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Photo: US Democrats—Senators Markey and Khanna—and introduce "ICBM" Act: Invest in Cures Before Missiles. Credit: UNFOLD ZERO | PNND.

Plea for Diverting Funds from Nuclear Weapons to Combating COVID-19

By Jamshed Baruah

GENEVA (IDN) — The Nobel laureate International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a coalition of non-governmental organizations promoting adherence to and implementation of the United Nations nuclear weapon ban treaty, has been pleading for divestment in nuclear weapons. "The imminent entry-into-force of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) allows for a unique opportunity to hit the nuclear weapons producers where it hurts—their wallets," an ICAN campaign says.

: Jamshed Baruah; ARMAMENTS; Nuclear Weapons; 14 April 2021

Photo: Soviet soldiers attack, February 1943. The ruined Railwaymen's Building is in the background. CC BY-SA 3.0

Solving the Riddle of Who Won the Second World War

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Who won the Second World War? If you go to the United Kingdom people will answer, we did, led by Winston Churchill. If you visit the USA people will say, we did, led by Franklin Roosevelt. If you go to Russia, people will say the Soviet Union did, led by Stalin.

They can’t all be right. All three did to an extent, in as much as all three went flat out to defeat Hitler’s Germany.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 13 April 2021

Photo: A Security Council meeting in progress. Credit: United Nations. Credit: UN

Did US Spies Read Russian Lips in the UN Security Council Chamber?

The following excerpts are from a newly-released, 220-page book titled “No Comment – and Don’t Quote me on That”, a rich collection of political anecdotes, both serious and hilarious, reflecting over 40 years of reporting from the United Nations*

By Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS, (IDN) — The United Nations, along with the 193 diplomatic missions located in New York, have long been veritable battlegrounds for spying, wire-tapping and electronic surveillance.

: Thalif Deen; OPINION; 13 April 2021

Photo: A monument in memory of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda is unveiled at the United Nations in Geneva (file). UN Photo / Violaine Martin.

UN Chief Calls for Reflecting on Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — In a message marking the grim anniversary of the 1994 genocide of Tutsi in Rwanda, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned of the rise of extremist groups and the inflammatory rhetoric that produced horrific consequences.

“Everyone must take a hard look at today’s world and ensure that we heed the lessons of 27 years ago,” the UN chief declared. “While the technology used by extremists is evolving, their vile messages and rhetoric remain the same.”

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 April 2021

Photo: Benin's presidential election kicked off on April 11. Credit: Seraphin Zounyekpe/Xinhua

Key Opposition Leaders Disqualified, Exiled or Under Investigation In Benin’s Presidential Poll

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore…and then run?”

Those were the prophetic words of poet Langston Hughes but they could also explain the rising frustration in an African election season where hopes for a democratic change are deferred and the incumbent holds on to power year after year after year.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 April 2021

Photo: The new EMOWAA draws inspiration from its historical architectural typologies and establishes its own courtyard in the form of a public garden. Credit: EMOWAA Museum.

Discussion About the Repatriation of Nigeria’s ‘Benin Bronzes’ Looted by British Soldiers

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — The Church of England is joining a handful of museums, universities, and private owners exploring the repatriation to Nigeria of thousands of brass plaques, wooden and ivory sculptures known as the Benin Bronzes looted by British soldiers in the waning days of the colonial era.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 April 2021

Image: Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) Credit: Anadolu Agency

Sudan Declines Ethiopian Proposal for Data Sharing on Dam Filling

By Sudan Tribune

KHARTOUM (IDN) — Sudan has declined an Ethiopian offer to share data on the second filling of a giant dam before reaching a legally binding agreement. Egypt has adopted a similar position.

Ethiopia’s foreign ministry on April 9 said it has formally requested Sudan and Egypt to "nominate dam operators to exchange data before the second filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) commences in the upcoming rainy seasons in Ethiopia".

: Africa & ME Editor; THE WORLD; Horn of Africa; 12 April 2021

Of Human Family, Culture of Peace & Sustainable Development

By Ramu Damodaran

The writer is Chief, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) hosted in the Department of Global Communications. This OpEd was first published in #WhyWeCare on April 8.

NEW YORK (IDN | UNAI) — We left last week with Bob Marley in our ear, his quest to consummate the end of physical slavery with liberation from its mental forms. Barely had our column been uploaded when I learned of the superstar’s family’s decision to reissue, in honour of UNICEF, his emblematic “One Love” remastered for our age of the pandemic.

: UN Bureau; OPINION; 11 April 2021

Photo: The COVID-19 pandemic drastically reduced the earning power of the Singh family from Madhya Pradesh, India. Credit: UNDP India/Dhiraj Singh

IMF and World Bank Decision to Tackle COVID-Related Debt Crisis Greeted

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK (IDN) — The UN Secretary-General has welcomed steps announced by the International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) and the World Bank Group Development Committee, to address debt crises and other financial anguish to economies arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, “as a sign of hope and renewed multilateralism”.

In a statement issued through his Spokesperson on April 9, António Guterres said developing economies had struggled to secure enough financial resources to cope with the onset of the coronavirus crisis, “let alone to recover from it”.

: Radwan Jakeem; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 10 April 2021

Photo: Sudanese protestors gather in front of government buildings in Khartoum to celebrate the final signing of the Draft Constitutional Declaration between military and civil representatives in August 2019. VOA-Public Domain.

Two Years On, Sudan's Political Transition Remains Extremely Volatile

By Philipp Jahn and Gerrit Kurtz*

This article was first published in the Journal of the International Politics and Society, issued by the German Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung’s Brussels office.

KHARTOUM (IDN) — April 11, 2019 was a day of great emotion in Khartoum. At noon, the then-Vice President Ibn Auf announced the arrest of President Omar al-Bashir. The residents of Khartoum celebrated the end of his 30-year rule by holding a sit-in in front of the military headquarters. In the evening, however, the mood shifted when the putschist military council announced two years of military rule.