Zecharias Zelalem

If you missed it, the African Union's communiqué in response to the invasion of Venezuela by US forces. For all the many shortcomings of the AU, on the 🇻🇪 issue, it has certainly proven to be a far more robust defender of the rules based order and even international law than many EU states. Some start to 2026!

Selam! Wanted to hear opinions from (but not limited to) our American friends here: So Semafor reported that both the Washington Post and NY Times were leaked info about the Caracas raid and planned Maduro abduction prior to it happening, but chose not to publish it. Apparently, it's a US media tradition meant to avoid compromising the safety of US troops. Qs: is withholding such info consistent with journo practice? And beyond journalism, how do you feel about the decision?

There has been genocide in each year of the 2020ies so far, what a cursed decade. A decade we kicked off with a global pandemic, lest we forget. Here's to bucking the trend in 26. Wishing you a happy new year fediverse fam.

THREAD: on Friday, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would recognize Somaliland, an autonomous breakaway republic in northern Somalia, as an independent state. This makes Israel the first state to officially recognize Somaliland, since it's 1991 declaration of independence. What is this all about? I have some theories. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-recognises-somaliland-somalias-breakway-region-independent-state-2025-12-26/

"Genocide resumes," reads this weekend's cover of @The Continent newspaper, as El Fasher finally falls after a 500+ day siege by the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan. The RSF, long implicated in genocidal violence in Darfur dating back to the days of its predecessor the Janjaweed back in 2004, have been on a deadly rampage killing thousands in recent days. Sudanese activists had been warning for over a year of what could happen if they were to overrun El Fasher. The disaster is now unfolding.