Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

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Greenpeace Africa strengthens indigenous knowledge and climate resilience through agroecology and beekeeping training in Lokolama

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

Lokolama — 4 December 2025. Greenpeace Africa has completed a community training exchange on agroecology and beekeeping in Lokolama, Equateur Province, bringing together Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) from the villages of Lokolama and Penzele. The initiative aims to advance food sovereignty, increase climate resilience, and safeguard the Congo Basin’s forests and peatlands — some of the world’s most essential carbon stores.

This hands-on training deepened a collaboration first established in April during a community experience-sharing workshop. With growing interest from local leaders and community members, the sessions focused on developing sustainable livelihood strategies rooted in Indigenous knowledge and ecological practices.

Agroecology Training: Strengthening Food Sovereignty

Participants received practical and theoretical training in agroecology, enhancing their understanding of sustainable agriculture, soil protection, and climate-resilient farming techniques. These skills aim to reduce community dependence on forest resources while improving food security.

Despite challenges — including limited training time and difficulties accessing quality seeds — the session succeeded in reinforcing community capacity and motivation for ecological farming.

Beekeeping: A Pathway to Income Diversification and Forest Protection

The beekeeping component, facilitated by local experts, combined traditional Indigenous knowledge with modern sustainable techniques. Participants engaged in:

  • theoretical sessions on hive construction, site selection, and seasonal dynamics,
  • practical construction of 20 community beehives,
  • installation of two experimental beekeeping sites (10 hives per village).

This initiative will serve as a local training hub, ensuring that skills are passed on within the community and providing a long-term source of income while reducing pressure on forest ecosystems.

Women’s participation was strongly encouraged despite the physical nature of the activities — an important step in strengthening gender inclusion within local forest governance.

A Model of Community-Led Climate Solutions

Greenpeace Africa emphasizes that supporting Indigenous and local communities is fundamental to protecting the Congo Basin. Through agroecology and beekeeping, communities are equipped to take concrete action in defense of their forests while securing sustainable livelihoods.

This participatory training was “highly appreciated by the communities and marks an important step in promoting local forest solutions and strengthening self-determination,” according to the field report.

A total of 20 participants took part in the training, with strong representation from young people and women.

Next Steps

To consolidate progress, Greenpeace Africa recommends:

  • a follow-up mission by February 2026 to assess hive colonization and honey harvesting timelines,
  • a second phase of training on honey extraction, packaging and commercialization,
  • support for community governance structures to manage local forest concessions,
  • more time on the ground for monitoring and mentorship.

END

Contact:

Raphael Mavambu, Communication and Media, [email protected], Greenpeace Africa

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USA: New findings reveal human rights violations at Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ and Krome detention centres

Source: Amnesty International –

Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ found to operate in inhuman, unsanitary, and unregulated conditions

Krome detention centre plagued by overcrowding, medical neglect, and violent abuse

‘These findings confirm a deliberate system built to punish, dehumanise, and hide the suffering of people in detention’ – Ana Piquer

Amnesty International today released a new report exposing cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment at two immigration detention centres in Florida: the Everglades Detention Facility (“Alligator Alcatraz”) and the Krome North Service Processing Center.

The 61-page report – Torture and enforced disappearances in the Sunshine State: Human rights violations at “Alligator Alcatraz” and Krome in Florida – reveals human rights violations that, in some cases amount to torture, occurring at Krome and “Alligator Alcatraz” within an increasingly hostile anti-immigrant climate in Florida under Governor Ron DeSantis, whose administration has intensified criminalisation and mass detention of migrants and people seeking safety. Findings were gathered during a September 2025 research mission. 

“Alligator Alcatraz”: a Florida State-run human rights disaster 

The research concluded that people arbitrarily detained in “Alligator Alcatraz” are living in inhuman and unsanitary conditions including overflowing toilets with fecal matter seeping into where people are sleeping, limited access to showers, exposure to insects without protective measures, lights on 24-hours-a-day, poor quality food and water, and lack of privacy – including cameras above the toilets.  

People interviewed shared that access to medical care is inconsistent, inadequate, or denied all together, placing individuals at serious risk of physical and mental harm. People reported being always shackled when they were outside their cell. Other treatment which those detained have endured amounts to torture, including being put in “the box”, a 2×2 foot cage-like structure as punishment – sometimes for hours at a time, exposed to the elements with hardly any water – with their hands and feet attached to restraints on the ground.  

“Alligator Alcatraz” operates outside federal oversight, without the basic registration or tracking systems used in ICE facilities constituting enforced disappearances when the whereabouts of a person being detained there is denied to their family, and they are not allowed to contact their lawyer.   

Krome: overcrowded, chaotic, and dangerous 

At ICE’s Krome Detention Center, operated by a private for-profit company, the research confirmed that despite having medical facilities on site, those detained reported serious medical negligence including failure to provide treatments and medical assessments. People detained at Krome confirmed previous reports of human rights violations. For example, there were reports of overcrowding, prolonged and arbitrary solitary confinement, lack of adequate medical care, overflowing toilets, lack of access to showers, constant illumination, and broken air conditioning.  

