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The BPLA's growth owes much to Maung Saungkha's skills in building bridges with other armed groups, according to a key ally and two analysts. It says armed groups that oppose it are "terrorists" who sow chaos and kill civilians. It has charged Maung Saungkha with sedition as it has done with most opponents of its rule. Some armed ethnic groups have long relied on drug trafficking for funds, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Some soldiers have run away, homesick, bored and tired after two years of war, said Maung Saungkha, who declined to disclose how many members are in his group.

Persons: Maung Saungkha, Bamar, Maung, Aunt Min, Richard Horsey, Nicola Williams, General Nyo Tun Aung, Tun Aung, We've, Shoon Naing, Poppy McPherson, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: Liberation Army, REUTERS, Poet, People's Defense Forces, National Unity Government, Strategy, AK, Karen National Union, Arakan Army, Myanmar Resistance, Myanmar Research, United Nations Office, Drugs, Reuters, UN, Thomson Locations: Myanmar, country's, Thailand, Myanmar's, Bamar, China, Russia

LONDON, Aug 2 (Reuters) - A partial pardon by Myanmar's ruling military of jailed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi means "absolutely nothing", her younger son said on Wednesday, calling on Western governments to do more to step up pressure on the junta. Myanmar has been in turmoil since early 2021, when the military overthrew Suu Kyi's elected government and cracked down on opponents of military rule, with thousands jailed or killed. Suu Kyi had won a 2015 election, held as part of tentative military reforms, and her party won again in 2020, before the military complained of election fraud. Kim Aris, the son of Myanmar’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, poses for a portrait at the Reuters office in London, Britain, August 2, 2023. "But I do not see that this will actually result in any dialogue," he said of Suu Kyi's partial pardon.

Persons: Myanmar's, Aung San Suu, Kim Aris, Suu Kyi's, Suu Kyi, Michael Aris, Myanmar’s, Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi, Dylan Martinez, I've, Aung, Suu, Sachin Ravikumar, Nick Macfie Organizations: Reuters, Aris, REUTERS, National Unity Government, Thomson Locations: British, London, Myanmar, Aung San Suu, Britain, Aung San, U.S

☆ Inside Myanmar’s Escalating Assault on Civilians
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Haley Willis | Weiyi Cai | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +16 min

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Persons: Anthony Davis, “, Mr, Davis, ”, Maung, “ It’s, you’ve, Nyaung Kone, Maung Maung, Ngun Hoi, Hram Ling “, Ngun, Daw Thein Htay, Thein Htay, Htoke, Ma Gyi Sauk, Paung Hle Kone, Hle Kone, ” Mr, Tun Sein, Tragically Organizations: New York Times, Rohingya, National Unity Government, The Times, United Nations, Human Rights, “, Janes, Amnesty, Amnesty International, Education, Facebook, Myanmar, Myanmar Witness, Times Locations: Myanmar, trickling, Myanmar’s, Rakhine State, Rakhine, China, Russia, Sagaing, Kachin State, Pazigyi, Naypyidaw, Yangon Yangon, Yangon, Nyaung, Khuafo, Thantlang Township, Ngun, Thantlang, Salai, Ma Gyi, Paung, Sagaing’s Son, “

☆ Guatemalan presidential contender Torres visits Washington ahead of August run-off
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

GUATEMALA CITY, July 27 (Reuters) - Guatemalan presidential candidate Sandra Torres will meet with U.S. officials in Washington on Thursday, her party said, ahead of a run-off vote next month that has raised international concerns over alleged interference by authorities. Torres' National Unity of Hope (UNE) party said the former first lady of Guatemala is slated to discuss migration, trade and security with U.S. State Department representatives. Torres' rival, Bernardo Arevalo of the Semilla party, who finished second in the vote, has not said whether he also plans to visit Washington. President Joe Biden's administration has raised various concerns over Guatemala's election process, including criticizing raids by authorities last week of Semilla offices. A senior Biden administration official previously said the United States planned to host Torres and Arevalo for talks in Washington this week to show support for free and fair elections.

