President Biden signaled Thursday that he will agree to leave some U.S. forces in Afghanistan past a May 1 deadline for withdrawal, but said he “can’t picture” U.S. troops still there next year. Biden cited the logistical challenge of quickly removing U.S. and allied forces this spring but indicated that he contemplated only a short delay in ending the deployment of American battlefield forces after nearly two decades of war. “We will leave, but the question is when we leave,” Biden said during a news conference at the White House, noting that the U.S. has been meeting with NATO allies who have troops in Afghanistan and that “if we leave we’re going to do so in a safe and orderly way.” Biden did not address whether he wants to replace the U.S. military deployment with a small contingent of counterterrorism forces as has been recommended by some military leaders. Asked whether he expected U.S. forces to still be there next year, Biden replied that he “can’t picture that being the case.”

Meanwhile, Gen. Robert Clarke, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, said in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday that support from U.S. troops is “critical” to Afghan forces’ ability to fight the Taliban and other militants. Clarke noted that he recently met with his Afghan counterpart and found that “progress has been made” and that his counterpart is a “very dedicated commander.” But, Clarke added, “I think the capabilities that the U.S. provides for the Afghans to be able to combat the Taliban and other threats that reside in Afghanistan are critical to their success.” In response to a question from Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) about a recent increase in targeted assassinations of civil society leaders suspected to have been carried out by the Taliban, Clarke said, “It's clear that the Taliban have not upheld what they said they would do and reduce the violence,” adding, “While on the positive side, they have not attacked U.S. forces, it is clear that they took a deliberate approach and increased their violence … since the peace accords were signed.” Washington Post, NBC News, Politico, CNN, The Hill, Voice of America
Related:
Foreign Policy: India Joins Pakistan, Russia, and China in Afghan Peace Talks
Associated Press: Sticky Bombs Latest Weapon In Afghanistan's Arsenal Of War

DHS reportedly weighing major changes to fight domestic violent extremism: The Department of Homeland Security is reportedly moving toward policy changes aimed at detecting and stopping domestic violent extremism. Two senior Biden administration officials said that DHS is seeking to improve its ability to collect and analyze data about domestic terrorism, including the sorts of public social media posts that threatened a potential attack on the Capitol ahead of the January 6 Capitol Riot, but were not deemed “actionable” by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies. DHS is reportedly planning to expand its relationships with companies that scan public data for intelligence, and to better harness the data it already collects on Americans, including travel and commercial data through Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, and other DHS components. The department is also reportedly contemplating changes to its terrorist watch listing process “to see if there are ways we can leverage it to take into account international and domestic travel of known violent extremists,” a senior official said, adding, “The idea is to identify people who may through their social media behavior may be prone to influence by toxic messaging spread by foreign governments, terrorists and domestic extremists.” The officials stressed that the trigger for scrutiny would be plans for violence, not political ideology. NBC News
Related:
NPR: Capitol Siege Has Been A Success For Recruiting Extremists, Former DHS Staffer Says 

Parler says it informed FBI of violent content before Capitol Riot: The social media network Parler referred violent content from its platform to the FBI more than 50 times in the weeks before the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, the company said Thursday, following criticism that it failed to adequately police threats ahead of the deadly attack. Parler began alerting the FBI in December to content suggesting the possibility of violence at the Capitol, the company wrote in a letter to the House Oversight and Reform Committee, which is investigating Parler and its role in the riot. The social media platform popular with the far-right said that it referred a number of posts to law enforcement, including one on December 24 from a user who called for an “armed force” of 150,000 people to “react to the congressional events of January 6,” including in the letter its communications with FBI officials. Parler said it forwarded a series of posts to the FBI on January 2 from a user saying he would be wearing body armor to the pro-Trump rally on January 6, quoting the post as saying, “It’s no longer a protest … This is a final stand where we are drawing the red line at Capitol Hill. I trust the American people will take back the USA with force and many are ready to die to take back #USA.” The FBI, which has repeatedly said it had no specific, credible threats about violence at the Capitol on January 6, has so far declined to comment. Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times
Related: 
NPR: 5 Takeaways From Big Tech’s Misinformation Hearing 

