Interview with Dr. Alaa Slih Hamadto, a cleantech entrepreneur from Sudan.
Dr. Alaa Slih Hamadto is the CEO and founder of Solar Foods, a clean technology startup and pioneer in the dried food industry in Sudan. Solar Foods purchases produce from smallholder farmers, dries it with solar energy, and packages it in an environmentally friendly manner that meets the needs of both the retail and wholesale market.
Dr. Hamadto was a participant of the panel “Women, Peace, and Security: How to Promote Stability in Conflict-affected Countries by Funding Female Entrepreneurs” at the 5th World Entrepreneurs Investment Forum in Bahrain on 16 May 2024.
In this compelling video, Artificial Intelligence (AI) re-enactments bring to life the testimonies of survivors of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) from Burundi, Bosnia & Herzegovina, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Iraq. These accounts shed light on the barriers that survivors/victims face in reporting, and the challenges practitioners face in responding to and documenting CRSV cases in conflict settings. The video highlights the entrenched gender inequalities that disproportionately affect women and girls, and recognises that men and boys are also survivors/victims. The video explores the international legal frameworks in place and the crucial role of Senior Women Protection Advisors in peacekeeping settings, emphasizing the criticality of comprehensive CRSV prevention and response to protecting women, girls, men and boys from CRSV and to achieving peace and security.
Describing the scale of devastation in Gaza as unparalled, a UN official in the region details the severe consequences for mothers and pregnant women. Nestor Owomuhangi, Representative in Palestine of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), says the odds of women miscarrying or dying in childbirth have tripled, while malnutrition stalks mothers trying to breastfeed.
Statement by the High Representative on behalf of the European Union on the alignment of certain third countries with Council Implementing Decision (CFSP) 2024/2502 of 23 September 2024 implementing Decision 2013/255/CFSP concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Syria.
Eidgenössisches Departement für auswärtige Angelegenheiten
Bern, 11.10.2024 – Rede von Bundesrat Ignazio Cassis, Vorsteher des Eidgenössischen Departements für auswärtige Angelegenheiten (EDA) – Es gilt das gesprochene Wort
Excellencies
Ladies and Gentlemen
Dear Guests
Last year, I ended my speech with the words of Nobel laureate Hermann Hesse: “To achieve the possible, we must attempt the impossible – again and again.”
And that’s exactly what we do, year after year. The rapid technological advances we’re witnessing are expanding the boundaries of civilization in ways we once considered impossible.
This is where GESDA plays its role: it opens new frontiers, enabling us to not only imagine but also anticipate the future and prepare for the changes ahead with tangible, inclusive solutions.
Things are moving fast, and so is GESDA.
Following last year’s launch of the Open Quantum Institute, GESDA now presents the Anticipation Gateway Initiative, its second pioneering project, which is now entering a three-year prototyping phase.
I want to congratulate the entire GESDA team and its supporters for their unwavering commitment to pushing boundaries for multilateralism and humanity.
New technologies are reshaping relationships —between people, organisations, and our environment. While this is not new, the pace of progress now far exceeds human evolution, creating deeper divides in our societies.
Ladies and gentlemen
What’s on GESDA’s radar? What’s cooking in the labs? Let me highlight two rapidly advancing fields: synthetic biology and neuroscience.
1) Synthetic biology: This field merges biology and engineering, allowing us to create new living organisms or modify existing ones to perform novel tasks—potentially enabling us to program living cells like computers in the future.
Over the next five years, integrating synthetic biology with AI will speed up the development of new biological agents:
On the upside, it could lead to the rapid development of vaccines and treatments, helping us live healthier, longer lives.
On the downside, some agents could be misused as biological weapons.
2) Neurotechnology: This field involves technologies that interact with the nervous system to monitor or influence brain activity. GESDA foresees that next-gen implants will stimulate multiple brain regions, with AI and brain-computer interfaces becoming a reality soon.
· The bright side: Neurotechnology could help paraplegics walk again.
· The dark side: It might also be used to enhance soldiers’ abilities, improving precision, resilience, and reducing sleep needs—raising ethical concerns we must address.
Dear guests
The rapid acceleration of science will deeply impact every aspect of our lives, including international peace and security. Given Switzerland’s history of innovation and mediation, we believe it’s crucial to focus on preventing and managing conflicts that may arise from emerging technologies.
As science advances, diplomacy must keep pace.
In this spirit, during our presidency of the UN Security Council this October, Switzerland will propose a presidential statement to highlight the importance of monitoring scientific advances and their effects on global peace and security.
While the UNSC currently addresses pressing issues such as the Middle East, Ukraine, Yemen, and Sudan, we must also view global dynamics through the lens of science. Leaders need to prepare for future science-driven challenges, as they will increasingly face conflicts fuelled by technology.
This will be my message as President of the Security Council on 21 October in New York. Specifically, this will mean discussing the forms of warfare we wish to avoid, establishing rules, and setting clear limits.
Thanks to GESDA’s Anticipation Gateway Initiative, we can begin shaping this vision with three key instruments:
1. The training framework for anticipatory leadership prepares decision-makers for a rapidly evolving world, helping them understand breakthrough technologies.
2. The public portal raises global awareness on these issues (this will also feature at the Swiss Pavilion at the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, Kansai).
3. The anticipation observatory provides a platform for everyone to engage in these vital conversations.
Ladies and gentlemen
I began with a Nobel laureate, so I’ll close with another. Marie Curie once said: “In life, nothing is to be feared, everything is to be understood. It is time to understand more, so that we may fear less.“
As we conclude this month’s Swiss presidency of the UNSC, my hope is that we leave New York with a sense of accomplishment—having made progress in ensuring the Council remains committed to monitoring scientific developments and their impact on global peace and security.
In UN terms, the Council must stay engaged and encourage others to continue this crucial discussion. The more we understand, the less we will fear.
Now, turning ‘back to the present’, I look forward to hearing the perspectives and insights from my ministerial colleagues.
Mr. Chair, Prime Minister Siphandone, thank you for your warm welcome and congratulations on your leadership of ASEAN this year.
Distinguished leaders of ASEAN,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
For nearly six decades, the family of South-East Asian countries has blazed a path of collaboration.
Every day, you grow more integrated, dynamic and influential.
And our ASEAN-UN partnership is growing ever stronger, too and it is today a strategic partnership from the UN point of view.
The ASEAN-UN Plan of Action is making important progress across the political, security, economic and cultural fronts.
I am particularly grateful for the important contribution of ASEAN members to our peacekeeping operations. Allow me to express my total solidarity with the Indonesian delegation. Two Indonesian peacekeepers [serving in Lebanon] were wounded by Israeli fire. We are together with you and the Indonesian people at this time.
I also welcome your work on the preparation of the Community Vision 2045.
This region has always been about looking ahead.
And so is the Pact for the Future, adopted last month at the United Nations.
We need to keep looking ahead.
Let me point to four key areas.
First, connectivity — your theme for the year.
We start with a fundamental objective: technology should benefit everyone.
Across Southeast Asia, broadband and mobile internet connectivity has soared. Yet the digital divide persists.
And a new divide is now with us — an Artificial Intelligence divide.
Every country must be able to access and benefit from these technologies.
And every country should be at the table when decisions are made about their governance.
The Pact for the Future includes a major breakthrough — the first truly universal agreement on the international governance of Artificial Intelligence that would give every country a seat at the AI table.
It also calls for international partnerships to boost AI capacity building in developing countries.
And it commits governments to establishing an independent international Scientific Panel on AI and initiating a global dialogue on its governance within the United Nations.
Second, finance.
International financial institutions can no longer provide a global safety net – or offer developing countries the level of support they need.
The Pact for the Future says clearly: we need to accelerate reform of the international financial architecture.
To close the financing gap of the Sustainable Development Goals.
To ensure that countries can borrow sustainably to invest in their long-term development.
And to strengthen the voice and representation of developing countries.
This includes calling on G20 countries to lead on an SDG Stimulus of $500 billion a year.
Substantially increasing also the lending capacity of Multilateral Development Banks.
Recycling more Special Drawing Rights.
And restructuring loans for countries drowning in debt.
Third, climate.
ASEAN countries are feeling the brunt of climate chaos – disasters like Super Typhoon Yagi – while the 1.5 degree goal is slipping away.
We need dramatic action to reduce emissions.
The G20 is responsible for 80 per cent of total emissions – they must lead the way.
I welcome the pioneering Just Energy Transition Partnerships in Indonesia and Vietnam.
By next year, every country must produce new NDCs aligned with limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Developed countries must keep their promises to double adaptation finance.
And we need to see significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund.
Every person must be covered by an alert system by 2027, through the United Nations’ Early Warnings for All Initiative.
We must secure also an ambitious outcome on finance at COP29.
Fourth and finally, peace.
I recognize your constructive role in continuing to pursue dialogue and peaceful means of resolving disputes from the Korean Peninsula to the South China Sea. And I salute you for doing so in full respect of the UN Charter and international law – including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Meanwhile, Myanmar remains on an increasingly complex path.
Violence is growing.
The humanitarian situation is spiralling.
One-third of the population is in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Millions have been forced to flee their homes.
Seven years after the forced mass displacement of the Rohingya, durable solutions seem a distant reality.
I support strengthened cooperation between the UN Special Envoy and the ASEAN Chair on innovative ways to promote a Myanmar-led process, including through the effective and comprehensive implementation of the ASEAN Five-Point Consensus and beyond.
The people of Myanmar need peace. And I call on all countries to leverage their influence towards an inclusive political solution to the conflict and deliver the peaceful future that the people of Myanmar deserve.
Excellencies,
ASEAN exemplifies community and cooperation.
You are far more than the sum of your parts.
In a world with growing geopolitical divides, with dramatic impacts on peace and security and sustainable development, ASEAN is a bridge-builder and a messenger for peace.
Peace that is more necessary than ever, when we see the immense suffering of the people in Gaza, now extended to Lebanon, not forgetting Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar and so many others.
Allow me to tell you that the level of death and destruction in Gaza is something that has no comparison in any other situation I have seen since I became Secretary-General.
I am extremely grateful for your constant efforts to keep our world together.
You play a key role in shaping a world that is prosperous, inclusive and sustainable with respect for human rights at its heart.
And you can always count on my full support and that of the United Nations in this essential effort.
Source: Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – OSCE
Headline: Anti-trafficking practitioners meet in Italy for first Mediterranean regional simulation-based training exercise
A staged police search during the final phase of the week-long anti-human trafficking simulation training exercise conducted in Vicenza, Italy (CoESPU/Vicenza) Photo details
The first Mediterranean regional simulation-based training exercise for anti-trafficking practitioners from OSCE participating States and Partners for Co-operation concluded today in Vicenza, Italy, at the premises of the Centre of Excellence for Stability Police Units (CoESPU).
In the framework of this week-long training, more than 50 anti-trafficking practitioners from Italy, Malta, Spain, Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia came together to solve complex cases of human trafficking. The training scenario incorporated complex and diverse migratory flows across multiple States, demonstrating how criminal groups exploit the vulnerability of migrants and displaced persons to traffic them into labour exploitation, sexual exploitation or forced criminality. The training brought together a wide range of professionals from across the anti-trafficking ecosystem, including prosecutors, labour inspectors, social workers, criminal and financial investigators, lawyers, NGO workers and migration officers. Participants were trained on their individual roles, as well as on how to effectively co-operate with their counterparts in the identification of trafficking victims and detection, investigation and prosecution of human trafficking crimes. In this context, the practitioners had the chance to practice and master their skills in multi-agency collaboration, applying victim-centred and trauma-informed approaches.
“With Mediterranean security indivisible from security within the OSCE region at large, the Mediterranean regional simulation-based training exercise demonstrated the lasting value and continued collaboration between the OSCE, participating States, and Mediterranean Partners for Co-operation, and how strengthening efforts to combat trafficking in human beings contributes to improved security across the wider region,” said Dr. Kari Johnstone, the OSCE’s Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, in her closing remarks.
First implemented in 2016, the OSCE’s simulation-based trainings remain a highly relevant training tool to enhance the capacity of OSCE participating States and Partners for Co-operation to promptly identify and assist presumed victims of trafficking in human beings as well as investigate and prosecute perpetrators through the use of a multi-agency, victim-centred, trauma-informed, gender-sensitive and human rights-based approach.
This activity was implemented with the financial support from the Governments of France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, Switzerland and the US, as well as the Republic of Italy, which also provided in kind contributions.
For more information on simulation-based trainings, please visit Simulation-based training | OSCE
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:
COTONOU, Benin, October 11, 2024/APO Group/ —
Benin joins six other African countries that contribute to ADF; 74 million people in Africa have benefitted from improvements in agriculture for food security through the Fund.
Benin has pledged $2 million to the next replenishment of the African Development Fund, the concessional window of the African Development Bank Group.
The country’s Minister of Economy and Finance, Romuald Wadagni, made the announcement in Cotonou, at the opening session of the Mid-Term Review of the 16th Replenishment of the Fund.
It came shortly after the head of the African Development Bank Group, Dr Akinwumi Adesina invited Benin’s President Patrice Talon to be a champion of ADF 17 and encouraged him to “pledge financial support.”
Announcing his country’s pledge, Minister Wadagni said the African Development Fund was a trusted partner for low-income countries and recommended that each “recipient country demonstrates rigour and transparency.”
He said one of Benin’s objectives was “to ensure that we can use the ADF instrument in the form of guarantees and raise money in order to benefit from its leverage effect.”
The current three-year financing cycle, which received a record $8.9 billion ends in 2025. Benin becomes the seventh African country to contribute, joining Algeria, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Morocco and South Africa.
“Our ambition is encouraging more African countries to become state participants in the ADF,” said Adesina, citing Kenya’s pledge of $20 million to ADF, announced last May by President William Ruto during the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank Group in Nairobi.
He said the African Development Fund is providing Benin with $108.2 million towards general budget support for economic governance and private sector development program focused on improving the overall business climate, supporting agro-industrial sector and strengthening the development of Special Economic Zones, like Glo Gjigbe, that ADF delegates visited as part of the Mid Term Review program.
Across the continent, Adesina said the African Development Fund is achieving impactful and impressive results.
“15 million people have been provided with access to electricity. 74 million people have benefitted from improvements in agriculture for food security. 45 million people have benefitted from improved transport. And over 8,700 kilometers of roads have been built or rehabilitated,” said Adesina.
“I am proud of what this institution has achieved in its 50 years of existence,” he added, pointing out that the Fund has been ranked “the second-best concessional financing institution in the world for the quality of its development assistance.”
The Cotonou meeting was attended by ministers, representatives of donor and beneficiary member countries, the Bank Group’s Board of Directors, senior management and staff.
On Tuesday 22 October (7-9pm), Amnesty International UK will host an in-conversation event at its east London offices with the family of Alaa Abdel Fattah, the UK national arbitrarily detained in Egypt.
Mona Seif, Abdel Fattah’s sister, will be in conversation with Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK’s Chief Executive.
The event comes shortly before the publication of a new edition of Abdel Fattah’s acclaimed book You Have Not Yet Been Defeated: Selected Works 2011-2021, which is set to be republished in a special new edition on 24 October by Fitzcarraldo Editions.
There will be readings from the book by the British-Palestinian writer Selma Dabbagh, as well as an audience question-and-answer session.
Abdel Fattah, 42, a prominent blogger and writer who has been in detention in Egypt since September 2019, has already served his five-year jail sentence on trumped-up charges of “spreading false news” after a grossly unfair trial. Recently, the family was told by the Egyptian authorities that they will not consider releasing Abdel Fattah until January 2027.
The in-conversation event and publication of a new edition of You Have Not Yet Been Defeated are part of an ongoing campaign to secure Abdel Fattah’s release.
You Have Not Yet Been Defeated comprises a selection of Abdel Fattah’s speeches, interviews, social media posts and essays since the Egyptian revolution in January 2011, many written from his jail cell. The book, which has a foreword by Naomi Klein, will be available for sale on the evening.
The event will be followed by an informal drinks reception. Attendance is free but booking is required via Eventbrite.
Event details
What: in-conversation event with family of Alaa Abdel Fattah and Sacha Deshmukh ahead of a new edition of You Have Not Yet Been Defeated, with readings from the book by Selma Dabbagh
Where: Amnesty International UK’s office, 17-25 New Inn Yard, London EC2A 3EA
The President of the Council of Ministers, Giorgia Meloni, is in Cyprus today to attend the 11th Med9 Summit.
Prior to the working sessions, President Meloni organised a quadrilateral meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.
In the margins of today’s Med9 Summit in Paphos, the President of the Council of Ministers, Giorgia Meloni, organised a quadrilateral meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen to discuss the issue of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan and other states in the region. This issue has become even more pressing in light of the most recent developments in the Middle East crisis.
The leaders discussed concrete solutions to create the conditions for Syrian refugees to be able to voluntarily return to their homeland in a safe and sustainable way, in collaboration with the main humanitarian organisations operating in the region.
