International


Syria: Damascus Denies Syrian Land-Grabbing Law Still Published on State Media

Apr 28, 2018 | John J. Catherine, Kurdistan 24

A Syrian official denied the existence of a presidential decree in which the government would confiscate property from its citizens if ownership is not "confirmed"…


Afghanistan: Drought Exacerbating Malnutrition Levels in Afghanistan – UNICEF

Apr 28, 2018 | Robin Gomes, Vatican News

With an extremely dry winter hitting 22 provinces across Afghanistan, the lives of a million people are critically affected, with children the most vulnerable.  Another…


Myanmar: An Environmental Disaster [Photos]

Apr 27, 2018 | Zon Pan Pwint, Myanmar Times

About 200 government firefighters and 100 volunteer firefighters have been wrestling to extinguish the landfill fire. The brave and self-sacrificing firefighters work around the clock…


Africa: West Africa Faces Security Threat from Herders/Farmers Violence - UN

Apr 27, 2018 | Nnenna Ibeh, Naij

The United Nations has said that the incessant clash between herdsmen and farmers across Nigeria poses a grave security to West Africa. Mohammed Ibn Chambas,…


China/Philippines/Vietnam/South China Sea: Duterte to Vietnam: PHL Holding on to Tribunal Ruling vs. China

Apr 27, 2018 | Virgil Lopez, GMA News

President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday assured his Vietnamese counterpart that the Philippines was not abandoning the decision of the United Nations-backed arbitral tribunal in 2016…


Iraq: No Oil Majors Win Contracts in Iraq Oil Licensing Round

Apr 26, 2018 | Maher Chmaytelli, Reuters

Iraq failed to attract investment from the top global energy companies in its oil and gas exploration/development contract auction on Thursday, with no major firms…


Colombia: This Woman Who Saved Her Afro-Colombian Community’s Land from Illegal Gold Miners Won Prestigious Prize

Apr 26, 2018 | Remezcla

Every year, the Goldman Environmental Prize honors those working to protect the earth on a grassroots level. The organization scours all continents for environmental heroes who have had…


Conflict Minerals: IBM Is Tackling Blood Diamonds with Blockchain

Apr 26, 2018 | Olga Kharif, Bloomberg

International Business Machines Corp., a group of four gold and diamond industry companies and an independent laboratory are developing a blockchain network for tracing the…


Conflict Minerals: IBM's Blockchain Tech to Track Jewels from Mine to Retail Stores

Apr 26, 2018 | Olga Kharif, Bloomberg

International Business Machines Corp., a group of four gold and diamond industry companies and an independent laboratory are developing a blockchain network for tracing the…


Iraq: Iraq's Move to Rush Oil Bidding Could Deter Some Firms

Apr 25, 2018 | Sinan Salaheddin, Associated Press

Iraq is opening more of its untapped oil and gas resources to foreign developers, hoping to boost revenues after its costly war with the Islamic…


Colombia: Green Gold, Black Gold, Avocados vs Oil

Apr 24, 2018 | Emma Newbery, Bogota Post

Throw-away comments from politicians always tend to spark headlines during election time – in this case a flurry of memes and a debate about the…


Afghanistan: Emergency Alerts Loom as Drought Takes Hold in War-Torn Afghanistan

Apr 23, 2018 | Rupam Jain, Reuters

Afghanistan faces the threat of serious drought this year after recording the lowest snowfall and rain in years over the winter, officials said on Monday,…


Liberia: “Corridors of Trouble” in Liberia Land Sector

Apr 23, 2018 | Simeon S. Wiakanty, Daily Observer

The Chairman of the Liberia Land Administration Project, Dr. Cecil Othello Brandy, has disclosed that a huge gap exists in the land sector. While he…


Afghanistan/Iran: Afghanistan Blocks Flow of Hirmand River into Iran

Apr 22, 2018 | Financial Tribune

Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian said by building dams on Hirmand River, the eastern neighbor Afghanistan has significantly reduced the volume of water entering Iranian territories…


Sudan: Blood and Gold: Now Sudan's Land Wars Have Spread to Mining

Apr 21, 2018 | Mohammed Amin, Middle East Eye

The protesters always wanted their rally to be peaceful, they said. But by the end of the day at the gold mine in Sudan's remote…


