More than 100 days after the environmental disaster, over 60,000 people in the northern districts of Sri Lanka are living in makeshift accommodation. ‘The relief centres don't even have drinking water,’ they complain. The effects of the disaster compound the historical discrimination suffered by the tea plantation workers’ community. Fifteen petitions have been submitted to the president and the government.
The death of the patriarch who had led the Georgian Orthodox Church since 1977 and the fiftieth anniversary of the episcopal consecration of the patriarch of Moscow: two stories celebrated in the ‘Russian world’ as ‘heroism of faith resisting heresy’. Yet they also reveal the continuity between present-day Russia and the Stalinist era.
The Vatican has issued an appeal against investments in activities that harm the environment and people, especially Indigenous peoples. The initiative, supported by 45 organisations, calls on religious institutions to review their use of financial instruments in light of the notion of “integral ecology" proposed by the encyclical Laudato Si'. For Cardinal Fabio Baggio, this is “An act of coherence with our faith, with the defence of human dignity.”
The Turkish government is ready to invest up to US$ 100 billion to build eight new reactors over the next 10 years. Projects are being considered with several global partners, from Russia and China to Canada and South Korea. The country has been barely touched by the war so far, but the upcoming July NATO summit could provide an opportunity to rethink its place in the Alliance. Meanwhile, the conflict has had consequences for travel and tourism.
The re-election of the incumbent prime minister marks an unprecedented development in Thai politics ruled over the past two decades by fragile governments and military intervention. Bhumjaithai won a majority and formed a broad coalition, at the expense of progressive movements and the demands of the younger generations. Tensions with Cambodia and the risk of economic stagnation remain in the background.
Under the spotlight today because one Iranian missile hit Tel Aviv, cluster bombs continue to be used in contemporary conflicts by many countries that are not signatories to the Convention banning them. In 2024, at least 314 civilians were killed or wounded, nearly half of them children. The greatest danger remains unexploded submunitions, which cause victims for decades. In September of this year, Laos, still the most heavily bombed country in the world, will host the third Review Conference.
