Hey, this is Sham, your very own news curator. If you understand/want to read more German, I am going to curate and write the daily newsletter 'Morgenpost' over at Krautreporter until February 12. I'll mostly be covering German and European topics there. If that's not your vibe, stay here. Don't move. Not an inch.
In issue #321, I focus on a legal showdown in Lebanon. There, one man is taking on the country's top politicians so that the victims' families can finally see some real accountability for the 2020 Beirut port explosion that killed more than 200 people. I also show you the latest UNESCO additions, specifically the ones from Yemen because, eh, why the f*ck not ;) Plus, you'll read more good news from Sierra Leone (that country is on fire right now!) and some good news about Syria (I know!), Costa Rica and Japan. I also shared a free-for-everybody secret to happiness and a short documentary on the lives of Jewish people in Iraq. Ah, so much more. Keep reading and have a great week!
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Who is responsible for the 2020 port explosion in Beirut, Lebanon? We still don't know.
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Refresher: On August 4, 2020, hundreds of tonnes of ammonium nitrate exploded in the port of Beirut, Lebanon's capital. At least 218 people died, thousands got hurt, and many more people lost their homes. Nobody higher-up has been held responsible for what happened – so far. Many people in Lebanon are desperate to see some accountability.
Last week, to everyone's surprise, Judge Tarek Bitar was like, 'we need to continue this investigation' and issued charges against current and former senior officials.
Why this matters: The explosion in August 2020 is one of the largest non-nuclear blasts on record. Many believe that 'Lebanon's top officials knew this would/could happen and they didn't do anything about it'. They also believe that impunity is the norm in Lebanon. You can do a lot of f*cked up things and not go to jail for it. Tarek Bitar and this investigation symbolize that justice may one day be served in Lebanon.
Tell me more
Tarek Bitar was chosen to lead the investigation into the 2020 explosion in 2021. Before him, another person named Judge Fadi Sawan was in charge but was removed because of complaints from some 'important people'. Bitar then accused some of the country's top politicians of being involved, including those connected to Hezbollah, the country's ex-prime minister and the chief prosecutor. But they wouldn't talk to him and said he didn't have the power to do what he was doing. A year later, the people who were checking on Bitar's work retired and no one has replaced them, so the investigation stopped in 2021... until last week. The chief prosecutor, Ghassan Oweidat has fired back, 'you cannot just restart the inquiry on your own. I will notify security forces to not abide by your orders.'
What do the victims' families think of Bitar?
"This is really bold and courageous. He tried this before and it didn't work. There is no support among the political figures. You feel like he's on a solo mission," Tania Daou-Alam, who lost her husband in the blast. She believes that he is a "modern-day hero". William Noun, who lost his brother in the blast, said of Bitar's move: "This is very much a judicial uprising". (Reuters)
What now?
Well. If the case is not brought to trial by the judicial council, Bitar could still release all of his evidence to the public and help prosecutors in other countries like France and Germany. These countries have ongoing cases because people holding citizenship from their countries died in the explosion. Zina Wakim, the president of Accountability Now and a lawyer for the victims, said that these other cases will depend on Bitar's investigation. She also said that people are still trying to get the United Nations to look into the explosion. She believes that the way the judicial system is set up in Lebanon makes it hard to hold people accountable for their actions and that victims of the explosion have no choice but to take their case to other countries. (Al Jazeera)
- Quote: "We are in shock," Mireille Khoury, mother of Elias Khoury, who was killed by the explosion at the age of 15 told the organizations. "In what state are we living? All this proves that the international investigation is our only hope and that the HRC [Human Rights Council] is our main route. When will the leaders of the world open their eyes to this horrendous injustice against us." (Amnesty International)
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New UNESCO listings from Yemen, Ukraine and Lebanon are in danger
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UNESCO announced that it added new names to its list of 'important places' and 'important places in danger'. The lists now include The Landmarks of the Ancient Kingdom of Saba, Marib in Yemen, The Rachid Karameh International Fair in Tripoli, Lebanon, and the Historic Center of the Port City of Odesa in Ukraine.
Why this matters: Some of the world’s most impressive wonders are disappearing with every passing day. UNESCO is an agency of the United Nations that is responsible for identifying and protecting cultural and natural heritage sites around the world that are considered to be of outstanding universal value. But, when a heritage site is listed as “endangered,” it means that UNESCO has determined that the site is facing significant threats that could lead to its destruction or significant degradation.
Tell me more about the one in Yemen. I've never heard about it.
