Global Pulse

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  • Kenya to charge students with murder over deadly school fire

    Kenya to charge students with murder over deadly school fire

    A devastating arson attack at a Kenyan girls’ boarding school that left 16 teenage pupils dead and dozens wounded is moving into the legal phase, with national prosecutors announcing they have approved murder charges for the students implicated in the blaze.

    The fatal fire broke out on 28 May at Utumishi Girls’ School, located in Gilgil roughly 120 kilometers northwest of Kenya’s capital Nairobi. The inferno swept through the upper floor of a three-story dormitory that was housing 202 students in 135 bunk beds, a layout that quickly turned a contained fire into a mass casualty event. Trapped by an emergency exit that failed to open when the blaze started, the students could only escape through a single narrow doorway, leading to the high death toll. All the victims were between 15 and 18 years old.

    Local law enforcement launched an immediate investigation into the cause of the fire. After conducting interviews with surviving students and school staff, and completing a forensic analysis of closed-circuit security camera footage from the campus, eight students were identified as persons of interest. Police allege the group planned and carried out the attack by igniting mattresses close to one of the dormitory’s exits, and all eight were taken into police custody after the incident.

    In an official statement released last week, Kenya’s Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) confirmed that after a thorough review of all evidence collected by investigators, the DPP has formally approved murder charges against the implicated students. “The suspects will face sixteen (16) counts of murder arising from the incident,” the statement read. While prosecutors have not confirmed the exact number of students that will be charged, nor an exact timeline for the arraignment, court documents confirm the suspects are scheduled to make their first formal appearance at a Naivasha courtroom on Wednesday. All eight remain in police custody as of Tuesday.

    Beyond the immediate case, the ODPP has sounded the alarm over a concerning nationwide uptick in arson attacks and violent incidents at Kenyan learning institutions, warning that any individual found responsible for such violence will face full legal accountability.

    Preliminary government assessments have also highlighted critical systemic safety failures at the school that contributed to the high death toll. Kenya’s Education Minister Julius Ogamba confirmed early findings show multiple serious breaches of mandatory safety protocols at Utumishi Girls’ School, including severe overcrowding in the dormitory where the fire broke out and the fatal decision to lock the emergency exit door during occupancy.

    This tragedy is not an isolated event for Kenya: the country has grappled with a decades-long pattern of fatal dormitory fires at boarding schools. Just two years ago, a similar dormitory blaze in central Kenya killed at least 21 people. Research into past incidents shows many of these fires have been linked to arson, often carried out by disgruntled students protesting harsh disciplinary rules, poor living conditions, or fee increases. Other fires have been ruled accidental. In most cases with high casualty counts, investigators have pinned the elevated death toll on systemic failures: widespread overcrowding, non-functional emergency exits, blocked escape routes, and locked windows that violate national school safety guidelines.

    As the legal process gets underway this week, Kenyan education officials are facing renewed pressure to implement mandatory safety audits across all of the country’s boarding schools to address the long-unresolved risks that have led to repeated mass casualty fires.

  • Cross border rail passengers warned of major disruption

    Cross border rail passengers warned of major disruption

    Major cross-border rail travel between Belfast and Dublin has been thrown into disarray after unplanned damage to critical overhead power lines in the Republic of Ireland forced widespread service suspensions and alternative travel arrangements.

    Irish national rail operator Iarnród Éireann confirmed Tuesday evening’s damage, which impacted infrastructure in Dublin’s Raheny area at approximately 8:30 p.m. local time, will disrupt services through at least the morning rush hour, with potential delays extending into midday. The Belfast-Dublin Enterprise route is running a substituted bus shuttle between Dublin’s Connolly Station and the northern town of Drogheda for the duration of the repairs, while two scheduled services from Belfast to Dublin set to depart at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. have been scrapped entirely.

    Industry officials estimate between 15,000 and 20,000 daily commuters across the Republic of Ireland will face travel disruptions as repair crews work to restore full service. Repair teams were only able to mobilize after 1:00 a.m. Wednesday morning, following a major scheduled event in the region: a sold-out Teddy Swims concert in Malahide, a coastal suburb just outside of Dublin.

