As tensions continue to rise in the Middle East, two women's organizations are pushing for a return to negotiation and a permanent resolution to the conflict. “Women Wage Peace” is the largest grassroots peace movement in Israel, while its Palestinian counterpart, “Women of the Sun,” is a Palestinian women's organization based in Bethlehem. They are part of a global movement to ensure women are not just represented, but also at the leadership table in peace negotiations. Their work is...

As Russians headed to the polls this month, the reelection of Russian President Vladimir Putin was not in doubt. On March 17th, with over 87% of the votes in his favor, Putin secured a fifth term, becoming the longest-serving leader of the Federation since Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. With most opposition candidates either dead, jailed, exiled, or barred from running, the path was clear, with no credible challenger to his rule. Echoing this landslide victory, polls in Russia seem to...

UNRWA is in trouble. The UN agency for Palestine Refugees is accused by Israel of being infiltrated by Hamas and having had some of its staff involved in the attacks on October 7th. Nearly 2 million people in Gaza depend on UNRWA for survival as war and displacement continue after nearly four months of war. The allegations by Israel concern a fraction of the workforce in Gaza, but are having devastating consequences for the organization, threatening its very existence. While an investigation...

From war-torn Ukraine and Sudan to the Mediterranean, 2023 marked yet another year where thousands were forced to leave their homes in pursuit of a better life. In one of the deadliest migrant boat tragedies, more than 600 people drowned on June 14 off the coast of Greece, after a fishing vessel known as the Adriana capsized and sank. A few months later, the minuscule Italian island of Lampedusa saw an influx of 10,000 individuals within days, which nearly doubled the local population. It...

On November 15th, Israeli forces stormed al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical complex in the Gaza Strip, in search of a Hamas base. The facility sheltered hundreds of people: wounded civilians, children, and newborns. Soon after, the World Health Organization labeled the hospital a "death zone." Healthcare facilities enjoy special protections under international law. However, from Gaza to Ukraine, and in many other places, evidence suggests that hospitals are routinely viewed as mere...

On November 15th, the world watched as a highly anticipated meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden took place amid the scenic backdrop of Woodside, California.   From a controversial visit by a US House Speaker to Taiwan, to a Chinese spy balloon crossing the United States – the two countries’ relations have sunk to their lowest point in decades.   And from the war in Ukraine to the conflict opposing Israel and the Palestinians, and a general election in Taiwan...

In the early hours of October 7, Palestinian militants with Hamas, the Islamic group that controls the Gaza Strip, mounted a stunning and highly coordinated invasion of Israel.   They rampaged through Israeli towns, killing people in their homes, attacking young rave-goers, and taking some 200 hostages.   The attacks by Hamas were horrific and gruesome, some of them live-streamed on social media for maximum impact.   These were soon followed by Israel declaring war on Gaza, announcing a...

In the early hours of October 7, a powerful earthquake shook Herat province in western Afghanistan. It was followed by multiple aftershocks and a second, strong earthquake on October 11.   Entire villages across western Afghanistan have been destroyed and over a thousand people lost their lives. And out of the rubble and dust has emerged a shocking statistic: according to the United Nations, women and children make up the vast majority of the dead and injured. To understand why, a new report...

The announcement by the Norwegian Nobel Committee on the Peace Prize is an event highly anticipated each year by millions around the world.   It’s easy to see why: the names of previous Nobel Peace Prize recipients include the likes of Malala Yousafzai, President Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela, and the 14th Dalai Lama.   So who will be the winner this year? And what impact can it have on those who are receiving the Prize?   351 candidates were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023,...

Eighteen months since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to invade Ukraine. US officials now report that the total number of troops from both sides killed or wounded since the war began is nearing half a million. A staggering toll, most of it paid by Russian troops, which outnumber Ukrainians almost three to one.   Boosted by billions of dollars of military aid and state-of-the-art weaponry from its Western allies, Ukrainians have embarked on a counteroffensive aiming at...

A year ago, in the early hours of June 25, a gunman opened fire at three locations in the centre of Oslo, including at the London Pub, a longstanding fixture of the LGBTQ+ scene in the Norwegian capital. Espen Aleksander Evjenth was there dancing with his partner and his friends, when a bullet hit his head. Despite his severe wound, he miraculously survived. Police later announced that they viewed the shooting as a terrorist attack, and Oslo Pride organisers cancelled the parade due to take...

On Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has extended his rule into a third decade, beating his rival Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in a bitter presidential race.   The run-off victory caps an extraordinary campaign for Erdoğan who had hoped for a swift win. However, sky-rocketing inflation, a devastating earthquake and a united opposition left him vulnerable at the ballot box.   For two decades, Erdoğan has loomed large over Turkish politics, gradually concentrating powers and cracking down on...

