USAID's Office of Inspector General has found that security forces and administrators at northeast Syria's al-Hol camp "diverted aid"—bread from a USAID-funded program—"from the intended beneficiaries to themselves." An unnamed "awardee" of the aid, presumably an NGO, was "forced to rely on the Asayish and the Camp Administration to deliver bread within the inaccessible areas of the camp, which created the opportunity for the initial diversion. However, once the awardee received full access to the camp, the Asayish and the Camp Administration continued to divert the USAID-funded bread." Asayish (for Internal Security Forces of North & East Syria) is the militia associated with the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Al-Hol, which is home to both sympathizers and victims of the so-called Islamic State, has become notorious for its dangerous and extremely harsh conditions. (TNH)

The state of Manipur in remote northeastern India has again erupted in protest, after the bodies of six women and children from the majority Meitei community were recovered. Meitei leaders say the victims were kidnapped and murdered by members of the Kuki minority. The demonstrations, which saw protesters torch the homes and offices of government officials, have led to the arrests of several people. A proposed change to land-tenure law in the state in favor of the Meitei last summer set off months of protests, violence, and a communications shutdown.

As the Trump team's plans fall into place for mass detention of millions of undocumented immigrants—perhaps even naturalized citizens—and establishment of a concentration camp system, invocation of the Insurrection Act to mobilize the army for the round-ups has been broached. Sending National Guard troops from red states into blue states to carry out round-ups and put down protests—over the objections of governors who have refused to cooperate—could portend civil war. And despite the absurd fiction that Trump is an isolationist peacenik, the latest ominous appointment to his cabinet is Islamophobe GWOT ultra-hawk Sebastian Gorka as senior director for counterterrorism. There is still time to invoke the 14th Amendment to bar Trump from the presidency—just as Brazil's Jair Bolsonaro, indicted for leading a Trump-style attempted auto-golpe in 2022, has been barred from office. And just as the Congressional Black Caucus sought to bar Dubya Bush from office over considerably lesser matters on Jan. 6, 2001.

The daughters of civil rights leader Malcolm X filed a civil action Nov. 15 against the United States government, the City of New York, and the estates of various former federal agents for their alleged role in concealing, condoning and facilitating his assassination in 1965. The family is represented by noted civil rights attorney Ben Crump.

The suit accuses agents, officials and informants for the US Department of Justice (DoJ), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the New York City Police Department (NYPD) of acting "individually, jointly, and in conspiracy, to proximately cause" the assassination of Malcolm X. The complaint further accuses the government and various agencies of purposely failing to intervene in the assassination and working to cover up their involvement.

Russia on Nov. 18 vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution aimed at protecting civilians in Sudan amid the country's ongoing conflict. The resolution, which called on the warring factions to cease hostilities and engage in dialogue in good faith, was blocked despite widespread support—including from China, which frequently votes in a bloc with Russia. Introduced by the United Kingdom and Sierra Leone, the draft resolution demanded that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) honor and fully implement their pledges in the "Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan," which was signed by both sides in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in May 2023. Russia said the resolution did not sufficiently respect Sudan's sovereignty in justifying its veto, which was assailed by international human rights organizations. Sudan's government rejected the resolution for failing to condemn the United Arab Emirates for backing the RSF—an accusation the UAE has consistently denied. (Jurist, Security Council Report, Amnesty International, BBC News)

The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Nov. 21 issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defense minister Yoav Gallant, and possibly-deceased Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The court charged Netanyahu and Gallant with using starvation as a method of warfare and accused them of criminal responsibility for murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts in Gaza. Prosecutors said both Israeli officials intentionally deprived Gaza's civilian population of essential supplies and were responsible for attacks against civilians.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights released its ruling in the case of Pérez Lucas et al v. Guatemala on Nov. 14, finding the state responsible for the forced disappearance of four indigenous human rights defenders in 1989.

The court determined that Guatemala violated multiple rights under the American Convention on Human Rights when state agents forcibly disappeared Agapito Pérez Lucas, Nicolás Mateo, Macario Pú Chivalán, and Luis Ruiz Luis, who were indigenous K'iche Maya members of the Ethnic Communities Council "Runujel Junam" (CERJ). The victims worked to oppose forced recruitment into Civil Self-Defense Patrols in Guatemala's Quiché region.

The Hong Kong Court of First Instance on Nov. 19 sentenced 45 defendants for conspiracy to commit subversion, with prison terms ranging from 50 to 120 months, depending on their alleged roles in an unauthorized primary election staged by pro-democracy groups in 2020.

The case stems from pro-democracy activists' efforts beginning in January 2020 to gain a majority in Hong Kong’s Legislative Council. Their goal was to pressure the government to meet five demands: withdrawing a pending bill to ease extradition to mainland China, stopping the labeling of protests as "riots," dropping charges against activists, investigating police brutality, and implementing universal suffrage for Legislative Council and chief executive elections. In June 2020, Beijing imposed a National Security Law (NSL), broadly viewed as a means of stifling the ongoing protests. Hong Kong has in recent decades operated under a unique framework that grants it certain autonomy from mainland China's political system, an arrangement stemming from its 156-year history as a British colony before its 1997 handover to Chinese sovereignty.