By Thalif Deen NEW YORK (IDN) — As the devastating war in Ukraine continues—with thousands of civilian killings and entire cities reduced to rubble—the United States has accelerated an unprecedented flow of weapons to the besieged nation. If Ukraine loses the ongoing war, battling one of the world’s major military and nuclear powers, it is […]
Sustainable Development Threatened by ‘Finance Divide’ and COVID-19
By Radwan Jakeem NEW YORK (IDN) — The crippling cost of debt financing for many developing countries has hamstrung their recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, forced cutbacks in development spending, and constrained their ability to respond to further shocks, according to a new United Nations report.
Ukraine War Hits Russia’s Tourism Industry
By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW (IDN) — Russia’s tourism, both in-bound and out-bound, is severely hit by the war-ravaged crisis that unfolded in the former Soviet republic of Ukraine late February. For more than two years, the tourism industry was affected due to the widespread Covid-19 that shattered the world. Industry operators say that the […]
Is The US Poised to Sign Up as Member of The International Criminal Court?
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) — In 2017 the office of the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) released a report which for the first time explicitly named US military forces in the field and CIA operatives in secret prisons as possible war crimes culprits for their alleged use of torture and […]
UN Chief Joins Rwandese to Denounce ‘Deliberate, Systematic’ Use of Genocide
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Speaking by video on the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged the world community to choose humanity over hatred; compassion over cruelty; courage over complacency and reconciliation over rage. If anyone missed the […]
African Woman Writer Scoops Major Fellowship Prize
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Fellowships to 180 exceptional individuals in pursuit of scholarship in any field of knowledge and creation in any art form were announced on April 7 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Chosen from a rigorous application and peer review process out of almost 2500 […]
Ukraine War: OPCW Keeping a Close Eye on Chemical Weapons Use by Russia
THE HAGUE (IDN) — The Technical Secretariat of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is monitoring closely the situation in Ukraine. According to the OPCW spokesperson, the Secretariat is concerned by the recent unconfirmed report of chemical weapons use in Mariupol, which has been carried in the media over the past 24 […]
UN’s Goal of Poverty & Hunger Eradication by 2030 is “Highly Unlikely, if not Impossible”
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — A projected rise in global poverty this year—with over a quarter of a billion more people joining the ranks of the world’s poor—threatens to undermine the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the General Assembly back in 2015. One of the primary goals, listed high-up as […]
UN Report Calls for Asia-Pacific to Focus on Inclusive Recovery
By Krishan Dutta BANGKOK (IDN) — With an eye on the continuing uncertainty over the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic and increased global risks, the Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific for 2022, has called for anchoring the region’s economic recovery and progress in “a new social contract” of inclusiveness to protect […]
Safeguarding The Blue Pacific from Any Further Nuclear Contamination
By Neena Bhandari SYDNEY (IDN) — The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), the region’s leading political and economic policy organisation, has appointed a panel of global experts on nuclear issues to provide independent scientific and technical advice to Pacific nations in their discussions with Japan over its intentions to discharge treated nuclear wastewater from the Daiichi […]