Cities & Illicit Economies, Mesoamerican Working Group on Security and Democracy (MAWG), Protecting Politics, AMA-Obs, AR-Obs, CAM-Obs

Peace by design: Strong local institutions and governance are key to preventing violence and organized crime in cities

...Armed violence in our communities is a pervasive problem that has damaged public trust in institutions in countries ranging from El Salvador to Sweden. The impact of violence on people’s lives and o...

Posted on 25 Jul 2025

Author(s): Antônio Sampaio

WEA-Obs

Why the deadliest migration route in the world is becoming more popular

...On 1 July 2025, Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), the most powerful violent extremist organization in the Sahel, launched a series of coordinated attacks on seven towns along Mali’s borde...

Posted on 23 Jul 2025

Author(s): Flore Berger, Lucia Bird Ruiz-Benitez de Lugo, Mouhamadou Kane

APA-Obs

Railroad to extinction

Railroad to extinction

...The China–Laos Railway has enabled a dramatic expansion of illegal wildlife trade (IWT) in Laos, transforming the country into a critical node in transnational trafficking networks. According to thi...

Posted on 22 Jul 2025

Eco-Solve

Amplifying community-led solutions to combat environmental crimes in the Amazon

Amplifying community-led solutions to combat environmental crimes in the Amazon

...Global attention to the environmental challenges facing the Amazon has increased ahead of the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), which will take place in Belém, the capital of...

Posted on 21 Jul 2025

Author(s): Laura Avila Rivera, Gabriel Funari

UN-TOC Watch

UNpredictable times

...Ordinarily, staff at the United Nations Office in Vienna would now be preparing for a well-earned summer: tying up loose ends, attending final meetings, setting out-of-office replies and beginning to ...

Posted on 18 Jul 2025

Author(s): Ian Tennant

Crime & Conflict, HT-Obs

The weaponization of displacement by gangs in Haiti

...In 2024, crime-related violence triggered the displacement of at least 1.2 million people globally – more than twice the number recorded in the previous year. In a report to the Human Rights Council...

Posted on 16 Jul 2025

Author(s): Romain Le-Cour-Grandmaison

Global Organized Crime Index, Latinoamérica y el Caribe, AMA-Obs

Organized crime is driving a deadly surge in violence in Brazil

...Violence in Brazil’s northern and north-eastern regions is a growing concern. In 2023, the homicide rate in northern Brazil was 41.5% higher than the national average. Meanwhile, six of the 10 citie...

Posted on 14 Jul 2025

Author(s): Gabriel Funari, Gabriel Granjo

Sanctions and organized crime

New targets, old tools: The G7 ups momentum around the use of sanctions against migrant smugglers and human traffickers

...Human trafficking and the smuggling of migrants continue to dominate political debates and multilateral discourse as leaders search for new tools and strategies to address these crimes. In this contex...

Posted on 11 Jul 2025

Author(s): Matt Herbert

Drug Policy, EUR-Obs

European Drug Trends Monitor

European Drug Trends Monitor

... This is the first report of the GI-TOC European Drug Trends Monitor, an output of our Observatory of Organized Crime in Europe. This series of bulletins will track developments in European drug ma...

Posted on 11 Jul 2025