Pollution is deadlier than war, disaster, hunger: Report

Indian soldiers walk amidst morning smog in New Delhi, on Friday. (AP)
Updated 21 October 2017
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Pollution is deadlier than war, disaster, hunger: Report

NEW DELHI: Environmental pollution — from filthy air to contaminated water — is killing more people every year than all war and violence in the world. More than smoking, hunger or natural disasters. More than AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined.
One out of every six premature deaths in the world in 2015 — about 9 million — could be attributed to disease from toxic exposure, according to a major study released Thursday in the Lancet medical journal. The financial cost from pollution-related death, sickness and welfare is equally massive, the report says, costing some $4.6 trillion in annual losses — or about 6.2 percent of the global economy.
“There’s been a lot of study of pollution, but it’s never received the resources or level of attention as, say, AIDS or climate change,” said epidemiologist Philip Landrigan, dean of global health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, and the lead author on the report.
The report marks the first attempt to pull together data on disease and death caused by all forms of pollution combined.
“Pollution is a massive problem that people aren’t seeing because they’re looking at scattered bits of it,” Landrigan said.
Experts say the 9 million premature deaths the study found was just a partial estimate, and the number of people killed by pollution is undoubtedly higher and will be quantified once more research is done and new methods of assessing harmful impacts are developed.
Areas like Sub-Saharan Africa have yet to even set up air pollution monitoring systems. Soil pollution has received scant attention. And there are still plenty of potential toxins still being ignored, with less than half of the 5,000 new chemicals widely dispersed throughout the environment since 1950 having been tested for safety or toxicity.
“In the West, we got the lead out of the gasoline, so we thought lead was handled. We got rid of the burning rivers, cleaned up the worst of the toxic sites. And then all of those discussions went into the background” just as industry began booming in developing nations, said Richard Fuller, head of the global toxic watchdog Pure Earth and one of the 47 scientists, policy makers and public health experts who contributed to the 51-page report.
“To some extent these countries look to the West for examples and discussion, and we’d dropped it,” Fuller said.
Asia and Africa are the regions putting the most people at risk, the study found, while India tops the list of individual countries.
One out of every four premature deaths in India in 2015, or some 2.5 million, was attributed to pollution. China’s environment was the second deadliest, with more than 1.8 million premature deaths, or one in five, blamed on pollution-related illness, the study found.
Several other countries such Bangladesh, Pakistan, North Korea, South Sudan and Haiti also see nearly a fifth of their premature deaths caused by pollution.
Still, many poorer countries have yet to make pollution control a priority, experts say. India has taken some recent actions, such as tightening vehicle and factory emission standards and occasionally limiting the number of cars on New Delhi’s roads. But they have done little about crop burning, garbage fires, construction dust or rampant use of the dirtiest fossil fuels.
A court ban on firework sales before the Diwali festival did not stop New Delhi residents from firing rockets and lighting crackers throughout Thursday night. They awoke Friday morning to acrid, smoke-filled skies and levels of dangerous, lung-clogging particulate matter known as PM2.5 that went beyond 900 parts per million — 90 times the recommended limit by the World Health Organization (WHO) and 22 times higher than India’s own limits.
“Even though better pollution norms are coming in, still the pollution levels are continuously increasing,” said Shambhavi Shukla, a research associate with the Delhi-based Center for Science and Environment, which was not involved in the Lancet study.
To reach its figures on the overall global pollution burden, the study’s authors used methods outlined by the US Environmental Protection Agency for assessing field data from soil tests, as well as with air and water pollution data from the Global Burden of Disease, an ongoing study run by institutions including WHO and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.


FBI thwarts Iranian murder-for-hire plan targeting Donald Trump

Updated 9 sec ago
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FBI thwarts Iranian murder-for-hire plan targeting Donald Trump

Shakeri told the FBI he didn’t plan to propose a plan to murder Trump
The plot reflects what federal officials have described as ongoing efforts by Iran to target US government officials

WASHINGTON: The Justice Department unsealed criminal charges Friday in a thwarted Iranian plot to kill President-elect Donald Trump before this week’s presidential election.
A criminal complaint filed in federal court in Manhattan alleges that an unnamed official in Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard instructed a contact this past September to put together a plan to surveil and ultimately kill Trump.
If the man, identified as Farjad Shakeri, was unable to create a plan by then, the complaint said, the official told him Iran would pause its plan until after the presidential election because the official believed Trump would lose and it would be easier to assassinate him then, the complaint said.
Shakeri told the FBI he didn’t plan to propose a plan to murder Trump within the seven days the official had requested, according to the complaint.
The plot, with the charges unsealed just days after Trump’s defeat of Democrat Kamala Harris, reflects what federal officials have described as ongoing efforts by Iran to target US government officials, including Trump, on US soil.

