CEP Mentions
Ouest France: Germany: President Dissolves Parliament, Sets General Elections For February 23, 2025
“German Chancellor Olaf Scholz did not gain the confidence of the German parliament on Monday, December 16, 2024, and early elections will be held. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier officially dissolved parliament on Friday, December 27, and set the general election for February 23… Internal security was already polarizing the political debate, but it became central after the car-ramming attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg, in northeastern Germany, on Friday, December 20, 2024. Very quickly, far-right circles reacted "with very Islamophobic posts," Hans-Jakob Schindler, director of the Counter Extremism Project think tank, told Ouest-France.”
ABC News Australia: 'Unique' Radicalisation Of German Market Attacker
“Extremism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler says, while the perpetrator of the German Christmas market attack had been uniquely radicalised, they have been becoming more common since COVID-19.”
United States
The Times Of Israel: Report: Israeli, US Officials Say Low Odds Of A Hostage Deal Before Trump’s Return
“American and Israeli officials said Thursday that the chances of reaching a hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group before the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump on January 20 are low, the Walla news site reported. The comments came as Israel and the terror group traded blame for yet another failure to reach an agreement after a burst of renewed negotiations, more than 14 months since Hamas-led terrorists took 251 people hostage during its October 7, 2023 attack, of whom 96 — including 34 confirmed dead — remain in captivity in the Gaza Strip. It was not immediately clear what was expected to change with the US president-elect’s return to the White House, though Trump vowed at the start of this month that there would be “all hell to pay” for terror groups who continued to hold hostages upon his entry.”
Syria
BBC: Assad Loyalists Kill 14 In Clash With Syria's New Ruling Forces - Authorities
“Syria's new rebel-led authorities say supporters of ousted President Bashar al-Assad have killed 14 interior ministry troops in an "ambush" in the west of the country. They say 10 other troops were wounded in the fighting on Tuesday near the Mediterranean port of Tartous, a stronghold of Assad's minority Alawite Muslim sect. The clashes with pro-Assad loyalists are the first direct challenge to the authority of Syria's de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. Assad's presidency fell to rebel forces led by al-Sharaa's Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) faction just over two weeks ago. Security forces launched an operation in Tartous province on Thursday, according to state news agency Sana, in a bid to "restore security, stability and civil peace".”
Barron’s: Israel Says Struck 'Infrastructure' On Syria-Lebanon Border
“The Israeli military reported it conducted air strikes on Friday targeting "infrastructure" on the Syrian-Lebanese border near the village of Janta, which it said was used to smuggle weapons to the armed group Hezbollah. "Earlier today, the IAF (Israeli air force) struck infrastructure that was used to smuggle weapons via Syria to the Hezbollah terrorist organisation in Lebanon at the Janta crossing on the Syrian-Lebanese border," the military said in a statement. It did not specify whether the strikes were on the Syrian or Lebanese side, but they came a day after Lebanon's army accused Israel of "violation of the ceasefire agreement by attacking Lebanese sovereignty and destroying southern towns and villages". There is no official crossing point near Janta but the area is known for illegal crossings.”
Iran
Tehran Times: Iran Exports Non-Oil Goods Worth $1.5b To Pakistan In 8 Months
“Foroud Asgari said that Pakistan was Iran’s sixth top export destination in the mentioned eight-month period. On November 5, Iran's Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Mohammad Atabak said a free trade agreement with Pakistan has been finalized and the list of commodity items subject to the agreement will be prepared and released in two months. In a meeting between Head of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Samad Hassanzadeh and Pakistani Ambassador to Iran Muhammad Mudassir Tipu in Tehran in late June, the officials stressed the need for Iran and Pakistan to exercise barter trade and free trade to materialize a $10 billion trade target. During a meeting between Atabak and Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan in mid-October, the two sides discussed trade ties between the two countries, with both agreeing that economic exchanges should be promoted further.”
