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Armenia: bitter dispute escalates between PM and the church

10 Jul 2025

A deepening rift between prime minister Nikol Pashinyan and the Apostolic Church, is threatening to polarise the nation of three million. Tensions erupted after Pashinyan accused Catholicos Karekin II, the Church’s spiritual head, of fathering a child and supporting a coup plot, allegations Karekin denies. The conflict, rooted partly in fallout from Armenia’s 2020 defeat in the Nagorno-Karabakh war, has escalated with arrests of senior clergy and opposition figures, sparking alarms over religious freedom and national unity. Church bells rang an alarm at St Echmiadzin, historically reserved for invasions, signalling the detention of Archbishop Mikael Adjapakhyan, who was later arrested alongside others accused of plotting a coup. The dispute intertwines personal grievances, political rivalries, and historical tensions linked to the powerful 'Karabakh clan'. The World Council of Churches has voiced deep concern, calling for wisdom and justice to prevail. Meanwhile, Armenians fear the confrontation may fracture their society further, both politically and spiritually. See

Texas floods: over 100 dead, over 160 still missing

10 Jul 2025

In the wake of the catastrophic flash floods in Texas on 4 July, governor Greg Abbott has said that at least 109 people are confirmed dead and 161 are still missing. Among the missing are five children and a counsellor from Camp Mystic, a century-old Christian girls’ summer camp, where 27 lives were lost. Torrential rains caused the Guadalupe River to rise by eight metres in under an hour, turning areas like Kerrville and nearby counties into disaster zones. The devastation at Camp Mystic was profound, with personal belongings strewn across muddy grounds. Survivors recounted harrowing rescues, including airlifts and children escaping through cabin windows. Ten-year-old Lucy Kennedy recalled sensing danger before the flooding began and was later reunited with her mother, who also lost their home in the disaster. Amidst political disputes over emergency preparedness and federal weather service funding, Texas communities are grieving, searching, and beginning the long road to recovery from one of the deadliest flash floods in recent memory. For more information about Camp Mystic, see

Afghanistan: ICC issues arrest warrants for two leaders

10 Jul 2025

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for two senior Taliban figures - supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and chief justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani - accusing them of crimes against humanity through systematic gender-based persecution. Since the Taliban's return to power in August 2021, girls have been banned from education beyond sixth grade, women forced into veiling and isolation, and LGBTQ individuals have also been targeted. This is the first time an international tribunal has legally recognised LGBTQ people as victims of gender-based crimes against humanity. Though the Taliban dismissed the warrants as fuelled by ‘enmity and hatred for the pure religion of Islam’, international rights groups have praised the move as a historic and necessary step toward accountability and justice for the victims of ongoing gender-based oppression in Afghanistan. The decision came the day after the UN General Assembly expressed ‘serious concern about the widespread and systematic oppression of all women and girls in Afghanistan’, and called for the Taliban to ‘swiftly reverse these policies’.

Guinea: human rights activists disappeared a year ago

10 Jul 2025

A full year has passed since Guinean activists Oumar Sylla (known as Foniké Menguè) and Mamadou Billo Bah were forcibly disappeared on 9 July 2024, with no word on their whereabouts. Arrested by armed men in Conakry and reportedly taken to the Loos archipelago, the two members of the now-banned National Front for the Defence of the Constitution (FNDC) are believed to have endured torture and secret detention. Their case reflects a troubling rise in forced disappearances under Guinea’s ruling junta, which human rights organisations describe as a ‘climate of terror.’ Other victims include civil society leader Abdoul Sacko - abducted, tortured, and abandoned in the bush - and lawyer Mohamed Traoré, also abducted and abused. Despite initial promises of investigations, authorities have remained silent. Amnesty International has called for immediate and transparent inquiries, but families continue to wait in anguish. As hope fades, the international community is urged to demand accountability for Guinea’s growing list of enforced disappearances.