Washington describes the Myanmar army's actions against the Rohingya Muslims as "genocide" Washington describes the Myanmar army's actions against the Rohingya Muslims as "genocide"

Washington describes the Myanmar army's actions against the Rohingya Muslims as "genocide"

Washington describes the Myanmar army's actions against the Rohingya Muslims as "genocide" The United States considered the violence perpetrated by the Myanmar military against the Rohingya Muslim minority, amounting to "genocide and crimes against humanity."  The United States considered that the violence practiced by the Myanmar army against the Rohingya Muslim minority amounted to "genocide and crimes against humanity", according to a US official speaking to Agence France-Presse, on Sunday.  Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims have fled Buddhist-majority Myanmar since 2017, after a military crackdown is now the subject of a genocide case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.  Later today, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is scheduled to speak during a visit to the Holocaust Museum, where an exhibition entitled "Myanmar's Path to Genocide" is being held.  In December, Blinken said during a visit to Malaysia that "the United States is very actively seeking to find out if the treatment of the Rohingya could constitute genocide."  About 850,000 Rohingya live in camps in neighboring Bangladesh, while 600,000 remain in Rakhine State.  And if what happened in Myanmar is legally described as genocide, the country could face additional sanctions and restrictions on international assistance, in addition to targeting the military council with other sanctions, according to the New York Times.  The United States had imposed a series of sanctions on the leaders of the military coup in February 2021, who were accused, during the democratic transitional period that preceded the coup, of committing crimes against humanity, as a result of the fierce campaign against the Rohingya.  Myanmar's military has denied committing genocide against the Rohingya, who have also been deprived of Myanmar's citizenship, and claimed that it carried out an operation against "terrorists" in 2017.  A UN fact-finding mission concluded in 2018 that the military's campaign included "acts of genocide", but Washington at the time referred to the atrocities as "ethnic cleansing," a term that has no legal definition under international criminal law.



The United States considered the violence perpetrated by the Myanmar military against the Rohingya Muslim minority, amounting to "genocide and crimes against humanity."

The United States considered that the violence practiced by the Myanmar army against the Rohingya Muslim minority amounted to "genocide and crimes against humanity", according to a US official speaking to Agence France-Presse, on Sunday.

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims have fled Buddhist-majority Myanmar since 2017, after a military crackdown is now the subject of a genocide case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Later today, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is scheduled to speak during a visit to the Holocaust Museum, where an exhibition entitled "Myanmar's Path to Genocide" is being held.

In December, Blinken said during a visit to Malaysia that "the United States is very actively seeking to find out if the treatment of the Rohingya could constitute genocide."

About 850,000 Rohingya live in camps in neighboring Bangladesh, while 600,000 remain in Rakhine State.

And if what happened in Myanmar is legally described as genocide, the country could face additional sanctions and restrictions on international assistance, in addition to targeting the military council with other sanctions, according to the New York Times.

The United States had imposed a series of sanctions on the leaders of the military coup in February 2021, who were accused, during the democratic transitional period that preceded the coup, of committing crimes against humanity, as a result of the fierce campaign against the Rohingya.

Myanmar's military has denied committing genocide against the Rohingya, who have also been deprived of Myanmar's citizenship, and claimed that it carried out an operation against "terrorists" in 2017.

A UN fact-finding mission concluded in 2018 that the military's campaign included "acts of genocide", but Washington at the time referred to the atrocities as "ethnic cleansing," a term that has no legal definition under international criminal law.



