Global Pulse

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  • Mortgage holders hit with third rate rise but the real pain is delayed

    Mortgage holders hit with third rate rise but the real pain is delayed

    Australia’s central bank has extended its streak of monetary policy tightening, delivering a third straight 25-basis-point increase to the official cash rate that has lifted the benchmark to 4.35%. But a leading finance industry analyst is sounding the alarm: the full weight of these successive hikes has yet to hit struggling household budgets, with the most severe mortgage pain still on the horizon.

    Following its two-day policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) announced the latest rate increase last Tuesday, with eight of the nine-member governing board supporting the hike and one member pushing to hold rates steady at 4.1%. The move follows matching 25-basis-point hikes in February and March, bringing the cumulative increase this cycle to 75 basis points. This puts rates back exactly where they stood in January 2025, before the RBA delivered three rate cuts through that year. The RBA justified the move by pointing to persistent inflation, which remains at 4.6% – far above the central bank’s 2-3% target range. Officials signaled future hikes remain on the table, noting they will closely monitor incoming economic data and shifting global economic conditions.

    RBA Governor Michele Bullock acknowledged that geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, specifically the disruption to oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz – which carries roughly 20% of the world’s daily oil consumption – have already strained household budgets through higher fuel costs. Still, she argued that allowing inflation to remain entrenched would create far worse outcomes. “Australians are poorer because of this shock to oil prices. We are poorer and there is no way out of that, but the trade off is much worse,” Bullock said. “Now I understand this is a really difficult time for households who are already facing higher fuel prices and other cost of living pressures, but we must get on top of inflation now so that it doesn’t get away from us.”

    Sally Tindall, director of data insights at finance comparison platform Canstar, explained why the full impact of the three hikes has not yet reached mortgage holders. While banks calculate accrued interest on a daily basis, they do not immediately demand higher repayments from customers. Instead, lenders send formal notifications of changed repayment amounts and give borrowers a grace period to adjust their budgets before the new higher payments take effect. Among Australia’s largest lenders, Tindall noted Commonwealth Bank gives customers a minimum of 20 days from notification to the first higher payment, while the other three major banks require at least 30 days. In practice, this staggered implementation means it takes two to three months for all rate hikes to flow through to borrower repayments. As a result, many households are still only paying the higher rate from the first February hike, and have yet to absorb the increases from March and the latest May move. Tindall added that while the delayed timeline can confuse borrowers, it ultimately works in consumers’ favor by giving them breathing room to adjust their finances.

    To date, more than 40 Australian lenders have confirmed they will pass the full 25-basis-point May hike on to mortgage holders, a group that includes Australia’s four largest banks: Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, NAB and ANZ. All four big banks will implement the higher rates from May 15. It is expected that smaller lenders, many of which do not make public announcements about rate changes, will follow suit. Major bank leaders have acknowledged the added pressure on households and highlighted support available for struggling borrowers, alongside increased rates for savers that can offset some cost-of-living pressures. “We recognise many customers are already managing higher living costs, and further rate increases could add to that pressure,” said Angus Sullivan, group executive of retail banking at Commonwealth Bank. “Our focus is on supporting customers to stay on top of their finances, with practical tools, clear guidance and access to help when it is needed.”

    Westpac chief executive of consumer Carolyn McCann echoed that commitment, noting that ongoing Middle East tensions have amplified global economic uncertainty and inflationary pressures. “Right now our focus is on helping customers through the current economic environment. We encourage customers who are feeling stretched to reach out early. We have a range of support options available and our teams are ready to help,” she said. “We’ve also increased deposit rates which will provide some relief for savers who are navigating higher living costs.”

    Canstar’s analysis puts the tangible cost of the latest hike in perspective: for a borrower holding a $600,000 mortgage with 25 years remaining on their loan, the May increase will add roughly $91 to monthly repayments. When combined with the two prior hikes, the cumulative increase pushes average monthly repayments up by $272 from pre-hike levels. If rates hold steady for the next 12 months, that adds up to an extra $3,265 in annual mortgage costs compared to a scenario with no 2026 hikes.

