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10:00 AM ET, Wednesday, November 1, 2023

The Cipher Brief curates open source information from around the world that impacts national security. Here's a look at today's headlines, broken down by region of the world:  

THE TOP STORIES

White House Confirms Biden and Xi to Meet Next Month.  The White House announced that President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco this month.  White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the two leaders aim to have a “constructive conversation”on the sidelines of the APEC summit.  Teams from both sides have also reportedly agreed in principle on the meeting.  The announcement follows a meeting between Biden and other senior US officials with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week in Washington.  China has yet to officially confirm the Biden-Xi meeting, and a senior US official says that there are still “important details” to finalize.  Biden and Xi have not met in person since November of 2022 on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Indonesia.  Bloomberg CBS Reuters South China Morning Post

Senators of Both Parties Oppose House Republican Israel-Only Aid Bill, Biden Threatens Veto.  Both Democratic and Republican senators yesterday criticized a House Republican plan to provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel by cutting IRS funding and without providing aid to Ukraine.  The White House later said that President Biden would veto that version of the bill. The White House Office of Management and Budget said the bill “is bad for” Israel, the Middle East, and U.S. national security. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Republican plan “is not a serious proposal.” Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said four issues need to be addressed: “Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and the border.” At a Senate hearing yesterday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Ukraine needs continued U.S. assistance in its war with Russia. After testifying, Blinken had what he called “a very good meeting” with House Speaker Mike Johnson, but he declined to comment further. The House plans to vote on the Israel aid package tomorrow. Reuters Bloomberg

U.S. Special Operations Forces in Israel to Help Locate Hostages.  Assistant Defense Secretary Christopher Maier said on Tuesday that the U.S. has deployed Special Operations forces to Israel. Maier says that the U.S. commandos are working with the Israelis to assist in locating the 200-plus hostages Hamas seized during its attack on Israel October 7. Maier would not say how many commandos were in place, but other U.S. officials said several dozen have been sent. The officials said the commandos would join the FBI, State Department, and other hostage recovery specialists in discussions with their Israeli counterparts. U.S. Special Operations members do not currently have a combat role, but are reportedly advising their Israeli counterparts on what Maier says will be a “very complex fight” in the days and weeks ahead. Several other western nations have also moved their own special operations forces into the region to assist with potential rescue or evacuation operations. New York Times

U.S. Deploying 300 Additional Soldiers to Middle East.  The Pentagon announced on Tuesday that it is sending 300 additional troops to the Middle East to prevent an escalation of the Israel-Hamas war and to safeguard American personnel in the region. The Defense Department said the soldiers are part of a group of 2,000 troops in the U.S. who have been on a 24-hour prepare-to-deploy notice following the October 7th attacks by Hamas militants on Israel. Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said that the additional forces will offer support in areas like explosive ordnance disposal and communications.  Ryder did not specify where the soldiers will go, but confirmed the location is not Israel.  He also said that there were 27 attacks against American troops in Iraq and Syria in October.  Washington has recently deployed thousands of military personnel to the Middle East, including Air Force fighter squadrons, Army air defense units, two carrier strike groups, and an amphibious ready group with embarked Marine Expeditionary Unit.  Military Times Reuters Stars and Stripes Wall Street Journal

Israel, U.S. Considering Options for Peacekeeping Force in Post-Hamas Gaza.  Sources say Israel and the U.S. are considering options for the future of the Gaza Strip, including the possibility of a multinational peacekeeping force that might include U.S. troops, if Israel succeeds in defeating Hamas. The sources emphasized that discussions are still in an early stage, and some U.S. officials consider the options premature or unlikely. But National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson told Bloomberg that sending U.S. troops to Gaza as part of a peacekeeping force “is under discussion.” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in his Senate testimony yesterday that the U.S. is considering a range of options for the future of Gaza. Blinken told the Senate Appropriations Committee that there “can’t be a reversion to the status quo with Hamas running Gaza,” and he said the Israelis themselves know Israel cannot be “running or controlling Gaza.” Bloomberg

