In a video message to a conference sponsored by the Italian government, Leo XIV warns of the growth of obsessive Internet use, which is increasingly accompanying drug abuse. For the pontiff, “human and spiritual proposals” must counteract emptiness.
In India's federal capital – which has topped the list of the world's most polluted cities for over ten years – the first silver iodide rockets have been launched with the aim of causing artificial rain. The Centre for Atmospheric Sciences is sceptical, calling it an ‘improper application of science’ for political propaganda purposes.
The decision not to recruit music and phys ed teachers comes in for harsh criticism. For a choir director, it “is like removing a part of our humanity.” Human Rights Forum Bangladesh urges politicians to resist “unreasonable demands." Youth protests at the capital's university. Student told AsiaNews that “an entire generation” is “at risk of cultural impoverishment.”
The Minister of Home Affairs has announced firm measures to prevent attacks or clashes amid “growing global tensions” caused by the war in Gaza and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He met with the Jewish community at the Chesed-El Synagogue and confirmed the much-debated “Friends of Israel Annual Aliyah Gala Dinner.” However, the funds raised will not go to the settlers.
With Russia's doors increasingly closed due to nationalist tensions, nurses, labourers and bricklayers are now looking to Germany thanks to agreements signed by Berlin with the government in Tashkent. Meanwhile, the Uzbek population is set to reach 40 million, with a severe shortage of jobs at home.
Today's headlines: truce in Gaza and two-state solution at the Vatican meeting between Pope Leo and Abbas. Pyongyang launched a ballistic missile off the east coast. A hundred Indonesian activists protest against the granting of national hero status to former President Suharto. The area under opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan is reduced by a further 20%. In 2024, over 53,000 people killed by pollution in Iran.