    Barry Kenny, a representative from Iarnród Éireann, told public broadcaster RTE’s *Morning Ireland* that delaying the start of repair work until after the concert was a deliberate, safety-focused choice. Immediate access to the damaged line, he explained, would have required fully shutting down the entire corridor, trapping thousands of concert attendees after the event concluded. “I think potentially we would have had public safety issues if we weren’t able to clear and help move thousands of people from Malahide after the concert last night,” Kenny said. He added that commuters who have access to alternative private or public transport should make alternate plans if possible to avoid prolonged delays.

    In addition to the cross-border Enterprise service suspension, two local Dublin rail networks are also impacted: Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) services between Malahide, Howth and Clontarf Road are currently offline, along with northern commuter routes connecting Howth Junction to Connolly Station.

    A spokesperson for Iarnród Éireann noted that investigations into the root cause of the overhead line damage are still underway, while repair work continues around the schedule to restore full service as quickly as possible. The operator has issued a formal apology to passengers for the unplanned inconvenience. “Crews mobilised after 01:00hrs and repair works are ongoing. The cause of the damage is also being determined,” the spokesperson said.

  • Philippine devotees honor St. John the Baptist with a mud-covered display of faith

    Philippine devotees honor St. John the Baptist with a mud-covered display of faith

    On June 24, 2026, hundreds of devout Catholic worshippers gathered in the small rural village of Bibiclat, located in Nueva Ecija province in the northern Philippines, to carry out a centuries-old ritual of faith honoring St. John the Baptist. For the annual Taong Putik, or Mud People, festival, these devotees traded their ordinary clothes for a covering of thick soft mud scavenged from local rice paddies, followed by layers of dried banana leaves wrapped around their bodies, continuing a tradition that ties deeply personal piety to centuries of communal history.

    The tradition traces its origins back to the 1800s, rooted in humble beginnings shaped by historical hardship. Local church leaders record that poor 19th century farmers began the practice as an outward act of humility before God; the mud symbolized their connection to the land they worked, while the dried banana leaves allowed them to hide their identities, shielding themselves from widespread discrimination targeting low-income rural communities at the time.

    The devotion to St. John the Baptist grew dramatically in the decades following World War II, after a pivotal event that local residents still frame as divine intervention. According to the Rev. Elmer Villamayor, who led the Bibiclat parish between 2014 and 2021, a group of local men were set to be executed by Japanese occupying forces, when a sudden, heavy rainstorm halted the execution entirely, sparing their lives. Local worshippers widely interpreted this turn of events as a miracle granted by their patron saint, cementing the festival’s central role in the village’s spiritual life.

    Today, the festival carries on as a way for devotees to honor vows made in private prayer and give thanks for answered miracles and personal blessings. While no official attendance counts are maintained, Villamayor estimates that as many as 3,000 worshippers now participate each year, a number that has grown steadily in recent years as more people report personal blessings through their devotion.

    For many participants, the ritual is a multi-generational family tradition, passed down through generations after answered prayers. Melencio Nenuda, a 39-year-old construction worker, recalled that as a child the sight of mud-covered procession participants frightened him so much that he would hide when they passed through the village. That changed when he fell seriously ill in sixth grade: his mother prayed to St. John the Baptist, vowing that Nenuda would join the annual ritual if he recovered. Now, Nenuda returns every year, alongside his wife and son. “I will continue to go back to this tradition because it gives me a good future,” he explained.

    Forty-three-year-old Rickmar Castilio, who has participated in the festival for 20 consecutive years, brought his 11-year-old son Nathan for the first time in 2026, carrying out a vow he made years earlier. After Castilio lost his first child in infancy, he promised St. John the Baptist that he would return for the ritual every year if his next child survived. After his prayer was answered, he has kept his promise annually, and now aims to pass his devotion on to the next generation. “(I bring my child so) that he will get closer to St. John. The youth now are starting that path,” Castilio said. He added that he has observed a steady rise in participation in recent years, noting that growing numbers of worshippers are drawn to the tradition after experiencing personal miracles or seeing blessings in their own lives.

