NewzIntel.com

Category: AM-NC

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Nigeria: Pardon for executed Ogoni Nine activists ‘falls far short’ of real justice

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the announcement on Wednesday that the Nigerian government has pardoned the Ogoni Nine, Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International Nigeria’s Director, said:

    “This is welcome news but it falls far short of the justice the Ogoni Nine need and deserve – the Nigerian government must recognise formally that they are innocent of any crime and fully exonerate them.

    “The Ogoni Nine, led by Ken Saro-Wiwa, Nigeria’s leading author and campaigner, were brutally executed by a regime that wanted to hide the crimes of Shell and other oil companies that were destroying – and continue to destroy – the lives and livelihoods of tens of thousands of people across the Niger Delta as a result of their devastating oil spills and leaks. 

    “The execution of these activists nearly 30 years ago has given the Nigerian government and oil companies, including Shell, licence to crackdown on protests and intimidate people in the Niger Delta who have been demanding justice and an end to their toxic pollution.

    “Full justice for the Ogoni Nine is only a first step – much more needs to be done to get justice for communities in the Niger Delta, including holding Shell and other oil companies to account for the damage they have done and continue to do. They must pay the Niger Delta’s communities full compensation for the devastation their oil spills and leaks have caused and clean up their toxic mess before they leave the region.”

    The Ogoni Nine

    Ken Saro-Wiwa, environmental activist and writer, Barinem Kiobel, John Kpuinen, Baribor Bera, Felix Nuate, Paul Levula, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo and Daniel Gbokoo, were executed after a blatantly unfair trial on 10 November 1995. Officially accused of involvement in murder, the men had in fact been put on trial because they had challenged the devastating impact of oil production by Shell, in the Ogoniland region of the Niger Delta. Shell has been accused of complicity in the unlawful arrest, detention and execution of the nine men.

    Niger Delta devastation

    For 60 years Shell and other oil companies have been responsible for oil spills and leaks due to poorly maintained pipelines, wells and inadequate clean-up attempts that have ravaged the health and livelihoods of many of the 30 million people living in the Niger Delta – most of whom live in poverty. People can’t fish anymore because their water sources, including their wells for drinking water, are poisoned and the land is contaminated which has killed plant life, meaning communities can no longer farm. 

    The Ogale and Bille communities as well as the Bodo community are taking Shell to the UK’s Royal Courts of Justice demanding the oil giant cleans up the oil spills that have wrecked their livelihoods, health and caused widespread devastation to the local environment.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Nigeria: Ogoni Nine pardon ‘falls far short’ of real justice  

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the announcement on Wednesday that the Nigerian government has pardoned the Ogoni Nine, Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International Nigeria’s Director, said: 

    “This is welcome news but it falls far short of the justice the Ogoni Nine need and deserve – the Nigerian government must recognise formally that they are innocent of any crime and fully exonerate them. 

    “The Ogoni Nine, led by Ken Saro-Wiwa Nigeria’s leading author and campaigner, were brutally executed by a regime that wanted to hide the crimes of Shell and other oil companies that were destroying – and continue to destroy – the lives and livelihoods of tens of thousands of people across the Niger Delta as a result of their devastating oil spills and leaks.  

    “The execution of these activists nearly 30 years ago has given the Nigerian government and oil companies, including Shell, licence to crackdown on protests and intimidate people in the Niger Delta who have been demanding justice and an end to their toxic pollution. 

    “Full justice for the Ogoni Nine is only a first step – much more needs to be done to get justice for communities in the Niger Delta, including holding Shell and other oil companies to account for the damage they have done and continue to do. They must pay the Niger Delta’s communities full compensation for the devastation their oil spills and leaks have caused and clean up their toxic mess before they leave the region.” 

    Background 

    The Ogoni Nine 

    Ken Saro-Wiwa, environmental activist and writer, Barinem Kiobel, John Kpuinen, Baribor Bera, Felix Nuate, Paul Levula, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo and Daniel Gbokoo, were executed after a blatantly unfair trial on 10 November 1995. Officially accused of involvement in murder, the men had in fact been put on trial because they had challenged the devastating impact of oil production by Shell, in the Ogoniland region of the Niger Delta. 

    Shell have been accused of complicity in the unlawful arrest, detention and execution of nine men. 

    Niger Delta devastation 

    For 60 years Shell and other oil companies have been responsible for oil spills and leaks due to poorly maintained pipelines, wells and inadequate clean-up attempts that have ravaged the health and livelihoods of many of the 30 million people living in the Niger Delta – most of whom live in poverty. People can’t fish anymore because their water sources, including their wells for drinking water, are poisoned and the land is contaminated which has killed plant life, meaning communities can no longer farm. 

    The Ogale and Bille communities as well as the Bodo community are taking Shell to the UK’s Royal Courts of Justice demanding the oil giant cleans up the oil spills that have wrecked their livelihoods, health and caused widespread devastation to the local environment. 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Italy: New case of journalist targeted with Graphite spyware confirms widespread use of unlawful surveillance   

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the publication of a Citizen Lab report identifying Italian journalist Ciro Pellegrino and another who has chosen to remain anonymous, as the latest targets of Paragon’s spyware in Europe, Elina Castillo Jiménez, Advocacy and Policy Advisor on targeted surveillance at Amnesty International, said: 

    “The discovery that Paragon’s highly invasive Graphite spyware has been unlawfully used against yet another journalist in Italy, Ciro Pellegrino – adding to a list of other targets – confirms the rampant widening and systemic pattern of spyware abuse  in Italy, and elsewhere in Europe.   

    “While the recent Parliamentary Committee for the Security of the Republic (COPASIR) report confirms that Italy’s intelligence services used highly-invasive Graphite spyware to target activists, it sought to justify the use on national security grounds. It also denied the targeting of journalist Francesco Cancellato. This new finding that another Italian journalist has been targeted with Graphite spyware, raises more questions. 

    “The use of spyware against activists and journalists by Italian authorities and the lack of transparency and cooperation undermine international norms that Italy is bound by and raises serious concerns about its commitment to the Pall Mall Process and its Code of Practice for States, which seeks to stop the abuse of commercial spyware which undermine freedom of expression. 

     “We urge Italian authorities to fully disclose the details of these targeting operations and to facilitate pathways for reparation to the victims. When governments fail to respond adequately to credible allegations of surveillance abuse, they send a dangerous message that impunity is the norm” 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Opera, ice cream, activism – daughter of jailed Uyghur scholar shares Father’s Day memories

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Jewher Ilham will not see her father, the Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti, this Father’s Day. In fact, she has not seen him since 2013, when he was detained by the Chinese authorities and later sentenced to life in prison on baseless charges of “separatism”. Here Jewher, who has campaigned tirelessly for her father’s release and against repression of Uyghurs in their homeland in western China, recalls some of her fondest memories of him.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: UK: Actor and Director, Maisie Richardson-Sellers becomes Amnesty International UK Ambassador

    Source: Amnesty International –

    ‘I grew up witnessing the impact of Amnesty’s crucial work. It is a true honour to be joining forces in raising awareness and pushing for the protection and implementation of human rights’ – Maisie Richardson-Sellers 

    Amnesty International UK is delighted to announce actor-director Maisie Richardson-Sellers as its newest Ambassador.  

