News headlines
Public Flogging in Afghanistan Strips Women of Dignity
- Inter Press Service

KABUL, March 12 (IPS) - In the bone-chilling Afghanistan winter, a woman was dragged into a public square early this year and publicly lashed for a crime she may or not have committed. According to the ruling handed by the Taliban Supreme Court, the woman and the male culprit who was jointly accused of extra-marital affair received 30 lashes each and a one-year suspended prison sentence. The sentence was carried out in the presence of several local officials and residents in a province whose name is left out to protect the victim.
One in Four Migratory Species Under Threat, But Conservation Efforts Can Reap Rewards
- Inter Press Service

SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan & SHRINGAR, India, March 12 (IPS) - Global wildlife is facing a deepening crisis as the latest United Nations assessment warns that nearly half of the world’s migratory species are in decline due to human activity, habitat destruction, and climate change.
The Implausible Regime Change in Iran and How the War Affects the World
- Inter Press Service

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, March 12 (IPS) - The US/Israeli war on Iran might be like messing with a hornets’ nest, spreading fear and chaos all around. The Israeli government claimed that the war was a “preventive” measure to address an immediate threat of Iran constructing a nuclear bomb. However, this war has obviously been meticulously planned over a long period of time and it now seemed to be the right time to put this plan into action.
The Most Appropriate Response to Falling Birthrates? Embrace Them
- Inter Press Service

ST. PAUL, Minnesota, USA, March 12 (IPS) - As birthrates continue to decline in many industrialized countries, anxious governments are running out of schemes to keep women procreating.
Venezuela’s repressive State apparatus ‘intact’ despite leadership change
- UN News

Venezuela’s repressive State apparatus remains operational despite the seizure of former President Nicolás Maduro by United States forces on 3 January, according to independent UN human rights investigators.
Aid operations strained across Middle East: WFP seeks $200 million to sustain food assistance
- UN News

Rising food prices, growing displacement and disruptions to global supply routes are placing millions of people across the Middle East at greater risk of hunger, according to the World Food Programme (WFP), which warns that the humanitarian system is struggling to keep pace with expanding needs.
World News in Brief: Deadly drone attacks in Sudan, violence against women in the spotlight, more clashes in DR Congo
- UN News

UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Thursday he was appalled by the devastating impact on civilians of increasing drone attacks in Sudan, amid reports that more than 200 civilians have been killed by drones since 4 March alone, in the Kordofan region and White Nile state.
With Middle East ‘pushed to breaking point’, UN chief urges ceasefire, return to diplomacy
- UN News

The UN chief on Thursday urged all combatants to cease hostilities in the Middle East, uphold international law, protect civilians and make an immediate return to the negotiating table.
Russia deportation of Ukraine children is crime against humanity: independent probe
- UN News

Scores of Ukrainian children are still missing after being deported far and wide across Russia and occupied territories while their families continue to search for them, human rights investigators said on Thursday.
‘Perfect storm’: Lebanon crisis deepens as civilians bear the brunt
- UN News

Lebanon is facing a “perfect storm of unpredictable challenges” as conflict, mass displacement and dwindling humanitarian resources converge, the UN’s Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Lebanon, Imran Riza, has warned.

