Syria prepares large-scale attack on Idlib; Many universities in Japan discriminate against gender

"Türkiye and the US are expected to start joint patrols in the northern Syrian town of Manbij in the coming days, after completing training between soldiers of the two countries,"ReutersThe joint patrols in Manbij are part of a roadmap agreed by Ankara and Washington in June to ease tensions after Turkey demanded that US-backed Kurdish militia withdraw from the town, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on October 24.

Manbij is a strategic town that was once controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) with the support of US special forces. Türkiye accused the Kurdish militia of intending to establish an autonomous region there, so it sent troops to intervene. In July, the Manbij Military Council said Kurdish militia units had withdrawn from the area, but the Turkish Foreign Ministry accused the information of being "exaggerated and not reflecting the reality".

UN adds staff in Mexico to assist Central American migrant caravan

Honduran migrants in Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas state on the Guatemala-Mexico border on their journey to the US on October 19, 2018. Photo: AFP/ VNA

United Nations agencies are deploying additional staff to Mexico to work with local authorities to meet the needs of the Central American migrant caravan heading to the United States, currently in Mexican territory. Representatives from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IMO) have been deployed to Tapachula, Chiapas, and other cities in southeastern Mexico near the border with Guatemala. These staff will work with local UN teams in close coordination with local and federal authorities to help migrants register for asylum, direct them to shelters, and provide humanitarian aid.

UN spokesman Farhan Haq said stabilisation in Mexico had become an urgent matter, requiring appropriate reception and other conditions for asylum-seeking migrants and those already on the journey from Central America. UN agencies are conducting rapid assessments to gather information on the needs of children and their families, as well as people with special needs, including those living in cities along the caravan's likely route.

Tokyo officials confirmed on October 24 that Japanese journalist Jumpei Yasuda, who has been missing for more than three years after arriving in Syria, is in a Turkish immigration facility. In a video, Yasuda said he is in Turkey and in stable condition. Yasuda said he has been detained in Syria for 40 months.

Yasuda traveled to Syria in June 2015 to cover the civil war there, and many feared he had been captured by a rebel group.

The UN envoy to the Central African Republic, Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, reported to the UN Security Council on October 23 that the Central African Government will disarm several armed groups in the western part of the country by the end of this year. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga stressed that since the establishment of the UN-backed peacekeeping force (Minusca) in Central Africa in 2014, the force has made significant progress in extinguishing the flames of devastating conflict that are engulfing the Central African Republic in violence.

A serious peace process under the auspices of the African Initiative for Peace and Reconciliation in the Central African Republic is crucial. He added that these achievements allow hope to lay the foundations for building lasting peace. According to Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, in terms of disarmament, liberation and reintegration, half of the 12 armed groups have committed to participating in the national “disarming” programme.

On October 23, a detailed report on political advertising in the US on the social network Facebook or Instagram application was officially released. The report shows that 256.4 million USD has been spent on nearly 1.7 million politically oriented ads since May 2018. This is one of Facebook's latest efforts to prevent the use of social networks to deceive or divide voters in elections.

Topping the list of spenders was the Texas-based "Beto" organization, which campaigned for Democratic candidate Beto O'Rourke against his rival in the state, Republican Senator Ted Cruz. The organization spent $5.4 million on 6,024 ads. Coming in second was the Trump Make America Great Again Committee, which spent $3.1 million on 50,148 ads.

Syria prepares for large-scale attack on Idlib

Japan discovers more gender-discriminatory universities

Tokyo Medical University is embroiled in a scandal involving exam score manipulation to disqualify female applicants. Photo: AFP

Japan’s Education Ministry has launched an investigation into 81 public and private universities following a scandal involving female applicants at the prestigious Tokyo Medical University in August. After a preliminary investigation, the ministry inspected more than 30 universities to better understand how they conduct entrance exams.

The report, published on October 23, said the ministry had found evidence that many schools used various methods to exclude female applicants and candidates taking the entrance exam for the second or third time. Many schools rejected applications from some female applicants despite their scores meeting the school's admission requirements. In some cases, the schools gave priority to admitting children of former students over those with higher scores. The ministry said it had no plans to punish the universities or reveal the names of the schools involved.