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Internet spreads hate speech like wildfire says UN chief Antonio Guterres

Agencies
April 13, 2019

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that hatred speech has been spreading like wildfire through the Internet, saying attention should be given to “physical aggressions” in the recent attacks against the Jewish, Christian or Muslim centres.

"This situation requires a huge investment, an investment in social cohesion and investment in diversity to make people feel that even if they are different from others ... the societies should accept them, integrate them and respect them," Xinhua quoted Guterres as saying to the inaugural United Nations Model UN Summit on Friday.

Citing the recent attacks against several religious sites in New Zealand and Pittsburgh of the US, the UN chief called on the international community to guard against both "extreme thinking and extreme political action."

Noting that diversity "makes our society more vibrant and more interesting," the UN chief urged the international community to address the root causes behind the rise of both hatred speeches and actions.

"We need to really go deep, look into the root causes of why things are wrong," he noted.

The UN chief stressed that young generation has "a fundamental role to play" in this regard.

The UN Secretary-General reiterated the importance of multilateralism in addressing global problems, noting that "no country alone can solve these problems."

"Whether people like the UN or not, whether people think that UN must be reforming this or that aspect, we still need UN as a fundamental tool for a better world," the secretary-general concluded.

Model United Nations (MUN) simulations are popular exercises for those interested in learning more about the UN.

It is estimated that more than 400,000 students worldwide participate every year in MUN at all educational levels -- from primary school to university. Many of today's leaders in law, government, business and the arts fields have participated in MUN as students.

The UN Department of Global Communications wants to see Model United Nations become an actual agent of positive change in communities across the globe. As a first step, it held the Inaugural United Nations Model UN Summit on Friday.

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Agencies
July 28,2020

Sydney, Jul 28: Nearly 3 billion koalas, kangaroos and other native Australian animals were killed or displaced by bushfires in 2019 and 2020, a study by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) said on Tuesday, triple the group's earlier estimates.

Some 143 million mammals, 2.46 billion reptiles, 180 million birds and 51 million frogs were impacted by the country's worst bushfires in decades, the WWF said.

When the fires were still blazing, the WWF estimated the number of affected animals at 1.25 billion. The fires destroyed more than 11 million hectares (37 million acres) across the Australian southeast, equal to about half the area of the United Kingdom.

"This ranks as one of the worst wildlife disasters in modern history," said WWF-Australia Chief Executive Officer Dermot O'Gorman in a statement.

The project leader Lily Van Eeden, from the University of Sydney, said the research was the first continent-wide analysis of animals impacted by the bushfires, and "other nations can build upon this research to improve understanding of bushfire impacts everywhere".

The total number included animals which were displaced because of destroyed habitats and now faced lack of food and shelter or the prospect of moving to habitat that was already occupied.

The main reason for raising the number of animal casualties was that researchers had now assessed the total affected area, rather than focusing on the most affected states, they said.

After years of drought made the Australian bush unusually dry, the country battled one of its worst bushfire seasons ever from September 2019 to March 2020, resulting in 34 human deaths and nearly 3,000 homes lost.

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News Network
April 17,2020

Paris, Apr 17: The number of coronavirus-related deaths in France has increased by 753 to 17,920 over the past 24 hours, with the total case count now standing at 108,847, Jerome Salomon, the head of the state health agency, said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, the country reported a total of 106,206 cases, including a record 1,438 new fatalities. Salomon specified that it was not the daily death toll, as the data had been compiled over the last three-day weekend.

"The total number of victims since March 1 is 17,920," Salomon said at a briefing on Thursday.
He noted that 11,060 of them had died in hospitals, and 6,860 others in social and medical-social facilities.

President Emmanuel Macron on Monday extended nationwide movement restrictions, which had been introduced due to the epidemic, until May 11. Afterwards, the country is set to gradually reopen kindergartens, schools and universities.

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March 27,2020

London, Mar 27:  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Friday he has tested positive for the new coronavirus, but remains in charge of the U.K.'s response to the outbreak.

Johnson's office said he was tested on the advice of the chief medical officer after showing mild symptoms.

It said Johnson is self-isolating at his 10 Downing St. residence and continuing to lead the country's response to COVID-19.

In a video message, Johnson said he had a temperature and a persistent cough.

Over the last 24 hours I have developed mild symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus.

I am now self-isolating, but I will continue to lead the government’s response via video-conference as we fight this virus.

Together we will beat this. #StayHomeSaveLives pic.twitter.com/9Te6aFP0Ri

— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) March 27, 2020
"Be in no doubt that I can continue, thanks to the wizardry of modern technology, to communicate with all my top team, to lead the national fightback against coronavirus."

Earlier this week Britain’s Prince Charles announced that he had tested positive for the virus.

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