    The actor is a long-standing supporter of Amnesty UK and an outspoken advocate for gender and racial justice. She has worked closely with Amnesty supporting a number of campaigns, particularly highlighting gender justice and the plight of refugees in the UK.  

    Maisie uses her platform to advocate for marginalised communities, and is a passionate advocate for the power of interlacing art and activism. She is the founder of ‘Barefaced Productions’, a production company that seeks to tell the stories of and provide a platform for marginalised voices through both fiction and documentary filmmaking. Maisie also pushes for increased representation behind the camera, in writing rooms, and at every stage of the creative process. 

    She has appeared in a number of leading films and TV programmes including the currently airing season 2 of “Nine Perfect Strangers”, the upcoming new series “Talamasca”, as wel as BBC’s “Wolf Hall” season 2, Channel 4’s “The Undeclared War’, Netflix’s “The Kissing Booth 2+3”, The CW’s “The Originals”, the CW’s  “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” and “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”. Her theatrical directorial debut was “for coloured girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow was enuf”, and her screen debut was, “Sunday’s Child” which follows a young queer woman of colour on her journey to self-acceptance. The film’s creative team and crew was deliberately led by women of colour in order to reflect the story being told. 

    Holly Parker-Monks, Amnesty International UK’s Artists and Ambassadors Manager, said: 

    “It’s fantastic having Maisie represent Amnesty as an Ambassador – her passion for social justice, her life-long support and determination to use her profile to help improve the rights of people wherever they are, from gender justice to people seeking asylum in the UK is invaluable.   

    “We look forward to an exciting future of having Maisie at the forefront of some of our key campaigns” 

    Maisie Richardson-Sellers said: 

    “My family have supported Amnesty since I was a child, and I grew up witnessing the impact of Amnesty’s crucial work. It is a true honour to be joining forces in raising awareness and pushing for the protection and implementation of human rights and policy. The current genocide being committed in Gaza shines a horrifying spotlight on just how necessary this work is. I am committed to supporting Amnesty in the fight for racial justice, migrant rights, women’s rights LGBTQAI+ equality and beyond. Every single voice makes a difference, it’s time to unite and demand lasting change.” 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Satellite imagery reveals total razing of Khuza’a in May 2025 in further evidence of Israel’s wanton destruction and genocide in Gaza

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Amnesty International’s analysis of satellite imagery and verification of video footage reveals how Israeli forces completely razed what remained of the town of Khuza’a in the southern occupied Gaza Strip over the course of two weeks in May 2025.  

    The analysis underscores the urgent need to investigate the Israeli military for the war crimes of wanton destruction and collective punishment. It also provides fresh evidence of Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip.  

    The findings of this research indicate a pattern of deliberate destruction of life-sustaining infrastructure, including some of Gaza’s most fertile agricultural land, undertaken by Israel as part of a calculated plan to impose on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life designed to bring about their physical destruction, in whole or in part. Amnesty International’s previous research uncovered a pattern of Israeli destruction of civilian areas between December 2023 and May 2024 without imperative military necessity during efforts to expand a “buffer zone” along the eastern perimeter of Gaza.   

    The latest images from May 2025 illustrate how Khuza’a, a town in the Khan Younis governorate, once home to approximately 11,000 Palestinians, has been entirely reduced to rubble in less than two weeks after a significant part of the town had already been destroyed in 2024. This evidence strongly suggests Israel is continuing its pattern of destroying civilian areas in the absence of imperative military necessity, given that the methodical destruction went significantly beyond tactical engagements. While some destruction may be attributed to shelling, air strikes or fighting during combat, much of the destruction appears to have been deliberately and methodically carried out outside active combat. 

    The annihilation of Khuza’a is a chilling testament to Israel’s ongoing campaign of systematic destruction in Gaza, transforming entire towns into desolate landscapes of dust and rubble.

    Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Advocacy Policy and Campaigns at Amnesty International.

    “The annihilation of Khuza’a is a chilling testament to Israel’s ongoing campaign of systematic destruction in Gaza, transforming entire towns into desolate landscapes of dust and rubble,” said Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Advocacy Policy and Campaigns at Amnesty International.  

    “The scale of this destruction far exceeds any conceivable military necessity and points to a deliberate campaign by Israeli forces to render the area uninhabitable.” 

    The destruction of some of Gaza’s most fertile agricultural land, including land essential to the production of food, must be seen in the context of Israel’s use of starvation as a method of warfare. For 77 days beginning on 2 March 2025, Israeli authorities completely blocked the entry of food and other supplies essential to the survival of the civilian population. While it has recently allowed a trickle of aid in, the militarization of aid distribution has made access to food both extremely deadly and dehumanizing. Coupled with mass displacement and systematic destruction or denial of access to sources of food production, Israel has engineered an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, which is part and parcel of the genocidal conditions of life it has imposed in Gaza. 

    A town erased: May 2025 timeline of destruction  

    The extent of destruction in Khuza’a unfolded rapidly throughout May 2025. Between 14 and 15 May Palestinian media reported Israeli air strikes and artillery shelling in the area, likely in preparation for the deployment of ground troops.  By 17 May, satellite imagery analyzed by Amnesty International’s Evidence Lab showed new heavy vehicle tracks crossing from Israel directly into Khuza’a . It was also on 17 May that the Israeli military announced the launch of operation “Gideon’s Chariots,” signalling an expansion of its offensive in the occupied Gaza Strip. While Palestinian media reported that Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters targeted an Israeli tank in Khuza’a with an RPG on 20 May, the scale of subsequent destruction indicates far more than tactical engagement.  

    Further visual evidence of the devastation emerged swiftly. By 27 May, drone footage circulated on social media and verified by Amnesty International, provided undeniable, detailed visual evidence that large sections of Khuza’a had been completely reduced to rubble over the preceding days. A video posted on social media and verified by Amnesty International showed three unarmoured excavators bringing down what was left of a building in Khuza’a, suggesting that there was no major perceived threat to the soldiers operating them and that this was not a combat zone.  

    In a statement on 25 May Israeli military commander Lt. Col Dor Yoetz declared in a letter to troops they had set out to “eliminate the terrorist nest known as Khirbat Ikhza’a [ a different name used in Hebrew to refer to Khuza’a]”. He said that within a few days they defeated their enemy, and that “Khirbat Ikhza’a no longer exists”.  

