Syria’s return to the Arab League, with President Bashar al-Assad attending the summit in Saudi Arabia, represents an important shift in how regional actors view the survival of al-Assad’s government as well as a pragmatic move. Arab states see Syria’s crisis as an Arab problem and need to pursue strategies to mitigate the conflict’s toxic and destabilising impacts on the region, including drug trafficking networks, refugee crises, weakened border security, and Iran’s intensified role in Syria. The Arab consensus is that addressing Syria’s problems requires engaging with Damascus. Although some Arab states, such as Qatar, Kuwait and Morocco, still maintain that al-Assad’s government is illegitimate, Riyadh used its influence on the Arab and Islamic world to persuade them not to obstruct Syria’s re-entry. Experts suggest that without Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members being able to invest in Syria, Damascus is unlikely to distance itself from Iran.
Arab leaders, including Syrian President Bashar Assad for the first time in more than 10 years, gathered for an annual summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with the crisis in Sudan expected to be a primary focus. The ongoing fighting in the country, which has killed over 600 people and caused tens of thousands to flee their homes and is fueled by conflicting generals who have been backed by Saudi Arabia and other Arab states. Meanwhile, associated pressure from Western states and some Arab holdouts threatens Syria's return to the international community through the Arab League, which Saudi Arabia is lobbying.
Last month's "mistake fares" that led to cheap business and first class tickets between Indonesia and the US are being cancelled and refunded. A pricing glitch by Amadeus Global Distribution System allowed hundreds of travellers to purchase seats at one-tenth of their value, before the issue was spotted. Airlines such as All Nippon Airways later contacted customers who had booked flights to "cancel and fully refund all itineraries". The legal principle is that a contract may be annulled for a pricing error, if the buyer knew the price was too low.
The Group of Seven (G7) leaders visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum on Friday to spur momentum for nuclear disarmament ahead of the critical three-day summit in the atomic-bombed city. Japan remains the only country to have been attacked with a nuclear weapon, and the symbolism of holding the G7 summit in Hiroshima and visiting the Peace Park Museum "plays to one of Japan's strengths", according to Mark Fitzpatrick, former US State Department official. The primary aim of the summit is to pursue initiatives to foster disarmament and reinvigorate the stalled process of nuclear arms control. A total of nine countries currently field nuclear arsenals – the US, the UK, Russia, France, China, North Korea, Israel, India, and Pakistan. The G7 group comprises three nuclear states (France, Britain and the US), two states hosting nuclear weapons (Italy and Germany), and two states relying on such weapons in their security policies (Canada and Japan).
The African mediating mission announced by South Africa's president Cyril Ramaphosa may merit a mention when historians write about the rise of the post-unipolar world, according to an op-ed in the Financial Times. The author, Alec Russell, argues that the quixotic mediators from Africa underscore the accelerating assertiveness of the countries of the “global south”. Many non-western nations have seen the west's full-throttle support for Ukraine and regard it as hypocritical, with powers once again prioritising their own interests and concerns over other global issues such as health and climate change. The crisis has led to a renewed focus on the idea of six African heads of state criss-crossing the front lines of a European war, which threatens to totally rewrite the post-1945 world order.
The Brics summit in Durban in August will be a cacophonous showcase for the contradictions within the new “non-aligned movement”. The group consists of two autocracies, Russia and China, two big democracies, Brazil and India, and the host, and junior relation, South Africa. Now over a dozen more countries are interested in joining, including Iran. The risk, particularly for India and Brazil, is that the Brics could tilt ever more into becoming a China club.
The author suggests that the west should lead by example, commit finally to reforms of the global order and choose words more carefully. The Biden administration has been building bespoke regional alliances, but China is also busily convening summits of its own. New world orders, it is cautioned, are of course easier to declare than realise. South Africa’s chaotic mediating pas de deux with Russia is seen as an object lesson in how not to play the non-aligned game.