Iraq/Kuwait: Iraq Resumes Gulf War Reparation Payments to Kuwait

Apr 21, 2018 | Rudaw

Iraq has made its first reparations payment to Kuwait after a three-year pause. This is the first payment since October 2014 when Iraq was allowed…


Colombia: Open Destruction in the Colombian Amazon after FARC’s Exit

Apr 20, 2018 | Esteban Montaño and Semana Sostenible, Mongabay

The Amazon is one of the first victims of peace with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). As predicted, the process of disarmament has…


Local Firm Hires 2,000 Workers for Rose Farming

Apr 20, 2018 | Ziar Yaad, TOLOnews

A local firm in Nangarhar province, in the east of Afghanistan, has leased 300 hectares of land to grow rose and process it for perfume…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq Oil Minister Says Received More Than 90 Offers for Kirkuk Pipeline

Apr 20, 2018 | Reuters

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said on Friday the planned new Kirkuk oil pipeline was still under analysis and more than 90 offers had been…


Brazil: 2017 One of 'Bloodiest Years' for Land Conflicts

Apr 20, 2018 | Sam Cowie, Al Jazeera

Data released this week by Brazil rural violence watchdog Comissao Pastoral da Terra (CPT) showed there had been at least 70 killings related to land…


Afghanistan: MAIL to Roll out Multi-Billion Afghani Irrigation Plan

Apr 20, 2018 | Zarmina Mohammadi, TOLOnews

Ministery of Agriculture Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) Thursday said the Afghan government plans to rollout irrigation projects on farms, worth 2.5 billon AFs.MAIL spokesman Akbar…


Sudan/South Sudan/Abyei: EU Concerned over Situation in Abyei Disputed by Sudan and South Sudan

Apr 19, 2018 | Xinhua

The European Union (EU) on Wednesday expressed concern over the situation of the people of Abyei area, disputed over by Sudan and South Sudan. Ambassadors…


Colombia: Meet the People Building Alternatives to Mining in Colombia

Apr 19, 2018 | Hannibal Rhoades and Benjamin Hitchcock Auciello, Red Pepper

On the 26th March 2017, citizens from the mountainous municipality of Cajamarca, Colombia, voted, with a 98% majority, to ban South African miner AngloGold Ashanti’s…


Iraq/Kurdistan: The Great Russian Oil Game in Iraqi Kurdistan

Apr 19, 2018 | Dmitry Zhdannikov, Reuters

Last October, at the height of a political crisis in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, a letter arrived at the Iraqi oil ministry in Baghdad from Igor…


DRC: WFP-FAO Launch Innovative German-Funded Project to Support Peace and Rebuild Lives in Post-Conflict Areas of Eastern DR Congo

Apr 19, 2018 | Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) are launching an innovative joint project to…


Iraq: Exxon Faces Setback in Iraq as Oil and Water Mix

Apr 19, 2018 | Ahmad Ghaddar and Aref Mohammed, Reuters

Talks between Exxon Mobil and Iraq on a multi-billion-dollar infrastructure contract have reached an impasse, Iraqi officials and two industry sources said, in a potential…


Sierra Leone: DeBeers Rolls out App to Clean up Sierra Leone Diamond Supply Chain

Apr 19, 2018 | Ed Stoddard, Reuters

Global diamond giant De Beers is rolling out an app to help small-scale, artisanal diamond miners in Sierra Leone certify that gems they pry from…


Afghanistan: Action Urged on Afghan Flooding

Apr 19, 2018 | Yousef Zarifi, Institute for War & Peace Reporting

Residents of Kunar province in eastern Afghanistan are urging the government to act after suffering years of catastrophic flooding. Local residents said heavy rainfall and…


Egypt/Sudan: Sudan Protests to UN over Egypt Voting in Disputed Area

Apr 18, 2018 | eNews Channel Africa

Sudan has protested to the United Nations Security Council against Egypt, accusing Cairo of organising voting in a disputed border area during March's Egyptian presidential election.…


South Sudan: 600,000 People in South Sudan Said to Be at Risk from Contaminated Drinking Water

Apr 18, 2018 | Daniel Pelz, Deutsche Welle

Oil is South Sudan's biggest export earner. It is also a much needed lifeline for the government of the war-torn nation. German development organization Sign…