In a region where over 100 million people will be living by 2025, the traditional model of trade in raw materials and finished goods is being superseded, with an increasing focus on the coordinated creation of added value. Berlin is able to offer cutting-edge solutions for the green transition and make a vital contribution to the development of human capital.
Today’s headlines: the family of Iranian Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi: “She has lost 20 kilos in prison and her life is at risk”; Eswatini excluded from China’s zero-tariff policy in Africa due to its relations with Taiwan; A new gambling zone has been established in Russia on the border with China.
Kuwait-born US journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin was arrested and had his passport revoked for publishing the video of a US fighter jet crashing. A similar measure was taken against 21 other people, including two sisters. Bahrain has revoked the citizenship of 69 people accused of sympathies with Iran. Activists see the conflict as giving the authorities an “opportunity to crack down even harder”.
One year after its "China Target" report on Beijing's repression of dissidents abroad, the international consortium behind major probes like the Panama Papers is reporting suspicious attempts to access emails and sensitive data. According to researchers at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, private contractors are behind the operations of China's growing government-sponsored commercial hacking industry.
FIFA has decided to allow Afghan players to represent their country in international women’s competitions, despite the Taliban's failure to recognise them. At the same time, Afghan men are expelled from Europe under controversial agreements, while the country is still in the grips of a serious humanitarian crisis. Al-Qaeda backs the Taliban against the Pakistani government.
The work affects the property of the historic St. Mark's Church, founded in 1882. For its pastor, Rev Din, three times more land has been taken without the church’s consent. Protesters are calling on Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif to act. The protest reflects minority concerns over land rights and the protection of religious property.
