A group of young African students is shooting for the stars thanks to a program called ‘Pathways to Space.’ Aerospace company Boeing and a South African science organization backed an education program that just celebrated its first batch of graduates. Vicky Stark reports from Cape Town.
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Month: July 2024
UN cultural agency rejects plan to place Britain’s Stonehenge on list of heritage sites in danger
New Delhi — The United Nations’ cultural agency rejected recommendations Wednesday to place Stonehenge on the list of world heritage sites in danger over concerns that Britain’s plans to build a nearby highway tunnel threaten the landscape around the prehistoric monument.
Stonehenge was built on the flat lands of Salisbury Plain in southern England in stages, starting 5,000 years ago, with the unique stone circle erected in the late Neolithic period about 2,500 B.C.
It was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1986 — an honor bestowed upon sites that have special cultural or physical significance.
UNESCO experts had recommended listing Stonehenge as “in danger” over the plans for highway development.
But at the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee, which maintains the list and oversees the conservation of the sites, members led by Kenya and Qatar said Britain’s plans to mitigate the effect on the site were sufficient and that it should not be added to the “in danger” list.
The highway project, which has been touted for decades and mired in legal challenges, is aimed at trying to ease traffic along a stretch of road prone to gridlock by moving the main highway underground and slightly farther away from the famous stone circle.
It has faced fierce opposition from local residents and archaeologists, as well as concern from UNESCO, over potential damage to the environment, wildlife and possible new archaeological finds.
Kenya, in amending the recommendation to list the site as in danger, focused on the fact that the main stone circle would be farther away from the road with the new construction, and not the experts’ assessment that the road project would significantly impact the greater site. It also noted that Britain had considered more than 50 proposals for the highway plan.
“What needs to be protected is not just the henge but the overall landscape of which the henge is a central focus,” the UNESCO experts had argued in their draft proposal, which was rejected.
“The main henge is a highly visible and well-known monument and the proposed tunnel would improve its immediate setting, but this monument has to be considered in its context, surrounded by and inextricably linked to a large number of prehistoric features, which together form an ancient landscape.”
After rejecting the proposal to list Stonehenge as in danger, the committee agreed to ask Britain for an updated report on the state of conservation of the property by December 2025.
UNESCO says a site’s inclusion on its List of World Heritage Sites in Danger is not punitive, but rather meant to draw international attention to the urgent need for conservation measures and “encourage corrective action.”
If issues are not rectified, sites face the possibility of being de-listed by UNESCO, though that is rare.
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US links Pakistan’s economic growth to political stability
ISLAMABAD — The United States urged Pakistan Wednesday to protect the rights of all citizens, including freedom of expression and assembly, as a military-backed crackdown on the opposition party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan continues.
Donald Blome, the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, stressed during a seminar in Islamabad that upholding constitutionally guaranteed rights is crucial to the country’s economic progress.
“Protecting human rights for all is not just a fundamental pillar of a democracy; it’s a critical component of a vibrant and stable society drawing on the talents and contributions of all its citizens for the country’s benefits,” Blome said.
“Without such stability, the prospects for investment and economic growth appear far less certain,” he noted, without directly naming Pakistani political stakeholders.
The U.S. ambassador’s remarks came as Pakistan faces prolonged political turmoil stemming from Khan’s removal from power in 2022 through a parliamentary no-confidence vote and his subsequent imprisonment last August, which the United Nations described as having no legal basis.
The ongoing crackdown has led to the arrest of hundreds of supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or PTI, party, including women.
This week, police raided the PTI’s headquarters in the Pakistani capital, detaining its chief spokesman and several other media team professionals, accusing them of running an “anti-state campaign.”
Khan’s aides have denounced the arrests as part of a campaign of suppression and intimidation.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, struggling to address Pakistan’s deep economic problems, has publicly stated its intention to ban the party over charges of anti-state activities and maligning the military.