People shared stories of violence and ill-treatment from guards. Amnesty staffers witnessed a guard violently slam a metal flap of a door to a solitary confinement room against a man’s injured hand. Other people reported being hit and punched by guards. People also reported difficulty in accessing counsel and not knowing how long they would be detained nor what would happen next. 

“Everybody who’s in a detention facility is suffering”: immigration enforcement and detention in Florida 

In February, Florida passed extreme and discriminatory immigration laws that are putting immigrant communities at grave risk. The expansion of 287(g) agreements that deputise local law enforcement to act as immigration officials and detain people for immigration purposes have led to wrongful arrests, racial profiling, and widespread fear that prevents families from accessing schools, hospitals, and other essential services. 

Florida has become a testing ground for abusive immigration enforcement policies, closely aligned with the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant and racist agenda. Under Governor Ron DeSantis, the state has intensified the criminalisation of migration and relied on sweeping emergency powers to rapidly scale up mass detention. Since January 2005, Florida has increased the number of people in immigrant detention by more than 50 percent. Between June and August this year alone, the state issued 34 no-bid contracts totalling more than US$360 million for “Alligator Alcatraz”, with annual operating costs projected at US$450 million – all while cutting billions from essential health, food security, emergency response, and housing programmes.  

Immigration detention in the United States has a long record of abuses. President Trump has increased its use by nearly 70% since his first term, while conditions in detention have sharply deteriorated. Of the at least 24 people who have died in ICE custody since October 2024, six deaths occurred in Florida facilities, including four at Krome.  

Urgent Reforms Needed in Florida and Federal Immigration Detention

Amnesty is calling on both the government of Florida and the US government to address systemic human rights violations within immigration detention facilities. Amnesty urges Florida officials to close Alligator Alcatraz and to prohibit the use of any state-run immigration detention. The state must end the misuse of emergency powers, halt all no-bid procurement, and redirect detention funding towards essential health care, housing, and disaster-relief programmes. The recommendations also include banning shackling, solitary confinement, and punitive outdoor confinement; ensuring confidential access to legal counsel and interpretation services; conducting transparent and independent investigations into torture and medical neglect; and establishing meaningful, independent oversight for all detention facilities. 

At the federal level, the US government must end its cruel mass immigration detention machine, stop the criminalisation of migration, and bar the use of state-owned facilities for federal immigration custody. The US government must ensure thorough investigations into all deaths, allegations of torture in custody and other abuses, and comply with international human rights standards. Also, the federal government must undertake a comprehensive review of ICE contracts with state and private actors to ensure human rights compliance, the restoration of protections for “sensitive locations” such as schools, hospitals, and churches, and increased federal funding to support universal legal representation and interpretation services in immigration proceedings. 

Ana Piquer, Amnesty International’s Director for the Americas, said:

“These findings confirm a deliberate system built to punish, dehumanise, and hide the suffering of people in detention.

“Immigration enforcement cannot operate outside the rule of law or exempt itself from human rights standards. What we are seeing in Florida should alarm the entire region.

“These despicable and nauseating conditions at Alligator Alcatraz reflect a pattern of deliberate neglect designed to dehumanise and punish those detained there. Krome’s extreme overcrowding, medical neglect, and reports of humiliating and degrading treatment paint a picture of harrowing human right violations.

“The choice to prioritise punishment, dehumanisation and cruelty over public welfare is as shortsighted as it is appalling. The conditions we documented at Alligator Alcatraz and Krome are not isolated – instead they represent a deliberate system of cruelty designed to punish people seeking to build a new life in the US.

“We must stop detaining our immigrant community members and people seeking safety and instead work towards humane, rights-respecting migration policies.” 

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USA: New Findings Reveal Human Rights Violations at Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” and Krome Detention Centers 

Source: Amnesty International –

Amnesty International today released a new report documenting cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment at two immigration detention centers in Florida: The Everglades Detention Facility (“Alligator Alcatraz”) and the Krome North Service Processing Center (Krome).  

The report, Torture and enforced disappearances in the Sunshine State: Human rights violations at “Alligator Alcatraz” and Krome in Florida, reveals human rights violations that, in some cases amount to torture, occurring at Krome and “Alligator Alcatraz” within an increasingly hostile anti-immigrant climate in Florida under Governor Ron DeSantis, whose administration has intensified criminalization and mass detention of migrants and people seeking safety. Findings were gathered during a September 2025 research mission. 

“These findings confirm a deliberate system built to punish, dehumanize, and hide the suffering of people in detention,” said Ana Piquer, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for the Americas. “Immigration enforcement cannot operate outside the rule of law or exempt itself from human rights standards. What we are seeing in Florida should alarm the entire region.” 

These findings confirm a deliberate system built to punish, dehumanize, and hide the suffering of people in detention”.

Ana Piquer, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for the Americas.

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Global: “Intellexa Leaks” investigation provides further evidence of spyware threats to human rights 

Source: Amnesty International –

The “Intellexa Leaks”, a new joint investigation by Inside Story, Haaretz and WAV Research Collective with technical analysis provided by Amnesty International, exposes the internal operations of Intellexa,  – a company notorious for selling highly invasive spyware Predator linked to human rights abuses in multiple countries. 

