Russian forces are expanding their attacks on Ukrainian border settlements close to the northeastern city of Kharkiv, opening up a new front in the war. With U.S. and European weapons finally due to arrive on the front lines in the coming weeks following delays, can Ukraine hold back Moscow’s invading troops? Henry Ridgwell has more
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Month: May 2024
South Africa urges UN’s top court to order cease-fire in Gaza
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — South Africa urged the United Nations’ top court on Thursday to order a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip during hearings over emergency measures to halt Israel’s military operation in the enclave’s southern city of Rafah.
It was the third time the International Court of Justice held hearings on the conflict in Gaza since South Africa filed proceedings in December at the court, based in The Hague in the Netherlands, accusing Israel of genocide.
The country’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Vusimuzi Madonsela, urged the panel of 15 international judges to order Israel to “totally and unconditionally withdraw” from Gaza.
The court has already found that there is a “real and imminent risk” to the Palestinian people in Gaza by Israel’s military operations. “This may well be the last chance for the court to act,” said Irish lawyer Blinne Ni Ghralaigh, who is part of South Africa’s legal team.
Judges at the court have broad powers to order a cease-fire and other measures, although the court does not have its own enforcement apparatus. A 2022 order by the court demanding that Russia halt its full-scale invasion of Ukraine has so far gone unheeded.
During hearings earlier this year, Israel strongly denied committing genocide in Gaza, saying it does all it can to spare civilians and only targets Hamas militants. The country says Rafah is the last stronghold of the militant group.
The latest request focuses on the incursion into Rafah.
South Africa argues that the military operation has far surpassed justified self-defense. “Israel’s actions in Rafah are part of the end game. This is the last step in the destruction of Gaza,” lawyer Vaughan Lowe said.
According to the latest request, the previous preliminary orders by the court were not sufficient to address “a brutal military attack on the sole remaining refuge for the people of Gaza.” Israel will be allowed to answer the accusations Friday.
In January, judges ordered Israel to do all it can to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in Gaza, but the panel stopped short of ordering an end to the military offensive that has laid waste to the Palestinian enclave.
In a second order in March, the court said Israel must take measures to improve the humanitarian situation.
South Africa has to date submitted four requests for the international court to investigate Israel. It was granted a hearing three times.
Most of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million people have been displaced since the fighting began.
The war began with a Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7 in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages. Gaza’s Health Ministry says over 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, without distinguishing between civilians and combatants in its count.
South Africa initiated proceedings in December 2023 and sees the legal campaign as rooted in issues central to its identity. Its governing party, the African National Congress, has long compared Israel’s policies in Gaza and the occupied West Bank to its own history under the apartheid regime of white minority rule, which restricted most Blacks to “homelands.” Apartheid ended in 1994.
On Sunday, Egypt announced it plans to join the case. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Israeli military actions “constitute a flagrant violation of international law, humanitarian law and the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 regarding the protection of civilians during wartime.”
Several other countries have indicated they plan to intervene, but so far only Libya, Nicaragua and Colombia have filed formal requests to do so.
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China’s plan to float nuclear reactors in South China Sea seen as risky
WASHINGTON AND TAIPEI, TAIWAN — The U.S. military has warned that China is moving forward with development of floating nuclear reactors in the South China Sea to bolster its claim to disputed maritime territory. Analysts say the plan to build ships with mobile nuclear power sources would raise tensions with its neighbors and pose risks to the environment.
Chinese media reports described the marine nuclear power platforms as small plants inside ships that would act as mobile “power banks” at sea for stationary facilities and other ships. Beijing had suspended the project a year ago over safety and effectiveness concerns, reported the South China Morning Post.
But the outgoing commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and State Department officials this month said China is still building the floating reactors to supply power to disputed islands, the Washington Post reported.
Although U.S. officials told the Post the deployment of such reactors would take several years, Admiral John Aquilino said their development would undermine regional security and stability.
The Philippines last week echoed those concerns.
Philippines National Security Council Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya said China would use its floating reactors to power military bases it has built on artificial islands, including those within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. He told local media that China’s nuclear plants would further militarize disputed areas of the South China Sea.