Iran has carried out the executions of three men accused of killing members of the country’s security forces during anti-regime protests last year. Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi Sheikh Shabani and Saeed Yaghoubi Kordsofla were hung in the early hours of Friday. The co-ordinated and terrorist acts committed by the men involved the deaths of three members of the security forces in the city of Isfahan, according to the Mizan news agency which is affiliated with Iran’s judiciary. Critics of the regime had called for the death sentences against the men not to be carried out. The unrest sparked by the killing of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in custody after being accused of not wearing an Islamic dress, led to the largest protests seen since the Iranian revolution of 1979.
Israel's minister of diaspora affairs, Amichai Chikli, has defended billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk over a tweet comparing George Soros, the Hungarian-born Holocaust survivor and liberal philanthropist and Soros to a Marvel comic book villain. Days earlier, Israel’s foreign ministry had condemned Musk's tweet, which it said “reeked of antisemitism”. Chikli tweeted that criticism of Soros, who finances "the most hostile organisations to the Jewish people and the state of Israel is anything but antisemitism". Antisemitic posts and the phrase “The Jews” were trending on Twitter following Musk's original comment.
Both the United States and the United Nations have condemned anti-Arab slogans chanted during an annual march in Jerusalem's Old City, with Israeli nationalists present. During the heavily policed and flag-waving procession, several groups of Jewish youths confronted and beat Palestinians, chanting "Death to Arabs" and waving racist banners. The march celebrates Jerusalem Day, when Israel marks its capture of eastern Jerusalem during the 1967 war. Palestinian shopkeepers shuttered their businesses along the route before the march, fearing potential abuse. In recent years, Jerusalem Day festivities have become a show of force for Jewish nationalists and a cause of concern for Palestinians.
For Palestinians in refugee camps in Lebanon, each anniversary of “nakba,” or “catastrophe,” is a reminder of the forced mass-displacement and dispossession of homes and land that became Israel in 1948. This year, commemorations on 15 May were limited by renewed conflict between Palestinians and Israeli forces, preventing the annual march towards the Israeli-Lebanese border. Nonetheless, refugees such as Ghassan el-Shouly still gathered to organise a march within Rashidieh camp, frustrated by their lack of right to return to their homeland or many essential professions.
Superiors of U.S. Air National Guardsman Jack Douglas Teixeira, who was accused of leaking military secrets, offered him intelligence-related training after he was admonished twice for his handling of classified information, according to a memo filed by US Justice Department attorneys. Teixeira had been offered cross-training as an entry-level “fusion analyst”, but declined. Representatives of the US authorities warned a federal court that Teixeira could not be trusted to be detained at home while he awaited trial, while adding that he had bragged online that he had access to secret information.
The G7 has endorsed the ‘Hiroshima Vision on Nuclear Disarmament’, a new action plan unveiled by Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, which is intended to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons. The G7 leaders have agreed on a series of priorities aimed at reducing global nuclear arsenals, but have not implemented any binding agreement to remove them. They condemned Russia's "dangerous and unacceptable" atomic threats against Ukraine and the acceleration of China's nuclear arsenal. However, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) claimed the meeting “failed to come up with any concrete proposals” and just produced “a rehash of old non-proliferation measures” that did not address the severity of the current nuclear threat nor the urgency of disarmament. All G7 member countries rely on nuclear weapons for their security and, as result, it is suggested that the countries are limited in their ability to negotiate for disarmament. Despite this, the group has nonetheless suggested practical steps such as increasing the transparency of nuclear capacity and reducing stockpiles, securing nonproliferation, promoting the peaceful use of nuclear agency and continuing not to use atomic weapons.
Recent events in Israel have led to many questions. Rockets began pouring across the border after Israel made targeted air strikes on three senior ranking members of the Palestinian militant group, Islamic Jihad. The confrontation evolved into five days of fighting, which killed 33 Palestinians and two Israelis. Hamas, which has a tacit non-competition clause with Islamic Jihad, remained relatively quiet. So what has changed? Experts suggest that Islamic Jihad is improving and their ties with Hamas are strengthening, with unexpected regional politics providing both groups with a better reason than ever to join forces. Hamas has become cosy with Iran, breaking decades of friction with Islamic Jihad, with both groups seeing the benefits of close cooperation. Unlike previous operations, Islamic Jihad was given free rein to respond to Israeli attacks, and was even given shelter and logistical assistance by Hamas. All of which has led to one conclusion - Gaza is no longer the same Gaza.
The Organisation for the Prohibition for Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has failed to offer a road map for the next five years due to differences among member states. The OPCW had wanted an agreement on preventing the re-emergence of chemical weapons, including those in Syria. The watchdog also discovered that Russian nerve agent Novichok was used against both Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018 and Alexei Navalny in Russia last year. Only four countries have not ratified the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention.
Canadian climate tech start-up Carbonhound has raised $1.3m in funding and created software to help small- and medium-sized businesses track their emissions and reduce their carbon footprints. The technology enables firms to view emissions levels in real time and streamline their efforts to meet the carbon-focused regulations and targets coming into force in markets around the world, said co-founder Sanders Lazier. "If you’re not a sustainable business, then you’re grabbing a smaller and smaller portion of market share every year”, he added.
Former Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira has been detained ahead of trial on charges under the Espionage Act, relating to the sharing of military documents. The information, which was allegedly leaked on social media platform Discord, included US assessments of Russia's war in Ukraine and other national security issues. The leak caused controversy over why a low-ranking state official had access to classified data. Teixeira had also been caught accessing and making notes on classified information by his superiors before his April arrest. The former Guardsman has yet to enter a plea concerning the allegations.
A proposal for a Marine Protected Area in East Antarctica is being blocked by Russia and China, according to an Australian environmental official. Tanya Plibersek, minister for the environment and water in Australia, has called for action after a research trip to Antarctica led to findings that mother and baby humpback whales are being forced to compete with a dozen industrial factory ships for krill. The whales make an annual 17,000 km round trip to the area. Plibersek is seeking a Global Oceans Treaty to protect two-thirds of the high seas to help safeguard Antarctic marine life.
Saudi Arabia hosted an Arab League summit on Friday in which Syrian President Bashar Assad was welcomed back after a 12-year suspension and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a surprise visit to rally support against Russia. Russian airstrikes have left a swath of destruction across both countries, but in Syria they came at Assad’s invitation and helped him cling to power through years of grinding civil war. In recent months, Saudi Arabia has restored diplomatic ties with Iran and led the push for Syria’s return to the 22-member Arab League. The Saudi crown prince welcomed both Assad and Zelensky to the Red Sea city of Jeddah, expressing support for “whatever helps in reducing the crisis between Russia and Ukraine.” A collective statement issued at the conclusion of the summit rejected any “illegitimate foreign presence” in Syria and supported the eventual return of Syrian refugees.
Peter Weiniger, a journalist for The Age, has died aged 79 after a prolonged battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Weiniger played a key role in establishing Melbourne’s stand-up comedy scene, after eavesdropping on shows at Fitzroy venues in the 1980s and publishing reviews of their content. Some of the comics he supported and promoted included Richard Stubbs, Rod Quantock, Jean Kitson, Glenn Robbins and Mary Keneally. Weiniger was born in Shanghai, survived the Holocaust, and spent time in Israel and Southeast Asia as an adult, before returning to Australia to work as a reporter for the AAP news agency. He began writing for The Age in 1979 and spent three decades with company, holding positions on News Diary, the Green Guide, EG and Epicure. Weiniger’s final role as a journalist was as a leader-writer on the editorial team.
The United States won 1-0 against Ecuador in the opening matches of the Under-20 World Cup, with left back Jonathan Gomez scoring the winning goal in injury time. Until that point, both sides had little inspiration in their play, with Ecuador not producing a single shot on target. In Group A, New Zealand scored the first goal of the tournament, with Norman Garbett netting in the 80th minute to beat Guatemala. Hosts Argentina were due to play Asian champions Uzbekistan in their opening match. Indonesia's spot in the tournament was given to Argentina due to protests against hosting Israel.
Tens of thousands of Israelis took to the streets for the 20th week in a row, over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plans to increase controls on the Supreme Court. The government's aims to perform a large overhaul which would see parliament have the ability to override many Supreme Court rulings, and would give the government control over Supreme Court judge nominations. Netanyahu has claimed that activist judges are taking control away from politicians, arguing that the changes would address this. Moderate Israelis believe this plan could run democracy into dictatorship.
