World roundup: May 31 2023

Stories from Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and elsewhere

TODAY IN HISTORY

May 31, 1223: The Battle of the Kalka River

May 31, 1902: The Treaty of Vereeniging brings an end to the Second Boer War. In effect the Boer states (the Transvaal and the Orange Free State) surrendered in exchange for an amnesty and a British pledge that, after a period of postwar military control, both states would be allowed to transition to the status of self-governing colonies. Presumably it will not come as a great surprise to learn that the parties agreed to put off any discussion of Black enfranchisement until after the colonies had achieved self-governing status, or in other words indefinitely. It should also not come as a surprise to learn that when they were granted self-governing status (1906 for the Transvaal and 1907 for the Orange Free State) the issue of Black enfranchisement still didn’t come up. The two colonies did agree to merge into the Union of South Africa in 1910, which gained independence (under the British Commonwealth) in 1931.

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

It’s apparently been a busy few days for Islamic State’s remaining Syrian units. According to The New Arab, a senior Syrian Democratic Forces officer was killed at his home in Syria’s Raqqa province on Monday in an attack believed to have been carried out by IS personnel. On Tuesday, IS fighters reportedly attacked three checkpoints in Raqqa manned by forces aligned with the Syrian government, killing at least two people and wounding three others, and this comes after a group of IS fighters killed a Russian military officer in Homs province over the weekend.