Bangladesh
At least six Rohingya refugees have been killed in flooding and landslides at refugee camps in Bangladesh. More than 740,000 Rohingya fled into Bangladesh from neighboring Myanmar after the army launched a violent crackdown against them in 2017. Since then, Bangladeshi authorities have struggled to house them adequately and thousands of Rohingya are at risk during monsoon season each year. Rights groups and the UN in 2017 documented the Myanmar army carrying out killings, using rape as a weapon of war and burning down villages in attacks the UN said amounted to genocide. Myanmar insists it was dealing with an “extremist” threat.
More from Al Jazeera here.
North and South Korea
North and South Korea have resumed communication via a hotline that was cut off by the North more than a year ago after relations deteriorated following a frosty summit. According to the government in Seoul, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un have also exchanged several letters since April.
More from the Associated Press here.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi-based Sudanese journalist Ahmed Ali Abdelkader has been sentenced to four years in prison for tweets deemed critical of the Kingdom, according to Human Rights Watch. "This and other similar prosecutions demonstrate just how determined Saudi authorities are to stamp out even the most minor criticism or questioning on social media and deter all dissent under threat of long prison sentences," Michael Page, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, said.
More from the New Arab here.