“We will, under no circumstances, tolerate such actions against our motherland, innocent people, or the armed forces of Pakistan,” Sharif reiterated Wednesday, while presiding over a cabinet meeting.
The threat of banning the country’s most popular and the single largest party in parliament has further fueled political tensions.
On Tuesday, during a congressional hearing in Washington, the crackdown and potential banning of the Pakistani opposition party also came under discussion when Donald Lu, the U.S. assistant secretary of state, was responding to questions from lawmakers.
Democratic Congressman Brad Sherman, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, raised the issue of Pakistan banning Khan from holding public office and preventing his party from using its iconic cricket bat symbol on the ballots in the February 8 vote.
“The information minister and two other ministers have said that they want to ban the PTI. And we see in the latest development that the PTI office has been sealed, their national information security and many women have been arrested,” Sherman said.
“The best thing you can do is ask Ambassador Blome to go visit Imran Khan in prison, and I wonder if you would consider that,” the congressmen told Lu. “We’ll definitely discuss it with Ambassador Blome,” responded the assistant secretary of state.
“Pakistan’s future must be decided by its people. It’s clear that the PTI is Pakistan’s most popular party. I disagree with Imran Khan on many things, but it’s the right of Pakistan’s people to choose their leader,” Sherman wrote on his social media X platform after the hearing.
Khan’s arrest last year sparked violent street protests in Pakistan, with some of his supporters attacking facilities linked to the country’s powerful military.
The Sharif government and the military used the riots to defend the crackdown on the PTI and as a reason to keep Khan in prison after several of his convictions in other cases were recently overturned by appeals courts for lack of evidence.
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court ruled that the PTI was eligible for around two dozen extra reserved seats in parliament, saying the Election Commission of Pakistan deprived the party of them in breach of the constitution.
Once implemented, the verdict will further strengthen the PTI in the parliament and weaken the ruling coalition. It has also given credence to the opposition and independent monitors’ allegations that the February 8 elections were rigged in favor of pro-military parties and prevented the PTI from sweeping the polls.
Khan, 71, rejects all charges against him — ranging from corruption to sedition and a fraudulent marriage — as politically motivated and part of a larger effort by the military to keep him and his party from returning to power.
The former cricket hero turned politician insists on the return of his party’s “stolen mandate” or new elections overseen by an impartial election commission.
Sharif, who has the backing of the military, denies his government is unfairly targeting Khan and his party, saying it was determined to bring to justice those responsible for the May 2023 attacks on military facilities.
Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted 368-7 to approve a resolution urging “the full and independent investigation of claims of interference or irregularities” in Pakistan’s election, a move Islamabad rejected.
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Bangladesh factories, banks reopen as curfew is eased after protests taper off
DHAKA — Rush-hour traffic returned to the streets of the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Wednesday, as a curfew was eased after four days of nationwide shutdown that followed deadly protests led by university students against quotas in government jobs.
Offices reopened and broadband internet was largely restored, although social media continued to be suspended, days after the clashes between protesters and security forces killed almost 150 people.
The country has been relatively calm since Sunday, when the Supreme Court ruled in favor of an appeal from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government and directed that 93% of jobs should be open to candidates on merit.
Bangladesh’s mainstay garment and textiles industries, which supply to major Western brands, also began reopening some factories after a pause in production during the curfew.
“All our factories are open today. Everything is going smoothly,” said S.M. Mannan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
The stock exchange opened too, as well as banks, after remaining shut the past two days.
Residents of Dhaka were out on the streets, some making their way to offices as public buses also began running in some places.
“It was a hassle to reach the office on time,” said Shamima Akhter, who works at a private firm in the capital. “Some roads are still blocked for security reasons. Don’t know when everything will get normal.”
Local news websites, which had stopped updating since Friday, were back online too.
Bangladesh authorities had shut mobile internet and deployed the army on the streets during the curfew that was imposed from midnight on Saturday.
