34.2014
August 15–21
EUROPE
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Montenegro to sign border deal
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro are due to sign a border demarcation agreement, becoming the
first two countries in the former Yugoslavia to resolve the issue in full.
Read full article: Balkan Insight (08/21)
Kosovo
Ukrainian peacekeepers to leave Kosovo
Ukraine will pull out most of its troops from the NATO peacekeeping mission in Kosovo (KFOR) by the end
of the month, KFOR announced on Monday.
Read full article: B92 (08/19)
Ukraine
Russian aid convoy starts moving into Ukraine
The first trucks from a Russian aid convoy on Thursday passed a Russian border check point and started
moving towards the border crossing with Ukraine, a Reuters reporter at the scene said.
Read full article: Reuters AlertNet (08/21)
Zentrum für Internationale Friedenseinsätze (ZIF) . Ludwigkirchplatz 3–4 . 10719 Berlin . www.zif-berlin.org
Ukraine army pushes into rebel-held territory
At least 52 people killed, and more wounded, as troops fight their way into cities held by rebels in eastern
Ukraine.
Read full article: Al Jazeera (08/21)
Ukraine, Russian presidents to meet in Belarus
Russia and Ukraine said yesterday (19 August) that their presidents would meet together with top
European Union officials in Belarus's capital of Minsk on 26 August to discuss their conflict over Ukraine.
Read full article: EurActiv (08/20)
AFRICA
Central African Republic
MINUSCA preparing to take over from MISCA
In just under four weeks the UN Multi-dimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission (MINUSCA) will take
over authority from the African-led International Support Mission to the CAR (MISCA). Among its priorities
will be implementation of the provisions of the agreement on the cessation of hostilities and setting up a
mechanism to investigate violations.
Read full article: defenceWeb (08/21)
European peacekeepers in CAR gun battle
Wednesday’s clashes broke out after residents of the PK-5 neighbourhood in Bangui accused the European
Union force (EUFOR) of shooting dead a man late on Tuesday.
Read full article: Al Jazeera (08/20)
Democratic Republic of the Congo
SADC ultimatum to Rwanda rebels in DRC
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) political leadership has issued an ultimatum to the
Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to surrender
and disarm within six months.
Read full article: StarAfrica (08/19)
Liberia
Ebola crisis: Liberia police fire at Monrovia protests
Police in Liberia's capital, Monrovia, have fired live rounds and tear gas during protests after a quarantine
was imposed to contain the spread of the deadly Ebola virus.
Read full article: BBC (08/21)
www.zif-berlin.org
Peace Operations Update 34.2014 | page 2
Libya
UN mission condemns 'grave escalation' in fighting, urges ceasefire
The Mission said it deeply regrets that there has been "no response to the repeated international appeals"
and its own efforts for an immediate ceasefire. Continued fighting poses a serious threat to Libya's political
process, as well as to the security and stability of the country.
Read full article: UN News (08/17)
Ban appoints Spanish national as head of UN support mission in Libya
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Mr. Bernardino León
of Spain as his Special Representative for Libya. Mr. León will also serve as the Head of the United Nations
Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).
Read full article: UN News (08/14)
Mali
Operation Barkhane: a show of force and political games in the Sahel-Sahara
On 15 July 2014, French President François Hollande launched Operation Barkhane; a counter-terrorism
force intended to hunt down terrorist groups in Sahel countries and prevent them from re-forming.
Read full article: ISS Today (08/19)
Two UN peacekeepers killed in attack in northern Mali
Two UN peacekeepers have been killed and seven others were injured in a suicide attack on a UN patrol
base in northern Mali. … It is not yet clear who was behind the attack, which has been condemned by UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Read full article: BBC (08/17)
Somalia
Somali warlord Ahmed Dai 'on the run' after disarmament raid
Correspondents say it was the heaviest fighting in the city since Islamist militants were driven out in 2011.
Read full article: BBC (08/15)
South Sudan
South Sudan government a no-show at peace talks
Opposition delegates at the slow-moving peace talks for South Sudan on Tuesday said government
negotiators have failed to show up for the talks in Addis Ababa since last week.
Read full article: VOA News (08/19)
As South Sudan crisis grows, Ethiopia becomes Africa’s largest refugee host
Ethiopia has surpassed Kenya in hosting the most refugees in Africa, sheltering 629,000 refugees as of the
end of July, the United Nations refugee agency announced on Tuesday.
Read full article: UN News (08/19)
www.zif-berlin.org
Peace Operations Update 34.2014 | page 3
Machar snubs Kiir’s offer to end conflict
South Sudan’s ex-vice president Riek Machar has rejected President Salva Kiir’s proposal to name him as
second vice president in a transitional unity government, sources said.
Read full article: StarAfrica (08/18)
African Union forms committee to support Sudan dialogue
The African Union (AU) has decided to set up a higher committee to support Sudan’s ongoing national
dialogue and tasked its chief mediator, Thabo Mbeki, with chairing it.
Read full article: Sudan Tribune (08/17)
IGAD extends South Sudan peace talks as regional leaders postpone meeting
The decision comes as South Sudan government and the opposition faction of the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation
Movement (SPLM-in-Opposition) … failed to meet the 10 August deadline to conclude a peace agreement.
