Pointy-eared and short-haired, the Jindo dog is a symbol of South Korea, where breeders and authorities keep its bloodline even purer than one of the world’s least diverse societies. The medium-sized hunting dog comes from the island of the same name, a remote rural community off the peninsula’s south coast. Visitors are greeted by signboards … Read more
Bangladesh is using “draconian” internet laws to crack down on dissent, curb public debate and criticism and harass and prosecute journalists, Amnesty International said Tuesday. “The Bangladeshi government treats journalism as if it were a crime,” said Olof Blomqvist, the group’s researcher, in a report entitled “Caught between fear and repression: Attacks on freedom of … Read more
Armed groups in the Central African Republic (CAR) have killed at least 45 civilians in apparent reprisal strikes over the past three months, a human-rights watchdog says in a new report. The violence pitted armed groups against one another in the central province of Ouaka, which is at the border of the mainly Muslim north … Read more
Facebook has denied it is targeting insecure young people in order to push advertising, amid a row over a leaked document. A research paper, reported on but not published by The Australian newspaper, was said to go into detail about how teenage users post about self-image, weight loss and other issues. Facebook confirmed the research … Read more
The ongoing debate about the AMERI deal and questions about its genuity and or rather ingenuity remains with former Minister of State Vicky Bright joining in the controversial discussions. For her, the previous NDC government and the energy ministry is solely responsible for the leakage of some government documents which were vital for the contract … Read more
An Afghan strongman is giving sanctuary to Taliban fighters and their families who had sought haven across the border in Pakistan, building on a radical strategy to reduce Islamabad’s perceived influence on the insurgency. Kandahar’s powerful police chief Abdul Raziq last December called for a “safe zone” for Taliban militants, a contentious plan centred on … Read more
High-tech dating of mastodon remains found in southern California has shattered the timeline of human migration to America, pushing the presence of hominins back to 130,000 years ago rather than just 15,000 years, researchers said Wednesday. Teeth and bones of the elephant-like creature unmistakably modified by human hands, along with stone hammers and anvils, leave … Read more
It’s not only in life that humans leave their mark on nature. In death, our decomposing corpses alter the chemistry of precious soil, scientists have warned. Whether our bodies are buried or cremated, they leach iron, zinc, sulphur, calcium and phosphorus into ground that may later be used as farms, forests or parks. They are … Read more
China has launched its first domestically designed and built aircraft carrier, state media said Wednesday, as the country seeks to transform its navy into a force capable of projecting power onto the high seas. Adorned with colourful ribbons, the Type 001A ship “transferred from dry dock into the water at a launch ceremony” in the … Read more
Newborn humpback whales and their mothers whisper to each other to escape potential predators, scientists reported Wednesday, revealing the existence of a previously unknown survival technique. “They don’t want any unwanted listeners,” researcher Simone Videsen, lead author of a study published in Functional Ecology, told AFP. “Potential predators such as killer whales could listen to … Read more
Chocolate addicts, it’s probably a good time to start stocking up. The treats may not be this cheap much longer. Cocoa’s 42 per cent slump over the last 12 months makes it the worst performer among 34 commodities tracked by Bloomberg. Prices tumbled as output increased in Cote d’Ivoire, the world’s top grower, and the … Read more
A Chinese court indefinitely postponed the trial of a prominent human rights lawyer on Tuesday, his supporters said, in a case that has sparked international concern after allegations he was tortured. Xie Yang, who had worked on numerous cases considered politically sensitive by the ruling Communist Party, was among hundreds of legal staff and activists … Read more
Yes, marijuana is known for its ~mind-altering~ effects, but weed doesn’t stop there. If you’re a person who’s ever toked up and then gotten down, you know weed can have a… noticeable effect on your sex life. Here are 14 ways weed can affect sex, because I couldn’t quite come up with 420. 1. Doing … Read more
The Prof Kwasi Botchwey Committee tasked to investigate the cause of the defeat handed the National Democratic Congress in the 2016 elections has been given at most a month’s extension to conclude its report. The extension of the deadline is allow for the committee to meet all interest groups some of whom are still yearning … Read more
The Ugandan army said Wednesday it has neutralised the Lord’s Resistance Army, as troops began withdrawing from the Central African Republic where they had been hunting the group’s feared leader Joseph Kony. “The decision to withdraw was premised on the realisation that the mission to neutralise the LRA has now been successfully achieved,” Ugandan army … Read more
Before tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians marched before him, along with some of the most fearsome weapons at his command, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and his audience were shown portraits of his grandfather and father. Pyongyang’s giant weekend parade was intended as a show of military strength aimed at Washington, Seoul, Tokyo … Read more
Egyptian Coptic Christians observed Easter Mass under tight security on Saturday with the ancient minority still reeling from twin church bombings that killed dozens just days before. In Saint Mark’s Cathedral, where Coptic Pope Tawadros II led the mass, worshippers passed through three metal detectors as policemen and soldiers stood guard in the sprawling compound … Read more
Egyptian Copts will celebrate Easter mass on Saturday, marking one of Christianity’s most joyous occasions just days after the deadliest attacks in living memory against the country’s religious minority. The faithful will spend a large part of Easter eve going through arduous security checks outside places of worship, after twin Palm Sunday bombings killed 45 … Read more
For his whole life, Hausa trader Bashiru Tanko has lived peacefully alongside the Yoruba people of Ile-Ife in southwest Nigeria. Originally from the northern city of Kano, Tanko’s father settled in the Sabo area of the city, where he built a prosperous family business. “I was born and bred in this town. Even though my … Read more
Nigeria handed down an astonishing 527 death sentences in 2016, three times more than the previous year, in what Amnesty International described Tuesday as a “massive and worrying spike”. In its annual global report on the death penalty, the human rights group said that death sentences in Nigeria rose from 171 in 2015, placing it … Read more