The Washington Post: Foreign volunteers in Ukraine without guns and helmets, far from the battlefronts  The Washington Post published a report prepared by Sudarsan Raghavan, in which he said that foreign volunteers, some of whom are American amateurs, are frustrated after volunteering to fight in Ukraine “without a gun, without a helmet, and without a fight.”  Sudarsan's report, which was prepared from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, stated that "Adam, who was working before his decision to buy a ticket for one trip in two places, as a guard and a seller in the store of everything for a dollar. He had rifles that he used in shooting ranges, and as for combat, all he had experience in was during self-defense classes. All this did not stop the 24-year-old from Thousand Oaks, Los Angeles, from traveling to the Ukrainian capital this month.   He joined the Foreign Legion to fight the Russian forces which are only 15 miles from Kyiv. He said he had hoped to save Ukraine and defend American values, and said: "Democracy and freedom are important to the whole world." Speaking in the lobby of a Kiev hotel, where he wore his new uniform alongside members of his new unit, he added: “What (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is doing is completely wrong. The Ukrainians are the weakest link and they need help.”  Thousands of Americans and other nationalities have flocked to the Ukrainian capital since the Russian invasion, responding to the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. As the war enters its fourth week, a growing number of volunteers are flocking to the Ukrainian capital, signing contracts, receiving weapons, uniforms and training before being deployed to multiple fronts. They were compared to the International Legion, which was joined by more than 32,000 Americans and Europeans who fought for the Republicans during the Spanish Civil War from 1936-1939.  Thousands of Americans and other nationalities have flocked to the Ukrainian capital since the Russian invasion, answering the call of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.  Unlike the romance and commitment of the fighters at the time, the current volunteers' sense of adventure fades when Russian planes and guns begin pounding the capital with Grad missiles, or when they watch street battles in other Ukrainian cities. Despite the reported presence of a number of former US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, foreign volunteers like Adam and those who dream of fighting are amateurs at best. What drives them into battle is their common sense of what the Ukrainians are exposed to.  And like the foreign battalion or legionnaires during the Spanish War, they feel they are on the right side of history. "I have little combat experience but I'm ready to fight and die with this guy," says Brian, a Canadian data analyst, referring to Adam. "Because my Ukrainian relatives are here," he added. "All my life I have been a hunter, I was put into a sniper squad here and I will kill every single Russian I can," he said. I have never killed anyone in my life, and I will enjoy it.”  All the volunteers interviewed by the writer refused to give their full names, as they are all afraid for their security, and there are those who want to protect their relatives, or they came without informing their families. It is unclear what the influx of these volunteers into the battlefield will offer. The government's volunteer program also seemed disorganized at times, according to interviews with five of them and a Georgian soldier who included a number of American and foreign volunteers in his militia.   Some were recruited into his division before they traveled from their countries, and there are others who loaded their bags and landed in the capital without contracts or knowledge of the local language in the hope that someone would receive them and send them to the fronts.  Beyond combat utility, foreign volunteers are useful in public relations operations and in demonstrating international sympathy with Ukraine. “This is a way of connecting people in other countries to the Ukrainian war and its aftermath,” says Elmarg Kehko, a Ukraine researcher at the Swedish Defense University. He added, "Perhaps the political outcome is more important in the long run than the real participation in the war." And there is a problem in turning these Americans and foreigners into a charge. If Americans are arrested, there is potential for them to be fuel in Russia's propaganda war. If they are killed, the United States will be under pressure for revenge, and all Adam is looking forward to is to go to the battlefield, although his first choice was to work with ambulance crews, because he got first class in America, and his second choice is a “sniper.” He has no experience with either task.  Adam, a Jew with US-Israeli citizenship, compared Russia's attack on Ukraine to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He believes that Ukraine and Israel have been subjected to unprovoked attacks, and that both countries need help to fight their enemies  The newspaper says that Adam, a Jew with American-Israeli citizenship, has not stopped watching what is happening in Ukraine. He compared Russia's attack on Ukraine to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He believes that Ukraine and Israel have been subjected to unprovoked attacks, and that both countries need help to fight their enemies. Adam has been doing odd jobs, studying for a degree in robotics at a local college in the San Fernando Valley: "Nothing happens at home." He said he loves guns, cars, basketball and martial arts. And at the shooting range he could shoot at moving objects.  He said he was planning to move to Israel and join the Israeli army, but decided to stop in Ukraine first, about which he doesn't know much, but he believes there is a connection, because his family belongs to immigrants from Lithuania and Poland. Adam did not tell his parents or sisters and brother that he had traveled to Ukraine, but rather told them that he had traveled to help Ukrainian refugees who crossed into Poland.   He did not contact the Ukrainian embassy or consulate, did not register with the foreign volunteer website, and only learned about the website when he arrived in Kyiv. The American volunteer flew to Istanbul and then to Warsaw, and found his way overland to Ukraine, passing through Lviv until he reached Kyiv.  About 20,000 foreign volunteers in the International Defense Corps crossed over Ukraine, including about 4,000 Americans. They have to sign contracts that they will fight until the end of the war. Others told that the contracts meant that the provisions of the Geneva Convention on war applied to them. Each volunteer gets $3,000 per month.  And there are security problems around the Foreign Legion, with volunteers complaining about delayed contracts, bureaucratic paperwork, getting guns and adequate training and waiting days before being transferred to military units. “To me, it looks like amateur work,” says Mamuka Mamolashvili, commander of the Georgian National Corps, a private militia that has been fighting Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine for nearly eight years. "There is a large influx" of foreigners who want to participate on the battle lines, he said.  The Ukrainians justify the delay, that the operation had nothing to do with disorganization, but to verify the identity of the volunteers, and only those with combat experience were allowed to take part in the fighting. And “when they have no experience, they are useless, and we tell them that they may benefit in other areas,” says a military official.  Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov described the foreign volunteers as “mercenaries” and would be prosecuted as criminals  Foreigners can volunteer in militia teams that have fewer demands. But they will face dangers on the battlefield. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov described the foreign volunteers as "mercenaries" and would be prosecuted as criminals. Legally, Americans can participate in others' wars, but the Biden administration has appealed to US Army soldiers not to participate in others' wars.  But Kelso, the volunteer from Montana, did not listen. The construction worker quit his job and traveled to defend the innocent, he says, noting that he served in the US Army for four years, but he did not see any combat action. “This is the first war.” Register at the Ukrainian government website. With the money he saved, he paid $700 to buy a ticket. He said, “I think the Lord is on our side. We are on the right side and what Russia has done is a great evil.”  The newspaper referred to a German volunteer who said he had participated in the Afghanistan war. Likewise, a Scottish grandfather said that he participated with the British army against the “Islamic State” organization, along with the Kurds in Syria. There are those who waited 10 days to sign their contract or finish their papers.

