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Between home and displacement in Lebanon

Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

“A small slope, starting from below with a big chinaberry tree. You go up a little, there is a loquat tree with big, delicious fruit that we’re always climbing… A small, cozy home – two rooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom, and I was so happy with it.”

Like a child describing a house seen in a dream, Warde* spoke to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams about her home in Deir Al-Zahrani, in Nabatiyeh governorate, southern Lebanon.

After the latest escalation of the Israeli war in Lebanon broke out 2 March, Warde remained in her home with her husband, son, and three daughters for 18 days amidst the roar of shelling and relentless airstrikes. They stayed until Israeli missiles struck directly behind their house, leaving people dead and injured, and forcing the family to flee in search of safety. Warde is one of the women our teams met in shelters in Beirut and Jiyeh in Mount Lebanon, where we are providing medical services through mobile clinics, launched as part of the emergency response to the escalation of war in Lebanon.

War, displacement, and compound suffering

At its peak, the Israeli war displaced more than one million people in Lebanon. As of 22 July, more than 375,000 of them remain unable to return home, or simply no longer have homes to return to, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Forcibly displaced people endure the ongoing toll of war and displacement, which extends far beyond the loss of a home and stability. The intense violence of Israeli warplanes and the accompanying sonic booms caused Walaa* to suffer a miscarriage. She was displaced with her husband, son, and daughter from Mayfadoun in Nabatiyeh governorate. 

“The sound of the warplanes was so frightening,” says Walaa. “No matter how much faith one has in God, fear is out of your hands.” 

As for Halime, displaced with her husband and daughter from Qaaqaaiyet El-Jisr in Nabatiyeh to a public school in Beirut, displacement has weighed heavily on her physically and psychologically.

“Everything here is hard for me. I can’t accept it. I’ve developed so much stress that I can no longer stand on my feet or walk,” says Halime. “If I want to get up off the floor, my husband has to pull me up. I went to the doctor and ran tests, and it turned out I have inflammation throughout my entire body.”

Children bear double burdens

Those displaced were often forced to leave their homes multiple times due to ongoing Israeli military attacks, even after the so-called ceasefire announced in April. This created a state of volatility and uncertainty that compounded the hardships displaced people were already facing, from inadequate conditions in shelters – particularly regarding water and sanitation – to disrupted livelihoods, financial distress, and challenges in accessing healthcare.

Children, in addition to the challenges they share with their families, have had their education disrupted and have been torn away from their daily surroundings. 

“Not a single child is at peace. They go out and play a bit at the sports club, but the real challenge is with their studies,” says Warde. “Nothing is available. Every child now has emotional distress and depression, feeling like, ‘I’m not in my home.’ There is no future in sight.”

Mohamad Ali and his wife, Walaa, spoke to us about their daughter’s deteriorating state after her close friend was killed in an Israeli airstrike.

“Our daughter suffered and is still suffering psychologically from this loss. She was texting her, telling her, ‘I want to come see you’, and then they bombed her house,” they say. “Her friend, her friend’s mother, aunt, and cousins were all martyred. I’ve struggled so much with her; she has developed health and psychological problems.”

Many shelters suffer from severe overcrowding alongside poor sanitary conditions, compromising the privacy of those sharing these spaces. Halime describes the difficulties faced by her 13-year-old daughter. 

“When my daughter came to the public school here, her initial reaction was that she didn’t want to live here,” says Halime. “But reality set in: ‘Darling, there is no home. Right now, there’s only this school to be our shelter. You have to accept it.’ It was hard for her the first few days, but then she managed. Still, she spends most of her time in the room.”

Memories of home and hope for return

Nisrine was displaced from her home in Seddiqine, Sour/Tyre, and returned when the ceasefire was first announced. However, she was soon forced to leave again with the renewed Israeli military threats against her village. 

“I miss everything about my house,” says Nisrine. “Everything, everything, everything. During the truce, we went up and thought it was over.” 

“But when I went to the house and saw the destruction, I felt it was going to be a long process,” she continues. “I brought everything I needed: mouneh [preserved seasonal foods], olive oil, oil-cured aubergines, my spices.” 

In early July, following the de-escalation in southern Lebanon, Nisrine returned to her village; however, she remains unable to return to her home.

Warde deeply misses her home’s garden; during her displacement, she even bought flowers and plants, dreaming of bringing them along when she returns home.

“I’m someone who loves flowers so much,” says Warde. “I have a long walkway, all planted with flowers… Roses, Brugmansia, summer seasonal flowers… Every flower has a story and a name, and I care for them like my own children.”

Warde remains displaced in Jiyeh, far from her village.

Walaa longingly awaits her return home, especially since she can no longer cook as she used to, due to the lack of an equipped kitchen in the shelter. 

