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February 21, 2020

Lawmakers Are Warned That Russia Is Meddling to Reelect Trump

By Adam Goldman, Julian E. Barnes, Maggie Haberman & Nicholas Fandos | The New York Times
Intelligence officials warned House lawmakers last week that Russia was interfering in the 2020 campaign to try to get President Trump reelected, five people familiar with the matter said, a disclosure to Congress that angered Trump, who complained that Democrats would use it against him.

More from WPR: The Sorry State of U.S. Election Security Makes Foreign Interference Inevitable

Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ Program Dwindles as More Immigrants Are Flown to Guatemala or Are Quickly Deported

By Arelis R. Hernández & Kevin Sieff | The Washington Post
Immigration attorneys and migrant advocates say the Trump administration is phasing out its year-old Migrant Protection Protocols policy, also known as “Remain in Mexico,” instead prioritizing newer, more restrictive programs that make qualifying for asylum in the United States extremely difficult.

More from WPR: ‘Remain in Mexico’ Is Punishing Asylum-Seekers, but Is It Deterring Them?

Opinion

February 21, 2020

Africa

News

February 21, 2020

Lesotho’s Leader Misses Court Date to Be Charged in Killing of Estranged Wife

By Elian Peltier | The New York Times
Lesotho’s prime minister, Thomas Thabane, who was expected to be charged Friday in the killing of his estranged wife, failed to appear in court, the authorities said, following weeks of mounting pressure and his announcement that he would resign from the country’s top political office.

Togo’s President Seeks Reelection to Extend 50-Year Dynasty

By John Zodzi & Anna Pujol-Mazzini | Reuters
Many people in Togo have only known just two presidents in their lifetime—Faure Gnassingbe, who is running for a fourth term in an election Saturday, and his father Eyadema Gnassingbe—and some Togolese are sick of the long-running dynasty.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

South Sudan Rival Leaders Agree to Form Coalition Government

By Maura Ajak | Associated Press
South Sudan’s rival leaders Thursday announced they have agreed to form a coalition government just two days before the latest deadline, a major step in the emergence from a five-year civil war that killed nearly 400,000 people and shattered life in the world’s youngest nation.

Togo Election: Main Observer Group Barred From Monitoring

By The Editors | Al Jazeera
Togo’s national election commission has revoked a main independent observer group’s accreditation to monitor the country’s presidential election, just days before the vote is due to take place.

The Americas

News

February 21, 2020

Dominicans Protest as Officials Detain Two in E-Vote Probe

By Martín José Adames Alcántara | Associated Press
Hundreds joined in a demonstration demanding the resignation of the Dominican Republic’s elections commission Thursday, the fourth consecutive day of protests over the weekend failure of municipal elections.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

Asia-Pacific

News

February 21, 2020

An Afghan Truce Test Is to Begin Amid a Political Crisis

By Mujib Mashal | The New York Times
A weeklong reduction in violence across Afghanistan, a major condition for the United States to formally sign its initial peace deal with the Taliban, goes into effect early Saturday, right after midnight, Afghan officials said Friday.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

Thai Court Says Anti-Abortion Laws Unconstitutional

By Chayut Setboonsarng | Reuters
Thailand’s Constitutional Court has ruled that existing laws criminalizing abortion are unconstitutional and ordered them to be amended, paving the way for clearer regulation for reproductive rights.

Opinion

February 20, 2020

Europe

News

February 21, 2020

U.S. and Allies Blame Russia for Cyberattack on Republic of Georgia

By David E. Sanger & Marc Santora | The New York Times
The United States and its key allies Thursday accused Russia’s main military intelligence agency of a broad cyberattack against the republic of Georgia in October that took out websites and interrupted television broadcasts, in a coordinated effort to deter Moscow from intervening in the 2020 presidential election in the United States.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

Middle East & North Africa

News

February 21, 2020

Global Terror-Finance Watchdog Set to Sanction Iran

By Benoit Faucon & Ian Talley | The Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
A global terror-finance watchdog agency is set to blacklist Iran, broadening a U.S. effort to isolate Tehran financially and potentially straining the already sanctions-battered Iranian economy.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

Why Iran’s Rigged Elections Matter

By Jason Rezaian | The Washington Post
Iranians have voted on many occasions since the 1979 revolution—even though they’ve always known that those elections were neither free nor fair. But there were at least some cases when there was enough of a choice to make the effort worthwhile. Iranians have traditionally used the vote to make their demands heard in an organized way, usually by voting against those politicians espousing the most isolationist and retrograde views.

News

February 20, 2020

Opinion

February 20, 2020

United States

News

February 21, 2020

Lawmakers Are Warned That Russia Is Meddling to Reelect Trump

By Adam Goldman, Julian E. Barnes, Maggie Haberman & Nicholas Fandos | The New York Times
Intelligence officials warned House lawmakers last week that Russia was interfering in the 2020 campaign to try to get President Trump reelected, five people familiar with the matter said, a disclosure to Congress that angered Trump, who complained that Democrats would use it against him.

