NewzIntel.com

Category: Middle East

  • MIL-OSI USA: 06.23.2025 Senator Cruz Statement on Iran Regime Attack on American Servicemembers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas Ted Cruz

    Published: 06.23.2025

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) issued a statement after the Iranian regime targeted the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar with missiles.

    Sen. Cruz said, “The Iranian regime is rogue and illegitimate, and is responsible for the murder, injury, and kidnapping of thousands of Americans. The Ayatollah had come within reach of acquiring a nuclear arsenal until our Israeli allies launched their recent and ongoing operation to end Iran’s nuclear weapons program. This weekend, President Trump took decisive action to fully disable the regime’s main nuclear facilities. The regime is weak, flailing, and lashing out dangerously. If harm comes to an American as a result of their continued violence, I have full confidence that President Trump will again respond decisively.” 

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    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Turkish President Meets Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs

    Source: Government of Qatar

    Istanbul, June 21, 2025

    HE President of the sisterly Republic of Turkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Saturday with HE Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, on the sidelines of the 51st Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which is taking place in Istanbul, Turkiye.

    At the outset of the meeting, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs conveyed the greetings of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to HE the President of the Republic of Turkiye and His Highness’ wishes of good health and happiness to His Excellency and continued progress and prosperity for the Turkish people.

    For his part, HE the President of the Republic of Turkiye entrusted HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs with his greetings to HH the Amir, wishing His Highness good health and happiness, and further development and growth for the Qatari people.

    The meeting discussed bilateral cooperation relations and ways to support and enhance them, as well as the latest developments in the region, particularly in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories, the continued Israeli aggression on the territories of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in addition to a number of issues of mutual concern.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson: Advisory from a number of embassies to their citizens do not reflect the existence of specific threats

    Source: Government of Qatar

    Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson: Advisory from a number of embassies to their citizens do not reflect the existence of specific threats

    Doha – June 23

    Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari, Advisor to the Prime Minister and Minister and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, indicated that the advisory issued by a number of embassies to their citizens to take precautions or avoid certain locations in the State of Qatar are part of the general policies followed by a number of countries regarding travel advisories and security updates for their citizens around the world, and do not necessarily reflect the existence of specific threats.

    In a statement to the Qatar News Agency (QNA), Dr Al-Ansari stressed that the security situation in the country is stable, and that the relevant authorities are closely monitoring the situation and are ready to take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of citizens, residents, and visitors, and that they will keep the public informed of any developments that require alerts or action, emphasizing the need to obtain information from official sources.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson added that the State of Qatar continues to make active diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region and maintain regional security and stability by engaging with key stakeholders and regional and international partners.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Advisor to Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Qatar Strongly Condemns Attack That Targeted Al-Udeid Air Base

    Source: Government of Qatar

    Advisor to Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Qatar Strongly Condemns Attack That Targeted Al-Udeid Air Base

    Doha, June 23

    Advisor to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari expressed the State of Qatar’s strong condemnation of the attack that targeted Al-Udeid Air Base by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, and considered this a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of the State of Qatar, its airspace, international law, and the United Nations Charter. He affirmed that Qatar reserves the right to respond directly in a manner equivalent with the nature and scale of this brazen aggression, in line with international law.

    In a statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Dr Al Ansari reassured that Qatar’s air defenses successfully thwarted the attack and intercepted the Iranian missiles.

    The Advisor to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also emphasized that the continuation of such escalatory military actions will undermine security and stability in the region, dragging it into situations that could have catastrophic consequences for international peace and security, calling for the immediate cessation of all military actions and for a serious return to the negotiating table and dialogue.

    Dr Al Ansari said the State of Qatar was one of the first countries to warn against the dangers of Israeli escalation in the region, and have consistently called for diplomatic solutions to be prioritized and have stressed the importance of good-neighborliness and avoiding escalation, reaffirming that dialogue is the only way to overcome the current crises and ensure the security of the region and the peace of its people.

    The Advisor to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that the base had been evacuated earlier, following established security and precautionary measures, given the tensions in the region. All necessary steps were taken to ensure the safety of personnel at the base, including Qatari Armed Forces members, friendly forces, and others, while confirming that no injuries or human casualties resulted from the attack.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Receives Phone Call from Hungarian Foreign and Trade Minister

    Source: Government of Qatar

    Doha, June 24, 2025

    HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi received a phone call on Monday from HE Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Peter Szijjarto.

    During the call, they discussed cooperation relations between the two countries and ways to support and strengthen them, in addition to several topics of common concern.

    HE the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade affirmed the solidarity of the Hungarian people with the State of Qatar following the Iranian attack on its territory, noting that Qatar represents an important strategic ally for his country. He also commended its role in the release of three Hungarians who had been detained in Gaza.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI USA: LEADER JEFFRIES: “DONALD TRUMP AND EXTREME MAGA REPUBLICANS HAVE BEEN A COMPLETE AND TOTAL FAILURE DOMESTICALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY”

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)

    Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries held a press conference where he criticized the Rubber Stamp Republicans for not standing up for the American people while Donald Trump unleashes chaos, cruelty and corruption. 

    LEADER JEFFRIES: Good afternoon, everyone. The Trump administration continues to unleash chaos, cruelty and corruption on the American people. Donald Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans have been a complete and total failure domestically and internationally. Donald Trump promised that on day one of his presidency, he would end the war in Ukraine. He promised on day one of his presidency, he would free the hostages to bring about peace in the Middle East. And Donald Trump promised that on day one of his presidency, costs would go down in the United States of America. None of it has happened. Instead, costs in the United States of America aren’t going down, they’re going up. Donald Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans are crashing the economy in real time and driving us toward a possible recession. Donald Trump and House Republicans have not done a single thing to lower the high cost of living in the United States of America. Not a single thing. Instead, Republicans are trying to jam this One Big, Ugly Bill down the throats of the American people.

    The GOP Tax Scam represents the largest cut to Medicaid in American history. It’s an all-out assault on the healthcare of the American people. Children, families, people with disabilities, seniors, veterans will all be hurt by the GOP Tax Scam. Premiums, copays and deductibles will go up for tens of millions of Americans. Hospitals will close. Nursing homes will shut down. Community-based health clinics will be unable to operate, and because more than 16 or so million people in America will lose their healthcare, people in this country will die. That’s what Republican governance has brought to the United States of America. The GOP Tax Scam will also cut nutritional assistance from the American people. Children and seniors and older Americans will literally have food ripped away from them. And this all-out assault on healthcare, this all-out assault on nutritional assistance, is being done by Republicans so they can provide their billionaire donors with massive tax breaks that they don’t need and don’t deserve. The one big, ugly Republican bill will hurt everyday Americans in order to reward billionaires.

    At the same time, Donald Trump and his actions—which do not appear to be consistent with the United States Constitution—takes unilateral offensive military action without seeking the approval of the United States Congress. The use of military force, which is offensive in nature, must be approved by the House and the Senate. That’s according to the Constitution. It’s not optional, Donald. It’s not. The framers of the Constitution actually gave Congress the power to declare war for a reason. So the American people, through their elected representatives, would have the opportunity to debate the issue and make some decisions as it relates to what’s in the best interest and the national security of the American people. Donald Trump and the administration chose to ignore the Constitution. And so they’re going to have to come before Congress and explain their justification for an offensive military strike against Iran.

    Yes, we can never allow Iran to become a nuclear power. And of course, Israel has the right to defend itself, and we’ll support Israel’s security in an ironclad manner. But the Trump administration intentionally decided to ignore the aggressive diplomacy that was available to it, to try to address the Iranian nuclear threat and ignore the requirements of the Constitution, and now they’ve got to explain why. And we expect that justification, not just at the classified briefing behind closed doors tomorrow, but we expect them to explain to the American people the basis of the strike. What were the results in terms of actually thwarting Iran’s capacity to become a nuclear power? And what are the Trump administration’s plans to avoid another potentially disastrous war in the Middle East, with thousands of American lives are potentially at risk? What is your plan to avoid another foreign war, a promise you made, a promise that Donald Trump made to the American people last year? And just like every other major promise that he made on the campaign trail, he’s failed to keep.

    Full press conference can be watched here.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: Illinois Army National Guard trains with Polish Territorial Defence Force

    Source: United States Army

    U.S. Army Sgt. Joseline Sosa, a forward observer with 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard, relays information to her Polish counterparts during training in remote observation techniques in Toruń, Poland, June 6, 2025. The Illinois National Guard and Poland are partners in the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program, which pairs Guard elements with partner nations worldwide for mutual training and subject matter expert exchanges. Servicemembers with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team are spending two weeks alongside their Polish counterparts training on sniper operations, the Javelin anti-tank weapon system, combat medical care, and remote observer techniques. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Amber Peck) VIEW ORIGINAL

    TORUŃ, Poland — Soldiers with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Illinois Army National Guard, recently spent two weeks in Torún, Poland, training alongside members of the Polish Territorial Defence Force.

    Since 1993, the Illinois National Guard and Poland have been partners in the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program — an initiative that pairs Guard elements with partner nations worldwide for joint military training and subject matter expert exchanges.

    The recent two-week training focused on sniper operations, combat medical care, the Javelin anti-tank weapon system and remote observer techniques.

    For the sniper teams, the goal was to strengthen leadership skills in employing and overseeing sniper sections as well as developing advanced sniper expertise.

