WORLD - The African Mirror

Mar

21

2025

The Gaza ceasefire is dead − Israeli domestic politics killed it

WORLD

THE ceasefire in Gaza appears to be over. And while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to blame Hamas for the resumption of fighting that killed more than 400 Palestinians on March 18, 2025 – “only the beginning,” Netanyahu warned – the truth is the seeds of the renewed violence are to be found in Israeli domestic politics. Ever since the first phase of the ceasefire came into effect in January, Israeli politics experts – myself included – have flagged a likely insurmountable problem. And that is the execution of the plan’s second phase – which, if implemented, would…

Mar

21

2025

By JON RICHARDSON

Putin made Trump wait, then strung him along – it’s clear his war aims in Ukraine have not changed

WORLD

US President Donald Trump’s phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, didn’t take a tangible step towards ending the hostilities in Ukraine, let alone finding an enduring peace. Rather, it provided further evidence of Putin’s ability to string along and outsmart Trump. For starters, Putin sent a signal by making Trump wait for more than an hour to talk. Putin was speaking at a televised conference with Russian businesspeople and even made a joke about the delay when told the time for his call was approaching. This was clearly designed to show his alpha status, both to Trump and…

Mar

21

2025

By JESSICA WIDNER

Three novels by Nobel winner Han Kang that explain the fragile nature of South Korea

WORLD

LAST year, South Korea made headlines around the world for two reasons. The first was writer Han Kang’s celebrated Nobel Prize for Literature won in October; the second was far less positive. Late in the evening of December 3 2024, the country’s President Yoon Suk Yeol unexpectedly declared martial law – the first time it had happened since the country became a democracy in 1987. Protestors and lawmakers rushed onto the streets to resist Yoon’s decree, and martial law was annulled early the next morning at 1 am. Han in 2024 during Nobel Week. Photo by John Sears - Own…

Mar

20

2025

By ELEANOR KLIBANOFF, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE

Houston-area midwife arrested for allegedly providing illegal abortions

WORLD

TWO people have been arrested and charged with performing illegal abortions at a Houston-area health clinic, the first criminal charges brought under the state’s near-total abortion ban. Maria Margarita Rojas, 48, a midwife, and Jose Ley, her employee, were charged with the illegal performance of an abortion, as well as practicing medicine without a license. The abortion charge is a second-degree felony, which comes with up to 20 years in prison. Rojas, who identified herself as “Dr. Maria,” operated a network of clinics in Waller, Cypress and Spring. According to a news release from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the…

Mar

20

2025

By JAN LANICEK and RUTH BALINT

A new definition of antisemitism from Universities Australia is attracting criticism – two historians explain why

WORLD

SINCE Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7 2023, and Israel’s war in Gaza, there has been a sharp increase in antisemitic incidents, some of these occurring at Australian universities. The war’s ongoing reverberations have led to renewed controversy over the question of when criticism of Israel and support for Palestinian rights becomes antisemitic. On February 27 2025, Universities Australia issued a statement on racism, acknowledging that racism existed on campuses in all forms, “including antisemitism, Islamophobia and the experience of First Nations people”. It followed a parliamentary report on rising antisemitism on university campuses tabled by Labor MP Josh…

Mar

20

2025

By The African Mirror

UN condemns Israel’s settlement policy as violation of international law

WORLD

IN a strongly worded report presented at a biweekly press briefing in Geneva, the United Nations Human Rights Office has condemned Israel's settlement policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as a breach of international law and a violation of Palestinians' right to self-determination. "Israel's settlement policy, its acts of annexation, and related discriminatory legislation and measures are in breach of international law and violate Palestinians' right to self-determination," UN spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told reporters. The report, covering a 12-month period ending October 2024, documents the ongoing transfer of powers over the Occupied Palestinian Territory from the Israeli military to the…

Mar

19

2025

By SCOTT LUCAS

Why has the Gaza ceasefire collapsed? Why has the US launched airstrikes in Yemen? Middle East expert Q&A

WORLD

FOR the past few weeks, the world’s attention has been focused on the prospect of a ceasefire in Ukraine and the diplomatic manoeuvrings that has entailed. But while Donald Trump has been focusing on negotiations with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, the ceasefire deal in Gaza he had a hand in getting over the line appears to have fallen apart. After negotiations with Hamas broke down, Israel cut off all humanitarian aid to Gaza at the beginning of March, then cut off power, and overnight on March 17 launched massive airstrikes across the Strip, killing more than 400 people. Meanwhile,…

Mar

19

2025

By The African Mirror

As displaced Syrians return home, others wait and hope for more aid

WORLD

FOR the past six years, a single tent has been the only home that Sana Khaled and her large family have known. She has made it as comfortable as their circumstances will allow, with piles of cushions bordering the carpeted floor and bright bunches of plastic flowers hanging from the interior fabric walls. But she still craves the security of a solid roof over their heads, especially during the cold winter months. “A tent is not like a home – the situation in a tent is difficult,” Sana explained. “You’re always in fear of something. There’s never any stability or…

Mar

19

2025

By The African Mirror

Slovenia sets positive example in defending rights by acceding to Statelessness Convention

WORLD

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, commended Slovenia's commitment to eradicating the devastating plight of statelessness by acceding to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. The Convention is the leading international treaty that sets out safeguards to protect people against statelessness, which deprives individuals of the benefits of a nationality. It helps States prevent new cases from arising and, in so doing, reduces statelessness. Slovenia is the 82nd state to have become a party to the Convention. The accession, which also fulfils Slovenia's pledge at the Global Refugee Forum in December 2023, reflects the country's efforts to uphold and protect…

Mar

18

2025

By SIMON MCCARTHY-JONES

Donald Trump’s foreign policy might be driven by simple spite – here’s what to do about it

WORLD

RECENT shifts in US foreign policy – particularly regarding tariffs and the war in Ukraine – have sparked debate over what is driving the Trump administration’s decisions. Some of those decisions have appeared so odd that media commentators and even some European officials have wondered out loud if the US government may now even be serving Russian interests. It’s more likely that US actions simply reflect an aggressive pursuit of what the Trump administration perceives to be America’s interests. Such policies may help rebuild US manufacturing and reorient its military for future tensions with China. Yet former Trump official Anthony…