LONDON, August 31 (IPS) – On 24 August, police sealed off access to Zambia’s courts, closed the day before the deadline for petitions to challenge the results of the 13 August presidential election. The judiciary’s top official cited security reasons, but the timing left little doubt that authorities meant to block the defeated candidate’s legal challenge.
Read the full story, “Zambia: An Uneven Contest, an Easy Win”, on globalissues.org →
DAR ES SALAAM, August 31 (IPS) – When the rains fail across Tanzania’s northern Maasai Steppe, herders drive their cattle farther in search of pasture and water.
On the shores of Nkondo, in Uganda’s Kikuube district, the day begins before sunrise. Fishers enter the lake to fish, while families around Lake Albert rely on its waters for food, income and daily survival.
The ocean is rising faster now than at any point in recorded history. The impacts are already being felt and the threats are growing.
UNITED NATIONS, August 28 (IPS) – Following 42 consecutive days without a new confirmed case, The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have announced the end of the Ebola outbreak in Uganda.
UZHGOROD, Ukraine, August 28 (IPS) – It is impossible to ignore. Loudspeakers across the city broadcast a recorded voice announcing a minute’s silence for those who have fallen in the war. After 60 ticks of the second hand, it is time for the national anthem: “Ukraine has not yet perished.”
UNITED NATIONS, August 28 (IPS) – As the UN commemorates its 81st anniversary, one lingering question remains: what is the future of the world body.?Will a hostile US downsize its operations at the United Nations, cut down its funding, continue defaulting in its payments — and perhaps eventually, withdraw from the world body?
Read the full story, “Will the Future of the UN be Dictated by a Hostile US?”, on globalissues.org →
URBANA, Illinois, US, August 27 (IPS) – Across the U.S. Midwest, from Illinois to Indiana to Ohio, severe storms and heavy rains caused devastating flooding, extensive damage to infrastructure, and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. The historic scale and severity of flooding led to the issuance of disaster proclamations for the States of Illinois and Indiana.
Read the full story, “U.S. Midwest Flooding Is a Growing Threat to Agriculture”, on globalissues.org →
KATHMANDU, August 27 (IPS) – A massive geophysical disaster along the mountainous Nepal-Tibet border has left at least 160 people dead and hundreds more missing after a glacial collapse triggered devastating flash floods and mudslides on Wednesday.
VICTORIA, Seychelles, August 26 (IPS) – Across this vast ocean, the latest monitoring by Mercator Ocean International shows marine heatwave conditions ranging from moderate to severe. At the same time, the World Meteorological Organization expects a strong El Niño to intensify through August to October, with a positive Indian Ocean Dipole also likely to develop. These are not distant scientific signals. They are an urgent warning that the ocean system on which millions depend is under mounting stress.
