International
Afghanistan: In War-Weary Kabul, Burning Coal and Tires Keeps Residents Warm — and the City Choked by Smog
Jan 12, 2019
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Alex Horton and Sharif Hassan, Washington Post
Afghanistan, long embroiled in conflict, has focused for the past 18 years on security and reconstruction at the expense of issues affecting the environment, according…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan's Kabul Faces Water Crisis as Drought, Population Strain Supply
Jan 11, 2019
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Agence France-Presse
Every year 80 million cubic metres (2.8 billion cubic feet) of water are extracted from Kabul's aquifers -- nearly double the natural recharge rate through…
Iraq: ‘Living Under a Black Sky:’ The Forgotten Cost of Conflict
Jan 10, 2019
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Bryan Bowman, Globe Post
As Iraq continues to rebuild after the war with ISIS, environmental pollution, an often overlooked consequence of conflict, threatens the public health and future security…
Myanmar: Myanmar Cracking Down on Opium, but Conflicts Push Drug Trade
Jan 10, 2019
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Al Jazeera
The amount of land being used to grow opium poppies continues to decline in Myanmar, but ongoing conflicts are hampering efforts to stamp out the…
Myanmar: Risk of Floods as Myanmar Builds Bridge Near Border
Jan 10, 2019
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Abdul Aziz, Coxs Bazar
The Myanmar government is building a bridge on Tambru canal close to Bangladesh’s barbed- wire border fence. Built on Myanmar’s land, the bridge has too…
Myanmar: Traders Hope for a Boost from New Gem Laws
Jan 9, 2019
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Kyaw Ko Ko, Myanmar Times
The new amendments to the law governing the extraction of gemstones in Myanmar are expected to offer relief for the gem industry in Mandalay. Industry…
Colombia: Illegal Deforestation Spikes in Colombia: How FARC Prevented Deforestation and the Government Cannot
Jan 9, 2019
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Ooda Loop
Although FARC groups have been largely demobilized in the two years since the peace deal they signed with the Colombian government, the government has been…
Niger: Signing of a Peace Agreement between Fulani and Mahamid Arab Communities in the Diffa Region of Niger
Jan 9, 2019
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Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue
The Fulani and Mahamid Arab communities from the municipalities of Foulatari, N’guelbeli, Goudoumaria and Mainé Soroa in the Diffa region of Niger signed a peace…
Liberia: China Breaks Ground for Liberia’s First Plywood Factory
Jan 8, 2019
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Samuel G. Dweh, FrontPage Africa
“We are here to break ground for the construction of a plywood factory, the first of its kind in Liberia, and for Liberia,” a Chinese…
DRC: Investigating DR Congo's Illegal Gold Trade
Jan 8, 2019
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Lisa Dupuy and Klaas van Dijken, Deutsche Welle
The conflict-ridden African nation is rich in gold — and gold smugglers, who are often linked to rebel groups. But tracing commercially available gold back…
DRC: DRC Miner SMB Leaves Responsible-Sourcing Scheme to Join Another
Jan 8, 2019
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Fiston Mahamba and Barbara Lewis, Reuters
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s biggest miner of coltan, an ore containing metals used in mobile phones, is leaving the ITSCI certification scheme relied on…
Colombia: How Organized Crime Profits from Deforestation in Colombia
Jan 7, 2019
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Bjorn Kjelstad and Felipe Puerta, InSight Crime
Two years after the signing of a peace deal between the Colombian government and the FARC, Colombia’s forests are under siege and experiencing heightened levels…
Myanmar: Salween Peace Park to Keep Lands in Local Hands
Jan 7, 2019
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Lawi Weng, Irrawaddy
Representatives of the Salween Peace Park have said there is no vacant land in Karen State and that all land and its natural resources are…
DRC: DRC on the Brink
Jan 7, 2019
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Resource Clips, Greg Klein
This is the place that inspired the term “crimes against humanity.” As a timely new book points out, American writer George Washington Williams coined that…
Liberia: Green Advocates, IDI Develop New Tools to Hold Oil Palm Farmers Accountable for Environmental and Human Rights Violations
Jan 7, 2019
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Alloycious David, Liberian Observer
Green Advocates International (GAI) and Inclusive Development International (IDI) have developed new advocacy tools that would be used by local communities to hold oil palm…
