It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Wednesday, December 13, 2023
Does the UN General Assembly have any power to stop Israel's war on Gaza?
Is the General Assembly able to step in when the Security Council is unable to make a decision to stop Israel's war on Gaza?
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter [Getty]
Many are hoping that a vote on Tuesday in the UN General Assembly on a non-binding resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire will demonstrate widespread global support for ending Israel's onslaught on Gaza, now in its third month.
After the US vetoed a resolution in the Security Council on Friday demanding a humanitarian ceasefire, Arab and Islamic nations called for an emergency session of the 193-member General Assembly on Tuesday afternoon to vote on a resolution making the same demand.
But is the UN General Assembly able to step in when the Security Council is unable to decide to stop Israel's war on Gaza?
What power does the General Assembly have?
According to the General Assembly’s 1950 resolution 377A (V), widely known as "Uniting for Peace", if the Security Council is unable to act because of the lack of unanimity among its five veto-wielding permanent members, the Assembly has the power to make recommendations to the wider UN membership for collective measures to maintain or restore international peace and security.
For instance, most frequently, the Security Council determines when and where a UN peace operation should be deployed, but historically, when the Council has been unable to make a decision, the General Assembly has done so.
For example, in 1956, the General Assembly established the First UN Emergency Force (UNEF I) in the Middle East.
In addition, the General Assembly may meet in an Emergency Special Session if requested by nine members of the Security Council or by a majority of the Members of the Assembly - as it is doing on Tuesday.
However, unlike Security Council resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are non-binding, meaning that countries are not obligated to implement them.
To date, the General Assembly has held 11 Emergency Special Sessions - eight of which have been requested by the Security Council.
On 27 February 2022 - shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine - the Security Council decided to call an Emergency Special Session of the General Assembly in its resolution 2623 (2022) due to a lack of unanimity among its permanent members, preventing it from exercising its primary responsibility of "the maintenance of international peace and security".
As a result, on 1 March 2022, the General Assembly, meeting in an emergency session, adopted a resolution by which it deplored "the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter". It also demanded Moscow immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine and completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders.
On 26 April, amid growing criticism of the lack of action by the Security Council to stop the war in Ukraine, the General Assembly adopted by consensus a landmark resolution requiring the five permanent members of the Council to justify their use of the veto.
While the General Assembly's resolutions are not legally binding, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Monday that the assembly’s messages "are also very important" and reflect world opinion.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, said on Sunday that the defeated resolution in the Security Council was cosponsored by 103 countries, and he is hoping for more cosponsors and a high vote for the General Assembly resolution on Tuesday.
In the first UN response to the war on Gaza, the General Assembly on 27 October called for a "humanitarian truce" leading to a cessation of hostilities. The vote was 120-14 with 45 abstentions.
After four failures, the Security Council on 15 November adopted its first resolution, calling for "urgent and extended humanitarian pauses" in Gaza to address the escalating crisis for Palestinian civilians during Israel's relentless aerial and ground attacks.
That vote in the 15-member council was 12-0 with the US, UK, and Russia abstaining.
The US and UK said they abstained because the resolution did not condemn Hamas’ 7 October attack on Israel, and Russia because it failed to demand a humanitarian ceasefire, which Israel and the United States oppose.
As the death toll in Gaza has mounted during Israel’s onslaught on the besieged enclave, calls for a ceasefire have escalated, and on Friday the US was isolated in its support for Israel in the Security Council, where the vote was 13-1 with the United Kingdom abstaining.
The Security Council meeting and vote last Friday were a response to a letter from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter, which enables a UN chief to raise threats he sees to international peace and security.
He warned of a "humanitarian catastrophe" in Gaza and urged the council to demand a humanitarian ceasefire.
Guterres said he raised Article 99 - which hadn’t been used at the UN since 1971 — because "there is a high risk of the total collapse of the humanitarian support system in Gaza".
The UN anticipates this would result in "a complete breakdown of public order and increased pressure for mass displacement into Egypt", he warned.
Gaza was at "a breaking point" and desperate people were at serious risk of starvation, Guterres said, stressing that Hamas' attack on Israel "can never justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people".
WASHINGTON: The Israel-Hamas war in Gaza is having a severe impact on the Palestinian economy, according to the World Bank, which now estimates sharp economic contraction this year and next.
