International

US midterms saw ‘widespread disinformation’ affecting voters: monitors

Photo: Olivier Touron / AFP

| Bye AFP |

Midterm elections in the United States saw free but highly polarized campaigns and voter disinformation was widespread, international observers said Wednesday.

The comments by observers with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which monitors elections in Western nations and the former Soviet Union, came a day after Americans headed to the polls — with outcomes set to shape the political fortunes of President Joe Biden.

Biden’s Democrats are facing a struggle to hold on to control of Congress, after a race that he has cast as a defining moment for US democracy.

For now, Republicans are edging towards a slim majority in the US House of Representatives, but their hopes of a “red wave” appear dashed as the Democrats outperformed.

20260224_estafa_mh_728x90

“Campaigning was free but highly polarized,” and involved harsh rhetoric, said Margareta Cederfelt, leader of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s short-term observer mission.

“Polarization and widespread disinformation affected voters’ ability to inform themselves,” she told reporters on Wednesday, adding that the intimidation of election workers was concerning as well.

The election campaign has seen a gush of misinformation, with far-right Republican candidates endorsing former president Donald Trump’s baseless claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Some have also seized on isolated voting machine glitches to launch what many saw as preemptive efforts to discredit the results.

A number of Republican candidates in key races, including those who, if elected, will have responsibility in overseeing future elections in their states, had challenged or refused to accept the legitimacy of the 2020 results, the OSCE noted in a statement on Wednesday.

20260224_estafa_mh_728x90

“Unfortunately… baseless allegations of fraud continued to have a serious result, in harassment of and threats against election officials,” Cederfelt added.

She noted that the vocal refusal by some in accepting the legitimacy of the 2020 results had a “harmful effect” on public discourse, lowering confidence in the system.

Accusations of rigging sprung up on social media platforms and were amplified by Trump after an Arizona county reported a minority of tabulation machines were not working during Tuesday’s vote.

Officials have since said there was no criminality involved in voting machine issues, and the OSCE added on Wednesday that it planned to follow up on the concerns in coming days.

20260224_estafa_mh_728x90

International

Iran Reports 201 Dead, 747 Injured After U.S. and Israeli Strikes

The Iranian Red Crescent Society reported Sunday night (local time) that at least 201 people were killed and 747 injured following attacks carried out by Israel and the United States against the Islamic Republic.

A spokesperson for the humanitarian organization said more than 220 rescue teams have been deployed across affected areas and that relief operations are continuing without interruption. The official highlighted the difficulty of treating the large number of wounded and the urgent need for additional resources in impacted provinces.

Out of Iran’s 31 provinces, 24 have reported damage, according to a statement carried by the Isna news agency. This marks the first overall casualty toll released by Iranian state-affiliated media since the launch of the offensive.

Among the dead are 85 schoolgirls from a school in the southern city of Minab, according to the country’s judiciary. “The number of martyrs at the Minab girls’ school has risen to 85,” the local prosecutor’s office said, as quoted by the judiciary’s website, Mizan Online.

Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian described the attack as a “savagery” that “constitutes a new black page in the record of countless crimes committed by the aggressors.”

20260224_estafa_mh_728x90

Meanwhile, the international community continues to monitor the situation closely amid concerns about possible further reprisals and the broader impact on Middle East stability, energy markets, and global security.

AFP noted that it was unable to independently verify the casualty figures or the circumstances surrounding the events.

International

Pope Leo XIV Urges End to ‘Spiral of Violence’ in Middle East

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday called for an end to the “spiral of violence” in the Middle East, following military strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran and subsequent retaliatory bombardments in the region.

“Faced with the possibility of a tragedy of enormous proportions, I urge the parties involved to assume their moral responsibility and stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss,” the pontiff told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

Speaking during the Angelus prayer, the U.S.-born pope said stability and peace cannot be achieved through threats or weapons. “Stability and peace are not built with reciprocal threats or with arms that sow destruction, suffering and death, but only through reasonable, sincere and responsible dialogue,” he declared.

The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics also called for diplomacy to “regain its role” amid escalating tensions.

In addition, the pope urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to urgently resume dialogue after several days of clashes between the two countries.

20260224_estafa_mh_728x90

International

Security Council to Hold Emergency Meeting on Middle East Crisis

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday condemned the “military escalation in the Middle East” following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes, just hours before an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.

“I call for the immediate cessation of hostilities and de-escalation,” Guterres said in a statement.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet on Saturday at 21:00 GMT (4:00 p.m. in New York) to address “the situation in the Middle East,” the United Nations announced.

The meeting, during which Guterres will deliver remarks, was convened at the request of France, Bahrain, Colombia, Russia and China, according to a diplomatic source.