Updated: Police arrest dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University

Updated: 5:30pm (AEST) New York City, US Reuters New York City police arrested dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrators holed-up in an academic building on Columbia University campus late on Tuesday and removed a protest encampment the Ivy League school had sought to dismantle for nearly two weeks. Shortly after police moved in, Columbia University President Minouche […]
Australia to police internet porn, spend $US600 million on domestic violence victims
Sydney, Australia Reuters Australia will spend almost $A1 billion on payments for those fleeing domestic violence and introduce new measures to police pornography and violence on the internet in response to what the government is calling a “national crisis” of gendered violence. Thousands took to the streets on Saturday to protest violence against women, which […]
Ecuador President decrees state of emergency in five provinces

Quito, Ecuador Reuters Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa on Tuesday decreed a state of emergency in five coastal provinces because of “internal armed conflict”. The measure marks the second security-based emergency declaration by Noboa, who took office in November on promises to turn around a deteriorating security situation that has led to a spike in violent […]
StrangeSights – ‘Holy grail’ of Lego pieces found; Beer Party makes a splash in Austria; and, metal detecting pays off…

DAVID ADAMS provides a round-up of some stories on the odder side of life…
Bakeries bring bread to north Gaza but hunger persists

Gaza/Doha, Qatar Reuters Asmaa al-Belbasi walks an hour to her nearest bakery each day to fetch bread for her children and other relatives in the north Gaza districts where aid agencies say famine still looms despite rising supplies. The route can be dangerous, along streets strewn with rubble from blown-up buildings that are impassable to […]
Haiti transition council names former senate leader as president
Port-au-Prince, Haiti Reuters Haiti’s transition council on Tuesday named Edgard Leblanc, the former senate president, to head the body instated last week as it seeks to bring security back to the violence-wracked Caribbean nation. Leblanc’s naming follows weeks of political deadlock and in-fighting following the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry while an armed conflict […]
Britain sends first voluntary asylum seeker to Rwanda, Sun newspaper says
London, UK Reuters Britain has sent its first asylum seeker to Rwanda under a voluntary scheme, The Sun newspaper reported on Tuesday, saying the unnamed migrant was flown out of the country on Monday. The voluntary scheme is separate to a forced deportation program that Britain is about to embark on in the next few […]
Russian missile kills three in Ukrainian port of Odesa

Reuters A Russian missile attack killed three people and injured three others in the Ukrainian port of Odesa early on Wednesday, regional Governor Oleh Kiper said. Kiper, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the attack damaged civilian infrastructure. An educational institution building burns after a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in […]
Preventative strategies: Why faith-based groups are prone to sexual abuse and how they can get ahead of it

As Sexual Assault Awareness Month comes to a close in the US, there are a few steps experts say every faith group can take to improve safeguarding protocols. KATHRYN POST, of Religion News Service, reports…
United Methodists begin to reverse longstanding anti-LGBTQ policies

Charlotte, North Carolina, US AP United Methodist delegates began making historic changes in their policies on sexuality on Tuesday – voting without debate to reverse a series of anti-LGBTQ policies. The delegates voted to delete mandatory penalties for conducting same-sex marriages and to remove their denomination’s bans on considering LGBTQ candidates for ministry and on […]