“I love cooking food and making sweets so much,” Walaa says. “The last dish I cooked was stuffed grape leaves in olive oil when we went back during the truce, and I made ghraybe [shortbread cookies]. It pains me that it’s been so long since I’ve cooked a meal.” 

Despite the cruelty of displacement, Mohamad Ali holds onto a few cherished memories. 

“If there’s anything we’ll hold on to from our displacement, it’s the good people we’ve met, the people who helped us, and those who welcomed us,” he says. “They made us feel like we weren’t strangers.”

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals.

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Spain: Ensure human rights, dignity and humanity are central in response to exceptional arrival of people in Ceuta

Source: Amnesty International –

Reacting to the crossing of tens of thousands of people, including children, from Morocco to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta and the reported deaths of 43 people, Esteban Beltrán, Director of Amnesty International Spain, said: 

“We are monitoring this situation very closely. Spanish and Moroccan authorities must put their human rights obligations at the centre of their response to the situation. They must ensure access to the asylum system for those who request it and uphold the human rights of all migrants, irrespective of their mode of arrival, without discrimination. 

“The large number of people arriving in Ceuta and the circumstances of crossings must not distract from the fact that under international law, the principle of non-refoulement is absolute and collective expulsions are prohibited in all cases. 

Spanish and Moroccan authorities must put their human rights obligations at the centre of their response to the situation

Esteban Beltrán, Amnesty International Spain

“All forces deployed must act in accordance with international law and standards, including with regards to the use of force. Spanish authorities must also ensure that adequate healthcare and social care resources are deployed to respond to the needs of the people, including to cater for the needs of children and others at increased risk of human rights violations. 

“Amnesty International calls on Spanish authorities to take necessary steps to prevent discriminatory impacts in their response to the situation, particularly on racialized people and children, and condemn the spread of racist rhetoric.”

Background

Ceuta authorities stated that over 60,000 people are estimated to have crossed. Spain has deployed army units in Ceuta to support the police and the Guardia Civil. 

Reports indicate that thousands of people are sleeping on the streets. Amnesty International will continue to monitor the situation for any evidence of human rights violations in border control, such as excessive use of force or violations including in the obligation of non-refoulement.  

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‘Ride the wave of momentum’: Australia announces once-in-a-decade Marine Parks Network review

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

In response to the federal government announcing its once-in-a-decade review of Australia’s Marine Parks Network, the following lines can be attributed to Elle Lawless, Senior Campaigner at Greenpeace Australia Pacific: 

“Greenpeace Australia Pacific welcomes today’s announcement that the Albanese Government will review Australia’s Commonwealth Marine Parks Network. This is a rare, once-in-a-decade opportunity to strengthen our marine parks and ban industrial fishing in Australia’s marine protected areas.

“Australians would be appalled to know that more than half of Australia’s Marine Parks Network currently allows for extractive industries, like longlining, bottom trawling and oil and gas mining. These so-called ‘protected’ areas were designed to safeguard our beloved ocean wildlife and underwater ecosystems – that is what Australians expect. Damaging industrial industries should not be given a free pass to trawl, fish, drill or extract from our marine parks.”

“With the first Ocean COP just around the corner, and off the back of Australia’s move to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty earlier this year, the Australian government has a unique opportunity to ride the wave of this momentum and solidify itself as a true global ocean leader.

“Greenpeace Australia Pacific is calling for industrial activities to be banned from our protected waters and for at least 30% of Australia’s ocean to be protected as ocean sanctuaries. This review presents a rare opportunity to create more ocean sanctuaries, true blue havens where ocean life can recover, thrive and repopulate the surrounding waters.”

—ENDS—

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Nicaragua: Constitutional reform seeks to dismantle the right to participate in public affairs

Source: Amnesty International –

In response to the constitutional reform initiative put forward by the Nicaraguan authorities to extend the presidential term and permanently exclude from electoral processes people labelled by the government as “traitors” or “coup plotters”, Amnesty International warns that these measures represent a further step in dismantling the right of Nicaraguans to participate in the public affairs of their country.

The right of all people to take part in the conduct of public affairs, including the right to vote and to be elected in genuine elections without unreasonable restrictions, is recognised under Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Nicaragua remains bound by this treaty and cannot arbitrarily eliminate or restrict these rights.

“This electoral reform is an attempt to consolidate a system in which the state arbitrarily decides who may exercise a fundamental human right and who is excluded from doing so on political grounds,” said Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

This electoral reform is an attempt to consolidate a system in which the state arbitrarily decides who may exercise a fundamental human right and who is excluded from doing so on political grounds,”

Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

The reform was presented following statements made by Co-President Daniel Ortega during a commemorative event on 19 July, when he declared that “there will be no more elections here”, marking the beginning of a process to incorporate these restrictions into the country’s legal framework.