On April 15th, explosions and gunfire began to rock the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, with the paramilitaries and army accusing each other of attacking their respective bases. With two heavily armed groups squaring off in one of the most populated cities on the African continent, the United Nations has now issued a stark warning that the humanitarian situation on the ground is reaching a “breaking point." Katarzyna Grabska—or Kasia as she's known by her colleagues—is one of thousands of...

On April 25th, Israel marks 75 years of existence, commemorating the Declaration of Independence of 1948. But this year, amid the fireworks, military parades and flag-waving, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu will be on the lookout for disruptions and more protests. Recent proposals by Netanyahu's government - the most far-right in the history of the country - to weaken the Supreme Court has sent hundreds of thousands of protestors to the streets. Meanwhile, illegal Israeli settlements in...

Disarmament, i.e. the collection of arms and ammunitions following civil wars, is aimed at preventing conflict recurrence and paving the way for peace. However, comprehensive disarmament of non-state actors is challenging and rare. In this episode, we look at the following questions: What is the relationship between disarmament of rebel groups and peace? What is 'criminalized peace' and how can we prevent it? What are the roles of women in arms control initiatives? The episode features the...

Research is only valid and useful so long as the people doing it are honest. However, there many incentives for researchers to lie. This discussion looks at the following questions: What is academic fraud? How prevalent is it? What can be done to prevent fraud? It features a prominent investigator of academic fraud (Nick Brown), a researcher who has studied academic publishing (Lynn Parker Nygaard) and a deputy editor of a prominent journal (Sebastian Schutte). This bonus episode is hosted...

On 28 February, the IPCC, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,launched the second part of its Sixth Assessment Report. This part assesses the impacts ofclimate change, looking at ecosystems, biodiversity, and human communities at global andregional levels. It also reviews vulnerabilities and the capacities and limits of the naturalworld and human societies to adapt to climate change. One of the main conclusions of the report is that climate adaptation is proceeding...

The last few months in Bosnia have been marked by moves towards secession and a flare-up ofethnic tensions emanating from Republika Srpska, the Serb-majority entity of Bosnia andHerzegovina established by the Dayton Peace Agreement which put an end to the 3 ½-year-longBosnian War. Commentators are describing the last few months as the worst political and securitycrisis since the war ended in 1995. In this episode, we discuss the current crisis and ask if what we are seeing in Bosnia is new to...

Every year, PRIO holds its Annual Peace Address, inviting distinguished guests to reflect on how to contribute to the creation of a world in which violence is the exception and peace is the norm. In 2021 the peace address was given by Jeffrey D. Sachs with the title “Why we must avoid a new cold war and how to do it”. Sachs is a world-leading expert in economics and sustainable development, University Professor and Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia...

Scrambles for natural resources and struggles for power when such resources come to light are a frequent cause of international conflict and tension around the world. In the Eastern Mediterranean, recent discovery of hydrocarbon has only exacerbated existing tensions. This is a region that includes Cyprus, Turkey, Greece, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Palestine, and Israel. Today we’re going to hear from PRIO Cyprus Centre researcher Zenonas Tziarras on this topic: he'll explain the key players, the...

What is the transformative potential of visual storytelling in conflict research? In the project Societal Transformation in Conflict Contexts or (TRANSFORM), animations and comics were created in collaboration between researchers, activists, artists, writers, and many others. These pieces of art not only serve to inspire possible change, but also to illustrate and highlight stories of societal transformation around the world. That work was done in collaboration with PositiveNegatives....

When the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, many academics found themselves in a desperate scramble. For female academics in particular, the threat of retaliation and loss of freedoms was ominous. Meanwhile, their colleagues and counterparts in other countries struggled to help them. Professor Jacqui True at Monash University managed to successfully help bring several female academics from Afghanistan to Australia. Today Jacqui and Afghan scholar Parisa talk about developments in...

In the 1980s, in what was then Northern Somalia, doctors, teachers, and other professionals lived out their ethics and ideals by restoring a hospital and responding to the needs of people in their community. Their actions were rewarded with arrests and imprisonment. This is the story of the Uffo group. In today’s podcast Mohamed Aden Hassan and Ebba Tellander discuss Uffo and how this story can inspire people around the world - especially perhaps the Somali Diaspora. Ebba also wishes to...

In 2020, 1.6 billion children were living in a conflict-ridden country. Approximately 452 million children – more than one in six – were living less than 50 km from where the actual fighting took place. For the last few years PRIO and Save the Children have collaborated on the Children in Conflict project which illuminates the number of children affected by violent conflict around the world. Updates have expanded to include children living in conflict zones where they are at risk for sexual...