The Washington Post: Foreign volunteers in Ukraine without guns and helmets, far from the battlefronts


The Washington Post published a report prepared by Sudarsan Raghavan, in which he said that foreign volunteers, some of whom are American amateurs, are frustrated after volunteering to fight in Ukraine “without a gun, without a helmet, and without a fight.”

Sudarsan's report, which was prepared from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, stated that "Adam, who was working before his decision to buy a ticket for one trip in two places, as a guard and a seller in the store of everything for a dollar. He had rifles that he used in shooting ranges, and as for combat, all he had experience in was during self-defense classes. All this did not stop the 24-year-old from Thousand Oaks, Los Angeles, from traveling to the Ukrainian capital this month. 

He joined the Foreign Legion to fight the Russian forces which are only 15 miles from Kyiv. He said he had hoped to save Ukraine and defend American values, and said: "Democracy and freedom are important to the whole world." Speaking in the lobby of a Kiev hotel, where he wore his new uniform alongside members of his new unit, he added: “What (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is doing is completely wrong. The Ukrainians are the weakest link and they need help.”

Thousands of Americans and other nationalities have flocked to the Ukrainian capital since the Russian invasion, responding to the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. As the war enters its fourth week, a growing number of volunteers are flocking to the Ukrainian capital, signing contracts, receiving weapons, uniforms and training before being deployed to multiple fronts. They were compared to the International Legion, which was joined by more than 32,000 Americans and Europeans who fought for the Republicans during the Spanish Civil War from 1936-1939.

Thousands of Americans and other nationalities have flocked to the Ukrainian capital since the Russian invasion, answering the call of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Unlike the romance and commitment of the fighters at the time, the current volunteers' sense of adventure fades when Russian planes and guns begin pounding the capital with Grad missiles, or when they watch street battles in other Ukrainian cities. Despite the reported presence of a number of former US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, foreign volunteers like Adam and those who dream of fighting are amateurs at best. What drives them into battle is their common sense of what the Ukrainians are exposed to.

And like the foreign battalion or legionnaires during the Spanish War, they feel they are on the right side of history. "I have little combat experience but I'm ready to fight and die with this guy," says Brian, a Canadian data analyst, referring to Adam. "Because my Ukrainian relatives are here," he added. "All my life I have been a hunter, I was put into a sniper squad here and I will kill every single Russian I can," he said. I have never killed anyone in my life, and I will enjoy it.”