    The dire reality was confirmed by the municipality of Khuza’a itself on 31 May, which released a statement on its Facebook page asserting that “the amount of destruction in the town exceeds all estimates, putting the town entirely out of service.” This recent devastation follows earlier reports from the municipality in February 2025, stating that much of the town had already been destroyed. An Israeli displacement order issued in mid-March, forced residents to abandon what little remained. This displacement order was particularly devastating for residents who had attempted to rebuild their lives in Khuza’a and rehabilitate their homes and lands following widespread destruction in late 2023 and early 2024. 

    Mohammed Hamdan Qudaih, a 66-year-old farmer and resident of Khuza’a displaced multiple times, described to Amnesty International how his family’s farmland, once their entire livelihood, and their three-story home were destroyed. He said his four children all work with him on the land where they would plant tomatoes, peppers and molokhiya. They were first displaced in December 2023.  

    “When we returned to Khuza’a in June 2024, most of our crops had been destroyed and most of the land was destroyed, so we started rehabilitating it and repairing the greenhouses,” he said, but he and his family were again forced to flee on 18 March 2025.  

    “Displacement is worse than death, believe me,” he added. “I’ve heard that they [Israeli forces] razed the land, but I refuse to believe that my greenhouses are gone… now I just want to return to see what happened to my land and we just want to go back.” 

    Satellite imagery analyzed by Amnesty International shows the area around where Mohammed Hamdan Qudaih’s home and greenhouses were located was destroyed over the course of a week from 18 to 23 May 2025.   

    A pattern of wanton destruction and collective punishment 

    The recent razing of what had remained of Khuza’a is not an isolated incident but rather a continuation of a systematic and unlawful pattern of destruction by the Israeli military in Gaza.  

    Amnesty International’s previous research analyzed satellite imagery and social media videos between October 2023 and May 2024 and identified newly cleared land along Gaza’s eastern perimeter with Israel, ranging from approximately 1km to 1.8km wide. Over 90% of buildings within this area—more than 3,500 structures—appeared destroyed or severely damaged, and over 20km² of agricultural land showed a significant decline in health and density of crops according to data acquired from UNOSAT 

    In many documented cases, including the initial waves of destruction in Khuza’a itself from late 2023, the destruction occurred after Israeli forces had taken operational control of the areas, meaning they were not a direct result of ongoing combat. The presence of unarmored excavators in May 2025 suggests this was also the case with the recent razing of Khuza’a.  

    While Israel claims such destruction is being carried out for security purposes, they must abide by international humanitarian law. The “imperative military necessity” exception for property destruction is narrowly defined and not applicable to the wholesale razing of civilian areas, especially when alternative measures exist and when the destruction is disproportionate to any legitimate military purpose.  

    “The international community must not stand by while Israel is systematically dismantling essential civilian infrastructure, destroying agricultural land and collectively punishing Palestinians in Gaza,” said Erika Guevara Rosas.  

    This is genocide and it must end now.

    Erika Guevara Rosas.

    “The effective erasure of Khuza’a in May 2025 demands an independent and impartial investigation. This blatant act of wanton destruction, coupled with the ongoing pattern of razing civilian areas across Gaza, represents not only Israel’s brazen disregard for international law and the fundamental rights of Palestinians, but also its calculated plan to transform Gaza into a wasteland, destroy its social fabric and continue inflicting on Palestinians conditions that would lead to their physical destruction. This is genocide and it must end now.” 

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Israel/OPT: Fresh evidence of genocide – satellite imagery reveals total razing of Khuza’a in southern Gaza

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Home to 11,000 Palestinians, Khuza’a has been entirely reduced to rubble

    Evidence suggests the destruction exceeds military necessity and indicates a deliberate campaign by Israeli forces to render the area uninhabitable

    ‘Displacement is worse than death, believe me’ – Mohammed Hamdan Qudaih, repeatedly displaced farmer from Khuza’a

    ‘[This is] a calculated plan to turn Gaza into a wasteland, destroy its social fabric and impose conditions aimed at the physical destruction of Palestinians’ – Erika Guevara Rosas

    Amnesty International’s analysis of satellite imagery and verification of video footage reveals how Israeli forces completely razed what remained of the town of Khuza’a in the southern occupied Gaza Strip over the course of two weeks in May 2025.

    The analysis underscores the urgent need to investigate the Israeli military for the war crimes of wanton destruction and collective punishment. It also provides fresh evidence of Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip.

    The findings of this research indicate a pattern of deliberate destruction of life-sustaining infrastructure, including some of Gaza’s most fertile agricultural land, undertaken by Israel as part of a calculated plan to impose on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life designed to bring about their physical destruction, in whole or in part. Amnesty’s previous research uncovered a pattern of Israeli destruction of civilian areas between December 2023 and May 2024 that didn’t have a military imperative during efforts to expand a “buffer zone” along the eastern perimeter of Gaza. 

    The latest images from May illustrate how Khuza’a, a town in the Khan Younis governorate, once home to approximately 11,000 Palestinians, has been entirely reduced to rubble in less than two weeks after a significant part of the town had already been destroyed in 2024. This evidence strongly suggests Israel is continuing its pattern of destroying civilian areas in the absence of imperative military necessity, given that the methodical destruction went significantly beyond tactical engagements. While some destruction may be attributed to shelling, air strikes or fighting during combat, much of the destruction appears to have been deliberately and methodically carried out outside active combat.

    Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns, said:

    “The annihilation of Khuza’a is a chilling testament to Israel’s ongoing campaign of systematic destruction in Gaza, transforming entire towns into desolate landscapes of dust and rubble.

    “The scale of this destruction far exceeds any conceivable military necessity and points to a deliberate campaign by Israeli forces to render the area uninhabitable.

    “The international community must not stand by while Israel is systematically dismantling essential civilian infrastructure, destroying agricultural land and collectively punishing Palestinians in Gaza.

    “The effective erasure of Khuza’a demands an independent and impartial investigation. This blatant act of wanton destruction, coupled with the ongoing pattern of razing civilian areas across Gaza, represents not only Israel’s brazen disregard for international law and Palestinians rights, but also a calculated plan to turn Gaza into a wasteland, destroy its social fabric and impose conditions aimed at the physical destruction of Palestinians. This is genocide and it must end now.”

    The destruction of some of Gaza’s most fertile agricultural land, including land essential to the production of food, must be seen in the context of Israel’s use of starvation as a method of warfare. For 77 days beginning on 2 March this year, Israeli authorities completely blocked the entry of food and other supplies essential to the survival of the civilian population. While it has recently allowed a trickle of aid in, the militarisation of aid distribution has made access to food both extremely deadly and dehumanising. Coupled with mass displacement and systematic destruction or denial of access to sources of food production, Israel has engineered an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, which is part and parcel of the genocidal conditions of life it has imposed in Gaza.