    Even though rates have only returned to 2025 levels, Tindall warned that today’s economic landscape means the burden is far heavier for households. Cost-of-living pressures have intensified dramatically over the past 16 months: grocery prices have climbed, national electricity rebates have expired, and global oil market disruptions have sent fuel prices soaring. “The pressure is actually higher this time around,” Tindall said. “For some households it will be a mountain that is too high to climb and they won’t have the funds for it.”

    Tindall noted that Australian households are currently split along sharply different financial lines: some borrowers have built equity buffers and are ahead on their mortgage repayments, while others are already teetering under the weight of soaring living costs. For borrowers struggling to meet new repayment requirements, she advised reaching out to their lender directly or contacting the free, independent national debt hotline to access support.

  • Militia kill at least 69 in NE DR Congo: local, security sources

    Militia kill at least 69 in NE DR Congo: local, security sources

    A brutal militia assault in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s restless northeastern province of Ituri has claimed the lives of at least 69 people, according to local and security sources who spoke to Agence France-Presse on Saturday. The massacre marks just the latest in a prolonged string of violent incidents that have rocked the gold-rich border region, which has grappled with years of destabilizing armed conflict.

    The attack, carried out by gunmen aligned with the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (Codeco) militia, was actually carried out at the end of April, sources confirmed. Ongoing instability driven by the persistent presence of Codeco fighters in the area prevented recovery teams from reaching the site to retrieve victims’ remains for multiple days, delaying the announcement of the full death toll.

    While security sources have confirmed a confirmed death toll of 69, Dieudonne Losa, a local civil protection official, told AFP the actual number of fatalities exceeds 70. A full accounting of victims is still ongoing as access to the area remains restricted.

    Codeco frames itself as a defender of the rights of the Lendu community, a population primarily made up of agricultural farmers, in long-running tensions with the Hema community, whose members largely work as pastoral herders. A second armed faction, the Convention for the Popular Revolution (CRP), operates in the province and says it advocates for the Hema community.

    The two groups are only among several armed actors active in the region. One of the most prominent is the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a faction formed by exiled Ugandan rebels that has sworn loyalty to the Islamic State group. Just two days before Saturday’s announcement of the Codeco attack, local and security sources reported that ADF fighters had killed at least 36 people across two days of assaults in Ituri and neighboring North Kivu province.

    Since 2021, the Ugandan People’s Defence Force has operated alongside the Congolese national military in northern North Kivu and across Ituri to coordinate counter-insurgency operations against the ADF. A notable complicating dynamic in the conflict is that the Congolese army has occasionally deployed Codeco fighters as auxiliary forces in its operations against other armed groups.

    Earlier on Saturday, the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) issued a public warning of an accelerating “deadly” wave of attacks targeting civilian populations across the country’s unstable eastern borderlands. “Dozens of civilians have been killed in recent days” across Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu, the UN mission said, declining to share further details on the incidents at the time of the statement.

    Eastern DRC, a region teeming with valuable untapped mineral reserves, has been engulfed in overlapping cycles of armed conflict for nearly 30 years, involving dozens of militias, rebel factions, and national military forces. Civilians have consistently borne the brunt of the violence, with thousands displaced annually and hundreds killed in targeted attacks across the region.

  • Israeli settlers force Palestinian family to exhume father’s body in West Bank

    Israeli settlers force Palestinian family to exhume father’s body in West Bank

    In a shocking incident that has drawn widespread international rebuke, a Palestinian family was compelled by Israeli settlers to disinter the body of their late father from a West Bank cemetery on Friday, deepening ongoing concerns over escalating settler violence in the occupied territory. The confrontation unfolded near the recently reestablished Israeli settlement of Sa-Nur, located close to the city of Jenin. Settlers claimed the burial site, situated roughly 300 meters from the settlement outpost, violated their unstated proximity rules – a demand that ignored the fact the family of the deceased, Hussein Asasa, had secured all required Israeli government permits for the burial.

