Human Rights Bound

Up to 1,000 migrants may have vanished in the Central Mediterranean during Cyclone Harry, far more than the 380 people officially listed as missing by maritime authorities, according to humanitarian groups working on the Tunisia–Libya route. The Italian NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans says testimonies from coastal communities around Sfax and from migrants’ families suggest dozens of boats sailed into the storm and never returned, turning what was reported as a series of shipwrecks into what advocates describe as a “hidden catastrophe” at sea.

France’s National Assembly has unanimously approved a reform that makes it easier for people exposed to French nuclear tests in Algeria and Polynesia to obtain compensation, replacing an onerous case‑by‑case causality test with a presumption of exposure for those who were present in designated test zones and later developed recognized radiation‑linked illnesses.

Clashes near the town of Korbol in southern Chad on January 13, 2026, left soldiers and rebel fighters dead after the army issued a 48‑hour ultimatum to the Movement for Peace, Reconciliation and Development. The incident barely registered internationally, yet it captures a familiar cycle in Chad’s politics: armed groups rejecting disarmament, a government relying on military pressure, and border regions absorbing the costs. Looking at Korbol helps explain how under‑reported local flashpoints quietly sustain instability across the country.

A Tunis appeals court has confirmed a two-year prison sentence against opposition leader Abir Moussi, upholding a conviction linked to allegations of digital misinformation and defamation. The ruling, tied to a case initiated by Tunisia’s election authority, comes amid a wider use of legal provisions governing online speech in politically sensitive cases.