Global hunger could double due to COVID-19 blow, says UN
Genevam Switzerland/Washington DC, USReuters The number of people facing acute food insecurity could nearly double this year to 265 million due to the economic fallout of COVID-19, the United Nations’ World Food Programme said on Tuesday. The impact of lost tourism revenues, falling remittances and travel and other restrictions linked to the coronavirus pandemic are […]
Global coronavirus cases pass 2.5 million as US tally surpasses 800,000
Reuters Global coronavirus infections surpassed 2.5 million on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally, with US cases surpassing 800,000. The figure includes more than 170,000 deaths, two-thirds of which have been reported in Europe. A nurse wipes away tears as she stands outside NYU Langone Medical Center on 1st Avenue in Manhattan as New York […]
Road to recovery: Australia eases restrictions as coronavirus spread slows
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Declaring Australia was on the road to recovery with new coronavirus infections almost stamped out, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday hospitals will resume many elective surgeries and schools will be re-opened for more children. As part of broad social distancing restrictions, Australia in March banned all non-emergency surgeries to free-up hospital […]
Militants show kidnapped priest in Niger
BosNewsLife Islamic militants have shown a video of an Italian priest who was kidnapped in Niger in September, 2018, in the first proof of life since his abduction, Catholic aid workers confirmed. Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) said it saw the 23 second video featuring Pierluigi Maccalli earlier this month. ACN […]
Actor Idris Elba launches UN coronavirus fund for poor farmers
Barcelona, SpainThomson Reuters Foundation British actor and filmmaker Idris Elba launched a new United Nations fund on Monday to help farmers in poorer nations, calling on richer economies to provide aid to prevent “needless hunger and suffering” stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. Elba and his wife, model and activist Sabrina Dhowre Elba, gave their support […]
Italy’s lockdown labour crunch sparks fears of mafia exploitation
Rome, ItalyThomson Reuters Foundation Mafia exploitation of immigrants on farms in Italy is likely to rise as the coronavirus lockdown brings chronic labour shortages, the government and labour rights groups have warned. Italy normally depends on 370,000 foreign workers to bring in its harvest, but travel restrictions to stop the spread of the virus have […]
Rule or own?
One of the very interesting developments in Western civilization was the separation between the right to rule and ownership. PICTURE: Pro Church Media/Unsplash Not that long ago, to own was to rule – and to rule implied ownership. Kings, governors, lords, husbands owned those under them. It was a huge intellectual leap to separate these things. It allowed the democratic system to […]
The loneliness pandemic: How the quarantined are grappling with solitude and faith
CLAIRE GIANGRAVÉ, of Religion News Service, reports on how people in Italy are coping with quarantine restrictions and social isolation…
A grave concern: Coronavirus highlights burial plot shortages in cities
Bangkok, Thailand/Johannesburg, South AfricaThomson Reuters Foundation The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the problem of scarce burial space in cities, even as health concerns and tight budgets force more families to opt against traditional grave burials, land rights experts said on Monday. As cities around the world have rapidly expanded in recent decades, urban cemeteries have […]
Essay: How to build community while worshipping online
In an article first published on The Conversation, HEIDI A CAMPBELL, US academic and author of ‘Exploring Religious Community Online’, looks at what her research shows about taking Christian communities online…