These measures form part of a sustained process of concentration of power and closure of civic space that intensified following the repression of the 2018 protests, during which, according to civil society organisations and regional and international human rights mechanisms, more than 300 people were killed. Since then, the authorities have cancelled the legal status of more than 5,000 civil society organisations, shut down independent media outlets and arbitrarily stripped people considered to be political opponents, journalists and human rights defenders of their nationality, leaving many stateless and forcing many others into exile.

Far from reversing this deterioration, the authorities have continued dismantling the rule of law and systematically ignoring the recommendations made by international human rights mechanisms. In 2025, they promoted a constitutional reform that abolished the separation of powers and subordinated the legislative, judicial and electoral branches to the Presidency.

More recently, in July 2026, hundreds of legal professionals were stripped of their licences to practise, in what UN experts described as a purge of the legal profession that leaves victims of repression with virtually no access to independent legal representation.

“Behind every organisation that has been shut down, every licence revoked and every person stripped of their nationality is someone whom the state has deprived of the ability to express themselves, organise and decide the future of their country. This is what the announcement seeks to turn into law,” added Ana Piquer.

Behind every organisation that has been shut down, every licence revoked and every person stripped of their nationality is someone whom the state has deprived of the ability to express themselves, organise and decide the future of their country. This is what the announcement seeks to turn into law,” 

Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

Amnesty International urges the Nicaraguan authorities to refrain from adopting any law or reform aimed at eliminating or unduly restricting the right of people to participate in the public affairs of their country.

The authorities must guarantee periodic and genuine elections through universal suffrage and under conditions that ensure the free expression of the will of the electorate, in accordance with Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. They must also end all reprisals against those who exercise or promote this right, including restrictions on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly that make effective civic and political participation impossible.

The organisation also calls on the UN Human Rights Council and its member states to ensure that the Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua specifically monitors the proposed legislative measures and their impacts.

Amnesty International further calls on other states not to recognise or normalise the suppression of this right as a sovereign domestic decision, and to raise the situation in all relevant multilateral forums, demanding that Nicaragua comply with all its binding obligations under international human rights law, particularly those it has voluntarily undertaken.

Amnesty International will monitor and analyse the proposed reforms and document their impact on the rights of Nicaraguans living in the country and those in exile.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact [email protected] 

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Oil and gas Shell pockets equivalent of an average UK annual salary ‘every 37 seconds’ as Greenpeace targets oil giant over ‘shameful’ Q2 profits Greenpeace activists deployed an electric advertising van across central London this morning to coincide with Shell’s colossal second-quarter earnings announcement.  The stunt highlights what the organisation described as the “obscene”… by Molly Robson July 30, 2026

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

Greenpeace activists deployed an electric advertising van across central London this morning to coincide with Shell’s colossal second-quarter earnings announcement. 

The stunt highlights what the organisation described as the “obscene” profits being made by one of the world’s biggest fossil fuel companies while communities across the globe suffer the escalating impacts of climate change.

Shell today reported almost $10 billion ($9.84 billion or £7.4 billion)  in profit for the second quarter of 2026 alone.

Images from today’s action are available here.

Greenpeace analysis shows the scale of those profits:

  • Shell made the equivalent of an average UK worker’s annual salary in profit every 37 seconds.
  • An average UK worker would need to work for around 210,000 years – or 5,300 full working lifetimes – to earn what Shell made in just three months.
  • Shell’s Q2 profits alone could have funded around 4.7 GW of new onshore wind capacity – enough to generate electricity for around 5.8 million UK homes.
  • The fossil fuel giant’s Q2 earnings could cover the annual energy bills of nearly 4.5 million UK households – more than every household in London, based on the current Ofgem price cap of £1,663 a year for a typical direct debit household.
  • Someone earning over £9,900 every day since the birth of Jesus still wouldn’t have earned as much as Shell made in profit in the last three months alone.

Responding to Shell’s bumper second-quarter profits, Greenpeace political campaigner Rudy Schulkind said:

“We’re running out of words to describe the obscenity of these numbers. As these figures land, Europe is engulfed by apocalyptic wildfires, communities across Asia are reeling from devastating floods, and the UK battles through drought and yet more dangerous heat. 

These aren’t anomalies; they’re the defining story of the fossil fuel age: Shell takes the profits, and the rest of us pick up the catastrophic bill.

“There is nothing to celebrate about a business model that generates billions for shareholders while families lose their homes, farmers’ crops fail, public services buckle and future generations inherit an increasingly unstable climate. Let’s be clear: these profits are built on a business model that is upending lives across the world.”

The protest comes as the Northern Hemisphere experiences another summer of destructive climate extremes. Across Europe, North Africa and beyond, communities have endured deadly heatwaves, catastrophic wildfires, prolonged drought and devastating floods.

In the UK, record-breaking temperatures this summer are estimated to have contributed to around 2,700 excess deaths, while prolonged dry conditions have left half of England officially in ‘exceptionally serious’ drought. Since mid-July, wildfires have swept across France, Spain and Portugal, forcing more than 300,000 people to evacuate.

