PURPLE PAIN
Spontaneous gatherings and tributes continued into the early hours this morning after the sudden death of Prince, the American music icon and virtuoso instrumentalist behind “Kiss” and “Purple Rain.” His body was found yesterday at his home in the Minneapolis suburb of Chanhassen. He was 57. Authorities are investigating the death, and an autopsy is planned for later today.
Have a look at front pages from world’s newspapers today, bidding farewell to the man born Prince Rogers Nelson.
COP21
Global leaders gather in New York today to sign the Paris COP21 Agreement on climate change that was agreed to by 195 countries in December. Leaders from some 170 of the nations have confirmed that they will be on hand to formally ratify the commitment.
— ON THIS DAY
The COP21 ceremony lands on Earth Day, which began exactly 46 years ago today. See that event, and more, in today’s 57-second shot of history.
UN CONFERENCE ENDS WITHOUT POLICY SHIFT
A UN conference on drugs in New York concluded yesterday without a major shift in policy and with deep divisions over core questions such as whether to decriminalize drug use and to legalize marijuana.
UBER SETTLES LAWSUIT
Ride-hailing service Uber announced yesterday evening that it will pay an initial sum of $84 million to settle cases in California and Massachusetts to some 385,000 drivers after reaching a settlement in a class-act lawsuit over the status of their drivers, Los Angeles Times reports. Uber hopes the settlement moves the mutli-billion-dollar company one step closer to getting its way in classifying drivers as independent contractors rather than full-time employees.
OBAMA URGES BRITISH VOTERS TO REJECT BREXIT
U.S. President Barack Obama made an appeal in an op-ed article in Friday’s edition of The Daily Telegraph for Britain to remain in the European Union, saying membership had magnified Britain’s place in the world and made the bloc stronger and more outward looking.
— MY GRAND-PERE’S WORLD
Napoleonic Trinkets — Portoferraio, 1969
DEATH TOLL AT 24 FROM MEXICO BLAST
The death toll from the blast that hit the facility in the southern city of Coatzacoalcos in Mexico Wednesday climbed to 24, with another 13 seriously wounded, El Universal reports.
RUSSIAN FIRE MISDIRECTED AT ISRAELI AIRCRAFT
Russian forces in Syria have fired at Israeli military aircraft, prompting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seek improved operational coordination with Moscow, The Times Of Israel reports today.
— WORLDCRUNCH-TO-GO
Raising shrimp right next to a waste treatment plant: The choice may sound counter-intuitive, as sewage and seafood aren’t exactly the most mouth-watering combination. But the facility’s location is actually a stroke of genius, Gisela Reiners writes for German daily Die Welt: “As is often the case, it’s best not to judge a book by its cover. The sewage plant, it turns out, is a fantastic source of clean water, It is also an ideal place to dispose of shrimp excretions, which can simultaneously be used to generate heat that the little critters need to thrive. The conditions, in other words, are nearly perfect.”
Read the full article, Farming Florida-Bred Shrimp In A German Sewage Plant.
ECUADOR TORMENTED BY SECOND QUAKE
Another earthquake measuring 6.0 magnitude hit Ecuador’s disaster-stricken coast yesterday, less than a week after a huge 7.8 magnitude quake devastated the area and killed 587 people, El Comercio reports. There have been no reports of further casualties so far.
MORE STORIES, EXCLUSIVELY IN ENGLISH BY WORLDCRUNCH
- Be Sad, Move On: Mourning In The Modern Era — Le Monde
- Lynching In Latin America: Why Colombia Vigilante Mobs Are Spreading — El Espectador
- Seoul Aims To Be World Capital Of The Sharing Economy — Les Echos
LETHAL 2016
David Bowie, Alan Rickman, now Prince … BBC News confirms that there’s definitely something wrong with 2016.