Deepening Darkness, and a Ray of Hope, in Afghanistan: Daily Brief

A massive explosion struck a mosque in Kabul yesterday evening, killing at least 20, injuring many more, and adding to the Afghan people’s dual miseries of Taliban abuses and international apathy. One ray of hope: Afghanistan’s women are still out protesting...

A Russian attack on residential apartments in Kharkiv has reportedly killed at least six people. The incident is a reminder of previous unlawful attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine’s second largest city, detailed in our investigations published two days ago.

When we read about the impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the numbers can be overwhelming – tens of thousands killed, millions fleeing their homes, seemingly countless war crimes being investigated… The scale of events can appear almost unreal, too big to even comprehend. Sometimes, to understand what’s happening in the bigger picture, you have to focus on the experience of one individual and see the horror on a human level, through one person’s unique story. The deeply disturbing account of Oleksandra Korostelova and her family in Kharkiv, as retold simply and directly by our colleague Belkis Wille, is one of these stories. Nothing quite hits you like the step-by-step narrative of what happened to Oleksandra, her husband and their four-month-old baby son. (Warning: graphic.)

Cage, smother, subdue, repeat… That’s the four-word summary of Israel’s policy towards Gaza, which has as a result become an “open-air prison” for over two million Palestinians. Until the international community brings sufficient pressure to push Israeli authorities to abandon their longstanding policy to subdue the Palestinians of Gaza, this vicious cycle will continue.

All parties to the conflict in northern Syria should minimize civilian harm during ongoing and future military operations there, Human Rights Watch said today in a question-and-answer document that focuses on Turkey’s possible military incursion to parts of northern Syria held by Kurdish-led forces. Since May 2022, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has threatened a military incursion into northeast Syria targeting the cities of Tel Rifaat and Manbij in Aleppo governorate. It would be Turkey’s fourth military move into northern Syria since 2016.

Rival South Sudanese leaders have agreed to extend their 2018 peace deal for another 24 months. President Salva Kiir, who signed the extension alongside four other political groups, said that the extension will allow for unification of the armed forces, creation of a new constitution, and time to prepare for elections to avoid a return to war. That may sound promising, but unfortunately, the extension takes place against a backdrop of widespread insecurity and a heavy climate of repression, including violence against civilians. There need to be concrete steps toward improving the country’s human rights situation. As our colleague Nyagoah Tut Pur, South Sudan researcher, says, "The extension needs to be accompanied by a dramatic shift in the attitude of South Sudan’s leadership…".

The United Nations Human Rights Council should renew the mandate of its Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela, 125 national and international organizations working on Venezuela said today. The Mission, established in 2019 to investigate systematic human rights violations in Venezuela, has helped push for accountability for serious crimes in the country.