Preparing for a Changing ClimateCopenhagen’s Far-Reaching Transformation into a “Sponge City”

It’s shortly after 1 p.m. on a gray, Wednesday afternoon as Ditte Juul Sørensen, standing in a park in southern Copenhagen, talks about how she intends to flood the dog park should it become necessary. The green area used to consist merely of a sodden meadow, a decrepit playground and a couple of dirt paths. But over the last seven years, the 46-year-old landscape architect has completely transformed it.

Today, it marks the end of an invisible river that winds its way through Copenhagen, designed to save the city in the event of torrential rainfall.

Dire hygiene spells new threat for Morocco quake survivors

 In her earthquake-hit Moroccan town, Zina Mechghazzi has improvised a sink by placing a pink bucket and a bar of soap on the dusty ground amid the ruins.

“I haven’t taken a shower in seven days,” said the woman from Amizmiz at the foot of the High Atlas range, about 60 kilometres (40 miles) southwest of Marrakech.

“I’ve only washed my armpits and changed my clothes.”

Over a week since a 6.8-magnitude quake devastated parts of central Morocco, many worry that the dire living conditions and poor hygiene spell new threats for the survivors.

The disaster killed nearly 3,000 people and injured thousands more when it hit in Al-Haouz province, south of the tourist hub Marrakesh, on September 8.

Thousands of Australians rally for Indigenous rights vote

The Voice to Parliament would be a constitutionally-enshrined advisory body of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The proposal is slumping in opinion polls ahead of a referendum.

Thousands of people rallied across Australia on Sunday to show support for a Indigenous rights reform that is bleeding support in the polls ahead of a referendum next month.

The proposal would enshrine Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the constitution and would establish an advisory body that would consult the government on policies that affect them, known as the Voice to Parliament.

Rally organizers said around 20,000 people marched in Brisbane, Australia’s third-biggest city, while police estimate some 15,000 marched in Sydney and 10,000 in Melbourne.

Other rallies were held in Canberra, Perth, Darwin, Hobart, and the outback hub of Alice Springs.

Is one of Russia’s oldest allies slipping from the Kremlin’s orbit?

The arrival of US soldiers for a peacekeeper training exercise in Armenia has rankled the Russian government, which has for decades acted as the sole security guarantor for the former Soviet republic. The 10-day “Eagle Partner” exercise, which began Monday, involves 85 US and 175 Armenian soldiers and aims to prepare the Armenians to take part in international peacekeeping missions.

Russell Brand accused of sexual assault by four women

Dozens of children were left behind by UN personnel in Haiti. Their mothers want justice
By Caitlin Hu, Etant Dupain and Paula Newton
Video by CNN’s David von Blohn and Ladan Anoushfar

‘Utter destruction:’ Derna left like a war zone by Libya’s catastrophic flooding

Driving into Derna in the early hours was like arriving in a ghost town. The city, decimated by flash floods that tore through homes and streets earlier this week, was eerily quiet.
Even at night, damage and destruction could be seen everywhere you looked. In the light of day, a scene of utter devastation unfolded.

‘An unimaginable scene’: Survivors describe Libya floods

China denounces Europe investigation of EVs

Beijing has called a European Commission probe into Chinese electric vehicle subsidies, a “naked protectionist act.”

China on Thursday warned that looking into Chinese state subsidies for electric vehicles would have a “negative impact” on economic and trade ties between the bloc and Beijing.

The Chinese commerce ministry deemed the decision to launch the probe to have been motivated by a desire to protect European markets from competition.

What Beijing has said

“China believes the investigative measures proposed by the European Union are in reality to protect its own industry in the name of ‘fair competition’,” the Commerce Ministry said in a statement.

“It is a naked protectionist act that will seriously disrupt and distort the global automotive industry and supply chain, including the EU, and will have a negative impact on China-EU economic and trade relations,” it added.

Yemen’s Huthi rebels to visit Saudi Arabia, raising hopes of breakthrough in conflict

Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels are to fly to Riyadh for the first publicly announced visit since a Saudi-led military coalition opened hostilities in 2015, government and diplomatic sources said on Thursday.

