WORLD - The African Mirror

Jan

17

2026

What next for the humanitarian crisis and response in Venezuela?

WORLD

MORE than 10 days after the US military strikes on Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas on 3 January, there is still no clarity about long-term US plans for Venezuela and its population. As citizens cautiously resume their daily activities amid anxiety over the future and fear of more violence and state repression, aid groups are also struggling to figure out what the US control over the country will mean for their work and how it will impact humanitarian needs. On 6 January, President Donald Trump’s administration announced an energy deal with Venezuelan…

Jan

16

2026

By BLESSING KAVHU

Human-wildlife conflict in Zimbabwe is a crisis: who is in danger, where and why?

WORLD

IN the fishing villages along Lake Kariba in northern Zimbabwe, near the border with Zambia, everyday routines that should be ordinary – like collecting water, walking to the fields or casting a fishing net – now carry a quiet, ever-present fear. A new national analysis shows that human-wildlife conflict in rural Zimbabwe has intensified to the point where it has become a public safety crisis, rather than simply an environmental challenge. Between 2016 and 2022, 322 people died in wildlife encounters. Annual fatalities climbed from 17 to 67: a fourfold increase in just seven years. These fatal encounters are concentrated…

Jan

16

2026

By ALI MAMOURI

One uprising, two stories: how each side is trying frame the uprising in Iran

WORLD

SINCE the outbreak of the current wave of protests in Iran, two sharply competing narratives have emerged to explain what is unfolding in the streets. For the ruling establishment, the unrest is portrayed as a foreign-engineered plot. They argue it is an externally-driven attempt to destabilise the state through manipulation, infiltration, and psychological operations. For the opposition, the same events are framed as a nationwide uprising rooted in long-standing grievances. They argue the protests signal a rupture between society and the political system. How the “story” of a conflict is told is a key component in warfare. The Iranian protests…

Jan

16

2026

By EDUARDO GAMARRA

The ‘drug threat’ that justified the US ouster of Maduro won’t be fixed by his arrest

WORLD

DONALD Trump has flagged Venezuelan drug trafficking as a key reason for the U.S. military operation on Jan. 3, 2026, that captured President Nicolás Maduro and whisked him to New York to face federal drug charges. Trump has described Maduro as “the kingpin of a vast criminal network responsible for trafficking colossal amounts of deadly and illicit drugs into the United States.” In 2025, the administration presented the U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean and repeated strikes on alleged drug trafficking vessels off Venezuela’s coast as necessary to counter the flow of cocaine into the United States. But as an…

Jan

16

2026

By LEONIE FLEISCHMANN

Amid a rocky truce, Israel and Hamas prepare to resume fighting

WORLD

PROGRESS towards achieving Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza is stalling. Israeli strikes across the territory on January 9 killed 13 Palestinians, with new raids days later claiming three more lives. The situation has now reached a critical juncture, with both Israel and Hamas reportedly preparing for a resumption in fighting. The first phase of the US-brokered ceasefire, which came into effect in October, has mostly been completed. Israel’s military has withdrawn to the eastern half of the Gaza Strip, as required by the agreement. And dozens of Israeli hostages, living and dead, have been exchanged for hundreds of…

Jan

15

2026

By OWN CORRESPONDENT

Saudi Arabia executes record 356 people in 2025, surpassing previous year’s high

WORLD

SAUDI Arabia executed at least 356 people in 2025, marking the highest number of executions in a single year since monitoring began and breaking the record set just one year earlier, Human Rights Watch has reported. The 2025 total surpasses the 345 executions recorded in 2024, representing the second consecutive year Saudi authorities have set a new execution record. Foreign nationals convicted of nonlethal drug offences accounted for the majority of executions, according to data compiled by Reprieve and the European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights. Of the 356 executed, 240 had been convicted of drug-related offences, with 188 of…

Jan

15

2026

By BAMO NOURI

The use of military force in Iran could backfire for Washington

WORLD

DONALD Trump is weighing military action in Iran over the state’s crackdown on protesters. Reports suggest that more than 600 people have been killed since the protests began in late December, with the US president saying the US military is now “looking at some very strong options”. Trump has not yet elaborated on what these options are and has said that Iranian officials, keen to avoid a war with the US, had called him “to negotiate”. But he added that the US “may have to act before a meeting” if the deadly crackdown continues. There is a wide spectrum of…

Jan

15

2026

By OWN CORRESPONDENT

Clintons defy congressional subpoena in unprecedented confrontation over Epstein probe

WORLD

IN an extraordinary act of defiance that could land them in prison, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton refused to appear before Congress, releasing a blistering letter accusing House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer of weaponising his power for partisan purposes while the nation faces mounting crises. The standoff marks an unprecedented escalation in the Republican-led investigation into the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, with Comer announcing contempt of Congress proceedings will begin next week - a rarely invoked enforcement tool that carries up to one year in prison and fines of up to…

Jan

14

2026

By AMIN NAENI

This is the playbook the Iranian regime uses to crack down on protests – but will it work this time?

WORLD

IN late December, Tehran’s bazaar merchants began protesting against Iran’s theocratic rulers over the sharp collapse of the currency. These protests quickly spread nationwide, although the level of participation remained limited initially. The situation changed when Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s former shah, issued a public call for demonstrations last Thursday and Friday. This altered the dynamics of the protest movement. The authorities appeared not to take Pahlavi’s call seriously, suggesting they did not believe the US-based Pahlavi had significant influence among the population. State media openly mocked the call. Yet, Pahlavi’s message spread rapidly online. His video…

Jan

14

2026

By The African Mirror

The unraveling: How Saudi Arabia dismantled the UAE’s regional ambitions in ten days

WORLD

FOR over a decade, the United Arab Emirates under Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan cultivated an image as the Middle East's indispensable power broker - a nimble operator whose military bases, proxy forces, and chequebook diplomacy punched far above the tiny nation's weight. From the Horn of Africa to the Arabian Peninsula, Abu Dhabi's fingerprints were everywhere: ports in Somalia, militias in Yemen, and a shadow network of influence that often operated independently of - and occasionally at odds with - its ostensible Saudi allies. That carefully constructed empire is now collapsing with breathtaking speed. In what can only be…