The conflict, sparked by Hamas’ cross-border attacks on October 7 that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli figures, and saw around 240 hostages taken back to Gaza, is now dragging on into its third month.
The human toll of Israel’s fierce response has been extreme: More than 18,400 people in Gaza have been killed, the majority of them women and children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
The UN estimates 1.9 million of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced by the war, half of them children, as Israel’s overwhelming aerial bombardment in the days after October 7 was subsequently accompanied by a ground invasion aimed at destroying Hamas.
Beyond the immediate human cost, the Israel-Hamas conflict has also “severely impacted the Palestinian economy,” the World Bank announced in a statement published Tuesday.
Gaza’s contribution to the overall Palestinian economy, which includes the West Bank, had already shrunk from around 36 percent in 2005 to just 17 percent last year, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.
Israel’s fierce response to the Hamas attacks on October 7, along with the shuttering of its borders to Palestinian workers from both Gaza and the West Bank, is likely to severely impact the Palestinian economy, according to the Bank.
Despite Gaza’s small economic contribution, the World Bank now expects the overall Palestinian economy to contract by 3.7 percent this year, down sharply from its pre-war forecast of a 3.2 percent increase.
Next year, the situation is expected to be even worse.
Whereas the World Bank previously anticipated growth of 3.0 percent in 2024, it now expects an overall contraction of 6.0 percent – on the assumption that the severity of the conflict decreases next year.
If the war drags on, the economic impact could be even worse.
In response, the World Bank has announced a $35 million support package aimed at meeting the immediate medical needs of the population in Gaza.
The package, which requires board approval, would provide “emergency relief for the affected people of Gaza,” the World Bank said.
UK to probe Unilever's environmental claims as part of greenwashing crackdown
Dec 12 (Reuters) - Britain's competition watchdog said on Tuesday it would scrutinise environmental claims made by UK consumer goods giant Unilever (ULVR.L) about certain household essential items, amid a wider crackdown on greenwashing.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it is seeking to make sure shoppers are not being misled after an initial review uncovered a range of concerns that the maker of Dove soap "may be overstating how green certain products are".
"We'll be drilling down into these claims to see if they measure up," said CMA Chief Executive Sarah Cardell.
"We are surprised and disappointed with the CMA's announcement and refute that our claims are in any way misleading," a spokesperson for Unilever said in an emailed statement. "We will continue to co-operate with the CMA and fully comply with further requests for information."
Shares in the London-listed firm opened 0.7% lower on Tuesday.
The regulator is stepping up scrutiny of companies that may be exaggerating their green credentials in an attempt to woo climate-conscious consumers as well as billions of dollars from environmentally focused investor funds.
The CMA had launched a wider probe in January, joining regulators across the United States and Europe as they crack down on potentially false environmental, social and governance-related (ESG) claims made by companies. It last year published a green claims code, a set of guidelines for companies and shoppers to ensure that environmental claims are genuine and not misleading
The watchdog said it had not opened official investigations into other companies, adding that possible outcomes of the Unilever probe include securing undertakings from the company to commit to operational change or taking the firm to court.
Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Kirsten Donovan and Gerry Doyle
'The Discord Leaks' looks at one of the biggest leaks of government secrets in U.S. history
New reporting by The Washington Post and 'Frontline' reveals details about Jack Teixeira’s alleged leak of classified U.S. intelligence on the Discord chat platform, his possible motivations and the red flags officials missed. The documentary premieres Dec. 12 on PBS and online. The Washington Post's Shane Harris joins Morning Joe to discuss.
Dec. 12, 2023
The US refuses to condemn images of stripped Palestinian men before Israeli investigation
Sky News correspondent Mark Stone challenges US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on America's response to Israeli forces detaining a number of Palestinian men who were stripped to their underwear and blindfolded.
December 12, 2023
Myanmar military meets rebel groups with China's help, regime says
Government expects another meeting with ethnic forces leading recent offensive
A flag of a Myanmar rebel force is installed in Khawmawi village on the border with India, as seen from India's northeastern state of Mizoram on Nov. 14.
(Reuters) -- Representatives from Myanmar's ruling military have held talks, facilitated by China, with three armed rebel groups leading an anti-regime offensive, state media reported a military government spokesperson as saying on Monday.
