April, 2021

• 23 April

  New Oil Price Surge Caps Year Of Recovery Since ‘Black Monday’

  Oil prices resumed their surge on global markets on Tuesday as traders shrugged off the memory of “Black Monday” 2020, when some crude prices went into negative territory at the start of the pandemic recession. Brent crude, the global benchmark, went above $68 a barrel for the first time in …

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• 23 April

  Mali: Killings, ‘Disappearances’ in Military Operations

  Malian soldiers have allegedly killed at least 34 villagers, forcibly disappeared at least 16 people, and severely mistreated detainees during counterterrorism operations in Mali’s central Mopti region, Human Rights Watch said today. Mali’s transitional government should conduct credible and impartial investigations into these incidents. All were committed since the transitional …

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• 23 April

  Swedish Suit Says Strongman Savagely Struck Syrians With Sarin

  Syrian dictator Bashar Assad was sued on Tuesday for using chemical weapons against his own countrymen during Syria’s long-running civil war. Four NGOs in Sweden filed the criminal complaint against the Russian-backed strongman and his Damascus cohorts, expressing hope that an “investigation into these crimes will eventually result in trials …

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• 23 April

  Summit on Afghan Quagmire Delayed After Taliban Pull Out

  The much-anticipated Istanbul summit, scheduled for next week between Taliban officials and representatives of over 20 countries and international bodies, has been postponed due to the Taliban’s refusal to attend, Turkey confirmed on Tuesday. “We thought that it would be beneficial to postpone it,” Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said. “We …

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• 23 April

  Russia briefly withdraws from bases in north Aleppo, leaving SDF to face Turkey by itself

  Russia briefly withdrew its forces and its military equipment from two bases in Tal Rifaat, only to return to them in the wake of understandings with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that control the area and fear the advances of the Turkish-backed opposition. Russian forces withdrew April 13 from two …

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• 23 April

  Government, Kurdish forces clash in northeast Syria

  The pro-government National Defense Forces fired on Kurdish Asayesh forces at a checkpoint in Qamishli, according to Kurdish sources. Clashes broke out in northeast Syria last night between Kurdish and government forces. The violence began in the Qamishli neighborhood of Tayy. The pro-government militia the National Defense Forces attacked a …

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• 23 April

  Iran welcomes Iraqi mediation with Gulf states

  No clear results yet, said Tehran’s ambassador in Baghdad after reports of Saudi-Iran dialogue. Iran’s ambassador to Baghdad said on Tuesday his government welcomes Iraq’s efforts to mediate relations with Arab Gulf states. “The Islamic Republic supports Baghdad’s mediation to bring Tehran closer to countries with which we have faced …

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• 23 April

  No plans for full US withdrawal from Iraq, top general says

  The United States may be leaving Afghanistan but troops will remain in Iraq for the foreseeable future, the CENTCOM commander told Congress. The top commander of US forces in the Middle East told lawmakers that he does not foresee a full US withdrawal from Iraq amid continued dialogue with officials …

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• 23 April

  Turkey looks to pull ahead of EastMed rivals in Libya

  Can Greece use its position in the European Union to tempt Libya away from Ankara’s fold? A series of state visits by leaders of Libya’s new National Unity Government to Athens and Ankara last week laid bare the difficulty Greece faces in swaying the North African country away from its …

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• 23 April

  Commander Says Africa Too Important For US To Ignore

  Africa is a fascinating continent of tremendous possibilities but also tremendous dangers, and the U.S. ignores the nations of Africa at its own peril, the commander of the U.S. Africa Command said during an interview. “China and Russia don’t ignore Africa, and that alone should say something,” Army Gen. Stephen …

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