The government said curfew restrictions would be relaxed for seven hours on Wednesday and Thursday, and offices would also be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Student demands
Analysts say the student action has given fresh impetus to Hasina’s critics, months after she won a fourth-straight term in power in January in a national election boycotted by the main opposition party.
“The informal federation of government critics appears deeper and wider than before the election, which presents a serious challenge to the ruling party,” said Geoffrey Macdonald at the United States Institute of Peace.
Hasina, 76, is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh, who led the country’s movement for independence from Pakistan.
The earlier 56% job quotas included a 30% reservation for families of veterans of the 1971 independence war, which critics said favored supporters of Hasina’s Awami League.
Hasina’s government had scrapped the quotas in 2018, but a high court ruling reinstated the them last month.
Students were furious because quotas left fewer than half of state jobs open on merit amid an unemployment crisis, particularly in the private sector, making government sector jobs with their regular wage hikes and perks especially prized.
Hasina has blamed her political opponents for the violence and her government said on Tuesday that it would heed the Supreme Court ruling.
The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party has denied any involvement in the violence and accused Hasina of authoritarianism and a crackdown on her critics, charges denied by her government.
Protesting students have given the government a fresh 48-hour ultimatum to fulfill four other conditions of an eight-point list of demands, and said they would announce their next steps on Thursday.
“We want the government to meet our four-point demand, including restoration of internet, withdrawal of police from campuses, and opening universities (which have been closed for a week),” protest coordinator Nahid Islam said.
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Russia pushes back at France over media credentials for Paris Games
Progress in ending world hunger set back by global crises
US, Saudi Arabia invite Sudan’s warring factions to peace talks
EU’s tariffs on Chinese EVs could slow progress on bloc’s green goals
Berlin, Germany — Forced to choose between its ambitious climate goals and a major loss of electric vehicle market share to China, the European Union opted to protect its carmakers. But analysts say the long-term effect on efforts to reduce greenhouse gases remains to be seen.
Provisional duties of up to 37.6% on Chinese-made EVs imposed by the EU earlier this month “might slow sales of EVs,” which are a key component of any plan to slow the rate of climate change, acknowledged Miranda Schreurs, professor at the Technical University of Munich, in an interview.
“It probably does have to do with concerns about the tariffs and also concerns about the [extent to which] Europe is really supporting the transition to EVs right now,” said Schreurs, who specializes in environment and climate policy, including energy transitions.
“That can have a negative impact if European consumers feel like the Green Deal is hurting them rather than helping them. … And many people are much more worried about inflation and their pockets … so there’s the question of what will the public accept?”
The EU imposed the new duties, which come on top of an existing 10% tariff, after accusing Beijing of offering “unfair subsidization” that threatened economic injury to Europe’s own electric vehicle makers. The bloc said China-made EVs were selling at prices 20% lower than those of their European counterparts.
Beijing retaliated last week with an anti-dumping probe into EU imports that singled out Danish, Dutch and Spanish pork firms.
Schreurs said the trade dispute reflects major changes in the global auto market based on growing awareness of the threat posed by climate change and the potential of electric vehicles to eliminate a major source of the gases that are heating the planet.
“China, which wasn’t a big international player in terms of automobile exports, has become the dominant player – the biggest player – in EV exports in the last several years,” she told VOA. “This is putting a lot of pressure on European manufacturers of automobiles.”
Boosted by government policies and subsidies, China’s BYD overtook Tesla to become the world’s top EV maker last year. Some projections say Chinese-made EVs could account for 15% to 25% of all such vehicles sold in the EU by next year.
Any slowdown in the sales of EVs will inevitably impact the continent’s so-called Green Deal, which aims to slash greenhouse gases in the transport sector, mainly by boosting the share of EVs. EU planning calls for emissions to be cut by 37.5% compared with 1990 levels by 2030, and for only zero-emission vehicles to be sold by 2035.
