North Korea, Eritrea and Mauritania have the highest prevalence of modern slavery in the world, according to the 2023 Global Slavery Index published Wednesday, which noted a "worsening" situation globally since its last survey five years earlier.. By this benchmark, reclusive and authoritarian North Korea has the highest prevalence of modern slavery (104.6 per 1,000 population), according to the report.
The weekend school dormitory blaze that killed 19 minors in central Guyana was started by a disgruntled pupil angry at having her mobile phone confiscated, a government source told AFP on Tuesday.. The police report said there were 57 pupils in the dormitory, which was "a one-flat concrete building measuring about 100 feet by 40 feet, with several windows, all grilled, and five doors." dc-pgf/bc/md
The world is failing to protect civilians as the number of people caught up in conflicts and their humanitarian aftershocks skyrocketed last year, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday.. Citing civilian deaths in Ukraine and Sudan, schools destroyed in Ethiopia and damage to water infrastructure in Syria, Guterres warned the UN Security Council that "the world is failing to live up to its commitments to protect civilians; commitments enshrined in international humanitarian law."
Super Typhoon Mawar packing potentially catastrophic winds is heading for a direct hit on Guam, a US territory in the Pacific that is a crucial US military outpost.. "The triple threats of Super Typhoon Mawar are torrential rains that may result in landslides and flash flooding, catastrophic wind, and life-threatening storm surge," it said.
Bolivia's president has asked Pope Francis for files on sexual abuse committed by Catholic priests in the South American country following revelations of alleged large-scale exploitation of children.. President Luis Arce, in a letter sent to the Pope on Monday, appealed for "access to all the files and information concerning these allegations and acts of sexual abuse committed by Catholic priests and members of the religious order on Bolivian territory."
Netflix on Tuesday expanded its crackdown on users sharing passwords with people beyond their immediate family as it seeks to shore up revenue at the leading streaming television service.. But there is also the risk that people no longer getting Netflix free will opt to "glom onto their friends' and families' Prime Video, Disney+, or Max instead," Benes said, referring to rival streaming services.
Thousands of Israelis on Tuesday protested the allocation of funds to ultra-Orthodox Jews in the government's proposed state budget.. Opposition head Yair Lapid said the budget was "destructive" as it included monies to ultra-Orthodox Jews that discourage them from taking a more active part in Israeli economy.
Scandal-ridden former Panama president Ricardo Martinelli on Tuesday went on trial on charges of money laundering, clouding his chances of standing in next year's election.. Supermarket magnate Martinelli denies having received "any ill-gotten gains" and claims to be a victim of political persecution to prevent him from standing in the May 2024 presidential elections.
Separatists in Cameroon's restive anglophone region which has suffered years of fighting between the state and insurgents have kidnapped around 30 women who were protesting against violence, officials said on Tuesday.. "Over 30 women were severely tortured and kidnapped by heavily-armed terrorists" on Saturday in the village of Kedjom Keku in the Northwest region, where armed separatist groups frequently kidnap civilians, mostly for ransom, local officials said.
Republican Ron DeSantis is to announce his hotly-anticipated challenge to Donald Trump for the party's 2024 White House nomination on Wednesday, touting his ultra-conservative record as governor of Florida as a blueprint for the nation.. DeSantis has spent months preparing the ground for his White House bid, criss-crossing the country to promote his memoir, "The Courage to be Free," and making multiple stops in states seen as influential in the Republican primary contest, including Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