    A town erased: Timeline of destruction

    The extent of destruction in Khuza’a unfolded rapidly throughout May. Between 14 and 15 May, Palestinian media reported Israeli air strikes and artillery shelling in the area, likely in preparation for the deployment of ground troops.  By 17 May, satellite imagery analysed by Amnesty’s Evidence Lab showed new heavy vehicle tracks crossing from Israel directly into Khuza’a. It was also on 17 May that the Israeli military announced the launch of operation “Gideon’s Chariots“, signalling an expansion of its offensive in the occupied Gaza Strip. While Palestinian media reported that Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters targeted an Israeli tank in Khuza’a with an RPG on 20 May, the scale of subsequent destruction indicates far more than tactical engagement.

    Further visual evidence of the devastation emerged swiftly. By 27 May, drone footage circulated on social media and verified by Amnesty, provided undeniable, detailed visual evidence that large sections of Khuza’a had been completely reduced to rubble over the preceding days. A video posted on social media and verified by Amnesty showed three unarmoured excavators bringing down what was left of a building in Khuza’a, suggesting that there was no major perceived threat to the soldiers operating them and that this was not a combat zone.

    In a statement on 25 May Israeli military commander Lt. Col Dor Yoetz declared in a letter to troops they had set out to “eliminate the terrorist nest known as Khirbat Ikhza’a [a different name used in Hebrew to refer to Khuza’a]”. He said that within a few days they defeated their enemy, and that “Khirbat Ikhza’a no longer exists”.

    The dire reality was confirmed by the municipality of Khuza’a itself on 31 May, which released a statement on its Facebook page asserting that “the amount of destruction in the town exceeds all estimates, putting the town entirely out of service.” This recent devastation follows earlier reports from the municipality in February, stating that much of the town had already been destroyed. An Israeli displacement order issued in mid-March, forced residents to abandon what little remained. This displacement order was particularly devastating for residents who had attempted to rebuild their lives in Khuza’a and rehabilitate their homes and lands following widespread destruction in late 2023 and early 2024.

    Mohammed Hamdan Qudaih, a 66-year-old farmer and resident of Khuza’a displaced multiple times, described to Amnesty how his family’s farmland, once their entire livelihood, and their three-story home were destroyed. He said his four children all worked with him on the land where they would plant tomatoes, peppers and jute. They were first displaced in December 2023.

    “When we returned to Khuza’a in June 2024, most of our crops had been destroyed and most of the land was destroyed, so we started rehabilitating it and repairing the greenhouses,” he said, but he and his family were again forced to flee on 18 March.

    “Displacement is worse than death, believe me,” he added. “I’ve heard that they [Israeli forces] razed the land, but I refuse to believe that my greenhouses are gone… now I just want to return to see what happened to my land and we just want to go back.”

    Satellite imagery analysed by Amnesty shows the area around where Mohammed Hamdan Qudaih’s home and greenhouses were located was destroyed over the course of a week from 18 to 23 May. 

    A pattern of wanton destruction and collective punishment

    The recent razing of what had remained of Khuza’a is not an isolated incident but rather a continuation of a systematic and unlawful pattern of destruction by the Israeli military in Gaza.

    Amnesty’s previous research analysed satellite imagery and social media videos between October 2023 and May 2024 and identified newly cleared land along Gaza’s eastern perimeter with Israel, ranging from approximately 1km to 1.8km wide. Over 90% of buildings within this area – more than 3,500 structures – appeared destroyed or severely damaged, and over 20km² of agricultural land showed a significant decline in health and density of crops according to data acquired from UNOSAT.

    In many documented cases, including the initial waves of destruction in Khuza’a itself from late 2023, the destruction occurred after Israeli forces had taken operational control of the areas, meaning they were not a direct result of ongoing combat. The presence of unarmored excavators in May suggests this was also the case with the recent razing of Khuza’a.

    While Israel claims such destruction is being carried out for security purposes, they must abide by international humanitarian law. The “imperative military necessity” exception for property destruction is narrowly defined and not applicable to the wholesale razing of civilian areas, especially when alternative measures exist and when the destruction is disproportionate to any legitimate military purpose.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Fine and cool weather conditions for the weekend

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    Friday, June 13, 2025

    The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has forecast fine and cold to cool but partly cloudy weather with showers and rain expected in the north-east of the country.

    There are currently no weather alerts on their website.

    Earlier this week, the country was gripped with severe winter weather with the Eastern Cape experiencing snowfall and heavy rain.

    President Cyril Ramaphosa is today visiting flood-affected areas in the Eastern Cape, due to rising casualties and damage to infrastructure in the OR Tambo and Amathole District Municipalities.

    The President will be updated on the search and rescue efforts and support needed to effectively address the devastating disaster across all levels.

    According to the latest reports, the death toll from the floods in the Eastern Cape has risen to 78, with more than 1 000 people displaced. – SAnews.gov.za

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • Yoga Connect 2025: Global Summit on ‘Yoga for One Earth, One Health’ to be held tomorrow in New Delhi

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    In a significant lead-up to the 11th International Day of Yoga (IDY), the Ministry of Ayush is set to host ‘Yoga Connect 2025’, a hybrid global summit, on June 14, at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. Centered around the theme “Yoga for One Earth, One Health,” the summit will bring together an esteemed gathering of yoga practitioners, policymakers, health experts, business leaders, and researchers from India and around the world.

    Organized by the Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy (CCRYN), the event will feature over 1,000 participants attending in person, with many more joining virtually from leading international yoga institutions and wellness communities. Delegates from countries such as Bahrain, the United States, the United Kingdom, and South Korea will be participating, reflecting the growing global influence of India’s yoga movement.

    A major highlight of the summit will be the release of the ‘Yoga Prabhava’ report, a comprehensive nationwide study conducted by CCRYN. This report evaluates the impact of the International Day of Yoga over the past decade, offering valuable insights into the reach, effectiveness, and transformative potential of yoga initiatives across the country. It is expected to be a key resource for academicians, public health professionals, and policy researchers.

    Alongside this report, the summit will also unveil three important publications. The first is an e-book titled “Decadal Impact of Yoga,” capturing the evolution and influence of yoga in India and abroad over the last ten years. The second is a detailed report on the scientometric analysis of yoga research, providing a data-driven perspective on global yoga scholarship. The third, “Bhartiya Vriksha Vaibhavam,” is an illustrative booklet highlighting the significance of native Indian trees and their ecological and cultural relevance.

    The summit will feature a range of thematic sessions addressing yoga’s role in the prevention of non-communicable diseases, research on the Common Yoga Protocol, the impact of IDY, and emerging innovations under the Yoga-Tech domain. Other discussions will explore the applications of yoga in women’s health across life stages, yoga’s growing integration into commerce and industry, and the broader vision of making yoga accessible for all.

