Trump administration picks targeted with bomb threats and swatting
Washington DC, US Reuters Several of President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet and administration picks were targeted this week with actions including bomb threats and “swatting,” a spokesperson for the transition team said on Wednesday. The threats were made Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, and law enforcement acted quickly to ensure the safety of those targeted, spokesperson […]
China releases three US citizens after years of diplomacy
Washington DC, US Reuters China has released US citizens Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung, the White House said on Wednesday, concluding years of diplomacy over Americans that Washington says were wrongfully detained in China. The Biden administration also upgraded its travel advisory for China, a move long sought by Beijing that US officials […]
Pope’s weekly audiences to be translated into Mandarin from December
Vatican City Reuters Pope Francis said on Wednesday that his teachings at his weekly general audience at the Vatican would also be translated into Mandarin starting from next week. At the audiences held every Wednesday, Pope Francis speaks in Italian, and his teachings are translated and read out in English, French, German, Polish, Spanish, Portuguese […]
Brazilian congressional committee votes for bill to ban abortion
Brasilia, Brazil Reuters A committee in Brazil’s lower chamber of Congress approved a bill on Wednesday that would ban abortion in Brazil in all cases including those currently allowed such as fetal deformation, rape or when the mother’s health is in danger. The Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee, where conservatives have a majority, voted 35 […]
US urges Ukraine to lower fighting age to 18 to bolster ranks against Russia
Reuters Ukraine should consider lowering the age of military service for its soldiers to 18 from 25, a senior US administration official said on Wednesday, putting pressure on Kyiv to bolster its fighting forces in the country’s war with Russia. Speaking to reporters, the official said Ukraine was not mobilising or training enough new soldiers […]
After Vatican visit, Blinken praises Pope Francis’s work on LGBTQ rights
Vatican City Reuters US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday praised Pope Francis for his work on LGBTQI issues after meeting the leader of the 1.4-billion-member Roman Catholic Church and other senior officials at the Vatican. “The Secretary commended the Pope’s commitment to advancing the basic rights and dignity of LGBTQI persons,” US State […]
Support network: US Border Patrol trains more chaplains as the job and polarising immigration debate rattle agents
GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO, of Associated Press, reports from a training academy for Border Patrol chaplains in Florida…
Ireland’s tradition of welcoming migrants under strain in election
Ballaghaderreen, Ireland Reuters In the small Irish market town of Ballaghaderreen, a long-standing welcome to immigrants is fraying badly ahead of a general election this week, the first to see the country’s main political parties competing to be toughest on migrants. A country that has long prided itself on being welcoming to migrants, Ireland has […]
Essay: Band Aid sang ‘feed the world’ 40 years ago – where is hunger still an issue today?
RACHEL NORMAN, in an article first published on The Conversation, says that decades after the release of the hit song, there are many regions of the world where people are still suffering from acute food insecurity…
Israeli northern residents fume at ceasefire, still feel vulnerable to attack
Nahariya, Israel Reuters For the first time in months on Wednesday, sirens warning of incoming attacks from Lebanon were not heard in northern Israel, but many residents were nonetheless outraged by the government’s ceasefire with the Hezbollah armed group. The deal, which promises to end a cross-border conflict that has killed thousands since it was […]