Myanmar's military is battling armed opponents on several fronts, in the fiercest challenge to its grip on the Southeast Asian country since it seized power from an elected government in 2021.
Rebel groups aligned with a pro-democracy parallel government launched a coordinated offensive in late October, taking control of several military posts and towns near the border with China in the north and in western states.
"Myanmar's National Unity and Peacemaking Coordination Committee met with representatives of MNDAA, TNLA and AA with the help of China," said Zaw Min Tun, according to MRTV's Telegram channel, referring to the armed ethnic groups spearheading the offensive. "Based on the development of the conversation, there will likely be another meeting at the end of this month."
It was unclear when or where the meeting took place, and Zaw Min Tun did not elaborate on what was discussed.
Representatives of the three rebel groups did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Chinese officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
The statement comes as fighting continues across two-thirds of the country, killing more than 360 civilians and displacing more than half a million, according to the United Nations.
Flashpoint is South China Sea, not Taiwan: Philippine envoy to U.S.
Romualdez calls China's Xi 'evasive' on tensions, urges multilateral patrols
Philippine and U.S. aircraft take part in a joint maritime exercise in the South China Sea during November. (Philippine Air Force via Reuters)
RYO NAKAMURA,
Nikkei staff writer
December 13, 2023
WASHINGTON -- The skirmishes between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the South China Sea could spark a major conflict at "any time," the Philippine ambassador to the U.S. warns.
The South China Sea "is the flashpoint, not Taiwan," Jose Manuel Romualdez told Nikkei Asia in an interview on Thursday. "[If] anything happens in our area, it's like the beginning of another war, world war."
The Philippines on Sunday said that a Chinese vessel used water cannons and rammed Manila's ships headed to their resupply mission at Ayungin Shoal in the Spratly Islands. This followed an incident a day earlier in which Chinese Coast Guard ships are accused of using water cannons against Philippine civilian vessels near Scarborough Shoal.
The escalations came weeks after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. tried to manage tensions in the critical waterway during an encounter with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in the U.S. state of California.
"[Marcos] wanted to show that 'I'm willing to talk to you.' But it doesn't look like President Xi was in the mood to have anything like that," Romualdez said, calling it "disappointing."
The ambassador said Xi "was very evasive" and "noncommittal."
"He didn't say anything," Romualdez recalled of the leaders meeting. "He just listened, and then he just said, 'We'll just let our defense and our diplomats talk about this."
China asserts historical rights to nearly all of the South China Sea and rejects Manila's own maritime claims. Beijing has defied a 2016 ruling by an international tribunal in the Hague that denied Beijing's historical claim.
Romualdez called for multilateral responses to counter China's coercive actions, including joint patrols in the South China Sea.
"The only way to do that is to have multilateral countries show force," the ambassador said. Citing joint sails and air patrols with the U.S. in late November, he said "it's like a trial run. I think we will have more in the future."
Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told Nikkei during an interview in November that Japan, New Zealand, the U.K., Canada and France are among the candidates to join multilateral patrols in the South China Sea.
The Philippines gives the American military access to nine sites across the archipelago. The arrangement is meant to enable the U.S. to not only provide disaster relief and humanitarian assistance quickly but also respond to contingencies in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.
Romualdez was asked which materials Manila allows the U.S. to preposition in the nine locations.
"Offensive weapons, we have to discuss it on a case-by-case basis. Ammunition can be interpreted many ways," he said, indicating the possibility that the U.S. military might prepare for high-end conflict around the country.
U.S. Gen. Charles Brown Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke Monday by phone with Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. -- chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines -- about the South China Sea.
The readout from the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the military officials "discussed mutual strategic security interests and opportunities for increased military cooperation, including enhancing maritime cooperation, improving interoperability and information sharing, and increasing training and exercises."
Though repeatedly committing to defend the Philippines as a treaty ally, the Pentagon stops short of applying the mutual defense treaty to unsafe operations such as use of water cannons and collisions.
AGRO ECOLOGY
New genetic vulnerability to herbicide found in nearly 50 sweet and field corn lines
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURAL, CONSUMER AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
IMAGE:
RESEARCHERS FROM USDA AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS, AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR DISCUSS THE FIRST PUBLIC REPORT OF SEVERE TOLPYRALATE SENSITIVITY IN CORN.
URBANA, Ill. — When a sweet corn breeder reached out in 2021 to report severe injury from the herbicide tolpyralate, Marty Williams hoped it was a fluke isolated to a single inbred line. But two years later, after methodical field, greenhouse, and genetic testing, his new Pest Management Science study not only confirms sensitivity to tolpyralate in 49 sweet corn and field corn lines, but also reveals a new genetic vulnerability that may affect corn more generally.
Tolpyralate is a relatively new HPPD-inhibiting herbicide labeled for all types of corn. Typically, corn detoxifies HPPD-inhibitors before they can cause injury, through expression of the Nsf1 gene. Corn lines with mutant nsf1 alleles can show sensitivity to HPPD-inhibitors, but that wasn’t the case with tolpyralate in the lines Williams tested. Instead, his study showed tolypyralate sensitivity is related to a different gene entirely, explaining why sensitivity was neither expected nor caught during the breeding process.
“Cross-sensitivity to multiple postemergence herbicides, all linked to mutant nsf1 alleles, has been understood for years. Breeders typically screen with a product like nicosulfuron, an ALS-inhibitor, because it'll identify (i.e., kill) any inbreds that aren’t tolerant to a wide variety of herbicides, including most HPPD-inhibitors,” said Williams, an ecologist with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service and affiliate professor in the Department of Crop Sciences, part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The original sweet corn line from 2021 had been screened with nicosulfuron, showing no injury and indicating the Nsf1 gene was doing its job. Expecting the same result with tolpyralate was reasonable, since no one had reported major crop injury from the new herbicide. So, when tolpyralate injury reared its head, the breeder was baffled.
The unusual case led Williams’ team to start hunting for bleached-white corn — the telltale sign of HPPD-inhibitor injury — around the U. of I. farms.
They didn’t have to hunt long.
Here and there, among strapping green corn rows, were stunted, white stragglers. The team contacted the researchers running trials around the farms to find out what had been sprayed. Tolpyralate, every time.
Faced with a phenomenon that looked less and less like a fluke, Williams’ crew embarked on field and greenhouse trials to determine just how widespread tolpyralate sensitivity was. Having easy access to a sweet corn diversity panel, they focused mostly on that group. But they also tested a narrow panel of field corn genotypes.
From the modest screening, the team documented 49 sweet corn (43) and field corn (6) inbreds that suffered moderate to severe injury from tolpyralate. Importantly, the source of the sugary enhancer gene in sweet corn, a parent line for many sweet corn hybrids, was among the most sensitive genotypes, suggesting sensitivity could be even more widespread.
Interestingly, injury was far worse with the addition of atrazine and herbicide adjuvants commonly co-applied with HPPD-inhibitors.
“When we applied pure tolpyralate to the sensitive sweet corn inbred, the crop looked fine,” Williams said. “But when we added adjuvants recommended by the herbicide label — crop oil or methylated seed oil —we got a severe bleaching response. And when we also included atrazine, which is common with HPPD-inhibitors, plant mortality was rapid.”
Williams clarified it’s not feasible to just remove the adjuvants from the tank. They improve herbicide uptake by weeds and are essential for successful weed control.
“Tolpyralate has agronomic advantages, but obviously it will have limited utility if it harms the crop,” Williams said.
With mounting evidence suggesting nsf1 wasn’t to blame for tolpyralate sensitivity, the team then mapped the genome to find the culprit.
“Using the original sensitive sweet corn line to map the trait, we narrowed it down to the region on chromosome 5 near Nsf1. But it’s not Nsf1, and there's nothing obvious in the genomic region we identified that easily explains tolpyralate sensitivity. So, while we've mapped the trait, the physiological mechanism remains elusive.”
Williams notes that more research is needed to get to the bottom of tolpyralate sensitivity, both in terms of the physiological mechanism and how widespread the trait might be in all types of corn. He said there’s potential to develop molecular markers that can identify sensitive corn lines, which would be useful in improving tolerance to tolpyralate.
For now, he wants to raise awareness among corn breeders, growers, and chemical companies working on the next generation of HPPD-inhibitors, especially since this is the first incidence of a genetic vulnerability to a corn herbicide documented in over three decades.
“What we have learned from this research may be helpful beyond tolpyralate itself, since several new HPPD-inhibitors derived from the same chemical structure are being developed,” Williams said. “If we can avoid additional problems in the future, let's do it now."
The study, “First report of severe tolpyralate sensitivity in corn (Zea mays) discovers a novel genetic factor conferring crop response to an herbicide,” is published in Pest Management Science [DOI: 10.1002/ps.7896]. Authors include Marty Williams, Nicholas Hausman, Ana Saballos, Christopher Landau, Matthew Brooks, Pat Flannery, William Tracy, and Charlie Thompson.
URBANA, Ill. – Nutrient runoff from agricultural production is a significant source of water pollution in the U.S., and climate change that produces extreme weather events is likely to exacerbate the problem. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign looks at how extreme rainfall impacts runoff and suggests possible mitigation strategies.
“We look at more than a decade of precipitation events in the state of Wisconsin and quantify the increase in nutrient runoff right around the event and at the end of the growing season. Climate models predict that we’ll continue to see an increase in extreme events, and our works speaks to the challenging relationship between nutrient use and water quality,” said Marin Skidmore, assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at U. of I. Skidmore is lead author of the study with coauthors Jeremy Foltz from University of Wisconsin-Madison and Tihitina Andarge from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
“Our focus on a single state allows us to accurately measure farm locations and practices, while keeping statewide regulation constant, in a way that would be difficult in a national study,” Skidmore added.
Livestock manure and crop fertilizer are major causes of nonpoint source pollution from agriculture. Wisconsin has a large dairy industry, where most farms are below the federal definition of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and therefore not regulated under the Clean Water Act. Instead, they are subject to a patchwork of local regulations.
The researchers studied water quality across nearly 50 watersheds in Wisconsin from 2008 to 2020. They correlated ammonia and phosphorus concentration data from the Water Quality Portal with the location of livestock farms and crop acreages, and they determined nutrient levels after ½ inch, 1 inch, and 2 inches of rainfall.
They found spikes in nutrient concentrations immediately after extreme precipitation events, and the effect increased with the amount of precipitation. For example, within five days of an inch of precipitation, ammonia was 49% higher and phosphorus was 24% higher. If there was at least one day in a month with over an inch of precipitation, monthly ammonia was 28% higher and monthly phosphorus was 15% higher.
“We observe a significant interaction between rainfall, agricultural production, and runoff. It is not just a short-term spike in nutrient levels; at the end of the season, we still see persistent increases in phosphorus and ammonia attributed to those extreme precipitation events months earlier,” Skidmore stated.
However, the researchers found that agricultural management practices can help mitigate the effects.
“Our results show that cover crops planted in the winter can lower the amount of nutrients in the water. Areas with cover crops have significantly lower spikes in ammonia and phosphorus, and the effect persists until the end of the growing season. We already know cover crops are great for soils and nutrient management, but this is additional empirical evidence showing that cover crops are climate-smart practices that can help agriculture be resilient into the future,” Skidmore said.
The researchers also observed the presence of legacy nutrients, which are left behind from agricultural practices decades or even centuries ago.
“There is a direct impact of extreme precipitation on runoff that is unexplained by current activities. We attribute this to sedimented nutrients that remain in the soil from previous activities,” Skidmore noted. “One of the best ways to deal with legacy nutrients is to ensure soils are healthy. By preventing soil erosion, you keep the legacy nutrients in the soil and out of surface water. These findings further support the use of management practices such as conservation tillage, vegetative buffer strips, and cover crops.”
Wisconsin watersheds feed into North America's two largest river systems, the Mississippi and Great Lakes/St. Lawrence. Nutrient pollution can have acute local impacts, such as green algal blooms, which can be toxic to humans and animals. If people can’t enjoy recreational activities like swimming or fishing, it leads to losses for local economies. Furthermore, downstream impacts continue along the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico where nutrients contribute to a growing dead zone.
Finding solutions to dealing with nutrient pollution benefits the environment and society in general, Skidmore noted.
“Conservation strategies are not necessarily cost-effective for producers, so we must ensure there are policies in place to support their implementation. As we're approaching the next Farm Bill, there are discussions around how to allocate funds from the Inflation Reduction Act for climate-smart and conservation ag practices. It’s important that such practices continue to receive funding so farmers can facilitate those benefits for all of us,” she concluded.
The paper, “The impact of extreme precipitation on nutrient runoff,” is published in the Journal of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association [doi.org/10.1002/jaa2.90]. Authors are Marin Skidmore, Tihitina Andarge, and Jeremy Foltz. Skidmore and Foltz received funding from the Wisconsin Dairy Innovation Hub and Andarge was supported by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Grant No. 2022-67023-36377.
JOURNAL
Journal of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association
Reacting to the news that another independent Azerbaijani journalist, Teymur Karimov, was arrested on Monday in Baku and now faces criminal charges, Natalia Nozadze, Amnesty International’s South Caucasus Researcher, said:
“The arrest of Teymur Karimov follows a disturbing pattern of spurious charges being brought against journalists and other critical voices in Azerbaijan. What we are witnessing is an escalating crackdown on independent media, which began with the arrest of the leadership of the independent Abzas Media and Kanal 13 in late November
The arrest of Teymur Karimov follows a disturbing pattern of spurious charges being brought against journalists and other critical voices in AzerbaijanNatalia Nozadze, Amnesty International’s South Caucasus Researcher
“What’s unfolding is worryingly reminiscent of the crackdowns on independent media, media freedom and civil society seen in 2012 and 2015, which decimated civil society in Azerbaijan, saw the closure of critical outlets and NGOs, and the persecution and arbitrary arrests of dozens of human rights defenders and activists.”
Background
On 12 December 2023, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan confirmed the arrest of Teymur Karimov, the head of the independent YouTube news channel Kanal-11, who had gone missing a day earlier. According to officials, a criminal case was opened against him under Article 182 of the Criminal Code (“extortion”).
Since November, authorities have arrested at least six journalists, placing them in pretrial detention on what appear to be fabricated charges. Those arrested include the director of Abzas Media, Ulvi Hasanli; chief editor Sevinj Vagifgyzy; journalist Nargiz Absalamova; contributor Mahammad Kekalov; the founder of Kanal 13, Aziz Orujov; and its host, Rufat Muradli. A handful of other journalists were called in for questioning and reported being harassed and threatened against continuing their journalistic activities and critical reporting.
2,114 seizures of endangered animals and timber in major international law enforcement operation
INTERPOL
12 December 2023 Wildlife and forestry crime are emerging as key elements of transnational organized crime and a serious threat to global security
LYON, France -- Endangered animals including elephants, rhinos and pangolins, as well as protected timber, particularly tropical hardwoods, have been seized in a joint INTERPOL - World Customs Organization (WCO) operation to stop wildlife and timber trafficking.
From 2 – 27 October, customs and police officers coordinated some 500 arrests worldwide and more than 2,000 confiscations of animals and plants that are protected under the : Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) due to their threatened status. Any trade performed in breach of CITES is illegal.
The global operation, named Operation Thunder, involved police, customs, border control, environment, wildlife and forestry officials in 133 countries who worked together across borders. This marked the highest participation rate in Operation Thunder since the annual law enforcement campaign was launched in 2017.
Among the 2,114 seizures were more than 300kg of ivory, thousands of turtle eggs, 30 tonnes of plants, dozens of big cat body parts and rhino horns, as well as primates, birds and marine species.
Authorities also confiscated 2,624 cubic metres of timber which is equivalent to 440 standard shipping containers. Czech Republic authorities intercept the smuggling of two golden handed tamarins Brazilian authorities discover eggs of CITES-protected species smuggled in a passenger’s luggage. Hundreds of parcels, suitcases, vehicles, boats and cargo transporters were examined as they are often used to conceal wildlife species like this turtle seized in Thailand Customs and police confiscated over 2,000 CITES-protected animals and plants during Operation Thunder 2023, including this Pangolin in Botswana. Brazil's targeted controls: dozens of timber plants were inspected during Operation Thunder 2023 A total of 1,370 live birds – such as these CITES-listed psittacines intercepted by Indian authorities – were seized during Operation Thunder 2023 A sample of protected species body parts (horns) intercepted in Argentina during Operation Thunder 2023 Seizures during Operation Thunder 2023 varied from timber to live animals and their derivatives such as these taxidermy specimens confiscated in Argentina Two CITES-protected Capped Langur primates were intercepted by Bangladesh authorities during Operation Thunder 2023 Eggs of CITES-protected species are seized by Bolivian border authorities during Operation Thunder 2023 53 live primates – such as this monkey detected at a Bolivian border – were rescued during Operation Thunder 2023 A timber and logging plant in Brazil is inspected as part of Thunder 2023 global operations. Brazil’s targeted controls: dozens of timber plants were inspected during Operation Thunder 2023
Although Operation Thunder 2023 results are still coming in, initial data has enabled police and customs to identify some clear trends:60 per cent of wildlife trafficking cases were linked to transnational organized crime groups, operating along routes also known for smuggling other illegal products.
Protected reptiles and marine life are being exploited for luxury brand fashion.
Online sales platforms are still being used to sell wildlife, timber and marine goods.
Illegal and legal timber are blended for transport to make it difficult to detect illegally logged wood.
Transnational organized crime groups resort to high levels of document fraud, particularly the use of forged certifications and CITES permits and permit reuse.
INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock said:
“Important and endangered animals, birds and plants are being put at risk of extinction by wildlife and timber traffickers. These appalling crimes not only deprive the world of unique animals and plants but also countries of their natural assets and resources.
“The costs to communities are even greater, because as this Operation shows, almost all environmental crime has links to other forms of crime including violence, corruption and financial crime, but also has strong links to transnational organized crimes groups.
“As the world grapples with the devastating consequences of environmental degradation and species extinction, INTERPOL and WCO are emerging as leaders in safeguarding biodiversity and world security.”
WCO Secretary General Dr Kunio Mikuriya said:
“As part of a comprehensive strategy, customs plays a pivotal role in disrupting criminal networks involved in the illegal wildlife trade. This is achieved by enforcing strict controls at borders, effectively closing off avenues for exploitation and financial gain available to traffickers.”
“At the forefront of this strategy, customs employs intelligence-sharing, championing collaboration, and adopting technological advancements. These measures are crucial to stay one step ahead of criminals, thereby ensuring that customs’ contribution to combating wildlife crime is dynamic, responsive and adaptive.”
Indonesian authorities intercept protected bird species concealed for travel in cardboard boxes Brunei rangers inspect protected tree species during Operation Thunder 2023 where 2,624 cubic metres of timber were seized globally. Protected cactus species seized during the Canadian leg of Operation Thunder 2023 Canadian authorities seized a set of statues made from protected timber Indonesia: searches at land and air border checkpoints focused on illegally traded species protected by national legislation or CITES Indonesian authorities intercepted a wide range of protected bird species during Operation Thunder 2023 Authorities confiscated 2,624 cubic metres of timber during Operation Thunder 2023, such as here in Indonesia Dik Dik antelope carcasses intercepted by the Kenya Wildlife Service A live Pangolin is seized by Mozambican border authorities Panama rangers inspect protected tree species during Operation Thunder 2023 Portuguese authorities inspect a pet shop whose owner is suspected of engaging in the illegal sale of protected species Seizure in Tanzania of a leopard skin and elephant tusks
INTERPOL and the WCO shared intelligence, coordinated investigations and pooled their resources to enable frontline police and customs officers to target, identify and arrest traffickers, including those operating online, as they tried to smuggle animals or timber across borders.
Known traffickers wanted through INTERPOL’s Red Notice alert system were identified ahead of operations and were subsequently targeted when crossing borders.
Hundreds of vehicles, including cars, trucks, and cargo ships, were searched at checkpoints across all regions. Specialized sniffer dogs and X-ray scanners were deployed to detect hidden wildlife and camouflaged timber shipments. Hundreds of parcels, suitcases, vehicles, boats and cargo transporters were examined as they are often used to conceal transported wildlife species.
CITES Secretary General Ivonne Higuero said:
“The results of Operation Thunder 2023 again show that strong and coordinated responses between parties are crucial to tackle transnational criminal networks involved in wildlife crime.
“Well targeted, unified and coordinated efforts such as those mobilized through this global operation are exactly what is needed to overcome the threat posed by wildlife crime.” Notes to editors
Now in its seventh year, Operation Thunder is a joint operation coordinated annually by INTERPOL and the WCO with the backing of CITES and the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime.
Thunder operations are funded by the European Commission’s Directorate General for International Partnerships, Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative, the US Agency for International Development, the US Forestry Service and the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Operation Thunder 2023 coincides with the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference - Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP28) which ends today after high level discussions on how to address pressing environmental challenges characterized by climate change and biodiversity loss.
