Poor Struggle as Inflation Soars

IPS As long as the Kenyan shilling is under pressure from the dollar, the price of fuel and food will continue rising. In August the shilling reached a record low of 95.05 shillings to the dollar. The low income segments are hardest hit by this situation.

Bomb at UN building in Nigerian capital Abuja

BBC There has been a bomb attack at the UN building in the Nigerian capital Abuja, the United Nations says. The BBC’s Bashir Sa’ad Abdullahi, who is at the site of the explosion, says the ground floor of the building has been badly damaged. The emergency services are removing dead bodies from the building while [...]

Wave of Illegal, Senseless and Violent Evictions Swells in Port au Prince

Common Dreams With nearly 600,000 internally displaced persons still in camps, the scale of Haiti’s homeless problem remains daunting. by Bill Quigley Mathias O is 34 years old.  He is one of about 600,000 people still homeless from the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti.  He lives with his wife and her 2 year old under [...]

Human trafficking ring used girls as young as 12, Cook County prosecutors say

Chicago Tribune 9 people charged in sex-ring case By Antonio Olivo and Dahleen Glanton, Tribune reporters Dozens of girls, some as young as 12, were forced into prostitution by a human trafficking ring that kept its victims in line with brutal means that included beatings, Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez said Wednesday

Congo’s religious leaders urge security for November general elections

KINSHASA, Congo (CNS) — Congolese religious leaders expressed worries that November’s general elections could be marred by violence, and they called on the international community to ensure optimal security for people and ballots after the polls.

Damage from Virginia quake appears to hit churches hard

By Catholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) — Historic churches in Washington, Maryland and Virginia were among buildings with the most serious damage after the unusual Aug. 23 magnitude 5.8 earthquake shook the region.

Nuclear refugees struggle to cope with uncertain future

Japan Times Left in limbo by lack of official info, many don’t know where to turn By MIZUHO AOKI Like thousands of other people, Miwa Kamoshita’s life was turned upside down when the March 11 tsunami struck the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, leading her and her family to voluntarily evacuate their home in Iwaki, [...]