UN investigator: Rights of minorities to worship undermined
UNITED NATIONS—The UN special investigator on religious freedom urged countries to repeal laws undermining the right of minorities to worship and hold beliefs, pointing as examples to China’s detention of Uighurs, 21 countries that criminalize apostasy, and sweeping surveillance of Christians in North Korea and Muslims in Thailand. Ahmed Shaheed warned that “the failure to eliminate discrimination, combined with political...
Only one in seven Britons say Truss will be better than Johnson, poll reveals
More than a quarter of people in the UK believe the new Prime Minister Liz Truss will be worse than her predecessor Boris Johnson, according to a new poll, showing overwhelming dissatisfaction among Britons with the Tory leadership. According to the results of a snap poll, published by YouGov on Sept. 5, only one in seven people in the country...
World’s food supply in jeopardy
(FinalCall.com) - The diversity of the world's food supply is being jeopardized by genetically engineered crops, according to some advocates and experts. The consequences of GE crops is that they eliminate diversity, say critics. “Once the product interacts with the environment and crossbreeds with similar or related species, all acquire the introduced dominant traits and the wide varieties previously...
Sadness, anger in Palestine: Thousands mourn martyrs of Israeli raid on Jenin
Thousands of people turned out for the funeral procession of a dozen Palestinians, among them four minors, killed by Israeli military forces during a raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the northern part of the occupied West Bank. On July 5, the mourners converged outside Jenin’s governmental hospital as they grieved for the victims of the latest Israeli onslaught....
Puerto Rico party to hold vote on its political future
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico—With a possible plebiscite (vote) on statehood or independence for Puerto Rico looming, one of the island’s two main parties said on June 16 it will ask its members to reconsider or reaffirm its own stance on the U.S. territory’s political future by holding an island wide vote on the issue. The announcement by Jose Luis Dalmau,...
Half of U.S. troops in Iraq say it’s time to come home
Most Iraqis doubt U.S. will ever leave (FCN, 02-14-2006)Broken coalition, resistance and dwindling recruitment mark two-year anniversary of U.S. invasion of Iraq (FCN, 04-06-2005) WASHINGTON (IPS/GIN) - The findings of an unprecedented poll of U.S. troops in Iraq are certain to add to steadily growing pressures on the Bush administration to accelerate Washington's withdrawal from a country that...
Donors promise Haiti $324 million to rebuild
JIM.LOBE WASHINGTON (IPS/GIN) - International donors have pledged $324 million over the next two years in additional aid to help Haiti recover from food riots and damage to roads and other key infrastructure caused by four hurricanes that ravaged Latin America's poorest nation last summer. The commitments were made during an all-day, all-star meeting April 15 that featured former...
Maduro slams ‘terrorist attack’ on Venezuelan oil company’s pipeline
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has condemned a “terrorist attack” on a major gas pipeline at a time when the Latin American country is already reeling from fuel shortages due to illegal U.S. sanctions against Caracas. The incident took place on Jan. 23 and led to a major fire at the facilities in the northeastern state of Anzoategui. Media reports said the fire...
UNICEF condemns air strike on schools in Myanmar
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has strongly condemned the Feb. 5 deadly airstrike on two schools in eastern Myanmar resulting in the deaths of at least four children and two teachers, with many more left injured. The children killed were boys between 12 and 14 years of age. “UNICEF strongly condemns any strikes against schools and places of learning, which must always...
Qatar, UAE resume diplomatic relations, reopen embassies
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have resumed relations after a six-year break, reopening their respective embassies. The two countries said in statements on June 19 the Qatari Embassy in Abu Dhabi and a consulate in Dubai, as well as the UAE Embassy in Doha had resumed operations. The Qatari Foreign Ministry said the restoration of ties “represents the will...