BBC News with Julie Candler.
European Union foreign and defense ministers have approved plans to establish a new EU military mission to combat gangs, trafficking people into Europe from Libya. It could eventually include operations to destroy smugglers’ boats in Libyan territorial waters, but needs the backing of the UN Security Council. The Libyan Ambassador to the United Nations IIbrahim Dabbashi said Libya’s internationally recognized government had not yet been consulted about the plans.
I think if they need to have any operation on the Libyan soil or on the Libyan territorial water, they have to seek the consent of the Libyan legitimate government. Certainly, any resolution by the Security Council has to be agreed upon by the Libyan government. We have never been consulted officially.
President Barack Obama has banned the US government from giving military-style equipment to local police forces. The White House said that armored vehicles and tracks, camouflage uniforms and grenade launchers would no longer be given out. The decision follows accusations of that police were too heavy-handed in dealing with protesters in Ferguson last summer. President Obama announced the measures during a visit to New Jersey.
We’ve seen how militarized gear can sometimes give people a feeling like there’s an occupying force opposed to a force that’s part of a community, that’s protecting them and serving them, can alienate and intimidate local residents and send the wrong message. So we’re gonna prohibit some equipment made for the battlefield that is not appropriate for local police departments.
Scientists believe they have solved the mystery of the apparent pause in global warming. The earth’s average temperature has risen steadily since the 1950s, but this trend suddenly slowed around the turn of the century, because carbon dioxide levels continue to increase. Climate researchers believe that the resulting heat must have gone somewhere. The latest research suggests it is collected in the Indian Ocean, after initially building up in the Pacific.
Ivory Coast has opened its first large-scale chocolate factory. President Alassane Ouattara inaugurated the seven-million-dollar plant on the outskirts of Abidjan. Our African Editor Richard Hamilton reports.
Inaugurating the factory, President Alassane Ouattara said it would help the world’s top producer of cocoa become the world’s largest producer of chocolates. Most of Ivory Coast’s cocoa is exported in its raw bean form and then turned to fancy chocolate in factories in Europe. But with the economic downturn there, consumption is declining, so the French firm Cémoi that built the factory is hoping to target west Africa’ growing middle class consumer market. It says the customers those actually eating the chocolate will be Ivorians and west Africans.
World News from the BBC.
A massive landslide in Columbia has killed at least 48 people. Residents of the western town of Salga say a torrent of mud, rocks and uprooted trees swept away houses in poor neighborhoods after heavy rain. President Juan Manuel Santos has declared a state of emergency, and promised to rebuild the houses.
Tens of thousands of Macedonians have staged a pro-government rally in front of the National Assembly in the capital Skopje. One day’s demonstration came a day after a big opposition rally asked Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski to step down over corruption allegations. Guy De Launey is in Skopje.
It was a fine example of a tit-for-tat rally. The space outside the National Assembly was packed with a flag-waving crowd in an uncanny echo with Sunday’s anti-government event. And this time, instead of demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, they heard him denounce his opponents.
“Macedonia has been under serious attacks”, said Mr. Gruevski, “they want us to leave Macedonia to them. But this force, this massive attendance and this energy is the best answer to those people.”
The International Labor Organization say three quarters of workers worldwide don’t have permanent job contracts, and some have no contract at all. In a new report, the ILO says most workers are employed under a short-term basis and have no pensions or social benefits. The ILO says flexibility in employment could help young people into the jobs market, but also adds to the risk of exploitation.
170 people from rival motorcycle gangs in Texas have been charged in connection with violence on Sunday that left 9 people dead. They’re facing a range of charges, including murder and taking part in organized crime. What began as a fistfight in a restaurant in the city of Waco turned into a major battle, in which knives, clubs, chains and guns were used.