Responding to the investigation published today, Jurre van Bergen, Technologist at Amnesty International’s Security Lab said:  

“This investigation provides one of the clearest and most damning views yet into Intellexa’s internal operations and technology. 

Jurre van Bergen, Technologist at Amnesty International’s Security Lab

“The fact that, at least in some cases, Intellexa appears to have retained the capability to remotely access Predator customer logs – allowing company staff to see details of surveillance operations and targeted individuals raises questions about its own human rights due diligence processes. If a mercenary spyware company is found to be directly involved in the operation of its product, then by human rights standards, it could potentially leave them open to claims of liability in cases of misuse and if any human rights abuses are caused by the use of spyware.     

“Predator spyware was also implicated in surveillance attacks in 2021, such as against the Greek journalist Thanasis Koukakis, based on digital forensic research by Citizen Lab. Information in the leaked files now adds to the evidence connecting Intellexa’s products to violations of human rights, such as rights to privacy and freedom of expression. 

“These revelations come at a time when new cases of Predator spyware abuse are coming to light, showing that Intellexa’s product continues to be used to unlawfully surveil activists, journalists and human rights defenders around the world. Amnesty International’s Security Lab uncovered an attack against a human rights lawyer from Pakistan’s Balochistan province over WhatsApp during the summer of 2025, proving that the Predator spyware is being actively used in Pakistan, gravely violating privacy and freedom of expression rights. 

“Even more alarming is the company’s latest development of a new spyware product called Aladdin which can infect mobiles through online advertisements.” 

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“We are setting an example”: Meet five activists advancing women’s and girls’ rights in West Africa

Source: Amnesty International –

Amnesty International is working closely with communities and partner organizations to combat violence against women and girls in Burkina Faso, Senegal and Sierra Leone. In these West African countries, they are subjected to different forms of gender-based violence (GBV), including early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM), but also physical, psychological, and economic violence, exposing them to many vulnerabilities and multiple human rights violations.

Meet five activists who are speaking out, working to raise community awareness, challenging gender-based violence and supporting survivors.

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DRC: Peace deals fail to end human rights abuses

Source: Amnesty International –

After more than eight months of diplomatic efforts by the United States and Qatar to end the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), civilians continue to face serious human rights abuses by the Rwanda-backed March 23 Movement (M23) and the Wazalendo, a coalition of armed groups supported by the Congolese army. As the presidents of Rwanda and DRC prepare to sign a peace agreement at the White House today, Amnesty International has said:

“The upcoming signature of the peace deal between the presidents of DRC and Rwanda in Washington takes place as the violence continues in eastern DRC with immense suffering for civilians,” said Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa.

“Months of discussions and the signing of multiple agreements in Washington and Doha have had no tangible impact on the lives of Congolese civilians. President Trump must press M23, Rwandan and Congolese leaders to end ongoing human rights abuses against civilians in the country and clearly indicate that they will be held individually accountable for their failure to respect the agreement.”

The upcoming signature of the peace deal between the presidents of DRC and Rwanda in Washington takes place as the violence continues in eastern DRC with immense suffering for civilians.

Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa

Amnesty International has received credible reports of abuses committed by Wazalendo fighters and revenge killings by M23 against civilians suspected of collaborating with the Wazalendo. Tens of thousands of residents were displaced in October. In parts of North Kivu province, many civilians have resorted to living in forests for fear of attacks by armed groups.

“Congolese are fed up with lofty rhetoric and diplomatic language,” said Tigere Chagutah “They are tired of waiting. Thousands of civilians are caught between two brutal forces. On one side, they face summary killings, torture, gang rape and abductions by Rwandan-backed M23. On the other side, they are killed, ill-treated, abducted and raped by members of the Wazalendo.”

President Trump must press M23, Rwandan and Congolese leaders to end ongoing human rights abuses against civilians in the country and clearly indicate that they will be held individually accountable for their failure to respect the agreement.

Tigere Chagutah

“It’s appalling that international diplomats, including those from the US, European Union and African Union, are shirking their moral and international obligations by not applying direct and consistent pressure on Rwandan and DRC leaders to stop supporting abusive armed groups,” said Tigere Chagutah.

“World leaders are aware of the killings and rapes committed by the warring parties in DRC and choose to disregard them. Officials from the US, European Union and the African Union must prioritise stopping human rights abuses. Until diplomats impose consequences on the backers of the M23 and the Wazalendo, Congolese civilians will continue to suffer,” said Tigere Chagutah.

Background

US, Congolese and Rwandan diplomats have worked on the peace deal set to be signed in Washington since April. Rwandan and DRC officials signed a peace agreement in Washington on 27 June, which allows Rwanda to maintain their “defensive measures” in eastern Congo until the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and affiliated armed groups are “neutralized.”

The FDLR is an armed opposition group operating in eastern DRC mainly composed of Rwandan Hutu. It contains remnants of the Interahamwe and former Rwandan soldiers responsible for the 1994 Rwandan genocide, as well as fighters not involved in the genocide, including many too young to have participated in the genocide. Rwandan President Paul Kagame has called the FDLR an “existential threat” to Rwanda.

