News & Horn Highlights: Tigray forces withdraw and call for peace, Resolution on rights probe in Ethiopia adopted, 164 people drown off Libya

Dear readers, as the year draws to a close, the News and Horn highlights will take a break. We will return in the second week of January. We wish you happy holidays to those that celebrate, and we express our sincerest hope that 2022 will start with concentrated efforts for peace building and negotiation.

This week news highlights: Tigray forces announce withdrawal in a bid for peace; Reports of bombings in Tigray; UN Human Rights Council adopts resolution to implement human rights probe in Ethiopia; Experts call for renewed international pressure on Ethiopia; Allegations of rape during Sudan protests; Hamdok may resign; Refugees drown in shipwrecks off Libya; UN team was unable to enter restricted Belarus-Poland border zone; Increase in asylum applications by Syrians in Europe; Migrants in Germany important for the labor market says study; Failure of rescue operation may have contributed to channel deaths; Empathy and safe passage for refugees arriving in Britain; Call to protect children on the move; Refugees in UK hotels cannot distance amidst Omicron; and IOM says Female migrants face more challenges reintegrating than men

News Highlights: AU suspends Sudan amidst coup, Sanctions against Libyan detention chief, Greek camps detain migrants illegally

In this week news highlights: African Union suspends Sudan’s Membership; Guterres appeals to the UNSC for effective deterrence against coups; Millions called to protest the Coup; US Senators call on Ethiopia to take action to avert revocation of AGOA benefits; Government airstrike kills 6; British-Canadian researcher sentenced to 5 year for espionage in Somalia; International Crisis Group suggest a roadmap out of the Tigray conflict; Millions of Somalis will rely on humanitarian aid by 2022; LGBTQ refugees facing violence and discrimination in Kenya; Humanitarian flights from Libya restarted; UN and US impose sanctions against Libyan detention centre manager Osama Al Kuni Ibrahim; Eritrean human trafficker Kidane Zekarias Habtemariam target of international investigation; The EU will not fund a wall to prevent migration at the Belarus border; Migrants and refugees held in dire conditions in Greek camps; Polish border guards use tear gas against migrants; Italy’s former Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on trial for kidnapping; Facebook platforms exploited by human traffickers; and Millions newly displaced by climate change.

News Highlights: Offensive against Tigray forces starts, Shooting in Libyan detention centre kills 6, Increasing harassment of refugees in EU

In this week news highlights: Ethiopian government launches offensive against Tigray forces; US ponders sanctions; UN recalls two officials over audio recordings; High ministerial meeting on Ethiopia; Tigray interim government member seeks asylum; Sudan Tribune reports unconfirmed news that Salva Kiir would mediate in Tigray conflict; Eritrea re-elected to UN Human Rights Council – critics cry foul; 6 migrants shot and killed by Libyan detention centre guards following crackdown; 15 migrants bodies found off to shore of Libya; 1,100 migrants and refugees crossed the English Channel during the weekend; Migrants and refugees facing harassment in Northern France; NGO unable to operate in militarized Greece-Turkey border area; Greece and Croatia suspected of illegal pushbacks at the borders using EU funds; UNHCR urges greater access to mental health for refugees.