Death Toll in Libya Flooding Rises to Over Five Thousand As Global Aid Arrives |
More than 5,300 people have been reported dead and thousands more remain missing after floodwaters swept through the port city of Derna on Sunday, an official from the administration that runs eastern Libya told Reuters. Dams near the city burst after heavy rains that scientists say appear to have been exacerbated by climate change (AP). While the United States and some European and Middle Eastern countries have pledged relief (BBC), aid convoys have struggled to reach the city due to destroyed roads and Libya’s divided political status.
Infrastructure around the city was poorly maintained after years of conflict, Libya’s Al-Wasat news site reported, and the country is not properly equipped to respond to such a disaster. Tens of thousands of people have been made homeless by the flooding, the eastern Libyan official said. |
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“Years of war and lack of a central government have left [Libya] with crumbling infrastructure that was vulnerable to the intense rains. Libya is currently the only country yet to develop a climate strategy, according to the United Nations,” the Associated Press’s Jack Jeffery writes.
"You have people who are pledging help but the help is not coming," Libyan journalist Abdulkader Assad tells the BBC. "There are no rescue teams, there are no trained rescuers in Libya. Everything over the last 12 years was about war."
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North Korea’s Kim Pledges Support for Russia’s ‘Sacred Fight’ in Meeting With Putin |
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said he supports "all decisions" (Yonhap) made by Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow’s fight against the West during a summit at a Russian space center today. The Kremlin said the leaders would discuss sensitive issues in the talks that would not be made public; analysts have warned Kim could provide Putin with ammunition for its war in Ukraine.
This In Brief by CFR expert Scott A. Snyder details the perils of a renewed North Korea-Russia relationship.
China/Taiwan: China announced a plan (CNN) yesterday to deepen economic links between its coastal province of Fujian and Taiwan. The announcement came as Taiwanese authorities reported Chinese warships in the waters near the island.
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Seven Indian Villages Declared ‘Containment Zones’ After Nipah Virus Deaths |
Two people have died from the virus (India Today) in India’s southern Kerala state. Travel will be restricted to containment areas while testing is conducted and masking is required. Some schools and offices in the area were closed.
Sri Lanka: The Catholic Church and families of the victims of the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings have called for a foreign investigation (Nikkei) into the attacks, saying the government committees probing them lack independence. A documentary that aired this month included allegations that members of Sri Lanka’s security forces were connected to the bombings.
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Middle East and North Africa |
Hamas Official Travels to Lebanese Refugee Camp in Effort to Stem Violence |
Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzouk, a top leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, arrived in Beirut (AP) yesterday and traveled to the country’s largest Palestinian refugee camp after a cease-fire between rival factions in the camp quickly collapsed on Monday. Hundreds of displaced families have fled the camp amid the clashes. |
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France Calls on Niger Junta to Release Detained French Official |
Niger’s military junta arrested an official (Le Monde, AP) serving French citizens abroad, France’s foreign ministry said yesterday. France has kept its ambassador to Niger in his post, refusing to acknowledge the junta’s order for him to leave. South Africa: Despite rapidly burning through its diesel-powered units to generate backup electricity during peak demand, electricity outages across South Africa are at unprecedented levels, Bloomberg reported.
This In Brief by CFR’s Mariel Ferragamo looks at whether South Africa’s power crisis could sink its clean energy goals.
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Von der Leyen Announces Anti-Subsidy Probe Into Chinese EVs, Calls for EU Expansion |
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Guatemalan President-elect Pauses Participation in Transition Amid Electoral Facility Raids |
The top prosecutor’s office raided the premises (Reuters) of the country’s electoral court yesterday in what president-elect Bernardo Arévalo de Léon called an “abuse of authority for electoral purposes.” The Organization of American States said the raids violated Guatemalan electoral law.
China/Venezuela: The two countries are elevating their relations (AP) to a rare “all-weather” partnership, Chinese state media reported. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is currently on his fifth state visit to Beijing, which has contributed tens of billions of dollars in loans, grants, and investment to Venezuela’s economy.
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House Speaker Orders Impeachment Probe Against Biden |
U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said investigations revealed (AP) a “culture of corruption” in the family of President Joe Biden that called for deeper review. Some far-right lawmakers pressured McCarthy (NYT) to open the probe, while other House Republicans opposed it, citing a lack of evidence. Unlike past U.S. presidential impeachment probes, McCarthy did not immediately say he would hold a vote on opening the inquiry.
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IEA Chief Says Demand for Coal, Oil, and Natural Gas Will Peak This Decade |
International Energy Agency (IEA) Director Fatih Birol said in a statement that the agency projects peak global demand for all three major fossil fuels will come this decade (WSJ). This accelerates a previous IEA projection due to the rapid rollout of renewable energy. Demand will vary considerably across world regions, Birol wrote in a separate article for the Financial Times.
CFR expert Benn Steil tracks the energy mix across the world.
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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