“Anything that supports their military presence in those islands is technically a threat to our national security and against our interests,” he said, adding that Australia and the U.S. would be among Manila’s allies conducting joint patrols in the South China Sea.
Beijing claims control over almost the entire South China Sea, putting it in dispute with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. China has already built artificial islands with airport runways to strengthen its claims.
Analysts say Beijing’s floating reactors would not only strengthen its military presence in the area but also give them an excuse to extend its reach through security actions.
Song Yanhui, director of the International Law Society of the Republic of China, Taiwan, told VOA the current military security zone for China’s artificial islands is a radius of 500 meters (1,640 feet), meaning other aircraft and ships that enter this radius can be legitimately expelled.
Song said that if China deploys a floating nuclear power plant in the South China Sea, it could use the excuse of protecting the environment from radioactive pollution to drive away ships from a larger area or to take defensive measures.
For Beijing, he said, “It kills two birds with one stone. It is a win-win strategy. It can strengthen its military presence, civilian use and claim to sovereignty.”
But the potential for radiation leaks is a real concern, say analysts.
Pankaj Jha, dean of research at the School of International Affairs of India’s Jindal Global University, told VOA China’s lack of experience in operating such floating reactors could spell disaster.
“It is a threat because it will contaminate water and also surrounding areas,” he said. “Any radiation leak would make the island uninhabitable and might also impact fishermen from the South China Sea.”
Analysts note in the event of conflict with China, the floating reactors could also become military targets.
China has deployed radars, anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles, and fighter jets, among other weapons, on the disputed territories of Mischief Reef, Subi Reef and Fiery Cross, the three largest artificial islands in the Spratly Islands.
Richard Fisher, senior fellow with the International Assessment and Strategy Center, told VOA floating nuclear power plants could also one day extend China’s weapons capabilities.
“If they were protected, these nuclear power plants could also potentially power future energy weapon devices,” Fisher said. “Laser weapons that could knock down missiles and aircraft or very powerful microwave weapons could also disable missiles and aircraft that would get within their range.”
Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, would not comment on the concerns expressed about China’s plans to move forward with the floating nuclear power plants.
“I am not aware of the particular case you have shared with us, thus could only reply in principle,” he told VOA in an emailed response May 14. “China’s position on the South China Sea issue is clear and consistent. We will stay committed to properly handling disputes through dialogue and consultation with countries concerned, and would like to work with ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nation] countries to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, advance the consultation on a code of conduct in the South China Sea and jointly safeguard peace and stability in the region.”
China is not the first country to look at building floating nuclear reactors.
The United States took the lead in proposing the concept as early as 1970 but due to safety concerns did not quickly pursue development.
Russia is the only country that has brought a floating nuclear power plant to fruition, with the Akademik Lomonosov plant producing electricity and heating since 2020 from a harbor in Pevek, a town in the Arctic Circle.
The International Atomic Energy Agency at a November forum in Vienna expressed concern about the development of floating nuclear reactors, particularly when they cross international borders or operate in international waters.
“The IAEA is working with our member states to determine what further guidance and standards might be needed to ensure the safety of floating nuclear power plants,” IAEA Deputy Director General Lydie Evrard said in a press release.
The IAEA noted Canada, China, Denmark, South Korea, Russia and the U.S. are each working on marine-based “small modular reactor designs.”
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Putin shakeup points to Russian preparations for long, costly war
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s naming of an economist as his new defense chief is a sign he is preparing for his costly war in Ukraine to go even longer, analysts say. Elizabeth Cherneff narrates this report from Ricardo Marquina.
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Ghana’s civil society groups join anti-corruption fight
A 2023 Transparency International report found that most African nations have shown little progress in the fight against government corruption. Civil society groups in Ghana, however, are taking up the challenge to expose corruption and push for action. Isaac Kaledzi has more from the capital, Accra.
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Chad’s constitutional council to finalize election results despite petitions for annulment
YAOUNDE, CAMEROON — Chad’s constitutional council was expected on Thursday to declare final results of the May 6 presidential election and name transitional president General Mahamat Idriss Deby as the winner. This despite calls for annulment of the polls due to what the opposition says was massive fraud. Analysts say uncertainty lies ahead as tensions remain high.
