International
South Sudan: Wildlife Devastated in South Sudan War: Conservationists
Nov 19, 2014
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Peter Martell, AFP
Nairobi - Warring factions in South Sudan have slaughtered, poached and eaten "alarming" numbers of endangered wildlife, devastating one of Africa's largest migrations, conservationists warned…
Afghanistan: Land-Grabbing by Powerful Rife in Afghanistan - Watchdog
Nov 19, 2014
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Reuters
Corruption and weak regulation have allowed nearly a quarter of a million hectares of land to be seized in Afghanistan over the last decade, often…
South Sudan: Govt Denies Reports of Oil Leak in Unity State
Nov 19, 2014
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Sudan Tribune
Juba — South Sudan's minister for petroleum and mining has dismissed reports of an oil leak in severely damaged fields in Unity state. Speaking to…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq, Kurdish Region Implement Deal on Oil Exports, Salaries
Nov 19, 2014
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Reuters
The government of Iraq and the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region have begun implementing a deal under which Baghdad resumes funding Kurdish civil servant salaries in return…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Can the Iraqi-Kurdish Oil Deal Last?
Nov 18, 2014
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Nick Cunningham, Christian Science Monitor
Kurdistan and the Iraqi central government have reached an important agreement over oil.
Although the deal is only an interim agreement, leaving larger issues unresolved, the…
Conflict Minerals: Federal Appeals Court to Reconsider Conflict Minerals Rule
Nov 18, 2014
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Tim Devaney, The Hill
U.S. companies may be required after all to disclose whether their products are manufactured with "conflict minerals" from war-torn parts of Africa, a federal appeals…
South Sudan: S Sudan Minister Says Cleaning Up Damage to Oil Fields
Nov 18, 2014
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Radio Tamazuj
South Sudan’s Minister of Petroleum and Mining Stephen Dhieu Dau says that the government is now cleaning up damages caused during recent fighting between SPLA-IO…
Central African Republic: Central African Republic New ‘Blood Diamond’ Hub
Nov 18, 2014
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Martin Creamer, Mining Weekly
The dysfunctional Central African Republic (CAR) has taken over as the country where “blood diamond” activity is again rife.
Diamonds worth $24-million have been smuggled out…
Liberia: Oil Bid Round 'Transparent' - Nocal Replies Global Witness
Nov 18, 2014
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AllAfrica
Monrovia — Aletha Sherman, the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel for the National Oil Company of Liberia says the Bid Round team has worked…
Myanmar: Villagers to Protest Over Grisly Death of Kachin Jade Picker
Nov 18, 2014
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Lawi Weng, The Irrawaddy
RANGOON — Hundreds of villagers will protest this week after a jade scavenger was allegedly murdered and mutilated in Hpakant, a resource-rich area in northern…
China/Myanmar: Myanmar-China Border Dispute a Matter for Foreign Ministry Say Shan State Government
Nov 18, 2014
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Kyel Pyar, Mizzima
The Shan State government says the Myanmar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs should handle a border dispute concerning three villages now occupied by Chinese citizens but…
Liberia: Chief Karwor Requests Land for Post-Ebola Farming
Nov 18, 2014
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Johnson Bobby Liway, AllAfrica
The Chairman of the National Traditional Council of Liberia, Chief Zanzan Karwor, is urging the Ministry of Internal Affairs to request local officials in each…
Iraq: Iraq’s Biggest Oil Plant to Reopen After Militants Moved
Nov 18, 2014
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Kadhim Ajrash and Khalid Al-Ansary, Businessweek
Iraq’s biggest oil refinery at Baiji is set to restart processing in about three months after government troops forced Islamic State armed militants away from…
South Sudan: South Sudan Govt Claims Full Control of Oilfields
Nov 18, 2014
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Star Africa
South Sudan has announced that it is in full control of the oilfields in the troubled Unity State, the scene of fighting between government troops…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Kurdistan to Begin Exporting Oil Through SOMO After Loan from Baghdad: KRG Officials
Nov 17, 2014
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Dalshad Abdullah, Asharq Al-Awsat
Erbil— The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) will begin exporting oil through under Baghdad’s supervision once it receives a loan it says was promised from the…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Capital of Kurdish Iraq Goes from Backwater to Boomtown as It Fights to Achieve Independence
