ANOTHER STEP TOWARDS PEACE AS TRUMP AND KIM MEET AT DMZ
By Donnelly McCleland South Korea’s president on Tuesday [2 July] called a recent US-North Korean summit at the Korean border an end of mutual hostility between the countries, despite scepticism by many experts that it was just a made-for-TV moment that lacked any substance. During their impromptu third summit at the Korean Demilitarised Zone on…
EGYPTIAN PRESIDENTIAL COMMITTEE LEGALISES 127 CHURCHES
By Mike Burnard A presidential committee tasked with rectifying the status of unlicensed Christian places of worship, chaired by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, approved on Monday [1 July] legalising 127 churches and service buildings that used to be operating without permits. This brings to 1,021 the total number of unlicensed Christian places of worship and…
MIGRANT CHALLENGES AROUND THE WORLD STILL A CRITICAL ISSUE
By Donnelly McCleland Pope Francis has prayed for migrants in a special Mass, saying they are people and not just a social issue. The Mass, celebrated in St. Peter’s Basilica on Monday [8 July], marked the sixth anniversary of the pope’s visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa on 8 July 2013. Francis had been…
US-IRAN TENSIONS DEEPEN
Iran said on Tuesday [25 June] that a decision by the United States to impose “hard-hitting” sanctions on the country’s top leadership, including the Supreme Leader, has permanently closed the path to diplomacy between Tehran and Washington. “Imposing useless sanctions on Iran’s Supreme Leader (Ayatollah Ali Khamenei) and the commander of Iran’s diplomacy (Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif)…
ETHIOPIAN INFIGHTING THREATENS PRIME MINISTER’S REFORM PROCESS
By Donnelly McCleland Ethiopia marked a national day of mourning on Monday [24 June] after four government officials [and a retired general], including the governor of the Amhara region and the chief of the army, were assassinated over the weekend in dual attacks in Addis Ababa and Amhara’s capital city, Bahir Dar. State forces shot…
MASS PROTESTS IN HONG KONG OVER PROPOSED EXTRADITION BILL
By Alex Pollock Thousands of people in Hong Kong surrounded police headquarters [on Friday 21 June], calling for an extradition bill to be scrapped. Millions of people have marched against the bill in recent weeks, with violent clashes breaking out with police. The bill, which allows extradition to mainland China, has already been suspended. People…
SUDAN’S OPPOSITION CALL FOR CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE CAMPAIGN AFTER CLAMPDOWN
By Donnelly McCleland A civil disobedience campaign in Sudan has brought the country’s capital to a standstill, closing down restaurants, banks and other businesses and turning streets desolate on Sunday [9 June], the latest escalation by protesters demanding an end to military rule. The mass showing of government defiance follows a military crackdown, that protestors…
UK LEADERSHIP AND KEY CONTENDERS
Compiled by Mike Burnard Prime Minister Theresa May stepped down on Friday 7 June as leader of Britain’s Conservative Party after admitting failure in her attempt to withdraw the country from the European Union. She will remain as a “caretaker” Prime Minister for a few weeks while the party picks a successor. (Global News) Why is Theresa May…
ZELENSKIY’S SERVANT OF THE PEOPLE PARTY VOWS ‘RADICAL CHANGES’
By Donnelly McCleland The party of Ukraine’s new President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has kept a strong lead ahead of a parliamentary election due on 21 July, an opinion poll showed on Monday [10 June]. The survey by KIIS research body showed the former television comedian’s equally new party, Servant of the People, on 34.4 percent, below…
THE BATTLE FOR IDLIB HEATS UP
By Donnelly McCleland The Syrian military and its allies have begun a long, slow and violent campaign to recapture the last province in the country still under opposition control, where the government has gradually cornered rebels, extremists and civilians alike. A victory in Idlib province, in Syria’s northwest, would help the country’s president, Bashar al-Assad,…