Isis terrorists in Iraq and Syria ‘may be using weapons exported to the Middle East by the UK
Assault weapons sent from Britain to Iraq in the wake of 2003 invasion may have ended up in Isis’s hands
Isis terrorists operating in Iraq and Syria may be using weapons exported to the Middle East by the UK, according to a new report.
Assault weapons and small arms sent from Britain to Iraq in the wake of the 2003 invasion may have ended up in the hands of the militant Islamic group, the research carried out by human rights organisation Amnesty International says.
Drawing on expert analysis of thousands of videos and images, the report concludes that IS fighters have access to a “substantial arsenal” of arms and ammunition designed or manufactured in more than 25 countries. Their weapons include US military issue M16 rifles, Austrian and Russian sniper rifles and Chinese and Belgian machine guns, it says.
How to turn slaughterhouse waste into fuel
Roman Marciniak
Every day, the slaughterhouse in the Senegalese city of Saint-Louis produces almost half a ton of organic waste. Whereas the waste was once thrown into rivers or left to rot in the open, authorities are now putting the animal remnants to good use by turning the trash into biogas and natural fertilizer for use by local residents and farmers.
For years, waste from the slaughterhouse, based in the city´s Khor area, was either dumped in rivers or in landfills, creating pollution and stomach-churning odours. To solve the problem, city authorities teamed up with the local neighbourhood council and ´Le Partenariat´, a French NGO that has been active in Saint-Louis for thirty years. The solution came in the form of ´biodigesters´, a technology already used extensively across Asia. Biodigesters are oxygen-free vats which contain organic waste from plants or animals. The waste is broken down naturally to produce a renewable energy called biogas in a process known as ´methanisation´.
The biodigesters were set up under the close supervision of a French company called BioEco. They´ve been up and running since 2013, thanks to financing from both the Poweo foundation and Senegal´s National Biogas Programme. Working hand in hand with the NGO Le Partenariat, a local committee is currently responsible for making sure the devices run smoothly.
Beijing issues ‘red alert’ pollution warning
Automobiles have been restricted in the Chinese capital and many construction sites and schools closed under the first city-wide red alert for pollution. Residents were told to limit time outdoors as smog blanketed city.
The Chinese government on Tuesday ordered 30 percent of vehicles off the roads, banned heavy vehicles, told schools to cancel classes and urged companies to offer flexible working hours to employees, while canceling most outdoors events.
The city-wide “red alert” follows the appearance of grey haze over the city of around 21.5 million people, though many Chinese people noted the conditions were by far not the worst recorded. Some surmised that the move reflected a change in management more than pollution levels that have plagued major cities for decades.
A study led by atmospheric chemist Jos Lelieveld of Germany’s Max Planck Institute and published this year in “Nature” magazine estimated that 1.4 million people each year die prematurely because of pollution in China.
10 million people facing food emergency in Ethiopia as El Nino bites
December 8, 2015 – 5:11PM
Matt Wade
Senior writer
The toll from Ethiopia’s worst drought in 50 years is escalating, with officials dramatically increasing their estimate for the number of people facing critical food shortages.
Two months ago the Ethiopian government said about 8.2 million people would be in need of emergency food assistance in 2016, but this week it lifted the estimate to 10.1 million. Aid agency Save the Children estimates about 5.75 million Ethiopian children will be affected by the worsening food crisis.
The El Nino effect – caused by warming sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean – has been blamed for the failure of this year’s rains across a large portion of Ethiopia, triggering what the United Nations calls a “slow onset” emergency. El Nino has also caused a drought in Papua New Guinea and unusually warm, dry weather across much of Australia.
The Ethiopian government had allocated over $US200 million ($273.7 million) of its own resources to emergency relief so far this year but in the latest humanitarian assessment, published this week, it calls on the international community “to stand with the people of Ethiopia at their time of need”. It says the emergency response will cost another $US1.4 billion.
Soup kitchen refugees dream of Europe
Updated 2044 GMT (0444 HKT) December 7, 2015
A barbed wire fence runs through the fields and hills that mark the border between Greece and Macedonia. Just outside the Greek village of Idomeni is a metal gate — the designated entry point for refugees who want to cross into Macedonia.
But not everyone can go. Refugees from Iraq, Syria or Afghanistan are ushered past the ramshackle collection of tents in the Greek field nearby, past the railroad track manned by Greek riot police and, after a brief wait, through the metal gate into Macedonia.
For everyone else, the door is closed.
Whether they are refugees or economic migrants there is no freedom of movement, and geography means the easiest route to a country willing to accept them is via Macedonia.
Last week, Macedonia took the decision to allow in only a select group of refugees. Riots broke out as hundreds of mostly Moroccans, Iranians and Pakistanis voiced their frustration at being stranded on the Greek side, briefly closing the border.
No charges for Chicago cop over shooting, but city police face wider probe
Video of Ronald Johnson III killing shows suspect had gun; US launches civil rights probe into Chicago policing
A Chicago officer will not be charged over the fatal shooting of a black man in the city in 2014, prosecutors announced Monday, as they released video footage that appeared to show the suspect armed but running from police during the incident.
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez said Ronald Johnson III “ignored” commands to stop and drop his weapon and added that the 25-year-old had pointed his gun at officers prior to being shot dead by officer George Hernandez. At a press briefing Monday, Alvarez also released dashcam footage of the shooting — a move long demanded by family members of Johnson.
In the footage, the suspect is seen running across a street with several officers in pursuit. Johnson runs off screen by the time he is struck and killed by two bullets. A slowed-down version of the video shows what appears to be a gun in his hand. A lawyer for the Johnson family said the investigation into the shooting was a “joke” and an affront to the man’s family and Cook County citizens.
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