Postcards: Crippled by lake’s fluoride waters, Kenyan women struggle to survive
DOMINIC KIRUI, writing for Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports from Lake Baringo in Kenya…
Pandemic biggest hurdle for New Zealand’s Ardern after “tectonic” election
Wellington, New ZealandReuters Jacinda Ardern’s landslide election win gives her a mandate for the transformational change she has been promising New Zealand for three years, but the COVID-19 pandemic may limit what she can actually do. The Prime Minister’s signature achievement in all but eliminating the new coronavirus from the Pacific island nation through strict […]
US archbishop performs exorcism to cleanse protest site
San Rafael, California, USAP The Archbishop of San Francisco performed a short exorcism ceremony Saturday outside a Catholic church where protesters had earlier toppled a statue of Father Junipero Serra, saying the ceremony was intended to drive out evil and defend the image of Serra. Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone performed the ritual before some 150 supporters […]
French premier joins nationwide tributes to beheaded teacher
Paris, FranceAP France’s Prime Minister joined demonstrators on Sunday who rallied together across the country in tribute to a history teacher who was beheaded near Paris after discussing caricatures of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad with his class. The demonstrations came hours after US President Donald Trump sent France a message of solidarity in the wake of […]
Japan to test anti-virus measures at near-full baseball stadium
Tokyo, JapanReuters Yokohama Stadium will hold three baseball games at around 80 per cent capacity later this month as Japan looks to test its COVID-19 countermeasures at big events ahead of the rearranged Tokyo Olympics next year. Professional sports stadiums in Japan have been limited to 50 per cent capacity as part of efforts to […]
Native Americans fear votes in remote tribal lands could go uncounted
New York City, USThomson Reuters Foundation Colleen Benally, who lives on the Navajo Nation reservation in the American south-west, spends a lot of time in her car. Her daily commute takes three hours, and it’s a 245 kilometre drive to collect mail from the nearest post office. “It’s just normal for us that we don’t […]
Pope removes Polish bishop accused of sex abuse cover-up
Rome, ItalyAP Pope Francis on Saturday permanently removed a Polish bishop who was kicked out of his diocese a few months ago pending a Vatican investigation into allegations he covered up cases of sexual abuse by his priests. The resignation of Edward Janiak as Bishop of Kalisz suggests the Vatican was able to substantiate at […]
Churches and coronavirus: Masks keep churches from being superspreaders. But they make sermons tough
BOB SMIETANA, of Religion News Service, reports on how US preachers are coping with masks, church closures, online services and social distancing measures…