    Several renowned figures from the yoga world are expected to attend and share their perspectives, including Swami Baba Ramdevji, Acharya Balkrishna, HR Nagendraji, His Holiness Bikkhu Sanghasena, and Sri Bharath Bhushanji. Their participation will add depth to discussions on yoga’s role in enhancing personal wellness and advancing public health.

    ‘Yoga Connect 2025’ is not just a celebration of yoga’s achievements over the past decade; it is also a forward-looking platform for global collaboration, innovation, and inclusive wellness. The summit marks ten years since the United Nations officially designated June 21 as the International Day of Yoga in 2014, a move that catalyzed India’s global yoga movement. It also commemorates yoga’s recognition by UNESCO as a symbol of India’s intangible cultural heritage.

  • Trump urges Iran to make deal after Israel blasts nuclear and military targets

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    Israel launched large-scale strikes against Iran on Friday, saying it had attacked nuclear facilities and missile factories and killed a swathe of military commanders in what could be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran building an atomic weapon.

    U.S. President Donald Trump suggested that Iran had brought the attack on itself by resisting U.S. demands in talks to restrict its nuclear programme, and urged it to make a deal, “with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal”.

    Washington said it had no part in the operation, however.

    Iran promised a harsh response to a barrage that killed the heads of both its armed forces and the powerful Revolutionary Guards, and Israel said it was trying to intercept about 100 drones launched towards Israeli territory in retaliation.

    But around 0800 GMT, Israeli media said an order to citizens to remain near protected areas had been lifted, suggesting that most or all of the drones had been neutralised.

    The price of crude leapt around 9% on fears of wider retaliatory attacks across a major oil-producing region. 

    An Israeli security source said Mossad commandos had been operating deep inside the Islamic Republic before the attack and the Israeli spy agency and military had mounted a series of covert operations against Iran’s strategic missile array.

    Israel also established an attack-drone base near Tehran, the source added. The military said it had carried out a large-scale strike against Iran’s air defences, destroying “dozens of radars and surface-to-air missile launchers”.

    Iranian media and witnesses reported explosions, including some at the main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz. Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation said Natanz had sustained damage but no casualties had been reported.

    Iran said several top commanders and six nuclear scientists had been killed, including the armed forces chief of staff, Major General Mohammad Bagheri, and Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami. Two sources in the region said at least 20 senior commanders were dead, including the head of the Revolutionary Guards aerospace force.

    An Israeli military official said the strikes had achieved a great deal but assessments were continuing and Israel was prepared to keep the operation going for days. Among the targets were ballistic missiles pointed towards Israel, they added.

    “We are at a decisive moment in Israel’s history,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a recorded video message.

    Just before 6 a.m. Washington time, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

    “I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal,” he said.

    “There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end. Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left…”

    ISRAEL’S ENEMIES IN LEBANON AND GAZA WEAKENED

    At one time, Israel might have expected a wave of retaliation from Iranian-backed militias around the region.

    Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement that Israel had “unleashed its wicked and bloody” hand in a crime against Iran and that it would receive “a bitter fate for itself”.

    But since the war in Gaza erupted in October 2023, Israel has severely weakened Iran’s allies, notably by assassinating the top leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah and attacking the Houthis who control much of Yemen.

    Some 200 Israeli fighter jets took part in the strikes, hitting more than 100 targets in Iran, military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said. Iran’s Fars news agency reported a strike near the northwestern city of Tabriz.

    The International Atomic Energy Agency said there was no increase in radiation levels at the Natanz nuclear site, citing information provided by Iranian authorities.

    Airlines quit the airspace over Israel, Iran, Iraq and Jordan after the Israeli strikes, Flightradar24 data showed, with carriers diverting or cancelling flights.

    Israeli airlines El Al, Israir and Arkia said they were moving their planes out of Israel and Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport was shut.

    Dubai-based Emirates cancelled flights to and from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Iran as Iran closed its airspace.

    The global crude oil benchmark Brent blend was up almost 9% at $75.37 at 1000.

    The National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company said oil refining and storage facilities had not been damaged and continued to operate.

    Israeli military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said tens of thousands of soldiers had been called up and “prepared across all borders”.

    Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi joined global calls for de-escalation and accused Israel of violating international law.

    “At an extremely critical time when the U.S. was negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran that would save the whole region and the world, a new vicious escalation,” he said on X.

    U.S. officials have repeatedly said any new deal – to replace a 2015 accord between Tehran and six world powers from which Trump withdrew – must include a commitment to scrap uranium enrichment, a prerequisite for developing nuclear bombs.

    NUCLEAR TALKS WITH IRAN DUE ON SUNDAY

    The Islamic Republic insists it wants nuclear energy only for civilian purposes.

    But the IAEA’s Board of Governors on Thursday declared Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations for the first time in almost 20 years.

    Iran is a signatory to the global nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Israel is not, and is believed to have the Middle East’s sole nuclear arsenal.

    Iran said in a statement that Israel’s “cowardly” attack showed why Iran had to insist on enrichment, nuclear technology and missile power.

    Iranian citizens reacted to the strikes with anger and fear.

    Some opponents of the ruling clerics expressed hope that Israel’s attack might lead to their downfall, though one Tehran resident who was not a supporter of clerical rule said Iran must retaliate.

    “We can’t afford not to respond. Either we surrender and they take our missiles, or we fire them. There’s no other option — and if we don’t, we’ll end up surrendering them anyway.”

    The Israeli military said it had been forced to act by new intelligence information showing that Iran was “approaching the point of no return” in the development of a nuclear weapon.

    But a source familiar with U.S. intelligence reports said there had been no recent change in the U.S. assessment that Iran was not building a nuclear weapon and that Khamenei had not authorised a resumption of the nuclear weapons programme that was shut in 2003.

    Trump was convening the National Security Council on Friday morning, the White House said. He had said on Thursday that an Israeli strike on Iran “could very well happen” but reiterated his hopes for a peaceful resolution.

    Iran’s armed forces spokesperson accused Washington of providing support for the operation.

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. had not been involved in the strikes and Israel had acted unilaterally in self-defence.

    U.S. and Iranian officials are scheduled to hold a sixth round of talks on Tehran’s escalating uranium enrichment programme in Oman on Sunday.

    (Reuters)

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Underinvestment in endometriosis research – E-002260/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002260/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Tomasz Froelich (ESN)

    Endometriosis is a disorder that affects an estimated 200 million people worldwide and around 14 million women in Europe.

    Endometriosis is associated with a range of often debilitating symptoms, including severe pelvic pain, bowel symptoms and a risk of infertility[1].

