Sudan, Brazil, Syria.

Today's three stories you should know.

Jul 22, 2023

Sudan

Armed men today attacked aid workers from Doctors Without Border (MSF) in Sudan, the humanitarian group said, warning such incidents could put its ability to operate in the country at risk. The men assaulted a group of 18 MSF staffers as they tried to deliver supplies to one of only two remaining operational hospitals in the capital Khartoum, beating and whipping them. The conflict in Sudan, between the military and a powerful militia, has pushed to country into full-blown humanitarian crisis.

Brazil

Interesting one out of Brazil. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has signed an order tightening gun laws, cutting the number of firearms a person can own from four to two. The move is in effect an undoing of policies followed by the country’s previous president Jair Bolsonaro. The far right former leader had encouraged gun ownership and it surged seven-fold during his tenure. "We will continue to fight for fewer weapons in our country. Only the police and the army must be well-armed," Lula said.

Syria

A senior UN expert today criticised the Syrian government for continuing to hold tens of thousands of children in detention because of their parents’ ties to ISIS. Fionnuala Ni Aolain visited northeastern Syria and went to one prison camp where a staggering 31,000 of the 55,000 people there are children. “There appears to be no understanding that it is in absolute contravention of international law to detain children in what appears to be an unending cycle of cradle-to-grave detention,” Ni Aolain said.