World
Sudan’s political and leadership turmoil continues
Understanding Sudanese politics is like a long-distance relationship. You never fully appreciate the relationship until you are living with the person you are in the relationship with. Understanding Sudanese politics is historically difficult. It’s like everyone speaking at the same time, resulting in a cacophony of voices trying to understand what’s really going on. Add to this equation a new...
Hate crimes against Muslims in Canada jump by 71 percent: Study
Hate crimes against Muslims across Canada jumped by 71 percent in 2021, according to a newly released report by the government agency Statistics Canada. Released on Aug. 9, the study found that the number of recorded attacks against Muslims increased from 84 incidents in 2020 to 144 in 2021. In 2019, a total of 182 incidents targeting Muslims had been...
Young Gaza artist was among those killed in Israeli strikes
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip—When Israeli bombs began falling recently, 22-year-old Duniana al-Amour ran into her room and tried to escape into her art and drawing, just as she had during Gaza’s past wars. But this time around, her pencil never met the paper. An Israeli shell struck outside her home on Aug. 5, making her one of the first of at...
Step up protection for activists who challenge big business in Colombia
Activists who raise concerns about business projects in Colombia are under serious threat for speaking out, and UN human rights experts are urging the government to do much more to protect them. “Serious threats, including death threats, are commonplace in Colombia for defenders who raise concerns about corporate activity, in particular in land-intensive industries,” said Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation...
Western forces, press try to delegitimize Africa neutrality toward Russia in U.S., NATO-led proxy war in Ukraine
The U.S.-led Western press machine is sucking the air out of the media-sphere with its “domination of the information space” and social media platforms like Twitter are putting significant and influential voices in “twitter jail,” said Riaz Tayob, a researcher with the South African Chapter of the Southern and Eastern African Trade Institute, on Russian media outlet RT’s “World...
Human trafficking: ‘All-out assault’ on rights, safety and dignity, says UN chief
Human trafficking is a horrific crime and “an all-out assault on people’s rights, safety and dignity,” Secretary-General António Guterres said on the eve of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. “Tragically, it is also a problem that is growing worse—especially for women and girls, who represent the majority of detected trafficked persons globally.” Separated and vulnerable Conflicts, forced displacement, climate change, inequality and...
Healthy life expectancy in Africa grows by nearly 10 years
Healthy life expectancy among Africans living in mainly high and upper middle-income countries on the continent, has increased by almost 10 years, the UN health agency, WHO, said on Aug. 4. The World Health Organization announced the good news Aug. 4 after examining life expectancy data among the 47 countries that make up the WHO African Region from 2000 to 2019, as part of...
UK court denies Venezuela access to its $2bn gold reserves
Britain’s High Court has denied the Venezuelan government’s access to its nearly $2 billion worth of gold reserves held in the Bank of England, ruling in favor of the country’s U.S.-sponsored opposition figure Juan Guaidó. After a four-day trial, the court ruled on July 29 that the British government recognizes Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president, despite his eroding support even among...
Economics of war: Pain for Europe now, later for Russia
Across Europe, signs of distress are multiplying as Russia’s war in Ukraine drags on. Food banks in Italy are feeding more people. German officials are turning down the air conditioning as they prepare plans to ration natural gas and restart coal plants. A giant utility is asking for a taxpayer bailout, and more may be coming. Dairies wonder how they...
Pope apologizes to Canadian Indigenous for church abuse
Pope Francis offered a sweeping apology to Indigenous people on their native land in Canada over church-run residential schools that became gruesome centers of abuse, forced assimilation, cultural devastation and death for over a century. Addressing a large crowd of Indigenous people, some wearing traditional clothing and headdresses, in Maskwacis, Alberta, the site of a former residential school, the pope...