    According to reporting from Israeli outlet Haaretz, settlers immediately began digging at the cemetery shortly after the funeral ceremony concluded, triggering tense physical confrontations between the settlers and local Palestinian residents who gathered to protect the grave. The Israeli military confirmed it dispatched forces to the scene, where personnel seized the digging tools the settlers had brought to excavate the site. Despite this intervention, the Asasa family ultimately said they had no choice but to remove the body themselves and reburry it at a separate cemetery, all under armed Israeli military escort. During the traumatic process, settlers pelted the grieving family with stones as they carried out the exhumation.

    The United Nations’ top human rights official in Palestine condemned the act in stark terms. Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN human rights office in the Palestinian territories, called the incident appalling, noting it was a clear example of the systematic dehumanization of Palestinians unfolding across the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). “It spares no one, dead or alive,” Sunghay said of the ongoing pattern of abuse.

    Settler violence against Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank is not a new development, but experts and local authorities have documented a dramatic surge in attacks since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war in October 2023. Today, settlers carry out near-daily assaults on Palestinian villages and population centers, ranging from property vandalism and arson to forced displacement and violent physical attacks, many of which involve the use of firearms.

    Just last month, a deadly settler attack on a school northeast of Ramallah left two Palestinians dead, including a 15-year-old teenage student. Data collected by the Palestinian Authority’s Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission underscores the scale of the escalating violence: since October 2023, at least 50 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers, with 15 of those fatalities recorded in the current year alone. The incident has renewed international calls for accountability for settler violence and protections for Palestinian civilians living under occupation.

  • Iran wants team members who served in the Revolutionary Guard to get visas for the World Cup

    Iran wants team members who served in the Revolutionary Guard to get visas for the World Cup

    DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — In a firm announcement made Saturday, the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran has confirmed that the country’s national men’s soccer team will “definitely” take part in the 2026 FIFA World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, while calling on the three host nations to address Tehran’s key concerns over cross-border travel and fair treatment of the delegation.

    Per reporting from Iranian state media, federation president Mehdi Taj outlined a core demand: all members of the Iranian squad and technical staff, particularly those who completed mandatory military service with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), must be granted entry visas without obstruction or delay.

    Iran’s participation comes against a backdrop of extreme geopolitical tension. The Islamic Republic currently holds a fragile ceasefire with the U.S. following a February 28 series of attacks on Iran by the U.S. and Israel that escalated into open conflict. Additionally, Iranian citizens have long faced broad travel restrictions imposed by the Trump administration that remain in place.

    In the official statement carried by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, delivered Friday, Taj confirmed that Tehran had submitted formal conditions for its participation, including binding guarantees for visa access, on-ground security, and respectful treatment of all Iranian players and officials. He emphasized that Iran would compete “without retreating from our beliefs, culture and convictions.”

    Taj’s comments follow a high-profile incident last month, when Canadian border authorities denied him entry ahead of a scheduled FIFA Congress, citing his reported past links to the IRGC. Both the U.S. and Canada have formally designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization, a labeling that Iran rejects fiercely.

    This is not the first time visa concerns for IRGC conscripted personnel have emerged. The issue could directly impact one of Iran’s star players: team captain and star striker Mehdi Taremi, who completed his mandatory military service with the Guard. In Iran, mandatory conscription assigns recruits to the IRGC, national army, or police force largely at random, meaning many young Iranians have no choice in their service assignment.

    Taj has repeatedly pushed FIFA to deliver formal assurances that Iranian national symbols — including the country’s flag and national anthem — will be treated with full respect across all World Cup venues and events.

    Iran has been drawn into Group G for the 2026 tournament, where it will face off against Belgium, New Zealand and Egypt. The team will kick off its World Cup campaign against New Zealand in Inglewood, California, a city adjacent to Los Angeles in the U.S.

