France Must Stop Flawed Bone Tests: Daily Brief

Plus: A year of Gaza protests; migrants' unanswered emergency calls from the Mediterranean; victims of Cyclone Idai denied food; New Zealand leader should stand with Turkic Muslims during China visit; Saudi feminists temporarily released; Germany extends halt on arms sales.

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France’s highest court recently ruled that controversial bone tests to assess the age of unaccompanied migrant children are flawed, but still constitutional. These tests have been widely criticized by health experts.

Palestinians living in Gaza have been protesting for a year against their living conditions. Will anyone listen to them?

Hundreds of migrants who are fleeing hardship in their home countries drown at sea in the Mediterranean. The Libyan coast guard takes the lead on search and rescue in the Mediterranean, but most times, the numbers provided for emergency calls go unanswered, and in cases when they are picked up, operators cannot speak English. This is a direct contravention of international law.

Zimbabwe must investigate allegations of abuse of Cyclone Idai aid, where victims are denied food on political grounds.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden has taken a stand for Muslim’s rights at home. When she visits China, she should speak out against the suffering of Uighur Muslims who are held in camps. 

A couple in Kyrgyzstan have been detained for holding a peaceful protest against Russia's military presence in the country ahead of Russian President Vladmir Putin’s visit.

Public outcry has led Saudi Arabia to release three feminist activists who were detained in an ongoing crackdown on activism. Saudi Arabia should release all political prisoners and drop charges against them.

And finally, Germany has extended its ban on sales of weapons to Saudi Arabia. France and the UK should follow Germany’s example and stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia. If there is clear risk that arms will be involved in violations to international humanitarian law, EU states are bound by law to stop arms sales.