Virus variant races through Italy, especially among
Nurse Maurizio di Giacobbe tends to a patient in a COVID-19 ICU of the Tor Vergata Polyclinic Hospital, in Rome, Italy, Dec. 13, 2020. The coronavirus pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges for families around the world managing work and home life with children kept home from school and after-school activities. For the Di Giacobbe family, the juggling is even ...
United Arab Emirates struggles to recover after heaviest recorded rainfall ever hits desert nation
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates—The United Arab Emirates tried to wring itself out April 18 after the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, with its main airport allowing more flights even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and communities. Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel, allowed global carriers on the morning of April 18 to...
More than 850,000 Syrian, Turkish children displaced by earthquakes
One month on from the two catastrophic earthquakes that struck Türkiye and Syria, more than 850,000 children remain displaced after being forced from their damaged or destroyed homes amid millions in dire need of aid, UN agencies said. “Families forced from their homes by the earthquakes have spent the past four weeks focused on survival, their lives on hold while aftershocks...
Debate over UN reform shows divide between rich and poor
UNITED NATIONS (FinalCall.com) - In 1964, the Group of 77 (G-77) plus China was formed at the United Nations, according to one of its founding fathers, Tanzanian president, Julius Kambarage “Mwalimu” Nyerere, to create an opportunity for developing nations to be prime movers of their own destiny. “The Group of 77 was created to change the status quo, which was...
Nervous Pakistanis asking ‘Are we next?’
ISLAMABAD (IPS)–Worries are growing here about the long-term implications of the war on Iraq for Pakistan, its ties with the United States as well as with rival neighbor India. At worst, many fear that what they call the policy of U.S. expansionism may soon be knocking at Pakistan’s doors. "What does war in Iraq mean for Pakistan?...
Migrant workers face dire conditions at South Korean farms
POCHEON, South Korea—“It’s a world of lawlessness,” Rev. Kim Dal-sung muttered over the phone as he drove his tiny KIA over narrow dirt paths zigzagging through greenhouses made of plastic sheets and tubes. In the bleak landscape of dull blue and gray in Pocheon, a town near South Korea’s ultra-modern capital, hundreds of migrant workers from across Asia toil in...
Ethiopian lawmakers remove Tigray group from terror list
NAIROBI, Kenya—Ethiopian lawmakers have removed the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front from the country’s list of designated terror groups more than four months after a peace agreement ended a conflict that killed hundreds of thousands of people. The March 22 decision highlights the improving relations between federal officials and Tigray regional ones and moves the region closer to the establishment of an interim...
Is road map to peace dead without Arafat?
Bush, Sharon try to ostracize Palestinian leader (FinalCall.com)--The recent efforts of the Bush administration and that of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Israeli government toward a lasting peace in Palestine has been hailed by the mainstream media in the United States as significant and possibly the greatest overture in modern times. However, the inability to secure a ceasefire between the two nations...
Resistance leader’s death deepens Kashmir strife
NEW DELHI—The death of a top separatist leader in disputed Kashmir and the ensuing crackdown on public movement and communications by Indian authorities have highlighted the turmoil seething just below the surface in the region. Here’s a closer look at what Syed Ali Geelani meant to Kashmir and why problems still roil the region two years after India revoked its semi-autonomy and...
Baltimore prosecutor calls charges against her ‘malicious’
BALTIMORE—Baltimore’s top prosecutor has asked a federal judge to dismiss an indictment against her, alleging the prosecution has been driven by “malicious personal, political, and even racial animus.” State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby was indicted in January on charges of perjury and making false mortgage applications in the purchase of two Florida vacation homes. She has pleaded not guilty. In a motion...