WORLD BRIEFING: February 14, 2024

The House of Representatives has narrowly voted to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, making him the first cabinet member to face impeachment in nearly 150 years. Many Republicans blame Mr. Mayorkas for an unprecedented influx of migrants at the US-Mexico border. The issue now heads to the Democratic-led Senate, where it is likely to fail - BBC

Panic is soaring in Rafah as desperate Palestinians decide whether to flee the last refuge in Gaza as Israel draws up plans for a ground offensive that the United Nations aid chief has warned could lead to “a slaughter.” A growing number of countries and international organizations are now scrambling to convince Israel to halt its planned offensive, with Ireland’s Taoiseach (or prime minister) Leo Varadkar accusing the country of becoming “blinded by rage.” The South African government made an “urgent request” to the International Court of Justice Tuesday to determine if Israel’s extended military actions in the southern Gazan city require it to “use its power to prevent further imminent breach of the rights of Palestinians in Gaza.” - CNN

The Russian ambassador to the UK, Andrei Kelin, replied “probably” when asked by Sky News’ Yalda Hakim whether Russia was using Iranian drones in Ukraine. He pushed back, however, on suggestions that a desperate Kremlin was turning to North Korea for ammunition and other armaments. In one of the most absurd claims from the recorded interview Tuesday evening, Kelin said that had Ukrainian troops surrendered earlier in Mariupol, Russia wouldn’t have had to bomb the seaside city to the extent it did. The siege of Mariupol began on 24 February 2022 and lasted until 20 May. During the Russian siege, the Red Cross described the situation in Mariupol as "apocalyptic" while Ukrainian authorities accused Russia of engineering a major humanitarian crisis in the city. Ukrainian officials reported that approximately 25,000 civilians had been killed and that at least 95% of the city had been destroyed during the fighting, primarily by large-scale Russian bombardments.

The Ukrainian military says it has destroyed a large Russian landing ship in the Black Sea off the coast of occupied Crimea. "The Armed Forces of Ukraine together with the military intelligence (GUR) have destroyed the Caesar Kunikov, a large landing ship belonging to the occupiers," the General Staff of Ukraine's military said on Feb. 14. It said the vessel was off the coast near the settlement of Alupka when it was hit by Ukrainian drones. Ukrainian news portal Ukrainska Pravda first reported the incident. Russia has not commented on the Ukrainian claim, which could not be independently confirmed immediately - RFE/RL

U.S. President Joe Biden has called for the House of Representatives to quickly pass a bill that would provide billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine, challenging Republicans lawmakers to take a stand against Russian President Vladimir Putin and vote in favor of the spending package. Biden urged immediate passage of the bill in comments at the White House on Feb. 13 after House Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican-Louisiana) sharply criticized the $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and other countries, casting serious doubts on its future just hours after it passed the Senate. "I urge speaker Johnson to bring it to the floor immediately, immediately," Biden said, adding that it is "critical" for Ukraine - RFE/RL

NATO is set to announce that most of its members are on track to hit the alliance’s defense spending target as it prepares for more Russian aggression and braces for the potential election of Donald Trump. According to three officials, NATO will say on Wednesday that 18 of its 31 members will meet the target of spending 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense this year, with that number likely to rise as budgets are adjusted. “NATO expects about two-thirds of allies to hit 2 percent in 2024,” an alliance official told the Financial Times. NATO’s spending rose markedly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine but Trump’s term in office in 2017-21 also brought a significant uptick as the US president harangued his European allies for failing to spend enough. In 2016, only five countries met the target. Today Poland spends 3.9 percent of GDP on defense, ahead of the US itself on 3.5 percent. Other countries such as Spain trail, spending just above 1 percent - FT

Indonesians have voted for a new president Wednesday as the world’s third-largest democracy aspires to become a global economic powerhouse a quarter-century after shaking off a brutal dictatorship. Voting ended Wednesday afternoon with no major problems reported across the archipelago. Early and unofficial results were expected within the day by quick-count outlets certified by the General Election Commission. Official final results will come in about a month. The front-runner in pre-election polls, Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, was the only candidate with ties to the Suharto era. He was a special forces commander at the time and has been accused of human rights atrocities, which he vehemently denied – AP

This review is reprinted with the author’s permission from his World Briefing blog. See the original here.