Persons: Sandra Torres, Torres, Bernardo Arevalo, Joe Biden's, Arevalo, Sofia Menchu, Daina Beth Solomon, Mark Porter Organizations: GUATEMALA CITY, U.S, National Unity of, U.S . State Department, The State Department, Atlantic Council, Biden, Thomson Locations: GUATEMALA, Washington, Guatemala, United States

☆ Myanmar military may move Suu Kyi to house arrest - media
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A demonstrator holds up a placard outside the Central Bank of Myanmar to protest against the military coup and to demand the release of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in Yangon, Myanmar, February 11, 2021. REUTERS/Stringer/File PhotoJuly 26 (Reuters) - Myanmar's military government may move ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi from prison to house arrest in the capital, Naypyitaw, two media outlets reported on Wednesday. Many Western governments have condemned the junta's treatment of Suu Kyi and others, calling for their release. The daughter of Myanmar's independence hero was first put under house arrest in 1989 after huge protests against decades of military rule. In 1991, she won the Nobel Peace Prize for campaigning for democracy but was only fully released from house arrest in 2010.

Persons: Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi, Stringer, Suu, Kyaw Zaw, Suu Kyi, Don Pramudwinai, Kanupriya Kapoor, Robert Birsel Organizations: Central Bank of, REUTERS, Associated Press, BBC, Reuters, National Unity Government, Thai Foreign, ASEAN, Myanmar, Thomson Locations: Central Bank of Myanmar, Aung San Suu, Yangon, Myanmar, Naypyitaw, Suu

☆ The Fading Dream of Korean Reunification - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Haeryun Kang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

For a brief time after, my dream career was to lead South Korea’s Ministry of Unification, which deals with inter-Korean affairs. The first time I actually met a North Korean was in 2010, in Vienna of all places. A museum was hosting an exhibition of North Korean art, and I went three times. During my last visit, a man who identified himself as a bureaucrat from North Korea’s culture ministry approached me. The South Korea government blocks many North Korean websites.

Persons: Kang, ” We’re, Koreas, “ Organizations: North, South Korean, Sydney Olympics, South Korea’s Ministry of Unification, Korea’s National Security, South Locations: South Korea, North, Korea, Korean, Vienna, South, “

☆ India’s Modi sparks political storm with pitch for common civil code
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Yp Rajesh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Currently, India's Hindus, Muslims, Christians and large tribal populations follow their own personal laws and customs, alongside an optional secular code, for marriage, divorce, adoption and inheritance. The Law Commission, a government-appointed advisory body, has sought public opinion by Friday on creating a Uniform Civil Code (UCC). The BJP says the common code is necessary to ensure gender justice, equality through uniform application of personal laws, and to foster national unity and integration. The comments were his most forceful in favour of the common code and set off a political storm. "Majoritarian morality must not supersede personal laws, religious freedom, and minority rights in the name of a code which remains an enigma," it said.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, Sanjay Kumar, India's, playbook, Sushil Modi, Zakia Soman, YP Rajesh, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: BJP, DELHI, Indian, Bharatiya Janata Party, Commission, New Delhi’s, UCC, Muslim Women's Movement, YP, Thomson Locations: Egypt, India, Karnataka

☆ ASEAN struggles for unity on Myanmar conflict
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The cause of the delay was unclear but an ASEAN official said a communique was being finalised and would be released soon. ASEAN chair Indonesia on Wednesday urged the group's foreign ministers to remain united in tackling the escalating violence in Myanmar. Malaysia, a vocal critic of the junta, urged ASEAN to strongly condemn the junta's actions, including violence. RIFTS APPARENTRifts within ASEAN over Myanmar were highlighted when Thailand invited Myanmar military officials to a meeting last month aimed at "re-engaging" with the junta. Indonesia, as ASEAN chair this year, is working behind the scenes to bring all stakeholders in the Myanmar conflict together for informal talks, but diplomats say it is struggling to make headway.

Persons: Zambry Abdul Kadir, Antony Blinken, Wang Yi, Don Pramudwinai, Don, Myanmar's, Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi, Malaysia's Zambry, Suu Kyi's, Kate Lamb, Stanley Widianto, Kanupriya Kapoor, Rob Birsel, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Myanmar's, Association for Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, Junta, Indonesia, Wednesday, Myanmar, Thai Foreign, National Unity Government, Thomson Locations: JAKARTA, Jakarta, Myanmar, Malaysia, United States, China, Russia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Aung San Suu, Naypyitaw

☆ ASEAN chair Indonesia has little to show for Myanmar peace drive, diplomats say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Kate Lamb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

JAKARTA, July 12 (Reuters) - Indonesia, working on behalf of southeast Asian nations, has little to show so far for its intense behind-the-scenes efforts to bridge gaps between factions in Myanmar's conflict, diplomatic sources say. Myanmar has been racked by violence since 2021, when the military seized power from a largely elected government and unleashed a deadly crackdown on opponents. But the junta, an opposition "shadow government" and rebel militias all refuse to compromise on their respective conditions to start even informal talks, said three sources, including two diplomats, familiar with the matter. Sasa said he could not confirm if the Bali meetings had taken place, but called for even deeper engagement with ASEAN. The sources said Indonesia had drawn inspiration from its "cocktail diplomacy" of the late 1980s, when it convinced Cambodia's four opposing factions to meet for informal talks near Jakarta.