North Korea Preparing Third Spy Satellite Launch Attempt, Has Sent Munitions to Russia.  South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) reports that North Korea is in the final stages of preparations for its third attempt at launching a spy satellite.  NIS believes that the chances of this attempt succeeding are high, following the failures of its two past attempts this year due to booster malfunctions.  NIS added that Pyongyang appears to have received technical assistance from Russia for the launch.  During North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s visit to Russia in September, Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged to help Pyongyang build satellites, without elaborating.  Separately, NIS reports that North Korea has also delivered over 10 shipments of munitions to Russia, including over one million artillery rounds.  A South Korean lawmaker said this is roughly the amount of munitions that Russia expends in two months in its invasion of Ukraine.  NIS said the shipments were delivered by vessels between a North Korean east coast port and Russian ports.  North Korea is reportedly running its munitions factories at full capacity to meet the Russian demand.  Meanwhile, NIS says it has seen “indications” that North Korea is looking to provide “a wide range of support” for Palestine, in an apparent attempt to benefit from the Israel-Hamas conflict.  NIS also reports that over 80 percent of foreign cyberattacks against South Korea were by North Korea and China, with North Korean hackers targeting private companies over government agencies more frequently.  Barron’s Reuters 

North Korea Closes Multiple Embassies Around the World.  News media reports and analysis say North Korea is preparing to close as many 25 percent of its embassies worldwide, including those in Spain, Hong Kong and multiple countries in Africa. South Korea’s unification ministry said yesterday that Pyongyang’s recent closures are a sign that North Korea is struggling to make money overseas because of international sanctions. Chad O’Carroll, founder of the North Korea-focused website NK Pro, wrote that the embassy closings set the stage for what could be one of North Korea’s “biggest foreign policy shakeups in decades.” O’Carroll said more than a dozen missions may close, likely because of international sanctions, a general trend of disengagement, and a probable weakening of North Korea’s economy. Reuters

Largest Chinese Antarctic Fleet Sets Sail to Build Research Station.  Two Chinese icebreaker research vessels and a cargo ship set sail for the Antarctic on Wednesday to help build China’s fifth station on the continent.  The flotilla, which has over 460 personnel on board, is the largest fleet of Chinese research vessels deployed to the Antarctic.  It will focus on building a station on the Ross Sea.  The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) says the station is expected to include an observatory with a satellite ground station, which will “fill in a major gap” in China’s access to the continent.  CSIS also notes that the station is well positioned to potentially collect signals intelligence over Australia and New Zealand and telemetry data on rockets launched from Australia’s Arnhem Space Center.  China denies that it will use the new station for espionage.  China has four Antarctic research stations built from 1985 to 2014.  Reuters 

ISRAEL AND HAMAS WAR

Blinken and Austin Appeal for Israel Aid.  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Tuesday called for the approval of President Joe Biden’s $106 billion aid package which includes funding for Israel, Ukraine, U.S. border security, and efforts to counter China in Asia.  The request asks for $14.3 billion for Israel, including $9 billion for humanitarian relief for both Israel and Gaza.  Separately, Blinken said a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict would only allow Hamas to reconsolidate, though he said “humanitarian pauses” to get aid to those in need should be considered.  Blinken added that both Hamas and Israel cannot run Gaza in the future and that an “effective and revitalized Palestinian Authority” would ideally take charge, with other countries in the region stepping in temporarily.  Regarding attacks on U.S. forces in the Middle East, Austin said “we will respond” if they continue.  U.S. airstrikes on arms storage facilities in Syria aimed to deter further attacks, but have so far failed to do so.  Associated Press CNN Reuters Washington Post The Cipher Brief

FBI Director Warns of U.S. Terror Threat from Hamas Attacks.  FBI Director Christopher Wray warned on Tuesday that the Hamas attacks on Israel could inspire the most significant terror threat to the U.S. since the launch of ISIS about a decade ago.  Wray noted that since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, several foreign terrorist organizations have called for attacks against Americans and the West, which raises the threat posed by homegrown U.S. violent extremists.  Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas added that there has been an increase in antisemitism and reports of anti-Jewish incidents at U.S. universities amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.  Officials have also warned of threats to Muslims and Arab Americans.  NBC News NPR Reuters The Cipher Brief

