💡 SPOTLIGHT
For every era, its own fascism — this is how ours is starting to look
Right-wing movements have surged in Europe, and fascism is on the ascendancy across disparate regions of the world. As populist leaders gain power, the specter of authoritarianism looms large, writes Oleksandr Demchenko for Ukrainian news website Livy Bereg.
Across the globe, worrying trends are emerging in both politics and society.
In the Netherlands, the Freedom Party, known for its anti-European, anti-Muslim, and anti-Ukrainian stance, recently won the national elections. In Argentina, newly elected president Javier Milei proposes an extreme solution to the economic crisis – destroying the central bank. Right-wing movements are gaining traction among young voters across Europe, seduced by neo-Nazi influences not seen since World War II.
China has long been operating concentration camps for Uyghur Muslims, while racism remains a major problem in Russia. Next year will witness a phalanx of critical elections worldwide, with over three billion people voting for new governments. Concerns over the potential rise of anti-democratic governments are growing in tandem.
In this climate of deepening polarization and radicalization, many commentators have issued warnings about the free world losing ground to autocracy. But there's another underlying trend that's not being discussed directly enough: the shift towards fascism, itself. Left-wing radicalism, anti-immigrant sentiments, demographic challenges, and terrorism have all contributed to the rise of fascists camouflaged as populist dictators.
What does a fascist leader look like? Consider the man that Thomas Edison hailed as a genius, Gandhi praised as a superman, and Churchill lionized as an exemplary figure for all. He defended his homeland, suffered severe wartime injuries, witnessed the collapse of his own state, and then plotted to transform it. He built roads, bridges, and healthcare infrastructure, fought against the mafia and communism, and promised a better life for the underprivileged and veterans. Benito Mussolini did all of this while also earning a reputation as a fascist dictator.
Mussolini was the epitome of a fascist leader. He was a politician with limited knowledge, lacking in economic understanding, aiming for complete state control without a clear program, often adapting to the prevailing public sentiments. His regime curtailed rights as much as possible.
Mussolini propagated war, ruthlessly targeted minorities through any available means, persecuted opposition forces, and projected a macho image of himself among citizens. In essence, he was an unprincipled individual seeking total obedience.
Europe failed to recognize Mussolini's true nature. Projected as a socialist courtesy of his newspaper Popolo d'Italia, he received financial support from French businesses to counter German propaganda before and during World War I, but would go on to adamantly oppose Lenin and communism. After his coup d'état, the Italian press dubbed Mussolini as the "incarnation of God." [...]
— Read the full Livy Bereg article by Oleksandr Demchenko, translated from Ukrainian by Worldcrunch.
• Fighting continues in southern Gaza as war passes two-month mark: As fighting continues in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, the United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has warned of a deepening “catastrophe” in Gaza and has invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter to urge the UN Security Council to act on the war. Follow Worldcrunch’s continuing coverage of the war between Israel and Hamas as the world marks two months since the Oct. 7 attack.
• Senate Republicans block U.S. funding for Ukraine: Republican senators in the United States have blocked the $106-billion emergency spending bill to provide new security assistance for Ukraine and Israel, as they demand tougher measures to control immigration at the U.S. border with Mexico. U.S. President Joe Biden called the senators’ tactics “stunning” and dangerous but said he was willing to “make significant compromises on the border,” to get the package through Congress.
• Shooting on Las Vegas campus leaves 4 dead, including gunman: Three people are dead and one person is in stable condition following a shooting at the Las Vegas campus of the University of Nevada (UNLV) on Wednesday. The suspected gunman, identified as a 67-year-old career college professor, has been killed by police. This marks the 80th school shooting in 2023 in the U.S.
• Erdogan in Greece to restart relations after years of tension: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has arrived in Athens on Thursday to meet with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, as both countries hope to reboot ties after years of friction. The leaders are expected to discuss trade, regional issues and the thorny issue of migration. For more, we offer this recent article from Turkish daily Diken about Erdogan’s charm offensive in the Gulf.
