- Flooding death toll soars to 11,300 in Libya’s coastal city of Derna
The death toll in Libya’s coastal city of Derna has soared to 11,300 as search efforts continue following a massive flood fed by the breaching of two dams in heavy rains, the Libyan Red Crescent said. Marie el-Drese, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) Libya secretary-general, said another 10,100 people are reported missing in the Mediterranean city. Health authorities previously put the death toll in Derna at 5,500. The storm also killed about 170 people elsewhere in the country.
Al Jazeera: “Flooding death toll soars to 11,300 in Libya’s coastal city of Derna”, Accessed: 15th, September, 2023.
- US military resumes drone flights and counterterrorism missions out of Niger bases (International Security)
The U.S. military has resumed flying drones and manned aircraft out of air bases in the Niger more than a month after a coup temporarily halted all those activities there, the head of U.S. Air Forces for Europe and Africa said. Since the July coup, the 1,100 U.S. forces deployed in the country have been confined inside their military bases. Last week the Pentagon said some military personnel and assets had been moved from the air base near Niamey, which is the capital of Niger, to another in Agadez. Niamey is about 920 kilometers away from Agadez.
The Associated Press: “ US military resumes drone flights and counterterrorism missions out of Niger bases”, Accessed: 15th, September, 2023.
- UN envoy for Sudan resigns and warns conflict could turn into civil war (North Africa)
The U.N. special envoy for Sudan who was declared unwelcome by the country’s military rulers resigned Wednesday in a final speech to the U.N. Security Council, warning that the conflict between Sudan’s rival military leaders “could be morphing into a full-scale civil war.”.
The Associated Press: “UN envoy for Sudan resigns and warns conflict could turn into civil war”, Accessed: 15th September, 2023.
- Britain, France, Germany to uphold ballistic, nuclear sanctions on Iran (Int’l Security)
Britain, France and Germany have announced they will keep their sanctions on Iran related to the country’s atomic programme and its development of ballistic missiles. The measures were to expire in October under a timetable spelled out in the now-defunct 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.
Al Jazeera: “Britain, France, Germany to uphold ballistic, nuclear sanctions on Iran”, Accessed: 15th September, 2023.
- Global Humanitarian Crisis (United Nations)
A global hunger crisis has left more than 700 million people not knowing when or if they will eat again. Demand for food is rising relentlessly while humanitarian funding is drying up according to the head of the United Nations food agency. World Food Program Executive Director Cindy McCain told the U.N. Security Council that because of the lack of funding, the agency has been forced to cut food rations for millions of people, and more cuts are on the way. This is the humanitarian community’s new reality — the new normal — and the organization will be dealing with the fallout for years to come.
The Associated Press: “Global Humanitarian Crisis”, Accessed: 15th September, 2023.
- EU faces deadline on extending Ukrainian grain ban as countries threaten to pass their own (European Union)
The European Union faced a deadline to decide whether to extend a ban on Ukrainian food from five nearby countries that have complained that an influx of agricultural products from the war-torn nation has hurt their farmers. Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria still allow grain and other Ukrainian foods to pass through on the way to other parts of the world.
The Associated Press: “EU faces deadline on extending Ukrainian grain ban as countries threaten to pass their own”, Accessed: 15th September, 2023.
- UK officially proscribes Russia’s Wagner as terrorist organization (Int’l Security)
Britain has officially designated the Russian mercenary Wagner Group as a terrorist organisation. This announcement makes it illegal to be a member or to support the PMC.
Reuter: “UK officially proscribes Russia’s Wagner as terrorist organization”, Accessed: 15th September 2023.
