Voice Of America: UN Observes Reduction In Taliban’s Enforcement Of Hijab On Afghan Women

“A new United Nations report suggested Thursday that the hardline Taliban government in Afghanistan has eased its drive to enforce an Islamic dress code or hijab on women. However, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA, noted in its quarterly report that violations of human rights at large continued under the Taliban regime. The Taliban have mandated that Afghan women wear what is termed as the “sharia hijab” in public, covering their faces entirely or only showing their eyes. The operations to enforce the dress code are carried out by the group’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. While UNAMA continued to receive reports of the enforcement of the hijab instruction by the Taliban ministry, the report said that “such incidents significantly decreased after January 2024 with the cessation of the large-scale enforcement actions which took place between December 2023 and January 2024.””

DW: Red Sea Attacks Pays Dividends For Yemen's Houthis

“A two-week lull in attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels have ended with the resumption of missile strikes targeting Red Sea ships linked to Israel, the United States or nations supporting the international anti-Houthi naval coalition in those waters. The attacks, which the Houthis have been carrying out since November 2023, are a bid to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. However, while the Iran-backed group has not managed to influence the course of the war between Israel and Hamas, its ongoing attacks have increased the group's popularity to an unprecedented level. And now, some five months into the attacks, the Houthis are starting to leverage this power boost across Yemen. Yemen is split into Houthi-controlled areas in the north and west, with its capital Sanaa, and areas under the control of Yemen's internationally recognized Presidential Council, which has its capital in Aden.”

United States

CBS: U.S. Military Concludes Airstrike In Syria Last May Killed A Civilian, Not A Terrorist

“Almost a year later, the U.S. military has concluded that an airstrike last May in northwestern Syria killed a civilian, instead of a senior al Qaeda leader, as it initially claimed.  U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) released a summary Thursday of its investigation into the May 3, 2023 strike saying the investigation found the strike killed civilian Lutfi Hasan Masto, the same person that social media reports at the time identified as the victim.  Though the investigation found several areas the command could improve on, according to the summary, it did not recommend any accountability actions for killing a civilian. The investigation concluded the strike complied with the law of armed conflict.   On the day of the strike, CENTCOM in a statement to the media said, "On the morning of May 3, 2023, at 11:42 a.m. Syrian local time, U.S. Central Command forces conducted a unilateral strike in northwest Syria, targeting a senior al Qaeda leader. We will provide more information as operational details become available."”

Associated Press: Nearly 2,200 People Have Been Arrested During Pro-Palestinian Protests On US College Campuses

“Police have arrested nearly 2,200 people during pro-Palestinian protests at college campuses across the United States in recent weeks, sometimes using riot gear, tactical vehicles and flash-bang devices to clear tent encampments and occupied buildings. One officer accidentally discharged his gun inside a Columbia University administration building while clearing out protesters camped inside, authorities said. No one was injured by the officer’s mistake late Tuesday inside Hamilton Hall on the Columbia campus, the NYPD said Thursday. He was trying to use the flashlight attached to his gun at the time and instead fired a single round that struck a frame on the wall. There were other officers but no students in the immediate vicinity, officials said. Body camera footage shows when the officer’s gun went off, but the district attorney’s office is conducting a review, a standard practice.”

Turkey

Reuters: Turkey Says It Killed 32 Kurdish Militants In Northern Iraq

“Turkey's military has "neutralised" 32 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) across various regions of northern Iraq, the Defence Ministry said on Friday. The ministry's use of the term "neutralised" commonly means killed. The PKK, which has been waging an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984, is designated a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. The ministry said the militants were found in the Haftanin, Gara and Hakurk regions of northern Iraq, as well as in a region where Turkey frequently mounts cross-border raids under its "Claw-Lock Operation". Turkey's cross-border attacks into northern Iraq have been a source of tension with its southeastern neighbour for years. Ankara has asked Iraq for more cooperation in combating the PKK, and Baghdad labelled the group a "banned organisation" in March.”

Saudi Arabia

Reuters: US And Saudi Arabia Nearing Agreement On Security Pact, Sources Say

“The Biden administration and Saudi Arabia are finalizing an agreement for U.S. security guarantees and civilian nuclear assistance, even as an Israel-Saudi normalization deal envisioned as part of a Middle East “grand bargain” remains elusive, according to seven people familiar with the matter. A working draft lays out principles and proposals aimed at putting back on track a U.S.-led effort to reshape the volatile region that was derailed by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the outbreak of war in Gaza, according to two sources who have seen the document. It appears to be a long-shot strategy that faces numerous obstacles, not least the uncertainty over how the Gaza conflict will unfold. U.S. and Saudi negotiators have, for now, prioritized a bilateral security accord that would then be part of a wider package presented to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who would have to decide whether to make concessions to secure historic ties with Riyadh, five of the sources said.”

Middle East

Reuters: Rafah Operation Could Result In 'Slaughter', UN Official Says

“An Israeli incursion in Rafah would put the lives of hundreds of thousands of Gazans at risk and be a huge blow to the humanitarian operations of the entire enclave, the U.N. humanitarian office said on Friday. Israel has warned of an operation against Hamas in the southern Gazan city of Rafah, where around a million displaced people are crowded together in shelters and makeshift accommodation, having fled months of Israeli bombardments triggered by Hamas fighters' deadly cross-border attack on Oct. 7. "It could be a slaughter of civilians and an incredible blow to the humanitarian operation in the entire strip because it is run primarily out of Rafah," said Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian office, at a Geneva press briefing. Aid operations run from Rafah included medical clinics and food distribution points, including centres for malnourished children, he said.”

The New York Times: Hamas Studies A Gaza Cease-Fire Offer From Israel, And Hints At Progress

“A Hamas leader said Thursday that the group would soon send a delegation to Cairo to “complete ongoing discussions” on a cease-fire deal for the war in the Gaza Strip, raising hopes of progress in the stalled efforts for a truce. The latest cease-fire proposal, which has been forcefully pushed by the Biden administration in recent days, comes after nearly seven devastating months of war. The deal would include a weekslong temporary truce — the exact duration is unclear — and the release of hostages held by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners in Israel. It would also allow the return of civilians to the largely depopulated northern part of Gaza, and enable increased delivery of aid to the territory. Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas’s political wing, said the group was studying the latest proposal from Israel, which includes some Israeli concessions, with a “positive spirit.” A Hamas delegation will go to Egypt soon to seek a deal that “realizes our people’s demands and ends the aggression,” according to a statement by the group.”

Associated Press: Hamas Is Sending A Delegation To Egypt For Further Cease-Fire Talks In The Latest Sign Of Progress

“Hamas said Thursday that it was sending a delegation to Egypt for further cease-fire talks, in a new sign of progress in attempts by international mediators to hammer out an agreement between Israel and the militant group to end the war in Gaza. After months of stop-and-start negotiations, the cease-fire efforts appear to have reached a critical stage, with Egyptian and American mediators reporting signs of compromise in recent days. But chances for the deal remain entangled with the key question of whether Israel will accept an end to the war without reaching its stated goal of destroying Hamas. The stakes in the cease-fire negotiations were made clear in a new U.N. report that said if the Israel-Hamas war stops today, it will still take until 2040 to rebuild all the homes that have been destroyed by nearly seven months of Israeli bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza. It warned that the impact of the damage to the economy will set back development for generations and will only get worse with every month fighting continues.”