Hope, ICC, Venezuelan Refugees
February 10, 2021
Yesterday’s Newsletter / February 10, 2021
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Mars mission from the UAE begins orbit of red planet
Summary: After being developed in Colorado over the course of several years and launched from Japan in July of 2020, a robotic probe from the United Arab Emirates has successfully achieve orbit around Mars, where it will stay for at least two years, its sensors aimed downward toward the surface to study weather conditions and atmospheric air leakage.
Context: The successful arrival of the probe, which is named Hope, in Mars orbit makes the country the first Arab nation and fifth nation, overall, to reach Mars; it’s also the first of a cluster of three new missions that are arriving this month—the other two are from China and the United States, and will arrive a day and about a week later, respectively.
—The New York Times
ICC ruling brings hope for Palestinians, dismay for Israelis
Summary: The International Criminal Court has determined that it has jurisdiction to rule on alleged criminal acts perpetrated by Israeli and Palestinian militant groups.
Context: This means the ICC could look at potential crimes against humanity committed years ago by individuals and groups on both sides of this ongoing conflict, but it could also partially determine the shape of the conflict in the future; both sides seem to resent the implication that their military actions might be wrong and those of the other side might be okay, but both also seem inclined to avoid getting called out by this court.
—Reuters
Colombia will legalize undocumented Venezuelan migrants
Summary: In a move that could benefit as many as a million Venezuelan migrants and refugees who are fleeing economic collapse and violence back home, the Colombian government has said that it will provide them with official documentation that will help them gain access to healthcare and legal work.
Context: A UN representative has welcomed this move as an “extraordinary gesture” of humanity, pragmatism, and human rights, and though temporary, it’s no doubt a welcome bit of news for these refugees who are being prevented from entering many other South American countries, and who face hyperinflation, starvation, and an increasingly authoritarian government in their home country.
—The Associated Press
Visual
1,200
Estimated number of small satellites that reached orbit in 2020, with another 10,000 (conservatively) expected by 2030.
That’s quite a lot of compact satellites in a short period of time, considering that only about 400 were launched between 2015 and 2018, in total.
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Yesterday’s Newsletter is published by analytic journalist and host of the Let’s Know Things podcast, Colin Wright.