The race is on to find missing following Kentucky tornadoes

Kentucky's governor reflected on the "unspeakable trauma" in his state, as he confirmed that weekend tornadoes have killed at least 64 residents. The victims ranged in age from as young as five months to 86 years old and come from at least eight different counties, with 18 people still unidentified.

Governor Andy Beshear said that at least 105 people remain missing and more deaths may be confirmed soon.

The revolution underway in India's diamond industry

Chintan Suhagiya is only 26, but already has seven years experience working in India's diamond industry.

Starting out, he ferried diamonds around his company, based in the world's diamond polishing capital, Surat in western India. But over the years he learnt how to inspect diamonds and now he grades their quality, using specialist equipment.

The Sikh princess who became a suffragette

The story of an Indian princess and suffragette has been immortalised in a children's book.

Sophia Duleep Singh was a daughter of the last Sikh ruler of the Punjab, Maharajah Duleep Singh, and grew up in Elveden, on the Norfolk-Suffolk border. The young princess made history in the early 1900s by risking her royal status to campaign for women's rights.

The Start Of A New Beginning - The Phoenix Newspaper Newsletter

The U.S. court case that ‘forced the nation to change’

On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that school segregation on the basis of race violated the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee to equal protection under the law.

The UAE Pavilion programs emphasize commitment to innovation and education

The UAE Pavilion at COP28 programs for 8 December 2023 featured convenings that aligned with the “Youth, Children, Education and Skills” thematic day at the global climate conference, with event discussions emphasizing the importance of innovation and knowledge sharing to nurture future generations.

The United States growing rich in languages

In the U.S., the number of people who spoke a language other than English at home nearly tripled from 23.1 million (about 1 in 10) to 67.8 million (about 1 in 5) over three recent decades, according to the Census Bureau.

The vineyards that’s putting India on the wine map

In India, innovative producers have adopted a range of approaches, from flipping the grape-growing season, to using kiwi fruit instead of grapes, to packaging wine in cans.

"When we started in 1997 no one knew what wine was," remembers Rajeev Samant, the founder of India's Sula Vineyards. "All liquor shops in India were called wine shops, so people thought wine meant liquor," he says.

The Voting Rights Act in the U.S. at 55

When the Voting Rights Act was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on August 6, 1965, a new era began in the United States. With a stroke of his pen, Johnson struck down discriminatory voting practices that had been adopted — primarily in Southern states — to disenfranchise African Americans.

Those practices, many dating back to the end of the U.S. Civil War in 1865, included the imposition of literacy tests and poll taxes that often-blocked Black citizens from exercising their right to vote, as guaranteed under the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Following on the heels of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed discrimination based on race, colour, religion, sex or national origin, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 helped to solidify the gains of the U.S. civil rights movement.

The West Midlands is a region of secret helpers as majority keep charity donations quiet from their friends

Major international aid organisations in the UK have teamed up for the first time to front a new campaign showcasing the positive impact UK aid has within lower income countries and the vital role the UK plays. Forming the Aid Alliance, the consortium, including organisations such as Care and ActionAid, will help to reignite belief in the power of ‘helping’ each other and the progress happening every day thanks to aid and the work we do with communities around the world.

The White House Comments on the death of Queen Elizabeth II

 
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
 
A PROCLAMATION

  Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was more than a monarch.  She defined an era.

The WHO highlighting global scourge of GBV

The WHO (World Health Organization) estimates that one in three women have experienced or will experience gender-based violence (GBV) during their lifetimes.

Since the pandemic started, 38% of women have personally experienced online violence and 85% of women know someone who has been targeted for online violence, a study by the Economist Intelligence Unit found.

The woman behind your GPS

If you rely on a Global Positioning System (GPS) device to guide you on unfamiliar roads, you have Gladys West to thank for it.

West, 87, is a retired mathematician living in north-eastern Virginia. Her former employer, the U.S. Navy, credits her with playing a pivotal role in developing GPS technology. From 1956 until her retirement in 1998, West worked with a team of engineers at a Navy base in Dahlgren, Virginia.

