News Trending

Thousands of Poles demonstrate against the country’s harsh abortion laws

By 284 0

After a lady in her fifth month of pregnancy died of sepsis, women’s rights activists called for rallies in dozens of Polish cities.

Thousands of people marched in Poland against the country’s stringent abortion law after a woman five months pregnant died of sepsis, the latest such death since the ban was tightened.

Protesters chanted “Stop killing us” as they marched through Warsaw’s capital towards the health ministry’s headquarters on Wednesday, some carrying placards reading “We want doctors, not missionaries” and “Hell for women,” a common slogan used to convey how the measure affects those carrying an unwanted or dangerous pregnancy.

Poland’s abortion laws, which are among the harshest in Europe, have sparked major protests in recent years, and the death of Dorota Lalik, 33, in May has fueled anti-government sentiment among many liberal Poles ahead of elections in October or November.

As conservative politics have progressively taken hold in one of Europe’s most devoutly Catholic countries, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s nationalist administration implemented a constitutional court judgement prohibiting terminations of pregnancies with foetal malformations in 2021.

According to abortion rights campaigners, there were at least five incidents of pregnant women dying whose families went public, blaming abortion restrictions for their deaths.

When asked about the consequences of the tight abortion restriction, Mateusz Morawiecki cautioned against “politicising” the Lalik case.

“Such perinatal deaths occurred also during the Platforma Obywatelska [Civic Platform],” Morawiecki remarked on Wednesday, referring to the centrist opposition party that ruled before his conservative party won office in 2015.

Even before Morawiecki’s Prawo i Sprawiedliwo (Law and Justice) party came to office, Poland had one of the most stringent abortion laws in Europe.

Women have the right to abortion under present legislation only in circumstances of rape or incest, or if their life or health is in danger. This week, government officials emphasised that the law was not the cause of the woman’s death. They emphasised that in such instances, women have the right to a legal abortion, and that the hospital infringed that right.

Several women have perished since 2020, when the constitutional court declared that women may no longer abort pregnancies due to serious foetal defects.

Women’s rights groups claim that the present statute, as well as the wider conservative milieu, has chilling effects. Another issue, they claim, is doctors who refuse to perform abortions because of their moral conscience.

An inquiry into Lalik’s death has been launched by prosecutors. They are already investigating two similar incidents in which pregnant women died in hospital following the demise of the foetus they were carrying.

In 2021, her family criticised physicians’ “wait-and-see attitude” when a pregnant 30-year-old mother from Pszczyna died.

A year later, a 37-year-old lady died in Czestochowa, Poland, just weeks after losing her 12-week-old twin foetuses.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending War

As tensions rise, Serbia arrests Kosovo police officers

By 311 0

Kosovo has sought the release of three border patrol personnel, accusing Serbia of ‘kidnapping’ them.

Serbian authorities reported they apprehended three “fully armed” Kosovo police officers near their common border, while Kosovo officials stated the trio was “kidnapped” while patrolling the region.

On Wednesday, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti condemned Serbia for the men’s kidnapping and demanded their release. They were apprehended 300 metres (330 yards) inside Kosovan territory near the border, he added.

“The entry of Serbian forces into Kosovo territory is an act of aggression aimed at escalation and destabilisation,” Kurti stated on his Facebook page.

Kosovo Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla also condemned the “kidnapping,” which he described as “violating any agreement and violating international norms.”

The minister urged the international community to “immediately increase pressure on Serbia not only to release our police officers, but also to cease its provocations.”

However, according to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, the three were apprehended as far as 1.8km (one mile) within Serbian territory, near the town of Gnjilica. Kurti was also accused of encouraging violence, according to him.

“We are at a fork in the road as to whether we will have peace or not… “And there is one man in the Balkans who wants to incite conflict at any cost – Albin Kurti,” Vucic remarked during a live TV broadcast.

He denied that Serbian police had entered Kosovo, claiming, “They did not even set foot there.”

Despite the fact that a NATO bombing operation forced Serbian security forces out of Kosovo in 1999, Belgrade continues to see it as a southern province.

Last month, riots in four primarily Serb communities in northern Kosovo, just outside Serbia, injured 30 NATO forces and 52 Serbs.

It erupted as Serbs protested against ethnic Albanian mayors who took office following a 3.5 percent turnout in a municipal election. The election was boycotted by Serbs in the area.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

The Pope and the Grand Imam make a plea for peace in the United Nations Security Council

By 294 0

Pope Francis and Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, grand imam of Al-Azhar, speak at a United Nations gathering about the need of “human fraternity.”

