World News

Several international research institutes and centres have developed a growing interest in the Islamic Hajj pilgrimage season, one of the largest annual human gatherings on earth, with some US and British universities publishing research papers proving that Hajj is an abundant source of positive human emotions.

Some of these papers found that Hajj supports the principles of tolerance and peace among pilgrims, facts that are considered as a testimony by neutral parties for the benefit of the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, as well as other Saudi authorities who strive to provide millions of pilgrims with a modern yet spiritual atmosphere.

The Buccaneer Beach & Golf Resort on St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands is welcoming news of increased American Airlines flights from Charlotte, North Carolina this winter season. The Dallas-Fort Worth-based carrier advised this week that seat capacity to the Caribbean and Latin America will increase by 40 percent compared to winter 2022 and “The Big Island” of St. Croix will benefit from daily Charlotte flights starting December 5, 2023.

Seven African leaders are travelling to Ukraine and Russia on a peace mission, hoping to work towards ending the war, which has badly affected living standards across the whole of the continent. The delegation from South Africa, Egypt, Senegal, Congo-Brazzaville, Comoros, Zambia, and Uganda is meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday and President Vladimir Putin on Saturday.

But the timing of the visit seems off. It comes just as Kyiv is launching its much-vaunted counter-offensive. So, what can this mission actually achieve?

After English-speaking visitors noticed the pun in taking route 666 to “Hell”, the bus line became a tourist attraction. Polish transit operator PKS Gdynia announced that due to complaints from the Roman Catholic Church it will be renumber its notorious ‘Satanic Bus’ route serving Pomeranian resort area.

According to the operator, bus route 666, serving Poland’s Baltic Sea resort of Hel, will be re-numbered at the end of June. “We changed the number from 666 to 669, [to be] less controversial and less conspicuous,” PKS Gdynia executive said, citing complaints by the church as one of the reasons for the decision.

“There is no single Caribbean American identity,” President Joe Biden said in a proclamation, referring to the roughly 8 million Caribbean Americans living in the United States today. “The mix of cultures, languages, and religions alive across the United States and the islands reflects the diversity of spirit that defines the American story.”

Here are images of art by five Caribbean American artists who work in an array of mediums as they address issues from colonialism within the Afro Caribbean diaspora to climate change. Ana Mendieta was born in Havana and came to live in the United States with her sister when Fidel Castro took power in 1960.

Chair and Founder of Precision Air Mr. Michael Shirima passed away last weekend at the Aga Khan Hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. His family confirmed his death and said that the leading aviation industry expert in Tanzania had passed away and will be laid to eternal rest this week at his family home in Kilimanjaro region in northern Tanzania.

The family described Mr. Shirima as an inspiration and a leader to many, and promised to forever cherish his life.

Texas native Opal Lee has seen a lot of history in her 96 years. She lived through the Great Depression, World War II and the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. In this century, she voted for the first African American president of the United States. Lee herself has made history, too.

In 2016, at age 89, the retired schoolteacher and longtime community activist took up the cause of elevating Juneteenth as a federal holiday. And she succeeded.

Tens of thousands have been evacuated in India and Pakistan as parts of the countries braced for an extremely severe cyclone today. Biparjoy - a cyclone over the Arabian Sea - is forecast to make landfall in Kutch in the western Indian state of Gujarat.

In Pakistan, the storm is expected to hit the coast of Sindh province and affect parts of Karachi city. Seven people have died in India amid heavy rains.

Jamaican poet Christena Williams is one of ten young Caribbean creatives who will be featured at the 40th edition of UNESCO’s Poetry Market to be held from 7 to 11 June at the Place Saint Sulpice in Paris, France.

Her selection means that Christena will participate in public readings of her poems, meet with publishers, and enjoy exchanges with other authors. Williams will also be able to network with important figures in Europe’s literary scene.

HookieLife Entertainment proudly presents the highly anticipated J'ouvert and Mas events that have become a fixture during its annual weekend of festivity, Hookie Weekend. The beloved staples ‘Lion’s Pride J’ouvert’ and ‘Riddim & Road’ are back for 2023 with creative themes much to the delight of patrons.

Taking place at the Rosecroft Raceway on Saturday June 17^th and Sunday June 18^th respectively, Lion’s Pride J’ouvert and Riddim & Road are both celebrations of Caribbean culture, music, and vibrant revelry. These exhilarating events promise to arouse the DMV with an explosion of colour, energy, and energizing rhythms that will captivate the diverse collection of attendees.

The African Development Bank Group and the Republic of Tanzania have launched the Skills Development for Youth Employability in Blue Economy project. This is a project that will enable Zanzibari youth to find well-paying maritime and other blue economy jobs.

The Bank is providing grant financing of $48.65 million for the project, with the Tanzanian government contributing an additional $5.42 million. Both parties signed the grant agreement on the 21st of November 2022, with its official launch taking place on 17 May 2023. The project will benefit about 43,000 youth (40% of them female) and prepare over 1,500 of them to start their own enterprises.

The US Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has reported that Kīlauea Volcano on Hawaiʻi Island is currently experiencing a new eruption within Halemaʻumaʻu crater that started at approximately 4:44 a.m.

The summit eruption of Kīlauea that began within Halemaʻumaʻu crater at 4:44 a.m. HST today, June 7, 2023, continues at this time.  All activity is confined to Kīlauea summit region, within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. There are no indications of activity migrating out of the summit region.

Trillions of dollars in reparations are owed to nations affected by slavery, a recently concluded study on the quantification of reparations for Transatlantic Chattel Slavery (TCS) in the Americas and the Caribbean has found.

The report identifies the reparations that are due in respect of 31 countries in which TCS was practised, according to Judge Patrick Robinson, former honorary president of the American Society of International Law and the project’s initiator, who spoke at the report’s launch yesterday at the Regional Headquarters of The University of the West Indies. To assess the reparations that are due, it must be established that the injuries or harm suffered by the enslaved are the consequence of wrongful conduct by those who carried out TCS.

The United States is the largest provider of international food assistance in the world, and it takes care that the food that feeds hungry people is safe and nutritious. The U.S. Department of Agriculture requires that food products are inspected and meet quality standards. What’s more, it requires packaging to keep the food safe and alerts the U.S. Agency for International Development, responsible for managing food aid to other countries, about any issues.

With USAID, the Agriculture Department conducts annual on-site audits of U.S. food commodity suppliers as part of its food safety/quality efforts, says Rufino Perez, senior food technology advisor for USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance. And all food provided by USAID adheres to the “Codex Alimentarius Recommended International Code of Practice” — a collection of internationally adopted food standards.

The Anguilla Tourist Board (ATB) have introduced its first-ever destination magazine, ‘Uniquely Anguilla’, a glossy new publication that brings the destination to life. Compelling imagery, in-depth features covering every aspect of Anguilla’s rich and vibrant heritage and culture, along with helpful travel tips on getting to and around the island, make this magazine the most comprehensive source for information about the island.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that RwandAir CEO Yvonne Manzi Makolo has assumed her duties as Chair of the IATA Board of Governors (BoG) for a one-year term, effective from the conclusion of the 79th IATA Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Istanbul, Türkiye on 5 June.

Makolo is the 81st chair of the IATA BoG and the first woman to take on this role. She has served on the BoG since November 2020. She succeeds Pegasus Airlines Chairperson of the Board Mehmet Tevfik Nane who will continue to serve on the BoG.