Myanmar soldiers cut off tattoos and gave detainees urine to drink, witnesses say

Eyewitnesses told the BBC the village [in the Rakhine State] was subjected to two-and-half days of terror as soldiers blindfolded and beat them up, poured burning petrol on their skin and forced some of them to drink their urine.

Warning: You may find some of the details in this piece disturbing

Israeli activists battle over Gaza-bound aid convoys

Months after some Israelis started to protest against aid lorries entering Gaza at the main Kerem Shalom crossing, the battle has moved to other key junctions, where rival groups of activists do their best to block or protect aid convoys […]

Right-wing activists, including Jewish settlers living in the occupied West Bank, have uploaded dozens of videos of crowds, including some very young children, hurling food onto the ground and stamping on boxes of aid.

You’ll find a short video embedded in the linked article.

Israeli activists battle over Gaza-bound aid convoys

Months after some Israelis started to protest against aid lorries entering Gaza at the main Kerem Shalom crossing, the battle has moved to other key junctions, where rival groups of activists do their best to block or protect aid convoys […]

Right-wing activists, including Jewish settlers living in the occupied West Bank, have uploaded dozens of videos of crowds, including some very young children, hurling food onto the ground and stamping on boxes of aid.

You’ll find a short video embedded in the linked article.

I doesn’t seem so given Israeli officials’ statements. But it will have a long-term political impact if Israel ignores that imho. It could lead to a higher degree of ‘diplomatic isolation’ for Israel and its allies for a long time. That’s just my opinion. And there’re arrest warrants, too.

As international support for an independent Palestine grows, here’s what Israelis and Palestinians now think of the two-state solution

With the announcement by Norway and Ireland that they have recognised Palestine as an independent state, and Spain expected to follow suit by the end of May, it appears that international momentum for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is growing.

The concept has long been supported by the US and its allies, as well as most Arab states and the United Nations […] Could things be different under different leadership? To answer this, we need to know whether the Israeli and Palestinian people could be persuaded to accept such a plan. Here it’s worth taking a look at what polling tells us.

As international support for an independent Palestine grows, here’s what Israelis and Palestinians now think of the two-state solution

With the announcement by Norway and Ireland that they have recognised Palestine as an independent state, and Spain expected to follow suit by the end of May, it appears that international momentum for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is growing.

The concept has long been supported by the US and its allies, as well as most Arab states and the United Nations […] Could things be different under different leadership? To answer this, we need to know whether the Israeli and Palestinian people could be persuaded to accept such a plan. Here it’s worth taking a look at what polling tells us.

I (unfortunately) have to agree. There’s a risk that the (far right-wing) Netanyahu government is harming Israel politically in the long run, and right-wing extremists will try to take advantage of that. It’s right-wingers against right-wingers.

The fact that many Israeli people and even some politicians (Israeli minister Benny Gantz openly threatens Netanyahu to leave the government over the PM’s Gaza policy, for example) oppose their own government doesn’t appear to matter, at least for now. People like Netanyahu or Ben-Gvir rule the country, and they are heading in the wrong direction.

I hope that changes, however, as politicians around the globe seem to reconsider their stance over the region. In Europe, Norway, Spain, and Ireland announced their recognition of a Palestinian state as of May 28.

But, yes, that’s not enough. Others must follow.

They have to stop the use of forced labour in China, the U.S. and wherever this bs happens. This “U.S. bad, China bad okay” stance is unbearable.

This is related, particularly as the discussion is to a large part around cheap cars:

China: Carmakers Implicated in Uyghur Forced Labor - (February 2024)

China’s electric vehicle battery supply chain shows signs of forced labor, report says - (June 2023)

UPDATE It seems that the UN deleted the article.

Here’s an alternative link: https://www.eurasiareview.com/02052024-gazans-face-new-terror-threat-from-booby-trapped-cans-of-food

When looking for an alternative link, I found also this: https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2024/feb/01/instagram-posts/no-viral-footage-doesnt-show-explosives-disguised

Social media posts claim footage from Gaza shows explosives disguised as food cans, but there are no visible labels or pictures on the metal cylinders to suggest they contain food.

Experts on military strategy and the Middle East said the metal cylinders seen in photos and videos online are likely containers for M603 fuzes, which are designed to detonate landmines. Footage shows one of the cans is labeled “fuze mine.”

The fuzes are not designed to explode if a person opens the container. It requires 140 to 750 pounds of force to ignite the fuze and trigger an explosion.

I’m sorry, seems that you can’t trust the UN news?

Here’s an alternative link: https://www.eurasiareview.com/02052024-gazans-face-new-terror-threat-from-booby-trapped-cans-of-food

BUT: It seems that the UN deleted the article.

When looking for an alternative link, I found also this: https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2024/feb/01/instagram-posts/no-viral-footage-doesnt-show-explosives-disguised

Social media posts claim footage from Gaza shows explosives disguised as food cans, but there are no visible labels or pictures on the metal cylinders to suggest they contain food.

Experts on military strategy and the Middle East said the metal cylinders seen in photos and videos online are likely containers for M603 fuzes, which are designed to detonate landmines. Footage shows one of the cans is labeled “fuze mine.”

The fuzes are not designed to explode if a person opens the container. It requires 140 to 750 pounds of force to ignite the fuze and trigger an explosion.

I’m sorry, seems that you can’t trust the UN news?

Iran charges journalists after BBC report on teen protester’s death

Iran’s judiciary has filed charges against “a number of journalists and activists” after the publication of a BBC report alleging men working for the security forces sexually assaulted and killed […] 16-year-old protester Nika Shakarami.

Iran charges journalists after BBC report on teen protester’s death

Iran’s judiciary has filed charges against “a number of journalists and activists” after the publication of a BBC report alleging men working for the security forces sexually assaulted and killed […] 16-year-old protester Nika Shakarami.

Yeah, but it’s not only the west. It seems there is no such thing as politics if and when enough money is involved.

Yeah, his name is Abdulaziz Alwasil.

Human Rights Watch says about women’s rights in Saudi Arabia:

The Personal Status Law [in Saudi Arabia] requires women to obtain a male guardian’s permission to marry, codifying the country’s longstanding practice. Married women are required to obey their husbands in a “reasonable manner.” The law further states that neither spouse may abstain from sexual relations or cohabitation without the other spouse’s consent, implying a marital right to intercourse.

While a husband can unilaterally divorce his wife, a woman can only petition a court to dissolve their marriage contract on limited grounds and must “establish [the] harm” that makes the continuation of marriage “impossible” within those grounds. The law does not specify what constitutes “harm” or what evidence can be submitted to support a case, leaving judges wide discretion in the law’s interpretation and enforcement to maintain the status quo.

Fathers remain the default guardians of their children, limiting a mother’s ability to participate fully in decisions related to her child’s social and financial well-being. A mother may not act as her child’s guardian unless a court appoints her, and she will otherwise have limited authority to make decisions for her child’s well-being, even in cases where the parents do not live together and judicial authorities decide that the child should live with the mother.

As one user in this thread said, it might be a feature required by the CCP.

Here’s another one: https://www.hackingbutlegal.com/p/naomi-wu-and-the-silence-that-speaks-volumes

What about …

“Guaranteeing security and privacy” could a strong argument imho.

As you don’t like reading, watch a documentary.

Forced Labour - SOS from a Chinese Prisoner

A desperate cry for help written in Chinese was discovered in a pregnancy test sold in France and made in a Chinese factory. It revealed a hidden world of Chinese prison-companies where prisoners are forced to work for 15 hour days manufacturing products for export. This documentary tries to find out who wrote the letter.