Residents of N’djamena, say that since Wednesday night, there has been a massive deployment of troops on streets and what they call the capital city’s strategic locations and neighborhoods considered to be opposition strongholds.
Twenty-four-year-old Abdoul Koulemann is a student at the University of N’djamena. He spoke with VOA on Thursday morning via a messaging app.
Koulemann says business has been at a standstill in N’djamena since Chad’s constitutional council announced on Wednesday night that results of the central Africa states May 6 presidential elections are to be proclaimed on Thursday.
Koulemann says the presence of heavily armed troops deployed by Chad’s military government all over N’djamena scares civilians. He says streets are empty because civilians have decided to remain in their houses as tension is perceived in the city.
Last week, Chad’s Elections Management Body, or ANGE, announced that Mahamat Deby had won the May 6 election with 61 percent of votes.
Monday, several opposition candidates filed petitions with the constitutional council challenging the official results. They say there was massive electoral fraud, including the stuffing of ballot boxes and soldiers chasing opposition representatives from polling stations. Prime Minister Succes Masra, who finished second with 18 percent, says voters were intimidated and arrested.
Deby calls the allegations unfounded.
Deby earlier this week said he is now the president of all Chadians, including candidates who did not win the May 6 polls. He says he is now concentrating in respecting his electoral promises, especially bringing back peace to Chad.
Opposition and civil society groups say they are also surprised over the council’s announcement that it was ready to finalize the election results without ruling on the petitions.
Electoral laws give the council until May 21 to rule on the petitions, according to the opposition.
The council has already said that election-day incidents like fighting and the late arrival of ballot boxes to polling stations were not enough to influence the outcome of the vote.
Beral Mbaikoubou is spokesperson for an opposition party, the Movement of Chad Patriots for the Republic, or MPTR.
He says it is now evident that Chad may descend into violence and chaos after Thursday’s proclamation of definitive results by the constitutional council because Deby rigged elections by falsifying results sheets and intimidating civilians with his military. He says the results declared by ANGE and to be confirmed by Chad’s constitutional council were prepared by Deby, who wants to confiscate power.
Mbaikoubou said civilians should stay at home to avoid confrontations with the military, which he says was deployed by Deby to crack down on people protesting election results.
Deby took power in April 2021 as leader of a transitional government after his father, Idriss Deby Itno, who had ruled Chad for more than three decades, died fighting northern rebels.
Lydie Beassemda is the only female who contested the polls. Speaking on Chadian state TV Thursday, she said that by confiscating power, Deby is failing to show love for the country. She says Chad is becoming a Deby dynasty.
She says her Party for Integral Democracy and Independence wants military leaders to note that Deby is not Chad’s democratically elected president and civilians have so far decided not to violently protest against stolen victory because they want peace in the volatile nation. She says angry Chadians may react violently if government troops continue to provoke civilians whose victory is stolen.
The Economic Community of Central African states, or CEEAC says Chadians should avoid chaos by protesting peacefully if they feel cheated in the elections.
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White House blocks release of Biden’s special counsel interview audio
Washington — President Joe Biden has asserted executive privilege over audio of his interview with special counsel Robert Hur that’s at the center a Republican effort to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress, the Justice Department told lawmakers on Thursday.
It comes as the House Oversight and Accountability Committee and the Judiciary Committee are each expected to hold a hearing to recommend that the full House refer Garland to the Justice Department for the contempt charges over the department’s refusal to hand over the audio.
Garland advised Biden in a letter on Thursday that the audio falls within the scope of executive privilege. Garland told the Democratic president that the “committee’s needs are plainly insufficient to outweigh the deleterious effects that the production of the recordings would have on the integrity and effectiveness of similar law enforcement investigations in the future.”
Assistant Attorney General Carlos Felipe Uriarte urged lawmakers not to proceed with the contempt effort to avoid “unnecessary and unwarranted conflict.”
“It is the longstanding position of the executive branch held by administrations of both parties that an official who asserts the president’s claim of executive privilege cannot be held in contempt of Congress,” Uriarte wrote.
