World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk |
- Emmanuel Macron faces uncertain first round as French election hopefuls vie for last votes
- Child refugees in Europe 'forced to sell bodies' to pay smugglers
- French police seize bomb-making materials after election plot arrests
- Brazil’s top court names football league champions – 30 years on
- US military considers shooting down North Korea missile tests, sources say
- Man accused of murder in Facebook video kills himself after police chase
- Force India F1 team boss Vijay Mallya arrested in London
- Asylum applications in Mexico have soared 150% since Trump's election
- UN staff taken hostage by South Sudanese refugees released unharmed
- United CEO: nobody will be fired after man was violently dragged from plane
- Turkey should investigate referendum vote 'irregularities', says EU commission
- Denmark to contest UK efforts to 'take back control' of fisheries
- Trump aides abruptly postpone meeting on whether to stay in Paris climate deal
- Google forced to open up Android to rival search engines in Russia
- EU launches public consultation into fears about future of internet
- First woman to officially run Boston Marathon does it again – 50 years later
- Palestinian hunger strikers' leader moved to solitary confinement
- The best street food on the planet, but Bangkok bans its roadside stalls
- Colombia's armed groups sow seeds of new conflict as war with Farc ends
- Venezuela braces for the 'mother of all protests' as both sides call for rallies
- Australia's 457 visa decision likely to hit free-trade talks with India, officials hint
- Where is the world's most sprawling city?
- Aid agencies accuse Nepal government of hampering their work
- Amina al-Jeffery told school of father's threats, charity says
- Jail for a joke: student's case puts free speech under spotlight in Spain
- Detectives hunting for reality TV star's boyfriend over London acid attack
- 102 villagers, 750 refugees, one grand experiment
- Democrat falls just short of 50% in Georgia election seen as test of Trump
- North Korean TV broadcasts music and missiles attacking US in video mock-up
- Malcolm Turnbull tells ACCC to force greater transparency in gas industry
- Iran nuclear deal: Trump administration approves agreement but review looms
- Wednesday briefing: Line up for the May poll dance
- Slavery laws would force Australian fashion labels to be more ethical – report
- New Zealand restricts skilled-worker visas in 'Kiwis-first approach to immigration'
- Jakarta election: Ahok makes last appeal as polling booths open
- Refugee who fled PNG to seek asylum in Fiji has first set of charges dismissed
- Brazil police storm Congress over proposal to raise retirement age
- Fresno shooting: three killed by gunman in central California
- North Korea needs patient talks not war | Letters
- Radical women who carved their place in history | Letters
- Revolutionary reading list is wrong on Lenin | Letters
- Are you taking part in protests in Venezuela?
- Polio vaccinations in Afghanistan, and Zimbabwe's grandmas offer therapy
- What has Esther Afua Ocloo done for women? Google knows
- Man accused of posting murder footage on Facebook kills himself – video report
| Emmanuel Macron faces uncertain first round as French election hopefuls vie for last votes Posted: 19 Apr 2017 01:30 AM PDT As polls narrow and a third of the electorate remains undecided, the presidential race has become increasingly unpredictable Before dawn broke over Paris, Emmanuel Macron was inspecting meat carcasses on hooks at a wholesale market. Rising early to talk about the "value of hard work" while watching butchers skinning calves' heads is a classic campaign stop in any French presidential election. But this stop seemed more urgent than usual. Related: Le Pen and Macron woo Paris as French election enters final stretch Continue reading... |
| Child refugees in Europe 'forced to sell bodies' to pay smugglers Posted: 18 Apr 2017 09:28 AM PDT Governments urged to end 'most heinous human rights violation' as report finds widespread sexual exploitation of migrant children in Greece Unaccompanied child refugees in Greece desperate to reach the UK and other parts of northern Europe are being forced to sell their bodies in order to pay smugglers to help them with their journeys, according to a new report from Harvard University. The report, from Dr Vasileia Digidiki and Prof Jacqueline Bhabha at the university's centre for health and human rights, reveals what they describe as a "growing epidemic of sexual exploitation and abuse of migrant children in Greece". Continue reading...This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| French police seize bomb-making materials after election plot arrests Posted: 18 Apr 2017 07:26 AM PDT Two 'radicalised' French nationals held and guns also retrieved in Marseille operation that minister says foiled imminent attack Police in Marseille have seized guns and bomb-making materials after arresting two men suspected of planning an "imminent and violent attack" days before the first round of France's presidential election. The French interior minister, Matthias Fekl, said the two, who were detained at different addresses in the southern port city, were French nationals aged 24 and 30. Continue reading... |
