Nigeria: Pressure to release U.S. crypto Executive
U.S. diplomats are pressuring Nigeria to release a detained cryptocurrency executive, Tigran Gambaryan. Gambaryan is a U.S. citizen and has been detained since February. He has been held on money laundering charges. Two U.S. congress members visited Gambaryan in June and claimed that his health was deteriorating. Gambaryan’s employers have also sought the release of their top official on humanitarian grounds.
Germany: Country closes more borders
Germany has extended random checks at its borders to five more Western European countries: France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Denmark in an attempt to curtail irregular migration into the country. These controls, which have been extended for a period of six months, come on top of similar ongoing checks at the German borders with Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Switzerland. The move comes on the heels of extremist attacks involving immigrants, particularly the knife attacks in western Germany.
Kenya: Airport Scandal
Many travelers are stranded in Kenya’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) after the country’s aviation union went on strike on February 11th, 2024. The strike is in protest over proposals to lease JKIA to the Adani group for 30 years. The Adani group is a Multinational conglomerate company based in India whose businesses include sea and airport management.
New Zealand: Bird with donkeylike yells wins
This year’s winner of New Zealand’s 2024 Bird of the Year is its endangered yellow-eyed penguin, or hoiho. The competition was unencumbered with the scandals that marred the voting in previous years. With its unmistakable yellow feather band around its head, and shrill donkeylike yells, the hoiho lives on New Zealand’s South Island and sub-Antarctic islands. The population has plummeted, and there are only 4,000 to 5,000 remaining due to threats from diseases, predators, and food scarcity. The competition this year was very low-key compared with the previous years. The winning campaign of the hoiho is supported by some local wildlife groups. This competition is part of New Zealand’s effort to raise awareness about the native birds in danger.
Congo: Three Americans detained
Three Americans, Marcel Malanga, 21, Tyler Thompson Jr., 21, and Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, 36, are facing the death penalty in Congo after they were found guilty of participating in a failed coup against the president. They were arrested alongside 37 others including mostly Congolese, a Briton, a Belgian, and a Canadian, who were all charged with terrorism, murder, criminal association, and illegal possession of weapons, among other charges. Marcel Malaga is the son of Christian Malaga, 41, who was alleged to be the leader of the coup. The convicted have 5 days to appeal the verdict.
