On January 8, 2025, after more than 630 days in prison images of Belarusian political prisoner Viktor Babaryko were released. Babaryko is one of Belarus's most famous political prisoners who ran a powerful campaign against the authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko in the 2020 elections. Following the polls Babaryko was arrested, accused of “laundering funds obtained by criminal means” and sentenced to 14 years of prison without the possibility of an appeal.
The Kenyan government declared gender violence as the country’s biggest security threat this past Thursday, December 19. Since September 2023 there have been 7107 reports of sexual and gender-based violence and now in just the past four months, 100 women in Kenya have been killed, most by men they knew. The country’s gender violence is endemic and following the surge in cases, the government proposes an action plan which includes a special police unit dedicated to femicide and a presidential group to propose methods to combat gender-based violence.
As of November 2024, half of Sudan requires immediate humanitarian aid, facing what the UN’s humanitarian chief describes as an “invisible crisis”. While 25 million Sudanese are in need of immediate assistance, the world has barely taken notice with attention fixed on other major conflicts such as Gaza and Ukraine.
The re-elected US president’s aggressive stance against undocumented immigrants and migration is a promise to America that Donald Trump says has “no price tag” and one that has incited major fear within those targeted.
Six new cases of polio have been reported in Pakistan this month, bringing 2024’s national case count to 39 and continuing the trend of rising cases over the last three years. Pakistan’s goal of eradicating poliovirus transmission has faced consistent setbacks since the implementation of the National Emergency Action Plan (NEAP) for Polio Eradication back in 2011.