| Brazil’s top court names football league champions – 30 years on Posted: 18 Apr 2017 05:01 PM PDT Supreme court panel rules that Sport Recife beat Flamengo to 1987 title after decades-long dispute over parallel competitions Most football matches are decided within 90 minutes, give or take a few minutes of injury time. But in the case of a 1987 Brazilian league championship, it has taken 30 years and a supreme court ruling for the winner to be named. Three decades after the match, a five-member panel of the country's supreme court ruled on Tuesday that Sport Recife beat Rio de Janeiro giants Flamengo 3-1 to win the league. |
| US military considers shooting down North Korea missile tests, sources say Posted: 18 Apr 2017 06:58 AM PDT Exclusive: As Pentagon looks for strategies to pressure into denuclearization, officials worry that intercepting missiles could escalate tensions and risk war The US military is considering shooting down North Korean missile tests as a show of strength to Pyongyang, two sources briefed on the planning have told the Guardian. Amid heightened tensions over North Korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, the Pentagon is looking for ways short of war to pressure the country into denuclearization, particularly if Pyongyang goes forward with a sixth nuclear test. Continue reading... |
| Man accused of murder in Facebook video kills himself after police chase Posted: 18 Apr 2017 09:03 AM PDT Steve Stephens was sought by police in the shooting of a Cleveland man broadcast on social media Sunday, and shot himself after a brief pursuit The man being sought by authorities in several states after the killing of a man in Cleveland was posted on Facebook has fatally shot himself after a brief pursuit, Pennsylvania state police have said. Pennsylvania state police said Steve Stephens was spotted on Tuesday morning in Erie County, in the state's north-west corner. Authorities say police tried to pull Stephens over and, after a brief pursuit, he shot and killed himself as his car spun out of control. Continue reading... |
| Force India F1 team boss Vijay Mallya arrested in London Posted: 18 Apr 2017 09:56 AM PDT Tycoon held on behalf of Indian authorities investigating fraud claims linked to Kingfisher Airlines collapse Vijay Mallya, the multimillionaire co-owner of the Force India Formula One team, has been arrested in London on behalf of Indian authorities investigating allegations of fraud in connection with the collapse of Kingfisher Airlines. Scotland Yard said Mallya, who fled to the UK from India to avoid arrest in relation to £1bn of unpaid debts, was arrested on an extradition warrant on Tuesday. Mallya was "arrested on behalf of the Indian authorities in relation to accusations of fraud", the police said. Continue reading... |
| Asylum applications in Mexico have soared 150% since Trump's election Posted: 18 Apr 2017 02:32 PM PDT More Central American migrants are seeking refuge in Mexico rather than take their chances in the US after Trump vowed to crack down on deportation The number of people applying for asylum in Mexico has soared by more than 150% since Donald Trump was elected US president, as more Central American migrants seek refuge in Mexico rather than take their chances in the United States. Mexico's refugee agency (Comar) received 5,421 asylum applications between November 2016 and March, a 150% rise from the same period the previous year. Continue reading... |
| UN staff taken hostage by South Sudanese refugees released unharmed Posted: 18 Apr 2017 03:47 PM PDT Unarmed group were demanding to be moved to another country, with most of them former fighters loyal to Riek Machar The 13 United Nations mission staff that were taken hostage by a group of 100 unarmed South Sudanese refugees in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been released. The hostage takers were among 530 people living in the Munigi base outside Goma since fleeing South Sudan last August, the UN's Goma bureau head, Daniel Ruiz, told Reuters. Most are former fighters loyal to the former vice-president Riek Machar. Continue reading... |
| United CEO: nobody will be fired after man was violently dragged from plane Posted: 18 Apr 2017 03:40 PM PDT Oscar Munoz promised more details after review of policies on overbooked flights, and executives said it was too soon to know if incident hurt ticket sales The CEO of United Airlines says no one will be fired over the dragging of a man off a plane – including himself. The CEO, Oscar Munoz, said on Tuesday that he took full responsibility "for making this right" and promised more details later this month after United finishes a review of its policies on overbooked flights. Continue reading... |