The Landmarks of the Ancient Kingdom of Saba in Marib are a pretty huge deal. The Kingdom of Saba is the Yemeni civilization’s backbone and one of the most prominent ancient Arab kingdoms. The Landmarks today consist of seven sites and provide evidence of a powerful kingdom with a centralized and intelligent government that controlled incense routes across the Arabian Peninsula, and also had commercial influence in the Mediterranean and East Africa from the 1st millennium B.C. to the arrival of Islam about 1,400 years ago. Plus, UNESCO is a huge fan of the irrigation system of Marib's sites for its "technological prowess in hydrological engineering and agriculture on a scale unparalleled in ancient South Arabia, resulting in the creation of the largest ancient man-made oasis." (NPR) Its destruction is even referenced in the Koran.
How do people in Yemen feel about this?
Mixed feelings; happy and fearful. Mohammed Jumeh, Yemen’s permanent delegate to UNESCO, tweeted, "Congratulations to Marib, Yemen, and the Arabs for this significant cultural accomplishment, which was the result of three years of efforts on the ground and in the halls." Muammar Al-Eryani, Yemen’s minister of information, culture and tourism, also congratulated Yemenis, local authorities and the ministry team that prepared the file, adding that there are now five Yemeni sites on the UNESCO list. (Arab News)
Which other Yemeni sites are on the UNESCO list?
Apart from the Marib sites, the UNESCO also includes the historic town of Zabid (used to be the capital of Yemen from the 13th to 15th century), the old walled city of Shibam (one of the oldest examples of urban planning based on high-rise buildings), the old city of Sana'a (inhabited for more than 2500 years) and the Socotra archipelago (exceptionally rich in biodiversity). (UNESCO)
But isn't Yemen at war right now?
Yes. And that's part of the reason why some specialists in Yemen cannot 'hooray' all the way. 'The government and the Houthi rebels are still fighting. They're even fighting in one of the seven sites of the Landmarks, in the Ancient City of Serwah!' Riyadh Bakarmom, an archaeologist, told Arab News, 'I also fear that, now that the world has acknowledged Marib's sites, people will want to steal and smuggle valuable relics.' (Arab News)
What now?
The only plus side here maybe is that being on the UNESCO World Heritage list gives sites access to better international assistance, both technical and financial, and helps mobilize the international community to ensure their protection.
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More you might have missed
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Pakistan: At least 41 people were killed and two others were injured when a bus plunged off a bridge and burst into flames in Lasbela District, Balochistan. (Reuters) In the same week, somewhere else in Pakistan, in Tanda Dam, ten children were killed and eleven other people were injured when their boat capsized. (AFP via Barron's) Then there was another toxic chemical incident in Karachi. At least 18 people have been killed in the past two weeks there. (Al Jazeera)
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Peru: Unfortunately, another bus in another country plunged off a cliff. This time, it killed at least 24 people in the El Alto District. (Reuters)
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Chad: Same in Chad... Twenty people were killed after a bus crashes near Oum Hadjer, Batha Est. (Reuters)
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Russia: The Moscow City Court ordered the closure of the Moscow Helsinki Group, Russia's oldest human rights organization. (RFE/RL)
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Honduras: Honduras had a big increase in the number of migrants entering the country "illegally" in 2022. 188,858 came in, compared to only 17,590 in 2021. Most of these migrants are young (21 to 40) and are mainly from Cuba, says the National Institute of Migration. (El Heraldo, Central American News, Spanish)
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Tokelau: About 1400 people in Tokelau headed to the polls last week to elect the members of the General Fono. Tokelau is a realm nation of New Zealand and also has an administrator but the New Zealand government says it respects the traditional governance structures that are "integral to community life in Tokelau". (RNZ)
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Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic: Brahim Ghali was re-elected as secretary general of the Polisario Front and president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. (Sahara Press Info)
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Hong Kong: Hong Kong's Customs and Excise Department announced that all products containing cannabidiol will be banned as of February 1 and that the chemical will be classified in the same category as heroin and cocaine. (South China Morning Post)
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South Africa / India: South Africa agreed to send twelve cheetahs to India each year for the next eight to ten years to make sure cheetahs don't go extinct there. The Asiatic cheetah actually went extinct in India in the 1940s due to overhunting and habitat destruction. (BBC News)
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Syria: The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons concludes with "reasonable grounds" that the Douma chemical attack that occurred on April 7, 2018, was carried out by the Syrian military. (Al Jazeera)
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Costa Rica: Last week, the trial for Luis Eduardo Varela Rojas, accused of killing Indigenous land defender Jehry Rivera, took place. Rojas publicly confessed to the murder, which occurred in the Térraba Indigenous territory during a land reclaim effort in February 2020. (Semanario Universidad, Central American News, Spanish)
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Finland: According to a new report, the country was found to be the 'most resistant to fake news.' The report, conducted by the Open Society Institute in Sofia, Bulgaria, looked at a number of metrics to determine the overall media literacy of European countries and six select countries outside of Europe. Italy and Israel (where the far-right recently came to power) were the lowest-ranking countries.