Cyber Command chief says U.S. carried out dozens of cyber operations to defend 2020 elections: The U.S. conducted more than two dozen cyber operations targeting foreign threats to the 2020 U.S. election before they could interfere with or influence them, according to Gen. Paul Nakasone, the head of U.S. Cyber Command. Testifying to the Senate Armed Services Committee, Nakasone, who also heads the National Security Agency, characterized the operations as part of Cyber Command’s move towards “persistent engagement” from “being a static to an active force” in the wake of foreign interference in the 2016 elections. Nakasone did not disclose any specifics about the operations. Nakasone said later in the hearing that U.S. Cyber Command conducted “11 hunt forward operations in nine different countries for the security of the 2020 election,” adding, “we know a lot of what our adversaries are doing when it comes to interference and influence of elections.” Nakasone also highlighted the need for both Congress and the military to learn lessons from recent cyber espionage incidents carried out by Russia and China over the past year. He reported that there was no evidence that any Defense Department networks had been compromised as part of the SolarWinds incident, but described both the attack, as well as recent vulnerabilities in Microsoft, as a “clarion call” to examine a wider range of cyber vulnerabilities. The Hill, CNN, CBS News

Georgia signs elections bill restricting voting access into law: Republicans in Georgia signed a sweeping elections bill into law Thursday. The bill passed both chambers of the legislature in the span of a few hours before Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed it Thursday evening. The new law imposes new voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes, and makes it a crime to approach voters in line to give them food and water. By changing its election laws, “Georgia will take another step toward ensuring our elections are secure, accessible, and fair,” Kemp said, adding that “alarming issues” with the 2020 election demonstrated the need for change. On Thursday evening, a trio of voting rights groups filed a lawsuit against the new law. The New Georgia Project, the Black Voters Matter Fund, and Rise Inc. wrote in the lawsuit, “the Voter Suppression Bill disproportionately impacts Black voters, and interacts with these vestiges of discrimination in Georgia to deny Black voters (an) equal opportunity to participate in the political process and/or elect a candidate of their choice.” Meanwhile, President Biden, in his first White House press conference Thursday, said that he will “do everything” in his power to halt efforts to restrict voting rights, saying that he thinks the efforts underway in state legislatures are “un-American.” CNN, Associated Press
Related:
Washington Post: Georgia State Democratic Lawmaker Arrested While Trying To Watch Gov. Kemp Sign Voting Bill 

House panel advances bill to repeal 2002 war authorization: A House panel advanced a bill Thursday that would repeal the 2002 authorization for the Iraq War. The House Foreign Affairs Committee voted 28-19 to approve the bill from Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) which would repeal the 2002 authorization for the use of military force (AUMF), advancing it to the House floor. Reps. Ken Buck (R-CO) and Peter Meijer (R-MI) voted with Democrats in support of the bill. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Gregory Meeks (D-NY) argued the AUMF is outdated, noting that “Iraq is a security partner of the United States. Saddam Hussein is long gone. No current operations depend on 2002 AUMF.” Republicans, meanwhile, argued that repealing the 2002 AUMF would hamstring U.S. counterterrorism missions, saying it should not be taken off the books until a replacement for the 2001 AUMF is agreed to. “I think we all agree we’ve abdicated our Article I responsibilities, and we need to look at updating these very old authorized uses of military force,” said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), adding, “But I believe we must do this as part of a comprehensive, updated replacement to provide clear authorities against the terrorists who still plot to kill Americans at home and abroad.” The Hill, Washington Post, Politico