| Turkey should investigate referendum vote 'irregularities', says EU commission Posted: 18 Apr 2017 05:20 AM PDT President's spokesman calls on authorities to launch transparent inquiry after observers raised doubts about poll result The EU has called on the civil authorities in Turkey to launch a transparent investigation into the referendum result granting the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, sweeping new powers. A spokesman for the European commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, said claims from neutral observers of election irregularities had been "examined attentively" in Brussels. Continue reading... |
| Denmark to contest UK efforts to 'take back control' of fisheries Posted: 17 Apr 2017 11:00 PM PDT Exclusive: Copenhagen has built a legal case that claims Danish fishermen's right to fish in seas around UK dates back to 1400s The British government's plan to "take back control" of its waters after leaving the EU is about to be challenged by a claim from Denmark that its fishermen have a historical right to access to the seas around Britain dating back to the 1400s. Officials in Copenhagen have mined the archives to build a legal case that could potentially be fought in the international court of justice in The Hague, although officials hasten to say that this is not their intention. Continue reading... |
| Trump aides abruptly postpone meeting on whether to stay in Paris climate deal Posted: 18 Apr 2017 10:22 AM PDT Unlikely coalition of fossil fuel firms, environmental groups and Republicans are calling on president to stay despite his pledge to 'cancel' agreement Donald Trump's aides have abruptly postponed a meeting to determine whether the US should remain in the Paris climate agreement, with an unlikely coalition of fossil fuel firms, environmental groups and some Republicans calling on the president to stick with the deal. Trump's top advisers were set to meet on Tuesday to provide the president with a recommendation ahead of a G7 meeting in May. However, a White House official said the meeting had been postponed due to conflicting schedules. It is unclear when it will now take place. Continue reading... |
| Google forced to open up Android to rival search engines in Russia Posted: 18 Apr 2017 03:30 AM PDT The £6.2m settlement sets new precedent for pre-installation of third-party apps and search engines, including Russia's Yandex Google has been forced to open up Android to rival search engines and applications in Russia, after settling a two-year battle with competition authorities for 439m roubles (£6.2m). The deal sets a new precedent for Google, which until now has resisted permitting the pre-installation of rival search engines and certain applications on to the world's most popular operating system. In 2015, Russia's Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) ruled that the Android-maker was breaking the law and abusing its dominant position through restrictions on third-party manufacturers, fining Google 438m rubles (£6.2m) in August 2016. Continue reading... |
| EU launches public consultation into fears about future of internet Posted: 18 Apr 2017 10:26 AM PDT Privacy, security, artificial intelligence, net neutrality, big data and impact of internet on daily life among topics included in surveys The EU is launching an unprecedented public consultation to find out what Europeans fear most about the future of the internet. A succession of surveys over the coming weeks will ask people for their views on everything from privacy and security to artificial intelligence, net neutrality, big data and the impact of the digital world on jobs, health, government and democracy. Continue reading... |
| First woman to officially run Boston Marathon does it again – 50 years later Posted: 18 Apr 2017 03:18 AM PDT Kathrine Switzer, who became women's rights hero in 1967 after completing all-male race, crosses line aged 70 A runner who saw off furious race officials to become the first woman to complete the Boston Marathon has repeated the feat 50 years later. Related: The 10 best marathon moments – in pictures Continue reading... |
| Palestinian hunger strikers' leader moved to solitary confinement Posted: 18 Apr 2017 02:25 AM PDT Marwan Barghouti relocated to another jail as Israeli officials say they will not negotiate with 'terrorists and incarcerated murderers' Marwan Barghouti, the leader of a mass hunger strike of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, has been moved to solitary confinement amid warnings by Israeli officials that they will not negotiate with the striking detainees. As the strike involving more than 1,100 prisoners in eight prisons entered its second day, the Israeli authorities moved swiftly to contain the protest, dispersing key figures to different prisons and ordering searches to prevent inmates sending messages. Continue reading... |
