By Dr Alon Ben-Meir* NEW YORK | 18 June 2024 (IDN) — The conflict between Kosovo and Serbia can only end when both sides agree to recognize the other. The question is how to resolve their conflicting issues, chief among them Serbia’s categorical refusal to recognize Kosovo’s independence The US Ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey Havener, […]
ANC and White-Led Party Join in South African National Unity Government
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 17 June 2024 (IDN) — Once unthinkable, two sharply antagonistic parties have come together in South Africa’s new government of national unity. The African National Congress has agreed to unite with their largest rival – the white-led, pro-business Democratic Alliance (DA) – after the ANC failed […]
Nuclear Threats on the Rise as Geopolitical Relations Deteriorate
By Thalif Deen NEW YORK 17 June 2024 (IDN)—The role of nuclear weapons in world politics is taking an increasingly dangerous trend due primarily to two reasons: the ongoing military conflicts and the growing modernization of nuclear arsenals. In the ongoing war in Ukraine, the on-again, off-again nuclear threats have come from Russia and in […]
Reflections From the Dried-Up Aral Sea
UNCCD Special Feature BONN | 17 June 2024 (IDN) — In the haunting expanse that was once the flourishing Aral Sea, the aftermath of an environmental catastrophe unfolds with swift and devastating consequences. Once the fourth largest freshwater lake in the world shared by Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the Aral Sea has lost about 90% of […]
Kenyan Bishops Slate Proposed Tax Hikes
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 16 June 2024 (IDN) — In a lengthy statement, members of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops are warning against passage of the 2024 finance bill, which if passed, they say, would hurt the vast majority of the country’s poor. The bishops criticized the proposed slew […]
Nigerian Leaders Warned of Impending Revolt as Prices Soar
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 16 June 2024 (IDN) — In the country’s worst economic crisis in decades, an imminent revolt could be inevitable in Nigeria should government officials continue to increase prices while holding down wages. The federal government insists on capping wages at $42 a month while organized labor […]
UN Keen to Tackle Global Refugee Crisis and Statelessness
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | 16 June 2024 (IDN) — While the European focus is on the Russo-Ukrainian war, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is concerned about those crossing terrain such as deserts and seas without adequate resources to escape war, poverty, or climate catastrophe—often at risk of losing their lives or […]
Like Humans, Elephants Call Each Other by Name
By Ngala Killian Chimtom YAOUNDE, Cameroon | 15 June 2024 (IDN) — A new study has revealed an interesting fact about elephants. Like human beings, they call each other by name. Researchers analyzed 469 calls, or “rumbles,” from wild African elephants in Kenya that had a known caller and receiver. Using artificial intelligence, they found […]
WHO Concerned About Escalating Health Crisis In West Bank
By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA | 15 June (IDN) — UN’s global health agency WHO has expressed concern about the escalating health crisis in the occupied Palestinian territory, including the West Bank, where attacks on health infrastructure and increased restrictions on movement are obstructing access to health care. “A spike in violence in the West Bank, […]
Climate Finance Tops Bonn UN Climate Talks
By Josh Gabbatiss and Molly Lempriere The following are excerpts from the Weekly climate newsletter of CarbonBrief, DeBriefed. BONN | 14 June 2024 (IDN) — Climate diplomats have finished another two weeks of intense negotiations in the German city of Bonn, discussing global efforts to cut emissions and protect people from climate hazards. Developed and […]