Khartoum, Sudan – Huge crowds of protesters have rallied in the streets of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, stepping up pressure on the country’s ruling military council to cede power to an interim civilian body. Tens of thousands of people chanting “We will protect the revolution with our blood” marched through Khartoum’s main streets on Thursday before converging outside the military headquarters,… Read more »
The Supreme Court in the United States prevented American sailors injured in the deadly 2000 al-Qaeda bombing of the navy destroyer USS Cole from collecting $314.7m in damages from the government of Sudan for its alleged role in the attack. In a 8-1 ruling, the justices on Tuesday overturned a lower court’s decision that had allowed the sailors to collect… Read more »
Istanbul, Turkey – As Turkey prepares for Sunday’s local elections, ensuring a free and fair vote is foremost in the minds of many across the country. Ballots across all 81 provinces will decide local officials, from neighbourhood and village representatives all the way up to the mayors of metropolitan municipalities in charge of massive budgets. While in many countries local… Read more »
After five years in prison, Alaa Abdel Fattah, a high-profile Egyptian blogger and rights activist, is due to be released from prison on Wednesday, his family said. His sister Mona Seif, a prominent human rights activist herself who founded the No to Military Rule movement, tweeted that the family was still waiting for the release process to begin. “We hope… Read more »
Washington, DC – US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that the US will continue to work to identify those responsible for the murder of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi and “hold them accountable”. Pompeo was confronted by Congressman Gerry Connolly about Khashoggi’s murder during a congressional hearing. Connelly is a Virginia Democrat in whose district Khashoggi resided. Khashoggi… Read more »
Part 1: The Issue of Informal Settlements The Republic of India has had a long history with informal settlements. It is currently estimated that around 64 million of India’s citizens live in dangerous and unsanitary slums. India has tried to implement an agency known as Keep India Beautiful, their goal is to educate people about cleanliness, tackling litter, waste minimization,… Read more »
Turkey will keep directing its banks to withhold lira liquidity from a key foreign market at least until after local elections on Sunday, sources have told the Reuters news agency, as the government intensifies efforts to defend the currency, which plunged last week. The government’s stop-gap measure to restore confidence in the lira, which remains unsteady after a crisis last… Read more »
Algiers, Algeria – A breakaway faction within Algeria’s ruling party has backed the army chief’s call for President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to be declared unfit to rule the country, even as several opposition parties and protesters denounced the powerful general’s remarks as an attempt to stifle their movement. Following weeks of youth-led anti-Bouteflika protests, Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaed Salah on Tuesday… Read more »
Nearly a dozen Saudi women’s rights activists have appeared before a three-judge panel to face charges related to their human rights work and contacts with foreign journalists and diplomats, in a case that has drawn international attention. The women, including rights campaigner Loujain al-Hathloul, university professor Hatoon al-Fassi and blogger Eman al-Nafjan, were expected to respond to charges on Wednesday,… Read more »
An aid group has warned of a “desperate and dangerous situation” in the Mediterranean Sea after authorities in Italy vowed to close their ports to a ship reportedly hijacked by rescued refugees and migrants. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Matteo Salvini, Italy’s far-right interior minister, identified the ship as Elhiblu 1 and said the crew had rescued some 120 people… Read more »