Asmara (Agenzia Fides) – A joint tripartite committee of the Foreign Ministers of Egypt, Eritrea and Somalia will work to promote strategic cooperation in all areas. This was agreed by the presidents of the three countries during their meeting yesterday, October 10, in the Eritrean capital Asmara. The Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki welcomed his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and his Somali counterpart Hassnan Sheikh Mohamud, who hosted the meeting. In a joint statement, the heads of state of the three countries stressed the need to respect the fundamental principles of international law, in particular the greatest possible respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the countries in the region. They agreed to increase and deepen cooperation and coordination in order to improve the capacity of the Somali authorities to face the various internal and external challenges and to enable the Somali army to fight terrorism in all its forms and protect its territory and maritime borders.A position that is particularly aimed at Ethiopia, which signed an agreement with the separatist Somali region of Somaliland on January 1 of this year (see Fides, 9/1/2024). According to this agreement, in exchange for the transfer of a naval base and a stretch of coast from Ethiopia, Somaliland will be recognized as an autonomous state separate from the rest of Somalia. To date, no state has recognized Somaliland’s independence. The government in Mogadishu responded to this agreement first by strengthening relations with Turkey (see Fides, 22/2/2024) and later by establishing a strategic partnership with Egypt (see Fides, 30/8/2024), which has now been extended to Eritrea, another historical adversary of Ethiopia. On the sidelines of the meeting, the presidents of Somalia and Egypt also issued a joint statement reaffirming their support for the unity, independence, integrity and sovereignty of Somalia over its entire territory and rejecting unilateral measures that threaten the unity and sovereignty of the State. In addition to the situation in Somalia, the Asmara Summit also addressed the crisis in Sudan and its regional implications, security and cooperation between the countries bordering the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the establishment of coordination mechanisms between the three countries. All these issues are of crucial importance for the three states, but above all for Egypt, which must, on the one hand, defend navigation to and from the Suez Canal, an important source of income for its treasury, and, on the other, prevent Ethiopia from gaining control over the flow of the Nile water through the famous dam on the Blue Nile (Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam). For this reason, Egypt is also active in the Sudanese civil war, where it supports the Sudanese armed forces led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan against the “Rapid Support Forces” (RSF) of Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemeti). The latter accused the Egyptian Air Force of bombing some of their units near the capital Khartoum. These accusations were denied by Cairo. But various powers are directly and indirectly involved in the Sudanese civil war (see Fides, 15/4/2024). The Horn of Africa risks being affected by local conflicts (between Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia), regional conflicts (war in Sudan, rivalry between Ethiopia and Egypt) and tensions in the Middle East (involvement of the Yemeni Houthis in the war against Israel). (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 21/10/2024)
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Mr. Chair, Prime Minister Siphandone, thank you for your warm welcome and congratulations on your leadership of ASEAN this year.
Distinguished leaders of ASEAN,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
For nearly six decades, the family of South-East Asian countries has blazed a path of collaboration.
Every day, you grow more integrated, dynamic and influential.
And our ASEAN-UN partnership is growing ever stronger, too and it is today a strategic partnership from the UN point of view.
The ASEAN-UN Plan of Action is making important progress across the political, security, economic and cultural fronts.
I am particularly grateful for the important contribution of ASEAN members to our peacekeeping operations. Allow me to express my total solidarity with the Indonesian delegation. Two Indonesian peacekeepers [serving in Lebanon] were wounded by Israeli fire. We are together with you and the Indonesian people at this time.
I also welcome your work on the preparation of the Community Vision 2045.
This region has always been about looking ahead.
And so is the Pact for the Future, adopted last month at the United Nations.
We need to keep looking ahead.
Let me point to four key areas.
First, connectivity — your theme for the year.
We start with a fundamental objective: technology should benefit everyone.
Across Southeast Asia, broadband and mobile internet connectivity has soared. Yet the digital divide persists.
And a new divide is now with us — an Artificial Intelligence divide.
Every country must be able to access and benefit from these technologies.
And every country should be at the table when decisions are made about their governance.
The Pact for the Future includes a major breakthrough — the first truly universal agreement on the international governance of Artificial Intelligence that would give every country a seat at the AI table.
It also calls for international partnerships to boost AI capacity building in developing countries.
And it commits governments to establishing an independent international Scientific Panel on AI and initiating a global dialogue on its governance within the United Nations.
Second, finance.
International financial institutions can no longer provide a global safety net – or offer developing countries the level of support they need.
The Pact for the Future says clearly: we need to accelerate reform of the international financial architecture.
To close the financing gap of the Sustainable Development Goals.
To ensure that countries can borrow sustainably to invest in their long-term development.
And to strengthen the voice and representation of developing countries.
This includes calling on G20 countries to lead on an SDG Stimulus of $500 billion a year.
Substantially increasing also the lending capacity of Multilateral Development Banks.
Recycling more Special Drawing Rights.
And restructuring loans for countries drowning in debt.
Third, climate.
ASEAN countries are feeling the brunt of climate chaos – disasters like Super Typhoon Yagi – while the 1.5 degree goal is slipping away.
We need dramatic action to reduce emissions.
The G20 is responsible for 80 per cent of total emissions – they must lead the way.
I welcome the pioneering Just Energy Transition Partnerships in Indonesia and Vietnam.
By next year, every country must produce new NDCs aligned with limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Developed countries must keep their promises to double adaptation finance.
And we need to see significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund.
Every person must be covered by an alert system by 2027, through the United Nations’ Early Warnings for All Initiative.
We must secure also an ambitious outcome on finance at COP29.
Fourth and finally, peace.
I recognize your constructive role in continuing to pursue dialogue and peaceful means of resolving disputes from the Korean Peninsula to the South China Sea. And I salute you for doing so in full respect of the UN Charter and international law – including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Meanwhile, Myanmar remains on an increasingly complex path.
Violence is growing.
The humanitarian situation is spiralling.
One-third of the population is in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Millions have been forced to flee their homes.
Seven years after the forced mass displacement of the Rohingya, durable solutions seem a distant reality.
I support strengthened cooperation between the UN Special Envoy and the ASEAN Chair on innovative ways to promote a Myanmar-led process, including through the effective and comprehensive implementation of the ASEAN Five-Point Consensus and beyond.
The people of Myanmar need peace. And I call on all countries to leverage their influence towards an inclusive political solution to the conflict and deliver the peaceful future that the people of Myanmar deserve.
Excellencies,
ASEAN exemplifies community and cooperation.
You are far more than the sum of your parts.
In a world with growing geopolitical divides, with dramatic impacts on peace and security and sustainable development, ASEAN is a bridge-builder and a messenger for peace.
Peace that is more necessary than ever, when we see the immense suffering of the people in Gaza, now extended to Lebanon, not forgetting Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar and so many others.
Allow me to tell you that the level of death and destruction in Gaza is something that has no comparison in any other situation I have seen since I became Secretary-General.
I am extremely grateful for your constant efforts to keep our world together.
You play a key role in shaping a world that is prosperous, inclusive and sustainable with respect for human rights at its heart.
And you can always count on my full support and that of the United Nations in this essential effort.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Police will implement crowd safety management measures and special traffic arrangements in Kowloon and New Territories this weekend (October 12 and 13) to facilitate the holding of the Hong Kong Cyclothon. On the morning of October 13, the 50km and 32km rides will start at Salisbury Road near the Empire Centre and take route via West Kowloon and New Territories South before finishing at the Jordan Road flyover. Other races will also be held at East Tsim Sha Tsui and Hung Hom area. Depending on the prevailing crowd situation, the Police will consider implementing crowd safety management measures in the vicinity of the racecourse and other crowded areas in Tsim Sha Tsui.A. Road closure and traffic diversions The following traffic arrangements will be implemented, except for vehicles with permit:Kowloon——-(1) From 8pm on October 12 to about 4pm on October 13: The layby on westbound Mody Road outside Mody Road Garden will be closed.(2) From 1am to about 10.30am on October 13:Road closure Mody Road between Mody Lane and Mody Road Garden.Traffic diversion Traffic along eastbound Mody Road must turn left to Mody Square and westbound Mody Road.Traffic arrangement Vehicles over seven metres in length or four tonnes in weight cannot enter Mody Road between the exit and entrance of Tsim Sha Tsui East (Mody Road) Bus Terminus and Mody Lane, and Mody Road between Mody Road Garden and Science Museum Road.(3) From 1am to about 11am on October 13:Road closure- Southbound West Kowloon Highway between Tsing Kwai Highway and the slip road of Lin Cheung Road;- The slip road of northbound West Kowloon Highway to Jordan Road;- The service road of northbound Western Harbour Crossing to the slip road of West Kowloon Highway;- Northbound Nga Cheung Road elevated road and the slip road to Western Harbour Crossing;- The third lane of southbound Lin Cheung Road between Olympic City 2 and Yau Ma Tei Ventilation Building;- The second and third lanes of southbound Lin Cheung Road between Yau Ma Tei Ventilation Building and Nga Cheung Road;- Southbound Nga Cheung Road between Lin Cheung Road and Nga Cheung Road elevated road;- The fast lane of southbound Nga Cheung Road elevated road between the slip road of southbound Lin Cheung Road and the access road to Elements;- Eastbound Jordan Road flyover between Hoi Po Road and northbound Lin Cheung Road;- Westbound Jordan Road flyover between northbound Nga Cheung Road elevated road and Hoi Po Road;- Eastbound Jordan Road between southbound Nga Cheung Road and To Wah Road;- The fast lane of eastbound Jordan Road between To Wah Road and northbound Lin Cheung Road; and- Hoi Po Road between Jordan Road and Yau Ma Tei Interchange.Traffic diversions- Traffic along Mei Ching Road cannot enter southbound West Kowloon Highway via southbound Lin Cheung Road;- Traffic from southbound Lin Cheung Road to Western Harbour Crossing will be diverted via Lai Cheung Road, Hoi Wang Road, Jordan Road and northbound Lin Cheung Road;- Traffic along northbound Western Harbour Crossing will be diverted via West Kowloon Highway, Yau Ma Tei Interchange, Lai Cheung Road and Ferry Street to eastbound Jordan Road;- Vehicles leaving from International Commerce Centre must turn left to southbound Nga Cheung Road elevated road;- Traffic along northbound Nga Cheung Road cannot enter Jordan Road to To Wah Road; and- Traffic along westbound Jordan Road flyover must turn left to southbound Nga Cheung Road elevated road.(4) From 1am to about 3.30pm on October 13:Road closure- Southbound Princess Margaret Road Link between Metropolis Drive and Hung Hom Bypass;- Hung Hom Bypass between Salisbury Road and Princess Margaret Road Link;- The second and third lanes of eastbound Hung Hom Bypass between Princess Margaret Road Link and Hung Hom Road;- The third and fourth lanes of westbound Hung Hom Bypass between Hung Hom Road and Princess Margaret Road Link;- The second and third lanes of eastbound Hung Hom Road between Hung Hom Bypass and Hung Hum South Road;- The second and third lanes of westbound Hung Hom Road between Tak Fung Street and Hung Hom Bypass;- Hong Wan Path;- The slip road leading from Metropolis Drive to Hung Hom Bypass;- Mody Lane;- Salisbury Road underpass;- Southbound Salisbury Road between Cross Harbour Tunnel Administration Building and Science Museum Road; and- Salisbury Road between Science Museum Road and Chatham Road South.Traffic diversions- Traffic along southbound Princess Margaret Road Link must turn right to westbound Metropolis Drive;- Traffic along eastbound Metropolis Drive must turn left to northbound Princess Margaret Road Link or the down ramp slip road leading to eastbound Hung Lai Road;- Traffic along southbound Science Museum Road must turn left to northbound Hong Chong Road;- Traffic along southbound Hung Hom Road will be diverted via Hung Hom Bypass slip road to Cheong Wan Road and other destinations;- Traffic along southbound Chatham Road South must turn right to westbound Cameron Road, or diverted to turn right to westbound Salisbury Road after the completion of road closure item (5), except for franchised buses;- Traffic along eastbound Salisbury Road must turn left to northbound Chatham Road South, except for franchised buses;- Traffic along eastbound Mody Road must make a U-turn at Mody Road near Mody Lane for westbound Mody Road; and- Traffic along westbound Mody Road must make a U-turn at Mody Road near Mody Road Garden for eastbound Mody Road.Traffic arrangements Granville Road between Granville Square and Science Museum Road will be re-routed to one-way eastbound from 7am to 3.30pm on October 13. Prohibited Zone of Tsim Sha Tsui East (Mody Road) Bus Terminus will be rescinded from 10.30am to 3.30pm on October 13. Eastbound Salisbury Road between Chatham Road South and the entrance of Tsim Sha Tsui East (Mody Road) Bus Terminus will be re-routed to one-way westbound from 10.30am to 3.30pm on October 13.(5) From 2.30am to about 9.30am on October 13:Road closure- Westbound Salisbury Road between Chatham Road South and Nathan Road;- Eastbound Salisbury Road U-turn slip road near Chatham Road South; and- Southbound Chatham Road South between Mody Road and Salisbury Road, except for franchised buses.Traffic diversion Traffic along southbound Chatham Road South must turn right to westbound Cameron Road, or may choose to turn left to eastbound Mody Road (except for vehicles over seven metres in length or four tonnes in weight).Traffic arrangement Vehicles over seven metres in length or four tonnes in weight cannot enter southbound Chatham Road South to the south of Cameron Road, except for franchised buses.(6) From 2.30am to about 10.30am on October 13:Road closure- Northbound Kowloon Park Drive between Salisbury Road and Canton Road;- Peking Road between Canton Road and Kowloon Park Drive;- The second and third lanes of Middle Road between Hankow Road and Kowloon Park Drive;- Canton Road between Haiphong Road and Salisbury Road;- Ashley Road between Peking Road and Middle Road;- Westbound Salisbury Road between Nathan Road and Star Ferry Pier;- Eastbound Salisbury Road between Star Ferry Pier and Kowloon Park Drive;- The fourth lane of eastbound Salisbury Road between Kowloon Park Drive and Hankow Road;- The fourth and fifth lanes of eastbound Salisbury Road between Hankow Road and Nathan Road; and- The third and fourth lanes of eastbound Salisbury Road between Nathan Road and Middle Road.Traffic diversions- Traffic along southbound Canton Road must turn left to Haiphong Road;- Traffic along westbound Middle Road must turn left to southbound Kowloon Park Drive;- Traffic along southbound Nathan Road must turn left to eastbound Salisbury Road; and- Traffic along eastbound Peking Road cannot turn right to Ashley Road.(7) From 3am to about 11am on October 13:Road closure- Westbound Austin Road West;- Westbound Austin Road West underpass;- The at-grade loop road of Austin Road West;- The third and fourth lanes of southbound Lin Cheung Road underpass between northbound Lin Cheung Road slip road and Austin Road West underpass; and- The lowest level underpass of northbound Lin Cheung Road between Austin Road West underpass and the exit of Lin Cheung Road underpass.Traffic diversions- Traffic along westbound Austin Road must turn to northbound Canton Road or southbound Canton Road; and- Traffic along northbound Canton Road cannot turn left to westbound Austin Road West.(8) From 3am to about 1pm on October 13:Road closure- The slow lane of eastbound Museum Drive; and- The slow lane of northbound Nga Cheung Road between Museum Drive and about 30 metres northward of Austin Road West roundabout.(9) From 4.15am to about 10.30am on October 13:Road closure Northbound Canton Road between China Hong Kong City and Austin Road West.Traffic diversion Northbound Canton Road between the exit and entrance of China Hong Kong City and Kowloon Park Drive will be re-routed to one-way southbound.(10) From 6.30am to about 11.30am on October 13: The layby on northbound Hoi Ting Road near West Kowloon Government Offices will be closed.New Territories—————(1) From 1am to about 7.15am on October 13:Road closure Upper deck of Lantau Link Kowloon bound.Traffic diversions- Traffic from Lantau to Kowloon will be diverted via the lower deck of Lantau Link, North West Tsing Yi Interchange, Tsing Yi North Coastal Road, Tsing Tsuen Road, Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road, Cheung Sha Wan Road and Lai Chi Kok Road;- Traffic from Lantau to Tuen Mun Road or Tai Lam Tunnel will be diverted via the lower deck of Lantau Link and northbound Ting Kau Bridge;- Traffic from Ma Wan to Kowloon will be diverted via westbound Lantau Link (Kap Shui Mun Bridge), the lower deck of Lantau Link, North West Tsing Yi Interchange, Tsing Yi North Coastal Road, Tsing Tsuen Road, Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road, Cheung Sha Wan Road and Lai Chi Kok Road; and- Traffic from Ma Wan to Tuen Mun Road or Tai Lam Tunnel will be diverted via westbound Lantau Link (Kap Shui Mun Bridge), the lower deck of Lantau Link and northbound Ting Kau Bridge.Traffic arrangement Speed limit restrictions will be implemented on northbound Penny’s Bay Highway, North Lantau Highway Kowloon bound and Lantau Link Kowloon bound.(2) From 1am to about 9am on October 13:Road closure- Eagle’s Nest Tunnel Sha Tin bound and Sha Tin Heights Tunnel Sha Tin bound;- The slip road leading from eastbound Ching Cheung Road to northbound Tsing Sha Highway;- Northbound Tsing Sha Highway between West Kowloon Highway and the exit of Sha Tin Heights Tunnel Sha Tin bound; and- The slip road leading from northbound Lai Po Road to eastbound Tsing Sha Highway.Traffic diversions- Traffic along West Kowloon to New Territories East via Eagle’s Nest Tunnel will be diverted via northbound Castle Peak Road, eastbound Ching Cheung Road, eastbound Lung Cheung Road and northbound Tai Po Road or northbound Lion Rock Tunnel;- Traffic along eastbound Ching Cheung Road to New Territories East will be diverted via eastbound Lung Cheung Road and northbound Tai Po Road or northbound Lion Rock Tunnel;- Traffic along northbound West Kowloon Highway to New Territories East will be diverted via northbound Lin Cheung Road, westbound Mei Ching Road, northbound Container Port Road South, eastbound Ching Cheung Road, eastbound Lung Cheung Road and northbound Tai Po Road or northbound Lion Rock Tunnel; and- Traffic along northbound Lin Cheung Road to New Territories East will be diverted via westbound Lai Po Road, westbound Hing Wah Street West, northbound Container Port Road South, eastbound Ching Cheung Road, eastbound Lung Cheung Road and northbound Tai Po Road or northbound Lion Rock Tunnel.(3) From 1am to about 11am on October 13:Road closure- Southbound carriageway of Tsing Kwai Highway, Cheung Tsing Tunnel and Cheung Tsing Highway;- Southbound Ting Kau Bridge;- Exits from Lantau Link to southbound Cheung Tsing Highway;- The slip roads from Kwai Tsing Road and Kwai Chung Road leading to southbound Tsing Kwai Highway;- Eastbound Tsing Sha Highway between the access road of Cheung Tsing Tunnel and West Kowloon Highway;- The slip road leading from Tsing Yi Hong Wan Road to eastbound Stonecutters Bridge;- The slip road leading from Container Port Road South to eastbound Tsing Sha Highway (Ngong Shuen Chau Viaduct);- The slip road leading from Mei Ching Road to southbound Lin Cheung Road, except for vehicles leaving Container Port via Roundabout 6 to Mei Ching Road and Tsing Kwai Highway New Territories bound ; and- North West Tsing Yi Interchange U-turn slip road from eastbound Tsing Yi North Coastal Road to westbound Tsing Yi North Coastal Road.Traffic diversions- Traffic along Tuen Mun Road and Tai Lam Tunnel heading to Kowloon will be diverted via Tuen Mun Road, Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road, Cheung Sha Wan Road and Lai Chi Kok Road;- Traffic from Tsing Yi South heading to Kowloon will be diverted via Tsing Yi Road, Kwai Tsing Road, Kwai Tsing Interchange, Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road, Cheung Sha Wan Road and Lai Chi Kok Road; and- Traffic from Kwai Chung Container Port heading to Kowloon will be diverted via Container Port Road South, Hing Wah Street West and Lai Po Road. The above road closures will not affect traffic from Western Harbour Crossing and from Kowloon or New Territories East via Route 3 or Route 8 to various destinations, including the Airport, Lantau, Ma Wan and New Territories West.B. Suspension of parking spaces Six metered parking spaces on Chatham Road South (meter no. 4271A, 4271B, 4272A, 4272B, 4723A and 4723B), five metered parking spaces on Mody Road (meter no. 4263A, 4264A, 4264B, 4265A and 4265B) and six metered parking spaces on Cameron Road (meter no. 4414B, 4415A, 4415B, 4416A, 4416B and 4417A) will be suspended from 8pm on October 12 to 3.30pm on October 13. All Green Minibus stands, taxi stands, taxi pick-up and drop-off points, loading and unloading bays and on-street parking spaces within the road closure areas in Tsim Sha Tsui will be suspended in phases from 1am on October 13 until the re-opening of roads. Vehicles will not be permitted to access or leave car parks and hotels in the affected areas during the road closure period. All vehicles parked illegally during the implementation of the above special traffic arrangements will be towed away without prior warning, and may be subject to multiple ticketing. Members of the public should pay attention to the latest special traffic arrangements announced by the Transport Department. Actual implementation of traffic arrangements will be made depending on traffic and crowd conditions in the areas. Members of the public are advised to exercise tolerance and patience and take heed of instructions of the Police on site.
MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
The third Moscow Fashion Week has ended in the capital. It was held from October 4 to 9 in the Central Exhibition Hall “Manezh”. Collections were presented by about 200 designers from 41 cities of Russia, as well as seven other countries. Among them are China, the United Arab Emirates, Costa Rica and India. This was reported by Natalia Sergunina, Deputy Mayor of Moscow.
“The participants were able to demonstrate their skills, find new business partners, and exchange experiences with colleagues from different parts of the world. As in previous years, the event generated great interest. Over the course of six days, the venue was visited by 65,000 people,” said Natalia Sergunina.
During Moscow Fashion Week, 83 fashion shows took place. Many brands relied on the cultural codes and national characteristics of their native land. For example, a designer from Cheboksary presented a collection based on the national Chuvash costume. A representative of the Republic of South Africa created evening and casual looks in a bright color scheme. Some wardrobe elements were shaped like butterfly wings.
In addition, a market was open during the fashion week. Anyone could buy clothes and accessories from 80 brands. A business showroom was opened for the professional community, with over 50 Russian specialists taking part. They held meetings with potential partners and wholesale buyers.
Industry leaders gave 25 lectures to the event’s guests. The audience was told about trends and how they changed over time, as well as the influence of neural networks on the creation of collections. More than two million people watched the online broadcasts of the meetings with experts.
In addition, the World Fashion Short short film festival took place. It brought together directors not only from Russia, but also from other countries, including Belarus, Colombia, Mexico and Turkey. The works selected by the international expert council were shown at the Artplay design center.
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-22)
Oswego, New York – Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24) was recently honored with the Friend of the Family Award by the Faith & Freedom Coalition, recognizing her dedication to upholding conservative values, protecting American families, and defending religious liberty and individual freedom through her legislative efforts during the 118th Congress.
Tenney has championed numerous bills, including the Parents Bill of Rights Act, which ensures parents have the right to know what their children are being taught and what is happening in our nation’s schools. She also supported the Protecting Women and Girls in Sports Act, aimed at preserving fairness by preventing biological men from competing in women’s sports, further advocating for conservative principles and traditional values.
“The woke left continues its assault on conservative values, religious liberty, and the sanctity of life. It is essential to stand behind legislation that defends these priorities. I am deeply honored to receive the Friend of the Family Award, which highlights my commitment to safeguarding freedom, religious liberties, and supporting Israel. I am grateful to the Faith & Freedom Coalition for this recognition and remain dedicated to fighting for the values NY-24 holds dear in Congress,” said Congresswoman Tenney.
A Concluding Statement describes the preliminary findings of IMF staff at the end of an official staff visit (or ‘mission’), in most cases to a member country. Missions are undertaken as part of regular (usually annual) consultations under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, in the context of a request to use IMF resources (borrow from the IMF), as part of discussions of staff monitored programs, or as part of other staff monitoring of economic developments.
The authorities have consented to the publication of this statement. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board. Based on the preliminary findings of this mission, staff will prepare a report that, subject to management approval, will be presented to the IMF Executive Board for discussion and decision.
Washington, DC:Kuwait has a window of opportunity to implement needed fiscal and structural reforms to boost private sector-led inclusive growth and diversify its economy away from oil:
Gradual fiscal consolidation of about 12 percent of GDP is needed to reinforce intergenerational equity.
Structural reforms should focus on improving the business environment, attracting FDI, and unifying the labor market.
These reforms should be underpinned by continued prudent monetary and financial sector policies.
Economic statistics should be strengthened to support well-informed policymaking.
Recent Developments, Outlook, and Risks
Kuwait has a window of opportunity to implement needed fiscal and structural reforms. Political turmoil has gripped Kuwait in recent years, stalling reforms. The political gridlock was broken in May 2024, when H.H. the Amir Sheikh Meshaal al‑Ahmad al‑Jaber al‑Sabah dissolved the Parliament and suspended parts of the Constitution for up to 4 years, allowing reforms to be expedited.
The economic recovery was disrupted in 2023, and inflation is moderating. Real GDP contracted by 3.6 percent in 2023. This economic downturn was concentrated in the oil sector, which contracted by 4.3 percent in 2023 due to an OPEC+ oil production cut. In addition, the non-oil sector is estimated to have contracted by 1.0 percent in 2023, primarily reflecting lower manufacturing activity in oil refining. Headline CPI inflation declined to 3.6 percent in 2023 reflecting lower core and food inflation. More recently, headline inflation moderated further to 2.9 percent (y-o-y) in August 2024, given lower housing and transport inflation.
The external position remained strong in 2023. The current account surplus moderated to 31.4 percent of GDP in 2023, with a 10.3 percent of GDP reduction in the trade surplus from lower oil prices and production largely offset by a 7.4 percent of GDP increase in the income surplus. Official reserve assets amounted to a comfortable 9.0 months of projected imports at end-2023. However, the external position was substantially weaker than the level implied by fundamentals and desirable policies in 2023, partly reflecting inadequate public saving of oil revenue.
The fiscal balance weakened in FY2023/24. The fiscal balance of the budgetary central government swung from a surplus of 11.7 percent of GDP in FY2022/23 to a deficit of 3.1 percent of GDP in FY2023/24. This mainly reflected a 5.8 percent of GDP reduction in oil revenue given lower oil prices and production, and a 9.7 percent of GDP increase in current spending, of which 5.7 percent of GDP went to the public sector wage bill while 3.4 percent of GDP went to subsidies. Nonetheless, the fiscal balance of the general government (which includes the income from SWF investments) was an estimated 26.0 percent of GDP in FY2023/24.
Financial stability has been maintained. Banks have sustained strong capital and liquidity buffers to satisfy the CBK’s prudent regulatory requirements, while NPLs remain low given judicious lending practices and are well provisioned for.
Under the baseline assuming current policies, the economy is projected to remain in recession in 2024, then to recover over the medium term:
Real GDP will contract by a further 3.2 percent in 2024 due to an additional OPEC+ oil production cut, then will expand by 2.8 percent in 2025 as the cuts get unwound, and will grow broadly in line with potential thereafter.
The incipient recovery of the non-oil sector will continue in 2024, with non-oil GDP expanding by 1.3 percent despite fiscal consolidation, after which it will gradually converge to its potential of 2.5 percent.
Headline CPI inflation will continue to moderate to 3.0 percent in 2024 as excess demand pressure dissipates and imported food prices fall, then will gradually converge to 2.0 percent as the non-oil output gap closes.
The current account surplus will moderate further to 28.4 percent of GDP in 2024 as lower oil prices and production reduce the trade surplus, then will gradually decline over the medium term alongside oil prices.
The fiscal deficit of the budgetary central government will increase to 5.1 percent of GDP in FY2024/25 as lower oil revenue more than offsets expenditure rationalization, then will steadily rise by about 1 percent of GDP per year over the medium term under current policies.
The risks surrounding these baseline economic projections are skewed to the downside. The economy is highly exposed to a variety of global risks through its oil dependence, in particular to commodity price volatility, a global growth slowdown or acceleration, and the further intensification of regional conflicts. The materialization of these risks would be transmitted to Kuwait mainly via their impacts on oil prices and production. Domestic risks are primarily associated with the implementation of fiscal and structural reforms, which could get further delayed or accelerated. These reforms are needed to diversify the economy away from oil, which would enhance its resilience and stimulate private investment.
Economic Reforms—Transitioning to a Dynamic and Diversified Economy
The authorities aspire to implement reforms to support the transition to a dynamic and diversified economy. To achieve this goal, a well-sequenced package of fiscal and structural reforms is needed. Structural reforms to improve the business environment and attract foreign investment are needed to boost private sector-led inclusive growth. Meanwhile, fiscal reforms should be implemented to reinforce intergenerational equity while incentivizing Kuwaitis to pursue newly created job opportunities in the private sector, in particular gradual fiscal consolidation.
The contractionary stance of fiscal policy is appropriate. Fiscal policy was strongly procyclical in FY2023/24, with a fiscal expansion of 6.9 percent of non-oil GDP contributing to excess demand pressure. Under the FY2024/25 Budget, the non-oil fiscal balance of the budgetary central government should increase by 4.7 percent of non-oil GDP relative to FY2023/24. This large fiscal consolidation will help close the non-oil output gap while reinforcing intergenerational equity. It is mainly driven by current expenditure rationalization, concentrated in planned subsidy cuts worth 4.3 percent of non-oil GDP.
Substantial further fiscal consolidation is needed to ensure intergenerational equity. Under the baseline, the projected fiscal balance of the general government is far below the level needed to maintain the living standards of Kuwaitis for generations to come. A prudent approach calls for gradual fiscal consolidation of about 12 percent of GDP to reinforce intergenerational equity, alongside structural reforms to diversify the economy away from oil. These reforms would also reinforce external sustainability.
Expenditure and tax policy reforms would be needed to support the transition to a dynamic and diversified economy:
Fiscal consolidation should be implemented at a pace of 1 to 2 percent of GDP per year until the PIH fiscal balance target is achieved. This would offset or reverse the projected roughly 1 percent of GDP per year increase in the fiscal deficit of the budgetary central government over the medium term, without reducing growth much.
Compensation of government employees surged over the past decade, to the top of the GCC. A public sector wage setting mechanism should be introduced to gradually reduce the 41 percent premium over the private sector, while a hiring cap should be used to steadily lower the public sector employment share, both towards high-income country levels.
Hydrocarbon consumption subsidies are the highest in the GCC. They should be phased out by gradually raising retail fuel and electricity prices to their cost-recovery levels while providing targeted transfers to vulnerable groups.
On-budget public investment plummeted over the past decade, to near the bottom of the GCC. It should be raised to build up the quantity and quality of infrastructure towards high-income country levels.
The hydrocarbon share of government revenue remains the highest in the GCC. In the context of the global minimum corporate tax agreement, the government’s plan to extend the CIT to all large domestic companies is welcome. To boost non-oil revenue mobilization, Kuwait should introduce the GCC-wide VAT and excise tax.
The conduct of fiscal policy should be strengthened with Public Financial Management reforms. To align budget planning and execution with fiscal policy objectives, the Ministry of Finance should introduce a medium-term fiscal framework—including a fiscal rules framework with a public debt ceiling and non-oil fiscal balance target—underpinned by a medium-term macroeconomic framework. To inform fiscal policymaking and assess reform proposals, the capacity of the Macro-Fiscal Unit should be strengthened. To facilitate orderly fiscal financing, the Liquidity and Financing Law should be enacted expeditiously.
Monetary and Financial Sector Policies—Maintaining Macrofinancial Stability
The exchange rate peg to an undisclosed basket of currencies remains an appropriate nominal anchor for monetary policy. It has supported low and stable inflation for many years. Sustaining this successful monetary policy track record requires preserving the independence of the CBK. The monetary transmission mechanism should be strengthened by deepening the interbank and domestic sovereign debt markets, establishing an efficient capital market, and phasing out interest rate caps.
The restrictive stance of monetary policy is appropriate. The exchange rate regime gives the CBK relative flexibility to conduct monetary policy. The policy rate is currently in line with controlling inflation and stabilizing non-oil output while supporting the exchange rate peg, and is above neutral. Under the baseline, monetary normalization is warranted, as inflation further moderates and the non-oil output gap closes.
Systemic risk remains contained and prudently managed. The credit cycle downturn triggered by the pandemic has been gradually unwinding, with the credit gap estimated to be nearly closed. Under the CBK’s latest stress tests, the capitalization and liquidity of the banking system generally exceeded Basel III minimum requirements, while individual bank shortcomings were limited. The stance of macroprudential policy is appropriate given contained systemic risk and subdued credit growth. Given that capital requirements exceed Basel III minimum requirements, the CBK could consider reclassifying part of its country specific capital buffer as a positive neutral countercyclical capital buffer. It should also continue its practice of regularly reviewing the adequacy of its financial regulatory perimeter and macroprudential toolkit. Finally, the CBK should continue its risk-based supervisory approach to assessing banks and effectively addressing any vulnerabilities.
Structural financial sector reforms are needed to enhance financial intermediation efficiency. The unlimited guarantee on bank deposits should be gradually replaced with a limited deposit insurance framework to address moral hazard, while the interest rate caps on loans should be phased out to support efficient risk pricing.
A comprehensive and well-sequenced structural reform package is needed to increase non-oil potential growth. The initial priorities are to improve the business environment by enhancing transparency, raising efficiency, and further opening up the economy. Meanwhile, labor market reforms should be gradually phased in to incentivize private sector-led inclusive growth.
The business environment should be further improved to raise economic competitiveness and promote private investment. To boost transparency, data disclosure on secondary market real estate transactions should be enhanced, while universal auditing standards for corporate balance sheets should be adopted. To raise efficiency, the government should improve public infrastructure, conduct regulatory impact assessments with public consultations, integrate digital public service delivery across ministries, and further streamline business establishment processes. To attract FDI, full foreign ownership of businesses should be permitted, while foreign ownership restrictions on land should be relaxed. Finally, public land sales for residential and commercial development should be scaled up.
Major labor market reforms are needed to promote economic diversification. To incentivize Kuwaitis to seek employment in the private sector, compensation and working conditions should be better harmonized across the public and private sectors. Enhancing the quality of education and aligning it with private sector needs would raise productivity and support economic diversification. Employment of highly-skilled expatriate workers should be supported by introducing targeted visa programs and reforming job sponsorship frameworks, promoting knowledge transfer. Higher female labor force participation should be encouraged by further improving the working environment for women, including by fully implementing the legal requirements for childcare in the private sector.
Reforms are needed to strengthen AML/CFT effectiveness. The AML/CFT framework should be strengthened expeditiously following a risk-based approach to protect its effectiveness.
Progress with climate change adaptation and mitigation should be accelerated. The government has made progress with implementing the 2019 National Adaptation Plan, but is delayed in developing its mitigation plan.
Data provision has some shortcomings that somewhat hamper surveillance, which the authorities should address within their legal constraints. An expenditure-side National Accounts decomposition remains unavailable for 2023, while multi-year delays in the publication of GDP data after the pandemic confounded surveillance and policymaking. The CSB urgently needs additional funding to boost its capacity and resume its annual Establishment Survey, which has not been conducted since 2019. The exclusion of government investment income and SOE profit transfers from the Government Finance statistics hampers fiscal policy analysis, while the omission of government foreign assets from the IIP statistics generates stock-flow inconsistencies with the BOP statistics.
The mission thanks the authorities for their warm hospitality and constructive engagement.
A Concluding Statement describes the preliminary findings of IMF staff at the end of an official staff visit (or ‘mission’), in most cases to a member country. Missions are undertaken as part of regular (usually annual) consultations under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, in the context of a request to use IMF resources (borrow from the IMF), as part of discussions of staff monitored programs, or as part of other staff monitoring of economic developments.