Nov 17, 2014
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Campbell MacDiarmid, National Post
Erbil, Kurdistan Region — The nucleus of the city is a citadel rising 30 metres above the plains. The height represents the accretion of eight…
Iraq: Battle Turning Against IS, Says US Gen Martin Dempsey
Nov 15, 2014
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BBC
America's top general has told US troops in Iraq that momentum is turning against Islamic State militants. Gen Martin Dempsey, on an unannounced visit, called…
DRC: Oil Dispute Takes a Page From Congo’s Bloody Past
Nov 15, 2014
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Jeffrey Gentlemen, New York Times
VIRUNGA NATIONAL PARK, Democratic Republic of Congo — The trouble started when a British company suddenly appeared in this iconic and spectacularly beautiful national park,…
Protected Areas Can Safeguard Global Biodiversity and Build Peace in Conflict Hotspots
Nov 14, 2014
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Phys Org
Today, the Conservation International (CI) Policy Center for Environment and Peace released five case study summaries that show that protected areas, through transparent and open…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Kurdistan Pushes Independent Oil Company Plan after $500m Deal with Iraq
Nov 14, 2014
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Middle East Eye
A preliminary deal between Baghdad and Iraq's Kurdish region to resolve long-running financial disputes over oil has reduced a threat to national unity, Iraq’s oil minister…
Sierra Leone: Ebola Wiping out Sierra Leone's Post-War Gains: Study
Nov 14, 2014
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AFP
Ebola-hit Sierra Leone faces social and economic disaster as gains made since the country's ruinous civil war are wiped out by the epidemic, according to…
China: Addressing Conflict Minerals – China Publishes ‘Groundbreaking’ Guidelines
Nov 14, 2014
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Heidi Vella, Mining Technology
In a bid to strengthen its commitment as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, last month, in an unprecedented move, a Chinese government-affiliated…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Oil Producers in Iraqi Kurdistan Expect Export Payments This Month
Nov 13, 2014
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Reuters
Three of Iraqi Kurdistan's main oil producers said they expect payments this month from the regional government for oil exports, as they look set to…
Myanmar: Colorful Fields in Shan State Signal Another Bumper Opium Crop
Nov 13, 2014
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Lawi Weng, The Irrawaddy
PEKHON TOWNSHIP, Shan State — In west-Padaung, a hilly region located on the border of Shan and Karenni states, farmers are hard at work in…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq and Kurds Reach Deal on Oil Exports and Budget Payments
Nov 13, 2014
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Ben Hubbard, New York Times
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s central government and the autonomous region of Kurdistan reached an interim agreement on Thursday over oil exports and budget payments, at least…
Iraq: Iraq Losing Billions In Oil Revenues To IS
Nov 12, 2014
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Radio Free Europe Radio Library
Iraq’s Oil Ministry has said that the country is losing as much as $1.2 billion a month in oil revenues as a result of Islamic State…
Myanmar: Land Disputes Leading Cause of Human Rights Complaints
Nov 12, 2014
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Nobel Zaw, The Irrawaddy
RANGOON — The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) has said that nearly 45 percent of the total complaints it has received this year stem…
Liberia: As Ebola Takes Lives in Liberia, It Leaves Hunger in Its Wake
Nov 12, 2014
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Lenny Bernstein, Washington Post
FOYA, Liberia — The Ebola virus, which has killed more than 2,830 Liberians and collapsed the country’s health-care system, is also attacking Liberia’s food supply,…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Baghdad and Kurds, Under Pressure, Reach Deal on Oil
Nov 12, 2014
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Sarah Kent, Wall Street Journal
The governments of Iraq and its semiautonomous region of Kurdistan reached an interim accord to ease long-standing tensions over Kurdish oil exports, both sides said…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Kurdistan exporting oil from disputed fields
Nov 11, 2014
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Ben Van Heuvelen, Iraq Oil Report
Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is now exporting oil from fields it recently seized from federal authorities - a step that takes Kurdistan much…