Iraq
Aljazeera: ‘Modern Slavery’: Trapped In Iraq, Nigerian Women Cry Out For Help
“Sometimes when the pain hits, Agnes* has to pause for several seconds to ride out the excruciating wave. It feels like someone has tied a rope to her insides and is pulling and twisting it, the 27-year-old Nigerian domestic worker says, making it hard to bend or stand up straight. Agnes’s ordeal started in March in the Iraqi city of Basra when her boss raped her at gunpoint. She fell pregnant, and the man then forced her to undergo a painful abortion. It was so difficult, Agnes said, that she could not sit for three days. Since then, the severe abdominal pains won’t go away, and there’s no one to take her to a hospital. “I just want to go home and treat myself, but I can’t do that,” Agnes said on a phone call from Basra, where she is holed up in a hostel belonging to the recruiting firm that hired her from Nigeria last year. “The man has refused to pay my salary. I don’t know if I am pregnant, but I have not seen my menstruation since then. I just want to go home and check myself and see what’s happening inside me,” she added, her voice breaking.”
Afghanistan
Amu TV: Report: 181 Cases Of Media Rights Violations Documented In Afghanistan In 2024
“The Afghanistan Journalists Center has reported 181 cases of media rights violations in the country over the past year, including the closure of 18 outlets due to new restrictions imposed by the Taliban and the detention of 50 journalists. In its annual report, the center noted an 8 percent increase in the suppression of media freedoms in 2024 compared to the previous year. The report describes an intensifying crackdown under the Taliban’s opaque media policies, highlighting an escalation in restrictions and censorship. The report underscores a growing divide within the Taliban administration over media governance. On one side, Taliban spokespeople and officials from the Ministry of Information and Culture have publicly expressed support for media operations under the framework of Afghanistan’s previous media laws, which nominally protected press freedoms.”
Pakistan
The Hill: Taliban Claims Pakistani Airstrikes Killed 46
“A Taliban government official said the airstrikes Pakistan launched on Afghanistan Tuesday killed 46 people, including women and children, according to The Associated Press. Hamdullah Fitrat, the deputy spokesperson for the Afghan government, said the strikes hit four locations in the district of Barmal.”
Amu TV: Clashes Erupt Between Taliban And Pakistani Border Forces In Paktia: Sources
“Intense clashes broke out late Thursday night between Taliban and Pakistani border troops in Dand-e-Patan district of Afghanistan’s Paktia province, local sources reported on Friday. The fighting, which reportedly began around 1 a.m. local time on Dec. 27, lasted for several hours, with both sides exchanging heavy fire, sources added. According to local sources, some rockets fired by Pakistani forces struck civilian homes. However, no detailed information on casualties or damage on either side has been released. The Taliban have yet to comment on the incident. The clash comes just three days after Pakistani airstrikes targeted the Barmal district of neighboring Paktika province. The Taliban claimed the strikes were aimed at Waziristani refugees and resulted in the deaths of 46 people, including women and children.”
Middle East
Reuters: Gaza Medics Say Israeli Strike Kills Five Journalists
““Gaza authorities said an Israeli airstrike killed five Palestinian journalists in a vehicle outside a hospital on Thursday but the Israeli army said the victims were Islamic Jihad militants posing as media workers. Medics said the five were among at least 31 people killed in Israeli air assaults across the Palestinian enclave before dawn as Hamas and Israel traded blame over delays in reaching a ceasefire deal after more than 14 months of fighting. The Palestinian Journalists Union said one strike killed five journalists from the Al-Quds Today channel who were in a broadcast vehicle in front of Al-Awda Hospital in the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. The union said more than 190 Palestinian journalists have been killed by Israeli fire since the war began in October 2023. The Gaza-based channel called the strike a massacre and said in a statement on Telegram the five "were killed as they carried out their media and humanitarian duty". It has regularly featured Islamic Jihad leaders and provided day-to-day coverage of the war in Gaza.”
DW: Israeli Strike Kills 5 Palestinian Journalists In Gaza
“Israel is defending its strike on a media broadcast van outside a hospital in central Gaza. The attack killed five Palestinian journalists with the local Al-Quds news outlet, which is affiliated with the Islamic Jihad militant group. The Israeli army says it targeted "Islamic Jihad operatives posing as journalists."”
