Argentine man cleared in deadly bombing at Jewish centre
Buenos Aires, ArgentinaAP A court said Wednesday it has cleared the only Argentine still facing charges in the 1994 bombing that killed 85 people at a Jewish cultural centre in the nation’s capital. The federal court ruling came after former auto dealer Carlos Telleldín again denied knowing that the truck he sold would be used […]
Debt to personal data: Five threats to digital rights in Africa in 2020
Johannesburg, South Africa/Nairobi, KenyaThomson Reuters Foundation From internet blackouts to contact tracing apps, digital rights across Africa were spotlighted in 2020 as millions of people were forced online to work, study and socialise amid lockdowns to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus. Rights advocates and research groups raised concerns that measures enacted to curb […]
As California’s hospitals fill, Kirk Cameron hosts another unmasked Christmas carolling event
Los Angeles, USRNS The actor-turned-evangelical Christian activist Kirk Cameron led a large outdoor Christmas carolling event Tuesday night in Thousand Oaks, California, despite a COVID-19 surge that is filling hospital beds across the southern part of the state. The event, which took place in the parking lot of The Oaks mall, about 65 kilometres west […]
Kashmir parties opposed to Modi win seats in local polls
Srinigar, IndiaAP An alliance of political parties opposed to India’s policies in Kashmir has won a majority of seats in local elections, the first since New Delhi revoked the disputed region’s semiautonomous status and took direct control last year. The alliance, which is pro-India but favours self-governance in Kashmir, won 112 out of a total […]
Books: From the Vatican’s table to yours – new Christmas cookbook a culinary masterpiece
CLEMENTE LISI, in an article first published on Religion Unplugged, takes a hands-on approach to his review of ‘The Vatican Christmas Cookbook’…
Dogs ease pandemic isolation for nursing home residents in New York
New York City, USAP Eileen Nagle sees her family in video chats and drive-by visits, but that hasn’t made up for the lack of warm hugs in the nine months since the pandemic led her nursing home to shut its doors to visitors. Enter Zeus. “Zeus is a friendly little snowball, very happy,” said Nagle, […]
StrangeSights: Wearing someone else’s face; a bottler of a mystery; and, the world’s “ugliest” orchid…
DAVID ADAMS writes about the odder side of life…
US study shows Gen Z is lukewarm about religion, but open to relationships
RNS More than half of teens and young adults who say they are affiliated with an organised religion also say they have little or no trust in organised religion. In other words, they are involved in religious institutions on paper but are disengaged at some level because they don’t trust religious institutions – even the […]
Mexico alleges Luz del Mundo, four other groups laundered money
Mexico City, MexicoAP Mexican investigators said Tuesday they have filed money-laundering complaints against five religious groups in Mexico, including the Luz del Mundo church whose leader is charged in the United States with child rapes. The announcement from the Financial Intelligence Unit did not identify the groups involved in the complaints. But an official, who […]
Homeless advocates organise against Sean Feucht’s upcoming outreach in Skid Row
Los Angeles, USRNS Advocates for the residents of LA’s Skid Row neighborhood are organising against a planned appearance by Christian recording artist Sean Feucht in the community, which has one of the highest rates of homelessness in the country. “They have a reputation of basically drawing tons of unmasked people where they go. If that’s […]