Myanmar’s shadow civilian government on Friday pledged to grant citizenship to the country’s ethnic Rohingya if it regains power from the military, as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) held talks with the junta about the ongoing political crisis prompted by its February coup d’état.

In a rare news conference, the National Unity Government (NUG) comprised of Myanmar’s ousted elected leadership said that it plans to amend the country’s constitution to give citizenship to the mostly Muslim ethnic group that was the target of a brutal military crackdown in Rakhine state in 2017.

Source: Myanmar’s Shadow Civilian Government Pledges to Grant Rohingya Citizenship on Return to Power — Radio Free Asia

Source: Brazil’s Amazon deforestation reaches record level for May – The Washington Post

Sea ice across much of the Arctic is thinning twice as fast as previously thought, researchers have found.

Arctic ice is melting as the climate crisis drives up temperatures, resulting in a vicious circle in which more dark water is exposed to the sun’s heat, leading to even more heating of the planet.

The faster ice loss means the shorter north-eastern shipping passage from China to Europe will become easier to navigate, but it also means new oil and gas extraction is more feasible.

Source: Arctic sea ice thinning twice as fast as thought, study finds | Arctic | The Guardian

Among hospitalized adolescents, nearly one-third required intensive care unit admissions and 5% required invasive mechanical ventilation. Of the hospitalized adolescents and teens, nearly 30% had no underlying conditions. “Much of this suffering can be prevented,” Walensky said, noting that adolescents and teens older than age 12 are now eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Source: CDC: Rate of COVID-19 hospitalization rising in adolescents, teens – UPI.com