• Seychelles declares state of emergency after explosion and flooding: Seychelles’ president has declared a state of emergency on Thursday following a massive explosion at an industrial area on the main island, Mahé, and severe flooding and landslides. At least three people were killed.
• Italian opera singing gets UNESCO recognition: The United Nations cultural agency added Italian opera singing to its list of intangible global heritage, joining other famed Italian practices, such as pizza-making.
• McDonald’s unveils its answer to Starbucks: McDonald's has announced the details of its new and secretive spinoff brand, CosMc's, which has been described as a “beverage-led concept” that's “inspired by nostalgia.” The brand’s name comes from CosMc, a McDonaldland mascot that appeared in ads in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The fast food giant plans to open the first location this week in Bolingbrook, Illinois, before opening 10 others in the U.S. by the end of 2024 in a test.
Lima-based daily Diario Correo features Alberto Fujimori finally “Breathing Freedom”, as the former Peruvian President (1990-2000) was released from Barbadillo prison in Peru’s capital after being incarcerated for 16 years. Aged 85, Fujimori was granted a pardon on humanitarian grounds, as he suffers from respiratory, neurological and hypertension problems. This court order is criticized by some that consider he abused democracy and committed atrocities while fighting the Shining Path far-left guerrilla group in the early 1990s while others believe he saved the country from terrorism and economic collapse.
Planchodrome
As France gets ready to host the 2024 Olympic Games, which will include a skateboarding event, the French language enrichment commission has shared a list of new words related to the practice. In France, you won't find skate parks anymore, but planchodromes, where you can take your planche à roulette (literally, a board on wheels) to glide around. With these new words, the commission aims to make the specialized lexicon of skateboarding “more accessible to all” ahead of the games.
Palestinian olive trees are also under Israeli occupation — and that's not a joke
In the West Bank, a quieter form of oppression has been plaguing Palestinians for a long time. Their olive groves are surrounded by soldiers, and it's forbidden to harvest the olives — this economic and social violence has gotten far worse since Oct. 7, reports Francesca Mannocchi in Italian daily La Stampa.
🚜 Olive trees are also the most important product in the West Bank, and this year, according to Abbas Milhem of the Union of Palestinian Farmers, they should have yielded $70 million, but the harvest has been banned almost everywhere, with dramatic consequences for some 100,000 farmers who live off the fruit of their land.
❌ In past years, the olive harvest was coordinated by local Palestinian authorities and the Israeli army. Agreements included a schedule of specific dates when Palestinian farmers could reach their lands, harvest the olives, and work the land. In many communities south of Hebron, the dates when work was permitted this year were scheduled just a few days before the attack on October 7th. An attack that changed everything. Since then, all permit requests have been rejected. The farmers who tried to reach their crops anyway were attacked by settlers. Most were left without work.
💥 Yesh Din, an Israeli human rights organization, has documented 99 settler attacks against Palestinian farmers in recent weeks. Last year, there were 38. In 18 cases, according to the organization, it was the soldiers themselves who prevented the harvest. One of these cases saw a farmer shot and killed by an off-duty soldier, who was immediately released and resumed service a few days later.
➡️ Read more on Worldcrunch.com
“Inevitably we got some things wrong.”
— Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson admits that his government made mistakes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking at a public inquiry into his handling of the health crisis, Johnson apologized to the families of victims for having “underestimated the scale and pace of the challenge,” but assuring the public that his government had done “their level best.” Johnson’s actions during the pandemic were roundly criticized, and he was eventually forced out of office last year over the scandal linked to parties he hosted in violation of lockdown rules.
📸 PHOTO DU JOUR
Palestinians line up as flour is being distributed by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in Dair El-Balah, central Gaza, as the war between Hamas and Israel passes the two-month mark. — Photo: Omar Ashtawy/APA Images/ZUMA
✍️ Newsletter by Anne-Sophie Goninet, Chloé Touchard, Valeria Berghinz and Cory Agathet
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