Italian workers strike against war and militarizationThe Italian grassroots trade union Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) launched a general strike on Friday, June 20, to escalate national mobilization against armament and war. Echoing a slogan from broader peace campaigns – “Abbassate le armi, alzate i salari” (“Lower the weapons, raise the wages”) – striking workers aiming to expose the consequences of Europe’s, and more specifically Italy’s, growing military-industrial agenda, including more cuts in the region’s public services.
https://peoplesdispatch.org/2025/06/21/italian-workers-strike-against-war-and-militarization/British parliament votes in favour of assisted dying lawThe “Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life)” law would give mentally competent, terminally ill adults in England and Wales with six months or less left to live the right to choose to end their lives with medical help. Those who would want the procedure would have to be signed off on by two doctors and a panel of experts.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/20/british-parliament-votes-in-favour-of-assisted-dying-lawhttps://archive.ph/Jofq5 Top Bulgarian official says he’ll intervene to stop food price spikes before eurozone entry A top Bulgarian official has said he will intervene to stem sharp rises in the prices of food and drink that he blames on speculators profiteering ahead of the country's expected entry into the eurozone. Inflation is a politically explosive topic in Bulgaria, as the country looks set to join the eurozone on Jan. 1 next year. Public support is starkly divided, particularly because of fears that currency convergence will import western European prices to the EU's poorest country.
https://www.politico.eu/article/bulgaria-eurozone-official-stop-food-price-spikes-before-entry/https://archive.ph/VG8b1Tens of thousands join pro-Palestinian marches across EuropeIn London, AFP journalists saw tens of thousands of protesters, who waved Palestinian flags as they marched through the British capital clad in keffiyeh scarves. In Berlin, more than 10,000 people gathered in the centre of the city in support of Gaza, according to police figures. And in the Swiss capital Bern, march organisers estimated that 20,000 people rallied in front of the national parliament, urging the government to back a ceasefire. There have been monthly protests in the British capital since the start of the 20-month-long war between Israel and Hamas, which has ravaged Gaza.
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2025/06/tens-thousands-join-pro-palestinian-marches-across-europeJordan urged to cancel Israel gas deal after supply halted amid Iran warThe production halt - resulting from disruptions at the Leviathan gas field - is being cited by the Jordanian National Campaign to Overturn the Gas Agreement with the Zionist Entity, known by its slogan "The Enemy's Gas is Occupation", as grounds to terminate the deal. The campaign, a coalition of public figures, political parties and professional associations opposed to normalisation with Israel, views the current situation as a legal and political opportunity to annul the agreement under the force majeure clause. This clause permits cancellation without financial penalties if unforeseen events prevent the fulfilment of contractual obligations.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/jordan-urged-cancel-israel-gas-deal-after-supply-halted-amid-iran-warErdogan says UNRWA to open office in Turkey, calls for more support for agencyAddressing foreign ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul, Erdogan said opening an Ankara UNRWA office would deepen Turkey's support for the agency. "We must not allow UNRWA, which plays an irreplaceable role in terms of taking care of Palestinian refugees, to be paralysed by Israel. We expect our organisation and each member state to provide financial and moral support to UNRWA to thwart Israel's games," Erdogan said.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/erdogan-says-unrwa-open-office-turkey-calls-more-support-agency-2025-06-21/Nigerian communities to take Shell to high court over oil pollutionMembers of the Bille and Ogale communities in the Niger delta, which have a combined population of about 50,000, are suing Shell and a Nigerian-based subsidiary of the company, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, which is now the Renaissance Africa Energy Company. The two communities began the legal action in 2015, claiming they had suffered systemic and ongoing oil pollution for years due to the companies’ operations in the African country, including the pollution of drinking water.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/20/nigerian-communities-shell-high-court-oil-pollutionSri Lanka plans IMF talks on ways to lure foreign investorsBeyond last year's economic growth of 5%, Sri Lanka still needs to focus on deeper reforms such as reforming loss-making state enterprises and trimming a bloated public service, Dissanayake said. … Colombo boosted power prices by 15% last week in its effort to secure IMF executive board approval for the fifth tranche of its facility, standing at about $334 million.
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/sri-lanka-plans-imf-talks-ways-lure-foreign-investors-2025-06-16/UN expert recommends NTF-ELCAC abolition amid rampant red-tagging and media attacksKhan questioned the need to retain the NTF-ELCAC which was established by the previous administration under a different political context, considering its ruinous effect on their human rights, including the right to freedom of expression. She said that the Philippine government had briefly told her how it has been considering the task force into a peacebuilding entity, Khan expressed her doubt whether an entity that is widely considered to have been a major source of vilification, threats and harassment can transform itself into a credible peacebuilder.
https://www.bulatlat.com/2025/06/19/un-expert-recommends-ntf-elcac-abolition-amid-rampant-red-tagging-and-media-attacks/Canada poised to pass infrastructure bill despite pushback from Indigenous peopleWhile the bill says the government must consult Indigenous communities in cases where their rights are affected by a fast-tracked project, it also allows the Liberal cabinet to overrule pre-existing laws to speed up permits for major projects. The federal legislation comes as provinces also pass bills that speed up infrastructure projects. Ontario plans to create “special economic zones” that would bypass all provincial laws, amid tensions between the premier and First Nations chiefs in areas slated for mining. Doug Ford, Ontario’s premier, provoked criticism earlier this week criticized for saying First Nations communities “keep coming hat in hand all the time to the government” for more money. He apologized the following day after meeting with chiefs from the Anishinabek Nation, which represents 39 of Ontario’s 133 First Nations chiefs.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/20/canada-infrastructure-bill-indigenous-rightsPanama suspends constitutional protections in the northwest after destructive protestsWhat began as nationwide protests against changes to the social security system morphed Thursday night into people damaging the local airport and the facilities of banana giant Chiquita Brands, which fired thousands of striking workers in the province last month. Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino had said at the time that the banana workers’ strike was illegal and included some 5,000 workers. On May 27, the government declared a state of emergency in the province without suspending constitutional protections.
https://apnews.com/article/panama-protests-chiquita-banana-cd8c42c8cb695c2e39ee6fb3ec886388Petro says Colombia will vote on constituent assembly next yearThe Senate’s fierce opposition to a widely supported labor reform has shown “who is with” the people and “those who insults and condemn them, those who forbid them to speak. Now that popular knowledge must be expressed where the people are king, at the ballot box,” Petro added. For this reason, said the president, the government plans to convene a national constituent assembly that would be called during the same elections that will elect a new Congress and a successor to Petro. "I await the decision of millions so that the next government and congress will have the imperative mandate to build the social rule of law, social justice, deep democracy with the people, peace."
https://colombiareports.com/petro-says-colombia-will-vote-on-constituent-assembly-next-year/