Our editors’ weekly take on humanitarian news, trends, and developments from around the globe.
On our radar
Two weeks into ceasefire, Gaza aid still enters at a trickle
Two weeks into a rocky ceasefire that was supposed to see aid surge into the Gaza Strip, humanitarian deliveries are still being held to a trickle by Israeli restrictions. The ceasefire deal that came into effect on 10 October called for 600 aid trucks per day to be allowed to enter Gaza. However, Israel has only been allowing an average of 94 per day into the enclave, and Israeli authorities are continuing to ban the entry of many essential items – from cooking pots to medical supplies and material for shelters – aid workers told a press briefing on 23 October. Since the ceasefire began, 17 international organisations have seen their aid shipments blocked entirely at the border by Israeli authorities. Dozens of NGOs signed a joint letter decrying what they said was the arbitrary rejection of aid shipments and a restrictive new registration policy that is making it harder for humanitarian groups to operate. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the UN’s top court, issued an advisory opinion on 22 October finding that Israel had violated international law by obstructing aid to Gaza over the past two years and ordered Israeli authorities to work with the UN to allow humanitarian supplies into the enclave. ICJ advisory opinions are non-binding, but they are considered the most authoritative interpretations of international law on a given topic and exert significant influence in the international system. While much attention is focused on whether the ceasefire will hold and what its next steps will bring, many humanitarian and human rights organisations are warning that future stability cannot be achieved without accountability for crimes that have been committed over the past two years.
Is US-led regime change in Venezuela coming?
The intensification of US military operations in the Caribbean – coupled with reports that senior Venezuelan officers secretly attempted to strike a deal with the Trump administration to remove President Nicolás Maduro – makes the prospect of regime change in Venezuela seem increasingly likely. If reports are to be believed, the palace coup scheme – brokered by Qatar – involved high-ranking figures close to Venezuela’s leader, including Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez. Even if the US did turn it down, as reports suggest, the plan is being seen as evidence that Maduro’s inner circle may prefer ousting him to further escalating tensions with the US. Since September, President Donald Trump has deployed about 10,000 US troops in the Caribbean as well as significant numbers of ships and aircraft, while carrying out a series of deadly strikes on boats allegedly smuggling drugs into the US. He has also authorised CIA operations in Venezuela and threatened to launch land attacks. The Trump administration claims the military build-up is part of US efforts to tackle drug cartels, but some observers say it's more likely to do with an attempt at regime change. Whether Maduro goes or not, the country is beset by challenges. Nearly eight million Venezuelans have fled the country since 2015, and any of them hoping to return in the short-term will find dire humanitarian conditions – from hunger to the collapse of the healthcare and education systems. For more on the current barriers to aid access in Venezuela, read this report.
The link between online speech and real-world harms
Online speech can fuel real-life violence – and reduce it as well, a new study finds. Researchers at the Peace Research Institute Oslo cross-checked posts on a social media network popular with Hindu nationalists in India with reports of attacks against religious minorities. Hateful posts were statistically linked to more violence against Muslims and Christians, the researchers found. At the same time, posts “alluding to the overcoming of religious divisions” were linked to fewer attacks. “Digital platforms do not merely reflect tensions – they can actively amplify or reduce them,” lead author Sebastian Schutte said. “Online speech must be part of any serious approach to conflict prevention.” It’s an issue many humanitarian organisations are watching closely. From Gaza to Myanmar and the Sahel, aid groups have long found themselves the subject of negative information, though proving the link between speech and real-world harms isn’t easy. INSO, the humanitarian safety organisation, says authorities in Burkina Faso have detained its staff under false spying allegations. The case has spiralled into “a catalyst for anti-NGO sentiment”, analyst group Insecurity Insight says, with death threats and calls for executions (they note any findings should be read with caution, and that a spike in hostile comments may show a “coordinated or deliberately amplified campaign”).
