Lebanese army soldiers stand guard in front of a bank that was set on fire.

In Lebanon, a financial meltdown, state dysfunction and a massive explosion at the Beirut port have submerged the country in crisis for nearly half a decade and left three-quarters of the population in poverty. Now, as 2024 progresses, the Lebanese state’s process of disintegration appears irreversible.

Former South African President Jacob Zuma.

Accustomed for so long to one-party dominance, South Africa’s ruling African National Congress now finds itself in uncharted political territory ahead of May 29 elections. Among the many problems the ANC currently faces, one stands out: the emergence of the newly created MK Party, with former President Jacob Zuma at its head.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

For almost 15 years, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been a fixture of EU politics, while leading a populist onslaught against liberalism at home. But even as Orban attracts fawning admiration from other anti-liberal populists in Europe and the United States, cracks are beginning to show in his own power base in Hungary.