Month: July 2021

The little girl wearing a red Mickey and Minnie Mouse tee-shirt was firm. “The rulers of this country are all trash,” she pronounced with indignation, and “they should resign; it would be better if someone from any other country came to rule us,” she told the host of a talk show on Lebanon’s MTV channel. “We cannot get anything.  There is no medicine, no Internet, no fuel,” she said. The audience applauded. The host sighed.  Since Marita Derzeh’s pronouncements, made July 15, the plight of her small Mediterranean country has only worsened, and while the youngster’s comments might reflect the …

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The Tokyo Olympic organizing committee fired the director of the opening ceremony on Thursday because of a Holocaust joke he made during a comedy show in 1998. Organizing committee president Seiko Hashimoto said a day ahead of the opening ceremony that director Kentaro Kobayashi has been dismissed. He was accused of using a joke about the Holocaust in his comedy act, including the phrase “Let’s play Holocaust.” “We found out that Mr. Kobayashi, in his own performance, has used a phrase ridiculing a historical tragedy,” Hashimoto said. “We deeply apologize for causing such a development the day before the opening …

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Indian farmers, protesting over three new farm laws they say threaten their livelihoods, will start a sit-in near parliament in the center of the capital New Delhi in a renewed push to pressure the government to repeal the laws. In the longest-running growers’ protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, tens of thousands of farmers have camped out on major highways leading to New Delhi for more than seven months. As India’s monsoon session of parliament began this week, some protesting farmers tried to march towards the main government district, but they were stopped by police just miles from parliament. …

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Thousands of residents fled blazes in western Canada on Wednesday with several hundred soldiers scheduled to deploy to fight this year’s virulent and early fires, which are wreaking havoc across portions of western North America. “I have a holiday trailer that is my new home,” said Margo Wagner, head of a district in the western province of British Columbia, who has found herself among the evacuees. The fire marks the second time in four years that her home in the province’s central Canim Lake rural area has been threatened by a blaze. South of the border, a number of communities …

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Senior U.S. and Chinese diplomats are set to meet Sunday at a time of rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.   The U.S. State Department said Wednesday that Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, the No. 2 American diplomat, will meet with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and others in Tianjin, China, as part of an Asia trip which includes stops in Japan, South Korea and Mongolia as well as Oman.  “In the context of relationships that are complex, that are challenging, that are dynamic, we believe it’s important to maintain open lines of communication between high-level officials. And that includes …

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The United States has extended the closure of land borders it shares with Canada and Mexico to non-essential travel through Aug. 21, the Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday. DHS extended the closures by 30 days after Canada said on Monday it would allow fully vaccinated visitors from the U.S. for non-essential travel beginning Aug. 9, ending a 16-month travel ban prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. and Canada’s easing of travel restrictions comes as the delta variant spreads in parts of the U.S. where vaccination rates are relatively low, raising concern among U.S. health officials. DHS said it …

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In Armenia, there is no shortage of COVID-19 vaccines in part because of vaccination hesitancy across the region. While in neighboring Iran, the lack of vaccines has led to long waiting periods for those who want to get inoculated.  Now, Armenia is now offering Iranians a chance to get a shot for free. Shake Avoyan has the story narrated by Anna Rice. Camera: Shake Avoyan    …

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