Deadly shipwrecks as EU migration policy faces legal scrutiny
More than 40 people drowned when a migrant boat sank off the coast of Tunisia on 23 October in one of the deadliest incidents in the Mediterranean Sea this year. The Tunisian Coast Guard rescued 30 survivors. The tragedy followed another shipwreck near the Italian island of Lampedusa on 17 October in which at least 20 people are thought to have drowned. Eleven people were rescued by the Italian Coast Guard and a nearby merchant boat. The UN’s refugee agency, UNHCR, has recorded over 1,000 deaths in the central Mediterranean Sea, between North Africa and Italy, so far this year. The EU has long sought to prevent migration across the Mediterranean by partnering with authorities in North African countries – an approach the EU continues to double down on despite serious concerns that it has given authoritarian governments a free pass while helping to facilitate human rights abuses against migrants and asylum seekers. A team of lawyers recently filed a request with the International Criminal Court for it to investigate 122 European leaders – including French President Emmanuel Macron and former German chancellor Angela Merkel – for crimes against humanity related to EU migration policy.
“Our revolution will not be hijacked”
Madagascar’s powerful Gen Z movement has put the new military-led administration on notice. “Our revolution will not be hijacked,” the activists warned in a Facebook post. “The Malagasy youth are watching and mobilising.” But an early disappointment has been the appointment this week of businessman Herintsalama Rajaonarivelo as prime minister by the interim president, Colonel Michael Randrianirina. Rajaonarivelo is said to have links with the previous government, overthrown by a popular coup on 17 October after weeks of street protests. Gen Z Mada said the decision ran “contrary to the desired structural change” and was made “without consultation”. Randrianirina has a difficult balancing act. He needs to satisfy the aspirations of Malagasy for political and economic reform, while dealing with a cautious international community. The coup-allergic African Union – faulted for not having a similar lack of tolerance for poor governance triggering protests across the continent – has already sanctioned the new regime. It’s a decision that has angered many Malagasy who, for the moment at least, regard the junta as a legitimate government that came to their rescue.
Afghanistan and Pakistan look to shore up fragile truce
Representatives from Afghanistan and Pakistan are slated to enter a second round of talks this weekend to try to bolster the ceasefire they negotiated in Qatar last week. The new talks in the Turkish city of Istanbul – focused on mechanisms to ensure both sides stick to the initial agreement – follow two weeks of escalating hostilities that saw the Pakistani military strike not only in Afghan border areas but also in residential districts of central Kabul. Afghanistan’s Taliban-led Islamic Emirate government responded with its own attacks into Pakistani territory. Speaking to local media, Afghan government officials said representatives from Washington had offered to assist in the negotiations but that Doha and Ankara, close allies to both Afghanistan and Pakistan, were able to help them resolve their issues without the need for Western intervention. However, other countries, including China and the UK, have sent representatives to Kabul ahead of the Türkiye meeting to reiterate how vital a lasting peace between both countries is. The dispute goes back to Pakistan’s claim that the Islamic Emirate is assisting the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) armed group stage attacks on Pakistani soil – a charge Kabul has repeatedly denied. Pakistan’s attempts to curb TTP-claimed activity has also led it to launch large military offenses within its own territory. For more on the growing civilian toll from these operations, read our report: Children under fire as Pakistan drone war escalates.
Weekend read
Dadaab refugees decry divisive and unfair food aid cuts
“We do not accept to be divided and made to turn on each other.”
The latest installment of Dadaab Voices explores the controversy over Differentiated Assistance.
And finally…
Artificial news
Millions of people who use AI assistants to get their news might be reading false, hallucinated, or outdated information. A new BBC-led study of four such tools – ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, and Perplexity – found that 45% of AI-generated answers to news-related questions contained at least one significant error, 31% had missing, misleading, or incorrect sourcing, and 20% included major accuracy issues. Google’s Gemini tool performed the worst, with 76% of responses including major issues, mainly with sourcing. AI assistants provide news to 7% of total online news consumers, and 15% of those under 25 years old, according to the Reuters Institute. Readers who want to learn how to detect inaccuracies in AI-generated news can consult this toolkit.
