Top of the Morning: A Mass Atrocity in Iraq

A Mass Atrocity in Iraq….ISIS boasts that it has killed 1700 Shiites and Iraqi soldiers, and posted images online to back up this claim. Sectarian civil war is their aim. “But with their claim, the Sunni militants were reveling in an atrocity that if confirmed would be the worst yet in the conflicts that roil the region, outstripping even the poison gas attack near Damascus last year.In an atmosphere where there were already fears that the militants’ sudden advance near the capital would prompt Shiite reprisal attacks against Sunni Arab civilians, the claims by ISIS were potentially explosive. And that is exactly the militant group’s stated intent: to stoke a return to all-out sectarian warfare that would bolster its attempts to carve out a Sunni Islamist caliphate that crosses borders through the region. (NYT http://nyti.ms/1nI9QSC)

And the USA is evacuating staff from its Baghdad embassy (USA Today http://usat.ly/1nIa3W0)

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Africa

Aid agencies warned Sunday that starvation and diseases like malaria and cholera were set to intensify the crisis in South Sudan, which has been devastated by six months of conflict. (AP http://yhoo.it/1kWSUb6)

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s information minister says hundreds of rebels from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda from South and North Kivu provinces have been disarming as part of the government’s program to improve security and stabilize the country. (VOA http://bit.ly/1kWSCB8)

Nigerian security forces said on Sunday they were searching for a British construction worker they believe was kidnapped in the central Plateau state. (VOA http://bit.ly/1izUgnC)

Three armed groups from northern Mali announced in Algiers on Sunday that they have agreed to begin talks with the Bamako government aimed at resolving long-standing disputes. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1izUNpB)

Africa needs to first rely on internal investment if it is to achieve the infrastructure developments it urgently needs, the president of Senegal said Sunday at a regional summit. (AP http://yhoo.it/1kWTcPr)

MENA

The Italian coast guard says it has rescued nearly 300 Syrian migrants from a fishing boat adrift in the Mediterranean Sea. (VOA http://bit.ly/1izU9IS)

A Kuwaiti human rights organisation on Sunday urged the Gulf state to fulfil pledges to abolish the sponsorship system for foreign labor and to end the arbitrary deportation of expatriates. (AP http://yhoo.it/1izUUS3)

Asia

Thousands of migrant workers have fled back to Cambodia, fearing the Thai military will crackdown on illegal workers. (VOA http://bit.ly/1izU7Rl)

Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission filed a case with local police accusing 17 people of breaching regulations over the construction of a building that collapsed last year, killing over 1,130 mostly garment workers. (AP http://yhoo.it/1kWSZf7)

The Americas

Incumbent Juan Manuel Santos has been re-elected as Colombian president with nearly 51% of the vote, seeing off his right-wing challenger. (BBC http://bbc.in/1kWSIIV)

Opinion/Blog

A ‘special’ perspective on food, human rights and the future of agriculture (Humanosphere http://bit.ly/1vp9WBP)

 

Why are taxes on capital income lower than taxes on labour income? (Owen abroad http://bit.ly/1izUpHI)

Why your aid organisation should buy local (WhyDev http://bit.ly/1qiJiKP)

Research/Reports

The use of carbon markets to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions was dealt a blow on Sunday after two weeks of United Nations talks on designing and reforming the mechanisms ended in deadlock. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1kWTdTx)
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights recently criticized the international community for failing to stop widespread abuses. Navi Pillay said governments too often place more importance on politics than human rights. (VOA http://bit.ly/1izVaR2)