- The Guardian
- Issue #2058
NIGERIA: Islamic extremists killed at least seven farmers in north-east Nigeria, local authorities said, in an attack that further threatens food security in the hard-hit region at risk of famine. The militants attacked the farmers as they worked on their crop fields near Borno state’s Molai area.
SERBIA: Prosecutors have opened legal proceedings against three Kosovo police officers, ignoring international demands for their immediate and unconditional release. Serbian officials say they were arrested when they crossed deep inside their border while Kosovo officials insist they were “kidnapped” and taken to Serbia by force.
HONDURAS: An environmental activist was killed by unidentified gunmen six months after his younger brother and another activist were killed in a similar attack. Oqueli Dominguez was shot by two men on a motorcycle at his family’s home in Tocoa. All three were well-known defenders of the nearby Carlos Escaleras National Park which has been a iron oxide mining spot for years.
BULGARIA: President Rumen Radev has dismissed the country’s chief prosecutor amid public anger over his failure to tackle high-level corruption. Radev signed a decree to remove Ivan Geshev from his post after the Supreme Judicial Council earlier voted to oust him for “undermining the prestige of the judiciary.” The decision referred to his remark during a news conference demanding the removal of “political trash” from Parliament.
ASIA: India and Pakistan are bracing for flash floods, heavy rain, and high winds after Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall this evening, making it difficult for rescue teams to aid evacuations. Authorities expect conditions to worsen as Biparjoy was expected to reach wind speeds gusting up to 138 km before slowing down, passing through already flood-devastated Sindh in Pakistan.
ECONOMY: The European Central Bank pressed ahead with another interest rate hike, and said that more are on the way in an attempt to get ahead of inflation figures. The increase to 3.5 per cent is the eighth straight rise since July 2022 for the 20 countries using the euro as the current rate of inflation is at 6.1 per cent. Interest rate hikes can weaken the economy and risk recession.
MIDDLE EAST: Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a drive by Beijing to elevate relations and increase its overall presence in the region. The sides have announced the formation of a “strategic partnership,” as China’s chief rival for global influence, the United States, is seen as withdrawing from the region following the conflicts in Iraq, and Afghanistan and complications in ties with regional power Saudi Arabia.
AFRICA: Zimbabwe has reported record tobacco sales while its farmers are “heavily indebted” and seeing “minimal” benefits, according to the labour group the Tobacco Association of Zimbabwe. Critics say the farmers are not benefitting as they should from the tobacco boom, largely because of a contract system that locks them into unfavourable loans and prices.