Persons: Sasa, Bali, Cambodia's, Lina Alexandra, Retno Marsudi, Kanupriya Kapoor, Kevin Liffey Organizations: Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, National Unity Government, Centre, Strategic, International Studies, Indonesian, Thomson Locations: JAKARTA, Indonesia, Myanmar, Indonesia's, Bali, Jakarta

Now, in their next step to consolidate power, they are trying to manipulate the national elections that are underway. In anticipation of the 2023 elections, President Alejandro Giammattei packed the courts and the electoral tribunal with loyalists. The ruling regime and its allies then enlisted these entities to distort the Constitution and tamper with election procedures to tilt the political playing field in their favor. Many fear the ruling could pave the way for additional spurious challenges that could eventually overturn the results, delay the second round or exclude Mr. Arévalo from competing altogether. The cries of fraud echo those in the United States after President Biden’s 2020 victory, although, with the entire judicial system on their side, Guatemala’s election deniers stand a better chance of pulling it off.

Persons: ”, Alejandro Giammattei, Bernardo Arévalo, Sandra Torres, Arévalo, Biden’s Organizations: National Unity of Hope, Constitutional Locations: United States

☆ Why the US ‘does not get to assume that it lasts forever’
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Ronald Brownstein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

“We need to separate by red states and blue states and shrink the federal government,” Greene said in a tweet on President’s Day this year. Blue state governors, legislatures and mayors might respond to such an offensive in forceful ways difficult to predict today. The Republican-appointed majority on the US Supreme Court has encouraged the red state social offensive with decisions that stripped away national rights – most prominently on abortion and voting. “Given the make-up of the courts, it’s difficult for blue states to be hopeful about this,” says Kettl. “The United States does not get to assume that it lasts forever.”

Persons: we’ve, ”, Donald Kettl, Donald Trump, I’ve, ’ “, Trump, Daniel Cox, Alan Wolfe, Wolfe, ” Wolfe, “, Joe Biden, Trump –, Abraham Lincoln, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kevin McCarthy, ” Greene, Susan Stokes, Stokes, he’s, Biden, Jim Crow, Cox, Michael Podhorzer, what’s, MAGA, Eric Liu, Liu, Richard Nixon’s, Liu’s, ” Liu Organizations: CNN, America, University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy, Republican “, American Enterprise Institute, Boston University, Republican, Democratic, Chicago Center, Democracy, University of Chicago, CBS, Trump, National Guard, Fugitive, “, US, GOP, White House, AFL, Citizen University Locations: United States, States, America, Black, Confederate States, Georgia, Midwest, Heartland, Great, New York, Memphis, Austin, Blue, Michigan , Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Arizona

☆ Guatemala court orders presidential ballot review, opposition cries foul
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( Sofia Menchu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Torres took 15.8% of the vote in the June 25 round, with Arevalo close behind with 11.8%. Some analysts expect Arevalo to win the runoff due to Torres' unpopularity in the voter-dense capital, Guatemala City. The court said it would then determine whether to take the rare step of mandating a recount. Arevalo said he would ask Guatemala's electoral court to annul the top court's decision, which he described as lacking legal merit and dangerous to the electoral process. In the days after the vote, Torres said she was concerned that votes had been manipulated with a faulty software system to favor Arevalo's party, Semilla.

Persons: Sandra Torres, Read, Bernardo Arevalo, Torres, Arevalo, Alejandro Giammattei's Vamos, Sofia Menchu, Daina Beth Solomon, William Mallard Organizations: National Unity of, GUATEMALA CITY, Central American, National Unity of Hope, Guatemalan, of American, Thomson Locations: Guatemala City, Guatemala, GUATEMALA

CNN —Ma Khin Hla and her five siblings didn’t have time to run when a fighter jet buzzed over their village in Myanmar’s central Sagaing region. We didn’t get to run as it immediately dropped bombs.”When she opened her eyes after the strike on Tuesday, Ma Khin Hla said she saw her siblings’ bodies scattered around her. A monastery hit by the junta airstrike in Pale township, Sagaing region, Myanmar. CNN reached out to junta spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun for comment on the airstrike but did not receive a response. Ma Khin Hla, whose five siblings were killed, said she has been forced to take shelter with relatives in another village.