Russia says summoned Canadian diplomat to reject Western sabotage accusations

Updated 25 min 13 sec ago
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Russia says summoned Canadian diplomat to reject Western sabotage accusations

  • Moscow said the Canadian diplomat “was told that these speculations” were being spread in a “coordinated manner, in the context of the hybrid war” being waged against Russia
  • Russia blasted the allegations as “false,” “unacceptable” and part of a “provocation” being led by the US

MOSCOW: Moscow summoned a Canadian diplomat on Friday to rebut Western allegations that Russia’s secret services had orchestrated a campaign to mail explosive packages to addresses in NATO countries, including Canada.
After a series of fires at DHL depots in Britain and Germany this summer, Russia was accused of being behind a brazen plot to ship explosive parcels via commercial airliners.
Ottawa expressed its concern earlier this week to Russian officials after Poland and Lithuania announced several arrests as a result of a probe into attempts to send parcels packaged with explosives on cargo flights to the United States and Canada.
“The deputy head of the Canadian diplomatic mission in Moscow was summoned and handed an official note in connection with the false accusations of alleged planned ‘Russian sabotage’ against NATO countries,” Russia’s foreign ministry said.
Moscow said the Canadian diplomat “was told that these speculations” were being spread in a “coordinated manner, in the context of the hybrid war” being waged against Russia by the West.
Russia blasted the allegations as “false,” “unacceptable” and part of a “provocation” being led by the United States.
Canada’s public safety ministry said Ottawa is “aware of and deeply concerned with Russia’s intensifying campaign, from cyber incidents and disinformation operations to sabotage activities.”
It confirmed the Canadian government had “expressed this concern directly to Russian officials and unequivocally stated that any threat to the safety and security of Canadians is unacceptable.”
The ministry added there was “no imminent threat” to the public but said Canada “will continue to monitor the situation very closely.”
Canada’s Transport Minister Anita Anand told reporters on Wednesday that she required “more information” on the alleged plot but said she would taking “additional steps” to ensure the safety of passengers and packages, without providing details.
The reported plot, involving civilian airlines, comes amid growing concern in the West at what it sees as Russia’s increasingly reckless espionage and sabotage operations inside NATO countries.
“Russian intelligence services have gone a bit feral, frankly,” Richard Moore, head of Britain’s MI6 secret intelligence service said in September in rare public remarks.


Governor Koike discusses areas of cooperation with Egyptian Prime Minister Madbouly

Updated 08 November 2024
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Governor Koike discusses areas of cooperation with Egyptian Prime Minister Madbouly

  • Dr. Mostafa Madbouly congratulated Koike on her re-election as Governor of Tokyo
  • The Prime Minister also lauded Japan’s contribution to implementing the Japanese Tokkatsu educational system