    U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Bruno Rios, a cavalry scout with C Troop, 2nd Battalion, 106th Cavalry Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard, confirms that the weapon of his Polish counterpart is clear of ammunition following the completion of a shooting drill at a range near Toruń, Poland, June 7, 2025. The Illinois National Guard and Poland are partners in the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program, which pairs Guard elements with partner nations worldwide for mutual training and subject matter expert exchanges. Servicemembers with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team are spending two weeks alongside their Polish counterparts training on sniper operations, the Javelin anti-tank weapon system, combat medical care, and remote observer techniques. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Amber Peck) VIEW ORIGINAL

    “Our goal as a training team is to ensure we are equipping the Polish snipers with the tools to employ themselves against drones and thermal environments,” said Sgt. 1st Class Hussein Mashal, an infantryman with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard. “By merging our techniques with theirs and the lessons learned from the Ukrainian war, we hope to strengthen their sniper employment capabilities and survivability.”

    In the medical realm, Soldiers with the Illinois Army Guard’s C Company, 634th Brigade Support Battalion, shared casualty care treatment procedures — from the point of injury to the final point of care.

    This iteration included complex training scenarios that allowed participants to triage and evaluate casualties in a realistic, stressful simulated combat environment.

    “It’s always worth it working with the National Guard,” said Polish TDF 2nd Lt. Jakub Piotrowski, a medical team member and instructor. “We do the same things in different ways so it’s worthwhile to see how a different army is doing the same thing and then be able to cooperate with it.”

    U.S. Army Sgt. Michael Rojas, a cavalry scout with C Troop, 2nd Squadron, 106th Cavalry Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard, observes as a Polish Territorial Defence soldier engages targets on a range near Toruń, Poland, June 7, 2025. The Illinois National Guard and Poland are partners in the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program, which pairs Guard elements with partner nations worldwide for mutual training and subject matter expert exchanges. Servicemembers with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team are spending two weeks alongside their Polish counterparts training on sniper operations, the Javelin anti-tank weapon system, combat medical care, and remote observer techniques. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Amber Peck) VIEW ORIGINAL

    Javelin instructors echoed that sentiment.

    “The Polish soldiers were extremely motivated and eager to learn,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Nicholas Broden, a training noncommissioned officer with C Company, 1st Bn., 178th Inf. Regt. “They were always asking questions and were very hands on with the equipment.”

    Previous training exchanges meant many of the Polish soldiers already had foundational knowledge of the Javelin systems. That allowed the training to advance quickly to more strategic and tactical discussions, said Broden.

    For the forward observer teams — or remote observers — the focus was on establishing the fundamental skills for indirect fire coordination, a capability the TDF is actively strengthening as they expand artillery capabilities.

    “We started off pretty basic with basic call for fire and then basic joint fires observer skills,” said U.S. Army Master Sgt. William Aitken, an operations NCO with the 33rd IBCT. “It’s kind of an abbreviated forward observer program for the TDF.”

    U.S. Army Sgt. Joseline Sosa, a forward observer with 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard, receives information from her Polish counterparts during training on remote observer techniques in Toruń, Poland, June 6, 2025. The Illinois National Guard and Poland are partners in the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program, which pairs Guard elements with partner nations worldwide for mutual training and subject matter expert exchanges. Servicemembers with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team are spending two weeks alongside their Polish counterparts training on sniper operations, the Javelin anti-tank weapon system, combat medical care, and remote observer techniques. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Amber Peck) VIEW ORIGINAL

    The training also included high tech capabilities — such as employing small drones – combined with improvised concealment techniques to help Polish soldiers observe from a distance while staying hidden. The team practiced setting up hasty observation posts, coordinating drone feeds with command elements, and minimizing visual and electronic signatures — skills directly influenced by lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.

    Overall, the training helped strengthen and continue the 30-plus year partnership.

    “Our partnership with Poland, which began in 1993 and included 19 years of co-deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, is the gold standard of deployments,” said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Lenny Williams, the Illinois National Guard’s assistant adjutant general for Army. “We learn, we teach and we develop new tactics and techniques together with each critical knowledge exchange event. Our capabilities have improved, we’ve expanded our capacity and our partnership has grown even stronger the past two weeks.”

    Related Links

    The Official Website of the National Guard | NationalGuard.mil

    The National Guard on Facebook | Facebook.com/TheNationalGuard

    The National Guard on X | X.com/USNationalGuard

    State Partnership Program | NationalGuard.mil

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Welch Condemns Iran’s Retaliatory Attack Targeting U.S. Military Base in Qatar 

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) released the following statement after Iran launched retaliatory targeted attacks on a U.S. military base in Qatar: 
    “I condemn Iran’s missile launches targeting U.S. forces in Qatar and am thankful our troops are safe and unharmed. In addition to endangering U.S. forces, these strikes put at risk millions of civilians in Doha. This retaliation would never have taken place if President Trump had not been led into this conflict by Prime Minister Netanyahu. It is clear that Netanyahu’s goals in Iran go well beyond Iran’s nuclear program—clearly evidenced by intentionally bombing universities, television broadcasters, and natural gas sites. Netanyahu wants regime change. It raises serious questions about President Trump’s motivation for dropping bombs without first seeking the support of Congress, as required by the Constitution.  
    “I strongly support Senator Kaine’s War Powers Resolution, which permits U.S. forces to continue defending Israel from attacks by Iran, while enforcing the President’s constitutional obligation to seek Congressional authorization before launching a war with Iran.”  
    Earlier this week, Senator Welch released a statement condemning President Trump’s decision to enter a war with Iran. Senator Welch also shared a video voicing his opposition to taking action in the conflict between Israel and Iran, and urged Senators of both parties to strongly oppose allowing Netanyahu to pull the U.S. into yet another war in the Middle East. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Iran (Non-proliferation) – Security Council | United Nations

    Source: United Nations (video statements)

    Non-proliferation (Iran) – Security Council, 9944th meeting.

    – Letter dated 28 May 2025 from the President of the Security Council, acting in the absence of a Facilitator for the implementation of resolution 2231 (2015) addressed to the President of the Security Council (S/2025/335)
    – Nineteenth report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of Security Council resolution 2231 (2015) (S/2025/397).

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wng4_UDM5zg

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Coons, Ranking Member Shaheen statement on Iranian missile strikes

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Delaware Christopher Coons

    THE HAGUE – Today, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Chris Coons (D-DE) issued the following statement after reports that Iran had launched missiles at U.S. military bases in Qatar and across the Middle East in response to American military operations in Iran this weekend. Ranking Member Shaheen and Senator Coons are leading a congressional delegation to the NATO Summit in the Netherlands this week:

    “The conflict between Israel and Iran has escalated to now include active U.S. involvement. We continue to urge the Administration to take immediate action to protect U.S. forces and diplomats, their family members and all Americans abroad. There should be no higher priority. President Trump also needs to contain this conflict before more Americans are endangered. 

    “Congress is now on Day 10 of not receiving any formal briefing from the Administration or having any information to provide Americans who are in harm’s way. We must be informed immediately of any further planning. As we represent Congress at the NATO Summit in the Netherlands, our allies in Europe and partners in the Middle East who have extensive experience with Iran continue to urge for restraint. Now is the time for de-escalation and diplomacy.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Bacon Issues Statement on Iran/Israel Situation

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Don Bacon (2nd District of Nebraska)

    Bacon Issues Statement on Iran/Israel Situation

    Washington, June 23, 2025

    Bacon Issues Statement on Iran/Israel Situation

    Washington – Rep. Don Bacon (NE-02) issued the following response regarding the Iran/Israel situation:

    “Iran should have taken the denuclearization deal when President Trump offered it.  As we saw over the weekend, they are unwise to continue testing the President’s resolve and today’s strikes on US bases in the region are another miscalculation. Since 1979 the Islamic Republic of Iran has been responsible for the deaths of more than 900 Americans and runs the largest terror organization in the world.  I fully support President Trump’s actions to put an end to their four-decade campaign of bloodshed against the United States and the State of Israel.” 

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General – on Qatar

    Source: United Nations secretary general

    The Secretary-General is deeply alarmed by the further escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.

    From the outset of the crisis, the Secretary-General has repeatedly condemned any military escalation in this conflict, including today’s attack by Iran on the territory of Qatar. He further reiterates his call on all parties to stop fighting.   
      
    The Secretary-General urges all Member States to uphold their obligations under the UN Charter and other rules of international law.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Salinas Statement on Trump’s Strikes on Iran

    Source: US Representative Andrea Salinas (OR-06)

    Congresswoman Andrea Salinas’ statement on Trump’s strikes on Iran: 

    “Donald Trump’s decision to attack Iran is unauthorized and unconstitutional. Any future involvement needs to be debated and approved by Congress, especially if it involves our service members.

    I will continue to uphold the oath I swore to defend the Constitution and the security of the United States.

    Iran must never acquire a nuclear weapon and preventing a nuclear armed Iran is a shared priority both for the United States, Israel and our allies.

    However, we cannot allow any president to involve us in another open-ended war without constitutional authority.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Salinas Statement on Trump’s Strikes on Iran

    Source: US Representative Andrea Salinas (OR-06)

    Congresswoman Andrea Salinas’ statement on Trump’s strikes on Iran: 

    “Donald Trump’s decision to attack Iran is unauthorized and unconstitutional. Any future involvement needs to be debated and approved by Congress, especially if it involves our service members.

    I will continue to uphold the oath I swore to defend the Constitution and the security of the United States.

    Iran must never acquire a nuclear weapon and preventing a nuclear armed Iran is a shared priority both for the United States, Israel and our allies.

    However, we cannot allow any president to involve us in another open-ended war without constitutional authority.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Chernyshenko: Improving the quality of teaching natural sciences in schools is bearing fruit

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Russian team of the first Open International Geographical Olympiad (openGeo 2025)

    The results of the first Open International Geographical Olympiad (openGeo 2025) were summed up at the University Gymnasium of the Lomonosov Moscow State University. The competition brought together 107 participants from 23 countries. The Russian team was represented by six winners of the final stage of the All-Russian School Olympiad in Geography for the 2024/25 academic year. In the team competition at openGeo 2025, they won first place: the Russian team has four gold and two silver medals.

    The children were congratulated by Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Chernyshenko and Minister of Education of Russia Sergei Kravtsov.

    “Our President Vladimir Putin noted that geography serves as the basis for the formation of patriotic values, cultural, national identity and self-awareness. The brilliant victory of our schoolchildren shows that adult outstanding scientific minds have someone to rely on. Thanks to such victories, we see that our common work to fulfill the President’s task – to improve the quality of teaching natural sciences in schools – is bearing fruit. Thank you to everyone who contributed to these high results, and we wish you success in the future!” said the Deputy Prime Minister.

    He also added that the national project “Youth and Children” helps to create conditions for realizing the potential and developing the talents of each person.

    The head of the Russian Ministry of Education, Sergei Kravtsov, congratulated the children and drew attention to the fact that the Olympiad contributes to strengthening international educational ties.

    “Today we pay special attention to developing interest in schoolchildren in studying natural sciences. Participation in the Open International Geographical Olympiad is an opportunity for children not only to test their knowledge, but also to meet young talents from different countries, exchange experiences and ideas. I would like to note that such a competition was held on the Russian platform for the first time. I congratulate our team, their parents and teachers on their brilliant result. I am sure that the success of our schoolchildren will inspire their peers to new discoveries and achievements,” emphasized Sergey Kravtsov.

    Gold medals were awarded to:

    ● Christian Rymarchuk, State Budgetary Educational Institution “School No. 179”;

    ● Dina Islyamutdinova, State Budgetary Educational Institution of the City of Moscow “School No. 2054”;

    ● Nikita Rusakov, University Gymnasium of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov;

    ● Elizaveta Kiseleva, State Budgetary Educational Institution “Lyceum “Second School” named after V.F. Ovchinnikov”.

    Silver medals were won by:

    ● Tikhon Pulyayev, State Budgetary Educational Institution “Moscow Gymnasium in the South-West No. 1543 named after People’s Teacher of the Russian Federation Yu.V. Zavelsky”;

    ● Alexey Gorlov, OAO “School of the Center of Pedagogical Excellence”.

    The coaches of the Russian team were leading specialists from the Faculty of Geography of the Lomonosov Moscow State University Pavel Kirillov and Dmitry Bogachev, as well as a teacher from the National Research University Higher School of Economics Artur Petrosyan and a teacher from the OANO New School Anna Romashina.

    Young geographers from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Afghanistan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Ghana, Zambia, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, China, Nigeria, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka took part in the Olympiad. Thaddeus Trazo (Philippines) was recognized as the absolute winner of openGeo 2025. Russian schoolboy Christian Rymarchuk shared 2nd place with a participant from Belarus.

    All Olympiad tasks were completed in English. The Olympiad competition program consisted of three rounds. During the theoretical round, participants solved five problems in physical and socio-economic geography. The practical round included tasks aimed at analyzing space images, graphic and cartographic tasks. As part of the multimedia test, schoolchildren answered 40 illustrated questions from various areas of geographical knowledge.

    The scientific committee and jury of openGeo 2025 included leading scientists and geographers from Russia (representatives of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences), India, Kazakhstan, Serbia and other countries.

    Open International Geographical Olympiad (HTTPS: //opengeo. Msu.ru) is an international competition for high school students. Its organizers are the Russian Ministry of Education and Lomonosov Moscow State University.

    The competition is held as an open alternative international Olympiad for schoolchildren and students selected based on the results of national geographic Olympiads and other intellectual competitions in the field of geography of the CIS, SCO, BRICS and other countries. The event is aimed at popularizing geographical knowledge and skills among talented schoolchildren and strengthening international educational and academic ties.

    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.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Jayapal Statement on Escalating Tensions Between the US and Iran

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (7th District of Washington)

    WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), a Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement amid rising tensions in the Middle East as Iran launched missiles at U.S. Military bases in Iraq and Qatar in response to U.S. attacks. 

    “Due to the reckless and unconstitutional military actions of this administration, the American people are now at risk. Trump said he would be a ‘peacemaker’ and is clearly betraying that promise and the voters who put their trust in his administration. Instead of negotiating peace agreements in our existing wars, he has now launched the United States into another dangerous war, with potentially devastating consequences for both our servicemembers and civilians.

    “When Trump ordered bombing in Iran, there was no imminent threat to the United States from Iran that necessitated action without Congressional authorization. This is not our war to fight. Even Trump’s own Director of National Intelligence told Congress that Iran was not on the verge of building a nuclear weapon, nor were they threatening the U.S. or servicemembers in the region. The longer-term consequences of these strikes, including to the American people, will be severe.

    “Congress has the sole power to declare war in the absence of imminent threats — that is not only because we are elected directly by the people and represent each district’s will, but also so that reckless decisions are not made. Trump’s actions in Iran are clearly an act of war and put our national security and the safety of U.S. troops at risk, as we saw today when Iran launched retaliatory missiles at our bases in Qatar. My thoughts are with the servicemembers now in harm’s way and their families.

    “In direct contradiction of his own Cabinet officials, Trump has also made it clear that this war is, in fact, about ‘regime change.’ Regime change led by outside forces has rarely been successful and is exactly how the U.S. got into an eight-year war in Iraq that killed 4,000 American troops and cost untold U.S. taxpayer dollars. The American people—including those who voted for Donald Trump—have been clear that they do not want another forever war. It is absolutely essential that Congress immediately vote on a War Powers Resolution to rein in this Administration and ensure our country is not put into even more dangerous wars.

    “Now is the time for diplomacy. Experts have been clear across the board that these strikes will only encourage Iran to weaponize in secret. Instead of reactionary attacks, we should be working to negotiate an end to dangerous levels of enrichment and ensure inspection of sites in Iran.”

    Issues: Foreign Affairs & National Security

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Pressley, Clark, Warren, Trahan Stand with Planned Parenthood, Condemn Proposed Cuts to Reproductive Health Care Under GOP’s Big Ugly Bill

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

    Ahead of Dobbs Anniversary, Lawmakers Slam GOP Budget That Slashes Health Care Coverage, Defunds Planned Parenthood

    Pressley Shines Light on the Life-Saving Work of Planned Parenthood, Underscores Critical Need to Confront Converging Black Maternal Mortality and Reproductive Justice Crises that Cost Adriana Smith her Life

    Video

    BOSTON – Today, ahead of the third anniversary of the Dobbs decision that dismantled the basic right to abortion care, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Co-Chair of the Reproductive Freedom Caucus, and the women of the Massachusetts delegation, Whip Katherine Clark (MA-05), Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Rep. Lori Trahan (MA-03) joined Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts President Dominique Lee for a press conference in solidarity with Planned Parenthood as they collectively fight to stop Republicans’ latest attack on reproductive freedom in the GOP’s Big, Ugly Bill.

    Their advocacy comes as Donald Trump and Republicans are advancing a cruel budget reconciliation bill that would defund Planned Parenthood health centers, bar private health insurers on the ACA marketplace from offering abortion coverage, and slash Medicaid health care coverage — leaving over 300,000 Massachusetts residents unable to access basic health care services.

    “As we mark three years since the devastating day the Supreme Court denied us our bodily autonomy and ripped away the basic right to abortion care in America, we recommit to fighting for families across this country to access the basic medical care they need to survive, to be safe in birth, to be treated with human dignity,” said Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Co-Chair of the House Reproductive Freedom Caucus. “It starts by defeating Republicans’ Big Ugly Bill – their shameful reconciliation bill that would put necessary health care further out of reach for millions of people and would drastically defund Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood clinics across this nation are quite literally saving lives – often the only option for miles for life saving cancer screenings, affordable birth control, and compassionate prenatal care. We will never yield to Trump and Republicans’ agenda to make America a nation of forced birth – this is not an inevitability, and I’m proud to join Whip Clark, Senator Warren, and Congresswoman Trahan in standing with Planned Parenthood in our fight to restore true bodily autonomy and reproductive justice.”

    “Tomorrow will mark three years since Trump’s Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. For three years, the Republicans have marched nonstop toward their ultimate goal of a national abortion ban — with total control over women’s health care in every state, including Massachusetts,” said Whip Clark. “And now, we have their Big, Ugly Betrayal of Women Budget, which will impose the single biggest health care cut in our country’s history and inflict the biggest assault on women’s health care since Dobbs. To put it simply, this is a life-and-death fight every day. Republicans are choosing to make life harder and more expensive and more dangerous for America’s 170 million women and girls. All to help America’s 900 billionaires.”

    “Since Trump’s Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, we’ve seen a new form of hell at every turn. Now, Republicans in Congress are on track to pass a bill that amounts to a backdoor ban on abortion — even in states where it’s protected. Republicans’ bill to cut Medicaid and defund Planned Parenthood is a one-two punch to women across the country, and we are not going to let them get away with it,” said Senator Warren.

    “Three years ago, Donald Trump’s Supreme Court opened the floodgates to extreme abortion bans in GOP-controlled states across the country – bans that criminalize doctors, endanger women’s lives, and force survivors of rape to carry pregnancies against their will,” said Rep. Trahan. “Now, Republicans in Washington are trying to punish states like Massachusetts for protecting access to abortion by withholding federal health care funding for families who need it most. It’s a coordinated effort to force every state to fall in line with Trump’s anti-abortion, anti-woman agenda, and we have to do everything in our power to stop it from passing.”

    “The so-called ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ is a backdoor abortion ban, even in safe-haven states like Massachusetts,” said Dominique Lee, president of the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts. “This bill would ‘defund’ Planned Parenthood by blocking Medicaid reimbursement, which could impact half of Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts’ budget. PPLM serves more than 30,000 patients annually, and nearly 40% of them are on Medicaid. If this bill passes, it won’t matter that abortion is legal here. People could lose access to abortion, birth control, STI testing, cancer screenings and other care from the provider they trust most. Planned Parenthood will not abandon our patients, our staff, or our communities, but we need everyone with us to help stop this attack on people’s health and freedom.”

    A transcript of Congresswoman Pressley’s opening remarks is available below and the video is available here.

    Transcript: Pressley, Clark, Warren, Trahan Stand with Planned Parenthood, Condemn Proposed Cuts to Reproductive Health Care Under GOP’s Big Ugly Bill
    Boston, MA
    June 23, 2025

    Good morning. In a couple of days, our daughter, Cora, will turn 17, and as we’re looking at colleges, you know, one factor that shapes that decision – and it’s a key factor – is where she’ll be able to access healthcare. That’s now a part of our calculus and our decision-making. 

    This morning, she asked me, in the wake of recent events in the Middle East, “Are we going to be okay?”

    She has shared with me her concerns for classmates who are immigrants, who have expressed anxiety and fear about going away for a vacation, and whether or not they’ll be able to come back into the country – and they were born here. 

    So every day that she asks me, “Are we going to be okay?” – it becomes harder and harder to answer that question with confidence that “Yes, we will be.”

    But standing here shoulder-to-shoulder with my colleagues, you certainly fortify me in this work and in that belief that we will be okay and we will get to the other side of this. Thank you all for being here today. 

    I want to echo the sentiment offered by our Whip a moment ago that Congress should do everything in its power to reign in Trump and to prevent an endless war in Iran. 

    I want to underscore the urgency of protecting our reproductive freedom – I reiterate this in my role as the Co-Chair of the House Reproductive Freedom Caucus. 

    So we have to do everything to protect our reproductive freedom and preventing Republicans’ shameful – and it is shameful – reconciliation bill from putting necessary health care further out of reach for millions of Americans.

    When we say an abortion ban, what does that really mean? 

    A nation of forced birth. 

    A nation of forced birth – what could be more violent than that? 

    What could be more void of common sense and compassion in a country that does not yet have universal childcare, paid leave – an administration that seems to be hostile towards women, attacking our freedoms at every turn, degrading Head Start.

    There are 80 million Medicaid recipients in this country. 40% of births in this country are covered by Medicaid. 

    So I want to say thank you to our partners in good at Planned Parenthood, who labor in love day in and day out, navigating a very perilous and unpredictable terrain. Thank you for showing up for Massachusetts to provide our constituents with essential health care. 

    And I’ll just share when I came here in 1992 to, you know, pursue a higher learning – in a city where I did not know a soul – and found myself experiencing debilitating pain, I came to Planned Parenthood and was diagnosed with uterine fibroids. 

    And I was met with compassion and community and embrace, and that meant everything. 

    Again, I did not know a soul. I knew no one. But I knew that I could get answers and help with Planned Parenthood. 

    Later, as a survivor of campus sexual assault, I also returned to Planned Parenthood for counseling and STI testing. So I just want to personally, again, just express my heartfelt gratitude for the entire team here, from your security to providers and the like.

    Every time we’re in Washington and folks across the aisle – mostly, but not only, white men – start to attack the critical work of Planned Parenthood, I know the moment they open their mouth that they’ve never sat across from a dedicated Planned Parenthood provider or patient, because if they had, they would understand the vital importance of this work.

    Planned Parenthood is often the only accessible health care provider for families. In the Massachusetts seventh, we are fortunate to have a real density of health care services – but in many parts of the country, the only place you can access care for miles is a Planned Parenthood. 

    And Planned Parenthood clinics across this nation are quite literally saving lives. Planned Parenthood is often the only option for miles for life saving cancer screenings.

    Regardless of zip code, they are the trusted provider folks turn to for preventative and routine medical care. Planned Parenthood is the place you can go to to get affordable birth control and compassionate prenatal care. 

    The attacks on Planned Parenthood are nothing new. In this moment, they are far more coordinated and sinister than we have ever seen, however. 

    Those who aim to rob people of this essential health care in their communities are using every tool – the courts, complicit state houses in many states, and notably this Big Ugly Bill in Congress. 

    Imagine having the full power and authority of the United States government, controlling the White House and the Senate, and you choose to go after cancer screenings for mothers.

    The cruelty is the point.

    At this point, Republicans can’t deny that they’re actually in the business of making people across America sicker, poor and more vulnerable. 

    I walked in here today with a heavy heart, with Adriana Smith on my mind. 

    Adriana Smith was a 30-year-old nurse and the mother to a vibrant six-year-old when she experienced debilitating headaches – her pain was dismissed, not believed. She was sent home from the hospital without the care she needed. She woke up gasping for air, arrived at the hospital, and shortly thereafter, was declared brain dead. The blood clots the doctors had missed had claimed her life. 

    But to be a black woman in America means that not only was Adriana’s pain dismissed and her son robbed of a mother – no, because of an extreme abortion ban in Georgia, the hospital stated that they could not take her off of life support.

    And because she was nine weeks pregnant when she was declared brain dead, about a month past a missed period, the hospital would not allow Adriana’s family to make sensitive end of life medical decisions for their loved one. The hospital made her body an incubator. 

    This week, baby Chance was delivered by a posthumous emergency C section and remains in the NICU. Adriana’s family was finally able to lay her to rest and to pick up the pieces as they navigate their deep grief. 

    I wish I could say that Adriana’s story is a horrific anomaly, but we are experiencing up close the converging crises of black maternal mortality and denials of essential abortion care in this post Dobbs decision world.

    None of us are free until all of us are free. 

    So this week, as we mark the three years since the devastating day the Supreme Court denied us our bodily autonomy and ripped away the basic right to abortion care in America, we recommit to fighting for families across this country to access the basic medical care they need to survive, to be safe in birth, to be treated with human dignity. 

    This is not an inevitability. 

    A more just America is possible, and it starts by defeating this Big Ugly Bill before it dismantles essential health care in America. 

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Presidents of both parties have launched military action without Congress declaring war − Trump’s bombing of Iran is just the latest

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Sarah Burns, Associate Professor of Political Science, Rochester Institute of Technology

    President Donald Trump is seen on a monitor in the White House press briefing room on June 21, 2025, after the U.S. military strike on three sites in Iran. AP Photo/Alex Brandon

    In the wake of the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22, 2025, many congressional Democrats and a few Republicans have objected to President Donald Trump’s failure to seek congressional approval before conducting military operations.

    They note that Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war and say that section required Trump to seek prior authorization for military action.

    The Trump administration disagrees. “This is not a war against Iran,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo, implying that the action did not require approval by Congress. That’s the same view held by most modern presidents and their lawyers in the Office of Legal Counsel: Article 2 of the Constitution allows the president to use the military in certain situations without prior approval from Congress.

    By this reading of the text, presidents, as commander in chief, claim the power to unilaterally order the military to initiate small-scale operations for a short duration. Members of Congress may object to that claim, but they have done little to limit presidents’ unilateralism. What little they have done has not been effective.

    As I’ve demonstrated in my research, even though the 1973 War Powers Resolution attempted to constrain presidential power after the disasters of the Vietnam War, it contains many loopholes that presidents have exploited to act unilaterally. For example, it allows presidents to engage in military operations without congressional approval for up to 90 days. And more recent congressional resolutions have broadened executive control even further.

    President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the U.S. declaration of war against Japan on Dec. 8, 1941.
    U.S. National Archives

    A long tradition of executive authority

    Presidents can even overcome the loopholes in the War Powers Resolution if the operation lasts longer than 90 days. In 2011, a State Department lawyer argued that airstrikes in Libya could continue beyond the War Powers Resolution’s 90-day time limit because there were no ground troops involved. By that logic, any future president could carry out an indefinite bombing campaign with no congressional oversight.

    While every president has bristled at congressional restraints on their actions, presidents since Franklin D. Roosevelt have successfully circumvented them by citing vague concerns like “national security,” “regional security” or the need to “prevent a humanitarian disaster” when launching military operations. While members of Congress always take issue with these actions, they never hold presidents accountable by passing legislation restraining him.

    President Trump’s decision to bomb Iranian nuclear sites without consulting Congress falls in line with precedent from both Democratic and Republican leaders for decades.

    Much like his predecessors, Trump did not, and likely will not, provide Congress with more concrete information about the legality of his actions. Nor are congressional lawmakers effectively holding him accountable.

    The push-and-pull between Congress and the president over military operations dates back to the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack, which led Congress to declare war on Japan. Before then, Congress had prevented the U.S. from joining World War II by enforcing an arms embargo and refusing to help the Allies prior to the attack on Hawaii. But afterward, Congress began allowing the president to take more control over the military.

    During the Cold War, rather than returning to a balanced debate between the branches, Congress continued to relinquish those powers.

    Congress never authorized the war in Korea; Harry Truman used a U.N. Security Council resolution as legal justification. Congress’ vote explicitly opposing the invasion of Cambodia didn’t stop Richard Nixon from doing it anyway. Even after the Cold War, Bill Clinton regularly acted unilaterally to address humanitarian crises or the continued threat from leaders like Saddam Hussein. He sent the military to Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia and Kosovo, among other places.

    After 9/11, Congress quickly gave up more of its power. A week after those attacks, Congress passed a sweeping Authorization for Use of Military Force, giving the president permission to “use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001.”

    In a follow-up 2002 authorization, Congress went even further, allowing the president to “use the Armed Forces … as he determines to be necessary and appropriate in order to defend national security … against the continuing threat posed by Iraq.” This approach provides few, if any, congressional checks on the control of military affairs exercised by the president.

    In the two decades since those authorizations, four presidents have used them to justify all manner of military action, from targeted killings of terrorists to the years long fight against the Islamic State group.

    Congress regularly discusses terminating those authorizations, but has yet to do so. If Congress did, the loopholes in the original War Powers Resolution would still exist.

    While President Biden claimed he supported the repeal of the authorizations, and supported more congressional oversight of military actions, Trump has made no such claims. Instead, he has claimed even more sweeping authority to act without any permission from Congress.

    As recently as 2024, Biden used the 2002 authorization as a legal rationale for the targeted killing of Iranian-backed militiamen in Iraq, a strike condemned by Iraqi leaders.

    Those actions may have ruffled congressional feathers, but they were in keeping with a long U.S. tradition of targeting members of terrorist groups and protecting members of the military serving in a conflict zone.

    Demonstrators outside the U.S. Capitol in January 2020 call on Congress to limit the president’s powers to use the military.
    AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana

    Threats of war

    During his first presidential term in 2020, Trump ordered a lethal drone strike against a respected member of the Iranian government, Major General Qassim Soleimani, the head of Iran’s equivalent of the CIA, without consulting Congress or publicly providing proof of why the attack was necessary, even to this day.

    Tensions – and fears of war – spiked but then slowly faded when Iran responded with missile attacks on two U.S. bases in Iraq.

    Now, the U.S. attacks on Iranian nuclear sites have revived both fears of war and renewed questions about the president’s authority to unilaterally engage in military action. Presidents since the 1970s, however, have effectively managed to dodge definitive answers to those questions – demonstrating both the power inherent in their position and the unwillingness among members of the legislative branch to reclaim their coequal status.

    This article is an updated version of a story published on Jan. 24, 2024.

    Sarah Burns does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Presidents of both parties have launched military action without Congress declaring war − Trump’s bombing of Iran is just the latest – https://theconversation.com/presidents-of-both-parties-have-launched-military-action-without-congress-declaring-war-trumps-bombing-of-iran-is-just-the-latest-259636

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Work, wages and apprenticeships: sifting for clues about the lives of girls in ancient Egypt

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julia Hamilton, Lecturer in History and Archaeology, Macquarie University

    Weavers in the Tomb of Khnumhotep II, Beni Hassan, Egypt. Painted by Norman de Garis Davies (MMA 33.8.16)

    We know surprisingly little about the lives of children in ancient Egypt.

    And what records we do have about them often concern the lives of the elite – the young king or the children of senior officials. They are more prominent in surviving material evidence, especially funerary art. Infant mortality rates were high in ancient Egypt.

    As a result, much of the work in Egyptology on representations of childhood in ancient Egypt is dominated by evidence for the lives of boys and young adult men.

    But what were the lives of ordinary girls like in ancient Egypt? And how did they make their way in a deeply patriarchal culture?

    Finding hieroglyphic words for girls

    An initial problem in studying girls’ lives in ancient Egypt is answering the question: who was a girl in ancient Egypt?

    Chronological age was not always recorded by ancient Egyptians in their letters or inscriptions.

    Instead, more general words and hieroglyphic signs tended to accompany images of men, women and children to indicate their social roles.

    A woman is shown nursing a child while another woman is dressing her hair.
    Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (22.2.35)

    These words and signs were only loosely associated with biological development.

    Hieroglyphic words for infants and small children, for instance, could be marked with an image of a small, seated child – sometimes with a finger held to its mouth.

    Among the words used to describe young girls – talking, walking, and participating alongside adults in their work – was sheriyt.

    This is the word often found in ancient accounting documents recording payments of wages, indicating a girl-child worker. They are distinguished from older women in these documents, although it is difficult to know precisely how young they might have been.

    In this way, written administrative records and archaeological evidence reveals girls of many social classes were integrated into economic production from an early age.

    Payment for work

    Elephantine, a town at Egypt’s southern frontier near modern-day Aswan, provides a unique window into the urban life of some girls who worked in textile workshops during the ancient Egyptian Middle Kingdom, which dates approximately 2030–1650 BCE.

    First published in 1996, archaeologists found a ceramic bowl repurposed as a writing surface in a house in the densely packed urban settlement.

    The excavators initially dated the bowl to the reign of King Amenemhat III, who ruled almost 3,800 years ago. However, based on the style of writing and the types of names listed, some scholars have also dated it earlier. It contains lists of payments of provisions of grain for textile workers over the course of a month.

    What makes this document so important is that it names at least 18 child workers. Of these, 11 are girls, clearly marked with the Egyptian word sheriyt, working alongside 28 adult women.

    The list shows adult women in this workshop received between 50–57 heqat (around 240–274 litres) of grain – although it’s not entirely clear if this was a one-off payment, a payment per month, or something else. The girls earned smaller but still significant wages of 3–7 heqat (around 14–34 litres).

    Some other adult women seem to have also received comparable provisions to the girls, although without further information it is difficult know their social status or age.

    This document not only confirms that girls received payment for their labour. It also suggests a structured apprenticeship system where young girls (and boys) worked alongside experienced craftswomen.

    This corroborates evidence from visual art of textile workshops from the same period.

    Weavers in the Tomb of Khnumhotep II, Beni Hassan, Egypt. Painted at the tomb in 1931 by Norman de Garis Davies.
    Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (33.8.16)

    Work life, home life

    Archaeological evidence suggests textile production occurred both within homes and in dedicated workshops.

    Evidence from the excavations at Elephantine suggests homes had several rooms with multiple purposes, including courtyards, entrance vestibules, kitchens with ovens (recognisable by blackened walls and ash deposits), and possible stairs leading to roof spaces.

    Privacy would have been limited. Daily life would have included close interaction with animals, as evidenced by attached animal pens.

    More recently, close to the house where the provision list was discovered, archaeologists found needles, spindles, shuttles, and remains of pegs for a large loom.

    These were found both inside houses and in the courtyards attached to them.

    It’s hard to know what exactly these buildings were for; they probably served multiple purposes.

    Lives shaped by class and legal status

    Not all girls at Elephantine had the same experience of life. The town’s position at Egypt’s southern frontier in this period meant it was home to diverse populations, which included migrants, enslaved people and transitory workers.

    A letter dating to the reign of King Amenemhat III documents some families, including women and children, arriving at Elephantine seeking work during a famine in their home region.

    This ancient letter mentions families, including women and children, looking for work.
    © The Trustees of the British Museum. Shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) licence, CC BY-NC-SA

    This evidence can be compared to a legal document from the same time period but from another Egyptian town, El Lahun. This document mentions the purchase and transfer of enslaved women and infants who are called Aamut, referring to a region in West Asia. The document shows they have been given new Egyptian names.

    These documents remind us factors such as class and legal status have always profoundly shaped girls’ lives.

    Valuing the work of girls

    Accessing the everyday thoughts, feelings, and perspectives of many ancient people, especially children, is challenging for historians. We don’t, for instance, have a wealth of personal diaries from ancient Egypt to learn about girls’ interior lives.

    But what’s clear is that girls were not merely passive participants in society. They were active economic contributors, who often received formal compensation for their work.

    Historians must always look beyond elite contexts to incorporate diverse evidence types – administrative documents, archaeological remains, and artistic representations – to construct a more complete picture of ancient lives.

    Julia Hamilton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Work, wages and apprenticeships: sifting for clues about the lives of girls in ancient Egypt – https://theconversation.com/work-wages-and-apprenticeships-sifting-for-clues-about-the-lives-of-girls-in-ancient-egypt-249581

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI: ILUS Provides Shareholder Podcast Update on Strategic Progress Across Its Portfolio Companies

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, NY, June 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Ilustrato Pictures International Inc. (OTC: ILUS) (“ILUS” or the “Company”), a mergers and acquisitions company focused on acquiring and scaling businesses in the public safety and industrial sectors, today released a shareholder podcast updating its progress, strategic shifts, and operational milestones across its portfolio companies.

    ILUS shared key updates regarding operational restructuring, financial improvements, and strategic goals as it enters a new phase of focused, scalable growth.

    To listen to the full shareholder podcast, please visit: https://youtu.be/d5DA9IPffK0

    ILUS Company Overview: Reset, Refocus, and Rebuild

    After navigating two challenging years in 2023 and 2024, ILUS is entering a new chapter of strategic growth and consolidation. Key themes from the shareholder podcast included:

    • Audits: ILUS and SAML have transitioned to a U.S.-based auditing firm, enhancing compliance and aligning with future uplisting goals. The company is currently finalizing a comprehensive two-year re-audit and related consolidations to bring all financial filings fully up to date.
    • Business Model Realignment: ILUS has restructured several legacy operations and consolidated its footprint, including relocating core operations to a central facility in Jacksonville, Florida, to streamline production and reduce costs.
    • Strategic Value Creation: ILUS continues to evaluate uplist, spinoffs, partnerships, and dividend-based structures to unlock and return shareholder value.

    ILUS also highlighted its positions in external entities, including Fusion Fuel Green PLC (Nasdaq: HTOO). Additionally, the podcast introduced ILUV Capital, a business development company (BDC) under consideration that may operate alongside ILUS to deliver alternative pathways for a return for ILUS Shareholders should it materialize.

    Portfolio Highlights

    SAML to ILUS Industries Transition

    SAML, an ILUS portfolio company, is currently undergoing a rebranding process:

    • A name change to ILUS Industries is underway.
    • Nick Link is serving as interim CEO, with the search for a permanent CEO currently in progress.
    • ILUS Industries will provide a focused platform for vertical growth and additional merger activity.

    Emergency Response Technologies (ERT)

    Will sit as a subsidiary under ILUS Industries, controlled by ILUS Industries

    ERT remains a core pillar of ILUS’s strategy, advancing innovation in the fire, public safety, and industrial markets.

    • Firebug Product Line: Production is underway at the Jacksonville facility, focused on wildfire response, battery fire suppression, and public safety, which will also alleviate any tariff risk.
    • E-Raptor EV Range: The desk top R&D and new design of the new electric vehicle are complete. Production will begin in Serbia, with partial U.S. assembly at ILUS’s Jacksonville site.
    • Expansion into Vertical Markets: ERT is actively developing distribution networks and product offerings in the industrial, safety, and agricultural sectors for this product and will seek an acquisition of a distribution network for this product.

    Fusion Fuel Green (HTOO)

    ILUS recently completed the sale of QIND to Fusion Fuel Green PLC (Nasdaq: HTOO):

    • As part of the realignment, JP Backwell transitioned from SAML to assume the role of CEO at HTOO.
    • ILUS now holds approximately 35 million shares of Nasdaq-listed HTOO equity as an asset on its Balance Sheet while:
      • The transaction eliminated QIND’s debt from ILUS’s balance sheet and relieved ILUS of related consolidation and reporting burdens.
      • ILUS retains indirect exposure to QIND’s future performance.

    Replay Solutions (Resource Recovery & E-Waste)

    A wholly owned subsidiary of ILUS Industries

    Replay is now launching its environmentally sustainable operations:

    • E-waste processing is set to begin in Serbia, with future expansion planned into additional regions, including Egypt, the UAE, and later the USA in 2026.
    • Equipment and machinery have been manufactured and are awaiting shipment to operational locations.
    • Has signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a Dubai-based refinery for the potential acquisition of a substantial volume of marine sludge oil, intended for processing into recycled oil products and lubricants. Additionally, Replay is conducting due diligence on a second acquisition target. There is no guarantee that either of these acquisitions will materialize.
    • Research and development are underway for a tyre pyrolysis facility to diversify Replay’s recycling capabilities, for the conversion of tyres into oil and lubricants.

    Strategic and Financial Outlook

    • ILUS has materially strengthened its financial position through the QIND/ HTOO transaction and strategic restructuring.
    • The organization now manages a portfolio of increasingly bankable businesses supporting improved capital access.
    • With enhanced balance sheet strength and operational scale, ILUS is increasingly improving and readying itself for a potential IPO or uplist in the future.
    • ILUS intends to establish a BDC company called As ILUV Capital either within ILUS or standalone, with ILUS Shareholders receiving benefits in some way to be defined. As this matures, ILUS may be in a position to explore dividends or share buybacks, consistent with its vision of long-term shareholder return.

    Summary and Closing Remarks

    • ILUS has postponed the upcoming shareholder meeting to ensure stronger participation and alignment.
    • With two difficult years behind it, ILUS is focused on ensuring the next three years reflect sustained growth, transparency, and execution.
    • ILUS management expressed gratitude for shareholders’ support and patience and looks forward to connecting in person during planned meetings later this year.

    For further information on ILUS, please see its communication channels:

    Website: https://ilus-group.com
    X: @ILUS_INTL
    Email: IR@Ilus-Group.com
    Source: ILUS

    Contact:
    IR@Ilus-group.com
    (917) 522-3202)

    Forward-Looking Statement

    Certain information set forth in this press release contains “forward-looking information”, including “future-oriented financial information” and “financial outlook”, under applicable securities laws (collectively referred to herein as forward-looking statements). Except for statements of historical fact, the information contained herein constitutes forward-looking statements and includes, but is not limited to, the (i) projected financial performance of the Company; (ii) completion of, and the use of proceeds from, the sale of the shares being offered hereunder; (iii) the expected development of the Company’s business, projects, and joint ventures; (iv) execution of the Company’s vision and growth strategy, including with respect to future M&A activity and global growth; (v) sources and availability of third-party financing for the Company’s projects; (vi) completion of the Company’s projects that are currently underway, in development or otherwise under consideration; (vii) renewal of the Company’s current customer, supplier and other material agreements; and (viii) future liquidity, working capital, and capital requirements. Forward-looking statements are provided to allow potential investors the opportunity to understand management’s beliefs and opinions in respect of the future so that they may use such beliefs and opinions as one factor in evaluating an investment. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and undue reliance should not be placed on them. Such forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although forward-looking statements contained in this presentation are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management’s estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable securities laws. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has provided guidance to issuers regarding the use of social media to disclose material nonpublic information. In this regard, investors and others should note that we announce material financial information via official Press Releases, in addition to SEC filings, press releases, Questions & Answers sessions, public conference calls, and webcasts also may take time from time to time. We use these channels as well as social media to communicate with the public about our company, our services, and other issues. It is possible that the information we post on social media could be deemed to be material information. Therefore, considering the SEC’s guidance, we encourage investors, the media, and others interested in our company to review the information we post on the following social & media channels: Website: https://ilus-group.com X: @ILUS_INTL

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: HFAC Middle East And North Africa Subcommittee Chairman Lawler Reacts to Iranian Strikes on U.S. Bases

    Source: US Congressman Mike Lawler (R, NY-17)

    Washington, D.C. – 6/23/25… Today, Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Middle East and North Africa subcommittee, reacts to the news of Iranian strikes on U.S. bases in the region.

    “I pray for the safety of our brave men and women serving our country overseas, and the thousands of civilians on these military bases,” said Chairman Lawler. “All Americans stand with them as they face this outrageous attack that is yet another escalation by an Iranian regime hellbent on killing Americans.”

    “Since this wasn’t clear to the Ayatollah before, any attack against the United States or our allies will bring a decisive response,” concluded Congressman Lawler.

    Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of Congress and represents New York’s 17th Congressional District, which is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties. He was rated the most effective freshman lawmaker in the 118th Congress, 8th overall, surpassing dozens of committee chairs.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Chinese Foreign Minister Meets Former UK Prime Minister

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhua) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair in Beijing on Monday.

    As Wang Yi, also a member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, pointed out, China and the UK, as permanent members of the UN Security Council and world powers, should fulfill their international obligations, demonstrate responsibility and make contributions to world peace and development.

    Wang Yi recalled that last year, the leaders of the two countries held a telephone conversation and a face-to-face meeting, putting China-UK relations on the right track of improvement and development. According to him, China pays special attention to the UK’s commitment to a consistent, long-term policy based on mutual respect towards China.

    “China is willing to work with the UK to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, strengthen exchanges in various fields, enhance mutual understanding, and promote the healthy and stable development of China-UK relations,” the Chinese Foreign Minister said.

    T. Blair, for his part, noted that attempts to isolate China are doomed to failure and the world needs greater understanding of China. Both sides, he stressed, should intensify dialogue and exchanges at all levels of government and among various social circles, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, and promote sustainable and positive development of bilateral relations.

    On the Israeli-Iranian conflict, Wang Yi said differences between the countries should be resolved peacefully through dialogue and consultation, adding that Israel’s preemptive strike on Iran under the pretext of “potential future threats” and the US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency send a wrong signal to the world that disputes can be resolved by force rather than negotiations, thereby setting a dangerous precedent with serious consequences.

    “All parties to the conflict should take measures to ease tensions and return to the path of political settlement through dialogue and negotiations to restore peace and stability in the Middle East,” Wang Yi concluded.

    Tony Blair said the UK was paying close attention to the conflict between Israel and Iran and called for a return to the path of negotiations through dialogue and diplomacy to quickly restore peace, security and stability in the region. –0–

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Breaking: Iran Launches Missile Attack on US Base in Qatar

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    DOHA, June 23 (Xinhua) — Qatar’s air defense systems responded to several missiles over the capital Doha on Monday after Iran announced it had launched a military operation against U.S. troops at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.

    According to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, Tehran has launched an operation called “Proclamation of Victory” targeting US bases in Iraq and Qatar. -0-

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Iran Launches Missile Attack on US Base in Qatar

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    DOHA, June 23 (Xinhua) — Qatar’s air defense systems intercepted several missiles over the capital Doha on Monday after Iran announced it had launched a military operation against U.S. troops at Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base, Qatari officials said.

    As noted by the adviser to the Prime Minister, official representative of the Qatari Foreign Ministry Majid bin Mohammed al-Ansari, Qatar’s air defense systems successfully repelled the attack and shot down the Iranian missiles.

    Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced in a statement the launch of an operation called “Proclamation of Victory” targeting US bases in Iraq and Qatar.

    The IRGC has called Al Udeid Air Base “the headquarters of the US Air Force and the largest strategic asset” of the US in West Asia.

    “Iran will not, under any circumstances, leave any attacks on its territorial integrity, sovereignty and national security unanswered,” the IRGC statement emphasized.

    Ahead of the Iranian strikes, Qatar and the neighboring United Arab Emirates closed their airspace.

    Qatar says no casualties in Iranian attack. –0–

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Gulf States want no winner in the conflict between Israel and Iran

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Mira Al Hussein, Research Fellow at the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World, University of Edinburgh

    When Israel assassinated a number of senior Iranian military officials and nuclear scientists on June 13, there was an initial euphoria among some ruling elites in the Gulf. They saw it as a sign of Iran’s diminishing regional threat.

    Relations between Gulf states and Iran have been fraught since 1979 when Iran’s former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, vowed to export the revolution that had brought him to power that same year. This set off decades of ideologically charged proxy conflicts, with Gulf states viewing Iran as the principal destabilising force in the Middle East.

    But the recent euphoria has given way to unease as the push by Israel – and now the US – for regime change in Tehran has become clear. Following US strikes against Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend, US president Donald Trump has floated the idea of overthrowing the government to “make Iran great again”.

    Retaliatory attacks by Iran on American forces at bases in Qatar and Iraq have now brought the conflict closer to home. The strikes have prompted Gulf states to close their airspaces, while Qatar has warned of its right to respond directly “in a manner equivalent with the nature and scale” of Iran’s attack. What effect the attacks will have on the involvement of Gulf countries in the conflict will soon become clear.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    The Gulf states have long worked to keep Iran’s influence in check without attempting to topple its leadership. They have sought rapprochement, with Saudi Arabia and Iran reestablishing diplomatic ties in 2023 and reopening embassies in each other’s countries.

    Gulf leaders view the alternative to warmer relations – be it a chaotic regime change or a globally interconnected or expansionist Iran – as possibly even more destabilising for the Gulf region and its economic ambitions.

    Iran, for all its regional adventurism, is still regarded in the Gulf as an organic part of the Middle East. It is a civilisation with deep, ancient roots and an uninterrupted history of co-existence and cultural co-creation within the Islamic world.

    This stands in contrast to how Israel is perceived. Some Gulf states have established diplomatic relations with Israel since 2020, under the framework of the Abraham Accords. But there remains a wider perception – particularly among citizens of these countries – that Israel is an imposed colonial presence whose threat to regional stability is growing.

    Iran has hardly been a benign actor. Its government has played a destabilising role across the Arab world, from propping up the ruthless regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria to supporting armed groups in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. And now it has attacked the sovereign territory of two Gulf countries.

    It also continues to occupy three islands that are claimed by the United Arab Emirates: Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa. Iran’s interventions have left behind a trail of sectarianism, militarisation and humanitarian crises.

    Yet Gulf leaders separate the actions of the Iranian regime from the people of Iran. Repeated waves of protests within Iran, particularly the women-led uprisings of recent years, have reinforced the sense that ordinary Iranians are themselves victims of a repressive regime.

    There’s empathy within the Gulf for Iranian society, coupled with recognition of the historic and cultural ties that bind the region and its people. Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, described Iran as a “neighbour forever” in 2022, and with this neighbourliness comes a preference for stability over collapse.

    Gulf states would rather not see Iran plunge into chaos. This could unleash humanitarian crises and refugee flows that would be morally troubling and economically disastrous for the region.

    No decisive winner

    While there is no appetite within the Gulf for regime change in Tehran, views expressed in government-controlled media suggest there is interest in seeing a political transformation in Israel. It seems to me that the Gulf states would prefer neither Iran nor Israel to emerge as a decisive winner in this military confrontation. A prolonged war of attrition weakens both, reducing the threats they pose to Arab sovereignty and regional stability.

    Such a conflict could result in political change in Israel that sees the end of oppressive policies against Palestinians and curbs to regional aggression. This would ease the political cost of normalising relations with Israel. Current efforts to integrate Israel into the regional order place Gulf leaders in an awkward position, appearing to side with a state that routinely violates Arab rights.

    A regime change in Iran, particularly one that produces a nationalist, pro-western government, would present new complications for the Gulf. A more internationally connected and economically ambitious Iran could overshadow Gulf economies and revive old territorial disputes.

    A prolonged conflict would, of course, raise the prospect of the Strait of Hormuz emerging as a flashpoint. A closure, which Iran is reportedly discussing as a possibility, would disrupt one-fifth of the world’s oil supply and plunge global markets into turmoil.

    Neither side may actively seek this, but the risk of miscalculation is high. For Gulf economies, whose futures are tied to global energy markets and diversification projects, such an outcome would be catastrophic.

    However, at least for now, Gulf countries seem relatively calm about the prospects of a closure. They issued a series of statements on June 22, expressing concern over the US strikes on Iran and calling for restraint. But the tone of their statements was rather measured.

    The mood in the Middle East appears to be shifting. As one Emirati analyst, Mohammed Baharoon, recently warned: “Israel risks seeing itself as Thor, the mythical deity whose real status as a god is related to his hammer. This is dangerous for Israel’s future in the region and the world.”

    Baharoon added on social media: “Hammer-wielding Israel will have very limited space in a region that seeks economic partnerships over security alliances.” In other words, the region’s priorities are shifting, and Israel’s overreliance on military power is increasingly at odds with the future that the Gulf leaders are trying to shape.

    They wish to make the region an economic magnet for investment, not a cinematic backdrop for perpetual conflict.

    Mira Al Hussein is a non-resident fellow with DAWN MENA and Gulf International Forum.

    – ref. Gulf States want no winner in the conflict between Israel and Iran – https://theconversation.com/gulf-states-want-no-winner-in-the-conflict-between-israel-and-iran-259471

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Panels established to review Canadian surtaxes, Chinese duties on farm and fish products

    Source: World Trade Organization

    DS627: Canada — Measures on Certain Products of Chinese Origin

    China submitted its second request for the establishment of a dispute panel with respect to the surtax measures imposed by Canada on certain products of Chinese origin, including electric vehicles and steel and aluminium products. Canada had said it was not ready to accept China’s first request for the panel at a DSB meeting on 23 May.

    China said it considers Canada’s measures inconsistent with provisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). It added that it was open to constructive discussions and remains committed to resolving the dispute.

    It is unfortunate that China has included in its panel request claims related to certain solar products, critical minerals, semiconductors, permanent magnets and natural graphite imported from China, Canada said, noting that there are no Canadian surtax measures on these products. China has therefore failed to identify the specific measures at issue as required under the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU), Canada said.

    Canada said its surtax measures on electric vehicles and steel and aluminium products are justified under the GATT and that it was fully prepared to defend these measures. Canada remains committed to maintaining constructive dialogue with China even as the dispute moves to the panel stage, it added.

    The United States said that China responded to the surtaxes by imposing countermeasures in the form of additional duties on Canadian agricultural and fishery products.

    The DSB agreed to the establishment of the panel. 

    Australia, the European Union, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Norway, the Russian Federation, Singapore, Switzerland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, Ukraine and the United States reserved their third-party rights to participate in the proceedings.

    DS636: China — Additional Import Duties on Certain Agricultural and Fishery Products from Canada

    Canada submitted its second request for the establishment of a dispute panel with respect to the additional import duties imposed by China on certain Canadian agricultural and fisheries products. China had said it was not ready to accept Canada’s first request for the panel at a special DSB meeting on 5 June.

    Canada said the import duties imposed by China represented a unilateral determination and trade countermeasures contrary to WTO rules. Canada moreover said that as the dispute concerns perishable goods, the case should be treated as urgent as provided by the DSU. Canada remains committed to maintaining constructive dialogue with China even as the dispute moves to the panel stage, it added.

    China replied that it regretted Canada’s decision to seek the establishment of a panel and opposed Canada’s claim that DSU provisions on urgency apply to this case. China said it will defend itself in the proceedings and is confident that its measures will be found consistent with WTO rules. It added that it remained open to engagement with Canada.

    The United States reiterated that the measures at issue are countermeasures imposed by China in response to Canadian measures China is challenging in DS627.

    The DSB agreed to the establishment of the panel. 

    Australia, the European Union, India, Japan, Norway, the Russian Federation, Singapore, Switzerland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States and Viet Nam reserved their third-party rights to participate in the proceedings.

    Appellate Body appointments

    Colombia, speaking on behalf of 130 members, introduced for the 88th time the group’s proposal to start the selection processes for filling vacancies on the Appellate Body. The extensive number of members submitting the proposal reflects a common interest in the functioning of the Appellate Body and, more generally, in the functioning of the WTO’s dispute settlement system, Colombia said.

    The United States said it does not support the proposed decision and noted its longstanding concerns with WTO dispute settlement that have persisted across US administrations. The United States emphasized that the dispute settlement process was meant to help members resolve specific disputes without creating new rules that alter rights and obligations under the covered WTO agreements. The US reiterated that fundamental reform of WTO dispute settlement is needed and that it will reflect on the extent to which it is possible to achieve such a reformed WTO dispute settlement system.

    More than 20 members took the floor to comment, one speaking on behalf of a group of members. Several members urged others to consider joining the Multi-party interim appeal arrangement (MPIA), a contingent measure to safeguard the right to appeal in the absence of a functioning Appellate Body. 

    Colombia, on behalf of the 130 members, said it regretted that for the 88th occasion members have not been able to launch the selection processes. Ongoing conversations about reform of the dispute settlement system should not prevent the Appellate Body from continuing to operate fully, and members shall comply with their obligation under the Dispute Settlement Understanding to fill the vacancies as they arise, Colombia said for the group.

    Dispute settlement reform

    The DSB Chair, Ambassador Clare Kelly (New Zealand), said that the General Council (GC) Chair Ambassador Saqer Abdullah Almoqbel (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) had informed members in a 6 June communication that, regarding dispute settlement reform, his consultations have confirmed readiness to preserve and build on the progress already made, and to advance only when the time is ripe to make meaningful progress on key unresolved issues with the engagement of all delegations.

    The GC Chair also indicated that both the DSB Chair and the GC Chair will be closely monitoring the situation and will revert to members at the appropriate time. The DSB chair added that her door is open to delegations wishing to further discuss the matter.

    Surveillance of implementation

    The United States presented status reports with regard to DS184, “US — Anti-Dumping Measures on Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Products from Japan”,  DS160, “United States — Section 110(5) of US Copyright Act”, DS464, “United States — Anti-Dumping and Countervailing Measures on Large Residential Washers from Korea”, and DS471, “United States — Certain Methodologies and their Application to Anti-Dumping Proceedings Involving China.”

    The European Union presented a status report with regard to DS291, “EC — Measures Affecting the Approval and Marketing of Biotech Products.”

    Indonesia presented its status reports in DS477 and DS478, “Indonesia — Importation of Horticultural Products, Animals and Animal Products.” 

    Next meeting

    The next regular DSB meeting will take place on 25 July 2025.

    Share

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Amnesty International UK’s response to Home Secretary’s announcement that Palestine Action will be proscribed a terrorist organisation

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK Chief Executive said: 

    “Amnesty International is seriously concerned by the Home Secretary’s announcement that she intends to proscribe Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation. The UK has an overly broad definition of terrorism and proscribing a direct-action protest group like Palestine Action risks an unlawful interference with the fundamental rights of freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.

    “Terrorism legislation must always be treated with the highest degree of caution and restraint, as it allows the state to curtail due process and interfere with other human rights in ways that would violate international human rights law. Given the enormous consequences of proscription, such an interference with fundamental rights will only be lawful when it is provided by a clear law and is strictly necessary and proportionate in the sense that it is the only step capable of securing a legitimate aim.

    “Clearly that is not the case when it comes to Palestine Action; the ordinary criminal law, accompanied by appropriate human rights protections, is more than capable of responding to direct action protesters of their kind. It should be remembered that proscribing Palestine Action not only makes membership of the organisation a criminal offence, through broadly worded speech offences such as ‘glorification’ it puts at risk the free speech rights of many other activists who are deeply concerned about the plight of Palestinians in the context of Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza.

    “Government embarrassment at security breaches is no proper basis for excessive and disproportionate interferences with human rights. It is precisely this kind of unlawful government action that critics of the UK’s terrorism laws warned would come one day.”   

    View latest press releases

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: EU/Israel: ‘Timid’ review of EU-Israel Association Agreement a ‘greenlight to Israel’s genocide’

    Source: Amnesty International –

    Responding to the European Commission’s review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement which found ‘indications’ that Israel is breaching its human rights obligations, Eve Geddie the Director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office said:

    “Despite its timid wording, the European Commission finally states the obvious: Israel is breaching its human rights obligations under the Agreement. This is an indisputable fact that Amnesty International, international courts, UN bodies, independent experts, prominent Palestinian, Israeli and international NGOs, scholars, commentators and former diplomats have been saying for years.

    “It is unforgivable that it took the EU so long to launch this review and disturbing to see the EU fail to set out any measures it plans to take against Israel. Every day the EU delays meaningful action, is a greenlight for Israel to continue its genocide in the Gaza Strip and unlawful occupation of the whole Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT).

    “The EU and its member states have an obligation to ban trade and investment that could contribute to Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and other grave violations of international law, including the crime against humanity of apartheid against all Palestinians whose rights it controls.

    “Now that they have determined there are ‘indications’ that Israel is breaching human rights, there is no excuse for inaction or delays. Every deal that EU member states do with Israel in the meantime, leaves them at risk of being complicit in Israel’s grave violations of international law, including genocide.

    “Member states in favour of suspending the agreement must use all their diplomatic weight to ensure that opponents of the suspension, including Germany, fully understand the risk of complicity and the cruel toll on Palestinian lives of continued EU inaction. If the EU fails to live up to these obligations as a bloc, and seeks to shield itself from its clear legal obligations, its member states must unilaterally suspend all forms of cooperation that may contribute to violations of international law.”

    Background

    On 23 June 2025, the European Commission presented its review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement to EU foreign ministers. The review found ‘indications’ that Israel is breaching its human rights obligations but did not present any measures for the EU to take in response.

    Amnesty International has long called for a thorough, comprehensive, and credible review the Association Agreement in line with EU member states’ obligations to prevent trade and investment that contributes to maintaining Israel’s unlawful occupation of the OPT, as set out by the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinion of 19 July 2024 and obligations not to render aid or assistance to the commission of crimes under international law.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI Video: UN Charter, Secretary-General/Syria, Iran & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (23June 2025)

    Source: United Nations (video statements)

    Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

    ———————————

    Highlights:
    UN Charter
    Secretary-General/Syria
    Iran
    Central African Republic
    Occupied Palestinian Territory
    Lebanon
    Democratic Republic of the Congo
    Sudan
    Ukraine
    Haiti
    Security Council
    Climate in Asia
    Internet Governance Forum
    Senior Personnel Appointment
    Resident Coordinators
    International Days
    Office for Disarmament Affairs
    Briefings

    __________________________________________

    UN CHARTER
    Today, at 5:00 p.m., the Secretary-General will deliver remarks at a ceremony to welcome home the original UN Charter, 80 years after it was adopted.
    He will make remarks and point out that the Charter is more than parchment and ink; it is a promise of peace, a promise of dignity and cooperation among nations.
    He will say that today, as our world faces age-old challenges, and newer threats like the climate crisis and runaway technology, we have the tools and the norms of international law to guide us, starting with that Charter.

    SECRETARY-GENERAL/SYRIA
    In a statement issued today, the Secretary-General strongly condemned the terrorist attacks that took place on Sunday at the St. Elias Church in Damascus. He expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a swift recovery to those injured.
    The Secretary-General reiterated that all perpetrators of terrorism must be held accountable. He took note that the Syrian interim authorities have condemned this attack and, after a preliminary investigation, attributed it to Islamic State of Iraq and Levant, ISIL. The Secretary-General called for a full investigation.
    The Secretary-General reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to supporting the Syrian people in their pursuit of peace, of dignity, and justice.
    Geir Pederson, the Special Envoy in Syria, also issued a statement on the same attack.

    Full Highlights:
    https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=23%20June%202025

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPeVJl4i2rA

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: UN Charter, Secretary-General/Syria, Iran & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (23June 2025)

    Source: United Nations (video statements)

    Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

    ———————————

    Highlights:
    UN Charter
    Secretary-General/Syria
    Iran
    Central African Republic
    Occupied Palestinian Territory
    Lebanon
    Democratic Republic of the Congo
    Sudan
    Ukraine
    Haiti
    Security Council
    Climate in Asia
    Internet Governance Forum
    Senior Personnel Appointment
    Resident Coordinators
    International Days
    Office for Disarmament Affairs
    Briefings

    __________________________________________

    UN CHARTER
    Today, at 5:00 p.m., the Secretary-General will deliver remarks at a ceremony to welcome home the original UN Charter, 80 years after it was adopted.
    He will make remarks and point out that the Charter is more than parchment and ink; it is a promise of peace, a promise of dignity and cooperation among nations.
    He will say that today, as our world faces age-old challenges, and newer threats like the climate crisis and runaway technology, we have the tools and the norms of international law to guide us, starting with that Charter.

    SECRETARY-GENERAL/SYRIA
    In a statement issued today, the Secretary-General strongly condemned the terrorist attacks that took place on Sunday at the St. Elias Church in Damascus. He expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a swift recovery to those injured.
    The Secretary-General reiterated that all perpetrators of terrorism must be held accountable. He took note that the Syrian interim authorities have condemned this attack and, after a preliminary investigation, attributed it to Islamic State of Iraq and Levant, ISIL. The Secretary-General called for a full investigation.
    The Secretary-General reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to supporting the Syrian people in their pursuit of peace, of dignity, and justice.
    Geir Pederson, the Special Envoy in Syria, also issued a statement on the same attack.

    Full Highlights:
    https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=23%20June%202025

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPeVJl4i2rA

    MIL OSI Video –