    The ritual follows a strict, familiar schedule that has remained unchanged for generations. Devotees begin their preparations before dawn, heading out to the surrounding rice fields around 4 a.m. to collect soft mud, which they smear across their entire bodies before wrapping themselves in dried banana leaves. Once fully prepared, they walk barefoot back to the village’s St. John the Baptist Church, carrying only lighted candles and their cellphones. As they wait for the start of the celebratory Mass, they gather to sing hymns around a small fire lit from the accumulated candle offerings.

    The Philippines is home to the largest Catholic population in Asia, and the Taong Putik festival remains one of the nation’s most distinctive examples of folk Catholicism, blending centuries of indigenous rural tradition with formal Catholic devotion. This report is from the Associated Press, with religious coverage supported through AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP holds sole responsibility for this content.

  • German trains running after communication outage but questions remain

    German trains running after communication outage but questions remain

    BERLIN – Less than 24 hours after a sudden, widespread communications system failure brought Germany’s entire national rail network to a standstill and left thousands of passengers stranded across the country, services have returned to near-normal operations – but the state-owned national rail operator is now facing mounting public and political backlash over the disruptive incident.

    The chaos unfolded late Tuesday evening, when a critical failure struck the GSM-R digital communications infrastructure. This specialized system serves as the backbone for internal communications across Germany’s rail network, and its sudden outage forced an immediate, nationwide halt to all train services. For roughly two hours, passengers were left stuck at stations and on board trains, with long queues quickly forming at station information desks as anxious travelers sought updates on their journeys. Service gradually resumed after technicians addressed the outage.

    By Wednesday morning, Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s federal government-owned main rail operator, confirmed that most services were running “largely seamlessly” across the network, though it warned passengers of a small number of isolated service cuts that could remain in place for part of the day.

    As of Wednesday, officials have not yet released any details on what caused the widespread communications failure. The incident comes amid years of growing public frustration over consistent delays, frequent service interruptions, and underperformance across Germany’s rail network. For years, the system suffered from chronic underinvestment, and Deutsche Bahn is currently in the middle of a series of extensive, disruptive overhauls of the country’s busiest major routes, an effort designed to reverse years of neglect and boost long-term service quality.

    The total shutdown of national rail service triggered by a single technical failure has been widely condemned as a new low for German rail. Oliver Krischer, regional transport minister for Germany’s most populous state North Rhine-Westphalia, described the incident in comments to German news agency dpa as “a new low in already poor operating quality.” Krischer emphasized that robust emergency protocols must be put in place to prevent similar widespread disruptions going forward, noting that German commuters and travelers depend on rail to reach their destinations with at least basic reliability.

  • US to probe petrol price gouging claims, Trump says

    US to probe petrol price gouging claims, Trump says

    Amid shifting global energy markets following months of heightened volatility tied to the Iran conflict, former U.S. President Donald Trump has publicly announced he has directed the Department of Justice to launch an immediate investigation into major domestic energy companies, accusing the firms of exploiting consumers by failing to pass falling crude oil costs onto drivers at the gas pump.

    In a social media post that has drawn new attention to post-conflict energy pricing, Trump argued that gasoline prices have not declined nearly as quickly as he expected, even as global crude costs have pulled back sharply from their recent peaks. “The big Oil Companies are not dropping their price at the pump commensurate with the sharply lower prices they are paying for Oil,” Trump wrote in the post. “Those prices are dropping like a rock! In other words, customers are being ‘gouged.’”

    Trump did not name any specific oil and gas companies in his announcement, and as of press time, neither the Department of Justice nor the White House has issued an official response to requests for comment from the BBC.

    The current pricing tension traces back to late February, when a joint strike by the U.S. and Israel against Iran triggered widespread disruption to global energy supplies. In response to the attack, Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic chokepoint through which roughly a fifth of the world’s daily oil shipments pass. The closure sent global energy markets into chaos, pushing the international Brent crude benchmark to a near-$120 per barrel high in May, up from a pre-conflict level of around $70 per barrel.