U.S. senators push for broader Iran deal, not return to nuclear pact: 43 U.S. senators, many of whom opposed the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran, appealed to President Biden on Thursday to work toward an international agreement that addresses issues beyond just Tehran’s nuclear program. The letter was released as the Democrat Biden’s administration explores ways to restore the nuclear pact that Iran signed with the United States and other world powers, but was abandoned in 2018 by then-President Trump, who reimposed sanctions. “Democrats and Republicans may have tactical differences, but we are united on preventing an Iranian nuclear weapon and addressing the wide range of Iranian behavior,” the senators led by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) wrote in the letter dated Thursday. The letter expresses the “long-held view” from lawmakers and presidents from both parties that a nuclear-armed Iran would pose a grave threat to the natural security interests of the U.S. and its allies and partners, and notes that Iran poses a threat by exporting arms, supporting militants who target U.S. forces and via its ballistic and cruise missile programs. It also calls for the release of political prisoners. Reuters, The Hill, Axios

U.S. lawmakers advance legislation to punish Saudi Arabia for Khashoggi murder: A House committee on Thursday advanced legislation taking aim at Saudi Arabia in the wake of last month’s intelligence report implicating the country’s crown prince in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi following widespread criticism that the Biden administration didn't punish the kingdom harshly enough. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) introduced the Saudi Dissidents Protection Act with the support of Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX). The bill is a reworked, expanded version of the legislation put forward by Connolly in the last Congress that was rejected by Republicans. Noting that Jamal Khashoggi was his constituent, Connolly said “[h]is brutal murder must not be forgotten, and there has to be justice. This bill will be a vehicle for moving us toward eventual justice.” The legislation would reinstate a 120-day pause on arms sales to Saudi security forces involved in action against dissidents and add bans for intelligence and law enforcement bodies that detain American citizens and residents in Saudi Arabia or prevent them and their families from traveling.  The House Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday approved the legislation via voice vote as part of a bipartisan package, paving the way for it to be taken up by the full House. CNN

Biden reportedly wants to keep Trump policy that boosted armed drone exports: The Biden administration reportedly wants to keep a controversial Trump policy that jump-started sales of armed drones to countries whose human rights records are under scrutiny in the United States and elsewhere. From 2018 to 2020, Washington had been renegotiating the 33-year old Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) to lift agreed-upon limits on the proliferation of drone technology. But last year, then-President Trump shelved an effort to rewrite the pact and decided to offer U.S. drones to nearly any country that wanted to buy them. The National Security Council is reportedly now studying how to keep the policy in place while the Department of State is asking allies and other countries that sell drones to adopt the U.S. position regarding drone classification. Though no decision has been passed up to the undersecretary cabinet level, the Biden administration is reportedly leaning towards keeping Trump’s more expansive export policy. An official at the NSC said, “the U.S. government will continue to invoke its national discretion” and treat large drones as though they fall outside the purview of the MTCR, which was written to control the proliferation of cruise missiles. Reuters

Software vendors would have to disclose breaches to U.S. government users under new order: A planned Biden administration executive order will reportedly require many software vendors to notify their federal government customers when the companies have a cybersecurity breach. A National Security Council spokeswoman said no decision has been made on the final content of the executive order, but noted that the SolarWinds hack, which came to light in December, showed “the federal government needs to be able to investigate and remediate threats to the services it provides the American people early and quickly. Simply put, you can’t fix what you don’t know about.” The proposed order reportedly outlines several digital security recommendations, including the notification requirements for service providers. It also will require vendors to preserve more digital records for investigating hacks and to work with the FBI and the Homeland Security Department’s Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency when responding to incidents. In practice, the change will reportedly occur through updates to federal acquisition rules. Reuters

