Al Jazeera World

Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed since South Sudan's civil war began in December 2013, and millions more have been forced to flee their homes.

On one side of the conflict are troops and militias backing President Salva Kiir. On the other, those supporting former Vice President Riek Machar.

A peace deal was signed in 2018 to end the war, but the situation is far from settled, with atrocities having been committed by both sides, and continued fighting between the government and armed groups.

In February 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Council released a report describing what it believes is funding the war: the country's rich oil industry.

It says that the state-owned Nilepet oil company "has diverted oil revenues which should be shared with states into the coffers of elites in the government," and that its operations "have been characterised by a total lack of transparency and independent oversight."

According to the report, "oil revenues and income from other natural resources have continued to fund the war, enabling its continuation and the resulting human rights violations."

The country's oil sector is supervised by the minister of petroleum, Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, who denies the UN's allegations and others.

"I have been in the Ministry of Petroleum since 2016 and I can assure you there is no single dollar that has been used to buy arms in the ministry and even in the country," he told Al Jazeera. "The focus is peace, peace, peace. We are not investing in war and we will not at all invest in war ... Nilepet has not been financing any activities that is related to violence in the country."

He says that expanding the country's oil production - oil makes up 60 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and almost all of its exports - and attracting foreign investors, will increase the money available for development projects.

"Now myself and my colleagues in the government, we are also working to make sure that the production is increased, and we resume the oil blocks that has been dormant for the last five years, this is also going to be translated into money, so that we can have more money and then we will provide services to the people of South Sudan," he said.

But with a lack of transparency - one organisation obtained secret documents suggesting that Nilepet paid $80m to war-related officials and activities over a 15-month period beginning in March 2014 - the concern is that these expansions would simply deepen corruption.

South Sudan ranks 178 out of 180 countries on Transparency International's corruption index. But Gatkuoth says South Sudan's president has initiatives to address these issues.

"Corruption is everywhere in the world but the most important thing is how you deal with it," he said.

"People are being dismissed, people are being held accountable ... We have been actually really targeting people who have been actually involved in corruption and they are in jail and they are prosecuted. To me, the president is doing exactly the right thing and we are open book. In the Ministry of Petroleum or Finance or the whole government, we are open book."

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Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed since South Sudan's civil war began in December 2013, and millions more have been forced to flee their homes.

On one side of the conflict are troops and militias backing President Salva Kiir. On the other, those supporting former Vice President Riek Machar.

A peace deal was signed in 2018 to end the war, but the situation is far from settled, with atrocities having been committed by both sides, and continued fighting between the government and armed groups.

In February 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Council released a report describing what it believes is funding the war: the country's rich oil industry.

It says that the state-owned Nilepet oil company "has diverted oil revenues which should be shared with states into the coffers of elites in the government," and that its operations "have been characterised by a total lack of transparency and independent oversight."

According to the report, "oil revenues and income from other natural resources have continued to fund the war, enabling its continuation and the resulting human rights violations."

The country's oil sector is supervised by the minister of petroleum, Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, who denies the UN's allegations and others.

"I have been in the Ministry of Petroleum since 2016 and I can assure you there is no single dollar that has been used to buy arms in the ministry and even in the country," he told Al Jazeera. "The focus is peace, peace, peace. We are not investing in war and we will not at all invest in war ... Nilepet has not been financing any activities that is related to violence in the country."

He says that expanding the country's oil production - oil makes up 60 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and almost all of its exports - and attracting foreign investors, will increase the money available for development projects.

"Now myself and my colleagues in the government, we are also working to make sure that the production is increased, and we resume the oil blocks that has been dormant for the last five years, this is also going to be translated into money, so that we can have more money and then we will provide services to the people of South Sudan," he said.

But with a lack of transparency - one organisation obtained secret documents suggesting that Nilepet paid $80m to war-related officials and activities over a 15-month period beginning in March 2014 - the concern is that these expansions would simply deepen corruption.

South Sudan ranks 178 out of 180 countries on Transparency International's corruption index. But Gatkuoth says South Sudan's president has initiatives to address these issues.

"Corruption is everywhere in the world but the most important thing is how you deal with it," he said.

