The decision by International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan to seek arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, and three leaders of the Hamas organisation has ignited significant international backlash. On Monday, several of Israel’s closest allies, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Czech Republic, and Austria, condemned the legitimacy and timing of Khan’s actions. Netanyahu called the application for arrest warrants a “travesty of justice”. Kahn has created “a twisted and false moral equivalence between the leaders of Israel and the henchmen of Hamas,” Netanyahu said. “This is like creating…

Even before Tehran had formally announced the death of President Ebrahim Raisi, conspiracy theories as to whether foul play was to blame began coming in rapidly. Was Israel’s Mossad, the go-to organisation Iran likes to blame for almost any catastrophe that befalls the Islamic Republic, behind the helicopter crash? Was it the CIA, the same organisation which swept the Shah to power in a coup d’état in 1953? Or was it one of many internal enemies Raisi had managed to accumulate after his years in power?Raisi, after all, had no shortage of enemies both within and outside the regime. He…

While Putin’s main aim of the visit to Xi was to convince Xi, “Look at what the West is doing to you in tariffs and they are trying to cut off your market – it is time to accelerate economic warfare and join in with us in this full-blown economic war with the West,” Hess’s impression is that President Xi is “certainly not ready to do so and hasn’t been.”

The United Kingdom and Canada have pledged to strengthen collaboration on Artificial Intelligence (AI) safety, building upon their shared commitment to responsible AI development. The announcement, confirmed by UK Technology Minister Michelle Donelan and Canadian Science and Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne, establishes a new partnership between the two countries’ respective AI Safety Institutes (AISIs). Donelan tweeted “The collaboration of AI Safety Institutes is vital to the responsible development of AI and the advancement of science worldwide.” The AI Safety Institute added, “This partnership is a key moment in the development of an international network of AI safety institutes.” Both governments…

The military’s most secretive unit is on a recruitment drive to select more men and women to carry out undercover operations, The Telegraph revealed. The Defence Human Intelligence Unit (DHU), also known as Defence Humint Unit, works closely with the Special Forces. The unit’s role is to obtain “human intelligence” for use by the British Armed Forces by creating a network of civilian agents in war zones, such as in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. The DHU is currently deployed on operations around the world, working with the UK Special Forces, MI5 and friendly foreign nations. But like many specialist organisations within the military, the DHU is…

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a pivotal meeting in Beijing last week. Xi welcomed Putin with a grand reception, marking the start of what was celebrated as a ‘new era’ of cooperation in an increasingly ‘multipolar world’. This article, republished with permission from the Atlantic Council, features expert analysts examining the potential global implications of this newfound cooperation for the global community. New Atlanticist: May 16, 2024 Experts react: What will Putin and Xi’s ‘new era’ of cooperation mean for the world? By Atlantic Council experts Keep your “friends” close. On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and…

In recent months, violence by insurgents in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province has escalated, highlighted by an ambush on Southern African Development Community (SADC) forces near Macomia, which damaged vehicles but caused no casualties. As the SADC prepares to withdraw in July amid criticisms of its effectiveness, Rwandan and Tanzanian troops have been praised for securing certain areas. Mozambique specialist Dr. Joseph Hanlon believes the $20 billion LNG project by TotalEnergies and the $30 billion project by ExxonMobil will proceed, as these companies trust the Rwandan forces to protect the crucial offshore gas fields and infrastructure. Hanlon noted the effectiveness of the Rwandan and Tanzanian troops compared to the SADC forces, suggesting that the LNG investments will continue despite the insurgency.

In a historic and emotionally charged session, the UN Security Council convened its first ever meeting solely focused on the hostages taken by Hamas terrorists during their attack on Israel on 07 October.  The meeting, initiated by the United States, brought together diplomats, survivors, and families of the captives to highlight the human toll of these abductions and call for the hostages’ immediate release. Shoshan Haran, who was taken hostage along with her daughter and two grandchildren, provided a harrowing account of the psychological impact on her three-year-old granddaughter. “Three weeks after we were released, Yahel only whispers, too afraid…

A major investigation was underway last night to try and establish the motive behind the attempted assassination of the controversial Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico. The gunman has been named as Juraj Cintula, a 71-year-old poet, author and vocal critic of Fico’s government with possible links to a pro-Russian militarised group. Cintula, a resident of Levice, identifies himself as a writer and is a founding member of the Dúha Literary Club. Cintula’s background also includes past employment as security guard, with reports suggesting he himself was the target of an attack in a shopping centre. While details about his personal…

As the world moves towards a multipolar system, Africa’s future holds weight. Jakkie Cilliers, Head of African Futures and Innovation at ISS Pretoria, analyses this shift in a recent ISS Today article. He argues that the US needs to adapt to this new reality and collaborate with China, rather than compete, to maintain its influence in Africa. Cilliers highlights the dangers of a return to Cold War-style proxy conflicts and emphasises that strong trade partnerships, not political coercion, are key to Africa’s development. Retaining US influence in Africa requires bridge-building with China In a complex new multipolar world, a country’s…

A Russian drone regiment is recruiting members of the Kremlin elite so they can ‘sidestep’ military service on the front, according to the British government.The unit called “Bars Kaskad” is recruiting Russian elites, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.Bars Kaskad was created by the Russian State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, and it contains an “unusually high” number of pro-Putin United Russia Party members and sons of Kremlin elites — “up to 10 in total”, according to the MoD.The unit is primarily involved in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operations…

The UK continues to cement its position as a global leader in AI safety with the launch of Inspect, the world’s first state-backed AI safety testing platform made available for free public use. Developed by the UK AI Safety Institute, Inspect empowers a wide range of users – from startups to international governments – to evaluate AI models for potential security risks. With super-powered AI models poised to hit the market this year, the need for robust safety measures has never been greater. Untested AI poses a risk of biased decisions, unforeseen accidents, and loss of control. “Inspect” tackles this…