Day: March 6, 2023

UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations secretary-general warned Monday at the start of a major women’s conference that at the current pace, gender equality is projected to be 300 years away. “Progress won over decades is vanishing before our eyes,” Antonio Guterres said at the start of the Commission on the Status of Women. The CSW, as it is known, is expected to draw more than 4,000 government ministers, diplomats and civil society members for the annual two-week-long gathering to discuss how to improve the lives of women around the…

ANKARA, TURKEY — One month after a powerful quake devastated parts of Turkey and Syria, hundreds of thousands of people still need adequate shelter and sanitation, and an appeal for $1 billion to assist survivors is only 10% funded, hampering efforts to tackle the humanitarian crisis, a United Nations official said Monday. The February 6 earthquake and strong aftershocks have killed more than 46,000 people in Turkey, destroyed or damaged around 230,000 buildings and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless — making it the worst disaster in Turkey’s modern…

WASHINGTON — The Russian invasion of Ukraine has triggered an unprecedented wave of U.S. sanctions on Russia. In the year since the onslaught, the U.S. The Treasury Department has sanctioned about 2,400 entities and individuals, while the Commerce Department has imposed prohibitive controls on exports to Russia and its ally Belarus. While the Biden administration says the restrictions have “significantly degraded” Russia’s military-industrial complex and supply chains, it appears equally concerned that Moscow has proved increasingly adept at skirting the sanctions. Using intermediaries, Russian companies continue to ship oil across…

YAOUNDE, CAMEROON — A military court in Cameroon over the weekend charged a media mogul, a military officer, and a police commissioner with complicity in the January torture and killing of journalist Martinez Zogo. Cameroon laws state that crimes involving the use of weapons especially guns can be handled by a military court. Cameroon President Paul Biya also ordered the military court to carry out the investigation into Zogo’s death which led to media owner Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga, a police boss, and several officers being detained last month. Journalists in…

CAIRO — As the Egyptian economy struggles against negative headwinds from many directions, some sectors appear to be performing well. Ordinary Egyptians are buying lower-end merchandise as their purchasing power is eroded by inflation and the effects of Egypt’s weakening currency on the prices of imported goods. President Abdel Fattah el Sisi told a gathering of international leaders several months ago that the Russia-Ukraine conflict was seriously affecting Egypt’s economy. Egypt buys most of its grain from Russia and Ukraine and the price of importing wheat for a population of…