Persons: Khin Hla, didn’t, ”, Ma Khin Hla, Zaw Htet, ” Zaw Htet, Min Aung Hlaing, “, Zaw Min Tun, Ar Lu Organizations: CNN, Facebook, Administration, Peoples Defense Forces, National Unity Government, SAC, United Locations: Myanmar’s, Sagaing, Nyaung Kone, Pale, Myanmar, Zaw, “, United Nations, Russia, China, Singapore

☆ Russian PM urges citizens to rally behind Putin after aborted mutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW, June 26 (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said on Monday that the country had faced "a challenge to its stability" and must remain united behind President Vladimir Putin following Saturday's abortive mutiny by heavily armed mercenary fighters. "The main thing in these conditions is to ensure the sovereignty and independence of our country, the security and well-being of citizens," said Mishustin, a technocrat who was appointed prime minister in 2020. Mishustin, a former head of Russia's federal tax service, also took a swipe at the West. "As the president noted, virtually the entire military, economic, information machine of the West is directed against us," he said. Putin said on Saturday that the rebellion by the Wagner mercenary force had threatened Russia's very existence under threat and vowed to crush it.

Persons: Mikhail Mishustin, Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Mishustin, Putin, Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Gareth Jones, Kevin Liffey Organizations: Russian, Kremlin, Wagner Group, Belarusian, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Belarus, Russian, Russia

☆ Analysis: Emergence of Guatemalan anti-graft champion shakes up election
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Sofia Menchu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/5] Presidential candidate for the Semilla party Bernardo Arevalo holds a rally at the Parque Central a day after the first round of Guatemala's presidential election, in Guatemala City, Guatemala June 26, 2023. Underlining voter frustration with the status-quo, nearly a quarter of ballots counted were either spoiled or left blank. Arevalo, who has called corruption a "cancer eating away" at Guatemala, will face former first lady Sandra Torres in the run-off. Torres, running in her third presidential contest, won 15.8% of the first-round vote to Arevalo's 11.8%. Aldana later sought asylum in the U.S., while current President Alejandro Giammattei himself became embroiled in corruption allegations, which he denies.

Persons: Bernardo Arevalo, Juan Jose Arevalo, Arevalo, Thelma Aldana, Otto Perez, Semilla, Bernardo, Nicol Estrada, Carlos Pineda, Will Freeman, Hugo Novales, Sandra Torres, Torres, Freeman, Semilla's, Aldana, Alejandro Giammattei, Juan Jose, Giammattei, Ivan Velasquez, Julia Esquivel, Jimmy Morales, Sofia Menchu, Dave Graham, Stephen Eisenhammer, Rosalba O'Brien, Leslie Adler Organizations: Parque, REUTERS, GUATEMALA CITY, Council, Foreign Relations, of, Guatemala's, U.S, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Parque Central, Guatemala City, Guatemala, Josue, GUATEMALA, Arevalo, U.S, Guatemalan

☆ Eastern Libya administration threatens oil blockade
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGHAZI, Libya, June 24 (Reuters) - Authorities based in eastern Libya on Saturday threatened to blockade oil exports over the Tripoli government's use of energy revenue, accusing it of wasting billions of dollars without providing real services. Libya has been locked in a political standoff since last year, when the parliament in eastern Libya rejected the interim Government of National Unity in Tripoli and designated a new administration that has been unable to take over in the capital. The last major blockade was resolved last year when the Tripoli government appointed a new head of National Oil Corporation (NOC) who was said to be close to eastern commander Khalifa Haftar. Haftar said on June 17 he backed a move by the eastern-based parliament and another legislative body to appoint a new interim administration in a clear challenge to the current government in Tripoli. On Thursday a court in eastern Libya ruled that the eastern administration had won a case against NOC allowing it to take control of the company's accounts.

