OSINTSUM: Friday 26 July 2024

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OSINTSUM
Global Situation Update
Friday 26 July 2024

Africa

Africa: Research by development agency FSD Africa and advisory firm Shortlist predicts that a greener economy could bring 3.3 million jobs to the continent by 2030. Their joint report, Forecasting Green Jobs in Africa, predicts that 60% of the roles, mainly in the renewable energy sector, would be skilled or white collar positions.
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Democratic Republic of the Congo: The EU has imposed sanctions on nine people and one entity over accusations of human rights abuses and sustaining conflict in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Two leaders of the M23 rebel group and two from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda are included on the list, while the entity sanctioned was the political movement Alliance Fleuve Congo.
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Sudan: UN data shows at least 755,000 Sudanese citizens are experiencing catastrophic hunger. The Sudanese military is reportedly blocking aid from entering territory held by its rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF), while any aid that does get through is often stolen by RSF soldiers.
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Sudan: A report by rights group Amnesty International states that the civil war in Sudan is being fuelled by a constant flow of foreign-made weapons into the country. The group found that recently manufactured or recently transferred weapons and ammunition from China, Russia, Serbia, Turkey, the UAE, and Yemen are being imported into the country in large quantities.
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Americas

Bolivia: The Bolivian region of Santa Cruz has declared a state of emergency until the end of the year due to extreme weather conditions that have led to wildfires in the east of the country. The wildfires are preventing fuel supplies reaching certain areas due to their impact on the rail service, exacerbating diesel shortages which began earlier this week making it harder for firefighters to reach certain areas.
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Brazil: Members of the G20 group of nations have agreed to cooperate to ensure billionaires are effectively taxed in a declaration published today, after Brazil President Luiz Lula da Silva proposed levying a 2% wealth tax on fortunes over $1bn. The tax would affect 3,000 people globally and could raise an estimated $250bn annually.
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Venezuela: Opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez has said he trusts the country’s military to respect the result of Sunday’s upcoming presidential election as he and incumbent Nicolas Maduro held their final campaign rallies.
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Venezuela: Venezuelan’s living in other countries in South America and Europe report struggling to register to vote in Sunday’s upcoming presidential election. While almost half the 8 million Venezuelans who have emigrated are eligible to vote, only 68,000 are currently registered to do so.
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Asia/Oceania

Bangladesh: Bangladesh authorities say they forgot to remove UN livery from armoured vehicles before their army used them to contain violent protests which spread across the country last week, killing 150 people. The UN says it has sought a response from authorities after vehicles with UN branding were videoed operating in the capital Dhaka last week.
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China: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has expressed concern over his country’s relations with Japan, saying they are at a “critical stage of retreat if they do not advance”. One significant point of contention is Japan’s alignment with the US on semiconductor export restrictions, which has angered Beijing.
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North Korea: South Korea’s central bank estimates the North’s economy grew by 3.1% in real terms in 2023 after shrinking for three years in a row. The rise has been put down to a relaxation of border controls with China following the subsidence of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Philippines: The US Defense Department has admitted it spread propaganda in the Philippines aimed at denigrating China’s Sinovac vaccine during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Pentagon said the propaganda questioned the safety of the vaccine, and conceded it had made some “missteps” in its messaging.
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Europe

Belarus: President Aleksandr Lukashenko has promised to expand his country’s cooperation with Pyongyang in a message to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. His statement came in response to a North Korean message of congratulations on the National Day of Belarus.
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France: The French rail service has suffered a series of coordinated sabotage attacks across its high-speed network, hours before the opening ceremony of the Olympics. Nobody has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks, which have left thousands of passengers delayed.
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Hungary: Hungary has accused Ukraine of blackmail after it placed Russian group Lukoil on a sanctions list, preventing it from delivering oil to both Hungary and neighbour Slovenia. Hungary has asked the European Commission to order Ukraine to allow deliveries to resume.
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Poland: The Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, Michael O’Flahrety, has voiced his concern over Poland’s response to the migration crisis on its border with Belarus. O’Flahrety warned that Poland’s policy of sending migrants back across the border to Belarus may violate international law.
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UK: Foreign Secretary David Lammy has urged China to prohibit its businesses from supporting Russia’s armed forces in their illegal invasion of Ukraine during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. The two were speaking on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers event in Laos.
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Middle East

Gaza: Israel is demanding changes to a plan which would see a truce declared and hostages released, complicating negotiations over a deal which aims to end nine months of combat in the strip.
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Iran: Tanker tracking firms report embargoed Iranian crude has found a new market in the northeast Chinese port and refining city of Dalian, which has been importing the oil since late last year. Dalian’s purchases have helped sustain China’s purchases of Iranian oil at near record levels.
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Israel: The UK has dropped its opposition to the issuing of an international arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The move increases the likelihood the International Criminal Court will approve chief prosecutor Karim Khan’s request for one to be issued against him.
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Syria: Italy has appointed an ambassador to Syria in an attempt to “turn a spotlight” on the rights abuses in the country according to Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. Stefano Ravagnan is due to take up his new post shortly.
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