The ill-considered ban on Muslim refugees and visa applicants set in motion by President Trump had an “escape clause” concerning non-Muslim minorities who were being persecuted. Only Christians were mentioned, but the Middle East has a host of religious groups with a long history.
On December 4, 2016, Austrian Green Party candidate Alexander Van der Bellen was elected president against the far-right nationalist leader Norbert Hofer. The December 2016 vote took place against a background that has seen a steady rise of right-nationalist currents in much of Europe.
On October 30, 2016, the French Minister of Defense, Jean-Yves Le Drian was in Bangui, Central African Republic to end the French military help to the UN peacekeeping troops. He claimed that the French mission had been “a success.”
As a result of Saudi-led bombing raids, Yemen's underdeveloped socio-economic infrastructure has been largely destroyed. The UN-mediated peace negotiations have been broken off and most probably will not meet again in the near future. There is now a serious need first for post-war planning.
Aimé Césaire (1913 – 2008), the Martinique poet and political figure, whose birth anniversary we note on June 26, was a cultural bridge builder between the West Indies, Europe and Africa.
There was a wide-spread sense of relief among many Europeans when on May 23, 2016 it was announced that Alexander Van der Bellen won the election for President of Austria in a razor thin victory over his far right-wing Freedom Party opponent Norbert Hofer.
Copyright Toward Freedom 2019