PKK, also known as the Kurdistan Workers Party announced plans to disband and disarm, potentially bringing 40 years of conflict with Turkiye to an end. 

The move followed a call in February by the jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan for the group to lay down its arms. In a letter written from prison, Ocalan said, 

“There is no alternative to democracy in the pursuit and realisation of a political system. Democratic consensus is the fundamental way.”

Escalating atrocities in Gaza present an urgent moral crossroads and States must act now to end the violence or bear witness to the annihilation of the Palestinian population in Gaza – an outcome with irreversible consequences for our shared humanity and multilateral order, UN experts warned, demanding immediate international intervention.

The Israeli cabinet has approved plans to expand the war on Gaza and remain in the enclave for an unspecified amount of time. Benjamin Netanyahu said the new offensive will be an intensive military operation aimed at defeating Hamas. 

Netanyahu stated in a video message on X that Gaza’s Palestinian population “will be moved, for its own protection”.

The Israeli Prime Minister also added that Israeli soldiers would not go into Gaza, launch raids, and then retreat. “The intention is the opposite of that,” he said. 

^{(Photograph: Ben Dance / FCDO)}

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy revealed on Wednesday that the UK is in discussions with France and Saudi Arabia over the recognition of a Palestinian state, ahead of a UN conference in June.

Faustin Nsabumukunzi, 65, was charged with covering up from US authorities his role as a local leader in Rwanda when the genocide began in 1994. An estimated 800,000 Tutsis were killed during the three-month-long genocide.

At an initial court appearance, Nsabumukunzi pleaded not guilty to visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud and was released on $250,000 bail. The bail package requires home detention and GPS monitoring, but he will be allowed to continue working as a gardener.

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are seeking to lift the immunity of former President Joseph Kabila so that he can face trial on charges of supporting a rebel uprising in eastern DRC. 

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday evening, Minister of Justice Constant Mutamba stated that authorities have amassed clear evidence implicating Kabila in “war crimes, crimes against humanity, and massacres of peaceful civilians and military personnel”. 

In recent weeks Yemen’s Houthi armed group has shot down seven US Reaper drones worth over $200m.

The drones destroyed between 31 March and 22 April mark Washington's most significant material loss. 

Three of the drones were destroyed in the past week, suggesting an improvement in the Houthis’ ability to strike high-altitude US aircraft. 

The drones were conducting surveillance or attack missions when they crashed. 

China’s ambassador to India, Xu Feihong, signalled a renewal of China-India ties, in the aftermath of US-imposed tariffs on countries around the world.

Speaking to the Anadolu Agency on Monday, Former South African foreign minister Naledi Pandor renewed urgent calls to reform the United Nations. 

Pandor was the foreign minister when South Africa filed a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December 2023.

The ICJ ordered Israel to take all measures to prevent acts of genocide in the Palestinian enclave. It also directed Israel to ensure the provision of humanitarian aid and essential services to Gaza.