Global Issues

MANCHESTER, United Kingdom, March 17 (IPS) - Iranian and Israeli flags fill the centre of Manchester, in northern England. There are also portraits of a king overthrown almost half a century ago and of his son, now a claimant to the throne from exile. It is yet another march of Iranians calling for Reza Pahlavi as an alternative to the regime of the ayatollahs. Read the full story, “Iran Conflict: “Civil War Will Be Inevitable””, on globalissues.org →

PORTLAND, USA, March 17 (IPS) - Throughout its 250-year history, following the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, the United States has elected 47 presidents. From George Washington in 1789 to Donald Trump in 2024, each U.S. president has left their mark on the nation and the world in various ways. Read the full story, “Ranking U.S. Presidents: Best and Worst”, on globalissues.org →

BRATISLAVA, March 17 (IPS) - Gito* had just arrived at his father’s house in Caloocan City in the Philippines on December 7, 2016, when three armed policemen burst into the home, grabbed his father, took him outside and shot him multiple times. Gito told IPS his father had put his hands up when the officers told him they had come to arrest him, but they opened fire anyway. Read the full story, “Philippines: ICC Hearing Gives Survivors of Duterte’s Drug War Hope”, on globalissues.org →

BRIGHTON, UK, March 17 (IPS) - A massive expansion of AI-enabled surveillance of public spaces across Africa is violating citizens’ freedoms and the fundamental human right to privacy, warns a new report by the Institute of Development Studies. Read the full story, “Rapid Rise of Smart City Surveillance Tech Across Africa to Spy on Citizens”, on globalissues.org →

UNITED NATIONS, March 17 (IPS) - The 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) has brought together global leaders, gender equity advocates, and youth representatives at the United Nations (UN) Headquarters to advance efforts to strengthen mechanisms for justice, equality, and representation for women and girls worldwide. With challenges particularly pronounced in conflict zones, this year’s priority theme —“ensuring and strengthening access to justice for all women and girls — focuses on repealing discriminatory laws and addressing persistent structural barriers that prevent women and girls from being fully heard, represented, and treated equally. Read the full story, “At CSW70, Advocates Warn Conflict Is Deepening Barriers to Justice for Women and Girls”, on globalissues.org →

The crisis in the Middle East continues to intensify, with strikes and counter-strikes reported across the region and the humanitarian toll rising. UN agencies warn that health systems are under growing strain, children are increasingly affected by violence and displacement, and hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes. Despite mounting logistical and security challenges, UN agencies are scaling up emergency aid as the conflict’s impact spreads across the region and beyond. Stay with us for live updates from across the UN system. App users can follow coverage here.Read the full story, “MIDDLE EAST LIVE 17 March: Crisis impact ripples across region”, on globalissues.org →

The Middle East war could cause the worst disruption to lifesaving humanitarian work since COVID, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday.Read the full story, “Middle East war risks pushing 45 million more people into acute hunger”, on globalissues.org →

Top UN officials condemned on Tuesday Pakistan’s overnight strike on a rehab centre that reportedly killed at least 400 people in Kabul and injured more than 250 others.Read the full story, “Afghanistan: UN condemns deadly attack on rehab centre in Kabul”, on globalissues.org →

A new UN human rights report warns that expanding Israeli settlements are driving large-scale displacement of Palestinians across the occupied West Bank.Read the full story, “World News in Brief: West Bank displacement, Cuba fuel crisis, Sexual abuse safeguards, New ‘humancentric’ AI Advocate”, on globalissues.org →

LONDON, March 16 (IPS) - Once again, global oil prices are spiking, driven by the Israeli-US war against Iran. With Iran retaliating by attacking infrastructure and transport hubs and blocking the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil passes, oil supplies from the region are being choked, pushing up prices. The cost of a barrel of Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – stood at US$73 before the conflict but has surged beyond US$100 since. It could go higher still as war continues. Read the full story, “Oil Shocks, Political Upheaval and the One Solution Governments Keep Ignoring”, on globalissues.org →