    In recent weeks, as diplomatic peace talks have made incremental progress, global crude prices have retreated significantly, falling to roughly $76 per barrel as of the latest reporting. While that marks a major drop from the May peak, the benchmark remains above pre-conflict levels. The same trend has played out for U.S. consumers: average regular gasoline prices have fallen from April’s peak above $4 per gallon to roughly $3.90 per gallon, but still remain far higher than they were before the Iran conflict began.

  • Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng calls for renewing friendship between the people of China and the US

    Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng calls for renewing friendship between the people of China and the US

    On June 19, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng gathered a diverse group of long-time and new American friends at the Chinese Embassy in Washington D.C. for a gathering centered on reconnecting and rebuilding grassroots bonds between the two nations. Attendees included figures from across different sectors of U.S.-China exchange: Ronald Sakolsky, a veteran supporter of China’s desertification control initiatives; Gail Chou, an educator who spent 12 years teaching in Luoyang, Henan Province; and Ryan Corkery and Angelie Melara, young participants in the “50,000 in five years” China-U.S. youth exchange program.

    Opening the gathering, Ambassador Xie highlighted the historic significance of the recent China-U.S. summit held in Beijing, noting that the meeting laid out a new shared vision for bilateral relations and opened a fresh chapter for people-centered friendly engagement between the two countries.

    “To deliver on the important consensus reached by our two presidents, and to renew the long-standing friendship between Chinese and American people, we must work together and step up with new collective contributions,” Xie told attendees. He offered three key guiding principles for advancing grassroots China-U.S. relations: prioritize small, concrete actions to turn high-level vision into tangible outcomes; encourage American friends who have experience in China to share their personal stories, helping more Americans understand the deep historical roots of people-to-people friendship between the two nations; and invest in nurturing a new generation of cross-cultural friendship envoys.

    “Let us act on the important consensus between the two presidents, and renew friendship between the people of China and the U.S.,” Xie concluded his call to action.

    Following the ambassador’s remarks, participating American guests shared their own deeply personal stories of connection to China, reflecting on the bonds that have shaped their perspectives and lives. Sakolsky spoke with evident affection as he recalled his decades of experiences traveling and working in China. “When I first visited China, all I wanted was to see the Terracotta Warriors, walk alongside the Yellow River and stand on the Great Wall — and truly live like a local Chinese person,” he said. “When I turned down a special treatment offer and chose to share a room with my Chinese colleagues on one trip, I knew I had truly become part of their community. I’m no celebrity; I’m just an ordinary teacher who wants to say thank you to China, and do whatever I can to give back out of gratitude.”

    Calling the gathering a meaningful reunion of friends connected by shared memories of China, Sakolsky added that he is committed to advancing a new era of people-to-people and youth exchanges between the two countries.

    Chou shared touching, intimate details of her 12 years living and working in China, saying “I feel homesick for China — it is my home away from home. The warmth and gratitude my Chinese students showed me will always stay with me, and never fail to touch my heart.”

    Corkery, the young exchange participant, echoed the theme of small connections overcoming deep divides. “It’s the little, everyday moments that make it clear: even with language and cultural differences, there are universal things that bring us together, and those are the things we should keep our focus on,” he said.

    Melara, another young participant who only spent 10 days in China as part of the exchange, noted that even her short stay reshaped her entire worldview. “It completely changed how I think about the world, and how I approach new ideas and different cultures,” she said.

  • These traditionalist Catholics are defying Pope Leo XIV, and embracing their outsider status

    These traditionalist Catholics are defying Pope Leo XIV, and embracing their outsider status

    Decades after the Society of St. Pius X first split from the Roman Catholic Church over modernizing church reforms, the breakaway traditionalist group is preparing to redefine its schismatic identity with a bold, unprecedented act. On July 1, at the group’s Swiss seminary in Ecône — the same location where its 1988 original break from Rome occurred — the SSPX will consecrate four new bishops without the required papal consent, marking the largest expansion of its leadership in 36 years and a direct challenge to the authority of Pope Leo XIV.

    Founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre to oppose the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, which replaced the centuries-old traditional Latin Mass with vernacular services in local languages, the SSPX first cemented its split from the Vatican in 1988, when Lefebvre ordained four bishops without Rome’s approval. The Vatican immediately issued automatic excommunication for all involved, and the group has never held formal legal status within the global Catholic Church. Still, the SSPX has seen steady global growth in the decades since its schism, drawing a new generation of conservative Catholics drawn to traditional liturgy. Current SSPX statistics put its global membership at 2 active bishops, 733 priests, 264 seminarians, and more than 400 religious brothers and sisters across 50 countries, with a network of parishes, schools and seminaries operating as a parallel ultra-traditional Catholic structure outside Vatican control.

    SSPX leaders frame the upcoming consecrations as a practical necessity: the two remaining bishops from the 1988 ordination are elderly, and the group says it needs new leadership to serve its expanding global flock. SSPX Superior General Rev. Davide Pagliarani has invoked a self-declared “state of necessity” to justify the unsanctioned rite, arguing that the post-Vatican II Catholic Church has drifted into heresy and abandoned core traditional tenets. After Pagliarani announced the plans, the Vatican extended an invitation for talks to resolve the dispute, but decades of unresolved theological disagreements left the two sides at a deadlock. In an official statement announcing the four nominees — Pascal Schreiber of Switzerland, Michael Goldade of the U.S., and Michel Poinsinet de Sivry and Marc Hanappier of France — the SSPX denied seeking to seize power or establish a parallel hierarchy within the Catholic Church, claiming the sole purpose of the rite is to preserve the administration of traditional sacraments for its followers.

    Far from hiding the contentious act, the SSPX has planned a large, highly public four-day event that will be livestreamed to a global audience, with arrangements made for thousands of expected attendees. Organizers have secured accommodations at dozens of local hotels and private homes, coordinated carpooling from more than 100 regional locations, and even set up a pre-paid ticketing system for daily meals via a festival-style wristband. For attendees looking to take home a memento of the event, the group is selling a limited-edition $92.50 “Cuvee des Sacres” gift set of four wines, each bottle labeled with a symbol of episcopal office: a miter, ring, cross and crozier.

    This open, media-savvy embrace of schism marks a new chapter for the anti-modern group, according to theological experts. Massimo Faggioli, a theology professor at Villanova University — Pope Leo XIV’s alma mater — describes the movement as “Traditionalism 2.0”: while the SSPX holds an anti-modern, integralist theological agenda, it has fully adopted digital branding and modern event organizing to grow its brand among young conservative Catholics. “Their game is not about getting back into the fold, but getting back into the monopoly of that ultra-traditionalist identity,” Faggioli explained, noting that the level of advance planning for the event makes clear the group never intended to back down from the consecrations.

    The Vatican has already issued clear warnings: any bishop participating in the rite, as well as the four new bishops, will incur automatic excommunication for what the Holy See calls a “schismatic act” and “grave offense to God.” For Pope Leo XIV, who has worked to ease tensions with traditionalist Catholics that escalated under his predecessor Pope Francis, the challenge has been met with a measured resignation. The pope told reporters last week he was considering a final appeal to the SSPX to reverse course, but emphasized that the choice ultimately rests with the group. “Division among Christians is always painful for the church,” he said. “However, they refuse to accept certain fundamental elements of the church, starting with various points of the Second Vatican Council. And while I regret that choice, we must move forward.”