However, many analysts believe the tariffs will have only a modest effect on the rate of conversion to EVs, and Schreurs said a dampening of enthusiasm for EVs could prompt more people to switch to public transportation, which would do even more to cut emissions.
Wan-Hsin Liu, senior researcher at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, told VOA the short-term price increase will be there, but “still far away from a price shock” that would deter consumers.
“Even due to these countervailing duties, Chinese [battery electric vehicle] producers will not just transfer the whole duty costs to consumers completely,” said Liu, whose research focuses on China and innovation.
Over the long term, she said, the price increase will still be manageable and other non-Chinese EV producers can make up for any reduction in sales from China.
Schreurs said China could also help itself by shifting more of its auto-making to Europe, where about 13.8 million people work in the EU automotive industry, including 3.5 million in direct and indirect manufacturing, data from the European Commission shows.
“If China is investing in Europe in a way that it’s creating jobs, it can also decrease tensions” with the EU, she said. “The support for [Chinese EVs] will be stronger both from the public and government officials.”
Several Chinese EV makers are moving in that direction. Chery Auto signed a joint venture with Spain’s EV Motors to open a manufacturing site in Catalonia, while BYD will build its first EV production base in Hungary.
Liu said a larger shift of that kind would not have to translate into fewer jobs in China, where officials have set a goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2060.
“The market demand [for EVs] would only rise, so it doesn’t necessarily mean that [Chinese EV makers] build a factory in Europe and would then automatically close a factory in China,” she said. “These different kind of factories would serve different kinds of markets … so it does not mean green jobs in China will suffer.”
Schreur said both China and Europe need green jobs “and to do this in a way that also reduces the footprint tied to the manufacturing of cars.” Consequently, “perhaps it makes more sense that the prices of [China-made] cars are raised somewhat right now.”
The provisional tariffs remain subject to trade negotiations in November, and both Schreur and Liu believe the EU and China will be able to resolve some of their differences at that time. But Liu voiced some reservations.
“China currently perceives the EU’s investigation and decision on EVs and others as protectionist measures with the goal to protect solely the domestic industry,” she said. “China thinks that the responsibility for causing a potential trade war lies within the EU.”
In the end, she said, the outcome will depend on both sides’ willingness to compromise.
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France’s Macron will keep centrist caretaker government on through Olympics
Paris — French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday he will keep a centrist caretaker government on through the Olympics to avoid “disorder,” brushing aside an 11th-hour prime minister nomination by the country’s leftist coalition.
Macron made his widely expected announcement in a TV interview late Tuesday. Just prior to that appearance, the leftist coalition that won the most votes in this month’s parliamentary elections selected little-known civil servant Lucie Castets as their choice for prime minister.
But Macron told the France 2 network that the current government, who resigned last week to take on a purely caretaker role, would “handle current affairs during the Olympics,” which are being staged in Paris and elsewhere in France through Aug. 11.
“Until mid-August, we’re not in a position to be able to change things because it would prompt disorder,” Macron said. “I have chosen the stability” to safeguard the Games, which will soon gather about 10,500 athletes and millions of fans.
Party leaders in the leftist coalition immediately slammed Macron’s unwillingness to immediately consider their prime minister candidate.
There is no firm timeline for when Macron must name a new prime minister, following legislative elections that left the National Assembly, France’s influential lower house of parliament, with no dominant political bloc in power for the first time in France’s modern Republic.
Asked about the leftist coalition’s choice, Macron said “the issue is not a name provided by a political group,” adding that there must be a parliamentary majority behind the candidate to “pass reforms, pass a budget and move the country forward.”
France has been on the brink of government paralysis since the National Assembly elections resulted in a split among three major political blocs: the leftist New Popular Front, Macron’s centrist allies and the far-right National Rally of Marine Le Pen.
Macron, who has a presidential mandate until 2027, has the ultimate say in who is appointed prime minister. However, that person would need enough support from lawmakers to avoid a no-confidence vote.
