News Highlights: Somalia rejects mediation amidst tensions with Ethiopia, Phantom boats at sea, Starvation in Tigray

In this week’s News Highlights: Somalia rejects mediation over dispute Ethiopia-Somaliland MoU; IGAD Summit discusses Sudan and Ethiopia/Somalia tensions; Arab League and PSC discuss Ethiopia-Somalia tensions; Sudanese VP Malik Agar visits Eritrea;  Russian military base at Dahlak Islands in Eritrea; Clashes at Melbourne Eritrean festival; Displacement in Sudan reaches 7.7 million; Ethnic targeting of people suspected of spying in Sudan; World Heritage under threat in Sudan; Explosions and remote violence increase in Sudan; Starvation sets in in Tigray as Federal government denies looming famine; Fano warns citizens not to attend Timket celebrations in Amhara; Protests erupt in Tunisia as 37 people still missing at sea; Court hearing about reception centres begins in Albania; Boats disappear and wrecks go unreported in the Mediterranean; European Parliament votes to withhold funds from Hungary; Law passed to overcome UK Supreme Court block of Rwanda deal;  Five people dead after failed crossing of Channel; German Parliament votes to make deportations easier; Protest against French immigration law; and Crossings at highest level since 2016, says Frontex.

News Highlights: RSF seize Wad Madani, EU agreement on Migration and Asylum Pact, 61 die off Libyan coast as boat sinks

In this week’s News Highlights: RSF seize capital of Al-Jazira state, Wad Madani; UN appoints Independent International Fact-Finding Mission to Sudan; Chad expels 4 Sudanese diplomats over RSF support allegations; Ethiopia’s credit rating falls further, as African Development Bank withdraws international staff; IDPs from Oromia ordered to leave Amhara IDP centre; Turkish BAYKAR drone CEO gets medal of honour from Ethiopia; European Parliament delegation visits Tigray; 4th round of GERD Dam talks fails; 10 years since outbreak civil violence in South Sudan; Senior al-Shabaab commander killed in Somalia; Boat sinks off the Libyan coast, 61 drown; EU negotiators agree on key regulations for migration pact; NGOs warn of dangerous principles that new migration pact will bring; EU systematically shares information with Libyan militia linked to human trafficking; Refugees and migrants without shelter and resources as the winter starts in EU; Central Mediterranean Route the most frequented migration route to Europe in 2023; Stricter immigration bill adopted by French parliament; and UK Government states need for credible Transitional Justice policy in Ethiopia. 

This is the last News Highlights of this calendar year. Publishing will return to the regular schedule in the week of 8 January 2024. Best wishes for the holiday season.