U.S. Senate Confirms New Ambassador to Israel.  The U.S. Senate on Wednesday confirmed Jack Lew, a former treasury secretary in the Obama administration, to be the next U.S. ambassador to Israel.  Lew’s nomination was approved 53-43, mostly along party lines and despite fierce opposition from some Republican senators due to Lew’s involvement in the Obama-era 2015 Iran nuclear deal.  CNN Washington Post The Hill The Cipher Brief

Israeli Strike on Gaza’s Jabalya Refugee Camp Reportedly Kills Dozens.  An Israeli strike on the Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza has reportedly killed dozens of Palestinians.  The Gaza Health Ministry says that over 50 people were killed and 150 others injured in the attack.  Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Lt. Col. Ricahrd Hecht told CNN that the attack targeted and killed a senior Hamas commander, Ibrahim Biari.  Hamas has denied that one of its leaders was in the camp at the time of the attack.  Al Jazeera BBC CNN New York Times Washington Post Reuters The Cipher Brief

Limited Evacuations from Gaza into Egypt Underway for Foreign Nationals & Wounded.  Hundreds of foreign passport holders and wounded who had been trapped in Gaza began leaving the territory on Wednesday as the Rafah border crossing into Egypt was opened to them for the first time since the Hamas attack on Israel October 7. Egyptian security sources said the crossings began following a Qatari-mediated deal between Egypt, Israel and Hamas. Gaza’s Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry provided a list of foreign passport holders who can leave Gaza. Approximately 545 foreigners and dual nationals, as well as dozens of sick and wounded people, were expected to leave. At least five American NGO workers were on the list, but there are at least 400 U.S. citizens the State Department says have been stuck in Gaza and it is unclear how many will be allowed to cross. Meanwhile yesterday, 59 aid trucks crossed into Gaza, the largest number to pass through Rafah since crossings began October 21. Dozens of additional trucks were expected to enter Gaza today. CBS News NPR Wall Street Journal Reuters

Israel Deploys Missile Boats to Red Sea After Houthi Attacks.  The Israeli military deployed missile boats to the Red Sea after Yemen’s Houthis claimed to have launched missile and drone attacks at Israel and vowed to conduct more.  The military released footage of Saar-class corvettes patrolling near the Red Sea port of Eliat, which reports now describe as a ‘new front’ in Israel’s war with Hamas. Israel said the boat deployments are meant to bolster defenses in the area, adding to the air defenses already there.  The U.S. military is also deployed in the Red Sea and has reportedly intercepted Houthi missiles and drones launched towards Israel.  Reuters Times of Israel 

Blinken to Visit Israel on Friday.  The State Department said on Monday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel on Friday for meetings with government officials.  State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller added that Blinken, who has already visited Israel twice since the Hamas attacks on October 7, will also make additional stops in the region.  Reuters Times of Israel Wall Street Journal

Bolivia Cuts Diplomatic Ties with Israel, Others Recall Envoys.  Bolivia announced on Tuesday that it has severed diplomatic ties with Israel due to its attacks on Gaza.  Colombia and Chile have also recalled their country’s Israeli ambassadors for consultations.  All three countries called for a ceasefire and denounced Israel’s offensive and the killing of Palestinian citizens. Bolivian Deputy Foreign Minister Freddy Mamani said that the nation chose to cut ties in “repudiation and condemnation” of Israel’s “aggressive and disproportionate” military operations in Gaza.  Bolivia and Chile have also accused Israel of breaching international law, urging for increased humanitarian aid for the territory.  Columbia’s President Gustavo Petro added that the assaults on the Gaza Strip are a "massacre of the Palestinian people.”  Israel has not yet responded to requests for a comment.  Mexico and Brazil have also called for a ceasefire, with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday condemning Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for attempting to “wipe out the Gaza Strip.” Reuters Times of Israel

Iran’s Khamenei Calls for Muslim Nations to Stop Exports to Israel.  Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is calling on Muslim countries to stop oil and food exports to Israel to demand an end to Israeli air strikes on Gaza.  Tehran has warned of an escalation in the Israel-Hamas conflict involving Iranian-backed proxies in the region if the Israeli military does not cease its military actions in Gaza.  Al Jazeera France 24 Reuters 

THE UKRAINE UPDATE

Russian Drone Attack Hits Ukrainian Oil Refinery.  A Russian drone attack set fire to the Kremenchuk oil refinery in the central Poltava region overnight.  Regional officials said the fire was put out quickly, though the extent of the damage is unclear.  The refinery has been frequently targeted by Russian forces, and Ukraine says the facility is not operational.  Ukraine’s Air Force said it intercepted 18 of 20 drones and missiles launched by Russia in overnight attacks, which mostly targeted military and critical infrastructure.  Drone debris damaged railway power lines in the central Kirovohrad region, but officials say they were quickly repaired.  Attacks on the Donetsk, Kharkiv, and Kherson regions killed at least three people.  Reuters Kyiv Independent

Zelensky Touts Military Success in Black Sea, Warns Against Expectations for Instant Success.  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Kyiv’s recurrent assaults on the Russian Navy in the Black Sea have impeded Moscow’s attempts at domination, and that success should not be expected to happen instantly.  In an effort to celebrate Ukraine’s troops, Zelensky in his nightly video message praised “all those who do not retreat, who do not burn out,” and stressed that Kyiv’s counteroffensive is advancing despite its slow pace.  He urged his allies to maintain the flow of aid and funding, asserting that Ukraine could push Russian forces out of the strategic Black Sea theater and win the war with the help of continued assistance.  It is not yet known how much damage Ukraine has inflicted on Moscow’s forces in the Black Sea, though Zelensky argued that Ukraine’s success in the region will “go down in history books.”  At the frontline, intense fighting in areas like Avdiivka and Kupiansk continues.  Reuters

Russian Nationals Arrested in New York for Supporting Russia’s Military.  A U.S. Attorney's Office reported on Tuesday that two Russian-Canadians and one Russian-Tajik national were arrested in New York on suspicion of conducting a "massive sanctions evasion and export control scheme.”  The three defendants — identified as Nikolay Goltsev, Salimdzhon Nasriddinov and Kristina Puzyreva — allegedly worked to export circuits, semiconductors, and dual-use electronic components to Russia.  The suspects allegedly transferred more than 300 shipments of components, worth about $10 million, to Russia over a period of 12 months.  The U.S. Department of Commerce said that these components played a “critical role” in manufacturing sophisticated weapons systems.  It is believed that the suspects used New York-based front companies to purchase electronic components from American producers and ship them.  Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew Olsen said that the detainment of the three suspects signals the undermining of "a sophisticated procurement” ring.  There was no reported mention of how the suspects plan to plea, or any comments from their attorneys.  U.S. Department of Justice Kyiv Independent

THE CYBER AND TECH RUNDOWN

FBI Director Warns Senate of Cyber Spillover Into U.S. from Hamas-Israel Conflict.  FBI Director Christopher Wray told a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing Tuesday that Iranian and non-state threat actor cyberattacks against the U.S. could intensify if the Hamas-Israel conflict worsens.  Wray said that cyber targeting of “American interests and critical infrastructure” already under way by Iran and others could grow if the Mideast hostilities expand, along with the threat of “kinetic attacks.”  Noting the long-standing alliance between Iran and Hezbollah, which he describes as Tehran’s “primary strategic partner,” Wray testified that the bureau is closely watching for repercussions in the U.S. of tensions in the region.  Concerns remain that a new front in cyberwarfare may emerge as Israel’s ground offensive into Gaza proceeds and Iran sees opportunities to direct its cyber forces on Israeli targets.  The Record

Iran-Linked Threat Actor Deploys Advanced Malware Against Multiple Mideast Targets.  A cyberespionage group linked to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) is targeting government, military, and telecommunications systems across the Middle East.  A group tracked as “Scarred Manticore '' is covertly infiltrating systems in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, and Israel, according to Check Point researchers with the goal of extracting data.  The researchers say the tools and capabilities used currently by the threat actor demonstrate the progress made by Iranian groups in recent years.  The location of systems targeted by the group aligns with Iranian interests and matches the typical profile that MOIS-affiliated actors target in espionage operations.  In the latest intrusions, Scarred Manticore deployed an advanced malware backdoor, Liontail, which gives attackers the ability to execute commands through HTTP prompts.  The group’s tactics include generating a unique implant for every compromised server to mask their malicious activities within legitimate network traffic and gain persistence on a targeted system.  Some tools used by the group have been linked to another alleged MOIS-sponsored operation, the destructive attack against Albanian government infrastructure.  Researchers believe Scarred Manticore operations will continue and could expand in line with Iranian goals.  The Record