Pope Francis and a major Sunni imam both called for peace at the United Nations Security Council in New York, where the topic was “human fraternity.”

The pope, who is recuperating from abdominal surgery, addressed a message to the United Nations assembly on Wednesday, saying that a third world war is being fought “piecemeal” and that mankind is suffering from a “famine of fraternity.”

Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, grand imam of Al-Azhar, Cairo’s 1,000-year-old seat of Sunni learning, stated in a virtual briefing to the UN Security Council that human brotherhood was the key to world peace, a message he and Pope Francis emphasised in a joint paper issued in 2019.

“In our day, with nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction, the battlefield has become practically unlimited, with potentially catastrophic consequences,” the pope said in a statement read by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican’s secretary for relations with states and international organisations.

“The time has come to say an emphatic “no” to war, to declare that wars are not just, but only peace is just,” the pontiff said in a statement.

Without identifying Russia or Ukraine, the grand imam stated that the war raging on Europe’s eastern frontiers has instilled anxiety and “concern that it may regress humanity to a primitive era.”

“Our gathering today is not a luxury, but a necessity, dictated by concern for the future of humanity,” al-Tayeb stated.

According to the grand imam, political leaders must pursue the goal embraced by Al-Azhar and the Roman Catholic Church in the 2019 manifesto on human brotherhood for world peace.

Following the pope’s and grand imam’s pleas, as well as council addresses, members endorsed a resolution acknowledging that hate speech, racism, xenophobia, intolerance, gender discrimination, and acts of extremism “can contribute to the outbreak, escalation, and recurrence of conflict.”

The resolution, co-sponsored by the UAE and the United Kingdom, was unanimously accepted, despite the fact that several of the council’s 15 members had been accused of some of the same crimes they denounced.

After the voting, UAE Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh told The Associated Press that it was a “landmark” resolution that brought together prior council decisions tackling hate speech, racism, incitement, and extremism in various ways for the first time.

According to Nusseibeh, it fosters tolerance, equality, cohabitation, and conversation.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hailed the pope and grand imam’s proclamation as “a model for compassion and human solidarity,” urging governments and people throughout the world to “stand together as one human family” and create “an alliance of peace, rooted in the values of human fraternity.”

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Dozens killed as migrant boat capsizes off Greece

By 306 0

A tragic incident occurred off the southern coast of Greece, resulting in the deaths of at least 59 migrants, while over 100 individuals were rescued after their fishing vessel capsized. This shipwreck marks the deadliest incident of its kind in Greece this year.

The exact number of people on board remains uncertain, but Greek officials and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) suggest that hundreds may have been aboard the vessel. The Greek coastguard spotted the boat in international waters with the help of an aircraft from the EU border agency Frontex. Despite the coastguard’s attempts to provide assistance, the passengers declined help, and none were wearing life jackets.

Shortly afterward, the boat capsized and sank, leading to a search and rescue operation hampered by strong winds. The majority of those on board were reportedly men in their twenties, and the boat was allegedly en route from Libya to Italy. The nationalities of the victims have not been disclosed yet. Survivors have been transported to Kalamata for medical treatment.

Greece serves as a primary entry point into the European Union for refugees and migrants from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. This incident follows international criticism directed at the Greek government for alleged videos showing the forceful expulsion of migrants left adrift at sea. According to UN data, over 70,000 refugees and migrants have arrived in Europe’s frontline countries this year, with the majority reaching Italy.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Mother in Austria Faces Attempted Murder Charges for Locking Child in Dog Cage

By 293 0

Authorities in Austria are investigating a 32-year-old woman for the alleged attempted murder and torture of her 12-year-old son. The shocking case came to light recently and has sparked widespread outrage in the country. The woman has been in pre-trial detention in Krems, located northwest of Vienna, since November.

The alarm was raised by a social worker, and when authorities arrived, they found the child comatose and suffering from hypothermia. The father, who lives separately, had reportedly tipped off the authorities. The boy, who had been subjected to months of torture, was severely malnourished and had a body temperature of just 26.8°C. He was immediately taken to the hospital, and the mother was arrested the following day.

According to police spokesman Johann Baumschlager, the woman is suspected of locking her son in a small dog cage, exposing him to sub-zero temperatures, and depriving him of food. She allegedly doused him with cold water multiple times a day while keeping the apartment’s windows open for several hours in freezing temperatures. The physical health of the boy has since improved, but he continues to suffer severe psychological trauma.

In late May, the Supreme Court of Justice rejected the woman’s complaint against her prolonged custody. The investigation is ongoing and is expected to continue until late summer, at which point a decision regarding an indictment will be made.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Romanian prosecutors are ramping up human trafficking cases, according to Andrew Tate

By 287 0

According to Romania’s anti-organized crime section, the human trafficking allegations against controversial influencer Andrew Tate, his brother Tristan, and two associates have been increased.