Macron urged politicians from both the moderate left, the center and the moderate right to “work together” during the summer, arguing that with no outright majority, none of the main blocs can implement their political platforms.
He said “compromises” are needed.
Macron said he’d like to form a government as soon as possible, but that “Obviously, until mid-August, we need to be focused on the Games.”
The leftist coalition has repeatedly demanded the right to form a government after it won the most seats in the National Assembly, yet deep internal divisions have prevented its members from agreeing on a prime minister candidate for more than two weeks. The coalition is composed of three main parties — the hard-left France Unbowed, the Socialists and the Greens.
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British royal family announces plan to reduce carbon emissions
LONDON — Britain’s royal family on Wednesday set out its latest plans to reduce its carbon footprint, including the installation of heat pumps at the centuries-old Windsor Castle near London.
Other environmentally friendly initiatives include the electrification of the royal family’s luxury fleet of vehicles, including the Bentley State Limousines.
King Charles III, a life-long environmentalist, famously owns a 1970 Aston Martin DB6 that he had converted to run on biofuel produced from surplus English white wine and whey from cheese manufacturing.
The sports car was a gift from his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, for his 21st birthday.
Under the net-zero plans, set out in the family’s annual report and accounts for the financial year of April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024, jet fuel for helicopters and chartered aircraft will be replaced with sustainable aviation fuel.
Royal properties in central London such as Buckingham Palace would also be connected to heat networks.
These are considered a more efficient way of providing heat by producing and distributing heat from a central source, rather than relying on individual boilers.
“These projects … have substantial potential to reduce the royal household’s GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions,” the report said.
The first solar panels, which convert sunlight into electricity, have been installed at the 900-year-old Windsor Castle, one of Charles’s main residences.
The report published alongside annual accounts revealed that profit from the royal family’s land and property holdings, the Crown Estate, more than doubled last year to a record $1.4 billion, driven by a short-term boost from offshore wind farms.
The Crown Estate is an independently run business whose profits go to the government, which hands a small portion of the money to the monarchy to support official duties of the royal family.
The estate owns the vast majority of Britain’s seabed, stretching up to 12 nautical miles from the mainland, and leases part of it to wind farm operators.
The surge in profits was mainly the result of option fees — payments made by companies to reserve a patch of the seabed to eventually build their wind turbines.
The most recent round of offshore wind leasing saw licenses granted for three wind farms in the North Sea and three in the Irish Sea.
Last week, the new Labour government announced plans to widen the investment powers of the Crown Estate, giving it more scope to borrow for investments including offshore wind projects.
The government said that in doing so, 20 to 30 gigawatts of energy from offshore wind would be created by the end of the decade.
It has also proposed boosting investment in sustainable aviation fuel plants across the country.
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Uganda charges dozens of anti-graft protesters
Kampala, Uganda — Dozens of people who joined scattered anti-corruption rallies in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, on Tuesday in defiance of an official ban have been charged and held behind bars, their lawyers said.
About 60 people, including a prominent TV and radio presenter and three young protest leaders, were hurriedly brought before the courts and remanded into custody on charges including being a “common nuisance,” they said.
President Yoweri Museveni, who has ruled the East African country with an iron fist for almost four decades, had warned over the weekend that the demonstrators were “playing with fire.”
Riot police were out in force across Kampala, manning roadblocks especially near the business district, while officers sealed off roads to parliament.
Police spokesman Kituuma Rusoke had said the authorities would not allow any demonstration that threatened Uganda’s “peace and security.”
The call to action over corruption was organized by young Ugandans online, with colorful posters urging people to march on parliament, drawing inspiration from neighboring Kenya’s mostly Gen-Z-led anti-government protests.
Graft is a major concern in Uganda, with several high-profile scandals involving public officials, and the country is ranked a lowly 141 out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s corruption index.
“We are tired of corruption,” protester Samson Kiriya shouted from between the bars of a police van as he was arrested.
About 60 people who were detained during the rallies were brought before the courts in separate hearings, their lawyers said.
They included well-known television and radio presenter Faiza Salima as well as a social media influencer and a doctor, lawyer Ashraf Kwezi told AFP.
“The three were charged with a flimsy offense of being a common nuisance … and disorderly after they participated in the protest today, but they denied the charges,” he said.
Three protest organizers identified as George Victor Otieno, Kennedy Ndyamuhaki and Aloikin Praise Opoloje were arrested as they marched to parliament and have also been charged.
Bernard Oundo, president of the Uganda Law Society, told AFP that 50 people were charged at one hearing in a Kampala court and are to reappear between July 30 and Aug. 8.
Another five were charged in a separate hearing at another court, their lawyer, Patience Muwanguzi, said.
“This was a rushed trial. They were arrested and taken to court in a very short time and remanded to prison without securing them bail,” she told AFP. “We will ensure these people receive justice.”
Human Rights Watch Uganda researcher Oryem Nyeko condemned the multiple arrests and said they were “a reflection of where Uganda is at the moment as far as respect for those rights is concerned.”
On the eve of the rally, Ugandan authorities besieged the headquarters of the opposition National Unity Platform of former presidential candidate Bobi Wine and arrested three of his party’s MPs.
A heavy police presence remained in place around the offices in a Kampala suburb on Tuesday, an AFP journalist said.
“Salutations to all who have courageously marched and are still marching against corruption and misrule — even in the face of very brutal actions by the military and police!” Wine posted on X. His real name is Robert Kyagulanyi.
Ugandan authorities have frequently cracked down on the NUP and Wine, a popstar turned politician who challenged Museveni unsuccessfully in the last elections in 2021.
Corruption is endemic in Uganda, where several high-profile figures have recently come under the spotlight in graft scandals.
Earlier this year, the United States and Britain sanctioned several Ugandan officials including parliament speaker Anita Among and three former or current ministers for alleged involvement in corruption.
The ministers are on trial accused of stealing iron sheets destined for the poor under a government-funded project and redirecting them to politicians and their families, but no charges have been laid against the speaker.
Four legislators from Uganda’s ruling party and two senior civil servants are also in custody for allegedly embezzling large sums of money meant to compensate farmers who lost property during the 1980s bush war that brought Museveni to power.
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US invites Sudan’s warring parties for talks, RSF to participate
WASHINGTON — The United States has invited the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for U.S.-mediated ceasefire talks starting on Aug. 14 in Switzerland, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday.
RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo said early on Wednesday they will constructively participate in the talks to achieve “a comprehensive ceasefire across the country and facilitate humanitarian access to all those in need.”
“We reaffirm our firm stance … which is the insistence on saving lives, stopping the fighting, and paving the way for a peaceful, negotiated political solution that restores the country to civilian rule and the path of democratic transition,” Dagalo said in a statement.
The talks will include the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations as observers, Blinken said in a statement. Saudi Arabia will be a co-host for the discussions, he added.
“The scale of death, suffering, and destruction in Sudan is devastating. This senseless conflict must end,” Blinken said, calling on the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to attend the talks and approach them constructively.
The war in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023, has forced almost 10 million people from their homes, sparked warnings of famine and waves of ethnically driven violence blamed largely on the RSF.
Talks in Jeddah between the army and RSF that were sponsored by the United States and Saudi Arabia broke down at the end of last year.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday that the goal of the talks in Switzerland was to build on work from Jeddah and try to move the talks to the next phase.
“We just want to get the parties back to the table, and what we determined is that bringing the parties, the three host nations and the observers together is the best shot that we have right now at getting the nationwide cessation of violence,” Miller said.
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Rights groups criticize efforts to displace migrants ahead of Paris Olympics
Rights groups accuse French authorities of “social cleansing” ahead of the Paris Olympics by uprooting migrants, sex workers and others around the capital — undermining promises of making these Games the most inclusive ever. The government says it’s simply trying to address a longstanding problem. Lisa Bryant has more from the French capital.
