Syria-Israel, DR Congo, Ethiopia.

Today's three stories you should know.

Syria-Israel

A group of Israeli settlers crossed beyond the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights in Syria and laid foundation stones for what they said would be the first Israeli settlement deeper into Syria. The settler group called the land "Navi Habashan," which they said was a biblical name, claiming it was “the inheritance of our ancestors.” The Israeli military said it had detained the group for crossing the security fence between the occupied Golan and Syria. Israel captured the region during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and, despite it being internationally recognized as part of Syria, has built dozens of settlements there since.

More from the New Arab here.

DR Congo

The ISIS-linked ADF group has killed at least 52 civilians this month in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), U.N. peacekeepers in the country said. The ADF is one of several armed groups fighting over land and resources in eastern DRC, which has been beset by conflict for decades. As mentioned in yesterday’s Proximities, Qatar has been hosting peace talks between the government and another armed group, the M23, but they have not yet reached terms.

More from Al Jazeera here.

Ethiopia

Well-known Ethiopian journalist Yonas Amare has disappeared after he was taken from his home six days ago by masked men, according to witnesses. Men in what appeared to be military uniforms confiscated the mobile phones of neighbours before bringing Yonas, a senior editor at The Reporter newspaper, from his home. Neighbours were warned by the men to stay inside their homes and not talk about it afterward, according to a story in The Reporter. Police in the capital Addis Ababa denied they have Yonas in custody and he has not been brought before any court. Ethiopia slipped to 145th out of 180 countries in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders.

More from The Reporter here.