They are now being probed for the more serious crime of “continued human trafficking.”

A seventh victim was added to the investigation, which began with six women.

Since April, the Tate brothers and their allies have been held under house arrest in Bucharest.

They were detained for the first time in December and are being probed for rape, human trafficking, and creating an organised crime ring.

They have consistently denied any wrongdoing.

The four suspects were summoned to the headquarters of Romania’s organised crime section on June 12 to be notified of the fresh allegations. Adult trafficking is punishable by up to ten years in jail in Romania.

Prosecutors also stated that a further criminal inquiry had been launched against a Romanian individual named Vlad Obuzic, who they claim was linked to the Tate brothers.

Mr Obuzic is accused of human trafficking and organising a criminal crime gang to sexually exploit seven women who were lured and blackmailed into producing pornographic content for social media platforms, with the suspects pocketing the majority of the profits.

“To ensure the victims’ loyalty and that they will only perform for the benefit of the members of the group, they were forced to tattoo the name or face of the group member exploiting them,” authorities stated in a statement.

Prosecutors in Romania are scheduled to publish an indictment detailing the official allegations lodged against the brothers and their allies later this month, kicking off the trial.

Mr Tate, 36, has millions of internet fans. His material is especially popular with young guys who are captivated to his hyper-macho appearance.

Mr Tate denied fueling a culture of sexism and defended his image in an interview with BBC News in early June.

He also ignored the testimony of specific women who have accused him of rape and exploitation in the present probe.

A few days later, a British lady claimed Mr Tate choked her till she passed out while they were having sex and then threatened her.

Mr Tate’s representative told the BBC that he was “saddened that a few opportunistic women with whom he allegedly spent time nearly a decade ago have decided to try and take advantage of his current situation.”

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

The United Nations Refugee Agency reports a global displacement of 110 million people

By 337 0

Conflicts in Ukraine and Sudan, as well as the Afghanistan crisis, have pushed millions of people to migrate in search of safety.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the number of persons displaced worldwide has reached a record 110 million, with hostilities in Ukraine and Sudan causing millions to flee their homes.

The UNHCR stated in its annual Forced Displacement report on Wednesday that around 19 million people were forced to escape last year, the largest yearly increase on record, bringing the total to 108.4 million by the end of last year.

According to UN refugee director Filippo Grandi, the figure has subsequently climbed to at least 110 million, owing mostly to Sudan’s eight-week-old war.

“It’s quite an indictment of the state of our world to have to report that,” he remarked during a news conference in Geneva.

The total number includes both persons seeking protection within their own nations and those who have crossed borders. According to the data, refugees and asylum seekers accounted for around 37.5 percent of the total.

“Solutions to these movements are becoming increasingly difficult to even imagine, let alone put on the table,” he explained. “We live in a highly polarised world, where international tensions spill over into humanitarian issues.”

According to the organisation, prior to the Syrian crisis in 2011, there were around 40 million refugees and internally displaced persons, a figure that had been steady for roughly 20 years. However, the figure has climbed each year thereafter.

According to the research, 339,300 refugees were able to return home last year, while 114,300 were relocated in a third country – more than double the amount expected in 2021.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News

Germany sends Indigenous people’s remains to New Zealand

By 302 0

German institutions returned the skeletons of 95 Maori and Moriori individuals, including six mummified tattooed heads.

95 Indigenous New Zealanders’ bones, as well as antiques and cultural treasures, have been repatriated to New Zealand from museums and colleges in Germany.

The 95 Maori and Moriori persons’ ancestral bones, including six toi moko – Maori mummified tattooed skulls – were welcomed to Te Papa, New Zealand’s national museum, in a special ceremony on Wednesday.

New Zealand Ambassador to Germany Craig Hawke said the bones were being repatriated after “more than a century away from their homeland” and in a fashion that highlighted the “mature and close relationship” between Berlin and Wellington.

“Our relationship extends beyond traditional diplomatic relations to include cultural, scientific, and knowledge exchange.” “These repatriations are a powerful illustration of our collaborative partnership,” Hawke added.

Te Herekiekie Haerehuka Herewini, the Te Papa museum’s head of repatriation, stated that the German institutions involved demonstrated “significant respect and understanding” as well as a “strong sense of doing the right thing.”

“As we celebrate 70 years of diplomatic relations between Aotearoa New Zealand and Germany, these repatriations demonstrate the mature and close relationship that we share,” he said.

