The deal would allow Ukraine to resume shipments of grain from the Black Sea to world markets and Russia to export grain and fertilizers, ending a standoff that has threatened world food security.
The move follows months of turmoil in the country that saw a new president elected
Sri Lankan security forces raided an anti-government protest camp outside the presidential office in Colombo on Friday. It comes amid a months-long political crisis sparked by a financial meltdown.
“A joint operation involving the military, police and police special forces was launched in the early hours to recover the presidential secretariat from the protesters as they have no legal right to hold it,” police spokesperson Nalin Thalduwa told Reuters news agency.
According to police, the raid led to nine arrests, two of those detained were injured. The organizers of the protest claim that at least 50 people were injured, including several journalists. They also say they planned to hand over the presidential offices peacefully, an intention the police said they had no knowledge of.
The demonstrators accused authorities of a violent crackdown. “They beat us really cruelly,” an activist told Reuters. “Mr Wickremesinghe doesn’t know what democracy is,” he added.
Media footage from the scene appears to show soldiers in riot gear, armed with rifles, marching towards the camp, known as Gota Go Gama, that had been in place since April. The name of the camp makes an apparent reference to Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka’s former president, and calls for his resignation.
The move comes after Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as president on Thursday after his predecessor fled the country and resigned. Sri Lanka has faced unrest for several months over severe food and fuel shortages and record inflation.
The crisis has been blamed on the Covid-19 pandemic, which cut tourist revenue for the island, and Rajapaksa’s ban on chemical fertilizers, which was a major blow to the agricultural sector.
LONDON, Jul 22 (IPS) – The writer is Editor-in-Chief at CIVICUS, the global civil society alliance. He is one of the lead authors for CIVICUS Lens and the 2022 State of Civil Society ReportThe UN High Commissioner for Human Rights sits at the top of the UN’s human rights system. It’s a crucial role for the victims of violations and the many civil society activists who look to the UN system to set and apply human rights norms, monitor the human rights performance of states and hold rights violators to account.
Japan’s Unification Church is under the spotlight after the murder of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Known as the “Moonies,” the group was apparently the target of the alleged assassin’s hatred.
Three soldiers were killed near Damascus, according to a Syrian military source
Syrian air defenses were activated shortly after midnight on Friday in response to an act of “Israeli aggression” in the vicinity of the capital Damascus, according to a military source cited by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
“At exactly 12:32am today, the Israeli enemy carried out an air aggression with rockets from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan, targeting some points in the vicinity of the city of Damascus,” the source told SANA.
While air defense systems reportedly managed to intercept some of the missiles, three soldiers were killed and at least seven others injured in the strike, which also caused some “material damage,” according to the military.
The Israeli government has not officially commented on the reports so far. On the rare occasions Israel has admitted carrying out attacks inside Syria, the Israeli government says it has the right to preemptive self-defense against Iran. Tehran has acknowledged sending military aid to Damascus to aid the fight against Islamic State and other terrorist groups.
Last month, another alleged Israeli strike forced the Damascus International Airport to temporarily suspend operations, after several missiles also fired from the direction of Golan Heights hit the runway.
While the government in West Jerusalem did not officially comment on that attack, the satellite company ImageSat International (ISI) published photos of the destruction and said that the strike “disabled the entire airport until repair.”
Animal health is important to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but greater investment is needed to evaluate the impact, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and partners said in a report published on Thursday.
Draghi’s government of national unity collapsed Wednesday after members of his uneasy coalition of right, left and populists rebuffed his appeal to band back together.
Private firms have successfully aided Kiev, Space Force chief John Raymond says
Commercial players in the aerospace industry have been “helpful” to Kiev during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the head of the US Space Force has said.
“My first observation I’d say is that space is important. And we have certainly seen that in this conflict,” General John Raymond, chief of US space operations, said on Tuesday at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado.
“And I would also say that commercial space has been very important in providing capabilities that have been helpful to Ukraine.”
Raymond also said that the US military uses space capabilities “each and every day.”
“Today, nothing we do as a joint force that isn’t enabled by space,” he stated. “And it is a huge force multiplier.”
Elon Musk’s SpaceX said last month that it had delivered 15,000 kits of its Starlink satellite communication system to Ukraine, which, according to reports, helps Ukrainian troops aim artillery at Russian positions.
President Vladimir Zelensky told Wire in June that Starlink was “very effective” in maintaining internet access in embattled cities.
Reports in the media have also claimed that the US has been using classified and commercial satellites to provide Ukraine with intelligence on Russian troop movements.
“We routinely and have now for weeks been sharing information and intelligence about Russian units, both at sea and ashore,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told CNN in May.