More from WPR: The Sorry State of U.S. Election Security Makes Foreign Interference Inevitable

Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ Program Dwindles as More Immigrants Are Flown to Guatemala or Are Quickly Deported

By Arelis R. Hernández & Kevin Sieff | The Washington Post
Immigration attorneys and migrant advocates say the Trump administration is phasing out its year-old Migrant Protection Protocols policy, also known as “Remain in Mexico,” instead prioritizing newer, more restrictive programs that make qualifying for asylum in the United States extremely difficult.

More from WPR: ‘Remain in Mexico’ Is Punishing Asylum-Seekers, but Is It Deterring Them?

U.S. and Allies Blame Russia for Cyberattack on Republic of Georgia

By David E. Sanger & Marc Santora | The New York Times
The United States and its key allies Thursday accused Russia’s main military intelligence agency of a broad cyberattack against the republic of Georgia in October that took out websites and interrupted television broadcasts, in a coordinated effort to deter Moscow from intervening in the 2020 presidential election in the United States.

An Afghan Truce Test Is to Begin Amid a Political Crisis

By Mujib Mashal | The New York Times
A weeklong reduction in violence across Afghanistan, a major condition for the United States to formally sign its initial peace deal with the Taliban, goes into effect early Saturday, right after midnight, Afghan officials said Friday.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

Trump Names Richard Grenell as Acting Head of Intelligence

By Julian E. Barnes & Maggie Haberman | The New York Times
President Trump on Wednesday named Richard Grenell, the ambassador to Germany who quickly antagonized the establishment after arriving in Berlin in 2018, to be the acting director of national intelligence overseeing the nation’s 17 spy agencies.

Pompeo Meets Saudi King in Talks Focused on Iranian Threats

By Abdullah Al-Shihri & Aya Batrawy | Associated Press
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman on Thursday in a visit focused primarily on discussing shared security concerns about regional rival Iran.

Trial of Venezuela’s Citgo Six Delayed; Fearful Family Members Want the Trump Administration to Do More

By Anthony Faiola | The Washington Post
The long-awaited trial of the Citgo Six—oil executives, including five U.S. citizens, detained in Venezuela on corruption charges for more than two years—failed to open as scheduled Wednesday, leaving fearful family members calling on the U.S. government to do more to protect their imprisoned fathers and husbands.

More from WPR: Guaido’s Democratic Push Faces an Uncertain Future in Venezuela

Opinion

February 20, 2020

Trump Is Right to Bide His Time in Renewing a Nuclear Treaty With Russia

By Michael Singh | The Washington Post
New START can be extended by executive fiat, and the coming year affords the president plenty of time to do so. It would be a pity to lose the agreement’s benefits but a greater loss still to squander U.S. advantages at a moment when the arms-control landscape is changing in ominous ways.

More from WPR: Trump Wants a ‘Big Deal’ on Arms Control, Even If It Sinks the New START Treaty

The Americas

News

February 21, 2020

Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ Program Dwindles as More Immigrants Are Flown to Guatemala or Are Quickly Deported

By Arelis R. Hernández & Kevin Sieff | The Washington Post
Immigration attorneys and migrant advocates say the Trump administration is phasing out its year-old Migrant Protection Protocols policy, also known as “Remain in Mexico,” instead prioritizing newer, more restrictive programs that make qualifying for asylum in the United States extremely difficult.

More from WPR: ‘Remain in Mexico’ Is Punishing Asylum-Seekers, but Is It Deterring Them?

Dominicans Protest as Officials Detain Two in E-Vote Probe

By Martín José Adames Alcántara | Associated Press
Hundreds joined in a demonstration demanding the resignation of the Dominican Republic’s elections commission Thursday, the fourth consecutive day of protests over the weekend failure of municipal elections.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

Brazil Deploys National Guard After Senator Shot in Strike

By Diane Jeantet | Associated Press
A Brazilian senator was shot Wednesday as he tried to intervene in a strike by military police demanding higher salaries in the northeastern state of Ceara, prompting authorities to deploy federal forces.

Trial of Venezuela’s Citgo Six Delayed; Fearful Family Members Want the Trump Administration to Do More

By Anthony Faiola | The Washington Post
The long-awaited trial of the Citgo Six—oil executives, including five U.S. citizens, detained in Venezuela on corruption charges for more than two years—failed to open as scheduled Wednesday, leaving fearful family members calling on the U.S. government to do more to protect their imprisoned fathers and husbands.

More from WPR: Guaido’s Democratic Push Faces an Uncertain Future in Venezuela

Mexico City Arrests Two Suspects in Death of 7-Year-Old Girl

By Peter Orsi | Associated Press
Authorities said late Wednesday they arrested a woman and a man suspected in the kidnapping of a 7-year-old girl whose dead body was found wrapped in a plastic bag days later, a case that has provoked outrage in Mexico as the latest brutal example of killings of women and girls.

Europe

News

February 21, 2020

Lawmakers Are Warned That Russia Is Meddling to Reelect Trump

By Adam Goldman, Julian E. Barnes, Maggie Haberman & Nicholas Fandos | The New York Times
Intelligence officials warned House lawmakers last week that Russia was interfering in the 2020 campaign to try to get President Trump reelected, five people familiar with the matter said, a disclosure to Congress that angered Trump, who complained that Democrats would use it against him.