    Reaction from other traditionalist Catholic groups that remain in communion with Rome has been mixed. Many of these groups opposed Pope Francis’ crackdown on the traditional Latin Mass and share the SSPX’s concerns about a perceived doctrinal crisis in the modern church, but they uniformly condemn the unsanctioned consecrations as an act of unlawful disobedience. Joseph Shaw, head of the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales, noted that the SSPX’s decision to hold a large public event — rather than hiding the rite like smaller fringe groups — ensures followers can confirm the validity of their sacraments, saying “they (the SSPX) have the resources to do it nicely.” Other traditionalist critics have called the consecrations “grievously unlawful” and rejected the “state of necessity” justification, while also accusing the Vatican of hypocrisy for applying harsh pressure to the SSPX while negotiating with progressive German bishops whose reforms also contradict official Catholic doctrine. In a recent move that appears to pre-empt that criticism, the Vatican officially rejected a German request to allow laypeople to preach homilies, restating the longstanding rule that only priests and deacons may hold this role.

  • Pages of friendship: Fresh insights into China from US teens

    Pages of friendship: Fresh insights into China from US teens

    When young American travelers cross continents to explore China, their personal travel notebooks become far more than just a log of sightseeing destinations—they turn into intimate, unvarnished chronicles of cross-cultural connection that challenge preexisting narratives about the world’s most populous country. A new feature published by China Daily on June 24, 2024, invites readers to step into the shoes of a group of U.S. high school travelers, flipping through their handwritten journal entries to encounter China through the curious, open-minded lens of global youth.

    Instead of relying on secondhand media narratives or political talking points, these teen travelers build their understanding of China through first-hand encounters: walking the winding stone battlements of the Great Wall, wandering through the imperial courtyards of the Forbidden City, striking up conversations with local peers who share their love of music, sports, or art, and discovering unexpected common ground that bridges geographical and cultural divides. Organized as part of broader youth exchange efforts, the project centers young voices to reframe the U.S.-China people-to-people connection, moving beyond polarized public discourse to highlight the human bonds that form when young people get to meet each other face to face.

    China Daily reporter Xia Ji guides readers through the collection of journal pages, pairing handwritten excerpts and personal reflections with on-the-ground context from the trip. What emerges from the pages is not a polished, official portrait of the country, but a raw, authentic collection of impressions: the awe of standing at the top of the Great Wall at sunrise, the joy of swapping social media handles with a new Chinese friend who loves the same K-pop group, the surprise of finding how many shared values and daily experiences cut through long-held stereotypes. Each entry adds a new layer of fresh, youthful insight that deviates from standard media coverage, offering a reminder that grassroots, youth-led exchange remains one of the most powerful tools for building mutual understanding between nations.

    This feature is part of China Daily’s broader 2025 “A Date with China” special coverage series, which focuses on elevating personal cross-cultural stories and people-to-people ties between China and the rest of the world. The series also includes other narratives of longstanding connection, from an American educator who has spent decades working with China’s deaf community to initiatives boosting economic and cultural cooperation between China and partner nations across the globe.

  • Fears grow for civilians as paramilitary group closes in on strategic Sudanese city

    Fears grow for civilians as paramilitary group closes in on strategic Sudanese city

    As Sudan’s brutal civil war enters its fourth year, a build-up of paramilitary forces around the key central city of El-Obeid has sparked urgent global warnings that the region could face a new wave of mass civilian violence, echoing the catastrophic 2024 attack on El Fasher.

    In an official statement, a spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized the global community’s commitment to preventing a repeat of El Fasher’s atrocities in El-Obeid. Last year, when the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured El Fasher after a three-day assault, more than 6,000 people were killed. UN investigators have concluded the attack carried all the hallmarks of genocide.

    The UN Security Council has formally expressed alarm over confirmed reports of substantial RSF troop and weapons reinforcements deployed across areas surrounding El-Obeid in North Kordofan. The United States, United Kingdom and multiple European nations have also issued joint warnings of sharply escalating risks of large-scale atrocities against the city’s half-million residents.

    Strategic analysts who spoke to the Associated Press note that RSF deployments around the city are clear indicators the paramilitary group is preparing a full-scale offensive to retake control of El-Obeid, a critical stronghold that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) broke out from a more than year-long RSF siege in early 2024. The RSF has not issued any immediate response to requests for comment on the troop build-up.

