The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Wednesday called for a moratorium on the sale and use of artificial intelligence (AI) systems that threaten human rights until adequate safeguards are in place to ensure the technology will not be abused. “We […]
Day: September 15, 2021
Storm Nicholas moves over Louisiana, drenching US Gulf coast
Storm Nicholas has weakened to a tropical depression as it crawls from Texas into southern Louisiana on Wednesday, unleashing heavy rain across a landscape where Hurricane Ida recently destroyed thousands of rooftops, now covered with flimsy tarpaulins. Forecasters said Nicholas would slow to a stall […]
Indigenous leaders urge action as Canada’s election nears
Toronto, Canada – After the discoveries this year of unmarked graves belonging to Indigenous children who attended schools of assimilation in Canada, Cindy Blackstock expected much more from the people who want to lead the country. “It’s gut-wrenching,” said Blackstock, a Gitxsan activist for child […]
First all-civilian space crew set to blast off on SpaceX rocket
SpaceX aimed to blast a billionaire into orbit Wednesday night with his two contest winners and a healthcare worker who survived childhood cancer. It’s the first chartered passenger flight for Elon Musk’s SpaceX and a big step in space tourism by a private company. “It […]
Brazil’s top court shelves Indigenous land case, no new date set
Brazil’s Supreme Court on Wednesday suspended a high-profile land rights case that Indigenous people in the South American nation say is vital for their survival, with no new date for when it will revisit the matter. The top court is weighing whether a state government […]
UK and US to help Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines
Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom have announced a new trilateral security partnership, including a joint effort to help the Australian military acquire nuclear-powered submarines, in an apparent push to counter China. The leaders of all three countries unveiled the alliance, dubbed AUKUS, […]
Biden asserts ‘confidence’ in embattled top US General Milley
US President Joe Biden has said he backs top US general Mark Milley, who faces mounting pressure to account for reports that he may have overstepped his authority during Donald Trump’s presidency. Biden has “complete confidence” in Milley, who serves as the chairman of the […]
DRC police beat reporter in crackdown against opposition protests
Police have beaten a journalist and fired tear gas to disperse a small crowd in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) capital, Kinshasa, during an opposition protest against alleged election meddling. Some 20 protesters gathered on Wednesday in response to a call by opposition […]
Sri Lankan prison minister resigns after alleged inmate threats
The government minister in charge of Sri Lanka’s prisons has submitted his resignation following public outcry after he allegedly threatened to kill two ethnic minority prisoners. Lohan Ratwatte tendered his resignation to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Wednesday and acknowledged his responsibility for both incidents, the […]
Sheikh Jarrah’s El-Kurd twins make TIME top 100 list
Palestinian rights activists Muna and Mohammed El-Kurd, whose family faces forced displacement from their home in the occupied East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, have been named to TIME magazine’s annual list of the 100 most-influential people in the world. The twins, aged 23, earlier […]