"People are being dismissed, people are being held accountable ... We have been actually really targeting people who have been actually involved in corruption and they are in jail and they are prosecuted. To me, the president is doing exactly the right thing and we are open book. In the Ministry of Petroleum or Finance or the whole government, we are open book."

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When Istanbul was at the heart of the Ottoman Empire, it was one of the most ethnically diverse cities in history; Rebetiko was one of many cultural and musical variations. However, after the founding of Turkey in the early 20th century, most of the city's minorities slowly disappeared and were gradually replaced by Kurds and other economic migrants from Anatolia. Turkey had begun its transformation itself from an agricultural to an industrial economy; a change that would become more prominent from the 1950s onwards.

But all these groups had already left their indelible cultural mark on a country where musical influences come from Greece, the Balkans, Egypt, Iraq, Armenia, Spain, medieval European romance, seventeenth century Islamic chant - as well as traditional Ottoman folk music, the western classical tradition and contemporary pop music.

Nearly all these ethnic groups are now gone.

Ethnic Greeks descended from the Byzantine Christians (known as Rûm under Ottoman rule) left in the 1923 population exchange and 1955 riots - but not before Rebetiko, a kind of Greek blues, had become hugely popular. The Sephardic Jews, whose ancestors had fled fifteenth century Spain, gradually emigrated to Israel - but had kept its Ladino language and music alive and its Andalusian, Gypsy, Balkan and Middle Eastern melodies and rhythms were hugely popular in Turkey.

Attaturk banned traditional Ottoman music in 1934 so Turks tuned to Arabic radio, leading to the rise of Arabesque music in the 1970s; and there are still prolific and popular Arabesque musicians in Istanbul today. The Armenian composer Komitas was once compared to Bartok and impressed Claude Debussy. He was traumatised by the ethnic cleansing of the First World War but had already collected and transcribed over 3,000 pieces of Armenian folk music and published the very first collection of Kurdish folk song.

When Istanbul was at the heart of the Ottoman Empire, it was one of the most ethnically diverse cities in history; Rebetiko was one of many cultural and musical variations. However, after the founding of Turkey in the early 20th century, most of the city's minorities slowly disappeared and were gradually replaced by Kurds and other economic migrants from Anatolia. Turkey had begun its transformation itself from an agricultural to an industrial economy; a change that would become more prominent from the 1950s onwards.

But all these groups had already left their indelible cultural mark on a country where musical influences come from Greece, the Balkans, Egypt, Iraq, Armenia, Spain, medieval European romance, seventeenth century Islamic chant - as well as traditional Ottoman folk music, the western classical tradition and contemporary pop music.

Nearly all these ethnic groups are now gone.

Ethnic Greeks descended from the Byzantine Christians (known as Rûm under Ottoman rule) left in the 1923 population exchange and 1955 riots - but not before Rebetiko, a kind of Greek blues, had become hugely popular. The Sephardic Jews, whose ancestors had fled fifteenth century Spain, gradually emigrated to Israel - but had kept its Ladino language and music alive and its Andalusian, Gypsy, Balkan and Middle Eastern melodies and rhythms were hugely popular in Turkey.

Attaturk banned traditional Ottoman music in 1934 so Turks tuned to Arabic radio, leading to the rise of Arabesque music in the 1970s; and there are still prolific and popular Arabesque musicians in Istanbul today. The Armenian composer Komitas was once compared to Bartok and impressed Claude Debussy. He was traumatised by the ethnic cleansing of the First World War but had already collected and transcribed over 3,000 pieces of Armenian folk music and published the very first collection of Kurdish folk song.

When Istanbul was at the heart of the Ottoman Empire, it was one of the most ethnically diverse cities in history; Rebetiko was one of many cultural and musical variations. However, after the founding of Turkey in the early 20th century, most of the city's minorities slowly disappeared and were gradually replaced by Kurds and other economic migrants from Anatolia. Turkey had begun its transformation itself from an agricultural to an industrial economy; a change that would become more prominent from the 1950s onwards.

But all these groups had already left their indelible cultural mark on a country where musical influences come from Greece, the Balkans, Egypt, Iraq, Armenia, Spain, medieval European romance, seventeenth century Islamic chant - as well as traditional Ottoman folk music, the western classical tradition and contemporary pop music.

