Author: Gulf News Week
EPA/ShutterstockAn emergency response to major wildfires was launched in the Gironde region in late JulyAfter wildfires caused more damage in France this year than at any time since World War Two, many are left asking a single question: Why?A major driver is that climate is changing as a result of the well-documented way humanity is burning fossil fuels. Temperatures are only rising.But with records showing that nine out of 10 French wildfires are started by humans, the government in Paris is trying to attribute blame – although it is itself accused of being underprepared for the infernos that have now…
ReutersUp in the hills above the Roman columns of the ancient site of Sebastia, in the occupied West Bank, are olive fields that have been cultivated for generations by Palestinian families.One of the landowners, Abu Mudif, says he has received notification that his land is part of a tranche of about 450 acres that the Israeli authorities are taking possession of in order, they say, to protect and develop the site for a major new national park.Typically, Palestinian landowners receive little or no payment for such land expropriation. And even when it is offered, most refuse it as they see…
Annabel RackhamIt’s Saturday afternoon and I’ve nearly fallen at the first hurdle – I’ve left my digital camera battery on charge at home.Forgive me, I last took this camera out with me 15 years ago on a family holiday to the Canary Islands. Take two. Now with the charged battery in hand, I’m taking my digital camera to a DJ set as an experiment.It’s because older technology is having a bit of a moment – social media is full of people talking about why they’re going back to basics with the likes of digital cameras, wired headphones and early MP3…
Fifa criticises campaign to oust president InfantinoFifa strongly criticises what it calls a “concerted and ongoing effort” to “undermine” the organisation and its president Gianni Infantino. 60 mins agoFootball
Getty Images/Sharon Jones/BBC”Eyes peeled,” comes the order from the front passenger seat.Obediently, we scan the ends and tops of logs, looking between low scrub and patches of vivid wildflowers for a flash of stripes or a dart of movement.Eluding us is the numbat, a rare Australian marsupial which could be the love-child of a chipmunk and an anteater.Numbats were once populous across the bottom half of the continent, but Dryandra Woodland – in the south-western corner of Australia – is one of the few places they remain.Classified as endangered until this month, numbats have been bouncing back. This team’s efforts…
Maskot via Getty ImagesThe new rules apply to privately owned electric scooters, as rental versions have been bannedElectric scooter riders in Paris face being fined if they fail to comply with new safety rules, as police try to curb the number of accidents in the French capital.Some 79 people were killed in e-scooter accidents last year, a sharp rise from the 45 who died the year prior, police said on Saturday, citing figures from France’s road safety watchdog.In a bid to address “the concerning rise in serious and fatal accidents” involving the motorised vehicles, it is now mandatory for riders…
‘It’s going crazy’: Eyewitnesses capture forest fires raging across British ColumbiaThousands of people were forced to flee their homes as a fast-moving wildfire in a remote part of western Canada spread rapidly, doubling in size since it was first detected on Friday.The Bald Range fire now occupies more than 36 sq miles (95 sq km) across the Summerland and Okanagan-Similkameen districts of British Columbia, according to the BC Wildfire Service. Erick Thompson, an emergency official with the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen, said this was one of the “quickest-moving, largest fires in such a short time” he had seen in the…
Watch: Moment opposition MP throws eggs at Kosovo’s acting PMLawmakers and police officers had to intervene after Alliance party MP Time Kadrijaj hurled at least four eggs towards Kosovo’s acting prime minister Albin Kurti.3 hrs agoEurope
Getty ImagesMadonna has paid tribute to her regular collaborator and acclaimed music producer William Orbit, who died last month at the age of 69.”You pressed a magic button inside of me and I fell into a galaxy of unrealised dreams,” the pop superstar wrote on Instagram on Saturday. “Your music gave me a magic carpet to fly on and I visited many places.”Orbit’s family announced “with profound sadness” on Friday that the Grammy-winning producer died at home on 23 July. No cause of death was given. The British producer, whose real name was William Wainwright, helped reinvigorate Madonna’s career in…
Messi’s father Jorge dies aged 68 after illnessLionel Messi’s father and agent Jorge dies at the age of 68 following a long illness.51 mins agoArgentina