The academic year in occupied East Jerusalem began on Tuesday with an open-ended strike by teachers at private and Christian schools after Israeli meddling in students’ curriculum. All new first and seventh-grade classes at East Jerusalem’s Palestinian-majority municipal schools have been told to exclusively use the Israeli curriculum this year. Entry permits for West Bank…
Songs that are largely or wholly created by AI have been banned from Australia’s music charts. From this week, all releases must be “substantially human made” to be eligible. The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) said the new code would help “promote the human nature of artistry”. It follows a controversy around a cover of…
The US Supreme Court has ruled that states can ban transgender women from competing in female school and college sports. The court considered cases from students in two different states who had challenged bans on participation. The two states, Idaho and West Virginia, enacted laws that required public school and college sports teams to compete…
BBC – When Iraq’s football team qualified for the World Cup at the end of March, Abdulla Adnan bought tickets for his country’s matches against Norway and France, which will be played in the US cities of Boston and Philadelphia this month. “To go to a match, a stadium, a crowd, cheering, and see my…
Australia’s decision to restrict social media access for children under 16 has attracted global attention. Supporters argue that the measure is a necessary response to growing concerns about cyberbullying, harmful content, compulsive usage patterns and deteriorating adolescent mental health. Similar proposals are now being discussed in Europe and elsewhere. South Africa’s communications minister, Solly Malatsi…
Millions of people in central Africa rely on wild meat for their nutrition, especially in rural areas around the Congo rainforest, the second largest tropical rainforest in the world. Here, meat from domestic animals is scarce due to poor national transport infrastructure, livestock diseases and lack of forage. As a result, wild meat and freshwater…
US messenger app WhatsApp, owned by Meta Platforms, has been completely blocked in Russia for failing to comply with local law, the Kremlin said on Thursday, suggesting Russians turn to a state-backed “national messenger” instead. “Due to Meta’s unwillingness to comply with Russian law, such a decision was indeed made and implemented,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry…
Following the Africa Cup of Nations final against Morocco earlier this month, which saw Senegal walk off the field after Morocco were given a late penalty moments after Senegal had a goal disallowed, Senegal coach Pape Thiaw has been banned for five Confederation of African Football matches and fined $100,000. The Moroccan side also faces…
Of Africa’s 54 countries, 36 are now subject to either travel bans or visa bonds by the United States. African states are the prime target of President Donald Trump’s latest round of travel restrictions, which he says are aimed at protecting national security and preventing visitors overstaying. The US State Department this week added several…
A former EU commissioner has hit back after receiving a U.S. visa ban for alleged censorship. The Trump administration imposed visa bans on Thierry Breton, a former European Union commissioner behind the Digital Services Act (DSA), and four anti-disinformation campaigners, accusing them of censoring U.S. social media platforms. “The State Department is taking decisive action…
