BRUSSELS | 21 May 2026 (IDN | EEPA) — The following are the situation reports on the region and how the EU and the UN view it, Ethiopia, Sudan and the regufee and migration situation International and regional situation (per 21 May) Kenya’s Court of Appeal lifted an order blocking implementation of a medical cooperation […]
Trump’s China War Leads Nowhere
By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 20 May 2026 (IDN) — Both the US and China over the last few decades have messed things up. President Donald Trump has been vicious in his attacks, over trade and, in his first term, over the Coronavirus, which he blamed on China. Last week, during his visit to […]
EEPA reports on SAF advancing into Blue Nile State
BRUSSELS | 18 May 2026 (IDN | EEPA) — The following are the situation reports on Sudan, Ethiopia, South Sudan and the region and how the EU and the UN view it. Situation in Sudan (per 18 May) Fighting in Blue Nile state has intensified as the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) seek to retake Kurmuk, […]
After Venezuela and Iran, Next Cuba?
By Jan Servaes BANGKOK | 16 May 2026 (IDN) — Following the arrest of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a military attack, US President Donald Trump has hinted that Cuba could be his next target. In a presidential decree dated 26 January, 2026, he declared that […]
What Dispute Tribunal Reveals About the UN Internal Justice System
By Naïma Abdellaoui* GENEVA | 5 April 2026 (IDN) — The recent judgment of the United Nations Dispute Tribunal (UNDT/2026/042) marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing crisis of confidence in the UN’s internal justice system. At its core, the case involved an unprecedented collective action by 438 staff members challenging the retroactive expiration of roster memberships—a […]
A World Edging Back Toward the Nuclear Brink
By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 29 April 2026 (IDN) — Not long ago, U.S. Strategic Command—the branch responsible for nuclear weapons—issued a stark warning: conflict conditions could “very rapidly drive an adversary to consider nuclear use as their least bad option.” That sober assessment captures a growing unease. President Joe Biden’s decision to send […]
IRAN: Sustainable Peace Takes Time
By David L. Phillips* OXFORD, UK | 29 April 2026 (IDN) — I spent hours with Ambassador Javad Zarif, Iran’s Permanent Representative to the UN and Foreign Minister in 2015. Rather convincingly, he maintained that Iran was not seeking a nuclear weapon but merely insisting on its right to enrichment. He called Iran’s nuclear program a […]
Rethinking Conservation as a Climate Solution
Connecting the futures of jaguars, whales, and humans into one vibrant ecosystem. By Ramesh Jaura This article was first published on rjaura.substack.com BERLIN | 22 April 2026 (IDN) — Marking a watershed moment for global conservation, countries at the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of […]
A Fool Threw a Stone into a Well…
By James E. Jennings* ATLANTA, Georgia, USA | 15 April 2026 (IDN) — An Arab proverb says, “A fool threw a stone into a well—a hundred wise men could not get it out.” By thumbing his nose at the Constitution, bypassing Congress, and zeroing out 349 million US citizens kept in the dark about launching […]
Situation Report: Alleged human trafficker arrested in Ethiopia
Situation in Ethiopia (per 9 April) Ethiopian police arrested Yetbarek Dawit in Shire, Tigray region, accused of running a multi-million-dollar human trafficking network since 2018, along with nine alleged accomplices, following a cross-border investigation. The network allegedly operated five detention warehouses in Libya where victims were tortured and forced to call their relatives to pay […]