World roundup: June 13 2022

Stories from Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, France, and more

INTERNATIONAL

In today’s global news:

• Worldometer is tracking COVID-19 cases and fatalities.

• The New York Times is tracking global vaccine distribution.

MIDDLE EAST

SYRIA

According to The New Arab, a group of Jordanian merchants delivered a shipment of “basic foodstuffs” to the Rukban displaced persons camp in southern Syria last week. This was a commercial shipment, not humanitarian aid, but it provided some limited relief for some 10,000 people still living in that camp without access to regular sources of food and other basic goods. Rukban lies within the security perimeter that the US military and the Maghaweir al-Thowra militia have established around their checkpoint at Tanf, but the US refuses to provide them with any assistance. The Syrian government likewise refuses to take responsibility for the camp, whose residents refuse to go back to government-controlled territory for fear of reprisal from Syrian authorities.