A ceremony is scheduled today in Iraqi Kurdistan to mark the movement's farewell to arms. Its leader Öcalan recently praised “politics and social peace,” while delinking his personal fate from the peace process. Meanwhile, the crackdown on the main anti-Erdoğan party continues, with over 500 people jailed in just a few months.
At least four people are reported dead in the attack that saw the Yemeni group resume hostilities against maritime trade in the Red Sea in retaliation for the war in Gaza. Ten have been rescued, but the rest of the crew, mostly Filipinos, are still missing. Stella Maris appeals to the Manila government: ‘The safety of seafarers must be protected.’ Sunday is the day when the Church focuses on workers at sea.
During his recent visit to Istanbul, Armenian Prime Minister Pašinyan reportedly gave the green light to the “Turanian route”, which was one of Azerbaijan's main objectives in the war. A direct meeting with Aliyev to finalise the peace agreement between Yerevan and Baku is expected to take place in Baku in mid-July. This would be a turning point that would see Erdogan as the real winner in the region, given the weakening of Moscow and Tehran in global conflicts.
The founder of the Religious Freedom Data Center views settler attacks as a “disturbing development”. Israeli ministers and police legitimising it is worrying. A Judeo-centric ideology has “taken root”, but minority rights are not a “marginal issue”. On Monday, the patriarchs and heads of the Churches of Jerusalem will visit Taybeh in “solidarity”.
In Thailand, the lucrative coconut market relies on the exploitation of more than 3,000 specially trained monkeys of endangered species. An international boycott campaign against the mistreatment of these animals is driving producers to adopt new systems.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is warning that debt is the main factor of vulnerability in the population. The causes include the 2022 economic crisis, rising inflation, unemployment, and unsustainable interest rates. Some people are forced to sell their furniture to pay higher prices for food and medicine, analysts report.
