• Pope urges Bulgaria “don’t close your heart” to migrants

    <p>Pope Francis visited a refugee centre in Sofia and a Roman Catholic Church in Rakovski in Bulgaria where he advocated on behalf of migrants and refugees describing their suffering as&nbsp;“the cross of humanity”.&nbsp;</p> <p>The pope’s defence of migrants is a central point of his pontificate and he also hopes that his visit will heal divisions between the Eastern and Western Orthodox Churches which split in 1054.&nbsp;</p>
  • Over 30,000 march through Glasgow in support of Scottish independence

    Over 30,000 people marched through Glasgow on Saturday in support for Scottish independence reports The Guardian.

    The march was led by the ‘All Under One Banner’ movement which describes itself as “open to everyone who desires an independent Scotland”

  • Gaza-Israel violence continues into second day of airstrikes and rocket attacks

    Israeli warplanes and gunboats have continued to target the Gaza strip today in retaliation to Gaza fighters firing more than 400 rockets into Israeli territory.

  • Cyclone Fani kills dozens in India and Bangladesh

    The strongest cyclone to hit India in the last five years has devastated India’s eastern coast, killing approximately 16 people in the state of Odisha before hitting Bangladesh where at least 12 people have died.

  • Persecution of Christians coming close to genocide levels
    <p>The persecution of Christians in some regions of the world&nbsp;is coming close to meeting the international definition of genocide, according to a report commissioned by British Foreign Secretary,&nbsp;Jeremy Hunt.</p> <p>The interim report, led by the Bishop of Truro the Right Reverend Philip Mountstephen, has highlighted the geographical spread of anti-Christian persecution and it’s increasing severity.</p>
  • US accuse China of using ‘concentration camps’ and aggressive military expansion
    <p>The US Defense Department has accused China of pursuing an aggressive military build-up to combat US interests whilst also maintaining concentration camps which have detained close to three million Muslims.</p>
  • Ebola outbreak in DRC is worsening

    The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Society says the outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is “worsening”.  

    The DRC health ministry has reported that the death toll has risen to 1,008 and more than 1,450 cases have been registered since August 2018.

    Photograph: World Health Organisation

  • Human Rights Watch says China’s Xinjiang citizens are monitored by police app

    In a new report, Human Rights Watch (HRW) found that Xinjiang police are using a mobile app to illegally gathering information about people’s lawful behaviour and using it for mass surveillance and arbitrary detention of Turkic Muslims.

    Photograph: Human Rights Watch

  • Videos of 'war crimes' in Libya shared online
    <p>An investigation by BBC Arabic, has found evidence of alleged war crimes being shared on Facebook and YouTube.</p> <p>Disturbing images and videos have been found on these social media platforms showing bodies of civilians and fighters being desecrated by fighters of the Libyan National Army during an offensive in 2017.</p> <p>Under international law, the desecration of bodies and posting the images online for propaganda is a war crime.</p>
  • Venezuela plunges into new phase of political crisis
    <p>Juan Guaidó, Venezuela’s opposition leader, posted a video online urging supporters to take to the streets to oust President Nicolas Maduro from power.</p> <p>Guaido posted an online video in which he appeared to be surrounded by dozens of armed troops near a military base in Caracas.</p> <blockquote><p> “The time is now,” Guaido said. “We are going to achieve freedom and democracy in Venezuela,” he added. </p></blockquote>
  • Brexit has driven up recruitment for the New IRA

    Senior members of the militant republican group, known as the New IRA, have said that Brexit has helped to drive recruitment amongst young supporters as there is a renewed focus on the border and partition.

    Speaking to The Sunday Times a representative of the New IRA told the reporter that:

    “Brexit has forced the IRA to refocus and has underlined how Ireland remains partitioned […]

  • Thousands protest in Hong Kong against extradition law
    <p>Over 100,000 people marched through central Hong Kong yesterday in opposition to a law which would make it easier to extradite people to mainland China.</p>
  • San Diego synagogue shooting leaves one dead and three injured
    <p>John Earnest, a 19-year-old man, has been held by the San Diego police for questioning following a shooting at a synagogue on Saturday which left one dead and three injured.</p> <p>Lori Gilbert Kaye, a 60-year-old woman was killed in the shooting as she threw herself in front of the rabbi&nbsp;to save his&nbsp;life.</p>
  • Sudanese protesters demand civilian rule
    <p>Protesters in Sudan continue their call for civilian rule during the first meeting between a panel of protesters and the military council.</p> <p>Demands from the demonstrators include a four-year transition period to make the necessary arrangements to get rid of the former regime, to implement transitional justice and to prepare for real and decent elections.</p>
  • Kurdish activists occupy Amnesty International HQ
    <p>Kurdish activists and friends have been occupying Amnesty International headquarters in London since Wednesday to shed light on the Kurdish hunger strikes.</p> <p>More than 7,000 people, mainly political prisoners jailed in Turkey, are on indefinite hunger strike to demand Kurdistan’s worker’s Party leader, Abdullah Ocalan, the right to visits by his lawyers and family.</p> <p>Ocalan has been detained since 1999 and has not been allowed to see to his lawyer since 2011 and his family since 2016.</p>
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