Persons: majeure, Khalifa Haftar, Haftar, manouevring, Ayman al, Angus McDowall, Toby Chopra Organizations: Authorities, of National Unity, NATO, National Oil Corporation, OPEC, Central Bank of Libya, Thomson Locations: BENGHAZI, Libya, Tripoli, Libyan, Warfali, Benghazi

☆ 'Hell of a job': Biden's reaction and 5 other takeaways from Blinken's trip to China
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Leah Millis | Afp | Getty ImagesU.S. President Joe Biden said Secretary of State Antony Blinken "did a hell of a job" in Beijing. His comments came after Blinken's high-profile diplomatic mission to China, aimed at soothing strained ties with Beijing. In a surprise meeting, Blinken met Chinese President Xi Jinping for a 35-minute meeting toward the end of his two-day visit. He is the highest-level American official to visit China in nearly five years. Here are other takeaways from Blinken's trip to China:Progress madeBiden wasn't the only one who saw progress in the talks.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Xi Jinping, Leah Millis, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Wang Yi, Qin Gang, Xi, Blinken's, Qin, Mark Hannah, Hannah, Bonnie Gasler, Gasler, Wang, Robert Daly, Wilson, Daly, Taiwan Blinken, CNBC's Organizations: of, People, Afp, Getty, Beijing, U.S, U.S . State Department, State Department, Eurasia Group Foundation, CNBC, German Marshall Fund, Tech, China, Institute, East China, Taiwan, Taiwan Relations Locations: Beijing, China, U.S, Bali, Washington, Taiwan, South, East

Only Cambodia has so far officially confirmed it intended to attend the talks. Myanmar's junta spokesman could not be reached for comment on Sunday. Thailand's foreign ministry was tight-lipped about exactly who was attending the two-day gathering in the resort town of Pattaya, for which outgoing Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai sent invitation letters just four days before its start. Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn was to attend the meeting, his government said in a statement on Friday. Vietnam's government said its foreign minister would not attend "due to a prior engagement".

Persons: Nobel, Aung, Myanmar's, Swe, Don Pramudwinai, Don, Prak Sokhonn, Vivian Balakrishnan, Nantiwat Samart, Suu Kyi's, Panu, Phuong Nguyen, Ananda Teresia, Stefanno Sulaiman, Poppy McPherson, Devjyot, Kay Johnson, William Mallard Organizations: Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, Reuters, Cambodian, Nation TV, National Unity Government, Thai, Ananda, Thomson Locations: BANGKOK, Cambodia, Suu, Thailand, Pattaya, Myanmar, Indonesia, Singapore, Thai, ASEAN, Malaysia, Philippines, Bangkok, Hanoi, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Shoon

☆ Libya's Haftar backs creation of new government in challenge to Tripoli
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGHAZI, Libya, June 17 (Reuters) - Libya's eastern forces under commander Khalifa Haftar support a proposal to set up a new interim government, they said late on Friday, setting up a challenge to the existing administration in Tripoli. The committee's recommendations have been adopted by parts of Libya's divided political establishment and rejected by others. The eastern-based parliament, which has been allied to Haftar, rejected Dbeibah's mandate but the new prime minister it designated was unable to replace the Tripoli government, leading to a long political standoff. Diplomacy has focused on bringing the parliament and another legislative body, the High State Council, to agree clear rules for an election aimed at resolving Libya's political stalemate. Critics of Libya's political elite believe they have little intention of holding elections that could remove them from power and are more focused on control over government in Tripoli and its access to state resources.

Persons: Khalifa Haftar, Abdulhamid, Haftar, Ayman al, Angus McDowall Organizations: Tripoli . Haftar's Libyan National Army, NATO, of National Unity, High State Council, Dbeibah, Thomson Locations: BENGHAZI, Libya, Tripoli . Haftar's, Dbeibah, Tripoli, Dbeibah's, Warfali, Benghazi

Neither Azour nor Hezbollah-backed candidate Suleiman Frangieh came close to winning the 86 votes needed to win in a first round vote. Azour, the IMF's Middle East Director and an ex-finance minister, won the support of 59 of 128 lawmakers. Hezbollah and its allies then withdrew from the session, denying the two-thirds quorum required for a second vote in which 65 votes are enough for victory. Azour thanked lawmakers who backed him, saying he hoped the will expressed by "the majority of deputies" would be respected. George Adwan, a Christian lawmaker with the anti-Hezbollah Lebanese Forces party, said the vote was "a major victory" because it showed Azour close to 65 votes.

