Top Story
Russia is escalating its military presence in Syria. American officials report (though Russia denies) that Russia has at least 28 warplanes deployed at an airbase near Latakia, on the Syrian coast. Russia also began flying surveillance missions in Syria with drones, a week after sending artillery and tanks to an airbase controlled by the Syrian government at Latakia. Reuters reports that the Russian flights “underscored the risks of U.S.-led coalition aircraft and Russian flights operating in Syria’s limited airspace.” Though Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed that the United States was receptive to Russia’s increased role in the conflict, a spokesman for the United States Department of State said that there is no change to America’s position: it supports actions to counter ISIL, but not to support the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin met with Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu to discuss their countries’ military operations in support of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria. Syrian rebels say that increased Russian involvement will prolong the war and could prompt a corresponding influx of support from countries that support the rebel. The Middle East Institute argues that Russia’s actions are likely to lead to further violence but no resolution of the underlying political or security problems. Mitchell A. Orenstein argues in Foreign Affairs that the United States should be concerned about Russia’s moves in Syria.
Africa
At least 54 people were killed and 90 injured in three explosions in Maiduguri, Nigeria, on Sunday, September 20. A government spokesman blamed the militant group Boko Haram, which was founded in the city. The Boko Haram insurgency has displaced two million people since 2009. The government spokesman claimed that the attacks were the result of Boko Haram’s “high level of desperation.”
Following the coup in Burkina Faso late last week, a team of negotiators led by Senegal’s President Macky Sall reached a compromise with the Presidential Security Regiment. The Presidential Security Regiment, led by General Gilbert Diendéré, seized control of Burkina Faso and arrested the president and prime minister. The agreement would return interim president Michel Kafando to power but permit the allies of Blaise Compaoré, the country’s long-time president who was ousted by a popular uprising last year, to run in national elections be held by November 22. The transitional government had banned members of Compaoré’s government from running in the elections. The leaders of the coup would also be immune from prosecution. However, General Gilbert Diendéré, leader of the coup, did not appear at the news conference announcing the compromise, prompting doubts that he will abdicate peacefully. Meanwhile, leaders of Burkina Faso’s army said that they were marching towards Ouagadougou to restore the transitional government to power, by force if necessary. On Wednesday, Kafando was returned to power peacefully, though questions about the details of the deal remained murky.
Organizational failures, lack of funds, and insufficient equipment hamstrung the international response to the Ebola outbreak and caused deaths across West Africa, including those of health care workers, reports the Associated Press. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) nonetheless reports that the outbreak “could have been far worse” and warns that the instability in the Middle East presents new threats to global health. CSIS cautions that weak states create a risk of outbreaks of diseases that are very rare or easily treatable by a functioning health infrastructure. Moreover, ISIS “has the potential to pose a serious biosecurity challenge.”
Mozambique, once of the of the most heavily-mined nations on the planet, recently announced that it is mine-free. Removing all of Mozambique’s mines took 22 years of work and effective collaboration between the government, NGOs, and donors. Calvin Ruysen, a regional director for the Halo Trust, an NGO that focuses on removing the remnants of war, explains in The Guardian how Mozambique became mine-free.
Americas
The United States and China are negotiating a treaty that would prohibit the use of cyberattacks to cripple one another’s “critical infrastructure”–including banking systems, hospitals, power grids, and communications networks–during peacetime. Notably, the first version agreement does not preclude the sorts of cyber attacks the United States has recently accused Chinese hackers of committing, including theft of intellectual property and private information.
The administration of Ecuador’s president, Rafael Correa, has stepped up efforts to interfere with the freedom of the press. Recently, the government began shutting down Fundamedios, a group based in Quito that aims to support journalists and safeguard freedom of expression and association. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights condemned the action against Fundamedios last Thursday.
Asia
American soldiers stationed in Afghanistan have been ordered not to intervene when Afghan commanders supported by the United States sexually abuse children on military bases. An American military spokesman said that allegations of sexual abuse of children is a matter of domestic Afghan criminal law, and that American soldiers are not obligated to report it unless rape is being used as a weapon of war. He did not address the instructions that American soldiers not intervene. The New York Times article linked above does an excellent job of explaining the difficult situations faced by American servicemen in dealing with these issues.
Xi Jinping, China’s president and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, visited the United States at the end of last week. The Diplomat argues that Presidents Xi and Obama should attempt to “steer U.S.-China strategic competition onto a manageable course.” The Stimson Center provides a preview of the state visit, with a focus on three issues: a new model of major power relations, building a personal relationship between the two leaders, and a proactive attitude to addressing world issues.
Europe
Elections in Greece returned Alexis Tsipras, a leftwing leader who was initially elected in January because he opposed austerity measures, to power in that country. Tsipras promised to combat corruption, and his Syriza party promised to keep Greece on track with its European lenders, who bailed it out three times over the summer. The Wall Street Journal expects that Tsipras will implement “tough fiscal retrenchment.”
Middle East
On Wednesday, the Pentagon announced that, on September 10, coalition airstrikes in Iraq killed a senior leader of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The leader, Abu Bakr al Turkmani, was described as an “administrative emir,” and the Pentagon press secretary claimed that his death will disrupt ISIL operations in the area around Tal Afar, Iraq.
The International Atomic Energy Agency announced Monday that Iran’s role in inspecting its own nuclear facilities under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action are sufficient to meet the Agency’s standards. Iran said that it had provided samples its experts collected from its Parchin site, a location that Western nations have suspected is used for developing nuclear detonators. As part of the deal, the IAEA must assess the military aspects of Iran’s past research into nuclear technology. Some experts and politicians, particularly Republicans in America, believe Iran’s role in producing the samples fatally discredits the process.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) warns that Shi’a militias backed by the Iraqi government are responsible for “widespread destruction of homes and shops” around Tikrit. The militias have done similar damage in other areas after driving out the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), including abducting hundreds of Sunni residents. According to HRW, the failure to discipline the militias and prevent these abuses may undermine the fight against ISIL.
A report to the United States Special Operations Command Central argues that, despite the attention on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), al-Qaeda may be a more dangerous long-term threat. The author argues that ISIL’s brutal tactics may alienate it from potential supports, while al-Qaeda is making an effort win the support of people in the areas it controls. However, the author places huge importance on al-Qaeda affiliates, especially al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). If AQAP were to defect to ISIL, it would be a “game-changer.”
Oceania
Gunmen kidnapped four people from a resort in the southern Philippines on Monday night. The region has suffered from unrest involving Islamic militants, but the identity of the kidnappers is still unknown, and as of Monday there were no indications that terrorist groups active in the region were involved. A note left at the scene potentially implicating the New People’s Army (NPA) may have been a diversionary tactic. The people kidnapped included two Canadians, a Norwegian, and a Filipina. Military and police officials were surprised by the attack, because the immediate area around the resort has been relatively peaceful for more than a decade, and recent peace initiatives with Islamist rebels seemed to have brought stability to the region. As of Wednesday, searches on the ground and from the air had turned up no sign of the kidnappers or victims.