White House Counsel Ed Siskel wrote in a separate, scathing letter to Congress on Thursday that lawmakers’ effort to obtain the recording was absent any legitimate purpose and lays bare their likely goal — “to chop them up, distort them, and use them for partisan political purposes.”
The White House memo is a tacit admission that there are moments from the interview it fears portray Biden in a negative light in an election year — and that could be exacerbated by the release, or selective release, of the audio.
The transcript of the Hur interview showed Biden struggling to recall some dates and occasionally confusing some details — something longtime aides says he’s done for years in both public and private — but otherwise showing deep recall in other areas. Biden and his aides are particularly sensitive to questions about his age. At 81, he’s the oldest ever president, and he’s seeking another four year term.
Hur found some evidence that Biden had willfully retained classified information and disclosed it to a ghostwriter but concluded that it was insufficient for criminal charges.
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TSMC says no damage to its Arizona facilities after incident
TAIPAI, TAIWAN — Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC said Thursday there was no damage to its facilities after an incident at its Arizona factory construction site where
a waste disposal truck driver was transported to a hospital.
Firefighters responded to a reported explosion Wednesday afternoon at the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company plant in Phoenix, the Arizona Republic reported, citing the local fire department.
TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker whose clients include Apple and Nvidia, said in a statement none of its employees or onsite construction workers had reported any related injuries.
“This is an active investigation with no additional details that can be shared at this time,” it added.
TSMC’s Taipei-listed shares pared earlier gains after the news and were last up around 0.8% on Thursday morning. TSMC last month agreed to expand its planned investment by $25 billion to $65 billion and to add a third Arizona plant by 2030.
The company will produce the world’s most advanced 2 nanometer technology at its second Arizona facility expected to begin production in 2028.
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Take a stroll through the US president’s backyard
General public gets to visit White House grounds in spring and fall
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WFP warns window is closing to prevent famine in war-torn Sudan
United Nations — The World Food Program warned Wednesday that the threat of famine is growing for 5 million Sudanese in parts of the country affected by war.
“Commitments made by all parties to facilitate humanitarian access urgently need to be translated into realities on the ground,” Carl Skau, WFP’s deputy executive director, said in a statement.
Skau just returned from a mission to Sudan this week. He said the situation is “desperate and quickly deteriorating.”
“Only a few weeks remain to stock up food supplies in parts of Darfur and Kordofan before the rainy season starts and many roads become impassable,” he said. “Farmers also need to safely reach their farmlands to plant ahead of the rains.”
The rainy season in Sudan is from June through July.
In spite of fighting, border closures, checkpoints and other challenges, WFP says it is currently reaching some 2.5 million Sudanese with assistance.
Sudan was thrown into war 13 months ago, when fighting broke out in the capital, Khartoum, between the leaders of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The two generals were once allies in Sudan’s transitional government after a 2021 coup but have become rivals for power.
The fighting has since spread to other parts of the country, forcing almost 9 million people from their homes in search of safety. Two million of them have fled Sudan to neighboring countries. Of those who remain, 25 million need humanitarian assistance.
WFP says at least 5 million Sudanese are on the brink of starvation, but the number could be significantly higher, as the most recent data is from December.
The food agency has identified 41 hunger “hot spots” that are at high risk of slipping into famine in the coming month — most of them in hard-to-reach conflict-affected areas, including the Darfur and Kordofan regions and Khartoum.
Escalation in North Darfur
The United Nations has been raising the alarm on the situation in North Darfur for weeks. The RSF has reportedly started in recent days to move in on SAF forces inside El Fasher, the regional capital, endangering more than 800,000 civilians in the city.
On Monday, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the parties to immediately stop the fighting and resume cease-fire negotiations.
El Fasher is the only city in Darfur that the RSF has not captured. A full-scale battle there could unleash atrocities similar to those of the genocide carried out by Arab Janjaweed fighters against African Zaghawa, Masalit, Fur and other non-Arab ethnic groups in Darfur in the early 2000s. Janjaweed fighters make up today’s RSF.
The United Nations estimates 330,000 people are facing crisis levels of food insecurity in El Fasher due to a shortage of food items and soaring prices.
Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator for Sudan, said the weekend clashes in El Fasher reportedly caused dozens of civilian casualties and more displacement, with many residents seeking safety in the southern part of the city. She said aid cannot get through.
“More than a dozen trucks carrying health, nutrition and other critical supplies for more than 120,000 people have been trying to reach the city for weeks,” she told reporters at the United Nations on Wednesday. “They set out from Port Sudan on the 3rd of April — and still can’t reach El Fasher due to insecurity and delays in getting clearances at checkpoints.”
Doctors Without Borders, or Médecins Sans Frontières, supports a hospital in El Fasher that is overwhelmed and running low on supplies.
“Until now, North Darfur had been a relatively safe haven compared to other parts of Darfur,” Dr. Prince Djuma Safari, deputy medical coordinator in El Fasher for MSF, said in a statement. “Now, there are snipers in the streets, heavy shelling is taking place, and nowhere in the city is safe at all.”
He said more than 450 casualties, including women and children, had arrived at the MSF-supported South Hospital in El Fasher since fighting began on Friday. He said 56 of the patients had died and 40 more are still waiting for surgery.
your ad hereIndia gets new ambassador from China, but mistrust lingers
New Delhi — China’s appointment late last week of a new ambassador to India fills a seat that Beijing left vacant for 18 months. It’s a small step for two big Asian rivals but one that is unlikely to resolve mistrust between the two countries, analysts say.
Arriving in New Delhi last Friday, Xu Feihong, 60, replaces Sun Weidong, who stepped down in late 2022. VOA reached out to the Chinese Embassy and China’s foreign ministry on the new posting and the long delay but did not receive a response to a request for comment.
In a post on X after his arrival, Xu said he was looking forward to “working hard with all for #China-#India relations.” The new ambassador has been busy on the social media platform highlighting the potential of ties, updating with a post and photo Wednesday of him handing over his letter of credence to India’s foreign ministry.
Xu has served as China’s ambassador to Afghanistan from March 2011 to August 2013 and as Beijing’s top envoy in Romania.
In one recent post on X, the new ambassador noted that the leaders of both China and India have agreed on an important assessment that both are “cooperation partners, not competitors,” and that the two are “each other’s development opportunities, not threats.”
Earlier this week, the India-based research group Global Trade Research Initiative said that according to data for the fiscal year of 2024, China narrowly surpassed the U.S. as India’s largest trading partner after a decline over the past two years. Prior to that, China was India’s largest trading partner from 2008 to 2021.
However, some Indian analysts see relations as strained and tense, particularly following a deadly 2020 border clash that saw Beijing take control of disputed territory.
“There is a desire for improved relations on both sides,” said Lt. Gen. SL Narasimhan, a New Delhi-based China expert and former Beijing-based military attaché. “But at the same time, not much should be read into the appointment of a new envoy. There is a serious trust issue between two countries after the Galwan Valley conflict in June 2020.”
“But for India, peace and tranquility along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) are central to this relationship,” said Narasimhan.
Some, like Associate Professor of China Studies Sriparna Pathak, say that leaving the position open for so long was a sign of disrespect from Beijing.
“Considering the state of India-China relations … China not sending the ambassador to India [for such a long period of time] clearly indicates that it … looks down upon India, and that has been made obvious an ample number of times,” said Pathak, referring to Beijing’s rejection of New Delhi’s request to pull troops back to positions that preceded the deadly 2020 border clashes in Galwan, a disputed region of the Himalaya’s.
Pathak, of New Delhi’s Jindal Global University, also said New Delhi took offense to Beijing’s decision to name People’s Liberation Army Commander Qi Fabao a torchbearer in the 2022 Winter Olympics torch relay. Qi was widely known for his involvement in a 2020 border clash that killed two Chinese troops and at least 20 Indians.
India responded by joining Britain, Canada and the U.S. in a diplomatic boycott of the games, which several Western nations launched in response to China’s treatment of ethnic Uyghurs in the remote western region of Xinjiang.
In 2022, the two militaries clashed at least two more times, though no casualties were reported. Tens of thousands of troops remain massed on both sides.
Beijing and New Delhi have so far held 21 rounds of military talks and 29 rounds of diplomatic negotiations to address the standoff.
