Good Morning, Australia! – Youths riot in an American city after the funeral of a young man killed by police – The Nepal earthquake death roll increases – A big change in Greece’s plan to renegotiate its debt – And a lot more in your CareerSpot World News Briefs:
The City of Baltimore on America’s East Coast has burst out with violence after the funeral of Freddie Grey, the young African American man who died a week after a crippling beating by police. Youths looted liquor stores and burned a pharmacy. At least seven cops were hurt, one with broken bones. Police officials are in a lather because of unconfirmed reports that the two biggest street gangs – the Bloods and the Crips – have declared a truce purportedly to fight police, although that sounds a little melodramatic. Parents are being urged to locate their kids and keep them home as darkness falls. The Baltimore Orioles baseball team cancelled the scheduled game with the Chicago White Sox.
The death toll in Nepal has soared past 4,000 after the terrible earthquake, more than 7,000 are injured, and hundreds of thousands of people are spending the night in tents and improvised shelters. There are still about 200 people trapped on Mount Everest who need to be rescued. Outside the capital Kathmandu, roads and paths are blocked by mud and debris. Entire villages are reportedly destroyed, and survivors must carry out their dead to gravesites outside town. Around 90 percent of Nepal’s military is involved in search and rescue operations.
If you want to help Nepal, here are some links: UNICEF – The World Food Program – The Australian Red Cross – OXFAM Australia – Medicins Sans Frontieres Australia (Doctors Without Borders) – also, Charity Navigator is a great online tool which evaluates charities' accountability and finances, can help you avoid scams that prey on people's generosity in the wake of major disasters.
Poland’s border guards barred ten motorcyclists from entering the country, vowing to stop a Russian motorcycle gang from reenacting the Soviet march to Berlin in celebration of the anniversary of Germany’s World War II defeat. The Night Wolves gang is closely associated with President Vladimir Putin. The ten didn’t identify themselves as Night Wolves members, but called themselves “Memorial Riders on the Victory Road”. Germany is also not really happy with the idea of a gang of Russian bikers coming to town and put its own border guards on alert.
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has been sidelined as Athens tries to renegotiate its debt with Europe and the International Monetary Fund. Former Sydneysider Yanis’ brash style is getting nowhere with his more conservative colleagues, and he recently returned empty-handed from a meeting with Eurozone finance ministers. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says a deal with the creditors is now “very close”.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is ordering military training for Ugandan youths to counter the threat from the terrorist group Al Shabaab. Uganda has more than 6,000 troops taking part in the African Union force taking on the terrorist group in its home turf in Somalia. In 2010, al Shabaab bomb attacks in Kampala killed at least 76 people.