US President Donald Trump on Nov. 1 said that he has ordered the Pentagon, or the "Department of War," to prepare contingency plans for potential military action in Nigeria. Trump alleged that the Nigerian government has failed to protect Christian communities from violent extremist attacks.

Advocacy groups in Illinois filed a class action lawsuit against US federal authorities on Oct. 31 over "inhumane" conditions at a Chicago-area Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility, claiming violations of detainees' constitutional rights as well as federal regulations.

The plaintiffs' lawyers—from the MacArthur Justice Center, the ACLU of Illinois and Chicago law firm Eimer Stahl—charge that federal authorities have violated the Fifth Amendment Due Process clause by imposing unreasonable conditions of confinement. They also allege violations of an administrative regulation prohibiting coercion to induce waiver of rights. They further allege a violation of the Sixth Amendment in denial of detainees' right to counsel.

Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum on Oct. 23 announced that he will open the entire 1.56 million acres of the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and gas leasing. These lands are sacred to the Gwich'in Nation, home to irreplaceable wildlife, and have never seen industrialization.

In an action taken during a government shutdown, the Department of Interior (DoI) held a press conference to announce a series of resource development decisions aimed at opening up Alaska for the benefit of corporate interests. A key announcement was the rescission of the Biden administration's restrictive drilling program for the refuge. The DoI is now essentially replacing that program with the previous Trump-era plan to fully open the Coastal Plain of the ANWR to oil and gas development.

The Tunisian government on Oct. 27 ordered a prominent advocacy organization, the Tunisian Forum for Social & Economic Rights (FTDES), to suspend its activities for one month. The organization has been outspoken in its criticism of President Kais Saied's crackdown on Black African asylum seekers and migrants in the country, and his promotion of racist tropes about migration. The move comes amid a broader repression of civil society.

Throughout the 18-month siege of El Fasher, capital of Sudan's North Darfur state, international human rights observers had been warning that the city's residents faced a general massacre when it eventually fell to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Yet nothing was done, apart from ineffectual Great Power diplomacy that had zero impact on the ground. Now that the foretold massacre is underway—with hundreds killed, thousands missing, and no end in sight—calls are at last emerging for boycott, divestment and sanctions against the United Arab Emirates, the apparent underwriter of the genocidal RSF. In Episode 302 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg notes the contrast with the situation 20 years ago, when #SaveDarfur was a cause célèbre—and asks what has changed.

​​Protests have escalated in Tanzania following elections on Oct. 29 widely viewed as a sham. Violence erupted on polling day over the exclusion from the ballot of President Samia Suluhu Hassan's two biggest challengers, and increasing government repression. The protesters defied a heavy security presence to target polling stations, police vehicles, and businesses connected to the ruling party, some chanting "We want our country back!" An unknown number of people were shot dead, and Amnesty International has called for an investigation. Protests continued Oct. 30 despite an internet blackout and the deployment of soldiers to enforce a lockdown. Tanzania's main airports were also closed, with clips posted of people surging onto the runway in Dar es Salaam. Protesters were again on the streets on Oct. 31, this time trying to reach State House.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressed concern Oct. 30 over the protests and repression that have swept Cameroon following contested presidential election results. Demonstrators immediately defied a ban on public gatherings to support the opposition after the Oct. 12 election, but the situation escalated after the Constitutional Council announced five days later that long-ruling President Paul Biya had won. The opposition rejected the results and proclaimed their candidate, Issa Tchirola Bakary, as the legitimate winner, urging citizens to demonstrate peacefully. Thousands took to the streets demanding recognition of an opposition victory, to be met with repression; clashes between protesters and security forces led to fatalities and numerous arrests. The protests have shaken the capital, Yaoundé; the economic capital, Douala; and the northern towns of Garoua and Maroua. Local jails are filled with opposition supporters who accuse Biya of rigging the polls. Biya is set to assume his eighth term in office as the world's oldest president at age 92, having ruled Cameroon for 43 years. (Jurist)

The US administration announced sanctions Oct. 24 against Colombian President Gustavo Petro, his family, and Colombia's Minister of the Interior Armando Benedetti.