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US invites Sudan’s warring parties for talks in Switzerland in August
WASHINGTON — The United States has invited the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for U.S.-mediated cease-fire talks starting on August 14 in Switzerland, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday.
The talks will include the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations as observers, Blinken said in a statement. Saudi Arabia will be a co-host for the discussions, he added.
“The scale of death, suffering, and destruction in Sudan is devastating. This senseless conflict must end,” Blinken said, calling on the Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, and Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, to attend the talks and approach them constructively.
The war in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023, has forced almost 10 million people from their homes, sparked warnings of famine and waves of ethnically driven violence blamed largely on the RSF.
Talks in Jeddah between the army and RSF that were sponsored by the United States and Saudi Arabia broke down at the end of last year.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday that the goal of the talks in Switzerland was to build on work from Jeddah and try to move the talks to the next phase.
“We just want to get the parties back to the table, and what we determined is that bringing the parties, the three host nations and the observers together is the best shot that we have right now at getting the nationwide cessation of violence,” Miller said.
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ECOWAS counterterrorism force not ready for action, analysts say
Abuja, Nigeria — Regional analysts have voiced skepticism about a so-called standby counterterrorism force announced Sunday by West African bloc ECOWAS. The critics say despite the comments from Nigeria’s president suggesting the force is ready for deployment, ECOWAS has not provided any details about its size, base, funding or mode of operation.
Nigerian President and ECOWAS chair Bola Tinubu announced what he called the “activation” of a standby force on counterterrorism while addressing African leaders during an African Union meeting in Ghana on Sunday.
The force, first proposed in August 2023 after a coup in Niger, is projected to consist of military, police and civilian components and be jointly sponsored by ECOWAS members.
However, ECOWAS members have yet to decide which countries will contribute the personnel and from where they will operate.
Tinubu told leaders at Sunday’s summit that ECOWAS is exploring options for funding the force.
His comments came two weeks after three of the bloc’s former members — Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger — announced a confederation, signaling their exit from ECOWAS was permanent.
All three countries withdrew from ECOWAS after being suspended from the bloc following military takeovers of their governments.
Security analyst Senator Iroegbu says creating a joint ECOWAS force to fight terrorism is a good idea but questions the regional bloc’s readiness.
“With Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso pulling out and forming their own [confederation], it tends to dilute whatever arrangement, because these three countries are actually the epicenters of the terrorism we’re talking about,” he said. “This ECOWAS standby force, where’s it going to operate? Is it in Nigeria that already has its own arrangement?”
ECOWAS said it will continue to dialogue with the military leaders of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso and plans to convene a special summit on the future of the bloc.
In April, ECOWAS held a counterterrorism summit in Abuja to strategize on combating terrorism affecting its remaining member states.
Sub-Saharan Africa has become an epicenter of terrorism, accounting for more than half of the global terror-related deaths according to the 2023 Global Terrorism Index report.
Burkina Faso suffered the highest number of deaths, with Mali, Nigeria and Niger not far behind.
Ahmed Buhari, a political affairs analyst, says he is skeptical about the success of the ECOWAS force amid uncertainty and instability within the region.
“I do not see anything new with what ECOWAS is reiterating,” he said. “This is what we’ve been hearing for the past 15 years or so. It’s been in the conversation. The terror hasn’t declined. As a matter of fact, it looks like the terrorists are seemingly gaining ground and becoming more daring.”
Iroegbu said ECOWAS countries should focus more on improved governance if they want to address the causes of terrorism.
“More than setting up a force on counterterrorism, other aspects of non-kinetic measures are needed,” he said. “If you check, the root cause of these [problems] are non-kinetic issues like issues of good governance, development, inclusiveness, sound electoral process. These are issues that once they’re in place even terrorists will find it hard to thrive in such environment.”
It’s not clear when ECOWAS will hold the summit on its three former member states.