Scientists have concluded that the extreme temperatures experienced across the UK and Europe this summer would have been virtually impossible without human-caused climate change driven primarily by the burning of fossil fuels. Despite this, the oil and gas industry continues to lobby the Burnham government to approve new North Sea oil and gas developments, including the controversial Rosebank and Jackdaw fields.

Schulkind added:

“Andy Burnham’s Labour government has a choice. It can continue shielding the extraordinary profits of oil and gas giants, or it can make polluters pay by strengthening oil and gas taxation and using the revenue to help households with the cost of living, strengthen our resilience against extreme weather, and supercharge the transition to clean, affordable energy. A government that claims to be on the side of working people cannot credibly do both.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

How each figure was calculated (all at £7.4 billion):

  • Shell earns an average UK annual salary every 37 seconds.
    Based on Shell’s reported Q2 2026 profit of £7.4 billion over a 91-day quarter (7,862,400 seconds), the company earned approximately £934 in profit every second. Using an average UK full-time annual salary of £35,000, this equates to the average worker’s annual salary every 37.5 seconds, rounded to 37 seconds.
  • 210,000 years / 5,300 working lifetimes.
    Based on an average UK full-time annual salary of £35,000, it would take an average worker approximately 211,428 years to earn £7.4 billion, rounded to 210,000 years. Assuming a 40-year working career, this is equivalent to approximately 5,286 working lifetimes, rounded to 5,300 lifetimes.
  • Enough to generate electricity for 5.8 million homes:
    Using Arup’s central capital expenditure estimate of £1,588 per kW for UK onshore wind (DESNZ, July 2025), £7.4 billion could fund approximately 4.66GW of new onshore wind capacity. Applying Arup’s central 38.1% load factor, this would generate around 15.6TWh of electricity annually. Based on the DESNZ/Ofgem medium annual household electricity consumption of 2,700kWh, this is enough to power approximately 5.77 million UK homes, rounded to 5.8 million.
  • Enough to cover the annual energy bills of nearly 4.5 million households: Using Ofgem’s energy price cap for 1 July–30 September 2026 of £1,663 per year for a typical dual-fuel direct debit household, £7.4 billion would cover the annual energy bills of approximately 4,449,789 households, rounded to nearly 4.5 million households. For comparison, this is more than the total number of households in London.
  • £9,900 every day since the birth of Jesus. Someone earning £9,900 every day from the birth of Jesus until today (calculated using 2,026 years × 365.25 days) would have earned approximately £7.33 billion – still around £73 million less than Shell’s £7.4 billion profit in Q2 2026 alone. This figure is converted from the original dollar comparison using an exchange rate of US$1.334 to £1 and rounded down to ensure the comparison remains accurate.
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Pregnant women in eastern Chad are malnourished amid aid cuts

Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

N’djamena – More than one in five pregnant and breastfeeding women screened by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in the eastern Chadian border town of Adré during the first six months of 2026 were acutely malnourished. Three-quarters of them belonged to host communities excluded from local food distributions, due to rigid aid rules which limit access strictly to registered refugees amid critical funding shortfalls.

MSF is calling on international donors to fund Chad’s 2026 response plans and to explicitly include host communities in food and nutrition assistance. Amid crippling funding cuts, MSF stresses that Chadian authorities and UNHCR, the UN’s refugee agency, must guarantee that food, water, and health services meet emergency standards for both refugees and host communities before proceeding with any further relocations to Metché and Arkoum.

Since the war in Sudan began, more than 930,000 Sudanese refugees have crossed into Chad, over 80 per cent of them women and children; more than 700,000 have crossed through Adré alone. Since April 2023, UNHCR and Chadian authorities have relocated 646,216 people from border transit sites inland, with 45,321 of those occurring since January 2026 under the accelerated programme. 

“Having survived months of relentless violence, refugees arrive in Adré physically shattered, malnourished and deeply traumatised, only to be met with a brutal new reality, finding themselves in areas where host communities are already living in poverty and humanitarian actors remain scarce,” says Léa Ledru, MSF Project Coordinator in Adré. “Relocation does not resolve this: it simply moves the refugee population from one under-resourced host community’s doorstep to another’s.”

Between January and June 2026, MSF screened 5,785 lactating and pregnant women in Adré; 1,225, or 21.2%, were moderately or severely malnourished (GAM), significantly above the 15% emergency threshold that defines a critical humanitarian crisis. This includes 937 women (16.2%) with moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) and 288 (5%) with severe acute malnutrition (SAM), drastically elevating risks of miscarriage, obstetric haemorrhage, and premature birth. 