Persons: Gebran Bassil, Azour, Suleiman Frangieh, Frangieh, Nabih Berri, Michel Aoun, Hussein al, Haj Hassan, Bashar al, Assad, George Adwan, Mohamed Azakir, Matthew Miller, Miller, Mohanad Hage Ali, Riad Salameh, Sheikh Ahmad Qabalan dialled, Issam Abdallah, Simon Lewis, Tom Perry, John Stonestreet, Mark Heinrich, William Maclean Organizations: BEIRUT, Hezbollah, IMF, Maronite, Hezbollah Lebanese Forces, REUTERS, U.S . State Department, Carnegie Middle East Center, West, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Iran, Muslim, Saudi Arabia, Lebanese, Yemen, Beirut, Washington, U.S, United States, Israel, Damascus

☆ Libya political leaders to meet on electoral laws
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

However 61 HoR members and some HSC members have already objected to the way their leaders have been negotiating their agreement, and have said they will oppose its ratification. The HoR was elected as a national parliament in 2014 to a four-year term. The HSC was created as part of a political agreement in 2015 from members of an earlier interim parliament elected in 2012. However, under a 2015 political agreement, the international community requires both bodies to approve any new constitutional rules allowing an election, or a change in government. Many Libyans have voiced scepticism that their political leaders are negotiating in good faith, believing them to be unwilling to bring forward elections that might remove them from their positions of power.

Persons: finalise, Aguila Saleh, Khaled, Mishri, Adoulaye Bathily, HoR, Muammar, Abdulhamid, Dbeibah, Saleh, Angus McDowall, Andrew Heavens Organizations: High State, Morocco, NATO, of National Unity, Meshri, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TRIPOLI, Morocco, Muammar Gaddafi, Libya, Tripoli, Reuters Libya

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russia carries out intense missile and drone strike overnight; Russia's Medvedev says conflict could last decades
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Amanda Macias Karen Gilchrist Ruxandra Iordache | Amanda Macias | Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The entrance of the "PMC Wagner Centre," associated with Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, during the official opening of the office block on National Unity Day, in St. Petersburg, on Nov. 4, 2022. The head of Russian private military company, the Wagner Group, said his fighters are beginning to withdraw from Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. "PMC 'Wagner' began the withdrawal of units from Bakhmut," a message posted on Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's Concord Group Telegram channel said. "We're withdrawing our units from Bakhmut today, now it's 5am, 25 May, "Prigozhin said, although NBC was unable to verify if the footage had been filmed in Bakhmut. He said his forces would have a "new objective" after having a rest following prolonged fighting in Bakhmut.

His family – all 11 of them – had huddled together in their house in Sittwe, on the coast of Myanmar’s Rakhine state, as ferocious winds intensified overhead. As the water rose, the family ran to escape the storm surge but they got separated in the chaos. Sai Aung Main/AFP/Getty ImagesCrisis upon crisisWhile western Rakhine state took a direct hit from the cyclone, the UN estimates 150,000 people in the country’s northwest were also heavily affected. One resident from Magway, where around 11,000 households were affected by the storm, said her husband died in flooding caused by Cyclone Mocha. Smashed-up boats are piled up next to a broken bridge in Sittwe, in Myanmar's Rakhine state, on May 15 after Cyclone Mocha.

☆ Cyclone Mocha: Myanmar junta travel restrictions are holding up vital aid to cyclone-hit communities
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Myanmar’s military junta is holding up humanitarian access to some cyclone-hit communities in western Rakhine state after Cyclone Mocha devastated the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in the poorest parts of the country. Storm damage has hampered efforts to access rural and hard-to-reach areas while pre-existing travel restrictions imposed by the junta have delayed the delivery of vital aid to communities in urgent need. “It seems that many agencies haven’t even been able to conduct needs assessments, let alone deliver aid, because SAC (junta) officials have not granted travel authorization. This is extremely worrying.”A girl draws water from a pump at Basara refugee camp in Sittwe on May 16 in the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha. A Rohingya woman stands in her damaged house at Basara refugee camp in Sittwe on May 16 following Cyclone Mocha.

☆ Cyclone Mocha Leaves Thousands Homeless in Bangladesh and Myanmar
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Saif Hasnat | Suhasini Raj | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Hundreds of thousands of people began repairing or rebuilding their homes and livelihoods on Monday after a deadly cyclone hit Myanmar and Bangladesh over the weekend. The storm, named Mocha, killed several people in Myanmar, though there were conflicting accounts from leaders as to exactly how many. The Myanmar government said the number was five, but the shadow government, called the National Unity Government, which may have more sources in the country’s remote conflict zones, said it was 18. Though the damage from the powerful storm was not as dire as predicted, there were still hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees left homeless, along with reports of people stranded and having to make their way through storm debris to get home. The damage in Myanmar was mostly confined to Rakhine State, Chin State and other areas in the west, according to officials and aid workers.

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