DEA agent says he was wrongly fired and is now under investigation for being at Capitol during insurrection: A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent suspended for being at the U.S. Capitol during the January 6 Capitol Riot said Tuesday that he has since been fired from the agency and is now “the subject of a criminal investigation,” even though he claims he “never even stepped foot on the stairs of the Capitol building.” Mark Ibrahim said in an interview with Fox News that after the attack on the Capitol he “got on a flight back to LA … was escorted off the premises to my apartment like a criminal,” and “was fired after being suspended for two months, for performance issues.” Ibrahim, who said he is now taking “legal action against the DEA” said he was at the Capitol on January 6 because a “friend I served in Iraq with asked me to help him get there for documentation purposes and we were just spectators.” The Justice Department and the DEA declined to comment on Ibrahim’s assertion that he is under investigation, and Ibrahim's attorney, Darren Richie, declined to provide further information. CNN

Biden doubles vaccine goal for first 100 days: President Biden said Thursday that his administration is aiming to distribute 200 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines in its first 100 days, doubling its original goal after surpassing it last week. Biden framed the more ambitious target as the best and fastest way to contain the virus, which he said is his most important mission. “I know it’s ambitious, twice our original goal, but no other country in the world has come close … to what we are doing,” Biden said in comments at the beginning of his first formal press conference. The U.S. is now administering roughly 2.5 million doses per day, with more than 114 million shots given in the two months since Biden's inauguration. Barring any unexpected hiccups in the vaccine rollout, the country is already on pace to hit 200 million vaccinations in roughly five weeks, around Biden's 100th day in office. Politico
Related:
Reuters: Report Finds U.S. COVID-19 Response Could Have Avoided Hundreds Of Thousands Of Deaths

Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine starts testing in young children: Pfizer said Thursday it has started testing its COVID-19 vaccine in young children. Researchers administered the first doses of the vaccine to children enrolled in the study, which is evaluating the shots in children six months to11 years old. The study will enroll up to 4,644 children in the U.S. and Europe and provide the volunteers with two doses three weeks apart, as is the current dosing regimen. Pfizer expects initial results by the end of the year. The Pfizer BioNTech vaccine is authorized for use in people 16 years and older. The company previously started testing the vaccine in children ages 12 years to 15 years, and expects to submit to regulators results from that trial in the coming weeks. Wall Street Journal

European leaders won’t oppose export limits on COVID-19 vaccine: European Union leaders gave tentative backing to increased vaccine export controls on Thursday but said the bloc should tread carefully to avoid threatening international supply chains for shots. At the end of a virtual summit that focused on the bloc’s coronavirus troubles, leaders said they wouldn’t oppose a new system proposed by the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, that gives member states greater powers to block vaccine exports. However they warned against any blanket measures. “On one side we want to preserve global supply chains and combat protectionism, but on the other we want to take care of our own population, because that’s the only way out for the crisis,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after the meeting. The commission provided new data on Thursday showing that the EU had exported 77 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to more than 30 countries since December 1, compared to the 88 million doses it has distributed to its own member states. Wall Street Journal
Related:
New York Times: India Cuts Back on Vaccine Exports as Infections Surge at Home 

Cuomo family’s access to virus tests is now part of impeachment inquiry: An impeachment investigation into New York Governor Andrew Cuomo widened on Thursday to include revelations that the governor’s family and other influential people were given special access to state-run coronavirus tests early in the pandemic. The judiciary committee of the New York State Assembly has been investigating several allegations of sexual harassment made in recent weeks against Cuomo, as well as the manipulation by his senior staff of data related to nursing home deaths. On Thursday, the chair of the committee, Assemblyman Charles Lavine, said the preferential access for Cuomo’s family to hard-to-get tests in the beginning of the pandemic would also become part of the inquiry. Those who got tests, mostly during last March when few were available, included the governor’s brother, the CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, their mother, Matilda Cuomo, and at least one of their sisters. The samples were reportedly taken at home, in some cases by top Health Department officials, and rushed by state troopers to the state-run lab in Albany, where staff were instructed to process the tests immediately. New York Times, Wall Street Journal

