South Africa’s COVID-19 death toll much higher than official tally – report
Johannesburg, South AfricaReuters A South African report into excess deaths over the past year suggests more than 133,000 people in the country have died from COVID-19, far more than the official tally of nearly 55,000. The South African Medical Research Council has been monitoring excess deaths since May, 2020. A man walks past newspaper billboards […]
Gaza conflict intensifies with rocket barrages and air strikes
Gaza/JerusalemReuters Palestinian militants fired more rockets into Israel’s commercial heartland on Thursday as Israel kept up a punishing bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip and massed tanks and troops on the enclave’s border. Four days of cross-border fighting showed no sign of abating, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the campaign “will take more […]
More than 4,000 Indians die of COVID-19 for second straight day
Bengalaru/New Delhi, IndiaReuters India recorded more than 4,000 COVID-19 deaths for a second straight day on Thursday, while infections stayed below 400,000 for a fourth day, though the virus has become rampant in rural areas where cases can go unreported due to a lack of testing. Experts remain unsure when numbers will peak and concern […]
GreenSight: The ‘dudai’ or mandrake
ALVIN JOHNSON looks at the Biblical mentions of the mandrake, known in Hebrew as the ‘dudai’…
Pervis Staples, member of famed Staple Singers, dead at 85
Chicago, USAP Pervis Staples, whose tenor voice complemented his father’s and sisters’ in the legendary Gospel group The Staple Singers, has died, a spokesman announced Wednesday. He was 85. Pervis Staples died on 6th May at his home in Dalton, Illinois, according to Adam Ayers, a spokesman for Staples’ sister, Mavis Staples. The cause of […]
Muslims and Catholics in California’s Orange County to unite for Eid al-Fitr prayers
Los Angeles, USRNS Leaders at the Islamic Center of Fullerton, a growing congregation in Orange County, California, feared they would go a second year without gathering in person for Eid-al-Fitr prayers that mark the end of Ramadan. Normally, they’d host Eid prayers at a gym in a nearby park, but the pandemic posed challenges for […]
Thousands march in Colombia as President urges rejection of violence
Bogota/Cali, ColombiaReuters Union members, students, pensioners and workers marched in anti-government protests around Colombia on Wednesday, as President Ivan Duque urged citizens to reject violence and stereotypes about demonstrators and police alike. The sometimes deadly demonstrations were initially fueled in late April by outrage at a now-cancelled tax plan. But protesters’ demands have expanded to […]
“We are fed up”: Thousands pray at Portugal’s Fatima shrine for world without COVID-19
Fatima, Portugal Reuters Suffering from an autoimmune disease, 71-year-old Maria Emilia travels – often by foot – to one of Catholicism’s most famous sanctuaries in Portugal every year. But the coronavirus pandemic made her trip more important than ever. Standing in circles marked to maintain social distancing, Emilia joined about 7,500 other faithful at a […]
A matter of faith: Young evangelicals push to “build a bigger choir loft” for US climate action
LAURIE GOERING, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports on how some young evangelicals in the US are working to win over other evangelicals with regard to supporting climate action as an expression of their faith…
Latin America’s pandemic tragedy as death toll nears one million
Pisco, PeruReuters Hellen Ñañez has suffered enough tragedy for a lifetime. The Peruvian 28-year-old mother has mourned the death of 13 close relatives since the pandemic struck last year: uncles, cousins, a grandfather. Now her dad is fighting for his life. On a recent day in a dusty cemetery in the Pacific port town of […]