Sudan Conflict Worsens & more– 29th Aug 2023

Saluton from Tibidabo! This is Rorshok Multilateral Update from the 29th of August twenty twenty-three A summary of what's going down in the world's major multilateral institutions

According to Martin Griffiths, the U.N's humanitarian chief, the conflict in Sudan is escalating into "a humanitarian emergency of epic proportions".

The fighting, initiated in mid-April between the military and paramilitary forces, has claimed thousands of lives and displaced over 4.3 million people.

According to the data the UN's humanitarian Chief presented on Friday the 25th of August, areas lack food, and hundreds of thousands of Sudanese children face severe malnutrition and imminent death if left untreated.

Both the military and paramilitary forces are accused by the international community of committing human rights violations.

The dire situation underscores the necessity for immediate action to prevent a lost generation, trauma, and long-lasting scars of war on children.

Staying on the continent, the Economic Community of West African States (or ECOWAS) has rejected Niger junta's proposed plan of handing the power to a democratic government in three years.

ECOWAS remains skeptical of this plan. Former Military Head of State Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar led an ECOWAS delegation to Niger in an attempt to find a peaceful resolution with the junta.

Despite the delegation's efforts, the junta did not heed ECOWAS's ultimatum to reinstate President Mohamed Bazoum.

In another development on the situation in Niger, the African Union (or AU) has suspended the country from all its activities and has urged its members to avoid legitimizing the junta.

Western allies and democratic African states are concerned that the coup could facilitate the expansion of Islamist groups in the Sahel region and give Russia a stronger foothold.

The AU Peace and Security Council called for the immediate release of detained President Mohamed Bazoum, and supported ECOWAS's stance.

Meanwhile, the military junta in Niger gave on Saturday the 26th of August the French ambassador a foty-eight-hour deadline to leave the country.

The French diplomat has defied the junta’s demand and remains inNiger, with France and other EU countries stating that the coup leaders have no legitimacy to expel a diplomat.

Moving on to the Middle East, Muslim communities and Middle Eastern media accused the UK of attempting to obstruct the International Court of Justice (or ICJ) hearing on the legality of Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories.

London opposed the hearing of the case altogether on Thursday the 24th.

The UK's stance has drawn criticism from Palestinian diplomats and international law experts who argue that it fails to acknowledge the deepening nature of Israel's occupation.

There will be an advisory opinion from the ICJ on the occupation, settlement, and annexation of Palestinian land.

The case holds significance as a legal landmark for the Israel-Palestine conflict.

India and the US are making efforts to resolve their last remaining trade dispute at the World Trade Organization (or WTO), focusing on poultry products, after successfully resolving six other trade disputes.

Both countries are also exploring the potential involvement of their companies in each other's government procurement systems.

Previously, India lost a dispute over poultry imports from the US at the WTO due to concerns about Avian Influenza.

India placed a ban on U.S. poultry products in two thousand and seven under the guise of preventing the spread of low-pathogenic avian influenza, but it produced no scientific evidence to support the ban.

As India didn’t lift the ban on time, the US sought compensation. Now, the two nations are in discussions to resolve the case.

Piyush Goyal, Commerce, and Industry Minister, met with US trade representative Katherine Tai in New Delhi on Saturday the 26th of August to solve the dispute.

Worrying news from the pandemic frontier, as the World Health Organization (or WHO) has expressed concern over a surge in COVID-19 cases across countries in the Northern Hemisphere.

As these regions typically witness a rise in respiratory illnesses during the winter months, the WHO has urged nations to strengthen their surveillance and reporting of COVID cases, especially given the spike in hospitalizations, particularly in European countries.

Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO's technical lead on COVID-19 response, warned that the virus is reinfecting a large number of individuals each week and highlighted the concerning trend of cases increasing even in summer months.

The Who is also monitoring the emergence of new variants, such as the highly mutated BA.2.86 variant stemming from Omicron

Since we mentioned the COVID-19 pandemic, during the ASEAN Finance and Health Ministers' Meeting (or AFHMM) in Jakarta, ASEAN countries aimed to enhance their regional health infrastructure to address potential pandemics better.

The ongoing COVID pandemic has underscored the need for improved preparedness, prompting the AFHMM to focus on bolstering the health capacity within the ASEAN region for pandemic prevention, and response.

The delegates of the ASEAN countries also committed to increasing investment under the One Health approach to prevent animal-to-human disease transmission and discussed strategies to enhance community resilience through the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework (or ACRF).

Additionally, the expansion of the use of ASEAN's COVID-19 response fund to address future pandemics was discussed, with Indonesia and Thailand leading the initiative.

Moving on to the Gulf, the World Bank's Iran Economic Monitor (or IEM) has highlighted significant medium-term internal and external risks facing Iran's economy.

Domestically, there is a risk of social tensions and strikes, while externally, Iran is vulnerable to weaker global oil demand, declining oil prices, and intensified US sanctions.

The IEM report suggests that less strict sanctions, higher oil prices, and increased trade with China could mitigate some risks.

The Biden administration's release of frozen funds from Iraq and South Korea has reduced the likelihood of new US sanctions.

The IEM underscores the need for Iran to undertake significant fiscal and banking sector reforms to address its economic challenges, including addressing structural issues and improving bank supervision.

Speaking of the global economy, the upcoming annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (or IMF) and the World Bank, scheduled to be held in Marrakech, Morocco, in October, will focus on the future of Africa's economy.

African countries are currently dealing with challenges such as sluggish growth, food insecurity, and debt distress.

The meeting aims to address short-term challenges, such as inflation and debt, as well as long-term issues related to slow growth and a fragmenting global economy.

The continental free trade area is also a significant topic, with discussions focusing on physical connectivity, trade barriers, and digital money to promote economic growth and integration in Africa.

Next up, an interesting international criminal law case. Former Central African Republic militia leader Maxime Jeoffroy, also known as Eli Mokom, is facing war crimes and crimes against humanity charges at the International Criminal Court (or ICC) in The Hague.

The allegations stem from violence in twenty thirteen-twenty fourteen during the conflict between Muslim Seleka rebels and Christian anti-Balaka forces.

Prosecutors assert Jeoffroy orchestrated attacks on Muslim citizens, directed violence against civilians, and supplied rebels with ammunition.

The conflict has led to thousands of deaths and the displacement of over a million people. Jeoffroy was detained in Chad in twenty twenty-two and has denied all charges, citing self-defense against opposing militia attacks.

A year after Pakistan's devastating floods, UNICEF warns that around four million children are still in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

The agency emphasizes that the severe shortage of funds is hindering recovery efforts. Pakistan's Punjab province is racing to evacuate people from areas affected by the overflowing River Sutlej.

This year's monsoon rains have worsened conditions, leading to tragic child fatalities.

Approximately eight million people lack access to safe water, and over 1.5 million children require essential nutrition interventions in flood-affected districts.

UNICEF's appeal of $173 point five million dollars is only slightly over half funded. The organization

urges sustained investment in basic services for children and families.

And that’s it for this week! Thanks for joining us!

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