Politico Interviews Cybersecurity Expert on AI Standards, Global Competition.  In an interview with Politico’s Digital Future Daily (DFD), Cornell Professor Gregory Falco projected a future in which there is a relentless contest between AI-powered cyberattacks and cyber-defenses relying on the same technology.  In fact, Falco said, that future is already with us: “It’s happening on a pretty basic level today, where you have these bots that are doing bad things, and then you have AI systems that are trying to combat these blunt force bots that are messing with our digital infrastructure.”  Falco, who serves as chair of an IEEE committee developing standards for space system cybersecurity, noted that there is an expectation that the IEEE effort will result in revitalized cybersecurity guidance.  He pointed to the ambiguity of cyber guidance, which puts the technical community in the position of figuring out what makes sense and “causes a bit of a mess.”  The solution rests in a more deliberate government effort to connect with the developer community, not just the policy audience occupying “their little bubble of the Beltway.”  Turning to the international setting, Falco observed that China is responsible for “some of the most important and interesting AI work in the world right now.”  He recalled reports that China is using AI for offensive operations in league with other adversary nations.  AI, Falco summed up, is “an asymmetric system, where anyone is able to use these capabilities,” adding that the advantage goes to those with the most data and the most educated workforce to build systems.  “So we’re in a national security race right now against our adversaries,” Falco concluded.  Politico

UN AI Advisory Body Report Will Identify Gaps in Global Governance Measures.  UN tech envoy Amandeep Singh Gill says that an interim AI report from the organization’s newly formed advisory body will spotlight gaps that exist among current governance measures and then take steps to close those gaps.  Gill told Reuters, "we need to examine the landscape of existing governance responses across borders, and then see where the gaps are and how we can connect the governance responses together so that there are no gaps."  Under the UN Secretary General, Gill has responsibility for coordinating on tech issues, ranging from AI to neural technologies, across the UN.  The UN’s advisory body is co-chaired by Spanish digital minister Carme Artigas and Alphabet's James Manyika and is scheduled to have at least three in-person meetings and several virtual meetings.  The body’s recommendations will be discussed at a UN summit next September.  Reuters

Pro-Ukraine Hackers Claim Data Extraction from Russian Card Payment System.  Pro-Ukrainian hackers say that they have obtained user data extracted from Russia’s National Payment Card System’s (NSPK) Mir network, which operates as a domestic alternative to Visa and MasterCard.  The DumpForums group and Ukrainian Cyber Alliance defaced the NSPK website and claim to have breached Mir’s internal systems.  A NSPK spokesperson denied that any data was leaked, but DumpForums published a screenshot of a folder that it said contains 30 gigabytes of Mir data.  NSPK did acknowledge the defacement of its website.  The Record

ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD

Asia and Oceania

China, Japan Coastguard Face-Off at Disputed Islands.  Chinese and Japanese coast guard vessels had another tense encounter near disputed islands in the East China Sea, which Japan calls the Senkaku Islands and China calls the Diaoyu Islands.  The Chinese coast guard claimed that three Japanese vessels and several patrol ships “illegally” entered the territorial waters of the islands on Monday.  Chinese coast guard spokesperson Gan Yu said Chinese vessels took “necessary control measures,” without elaborating, and said that Japan should “stop all illegal activities” in the area.  Meanwhile, the Japanese coast guard said it urged three Chinese coast guard vessels to leave waters around the islands.  Two weeks ago, both sides had another confrontation around the islands.  Japan’s coast guard said it moved to block Chinese vessels from approaching Japanese fishing boats near the islands during that incident.  South China Morning Post 

Japan Says Alleged Russian Helicopter Violated Hokkaido Airspace.  The Japanese Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that a helicopter, presumed to be Russian, violated the airspace over Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost Island. The ministry said Air Self-Defense Force fighter jets were scrambled to respond. Kyodo News reported that the ministry lodged “a stern protest with Moscow” over the incident through diplomatic channels.  Kyiv Independent

