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Mali denounces UN report alleging state executed 500 civilians

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Bamako says the report does not meet established international standards because it is biased and based on a fictitious narrative

Mali’s interim military government has rejected a report by the United Nations human rights office claiming Malian soldiers and unidentified foreign fighters murdered at least 500 civilians during a five-day military operation last year.

The UN report claimed that, on March 27 last year, Malian forces and foreign personnel arrived in helicopters in the village of Moura in the Mopti region of central Mali and began shooting at residents who were attempting to flee. The report said that, in the following days, hundreds more had reportedly been shot and thrown into ditches.

However, Abdoulaye Maiga, interim prime minister in Bamako, dismissed the claims as being made in “a biased report that is based on a fictitious narrative and does not meet established international standards.”

The acting premier said an investigation into potential human-rights violations during the operation in Mopti is ongoing, but maintains that only terrorists had been killed, not civilians.

The UN report was based on interviews with witnesses and victims, as well as on forensic and satellite evidence. Witnesses told the UN that soldiers had corralled people into the center of the village, shooting randomly at those trying to escape.

“At least 58 women and girls were raped or subjected to other forms of sexual violence. In one shocking instance, soldiers reportedly brought bedding from a house, placed it under trees in the garden, and took turns raping women they had forced there,” the UN stated.

The report also found witnesses reported seeing ‘armed white men’ who spoke a foreign language. These troops were observed operating alongside Malian forces and, in some instances, appeared to be supervising operations.

Maiga said a judicial inquiry has been initiated against the UN fact-finding team for supposedly taking satellite photos of Moura without permission, which his government has deemed a threat to national security.

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Israeli president comments on Lebanon pager attacks

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Lebanon-based Hezbollah has “many enemies,” while Israel is only “defending itself,” President Isaac Herzog has said

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has provided ambiguous comments on the alleged involvement of West Jerusalem in the mass detonation of pagers and walkie-talkies in Lebanon last week.

Herzog made the remarks while speaking to Sky News’ Trevor Phillips on Sunday, as the host grilled the president on the apparently indiscriminate nature of the attacks that killed at least 37, including two children, and injured some 3,000.

“I reject out of hand any connection to this or that source of operation,” Herzog stated.

Asked whether Israel denies its involvement altogether or blames any other party for the attacks, the president refrained from doing so, while accusing Hezbollah of “destroying Lebanon” in the first place.

“I did not allude to anything except saying that there are many enemies of Hezbollah out there, quite a few these days. Hezbollah has been choking Lebanon, destroying Lebanon, creating havoc in Lebanon again and again and again. We are here simply to defend ourselves. That’s all we do,” he stated.

Israel planned pager attacks for 15 years – ABC News

Israeli intelligence is widely suspected as being behind the attacks, which have been roundly criticized globally. The explosives were presumably planted in the devices during manufacturing and then activated remotely.

UN human rights commissioner Volker Turk, for instance, called the incident “shocking” and said that it had unleashed profound “fear and terror.”

“Simultaneous targeting of thousands of individuals, whether civilians or members of armed groups, without knowledge as to who was in possession of the targeted devices, their location and their surroundings at the time of the attack, violates international human rights law and, to the extent applicable, international humanitarian law,” he stated.

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Ukraine won’t join NATO anytime soon – Scholz

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The German chancellor explained that Kiev doesn’t meet some of the criteria for membership in the US-led military bloc

Ukraine will most likely not be able to become a NATO member state in the foreseeable future as it does not meet a number of requirements for admission yet, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said. Earlier this month, the head of the US-led military bloc, Jens Stoltenberg, declared that all member states had agreed to welcome Kiev, but only if and when it vanquished Moscow’s forces.

In an interview with Germany’s Die Welt published on Monday, Scholz assessed that, for the time being, Ukraine’s Western backers should focus on helping the country “defend its land.” In the future, security guarantees for Kiev will also need to be discussed.

“But we are a long way away from there,” he added.

When asked whether he would theoretically support Ukraine’s accession to NATO after its military conflict with Russia was over, the chancellor claimed that it was “clear to everyone that this doesn’t stand on the agenda anytime soon.”

Ukraine can’t join NATO now – member state’s president

One of the reasons for that, according to Scholz, is that “there is a whole range of requirements belonging to NATO’s criteria that Ukraine can’t fulfill at present.”

Earlier this month, dpa news agency, citing a YouGov poll, reported that some 54% of Germans oppose the prospect of Ukraine joining NATO, with only 27% in favor.

Meanwhile, also this month, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the Washington Post that “all NATO allies agree that Ukraine will become a member of the alliance.” He, however, refused to offer any timeline for this.

According to the official, the US-led military bloc is currently helping Kiev “transition from Soviet-era equipment, doctrines and standards” and become “interoperable with NATO forces.”

In April, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky claimed that most Europeans would disapprove if NATO did not extend a “well-deserved invitation” to join the alliance. The Ukrainian leadership made it clear that it expected to see progress on the issue during an upcoming NATO summit in Lithuania in July.

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US to bolster weapons sales

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The State Department wants to speed up military shipments by embracing a more flexible approach encompassing entire sales regions

The US State Department is seeking to expedite arms sales to its foreign allies and partners amid a new “age of heightened strategic competition” and soaring global tensions, according to a new ten-point plan released on Thursday.

Although each year between 2019 and 2022 the US government authorized weapons sales and training to the tune of $45.8 billion on average, “the time has come to reassess and adapt security cooperation to meet new and emerging challenges,” the State Department explained, pointing to the ongoing Ukraine conflict and tensions in the Indo-Pacific.

According to a Wall Street Journal report on Thursday, the new program comes as the State Department scrambles to rectify delays in sales to foreign militaries, caused by a “risk-averse and sluggish” system.

These issues have resulted in fears that some of America’s partners could start “shopping for arms from some of America’s adversaries, such as Russia and China,” the WSJ wrote, citing unnamed US officials.

Pentagon made $3 billion ‘error’ in Ukraine aid – Reuters

As part of its plan, the department seeks in particular to “save time on the policy approval process” by anticipating the demands of Washington’s international partners based on the prior requirements of their regional neighbors. Citing the officials, the WSJ noted that the reform intends to make the system more flexible by moving away from selling American weapons on a case-by-case basis.

Another point of the plan is to change the State Department’s approach to notifying Congress, by “prioritizing consultations on critical potential arms transfers” and sharpening policies in the field of exporting US drones abroad.

Last year, as global tensions soared amid the Ukraine conflict and the ‘Taiwan’ stand-off between Beijing and Washington, US foreign military sales to other governments skyrocketed by 49%, reaching some $205 billion, according to the State Department.

The US also emerged as the main source of weapons for Ukraine amid its conflict with Russia, having committed some $37 billion in security assistance to Kiev. In recent months, however, US media have reported that Washington was running low on several types of weapons and ammunition as the military industry was struggling to keep up with demand.

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