Environmentalists are warning that the demand for charcoal in Somalia is fueling desertification and drought. The U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification, known as UNCCD, says an estimated 8.2 million trees were cut down for charcoal in Somalia betwe…
General
Climate-Related Drought Disasters Threaten Development, UN Warns
The United Nations warns accelerating climate change is causing a dramatic intensification of global drought disasters, which are threatening agricultural production, the world’s safe water supply and other essential aspects of human development. The…
France Arrests ‘High-Ranking’ Islamic State Fighter in Mali
French forces in Mali have captured a man they describe as a “high-ranking fighter of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara” (EIGS), the French military said Wednesday. Dadi Ould Chouaib, also known as Abou Dardar, was arrested June 11 in the flashp…
UN Calls for Better Remittance Services at Lower Cost
The United Nations is urging reforms that make it easier for migrants to send money back to their home countries, as it observes its annual International Day of Family Remittances. “Migrants have shown their continued commitment to their families and c…
US Renews Condemnation of Nigeria on Its Suspension of Twitter
The United States has renewed its condemnation of Nigeria for its recent suspension of Twitter, a move that senior U.S. officials said is a sign of restricting political space in the largest country in West Africa.Nigerian authorities indefinitely sus…
South African Afrikaners Group Trains Farmers in Self-Defense
In South Africa, a group called Afriforum has launched self-defense training for white commercial farmers. The group says the farmers are vulnerable to attacks, which it says are driven by tensions over unequal farmland distribution more than 25 years …