At least two people have died after a powerful storm battered Sicily, leaving parts of the Italian island submerged. Streets were flooded and many vehicles were stranded in Catania, and power cuts were reported in the city centre
Continue reading...Category Archives: World News
Despite Nigeria’s problems, President Buhari is building a legacy of hope | Tolu Ogunlesi
Investment in infrastructure will underpin a stronger economy, improved security and the country’s fight against corruption
Nigeria has faced challenges for as long as anyone can remember. But one problem Nigerians don’t talk about is our collective inability to acknowledge where progress is being made.
Fixating only on what is not working robs us of the chance to analyse and replicate our successes, and demoralises a populace in dire need of optimism.
Continue reading...What’s the beef with cows and the climate crisis?
Reducing methane emissions is seen as the biggest opportunity for slowing global heating by 2040
About a third of human-caused methane emissions come from livestock, mostly from beef and dairy cattle, produced in the digestive process that allows ruminants (hoofed animals including cows, sheep and goats with four-part stomachs) to absorb plants.
Cows and other farm animals produce about 14% of human-induced climate emissions, and it is methane from their burps and manure that is seen as both the biggest concern and best opportunity for tackling global heating.
Although methane breaks down relatively quickly in the atmosphere, it is a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Reducing these emissions has been touted as one of the most immediate opportunities to slow global heating ahead of the Cop26 UN climate talks in Glasgow.
Sudan coup: deposed PM allowed home as general says politicians ‘stir up strife’
Some ministers remain in detention and could face trial for inciting rebellion, says Gen Abdel-Fattah Burhan
Sudan’s deposed prime minister and his wife have been allowed to return home “under heavy security” a day after they were detained in a military coup, as the African Union suspended the country from its organisation citing the “unconstitutional” seizure of power.
The release of Abdalla Hamdok and his wife late on Tuesday to effective house arrest followed international condemnation of the power grab and calls for the military to release all the government officials who were detained when Gen Abdel-Fattah Burhan seized power on Monday.
Continue reading...‘It is bullying, pure and simple’: being a woman in Japanese politics
Harassment is common for women who run for office and female MPs comprise just 9.9% of lower house
Mari Yasuda has come to dread checking her social media accounts. While a TV programme has tipped the candidate as “one to watch” in Japan’s general election this month, her anonymous correspondents make no secret of their belief that, as a woman, she should not be standing for parliament at all.
“They accuse me of sleeping with powerful men to get ahead or make abusive comments in calls to our office,” says Yasuda, who is contesting a seat in Hyogo prefecture for the opposition Constitutional Democratic party of Japan. “I receive emails from men remarking on my appearance or asking me for a date.”
Continue reading...Aung San Suu Kyi testifies in Myanmar court as lawyers barred from speaking about her case
Ousted leader faces multiple criminal charges that supporters say are contrived to discredit her and legitimise the military
Ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi testified in court for the first time in one of several cases against her, but details of what she said were not available because of a gag order on her lawyers.
Since last week, all defence lawyers in Suu Kyi’s cases have been barred from providing details of the court proceedings.
Continue reading...FDA advisers recommend approval of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine for kids aged 5-11
Nearly unanimous vote clears the way for possible approval for emergency use next month, making nearly 30m children eligible
Independent advisers for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesday recommended the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine for children aged five to 11 – the first vaccine available for younger children in the US.
Of 18 members, 17 voted yes and one abstained.
Continue reading...Longtime Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin describes sexual assault by US senator
Revelation of incident ‘buried’ by Abedin contained in new memoir Both/And, to be published next week
Huma Abedin, a longtime close aide to Hillary Clinton, has written in a new book that she was sexually assaulted by a US senator, an incident she “buried” until allegations against the supreme court justice Brett Kavanaugh triggered her memory years later.
Abedin makes the shocking claim in a memoir, Both/And: A Life in Many Worlds, which will be published next week. The Guardian obtained a copy. Abedin does not name the senator or his party or give any other clues as to his identity.
Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 802 9999. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html
Continue reading...Covid live: UK records 40,954 new cases; Belgium brings back restrictions weeks after ending curbs
UK also reports 263 further deaths; Belgium reinstates curbs after 75% jump in daily cases in a week
- African Union vaccine deal arranged in part by the White House
- EU medical body approves Moderna Covid booster vaccine for all adults
- Papua New Guinea approves mass burial to relieve morgue as cases surge
- China to vaccinate children as young as three
- See all our coronavirus coverage
Headteachers have described the “sinister” intimidation tactics being used by protesters against the vaccination against Covid of teenagers in schools.
“It started with a few emails from a group calling itself Lawyers for Freedom,” the Guardian was told by the headteacher of one of a number of Liverpool schools that have come under pressure from anti-vaccine activists. “An email is relatively easy to ignore.”
Continue reading...Reconciliation bill ‘almost there’ after Manchin’s demands to scale it back – live
- Psaki on bill: don’t let ‘the perfect be the enemy of the historic’
- ‘Progressives are troubled … with the cuts,’ says Ilhan Omar
- 60% of Americans say oil firms are to blame for the climate crisis
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Another reporter pressed Jen Psaki on whether Joe Biden will be able to push for significant climate policies at the Cop26 conference if he has not yet reached a deal on the reconciliation package.
The press secretary acknowledged that it would be Biden’s “preference” to go to the United Nations conference with a deal on the reconciliation bill, which is expected to include a number of climate provisions, although some of them have been scaled back due to demands from Joe Manchin.
