New Zealand plans to outlaw greyhound racing because too many dogs are hurt or killed, the government said Tuesday, spelling an end to the practice in one of the few countries where it still operates. The racing of greyhounds as a betting sport was wildly popular at times last century. But the number of dogs…
The ancient mountains of the Andes are home to spectacled bears, pumas and the magnificent Andean condor. They’re also home to forests of lesser-known but critically important polylepis – known as “cloud trees.” Growing up to 5,000 meters above sea level, they are the highest-altitude trees in the world and are known to absorb and…
An armored vehicle belonging to the UN’s atomic watchdog was hit by a drone strike on its way to inspect a Ukrainian nuclear power plant on Tuesday, in an attack President Volodymyr Zelensky has blamed on Russia. The strike, which Russia has not commented on, took place as the vehicle traveled in a convoy to…
Vandals attacked a Jewish area of Sydney overnight, torching a stolen car and scrawling antisemitic words on walls, prompting a swift response from authorities who say antisemitism has no place in multicultural Australia. The attack comes as police search for three suspects over an arson attack on the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne on Friday…
Haiti’s government says the country’s gangs have crossed a “red line” after allegedly killing over 180 people over the weekend, after a gang leader reportedly blamed Voodoo adherents for his child’s grave illness. A statement by the Haiti Prime Minister’s office accused gang leader Micanor “Mikanò” Altès and associates of carrying out the massacre on…
One of the most powerful ethnic minority armed groups battling Myanmar’s army has claimed the capture of the last army outpost in the strategic western town of Maungdaw, gaining full control of the 271-kilometer (168-mile) -long border with Bangladesh. The capture by the Arakan Army makes the group’s control of the northern part of Rakhine…
Australia announced a multimillion-dollar agreement with Nauru on Monday that gives Canberra a veto right over a range of pacts the tiny Pacific atoll might want to enter with third countries, including China. Australia offered 140 million Australian dollars ($89 million) over five years to the remote nation’s population of 12,000 under the treaty to…
Animal rights activists have urged the Nepali government to stop what they’ve called “an appalling bloodbath” after they claimed thousands of animals were killed as part of a festival held every five years that traditionally ends with a mass sacrifice. At least 4,200 buffaloes and thousands of goats and pigeons were killed during a mass…
As Syrians rejoiced across the country this week, many began the frantic search for missing loved ones who had been forcibly disappeared under Bashar al-Assad’s brutal dictatorship. Crowds have descended on the notorious Saydnaya prison, which had become synonymous with arbitrary detention, torture and murder. Under the glaring sun, people poured toward the notorious facility…
Abu Mohammad al-Jolani’s road to Damascus has been long. He has talked openly about his change along the way. From young al Qaeda fighter two decades ago, to rebel commander espousing sectarian tolerance. It’s a journey along which he has had plenty of time to plan where and how he would mark his arrival, and…
