International
Afghanistan: Poppy Farming Creates Vicious Cycle in Afghanistan
Jan 17, 2018
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NHK
Afghanistan is fighting a losing battle against opium production. The amount of land used for poppy cultivation is believed to have hit a record high…
Afghanistan: Afghan Pomegranate Trade Bears Fruit
Jan 17, 2018
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Mohammad Ibrahim Spesalai, Institute for War and Peace Reporting
Officials and farmers in Kandahar are celebrating both bumper crops and rising exports of the province’s famously fine pomegranates. This fruit has always been an…
Afghanistan: Hothousing Farah's Economy
Jan 17, 2018
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Khushal Zaland, Institute for War and Peace Reporting
Farmers and officials in Farah say that the use of greenhouses is transforming their largely agricultural economy, with hopes that this could even provide a…
Afghanistan: Flagship Afghan Rural Program Lays Strong Foundation for the Future
Jan 16, 2018
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World Bank
Nestled in a broad sweeping valley, and surrounded by bare brown hills, the inhabitants of Melani Kalay village have long endured both floods and water…
Myanmar: Groups Blast Planned Hydropower Project in Shan State
Jan 16, 2018
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Myanmar Times
Civic groups in Shan State on Monday lambasted a plan by the Myanmar government and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), World Bank’s private sector arm, to…
Afghanistan: 4 Tribesmen Killed in Clash over Helmand Land Dispute
Jan 15, 2018
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Zainullah Stanikzai, Pajhwok Afghan News
At least four civilians have been killed and six others wounded during a clash with Taliban militants over a land dispute in Musa Qala district…
Myanmar: Jade Sales Fetch Nearly $300 Million
Jan 15, 2018
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Eleven
Myanmar earned over US$290 million (389.8 billion kyat) from jade exports up to the first week of this month in 2017-2018 fiscal year. Sales were…
Iraq: Inside Mosul Dam, Iraq's Biggest Potential Weapon of Mass Destruction
Jan 12, 2018
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Hollie McKay, Fox News
The Mosul Dam, the largest in the country with the capacity to hold 3 trillion gallons of water, controls the flow of the Tigris River…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq Parliament Forms Committee to Investigate KRG Oil Sector
Jan 12, 2018
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Rudaw
The Iraqi parliament is going to form a committee to look into the matter of Kurdistan’s oil, said a Kurdish MP, adding it will start…
Egypt/Sudan: Egypt-Sudan Spat Muddies Prospects for Deal on Big Nile Dam
Jan 12, 2018
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Keith Johnson, Foreign Policy
A diplomatic spat between Egypt and Sudan is spilling over into the long-running dispute over a dam Ethiopia is building on the Nile River, which…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan to Invest in Five Wheat Storage Facilities
Jan 12, 2018
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Eric Schroeder, World Grain
Agriculture Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) plans to build at least five wheat storage facilities in five provinces across Afghanistan. Officials with MAIL said approximately $28…
Climate Change: Make Security Strategy Include Climate Again, Lawmakers Urge Trump
Jan 12, 2018
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Timothy Gardner, Reuters
A group of more than 100 bipartisan lawmakers in the U.S. House urged President Donald Trump on Friday to reconsider the omission of climate change…
Afghanistan: MAIL Plans to Establish Five Wheat Storage Facilities
Jan 11, 2018
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Zarmina Mohammadi, TOLOnews
Officials from the Afghan Ministry of Agriculture Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) on Thursday said that the ministry plans to build at least five wheat storage…
Colombia: In Colombia, Marxist Rebels Hold the Oil Industry Hostage
Jan 10, 2018
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Maximo Anderson, Bloomberg
A three-month cease-fire—the first in three years of negotiations between the ELN and the government—expired on Jan. 9. While the group’s leadership, which claims around…
DRC: Congo May More Than Double Tax on Critical Cobalt Supply
Jan 10, 2018
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William Clowes and Thomas Wilson,
The Democratic Republic of Congo is preparing to more than double a tax on two-thirds of global cobalt supply, potentially increasing the cost of the…
Liberia: Forest Benefits for River Cess in Limbo