Following a round of talks in March, India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar told India’s NDTV that his “first duty to Indians is to secure the border. I can never compromise on that.”
He also went on to say that a normal relationship cannot be envisaged between India and China until China moves back to its pre-2020 position on its borders.
In a May 7 interview granted to Indian and Chinese media, Ambassador Xu said relations between the two countries should not be defined by any single issue or area.
“The overall border situation is stable and under control, and border areas are peaceful and tranquil,” he said. “China is ready to work with India to accommodate each other’s concerns, find a mutually acceptable solution to specific issues through dialogue at an early date, and turn the page as soon as possible.”
The last time the role of China’s top diplomat to India remained empty for more than a year was from 1962 to 1976 and was also linked to a border conflict. The 1962 Sino-Indian War was fueled by border skirmishes and the 1959 Tibetan uprising against rule by communist China, which saw the Dalai Lama flee to India.
The fact that India has continued to give refuge to the Tibetan spiritual leader has been a thorn in relations between New Delhi and Beijing, which exercises strict control over Tibet and its leaders.
The 1962 war saw Chinese troops attack and take over disputed territory in the Aksai Chin region along the two countries’ borders. The fighting resulted in thousands of Indian soldiers, and hundreds of Chinese troops, being killed or captured.
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US, Niger delegation meet to discuss US forces withdrawal
Pentagon — After nearly a two-week delay, U.S. and Nigerien officials are holding high-level follow-on meetings to coordinate the withdrawal of American troops from the country.
Christopher Maier, assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, and Lieutenant General Dagvin Anderson, joint staff director for joint force development, are meeting Wednesday and Thursday in Niamey with members of Niger’s new government, known as the National Council for Safeguarding the Homeland, or CNSP, two U.S. officials told VOA.
The CNSP posted on the social platform X Wednesday that Maier and Anderson met Wednesday with Lieutenant General Salifou Mody, one of the military coup members who was named minister of national defense.
The CNSP noted that the meeting comes two months after Niger denounced its military basing agreements with the United States and aims to “ensure that this withdrawal takes place in the best possible conditions, guaranteeing order, security and compliance with set deadlines.”
There are about 900 U.S. military personnel in Niger, including active duty, civilians and contractors, according to the U.S. officials, who spoke to VOA on condition of anonymity ahead of the conclusion of the talks. Most of the U.S. military personnel have stayed in the country past their deployment’s planned end dates, as details for their withdrawal are ironed out.
“We’re still in a bit of a holding pattern,” Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said last week.
Counterterrorism in ‘disarray’
The U.S. has had two military bases — Air Base 101 in Niamey and Air Base 201 in Agadez —to monitor terror groups in the region. Officials say most U.S. forces are based in the latter, which cost the U.S. $110 million to build, and began drone operations in 2019.
Niger’s natural resources have increased its importance to global powers, and Niger’s location had provided the U.S. with the ability to conduct counterterror operations throughout much of West Africa.
“We’re in a different position now, and we’re going to continue to consult with the Nigeriens in terms of the orderly withdrawal of U.S. forces. We’re going to continue to stay engaged with the partners in the region when it comes to terrorism and countering the terrorist threat,” Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder told reporters on Tuesday.
Countries in the region, including Niger, Mali, Nigeria and Burkina Faso, have seen an expansive rise in jihadist movements.
According to the Global Terrorism Index, an annual report covering terrorist incidents worldwide, more than half of the deaths caused by terrorism last year were in the Sahel.
Niger’s neighbor, Burkina Faso, suffered the worst, with 1,907 fatalities from terrorism in 2023.
“These are some of the most dangerous areas in the world,” Bill Roggio, editor of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Long War Journal, told VOA. “These countries are in dire threat of being overrun by jihadist groups.”
Now, Niger’s coup has put the West’s ability to monitor terrorists like the Islamic State and al-Qaida in the Sahel in “complete disarray,” according to Roggio.
The United States’ intelligence-gathering capacity was limited before, “but we’re approaching the point where intelligence-gathering is practically at zero,” he said.