All the volunteers interviewed by the writer refused to give their full names, as they are all afraid for their security, and there are those who want to protect their relatives, or they came without informing their families. It is unclear what the influx of these volunteers into the battlefield will offer. The government's volunteer program also seemed disorganized at times, according to interviews with five of them and a Georgian soldier who included a number of American and foreign volunteers in his militia. 

Some were recruited into his division before they traveled from their countries, and there are others who loaded their bags and landed in the capital without contracts or knowledge of the local language in the hope that someone would receive them and send them to the fronts.

Beyond combat utility, foreign volunteers are useful in public relations operations and in demonstrating international sympathy with Ukraine. “This is a way of connecting people in other countries to the Ukrainian war and its aftermath,” says Elmarg Kehko, a Ukraine researcher at the Swedish Defense University. He added, "Perhaps the political outcome is more important in the long run than the real participation in the war." And there is a problem in turning these Americans and foreigners into a charge. If Americans are arrested, there is potential for them to be fuel in Russia's propaganda war. If they are killed, the United States will be under pressure for revenge, and all Adam is looking forward to is to go to the battlefield, although his first choice was to work with ambulance crews, because he got first class in America, and his second choice is a “sniper.” He has no experience with either task.

Adam, a Jew with US-Israeli citizenship, compared Russia's attack on Ukraine to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He believes that Ukraine and Israel have been subjected to unprovoked attacks, and that both countries need help to fight their enemies

The newspaper says that Adam, a Jew with American-Israeli citizenship, has not stopped watching what is happening in Ukraine. He compared Russia's attack on Ukraine to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He believes that Ukraine and Israel have been subjected to unprovoked attacks, and that both countries need help to fight their enemies. Adam has been doing odd jobs, studying for a degree in robotics at a local college in the San Fernando Valley: "Nothing happens at home." He said he loves guns, cars, basketball and martial arts. And at the shooting range he could shoot at moving objects.

He said he was planning to move to Israel and join the Israeli army, but decided to stop in Ukraine first, about which he doesn't know much, but he believes there is a connection, because his family belongs to immigrants from Lithuania and Poland. Adam did not tell his parents or sisters and brother that he had traveled to Ukraine, but rather told them that he had traveled to help Ukrainian refugees who crossed into Poland. 

He did not contact the Ukrainian embassy or consulate, did not register with the foreign volunteer website, and only learned about the website when he arrived in Kyiv. The American volunteer flew to Istanbul and then to Warsaw, and found his way overland to Ukraine, passing through Lviv until he reached Kyiv.

About 20,000 foreign volunteers in the International Defense Corps crossed over Ukraine, including about 4,000 Americans. They have to sign contracts that they will fight until the end of the war. Others told that the contracts meant that the provisions of the Geneva Convention on war applied to them. Each volunteer gets $3,000 per month.

And there are security problems around the Foreign Legion, with volunteers complaining about delayed contracts, bureaucratic paperwork, getting guns and adequate training and waiting days before being transferred to military units. “To me, it looks like amateur work,” says Mamuka Mamolashvili, commander of the Georgian National Corps, a private militia that has been fighting Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine for nearly eight years. "There is a large influx" of foreigners who want to participate on the battle lines, he said.

The Ukrainians justify the delay, that the operation had nothing to do with disorganization, but to verify the identity of the volunteers, and only those with combat experience were allowed to take part in the fighting. And “when they have no experience, they are useless, and we tell them that they may benefit in other areas,” says a military official.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov described the foreign volunteers as “mercenaries” and would be prosecuted as criminals

Foreigners can volunteer in militia teams that have fewer demands. But they will face dangers on the battlefield. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov described the foreign volunteers as "mercenaries" and would be prosecuted as criminals. Legally, Americans can participate in others' wars, but the Biden administration has appealed to US Army soldiers not to participate in others' wars.

But Kelso, the volunteer from Montana, did not listen. The construction worker quit his job and traveled to defend the innocent, he says, noting that he served in the US Army for four years, but he did not see any combat action. “This is the first war.” Register at the Ukrainian government website. With the money he saved, he paid $700 to buy a ticket. He said, “I think the Lord is on our side. We are on the right side and what Russia has done is a great evil.”

The newspaper referred to a German volunteer who said he had participated in the Afghanistan war. Likewise, a Scottish grandfather said that he participated with the British army against the “Islamic State” organization, along with the Kurds in Syria. There are those who waited 10 days to sign their contract or finish their papers.

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