World News

Amid reports of fresh Israeli airstrikes in Gaza overnight into Wednesday, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said that more children have been killed there in recent months than in four years of conflict worldwide.  “This war is a war on children. It is a war on their childhood and their future,” said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, who described as “staggering” ...

“Hunger has reached catastrophic levels,” Jamie McGoldrick, the UN’s Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, told journalists at UN Headquarters on Wednesday, describing a two-day visit to war-ravaged Gaza. “Children are dying from hunger,” he said via videolink, as media reports indicate that at least 20 children have succumbed to starvation in the besieged and bombarded enclave, including most ...

The United States has said it is “deeply troubled” by the passing in Ghana of a stringent anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, which it says threatens constitutional freedoms. “The bill would also undermine Ghana’s valuable public health, media and civic spaces, and economy,” the US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement. It has called for the “review of the constitutionality ...

A two-day protest kicked off in Nigeria’s commercial hub of Lagos on Tuesday (Feb. 27) morning shortly before other locations nationwide followed. One of the country’s main unions, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has called workers to demonstrate outrage at the mounting hardship and insecurity. The watchword was “endhardshipnow”. Nigerians are living through one of the West African nation’s worst ...

The Women’s Manifesto Coalition (WMC) has raised concerns about political party cultures that are failing to include gender equality and women’s rights as salient issues in the process of building a democratic Ghana. The Coalition argues that the continuous underrepresentation of women in decision–making positions does not augur well for women’s ability to contribute to critical decisions that have implications ...

Kenya has waived entry fees for passport holders from South Africa and six other countries, following widespread criticism of the recently introduced $30 fee. The move aims to boost tourism and attract business travellers. Previously, all foreign passport holders were subject to visa requirements, but the government’s decision sparked backlash for potentially increasing travel costs and bureaucracy.  Exemptions now apply ...

Hungary’s President resigned Saturday (Feb. 10) over a child abuse case pardon. Katalin Novak is a member of the ruling conservative party Fidesz. Novak’s decision came after more than a week of public outrage after it was revealed that she issued a presidential pardon in April 2023 to a man convicted of hiding a string of child sexual abuses in a ...

More than 40 artisanal gold miners were killed in southwest Mali last week after the shaft they were working in collapsed, Mali’s mines ministry said on Wednesday. Artisanal mining is a common activity across much of West Africa and has risen in recent years due to growing demand for metals and rising prices. Deadly accidents are frequent as artisanal miners ...

 Judges at the International Court of Justice on Thursday opened two days of legal arguments in a case filed by South Africa accusing Israel of genocide in its Gaza war. Israel rejects the allegation. Lawyers for South Africa asked judges at Thursday’s hearings to impose binding preliminary orders on Israel, including an immediate halt to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. ...

Migration activists are sounding the alarm this week about mass expulsions and arbitrary arrests in Tunisia, where authorities are seeing more migrants arrive for attempted Mediterranean crossings from the North African nation to Europe. The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights on Monday accused the government of waging a campaign of repression against migrants at the expense of humanitarian ...