| The best street food on the planet, but Bangkok bans its roadside stalls Posted: 18 Apr 2017 03:21 AM PDT City has just scooped CNN poll but official says 'every street vendor will have to move out' by end of 2017 Authorities in Bangkok have banned street food from the capital's major roads, causing an outcry in a city famous for its affordable roadside cuisine. In a move criticised by locals and culinary enthusiasts, thousands of vendors selling dishes such as spicy prawn soup and papaya salad will disappear by the end of the year in the interests of "order and hygiene", according to city hall. Continue reading... |
| Colombia's armed groups sow seeds of new conflict as war with Farc ends Posted: 18 Apr 2017 02:00 AM PDT Last year's deal with the guerrilla group left a power vacuum, putting authorities and residents on edge amid new violence: 'Everyone's nervous' The guerrillas of the Farc occupied the territory around Argelia long enough to gain the support of some residents, and the loathing of others. So when local people watched a contingent of 140 rebels file through the town on their way to demobilization camps as part of a peace deal, it was with a sense of ambivalence: some bade farewell – others good riddance. Continue reading... |
| Venezuela braces for the 'mother of all protests' as both sides call for rallies Posted: 19 Apr 2017 01:00 AM PDT As dissatisfaction with the government grows, opposition leader needs no reminder of the risks involved in inflaming an already febrile national mood As Venezuela braces for the "mother of all protests" on Wednesday, opposition figurehead Henrique Capriles needs no reminder of the risks involved in inflaming an already febrile national mood. The walls of his office building are still blackened from the fire that blazed here last week after security forces lobbed a gas canister during an anti-government demonstration. Continue reading... |
| Australia's 457 visa decision likely to hit free-trade talks with India, officials hint Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:41 PM PDT Malcolm Turnbull's shock announcement leaves migration agents in Delhi struggling to update their customers The Australian government's decision to scrap a working visa used primarily by Indians is likely to set back efforts to secure a free-trade agreement between the two countries, foreign ministry officials in Delhi have hinted. Malcolm Turnbull on Monday announced the controversial 457 visa program for temporary workers would be abolished in favour of a new category that would "put jobs first" and "Australians first". |
| Where is the world's most sprawling city? Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:15 PM PDT Driving to work, driving to dinner, driving to meet friends … this quintessentially American invention requires a limitless supply of land and resources. Los Angeles is infamously sprawling but is it the worst offender? As a young child in Glasgow I was desperate to visit the United States, to see its incredible landscapes and its legendary urbanism: the Grand Canyon, the Manhattan skyline. But it wasn't until visiting much later that I experienced what is truly the iconic American landscape: the strip, that stretch of multi-lane road leading off into the distance, surrounded on either side by fast-food restaurants, islands of retail lost in seas of asphalt. Strip development, and its cousin the shopping mall, are symbols of America's gift to urbanism: sprawl. Los Angeles may be the world's most famously sprawling city but is it the worst culprit? What about Montreal, or Brisbane, both low density cities in countries with no shortage of space and a strong love of the car? Continue reading... |
| Aid agencies accuse Nepal government of hampering their work Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:00 PM PDT NGOs say their projects face lengthy delays and they have to pay the government hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees to get them approved International aid agencies in Nepal are paying the government hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees, and having to hand out stipends to bureaucrats, to get their projects approved and monitored. They accuse the government of hampering their work, citing year-long delays before aid projects are approved. The country's public officials can earn $2,500 (£1,996) a year just for attending meetings to approve aid projects, said aid groups, in a country where the prime minister's salary is $750 a month. Continue reading... |
| Amina al-Jeffery told school of father's threats, charity says Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:00 PM PDT MP says lessons should be learned from case of woman taken from Wales to Saudi Arabia against her will A Welsh schoolgirl who was taken to Saudi Arabia against her will and allegedly held as a prisoner by her father was failed by the authorities, it has been claimed, after she raised the alarm with her school months before she was taken away. Amina al-Jeffery spoke to school staff about her fears early in 2012, and had made a similar appeal at her previous school in 2011, according to the Henna Foundation, a charity that says it was consulted on the case. But there was no intervention by the authorities before she was taken to Saudi Arabia in April 2012. |
| Jail for a joke: student's case puts free speech under spotlight in Spain Posted: 18 Apr 2017 03:20 AM PDT Cassandra Vera got suspended sentence for tweets about Franco-era killing in ruling her supporters say will have chilling effect On 20 December 1973, the Spanish prime minister was killed in Madrid by a car bomb of such force that the Dodge in which he was travelling was blown more than 20 metres into the air and over the roof of the church where he had minutes earlier attended mass. It both murdered the man seen as Franco's natural successor and showed that the Basque separatists Eta could strike at the highest level of his dictatorship. |
| Detectives hunting for reality TV star's boyfriend over London acid attack Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:46 AM PDT At least 20 people were injured when liquid was sprayed at Hackney club, including two being treated at burns unit in Essex Detectives are hunting for the partner of a reality TV star in connection with an acid attack in a packed east London nightclub. The Metropolitan police want to question Arthur Collins, who is the boyfriend of Ferne McCann, after the evacuation of 400 people from the Mangle E8 nightclub in Hackney. Continue reading... |
| 102 villagers, 750 refugees, one grand experiment Posted: 18 Apr 2017 09:50 PM PDT In the autumn of 2015, Germany designated the hamlet of Sumte as a sanctuary for hundreds of displaced people. What followed was a test of the country's deepest principles There is no cinema in Sumte. There are no general stores, no pubs, gyms, cafes, markets, schools, doctors, florists, auto shops or libraries. There are no playgrounds. Some roads are paved, but others scarcely distinguish themselves from the scrub grass and swampy tractor trails surrounding each house – modest plots that grade into the farmland and medieval forests of Lower Saxony. There is no meeting hall. All is private and premodern. |
| Democrat falls just short of 50% in Georgia election seen as test of Trump Posted: 19 Apr 2017 01:11 AM PDT Jon Ossoff will face Republican Karen Handel in runoff on 20 June for seat congressional seat left vacant by health secretary Tom Price Democrat Jon Ossoff will compete in a runoff in a traditionally Republican congressional district in suburban Atlanta, after falling just short of the majority threshold needed to win outright in a special election on Tuesday. With 88% of precincts reporting, the 30-year-old had 48.3% of the vote. He willl face Republican opponent Karen Handel, a former Georgia secretary of state, on 20 June, after Handel finished second in a chaotic 18-candidate field. Continue reading... |
| North Korean TV broadcasts music and missiles attacking US in video mock-up Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:27 PM PDT North Korea's state television has aired footage of a musical show marking the birth anniversary of founding father Kim Il-sung, which ended with a mock-up video of missiles engulfing the United States in flames Continue reading... |
| Malcolm Turnbull tells ACCC to force greater transparency in gas industry Posted: 19 Apr 2017 01:07 AM PDT Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to produce six-monthly public reports examining the state of the market Australia's competition watchdog has been directed to monitor the liquefied natural gas industry as part of efforts to force more transparency in the gas market, with the government expressing concern current supply guarantees from the industry are insufficient. Malcolm Turnbull said at the conclusion of talks with gas chiefs in Canberra on Wednesday the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission had been directed to use its inquiry powers to compel the gas industry to provide information that would "shine a light on transactions with the Australian gas market and help it operate more fairly and efficiently". Continue reading... |
| Iran nuclear deal: Trump administration approves agreement but review looms Posted: 18 Apr 2017 10:43 PM PDT White House certifies Tehran's compliance but Rex Tillerson says a review will establish whether agreement is in US interests The Trump administration has notified Congress that Iran is complying with the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal negotiated by former president Barack Obama, and says the US has extended the sanctions relief given to the Islamic republic in exchange for curbs on its atomic program. However, secretary of state Rex Tillerson said in a letter sent late on Tuesday to House Speaker Paul Ryan that the administration had undertaken a full review of the agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Continue reading... |
| Wednesday briefing: Line up for the May poll dance Posted: 18 Apr 2017 10:02 PM PDT Corbyn agrees to PM's snap election call … book reveals Hillary Clinton's anguish at losing to Trump … and how village of 100 took in 750 refugees Hello, Warren Murray here with the news you need to get started. Continue reading... |
| Slavery laws would force Australian fashion labels to be more ethical – report Posted: 18 Apr 2017 09:06 PM PDT Ethical Fashion Report finds Mighty Good Undies, Etiko and RREPP among brands leading the way in keeping tabs on supply chains Introducing modern slavery laws would force Australian clothing companies to clean up their supply chains and catch up with international competitors, the authors of the annual Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report have said. The report, released on Wednesday, investigated the workers' rights policies of 106 clothing companies that operate or sell in Australia. It found the proportion of companies that were actively trying to trace their supply chain had increased from 49% in 2013 to 81% in 2017, but only 7% knew where all their cotton was manufactured. Continue reading... |
| New Zealand restricts skilled-worker visas in 'Kiwis-first approach to immigration' Posted: 18 Apr 2017 08:25 PM PDT Minister says changes will manage number and quality of migrants but opposition believes measures don't go far enough The New Zealand government has announced plans to tighten access to skilled work visas to help get Kiwis into jobs ahead of migrants. Employees in seasonal work such as fruit picking would also have their visas shortened to the length of time they were needed in the country. Continue reading... |
| Jakarta election: Ahok makes last appeal as polling booths open Posted: 18 Apr 2017 08:18 PM PDT Voting begins in runoff between Chinese Christian incumbent Ahok and Anies Baswedan, who analysts say courted Islamic vote to gain support Polls have opened in Indonesia's capital for what is expected to be a tight race to elect Jakarta's governor after campaigns riven by religious and racial tensions. More than 7 million Jakartans are expected to vote in Wednesday's poll, a race that pits the ethnic Chinese Christian incumbent, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama – better known by his nickname Ahok – against the former education and culture minister Anies Baswedan. Continue reading... |
| Refugee who fled PNG to seek asylum in Fiji has first set of charges dismissed Posted: 18 Apr 2017 07:33 PM PDT Loghman Sawari, who was held on Manus Island, still facing second series of charges after fleeing Papua New Guinea A young Iranian refugee who fled Papua New Guinea to seek asylum in Fiji has had charges against him thrown out of court in Port Moresby. The 21-year-old man, Loghman Sawari, had been resettled in the PNG community after about three years in the Manus Island detention centre. He left PNG on a false passport in January, arriving in Fiji with the intention of seeking asylum from alleged persecution in PNG. Continue reading... |
| Brazil police storm Congress over proposal to raise retirement age Posted: 18 Apr 2017 07:15 PM PDT Pension changes spark violence in Brasilia as police union members clash with congressional security forces Congressional police in riot gear used tear gas to drive back hundreds of members of federal police unions who tried to invade the Brazilian Congress on Tuesday to protest against a pension reform bill that would reduce their benefits. The demonstrators broke glass doors before being pushed back in a violent clash that underscored the unpopularity of the pension reform President Michel Temer's government is proposing to balance Brazil's overdrawn public accounts. Continue reading... |
| Fresno shooting: three killed by gunman in central California Posted: 18 Apr 2017 06:49 PM PDT
Three people were shot and killed Tuesday in an "unprovoked attack" in downtown Fresno and a suspect was taken into custody, the police said. But later on Tuesday, the chief said the shooting did not appear to be connected to terrorism, despite statements made by the suspect. Continue reading... |
| North Korea needs patient talks not war | Letters Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:05 AM PDT US vice-president Mike Pence visited South Korea and addressed US troops as part of a sudden, dangerous and irresponsible obsession with the region (Mike Pence warns North Korea: do not test Trump's resolve, 17 April). In addressing his troops, he referred to the South Korean people as "courageous", instantly implicating them all in a US war. The South Korean people would be best served not by divisive warmongers threatening millions of lives on their peninsula, but by skilled international negotiators patiently striving to reunify their country and bringing back together all its people into one land, one culture, one language, cultural tradition etc (after being cruelly divided by a previous war that killed over a million before being "resolved" in such a way as to suit the external interests of the US, China and Russia in 1953). • The big unrecognised military problem with North Korea (Editorial, 17 April) is not its potential use of nuclear weapons against the US (they might just reach Guam or Okinawa US airbases), but the thousands of conventional missiles that can certainly reach all of South Korea's commercial nuclear plants at four sites. The spent nuclear fuel cooling ponds – which need active cooling to stop the irradiated nuclear fuel overheating and dispersing radioactivity, such as at Chernobyl, to devastating effect – do not have hard containment and would easily be destroyed by an overwhelming North Koran missile barrage. They have no ground-to-air missile defences at these nuclear plants. |
