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If SALF joined forces with Vox, both far-right-wing parties would gather 16% of the vote.

The post Rise of Spanish far-right supported by new poll appeared first on Euractiv.

Musk hinted that others will follow Italy's lead in working with his satellite communication service.

The post Italy’s potential Starlink deal under fire over political, sovereignty, economic fears appeared first on Euractiv.

C'est une délégation de haut rang que le président Patrice Talon a dépêché à Accra, la capitale ghanéenne pour l'investiture du nouveau président John Dramani Mahama.

Le nouveau président du Ghana, John Dramani Mahama élu au terme de la présidentielle de 2024, a prêté serment ce mardi 7 janvier 2025 à Accra. La cérémonie, fort solennelle, est marquée par la présence de chefs d'Etat et de gouvernement de la sous-région, et plusieurs autres personnalités.

Pour représenter le Bénin, le président Patrice Talon a dépêché la vice-présidente de la République, Mariam Chabi Talata, et le ministre d'Etat chargé du développement et de la coordination de l'action gouvernementale, Abdoulaye Bio Tchané. Au nom du chef de l'Etat, et de toute la nation béninoise, ces deux personnalités ont adressé au nouveau président ghanéen, leurs félicitations et réitéré l'engagement du Bénin à renforcer la coopération régionale.
John Dramani Mahama accède au pouvoir pour la seconde fois au Ghana, après un premier mandat de 2012 à 2017.

F. A. A.

Les émissions de carbone de l’Allemagne ont chuté en 2024 grâce au déploiement intensif de l’énergie solaire et éolienne et à des températures plus douces.

The sanctions target Antal Rogán, a close aide of Orbán who has run his cabinet office since 2015.

The post US puts key aide to Orbán on Magnitsky list for suspected corruption appeared first on Euractiv.

Ce lundi 6 janvier 2025 à Tchonvi-Dandji, une localité située dans l'arrondissement d'Ekpè, commune de Sèmè-Kpodji, un conducteur de taxi-moto communément appelé ‘'zémidjan'' a été poignardé lors d'un spectacle de culte Egoun-goun.

Un conducteur de taxi-moto poignardé par un de ses collègues lors d'un spectacle de culte Egoun-goun ce lundi 6 janvier 2025 à Tchonvi-Dandji, dans la commune d'Ekpè. Le drame selon nos sources, est survenu suite à une discussion sur le comportement d'une des divinités en action.
Les échanges entre les deux taxi-motos prennent une autre tournure, et l'un d'entre eux, saisit un objet pointu et poignarde son vis-à-vis qui décède sur le champ.
Aussitôt alertés, les éléments du commissariat d'Ekpè se dépêchent sur les lieux. L'organisateur du spectacle et le zémidjan meurtrier, sont arrêtés et placés en garde à vue. Ils seront bientôt présentés au procureur de la République.

F. A. A.

The United Nations Security Council Meets on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict in Sudan. Credit: UN Photo/Manuel Elías

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Jan 8 2025 (IPS)

As the Civil War rages on in Sudan, the nationwide humanitarian crisis continues to worsen. Armed conflict has caused an escalation in civilian casualties and displacement in the past few months. Additionally, famine looms in the nation’s most conflict-impacted areas, which is exacerbated by tightened restrictions that impede humanitarian aid deliveries. Despite numerous calls for a cessation of hostilities by the international community, relief efforts are severely underfunded.

In 2025, humanitarian organizations seek to assist approximately 21 million people in Sudan, which is roughly half of the country’s population. However, this number is projected to increase following the escalation of armed hostilities recorded in December of 2024. According to a report from the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), the ongoing siege in El Fasher, the capital city of Sudan, left at least 782 dead and 1,143 injured from May 2024 to December 2024.