    El-Obeid holds unique strategic importance for both warring parties in Sudan’s ongoing conflict. Situated along Sudan’s primary east-west highway that connects outlying regions to the Nile Valley and the capital Khartoum, the city hosts a large military air base and an infantry division, making it a key logistical hub for the SAF’s campaign against the RSF.

    Nathaniel Raymond, executive director of the Humanitarian Research Lab at the Yale School of Public Health, explained that El-Obeid’s significance extends beyond military strategy. “El Obeid is important beyond even the strategic implications because it shows what happens when you have two forces that are highly depleted attempting to gain advantage on the other in high proximity,” he said. If the RSF seizes control of the city, it would open a clear path for the group to threaten Khartoum and Omdurman — territories the SAF retook last year — trigger widespread civilian chaos, and block humanitarian organizations from resuming operations in the capital region, Raymond added.

    Unlike the 2024 assault on El Fasher, which followed an 18-month siege and was driven largely by ethnically motivated violence, experts frame a potential El-Obeid offensive as a tactical rather than explicitly genocidal move. Still, Raymond warned that even a tactical takeover would likely lead to widespread reprisal killings of civilians perceived to be allied with the SAF.

    Ali Mahmoud Ali, a Sudan researcher for the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), noted that while the RSF is capable of cutting off El-Obeid from multiple directions, maintaining a full blockade would require the paramilitary to commit significant manpower, armored vehicles and military equipment that it can ill afford. Even so, if the RSF manages to capture and hold the city, the humanitarian situation “could deteriorate rapidly,” Ali warned.

    For months, El-Obeid’s civilian population has already lived under the constant threat of RSF drone strikes, which have destroyed critical civilian infrastructure including power stations, residential neighborhoods, bridges and key supply routes, according to UN documentation. Taghreed al-Rashid, a 35-year-old El-Obeid resident reached by phone, said while she feels some security from the presence of SAF troops, she grows increasingly anxious over targeted attacks on residential areas and public markets. A recent drone strike on a local power plant triggered a citywide water crisis, forcing al-Rashid to pay $5 per barrel of clean water — a crippling expense for most residents.

    “Despite everything we’re going through, we’re determined to stay in the city because forced displacement is an even harder struggle,” al-Rashid said.

    ACLED data confirms that drone-related fatalities have skyrocketed across the Kordofan region in 2025, with at least 2,670 total deaths (including both combatants and civilians) recorded this year — a 600% increase in drone-related deaths and an 81% increase in drone attacks compared to 2024. Another resident, Magdy Abdou, said he is still able to move to local mosques and markets without immediate risk, but lives in constant fear of future strikes on critical infrastructure. A takeover of El-Obeid would also allow the RSF to launch drone strikes from much closer range, expanding their striking capacity across SAF-held territory.

    Ravina Shamdasani, a spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said ongoing attacks on infrastructure have left El-Obeid’s residents facing severe shortages of food, fuel, clean water, healthcare and transportation. “Many civilians are trapped. Those who are able to flee are doing so. The imminent offensive must be halted, and civilians enabled to safely leave the city,” she said.

    Analysts remain divided over the RSF’s likelihood of capturing the city. Raymond argues that the RSF’s fighting capacity has been significantly eroded by sustained SAF defenses and intertribal conflict, leaving the group short on personnel to repel an expected SAF counterattack. However, Ali notes that the RSF has now deployed air defense systems in Abu Zabad, West Kordofan, which could serve as a logistical hub for operations targeting El-Obeid and the nearby city of Dilling, likely intensifying clashes across the region. Since the SAF broke the initial siege last year, the RSF has launched repeated attempts to reimpose a blockade from multiple directions.

    The SAF also maintains its own drone capabilities. An anonymous SAF official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief media, confirmed that recent SAF drone strikes destroyed an entire RSF battalion and more than 50 armored vehicles in West Kordofan, halting the group’s advance toward North Kordofan and El-Obeid. The official added that the military has developed a coordinated plan to defend El-Obeid’s airspace from incoming RSF drones.

