News Room

The Finnish authorities are planning to limit asylum applications. Helsinki Times reports that the government has published a draft bill enabling it to deny entry to asylum seekers and significantly restrict the reception of asylum applications in circumstances where such measures are deemed necessary. The bill will be open for comments until March 25. Prime…

Russia is having its presidential election from March 15 to 17. France 24 reports that three others are contesting for Moscow’s top seat in addition to the incumbent, Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, anti-war candidates have been barred from running. The three candidates are Leonid Slutsky, Nikolai Kharitonov and Vladislav Davankov. However, they pose little of a…

Eight months after Nigeria placed sanctions on Niger because the army seized power in the country, Mr Bola Tinubu, Nigeria’s President, has lifted the restrictions. Tinubu, the chairman of the regional bloc ECOWAS, led the bloc in demanding that the junta step down. A warning that the bloc could use military strength to dislodge putschists…

Israeli authorities have further tightened restrictions for Palestinians travelling to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem. They have thereby added to the mounting tensions. AlJazeera reports that despite the restrictions, 80,000 worshippers still made it to the holy site for the first Friday prayers of Ramadan. However, thousands of Palestinians were not allowed to…

An organised gang which allegedly specialized in smuggling migrants has been smashed by the Romanian Border Police, supported by Europol and involving the Bulgarian General Directorate Combating Organized Crime and the German Police. Eurasiareview reports that the group was allegedly smuggling migrants from Bulgaria to Romania, across the Danube River and then towards Western Europe….

As the violence in Haiti intensifies, the airports have been closed. Miami Herald reports that although airspace may be closed, those with money and connections are still finding their way out of the troubled country. A united front of ruthless armed gangs had seized Haiti’s two largest prisons about a week ago. They freed prisoners…

Religious tolerance exists in much of sub-Saharan Africa, especially among Muslims and Christians. DW reports that Sierra Leone stands out as a positive example. Murtala Kamara, a Muslim who lives in Freetown, said, “In Sierra Leone, the practice of food sharing among Muslims during Ramadan is not limited to Muslims. Christians provide food for their…