Rwanda and M23 signed a framework for a peace agreement in Qatar on 15 November 2025 designed to end the fighting in DRC. The deal included eight protocols, most of which still required negotiation by the two parties.

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True climate justice demands a reckoning with colonialism

Source: Amnesty International –

By Nciko wa Nciko and Samrawit Getaneh

The African Union declared 2025 to be the “Year of Justice for Africans and People of African Descent through Reparations”. The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights has an opportunity to make that more than just a slogan, as it considers the current request for an advisory opinion before it, on states’ human rights obligations in the context of climate change. It has an opportunity to issue a landmark opinion affirming the link between colonialism and the harms of climate change to people(s) across the continent. Such an opinion would mark a major step forward from the International Court of Justice and in Africa’s fight for reparative justice.

On July 30, 2025, Amnesty International published a report recounting how, during the French colonial era in Madagascar, authorities deliberately unleashed harmful, genetically manipulated cochineal parasites across some 40,000 hectares (98,850 acres) of a drought-resilient vegetation in the Androy region in Madagascar’s deep South.

Between 1924 and 1929, the parasites destroyed roughly 100km (62 miles) of vegetation cover each year.

Madagascar’s droughts are being intensified by human-induced climate change, driven largely by high-income historically high emitting countries, such as France – the very colonial power that left the Antandroy people vulnerable.

Nciko wa Nciko and Samrawit Getaneh

This was not a minor ecological loss. The vegetation had sustained the Antandroy people for generations, providing food and helping to preserve groundwater through chronic droughts. Its destruction erased a vital natural defence system against those droughts. More than a century later, the destruction has left the Antandroy people exposed to recurring mass hunger, displacement, and death whenever drought strikes.

Furthermore, Madagascar’s droughts are being intensified by human-induced climate change, driven largely by high-income historically high emitting countries, such as France – the very colonial power that left the Antandroy people vulnerable.

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Global: FIFA needs to act on human rights

Source: Amnesty International –

As FIFA Awards “Peace Prize,” Coalition Calls for Concrete Protections for Workers, Athletes, Fans, Journalists, and Children

FIFA, the international soccer governing body, needs to match its lofty rhetoric on rights with concrete action, a coalition of human rights organizations, trade unions, and fans groups said today. FIFA is holding its World Cup draw at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, on December 5, 2025, and awarding its first “FIFA Peace Prize.”

The Sport & Rights Alliance, Dignity 2026, ACLU, AFL-CIO, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Independent Supporters Council, NAACP, Athlete Ally, and Reporters Without Borders have come together to press FIFA to deliver a World Cup that respects the rights of fans, players, workers, journalists, and local communities.

The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, represents an opportunity to implement a new model for FIFA events—one that supports strong workers’ protections, safeguards children’s rights, upholds media freedom, and ensures that working people and communities benefit from hosting this mega-sporting event, the groups said.

“Workers, athletes, fans, and communities make the World Cup possible,” said Andrea Florence, executive director of the Sport & Rights Alliance. “The 2026 World Cup is the first to begin with human rights criteria embedded in the bidding process. But the deteriorating human rights situation in the United States has put those commitments at risk.”

With 200 days until kick-off, the escalating attacks on immigrants in the United States, FIFA’s cancellation of anti-discrimination messaging, and threats to press freedom and the rights of peaceful protesters signal a tournament heading in the wrong direction, the human rights and labor groups said.

There has been no transparency around FIFA’s peace prize process. Human Rights Watch has written to FIFA to request a list of the nominees, the judges, the criteria, and the process for the peace prize. Human Rights Watch received no response.

“FIFA’s so-called peace prize is being awarded against a backdrop of violent detentions of immigrants, national guard deployments in US cities, and the obsequious cancellation of FIFA’s own anti-racism and anti-discrimination campaigns,” said Minky Worden, who oversees sport for Human Rights Watch. “There is still time to honor FIFA’s promises for a World Cup not tainted by human rights abuses, but the clock is ticking.”

The following are areas of concern spotlighted by experts from the civil society groups:

Workers’ Rights

“The men’s 2026 FIFA World Cup is an opportunity to implement a new model for FIFA events that supports strong worker rights protections and ensures that working people and communities benefit from hosting this kind of mega-sporting events,” said Cathy Feingold, International Director at the AFL-CIO, and ITUC Deputy President. “Workers make the World Cup possible from working in the stadiums, preparing the infrastructure to playing in the matches to providing the entertainment. Given the work they do, FIFA must uphold its commitments that the games will be played with the effective implementation of worker and human rights.”

Media Freedom

“Every four years, billions of people turn their attention to the World Cup and its host countries,” said Clayton Weimers, executive director, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) USA. “They rely on journalists to deliver reliable information with appropriate context to tell the story of this tournament both on and off the field. Unfortunately, journalists in the US are seeing their access restricted, their visas threatened, and their safety put into question. FIFA and the host governments must guarantee the freedom and safety of journalists before, during, and after the 2026 World Cup.”