A U.S. defense official told VOA that “basically every flight,” even intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance drone flights, must be approved by the junta.
“The beginning of April is when things started getting slower,” the official told VOA. The junta began delaying and canceling the types of U.S. military flights that had been quickly approved before then.
Carla Martinez Machain, a political science professor at the University of Buffalo, believes the Pentagon will try to negotiate with Chad for a more significant American troop presence, as the U.S. struggles to find allies in what she called the “coup belt” — a reference to the recent coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
However, most U.S. forces have temporarily left from Chad for Germany in recent weeks, a move the Pentagon called a “temporary step” as part of an ongoing review of its security cooperation with Chad, which would resume after the country’s May 6 presidential election.
Only a small group of service members remain in Chad as part of a multinational task force, officials tell VOA.
“Niger was somewhat of a rarity in the sense that it had one of the few democratically elected governments in the region, and also a democratically elected government that was friendly to the U.S. and willing to host a U.S. military presence,” Martinez Machain told VOA. “And so, finding a replacement for that for a military base is going to be somewhat difficult.”
Unless the U.S. can find another base to use in West Africa, counterterror drones will likely have to spend most of their fuel supply flying thousands of kilometers from U.S. bases in Italy or Djibouti, severely limiting their time over the targets and their ability to gather intelligence.
“The beauty of having drones based in Niger was that they were in the thick of the fight. They were in the middle of where jihadist groups are operating. So, once you launch the drones, they’re in the midst of it, and all of the flight time being used can be used to gather information,” Roggio said.
Resupply concerns
Amid the negotiations and flight cancellations, U.S. troops in Niger began raising concerns about their supply chain. Service members in Niamey told the office of Representative Matt Gaetz that blood for the blood bank, hygiene supplies, malaria pills and other medications were running low.
A U.S. defense official acknowledged to VOA that “they were concerned about medication levels.” The official also said that troops in Niamey had gone through April without a resupply flight but had received food and water supplies through ground-based transportation.
A flight with medical supplies finally went from Agadez to Niamey last week, the defense official told VOA.
Coup forced withdrawal
Tensions between the U.S. and Niger began in 2023 when Niger’s military junta removed the democratically elected president from power.
After months of delay, the Biden administration formally declared in October that the military takeover in Niger was a coup, a determination that prevented Niger from receiving a significant amount of U.S. military and foreign assistance.
In March, after tense meetings between U.S. representatives and the CNSP, the junta called the U.S. military presence “illegal” and announced it was ending an agreement that allowed American forces to be based in the country.
During that meeting, the U.S. and Niger fundamentally disagreed about Niger’s desire to supply Iran with uranium and work more closely with Russian military forces.
“They [Niger] saw this as kind of an imperialistic move, and this was seen negatively and was part of the reason why the U.S. was told to leave the country,” Martinez Machain said.
Russia has made significant military inroads across the African continent, Martinez Machain added, because human rights violators are able to obtain military training, assistance and defense systems “without the conditions that the U.S. would attach them.”
“Especially for nondemocratic countries, this can seem very appealing,” she said.
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Nigerian officials probe plan to marry off scores of female orphans
Abuja, Nigeria — Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Women Affairs says it is investigating a plan by a lawmaker in central Niger state to marry off some 100 female orphans of unknown ages later this month.
Speaker of the Niger State Assembly Abdulmalik Sarkin-Daji announced the mass wedding last week but called off the ceremony following widespread outrage.
Minister of Women Affairs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, speaking to journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, condemned the plans.
Kennedy-Ohanenye said she had petitioned the police and filed a lawsuit to stop the marriages pending an investigation to ascertain the age of the orphans and whether they consented to the marriages.
“This is totally unacceptable by the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and by the government” of Nigeria, she said.
Last week, Sarkin-Daji announced his support for the mass wedding of the orphans, whose relatives were killed during attacks by armed bandits. He said it was part of his support to his constituents following an appeal for wedding funding by local traditional and religious leaders.
The mass wedding had been scheduled for May 24.
“That support I intend to give for the marriage of those orphans, I’m withdrawing it,” he said. “The parents can have the support [money], if they wish, let them go ahead and marry them off. As it is right now, I’m not threatened by the action of the minister.”