TOKYO: Governor of Tokyo, Koike Yuriko, who is visiting Cairo, met Egyptian Prime Minister Dr. Mostafa Madbouly on Friday at the government headquarters in the New Administrative Capital and discussed several cooperation initiatives, Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) officials told Arab News Japan.
The officials said Dr. Amr Talaat, Egypt’s Minister of Communications, and Information Technology; Ambassador Ahmed Shahin, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Asian Affairs; Mr. Katsunobu Takada, Chargé d’Affaires at the Japanese Embassy in Cairo, and Governor Koike’s accompanying delegation attended the meeting.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Prime Minister warmly welcomed Governor Koike and her delegation. He underscored the strategic and historical relations between Egypt and Japan, a testament to the enduring bond that continues to flourish in various fields.
Dr. Mostafa Madbouly congratulated Koike on her re-election as Governor of Tokyo in July for the third consecutive term and expressed his hopes for continued close coordination on various areas of bilateral cooperation.
The Prime Minister also expressed his fervent hope that Japan’s Prime Minister, alongside Governor Koike, will grace the official opening ceremony of the Grand Egyptian Museum once the project is finalized. He also extended his gratitude for Japan’s substantial contributions to major development projects in Egypt, including the museum.
Dr. Madbouly highlighted the Grand Egyptian Museum project as one of the foremost examples of cooperation between Cairo and Tokyo, along with the Egyptian Japanese educational partnership, exemplified by the Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology and Japanese Egyptian schools.
The Prime Minister also lauded Japan’s contribution to implementing the Japanese Tokkatsu educational system, affirming that Egypt is planning to expand this system. He attributed this decision to President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s directive, acknowledging the system’s remarkable success and high quality.
Dr. Madbouly also highlighted the ongoing cooperation between the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and TMG through the “SUSHI Tech Tokyo” initiative, a platform for promoting technological innovation, and the “Tokyo Innovation Base” platform, a hub for fostering entrepreneurial activities and technological advancements.
In turn, Governor Koike praised the bilateral cooperation between Egypt and Japan, expressing her happiness to visit Egypt, where she has unforgettable memories, having studied at Cairo University.
Koike also commended the well-organized 12th World Urban Forum, a global platform for discussing urban issues and solutions, which attracted a wide global audience.
In the meeting, Tokyo Governor Koike invited the Prime Minister, the Minister of Communications, and other Egyptian entities to participate in the upcoming “SUSHI Tech Tokyo” forum, scheduled for the first half of 2025. She noted that Japan has worked over the years to establish itself as a hub for startups and a welcoming environment for entrepreneurs.
Dr. Amr Talaat discussed several collaborative programs with Koike in information and communication technology, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and entrepreneurship. They explored the potential for experience exchange in business incubators for small projects across various sectors, including financial services, health care, and education.
Talaat highlighted that one of the main areas of cooperation with Tokyo’s government is in the startup and entrepreneurship sectors.
Governor Koike is in Egypt on the first leg of a tour of the region that includes Abu Dhabi of the UAE.


Germany brushes off Musk calling Scholz a ‘fool’

Updated 08 November 2024
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Germany brushes off Musk calling Scholz a ‘fool’

  • Government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann took a playful dig at the US tycoon, saying that “on X, you have Narrenfreiheit,” which translates to the freedom to act like a fool
  • A tight-lipped Scholz simply called it “not very friendly“

BERLIN: German officials on Friday brushed off tech billionaire Elon Musk labelling Olaf Scholz a “fool” on his social media platform X after the dramatic collapse of the chancellor’s coalition government.
In a comment Thursday above a post about the implosion of Scholz’s long-troubled coalition, the world’s richest man tweeted in German: “Olaf ist ein Narr” — “Olaf is a fool.”
Asked about Musk’s comment, government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann took a playful dig at the US tycoon, saying that “on X, you have Narrenfreiheit,” which translates to the freedom to act like a fool.
The word refers to revellers during Germany’s traditional carnival season, which starts next week, having the freedom to act without inhibitions.
Historically, the term echoes the notion of the “jester’s privilege” — the right of a court jester to mock those in power without being punished by the king.
Asked later about the comment, a tight-lipped Scholz simply called it “not very friendly,” adding that Internet companies are “not organs of state so I did not even pay it any attention.”
Musk strongly supported US election winner Donald Trump, and is now positioned to take up a role in his administration as a deputy tasked with restructuring government operations.
It is not the first time the Tesla boss has had run-ins with German officials online.
Last year he said Berlin-funded migrant rescue operations in the Mediterranean could be seen as an “invasion” of Italy, sparking a terse response from the German foreign ministry.
He has also expressed sympathy for some of the positions of Germany’s far-right AfD party, which has notched up a string of recent electoral successes and is riding high in the opinion polls.


First flight with Israelis evacuated from Amsterdam lands in Tel Aviv

Updated 08 November 2024
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First flight with Israelis evacuated from Amsterdam lands in Tel Aviv

  • The plane that arrived in Tel Aviv had passengers evacuated from Amsterdam

TEL AVIV: The first flight carrying Israelis evacuated from Amsterdam after violent clashes following a football match there landed on Friday at Ben Gurion International Airport, the Israel Airports Authority said.
“The plane that arrived in Tel Aviv now has passengers evacuated from Amsterdam,” Liza Dvir, spokeswoman for the airport authority told AFP.