Amna Abderahim, a Sudanese refugee who fled El Geneina, gives therapeutic milk to her daughter Djout Mahamat, 11 months old, who is being treated for severe acute malnutrition in MSF’s therapeutic feeding centre. Adré, Chad, May 2026.
Alexis Huguet / MSF

No organisation provides structured treatment for malnourished women; responses are limited to sporadic distributions of fortified flour blends whenever supplies are available. Meanwhile, child malnutrition admissions at the MSF-supported Adré health centre rose 30% between January and April 2026 compared with the same period in 2025.

Financial constraints triggered stockouts of World Food Programme (WFP) supplies for treating MAM in May and June, disrupting care for moderately malnourished children and pregnant and lactating women. Stock delivered at the end of June is projected to run out in September, with no clarity on further donations.

Pipelines to treat acute malnutrition also remain severely strained; only two-thirds of annual therapeutic food needs are covered, forcing humanitarian organisations to ration treatment to 10 packets per child weekly, instead of 14. While this stretches stock into early 2027, full clinical doses of therapeutic food would exhaust supplies by November 2026. Meanwhile, host communities remain excluded from general food distributions in Adré, even as soaring local markets push basic essentials out of reach. For example, the cost of a 20-litre container of cooking oil has skyrocketed from 12,000 CFA francs (US$21) to 20,000 CFA francs ($35).

The funding gap is not abstract: chronic underfunding has forced WFP to prioritise, covering food assistance in Adré and Metché since January 2026 through bi-monthly cash transfers portioned to last only 30 of every 60 days. Even that reduced amount runs out this month, putting the ration at risk of stopping for refugees too.

More than 10,000 refugees from Adré are expected to arrive in Metché camp before the end of September, adding to the 43,300 refugees and host community members already living there. Meanwhile, MSF and Action Contre la Faim (ACF) remain the sole healthcare providers in the camp. In addition, teams are receiving malnourished children from Arkoum and Allacha amid fading support, driving paediatric admissions at the MSF-supported hospital up 75 per cent, from 382 in the first half of 2025 to 670 in the same period of 2026. 

Water availability sits at just 8 litres per person daily, well below the 20-litre emergency minimum, forcing families to drink directly from unsafe water sources. Consequently, diarrhoea cases surged from 634 in the first half of 2025 to 1,044 in 2026. 

In camps lacking safe water and latrines, waterborne disease spreads rapidly among refugees and host communities alike, both already weakened by hunger. With the rainy season underway, these gaps echo the conditions behind last year’s cholera outbreak, which killed 167 people among 2,979 cases between July and December 2025.  

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Anti-migrant violence triggers emergency at the South Africa-Zimbabwe border

Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

People fleeing violence, intimidation and harassment sparked by anti-migrant protests in South Africa on 30 June need ongoing medical care, protection and humanitarian support as tens of thousands move through the country on their return journey to neighbouring countries. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams at the South Africa-Zimbabwe border towns of Musina and Beitbridge have been providing treatment to people who are traumatised and those who are displaced who have had their access to lifesaving HIV and other chronic medication disrupted. 

Run by the South African government, the remote temporary repatriation centre about 20 minutes’ drive from the small town of Musina is dusty and dotted with large white tents, where, despite it being winter, the mercury hovers around 30 degrees Celsius. Thousands of people gathering there are fearful and desperate; the mood is overwhelmingly desolate. The medical tent where MSF is running a clinic is quite far away from where people queue daily for buses back to their home countries, making it harder to reach some patients.

While working in a Zimbabwean gold mine six years ago, Munyaradzi* was exposed to a toxic chemical and still struggles with debilitating pain. Now travelling to Musina from where he has been living in Dennilton, a rural town straddling the Limpopo-Mpumalanga provincial border in South Africa, he has not had access to his chronic pain medication for seven weeks.

“That chemical affected me 2020 and I started drinking tablets from that year until now… I know they don’t like us here in South Africa, so I get my mind to go back home, but the police catch me before I go … they take me to police station,” says Munyaradzi. “I told them about my situation that I am drinking tablets. [The police] didn’t take me to clinic until now.” 

“That is why I have come here because I am trying to get my medicine,” he says.  “My body has got so much pain. The chemical enters in my skin and starts to damage my muscles and bones.”

Douglas Zulu, an MSF community health worker, addresses a group of Zimbabwean returnees at the Beitbridge reception centre before they continue their journey home. Zimbabwe, July 2026.
Conrad Gweru/MSF

Across the border in Beitbridge, MSF counsellors are concerned about the trauma their patients are experiencing. Nobuhle*, who has been living in Soweto, Johannesburg, and working as a chef at a local restaurant, was devastated to return home from work on 17 July to find her house had been burnt down. Luckily, her three children were away at the time.

“I found my house burnt. I lost my passport and permit, all my clothes and furniture, my children’s birth records and birth certificates,” says Nobuhle. “I have nothing with me. All I have is this small handbag. I do not even have a change of clothes.” 