    This cycle marks Iran’s fourth consecutive World Cup qualification, and its seventh appearance at the tournament overall. To date, the Iranian national team has never advanced past the group stage of the World Cup. Currently ranked 21st in the official FIFA global rankings, Iran lost only a single qualifying match throughout the Asian qualification process, making it one of the most in-form teams heading into the 2026 competition.

  • Mexican parents criticise ending school year a month early for World Cup

    Mexican parents criticise ending school year a month early for World Cup

    As the 2026 FIFA World Cup co-hosted by Mexico, the United States and Canada approaches, a controversial government plan to cut the academic year one month short has sparked fierce backlash from parents, business groups and regional authorities across Mexico, forcing President Claudia Sheinbaum to soften the original announcement and rebrand it as a non-final proposal.

    The initiative, first unveiled publicly by Mexican Education Secretary Mario Delgado last Thursday, would have wrapped up the current school year on June 5 – a full 3 weeks ahead of the traditional end date. Delgado justified the move by pointing to two key expected challenges during the tournament, which runs from June 11 to July 19 across the three North American nations: crippling traffic congestion from an expected surge in domestic and international travel, and an forecasted extreme heatwave across much of Mexico. He added that the decision had been reached “unanimously” together with state-level education authorities, and that the next academic year would still launch as scheduled on August 31, with a two-week pre-term learning reinforcement period designed to prevent students from falling behind on coursework.

    The policy change triggered immediate anger from Mexican families, who were suddenly forced to scramble to find last-minute childcare for an extra month of summer break. Many parents also raised concerns about disrupted end-of-year academic assessments and the heavy financial burden of unplanned summer activities for children. Speaking to local newspaper El Universal, one parent questioned the rushed handling of student evaluations, noting that students would now be graded based on incomplete coursework, while another criticized the policy for prioritizing tourist convenience over working families’ livelihoods, asking “They want the city empty for tourists, but what are we supposed to do for income?”

    The National Union of Parents issued a formal condemnation of what it called a “unilateral decision”, labeling the use of the World Cup as a justification for cutting classes “inexcusable”. The union pointed out that World Cup matches will only be held in three Mexican cities, questioning why the policy would disrupt the education of nearly 23 million students nationwide under what it called an “absurd pretext”.

    Business groups also joined the criticism. Coparmex, Mexico’s leading employers’ association, warned that the sudden unplanned schedule change would create widespread uncertainty for both working parents and businesses, and called on individual state governments to implement their own localized solutions to address heatwave and travel disruptions, while minimizing damage to household finances and national economic activity.

    Even Delgado’s claim of unanimous state support quickly fell apart. Three state governments publicly spoke out against the plan – including two that are actually hosting World Cup matches – with one state confirming it would retain the original academic calendar regardless of the federal proposal.

    Facing this broad wave of opposition, President Sheinbaum used her daily Friday press briefing to walk back the original announcement, reframing the plan as a draft proposal still open to review and revision. “Since many Mexicans love soccer and are looking forward to the World Cup, this proposal was put forward to bring forward the holiday break,” Sheinbaum told reporters. “But we also have to take into account the school days of our boys and girls. So it is just a proposal; the final schedule has not been set yet, and we will wait before making a definitive decision.” She also noted that the idea originated from teachers’ unions and state education authorities, rather than being initiated by the federal government.

    The controversy over the school calendar is not the only challenge Mexico has faced ahead of the 2026 tournament. Earlier this year, a government crackdown on violent drug cartels that resulted in the death of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) sparked a wave of retaliatory violence across the country, raising international concerns about visitor safety. One of Mexico’s host cities is Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco state and the epicenter of the recent unrest. Sheinbaum has repeatedly stressed that there is “no risk” to visiting football fans, while FIFA President Gianni Infantino has said he feels “very reassured” by Mexico’s security preparations. To address safety concerns, the Mexican government plans to deploy thousands of additional security personnel to host city streets throughout the duration of the tournament.

