Sweden’s parliament has passed one of the country’s most definitive migration laws in years, approving the so-called “snitch law” by a razor-thin margin. The legislation came through as the EU nation, which used to be one of the most welcoming for refugees, adopted a stricter policy after the unprecedented 2015 migration crisis.

The parliament approved the legislation formally titled Strengthened Return Operations on Monday, by 174 votes to 172.

It was based on a government proposal to oblige employees of six public agencies – the Tax Agency, Employment Service, Social Insurance Agency, Pensions Agency, Enforcement Authority, and Prison and Probation Service – to proactively inform police if they have reason to believe a person lacks the right to reside in Sweden.

The law, which comes into force on July 13, will provide authorities with “better tools to enforce deportation and expulsion decisions.”

Authorities will also be permitted to seize and search a suspect’s mobile phone if it may contain identity information, and to expand the use of fingerprints and photographs.

The legislation was supported by the right-wing Sweden Democrats, the center-right Moderate Party, the Christian Democrats, and the Liberals. The Social Democrats, the Left Party, the Green Party, and the Center Party voted against.

Migration Minister Johan Forssell welcomed the law, saying that the proposal for increased information exchange could “reduce the inhumane shadow society.” 

Critics, however, have warned that the law could erode public trust in the government and discourage vulnerable social groups from coming into contact with authorities.

“If the bill passes, we risk a whistleblower society with reduced trust in Swedish authorities. It would be extremely harmful to Swedish democracy,” John Stauffer, chief legal officer at Civil Rights Defenders, warned.

The initial version of the bill was even more sweeping, mandating schools, healthcare providers, and social services to report on suspected aliens, but it was amended after fierce pushback. The medical community was concerned, pointing out that the legislation violates doctor-patient ethics.

There are concerns that the law could still push undocumented people away from seeking medical aid, as information registered by healthcare workers is often shared with the Tax Agency or Social Insurance Agency and can still be used to track them.

Sweden’s migration policy has undergone a major shift since the 2015 refugee crisis, moving from a generous asylum system to a much more restrictive approach. In 2015 alone, Sweden, a country with around 10 million inhabitants, received around 163,000 asylum seekers – the highest per capita figure in Europe – though in recent years the numbers drastically decreased.

The reversal in migration policies culminated in the so-called 2022 Tido Agreement, when the mainstream ruling parties abandoned their traditional reluctance to cooperate with the Sweden Democrats, as the authorities prioritized expanded detention, accelerated returns, and deterrence measures.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday announced the deployment of the National Defense Force (SANDF) to combat gang violence and illegal mining in the Western Cape and Gauteng provinces.

In his 2026 State of the Nation Address (SONA), Ramaphosa declared organised crime as the most immediate threat to the country’s democracy and outlined comprehensive plans to strengthen the fight against criminal networks.

 “Our primary focus this year is on stepping up the fight against organised crime and corruption, and we will do so using technology, intelligence and integrated law enforcement.

”We will tackle organised crime by consolidating intelligence at national level, identifying priority syndicates and deploying handpicked multidisciplinary intervention teams focused on dismantling criminal networks,” he said.

Ramaphosa also said in strengthening the fight against gang violence and illegal mining, he will be deploying the SANDF to support the police.

”I have directed the Minister of Police and the SANDF to develop a technical plan on where our security forces should be deployed within the next few days, in the Western Cape and in Gauteng to deal with gang violence and illegal mining.”

Parliament will be informed about the deployment and related costs. ”We have to act to rid our country of gang violence,” said Ramaphosa.

His announcement on the deployment of the SANDF came hours after Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia hinted at a possible SANDF deployment, when he was speaking to the media earlier in the day when asked about plans to tackle gang violence on the Cape Flats.

Ramaphosa also told the nation that the government was implementing an integrated strategy to address the root causes of crime through coordinated interventions across society. “We are going to tackle gun crimes by streamlining legislation and regulations on licensing, possessing and trading and firearms and ammunition. We will increase enforcement of existing gun laws.”

The President promised to put more boots on the ground through the recruitment of 5,500 police officers, in addition to the 20,000 new officers announced in previous SONAs. He added that they were addressing the threat posed by the infiltration of illegal and counterfeit goods to South African jobs and industry.

