Egypt and Cyprus signed agreements to export Cypriot gas to Egypt for liquefaction and re-export to Europe, strengthening Eastern Mediterranean energy cooperation.
Egypt, Cyprus sign gas deals to expand energy exports to Europe Read More »
Disney has appointed Tony Chambers as president of its Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region, overseeing streaming, ad sales, and other key business areas.
Disney appoints new president for Africa region Read More »
Armed men abducted women and children from a sinking migrant boat off the Libyan coast.
Migrant boat sinks off Libya, women, children abducted Read More »
Patrick Charlier, director of the Interfederal Centre for Equal Opportunities (Unia), highlighted the concerning rise of anti-Muslim sentiment across Europe, noting that in Belgium, nine of 10 people facing discrimination are Muslim, particularly veiled women. A report released last week by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), “Being Muslim in the EU: Experiences of Muslims,” showed a marked increase in racism and discrimination against Muslims since 2016. The survey, conducted with responses from 9,000 respondents across 13 EU member states between October 2021 and October 2022, found that one in two Muslims encounter discriminatory treatment daily. Discrimination against Muslim women, men and children stems not only from their religion but is also due to factors like skin color, ethnic background and immigration history. Young Muslims born in Europe and veiled women are particularly affected. Belgium has emerged as a key area for the issues, with 43% of Muslims in that country reporting housing discrimination. Charlier, who has led the Equal Opportunities Center since 1993, emphasized the severity of the situation, pointing to hostility toward Muslims in education, employment and society. “For Belgium, when we’re speaking of religious and philosophical belief, it’s 90% concerning Muslims. The vast majority, nine cases out of 10, is according to Muslims that are facing discrimination, hate speech, hate crime,” said Charlier. “The last year, the most remarkable cases are in employment, discrimination in employment. It’s a majority of women that are victims of discrimination. When we are speaking of women in employment, that’s mostly cases of headscarves,” he said. Between 2017 and 2023, the center primarily addressed employment discrimination cases, with additional incidents occurring on social media and in schools, noted Charlier. -Anti-immigrant sentiment also fueling anti-Muslim sentiment “I think discrimination, hate speech and hate crime is grave. I don’t want to undermine the reality and the difficulty for Muslims in our country. That’s a reality. It’s not highly rising. It’s stable,” he said. “We are not out with discrimination against Muslims. We are not out on Islamophobia. There is an indirect link also with a form of what we call more xenophobia,” he said. “That’s all the discourse against asylum seekers and migration. It’s not directly focused on Muslims, but we know that this discourse against migrants is often with the idea ‘that’s Muslims that are coming from Syria, from now Palestine, from Afghanistan, and so on.’ But that’s not registered to us as ‘discrimination against Muslims’. It’s more xenophobia,” he added.
Islamophobia is rising in the West Read More »
Amid rising tensions with the West over the Ukraine war, Russia on Tuesday conducted a major exercise involving its nuclear forces, simulating a response to an enemy’s first strike. President Vladimir Putin emphasized the need for modern strategic forces, stating, “We will maintain nuclear forces at the necessary level of sufficiency” without entering a new arms race. The drills included test-firing a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile from Plesetsk, and ICBMs launched from the Novomoskovsk and Knyaz Oleg submarines in the Barents Sea and Sea of Okhotsk. Nuclear-capable Tu-95 bombers also conducted practice launches of long-range cruise missiles, all reaching their intended targets. This exercise follows warnings from Moscow about potential responses to Western support for Ukraine’s missile capabilities. Putin announced a new nuclear doctrine indicating that a conventional attack by a non-nuclear state backed by a nuclear power would be viewed as a joint attack, serving as a warning to the U.S. and its allies. The revised doctrine also includes provisions for the possible use of nuclear weapons in response to a significant air attack.
Russia launches major nuclear exercise amid west tensions Read More »
Shocking reports reveal horrific conditions faced by migrants in Tunisia, including human rights violations during rescue operations and forced transfers to dangerous border areas.
UN experts condemn Tunisia for migrant abuse Read More »
A boat carrying migrants capsized off the Canary Islands, resulting in the deaths of nine people and the disappearance of 48 others.
Nine migrants dead, 48 missing after boat capsizes near Spain Read More »
The deadly incident is part of a larger trend of increasing migration from West Africa to Europe.
Senegal arrests captain in migrant boat tragedy Read More »
European health authorities have recommended that EU countries issue travel warnings for regions affected by mpox following its designation as a global emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). On Friday, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) cautioned that Europe may see more imported cases due to the virus’s spread in several African nations. However, the ECDC noted that the risk of ongoing transmission within Europe remains low, as long as imported cases are quickly identified and controlled. This advisory comes after Sweden detected a new mpox variant, marking the first case of this strain outside Africa. Bruno Ciancio, ECDC’s head of surveillance, expressed concern over the worsening situation in Africa, especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and neighboring countries, where case numbers may be underreported. To curb the spread in Europe, the ECDC stressed the importance of rapid case identification and containment. They have advised EU and European Economic Area (EEA) countries to issue travel advisories for regions impacted by mpox. Since last year, mpox has spread in the DRC and other African countries, resulting in over 500 deaths, primarily in the DRC. The WHO’s global emergency declaration underscores the need for coordinated international efforts to address the crisis. The ECDC highlighted that EU/EEA travelers with close contact to affected communities face a higher risk, while close contacts of imported cases in Europe have a moderate risk. There are two subtypes of the mpox virus: Clade I, more severe and endemic to central Africa, and Clade II, responsible for the 2022 global outbreak. Currently, several African countries are dealing with Clade I and a new strain, Clade Ib. Sweden’s report of the first European case of Clade Ib has led the ECDC to increase the risk level for EU/EEA travelers and the general population. Although the impact in Europe is expected to be low, the ECDC recommends high preparedness, including effective surveillance, testing, and contact tracing. Travelers to mpox-affected areas are advised to consider vaccination, and European clinicians are urged to remain vigilant for potential cases, despite mpox not being endemic to Europe. Ciancio emphasized that while the risk should be taken seriously, it should not be overstated, given the availability of effective and safe vaccines.
EU urged to issue travel warnings as mpox risk in Africa grows Read More »
Cindy Ngamba won the Refugee Olympic Team’s first-ever medal on Thursday when she bagged the bronze in women’s boxing. “It means the world to me to be the first-ever refugee athlete to win a medal. I hope I can change the (color of) the medal on my next fight – in fact, I will change it,” Ngamba said after the bout. “I was fighting a very tough opponent today … but I listened to my trainers and coaches, I stuck to the tactics and I stayed calm and composed,” she added. The 25-year-old became the first-ever athlete to win a medal for the IOC Refugee Olympic Team, taking the bronze in the women’s boxing 75kg class after a semifinal loss to Panama’s Atheyna Bylon. Ngamba is one of 37 athletes competing in Paris as part of the refugee team. The first-ever refugee team took part in the Rio 2016 Olympics, followed by a 29-team competition at Tokyo 2020.
Cindy Ngamba wins historic first medal for Refugee Olympic Team Read More »
