Costa Rica opened a high-security jail on Wednesday inspired by a mega-prison in El Salvador that has become a symbol of the country’s war on gangs, widely criticized by human rights groups. Costa Rican President Laura Fernandez, who took office in May, campaigned on a promise to crack down on the wave of crime sweeping […]
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School headscarf ban meets resistance in Austria
As the new school year gets under way in Austria, a headscarf ban for girls under 14 has sparked protests on the streets and in the classroom, with dozens of pupils refusing to comply. Austria’s conservative-led government has insisted that the ban, introduced on September 1, promotes gender equality and protects Muslim girls from “segregation […]
Why is Shell facing lawsuits over climate disasters in Brazil and the Philippines?
A typhoon in the Philippines and flooding in Brazil. Twice in less than a year, British energy giant Shell has been the target of a new type of lawsuit seeking to make polluters pay part of the cost of specific extreme weather events.”We chose Shell because it’s an emblematic company. It meets all the criteria,” […]
New four-lane bridge opens between China, North Korea
A new four-lane road bridge linking China and North Korea finally opened on Thursday, 12 years late, enabling the Asian giant and its isolated nuclear-armed neighbour to step up cross-border trade substantially. China is its neighbour’s largest trading partner and a vital diplomatic and political backer, although relations have not always been smooth with the […]
‘No time to recover’: UNDP chief sounds alarm on growing poverty after Iran war shock
Millions could be thrown into poverty by surging energy costs, the impact of an intense El Nino phenomenon and higher interest rates, with vulnerable countries being pushed to the brink by repeated crises, the UN’s development chief told AFP. Global fuel prices have soared since the United States launched its war on Iran in late […]
Australia says won’t let big tech have ‘unfettered’ access to kids
Australia said Thursday it refused to allow big tech to have “unfettered” access to its kids as it formally introduced new legislation that would give users choice over what they see on their feeds. Under the centre-left Labor government’s “Digital Duty of Care” bill, firms behind popular platforms such as Facebook, TikTok and Instagram will […]
Freed from Belarus, founder of Lady Gaga’s biggest fan site tells his story
For two years, hundreds of thousands of Lady Gaga lovers wondered why the main fan account dedicated to the superstar musician had gone silent across social media. In September, they got their answer: the founder of “Gaga Daily” had been in prison in Belarus. The authoritarian country, a close ally of Moscow wedged between Russia […]
Online ‘witch hunt’ sweeps up Asians misidentified as US rape accused
One message told him to “go to hell.” Others said he deserved to be imprisoned. Death threats poured in. Asians who share a name with one of the men accused of raping a US university student have faced a torrent of online abuse. The alleged 2024 gang rape of a Cornell University student, detailed in […]
Prospect of Bolsonaro win looms large over Brazil’s Indigenous
Brazil’s Amazonian Indigenous communities are watching with bated breath as presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro inches closer to power, recalling the damage wrought on the rainforest under his father Jair Bolsonaro. The surname they share “represents everything bad for us,” Inara Waty, leader of the Satere-Mawe people in the Amazonian city of Manaus, told AFP.”It mainly […]