MONTENEGRO:
The tiny Baltic state’s first gay pride parade was welcomed by 200 violent demonstrators, who clashed with police and peaceful, prideful marchers. Considering that two thirds of Montenegrins believe homosexuality is an illness, the fact the march was able to take place at all is a surprise. [NBC]
QATAR:
Qatar’s new emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, has pledged his country’s continued support of Syrian rebel forces. Though no details have been released regarding the kind of aid that will be given, officials maintain that they will not abandon the fight against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. Pictured above is al-Thani’s predecessor and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaking about Syria in June. [Al Jazeera]
USA:
Americans’ disdain for the government has reached an all time high. Or more accurately, an all time low. Approval ratings of Congress and the President are in the sewer and six out of ten voters say they would vote to defeat and replace every single member of Congress, given the option. Polls reveal that Democrats mostly blame gridlock in the stagnant Congress, while Republicans blame the president. [NBC]
SUDAN:
Violence continues to rage in war-torn Sudan. Rebels from Darfur clashed with the army, displacing hundreds of civilians and resulting in many injuries and deaths. The rebel group called the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) is part of a larger group, the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) whose goal is to topple President Omar Hassan al-Bashir and the ruling wealthy Arabs. Sudanese officials say that if South Sudan continues to support the rebel groups, they will cut off oil supplies to the land-locked nation. [Reuters]
EGYPT:
As the death toll continues to rise in Egypt in the wake of the military removal of President Morsi, the military chief has appealed to the public. Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has pressed Egyptians to take to the streets in mass demonstrations to display their support for the army and denounce the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, Morsi’s party. Both sides have suffered immense casualties, and both claim the other started the bloodshed. Recent episodes have raised fears about the onset of militant violence. [CBS]
IRAQ:
A new wave of attacks has brought the death toll in Iraq since April to a whopping 3,000. This morning, insurgents assaulted police headquarters in northern Iraq, killing a total of 14 people. Nine policemen died, as well as the driver and assistant of the ambulance who rushed to the scene of the crime. As groups like al-Qaeda gain confidence, the situation becomes increasingly unstable and volatile. The escalating violence has led to fears of the resurgence of sectarian violence that pushed the country to the brink of civil war in 2003. [CBC]
INDIA:
Despite her best efforts at escape, the principle of the school where 23 kids died after eating school lunch has been arrested. Immediately after the children fell ill last week, Meena Kumari fled the scene. Police investigations reveal that the chef told Kumari the cooking oil looked different than usual, and Kumari told her to use it anyway. The staff maintained Kumari was in charge of the lunch, which was part of a government program to end malnutrition, a condition about half of India’s children suffer from. [Fox]
