'Panama Declares State of Emergency After Chiquita Banana StrikeStrikers have been protesting and blocking roads in the province, which borders Costa Rica, causing shortages of fuel and some food items. Schools are also closed. “The declaration of the state of emergency under no circumstances implies intervention in lifting road blockades by the communities,” said Minister of the Presidency Juan Carlos Orillac. …. President Mulino warned on Friday that thousands of jobs would be lost if the strike continued, which a labor court deemed “illegal.” A government delegation is in talks with union leaders, who are calling for a new law to restore benefits they say were provided under the previous pension and healthcare system.
https://ticotimes.net/2025/05/28/panama-declares-state-of-emergency-after-chiquita-banana-strikehttps://archive.ph/dylvJ‘Scratch the earth, there’s gold!’: Small miners, big firms and armed gangs fight over Peru’s mineral wealthUnderground gunfights are inevitable and attacks can come from all sides as armed men known as parqueros steal ore – the gold-bearing rock – by tunnelling in from connecting shafts or invading the mine from other entrances. The gangs burn tyres and pump smoke into the tunnels to drive out miners. Or they attack the security guards, as when the 13 men were killed.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/may/29/gold-peru-small-miners-big-mining-firms-armed-gangs-mineral-wealthTens of thousands demonstrate in Nepal seeking restoration of ousted monarchyThere has been growing demand in recent months for Gyanendra Shah to be reinstated as king and Hinduism to be brought back as a state religion. Royalist groups accuse the country’s major political parties of corruption and failed governance and say people are frustrated with politicians. Massive street protests in 2006 forced Gyanendra to give up his authoritarian rule, and two years later the parliament voted to abolish the monarchy.
https://apnews.com/article/nepal-protest-restoration-monarchy-king-b6646466a04558c3cfa61b669acc726eFemale Japanese ex-SDF member sues govt, abusers for sexual assaultsRina Gonoi, 23, who quit the force in June 2022 and posted online about a wide range of abuses that took place at the GSDF's Camp Koriyama in Fukushima Prefecture, filed the suit at the Yokohama District Court. Gonoi, who informed the Defense Ministry of her sexual assaults last June and called for an investigation, is seeking damages from the state and her five assailants, saying she was abused daily between fall 2020 and August 2021.
https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202301/30/WS63d77d65a31057c47ebabdb1.htmlhttps://archive.ph/bxZ5BTruckers' protests in Iran growTRUCK drivers in Iran blocked roads and ports on Wednesday as part of their strike against low salaries, high insurance rates and a possible hike in fuel prices. The strikes, which began last Thursday in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, one of the country’s main transport and shipping hubs, have now spread across Iran. The protests are slowly gaining steam and could develop into more serious protests against the government. Last week, the Iranian government announced plans to massively increase the price of fuel for trucks from 15.14 cents (11.36p) per gallon to nearly $1.90 per (£1.43) gallon in late June.
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/truckers-protests-iran-growNamibia pushes for German reparations on first genocide remembrance dayBetween 1904 and 1908, an estimated 65,000 Herero people and 10,000 Nama people were killed when the groups rejected colonial rule. It amounted to 80% and 50% of their respective populations at the time. Some of their skulls were taken to Germany for racist experiments and were stored in German hospitals, museums and universities for decades.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/28/namibia-first-genocide-remembrance-dayInside Trump’s New Gaza "Ceasefire" Proposal“The proposed deal from the Israelis through Witkoff is extremely difficult to accept,” said a senior Hamas official to Drop Site. “There is no talk about the [ceasefire] deal from January 19. There is no talk about a return to the situation before March 2” when Israel abandoned the original ceasefire. The Hamas official said that there is no guarantee Israel would even respect the 60-day truce after its ten captives are returned in the first week of the deal. “They might launch the war again,” he said. “There are no guarantees to a permanent ceasefire, no guarantees for a permanent withdrawal.”
https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/trump-gaza-ceasefire-proposal-hamas-israel-witkoffUS contractor hires obscure Gaza group for aid rollout after local snubsThree Brothers, the company eventually contracted for the scheme, was being used “as the first interface with the population” at the distribution centres, according to a person familiar with Gaza humanitarian issues. They said Khozandar’s team was well known to the Israeli security establishment and had a long history of working with them. Three Brothers employees are responsible for distribution, processing recipients and managing lines.
https://www.ft.com/content/9dbbf0cb-cc29-4eba-aa9b-2c7c9dcf46e8https://archive.ph/PXhmHIrish conservatives block proposal by Sinn Féin to restrict Israeli “war bonds”On May 28, representatives of conservative parties Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, part of the current Irish government, voted down a proposal brought forward by Sinn Féin that would have granted the Minister for Finance the authority to restrict the sale of Israeli bonds. The bill was defeated by a margin of 87 to 75, despite support from opposition parties and independent parliamentarians who vote with the government on other issues.
https://peoplesdispatch.org/2025/05/29/irish-conservatives-block-proposal-by-sinn-fein-to-restrict-israeli-war-bonds/Far-right Chega party becomes main opposition in Portugal’s parliamentThe far-right party, which was founded in 2019 by the former football pundit André Ventura, has capitalised on widespread dissatisfaction with Portugal’s mainstream left and right parties as the country continues to suffer a housing crisis, stressed health and education systems, and an average monthly wage of €1,602 (£1,346). It has seen a dramatic rise in support over the past few years, winning 1.3% of the vote in 2019, 7.2% in 2022, and 18.1% last year, when its seat count shot up from 12 to 50.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/28/far-right-chega-party-becomes-main-opposition-in-portugals-parliament