Africa Tanzania A comprehensive voluntary repatriation program has been finalized to bring back Tanzanian citizens living in South Africa, following growing impatience towards African immigrants; in co-operation with local authorities, returnees will undergo verification
Asia Georgia In Sukhumi, the capital of the region of Abkhazia, hundreds of people stormed the complex where the local parliament is located, protesting against an agreement with Russia to facilitate investment in local real estate
Europe Bulgaria Belene Island Foundation, an NGO, wants to honour with a memorial the 15.000 people considered enemies of the communist regime who were interned in Persin, many of whom died as a result of forced labour
Africa South Africa The government blocked the sending of food and water supplies to a group of miners hiding inside an illegal gold mine to force them out and then arrest them; many are undocumented migrants, who also do not leave for fear of being deported from the country
Africa Libya The “She Leads” project to support entrepreneurship for women in the cities of Tripoli and Sabha were launched at an event in the Old City, Tripoli; it aims at training over 80 women to facilitate their entry into the labour market
Asia Bahrain The Bank of Bahrain launched first bitcoin investment fund in the Gulf; the country had been proactive in establishing crypto banking regulations and confirms its attitude with the offer of a structured instrument to institutional investors
Asia Thailand In a landmark move towards ending statelessness, Thailand’s cabinet has approved an accelerated pathway to permanent residency and nationality for nearly half a million stateless people, marking one of the region’s most significant citizenship initiatives
Asia Vietnam The Bac Ninh festival celebrates 15 years of Quan Ho singing being recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage; known for its male-female duet style, Quan Ho is celebrated for its melodic richness and cultural importance
America Haiti Haiti announced the deployment of law enforcement to protect airport and commercial flights after US Federal Aviation Administration banned all flights by US airlines to Haiti until December 12, after two planes were shot at by gang members
Europe Albania Only 1 in 8 companies in Albania paid taxes on profits in 2023, according to official data from the Ministry of Finance
Europe Switzerland Nearly four million of Rolex Submariner and Sea Dweller diving watches were produced between 1953 and 2020; all Submariner watches make a total value of almost $50 billion, based on analysis of the first-ever release of production data by the watchmaker
America Saint Vincent and the Grenadines A monitoring project to protect the SVG parrot and other endemic species kicked off with a four day training workshop on the Passive Acoustic Monitoring – a non-invasive method ideal for studying wildlife, with a focus on the endangered Amazona Guildingii
Asia Myanmar The junta is urging citizens abroad to return for mandatory military service; the move follows intensified recruitment efforts amid escalating conflicts with ethnic minorities within the country displacement and humanitarian crises
Asia Mongolia Youth chess team returned with three medals from the 2024 FIDE World Youth Chess Championship in Brazil: Margad Munkhpurev got silver in Girls' Blitz, Tenguundalai Ganbat bronze in U14 Boys' Blitz and gold in Solving, Urangoo Gurvanbaatar got Master Title