Nearly all these ethnic groups are now gone.

Ethnic Greeks descended from the Byzantine Christians (known as Rûm under Ottoman rule) left in the 1923 population exchange and 1955 riots - but not before Rebetiko, a kind of Greek blues, had become hugely popular. The Sephardic Jews, whose ancestors had fled fifteenth century Spain, gradually emigrated to Israel - but had kept its Ladino language and music alive and its Andalusian, Gypsy, Balkan and Middle Eastern melodies and rhythms were hugely popular in Turkey.

Attaturk banned traditional Ottoman music in 1934 so Turks tuned to Arabic radio, leading to the rise of Arabesque music in the 1970s; and there are still prolific and popular Arabesque musicians in Istanbul today. The Armenian composer Komitas was once compared to Bartok and impressed Claude Debussy. He was traumatised by the ethnic cleansing of the First World War but had already collected and transcribed over 3,000 pieces of Armenian folk music and published the very first collection of Kurdish folk song.

Al Jazeera has obtained exclusive footage that proves the presence of child soldiers in the recruitment camps of the Saudi-UAE-led coalition fighting in Yemen.

The children, desperately poor, are being recruited to fight along the Saudi border to defend it from the Houthis, a rebel group that overran the capital, Sanaa, and large swaths of Yemen's northwest in 2014.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) formed a coalition to overthrow the Houthis - plunging Yemen into a ruinous war - supported by forces loyal to the country's internationally recognised government.

The conflict has created the world's worst humanitarian crisis, pushing Yemen to the brink of famine and leaving about 80 percent of its population - 24 million people - in need of humanitarian assistance.

However, many children face an even worse reality: being recruited by either warring side to fight in the conflict.

Amnesty International has worked to hold governments accountable for human rights violations for nearly 60 years, and it is now giving a critical look at its own organisation.

Following the suicide of a staff member, Amnesty commissioned an independent review of its company culture, which found that some of its staff have been victims of bullying, public humiliation, discrimination, and abuses of power, and that these issues threaten the organisation's credibility.

The report surveyed hundreds of employees as part of its investigation and found widespread mismanagement and a "toxic" work environment.

According to the report, 39 percent of staff had developed mental or physical health issues because of working there, and 65 percent didn't believe their well-being was a priority for Amnesty.

"I think this was a problem that was left festering for decades," Kumi Naidoo, Amnesty's secretary-general, told Al Jazeera.

"While we are winning battles, we are losing the war. And that contributes to a very stressful environment because all the folks that work at Amnesty are passionate, committed ... and they also understand that while we are winning here and there and important battles, they can see that human rights is slipping away from us."

Naidoo, who began his role in August last year, is looking to address these issues quickly.

He said these problems, in part, come from the inherently stressful nature of their work, as well as from an outdated management structure and the company's failure to prioritise its staff's well-being.

"Our organisation, set up in 1961, has added one layer of complexity after the other as it's evolved, and to be honest we need a complete reorganising because, in fact, the very structure of Amnesty right now is a source of certain conflicts and tensions that we need to fix urgently," he said.

He pointed out that Amnesty chose to make the report public, and that all seven members of its senior leadership team have accepted responsibility and offered to resign. To him, this transparency is a good first step.

"I am not saying it's going to be easy for us to recalibrate and move forward with a healing approach, if you want, but the commitment is there from myself, the board, and all parts of the organisation and we are focused on acting on it," he said. "One year won't sort everything out. But the term 'toxic' is quite a loaded word. I think within a year, I want that word off the table."

Until then, he recognises how the report bears weight on Amnesty's mission.

"I take the approach as the leadership of Amnesty at the board level and so on that given our values, given what we stand for, one case or two cases of racism or sexism or bullying are one case too many."

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On October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist working in the US for the Washington Post, entered his country's consulate in Istanbul to process paperwork - and was never seen again.

On the same day, a 15-man Saudi hit squad had allegedly flown to Istanbul. All the evidence points to Khashoggi's murder, suggesting that his body was first dismembered and then disposed of.

The killing of the well-known journalist and critic of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has resonated around the world, both as an attack on media freedom and as a shocking insight into the workings of a secretive and repressive regime.