The authorities have consented to the publication of this statement. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board. Based on the preliminary findings of this mission, staff will prepare a report that, subject to management approval, will be presented to the IMF Executive Board for discussion and decision.
Washington, DC:Kuwait has a window of opportunity to implement needed fiscal and structural reforms to boost private sector-led inclusive growth and diversify its economy away from oil:
Gradual fiscal consolidation of about 12 percent of GDP is needed to reinforce intergenerational equity.
Structural reforms should focus on improving the business environment, attracting FDI, and unifying the labor market.
These reforms should be underpinned by continued prudent monetary and financial sector policies.
Economic statistics should be strengthened to support well-informed policymaking.
Recent Developments, Outlook, and Risks
Kuwait has a window of opportunity to implement needed fiscal and structural reforms. Political turmoil has gripped Kuwait in recent years, stalling reforms. The political gridlock was broken in May 2024, when H.H. the Amir Sheikh Meshaal al‑Ahmad al‑Jaber al‑Sabah dissolved the Parliament and suspended parts of the Constitution for up to 4 years, allowing reforms to be expedited.
The economic recovery was disrupted in 2023, and inflation is moderating. Real GDP contracted by 3.6 percent in 2023. This economic downturn was concentrated in the oil sector, which contracted by 4.3 percent in 2023 due to an OPEC+ oil production cut. In addition, the non-oil sector is estimated to have contracted by 1.0 percent in 2023, primarily reflecting lower manufacturing activity in oil refining. Headline CPI inflation declined to 3.6 percent in 2023 reflecting lower core and food inflation. More recently, headline inflation moderated further to 2.9 percent (y-o-y) in August 2024, given lower housing and transport inflation.
The external position remained strong in 2023. The current account surplus moderated to 31.4 percent of GDP in 2023, with a 10.3 percent of GDP reduction in the trade surplus from lower oil prices and production largely offset by a 7.4 percent of GDP increase in the income surplus. Official reserve assets amounted to a comfortable 9.0 months of projected imports at end-2023. However, the external position was substantially weaker than the level implied by fundamentals and desirable policies in 2023, partly reflecting inadequate public saving of oil revenue.
The fiscal balance weakened in FY2023/24. The fiscal balance of the budgetary central government swung from a surplus of 11.7 percent of GDP in FY2022/23 to a deficit of 3.1 percent of GDP in FY2023/24. This mainly reflected a 5.8 percent of GDP reduction in oil revenue given lower oil prices and production, and a 9.7 percent of GDP increase in current spending, of which 5.7 percent of GDP went to the public sector wage bill while 3.4 percent of GDP went to subsidies. Nonetheless, the fiscal balance of the general government (which includes the income from SWF investments) was an estimated 26.0 percent of GDP in FY2023/24.
Financial stability has been maintained. Banks have sustained strong capital and liquidity buffers to satisfy the CBK’s prudent regulatory requirements, while NPLs remain low given judicious lending practices and are well provisioned for.
Under the baseline assuming current policies, the economy is projected to remain in recession in 2024, then to recover over the medium term:
Real GDP will contract by a further 3.2 percent in 2024 due to an additional OPEC+ oil production cut, then will expand by 2.8 percent in 2025 as the cuts get unwound, and will grow broadly in line with potential thereafter.
The incipient recovery of the non-oil sector will continue in 2024, with non-oil GDP expanding by 1.3 percent despite fiscal consolidation, after which it will gradually converge to its potential of 2.5 percent.
Headline CPI inflation will continue to moderate to 3.0 percent in 2024 as excess demand pressure dissipates and imported food prices fall, then will gradually converge to 2.0 percent as the non-oil output gap closes.
The current account surplus will moderate further to 28.4 percent of GDP in 2024 as lower oil prices and production reduce the trade surplus, then will gradually decline over the medium term alongside oil prices.
The fiscal deficit of the budgetary central government will increase to 5.1 percent of GDP in FY2024/25 as lower oil revenue more than offsets expenditure rationalization, then will steadily rise by about 1 percent of GDP per year over the medium term under current policies.
The risks surrounding these baseline economic projections are skewed to the downside. The economy is highly exposed to a variety of global risks through its oil dependence, in particular to commodity price volatility, a global growth slowdown or acceleration, and the further intensification of regional conflicts. The materialization of these risks would be transmitted to Kuwait mainly via their impacts on oil prices and production. Domestic risks are primarily associated with the implementation of fiscal and structural reforms, which could get further delayed or accelerated. These reforms are needed to diversify the economy away from oil, which would enhance its resilience and stimulate private investment.
Economic Reforms—Transitioning to a Dynamic and Diversified Economy
The authorities aspire to implement reforms to support the transition to a dynamic and diversified economy. To achieve this goal, a well-sequenced package of fiscal and structural reforms is needed. Structural reforms to improve the business environment and attract foreign investment are needed to boost private sector-led inclusive growth. Meanwhile, fiscal reforms should be implemented to reinforce intergenerational equity while incentivizing Kuwaitis to pursue newly created job opportunities in the private sector, in particular gradual fiscal consolidation.
The contractionary stance of fiscal policy is appropriate. Fiscal policy was strongly procyclical in FY2023/24, with a fiscal expansion of 6.9 percent of non-oil GDP contributing to excess demand pressure. Under the FY2024/25 Budget, the non-oil fiscal balance of the budgetary central government should increase by 4.7 percent of non-oil GDP relative to FY2023/24. This large fiscal consolidation will help close the non-oil output gap while reinforcing intergenerational equity. It is mainly driven by current expenditure rationalization, concentrated in planned subsidy cuts worth 4.3 percent of non-oil GDP.
Substantial further fiscal consolidation is needed to ensure intergenerational equity. Under the baseline, the projected fiscal balance of the general government is far below the level needed to maintain the living standards of Kuwaitis for generations to come. A prudent approach calls for gradual fiscal consolidation of about 12 percent of GDP to reinforce intergenerational equity, alongside structural reforms to diversify the economy away from oil. These reforms would also reinforce external sustainability.
Expenditure and tax policy reforms would be needed to support the transition to a dynamic and diversified economy:
Fiscal consolidation should be implemented at a pace of 1 to 2 percent of GDP per year until the PIH fiscal balance target is achieved. This would offset or reverse the projected roughly 1 percent of GDP per year increase in the fiscal deficit of the budgetary central government over the medium term, without reducing growth much.
Compensation of government employees surged over the past decade, to the top of the GCC. A public sector wage setting mechanism should be introduced to gradually reduce the 41 percent premium over the private sector, while a hiring cap should be used to steadily lower the public sector employment share, both towards high-income country levels.
Hydrocarbon consumption subsidies are the highest in the GCC. They should be phased out by gradually raising retail fuel and electricity prices to their cost-recovery levels while providing targeted transfers to vulnerable groups.
On-budget public investment plummeted over the past decade, to near the bottom of the GCC. It should be raised to build up the quantity and quality of infrastructure towards high-income country levels.
The hydrocarbon share of government revenue remains the highest in the GCC. In the context of the global minimum corporate tax agreement, the government’s plan to extend the CIT to all large domestic companies is welcome. To boost non-oil revenue mobilization, Kuwait should introduce the GCC-wide VAT and excise tax.
The conduct of fiscal policy should be strengthened with Public Financial Management reforms. To align budget planning and execution with fiscal policy objectives, the Ministry of Finance should introduce a medium-term fiscal framework—including a fiscal rules framework with a public debt ceiling and non-oil fiscal balance target—underpinned by a medium-term macroeconomic framework. To inform fiscal policymaking and assess reform proposals, the capacity of the Macro-Fiscal Unit should be strengthened. To facilitate orderly fiscal financing, the Liquidity and Financing Law should be enacted expeditiously.
Monetary and Financial Sector Policies—Maintaining Macrofinancial Stability
The exchange rate peg to an undisclosed basket of currencies remains an appropriate nominal anchor for monetary policy. It has supported low and stable inflation for many years. Sustaining this successful monetary policy track record requires preserving the independence of the CBK. The monetary transmission mechanism should be strengthened by deepening the interbank and domestic sovereign debt markets, establishing an efficient capital market, and phasing out interest rate caps.
The restrictive stance of monetary policy is appropriate. The exchange rate regime gives the CBK relative flexibility to conduct monetary policy. The policy rate is currently in line with controlling inflation and stabilizing non-oil output while supporting the exchange rate peg, and is above neutral. Under the baseline, monetary normalization is warranted, as inflation further moderates and the non-oil output gap closes.
Systemic risk remains contained and prudently managed. The credit cycle downturn triggered by the pandemic has been gradually unwinding, with the credit gap estimated to be nearly closed. Under the CBK’s latest stress tests, the capitalization and liquidity of the banking system generally exceeded Basel III minimum requirements, while individual bank shortcomings were limited. The stance of macroprudential policy is appropriate given contained systemic risk and subdued credit growth. Given that capital requirements exceed Basel III minimum requirements, the CBK could consider reclassifying part of its country specific capital buffer as a positive neutral countercyclical capital buffer. It should also continue its practice of regularly reviewing the adequacy of its financial regulatory perimeter and macroprudential toolkit. Finally, the CBK should continue its risk-based supervisory approach to assessing banks and effectively addressing any vulnerabilities.
Structural financial sector reforms are needed to enhance financial intermediation efficiency. The unlimited guarantee on bank deposits should be gradually replaced with a limited deposit insurance framework to address moral hazard, while the interest rate caps on loans should be phased out to support efficient risk pricing.
A comprehensive and well-sequenced structural reform package is needed to increase non-oil potential growth. The initial priorities are to improve the business environment by enhancing transparency, raising efficiency, and further opening up the economy. Meanwhile, labor market reforms should be gradually phased in to incentivize private sector-led inclusive growth.
The business environment should be further improved to raise economic competitiveness and promote private investment. To boost transparency, data disclosure on secondary market real estate transactions should be enhanced, while universal auditing standards for corporate balance sheets should be adopted. To raise efficiency, the government should improve public infrastructure, conduct regulatory impact assessments with public consultations, integrate digital public service delivery across ministries, and further streamline business establishment processes. To attract FDI, full foreign ownership of businesses should be permitted, while foreign ownership restrictions on land should be relaxed. Finally, public land sales for residential and commercial development should be scaled up.
Major labor market reforms are needed to promote economic diversification. To incentivize Kuwaitis to seek employment in the private sector, compensation and working conditions should be better harmonized across the public and private sectors. Enhancing the quality of education and aligning it with private sector needs would raise productivity and support economic diversification. Employment of highly-skilled expatriate workers should be supported by introducing targeted visa programs and reforming job sponsorship frameworks, promoting knowledge transfer. Higher female labor force participation should be encouraged by further improving the working environment for women, including by fully implementing the legal requirements for childcare in the private sector.
Reforms are needed to strengthen AML/CFT effectiveness. The AML/CFT framework should be strengthened expeditiously following a risk-based approach to protect its effectiveness.
Progress with climate change adaptation and mitigation should be accelerated. The government has made progress with implementing the 2019 National Adaptation Plan, but is delayed in developing its mitigation plan.
Data provision has some shortcomings that somewhat hamper surveillance, which the authorities should address within their legal constraints. An expenditure-side National Accounts decomposition remains unavailable for 2023, while multi-year delays in the publication of GDP data after the pandemic confounded surveillance and policymaking. The CSB urgently needs additional funding to boost its capacity and resume its annual Establishment Survey, which has not been conducted since 2019. The exclusion of government investment income and SOE profit transfers from the Government Finance statistics hampers fiscal policy analysis, while the omission of government foreign assets from the IIP statistics generates stock-flow inconsistencies with the BOP statistics.
The mission thanks the authorities for their warm hospitality and constructive engagement.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 3
Introductory Statement on Syria. Delivered by the UK’s Permanent Representative to the WTO and UN, Simon Manley.
Location:
Geneva
Delivered on:
(Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)
Thank you Mr President,
I have the honour to present draft resolution L.11 on the human rights situation in the Syrian Arab Republic, on behalf of: France, Germany, the Netherlands, Qatar, Türkiye, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom.
Mr President,
When he briefed this Council last month, the Chair of the Commission of Inquiry, Paulo Pinheiro described Syria, as a “quagmire of despair”. A fitting, yet tragic, depiction of the depth of human suffering Syrians continue to endure at the hands of Assad and his allies.
Once again, the Commission’s report documents violence against civilians; arbitrary arrests; and detentions under the most horrific conditions where torture and sexual and gender-based violence are rife.
Families receive no information or are misinformed about the fate and whereabouts of their loved ones following their detention. There is simply no end to the cruelty that the regime is apparently willing to inflict on those that it is meant to protect.
The draft resolution highlights violations and abuses against a generation of children in Syria, who have known nothing but a world where violence, fear, hunger and loss are a daily reality.
A world where at least 2.4 million children are out of school. Where those as young as 11 have endured sexual and gender-based violence in state-run detention facilities. Where children are the innocent victims of indiscriminate attacks on schools, hospitals and civilian areas.
As we approach International Day of the Girl Child, it is important we note the particular vulnerability of girls in Syria. Throughout this long conflict, girls have been targeted based on their gender, subject to forced marriage, and have taken on increased care-giving responsibilities. It is no wonder that of those out of education, girls are disproportionately affected.
Mr President,
The resolution we present today condemns such violations and abuses and calls for them to stop.
It demands that attacks on schools, healthcare and medical facilities cease. And it implores all parties to maintain unhindered, safe and sustainable humanitarian access to those in need.
Importantly, the resolution acknowledges that Syria’s future depends on the ability of generations to come to engage meaningfully in a political solution to the conflict.
I thank all those who have engaged constructively in the negotiation process.
If a vote is called on this resolution, I urge members of the Council to vote in favour of it.
Commissioner Pinheiro made clear that Syrians continue to look to this house for hope, for help. We cannot, should not, will not, abandon them.
Girls as young as nine could be forcibly married, and protections regarding divorce and inheritance potentially removed
Urgent legal reforms are needed to protect Iraqi women and girls’ rights and criminalise marital rape
‘Iraqi lawmakers must heed the warnings of civil society and women’s rights groups on the devastating impact of these amendments’ – Razaw Salihy
Ahead of an imminent parliamentary vote in Iraq on possible changes to the country’s Personal Status Law, Amnesty International is calling on Iraqi lawmakers to drop amendments that would violate women and girls’ rights, further entrench discrimination and could allow for girls as young as nine to be forced into marriage.
The current Personal Status Law applies to all Iraqis irrespective of their religion. The proposed amendments would grant religious councils of the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam in Iraq the authority to develop their own “code of Sharia rulings on personal status matters” within six months of the law being passed, effectively threatening women’s and girls’ rightsand their equality before the law.
The amendments would also open the door to legalising unregistered marriages, which are often used to circumvent child marriage laws, and removing penalties for adult men who enter such marriages and clerics who conduct them. It would also remove critical protections for divorced women, such as the right to remain in the marital home or receive financial support from the former husband.
“Iraqi lawmakers must heed the warnings of civil society and women’s rights groups on the devastating impact of these amendments, which would eliminate the current legal marriage age of 18 for both girls and boys, paving the way for child marriages, as well as stripping women and girls of protections regarding divorce and inheritance.
“Not only does child marriage deprive girls of their education, but married girls are more vulnerable to sexual and physical abuse, and health risks related to early pregnancy.
“It is alarming that these amendments to the Personal Status Law are being pushed so vehemently when completely different, urgent legal reforms are needed to protect Iraqi women and girls’ rights.
“Iraq’s parliament must reject these harmful proposed amendments and instead focus their efforts on addressing woeful shortcomings in the penal code, which permits ‘honour’ as a mitigating factor for the killings of women and girls and allows for the corporal punishment of the wife and children by the husband, as well as failing to criminalise marital rape.”
Amnesty confirmed that the proposed amendments violate international treaties ratified by Iraq including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Opposition to the bill
The first reading of the bill took place on 4 August 2024. Similar amendments were proposed in 2014 and 2017 but failed to pass due to a nationwide outcry. On 3 September, Iraq’s parliament attempted to hold a second reading of the draft bill but opposing MPs had waged a boycott campaign that succeeded in blocking this. The bill’s second reading took place on 16 September, with women MPs and other opponents of the bill raising concerns that none of their recommendations had been taken into account, nor an amended draft shared. On 17 September, the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court ruled that the amendments were aligned with Iraq’s constitution.
NEW YORK/BEIRUT, October 10, 2024 — Israeli attacks in Lebanon have forced health care facilities to close, limiting people’s access to health care at a time when medical and humanitarian needs are rising due to the ongoing conflict, said Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Medical facilities and medical personnel in Lebanon must be protected to ensure people have access to essential health care services.
Heavy Israeli bombardments have severely disrupted access to medical care across Lebanon. As of October 1, six hospitals and 40 general health care centers have closed their doors as the intensity of the fighting has made it impossible to work without safety guarantees, according to OCHA. In the last two weeks, Israeli strikes have claimed the lives of at least 50 paramedics. This brings the total number of health care workers killed since October last year to over 100, as reported by the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.
“We must ensure the continuation of care for those in need,” said François Zamparini, emergency coordinator for MSF in Lebanon. “We urge all parties to respect international humanitarian law. Civilians, civilian infrastructure, and medical facilities and medical personnel must not be targeted. Their safety must be guaranteed.”
Intense Israeli airstrikes impede MSF response
To reduce devastating consequences for civilians, MSF is working to ensure the continuation of health care in its existing facilities, while also scaling up and adapting activities. However, due to intense Israeli airstrikes, MSF has been forced to suspend some activities in highly affected areas.