“I thought having a passport and permit would save me, but no, I was wrong. I wanted to kill myself. I have lost hope, and I do not know what I will do”.

The narrative that the so-called ’self-repatriation’ process is always voluntary is questionable, as many fearful Malawians, Mozambicans, and Zimbabweans insist that they are documented but have little choice other than to flee for their safety. 

Passing through Musina, Joseph*, a Malawian from Pietermaritzburg who has been working as a tailor in South Africa since 1995, started ARVs in 2008. 

“They come to my house and say, ‘you are a foreigner, hamba (go)’. So, I run away and go to hide with my friends,” says Joseph. “Then I go to Durban. I am staying there at the bus station; it was raining, but we are outside.” 

“I leave my [HIV] medication there in the house. I don’t worry about that or the clothes; if I am still alive, I can get it,” he says. “I haven’t taken the medication in a few weeks. It is relief; I got my medication today [from MSF].”

Freedom, a Zimbabwean, moved to South Africa in 2009, where he has been working as an electrician and plumber. Treated in Beitbridge, he was forced to leave South Africa after his health deteriorated because he had been unable to access his antiretroviral (ARV) medication. 

Despite having a valid passport and a work permit, Freedom tells us the documents could not protect him when anti-migrant groups went door-to-door threatening non-South Africans in their homes.

“I defaulted on my medication for three months because of the xenophobic attacks in South Africa. I could no longer access the clinic as I used to, and my condition worsened,” Freedom says. “Before all this, the nurses in South Africa would not take it lightly if we missed the day for collection of our ARVs. Now everything has changed; they no longer want us.” 

“When I arrived on the Zimbabwean side, I was admitted for four days… because I had lost a lot of weight, my leg was swollen, and I was feeling very weak,” he says. “I am happy because I received a one-month supply of ARVs and was referred to a local clinic in Gweru for continued treatment.”

MSF teams are also treating many patients who do not have access to their chronic hypertension medication. Left untreated, high blood pressure can lead to serious complications, including strokes, heart failure, blood clots and even death. 

“We are concerned about access to healthcare disruptions and continuity of care for people living with chronic diseases such as HIV, TB, diabetes, hypertension and mental health conditions,” says Caroline Masunda, MSF emergency medical team lead in Musina. “We are seeing a trend in Musina of patients who have been unable to access lifesaving HIV and TB treatment for months after being turned away from South African healthcare facilities because they are migrants, increasing their risk of treatment failure and, in some cases, developing drug resistance.”

While South African authorities have reported processing over 53,000 migrants for repatriation, many people continue travelling through informal routes. Media reports indicate that 34,000 people have returned to Malawi and 100,000 to Zimbabwe, illustrating the regional scale of displacement. 

“More than 100,000 people fleeing or being displaced are the kind of numbers MSF see in hot conflict areas, not relatively stable democracies like South Africa,” says Masunda. “With so many displaced people, we call on governments in the region to step up collaborative efforts to ensure continuity of care for patients.”

Thousands of people are processed daily in Musina and stay there for an average of 24 hours. While the system appears efficient, MSF warns that vulnerable people may be missed because they are reluctant to leave queues to seek medical care or because they move on before receiving assistance.

* Name changed to protect patient privacy.

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Greenpeace Africa convenes national stakeholders to strengthen DRC’s legal framework on plastic pollution

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

Kinshasa, 30 July 2026 – Greenpeace Africa, in collaboration with the Office of the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Environment, Sustainable Development and New Climate Economy, is convening a two-day multi-stakeholder consultation workshop to advance policy reforms aimed at tackling the growing plastic packaging pollution crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The workshop brings together representatives from government institutions, civil society, academia, the private sector and technical partners to develop concrete recommendations for strengthening the country’s legal and institutional framework on plastic packaging management.

Plastic pollution has become one of the DRC’s most pressing environmental challenges, particularly in Kinshasa, where plastic waste clogs drainage systems, worsens flooding, degrades ecosystems and threatens public health. Despite the adoption of regulations restricting certain plastic products, gaps in implementation, weak enforcement mechanisms and the absence of comprehensive producer responsibility continue to fuel the crisis.

Over the course of the workshop, participants will examine options to strengthen the existing legal framework, including the gradual phase-out of unnecessary single-use plastics, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), deposit-return systems for plastic bottles, environmental fiscal measures, and the promotion of refill and reuse systems as sustainable alternatives. The consultation will also produce technical recommendations for submission to the DRC government and lay the foundation for a stronger national policy on plastic pollution.

“Although the DRC adopted strict measures to ban single-use plastics in 2018, enforcement has remained weak due to numerous exemptions that undermine the effectiveness of the regulation. This workshop presents a critical opportunity for stakeholders to strengthen the law and ensure it delivers the level of environmental protection that Congolese citizens deserve.”

