Worldcrunch
An accident in an illegal mine near Kolwezi, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has left at least 70 people dead. It is yet another tragedy in a region where hundreds of thousands of people work with no rules or safety measures, extracting the minerals used in our digital devices. It’s the latest chapter of a recurring story of exploitation.
Recently released, a former Palestinian detainee recounts the beatings, humiliation, and deprivation he endured as human rights groups warn of a prison system turned into an instrument of state violence.
Defending immigration for selfish reasons is just a modern ode to slavery — justice demands equality, not gratitude.
By twisting words into tools of war, Israel turns destruction into “security,” displacement into “voluntary migration,” and Gaza’s annihilation into a defensive necessity.
The debate too often strips Palestinians of their political agency, ignoring their own demands for equality, self-determination, and return.
In Colombia, people with disabilities face multiple barriers to accessing comprehensive sexuality education, which limits their autonomy and increases the risk of sexual violence. Experts warn that the education and health systems still do not guarantee their right to receive adequate information and support.
Coffee is a multi-million dollar industry in Costa Rica. But the work on coffee farms is demanding and carried out mainly by migrants, many of whom have left neighboring Nicaragua in search of a better life.
Getting El Salvador’s compliant parliament to legislate and scrap presidential term limits is the latest and sure-fire sign that President Nayib Bukele has no intention of ending his no-nonsense rule any time soon.
Iran is reportedly deporting thousands of Afghans — including many legal residents — claiming it can no longer afford to host millions of migrants. Witnesses describe chaotic expulsions marked by beatings and last-minute extortion at the border.
Cyber slavery rings are growing across the region, trapping young jobseekers in brutal scam compounds — and fueling a global criminal enterprise.
As Poland reinstates border checks with Germany and Lithuania over immigration concerns, experts warn that the situation at the Polish-German border increasingly unregulated, threatening the life and health safety of migrants.
Five activists from organizations and collectives in Venezuela spoke to Latin American feminist media Volcánicas about how the anti-NGO law affects their work and puts their lives at risk.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has challenged President Trump over the deployment of the national guard to address Los Angeles immigration protests. Echoing historic federal overreach, his stand challenges democratic norms and state sovereignty amid a polarized political landscape.
Five countries have imposed sanctions against the two most important far-right ministers in Israel’s Netanyahu government — Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Internal Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir — a first that marks the deterioration in relations between Israel and its allies. But with the Trump administration standing behind Netanyahu, little can be actually be done.
One month after the imprisonment of Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul and a key rival to President Erdogan, the Silivri penitentiary — where political opponents are crowded together — has come to symbolize a country where justice bows to the shifting winds of politics.
An appeal signed by 75 Nobel Prize winners calls on the world to take action to end the suffering of Congolese civilians in the mineral-rich eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. But they have little chance of being heard — despite our shared responsibility.
The West’s treatment of Pro-Palestinian protesters has shattered the image of democracies as bastions of free expression. But the West’s contradictions hold lessons for the Arab world.
Pope Francis had a remarkable impact on the Vatican. In Poland, the last Catholic stronghold of Europe, Francis took action, forcing high-ranking officials in the Church to resign, and dismissing some altogether. For Poland, a country still reckoning with the impacts of Pope John Paul II, both positive and negative, Francis’s papacy held particular weight.
Human rights groups warn that El Salvador’s prisons are marked by overcrowding, lack of access to basic services and repeated rights violations — but that the situation is even worse for women, who are already vulnerable sector of the population.
Human rights groups warn that El Salvador’s prisons are marked by overcrowding, lack of access to basic services and repeated rights violations — but that the situation is even worse for women, who are already vulnerable sector of the population.
Uganda’s Supreme Court in January banned the trial of civilians in military court with immediate effect. In practice, people who oppose President Yoweri Museveni remain in prison — and with even fewer ways to get out.
Ten years of arrests and silencing dissent may have been enough to instill fear in the hearts of Saudi citizens, who now comply with the sweeping changes reshaping their country — politically, economically and even socially.
