Devastating droughts are ravaging South Asia just about every year. The countries affected include Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bhutan. All of them are subject to the most damaging outcomes of droughts like agricultural land destruction, an increasingly dehydrated population with little access to clean water and growing social
On April 12th, France’s Upper House passed a controversial bill known as the “separatism bill,” adopted at first reading by 208 votes, with 109 votes against and 27 abstentions. This bill aims to fight the spread of Islamic separatism in France by controlling Islamic teachings and practices. This includes banning
On April 26th, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky proposed the cancellation of the Minsk agreements, established in 2014, which regulate conflict resolution in eastern Ukraine. According to Zelensky, the clauses no longer reflect the state of current relations and need a comprehensive update – if not tout-court revision. Zelensky invited the
On 24th April, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) held an emergency summit to determine the bloc’s response to the violent coup in Myanmar. The meeting in Jakarta marks the first cooperative international movement to handle the crisis, with leaders and representatives working together to develop a solution. This
April 7th commemorated the 27th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide that claimed the lives of 800,000 people in 3 months. In 2019, the French government launched the Duclert Commission, an investigation to examine France’s role in the tragedy more thoroughly. Last month, the Commission displayed its findings, unveiling some worrying
Since the beginning of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the entire world had its eye on one thing and asked a serious question: when will this be over? For this to be over, there must be a treatment or a vaccine. An effective treatment that eases symptoms and leaves hospitals unstrained
United Nations News reported on 16th April 2021 that up to 65,000 Nigerians are fleeing violence after a series of attacks in Damasak town in Borno State of Northeast Nigeria. From this incident, the UN Refugee Agency spokesperson (UNHCR), Babar Baloch, stated that “eight people were killed, and a dozen
A few weeks ago, Biden made the announcement that all American and NATO troops were being pulled out of Afghanistan by September 11th. It was clear that 2,300 U.S. troops and around 7,500 NATO troops would exit, but what remained unclear was the role that private military contractors (PMCs) would
As of April 22, 2021, the Gun Violence Archive has recorded 159 incidents of mass shootings in the United States this year alone. That number is nearly double what was reported on the same day last year, which was 87. Both of these numbers are far too high. In March
President Joe Biden has officially recognized the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Turks that took place over a century ago as a genocide. The recognition signals Biden’s commitment to promoting human rights in his administration’s foreign policy. Saturday, April 24th was Armenian Remembrance Day, marking the 106th
Neighbouring former Soviet Union countries, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were involved in an armed conflict over border disputes during the past month. The once united countries found themselves in a disagreement over land and water ownership. The issue revolves around a water facility that is located amid tense geographies. Disputes quickly
European Union (EU) brokers helped Georgia’s ruling party and opposition reach a deal to help stem the political crisis in the country of Georgia on Monday, according to European Council President Charles Michel. This development follows a two-month period of strife as a result of the detention of opposition politician
After nearly 20 years of intervention in Afghanistan, President Joe Biden vowed in a White House remark on April 14th to end the longest war in American history by withdrawing all U.S. combat troops by September 11th. According to the New York Times, other N.A.T.O. members are expected to follow
Years after initial human rights violations in 2013 and 2017 respectively, lawyers from four non-governmental organizations are filing a criminal complaint to the Swedish police regarding the chemical weapons attacks on Syrian civilians. The Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM), Civil Rights Defenders, Syrian Archive (SA), and
Before 2020, Palma was a small, quiet fishing town on the shoreline of Mozambique. With the arrival of Total, a French gas company, Palma transformed into a bustling hub for Mozambique’s growing gas industry. According to the BBC, Total began to develop a $20 billion gas liquefication plant in Palma
Despite the start of Ramadan, which is supposed to be a month of peace within Muslim communities, the brutal treatment of Palestinians continues with full force. Known as the world’s most intractable conflict, numerous attempts have been made to resolve the decades-long issue between Israel and Palestine, yet so far
The European Union condemned Russia’s expulsion of 20 Czech diplomats from their embassy in Moscow, and the Czech Republic responded by expelling Russian diplomats of their own. This week’s events mark a deepening of the worst diplomatic row between the two countries since the end of the Cold War. The
Turkey and Egypt’s cold diplomatic relations have been ongoing for almost 8 years. The two nations initially severed ties in 2013 after Egypt’s first democratically elected president Mohammed Morsi, long supported by Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was ousted by the military. According to Al Jazeera, after this turbulent period,
By September 11th—on the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks—all American and NATO forces will be pulled out of Afghanistan. This will mean the removal of 2,500 U.S. counterterrorism troops along with over 7,000 NATO forces. A withdrawal of troops has positive connotations for a generational war that has been
The former crown prince of Jordan, Prince Hamzah bin Hussein, was recently placed under “house arrest” by Jordanian officials and was cut off from phone and internet communication, according to a video statement provided to the BBC. Hamzah is the popular younger son of the late King Hussein, a charismatic