Prof. Georges Milumbu
 DRC Country Coordinator, Greenpeace Africa

Greenpeace Africa warns that plastic pollution has become far more than an environmental issue. It now poses serious risks to public health, urban resilience and sustainable development, particularly in rapidly growing cities such as Kinshasa.

“Single-use plastics are choking Kinshasa’s streets and poisoning its communities. Plastic waste is much more than a visual nuisance—it has intensified flooding over the years and is contaminating our food systems. Addressing this crisis requires bold political leadership and transformative solutions that go beyond waste management.”

Hellen Kahaso Dena
 Project Lead – Plastics Campaign, Greenpeace Africa

With plastic recycling rates in the DRC estimated at only 1–4%, the vast majority of plastic waste ends up in informal dumpsites, waterways and ultimately the Congo River. Greenpeace Africa believes that the country’s response must move beyond band-aid solutions towards preventing waste at the source through circular economy approaches that prioritise refill and reuse systems.

“To prevent waste, build a circular economy and create green jobs, the DRC must integrate refill and reuse systems into its national policies and regulatory frameworks. This shift will complement existing efforts while addressing plastic pollution at its source.”

Hellen Kahaso Dena
 Project Lead – Plastics Campaign, Greenpeace Africa

The workshop will conclude with a set of consensus-based recommendations developed jointly by participants to strengthen the existing anti-single-use plastic regulations and accelerate the country’s transition toward sustainable packaging systems. These recommendations are expected to guide future government action while reinforcing collaboration among public institutions, civil society, technical experts and the private sector.

**ENDS**

Contact:

Raphael Mavambu, Communication & Story-Telling Manager, [email protected], Greenpeace Africa

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A Year After #SaveRajaAmpat, Greenpeace Report Reveals Nickel and Dirty Energy Threats in the Archipelago

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

Jakarta, 30 July 2026. A Greenpeace Indonesia research report released today reveals that one year after public outcry over nickel mining in Raja Ampat through the #SaveRajaAmpat campaign, there is little evidence to suggest that the Indonesian government is working toward full and permanent protection of the area known as the ‘last paradise on Earth’. 

The ‘Unprotected Paradise’ report finds that three nickel mining licenses are in process, with mines planned for the eastern part of Waigeo, Raja Ampat’s largest island. One of the nickel companies has also been trying to activate a coal mining license in Misool, an island in the south of Raja Ampat, and two oil and gas companies produce oil and gas in and around Salawati Island–indicating the extent of dirty energy threats in the archipelago. 

“The Indonesian government’s move last year to revoke 4 nickel mining licenses in Raja Ampat was a welcome step, but it fell far short of providing protection for an area that is the most biodiverse marine ecosystem in the world, which is also the territory of Indigenous Peoples and islanders of Raja Ampat,” said Greenpeace Indonesia’s forest campaign team leader, Arie Rompas. 

The Unprotected Paradise report also finds that:

  • The UN has designated Raja Ampat as a UNESCO biosphere reserve, but maps exclude Kawe Island from the core zone, as well as the areas now threatened by nickel mining.
  • Areas in Raja Ampat that are within the Biosphere Reserve and the earlier Geopark boundaries are still mapped by Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources as areas which could be licensed for coal or other mining activities.
  • One of the most outspoken local politicians against nickel mining is a commissioner of a nickel mining company planning to start operations in East Waigeo.
  • PT Gag Nikel continues operations despite an environmental audit identifying serious failings, including unmitigated coastal sedimentation and inadequate erosion control.
  • Nickel from PT Gag Nikel is supplied to PT Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park (IWIP)[1], where it enters domestic and global supply chains. 

Large parts of the Raja Ampat archipelago, which was already designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark, became a UNESCO biosphere reserve in September 2025. Strangely, the later designation excluded Kawe Island from the core zone of the biosphere reserve, suggesting that lobbying on behalf of the nickel mining industry may have influenced map boundaries. 

Kawe Island was licensed to PT Kawei Sejahtera Mining before the Indonesian government revoked the permit last year. It is an area identified by conservation experts as an important site for manta rays[2], whose global population is vulnerable according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). 

Apart from the risks of new licenses, there are existing environmental threats from PT Gag Nikel operations. The Environment Ministry-mandated audit found several deficiencies, according to then-Minister of Environment Hanif Faisol Nurofiq. Greenpeace has obtained a copy of the letter from the Ministry to PT Gag Nikel, which outlines the extent of the company’s violations, including the ongoing risk of increased sediment loading to the coastal and marine environment, particularly during heavy rainfall, and failure to apply biodiversity protection principles when mining.

Public disclosure from PT Gag’s parent company PT Antam indicates that some of its nickel ore is processed by a company owned by the Tsingshan group. 

PT Tsingshan, a major shareholder of PT IWIP, has established a joint venture company, Youshan Nickel Indonesia, together with Huayou Group. Youshan Nickel makes battery components for electric vehicles in Indonesia. PT Huayou supplies nickel to battery supply chains linked to a number of major EV makers including Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, BMW, Mercedes, Tesla and BYD. It is therefore possible that any of these vehicle supply chains could be linked to nickel ore coming from Raja Ampat. However, a lack of supply chain transparency makes this impossible to confirm at this time.

To shed light on the dirty energy threatening the Raja Ampat archipelago, either from nickel, coal, and oil and gas, Greenpeace activists unfold banners with a main message “Protect Raja Ampat, Stop Dirty Energy” at the opening ceremony of an annual automotive exhibition in Tangerang, Banten today.

“Greenpeace is calling for the full protection of Raja Ampat from industrial activity and for the enforcement of existing laws which are supposed to protect small islands and conservation areas on land and at sea. Important areas for biodiversity and Indigenous Peoples must be off-limits to mining,” said Kiki Taufik, Greenpeace’s global head for Indonesia forest campaign.

Arie Rompas added, “Supply chain actors, including battery producers, must investigate their supply chains and clearly and publicly reject the supply of nickel that originates from any mines in Raja Ampat or other important areas for biodiversity and Indigenous Peoples.” Greenpeace and other NGOs have developed a Global Restricted Areas Map[3]  of areas that should be off-limits to mining. 

Note to Editor:

Read the report ‘Unprotected Paradise: One year on from the Indonesian Government’s decision to stop some of the nickel mining in Raja Ampat”

Photos and videos of nickel mining impacts in Raja Ampat in this link. 

[1]  PT Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park, located in Halmahera, North Maluku, houses a number of nickel and stainless steel processing facilities. Its operations has led to development of new industrial off-grid captive coal power plants, exacerbating climate and health impacts to the surrounding environment. 

[2] https://www.conservation.org/press-releases/2024/04/09/new-research-in-raja-ampat-reveals-vital-insights-into-protecting-vulnerable-reef-manta-rays 

[3] The Global Restricted Areas Map is an interactive tool released by Greenpeace International, Rainforest Foundation Norway, Mighty Earth, and Fern. It highlights global “no-go zones” that should remain completely off-limits to transition and critical minerals mining to protect biodiversity, climate stability, and human rights. See the link https://maps.greenpeace.org/maps/gpint/restricted-areas/?lang=en

Media Contact:

Arie Rompas, Greenpeace Indonesia’s Forest Campaign Team Leader, [email protected]

Budiarti Putri, Greenpeace Indonesia’s Communication Campaigner, [email protected]

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EU has failed to act as Italian rules obstruct sea rescues

Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

The European Commission has still not provided a final decision or indicated what action it will take, three years after Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the Association for Juridical Studies on Immigration (ASGI), EMERGENCY, Oxfam Italia, and SOS Humanity submitted complaints concerning Italy’s rules on civilian search and rescue activities. On the anniversary of the complaint, MSF is reiterating our call for the Commission to provide a decision.

The complaint concerns Italian Decree-Law 1/2023, known as the Piantedosi decree, as well as Italy’s practice of assigning distant ports to rescue ships, and the abusive use of Port State Control inspections. These measures continue to obstruct lifesaving search and rescue operations in the central Mediterranean Sea. Distant port assignments force rescue ships to spend less time in the search and rescue area and delay survivors’ access to essential services on land. Between January 2023 and December 2024, MSF’s rescue vessel Geo Barents was forced to navigate an additional 64,966 kilometres and spent 163 extra days at sea.

The Piantedosi decree imposes a series of restrictive rules that, in practice, place operational constraints on civilian rescue activities. Organisations that do not comply risk fines, detention, or even confiscation of their vessels. Since 2023, NGO rescue ships have been detained on 43 occasions, amounting to over 1,100 imposed days of detention. Yet these sanctions have repeatedly failed to stand up in court; to date, none of the 43 sanctions imposed have been confirmed by a final court judgement.

While the Commission delays, people continue to die at sea. By the end of July 2026, almost 1,500 people were feared dead or missing in the central Mediterranean, after 1,745 deaths in 2025. The central Mediterranean remains the world’s deadliest migration route, with more than 26,700 people dead or missing since 2014, according to the International Organization for Migration.

“Behind these numbers are people —men, women and children— who have the right to be rescued,” says Julie Melichar, MSF Search and Rescue representative. “These policies have repeatedly failed to stand up in Italian courts when sanctions against rescue organisations are challenged.” 

“Italy must stop obstructing lifesaving search and rescue work, and the European Commission must finally act,” says Melichar.

These policies and practices are not in line with EU member states’ obligations under European and international maritime and human rights laws. They endanger the lives of people on the move and undermine the work of organisations trying to save lives at sea. The European Commission cannot continue to look away.