A “No Fly Zone” sign near the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has accused the U.S. of being behind yesterday's attack in Moscow, in which two drones allegedly targeted the Kremlin.
👋 A jaaraama!*
Welcome to Thursday, where the Kremlin accuses Washington of being behind yesterday's drone attack in Moscow, severe floods kill at least 136 people across eastern Africa, and Hollywood pays tribute to Carrie Fisher on Star Wars day. Meanwhile, pan-African newspaper Financial Afrik looks at how Gabon, known for its successful sustainable development policy, is trying to reap the financial rewards of its preservation efforts.
[*Fula, West and Central Africa]
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🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• Kremlin accuses U.S. in drone attack, Zelensky visits The Hague: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused the U.S. of being behind yesterday's drone attack in Moscow, saying “We know very well that decisions about such actions are made not in Kyiv but in Washington.” Meanwhile, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the Hague, home of the International Criminal Court, saying Russian President Vladimir Putin must face justice. In Ukraine, new Russian airstrikes have been reported in multiple cities, including Kyiv.
• Israel raid kills three Palestinians accused of deadly settler attack: Israeli forces shot and killed at least three Palestinians during a raid in the Old City of Nablus. In a statement, Israel claimed that two of the men had been a part of a shooting that killed three Israeli settlers on April 7.
• Teen made “kill list” for Serbia school attack: The 13-year-old alleged school shooter in Serbia had planned the attack in advance and made a “kill list,” the police say. The boy and his parents have been arrested following the attack that killed eight students and a security guard, while two people are still reportedly in critical condition.
• Flooding kills at least 136 people in eastern Africa: Heavy rain has caused floods and landslides, killing at least 129 people in Rwanda, while six people lost their lives in neighboring Uganda. Rescue teams continue to look for survivors, after weeks of extreme weather caused landslides and buildings to collapse in the region.
• Actress killed in crossfire as fighting continues in Khartoum: Theater actress Asia Abdelmajid was killed in Khartoum, Sudan as fierce fighting continues. The army is attempting to push back the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) despite the announcement of a seven-day ceasefire.
• Fed raises U.S. interest rates to 16-year high: The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates for a tenth time in 14 months, reaching the highest rates in 16 years. Fed officials said that this would be the last increase for the moment.
• May the Fourth be with you, Carrie Fisher: To mark May 4th (informally known as “Star Wars Day” because of the pun “May the Fourth be with you”) Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher will receive a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Seven years after her death, the plaque will commemorate her role as the franchise’s Leia Organa, alongside those of co-stars Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford.
🗞️ FRONT PAGE
Serbia’s daily Blic dedicates its front page to the Belgrade school shooting where nine people, including eight children, were killed. Police say the alleged shooter, a 13-year-old student, had meticulously planned his attack for the past month, and had a list of targets. The daily reports he will not be tried as an adult, "despite the terrible crime" and describes him as a "calculated and cold-blooded killer."
📰 STORY OF THE DAY
Gabon says it's time for rich polluters to pay
The country's "Green Gabon" sustainable development policy has proven a success, writes pan-African newspaper Financial Afrik. The question now is: How can Gabon reap the financial rewards of its preservation efforts?
🇬🇦 Gabon has maintained the thick forests that cover 88% of the country through strict monitoring and logging restrictions. Deforestation avoided through the country's biodiversity management policy has already helped to sequester 90 million tons of carbon. The country's new challenge: turning that environmental success into a financial one, as well.
🌳 Since 2010, Gabon has implemented a sustainable development policy, called "Green Gabon," which aims to combine responsible timber exploitation and protection of the fauna and flora. Just over 2 million people live in this small country, which is almost entirely covered by forests. Loango Park is just 300 kilometers from the capital, Libreville. The animals there live in almost complete freedom, protected by a natural barrier of rivers, lagoons, oceans, forests, and mangroves.
💸 The REDD+ mechanism, created under the COP Paris Agreement to encourage sustainable forestry and cut emissions, should help countries like Gabon to profit from their environmental efforts by selling carbon credits to polluting countries. But the money is dependent on the will of major polluters to fulfill their commitments, and Gabon has struggled to find buyers. If sales don't pick up, the country says it may have to relax logging restrictions.
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#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
$9.65 billion
British energy giant Shell reported a Q1 net profit of $9.65 billion, surpassing analysts’ predictions, due to strong fuel trading earnings and higher Liquified Natural Gas sales, despite cooling energy prices. The company’s rivals, including BP and Exxon Mobil also posted forecast-beating results, as the sector continues to reap the benefits of high demand and volatile prices.
📣 VERBATIM
“Being in politics in Turkey means choosing a life with risks.”
— Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the main opponent to Turkey’s longtime leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the May 14 election, said that if he won he would bring freedom and democracy to Turkey no matter what it takes. "The youth want democracy," he told the BBC. "They don't want the police to come to their doors early in the morning just because they tweeted." Some of Kilicdaroglu's supporters fear for his safety. but he says it comes with the job: "I will walk my path whatever Erdogan and his allies do. They can't put me off. They can’t scare me.”
👉 MORE FROM WORLDCRUNCH
•The Kremlin Drone Attack Is Linked To Ukraine’s Counter-Offensive — No Matter Who Did It — UKRAINSKA PRAVDA
• The Rise Of China Does Nothing To Fix What's Wrong With The West — EL ESPECTADOR
• Fragmented Lives: Prodigal Sons Return To Buenos Aires — RECALCULATING
✍️ Newsletter by Yannick Champion-Osselin, Chloé Touchard, Inès Mermat, Anne-Sophie Goninet and Emma Albright
Let us know what’s happening in your corner of the world!
- Putin And Zelensky, So Close — And Farther Away Than Ever From Negotiations ›
- Nine More Dead In The West Bank — And Israel Still Thinks The Palestinian Question Doesn't Exist ›
- Sudan And The Specter Of A Proxy War ›