Immigration and Law Enforcement

“Attending a soccer match should never result in arbitrary detention or deportation,” said Daniel Noroña, Americas Advocacy Director, Amnesty International USA. “The threat of excessive policing, including immigration enforcement, at World Cup venues are deeply troubling, and FIFA cannot be silent. FIFA must obtain binding guarantees from U.S. authorities that the tournament will be a safe space for all, regardless of political stance, opinion or immigration status.”

Attending a soccer match should never result in arbitrary detention or deportation.

Daniel Noroña, Americas Advocacy Director, Amnesty International USA

Civil Rights and Anti-Discrimination

“FIFA’s decision to cancel anti-racism and anti-discrimination messaging at the Club World Cup sent a chilling signal to communities of color and all who have fought for equality in sport,” said Jamal Watkins, senior vice president of strategy and advancement, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). “At a time when hate crimes are rising and DEI programs are under attack, FIFA should not be retreating.”

Athletes’ Rights and LGBTQ+ Safety

“As an out athlete, I know what it means to compete in environments where you’re not sure you’ll be safe,” said Matthew Pacifici, former men’s professional player in the US and Athlete Ally ambassador. “LGBTQ+ players and fans need more than symbolic gestures—we need enforceable protections. The homophobic chants at the Club World Cup in Atlanta show exactly why FIFA’s retreat from anti-discrimination messaging is so dangerous. Players and fans must know that FIFA will protect them, not abandon them.”

Supporters’ Voice and Fan Safety

“Supporters are the backbone of this sport, yet FIFA keeps making decisions about our safety without ever talking to the people who actually show up,” said Bailey Brown, president, Independent Supporters Council. “You cannot claim to ‘unite the world’ while shutting out the very fans who bring the energy and passion to every match. We’re asking for something simple: transparency, real consultation, and concrete protections for every supporter at the 2026 World Cup.”

“The World Cup cannot be a celebration of football when half of the world is being priced out of the tournament,” said Ronan Evain, executive director of Football Supporters Europe. “By choosing to put profit over inclusivity, FIFA is threatening the very nature of the game. Fans across the globe will watch the draw in fear of not being able to enter the US, to afford putting down months of salary for a chance to follow their team or not knowing how they will be treated inside the country. It’s not too late for FIFA to reverse course, review its ticket pricing policy and clarify the security doctrine of this tournament.”

Safeguarding Children

“It is unacceptable that FIFA has no child safeguarding policy for the 2026 World Cup,” said Katherine La Puente, children’s rights coordinator at Human Rights Watch. “Risks children can face in the context of major sporting events include trafficking, sexual exploitation, child labor, and family displacements, among other forms of violence and abuse.”

Host City Residents, Communities

“For the World Cup to truly ‘unite the world,’ both FIFA and host committees need to ensure that the rights and dignity of everyone, whether residents or visitors, are protected and not exploited,” said Jennifer Li, coordinator of Dignity 2026 and director of the Center for Community Health Innovation at Georgetown Law. “For example, people who are unsheltered should not be criminalized for their status or displaced as part of so-called beautification efforts. FIFA and host cities have a responsibility to ensure that hosting communities benefit from this event, and that the most vulnerable residents do not bear the greatest costs.”

Host City Plans

As part of FIFA’s human rights framework for the 2026 World Cup, each of the 16 host cities is required to develop its own “human rights action plan” to prevent discrimination, support workers’ rights, protect children, and combat human trafficking.

Human Rights Watch, along with the Sport & Rights Alliance, Dignity 2026, and their member organizations, are calling on FIFA and host committees to:

  • Reinstate anti-discrimination messaging;
  • Commit to ensuring effective protections against racial profiling, arbitrary detention, and unlawful immigration enforcement during the tournament;
  • Work closely with community partners on finalizing the Human Rights Action Plans;
  • Take effective steps to ensure respect for the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful protest;
  • Announce and implement a comprehensive Child Safeguarding Policy;
  • Ensure meaningful community benefit from the 2026 World Cup; and
  • Take effective steps to ensure that the 2026 World Cup does not lead to abuses of vulnerable communities, including the jailing of unhoused populations.

·     

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Sudan: RSF’s ruthless attack on Zamzam camp should be investigated for war crimes

Source: Amnesty International –

Sudan: RSF’s ruthless attack on Zamzam camp should be investigated for war crimes

  • New report by Amnesty International shows how the RSF killed civilians, took hostages and destroyed mosques and schools during a large-scale attack in Zamzam 
  • ‘This was not an isolated attack, but part of a sustained campaign against villages and camps’ – Agnès Callamard 

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) deliberately killed civilians, took hostages, pillaged and destroyed mosques, schools, and health clinics during a large-scale attack in April on Zamzam, the largest camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in North Darfur State, Amnesty International said in a new report published today. These violations must be investigated as war crimes under international law. 

