America Brazil A Federal Court ordered Land Reform Agency to remove land occupiers from various sites in the Amazon; the decision follows a request from the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, a nationwide coalition that is denouncing unlawful settlings
Africa Mauritius A ceremony to award certificates to 61 fishermen who successfully completed a training programme on coral culture and reef rehabilitation was held at the Mauritius Maritime Training Academy in Pointe aux Sables
America Brazil Homophobic slurs are now punishable by prison, a decision welcomed by rights activists, that puts such hate speech on par with racist hate speech; the country’s Supreme Court has ruled that penalties range from two to five years in prison
Asia Philippines A total of 220 persons deprived of their liberty have obtained primary and secondary school diplomas through the Department of Education's Alternative Learning System programme at the Manila Women's Prison
Asia Sri Lanka Around 20 turtle carcasses were washed ashore along the stretch of beach from Negombo to Kalutara in just three days and it is suspected that it may be due to an underwater explosion
Europe Portugal Nationalist far-right party Chega! has tabled a bill proposing windfall tax on bank profits to finance housing support programs through a temporary solidarity grant, arguing that it would be an "effective and fair" measure
Africa Ivory Coast Didier Drogba, former Chelsea striker, has been appointed as new coach of national football team, with contractual goals of winning the next 2024 and 2025 African Cups and leading the country to win the 2026 World Cup
Asia Laos Laotian doctors at the Mother and Child Central Hospital have extracted a 20 kg cyst from a pregnant woman, in the first operation of its kind in the capital Vientiane
Africa Egypt Solar power stations have been installed at major museums and archaeological sites, including the Alexandria's National Museum, the Giza Plateau housing the Pyramids and the Palace of Mohamed Ali in Cairo, as part of a plan to promote sustainable tourism
Africa Malawi A training course for artisanal and small-scale miners on the correct use of a manual to promote and support sustainable mining and environmental monitoring at community level has been conducted by the government, in collaboration with several partners
America Haiti 61% of the population agreed with deploying armed forces according to a nationwide poll
Asia Jordan Hotel occupancy rates in the Kingdom have decreased due to high temperatures and approaching school season; reservation rate at five-star hotels from August 17-19 in Aqaba reached 87%, 61% in the Dead Sea, 62% in Amman and 40% in Petra
Africa Guinea The National Transitional Council unanimously authorised the ratification of the financing agreement between the International Development Association and the Republic of Guinea
Asia Iran Iran - with Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE - has been invited by the BRICS group of nations to become new members of the bloc