Libya, Guatemala, Bangladesh
Today's three stories you should know
Libya
Migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, including young girls and boys, are at risk of being killed, tortured, raped and forced into domestic slavery in Libya, the U.N. said in a new report, urging European countries not to return migrant boats to the country. In the years since longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi was toppled and killed in 2011, Libya has become the main transit point for people trying to reach Europe to escape war and poverty. The European Union and its member states have supported and trained the Libyan coastguard to apprehend migrants at sea and return them to Libya, where they are often taken advantage of by criminal gangs and traffickers, some of whom hold them for ransom.
More from Reuters here.
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Guatemala
Guatemala lifted a state of emergency that had been in place for a month following the killing of 10 police officers by suspected gang members. President Bernardo Arévalo said 83 people were arrested under the special powers and that homicides and reports of extortion had fallen compared with the same period last year. Gangs had retaliated against police in January after a crackdown on their members in three prisons where riots had broken out. Neighboring El Salvador, which also struggles to contain powerful drug gangs, introduced extraordinary powers four years ago that have since been renewed on a monthly basis.
More from AP here.
Bangladesh
Tarique Rahman has been sworn in as Bangladesh’s new prime minister and now faces the immediate challenge of uniting a country thrown into disarray by a street uprising in late 2024. Rahman’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party swept back to power after 20 years, winning a thumping two‑thirds majority, with the Islamist Jamaat‑e‑Islami in second place. Rahman and his cabinet will be expected to swiftly turn around an economy weakened by political uncertainty, introduce governance reforms and restore law and order. The Awami League party of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was barred from taking part.
More from the Dhaka Tribune here.