The 52 page report, “A refuge destroyed: RSF violations in Darfur’s Zamzam camp for internally displaced persons”, documents how, between 11 and 13 April 2025, the RSF attacked the camp, deploying explosive weapons and randomly shooting their firearms in populated residential areas. The relentless assault caused around 400,000 people to flee the camp between 13 and 14 April alone and was part of the RSF’s military campaign that began in May 2024 to capture El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State. The RSF claimed control of El Fasher on 26 October, executing scores of unarmed men and raping dozens of women and girls as they captured the city. 

Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said: “The RSF’s horrific and deliberate assault on desperate, hungry civilians in Zamzam camp laid bare once again its alarming disregard for human life. Civilians were ruthlessly attacked, killed, robbed of items critical to their survival and livelihood, and left without recourse to justice, while grieving the loss of their loved ones. This was not an isolated attack, but part of a sustained campaign against villages and camps for internally displaced persons..Some international partners, such as the UAE, actively fuelled the armed conflict by supporting the RSF with weapons.” 

“The only way to end these violations is to stem the flow of arms to parties to the conflict by expanding the arms embargo that currently applies to Darfur to the rest of the country. The member states of the African Union, the European Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the United Kingdom, United States, Russia, and China must call for all countries, in the first place the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to refrain from transferring weapons and ammunition to the RSF, Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and other actors. In addition, given the very high risk of diversion to the RSF, states must immediately cease all arms transfers to the UAE.”  

‘The shelling was everywhere’ 

Survivors of the assault told Amnesty that, on Friday 11 April and Saturday 12 April, shells landed in homes, on streets and, in one case, near a mosque during a wedding ceremony – all densely populated areas – killing and injuring civilians and setting homes on fire.  

Satellite imagery captured on 16 April and analysed by Amnesty showed new craters, providing further evidence of the widespread use of explosive weapons in populated areas.  

Survivors gave harrowing accounts of fleeing burning neighbourhoods and hiding from heavy fighting.   

Younis*, an emergency room volunteer, said: “It was really bad. You could not identify where the shelling is coming from. It was everywhere, in every place.” 

Mamoun*, a man in his mid-twenties who volunteered to distribute humanitarian aid, recalled: “[RSF] fighters were just shouting and shooting anywhere, so that is how many people were killed.” 

Sadya*, a volunteer for non-governmental organizations, described RSF fighters driving through her neighbourhood, not far from the main market in Zamzam, on 12 April: “One [RSF fighter] will stand up through a small roof and just shoot around and shoot anyone in the street.” 

Amnesty also documented RSF fighters deliberately shooting and killing civilians. Eyewitnesses told Amnesty that they saw RSF fighters shoot and kill 47 civilians who were hiding in homes, fleeing the violence, at a clinic and seeking refuge in a mosque.  

Eyewitness accounts and video evidence demonstrate that the RSF targeted civilians due to their perceived affiliation to the Joint Forces – an alliance of former Darfur rebel groups, fighting alongside the SAF – and the SAF. RSF fighters also pillaged and set fire to homes, businesses, the market and structures in the compound of the Sheikh Farah school and mosque, destroying or badly damaging critical civilian infrastructure. Religious, medical, and educational infrastructure are protected under international law. 

The displaced persons interviewed by Amnesty described making arduous journeys in search of safety without food, water, and medical services. Some experienced acts that may amount to the war crimes of rape, murder and pillage. 

Without food, water, healthcare services, or legal redress, the survivors of the attacks have felt abandoned by the international community. They told Amnesty that their priorities are humanitarian aid, safety, and the protection of civilians. They also called for criminal accountability and compensation for the crimes committed during and in the aftermath of the attack. 

Elnor*, who witnessed around 15 armed men – likely RSF fighters – storm his compound and shoot and kill his 80-year-old brother and 30-year-old nephew, said: “No-one is concerned with our situation.” 

ENDS 

Notes to editor 

* Pseudonyms are used to protect identities of interviewees for security and confidentiality reasons.

For this report, Amnesty International conducted research between June and August 2025 and interviewed 29 people, mostly eyewitnesses, survivors, relatives of victims, journalists, conflict analysts, and medical personnel who responded to those injured during the attack. The organization also verified and analysed dozens of videos, photos and satellite imagery. 

The RSF did not respond to Amnesty International’s request for comment. 

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The Atom and the Algorithm: Nuclear Energy and AI are Converging to Shape the Future

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) –

(As prepared for delivery)

Distinguished delegates, colleagues and friends,

Writers and futurists have long echoed Alvin and Heidi Toffler’s idea that “the future arrives too fast…and in the wrong order.” Today, we know, the speed is exponential. 

Two forces are reshaping humanity’s horizon at an unprecedented pace: the rise of artificial intelligence and the global transition towards clean, reliable energy. The world’s energy map is being redrawn before our eyes.

The essential point, our opportunity and our responsibility, is that these forces are not unfolding separately. They are converging and redefining the new global economy. 

We can now say with clarity: the AI revolution, through its scale and speed, was always going to choose nuclear energy as a partner. The only question was “when?”. Today, we know that the answer is “now.”

Let me explain why this partnership was inevitable and what it means for every region, every nation, and every person.