“Given the intensity of the violence, road damage, and the lack of guaranteed safety, we are currently unable to reach all affected areas in Lebanon despite the increasing medical and humanitarian needs,” Zamparini said.
Last week, MSF was forced to completely close its clinic in the Palestinian camp of Burj el Barajneh in the southern suburbs of Beirut and temporarily stop activities in Baalbek-Hermel, northeast Lebanon. These are both areas heavily affected by the strikes. The closure of medical facilities has left vulnerable people in these areas, specifically those living with chronic diseases, without the essential services they need.
Given the intensity of the violence, road damage, and the lack of guaranteed safety, we are currently unable to reach all affected areas in Lebanon despite the increasing medical and humanitarian needs.
François Zamparini, emergency coordinator for MSF in Lebanon
“We partially reopened our clinic in Hermel this week to ensure that patients receive their medications, providing them with a two-to-three-month stock of essential drugs, depending on the severity of their conditions and medical risks,” Zamparini said. “One of the hospitals we planned to support and had donated medications and trauma kits to, in Nabatiyeh—only a few kilometers away from the active frontlines—was hit on October 5.”
In the south of Lebanon, where the conflict and needs are greatest, MSF medical teams remain unable to operate at full capacity due to a lack of safety guarantees for medical personnel. For example, an MSF mobile medical team, which had been actively supporting general health care centers in Nabatiyeh and other areas closer to the Lebanese border since last November, has been forced to stop its activities. The team, which was once able to reach areas near the border, can no longer do so and is currently limited to operating only as far as Saida, which is about 50 kilometers [31 miles] north of the southern border.
The armed conflict is worsening an ongoing humanitarian crisis. Lebanon’s health care system was already overburdened by the country’s economic crisis, which has caused the immigration of many medical staff and strained the capacity and resources of medical facilities. Local health centers—already at capacity—are now facing increasing pressure as they try to meet the growing medical needs of displaced people.
The scale of displacement in Lebanon significantly surpasses the country’s ability to provide adequate shelter, with over a million people displaced, according to UNHCR. The majority of shelters in which people are seeking safety are in dire condition. In response, MSF has deployed 12 mobile medical teams across various regions of the country, including Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Saida, Tripoli, Bekaa, and Akkar. These teams are providing psychological first aid, general medical consultations, and mental health support, in addition to donating mattresses, hygiene kits, hot meals, and clean water.
MSF first began working in Lebanon in 1976 and has worked in the country without interruption since 2000.
Analysis of more than a dozen Israeli evacuation warnings show how Lebanese civilians were given contradictory information and exposed to heightened danger
Some warnings issued in middle of night on social media and with only 30 minutes notice
Backdrop of comments from Netanyahu and others indicates that Israel considers Lebanese civilians and property to be legitimate targets
‘This is not a warning, it’s torture. It’s a sadistic game’ – resident of Burj al-Barajneh
‘We’re extremely concerned that Israel may be seeking to replicate the approach it followed in Gaza, resulting in unprecedented civilian harm’ – Agnès Callamard
The evacuation warnings issued by the Israeli military to residents of the southern suburbs of Beirut and south Lebanon have been inadequate – and in some cases misleading – said Amnesty International.
Amnesty analysed more than a dozen Israeli military evacuation warnings and conducted interviews with 12 residents who fled various districts in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahieh following the Israeli evacuation warnings on 27-28 September, including al-Laylaki, Hay El Sellom, Hadi Nasrallah highway and Burj al-Barajneh. Amnesty also interviewed three residents of villages in south Lebanon.
Amnesty examined two warnings issued to residents of the crowded urban areas of Dahieh overnight on 27-28 September, after the attack that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. The airstrikes demolished entire residential buildings in the densely-populated area. Each warning identified three military targets and said that residents should evacuate a 500-metre radius around that location. The warnings were issued through the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesperson on X at night, without a clear timeline or details on safe routes.
In the two Dahieh warnings, maps published by the Israeli military alongside the evacuation warnings covering six different areas were misleading. In each case the area highlighted on the maps indicating the danger zone for civilians covered a much smaller area than the 500-metre radius that the Israeli military had advised civilians was the minimum distance civilians should evacuate. To be effective, warnings must give clear and timely instructions for civilians on moving away from military objectives that are going to be targeted, with information on safe routes and destinations.
The Israeli military also issued evacuation warnings to residents of approximately 118 towns and villages in south Lebanon between 1-7 October, following the start of its ground invasion. These warnings, which included towns that were more than 35 km from the border with Israel and outside the UN-declared buffer zone, do not – said Amnesty – make south Lebanon a free-fire zone.
Under international humanitarian law, parties to a conflict have a clear obligation to take all feasible precautions to avoid – or at least minimise – harm to civilians when carrying out attacks. This includes giving effective advance warning of attacks to civilians in affected areas unless circumstances do not permit. In any case, emphasised Amnesty, issuing warnings does not absolve Israel of its obligations under international humanitarian law to never target civilians and to take all possible measures to minimise harm to them.
According to the UN, a quarter of Lebanese territory has been affected by evacuation warnings.
Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said:
“The warnings issued by the Israeli military to residents of Dahieh – the densely-populated southern suburbs of Beirut – were inadequate.
“Our analysis shows that not only did the warnings issued by the Israeli military include misleading maps, but they were also issued at short notice – in one instance less than 30 minutes before strikes began – in the middle of the night, via social media, when many people would be asleep, offline or not following media reports.
“Instructing the residents of entire towns and villages in south Lebanon to evacuate is an overly-general warning that is inadequate and raises questions around whether this is intended to create the conditions for mass displacement.
“Regardless of the efficacy of the warnings, they do not mean that Israel can treat any remaining civilians as targets.
“Having spent the last 12 months investigating Israel’s war crimes in Gaza, we’re extremely concerned that Israel may be seeking to replicate the approach it followed in Gaza, resulting in unprecedented civilian harm.
“Amnesty International is calling on Israel’s allies, including the United States, to suspend all arms transfers and other forms of military assistance to Israel due to the significant risk that these weapons could be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international law.
“The organisation is also calling for a suspension of all arms transfers to Hezbollah and other armed groups in Lebanon.”
Case studies – southern suburbs of Beirut
Starting at 11:06 pm on 27 September, the Israeli military began to issue evacuation warnings to residents of Dahieh, a suburb in the south of Beirut. In the first warning, the Israeli military instructed residents via X to move 500 metres away from three buildings in the districts of al-Laylaki and al-Hadath, both densely-populated areas, alleging that residents are “located near Hezbollah interests”. The order did not give a timeframe for the evacuation. The map published alongside this warning highlighted an area around the buildings to indicate what was supposedly the 500-metre radius that residents should leave. However, the highlighted area in fact only covered approximately a 135-metre radius. While the map showed 30 buildings within the red circle, there are in fact 500 buildings within the 500-metre radius. The same is true for the evacuation warnings in the al-Hadath district: the areas highlighted on the maps warning residents to stay 500 metres away from the Sheet building and the al-Salam Complex, showed only at approximately 125m and 100m radiuses respectively.
At around 12:36am, just an hour and a half later, local media reported an Israeli airstrike on al-Laylaki. Over the next hour and 10 minutes, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported 11 further attacks on Dahieh, including on buildings and areas that had not received an evacuation warning. Fatima, a journalist who lives in al-Laylaki, told Amnesty that her brother called her at around 11:15pm while she was covering news of the strike on Nasrallah, warning her to leave the area. She said:
“I jumped in the car and drove erratically … I arrived in al-Laylaki and found that everyone was acting as crazily as I was. If people could throw themselves off the balcony to leave faster [they would]. Screaming, running, cars honking, motorcycles, plastic bags … I quickly helped my parents down the stairs to my car, and I only took my cat with me … I currently have no belongings at all.”
Fatima explained that al-Laylaki is a crowded residential area that remained fully populated until that night because it is on the outskirts of Dahieh and residents did not expect it to be targeted.
Abir, who lives with her mother close to al-Laylaki, told Amnesty that she could not immediately evacuate her house because her mother is older and sick, and needs to be carried down the stairs:
“It was a night from hell. I laid my mother on the floor in the safest room, which is the old bathroom, we hid our heads with our arms [throughout the bombardment].”
They were only able to leave a few hours later after a friend helped carry her mother down from the sixth floor.
At 3am on 28 September, the Israeli military issued another evacuation warning via X to residents in the districts of Burj al-Barajneh and al-Hadath, again in Beirut’s southern suburbs, instructing them to move 500 metres away from three other identified buildings. The warning did not give a timeframe for evacuation and maps of the affected areas were similarly misleading, highlighting areas much smaller than the indicated 500 metre radius.
At 5:47 am, the National News Agency reported that Israeli airstrikes targeted al-Hadath and al-Laylaki as well as the Chouiefat and al-Kafaat districts in Beirut’s southern suburbs, which were not listed in the evacuation warning. Local media reported continued airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs throughout the day.
Taghreed, a resident of Hay el-Sellom, said that she had not heard about the Israeli warning and took the decision to flee after the major attack that killed Hassan Nasrallah. She told Amnesty: “We were hiding and couldn’t reach the television. I don’t have social media so I don’t know what the Israelis said.”
Ahmad, a resident of Burj al-Barajneh, also said that he made the decision to leave Dahieh immediately after the airstrike that killed Nasrallah, as he lives with his elderly parents. He said:
“While we were still stuck on the road out of Dahieh, with all the ambulances trying to prioritise the wounded people, we heard about the warning on the radio in the van. I felt bitter. This is not a warning, it’s torture. It’s a sadistic game: ‘we will kill you and your family soon. Show us how you can escape’.”
On 30 September, the Israeli military issued a warning to evacuate from the surroundings of residential buildings in al-Laylaki, Haret Hreik and Burj al-Barajneh. The Israeli military launched a series of airstrikes just 30 minutes later. Similarly, on 3 October, at 10:51 pm, the Israeli military issued an evacuation warning for the residents of Burj al-Barajneh, telling them to leave immediately. Local media reported a “heavy strike” minutes after the evacuation order was issued, and at least four attacks by 11:30 pm.
Under international law, Hezbollah and other armed groups must, to the extent feasible, avoid locating military objectives, including fighters, ammunition, weapons, and military infrastructure, in or near densely-populated areas. However, the presence of military objectives in populated areas does not absolve Israeli forces of their obligations under international humanitarian law to avoid indiscriminate or disproportionate attacks as well as to take all feasible precautions to spare civilians, including civilians who fail to leave the area after an evacuation warning. Failure to provide effective advance warnings of attacks which may affect civilians, unless circumstances do not permit, and not taking all other feasible precautions to protect civilians, constitute violations of international humanitarian law.
Case studies – southern Lebanon
On 1 October, the Israeli military issued two evacuation warnings to residents of southern Lebanon. The first, at 9:21 am, instructed residents not to move vehicles south of the Litani River “until further notice,” alleging that Hezbollah is using “the civilian environment and the population as human shields”. At 12:18 pm, the Israeli military instructed residents of more than 25 towns across southern Lebanon to evacuate and move north of the Awwali River, some 58 km from the border with Israel and about 30km farther than the Litani River, which marks the UN buffer zone created after the 2006 war.
On 2 October, at 9:11 am and then at 11:15 am, the Israeli military issued warnings for a further 24 towns and villages across southern Lebanon, telling residents to “save their lives and leave their homes immediately”, ordering them to move north of the Awwali River and saying that any movement south could expose them to danger. The Israeli military issued a similar warning at 12:49 pm on 3 October for a further 25 towns and villages, at 9:11 am on 4 October for a further 35 villages, and at 12:58 pm on 7 October for 25 additional villages.
None of the “orders” offered safe and effective evacuation information, just instructing residents to leave “immediately”.
Amnesty’s concerns about the warnings to civilians in south Lebanon are heightened by some statements from Israeli political and military leaders indicating that they considered Lebanese civilians and property to be legitimate targets. Benjamin Netanyahu said on 27 September there is “a missile in every kitchen, a rocket in every garage”. The Israeli Education Minister said on television on 21 September that there was no difference between Hezbollah and Lebanon and that Lebanon “would be annihilated”. In June, the Israeli Defence Minister said that Israel is capable of returning Lebanon “to the stone age”.
The south Lebanon warnings and instructions that vehicles do not travel south of the Litani River also raise serious concerns over civilians’ access to essential supplies and services, including food, medication, healthcare and fuel. The mukhtar of Rmeich, a village south of the Litani river close to the border with Israel, which did not receive an evacuation warning but is within the area in which Israel has said vehicles are prohibited from travelling, told Amnesty that supplies in the town were rapidly dwindling. “The area is going to become destitute. How can we continue? It’s like they want to displace us,” he said.
The conditions being created by Israel’s actions in south Lebanon risk forcibly displacing the majority of the civilian population there. One of the towns in southern Lebanon that the Israeli military warned must be evacuated is Ain Ebel, where the majority of residents are Christian and have no known affiliation with Hezbollah.
Rakan Diab, an Ain Ebel resident, told Amnesty that residents of the village were surprised when, on 1 October, Ain Ebel was included in the Israeli military’s evacuation warning on X. Shortly afterwards, the village mayor received a call from a person purporting to be a member of the Israeli military warning residents to flee within around 45 minutes because there were weapons in the village. “People panicked … we needed to pack and leave immediately,” Rakan Diab said, explaining how the majority fled to the nearby village of Rmeich and the Lebanese army and the Lebanese Red Cross facilitated safe passage for a convoy of around 100 cars from Rmeich to north of the Awwali River.
Year of Israel-Lebanon conflict
Israel’s intensified military attacks in Lebanon began on 23 September. During the first day, Israeli forces carried out at least 1,600 attacks in areas across Lebanon, killing more than 500 people and injuring more than 1,800 in the first 24 hours. Hezbollah also launched more than 200 rockets towards Israel that day, with around 10 people sustaining shrapnel or debris wounds.
Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in ongoing cross-border hostilities since the group launched attacks into northern Israel following the outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Gaza last October. Israeli attacks on Lebanon since 7 October 2023 have killed at least 2,083 people, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health. More than 1.2 million people have been displaced in Lebanon, and at least 400,000 have crossed the border to Syria.
Since 8 October 2023, Hezbollah and other armed groups have launched thousands of missiles at northern Israel, killing 16 civilians. A further 12 civilians, all children, were killed on 27 July in an attack on Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights. Around 63,000 residents of northern Israel have been evacuated since 8 October. In one Hezbollah attack, on 12 November 2023, an anti-tank missile hit a group of electricity company workers who were doing infrastructure work near Dovev. One worker was killed and another lightly injured. In another attack, on 9 July, two civilians were killed when a missile hit their car while driving on highway 91 in the Golan Heights. In a statement released that day, Hezbollah took responsibility and said that it targeted the nearby Nafah military base in response to the assassination of one of its members. Many of Hezbollah’s rockets are unguided and cannot be aimed at a specific target. Firing inherently inaccurate rockets into areas where civilians are present are indiscriminate attacks, and thus violate international humanitarian law. Direct attacks on civilians and indiscriminate attacks which kill or injure civilians constitute war crimes.
Iraqi lawmakers must drop amendments to the Personal Status Law, which would violate women and girls’ rights, further entrench discrimination and could allow for girls as young as nine to be married, Amnesty International said today, ahead of an imminent parliamentary vote on the changes.
“Iraqi lawmakers must heed the warnings of civil society and women’s rights groups on the devastating impact of these amendments, which would eliminate the current legal marriage age of 18 for both girls and boys, paving the way for child marriages, as well as stripping women and girls of protections regarding divorce and inheritance, said Razaw Salihy, Amnesty International’s Iraq researcher.
“Not only does child marriage deprive girls of their education, but married girls are more vulnerable to sexual and physical abuse, and health risks related to early pregnancy. It is alarming that these amendments to the Personal Status Law are being pushed so vehemently when completely different urgent legal reforms are needed to protect Iraqi women and girls’ rights.
“Iraq’s parliament must reject these harmful proposed amendments and instead focus their efforts on addressing woeful shortcomings in the Penal Code, which permits ‘honour’ as a mitigating factor for the killings of women and girls and allows for the corporal punishment of the wife and children by the husband, as well as failing to criminalize marital rape.”
The current Personal Status Law applies to all Iraqis irrespective of their religion. The proposed amendments would grant religious councils of the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam in Iraq the authority to develop their own “code of Sharia rulings on personal status matters” within six months of the law being passed, effectively threatening women’s and girls’ rights and their equality before the law.
The amendments would also open the door to legalizing unregistered marriages, which are often used to circumvent child marriage laws, and removing penalties for adult men who enter such marriages and clerics who conduct them. It would also remove critical protections for divorced women, such as the right to remain in the marital home or receive financial support from the former husband.
“The amendments violate international treaties that Iraq has ratified, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Ensuring the safety, dignity and rights of women and girls is not only a state obligation under international human rights law but also a moral imperative that all Iraqi institutions must uphold,” said Razaw Salihy.
Healthcare facilities are being forced to close in areas affected by airstrikes.
Our teams are working to ensure the continuation of care in our facilities, while also suspending some activities in heavily affected areas.
All warring parties must spare civilians, medical facilities, and medical personnel.
Beirut – As Israeli attacks intensify in Lebanon, healthcare facilities in areas most affected by airstrikes are being forced to close. This is leading to devastating consequences for civilians and their access to healthcare.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams are working tirelessly to ensure the continuation of care in our existing facilities, while also scaling up our activities to address the needs emerging from the ongoing conflict. However, due to the intense Israeli airstrikes, we were forced to suspend some activities in highly affected areas. We continue to adapt our activities to provide people with much needed healthcare.
MSF urges all warring parties to spare civilians, medical facilities, and medical personnel in Lebanon to ensure that vital healthcare services can adequately address people’s urgent medical needs.
“Given the intensity of the violence, road damage, and the lack of guaranteed safety, we are currently unable to reach all affected areas in Lebanon despite the increasing medical and humanitarian needs,” says François Zamparini, emergency coordinator for MSF in Lebanon.
Distribution of essential item kits in downtown Beirut, Aazarieh building shelter. October 2, 2024.Maryam Srour/MSF
Last week, MSF was forced to completely close its clinic in the Palestinian camp of Burj el Barajneh in the southern suburbs of Beirut. We also had to temporarily stop our activities in Baalbek-Hermel, northeast Lebanon. These are both areas heavily affected by the strikes.
“We partially reopened our clinic in Hermel this week to ensure that patients receive their medications, providing them with a two-to-three-month stock of essential drugs, depending on the severity of their condition and medical risks,” adds Zamparini.
Patients in these areas are already vulnerable, struggling to access the healthcare they desperately need. The closure of medical facilities has left them, specifically people living with chronic diseases, without the essential services they need.
MSF medical teams also remain unable to operate properly in southern Lebanon due to a lack of safety guarantees for our medical personnel.
“One of the hospitals we planned to support and had donated medications and trauma kits to, in Nabatiyeh, only a few kilometres away from the active frontlines, was hit on 5 October,” explains Zamparini.
An MSF mobile medical team, which had been actively supporting general healthcare centres in Nabatiyeh and other areas closer to the Lebanese border since November 2023, has been forced to stop its activities. The team, which was once able to reach areas near the border, can no longer do so and is currently limited to operating only as far as Saida, which is about 50 kilometres north of the southern border, where needs are highest.
In the last two weeks, Israeli strikes have claimed the lives of at least fifty paramedics. This brings the total number of healthcare workers killed since October last year to over a hundred, as reported by the Lebanese Ministry of Public Healthhttps://apnews.com/article/lebanon-israel-medics-hezbollah-hospitals-6c7f75c921c9deec0fa5c160ce639664#:~:text=The%20health%20ministry%20on%20Thursday,wounded%20in%20the%20intense%20fighting.. The heavy Israeli bombardments have also severely disrupted access to medical care across Lebanon. As of 1 October 2024, six hospitals and 40 general healthcare centres have closed their doors as the intensity of the fighting made it impossible to work without safety guarantees, according to OCHA.https://www.unocha.org/news/todays-top-news-lebanon-occupied-palestinian-territory-and-israel-syria-haiti-ukraine-eastern
The armed conflict is worsening an ongoing humanitarian crisis, aggravating existing needs. Lebanon’s healthcare system was already overburdened by the country’s economic crisis, which has caused the emigration of many medical staff and strained the capacity and resources of medical facilities. Local health centres, already at capacity, are now facing increasing pressure as they try to meet the growing medical needs of displaced people.
The scale of displacement in Lebanon significantly surpasses the country’s ability to provide adequate shelter, with over a million people displaced according to UNHCRhttps://www.unhcr.org/news/press-releases/unhcr-s-grandi-appeals-urgent-humanitarian-support-and-end-bloodshed-lebanon. The majority of shelters people are seeking safety in are in dire conditions. To respond, MSF deployed 12 mobile medical teams across various regions of the country, including Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Saida, Tripoli, Bekaa, and Akkar. These teams are providing psychological first aid, general medical consultations, and mental health support, in addition to donating mattresses, hygiene kits, hot meals, and clean water. Nevertheless, people’s needs are far greater than what we are able to cover.
“We must ensure the continuation of care for those in need,” emphasises Zamparini. “We urge all parties to respect international humanitarian law. Civilians and civilian infrastructure, medical facilities and medical personnel must not be targeted. Their safety must be guaranteed.”
MSF’s response to the humanitarian crisis in Lebanon:
In response to the ongoing escalation of conflict and intense Israeli bombing in Lebanon, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has deployed 12 mobile medical teams across various regions of the country, including Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Saida, Tripoli, Bekaa, and Akkar. These teams are providing psychological first aid, general medical consultations, medication, and mental health support. MSF is also distributing essential items such as blankets, mattresses, and hygiene kits, as well as supplying water by trucks to schools and shelters where displaced people have gathered. Additionally, we are offering hot meals and drinking water to hundreds of displaced families. MSF has also donated fuel and trauma kits to several hospitals, prepositioned 10 tons of medical supplies and trained over 100 healthcare workers in trauma care and mass casualty management across the country.
About MSF in Lebanon:
MSF is an independent international medical humanitarian organisation that provides aid and free healthcare to people in need, without discrimination. MSF first began to work in Lebanon in 1976, and its teams have worked in the country without interruption since 2008.
In 2023, MSF teams worked in six locations across Lebanon, providing 13,609 free medical consultations for vulnerable communities, including Lebanese citizens, refugees, and migrant workers. MSF’s services include mental healthcare, sexual and reproductive healthcare, paediatric care, vaccinations, and treatment for non-communicable diseases such as diabetes.
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Israeli bombardment in Lebanon is causing mass displacement and urgent humanitarian needs
Evacuation warnings issued by the Israeli military to residents of the southern suburbs of Beirut and south Lebanon were inadequate, and in some cases also misleading, said Amnesty International today, highlighting that these warnings do not absolve Israel of its obligations under international humanitarian law to never target civilians and to take all possible measures to minimize harm to them.
Under international humanitarian law, parties to a conflict have a clear obligation to take all feasible precautions to avoid, or at least minimize, harm to civilians when carrying out attacks; this includes giving effective advance warning of attacks to civilians in affected areas unless circumstances do not permit.
“The warnings issued by the Israeli military to residents of Dahieh, the densely populated southern suburbs of Beirut, were inadequate. Our analysis shows that not only did the warnings issued by the Israeli military include misleading maps, but they were also issued at short notice – in one instance less than 30 minutes before strikes began – in the middle of the night, via social media, when many people would be asleep, offline or not following media reports,” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.
“Furthermore, instructing the residents of entire towns and villages in south Lebanon to evacuate is an overly general warning that is inadequate and raises questions around whether this is intended to create the conditions for mass displacement. Regardless of the efficacy of the warnings, they do not mean that Israel can treat any remaining civilians as targets. People who choose to stay in their homes or are unable to leave because members of their household have limited mobility, due to disability, age or other reasons, continue to be protected by international humanitarian law. Israel must at all times abide by its obligations under international law, including by taking all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians, wherever they are.”
Our analysis shows that not only did the warnings issued by the Israeli military include misleading maps, but they were also issued at short notice – in one instance less than 30 minutes before strikes began – in the middle of the night, via social media, when many people would be asleep, offline or not following media reports
Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General
To be effective a warning must be timely and provide information on safe routes and destinations. Amnesty International examined two warnings issued to residents of the crowded urban area of Dahieh overnight on 27/28 September, after the surprise strike that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. The airstrikes demolished entire residential buildings in the densely populated area. Each warning identified three military targets and requested that residents evacuate a 500-metre radius around that location. The warnings were issued through the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesperson on X (formerly Twitter), at night, without a clear timeline or details on safe routes.
In the two warnings issued to residents of Dahieh, the maps published by the Israeli military alongside the evacuation warnings, covering six different areas, were misleading. In each of these cases the area highlighted on the maps to indicate the danger zone for civilians covered a much smaller area than the 500-metre radius that the Israeli military had advised civilians was the minimum distance civilians should evacuate.
The Israeli military also issued evacuation warnings to residents of around 118 towns and villages in south Lebanon between 1 -7 October, following the start of its ground invasion. These warnings, which included towns that were more than 35 km from the border with Israel and outside the UN-declared buffer zone, do not make south Lebanon a free-fire zone.
To be effective, warnings must give clear instructions for civilians on moving away from military objectives that are going to be targeted. While warnings can, in some circumstances, be general in character, the definition of what constitutes general does not include overly broad warnings that ask civilians to evacuate entire areas (see for instance the 1987 Commentary on Protocol I).
Israel’s warnings in southern Lebanon covered large geographical areas, raising concerns as to whether they were designed instead to trigger mass relocation. Principle 5 of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement states that, in all circumstances, authorities and international actors must abide by their obligations under international law so as “to prevent and avoid conditions that might lead to displacement of persons”.
Methodology
Israel’s Operation Northern Arrows began on 23 September with intense aerial bombardment of several areas across Lebanon, including the south, the Bekaa valley and Dahieh, in the southern suburbs of Beirut. According to the Lebanese government, the number of displaced people fleeing Israeli airstrikes has risen to 1.2 million – the vast majority in the last three weeks alone.
Amnesty International reviewed over a dozen evacuation warnings by the Israeli military and conducted interviews with 12 residents who fled Dahieh following the Israeli evacuation warnings on 27/28 September 2024, including al- Laylaki, Hay El Sellom, Hadi Nasrallah highway, and Burj al-Barajneh. The organization also interviewed three residents of villages in south Lebanon.
Amnesty International’s Crisis Evidence Lab mapped the areas covered by Israel’s evacuation warnings to analyse the areas impacted by the strikes.
In its analysis of these warnings, Amnesty International is not seeking at this time to determine whether Israel struck military objectives in their attacks, but rather to investigate whether or not the warnings that Israel issued were effective at protecting civilians and adhered to international law.
Southern suburbs of Beirut: ‘This is not a warning, it’s torture’
Starting at 11:06 pm on 27 September, the Israeli military began to issue evacuation warnings to residents of Dahieh. In the first warning, the Israeli military instructed residents via X (formerly Twitter) to move 500 metres away from three buildings in the neighbourhoods of al-Laylaki and al-Hadath, both of which are densely populated areas, alleging residents there are “located near Hezbollah interests”. The order did not give a timeframe for evacuation.
The map published alongside this warning highlights an area around the buildings to indicate what was supposedly the 500-metre radius that residents should leave. However, the highlighted area in fact only covered approximately a 135-metre radius. While the map showed 30 buildings within the red circle, there are in fact 500 buildings within the 500-metre radius.
Caption: A map published by the Israeli military on X misrepresents the area affected by an evacuation warning. The text over the red dotted line reads “500 metres” in Arabic, but the line covers approximately 135 metres.
Caption: Satellite imagery shows the al-Laylaki neighborhood, in southern Beirut. The red circle shows the area highlighted by the Israeli military on the map published on social media. The wider area shows the full 500 metre radius impacted by the evacuation warning.
The same is true for the evacuation warnings in the al-Hadath neighbourhood: the areas highlighted on the maps warning residents to stay 500 metres away from the Sheet building and the Al-Salam Complex, showed only approximately 125m and 100m radiuses respectively.
Caption: Satellite imagery shows the al-Hadath neighbourhood, in southern Beirut. The red circles show the area highlighted in the map published by the Israeli military on social media. The wider circles show the area impacted by the evacuation warning.
At around 12:36am, just an hour and a half later, local media reported an Israeli strike on al-Laylaki. Over the next hour and 10 minutes, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported 11 further strikes on Dahieh, including on buildings and areas that had not received an evacuation warning.
Fatima, a journalist who lives in al-Laylaki, told Amnesty International that her brother called her at around 11:15pm while she was covering news of the strike on Nasrallah, warning her to leave the area:
“I jumped in the car and drove erratically… I arrived to al-Laylaki and found that everyone was acting as crazily as I was. If people could throw themselves off the balcony to leave faster [they would]. Screaming, running, cars honking, motorcycles, plastic bags…I quickly helped my parents down the stairs to my car, and I only took my cat with me… I currently have no belongings at all.”
Fatima explained that Al-Laylaki is a crowded residential area that remained fully populated until that night because it is on the outskirts of Dahieh and residents did not expect it to be targeted.
Abir, who resides with her mother close to al-Laylaki, told Amnesty International that she could not immediately evacuate her house because her mother is older and sick, and needs to be carried down the stairs: “It was a night from hell. I laid my mother on the floor in the safest room, which is the old bathroom, we hid our heads with our arms [throughout the bombardment].” They were only able to leave a few hours later after a friend helped carry her mother down from the sixth floor.
It was a night from hell. I laid my mother on the floor in the safest room, which is the old bathroom, we hid our heads with our arms
Abir, whose mother is older and sick and needed to be carried down from the sixth floor to be evacuated
At 3am on 28 September, the Israeli military issued another evacuation warning via X to residents in the neighbourhoods of Burj al-Barajneh and al-Hadath, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, instructing them to move 500 metres away from three other identified buildings. The warning did not state a timeframe for evacuation and maps of the affected areas were similarly misleading, highlighting areas much smaller than the indicated 500 metre radius.
Caption: Satellite imagery shows the Burj al-Barajneh and al-Hadath, in Beirut’s southern suburbs. The red circles show the area highlighted in the map published by the Israeli military on social media. The wider circles show the actual area impacted by the evacuation warning.
At 5:47 am, the National News Agency reported that Israeli strikes targeted al-Hadath and al-Laylaki as well as the Chouiefat and al-Kafaat neighborhoods in Beirut’s southern suburbs, which were not listed in the evacuation warning. Local media reported continued strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs throughout the day.
Taghreed, a resident of Hay el-Sellom, said that she had not heard about the Israeli warning and took the decision to flee after the major attack that killed Hassan Nasrallah. “We were hiding and couldn’t reach the television. I don’t have social media so I don’t know what the Israelis said,” she told Amnesty International.
Ahmad, a resident of Burj al-Barajneh, also said that he made the decision to leave Dahieh immediately after the strike that killed Nasrallah, as he lives with his elderly parents. “While we were still stuck on the road out of Dahieh, with all the ambulances trying to prioritize the wounded people, we heard about the warning on the radio in the van. I felt bitter. This is not a warning; it’s torture. It’s a sadistic game: ‘we will kill you and your family soon. Show us how you can escape’.”
On 30 September 2024, the Israeli military issued a warning to evacuate from the surroundings of residential buildings in al-Laylaki, Haret Hreik, and Burj al-Barajneh. The Israeli military launched a series of strikes just 30 minutes later. Similarly, on 3 October 2024, at 10:51 pm, the Israeli military issued an evacuation warning for the residents of Burj al-Barajneh, urging them to leave immediately. Local media reported a “heavy strike” minutes after the evacuation order was issued, and at least four strikes by 11:30 pm.
Under international law, Hezbollah and other armed groups must, to the extent feasible, avoid locating military objectives, including fighters, ammunition, weapons, and military infrastructure, in or near densely populated areas. However, the presence of military objectives in populated areas does not absolve Israeli forces of their obligations under international humanitarian law to avoid indiscriminate or disproportionate attacks as well as to take all feasible precautions to spare all civilians, including civilians who fail to leave the area after an evacuation warning. Failure to provide effective advance warnings of attacks which may affect civilians, unless circumstances do not permit, and not taking all other feasible precautions to protect civilians, constitute violations of international humanitarian law.
En masse evacuation warnings to residents of south Lebanon
On 1 October, the Israeli military issued two evacuation warnings to residents of south Lebanon. The first, at 9:21am, instructed residents not to move vehicles south of the Litani River “until further notice,” alleging that Hezbollah is using “the civilian environment and the population as human shields.”
At 12:18 pm, the Israeli military instructed residents of over 25 towns across southern Lebanon to evacuate and move north of the Awwali River, some 58 km from the border with Israel and about 30km farther than the Litani River, which marks the UN buffer zone created after the 2006 war.
On 2 October 2024, at 9:11 am and then at 11:15 am, the Israeli military issued warnings for a further 24 towns and villages across southern Lebanon, telling residents to “save their lives and leave their homes immediately,” ordering them to move north of the Awwali River, and saying that any movement south could expose them to danger. The Israeli military issued a similar warning at 12:49 pm on 3 October for a further 25 towns and villages, at 9:11 am on 4 October for a further 35 villages, and at 12:58 pm on 7 October for 25 additional villages.
None of the “orders” offered safe and effective evacuation, just instructing residents to leave “immediately”.
Caption: A map showing the towns and villages impacted by evacuation warnings across southern Lebanon
Amnesty International’s concerns about the warnings to civilians in south Lebanon are heightened by some statements from Israeli political and military leaders indicating that they considered Lebanese civilians and property to be legitimate targets. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said on 27 September 2024 there is “a missile in every kitchen, a rocket in every garage”. The Israeli Education Minister said on television on 21 September 2024 that there was no difference between Hezbollah and Lebanon and that Lebanon “would be annihilated”. The Israeli Defense Minister has also previously warned in June 2024 that Israel is capable of returning Lebanon “to the stone age”.
“The massive loss of life in Lebanon in recent days raises fears that Israeli forces may be flouting their obligation to take all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians wherever they are, including through issuing effective warnings. Having spent the last 12 months investigating Israel’s war crimes in Gaza, Amnesty International is extremely concerned that Israel may be seeking to replicate the approach it followed in Gaza, resulting in unprecedented civilian harm,” said Agnes Callamard.
The south Lebanon warnings and the instructions that vehicles do not travel south of the Litani River also raise serious concerns over civilians’ access to essential supplies and services, including food, medication, healthcare and fuel.
The mukhtar of Rmeich, a village south of the Litani river close to the border with Israel, which did not receive an evacuation warning but is within the area in which Israel has said vehicles are prohibited from travelling, told Amnesty International that supplies in the town were rapidly dwindling. “The area is going to become destitute. How can we continue? It’s like they want to displace us,” he said.
The conditions being created by Israel’s actions in south Lebanon risk forcibly displacing the majority of the civilian population there.
One of the towns in southern Lebanon that the Israeli military warned must be evacuated is Ain Ebel, where the majority of residents are Christian and have no known affiliation with Hezbollah.
Rakan Diab, an Ain Ebel resident, told Amnesty International that residents of the village were surprised when Ain Ebel was included in the Israeli military’s evacuation warning on X (formerly Twitter) on 1 October. Shortly afterwards, the mayor of the village received a call from an individual purporting to be a member of the Israeli military warning residents to flee within around 45 minutes because there were weapons in the village.
“People panicked… we needed to pack and leave immediately,” he said explaining how the majority fled to the nearby village of Rmeich and the Lebanese army and the Lebanese Red Cross facilitated safe passage for a convoy of around 100 cars from Rmeich to north of the Awwali River.
“Amnesty International is calling on Israel’s allies, including the United States, to suspend all arms transfers and other forms of military assistance to Israel due to the significant risk that these weapons could be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international law. The organization is also calling for a suspension of all arms transfers to Hezbollah and other armed groups in Lebanon,” said Agnès Callamard.
Background
Israel’s Operation Northern Arrows began on 23 September. During the first day, Israeli forces carried out at least 1,600 strikes in areas across Lebanon, killing more than 500 people and injuring over 1800 in the first 24 hours. Hezbollah also launched more than 200 rockets towards Israel that day, with around 10 people sustaining shrapnel or debris wounds.
Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in ongoing cross-border hostilities since the group launched attacks into northern Israel following the outbreak of hostilities between Israel and the occupied Gaza Strip in October 2023.
Many of Hezbollah’s rockets are unguided and cannot be aimed at a specific target. Firing inherently inaccurate rockets into areas where civilians are present are indiscriminate attacks, and thus violate international humanitarian law. Direct attacks on civilians and indiscriminate attacks which kill or injure civilians constitute war crimes.
Since 8 October 2023, Hezbollah and other armed groups have launched thousands of missiles at northern Israel, killing 16 civilians. A further 12 civilians, all children, were killed on 27 July in an attack on Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights. Around 63,000 residents of northern Israel have been evacuated since 8 October.
In one Hezbollah attack, on 12 November 2023, an anti-tank missile hit a group of electricity company workers who were doing infrastructure work near Dovev. One worker was killed in the attack, and another lightly injured.
In another attack, on 9 July 2024, two civilians were killed when a missile hit their car while driving on highway 91 in the Occupied Golan Heights. In a statement released that day, Hezbollah took responsibility and said that it targeted the nearby Nafah military base in response to the assassination of one of its members.
“It’s difficult for many of them, because they have to prove their vulnerability in legal terms. It’s emotionally dehumanizing that I need to prove what has happened to me for a basic human right, which is safety.”
With these words, Panos Mylonas, a psychologist and Mental Health activity manager working with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Athens, Greece, describes the emotional toll that the asylum-seeking process takes on individuals who are forced to continually justify their suffering.
On International Mental Health Day, in a conversation with Panos, the depth of the mental health crisis among migrants and refugees becomes painfully clear. Having worked with MSF for over four years, Panos shared his experiences working in the grave migration reality in Athens, where he supports unaccompanied minors, victims of sexual violence, and people with psychiatric needs.
The journey, the future, and the trauma
Migrants and refugees arrive in Greece carrying stories of survival from their countries of origin. Many of them have faced life-threatening circumstances including violence, torture, imprisonment, and sexual violence. Panos describes how most individuals are unaware of the dangers they will face on their journey, which often includes additional trauma. He explains that the combination of their traumatic experiences at home and the violence they encounter while fleeing leads to complex mental health issues that emerge when they arrive in Greece.
“They come here, having faced traumatic events in their country of origin and during their journey, which leads to very complex mental health presentations,” says Panos.
Panos highlights several recurrent mental health issues among the migrants he works with, including suicidal ideation, hopelessness, and severe anxiety.
“Almost all of them talk about suicidal thoughts, lack of support, and sleeping problems,” he says. The overwhelming feeling of hopelessness stems from their uncertain future in Greece, where many remain in a state of limbo, waiting for their asylum claims to be processed. This uncertainty exacerbates their trauma, preventing them from finding any sense of stability.
Panos Mylonas, a psychologist and Mental Health activity manager“Almost all of them talk about suicidal thoughts, lack of support, and sleeping problems,”
One of the most severe challenges faced by migrants and refugees is the deprivation of access to healthcare, which has a direct and devastating impact on their mental health. Panos explains that “when they get, let’s say, a negative reply to their asylum claim, this means that their access to healthcare is stopped.”
For many, this loss of healthcare is a significant blow, exacerbating their feelings of helplessness and deepening their mental health struggles. The denial of essential medical services strips them of the opportunity to receive both physical and psychological care, worsening their already fragile state. Panos places great stress on the need for uninterrupted access to healthcare, regardless of asylum outcomes, asserting, “access to healthcare should always be present, regardless of the result.” Without such support, the psychological burden on these individuals intensifies, leaving them trapped in a cycle of uncertainty and despair, further complicating their ability to rebuild their lives.
A particularly vulnerable group
Among the most vulnerable are unaccompanied minors, who face specific challenges. These young individuals, already in a fragile stage of their development, are thrust into an environment where they are disconnected from their families and have limited social support. While Greece provides some legal protections and shelter, Panos explains that these minors often face a sudden withdrawal of support once they turn 18.
“Once they are no longer minors, they are sent to camps, where there is little to no follow-up,” he adds, explaining the difficult transition many minors face as they enter adulthood without sufficient support.
MSF provides crucial support
MSF plays a crucial role in providing specialized mental health support to refugees and migrants. MSF offers a space where individuals are welcomed with respect and dignity.
“We provide them a space, regardless of race or gender or sexuality, to be heard and supported,” he emphasizes. We not only offer psychological support but also works in collaboration with social workers to provide holistic care, addressing both the practical and emotional needs of the migrants.
However, the demand far exceeds the capacity of MSF. Many patients have complex mental health needs, requiring long-term support that is difficult to sustain. “The scope of MSF is limited, and the needs are much greater than we can meet,” says Panos. This underscores the need for more comprehensive support systems for migrants, including better integration strategies and expanded mental health services.
When asked what he would change in the current system, Panos calls for faster processing of asylum claims and better living conditions in the camps, which often feel like prisons to those forced to reside there. He also points to the need for greater community support and raising awareness in the host society.
“There needs to be more awareness in Greek society about what is happening and more efforts to integrate these individuals into the community,” he suggests. Improving the availability of interpreters in healthcare settings and ensuring continuous access to healthcare, even for those who receive negative asylum claims, are also critical changes MSF calls for.
Médecins Sans Frontières has been providing essential medical and humanitarian aid to asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants in Greece since 1996. In response to the 2015 humanitarian crisis, MSF expanded its efforts to address the growing needs of people arriving in Greece. Emergency interventions were set up across Lesvos, Samos, Chios, Athens, and the border town of Idomeni, offering medical and mental health care, shelter, water and sanitation services, and distributing vital relief items. From December 2015 to March 2016, MSF also carried out life-saving search and rescue operations in the Aegean Sea.
Since the beginning of 2024, our mental health services in Athens, Greece have provided vital support to more than 1,900 individuals. Our primary clinical diagnoses include anxiety disorders, PTSD, and depression, often triggered by difficult living conditions, forced displacement, and experiences of sexual violence. Over half of those we support (56.3%) have been impacted by violence, leading to symptoms such as anxiety (40.9%), depression (31,6%) and trauma-related distress (14,7%). Our team works to address these complex needs, helping people cope with the challenges of displacement and adversity.
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Education is essentially an “industry of industries,” with K-12 and higher education enterprises handling data that could include health records, financial data, and other regulated information. At the same time, their facilities can host payment processing systems, networks that are used as internet service providers (ISPs), and other diverse infrastructure. The cyberthreats that Microsoft observes across different industries tend to be compounded in education, and threat actors have realized that this sector is inherently vulnerable. With an average of 2,507 cyberattack attempts per week, universities are prime targets for malware, phishing, and IoT vulnerabilities.¹
Security staffing and IT asset ownership also affect education organizations’ cyber risks. School and university systems, like many enterprises, often face a shortage of IT resources and operate a mix of both modern and legacy IT systems. Microsoft observes that in the United States, students and faculty are more likely to use personal devices in education compared to Europe, for example. Regardless of ownership however, in these and other regions, busy users do not always have a security mindset.
This edition of Cyber Signals delves into the cybersecurity challenges facing classrooms and campuses, highlighting the critical need for robust defenses and proactive measures. From personal devices to virtual classes and research stored in the cloud, the digital footprint of school districts, colleges, and universities has multiplied exponentially.
We are all defenders.
A uniquely valuable and vulnerable environment
The education sector’s user base is very different from a typical large commercial enterprise. In the K-12 environment, users include students as young as six years old. Just like any public or private sector organization, there is a wide swath of employees in school districts and at universities including administration, athletics, health services, janitorial, food service professionals, and others. Multiple activities, announcements, information resources, open email systems, and students create a highly fluid environment for cyberthreats.
Virtual and remote learning have also extended education applications into households and offices. Personal and multiuser devices are ubiquitous and often unmanaged—and students are not always cognizant about cybersecurity or what they allow their devices to access.
Education is also on the front lines confronting how adversaries test their tools and their techniques. According to data from Microsoft Threat Intelligence, the education sector is the third-most targeted industry, with the United States seeing the greatest cyberthreat activity.
Cyberthreats to education are not only a concern in the United States. According to the United Kingdom’s Department of Science Innovation and Technology 2024 Cybersecurity Breaches Survey, 43% of higher education institutions in the UK reported experiencing a breach or cyberattack at least weekly.²
QR codes provide an easily disguised surface for phishing cyberattacks
Today, quick response (QR) codes are quite popular—leading to increased risks of phishing cyberattacks designed to gain access to systems and data. Images in emails, flyers offering information about campus and school events, parking passes, financial aid forms, and other official communications all frequently contain QR codes. Physical and virtual education spaces might be the most “flyer friendly” and QR code-intensive environments anywhere, given how big a role handouts, physical and digital bulletin boards, and other casual correspondence help students navigate a mix of curriculum, institutional, and social correspondence. This creates an attractive backdrop for malicious actors to target users who are trying to save time with a quick image scan.
Recently the United States Federal Trade Commission issued a consumer alert on the rising threat of malicious QR codes being used to steal login credentials or deliver malware.³
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 telemetry shows that approximately more than 15,000 messages with malicious QR codes are targeted toward the educational sector daily—including phishing, spam, and malware.
Legitimate software tools can be used to quickly generate QR codes with embedded links to be sent in email or posted physically as part of a cyberattack. And those images are hard for traditional email security solutions to scan, making it even more important for faculty and students to use devices and browsers with modern web defenses.
Targeted users in the education sector may use personal devices without endpoint security. QR codes essentially enable the threat actor to pivot to these devices. QR code phishing (since its purpose is to target mobile devices) is compelling evidence of mobile devices being used as an attack vector into enterprises—such as personal accounts and bank accounts—and the need for mobile device protection and visibility. Microsoft has significantly disrupted QR code phishing attacks. This shift in tactics is evident in the substantial decrease in daily phishing emails intercepted by our system, dropping from 3 million in December 2023 to just 179,000 by March 2024.
Source: Microsoft incident response engagements.
Universities present their own unique challenges. Much of university culture is based on collaboration and sharing to drive research and innovation. Professors, researchers, and other faculty operate under the notion that technology, science—simply knowledge itself—should be shared widely. If someone appearing as a student, peer, or similar party reaches out, they’re often willing to discuss potentially sensitive topics without scrutinizing the source.
University operations also span multiple industries. University presidents are effectively CEOs of healthcare organizations, housing providers, and large financial organizations—the industry of industries factor, again. Therefore, top leaders can can be prime targets for anyone attacking those sectors.
The combination of value and vulnerability found in education systems has attracted the attention of a spectrum of cyberattackers—from malware criminals employing new techniques to nation-state threat actors engaging in old-school spy craft.
Microsoft continually monitors threat actors and threat vectors worldwide. Here are some key issues we’re seeing for education systems.
Email systems in schools offer wide spaces for compromise
The naturally open environment at most universities forces them to be more relaxed in their email hygiene. They have a lot of emails amounting to noise in the system, but are often operationally limited in where and how they can place controls, because of how open they need to be for alumni, donors, external user collaboration, and many other use cases.
Education institutions tend to share a lot of announcements in email. They share informational diagrams around local events and school resources. They commonly allow external mailers from mass mailing systems to share into their environments. This combination of openness and lack of controls creates a fertile ground for cyberattacks.
AI is increasing the premium on visibility and control
Cyberattackers recognizing higher education’s focus on building and sharing can survey all visible access points, seeking entry into AI-enabled systems or privileged information on how these systems operate. If on-premises and cloud-based foundations of AI systems and data are not secured with proper identity and access controls, AI systems become vulnerable. Just as education institutions adapted to cloud services, mobile devices and hybrid learning—which introduced new waves of identities and privileges to govern, devices to manage, and networks to segment—they must also adapt to the cyber risks of AI by scaling these timeless visibility and control imperatives.
Nation-state actors are after valuable IP and high-level connections
Universities handling federally funded research, or working closely with defense, technology, and other industry partners in the private sector, have long recognized the risk of espionage. Decades ago, universities focused on telltale physical signs of spying. They knew to look for people showing up on campus taking pictures or trying to get access to laboratories. Those are still risks, but today the dynamics of digital identity and social engineering have greatly expanded the spy craft toolkit.
Universities are often epicenters of highly sensitive intellectual property. They may be conducting breakthrough research. They may be working on high-value projects in aerospace, engineering, nuclear science, or other sensitive topics in partnership with multiple government agencies.
For cyberattackers, it can be easier to first compromise somebody in the education sector who has ties to the defense sector and then use that access to more convincingly phish a higher value target.
Universities also have experts in foreign policy, science, technology, and other valuable disciplines, who may willingly offer intelligence, if deceived in social-engineering cyberattacks employing false or stolen identities of peers and others who appear to be in individuals’ networks or among trusted contacts. Apart from holding valuable intelligence themselves, compromised accounts of university employees can become springboards into further campaigns against wider government and industry targets.
Nation-state actors targeting education
Peach Sandstorm
Peach Sandstorm has used password spray attacks against the education sector to gain access to infrastructure used in those industries, and Microsoft has also observed the organization using social engineering against targets in higher education.
Mint Sandstorm
Microsoft has observed a subset of this Iranian attack group targeting high-profile experts working on Middle Eastern affairs at universities and research organizations. These sophisticated phishing attacks used social engineering to compel targets to download malicious files including a new, custom backdoor called MediaPl.
Mabna Institute
In 2023, the Iranian Mabna Institute conducted intrusions into the computing systems of at least 144 United States universities and 176 universities in 21 other countries.
The stolen login credentials were used for the benefit of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and were also sold within Iran through the web. Stolen credentials belonging to university professors were used to directly access university library systems.
Emerald Sleet
This North Korean group primarily targets experts in East Asian policy or North and South Korean relations. In some cases, the same academics have been targeted by Emerald Sleet for nearly a decade.
Emerald Sleet uses AI to write malicious scripts and content for social engineering, but these attacks aren’t always about delivering malware. There’s also an evolving trend where they simply ask experts for policy insight that could be used to manipulate negotiations, trade agreements, or sanctions.
Moonstone Sleet
Moonstone Sleet is another North Korean actor that has been taking novel approaches like creating fake companies to forge business relationships with educational institutions or a particular faculty member or student.
One of the most prominent attacks from Moonstone Sleet involved creating a fake tank-themed game used to target individuals at educational institutions, with a goal to deploy malware and exfiltrate data.
Storm-1877
This actor largely engages in cryptocurrency theft using a custom malware family that they deploy through various means. The ultimate goal of this malware is to steal crypto wallet addresses and login credentials for crypto platforms.
Students are often the target for these attacks, which largely start on social media. Storm-1877 targets students because they may not be as aware of digital threats as professionals in industry.
A new security curriculum
Due to education budget and talent constraints and the inherent openness of its environment, solving education security is more than a technology problem. Security posture management and prioritizing security measures can be a costly and challenging endeavor for these institutions—but there is a lot that school systems can do to protect themselves.
Maintaining and scaling core cyberhygiene will be key to securing school systems. Building awareness of security risks and good practices at all levels—students, faculty, administrators, IT staff, campus staff, and more—can help create a safer environment.
For IT and security professionals in the education sector, doing the basics and hardening the overall security posture is a good first step. From there, centralizing the technology stack can help facilitate better monitoring of logging and activity to gain a clearer picture into the overall security posture and any vulnerabilities.
Oregon State University
Oregon State University (OSU), an R1 research-focused university, places a high priority on safeguarding its research to maintain its reputation. In 2021, it experienced an extensive cybersecurity incident unlike anything before. The cyberattack revealed gaps in OSU’s security operations.
“The types of threats that we’re seeing, the types of events that are occurring in higher education, are much more aggressive by cyber adversaries.”
—David McMorries, Chief Information Security Officer at Oregon State University
In response to this incident, OSU created its Security Operations Center (SOC), which has become the centerpiece of the university’s security effort. AI has also helped automate capabilities and helped its analysts, who are college students, learn how to quickly write code—such as threat hunting with more advanced hunting queries.
Arizona Department of Education
A focus on Zero Trust and closed systems is an area that the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) takes further than the state requirements. It blocks all traffic from outside the United States from its Microsoft 365 environment, Azure, and its local datacenter.
“I don’t allow anything exposed to the internet on my lower dev environments, and even with the production environments, we take extra care to make sure that we use a network security group to protect the app services.”
—Chris Henry, Infrastructure Manager at the Arizona Department of Education
Follow these recommendations:
The best defense against QR code attacks is to be aware and pay attention. Pause, inspect the code’s URL before opening it, and don’t open QR codes from unexpected sources, especially if the message uses urgent language or contains errors.
