Hong Kong, Somalia, Afghanistan.

Today's three stories you should know.

Jun 04, 2023

Hong Kong

Scores of people have been detained by Hong Kong police as authorities moved to ensure the 34th anniversary of China’s notorious Tiananmen Square massacre would not be marked in any way. Huge crowds - often tens of thousands of people - have commemorated the anniversary in Hong Kong for decades but the event has been effectively banned since the territory introduced a restrictive national security law in 2020. The 1989 pro-democracy protests in central Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, which saw crowds of up to 100,000 mostly students gather, ended with a brutal crackdown as tanks and armored personnel carriers rolled in. No comprehensive death toll has ever been confirmed but activist groups and witnesses estimate thousands were killed.

Somalia

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni today said that 54 of his country’s soldiers were killed in an al-Shabab attack on a base housing African Union peacekeepers in Somalia. The armed group had itself announced the assault a week ago, saying it had killed 137 Ugandan troops. Museveni added that Uganda’s army had since recaptured the base from Shabab fighters. The group has for more than a decade been fighting to topple Somalia’s government and impose its own interpretation of Islamic law.

Afghanistan

Horrific story out of Afghanistan. Almost 80 girls are in hospital after two primary schools were targeted in apparent poisoning attacks, according to a local official. Since sweeping to power in 2021, the ruling Taliban has stripped women and girls of most rights, including banning girls from education once they reach sixth grade. The official blamed the attacks on a personal grudge, without giving further information.