Why AI was destined to turn to nuclear energy

All major technological breakthroughs have been linked to new energy backbones: steam engines to coal, electrification to hydro and fossil fuels, digitalisation to gas and renewables, and now AI to clean, uninterrupted power.

AI’s demand for energy is intersecting with two other key global forces: the drive for energy security and the drive to meet environmental and climate goals. These three trends reinforce each other, and together they are determining investments, policies and geopolitics.

Artificial intelligence astonishes us. But beneath the elegant algorithms lies a simple truth:

AI runs on vast, uninterrupted quantities of electricity.

Training a frontier AI model requires tens of thousands of GPUs running continuously for weeks or months. Everyday use is spreading into hospitals, public administration, transport, agriculture, logistics, and education. Each query, each simulation, each recommendation consumes power.

And not just any power: power that never stops.

Customers want AI to be fast and always available. Investors want new and better data products. Innovation requires a lot of computing power. Providing what customers and investors want is an existential assignment for any corporation. In technology, the demand and the competition are hyperscale and hyperfast. 

There is only one energy source that can meet combined demands of low-carbon generation, 24/7 reliability, massive power density, grid stability and genuine scalability: nuclear energy.

This is why I call it not just a partnership, but a structural alliance: “Atoms for Algorithms.”

A two-way partnership 

Artificial intelligence is not only powered by nuclear energy, it’s also improving it.

Let me list 4 areas:

In nuclear power operations, AI supports predictive maintenance, anomaly detection, and optimization of thermal performance.

In design, it supports accelerated reactor modelling, fuel-cycle simulation, and materials development.

In safety, AI supports accident simulation, response analysis, and the development of emergency procedures.

And in safeguards it provides analysis of hours of surveillance footage, satellite imagery, and offers important pattern recognition tools.

This is happening right now in IAEA laboratories and across our work with Member States on all continents.

Reassuringly, despite its brilliance, AI still needs a human to make sure it is right and impartial, and to understand the politics behind a safeguards footnote.

And it requires humans to make sure it has the energy it needs, wherever in the world it operates. 

Data centres and their energy needs

AI may live in the cloud, but it runs on electricity.

Across the world, data centres consume more than 400 TWh of electricity each year. As their number grows at unprecedented rates of 20 to 30%, their total energy consumption is expected to more than double to nearly 1000 TWh per year. That’s as much electricity as is needed to power a G7 country.

We have a huge opportunity to make sure our digital future runs on clean energy. This is where Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) become especially relevant. They work particularly well for data centres because they are designed to be built in segmental units, making phased deployment possible. As an AI cluster expands, so can its nuclear power source.

The smaller footprint of SMRs and their enhanced safety systems mean they can operate close to industrial zones, including data-centre campuses. With SMRs, tech companies can avoid dependence on constrained regional electricity grids and reduce transmission losses. This becomes decisive in places where grid upgrades are slow, and interconnection queues already stretch far into the future.

SMRs need to get from the development stage to the international market fast and safely. The IAEA’s Nuclear Harmonization and Standardization Initiative has been working with regulators and industry to get it done.  

Around the world, more than 30 newcomer countries are looking to introduce nuclear energy, including SMRs. The IAEA works with them. Many of these same countries are also exploring how AI can support their development and economic modernization. The two go hand in hand.

The IAEA helps countries map out their energy future, using proven planning tools and decades of experience. In my travels, leaders everywhere talk about their long-term strategies for energy and economic growth; again and again, nuclear energy and AI are raised in the same sentence.

Today, AI-driven data centres are concentrated in a limited number of hubs. But that map is changing. A rapid global response to the surge in AI and cloud computing could see as much as 7 trillion dollars spent on data centres around the world by 2030. New digital corridors will emerge, including in Asia, Latin America and Africa. All of them will require reliable energy sources. And all of them will require local knowledge, trusted partners, and long-term cooperation focused on technology and economic growth.

AI in industrialised economies

The United States has more nuclear power plants than any other country and is working actively to triple capacity. It holds a leadership position in the development of artificial intelligence, hosting nearly 45% of the world’s data centres and more than half of all hyperscale facilities.

In Canada, rising investment in data centres is happening alongside the major refurbishment of existing nuclear power plants. 

Europe has some of the world’s densest digital corridors, with hubs in Frankfurt, Amsterdam and London. In Germany, Frankfurt hosts one of the largest internet exchange points by peak traffic. Italy’s hubs of Milan and Turin are poised to grow. 

Nuclear energy still provides about half the EU’s low-carbon power. Existing leaders like France and the UK are doubling down on nuclear, and newcomers like Poland are making fast progress in joining the club.  

Russia has a skilled research base in mathematics and computer science working on AI, and in nuclear energy it remains the world’s largest exporter, as well as a leading operator and developer of advanced reactor technologies.

China has bet on AI and on nuclear energy, with remarkable success. Its rapid advances in AI development and the construction of AI-focused data centres are happening as more nuclear-reactors are being built in China than anywhere else.

As Japan turns once-again to nuclear energy, it is investing heavily also in building and upgrading data centres to meet rising demand.

In the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates is one of the most recent countries to build a successful nuclear energy programme and is a leading regional AI hub. Saudi Arabia is considering introducing nuclear energy and is also investing heavily in AI.  

