Silencing Turkey's Media; Aleppo Evacuates; Refugee Rhetoric: HRW Daily Brief
Plus: US suspends major aid package to Philippines over rule of law concerns; France's state of emergency renewed for fifth time; Laos activist still missing four years on; Libya should end horrific abuse of detained migrants; & fresh fears for violence as South Sudan marks 3 years of civil war...
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Turkey’s government has all but silenced independent media in an effort to prevent scrutiny or criticism of its ruthless crackdown on perceived enemies, Human Rights Watch said in a new report today.
The evacuation of rebel-held areas of eastern Aleppo is underway, according to multiple reports. The International Red Cross is initially bringing out 200 wounded people in a fleet of ambulances, and buses are also heading into eastern areas as part of a wider evacuation. There are reports however that a convoy which tried to leave in the early hours of today came under fire.
Meanwhile a summit for EU heads of state is taking place in Brussels today, with migration and security likely to top the agenda. It comes amid new accusations that fear of populism is weakening Europe's response to refugees.
There's breaking news from the Philippines, with news that a major US aid package to the Philippines is not being renewed due to "significant concerns" about the rule of law under President Rodrigo Duterte.
Lawmakers in France have approved the fifth extension of a national state of emergency, now due to last until July 2017.
Four years to the day since the activist Sombath Somphone was forcibly disappeared in Laos, the government has still not provided news of his fate or his whereabouts.