Determined to assert its sovereignty over regions still under Serbia’s illegal control, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is pushing hard to enforce the euro as its official currency — risking a dangerous escalation in a region already scarred by war and ethnic conflict.
In Syria, LGBTQ+ individuals are being stripped of their freedom, dignity and right to defend themselves. Only a few voices and organizations working in secrecy attempt to shed light on the violations against them in an environment that is increasingly hostile toward anyone who dares to advocate for marginalized groups.
With many of Gaza’s banks and ATMs destroyed, Palestinians are turning to money brokers to obtain cash — and paying commission fees of up to 30% . While the practice is criminalized under the Palestinian law, many say agencies in Gaza are not taking action against the brokers, allowing their businesses to flourish.
The reelection of U.S. President Donald Trump is the most recent act in the spectacular, and so far unstoppable, rise of fascism. Faced with his full-blown offensive, Europe must fully invest in its vision as an alternative to Trumpism by defending those most in need.
Rio de Janeiro’s state tribunal brings judges and prosecutors to 26 locations disseminated around the city inside buses, as part of a program started in 2004. The buses mostly go to the poorest areas of the city, in an effort to bring justice to those that are oftentimes most distant from the Brazilian state.
With many of Gaza’s banks and ATMs destroyed, Palestinians are turning to money brokers to obtain cash — and paying commission fees of up to 30% . While the practice is criminalized under the Palestinian law, many say agencies in Gaza are not taking action against the brokers, allowing their businesses to flourish.
A recent video of a woman being tortured in Libyan refugee camps is further proof that agreements signed by the EU and Italy with Libyan and Tunisian authorities are doing more harm than good. But the work of associations like Refugees in Libya shows that there is still some hope for the future, writes Don Mattia Ferrari, a Catholic priest who works closely with these NGOs.
The year started without the tyrant of Damascus. Lebanon elected a president. Gaza has a ceasefire. Some of this progress is due to external geopolitical forces, yet there are signs that the region could be turning around from within.
Since 2021, Poland has been facing a humanitarian and migration crisis along its border with Belarus. In the meantime, several collectives of volunteers have sprung up, providing aid to migrants stuck between the two borders, such as food, water, and emergency blankets. Now, facing a harsher Pan-European border policy, and security pressure at home, some of these volunteers may be prosecuted for their efforts.
How can we transcend the anonymity of numbers? How can we preserve moments of love, resilience and defiance against oppression. Egyptian filmmaker and writer Basel Ramsis reflects on human connection, memory and the fight against dehumanization.
Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro plans to declare himself president on January 10, as he becomes the likely winner of the 2024 elections. Will there be a showdown or a revolt, or will a tired nation give in to tyranny?
Al-Sharaa has surprised many with his openness to dialogue after a past linked to al-Qaeda. He represents a complex model that embodies the transformation of Syria since the beginning of the revolution in 2011.
The absence of documentation and an international accountability mechanism capable of deterring warring parties in Yemen has exacerbated the severity of violations related to sexual assault against children. These violations have spread across social media, revealing the extent of unspoken crimes that have yet to find their way to justice.
Kinshasa is suing Apple in France and Belgium for “complicity” in the use of rare minerals pillaged by armed groups to build their products. Apple denies the accusations and guarantees traceability, but the case highlights the fragile balance of power in Silicon Valley’s global supply chains.
Donald Trump’s second term as U.S. president will undoubtedly bring about a transformation in geopolitics and the world economy. With a businessman rather than a politician in the White House, the country will take a more transactional approach based on negotiations.
Syrian prisons have been opened, unveiling a grim parade of horrors. The emotions are intense, yet much was already known about Assad’s machinery of death — and still, the world could do nothing. The defense of human rights ends where sovereignty begins.
Last December, the European Court of Human Rights found that Poland was violating the right to respect for private and family life by refusing to recognize same-sex civil partnerships. This, along with the end of conservative-Catholic rule last year, brings some signs of change to couples who have been waiting for years for the legislation to pass.
Almost everyone agrees on the Turkish role in the sudden reigniting of the Syrian civil war, a scenario that evokes a sense of déjà vu for those who remember how the region was shaken up in the mid-1970s from Damascus.