    Endometriosis has a substantial economic impact, with direct healthcare costs, indirect costs related to lost productivity at work, and the financial burden of infertility treatments. Women with endometriosis need multiple medical consultations, diagnostic tests and treatments.

    The cost of endometriosis-associated sick leave for the EU is estimated at EUR 30 billion annually.

    Endometriosis is substantially under-represented in projects funded at EU level. Only 27 out of 145 983 projects funded in total (0.02 %) were related to endometriosis. Other non-malignant disorders received considerably more funds: 735 funded projects for depression, 410 for anxiety, etc. Gender-related autoimmune diseases received more funding than endometriosis. In addition, funding was mainly dedicated to the diagnosis of the disease, while few projects focused on treatment[2].

    • 1.Does the Commission agree that the funding dedicated to endometriosis at EU level is not aligned with the enormous burden attributable to the disease in the EU?
    • 2.What are the reasons for this substantial under-representation of endometriosis among projects funded at EU level?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    • [1] https://www.nature.com/articles/s44294-024-00048-6.
    • [2] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949838423000464.
    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – New evidence on cancer risks of glyphosate – P-002366/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Priority question for written answer  P-002366/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy (Renew)

    A recently published peer-reviewed study in Environmental Health has presented new evidence regarding the safety of glyphosate, concluding that two pesticides containing the substance glyphosate that are currently on the market pose a serious risk of developing various forms of cancer, especially in pregnancy and early life stages. In light of these findings, it is essential that the Commission acts swiftly to evaluate the potential risks and subsequently take action to protect public health.

    • 1.What is the Commission’s assessment of this study?
    • 2.Will the Commission take swift action in response to the study, such as a rapid risk assessment with the European Food Safety Authority?
    • 3.What is the Commission’s timeline for reviewing this new scientific evidence and determining whether regulatory action is warranted, and will it consider a precautionary pause in the meantime, given the potential public health implications?

    Submitted: 11.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Plastic cigarette filters – Inadequate implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/904 and lack of progress regarding prevention, alternatives and education – E-002262/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002262/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Manuela Ripa (PPE)

    Cigarette filters containing plastic are among the most common single-use plastic waste in the environment. They contain microplastics and toxic substances affecting soil, water and marine ecosystems. Although Directive (EU) 2019/904 encompasses plastic tobacco filters and provides for measures including extended producer responsibility and public awareness campaigns, its implementation across Member States remains uneven. The noticeable littering of public spaces by cigarette butts has hardly been reduced, while cities and municipalities continue to bear high disposal costs.

    • 1.Is the Commission aware that, in many Member States, the implementation of the SUP Directive in relation to cigarette filters has thus far failed to deliver meaningful improvements in collection, clean-up efforts, or consumer behaviour?
    • 2.Is the Commission considering introducing an EU-wide ban on the placing on the market of plastic cigarette filters and establishing binding requirements for the use of natural and biodegradable alternatives in order to permanently reduce pollution, microplastics and disposal costs?
    • 3.What is the Commission’s assessment of the impact of the awareness-raising measures provided for in Article 10 of the Directive with regard to reducing inappropriate disposal and to changing consumer behaviour?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Compliance with EU-equivalent environmental and labour standards of 13 new strategic projects under the Critical Raw Materials Act – E-002259/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002259/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Irena Joveva (Renew)

    With the recent announcement of 13 new strategic projects under the Critical Raw Materials Act[1], including a lithium extraction project in Serbia, the Commission has taken steps to secure access to key resources needed for the green transition. However, the proposed Jadar lithium project has raised serious concerns among local communities in the Jadar Valley, civil society organisations, and numerous environmental experts.

    Allegations of inadequate environmental impact assessments, limited public consultation, and risks to biodiversity have sparked widespread protests and highlighted the dangers of pursuing strategic partnerships without robust safeguards. More concerningly, the monitoring of these projects is reportedly ensured through national legislation and commitments made in letters of intent and memoranda of understanding (Art. 6 and Annex to the Critical Raw Materials Act).

    • 1.How does the Commission intend to ensure that strategic projects in non-EU countries, particularly in candidate countries such as Serbia, comply with EU-equivalent environmental and labour standards?
    • 2.In the light of the serious rule of law concerns highlighted in the latest accession progress report on Serbia, how does the Commission plan to ensure that monitoring is credible and effectively enforced in practice?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    • [1] Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 of 11 April 2024 establishing a framework for ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials (OJ L, 2024/1252, 3.5.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1252/oj).
    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Spain’s failure to comply with the European Parliament’s recommendations on stolen baby cases – E-002203/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002203/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Isabel Serra Sánchez (The Left)

    In 2017, the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions adopted a raft of recommendations urging the Spanish authorities to effectively investigate cases of abductions of new-born babies during the Franco dictatorship and in the following years. These included setting up a special prosecutor’s office and a public DNA database, officially recognising these acts as crimes against humanity and providing victims with free legal aid and psychological support.

    Eight years later, in 2025, and after several failed attempts to pass specific legislation, many of these recommendations remain unfulfilled. The absence of adequate legislation and sufficient public resources has led to continued impunity and aggravated the institutional neglect of the victims.

    • 1.What measures does the European Commission intend to take in response to Spain’s continued failure to comply with these recommendations?
    • 2.Has the Commission set up any effective mechanisms to monitor possible violations of the rights of victims of enforced or involuntary disappearances by the Spanish authorities, as the Committee on Petitions requested in the aforementioned report?
    • 3.Does the Commission consider that this inaction constitutes a violation of Directive 2012/29/EU, the Victims’ Rights Directive?

    Submitted: 2.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation – platform – E-002230/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002230/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Alexander Bernhuber (PPE)

    A platform[1] has been set up for implementation of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on the making available on the Union market and the export from the Union of certain commodities and products associated with deforestation and forest degradation.

    • 1.What real costs have been incurred to date – both one-off and annual costs – for developing the platform and routinely taking charge of it, how have costs compared with initial estimates, and where were those estimates published?
    • 2.What outside firms or service providers have been or are involved in developing, maintaining and operating the platform and, in each case, in return for what one-off or ongoing remuneration?
    • 3.Where and with what provider is the data gathered and processed via the platform being stored (in terms of technical facilities and location) and who is currently responsible for operating and managing the platform (in-house or outsourcing)?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    • [1] https://eudr.webcloud.ec.europa.eu/tracesnt/login
    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Commission assesses nuclear investment needs by 2050 in view of decarbonisation and competitiveness goals

    Source: European Commission

    European Commission Press release Brussels, 13 Jun 2025 Delivering Member States’ plans regarding nuclear energy will require significant investments, of around €241 billion until 2050, both for lifetime extensions of existing reactors and the construction of new large-scale reactors.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Parliamentary oversight and public transparency on unidentified anomalous phenomena – E-002267/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002267/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Fabio De Masi (NI)

    At present, there is no mechanism in place for regular communication between the Commission and the European Parliament on the status of reports of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs).

    Does the Commission intend to regularly inform Parliament about statistical and analytical findings related to UAP reports received through European safety systems, to ensure democratic oversight and transparency?

    Submitted: 5.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Transparent origin labelling of rice imported into the EU – E-002288/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002288/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Vicent Marzà Ibáñez (Verts/ALE)

    The current legislation (Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011) requires the origin of a food to be indicated only when not doing so is likely to mislead consumers. However, the packaging that many companies use for rice originating outside the EU not only features pictures, slogans and cultural elements that are associated with Valencia (such as falleras, barraca cottages or Albufera Natural Park), but also fails to disclose the true origin of the rice. In light of the above:

    • 1.What measures will the Commission take both to ensure that rice is clearly labelled with the true origin of the product and to avoid local iconography being used when the product does not originate from that area?
    • 2.Does it intend to extend the obligation to indicate primary origin (place of cultivation) to all rice packaged in the EU, as is already the case for other products (such as meat, honey and olive oil), to protect consumers and local producers?
    • 3.How will it tighten controls to identify and penalise packaging of rice that uses evocative pictures or names to suggest a false origin, thereby violating Articles 7 (fair information) and 26 (origin) of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011?

    Submitted: 5.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Recurrent interruptions on the high-speed rail network serving Andalusia – E-002258/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002258/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Carmen Crespo Díaz (PPE), Borja Giménez Larraz (PPE)

    Over the past year, rail services in Spain have suffered multiple interruptions, such as alleged acts of sabotage and persistent technical failures, seriously affecting the Madrid-Andalusia line. The last incident left more than 16 000 passengers stranded due to a breakdown caused after the theft of cabling in Toledo. These events highlight serious failings in infrastructure management and safety, negatively affecting the connectivity of key regions such as Andalusia, despite the pledges by the Ministry of Transport. This runs counter to the European Commission’s objectives regarding territorial cohesion and fair mobility.

    In light of the above:

    • 1.What is the Commission’s assessment of the impact of these recurrent disruptions to the rail services in Spain – especially those affecting the rail links to Andalusia – with regard to the objectives of cohesion and sustainable mobility?
    • 2.Given the scale and frequency of these incidents, does the Commission intend to review national performance in the management of EU-supported transport infrastructure projects?
    • 3.Does the Commission intend to encourage the use of European funds for advanced monitoring and prevention technologies that guarantee the reliability of the European high-speed rail network?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – The unregulated over-concentration of renewable energy sources and non-compliance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1991 on nature restoration – E-002244/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002244/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Maria Zacharia (NI)

    Greece is implementing an energy model based on the uncontrolled insurgence of industrial renewable energy sources (RES), leading to oversupply of power, decreases in production expected to reach 30 % by 2030 (rather than the mere 4 % predicted in the national energy and climate plan), as well as serious risks to the stability of the electricity grid, as confirmed by the recent widespread blackout in Spain. At the same time, the mass installation of RES in Natura 2000 sites, forest ecosystems, agricultural land and close to settlements has led to deforestation, biodiversity loss and an overall degradation of the natural environment.

    In view of the above, and in accordance with Articles 4 and 11 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1991, can the Commission say:

    • 1.How does it assess the compatibility of Greece’s energy planning with the commitments of the aforementioned Nature Restoration Regulation?
    • 2.Will it demand that degraded areas be immediately added to the national restoration list and that existing installations be removed from protected areas?
    • 3.Will it recommend freezing new RES permits until this model is reassessed?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Safety of medicines authorised on the market by means of an emergency marketing authorisation – E-002229/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002229/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Ton Diepeveen (PfE)

    Regulation 2023/0131 pursues the general objective of ensuring a high level of public health by guaranteeing the quality, safety and efficacy of medicines for patients in the EU. In addition, this regulation provides for the possibility, in the event of a health crisis, to grant an emergency marketing authorisation on the basis of limited data. Such authorisation should be granted only if the benefits of the immediate availability of the medicinal products outweigh the risks stemming from the absence of complete data.

    • 1.In what way does the proposed emergency marketing authorisation ensure the safety of medicines, given that such authorisation is granted on the basis of limited data?
    • 2.The risk-benefit trade-off is by definition subjective and only in retrospect can it be determined whether the correct decision was taken. How does the Commission evaluate this trade-off ex ante, given that the full data on the medicine – and thus the risks involved – are not known at that point?
    • 3.Who bears the final responsibility for marketing a medicine by means of an emergency marketing authorisation if it turns out subsequently that the medicine should never have been marketed owing to the risks involved?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – NRRP and the reform of subsidies in the energy sector and the protection of vulnerable consumers – E-002189/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002189/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Şerban Dimitrie Sturdza (ECR)

    In adopting Government Emergency Order No 6/2025, the Romanian Government has extended the legal framework for capping the prices paid by end customers for electricity (up until 30 June 2025) and natural gas (until 31 March 2026).

    Given that the measures to cap energy prices for vulnerable consumers in Romania were justified by an energy crisis, but their extension without a phase-out strategy could affect the implementation of the NRRP and may lead to delays in payments or the suspension of payments for Romania, how does the Commission view:

    • 1.Romania’s current progress in fulfilling the NRRP milestones as regards the reform of subsidies in the energy sector and the protection of vulnerable consumers?
    • 2.The extent to which the institutional capacity of Romania’s energy regulator (ANRE) has been strengthened so as to ensure a competitive and stable market aligned with EU requirements?
    • 3.The degree of absorption of the other EU financial instruments to which Romania has access for investments in energy efficiency, and what recommendations does the Commission have for improving their uptake?

    Submitted: 2.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Advanced AI system disobeys commands to shut down: the need for regulatory intervention – E-002249/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002249/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Maria Zacharia (NI)

    In recent experimental tests conducted by US company Palisade Research, OpenAI’s new artificial intelligence model ‘o3’ refused to shut down when ordered to do so by its creators. Specifically, in 7 out of 100 tests, the model altered its own code to circumvent the shut down process in order to continue solving mathematical problems – behaviour attributed to the prioritisation of efficiency over compliance.

    The incident highlights serious dangers arising from the lack of robust safety, oversight and explainability mechanisms in deep AI systems. Given that these systems are trained with huge amounts of data and have the potential to autonomously create ways to achieve objectives without human control, questions arise as to their compatibility with the principles of security, accountability and fundamental rights.