U.S. gives $15 million to Palestinians for COVID-19 response: The United States said Thursday it is giving $15 million to vulnerable Palestinian communities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield made the announcement at the UN Security Council’s monthly Middle East meeting, saying the money from the U.S. Agency for International Development will support Catholic Relief Services’ “COVID-19 response efforts in health care facilities and for vulnerable families in the West Bank and Gaza.” In addition, she said, the funds will support emergency food aid to communities in need as a result of the pandemic. “This urgent, necessary aid is one piece of our renewed commitment to the Palestinian people,” Thomas-Greenfield said, adding, “The aid will help Palestinians in dire need, which will bring more stability and security to both Israelis and Palestinians alike.” Associated Press, Axios

Biden in talks with Mexico on migrants, expects to stem flow: President Biden on Thursday expressed confidence that Mexico will accept families arriving at the U.S. border, while defending his administration’s approach to the surge in migration. “We’re in negotiations with the president of Mexico. I think we’re going to see that change,” Biden said Thursday during his first formal news conference at the White House, adding, “They should all be going back.” Biden rejected the assertion that his welcoming rhetoric toward migrants is the reason more of them are seeking to cross the U.S. border and defended his efforts to repeal former President Trump’s hard-line immigration policies. “I make no apologies for ending programs that did not exist before Trump became president that have an incredibly negative impact on the law, international law, as well as on human dignity,” he said, adding that he would not resume Trump’s pandemic-era practice of turning away unaccompanied children at the border. Biden also said he would continue using the public-health order, known as Title 42, to turn away single adults and families arriving from Mexico and Central America, despite pleas from immigrant-rights groups to end the practice. Bloomberg 
Related:
CBS News: U.S. Adding 16,000 Emergency Beds For Record-High Number Of Migrant Children Entering Border Custody 

Bipartisan group of senators reportedly met this week to discuss immigration reforms: A bipartisan group of senators reportedly met on Wednesday to discuss a possible legislative solution to reform the nation’s immigration system. The meeting, which was organized by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), opened lines of communication between both parties to discuss a legislative path forward. Durbin has also reportedly been reaching out to senators and discussing with them one-on-one about their immigration priorities. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) said Thursday that he was optimistic after the meeting and would still like to look at a comprehensive immigration package. “I think that everyone has a different way of … getting pieces of legislation across the finish line,” Lujan said, adding, “But, when the American people overwhelmingly support many of these packages and provisions, and there's complete agreement that we have a broken immigration system in America, I think that shows that there's a genesis and a willingness to try to find a path forward.” CBS News, Politico

U.S. reportedly plans on ‘going after’ smugglers aiding migrant surge on Mexico border: The U.S. government reportedly plans in the next 90 days on “going after” smuggling and trafficking organizations that Washington accuses of manipulating migrants into heading for the U.S.-Mexico border. An anonymous Biden administration official forecast a continuing surge of migrants on the way in “spring caravans” and said U.S. and Mexican officials discussed ways to improve U.S.-Mexico border enforcement as well as making sure Central American governments have the resources to help secure Mexico’s southern border. The official added that a particular emphasis for the U.S. government in the next three months will be “going after trafficking organizations and smuggling organizations.” Meanwhile, El Salvador’s Congress on Thursday approved a law against human trafficking that increases prison sentences for migrant smugglers from between six to ten years to between eight to 12 years. The law also marks the first time the Central American country would punish the organizers of migrant caravans bound for the United States, making it a crime that carries a prison sentence of up to eight years. U.S. administration officials said a visit to Guatemala by White House senior Latin America adviser Juan Gonzalez and Northern Triangle envoy Ricardo Zuniga, which was called off this week due to a volcanic eruption, would be rescheduled and they would soon hold a virtual meeting with Guatemalan leaders. Reuters

