Global male fertility crisis: When a male born to a woman who smokes, his sperm count reduces by 50 per cent
For years, scientists across the world have gathered evidence showing declines in sperm quality. Now, new research compiling the results of those studies has found that sperm count has dropped dramatically around the world, and the rate of decline is accelerating. In a new analysis, researchers at Mount Sinai Medical...
DR Congo: Unresolved local conflicts, presence of foreign armies and poorly paid soldiers weaken combatants’ trust
A slow rollout of the Disarmament, Demobilisation, Community Recovery and Stabilisation Programme in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been undermined trust. Although President Felix Tshisekedi first called for a new DDR programme in 2019, the initiative is not yet operational, even with provincial and national coordinators appointed over...
Haiti’s forsaken women: They run own gangs for protection or collaborate with men, often with deadly results
While women are forcibly recruited io criminal gangs, others reluctantly join for protection or work, earning money by collecting information or stealing from homes, according to women who have fled gang-controlled areas and others working in such places who spoke on condition of anonymity out of security concerns. Some women...
Haitian gangs use rape to control women, who are now responding with own ‘Pink Iron’ gangs
It was love at first sight for Madeline*, who first met Baptiste* at a church retreat in Haiti’s southern port town of Les Cayes in 2002. As infatuated teenagers, they eventually wedded and settled in the Caribbean country’s capital, Port-au-Prince. With a growing family and unsteady work selling bottled sodas...
While US war industry revels in weapons heaven, the rest us on the planet huddle in hell on earth
In April this year, the United States offered attack helicopters worth $997 million to Nigeria, marking the latest stage in the warming of relations between the two countries that began early in President Donald Trump years. The Nigerian military, however, has committed torture on a massive scale while targeting thousands...
Non-state actors have the expertise to tackle conflict in northern Kenya but damaged trust in government’s a barrier
Conflict and insecurity have been synonymous with northern Kenya since independence. Thus, in recent weeks, cases of bandit attacks in the region have left villages terrorised and led to several deaths. In October 2022, the government launched a multi-agency security operation aimed at curbing further attacks. Northern Kenya is characterised...
Rohingya: We belong to Myanmar and Myanmar belongs to us…so calling us stateless is dehumanising
The use of the terms “stateless” or “statelessness” when referring to the Rohingya population is demotivating and inaccurate, says Aung Kyaw Moe, who serves as a human rights advisor to Myanmar’s National Unity Government – the civilian government-in-exile formed in the wake of the February 2021 military coup. Aung Kyaw...
Rohingya refugees in a catch-22 state: Life in refugee camps and exile is at risk as back home
As Southeast Asian leaders gather in the Cambodian capital this week for a regional summit, the escalating violence in Myanmar is atop the agenda, but Rohingya refugees and activists are urging that the plight of those driven out of the country is not forgotten. More than five years after escaping...
Researchers advocate for common standards for accounting, reporting and reducing military carbon emissions
No methodologies for tracking greenhouse gas emissions on military bases or in conflict areas have been published. Therefore, there is no data to help understand the impact of emissions linked to military base and aircraft. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is reportedly developing such a framework for its members....
While world’s largest militaries are heavy emitters green-house gases, this truth is hidden from public
The world’s militaries are heavy emitters of greenhouse gases. No one knows exactly how much. Estimates range between one percent and five per cent of global emissions, comparable with the aviation and shipping industries (two per cent each). Yet militaries are largely spared from emissions reporting. This must change, or...