  • Sinner opens Italian Open account, Sabalenka suffers shock early exit

    Sinner opens Italian Open account, Sabalenka suffers shock early exit

    The 2024 Italian Open in Rome delivered its first slate of dramatic upsets and statement wins on Saturday, as men’s world No. 1 Jannik Sinner lived up to massive home crowd expectations to launch his bid for a historic title, while two of the women’s top seeds suffered stunning early exits.

    Sinner, the 24-year-old Italian carrying the hopes of a nation that has not seen an Italian men’s champion at the Foro Italico since Adriano Panatta lifted the trophy 50 years ago, got his campaign off to a flawless start with a 6-3, 6-4 straight-sets victory over Austria’s Sebastian Ofner. The world No. 1 extended his incredible winning streak to 24 consecutive matches, wrapping up the contest in just 100 minutes in breezy Rome conditions, barely tested against his outmatched opponent. Even two brief stoppages in the second set to treat ill spectators did not disrupt his rhythm, with Sinner even finding reason to smile through the interruptions.

    The victory pushes Sinner into the third round, where he will face either Australia’s Alexei Popyrin or Czech teen Jakub Mensik. Buoyed by Sinner’s win, other Italian men also delivered strong results on home soil Saturday: 2023 Davis Cup winner Flavio Cobolli defeated France’s Terence Atmane 7-6(7/1), 6-3, while world No. 64 Mattia Bellucci upset 24th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 to book his spot in the fourth round. With last year’s champion Carlos Alcaraz sidelined from the tournament, Sinner enters the event as the heavy favorite to go one step further than his 2023 run, where he fell to Alcaraz in the final, and notch a record-extending fifth straight Masters 1000 title.

    Several other men’s story lines unfolded Saturday: former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev received a walkover into the third round after his scheduled opponent Tomas Machac withdrew from the tournament due to an unspecified illness, pushing back Medvedev’s opening match. Fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime suffered a shock second-round exit, falling to world No. 44 Mariano Navone of Argentina in straight sets 7-6(7/4), 7-6(7/5).

    The biggest story of the day, however, came on the women’s side, where world No. 1 and pre-tournament favorite Aryna Sabalenka was ousted in a stunning third-round upset by Romania’s Sorana Cirstea, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. The result marks Sabalenka’s earliest tournament exit since the 2023 Qatar Open, and ends her bid for a first Italian Open title in Rome. Sabalenka started the match with a blistering first set, but dropped her level dramatically as the match went on, visibly frustrated by her performance and hampered by physical discomfort that forced her to call a medical timeout for lower back and left hip issues. The injury concern casts uncertainty over her fitness ahead of the French Open, scheduled to start later this month in Paris.

    For Cirstea, the upset marks the first win over a reigning world No. 1 in her 18-year professional career. She will advance to face Linda Noskova in the fourth round.

    Sabalenka’s early exit was followed by another upset of a home favorite: defending women’s champion Jasmine Paolini saw her title defense end in the third round at the hands of Belgium’s Elise Mertens, who claimed a 4-6, 7-6(7/5), 6-3 come-from-behind win. Paolini, who came into the match holding three match points on Mertens’ serve in the second set, failed to convert any of her chances, dropped the tiebreak, and could not recover her momentum in the decider. The result will push Paolini out of the women’s top 10 world rankings, extending her current slump that has seen her fail to reach the fourth round in four consecutive tournaments.

    Not all top seeds fell Saturday: reigning French Open champion Coco Gauff battled past Argentina’s qualifier Solana Sierra in a three-set thriller, 5-7, 6-0, 6-4, to advance to the next round and keep her Italian Open title bid alive.

  • Suicide bomber, gunmen kill 3 police officers in attack on security post in northwest Pakistan

    Suicide bomber, gunmen kill 3 police officers in attack on security post in northwest Pakistan

    On a late Saturday evening in northwest Pakistan, a coordinated militant assault combining a suicide car bombing and armed gunfire left at least three police officers dead, local law enforcement confirmed. The violence unfolded in Bannu district, located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province along Pakistan’s volatile border with Afghanistan.

    According to senior local police official Zahid Khan, the attackers first detonated a vehicle packed with high explosives close to a security outpost. The powerful blast triggered multiple secondary explosions, reducing the security post and several adjacent civilian homes to rubble. Immediately after the detonation, several gunmen opened fire on security personnel, sparking a prolonged, intense firefight that was still ongoing as initial reports were compiled.

    Khan noted that an unconfirmed number of additional officers have been injured, with some believed trapped beneath the collapsed debris of the buildings. Rescue and security teams have since secured the perimeter of the attack site, working to clear rubble and neutralize remaining threats, though full casualty counts have not yet been finalized.

    As of Sunday morning, no militant organization had issued a public statement claiming credit for the attack. Security analysts however quickly pointed to long-running militant networks operating in the region as the prime suspects. Suspicion is widely expected to fall on Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), commonly known as the Pakistani Taliban, and its affiliated militant factions. The TTP, which is operationally separate from but closely aligned with the Afghan Taliban that retook control of Afghanistan in 2021, has carried out dozens of similar attacks on Pakistani security targets in recent years.

    Pakistan has faced a marked upward spike in militant violence across its northwestern border regions since 2021, marking one of the most serious security challenges for the country’s government in the last decade.

  • Man City beat Brentford to close gap on leaders Arsenal

    Man City beat Brentford to close gap on leaders Arsenal

    The 2023-2024 Premier League title race remains unresolved after a tense Saturday clash at the Etihad Stadium, where Manchester City secured a critical 3-0 victory over Brentford to cut the gap to league leaders Arsenal to just two points. For long stretches of the match, it looked like Pep Guardiola’s side would drop crucial points in their bid for a fourth consecutive league crown, as Brentford’s organized defense held firm for almost an hour and City’s attackers looked sluggish and out of sync.

    The match opened with a series of close calls that foreshadowed the drama to come. City winger Jeremy Doku forced an early save from Brentford goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, but it was City’s own keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma who nearly handed Brentford a shock opener. The Italian miskicked a clearance from Michael Kayode’s long throw, and the ball was only scrambled off the goal line at the last second. That near-disaster summed up City’s labored first half: star striker Erling Haaland sent a header high and wide from just six yards out after a pinpoint Doku cross, and later saw a close-range blast blocked by Kelleher, with Nathan Ake firing the rebound into the stands to the frustration of the home crowd. Midfielder Bernardo Silva also avoided a red card, picking up only a booking after lashing out at Brentford’s Nathan Collins.

    Brentford continued to push after halftime, with Donnarumma forced to make a solid save from Igor Thiago’s low drive to keep the score level. Recognizing his side needed a spark, Guardiola made a double substitution, bringing on Omar Marmoush and Phil Foden to inject energy into the attack. The tactical change paid off almost immediately, unlocking Brentford’s stubborn defense just 15 minutes later.

    In the 60th minute, Doku – who had scored two sensational curling goals against Everton earlier in the week – repeated his magic to break the deadlock. After his first attempt was blocked by a Brentford defender, the Belgian winger collected the rebound on the left edge of the penalty area and whipped a stunning strike into the top corner, marking his fourth goal in three matches. The goal lifted City, and Foden nearly doubled the lead minutes later, but Kelleher made another sharp close-range save to keep the match within reach for Brentford.

    Brentford still had chances to equalize: forward Kevin Schade had a late penalty appeal turned down after a challenge from Matheus Nunes, leaving the Bees empty-handed. In the 75th minute, Haaland settled any lingering nerves for City, scoring his 26th league goal of the season with a clever close-range backheel after his first attempt was blocked. Then, in stoppage time, Marmoush put the final polish on the result with a composed finish inside the box, boosting City’s goal difference to just one goal behind Arsenal’s.

    The result keeps Guardiola’s side firmly in the title hunt, putting immediate pressure on Arsenal, who face third-bottom West Ham United on Sunday. Following a 3-3 draw at Everton last Monday that had put the title firmly in Arsenal’s hands, City have done everything they can to force the leaders to drop points. If Mikel Arteta’s Gunners win their three remaining matches against West Ham, Burnley and Crystal Palace, they will claim their first top-flight title in 22 years, regardless of City’s results. City, however, hold a game in hand over Arsenal heading into this weekend’s action, and will return to league action against Crystal Palace at the Etihad on Wednesday before turning their focus to the FA Cup final against Chelsea on May 16.

  • Rwanda-backed rebels accuse the US of falling short as a peace mediator in Congo’s conflict

    Rwanda-backed rebels accuse the US of falling short as a peace mediator in Congo’s conflict

    In a scathing rebuke of Washington’s role as a peace broker in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a coalition of Congolese rebels led by the Congo River Alliance has accused the Trump administration of failing to uphold impartial mediation amid ongoing bloodshed in the country’s mineral-rich eastern region. The open criticism, delivered via a formal letter addressed to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and obtained by the Associated Press on Saturday, comes months after a high-profile U.S.-brokered peace agreement between the DRC and neighboring Rwanda, a deal the Trump administration has repeatedly touted as a landmark diplomatic success.

    The 2024 accord, hailed by then-U.S. President Donald Trump after negotiations with Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame, was designed not only to end decades of cyclic conflict in eastern Congo but also to lay the groundwork for a trilateral economic partnership that would open the region’s untapped rare earth mineral reserves to American government access and private sector investment. Despite Trump’s repeated claims of a diplomatic win, active hostilities have continued unabated across eastern Congo, with armed factions and government forces trading blame for repeated violations of the ceasefire terms.

    The rebel coalition, which includes the Rwanda-backed M23 movement — the most powerful armed group operating in eastern Congo — argues that Washington has consistently turned a blind eye to alleged peace commitment violations by the Tshisekedi administration in Kinshasa, while disproportionately targeting opponents of the Congolese government and Rwandan entities with punitive sanctions. Last week, the U.S. imposed new sanctions on former Congolese President Joseph Kabila, accusing him of funding and supporting rebel activities; earlier this year, Washington also blacklisted Rwanda’s military and four senior Rwandan officials over their documented support for M23. The letter charges that no comparable punitive measures or even public warnings have been issued against Tshisekedi’s government for its own breaches of the peace deal.

    “Your administration has neither imposed any sanctions nor issued even a simple warning to the leaders in Kinshasa, whose intransigent and arrogant attitude calls into question the impartiality and neutrality of the American Facilitator/Mediator,” the letter reads. It adds that the lack of consistent corrective action undermines confidence in U.S. mediation, noting that “the absence of clearly identifiable corrective measures fuels questions regarding the facilitation’s ability to preserve, over time, the requirements of impartiality and neutrality that are essential to its credibility.”

    Long-standing instability has plagued eastern Congo for generations, driven in large part by competition over control of the region’s vast deposits of critical minerals that underpin global technology and clean energy supply chains. More than 100 armed factions operate in the area, with M23 emerging as the most militarily capable. U.N. estimates show the group has grown from just a few hundred fighters in 2021 to roughly 6,500 today, a rapid expansion that the DRC government, U.S., and United Nations experts attribute to ongoing military support from Rwanda — a claim Rwanda has repeatedly denied. M23 launched a major offensive across eastern Congo in early 2024, seizing the regional capital Goma and other key population centers before the U.S.-brokered deal was reached.

    Independent regional conflict experts agree that while U.S. mediation reduced cross-border tensions between the DRC and Rwanda, it has failed to curb the escalating ground conflict. “While U.S. mediation has helped cool regional tension it has not stopped the escalating fighting on the ground,” Kristof Titeca, a University of Antwerp professor specializing in Central African governance and conflict, told the AP. The rebel letter’s public criticism adds new pressure on the Trump administration’s diplomatic efforts in the Great Lakes region, at a time when Washington is pushing to advance American economic interests in the region’s critical mineral sector. The Associated Press contributed reporting from Bonn, Germany, for this story.

  • Greece conducts controlled blast of mystery naval drone explosives

    Greece conducts controlled blast of mystery naval drone explosives

    A dramatic maritime security incident has unfolded off Greece’s western coast after local fishermen stumbled on an operational explosive-carrying naval drone hidden in a coastal cave near Lefkada in the Ionian Sea, prompting a major bomb disposal operation and reigniting fierce debate over the country’s preparedness for modern, asymmetric maritime threats. The unmanned surface vessel, which was found still running its engine on Thursday, was quickly secured by Greek coastguard vessels, towed to the nearby port of Vasiliki, and handled by specialist bomb disposal teams who safely removed its detonators and power battery before moving the 100 kilograms of estimated explosives to be disposed of via controlled detonation off the coast of Astakos. Multiple independent Greek media outlets have confirmed that the drone matches the design of Ukraine’s domestically produced Magura naval drone, a type of attack uncrewed vessel Kyiv has deployed extensively against Russian military and commercial maritime targets since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. Reporters also confirm handwritten notes in the Ukrainian language were recovered from the vessel’s onboard storage, though Kyiv has so far declined to issue any official comment on the incident. Greek armed forces specialist technical teams are currently conducting a full forensic inspection of the recovered drone components to trace its origin and intended mission. Two leading working theories have emerged from official and media sources, outlined by Greek newspaper Ta Nea: the drone either fell overboard during transit by sea, or it lost contact with its operators while en route to target Russian commercial shipping in the Mediterranean, a mission that would expand Kyiv’s naval drone campaign far beyond its traditional operating area of the Black Sea. Public broadcaster ERT added that faulty sensors and GPS interference from recent bad weather in the region likely caused the drone to drift off course before it was found by local fishermen. The discovery has triggered intense political backlash in Athens, with opposition figures and minor parties slamming the ruling government for gaps in Greece’s maritime surveillance and defense capabilities. Opposition defense spokesman Michalis Katrinis warned that the incident exposed Greece’s unprotected maritime borders, while the country’s Communist Party issued a series of pointed questions demanding clarity on whether the Greek government was aware the drone was operating in its territorial waters, and if similar uncrewed vessels from allied nations are regularly active in Greek sovereign waters. The pro-Russian nationalist party Hellenic Solution went further, labeling the incursion a deliberate military provocation against Greece. Speaking on Saturday to defuse rising political tension, Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias sought to downplay the security risks of the incident, stating that authorities had fully contained the threat and that the government is already moving to modernize Greece’s naval fleet. Dendias confirmed that Athens is pursuing policies to domestically produce advanced drones and deploy cutting-edge anti-drone defense systems to protect Greek territorial waters. The incident has already put Greece’s national intelligence agency, armed forces, and multiple relevant government ministries on heightened security alert. This discovery comes amid already tense context for Greek-Ukrainian defense cooperation: in November last year, the two nations signed a landmark agreement to jointly produce naval drones, granting Greece access to Ukrainian drone technology for its own domestic defense needs. However, just one week prior to this incident, leading Greek newspaper Kathimerini reported that Kyiv has recently demanded a veto over any Greek use of the jointly produced drones, out of concern that Athens could deploy them against Turkey – a NATO member with long-running maritime territorial disputes with Greece and close ties to Moscow. Beyond cooperation, the incident also fits a broader pattern of expanding naval drone activity in the Mediterranean: back in March, Russia accused Ukraine of attacking a Russian LNG tanker carrying sanctioned cargo with uncrewed sea drones in the Mediterranean between Malta and Libya, marking one of the first confirmed attacks of its kind outside the Black Sea. As the investigation continues, Greek authorities are still working to answer core questions about how the drone entered its territorial waters and what its ultimate target was, with the incident serving as a stark wake-up call for Southern European nations to adapt their maritime security frameworks to the growing threat of uncrewed attack vessels.