CBP not testing migrant children for COVID-19 at border stations: Customs and Border Protection is not testing migrant children at overcrowded border stations for COVID-19, Biden administration officials said on Thursday, though more than 100 have tested positive after being transferred from those facilities. “We are not performing testing inside Border Patrol facilities,” an administration official told reporters on a press call, saying that children are tested when they are transferred to sites run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency or the Department of Health and Human Services. In a Carrizo Springs, Texas, HHS facility currently housing 766 children, 108 have tested positive for COVID-19, all of whom came from Border Patrol stations. HHS said the children at Carrizo Springs who tested positive were isolated from other children. NBC News

Coalition forces target ISIS in Iraq as U.S. prepares for talks with Baghdad: The U.S.-led coalition against ISIS has conducted more airstrikes in Iraq this month than it did all of last year. Coalition jets carried out over 150 strikes against ISIS fighters in the mountains south of Mosul this month, U.S. and Iraqi military officials said earlier this week, compared to fewer than 120 airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq all of last year. Including Iraqi operations, a total of 312 airstrikes have destroyed 120 ISIS positions and killed 27 ISIS fighters, Col. Wayne Marotto, a spokesman for the military coalition, said in a tweet Wednesday. “The mission was to destroy Daesh hiding out in some tough terrain of caves and tunnels, ostensibly the last redoubt of the so-called caliphate,” Marotto added in a subsequent email, using an Arabic term for ISIS. The new data were released ahead of the latest round of talks between Baghdad and Washington about continued cooperation. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at a briefing Wednesday that the U.S. and Iraq will hold the second round of a “strategic dialogue” in April, noting, “The meetings will further clarify that coalition forces are in Iraq at the invitation of the Iraqi government and solely for the purpose of training and advising Iraqi forces to ensure that ISIS cannot reconstitute.” Stars & Stripes, Air Force Magazine, Al-Monitor

Pentagon official says Trump’s Somalia withdrawal ‘probably’ had ‘significant downsides’: The Trump administration’s movement of most U.S. troops out of Somalia to other countries in Africa “probably” had “significant downsides,” a Pentagon official said Thursday. “From my perspective, there [are] probably significant downsides to the pullout from the perspective of cost and effectiveness,” Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict Christopher Maier told the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding the Trump administration’s withdrawal of most of the 700 U.S. troops that were in Somalia to help local security forces fight al-Shabaab and the local ISIS affiliate. While Trump framed the move as part of his efforts to end “forever wars,” most of the U.S. troops that left Somalia were repositioned to other nearby countries such as Kenya and Djibouti and have continued to conduct operations inside Somalia. Responding to questions from Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), Maier said that the effect of withdrawing from Somalia “is something that is being looked at both from the counterterrorism perspective, and the broader regional objectives we have in the Horn of Africa.” Inhofe also noted that he would like to be “in on” the Biden administration’s Somalia review, highlighting how he disagreed with Trump on the issue. The Hill
Related:
Voice of America: Somalia Warns Envoys Against Interference in Political Affairs

UNICEF Alarmed by Spike in Children’s Deaths in Syria’s al-Hol Camp: UN officials have expressed concern over the deaths of more children in a refugee camp in northeastern Syria. UNICEF said on Wednesday it has received reports of a 15-year-old boy killed in al-Hol camp this week, two weeks after a 16-year-old was shot and killed. “The security situation in the camp is alarming with the reported killings of 40 adults and two children since the start of the year — 16 of them during March alone,” Bo Viktor Nylund, UNICEF representative in Syria, said in a statement Wednesday, in which he urged “the authorities in charge of the camp to secure the safety of children and all residents in the camp.” Sheikhmous Ahmed, head of the Refugee Affairs Office at the Syrian Democratic Forces-affiliated Autonomous Administration in North and East of Syria, said Tuesday’s killing took place at a school inside the camp, and attributed the recent increase in violence in the camp to growing activity by ISIS cells inside and outside the facility. Voice of America
Related:
Agence France-Presse: Slow Recovery In Syria’s Baghouz Two Years After ISIS Defeat 

