Two agonizing lives have come to an agonizing end: Mambo, who was born around 1983 in the wild and has been abused as a circus clown since his capture, suffocated miserably in a van about 2 weeks ago together with a fellow sufferer whose name was not yet known to us.

This can be seen from current entries in the Elephant database.

Mambo and the elephant cows Tonga, Nanda, Betty, and Kimba (also caught in the wild) have been at the “mercy” of the Casselly family of tamers for years, who force them to perform disgusting tricks in the arena: unforgettable the unspeakable pictures, taken in 2017 in the Karlsruhe Christmas Circus when Mambo pulled a carriage through the ring in which a pony was sitting.

Furthermore, he and his fellow sufferers were repeatedly abused during the breaks as mounts and also as springboards.

Continue reading “Germany: Circus elephant Mambo and his companion die painfully in the truck”

By EDITH M. LEDERER today.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States is ‘urging’ countries that have ratified a U.N. treaty to ban nuclear weapons to withdraw their support as the pact nears the 50 ratifications needed to trigger its entry into force, which 122 countries hope could happen this week.

This image taken with a slow shutter speed on Oct. 2, 2019, and provided by the U.S. Air Force shows an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile test launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

The U.S. letter to signatories, obtained by The Associated Press, says the five original nuclear powers — the U.S., Russia, China, Britain and France — and America’s NATO allies “stand unified in our opposition to the potential repercussions” of the treaty.

It says the treaty “turns back the clock on verification and disarmament and is dangerous” to the half-century-old Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, considered the cornerstone of global nonproliferation efforts.

Fihn dismissed the nuclear powers’ claim that the treaty interferes with the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty as “straightforward lies, to be frank.”

“Although we recognize your sovereign right to ratify or accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), we believe that you have made a strategic error and should withdraw your instrument of ratification or accession,” the letter says.

Fihn said there are about 10 countries that are trying very hard to ratify to get to 50, “and we know that there are a few governments that are working towards Friday as the date. … We’re not 100 percent it will happen, but hopefully it will.”

Continue reading “US ‘urges’ countries to withdraw from UN nuke ban treaty to block imminent ratification”

Back & Current Issues, Rebel City

Date: October 6, 2020Author: rebelcitylondon1 Comment

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Previous Previous post: REBEL CITY No.12

from Al Jazeera English shared with thanks

At least 178,000 homes submerged, nearly 7,000 hectares of crop impacted and close to 690,000 poultry, livestock killed or swept away.

20 Oct 2020

Severe floods and landslides triggered by weeks of heavy rains have killed at least 105 people in central Vietnam and “swamped” five million, according to media reports and an aid agency.

About a third of the dead included soldiers whose barracks were buried under deadly mudslides last week, Reuters news agency reported. Keep Reading

Yet another typhoon, Saudel (Pepito), now crossing the Phillipines, is due to hit central Vietnam Sunday 25th Oct.

At least 27 people are still missing, the agency said. Among them are 15 construction workers who were also hit by a landslide.

At least 178,000 homes have been submerged and nearly 7,000 hectares (17,297 acres) of crops have been impacted.

Close to 690,000 poultry and livestock animals have been killed or swept away.

Amid devastating US fires, experts urge fire prevention rethink

Landslide hits Vietnam army barracks, 22 soldiers missing

State television showed people sitting on the roofs waiting for aid from rescuers in Quang Binh province, where floods have blocked roads and cut power.

Continue reading “Another Climate disaster. ‘Catastrophic floods’: 105 killed, 5 million affected in Vietnam as New Typhoon Looms.”