According to Edem Wosornu, the Director of Operations and Advocacy for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Zamzam refugee camp, the nation’s largest refuge for internally displaced persons, has faced severe shelling in the final weeks of 2024. Approximately 80 people were killed and 400 were injured as a result of artillery shelling in western Darfur. Civilians and humanitarian aid groups, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), have attributed these casualties to hostilities perpetrated by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Nathaniel Raymond, the executive director of Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab, described the current situation in the Zamzam camp as a “kill box”. The escalation of warfare has forced Sudanese refugees to move toward dangerous RSF territories or toward the barren deserts where they face the risk of starvation. “We can see from space people camping under trees, on the side of the road. They’re going out of the frying pan and into the fire,” said Raymond, adding that many of these people have been severely injured or immunocompromised.

On January 6 2025, the United Nations (UN) Security Council warned that famine conditions are projected to spread throughout Sudan if humanitarian organizations do not effectively intervene soon. According to Wosornu, famine is present in five areas, including the Zamzam, Al Salam, and Abu Shouk camps, as well as regions in the western Nuba Mountains.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) states that five additional regions, including Um Kadada and El Fasher, as well as 17 other high-risk areas, could face severe famine-like conditions by mid-2025. Women, children, and the elderly are predicted to be disproportionately affected.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Deputy Director Beth Bechdol, the vast scale of famine is a direct result of extended warfare, displacement, and restricted humanitarian access. Additionally, the IPC report states that “only an immediate cessation of hostilities can prevent the crisis from worsening.”

It is crucial for humanitarian organizations to have unimpeded access to critically endangered areas in Sudan. The Adre border crossing, which provides direct passage from Chad to some of Sudan’s most affected areas, has seen numerous delays and blockages of aid. According to Wosornu, “key areas in South Kordofan are effectively cut off from external assistance,” while “visas for humanitarian personnel are not being granted swiftly enough”.

The start of 2025 is a major tipping point for the Sudan crisis as action must be taken now to ensure stability for millions of Sudanese people. Bechdol states that “immediate and unimpeded” humanitarian access is urgent at this time for humanitarian organizations to be able to deliver “multi-sectoral humanitarian assistance”.

The 2025 Humanitarian Needs Response Plan seeks approximately 4.2 billion dollars to provide life-saving assistance to 21 million Sudanese civilians that are struggling to stay alive. The funding from this plan would help to restore basic services such as access to food, water, and shelter, as well as protection services. “The risk of famine and its spread has been on our collective conscience since August, and now it is here, not only with people dying from hunger, but also with a breakdown of health systems, livelihoods and social structures,” warns Bechdol.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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If Donald Trumps withdraws from the Paris Agreement again, that would be a serious blow for international climate diplomacy, EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said in an interview.

The post EU warns of ‘serious blow’ from Trump on climate change appeared first on Euractiv.

In the Pacific, Investing in Coral Reefs and the Blue Economy programme will channel finance towards the protection of Fijian coral reefs and communities. Credit: UNDP

By David Smith and Neisha Manickchand
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Jan 8 2025 (IPS)

Climate change is one of the most serious global threats to the future of the world’s population. Its impact extends far and wide, from the economy to governance to the very health and well-being of society.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that between 2030 and 2050, some 250,000 extra deaths per year will occur because of the climate crisis’ impacts on nutrition and health. Extreme weather events directly affect food and water security and quality of life, resulting in an increase in malaria, diarrhoeal diseases, respiratory illnesses, and heat stroke, among other illnesses and stressors.

And they will reach every country, city, and municipality, in every corner of the world — but some areas are more vulnerable than others. Some of the most vulnerable? Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

https://www.un.org/ohrlls/content/list-sids

SIDS health systems are rarely built or have the resources to withstand the ever-growing, ever-changing impacts of the climate crisis. In the Caribbean Islands, for example, drought and excess rainfall have caused outbreaks of diseases transmitted by insect vectors. Dengue Fever — perhaps the most well known — has surged in recent years, nearly reaching 57,000 in 2024, a 469% increase over the same period in 2023.

The surge was likely fueled by El Niño and unplanned urban growth. The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) has also reported increased hospitalisations and deaths due to Dengue and other vector-borne diseases like Zika and Chikungunya.