The horrific story has been well documented in the media but there are still pieces missing and serious questions remaining unanswered: What happened to the body? Why did two weeks pass before Turkish investigators were allowed into the consulate to examine forensic evidence? And who was ultimately responsible for the killing?

Al Jazeera Arabic's Tamer Almisshal goes to Istanbul to try and find answers. He has pieced together the chronology of events - and examined the theories as to what may have happened to Khashoggi's body.

In mid-March, Saudi Arabia announced it had started court proceedings against those it believes were involved. The Kingdom still refuses to agree to a UN-led investigation, and despite the volume of powerful evidence, we still don't know whether those ultimately responsible for Khashoggi's death will ever be openly held to account.

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On October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist working in the US for the Washington Post, entered his country's consulate in Istanbul to process paperwork - and was never seen again.

On the same day, a 15-man Saudi hit squad had allegedly flown to Istanbul. All the evidence points to Khashoggi's murder, suggesting that his body was first dismembered and then disposed of.

The killing of the well-known journalist and critic of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has resonated around the world, both as an attack on media freedom and as a shocking insight into the workings of a secretive and repressive regime.

The horrific story has been well documented in the media but there are still pieces missing and serious questions remaining unanswered: What happened to the body? Why did two weeks pass before Turkish investigators were allowed into the consulate to examine forensic evidence? And who was ultimately responsible for the killing?

Al Jazeera Arabic's Tamer Almisshal goes to Istanbul to try and find answers. He has pieced together the chronology of events - and examined the theories as to what may have happened to Khashoggi's body.

In mid-March, Saudi Arabia announced it had started court proceedings against those it believes were involved. The Kingdom still refuses to agree to a UN-led investigation, and despite the volume of powerful evidence, we still don't know whether those ultimately responsible for Khashoggi's death will ever be openly held to account.

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In November 1979, a group of Iranian students took over the United States embassy in Tehran. Fifty-two American diplomats and citizens were held hostage for 444 days, in what became the longest hostage crisis in modern history.

The students were part of a revolution that overthrew the Shah and replaced his government with the Islamic Republic just months earlier.

Masoumeh Ebtekar, a prominent figure at the time, was both spokeswoman and translator for the students. Asked by Al Jazeera whether she has any regrets about her involvement with the hostage incident, the Iranian vice president for Women and Family Affairs remains resilient about the intention behind the students' actions.

"I don't think any of the students have any regrets because they felt that was a natural reaction. Any human being reacts to being subjugated to slavery ... being subjugated to foreign domination. Maybe the only concern or regret that they had was that it could have been resolved quicker," she says.

The students had demanded the US government deport the Shah back to Iran to stand trial. The hostages were eventually released in January 1981 and the crisis was over - but not Ebtekar's career.

After years in academia, she became Iran's third female member of cabinet in its history, when she was appointed as head of the Department of Environment during former President Mohammad Khatami's government.

Ebtekar has also served as Tehran's city councilwoman. In August 2017, President Hassan Rouhani appointed her vice president for Women and Family Affairs.

Forty years after the Iranian revolution, Ebtekar remains a strong believer of the principles she fought for.

Literacy rates and a younger generation of females encouraged to attend both school and university are badges of improvement and Ebtekar claims that challenges are noted and being systematically addressed.

"On the issue of education, the challenge that we have is that we have not addressed life skills properly in our education system," says Ebtekar. "This is something that we are focusing on specifically. For example, in the elementary or secondary stages, with the college and university system, we're working on upgrading communication skills among youth. Upgrading their skills to deal with their citizen rights and critical thought. These are life skills which are very important for the young generation."

As Iran suffers an ongoing economic crisis and sanctions, "again, on behalf of the United States government", how long can the Iranian people expect to wait for job creation and a release to the stifling economic pressure?

"Supporting entrepreneurship has been a strategy for us. We have a nationwide project implemented to train young women, particularly women with college degrees, on entrepreneurship skills; 18,000 billion tomans have been given in villages," says Ebtekar of the Iranian government's plans to ease economic hardships.

"I think that people have learned how to increase their resilience in difficult times," she continues. "This nation has withstood a war in which the whole world was practically against Iran when Saddam [Hussein] attacked. They have learned to be patient and to strengthen their internal capacities."

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