Despite national laws prohibiting it, forced or arranged marriage is a common phenomenon in Nigeria, especially among rural communities in the predominantly Muslim north, where religious and cultural norms such as polygamy favor the practice.
Poor families often use forced marriage to ease financial pressure, and the European Union Agency for Asylum says girls who refuse could face repercussions such as neglect, ostracism, physical assault and rape.
Raquel Kasham Daniel escaped being married off as a teenager when her father died and now runs a nonprofit helping children, especially less-privileged girls, get a formal education for free.
She said the ability of women to avoid forced marriage in Nigeria depends on their income and education.
“I was 16 when I lost my dad and I was almost married off, but then I ran away from home. And that gave me the opportunity to complete my education, and now I have a better life,” Daniel said.
“So, the reason why I prioritize education is to make sure that other girls have access to quality schooling so that it will help them make informed decisions about their lives. Education not only increases our awareness as girls about our rights but also enhances our prospects for higher income earning,” she said.
Thirty percent of girls in Nigeria are married before they turn 18, according to Girls Not Brides, a global network of more than 1,400 civil society groups working to end child marriage.
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US commanders in Poland see Russian threat as ‘near-term’
As Russia ramps up its offensive in eastern Ukraine, officials with the U.S. command in Eastern Europe say it’s urgent for NATO to be ready for a possible confrontation. VOA’s Eastern Europe bureau chief Myroslava Gongadze talked to the U.S. and Polish commanders during a U.S. Army transfer of authority ceremony in Boleslawiec, Poland. VOA footage and video editing by Daniil Batushchak.
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New study exposes gender bias in African family laws
Blantyre, Malawi — A new report finds that gaps in family laws in most African countries are fueling discrimination of women and girls. The report from the international NGO Equality Now says laws that favor men in matters of sex, marriage and inheritance, among other issues, leave many women in despair.
The study, released to coincide with the United Nations-declared International Day of the Family on Wednesday, highlights how legal frameworks and customary practices in 20 African countries have fueled discrimination in marriage, divorce, custody and property rights.
Esther Waweru is a senior legal adviser at Equality Now and co-author of the report.
She spoke with VOA from Kenya on how gaps in family laws have affected the lives of women in Africa.
“Take a case of Sudan for instance, where women cannot initiate divorce, unlike men. So, it therefore means that the woman will be trapped in a marriage that they don’t want to live [in], just because they can’t initiate a divorce,” she said.
Waweru said in some countries where women initiate a divorce, they are not allowed to take custody of the children from a previous marriage when they remarry.
In Malawi, the report notes that courts have ruled rape does not extend to marriage. It says customary law in Malawi presumes perpetual consent to sex within marriage and that a wife can deny her husband sex only when she is sick or legally separated.
While in Tanzania, the report says marital rape is only criminalized upon separation.
It also says customary and religious laws in countries like Algeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Nigeria undermine women and girls in matters of inheritance, as they receive less than men and boys.
Hala Alkarib is the executive director for Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa.
She told VOA from Ethiopia that the legal imbalance in many African countries leaves women feeling helpless.
“Imagine that you are not treated equally and discriminated against. It automatically goes without saying you are typically poor. You are exposed to violence systematically. You are dehumanized and undermined. You don’t have equal access to opportunities. You are subjected to different forms of sexual violence, and your dignity is compromised,” said Alkarib.
Francis Selasini is the executive director for Network Against Female Genital Mutilation in Tanzania. He said communities also play a role in undermining or sidestepping laws meant to protect women.
He cited issues of genital mutilation in northern parts of Tanzania, where he said communities have changed tactics to protect their traditional norms.
“For example, initially they were mutilating girls from 10 and above, for the reason of preparing her for marriage. But nowadays, they are mutilating even babies. They are doing so because they would like to defeat the legal process. Because they know if they mutilate babies, babies will not be able to take them to court. They will not be able to report,” he said.
Waweru of Equality Now says although many countries have ratified key international treaties that protect women’s rights, existing domestic laws make implementation and enforcement of these treaties difficult.
She calls upon African states to fully align their family laws and their practices with international human rights standards.
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