”We are establishing a National Illicit Economy Disruption Program that brings together key state agencies and other stakeholders, including the private sector, through the effective use of data analytics and artificial intelligence.

“We will be targeting high risk sectors like tobacco, fuel, alcohol and other counterfeit goods.”

Ramaphosa said the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry and Ad Hoc Committee in Parliament have exposed rampant corruption within SAPS and Metro police departments. “We can’t tolerate this,” he said, adding that the investigations on matters arising from the Madlanga Commission will be conducted swiftly by the newly appointed task team.

The State Security Agency will re-vet the top brass of SAPS and Metro police officers. “The vetting process will include lifestyle audits as well as we have successfully done with previous commissions. We will use the recommendations of the Madlanga Commission to make far-reaching changes,” he said.

Ramaphosa said they were determined that the commission’s findings and recommendations will lay the basis for a fundamental reform of the criminal justice system. “We are confident that these efforts will succeed, because the great majority of police officers are dedicated to upholding the law and diligently serving the people of South Africa.”

Earlier Ramaphosa urged the nation to draw its strength from the values as articulated in the Constitution. “Our strength comes from our determination and resolve. It comes from our creativity and inspiration as we navigate this new world,” he said.

According to Ramaphosa, South Africa was stronger than it was a year ago. “Our economy is growing again. While we have experienced four consecutive quarters of GDP growth, we know that it has to grow much higher and much faster to meet our social and economic challenges.”

Ramaphosa also said the government has brought an end to loadshedding and was building a more dynamic and resilient energy system. “We have made achievements in improving the performance of our ports and freight rail lines, steadily increasing the volume of goods that we move in and out of our country.”

The president added that the work done to rebuild key institutions from state capture is showing results. “The South African Revenue Service is once again a world class tax authority. The Investigating Directorate continues with this work and is making progress in the prosecution of those who need to be prosecuted,” he said. However, Ramaphosa said despite the progress being made, there were still challenges to be faced.

“Although we are moving forward, we must not claim any easy victories. We are still far from where we need to be.” He noted that for too many people, life remained hard, that jobs were scarce and opportunity was out of reach. “South Africans are worried about violent crime and corruption. They are concerned at the state of local government and its inability to deliver basic services in many parts of the country.”

But Ramaphosa said the Constitution calls on the government to work towards a society in which every South African has a fair chance to make a better life for themselves.

First published by IOL

The self-defeating energy policies forced on member states by the European Union leadership are in breach of a key treaty regulating relations within the bloc, former Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl has told RT. She lamented the EU’s overreliance on US energy supplies in an “ideological” effort to replace inexpensive Russian gas and oil.

Speaking to RT on Thursday, Kneissl, who is the head of the GORKI (Geopolitical Observatory for Russia’s Key Issues) think tank, said that “this super-dependence they have created themselves now by buying energy from the US, and only from the US is based on this, I would say… strange agreement that we had concluded between [US] President [Donald] Trump and Ursula von der Leyen, the [European] Commission president, in Scotland a few months ago.”

Kneissl argued that the Commission’s pledge to purchase $750 billion worth of US LNG (liquefied natural gas) over the next three years is in “total contradiction with” the bloc’s own Treaty of Lisbon. The accord stipulates that member states can make their own independent decisions on their sources of energy.

According to the former diplomat, Brussels’ attempts to cow member states into buying energy almost exclusively from the US, to the detriment of their economic prospects, are “illegal.”

Kneissl said that the EU leadership’s decisions are mostly “ideological” and run counter to the “basic laws, the basic fundamentals of supply and demand.”

She noted that many EU countries are happy to continue buying Russian LNG through third countries, such as India, as long as it comes not directly from Moscow. Such arrangements are inevitably costlier than purchasing energy directly from Russia, Kneissl said.

Following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, the EU has significantly reduced its energy imports from Russia. The move has driven up prices for businesses and households alike all across the bloc.

Nevertheless, earlier this year, Brussels announced plans to gradually phase out remaining imports of Russian gas, oil, and nuclear-fuel by the end of 2027.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has detained the leader of Iowa’s largest school district, alleging he was in the country unlawfully, lacked work authorization, and had a prior weapons conviction.