More from WPR: The Sorry State of U.S. Election Security Makes Foreign Interference Inevitable

U.S. and Allies Blame Russia for Cyberattack on Republic of Georgia

By David E. Sanger & Marc Santora | The New York Times
The United States and its key allies Thursday accused Russia’s main military intelligence agency of a broad cyberattack against the republic of Georgia in October that took out websites and interrupted television broadcasts, in a coordinated effort to deter Moscow from intervening in the 2020 presidential election in the United States.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

Germany Shooting Leaves at Least 11 Dead in Far-Right Attack

By Jack Ewing & Melissa Eddy | The New York Times
A German gunman driven by racism and diffuse conspiracy theories opened fire on two bars frequented by immigrants late Wednesday, killing nine people and shocking a nation where violent crimes targeting minorities have spiked against the backdrop of a resurgent far right.

Opinion

February 20, 2020

Trump Is Right to Bide His Time in Renewing a Nuclear Treaty With Russia

By Michael Singh | The Washington Post
New START can be extended by executive fiat, and the coming year affords the president plenty of time to do so. It would be a pity to lose the agreement’s benefits but a greater loss still to squander U.S. advantages at a moment when the arms-control landscape is changing in ominous ways.

More from WPR: Trump Wants a ‘Big Deal’ on Arms Control, Even If It Sinks the New START Treaty

On Iran, Europe Plays a Weak Hand to Advantage

By Ferial Ara Saeed | War on the Rocks
France, Germany, and the United Kingdom are relying on the nuclear deal’s dispute resolution process, and the political calculations the U.S. presidential election in November will prompt in Tehran and Washington, to motivate Iranian cooperation and American restraint.

Africa

News

February 21, 2020

Lesotho’s Leader Misses Court Date to Be Charged in Killing of Estranged Wife

By Elian Peltier | The New York Times
Lesotho’s prime minister, Thomas Thabane, who was expected to be charged Friday in the killing of his estranged wife, failed to appear in court, the authorities said, following weeks of mounting pressure and his announcement that he would resign from the country’s top political office.

Togo’s President Seeks Reelection to Extend 50-Year Dynasty

By John Zodzi & Anna Pujol-Mazzini | Reuters
Many people in Togo have only known just two presidents in their lifetime—Faure Gnassingbe, who is running for a fourth term in an election Saturday, and his father Eyadema Gnassingbe—and some Togolese are sick of the long-running dynasty.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

South Sudan Rival Leaders Agree to Form Coalition Government

By Maura Ajak | Associated Press
South Sudan’s rival leaders Thursday announced they have agreed to form a coalition government just two days before the latest deadline, a major step in the emergence from a five-year civil war that killed nearly 400,000 people and shattered life in the world’s youngest nation.

Togo Election: Main Observer Group Barred From Monitoring

By The Editors | Al Jazeera
Togo’s national election commission has revoked a main independent observer group’s accreditation to monitor the country’s presidential election, just days before the vote is due to take place.

Middle East & North Africa

News

February 21, 2020

Global Terror-Finance Watchdog Set to Sanction Iran

By Benoit Faucon & Ian Talley | The Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
A global terror-finance watchdog agency is set to blacklist Iran, broadening a U.S. effort to isolate Tehran financially and potentially straining the already sanctions-battered Iranian economy.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

Why Iran’s Rigged Elections Matter

By Jason Rezaian | The Washington Post
Iranians have voted on many occasions since the 1979 revolution—even though they’ve always known that those elections were neither free nor fair. But there were at least some cases when there was enough of a choice to make the effort worthwhile. Iranians have traditionally used the vote to make their demands heard in an organized way, usually by voting against those politicians espousing the most isolationist and retrograde views.

News

February 20, 2020

Pompeo Meets Saudi King in Talks Focused on Iranian Threats

By Abdullah Al-Shihri & Aya Batrawy | Associated Press
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman on Thursday in a visit focused primarily on discussing shared security concerns about regional rival Iran.

Opinion

February 20, 2020

On Iran, Europe Plays a Weak Hand to Advantage

By Ferial Ara Saeed | War on the Rocks
France, Germany, and the United Kingdom are relying on the nuclear deal’s dispute resolution process, and the political calculations the U.S. presidential election in November will prompt in Tehran and Washington, to motivate Iranian cooperation and American restraint.

Asia-Pacific

News

February 21, 2020

An Afghan Truce Test Is to Begin Amid a Political Crisis

By Mujib Mashal | The New York Times
A weeklong reduction in violence across Afghanistan, a major condition for the United States to formally sign its initial peace deal with the Taliban, goes into effect early Saturday, right after midnight, Afghan officials said Friday.

Opinion

February 21, 2020

News

February 20, 2020

Thai Court Says Anti-Abortion Laws Unconstitutional

By Chayut Setboonsarng | Reuters
Thailand’s Constitutional Court has ruled that existing laws criminalizing abortion are unconstitutional and ordered them to be amended, paving the way for clearer regulation for reproductive rights.

Opinion

February 20, 2020

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