The Huthis‘ visit, expected in the coming days, will raise hopes of a breakthrough in the quagmire conflict that has left hundreds of thousands dead through direct and indirect causes such as famine.

It comes five months after Saudi officials held talks in Sanaa, and as a UN-brokered ceasefire continues to largely hold despite officially lapsing in October.

“There are preparations for a Huthi delegation to visit Riyadh within the next 72 hours,” a Yemeni government official familiar with the situation told AFP.

A Western diplomat in Yemen confirmed the visit, saying it may take place within the next two days. Saudi officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ex-SDF sexual assault victim, lawmaker on Time’s emerging leaders list

Time magazine said Wednesday it has selected from Japan Rina Gonoi, a former Ground Self-Defense Force member who exposed the culture of sexual abuse within the service, and lawmaker Arfiya Eri, a former U.N. official of Uyghur descent, among this year’s 100 emerging world leaders.

“In Japanese society, speaking up about sexual violence has long been a taboo, but Rina’s courage has kicked the door open for all survivors,” the U.S. magazine said, referring to the 23-year-old who waived her right to anonymity and launched a public campaign last year to raise awareness about harassment she endured while in the GSDF.

The allegations led the Defense Ministry to dismiss a number of servicemen over the sexual assault and increase its efforts to address harassment.

Taiwan hits back at Elon Musk’s claim that it is ‘part of China’

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has hit back after Elon Musk called the self-ruled island an “integral part of China.”

Libya floods live news: Thousands dead, missing in Derna after Storm Daniel

• Officials in eastern Libya say more than 5,000 people have died in devastating floods caused by Storm Daniel.
• Aid agencies have so far provided lower estimates but warn the number of victims could sharply rise as thousands remain unaccounted.

Dams collapsing in Derna cause devastating floods

Philippine Nobel winner Maria Ressa acquitted of tax evasion

Ressa, the CEO and co-founder of investigative outlet Rappler, is a fierce critic of former Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte. She believes the charges against her are politically motivated.

A court in the Philippines on Tuesday acquitted investigative journalist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa of the final tax evasion charge that had been filed against her.

Ressa had a smile on her face as the judge delivered the acquittal, said AFP news agency. “You gotta have faith,” she told reporters outside the courtroom.

Iran’s regime has crushed anti-veil protests, but it has ‘lost the battle’ for credibility

One year after Mahsa Amini died in police custody, sparking nationwide protests, the Iranian regime has quashed all displays of public discontent. But the 2022 protest movement was not a lost cause and its impact on Iranian history cannot be undermined.

The crackdown was increasing, the screws of repression getting tighter, in the weeks leading up to the first death anniversary of Mahsa Amini, also known as Jina Amini.

The 22-year-old’s death in police custody on September 16, 2022, sparked protests across Iran for months until the authorities responded with brutal tactics, forcing protesters indoors or into exile. But with the anniversary of Amini’s death approaching, the regime was taking no chances.

Weeks ahead of the one-year milestone, the families of protesters killed by security forces were barred from holding commemorative gatherings at their graves, in what Amnesty International called the “cruellest restrictions”.  Several women’s rights activists were also detained and accused of planning events to mark the death anniversary, according to Human Rights Watch.

1st round of treated water release off Fukushima plant completed

About 7,800 tons of treated radioactive water has been discharged into the sea from the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in the first round of disposal as planned, the plant operator said Monday.

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc began the discharge of water that, despite concerns voiced by local fishermen and strong opposition from China, contained tritium levels below the prescribed limits. The release, which started on Aug. 24, is carried out under the monitoring of the Japanese government and the International Atomic Energy Agency.

As the volume of processed water, a result of cooling melted nuclear fuel, approached the plant’s storage capacity limit, TEPCO decided to release approximately 31,200 tons of this water in four rounds during the current fiscal year through March.

House of Representatives to open Biden impeachment inquiry