Afghanistan: At Least 30 Gold Miners Killed in Afghanistan Landslide
Jan 6, 2019
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Sayed Salahuddin and Alex Horton, Washington Post
At least 30 workers were killed in a landslide in northeastern Afghanistan while illegally sifting for gold, officials said Sunday. The landslide occurred in Badakhshan…
Afghanistan: Afghan Villagers Panning for Gold Die as Tunnels Collapse
Jan 6, 2019
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Najim Rahim and Mujib Mashal, New York Times
More than two dozen villagers panning for gold in the northern Afghan province of Badakhshan were killed on Sunday after the makeshift tunnels where they…
Afghanistan: Ministry Plans to Attract Investment in Pine Nuts Trade
Jan 6, 2019
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Rohullah Arman, TOLOnews
The Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) on Tuesday held a meeting in Kabul titled “Pine Nuts Development Investment Conference” where officials encouraged investors to invest…
South Sudan: Outlook 2019: New Signs of Hope Emerge for South Sudan’s Oil Industry
Jan 5, 2019
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Hellenic Shipping News
South Sudan’s long-suffering oil industry is looking with fresh optimism at 2019 following the East African producer’s latest peace deal which promises to re-energize the…
Afghanistan: Nimroz Farmers in Despair as Drought Kills Livestock
Jan 3, 2019
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Daily Outlook Afghanistan
Farmers in southwestern Nimroz province have been in despair after losing around 500,000 livestock to the worst drought in living memory. Mohammad Akbar Sharifi, agriculture,…
Iraq: Plunge in Oil Prices Threatens Iraq’s Postwar Recovery
Jan 2, 2019
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Sinan Salaheddin, Associated Press
The latest plunge in oil prices has dealt a heavy blow to Iraq’s stagnating economy, threatening the new government’s ability to rebuild after the war…
Afghanistan: Ministry Develops Policy to Ensure Mining Security
Jan 2, 2019
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Tamim Hamid, TOLOnews
The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum on Wednesday said it has developed a policy to ensure the safety of mining and ensure the safety of…
Food Security: Recognising the Debilitating Nature Conflict Has on Food Security
Jan 2, 2019
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Busani Bafana, Inter Press Service
In May 2018, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2417 (2018), explicitly acknowledging the link between conflict and hunger and calling on all partners to protect…
Gaza: Water Crisis May Make Gaza Strip Uninhabitable by 2020 [Video]
Jan 1, 2019
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Fred de Sam Lazaro, PBS News Hour
In the Gaza Strip, 97 percent of freshwater is unsuitable for human consumption, and raw sewage pours into the Mediterranean Sea. Facilities for desalinating and…
Afghanistan: Drones Used to Find Toy-Like “Butterfly” Land Mines
Dec 28, 2018
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Jeremy Hsu, Scientific American
A type of land mine called the “butterfly” has a particularly insidious reputation for two reasons: It is known for killing or crippling children who…
Myanmar: Residents Call for End to Mining Activities in Myanmar’s Kachin State
Dec 28, 2018
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Agence France-Presse
Residents from two townships in northern Myanmar’s Kachin state gathered in the state capital Myitkyina on Friday to demand that officials end to mining activities…
Iran/Iraq: Iraq, Iran Ink Energy Sector Agreement
Dec 27, 2018
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Rudaw
Iraq and Iran have agreed to continue cooperation in the energy and electricity sectors, despite time ticking down on the US waiver of sanctions. Iran’s…
Egypt/Ethiopia: Water Crisis Looms for Egypt as Ethiopia's Nile Mega-Dam Nears Completion
Dec 27, 2018
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Kieran Cooke, Middle East Eye
Egypt is facing a water crisis. A rapid increase in demand due to population growth, severe mismanagement of resources and a lack of investment in…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq's Kirkuk Oil Exports to Stay Restricted
Dec 26, 2018
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Ahmed Rasheed, Reuters
Exports from Iraq’s northern Kirkuk oilfields to the Turkish port of Ceyhan will stay at between 80-90,000 barrels per day (bpd) as most of the…
Water Wars: Early-Warning Tools Aim to Prevent 'Water Wars,' Curb Droughts
Dec 25, 2018
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Linda Givetash, NBC News
In a year of extreme heat and water-related tensions, researchers are trying to develop an early-warning system to prevent the devastating consequences of droughts that…