Beyond vector-borne diseases, climate change also affects non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and other health-related issues. Trinidad, a Caribbean island, saw increased hospital admissions for asthma due to high temperatures, and Belize, a country in Central America, reported that increased heat resulting from climate change is impacting schoolchildren and other vulnerable persons.

In the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT), overall population health status has also deteriorated with increasing climate change-induced health risks. According to an internal report, surveys carried out by Fiji National University note that increased rainfall and flooding have caused crop insecurity, leading to changes in diet and water-borne illnesses.

The frequency of extreme weather events in SIDS is not expected to slow down. Major hurricanes in the Caribbean are projected to increase, and tropical cyclones are expected to carry more and more rain.

The first Category 5 hurricane, “Beryl”— the highest category on the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale — of 2024 was uncharacteristically early, badly damaging Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, and parts of Jamaica. Beryl’s destruction is telling of future weather patterns and of small island nations’ vulnerability.

As this haunting trend progresses, climate experts, policymakers, and the global community are gathering the research to establish innovative and necessary solutions. The University of the West Indies (UWI) in the Caribbean, for example, is collaborating with other SIDS researchers to understand the impacts of climate on health which is demonstrated in the 2024 Small Island Developing States report of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change.

The report notes that addressing heat through adaptation efforts would be an extremely effective and life-saving intervention in SIDS. Establishing more urban green spaces, for example, can provide local cooling benefits and alleviate heat exposure in cities.

Furthermore, UWI and Fiji National University recently presented new research on the impacts of climate change on community health and wellbeing at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa.

And at the COP29 in Azerbaijan, participants developed a Special Report on Climate Change and Health, outlining priority recommendations from the global health community for governments, policymakers, and other sectors to place health at the heart of climate solutions.

Yet, for SIDS to truly adapt or combat the effects of climate change, increased access to financing is also crucial.

The research is evident and the urgency has been established. For SIDS, adhering to these recommendations and other global commitments is vital. The health impacts of climate change will continue to persist unless the necessary actions are taken.

Dr. David Smith is a Coordinator of the Institute for Sustainable Development at the University of the West Indies and Chair of the SDSN Caribbean Network. Neisha Manickchand is a Project and Resource Mobilisation Officer for the Institute for Sustainable Development at the University of the West Indies and Network Manager of the SDSN Caribbean Network.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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A brief explainer of everything you need to know about the region, its worsening crisis and why it all matters to the rest of Europe.

The post The Transnistria crisis explained appeared first on Euractiv.

The move would be problematic as the US and Denmark are NATO allies, while the former is also in the EU.

The post As hopes of buying Greenland dwindle, Trump doesn’t rule out military force appeared first on Euractiv.

Host Evi Kiorri speaks with politics reporter Nicoletta Ionta to unpack the implications of VDL's new commission.

The post Top10. Von der Leyen launches new EU commission with surprising picks appeared first on Euractiv.

Cerebral palsy is believed to be one of the most common neurological disorders in Nigeria.

Cerebral palsy is believed to be one of the most common neurological disorders in Nigeria.

Cerebral palsy is believed to be one of the most common neurological disorders in Nigeria.

Mubarak Bala was jailed for blasphemy in a case that attracted criticism from rights groups.

Barriers to industrial electrification, including economic, technological, and regulatory challenges must be overcome, to achieve lower energy costs and accelerate green investment.

The post Revolutionary ‘Clean Industrial Deal’ needed for a sustainable and competitive Europe appeared first on Euractiv.

Demand for wood is projected to increase by up to 49 per cent by 2050, driven by expanding industrial needs.

The post Global deforestation is declining, but forests are still under extreme pressure appeared first on Euractiv.

Weekly schedule of President António Costa, 06–12 January 2025

Malgré le retour du froid et de la pluie, un temps relativement stable s’annonce pour ce mercredi 8 janvier 2025. Toutefois, des nuages passagers et […]

L’article Le temps en Algérie ce mercredi 8 janvier : que prévoit le bulletin météo du jour ? est apparu en premier sur .