International
Afghanistan: Above 14,000 Acres of Land Usurped in Baghlan
Jan 27, 2018
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Pajhwok Afghan Times
Above 14,000 acres of state and private land has been usurped by powerful individuals and government officials in northern Baghlan province, Pajhwok Afghan News has…
Afghanistan: Cochranite Nears Retirement after Years of Conservation Work in Afghanistan
Jan 26, 2018
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David Feil, Cochrane Times
Canadians often take for granted the fact that we have national and provincial parks that are available for our enjoyment and to preserve nature, thinking…
Iraq/Kurdistan: War in Iraq and the Plunder of Kurdish Oil
Jan 26, 2018
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Erin Banco, Newsweek
Iraqi Kurdistan seems to be a classic example of the resource curse. Oil is found, pumped, shipped and sold (and sometimes stolen). Regimes, politicians, ministers and companies…
Angola/Namibia: No Namibia-Angola Conflict over Water
Jan 25, 2018
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Albertina Nakale, New Era
The Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry John Mutorwa has dismissed media reports implying Angolan authorities want Namibia to start paying for the water that…
Egypt/Ethiopia: Nile Dispute May not Derail Ethiopia-Egypt Cooperation
Jan 25, 2018
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Mu Xuequan, Xinhua
Disagreement over the Nile, one of the world's largest river systems, could turn into win-win cooperation instead of fueling conflict, experts have said. For the…
Afghanistan: Cotton Instead of Poppy?
Jan 25, 2018
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Gul Ahmad Ehsan, Institute for War and Peace Reporting
Activists in Helmand are calling for Kabul to push through a promised financial rescue package to enable a major state-run cotton factory to re-open in…
Colombia: Colombian Soldiers Lead Ecological Mission in High-Altitude Wetlands
Jan 25, 2018
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Forest Ray, Earth Island Journal
The soldiers in the Páramo de Sumapaz belong to Colombia’s First High Mountain Battalion (BAM, for its Spanish name). Trained to hunt their opponents over…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Oil Spills from Tanker Accidents Killing off Sirwan River Fish: Reports
Jan 24, 2018
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Rudaw
Pollution in the Sirwan River, a critical water source, has built up due to repeated oil spills from tankers having accidents on the narrow, hilly…
Papua New Guinea: PNG Group Criticises Govt for Organising 'Land Grabs'
Jan 24, 2018
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Radio New Zealand
ACT NOW!'s Eddie Tanago said government minister Justin Tkatchenko planned to allow commercial banks to take customary land as security for loans. Mr Tanago said…
Guterres Highlights Water Cooperation at Security Council Briefing on Afghanistan and Central Asia
Jan 24, 2018
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OOSKAnews
“Regional cooperation offers opportunities to address common concerns, including counter-terrorist financing, improving border security, fostering dialogue with religious institutions and leaders, and countering human trafficking…
Conflict Minerals: Gold Market Mulling Blockchain for $200 Billion of Supply
Jan 23, 2018
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Eddie Van Der Walt and Ranjeetha Pakiam, Bloomberg
Gold is going digital. Blockchain technology may help keep track of the roughly $200 billion of the precious metal dug from remote mines, traded by…
Afghanistan: Afghan Land Endangered by Amu River
Jan 23, 2018
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Samiullah Saihoon, Institute for War and Peace Reporting
Afghan officials are warning that work carried out to shore up the Amu river by countries upstream is causing serious flooding and the destruction of…
Iran: Water Conflict: Will a Drying Iran Face Syria’s Fate?
Jan 23, 2018
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Erik Khzmalyan, Geopolitical Monitor
Perhaps one of the most quoted predictions regarding the increasing role of water conflicts in global affairs belongs to former vice-president of the World Bank…
China/Southeast Asia: Return to Conflict for the Mekong River Delta?