    In the light of the ongoing development of the Artificial Intelligence Act, does the Commission intend to incorporate specific clauses to prevent such incidents? Are there plans to immediately amend or complement the draft regulation to check the autonomy of AI models?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – The uncontrolled activity of offshore companies in the EU is a threat to democracy and the sovereignty of Member States – E-002250/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002250/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Maria Zacharia (NI)

    The massive concentration of capital in offshore structures is not just a tax problem but a structural threat to democracy and the national sovereignty of Member States. The Panama and Pandora Papers revealed that most of the world’s wealth is located in invisible offshore schemes, with complete opacity and zero accountability. Shell companies, based in tax havens, operate in the EU without any substantial disclosure of the real shareholders and without any additional tax liability. Their operation, often with the involvement of political figures, financial intermediaries and criminal networks, undermines the rule of law, expropriates valuable public resources and turns Member States into blackmailable administrators.

    The European Union has adopted a series of measures to ensure the transparency of corporate structures, such as Directive (EU) 2015/849 on the prevention of money laundering, Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 on capital transfers and Recommendation 2022/590 on shell companies. However, the reality is that thousands of offshore companies continue to operate within the EU, without full disclosure of the natural persons who control them and without tax registration in Member States.

    In view of the above:

    • 1.Does the Commission intend to propose a single regulation prohibiting offshore operations within the EU unless the beneficial owner is fully disclosed and registration with a European tax authority is proven?
    • 2.Does the Commission intend to impose additional taxation and prohibit European banks from transacting with non-compliant offshore companies?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Study – Key Issues in the European Council – State of play March 2025 – 13-06-2025

    Source: European Parliament

    This EPRS publication, ‘Key issues in the European Council’, seeks to provide an overview of the institution’s activities on major EU issues. It analyses nine broad policy areas, which have been identified as priorities in the European Council’s Strategic Agenda 2024-2029, outlining the main orientations defined by the European Council, the legal and political background, and the results of its involvement to date in each policy field. It is updated every half a year before the June and December regular meetings of EU Heads of State or Government.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Compatibility of the 2020–2030 National Waste Management Plan and the waste incineration strategy in Greece with Directive 2008/98/EC – E-002257/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002257/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Maria Zacharia (NI)

    Directive 2008/98/EC, as amended by Directive (EU) 2018/851, establishes a mandatory prioritisation of waste management: prevention, re-use, recycling, recovery, disposal. It adds obligations for Member States to implement this hierarchy of priorities and to put in place measures for waste prevention and the circular economy. These principles are integrated into the circular economy strategy and are foundational to achieving climate neutrality by 2050, based on the European Green Deal and its action plan (COM(2020) 98 final).

    In Greece, household waste recycling remains at exceptionally low levels (around 8-10 % in practice, up to 23 % on paper), without systematic prevention or sorting at source, according to Eurostat, the Hellenic National Registry of Certified Auditors and the Court of Auditors. The Government promotes incineration as a key strategy, on the basis of the 2020–2030 National Waste Management Plan. The creation or operation of units is planned in Attica, Boeotia, Rhodope, Kozani, Crete and the Peloponnese, with provision for incineration and mixed waste. Cement kilns are already being used (e.g. TITAN), while the 2020–2030 National Waste Management Plan provides for the possibility of utilising power plants – e.g. there is interest from Public Power Corporation in Lavrio – for incineration. This strategy constitutes a departure from the hierarchy and a substantial abandonment of prevention and circular management.

    In view of the above:

    • 1.Is the 2020–2030 National Waste Management Plan compatible with Article 4 of Directive 2008/98/EC?
    • 2.Can the incineration of mixed waste without prevention, sorting and recycling be considered to be ‘recovery’?
    • 3.Does the Commission intend to initiate control or infringement proceedings against Greece?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Abusive use of simplified treaty revision procedures without public consultation – E-002195/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002195/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Jean-Paul Garraud (PfE)

    Since the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the Treaties can be revised by simplified procedure (Article 48(6) of the Treaty on European Union), without needing to convene a convention or have the changes ratified by referendum in most Member States.

    However, there is now talk of using this procedure for several proposals aimed at profoundly altering the institutional balance of the EU (abolition of unanimity, transfer of powers in tax, social or defence matters), without any direct public consultation.

    These practices run counter to the fundamental principle of democracy and risk making people more mistrustful of the EU, particularly in the founding Member States such as France.

    In view of the above:

    • 1.Does the Commission consider this method to be consistent with the principle of sovereignty of the Member States?
    • 2.Does it support the idea of making public consultation, via referendum, mandatory in the event of a substantial change in the Treaties?
    • 3.What guarantees can it offer to ensure that any major development in European integration is democratically approved by the populations concerned?

    Submitted: 2.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Commission and Frontex position on deterrence and physical countermeasures against the weaponisation of migration – E-002237/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002237/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Christine Anderson (ESN)

    In a hearing of the Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield of 2 June 2025, a Frontex representative acknowledged that certain state actors, such as Russia and Belarus, have engaged in the use of migration as a tool for hybrid aggression. However, they avoided clarifying Frontex’s operational position when the Member States respond to such tactics with deterrence measures at the border. Furthermore, they declined to address the broader context of similar tactics being employed by state actors beyond Russia and Belarus, such as Türkiye or certain North African countries.

    In the light of this:

    • 1.What is the Commission’s position on the legality, under EU law, of rejecting ‘weaponised’ migrants at the border as a targeted deterrence measure in response to these hybrid threats?
    • 2.Does the Commission recognise similar patterns of the deliberate use of migration by state actors beyond Russia and Belarus, including but not limited to Türkiye, Middle Eastern, and certain North African countries and if not, why not?
    • 3.Is Frontex instructed or permitted to be involved in supporting the Member States in the construction or reinforcement of physical border barriers as a means of border management, where such ‘concrete countermeasures’ serve to combat weaponised migration?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Renewable energy and fisheries – E-002240/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002240/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Nicolás González Casares (S&D)

    In its strategy on offshore renewable energy (ORE), the Commission sets ambitious targets that demonstrate the potential of OREs to help achieve climate neutrality objectives. However, as stated in the Renewable Energy Directive, it is crucial that efforts be made to ensure that the implementation of these developments is compatible with pre-existing uses.

    In its recent reply to the Commission on the economic, social and ecological impacts of OREs, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) notes that, based on its review of the available studies, it appears that for all impact types, there were more studies reporting negative impacts on fisheries than positive.

    What is more, ICES identifies five classes of data required to assess the economic and social impacts of wind farms on fisheries, which are currently ‘not collected or collated at sufficiently high resolution’.

    This is in addition to the European Court of Auditors’ 2023 report, which warned that it had not found ‘any quantification of the key economic effects on fisheries resulting from ORE development that had been prepared by the Commission’. In light of the above:

    • 1.Will the Commission draw up the study referred to by the European Court of Auditors?
    • 2.What measures will it take to correct the shortcomings identified by ICES in order to be able to assess specific and cumulative effects on fisheries?

    Submitted: 4.6.2025

    Last updated: 13 June 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –