Weekly update: 14 November – 20 November 2022
The following media round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period of 14 November to 20 November 2022.
Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates from the International Criminal Court, European Court of Human Rights, United Nations, European Union and other sources. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.
Ukraine / Russia – 14 November 2022
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that investigators have uncovered more than 400 war crimes in areas of Kherson abandoned by Russian forces as they retreated. Mr Zelensky said the bodies of civilians and soldiers had been found. The BBC has been unable to verify the allegations. Moscow denies its troops intentionally target civilians. Meanwhile Ukrainian authorities imposed an overnight curfew and restricted travel in and out of Kherson.
United Kingdom (UK) / France – 14 November 2022
The UK will pay France £8m more a year under a revised deal to try to stop people crossing the English Channel in small boats. Under the updated agreement, UK police officers will be able to observe their French counterparts in control rooms and on beaches. The number of officers patrolling the French coast to try to stop people setting off will rise from 200 to 300. PM Rishi Sunak said he was "confident" the crossings could be brought down.
United Nations (UN) – 15 November 2022
The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution calling for Russia to be held accountable for breaching international law by invading Ukraine. The resolution calls for Russia to pay reparations for the damage and loss of life during the conflict.
Syria – 15 November 2022
The bodies of two Egyptian girls have been discovered at the al-Hol detention camp hosting people linked to ISIS (ISIL) in northeastern Syria, according to local Kurdish security forces that administer the facility. A Kurdish security source told the AFP news agency that “the bodies of two Egyptian girls were found in the sewage waters”. Another camp official, who also requested anonymity for fear of reprisals, said the beheaded girls were aged 11 and 13, the Associated Press news agency reported.
Poland – 16 November 2022
Poland’s president Andrzej Duda said he expected his country would call for an emergency meeting of Nato members after “Russian-made” missiles strayed over into the country killing two people. The incident is the first time that the territory of a Nato country has been struck during the near nine month Ukraine war, and follows an intense 100-missile attack by Russia on Ukraine, which saw millions lose power and supply in neighbouring Moldova also disrupted. The Polish president said he had spoken to Joe Biden, the US president, Rishi Sunak, the UK prime minister, and Germany’s Olof Scholz and told them it was “highly likely” that Poland would request the special consultative Nato meeting.
Russia / Poland – 16 November 2022
US President Joe Biden has said it is "unlikely" that a missile that killed two people in Poland on Tuesday, 15 November, was fired from Russia. Polish officials said the "Russian-made missile" landed in Przewodow, on the Ukrainian border. Early reports had suggested Russia was to blame for the blast. Moscow denied the allegations. Reports of the missiles falling in Poland - which is a Nato member - came after Russia launched a fresh wave of attacks across Ukraine on Tuesday, days after its troops were forced to leave Kherson. Russia dismissed claims it was responsible, with the defence ministry in Moscow attacking what it called "a deliberate provocation aimed at escalating the situation".
Italy – 16 November 2022
The arrest of an Italian drug trafficker who was on Europol’s most wanted list is shrouded in mystery amid reports that he was captured and extradited from Syria. Bruno Carbone, who had been on the run since 2003, was the right-hand man of Raffaele Imperiale, a drug broker for the Naples’ Camorra mafia who was arrested in Dubai in August 2021. Carbone, 45, was arrested at Rome’s Ciampino airport on Tuesday in relation to a 20-year jail term handed down by prosecutors in Catania, Sicily, for crimes related to international drug trafficking, according to a statement from Naples’ police.
Iran – 16 November 2022
Four people have been sentenced to death on the charge of "enmity against God" in connection with the recent anti-government protests in Iran. Revolutionary Courts in Tehran said one of the unnamed "rioters" hit and killed a policeman with his car, the judiciary's Mizan news agency said. The second possessed a knife and a gun, and the third blocked traffic and caused "terror", it alleged. The fourth was convicted of a knife attack, Mizan reported late on Tuesday. Human rights activists condemned the death sentences - which brought the total to five since Sunday - saying they were the results of unfair trials.
Ukraine – 17 November 2022
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he had "no doubts" that Ukraine was not to blame for the missile strike that killed two people in Poland on Tuesday. Mr Zelensky said he had received assurances from his top commanders that "it wasn't our missile". He also called for Ukrainian officials to be allowed to access the blast site and to be part of the investigation. His comments came as Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said Kyiv's air defence missiles were "most likely" to blame. US President Joe Biden also cast doubt on Mr Zelensky's statement that the missile was not of Ukrainian origin, telling reporters "that's not the evidence".
Ukraine – 18 November 2022
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said 10 million Ukrainians are without power after a fresh wave of missile strikes by Russia. At least seven people were killed in the strikes, with the number expected to rise. "We are doing everything to normalise the supply," Mr Zelensky said in his nightly address. Ukraine's air defence managed to shoot down six cruise missiles and five drones, he added. On 17 November, Russia pounded Ukraine with a fresh missile barrage, hitting more energy installations and civilian buildings less than two days after one of its heaviest bombardments yet.
Saudi Arabia – 18 November 2022
The US has determined that Saudi Arabia's de facto leader - Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman - has immunity from a lawsuit filed by murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi's fiancé. Mr Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi critic, was murdered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. US intelligence has said it believes Prince Mohammed ordered the killing. But in court filings, the US State department said he has immunity due to his new role as Saudi prime minister. Mr Khashoggi's ex-fiancé, Hatice Cengiz, wrote on Twitter that "Jamal died again today" with the ruling.