{"id":106010,"date":"2026-04-28T20:52:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T20:52:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/2026\/04\/28\/world-news-in-brief-syria-human-rights-update-cubas-support-still-vital-after-hurricane-impunity-and-violence-in-myanmar-2\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T20:53:34","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T20:53:34","slug":"world-news-in-brief-syria-human-rights-update-cubas-support-still-vital-after-hurricane-impunity-and-violence-in-myanmar-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/2026\/04\/28\/world-news-in-brief-syria-human-rights-update-cubas-support-still-vital-after-hurricane-impunity-and-violence-in-myanmar-2\/","title":{"rendered":"World news in brief: Syria human rights update, Cuba’s support still vital after hurricane, impunity and violence in Myanmar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n

was a United Nations human rights investigator informed<\/a> The discovery was made \u2013 last month \u2013 during a five-day mission to al-Hasakah governorate, which ended on Tuesday. <\/p>\n

The team heard first-hand testimony of past and present human rights violations. According to the UN Human Rights Office, these include mass killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, and deportation of detainees to Iraq.OHCHR<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Spokesman Thamin al-Khaitan also described growing security concerns for people in southern Syria, as “the expansion of operations by Israeli forces occupying these areas” is putting lives at risk. <\/p>\n

The news got louder<\/strong> <\/h3>\n

“We have received reports of increased harassment and intimidation, including detention, interrogation, home searches, and restrictions on movement,” he said. <\/p>\n

“In Quneitra Governorate, Israeli forces reportedly set up checkpoints, searched residential properties and arrested and detained civilians.”<\/p>\n

Mr al-Khaitan pointed to \u201canother worrying development\u201d as the Israeli government approved a project to expand illegal settlements in the occupied Syrian Golan. <\/p>\n

The rights spokesperson also noted that the start of the trial of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his regime \u2013 mostly in absentia \u2013 in Damascus is “an important first step”. <\/p>\n

He stressed that “justice and redress must be achieved for hundreds of thousands of victims, in accordance with international human rights standards.” <\/p>\n

He said the arrest of Amjad Youssef, a former Syrian regime official allegedly responsible for carrying out a “horrible massacre” in the Tadamon neighborhood of Damascus in 2013, was also significant. <\/p>\n

Call to intensify Cuban relief efforts <\/h2>\n

The International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) has stressed the need to support ongoing relief efforts in Cuba, six months after Hurricane Melissa struck the island nation, affecting more than two million people. <\/p>\n

Cristian Torres Bermeo, IFRC Deputy Regional Director for the Americas, issued the call on Tuesday during a bi-weekly humanitarian briefing at the UN office in Geneva. <\/p>\n

Hurricane Melissa caused widespread damage in Cuba, with hundreds of thousands of homes destroyed, over 700 health facilities affected, and water systems severely disrupted. Entire communities were denied access to reliable electricity, clean water, and basic services. <\/p>\n

\n \u00a9 UNICEF\/Claudio Pelaez<\/span>
\n Hurricane Melissa struck Cuba in late October 2025, causing massive destruction across the island nation (File)<\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Recovery is being affected by fuel shortage<\/strong> <\/h3>\n

He recalled that the response took place amid a protracted epidemic of mosquito-borne diseases \u2013 thus placing additional pressure on an already strained health system \u2013 and more recently, under severe energy constraints following near-total US sanctions on oil imports. <\/p>\n

\u201cAcross the country, fuel shortages and instability in the power grid are disrupting transportation, water systems, waste collection and the delivery of health services,\u201d he said, speaking from Panama City. <\/p>\n

The IFRC launched an emergency appeal immediately after the storm to provide assistance to 100,000 people over the two years. Despite being significantly underfunded, it has supported the Cuban Red Cross in assisting approximately 45,000 people with essential services, psychosocial support and relief materials such as mosquito nets and shelter materials. <\/p>\n

Rights expert calls for global action to end impunity in Myanmar <\/h2>\n

The international community should take stronger action against Myanmar’s military rulers, the independent UN human rights expert monitoring the country said in his final report on Tuesday. <\/p>\n

Special correspondent Tom Andrews Said<\/a> Decades of impunity have led Myanmar to what he described as a “human rights crisis”. <\/p>\n

He said that “ending the crisis will require not only ending the military’s ability to attack and oppress the people of Myanmar, but also holding those responsible for serious human rights violations accountable.” <\/p>\n

He said that “the international community has done little to support those seeking justice and accountability.” <\/p>\n

frustration and anger<\/strong> <\/h3>\n

Mr Andrews warned that the people of Myanmar are frustrated and angry that a decades-long cycle of violence and oppression continues unabated, and not a single senior military official has been held accountable. <\/p>\n

For decades, the military has attacked civilians, persecuted ethnic minorities and committed other serious human rights violations, including widespread sexual violence, he said. <\/p>\n

Yet despite extensive evidence collected by civil society and international investigators, “accountability remains elusive.” <\/p>\n

Although some cases have been brought to international tribunals, he said these efforts are narrow in scope and insufficient to end impunity. <\/p>\n

Rights expert said that UN security council<\/a>Failure to refer to the situation in Myanmar International Criminal Court<\/a> It was “an indictment of the abdication of responsibility and the world’s commitment to justice.” <\/p>\n

Their report also outlines the work being done by activists, lawyers, human rights defenders and other bodies seeking justice for abuses. <\/p>\n

Special Rapporteurs receive their mandate from the United Nations human rights council<\/a> In Geneva. They are not UN employees and do not get paid for their work.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

was a United Nations human rights investigator informed The discovery was made \u2013 last month \u2013 during a five-day mission to al-Hasakah governorate, which ended on Tuesday. The team heard first-hand testimony of past and present human rights violations. According to the UN Human Rights Office, these include mass killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":89927,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[4234,1750,5072,18262,11415,615,1416,2678,11082,1914,298,5723,166],"class_list":{"0":"post-106010","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bible-verse","8":"tag-cubas","9":"tag-human","10":"tag-hurricane","11":"tag-impunity","12":"tag-myanmar","13":"tag-news","14":"tag-rights","15":"tag-support","16":"tag-syria","17":"tag-update","18":"tag-violence","19":"tag-vital","20":"tag-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106010","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106010"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106010\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":106013,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106010\/revisions\/106013"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106010"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106010"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106010"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}