Israel is among technology leaders, with strong entrepreneurial community.

 AI’s potential in Asia

Singapore is hub of connectivity, while South Korea is advanced in AI and nuclear energy.

Elsewhere in Asia there is enormous potential: countries including India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Vietnam, and the Philippines represent some of the fastest-growing markets for data-centre investment. Booming internet adoption and rapid digitalization are pushing infrastructure to keep pace.

If these countries align digital growth with firm, clean power, including SMRs, they will build some of the world’s most sustainable AI corridors.

AI in Latin America 

In Latin America, countries such as Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Colombia are emerging as important markets for AI and cloud services. This is driven by expanding digital economies and rising demand for data-centre infrastructure. 

Argentina has the opportunity to scale digital capabilities alongside its established nuclear-energy programme and its development of small modular reactors.

As a whole, the region provides the chance to build a sustainable and resilient digital ecosystem with clean, reliable power as a stabilizing foundation.

Africa’s digital leap

Africa stands poised for a digital leap. Its internet adoption is growing several times faster than the global average, but the continent still hosts less than one percent of global data-centre capacity.

Kenya, Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa are emerging as digital hubs.  South Africa alone provides more than half of Africa’s data-centre capacity. 

Governments across the continent are determined to expand reliable electricity to more than 600 million people without access. 

A growing number of countries, including Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Zambia, are exploring both conventional and modular nuclear power. 

By harnessing clean, dependable energy, Africa has the opportunity to build a resilient, scalable digital presence that can support its rapidly expanding economies and populations.

Across these regions, the IAEA steadfastly supports the growth of economies. We help countries examine their readiness to introduce or expand nuclear power programmes. Our review missions cover everything from legal and regulatory requirements to the state of the power grid and human resources. 

The Role of the IAEA

As nuclear energy and AI converge, we are facilitating the safe integration of AI into nuclear operations. Digital resilience, regulatory capacity and a common scientific base are key.

Equally, we are accelerating nuclear energy deployment. The IAEA has deep experience across the full spectrum of technologies, from large reactors and SMRs, to AI applications. 

The IAEA is the bridge to helping AI grow with the safe companion of nuclear energy. We are at the centre of the global nuclear safety standards system and support countries in building nuclear energy programmes through our Milestones Approach.

We help nations benefit from nuclear energy for electricity, for desalination, for medical research, and for radiotherapy care, to name but a few examples. This requires close collaboration with governments, regulators, academia, industry and local communities. More and more, we are poised to help nations benefit from nuclear energy for AI.

We have created pioneering partnerships with the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and are in the process of doing the same with other regional development banks. Together we help countries meet their economic ambitions. 

Ensuring success requires not only financing, but also the policies, expertise and safeguards that make investment sound, sustainable and trustworthy.

As the Spanish poet Antonio Machado said: “We make the path by walking.”

The Agency walks with every nation.

Atoms for Algorithms

Over the coming two days, you will have the chance to walk together and to discuss how to make this alliance – Atoms for Algorithms – happen. It is why we have assembled this outstanding group of representatives from every corner of the fields of AI, nuclear energy and beyond.

The interest in being part of this Symposium, here in person and online, is immense – representatives of 252 different organizations are registered: 23 nuclear operators; 13 State corporations; 13 AI and technology companies; 25 nuclear suppliers; 11 SMR and advanced reactor developers; 8 national laboratories; 19 research institutions; 28 universities; 29 regulatory bodies; 15 government agencies and ministries; 5 intergovernmental organizations; 10 industry associations, 8 NGOs; 21 consulting and engineering firms; 7 waste management and decommissioning companies; 7 financial and legal firms; and that still leaves 10 in other categories. 

I encourage you to talk to each other openly, continue the dialogue when you return home, collaborate across borders and disciplines, and come back to report on how you have transformed ideas into real progress.

Through the ideas and expertise you share this week, the IAEA will develop a framework and concrete action plans together with experts from both the AI and nuclear fields.

Our goal is to deliver tangible and coordinated outcomes that do two things: 1. advance clean energy solutions for AI and data centres; and 2.  improve performance and accelerate the deployment of nuclear energy technologies.

We will make it happen by using the many avenues we’ve already built delivering the IAEA’s “Atoms for Peace and Development” mission, and by establishing partnerships with you, with our Member States, and with other key stakeholders.  

I would like to thank the US, Japan and the other contributors who have supported this Symposium.

In closing, I promise you: the IAEA will stay ahead of the curve. We will support you, create opportunities, and remain an impartial, technical, ever-innovating global asset that serves the international community and you.

Let’s work for a future where AI expands human creativity, data centres run on clean, reliable power, nuclear anchors a sustainable digital age, and every region benefits.

If we get this right, we will shape a century worthy of our highest aspirations.

As Niels Bohr is said to have quipped: “Prediction is very difficult, especially about the future.”

Then, let’s not predict the future, let’s build it. 

If we succeed, one day, in whatever language AI invents, it will say this: “They understood the challenge and they did what was needed.”

Thank you.