Jan 10, 2018
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Joaquin M. Sendolo, Observer
Projects that would have been the first tangible benefits for citizens of River Cess County accrued from commercial logging are now stalled because the money…
Colombia: Reintegrating 14,000 Ex-Combatants Remains a Challenge, Security Council Told
Jan 10, 2018
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UN
Colombia's peace efforts remain challenged by the task of reintegrating 14,000 former rebel combatants, the top United Nations official in the country said Wednesday as…
Africa: When Humans War, Animals Die
Jan 10, 2018
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Ed Yong, Atlantic
Together with Rob Pringle, from Princeton University, Joshua Daskin compiled 65 years’ worth of data on the abundance of large mammals across all of Africa.…
Myanmar: Illegal Burmese Wood Used in British Boats, Says Organization
Jan 9, 2018
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Lauren Crothers, Mongabay
Timber that is being illegally logged and smuggled out of Myanmar is ending up as decking on luxury yachts in the UK, according to one…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan Destroying Hamoun Wetlands
Jan 9, 2018
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Financial Times
Over 70% of the southeastern Hamoun Wetlands (also known as Hamouns) in Sistan-Baluchestan Province are drying up, largely because of Afghanistan's injudicious dam construction on…
Myanmar: Timber Smuggling Still Thrives in Kachin and Northern Shan State
Jan 8, 2018
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Eleven
Timber smuggling is still thriving in Kachin and Northern Shan State, according to political leaders, people close to timber smugglers and locals who spoke with…
Egypt/Sudan: 'Water War' Escalates between Egypt, Sudan
Jan 8, 2018
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Giorgio Cafiero, Al-Monitor
So far, 2018 has been a negative year for Egyptian-Sudanese relations. On Jan. 4, Sudan recalled its ambassador from Egypt. Without providing further details, Sudan’s…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq Bans Kurdish Firm Kar Group from Operating Kirkuk Oilfields
Jan 8, 2018
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Ahmed Rasheed, Reuters
Iraq’s parliament voted on Monday to ban Kurdish engineering firm Kar Group from operating Kirkuk’s oilfields, following Iraq’s recapture of the Kurdish-held oil region in…
Afghanistan: Illegal Extraction of Badakhshan Mines Goes on
Jan 7, 2018
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Middle East North Africa Financial Network
All mines in northeastern Badakhshan province are illegally extracted by armed men and militants as the government collected no revenue this solar year from mining…
Afghanistan: UNICEF to Invest in Water, Hygiene in 27 Provinces
Jan 7, 2018
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Zabiullah Jhanmal, TOLOnews
Officials from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) announced on Sunday that it plans to launch a two-year water distribution program to the people in…
Afghanistan: Potable Water Soon in Rural Areas: MoRRD Signed Agreement to Provide Drinkable Water to 1.8 Million People
Jan 7, 2018
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Afghanistan Times
Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MoRRD) signed agreement with UNICEF to provide 1.8 million people drinkable water and hygiene services in rural areas across…
Afghanistan: Parliament Mocks Environment Protection Committee
Jan 6, 2018
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Afghanistan Times
The Environment Protection Committee on Saturday failed to satisfy Wolesi Jirga (Lower House) of parliament during impeachment that was strongly criticized by the lawmakers. Even…
Myanmar: Timber Auctions Temporarily Suspended as Illegal Trading Rises
Jan 5, 2018
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Su Phyo Win, Myanmar Time
Auctions for timber rejected by the Myanma Timber Enterprise (MTE), which are conducted by the Forest Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental…
Myanmar: Mandalay Region Increases Water Charges and Scales up Access
Jan 5, 2018
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Phyo Wai Kyaw, Myanmar Times
Eight thousand water meters will be installed free of charge in Pyigyitagun township with a total of US$20 million funding from Japan International Cooperation Agency…
Sudan: Sudan Recalls Egyptian Ambassador as Relations Sour
Jan 5, 2018
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Middle East Eye
Sudan has recalled its ambassador from neighbouring Egypt for consultations, the foreign ministry said on Thursday, without giving details on why or how long he…