Indian authorities have deported thousands of Bangladeshi citizens in the month since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won elections in the state of West Bengal. Shortly after taking power in West Bengal, BJP officials ordered the creation of detention centers both for undocumented Bangladeshis and Rohingya Muslims who are fleeing persecution in their native Burma and mistreatment in overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh.

Amnesty International on June 4 called for the immediate and unconditional release of civilians being held by armed groups in India's Manipur state as negotiations over the fate of remaining captives appear to have stalled amid continuing ethnic tensions.

In Episode 319 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg resumes his rant against the hegemony of digital and cellular technology—and takes heart from the local New York chapter of the Luddite Club: smart, free-thinking youth who are eschewing cellphones and social media in favor of "real life." Despite the cynical predictions of some, the chapter is true to its values and refreshingly doesn't even have a website—although a documentary film about them is in the works. In other glimmers of hope, the New York City nurses' strike that just ended in victory had as one of the key demands safeguards against workers being replaced by artificial intelligence. And the recent India AI Impact Summit in Delhi was disrupted by a protest action.

The United Nations on March 3 urgently called for civilian protection amid growing violence and instability in the Middle East—and particularly in regard to the ongoing US and Israeli military operations against Iran. The UN urged a thorough investigation into a deadly strike on a girls' school in Iran, and requested the disclosure of all relevant information.

Amnesty International on Dec. 18 urged all states to prevent the Portuguese-flagged Holger G vessel, carrying munition components bound for Israel, from docking at their ports. Having departed from India on Nov. 16, the cargo is destined for Israel's biggest arms manufacturer, Elbit Systems, and its subsidiary IMI Systems.

A comprehensive global report on "uncontacted" indigenous peoples, published Oct. 27 by UK-based Survival International estimates that the world still holds at least 196 uncontacted or isolated peoples living in 10 countries in South America, Southeast Asia and the Pacific region. Nine out of 10 of these groups face the threat of unwanted contact by extractive industries, including logging, mining, and oil and gas drilling. It's estimated that a quarter are threatened by agribusiness, with a third terrorized by criminal gangs. Intrusions by missionaries are a problem for one in six groups. After contact, indigenous groups are often decimated by illnesses, mainly influenza, for which they have little immunity. Survival International found that unless governments and private companies act to protect them, half of these groups could be wiped out within 10 years.

According to Oct. 12 reports in Pakistan's media, the Afghan Taliban and affiliated militants launched an attack from the Afghan side of the border, killing at least 23 Pakistani troops and injuring some 30 others. Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar stated that troops responded to cross-border raids by "Fitna-e-Khawarij and Fitna-e-Hindustan terrorist elements."* This appears to be a reference to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of providing sanctuary to. In contrast, a statement from Hamdullah Fitrat, spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, said that conditions on the "imaginary line" with Pakistan are under control.

The politically volatile region of Pakistan-administered Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) has once again plunged into a crisis of civil unrest. In late September, a local protest over government plans to drop subsidies for wheat and electricity rapidly transformed into a broader movement demanding comprehensive reform and regional ecomic relief. The demonstrations have pressured the government into negotiations and legal concessions, after initial harsh repression only further fueled public dissent.