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United Kingdom: Researchers from the University of Birmingham have discovered a way to reduce the CO2 emissions of steelmaking by almost 90 percent. The iron and steel industry is a major cause of greenhouse gasses, accounting for 9% of global emissions. (IRENA, The Next Web)
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Japan: The government said that it is set to legalize medical marijuana. (Japan News)
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Sierra Leone: Sierra Leonean women can finally own land. This landmark new law ends six decades of a sexist ban on women’s rights to buy, own, sell, and inherit land anywhere in the country. (Quartz)
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Africa: Africa’s economies will grow faster than the rest of the world. According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), the region’s economies will stabilize in 2023-2024, and then start growing at consistently higher rates than other parts of the world. (Quartz)
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Listen to birds wherever you are – or experimental music from Egypt
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A new survey found out that watching birds and hearing birdsong have a positive impact on our wellbeing for more than nine in 10 people. (The Guardian)
If you find yourself somewhere with no birds (not only are you lying to me but you're also lying to yourself), you can listen to some on YouTube or Spotify or – if you find that birdsong has got an annoyingly repetitive rhythm to it – go check out Egypt/Cairo-based producer and audio experimentalist Abdalrahman's new two-sided single, 'Everything Is In Full Effect' and 'ION-U'; both tracks are full of surprises. I liked 'ION-U' better; felt hypnotic.
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Article: How and why an app helps people with disabilities in Mongolia go to work
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"There are 94,800 people of working age with disabilities in Mongolia, according to a 2017 survey conducted by the National Statistics Office of Mongolia. Just over a quarter — 27.8% — were employed at the time. Many find it difficult to work outside their homes because they say Mongolia’s infrastructure — in particular, public transport and buildings — does not typically cater to people with physical disabilities or allow them to go about their lives with dignity. In a 2018 survey, nearly one-third cited hostile infrastructure as a deterrent to employment."
For Global Press Journal, reporters Nansalmaa Oyunchimeg and Myagmarsuren Battur write about how a ride-hailing app, a private company, is stepping in to make it possible for people with disabilities to participate in normal day-to-day stuff like, well, going to work.
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A short documentary on the lives of Jews in Iraq: 'Remember Baghdad'
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A part of Western Asia (or 'Middle East') is often passed over: the Jews of Iraq. 'Remember Baghdad' by Fiona Murphy is a short documentary (now showing on Netflix) that tells the story of the lives of the expat Iraqi Jewish community in London, United Kingdom. It's truly a window to a a 'lost paradise' as some Jewish people describe their time living there before they had to flee the country. In 1948, there were more than 140,000 Jews living in Iraq.
However, since 'Remember Baghdad' was made in 2017, the number of Jews in Iraq has gone down from five to three. And now, a new law in Iraq criminalises any contact with Israel, not just in Iraq itself, but in Kurdistan, which traditionally has had informal ties with the Jewish state. (Iran is most likely pulling the strings here.)
Watch the trailer for the documentary here.
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(투모로우바이투게더) 'Sugar Rush Ride' by TXT premiered on January 27 and quickly reached more than 30 million viewers. They've also announced their highly anticipated comeback record, 'The Name Chapter: TEMPTATION'. K-Pop is so very well-produced. (Bandwagon Asia) Listen to it in this newsletter's own Spotify playlist 'Go Global Weekly'.
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Marie Kondo has 'kind of given up' on tidying up. (The Washington Post)
During a recent webinar to promote her latest book, "Marie Kondo’s Kurashi at Home: How to Organize Your Space and Achieve Your Ideal Life", Kondo said, "My home is messy, but the way I am spending my time is the right way for me at this time at this stage of my life. Up until now, I was a professional tidier, so I did my best to keep my home tidy at all times. I have kind of given up on that in a good way for me. Now I realize what is important to me is enjoying spending time with my children at home."
Now, this finally sparks a lot of joy for me.
- Refresher: Kondo became an international phenomenon in 2019 with the launch of her Netflix reality series “Tidying Up,” in which she helped people clean up their messy homes and declutter their spaces in an attempt to restore calmness and “spark joy” in their lives.
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That's it from me.
Have you checked out this newsletter's very own Spotify playlist Go Global Weekly yet?
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