Новости за 05.04.2017

Hundreds of Asian workers pay recruitment fees for jobs building World Cup stadiums in Qatar and some end up working for nearly five months without a day of rest, according to an investigation funded by the Gulf state's World Cup organizing body. Conditions for workers from India, Nepal and Bangladesh powering a $200 billion infrastructure upgrade for the 2022 World Cup have come under scrutiny from rights groups who say migrants live in squalor and work without proper access to water and shelter. Читать дальше...

With a Supreme Court vacancy hanging in the balance, the U.S. Senate is poised to make a historic change in its voting rules Thursday, with members of both parties warning of perils that could alter the chamber. Republicans are expected to use their majority to change Senate rules and eliminate the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees, a move that has been called the "nuclear option" as it would erode minority party rights in the chamber. "We are in a terrible place," said Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona... Читать дальше...

Thousands of protesters, mainly students, rallied for the third straight night in Belgrade on Wednesday to protest against the overwhelming victory of Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic in a weekend presidential election. Throngs gathered in front of the Serbian parliament, blowing whistles and chanting "Vucic, you stole the election" and "End the dictatorship". Their numbers swelled as they marched through the city center. Protesters said they see Vucic as an autocrat and his Serbian Progressive... Читать дальше...

The United States may soon extend its ban on computers in the cabin on some flights from the Middle East and Africa to more airports, the head of Homeland Security confirmed Wednesday. Secretary John Kelly told a Senate committee that the Department of Homeland Security may "take measures in the not too distant future to expand the number of airports" affected by restrictions on laptops and tablet computers over concerns that terrorists may target commercial aviation by concealing explosives in larger electronics. Читать дальше...

Islamic State’s brazen overnight attack on Tikrit, killing at least 31 security personnel and civilians, is part of a series of diversionary attacks designed to mask its mounting losses in Mosul and portray that it has strength elsewhere in Iraq, analysts say. “IS might carry these attacks everywhere in Iraq,” said Michael Knights of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a research institution. Eighteen Iraqi police officers were among the dead in a series of coordinated strikes claimed... Читать дальше...

South Africa's African National Congress "closed ranks" around President Jacob Zuma after two key allies of the ruling party called for his resignation following a cabinet reshuffle that cost the country one of its investment-grade credit ratings. The rand fell more than 1 percent and bonds weakened after ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe told a news briefing on Wednesday that the ANC would not support removing Zuma, whose party leadership role ends in December. Zuma's presidential term will finish in 2019. Читать дальше...

More than 816,000 South Sudanese flee, citing violence and hunger at home.

A group representing a majority of European Union lawmakers said on Wednesday they wanted the European Parliament to start disciplinary proceedings against Hungary after a crackdown on foreign universities pushed by Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Hungary's parliament approved a law on Tuesday that could force out a university founded by financier George Soros — the Central European University (CEU) — despite international condemnation and protests by thousands of Hungarians. Also on Wednesday,... Читать дальше...

Country star Alan Jackson, actor-singer-guitarist Jerry Reed and songwriter Don Schlitz will be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame later this year. Their selection was announced Wednesday. Jackson, 58, from Newnan, Georgia, broke out in 1990 with his neo-traditional style of honky-tonk country music that earned him several multiplatinum records. His hit songs include "Chattahoochee," ''She's Got the Rhythm (And I Got the Blues)" and "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)." Jackson... Читать дальше...

The Pew Research Center says Muslims are soon to rival Christians as the largest religious group worldwide, with higher birth rates among Muslim families predicted to increase the Muslim population to a number ties with Christians by 2060. Pew said in a study released Wednesday that by 2060 Muslims will make up about 31 percent of the world population, with about 3 billion people, while Christians will make up about 32 percent, or 3.1 billion people. A Pew study two years ago found that Islam... Читать дальше...

After six months of post-election deadlock, Morocco's King Mohammed VI on Wednesday named a new cabinet led by the main Islamist party, which lost a key ministry in negotiations with rivals, the state news agency MAP said. The Islamist Justice and Development (PJD) party won elections in October, but the formation of a government was delayed during negotiations with parties who critics say were too close to royalists uneasy with sharing power with Islamists. Under Moroccan law no party can win... Читать дальше...

Istrian olive oil is the best

Venezuela's opposition lawmakers, some carrying injuries from this week's protests, on Wednesday sought the dismissal of Supreme Court judges whom they accuse of propping up a socialist dictatorship. Newly militant opposition leaders also announced another round of demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro for Thursday, despite chaos and violence in Caracas on Tuesday that left 20 injured and 18 arrested. The opposition, which won control of the National Assembly in late 2015, accuses Maduro... Читать дальше...

Humanitarian groups operating rescue ships off the coast of Libya picked up more than 700 migrants out of seven flimsy and overcrowded boats on Wednesday, Italy's coast guard said. The Phoenix rescue ship, operated by the Malta-based non-governmental organization MOAS, rescued more than 300 people from three boats in international waters off the coast of the Libyan city of Sabratha. The Aquarius, operated by SOS Mediterranee and Doctors without Borders, went to the aid of four rubber boats, a coast guard spokesman said. Читать дальше...

The World Cup champion women's soccer team has a new labor contract, settling a dispute in which the players sought equitable wages to their male counterparts. The agreement with the U.S. Soccer Federation runs through 2021, meaning the players will be under contract through the 2019 World Cup in France and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The women will receive raises in base pay and bonuses as well as better provisions for travel and accommodations. "We are proud of the hard work and commitment to... Читать дальше...

My Little Clean Air Space

International donors pledged $6 billion in aid for war-ravaged Syria on Wednesday as the U.N. Security Council held emergency talks over a suspected chemical attack that killed dozens in a rebel-held province.   Donors from more than 70 countries meeting at a conference on Syria in Brussels made a “collective pledge of $6 billion for this year alone,” EU Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Christos Stylianides said.     Stylianides described the pledge - which appeared to approach the conference hosts'... Читать дальше...

As Britain begins the process of leaving the European Union, it is trying to rekindle old trade links with Commonwealth countries. However, the push for new commerce has sparked a debate on the historical legacy of the British Empire, with accusations that ministers are trying to whitewash atrocities committed during colonial times. British Chancellor Philip Hammond arrived in India for a three-day trip to, in his government's words, "Bang the drum for British business." The quest for new Commonwealth... Читать дальше...

Nigeria's Federal High Court on Wednesday charged a former oil minister with money-laundering in an election bribery scandal over efforts to ensure former President Goodluck Jonathan won the 2015 election. Diezani Allison-Madueke is the first minister from Jonathan's Cabinet to be formally charged. Prosecutors allege that she paid bribes totaling 264 million naira (nearly $1.4 million at the time) to three electoral officials the day before the March 2015 elections. A former national security... Читать дальше...

Germany has threatened to slap social media companies with huge fines if they do not act quickly enough to remove “hate speech” from their websites. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet on Wednesday approved a measure that would fine websites like Facebook and Twitter up to $55 million if they do not do enough to censor comments that violate German speech law. "Hate crimes that are not effectively combatted and prosecuted pose a great danger to the peaceful cohesion of a free, open and democratic... Читать дальше...

Switzerland and Italy are in a diplomatic dispute over Switzerland's decision to close three secondary border crossings at night in a bid to fight crime. Italy's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned the Swiss ambassador for urgent talks, emphasizing that the closings violate Europe's norms on free circulation. In an email, the press office of the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs said Ambassador Giancarlo Kessler "took note" of the message from Italian authorities and pledged to keep them informed... Читать дальше...

A look at the best news photos from around the world.

Congo's president said Wednesday he would appoint a prime minister within 48 hours as a political impasse looms, and he promised that long-delayed presidential elections would take place without saying when. President Joseph Kabila's comments to parliament were his first since his party reached a deal with the opposition on Dec. 31 to hold elections without him by the end of this year. Concerns have grown about the deal's implementation. Catholic bishops who mediated the talks walked away last week... Читать дальше...

Shaka Ssali discusses the book “Against All Odds” with Cameroonian lawyer and author of the book, Angelle B. Kwemo, and discusses The Immigrant Magazine with Pamela Asobo Anchang, Publisher/Editor-In-Chief, of The Immigrant Magazine Inc.

Ebay founder Pierre Omidyar's philanthropy promised $100 million over the next five years to support journalism and fight fake news, the foundation announced Wednesday. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which broke the story of the controversial Panama Papers, is the first organization to receive funds from the Omidyar Network - a three-year grant of up to $4.5 million "to expand its investigative reporting". "Across the world, we see a worrying resurgence of authoritarian... Читать дальше...