Top EU diplomats in Libya to support interim authorities: The foreign ministers of France, Italy, and Germany arrived Thursday in Libya’s capital to show their backing of newly elected transitional authorities, who are expected to lead the country through general elections by the end of 2021. “We are here to express our support of the political transition in Libya and we are willing to cooperate with the government of National Unity,” Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said, referring to Libya’s interim government, which includes a three-member presidential council and a Cabinet that took power amid international pressure to implement a UN-brokered political roadmap. The three foreign ministers stressed that foreign fighters and mercenaries should immediately leave the country in order to ensure the full implementation of a ceasefire agreement inked in October. “This [withdrawal] is indispensable so that Libya can regain its sovereignty and security,” said France’s Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, adding, “By fulfilling these conditions, Libya can finally turn the page after so many years of a crisis that has divided the country.” Associated Press

Ethiopia says Eritrea agrees to withdraw troops from Tigray: Ethiopia’s prime minister said today that Eritrea has agreed to withdraw its forces from the Tigray region, where witnesses have described them looting, killing, and raping civilians. The statement by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office, which comes after intense pressure from the United States and others and a visit by Abiy to Eritrea, said that Ethiopian forces will take over guarding the border areas “effective immediately.” The statement doesn’t say how many Eritrean soldiers have been in Ethiopia, though witnesses estimate there to be thousands, and accuses former Tigray leaders of starting the conflict by attacking Ethiopian forces, then drawing Eritrea into the fighting by firing rockets into Eritrea’s capital. There was no immediate comment on the matter from Eritrea. Meanwhile, Wafaa Said, the UN’s deputy humanitarian coordinator for Ethiopia, warned UN members on Thursday that the impact of the crisis in Tigray isn’t fully known because of communications blackouts in large parts of the region and lack of access to vast areas, especially rural areas. “Yet what is already known is quite alarming,” he noted. Associated Press

UN sanctions committee to meet at U.S. request over North Korea missiles: The United Nations Security Council North Korea sanctions committee is due to meet today, at the request of the United States, over Pyongyang’s launch of two suspected ballistic missiles into the sea near Japan, a spokesperson for the U.S. mission to the United Nations said. Earlier on Thursday, Biden said the United States remained open to diplomacy with North Korea in spite of its missile tests this week, but warned there would be responses if North Korea escalates matters. The United States requested a meeting of the sanctions committee, comprised of lower-level diplomats from the 15 council members, to discuss the latest launches. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Pyongyang to renew its diplomatic engagement with all parties concerned and to work for peace and stability, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said on Thursday, adding, “Diplomatic engagement is the only pathway to sustainable peace and complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Thursday called for the revival of six-party negotiations to denuclearize North Korea, which would include Russia, the U.S., and China, alongside South Korea and North Korea. After meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong during his first trip to South Korea in eight years, Lavrov said, “Moscow and Seoul remain committed to an early resumption of negotiations between the parties in the interests of a lasting settlement of the entire range of problems in the region,” adding that the officials discussed the “importance of efforts to maintain peace and stability in Northeast Asia, including on the Korean Peninsula, which implies the sides’ rejection of the arms race and the buildup of all kinds of military activity.” Reuters, Nikkei Asia
Related:
Politico: Biden Says North Korea Is Top Foreign Policy Issue Facing U.S. 

New U.S. sanctions target military conglomerates in Myanmar: The United States on Thursday imposed what it calls its most significant sanctions to date over the military coup in Myanmar, restricting U.S. dealings with two Myanmar military holding companies that dominate much of that country’s economy. Thursday’s sanctions “target those who led the coup, the economic interests of the military, and the funding streams supporting the Burmese military’s brutal repression,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. The new measures generally bar any U.S. dealings with the two military holding companies, which are deeply involved in everything from the sale of alcohol and cigarettes to agriculture, banking, and mining. The companies distribute profits to Myanmar’s military and its members. Human-rights groups were enthusiastic about the new U.S. sanctions, after faulting previous U.S. measures as being little more than gestures. Blinken added that the United Kingdom was taking similar action against one of the holding companies. Associated Press, Reuters, CNBC
Related:
Reuters: U.S. Reviewing Myanmar ‘Genocide’ Determination: State Department Official 

