part in talks on a possible cease-fire between Thailand and Cambodia, in Malaysia on Monday. Credit: Pool photo by Mohd Rasfan Thailand and Cambodia agreed to a cease-fire starting at midnight on Monday, the leaders of both countries said, after the deadliest conflict between their nations in more than a decade killed at least 38 people and displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians. Thailand’s acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, and Cambodia’s prime minister, Hun Manet, shook hands with each other after holding talks in person for the first time since the fighting broke out five days ago along the countries’ disputed border. Since last Thursday, both countries have pounded each other with attacks, which at times included airstrikes and rockets fired. Reported sites of attacks and fighting since Thursday Sources: Cambodian and Thai officials, local news reports. The New York Times But even on the morning of the talks, the fighting had continued, with sounds of explosions heard near the border. Things appeared to quiet down only in the afternoon as the Thai and Cambodian leaders sat down in Putrajaya, a city about a half-hour drive from Malaysia’s capital. In the Thai province of Surin, Siriwut Wongcharoen, 59, a local official, who spoke by phone from a bunker in a temple where he was sheltering, said he was skeptical that the fighting would stop. He said he was still hearing gunshots as of Monday evening. “I’m not leaving this bunker yet, as I don’t feel confident enough,” Mr. Siriwut said. “I will wait for another one to two days.” The talks in Putrajaya were organized by Malaysian and American officials, at the official residence of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia. Edgard D. Kagan, the U.S. ambassador to Malaysia, was the top American diplomat in the meeting. Mr. Anwar announced several steps aimed at easing tensions, including an informal meeting between military commanders from Thailand and Cambodia, at 7 a.m. on Tuesday. If both sides agree, the talks would be followed by two additional sessions: one involving military attachés, led by Malaysia, and another set for Aug. 4, to be hosted by Cambodia. Chinese diplomats attended as observers, according to Malaysian officials. The United States and China, both of which have strategic and economic interests in Thailand and Cambodia, have ratcheted up pressure on the Southeast Asian nations to halt the fighting. On Saturday, President Trump said he had spoken to both leaders and that U.S. officials would not negotiate trade deals with either country unless the fighting stopped. The clashes continued through Sunday and early Monday. After the deal was announced, Mr. Trump said he spoke with both Mr. Phumtham and Mr. Hun Manet, and instructed his trade team to restart negotiations. “I have now ended many Wars in just six months — I am proud to be the president of PEACE!” Mr. Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. Mr. Trump’s threat may have been the reason Bangkok ultimately accepted mediation rather than direct talks with Cambodia, which it had earlier demanded, said Matthew Wheeler, senior analyst for Southeast Asia at the International Crisis Group. Mr. Trump recently set a new deadline of Aug. 1 for 12 nations, including Thailand and Cambodia, to reach trade deals with the American government, saying he would otherwise impose tariffs of 36 percent on U.S. businesses that import their goods. The Thai “government has been losing popularity because it has failed to revive the economy,” Mr. Wheeler said. “A deal to avoid the U.S. tariffs is by no means certain, but the Thai government needed to give itself every opportunity.” It was unclear if Monday’s agreement would lead to a genuine truce; there were no public announcements about how the cease-fire would be enforced as well as who would verify if it was being upheld. And nationalist feelings are still running high on both sides. Cambodia said last week that it had agreed to a cease-fire brokered by Malaysia but accused Thailand of reneging on the deal. Thailand responded by saying that any cease-fire had to be based on “appropriate, on the ground conditions,” and that Cambodia’s continued attacks showed a lack of good faith. As of Monday, the death toll exceeded that from the last outbreak of deadly battles between the two countries, from 2008 to 2011, in which 34 people were killed, according to an academic paper . This latest round of clashes erupted after two months of tension over contested territory. Both sides continued to accuse the other of carrying out attacks. In a late-morning news conference, Lt. Gen. Maly Socheata, a spokeswoman for Cambodia’s defense ministry, said Thai forces had fired at two ancient temples that are claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia, starting at 3 a.m. She said that Thailand had deployed planes to fire rockets and was “still aggressively attacking” Cambodia. Thailand’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Ly Nam, 38, a farmer in Oddar Meanchey Province in Cambodia, lives about 25 miles from where the fighting has been taking place. He said there had been constant booms and thuds since early Monday and was desperate for cease-fire. “It is two or three times more severe than yesterday,” he said, adding that he had not left the area because he needed to take care of his house and his 10 pigs. “Now I am hiding in a trench,” Mr. Ly Nam said. “We are in misery. We don’t have enough food to eat.” Some Cambodians have fled to the homes of family members and friends in Siem Reap, the site of the ancient Angkor Wat temple complex. Siem Reap has been untouched by the violence, but at Hindu and Buddhist shrines around Angkor Wat, people have held ceremonies to pray for a quick resolution to the war. On Sunday, after Mr. Trump announced his diplomatic intervention, residents began talking in hopeful terms of an American role in prodding the warring governments toward a cease-fire. The State Department said on Sunday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken with the top diplomats of both Thailand and Cambodia. “The United States applauds the ceasefire declaration between Cambodia and Thailand announced today in Kuala Lumpur,” Mr. Rubio said in a statement on Monday.  “President Trump and I are committed to an immediate cessation of violence and expect the governments of Cambodia and Thailand to fully honor their commitments to end this conflict.” Some analysts see diplomacy around the war as partly a test of American and Chinese influence in Southeast Asia, where Washington and Beijing are competing for dominance in military, economic and diplomatic spheres. Thailand is a U.S. treaty ally and hosts dozens of military exercises with the United States; China is the largest trading partner of both Thailand and Cambodia, which hosts a naval base largely funded by Beijing. Nations in the region prefer to balance relations with both superpowers rather than be compelled to choose one side. © 2025 The New York Times Company