| Radical women who carved their place in history | Letters Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:04 AM PDT Whatever opinion Rachel Holmes (A new feminist statue is a great idea. Shame they picked the wrong feminist, 15 April) holds regarding the statue in Parliament Square, it is distressing that she ends her piece with the now disproved and outdated comment about the nature of Emily Wilding Davison's death. Emily indeed lost her life to the cause. However, at the Epsom Derby she was attempting to petition the King and took a chance to pin something to a horse. It turned out to be the king's. Continue reading... |
| Revolutionary reading list is wrong on Lenin | Letters Posted: 18 Apr 2017 11:04 AM PDT It is hard to see why Tariq Ali (Top 10 books about the Russian revolution, 12 April) still celebrates the epic scale of Lenin's programme of rape, torture and murder. Just as hard to understand is that those who have excused the gulag don't understand the damage it did to the worldwide cause of social justice and good government. Without Stalin attracting the gaze of the German middle classes, it is unlikely that Hitler would have come to power. People like Tariq Ali have landed the kindly and lethargic Russian people, whose heroes are Dostoevsky and Oblomov, with an unjustified reputation for obscene cruelty that they still cannot shake off. Sadder even than that, Lenin's orgy of pain was only possible because Lloyd George feared a Russian invasion of India which led him to back a counter-revolution by Kornilov. This which was, if anything , just as damaging as Lenin's unfeasible policies and the way his ambiguous claim about peace, land and bread justified his seizure of power. The British cabinet papers are still immune to freedom of information requests, although they aren't the only source. Many other facts, buried by those Tariq Ali thinks were historians of the revolution, have yet to be brought to light. What a triumph. |
| Are you taking part in protests in Venezuela? Posted: 18 Apr 2017 09:42 AM PDT Mass protests are expected to take place in Venezuela on Wednesday. We'd like you to tell us why you're taking part Mass protests are expected in Venezuela on Wednesday, as dissatisfaction with the country's government grows. If you're taking part, we'd like you to tell us why. Related: 'Dictator Maduro!': thousands of Venezuelans protest ban of opposition leader Continue reading... |
| Polio vaccinations in Afghanistan, and Zimbabwe's grandmas offer therapy Posted: 18 Apr 2017 07:26 AM PDT Health workers resume vaccinations but suspicion of foreign-run medical teams persists, and we hear how Harare's grandmothers help by listening on park benches If you are reading this on the web and would prefer to get it in your inbox every two weeks, register for the email edition Health workers in Afghanistan have resumed a vaccination campaign against polio in northern Kunduz province, after 15 months of being denied access by the Taliban. Sune Engel Rasmussen reports on efforts to set up clinics to vaccinate about 170,000 children left without inoculation, in a climate of suspicion and fear. In Harare, grandmothers are taking turns to sit on park benches and listen to people experiencing depression and other mental health problems. Ranga Mberi finds out more about a scheme that has helped around 27,000 people in Zimbabwe amid an acute shortage of psychiatrists, while our video reveals how the therapy sessions not only challenge stigma but provide company for the elderly women. Continue reading... |
| What has Esther Afua Ocloo done for women? Google knows Posted: 18 Apr 2017 05:14 AM PDT Google's 'doodle' today celebrates the achievements of an entrepreneur from Ghana who helped to empower millions of women through business Esther Afua Ocloo founded her first company with less than a dollar to her name, selling marmalade as a teenager in the 1930s. It was the start of a career that would lead the Ghanaian entrepreneur to empower millions of other women to succeed in business, and for her to become an inspiration around the world. Now her achievements are being celebrated in a Google "doodle" on what would have been her 98th birthday. Continue reading... |
| Man accused of posting murder footage on Facebook kills himself – video report Posted: 18 Apr 2017 01:44 PM PDT Steve Stephens says he 'snapped' in one of the videos he posted on Facebook on Sunday, which included the apparently random kiling of Cleveland man, Robert Godwin. Stephens, who was being sought by police, fatally shot himself after a police chase on Tuesday Continue reading... |
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