    Federico Donelli, an associate professor of international relations at the University of Trieste, noted that the SAF has prioritized the defense of El-Obeid and the critical east-west corridor to the Nile Valley since last year, reflecting the military’s focus on holding key supply and transport routes. “Overall, the SAF appears capable of mounting an organized initial defense, but the key open question is whether it can sustain it against a faster, better-equipped RSF push,” Donelli said.

  • South Koreans expecting a home-game feel for World Cup group match against South Africa

    South Koreans expecting a home-game feel for World Cup group match against South Africa

    As South Korea prepares for its final Group A World Cup clash against South Africa in Monterrey, Mexico, head coach Hong Myung-bo says his side is set to receive an extraordinary boost: a raucous, home-field-style atmosphere built on years of cross-cultural football camaraderie. The warm welcome is no accident, tracing back to a historic 2018 World Cup upset that forged an unbreakable bond between fans of the two nations.

    When South Korea stunned defending champion Germany 2-0 four years ago, the result unexpectedly pushed Mexico through to the tournament’s knockout round. Overjoyed Mexican fans took to the streets outside South Korea’s Monterrey consulate, celebrating with a chant that has since become a symbol of the friendship: “Coreano, hermano, ya eres Mexicano” — “Korean brother, you are now Mexican.” That moment of gratitude has blossomed into sustained support for the South Korean national team during this co-hosted World Cup, which is being held across the United States, Mexico and Canada.

    Hong, who knows high-stakes World Cup football well as captain of South Korea’s iconic 2002 semifinal squad, says the outpouring of support from local fans is an unexpected gift for his players. After seeing Mexican fans turn out in force to back the Taeguk Warriors during their opening 2-1 victory over the Czech Republic in Guadalajara, Hong is expecting an equally enthusiastic crowd for Wednesday’s decisive match.

    “We may feel like this is our home ground tomorrow, and that is a very big gift to our players,” Hong said. “We will use that very well so we can play a good game tomorrow.”

    Beyond visiting traveling supporters, the Monterrey region already has deep ties to South Korea. Roughly 5,000 South Korean immigrants have settled in the area, most clustered in the Pesquería district just east of Monterrey National Airport. The community grew after South Korean automotive manufacturer KIA Motors opened a major local plant, drawing workers and businesses that strengthened economic and cultural links between the two countries. This tournament’s draw put all of South Korea’s group stage matches in Mexican host cities, cementing the team’s connection to the region ahead of the decisive clash.

    For visiting fans like Lee Ha-young, who traveled all the way from Seoul to support the team, the warmth of Mexican hospitality has already turned the country into a home away from home. While the two fan cultures differ — Mexican fans are far more outwardly expressive of their passion than the more reserved cultural norm in South Korea, Lee notes — shared love of the game has erased any divides.

    “Mexican fans have a lot of energy – more energy than us,” Lee said. “We have the same energy in our hearts, but it’s really hard to express because in Korean culture it’s not easy to express our feelings.”

    Lee added that many traveling South Korean supporters initially hoped the team would play at least one group stage match in the United States, where star Son Heung-min plays club football for LAFC. But the warm welcome from Mexican fans has changed all those expectations. “But the Mexican people have been really warm to us, so now I think tomorrow we will feel like home here in Monterrey,” she said.

    The stakes of Wednesday’s match could not be higher for both sides. Following a narrow 1-0 loss to host Mexico in their second group fixture, South Korea currently sits second in Group A with three points from two matches. South Africa and the Czech Republic are tied on one point apiece after playing out a 1-1 draw in their opening encounter. A win or even a draw will be enough for South Korea to lock in a spot in the knockout round, while South Africa must secure a full three points to guarantee it avoids elimination.

    If South Korea holds on to second place in the group, it will advance to a Round of 32 match in Los Angeles — a destination that would offer another comfortable, familiar setting for the team. The Los Angeles metro area is home to more than 300,000 Korean-Americans, who would likely turn out in force to support the national side. Still, for visiting fans like Lee, there’s something special about the welcome in Mexico that makes the experience unforgettable.

    “We might have to go to the U.S., for the round of 32,” Lee said. “But I don’t want to leave, I want to stay here in Mexico.”