Equality and Human Rights

More than 1,100 people, most of them Druze fighters, civilians and government security personnel, have been killed in clashes erupted on July 13 in Syria's Druze-majority province of Sweida, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. Clashes between local fighters and Sunni Bedouin, spiralled and drew in Syrian government forces, tribal allies of the Bedouin and the military of neighbouring Israel. According to the United Nations, the violence has displaced more than 128,000 people, an issue that has also made collecting and identifying bodies more difficult.

This week, a team of Japanese professionals conducted a landmine detection training programme for Ukrainian demining teams using equipment supplied by Japan. This initiative is intended to support Ukraine's ongoing efforts to clear explosive remnants of war in the context of Russia's ongoing invasion.