Continue reading...Justin Trudeau names women to top posts in Canada cabinet reshuffle
Mélanie Joly becomes foreign minister and Anita Anand defence minister in gender-balanced cabinet
Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, has carried out a major cabinet shuffle, naming women to the foreign affairs and defense posts in his gender-balanced cabinet.
Trudeau named Mélanie Joly as foreign minister and Anita Anand as defence minister. Chrystia Freeland, widely considered a favorite to replace Trudeau at some point, retains her positions as deputy prime minister and finance minister.
Continue reading...Islamic State in Afghanistan could have capacity to strike US next year
Pentagon says Afghan-based group and al-Qaida have intention to attack US and Taliban’s ability to fight them is ‘to be determined’
The US intelligence community has assessed that Islamic State in Afghanistan could have the capability of attacking the United States in as little as six months – and has the intention to do so, a senior Pentagon official has told Congress.
Colin Kahl, under secretary of defense for policy, also said it was still “to be determined” whether the Taliban – which is an enemy of Islamic State – has the ability to fight Islamic State effectively following the US withdrawal in August.
Continue reading...Ukraine has legal right to Crimean artefacts, Dutch court rules
Russia had sought to take control of ‘Scythian gold’ on loan to museum in Amsterdam
An appeals court in the Netherlands has ruled that Ukraine has legal control over a trove of artefacts from Crimea that was on loan to a Dutch museum when Russia annexed the peninsula in 2014.
Russia had sought to take control of the historical treasures, often called the “Scythian gold”, which includes gold and ceremonial daggers used by the nomadic tribe, a golden helmet from the 4th century BC, amulets, jewellery, and other treasures, including a Chinese lacquered box that made its way to Crimea along the Silk Road.
Continue reading...Sudan’s PM detained at home of coup leader ‘for his own safety’
Abdalla Hamdok and other ministers have not been seen since Abdel Fattah al-Burhan took power in bloody coup
The Sudanese military leader who took power in a bloody coup has said he is keeping the deposed prime minister detained at the general’s personal residence “for his own safety”, as concerns mount over the wellbeing of senior arrested officials.
The prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, and other ministers have not been seen since their detention and there have been international demands for their immediate release. They were seized by security forces loyal to general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan early on Monday and remain missing.
Continue reading...Japan’s Princess Mako marries and loses royal status
Emperor Naruhito’s niece and her college sweetheart make announcement at press conference
Japan’s Princess Mako has lost her royal status after marrying her “commoner” college sweetheart, Kei Komuro – a man she described as “irreplaceable” – while the couple voiced sadness over a scandal that has plagued their engagement.
After years of criticism of their relationship that has left Mako struggling with her mental health, the couple announced at a press conference at a hotel in Tokyo on Tuesday that they had wed. They declined to take questions from reporters.
Continue reading...Japan’s Princess Mako leaves royal family to marry college sweetheart – video
The now former Princess Mako of Japan has married Kei Komura, losing her royal status. The couple struggled with a financial scandal that plagued their engagement but said in a press conference to announce their marriage that they were ready to move forward with their lives together. The couple did not have a formal wedding ceremony or hold a reception banquet or any of the traditional rites associated with imperial weddings
Continue reading...World has wasted chance to build back better after Covid, UN says
Report says countries must strengthen climate ambitions after wasting chance to build back better after Covid
The world is squandering the opportunity to “build back better” from the Covid-19 pandemic, and faces disastrous temperature rises of at least 2.7C if countries fail to strengthen their climate pledges, according to a report from the UN.
Tuesday’s publication warns that countries’ current pledges would reduce carbon by only about 7.5% by 2030, far less than the 45% cut scientists say is needed to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C, the aim of the Cop26 summit that opens in Glasgow this Sunday.
Continue reading...Prince Andrew given deadline to face questions in Virginia Giuffre case
Duke must make himself available by 14 July in US lawsuit brought by woman who accuses him of sexual abusing her
Prince Andrew must make himself available to answer questions under oath by 14 July next year in a civil lawsuit brought by a woman who has accused him of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager.
While not specified in the court papers, the Duke of York and his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, are both expected to answer questions under oath. Depositions must be completed on or before 14 July, said the district judge Lewis Kaplan, who serves in the southern district of New York.
Continue reading...Boom time for Cape Verde’s sea turtles as conservation pays off
The number of nesting sites on the archipelago has risen dramatically, but global heating sees male population plummet
It’s nearly midnight as Delvis Semedo strolls along an empty beach on the Cape Verdean island of Maio. Overhead, the dense Milky Way pierces the darkness. A sea turtle emerges from the crashing waves and lumbers up the shore. Then another. And another.
Semedo is one of about 100 local people who patrol Maio’s beaches each night during nesting season to collect data on the turtles and protect them from poachers. This year has been busier than usual. Sea turtle nests on the islands of Sal, Maio and Boa Vista – the primary nesting grounds for loggerheads in Cape Verde – have soared in the last five years. Cape Verde’s environment ministry puts nest numbers in 2020 across all 10 islands at almost 200,000, up from 10,725 in 2015.
Continue reading...Why people believe Covid conspiracy theories: could folklore hold the answer?
Researchers use AI – and witchcraft folklore – to map the coronavirus conspiracy theories that have sprung up
Researchers have mapped the web of connections underpinning coronavirus conspiracy theories, opening a new way of understanding and challenging them.
Using Danish witchcraft folklore as a model, the researchers from UCLA and Berkeley analysed thousands of social media posts with an artificial intelligence tool and extracted the key people, things and relationships.