“Jai Shri Ram,” or “Hail Lord Ram” in English, has been transformed from an innocent, religious chant to a phrase associated with one of the world’s most active nationalist movements. Riots in the British city of Leicester in mid-September between Hindu and Muslim communities are just the tip of the iceberg of a movement that has become transnational.
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COVID-19, climate issues, and supply and demand problems have driven gas and oil prices up since 2020, Foreign Policy says. Now, with sanctions placed on Russia due to its ongoing war on Ukraine, a large part of the world’s oil supply is cut off and supply and demand has gotten even worse.
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Myanmar’s military vowed to crack down on opposition forces as the nation celebrated its Armed Forces Day, reports Al Jazeera. The leader of Myanmar, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, claimed that his forces would ‘annihilate’ civilian opposition groups and urged ethnic minorities away from supporting militia groups that oppose the Tatmadaw, the country’s military-led government. However, one civilian resistance group, the National Unity Government, prompted people to take part in a ‘Power Strike’, turning off their lights and TVs during the parade broadcast ABC News reports.
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On February 24, Russia made the conscious decision to invade Ukraine for yet another time since 2014. This active encroachment into non-Russian territory, which was condemned internationally, triggered the largest refugee crisis in Europe since World War II, reports Reuters. Although Europe has been heavily affected by this Russian aggression, the actions taken by those less impacted by the conflict will set the tone for how the international community reacts to similar crises in the future.
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Amidst the ease of pandemic restrictions around the globe, Hong Kong is facing a devastating surge in COVID-19 cases, reports The Guardian. Hong Kong, following in the footsteps of mainland China, has maintained a zero-tolerance COVID-19 restriction policy over the course of the pandemic. This approach proved to be largely effective up until the recent emergence of the Omicron variant.
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February 21 marked the beginning of preliminary arguments at the International Court of Justice regarding the genocide of Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine state of Myanmar, according to The Associated Press. Myanmar is currently being represented by military leaders, most of whom came into power after overthrowing the country’s previous leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
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February 1marked one year since Myanmar’s military staged a coup to oust democratically elected leader Aung Sann Suu Kyi, less than a decade after its transition into a democratic nation. The U.N. Security Council released a statement regarding the one-year anniversary, calling for those still detained to abe released, including the country’s former president Win Myint, reports U.S. News. Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and long-time supporter of democracy, remains detained as well.
Read moreOn January 18, Indonesia’s parliament passed a bill to relocate the nation’s capital from Jakarta to the jungle island of Borneo, with the new city’s name to be Nusantara. The move, according to BBC News, will cost an estimated 466 trillion rupiah, or roughly $32.4 billion. The bill passed by approvals from eight factions, with one faction rejecting, according to Indonesian House Representative Puan Maharani.
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North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un is a pariah within the international community for the often brutal nature of his rule and his no-holds-barred approach to any dissent. The infamous leader succeeded his father, Kim Jong Il, in 2011, and has since bent the nation to his will.
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On September 15, North Korea successfully launched ballistic missiles off their east coast. In doing so, they violated various United Nations resolutions. According to Al Jazeera, the missiles traveled for over two hours before they reached their target 930 miles away. During their journey, the missiles demonstrated agility by circling around into different paths.
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