Jan 21, 2018
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C. Danielle Bizier, SOFREP
For years, the principal narrative has been a world attempting to keep China’s maritime ambitions in check in the South China Sea. With one-third of…
Egypt/Ethiopia: Ethiopia Leader Rejects Call for World Bank Arbitration in Dam Dispute
Jan 21, 2018
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Aaron Maasho, Reuters
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has rejected a call by Egypt for World Bank arbitration in a dispute over a hydroelectric dam Addis Ababa is…
Myanmar: Thousands of Tons of Illegal Timber Seized in Nine Months
Jan 20, 2018
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Eleven
Myanmar seized more than 35,000 tons of illegal timber in nine months of fiscal year 2017-18, according to the Forest Department. The seized illegal timber…
South China Sea: Quiet Cooperation Eases Safety Risks in South China Sea
Jan 20, 2018
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Voice of America
Recently, an Iranian oil tanker exploded and sank after hitting a Chinese ship in the East China Sea. Investigators are still looking for a cause…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Kurdish Oil Exports Must Come under Iraqi Control, Abadi Tells PM Barzani in Baghdad
Jan 20, 2018
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Rudaw
Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani has met with his Iraqi counterpart Haider al-Abadi in Baghdad on Saturday, just a day before he is scheduled to…
Egypt/Ethiopia: Nile River Is Source of Development Not Conflict: Al-Sisi
Jan 20, 2018
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Daily News Egypt
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn signed Thursday several bilateral agreements in context of Desalegn€™s first visit to Egypt. The signing…
Climate Security: From Analysis to Action - High Profile Experts Launch Declaration on Climate and Security
Jan 20, 2018
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Climate Diplomacy
In December, the leading lights of the climate and security community launched an unprecedented declaration to catalyse action in the field in front of 350…
Myanmar: Kachin IDPs Fear Land Grabs in the Villages They Once Called Home
Jan 19, 2018
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Htun Khaing, Frontier
Companies are establishing banana plantations on land in Kachin State left idle and untended because of fighting between the Tatmadaw and the Kachin Independence Army,…
Central Africa’s Iconic Mammals Threatened by Poachers, Armed Groups – UN Environment Wing
Jan 19, 2018
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UN
Elephants, giraffes, rhinos and other magnificent mammals targeted in wildlife conservation areas of Central Africa are under threat of extinction, caught in the crosshairs of…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq's Kurdish Gas Project Gets Boost amid Political Tumult
Jan 19, 2018
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Angelina Rascouet, Bloomberg
Plans to export natural gas from Iraqi Kurdistan got a boost after reserves were upgraded at two key fields. Yet successful development still hinges on…
Nigeria: NEC Constitutes Committee to Tackle Conflict Between Herdsmen and Farmers
Jan 19, 2018
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Omololu Ogunmade, Paul Obi, and Victor Ogunje, This Day
The National Economic Council rose from its first meeting this year in the State House, Abuja, thursday and announced that it has set up a…
Iraq/Islamic State: ISIL Is Lighting Oil Wells on Fire as They Retreat, and No One Is Paying Attention
Jan 18, 2018
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Zoë Schlanger, Quartz
When ISIL retreats from an area in Iraq, they usually bomb anything that supports the local economy. Most of the time, that means they bomb…
Iraq/Kurdistan: BP to Help Iraq Boost Oil Flow at Fields Retaken From Kurds
Jan 18, 2018
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Khalid Al-Ansary, Kadhim Ajrash, and Bruce Stanley, Bloomberg
BP Plc agreed to help increase crude production at northern Iraq’s Kirkuk fields as the government pushes to restore output and exporting capacity after recapturing…
Egypt/Ethiopia: Egypt, Ethiopia Look to Avoid Conflict over Nile Dam
Jan 18, 2018
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Reuters
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pledged on Thursday not to let differences over a dam Ethiopia is building on the Nile river ruin relations with…
Climate Change: Climate Change Is National Security Risk, Congress Members Warn
Jan 18, 2018
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Randy Showstack, Eos
A bipartisan group of more than 100 members of Congress has urged U.S. president Donald Trump to recognize climate change as a national security risk,…
DRC: DRC Revises Mining Code to Capitalise on Cobalt Boom
Jan 18, 2018
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eNCA
As demand for batteries drives a surge in the price of cobalt, the Democratic Republic of Congo is gearing up to overhaul its mining regulations…
Myanmar: Myanmar to Target Illegal Charcoal Trade with China
Jan 18, 2018
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Mongabay
Myanmar has pledged to stem the massive tide of charcoal being illegally harvested, produced and exported from their forests to Chinese factories. Last week a…