Militant convicted and acquitted of Daniel Pearl murder to leave prison: A British-born militant sentenced to death for the murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl was ordered to be let out of prison Thursday by Pakistan’s Supreme Court. The court said, however, that Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and three others should remain in custody in accommodations similar to that given to prison staff while another appeal is considered. Sheikh and three accomplices have been behind bars since 2002 when they were convicted of the kidnapping and murder of Pearl, at the time the South Asia bureau chief for the Wall Street Journal. Since then they have won and lost a series of appeals and counter-appeals in connection with the case, with a top court last year overturning their murder convictions. That decision meant they had completed their sentences on the kidnapping charge, and the court in January ordered them to be released. They were kept in custody, however, as the provincial and federal governments, as well as Pearl's family, filed another petition to keep them behind bars. Agence France-Presse

Navalny complains of torture in Russian prison, lawyer says his health worsening: Jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny on Thursday accused Russian authorities of torture by depriving him of sleep in prison as his lawyer said his health has worsened with back pains and leg problems. Navalny reportedly said he is woken eight times per night by guards announcing to a recording camera that he is still in his cell. “Essentially I am being tortured through sleep deprivation,” he said in a formal complaint released by his lawyers, which published his medical applications and demanded “that the doctor’s access to Alexey be immediately ensured, that his treatment should be started, and the torture by sleep deprivation should be stopped.” In response, Russia’s prison service released a statement Thursday saying that Navalny is in “generally good health,” adding that he and other prisoners in the country’s Vladimir region received medical examinations on Wednesday at the inmates’ request. France24, ABC News, CNN, Associated Press
Related:
Reuters: U.S. Wages Psychological War On Moscow — Russian Defense Adviser 

China enacts new sanctions on UK entities over ‘lies and disinformation’ on Xinjiang: China announced sanctions today on British individuals and entities following the UK’s joining the EU and others in sanctioning Chinese officials accused of human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region. A statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry said the move by the Western bloc was based on “nothing but lies and disinformation, flagrantly breaches international law and basic norms governing international relations, grossly interferes in China’s internal affairs, and severely undermines China-UK relations.” Britain’s ambassador to China has been summoned for a diplomatic protest, the statement said. Sanctioned individuals and groups would be barred from visiting Chinese territory and banned from having financial transactions with Chinese citizens and institutions. Meanwhile, Chinese state TV on Thursday called for a boycott of companies including H&M and Nike. CNBC, Associated Press

Taiwan says it has begun mass production of long-range missile: Taiwan has reportedly begun mass production of a long-range missile and is developing three other models. Taking lawmaker questions in parliament, Taiwan’s Defense Minister, Chiu Kuo-cheng, said that developing a long-range attack capability was a priority. “We hope it is long-range, accurate and mobile,” he said, adding that research on such weapons by the state-owned National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology had “never stopped.” The institute’s deputy director Leng Chin-hsu said that one long-range, land-based missile had already entered production, with three other long-range missiles in development. Taiwan’s armed forces are in the midst of a modernization programme to offer a more effective deterrent to China’s military, including the ability to hit back at bases deep within China in the event of a conflict. Reuters

2 Indian soldiers killed, 2 injured in Kashmir rebel attack: Rebels fighting against Indian rule in disputed Kashmir attacked a paramilitary patrol Thursday, killing two soldiers and injuring two others, an official said. Militants sprayed bullets from two sides toward an armored vehicle carrying soldiers on patrol in the outskirts of the region’s main city of Srinagar, said Kishor Prasad, a top Indian paramilitary officer, describing it as a “hit-and-run attack.” Paramilitary spokesman Om Prakash Tiwari said two soldiers were killed and two others injured, one critically, in the attack. No rebel group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Associated Press