Analysts say the chances of successful dialogue among the West African states are slim but it is not impossible.
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Taliban lament lack of support despite victory against illicit Afghan drugs
Islamabad, Pakistan — Afghanistan’s Taliban claimed Tuesday that their crackdown on illegal drug production in the country has helped address a major global challenge but expressed frustration at the ongoing lack of international support in response.
Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told a national labor conference in Kabul that his country used to be the world’s largest opium-poppy producer. It was detrimental and smuggled to the entire world and resulted in more than four million Afghans becoming drug addicts in the past two decades, he said.
“The illegal production of drugs has ceased. The addicts are now in need of medical treatment while the farmers need livelihoods and employment,” Muttaqi said in his televised speech.
He noted that their counternarcotics campaign has led to immense economic pressures and severe hardships for Afghans reeling from the effects of years of war and natural disasters in the impoverished country.
“Regrettably, the international community has failed to fulfill its responsibility in this matter. Instead, they have imposed sanctions on Afghan trade, travel, and banking sectors in breach of the universal fundamental human rights,” the chief Taliban diplomat said.
The Taliban banned opium poppy cultivation and production in Afghanistan in April 2022, eight months after the fundamentalist group reclaimed power. The South Asian nation supplied about 80% of the global illegal opiate demand and 95% of Europe’s heroin in 2022, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
The UNODC noted in its 2024 World Drug Report that the drug ban has reduced opium production in Afghanistan by 95%, severely impacting the livelihoods of farmers and necessitating urgent humanitarian aid.
Muttaqi complained Tuesday that Afghanistan had been ignored in international conferences aimed at discussing solutions and steps to tackle calamities stemming from climate change.
Afghanistan is listed among the top 10 countries most vulnerable to climate change, even though it accounts for less than 1% of global carbon emissions. It has lately experienced unusually heavy rains, flash flooding, and worsening droughts, killing hundreds of Afghans, destroying livelihoods, and fueling hunger in a country where U.N. agencies say millions of people need urgent humanitarian aid.
However, the country remains largely a global pariah because of the Taliban’s curbs on women’s access to education and work. No country has formally recognized the de facto Afghan government.
The isolation has deterred foreign governments from engaging in formal financial dealings with Kabul and excluded Afghanistan from global climate change meetings, depriving it of much-needed foreign funding to battle climate change.
Muttaqi recounted the Taliban’s security gains, saying they have effectively countered the Islamic State-orchestrated threat of terrorism in the country, established nationwide peace, and ended corruption.
‘Absurd’ demands
“It’s absurd that the world demands action on drug control, security, and preventing Afghan territory misuse but offers zero cooperation,” Muttaqi said. He argued that international collaboration would help his administration create employment opportunities in Afghanistan that would deter its citizens from seeking to migrate to other countries and causing problems for them.
In early July, the United Nations hosted an international conference in Doha, where delegates discussed Afghan private-sector investment possibilities, how to build on the progress made in curbing illegal drug production, and women’s human rights.
“Running through all the discussions was the deep international concern about the ongoing and serious restrictions on women and girls,” Rosemary DiCarlo, the U.N. under-secretary-general who presided over the two-day sessions in Qatar’s capital, told a post-meeting news conference.
“Afghanistan cannot return to the international fold or fully develop economically and socially if it is deprived of the contributions and potential of half its population,” she said.
The Taliban has rejected criticism of their governance as an interference in internal Afghan matters. They maintain their regulations are aligned with Islamic law and local culture.
Girls ages 12 and older are not allowed to attend school beyond the sixth grade, and many women are barred from Afghan public and private sector jobs.
According to a recent U.N. Development Program report, the Afghan economy has contracted by 27%, leading to economic stagnation since the Taliban takeover. The report noted that sectors such as finance have “basically collapsed,” and there are no major sources of economic activity such as exports or public expenditure, leaving small and medium enterprises and farmers “as the lifeblood of the faltering economy.”
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