Tag Archives: WorldNews

‘Enigmatic’ skull shows modern humans were in Eurasia earlier than previously thought

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Early modern humans had made their way as far north as Greece 210,000 years ago, earlier than previously thought.

Yazmin Juárez delivers searing testimony on death of her daughter in Ice custody – video

In the House oversight committee, Yazmin Juárez, whose 21-month old baby daughter died in Ice custody, delivered searing testimony before Congress on Wednesday afternoon. ‘We came to the United States where I hoped to build a better safer life for us,’ said Juárez. ‘Instead I watched my baby girl die slowly and painfully just a few months before her second birthday’

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Vladimir Putin’s Russia is rehabilitating Stalin. We must not let it happen | Irina Sherbakova

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An archive of artefacts from Stalin’s brutal reign should stand as evidence against Putin’s vision of a ‘heroic’ Soviet past

• Irina Sherbakova was a founding member of the human rights organisation Memorial

Great expectations characterised 1989. In Russia, the rock band Kino sang “We are waiting for changes!” In huge public rallies on the streets of Moscow, millions demanded freedom and democracy. The Gorbachev era brought about a frenzy of change, and people witnessed incredible events on a weekly basis: they snatched up newspapers, hung on every word broadcast on TV, and with every passing day they felt more alive and free.

Related: ‘Homage to evil’: Russian activists detained over Stalin protest

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Trump calls May foolish as diplomatic row escalates

How not to make friends and influence people

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President criticises prime minister after Downing Street backs UK ambassador to US

Theresa May is facing a full-blown diplomatic standoff with the US after Donald Trump condemned Britain’s “stupid” Washington ambassador over leaked memos critical of the White House, as Downing Street insisted Sir Kim Darroch had its full support.

The escalating crisis began after a Sunday newspaper printed extracts of confidential memos in which Darroch labelled Trump’s administration “inept” and “dysfunctional”. The US president announced on Monday he would no longer deal with the ambassador.

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Planting trees can help save the planet – but only if governments put people first | Stephen Woroniecki

Not if they are industrial plantations!

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Nature-based solutions to the climate crisis must work with vulnerable communities, not leave them to pick up the bill

A new study extols the “mindblowing” potential of widespread tree planting as a solution to climate breakdown. The scientists claim that 1bn hectares of treeless land could be forested – an area equivalent to the size of the US – and the study’s authors say restoration of such areas could remove two-thirds (205 gigatonnes) of all the carbon dioxide emissions pumped into the atmosphere by human activities since the 1800s.

A number of organisations and scientists are investigating these nature-based climate solutions. While studies show different levels of ambition and potential, all are clear that carefully restored ecosystems can help solve three interlinked crises: the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and poverty. For climate, the most urgent priority to meet the goal of keeping global heating below 1.5C is decarbonising the economy, but restoring our forests, grasslands and wetlands, plus enhancing soil health, could provide part of the solution to the climate crisis. Land restoration and stewardship can both help stabilise the Earth’s climate by storing carbon, and provide ecosystems critical for wildlife – forests, mangroves, wetlands and coral reefs. This can also benefit local communities, particularly in emerging regions of the global south least responsible for this crisis and already suffering most severely from the impacts.

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Boris Johnson displays why he will be most ill-qualified PM of modern times | Martin Kettle

Smirks, smugness and self-love will not deter predominantly rightwing, old, white and male Tory voters

Tuesday night’s televised debate on ITV between Jeremy Hunt and Boris Johnson is the only chance the public will get to see the two candidates to succeed Theresa May argue their points head-to-head. But it won’t change anything.

Related: We’d be better off picking someone at random and giving them keys to No 10 | John Crace

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