The world mourns the death of Desmond Tutu OMSG CH

One of South African's best-known figures at home and abroad, the contemporary of Nelson Mandela was one of the driving forces behind the anti-apartheid movement in his country.

He was awarded the Nobel prize in 1984 for his role in the struggle to abolish the abhorrent system enforced by the White minority government against the Black majority from 1948 until 1991.

The ‘Voice of Africa’ calling for African voices to be heard

As Africa remains rigid in its position as the richest continent in the world, one of its most recognised and decorated ‘sons’ remains unflinching in his drive to see his beloved homeland ‘sit at the top table when the world’s more financially astute countries make the kind of decisions that others have to ‘sing’ to.

Called the ‘Voice of Africa’, Professor Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba PhD, LL.B, LL.M is passion about discussing the fate of Africa and he’s not afraid to apportion blame for Africa’s fate.

A former Director of Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, a lecturer in Law at the Faculty of Law at University of Nairobi, and Trustee and Executive Director of the African Institute of Leaders and Leadership, again, in Nairobi, he is now the Director of The Kenya School of Law and often makes powerful speeches about African solutions to African problems.

A compendium of all things Africa, he has written several books, and been the co-author of the prestigious ‘The Constitution of Kenya’.

A staunch Pan-African, he wrote 27 other books – one of which being ‘Stolen Kenya’ as he always said that: “Africans must take a historical journey. The rise and fall of Africa is on account of African politicians.

“Africa started to produce leaders that they didn’t recognise”.

Having served in the National Committee on Implementation of International Humanitarian Law, followed by being the Secretary to the constitution Kenya Review Commission, Professor PLO Lumumba often call for ‘hygiene’ in Africa, as it had been “disappearing from African politics – ably assisted by Europeans.

“After slavery ‘lost its sheen’ Europeans abolished it and created a new enterprise – ‘colonisation’

“In 1884 they (Europeans) then looked at the map of Africa and shared it out - they thought that they were ‘demi-gods’; calling it the ‘Messiah Complex’.

“But, we – our ancestors - built Europe and the USA. Now we have to reclaim what has always been ours.

“The Democratic Republic of Congo, for example, is the richest country on Earth – but one of the poorest on Earth.

“The question there is; ‘Where is the ‘democracy’?

“African leaders”, he says, “feel that they have the divine right to rule.

“It’s time, now, for African’s voices to be heard – as one”.

PLO Lumumba is one of THE voices that will forever be heard..

Theresa Kachindamoto is almost single-handedly giving Malawi children their childhood back

Theresa Kachindamoto could not have imagined ever leaving her job in a college in Zomba, in Southern Malawi. But, after 13-years of dedicated service, and following a 2012 United Nations survey, which found that more than half of the country’s girls were married before the age of 18, she was appointed the paramount chief, or Inkosi, of the Dedza District, with informal authority over more than 900,000 people to dissolve the litany of child marriages – and, in its stead, encourage education for both girls and boys.

Thousands evacuated as Cyclone Biparjoy heads towards India and Pakistan

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.

Thousands gather for funeral of Pope Benedict XVI

Having drawn thousands of people for his funeral, Pope Benedict XVI was buried in a crypt beneath St Peter's Basilica - which holds the tombs of more than 90 of his predecessors -  according to Benedict's final wishes.

Beginning in a traditional ceremony at St. Peter’s Square, in Vatican City, Benedict was named pope emeritus during the funeral, as the language of some prayers was different because he was not the reigning pope when he died.

Thousands in shelters after tsunami warnings following Japan earthquake

Thousands of people in Japan are spending the night in evacuation centres after a powerful earthquake.

Thousands mourn at Kenya's marathon star Kelvin Kiptum funeral

Widow, Asenath Rotich, led the mourners at the funeral for Kenyan marathon world record holder, Kelvin Kiptum.