The Times Of Israel: IDF Says It Hit Hezbollah Infrastructure Used To Transfer Arms In Strikes On Syria-Lebanon Border
“The IDF confirms launching airstrikes early this morning against what it says was infrastructure used by Hezbollah on the Syria-Lebanon border to transfer arms. According to the military, Israeli Air Force fighter jets hit sites at the Janta crossing, located in the Beqaa Valley of eastern Lebanon. “The Hezbollah terror organization uses civilian infrastructure to carry out terror activity and to transfer weapons, which are intended to be used to carry out terror attacks against Israeli citizens,” the military says.”
Nigeria
CNN: At Least 10 Killed After Nigerian Military Jet Targeting Bandits Bombs Civilians
“At least 10 people were killed and several wounded when a Nigerian military fighter jet pursuing bandits in two villages mistakenly bombed civilians in the northwestern state of Sokoto on Wednesday, the state governor Ahmed Aliyu said. “The military jets were on their mission to eliminate criminal armed groups terrorizing the state, and mistakenly bombed innocent people of this community,” Aliyu said in a statement. A crowd crush at a church in Nigeria's capital city Abuja led to the deaths of at least ten people, including four children. Aliyu added that the state will collaborate with other authorities to investigate the military operation that killed people in the villages of Gidan Sama and Rintuwa in the Surame local government area. The military late on Wednesday said it had struck targets in the vicinity of Gidan Sama and Rumtuwa identified as associated with the Lakurawa group, but did not provide any details on civilians affected.
Somalia
France 24: US Airstrike In Somalia Kills Two Al-Shabaab Members, Including Top Commander
“The US military said Thursday it had killed two members of the jihadist Al-Shabaab group in southern Somalia in an airstrike. The strike took place on Tuesday about 10 kilometers (six miles) southwest of the town of Quyno Barrow, south of Mogadishu, the United States Africa Command (US AFRICOM) said in a statement. The strike was conducted "in coordination" with Somalia's federal government, it said. "The command will continue to assess the results of the operation and provide additional information as appropriate," the statement said, providing no further details. The Somalian government issued a statement lauding a "meticulously planned operation" that was conducted alongside "international partners" in the same district. That statement said the operation "has successfully eliminated the terrorist ring leader Mohamed Mire Jama, also known as Abu Abdirahman, in the Kunyo-Barow district of Lower Shabelle province." Somalia is one of the poorest countries on the planet, enduring decades of civil war, a bloody insurgency by the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab, and frequent climate disasters.”
Africa
Associated Press: 6,000 Inmates Escape From A High-Security Prison As Post-Election Violence Roils Mozambique
“At least 6,000 inmates escaped from a high-security prison in Mozambique’s capital on Christmas Day after a rebellion, the country’s police chief said, as widespread post-election riots and violence are roiling the country. Police chief Bernardino Rafael said 33 prisoners died and 15 others were injured during a confrontation with the security forces. The prisoners fled during violent protests that have seen police cars, stations and infrastructure destroyed after the country’s Constitutional Council confirmed the ruling Frelimo party as the winner of the Oct. 9 elections. The escape from the Maputo Central Prison, located 14 kilometers (9 miles) southwest of the capital, started around midday on Wednesday after “agitation” by a “group of subversive protesters” nearby, Rafael said.”
Europe
World Cargo News: Owner Claims Russian Ship Sank Due To “Terrorist Act”
“A Russian cargo ship that sank in the Mediterranean on Monday was struck by three explosions in what has been described as “an act of terrorism,” the vessel’s owner claimed, according to the Russian state news agency RIA. The Ursa Major sank after an explosion damaged the engine room, leaving two of its 16 crew members missing, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday. Oboronlogistika, the ship’s owner and a company affiliated with Russia’s Defence Ministry, alleged that the incident was a deliberate “terrorist act”, Reuters reported. Survivors said that the explosions occurred on the ship’s starboard side, just before the vessel began to heel as water flooded its compartments.”
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