Consider implementing “protective domain name service,” a free tool that helps prevent ransomware and other cyberattacks by blocking computer systems from connecting to harmful websites. Prevent password spray attacks with a stringent password and deploy multifactor authentication.
Educate students and staff about their security hygiene, and encourage them to use multifactor authentication or passwordless protections. Studies have shown that an account is more than 99.9% less likely to be compromised when using multifactor authentication.
Corey Lee has always had an interest in solving puzzles and crimes. He started his college career at Penn State University in criminal justice, but soon realized his passion for digital forensics after taking a course about investigating a desktop computer break-in.
After completing his degree in security and risk analysis, Corey came to Microsoft focused on gaining cross-industry experience. He’s worked on securing everything from federal, state, and local agencies to commercial enterprises, but today he focuses on the education sector.
After spending time working across industries, Corey sees education through a different lens—the significantly unique industry of industries. The dynamics at play inside the education sector include academic institutions, financial services, critical infrastructure like hospitals and transportation, and partnerships with government agencies. According to Corey, working in such a broad field allows him to leverage skillsets from multiple industries to address specific problems across the landscape.
The fact that education could also be called underserved from a cybersecurity standpoint is another compelling challenge, and part of Corey’s personal mission. The education industry needs cybersecurity experts to elevate the priority of protecting school systems. Corey works across the public and industry dialogue, skilling and readiness programs, incident response, and overall defense to protect not just the infrastructure of education, but students, parents, teachers, and staff.
Today, Corey is focused reimagining student security operations centers, including how to inject AI into the equation and bring modern technology and training to the table. By growing the cybersecurity work force in education and giving them new tools, he’s working to elevate security in the sector in a way that’s commensurate with how critical the industry is for the future.
Next steps with Microsoft Security
To learn more about Microsoft Security solutions, visit our website. Bookmark the Security blog to keep up with our expert coverage on security matters. Also, follow us on LinkedIn (Microsoft Security) and X (@MSFTSecurity) for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity.
¹The Institutional Impacts of a Cyberattack, University of Florida Information Technology. January 18, 2024.
²Cyber security breaches survey 2024: education institutions annex, The United Kingdom Department for Science, Innovation & Technology. April 9, 2024
³Scammers hide harmful links in QR codes to steal your information, Federal Trade Commission (Alvaro Puig), December 6, 2023.
Methodology: Snapshot and cover stat data represent telemetry from Microsoft Defender for Office 365 showing how a QR code phishing attack was disrupted by image detection technology and how Security Operations teams can respond to this threat. Platforms like Microsoft Entra provided anonymized data on threat activity, such as malicious email accounts, phishing emails, and attacker movement within networks. Additional insights are from the 78 trillion daily security signals processed by Microsoft each day, including the cloud, endpoints, the intelligent edge, and telemetry from Microsoft platforms and services including Microsoft Defender. Microsoft categorizes threat actors into five key groups: influence operations; groups in development; and nation-state, financially motivated, and private sector offensive actors. The new threat actors naming taxonomy aligns with the theme of weather.
The President of the Council of Ministers, Giorgia Meloni, had a telephone conversation this afternoon with UNIFIL’s West Sector Commander, General Messina, who provided her with an update on the mission and on the situation of the Italian contingent serving in Lebanon, after the headquarters and two Italian bases positioned at outposts came under fire from the Israeli army.
The Italian Government has formally protested to the Israeli authorities and has strongly reiterated that what is happening near the base of the UNIFIL contingent is unacceptable. This is also why the Government, through the Minister of Defence, has summoned the Israeli Ambassador in Italy. President Meloni, who is closely following developments and is in constant contact with both the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, and the Minister of Defence, Guido Crosetto, expressed her and the Government’s strong solidarity with the Italian military personnel currently serving in Lebanon as part of the UN mission and the bilateral MIBIL mission.
President Meloni also recalled the invaluable work Italians are continuing to do to stabilise the area, in adherence to the United Nations mandate. Confirming UNIFIL’s fundamental role in the south of Lebanon, the Government is continuing to work towards a cessation of hostilities and a regional de-escalation.
International Day of the Girl provides an opportunity to celebrate the leadership of girls around the world and recommit to addressing the barriers that continue to limit their full participation. Today, to commemorate International Day of the Girl, First Lady Jill Biden will host the second “Girls Leading Change” event at the White House to recognize outstanding young women from across the United States who are making a difference in their communities. This year’s event will honor 10 young women leaders, selected by the White House Gender Policy Council, who are leading change and shaping a brighter future for generations to come.
The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that girls can pursue their dreams free from fear, discrimination, violence, or abuse; and to advancing the safety, education, health, and wellbeing of girls everywhere. Investing in young people means investing in our future; and they should have the opportunity and resources they need to succeed.
That’s why, since day one in office, this Administration has taken action to advance the safety, education, health, and well-being of girls, including:
Accelerating Learning and Improving Student Achievement. The American Rescue Plan, the largest one-time education investment in our history, included $130 billion to help schools address the impact of the pandemic on student well-being and academic achievement. To sustain these efforts, the Biden-Harris Administration increased funding and targeting of federal grants to better support academic recovery—from the Education Innovation and Research program to extended-day and afterschool programming through 21st Century Community Learning Centers. And the Administration’s Improving Student Achievement Agenda for 2024 is helping accelerate academic performance for every child in school.
Canceling Student Debt. President Biden and Vice President Harris vowed to fix the federal student loan program and make sure higher education is a ticket to the middle class—not a barrier to opportunity. The Biden-Harris Administration has approved nearly $170 billion in loan forgiveness for almost 5 million borrowers through more than two dozen executive actions with the goal of helping these borrowers get more breathing room in their daily lives, access economic mobility, buy homes, start businesses, and pursue their dreams.
Cutting Child Poverty Nearly in Half in 2021. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that no child should grow up in poverty. Their expansion of the Child Tax Credit helped cut child poverty nearly in half in 2021 to a record low of 5.2%. President Biden and Vice President Harris are fighting to restore this expansion, which would lift over a million girls out of poverty and narrow racial disparities. The Biden-Harris Administration has also lifted hundreds of thousands of girls out of poverty by updating the Thrifty Food Plan and creating SunBucks, a new program that helps low-income families afford groceries over the summer when they don’t have access to school meals.
Supporting Youth Mental Health. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that health care is a right, not a privilege, and that mental health care is health care—period. That’s why they invested almost $1.5 billion to strengthen the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and launched the National Mental Health Strategy, with ongoing investments to strengthen the mental health workforce, ensure parity for mental health and substance use care, connect Americans to care, and better protect youth from the harms of social media. The Biden-Harris Administration is also delivering the largest investments in school-based mental health services ever, bringing 14,000 new mental health professionals into schools across the country and making it easier for schools to leverage Medicaid to deliver care.
Preventing Gun Violence, Including Domestic Violence with Firearms. Gun violence is the leading killer of children and teenagers in the United States. President Biden and Vice President Harris have taken historic executive action to reduce gun violence and violent crime. In 2022, President Biden signed into law the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), the most significant new gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years. The intersection between guns and domestic violence can be especially deadly, and BSCA expanded background checks to keep guns out of the hands of more domestic abusers, narrowed the “boyfriend loophole” so an individual convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence against a dating partner is prohibited from purchasing a firearm, and expanded funding for red flag laws that allow for temporary removal of firearms from an individual who is a danger to themselves or others. President Biden established the first-ever Office of Gun Violence Prevention, overseen by Vice President Harris. The Biden-Harris Administration has made historic investments in law enforcement and community-led crime prevention and intervention strategies and has announced more executive actions to reduce gun violence than any other administration. Most recently, building on life-saving actions that the Administration has already taken, President Biden signed a new Executive Order in September 2024 to improve school-based active shooter drills and combat emerging firearms threats. The President and Vice President also announced new actions to support survivors of gun violence, promote safe gun storage, fund community violence intervention, and improve the gun background check system, among other actions.
Launching the American Climate Corps. President Biden launched the American Climate Corps to give a diverse new generation of young people the tools to fight the impacts of climate change today and the skills to join the clean energy and climate-resilience workforce of tomorrow. The American Climate Corps is tackling the climate crisis, including by restoring coastal ecosystems, strengthening urban and rural agriculture, investing in clean energy and energy efficiency, improving disaster and wildfire preparedness, and more. More than 15,000 young Americans have already been put to work in high-quality, good-paying clean energy and climate resilience workforce training and service opportunities through the American Climate Corps—putting the program on track to reach President Biden’s goal of 20,000 members in the program’s first year ahead of schedule.
Providing Children with Healthier, More Sustainable Environments. The Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean School Bus Program has awarded nearly $3 billion and funded approximately 8,700 electric and low-emission school buses nationwide, protecting children from air pollution by transforming school bus fleets across America. The Biden-Harris Administration also invested $15 billion toward replacing every toxic lead pipe in the country within a decade, protecting children and schools from lead exposure that can cause irreversible harm to cognitive development and hamper children’s learning. And earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency provided $58 million to protect children from lead in drinking water at schools and child care facilities.
Fighting Online Harassment and Abuse. Online harassment and abuse is increasingly widespread in today’s digitally connected world and disproportionately affects women, girls, and LGBTQI+ individuals. President Biden established the White House Task Force to Address Online Harassment and Abuse to coordinate comprehensive actions from more than a dozen federal agencies, and his Executive Order on artificial intelligence directs federal agencies to address deepfake image-based abuse. The Department of Justice also funded the first-ever national helpline to provide 24/7 support and specialized services for victims of online harassment and abuse, including the non-consensual distribution of intimate images; raised awareness of new legal protections against the non-consensual distribution of intimate images that were included in the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022; and funded a new National Resource Center on Cybercrimes Against Individuals.
Keeping Students Safe and Addressing Campus Sexual Assault. The Department of Education restored and strengthened vital Title IX protections against discrimination on the basis of sex for students and employees. The Department of Justice awarded more than $20 million in FY 2024 to support colleges and universities in preventing and responding to sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. And the Department of Education—in collaboration with the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services—launched a Task Force on Sexual Violence in Education that has released data on sexual violence at educational institutions and is working to improve sexual violence prevention and response on campus.
Supporting Vulnerable Youth. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken action to support the needs of vulnerable and underserved youth—from helping prevent youth homelessness and human trafficking to supporting employment initiatives for youth with disabilities. This includes $800 million in dedicated funding to support students experiencing homelessness through the President’s American Rescue Plan. The Department of Health and Human Services also issued landmark rules to improve the child welfare system, particularly for the most vulnerable children, and to advance the safety and wellbeing of families across the country, including for LGBTQI+ children in foster care. And the Department of Justice has funded programs to help communities develop, enhance, or expand early intervention programs and treatment services for girls who are involved in the juvenile justice system.
The Biden-Harris Administration has also taken action to support girls around the globe by fighting to advance the human rights of women and girls and promote access to education, health, and safety, including:
Promoting Girls’ Education Globally. The United States is investing in girls’ education around the world, which in turn advances health and economic development. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) invested more than $2.5 billion from FY 2021-2023 to increase access to quality basic and higher education, and reached 18.7 million girls and women in 69 countries in FY23 alone to advance gender equality in and through education. The Departments of State and Labor have also supported efforts to promote girls’ education through science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education programs in Kenya and Namibia, as well as technical and vocational education training centers for adolescent girls in Ethiopia. The United States has strongly condemned the restriction of girls’ education in Afghanistan, including by restricting visas for individuals believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, repressing women and girls by limiting or prohibiting access to education.
Closing the Gender Digital Divide. Last year, Vice President Harris launched the Women in the Digital Economy Fund (Wi-DEF) to accelerate progress towards closing the gender digital divide. To date, Wi-DEF has raised over $80 million, including an initial $50 million commitment from USAID. Building on the success of the Fund, the Women in the Digital Economy Initiative includes commitments from governments, private sector companies, foundations, civil society, and multilateral organizations that have pledged more than $1 billion to accelerate gender digital equality. This Initiative supports girls’ access to digital learning opportunities, provides employment and educational skills, and helps fulfill the historic commitment of G20 Leaders to halve the digital gender gap by 2030. Since the launch of Wi-DEF, the United States has invested $102 million in direct and aligned commitments to closing the gender digital divide and accelerating gender digital equality.
Preventing and Responding to Online Harassment and Abuse Globally. To address the scourge of online harassment and abuse against girls and women, the Biden-Harris Administration launched the 15-country Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online Harassment and Abuse, which has advanced international policies to address online safety and supported programs to prevent and respond to technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Since the Global Partnership was launched in 2022, the Department of State has supported projects in every region to prevent, document, and address technology-facilitated gender-based violence, cultivate safe online use, and respond to survivors’ needs.
Championing Girls’ Leadership in Addressing the Climate Crisis. In 2023, Vice President Harris announced the Women in the Sustainable Economy Initiative—an over $2 billion public-private partnership to promote women’s access to jobs in the green and blue industries of the future—including by advancing girls’ access to STEM education. Through WISE, the Department of State is investing more than $12 million in programs to benefit girls, including programs that promote girls’ economic skills and opportunities in STEM and that foster girls’ roles in leading, shaping, and informing equitable and inclusive climate policies and actions.
Strengthening HIV Prevention Services for Girls. To address key factors that make adolescent girls and young women particularly vulnerable to HIV, the United States launched the DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) public-private partnership as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2014. Announced in 2023, PEPFAR’s DREAMS NextGen program is the next phase of DREAMS that will take a more nuanced approach that is responsive to the current context within each of the 15 DREAMS countries. PEPFAR has invested more than $2 billion in comprehensive HIV prevention programming for girls through DREAMS—including $1.3 billion since the start of the Administration—and the program reaches approximately 2.5 to 3 million girls annually.
Increasing Efforts to End Child Marriage Globally. To address the global scourge of child, early, and forced marriage, USAID and the Department of State invested $86 million in 27 countries to support programs that prevent and respond to this harmful practice, including by equipping girls and young women with education and workforce readiness skills; providing education, health, legal, and economic support; and raising awareness. Under the leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration, the United States also made its first-ever contribution to the UNICEF-UNFPA Global Programme to End Child Marriage, which works in 12 countries in Africa and South Asia to promote the rights of adolescent girls, and is contributing more than $2 million in FY 2024 to UNFPA to help reach refugee adolescent girls and prevent child marriages in humanitarian settings.
Leading Programs to End Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting. To address the harmful practice of female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C), USAID invested in programs to address this issue in Djibouti, Egypt, Mauritania, and Nigeria. The United States is a long-standing donor to the UNICEF-UNFPA Joint Programme on the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation, and invested $20 million from FY 2020-FY 2023 in this partnership, which has succeeded in advocating for legal and policy frameworks banning FGM/C in 14 of 17 countries and supported more than 6.3 million women and girls with FGM/C-related protection and care services.
Promoting Young Women’s Civic and Political Participation. The Biden-Harris Administration has advanced the political and civic participation of women and girls as a pillar of democracy promotion efforts worldwide. The Administration launched Women LEAD, a $900 million public-private partnership focused on building the pipeline of women leaders around the world, including by supporting programs to reach girls and young women. Under this umbrella, the USAID-led Advancing Women’s and Girls’ Civic and Political Leadership Initiative provides more than $25 million to identify and dismantle the individual, structural, and socio-cultural barriers to the political empowerment of women and girls in ten focus countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Kyrgyz Republic, Yemen, and Fiji. Furthermore, the State Department is launching a new $1.25 million program in Africa that will empower and equip young women leaders to take on decision-making roles in democratic transition processes.
Protecting Girls in Humanitarian Emergencies. The United States government has increased its support for girls in humanitarian and fragile contexts. Since 2021, USAID has more than doubled the percentage of its humanitarian budget allocated to the protection sector, which includes child protection and gender-based violence activities serving girls. In FY 2023, USAID provided $163 million specifically towards addressing gender-based violence in humanitarian emergencies. In 2022, USAID and the Department of State launched Safe from the Start: ReVisioned, which seeks to better address the needs of girls and women from the onset of a conflict or crisis.
Combatting Child Trafficking. To combat child trafficking, including trafficking of girls, the Department of State has committed $37.5 million through Child Protection Compacts, building capacity in Jamaica, Peru, and Mongolia, and establishing new partnerships with Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, and Romania. These partnerships strengthen country responses to child trafficking to more effectively prosecute and convict traffickers, provide comprehensive trauma-informed care for child victims—including girls—and prevent child trafficking in all its forms.
The Commission is fully committed to a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem, within the United Nations (UN) framework, in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and in line with the principles on which the Union is founded and the EU acquis.
Türkiye is expected to actively support the negotiations on a fair, comprehensive and viable settlement of the Cyprus issue within the UN framework[1].
The EU has repeatedly called for the speedy resumption of negotiations and expressed its readiness to play an active role in supporting all stages of the UN-led process, with all appropriate means at its disposal.
The EU does not recognise the so-called ‘Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ and is bound by UN Security Council resolution 541[2].
The EU remains fully committed to defending its interests and those of its Member States and to ensuring that the UN Security Council resolutions and generally recognised principles and norms of international law, particularly with respect to the sovereignty, independence and integrity of states, are fully upheld.
The Commission’s key instrument to support a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue is the EU Aid Programme for the Turkish Cypriot community[3].
The overarching objective of the programme, since its creation in 2006, is to facilitate Cyprus’ reunification. Since 2006, the EU has allocated over EUR 700 million to the programme.
Reunification can be also fostered through increased trade across the Green Line, as it not only contributes to economic integration but also builds trust. The Commission is responsible for the implementation of the Green Line Regulation[4].
While this trade stood at around EUR 4 to 5 million per year until 2019, it reached a record of EUR 16 million in 2023.