Read full article: Sudan Tribune (08/15)
Sudan (Darfur)
Scores killed as Arab tribes clash in Darfur
At least 70 reported dead after Rezeigat and Maaliya tribes fight over territorial claims in western Sudan
region.
Read full article: Al Jazeera (08/20)
MIDDLE EAST
Iraq
Germany, Italy say prepared to send weapons to Iraq's Kurds
Germany and Italy joined Britain and France on Wednesday in saying they would arm Iraqi Kurdish
security forces fighting Islamic State militants in northern Iraq, in close coordination with the Baghdad
central government.
Read full article: Reuters (08/20) Balkan Insight (08/21)
France seeks international meeting to tackle Islamic State
French President Francois Hollande called on Wednesday for an international conference to discuss ways
of tackling Islamic State insurgents who have seized control of territory in Iraq and Syria.
Read full article: defenceWeb (08/20)
Isis fighters show strength as they repel Iraqi army's attempt to retake Tikrit
Iraqi military fails in third attempt to take town 80 miles north of Baghdad after coming under sustained
mortar and gunfire.
Read full article: The Guardian (08/19)
www.zif-berlin.org
Peace Operations Update 34.2014 | page 4
UN launches new aid effort in north Iraq
The United Nations agency for refugees is launching a major aid operation to reach more than half a million
people displaced by fighting in northern Iraq.
Read full article: BBC (08/19)
Britain steps up role in Iraq as warplanes monitor Isis positions
Defence secretary Michael Fallon confirms RAF Tornado jets have moved beyond humanitarian mission.
Read full article: The Guardian (08/18)
Iraq's Maliki finally steps aside, paving way for new government
Nuri al-Maliki finally bowed to pressure within Iraq and beyond on Thursday and stepped down as prime
minister, paving the way for a new coalition that world and regional powers hope can quash a Sunni
Islamist insurgency that threatens Baghdad.
Read full article: Reuters (08/15) Al Jazeera (08/14)
Adopting resolution, Security Council approves sanctions against militants in Iraq, Syria
Expressing its “gravest concern” that parts of Iraq and Syria are now under the control of the Islamic State
in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Al-Nusra Front, the United Nations Security Council today placed six
individuals affiliated with the terrorist groups on its Al-Qaida sanctions list and threatened measures
against those who finance, recruit or supply weapons to them.
Read full article: UN News (08/15)
Israel / Palestine
Israel kills three top Hamas commanders
Hostilities resumed after peace talks collapsed on Tuesday. Israel has vowed to pursue its campaign
until "full security" is achieved.
Read full article: BBC (08/21)
Gaza truce collapses, fighting erupts, Israel orders negotiators home
A ceasefire in the Gaza Strip collapsed on Tuesday, with Palestinian militants firing dozens of rockets at
Israel and Israel launching air strikes that health officials said killed three people including a woman and a
young girl in Gaza.
Read full article: defenceWeb (08/20)
Israel braces for war crimes inquiries on Gaza
The fighting is barely over in the latest Gaza war, with a five-day cease-fire taking hold on Thursday, but
attention has already shifted to the legal battlefield as Israel gears up to defend itself against international
allegations of possible war crimes in the monthlong conflict.
Read full article: New York Times (08/14)
www.zif-berlin.org
Peace Operations Update 34.2014 | page 5
Syria
James Foley: US reveals failed special forces rescue mission within Syria
Confirmation of the failed night-time raid, which took place earlier this summer, came after a day of sharp
questioning over whether the Obama administration had done enough to save Foley's life. It represented
the first confirmation of US military operations within insurgency-wracked Syria.
Read full article: The Guardian (08/21)
Assad forces retake key Damascus district
Security forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad moved in on Mleiha, which is 10km (6 miles) from the
centre of the capital, on Thursday morning.
Read full article: BBC (08/14)
CENTRAL ASIA
Afghanistan
Hundreds of Taliban fighters battle Afghan forces near Kabul: officials
As many as 700 heavily armed Taliban insurgents are battling Afghan security forces in Logar, a key
province near the capital Kabul, local officials said on Tuesday, in a test of the Afghan military's strength as
foreign forces pull out of the country.
Read full article: Reuters (08/19)
SOUTH EAST ASIA
Philippines / Mindanao
Philippine Muslim rebels take crucial step on path to pact
The Philippines' largest Muslim rebel group has taken a crucial step in ending decades of conflict, formally
submitting to the president a final proposal for self-rule that both it and the government have agreed on, a
presidential adviser said.
Read full article: Reuters AlertNet (08/21)
www.zif-berlin.org
Peace Operations Update 34.2014 | page 6
SOUTH AMERICA AND CARIBBEAN
Haiti
UN troops disperse Haiti protesters supporting Aristide
Mr Aristide faces charges of money laundering, but his supporters say the investigation is politically
motivated.
Read full article: BBC (08/15)
OTHER PEACEKEEPING RELEVANT NEWS
Attacks on aid workers hit record high
Three-quarters of the attacks took place in just five countries - Afghanistan, Pakistan, South Sudan, Sudan
and Syria. Afghanistan had the highest number of attacks on aid workers.
Read full article: VOA News (08/19)
www.zif-berlin.org
Peace Operations Update 34.2014 | page 7