China Kicks Off Nationwide Population Survey Amid Declining Birth Rate.  China begins polling 1.4 million people on Wednesday in a survey on population changes. The poll, announced October 10, will focus on both urban and rural areas throughout the country. China’s National Bureau of Statistics said the survey will help provide a basis for the government to formulate economic, social development and population-related policies. The poll comes as the government seeks to incentivize people to have more children amid a declining birth rate and the first decrease in population in more than 60 years. The government reported a population of approximately 1.41175 billion last year, a decrease of about 850,000 from the previous year, the first decline since 1961 – the last year of the Great Famine.  Reuters

Europe

France’s Macron Visits Kazakhstan.  French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Kazakhstan on Wednesday.  In a meeting with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Macron praised Kazakhstan for not supporting Russia in its war in Ukraine despite the “geopolitical difficulties [and] the pressures” Astana is likely facing.  The two sides signed various business deals, including a declaration of intent for a rare earths and rare metals partnership.  Kazakhstan is oil-rich and has already emerged as an alternative to Russia as a source of crude for Europe.  Kazakhstan is also a top exporter of uranium and serves as a key link in China-Europe trade bypassing Russia.  Macron is headed to Uzbekistan after Kazakhstan, both of which have refused to recognize Russia’s annexation of Ukrainian territories, pledged to follow Western sanctions against Moscow, and call both Russia and some Western nations as their strategic partners.  In response to Macron’s visit, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia maintains “historical ties” with Kazakhstan and that it can develop relations with any countries.  However, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that the West is trying to pull Russia’s “neighbors, friends and allies” away.  Reuters

Serbia's Vucic Dissolves Parliament for Snap Election.  Serbian President Aleksandar Vuvic dissolved parliament on Wednesday and called for an early election on December 17. Experts say the vote and the absence of parliament will allow Vucic to delay decisions over how to normalize relations with Kosovo, which Serbia still sees as its southern province. That normalization is the primary precondition for European Union membership. E.U. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a visit to Belgrade on Tuesday that both Serbia and Kosovo must step up their efforts to normalize relations if they want to join the bloc. Serbia also would need to join Western sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, take steps against corruption and organized crime, reform its economy and judiciary, and improve its human rights record.  Reuters RFE/RL

Africa

Mali Insurgents Claim to Have Seized Base Abandoned by UN Peacekeepers.  Tuareg rebels in Mali — called the Permanent Strategic Framework for Peace, Security and Development (CSP-PSD) — on Tuesday claimed that they have taken control of a base in the town of Kidal that was abandoned by the U.N. mission MINUSMA.  The peacekeeping mission’s withdrawal from bases around the country, which was demanded by Mali’s ruling military junta, has led to struggles between the army and rebels seeking control of areas left by the U.N.  Kidal, located in an area historically under control of rebels, is the eighth MINUSMA base to shut down in northern and central Mali. The mission said it had departed with extreme difficulty and confirmed that it had destroyed equipment before vacating, adding that it did not know what happened to the base after it departed. A source with information about the situation said that the militants captured the runway close to the camp shortly after the U.N. left.  Another resident said that the rebels had seized the base, without offering details. Mali’s junta has expressed concerns that the U.N.’s “retreat was not the subject of a handover" directly to the military.  Reuters France 24

Soldier in Gambia Sentenced to Prison for Failed Coup.  The high court of Gambia on Tuesday sentenced soldier Sanna Fadera to 12 years in prison for leading a failed coup last year against the government of President Adama Barrow.  Fadera has denied all wrongdoing.  In January, eight soldiers were charged with conspiracy and treason for the coup attempt in December of 2022.  A police officer and two civilians were also charged with conspiracy to commit a felony and concealment of treason.  Seven were acquitted and granted freedom.  Coups are not uncommon in Gambia, which is still recovering from over 20 years under the authoritarian rule of former president Yahya Jammeh, who seized power himself in 1994 and had foiled several coup attempts.  Reuters

Conflict in Congo Has Displaced Record 6.9 Million  The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Monday that an escalating civil war and violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo has displaced a record 6.9 million people.  According to UN data, most of those forced to leave their homes are from the eastern provinces.  The IOM said that since June, it has built 3,347 emergency shelters and distributed 7,715 kits with non-food supplies, but the organization said its operations remain underfunded.  Reuters

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