According to a statement released on Friday, Ian Andre Roberts, described as “a criminal illegal alien from Guyana,” was taken into custody during a targeted enforcement operation after allegedly attempting to flee from federal officers. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said he was subject to a final removal order issued in May 2024.

Roberts, who has served as superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) since 2023 on a six-figure salary, was stopped on Friday while driving a district-issued vehicle. He allegedly fled the scene, abandoned the car near a wooded area, and was later apprehended with help from the Iowa State Patrol before being booked into Woodbury County Jail.

“This suspect was arrested in possession of a loaded weapon in a vehicle provided by Des Moines Public Schools after fleeing federal law enforcement,” ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations St. Paul Field Office Director Sam Olson said. “How this illegal alien was hired without work authorization, a final order of removal, and a prior weapons charge is beyond comprehension and should alarm the parents of that school district.”

At the time of arrest, Roberts was carrying a loaded handgun, $3,000 in cash, and a fixed-blade hunting knife, according to ICE. Court records in Pennsylvania show that in January 2022 he pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a loaded firearm in a vehicle.

The incident has triggered questions about Roberts’ appointment by the board. CNN commentator Scott Jennings asked how Jackie Norris – the chair of the board and former chief of staff to Michelle Obama – could hire “an illegal alien with a fake degree & a criminal record to be the head of the public schools.”

“Incredible. An illegal alien with a deportation order managed to become the Superintendent of Schools for Des Moines, earning more than $300,000 a year,” attorney Laura Powell wrote on X.

Following the arrest, the DMPS board placed Roberts on paid administrative leave. Norris said he had been “an integral part of our school community” but stressed that the district could not confirm ICE’s claims, insisting that “no one here was aware of any citizenship or immigration issues that Dr. Roberts may have been facing.”

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Rosneft has denounced the EU’s decision to impose sanctions on India’s second largest refinery, calling it “unjustified and illegal.” 

On Friday, the bloc announced sanctions on the Vadinar refinery, which is owned by Nayara Energy, an Indo-Russian joint venture in which Rosneft has a 49% stake. 

“Rosneft Oil Company considers the European Union’s decision to impose restrictive measures on the Indian refinery of Nayara Energy as unjustified and illegal,” the company said in a statement on Sunday. 

”These sanctions are yet another example of extraterritorial implementation of politically motivated restrictions that blatantly violate international law and infringe on the economic interests of a sovereign state.” 

The Russian oil major added that the sanctions on Nayara Energy are another example of the EU’s unfair competition practices. 

Announcing its 18th package of sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine conflict on Friday, the EU also imposed punitive measures on India’s flag registry, the official list of all the ships that fly a country’s flags. 

The Vadinar refinery has an annual capacity of 20 million tons. The EU is a major buyer of Russian crude refined at Vadinar, according to media reports. 

Rosneft clarified that it does not hold a controlling stake in Nayara, as it owns less than 50% of the company’s authorized capital.

Calling the sanctions on Nayara “far-fetched and false in content,” it said the company is an Indian entity, taxed in India, with profits reinvested in India’s refinery, petrochemical, and retail network.

”The imposition of sanctions against the refinery directly threatens India’s energy security and will have a negative impact on its economy,” Rosneft added. 

In a statement on Friday, the Indian Foreign Ministry said New Delhi “does not subscribe to any unilateral sanction measures” and is a “responsible actor” in the global energy sector. 

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Malaysia was rocked by an unexpected discovery on Tuesday when an explosion and billowing smoke from a house along Lorong Cekara Purnama, Bandar Puncak Alam, led authorities to uncover an illegal bitcoin mining operation.

The latest development comes as the Southeast Asian country continues to battle unauthorized crypto mining, which has caused significant financial losses and strains on the country’s power infrastructure.

Sungai Buloh district police chief, Superintendent Mohd Hafiz Muhammad Nor, revealed that 14 volunteer firefighters from Saujana Utama and Bestari Jaya were dispatched after a local woman reported the incident to the Sungai Buloh district police headquarters at 11:41 a.m. on February 11th.

Upon arrival, both firefighters and patrolling police officers had to forcibly enter the unoccupied house, where they found the fire originating from a room filled with modified electrical circuits. They had been illegally connected to the power grid and had short-circuited, which caused the blaze.

After extinguishing the fire on the evening of Tuesday, a joint investigation by the police and Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) personnel revealed…