Worldwide
Gaza: ceasefire extended
30 Nov 2023
On 30 November Israel and Hamas struck a last-minute agreement to extend their ceasefire for a seventh day. Both sides agreed to extend the truce, with Hamas releasing more hostages and Israel receiving a list of…
COP28: Pope unable to attend
30 Nov 2023
Pope Francis has announced that due to health concerns he will be unable to attend the COP28 climate conference in Dubai, which will run from 30 November to 12 December. The Pope has been an advocate…
President Sultan al-Jaber has denied allegations that the UAE plans to use the COP28 climate summit to negotiate oil and gas deals with other nations, as reported by the BBC on 27 November. Leaked briefing documents…
Tajikistan: challenges facing the Church
30 Nov 2023
Tajikistan is a beautiful mountainous country; the Tajik language is related to Iranian. After gaining independence in the early 1990s, the country endured a tribal-based civil war that resulted in significant loss of life. Despite having…
Sierra Leone: weekend coup attempt foiled
30 Nov 2023
The information minister has declared that attacks on several locations in the capital, Freetown, were in fact a failed coup attempt led mainly by bodyguards of the previous president, Ernest Koroma. On 26 November they attacked…
Australia: apology to thalidomide victims
30 Nov 2023
Prime minister Anthony Albanese has issued a national apology to survivors of the thalidomide scandal and their families, marking the government's first acknowledgment of its role in the tragedy. Thalidomide, initially a sedative but widely used…