After a four-year political battle, France’s Quai Branly Museum in Paris returned 20 toi moko – mummified tattooed skulls – that had been taken to Europe in the 18th century in 2012.

According to The New Zealand Herald, the Grassi Museum in Leipzig, the Reiss Engelhorn Museum in Mannheim, the Linden Museum, the Stuttgart State Museum of Natural History, the Georg August University in Gottingen, the Roemer und Pelizaeus Museum in Hildesheim, and the Museum Wiesbaden returned the remains and other artefacts on Wednesday.

Germany returned 20 antique bronze statues to Nigeria in December as part of attempts to confront the country’s “dark colonial past,” according to the country’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock.

The statues, known as Benin bronzes, were among thousands plundered by British forces from the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin — now part of southern Nigeria — during colonial control. Some of the valuables wound up in the hands of other governments, notably Germany.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending War

A senior Russian officer has been killed in the Ukraine counteroffensive

By 311 0

Major-General Sergei Goryachev, chief of staff of Russia’s 35th Army, was killed in a missile attack in the Zaporizhia area, according to reports.

According to a Russian-backed figure in Ukraine, a top Russian officer was killed in a Ukrainian missile strike during Kyiv’s counteroffensive against Russian soldiers.

On Tuesday, Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-installed official in a part of the southern Zaporizhia region under Moscow’s control, said that Russian Major-General Sergei Goryachev, Chief of Staff of Russia’s 35th Army, was killed a day earlier on the Zaporizhia front, where Ukrainian forces have been retaking some territory.

The Russian Defence Ministry had no immediate confirmation of Goryachev’s death.

Goryachev, 52, was a renowned soldier. According to Reuters, he served in the Second Chechen War, commanded a tank brigade, controlled a Russian military facility in Tajikistan, and led Russian soldiers in Moldova’s breakaway pro-Russian province of Transdniestria.

If true, Goryachev’s killing represents the first Russian senior commander killed in Ukraine in almost a year. “Voenkor Z,” a Russian combat journalist and military blogger, broke the news of his death first.

“The army has lost one of its brightest and most effective military commanders, who combined the highest professionalism with personal courage,” Rogov said on his official Telegram channel. “Our heartfelt condolences to the deceased’s family and friends!”

On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with 18 famous Russian military bloggers and war journalists in an effort to boost his narrative about the conflict’s favourable development in Ukraine.

The meeting, in which Putin stated that Ukraine had suffered “catastrophic” losses in its counteroffensive, comes amid “widespread discontent in the Russian information space” following drone attacks on Russian territory and border incursions by pro-Ukrainian but Russian armed groups, according to a leading war monitor on Wednesday.

The Washington, DC-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) noted in a daily briefing paper on the Ukraine war that Russian “milbloggers” who have been more critical of Putin’s war operations were not invited to the conversation.

“Putin is likely setting information conditions to prevent potential lines of attack against the Kremlin in the event of Russian failure” in Ukraine, the ISW said, adding that the Russian president may be aware “that committed pro-war figures” and the influence of military blogging are “his key constituency as he calls on the Russian public to prepare for a protracted war in Ukraine”.

“Putin’s engagement with these milbloggers may suggest that the Kremlin will increasingly rely on the wider ultranationalist community to maintain support for the war effort,” the ISW said.

According to the ISW, Russian claims of Major-General Goryachev’s death in the Zaporizhia area show that “some Russian senior military commander officials continue to operate close to the front line and remain vulnerable to accurate Ukrainian strikes.”

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

In 2022, RNLI lifeboat personnel will have rescued the lives of 108 migrants

By 302 0

According to the RNLI, lifeboats were sent 290 times last year to rescue migrants in the English Channel.

For the first time, the organisation has made public information about its work on migrant crossings.

The RNLI, which has been chastised for providing a “taxi service” for migrants, reported saving 108 lives in the Channel between France and the Kent coast.

Its CEO stated that he made no apologies for saving lives at sea.

In 2022, lifeboats manned by volunteer crews were launched more than 9,000 times off the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The charity’s annual report for 2022 shows a 3.5% rise in net revenue, part of which came from larger donations, but expenditures also increased.

Some of the funds have gone towards the development of a new gadget known as “sea stairs,” a floating platform that allows workers to rescue people from the ocean more rapidly.

Mr. Ling called the floating platform a “game changer.”

He said that a standard rescue of a sinking small boat would take roughly one minute per person, but the sea stairs allowed 20 people to be rescued in 90 seconds.

The arrival of 616 migrants on tiny boats on Monday brings the total number of migrants crossing in 2023 to 8,380.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright