NEW DELHI, India, Jul 01 (IPS) - In 2020, French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans for tougher laws to tackle what he called, “Islamist Separatism”, and a crackdown on “radical Islamists” in France, which he said were materializing through repeated deviations from the Republic’s values. To counter this, President Macron announced his plans to create a “French Islam”, a practise of the faith which would be regulated by the state.

St David’s, Wales, Jul 01 (IPS) - Documented images of albatross chicks and marine turtles dying slow deaths from eating plastic bags and other waste are being seared into our consciences. And yet our mass pollution of Earth’s seas and oceans, fuelled by single-use plastics and throw-away consumerism, just gets worse.

HAMILTON, Ontario, Canada, Jul 01 (IPS) - The COVID-19 pandemic has undeniably amplified the existing vulnerabilities of billions of people worldwide. Marginalized communities in developing countries were excluded from social protection and support.

The practice of shutting down internet and mobile phone access to stifle dissent has become “entrenched” and more sophisticated in a growing number of countries as governments seek to retain power, a top UN-appointed independent rights expert said on Thursday.