Global News Roundup: March 14-21

By Lily Cusack

Russia Withdraws Warplanes from Syria

Russia withdrew war planes such as these from Syria on Tuesday, March 15, 2016. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Russia flew their warplanes in Syria home on Tuesday, March 15, which the United Nations hopes will aid in the development of peace talks in Geneva, according to CBC. Russia has stated that they are still maintaining an air base and an undeclared number of forces in the country. The Syrian Organization for Human Rights has stated that Russian airstrikes have killed over 1,700 civilians, but Russia denies this statistic. The airstrike program has cost Russia an estimated $700 to $800 million. Russia supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime and has been trying to put an end to the rise of the Islamic State in the war-torn nation. However, Russia has been increasingly frustrated with al-Assad, as he refuses to cooperate at the Geneva peace talks, which also include the United States. Russia is pushing for presidential elections, but they are leaving the question of al-Assad to inside, rather than outside, forces.

North Korea Sentences U.S. Student to Hard Labor

21-year-old student Otto Frederick Warmbier was arrested in Pyongyang , the capital of North Korea. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. 

According to CNN, on Wednesday, March 16, an American college student was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor by the North Korean government while visiting the country. Otto Frederick Warmbier, a University of Virginia student, reportedly removed a political banner from his hotel room before leaving, which the North Korean government constitutes as a “hostile act” against the country. The government claims that Warmbier was supported by either a church in his home state of Ohio, a secret university organization, or the CIA to commit the act. Warmbier pleaded guilty and issued a tearful apology, but was sentenced only after an hour of the trial. Warmbier was arrested on Jan. 2 as he was about to board his plane to leave the country.

SeaWorld to Stop Breeding Killer Whales

One of the multiple Shamu killer whales jumps during a show at Sea World San Diego in 2009. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.  

SeaWorld announced on Thursday, March 17, that they will stop breeding their killer whales in captivity, while their current killer whales will continue to perform in shows until their deaths, according to Calgary Sun. They will use birth control to prevent reproduction. SeaWorld, which has 29 killer whales under their care, have come under fire by activist groups for their treatment of whales in captivity. In 2015, three killer whales died within six months at a park in San Antonio, Texas. Since then, SeaWorld has implemented a new plan for viewing the killer whales. The whales will be shown at specific times, and the viewing areas will “reflect the natural world” while focusing on “orca enrichment, exercise and overall health.” For the next five years, SeaWorld will also partner with the Humane Society of the United States in providing $50 million to end commercial whaling and seal hunting and killing sharks for their fins. The company’s shares rose 8.2 percent on Thursday.

FlyDubai Plane Crashes While Landing

A FlyDubai plane like this crashed upon landing in a Russian city on Saturday, March 19, killing all 62 passengers on board. Photo 

According to Bloomberg Business, a FlyDubai plane broke apart while attempting to land in Rostov-on-Don, Russia on Saturday, March 19. The crash, which took place during difficult weather conditions, killed the 62 people on board. After trying to land two hours earlier, the plane returned to the landing pad, where it crashed and immediately burst into flames. Flightradar24, which tracks and collects data concerning airlines, stated that while the plane was losing altitude, it was gaining speed. The Investigative Committee in Russia is planning on examining “human error, technical failure and difficult weather conditions” as possible causes to the crash. The flight had 33 women, 18 men, four children and seven crew on board. FlyDubai is providing $20,000 per passenger to the families of the deceased.

Paris Attack Suspect Arrested

The Eiffel Tower illuminated in the colors of the French flag in honor of the November 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia. 

Salah Abdeslam, a key suspect to the Paris attacks in November, was arrested in Brussels on Friday, March 19, according to International Business Times. The Belgium-born French national has been in hiding since the November attacks. He was formally charged on March 20 with involvement in terrorist murder. Abdeslam is thought to have transported the suicide bombers to the Stade de France before they detonated themselves, as well as possibly purchasing the detonators. He has said that he planned to detonate his vest, but backed out at the last minute. Due to the large amount of heavy weapons found during the initial search, it is thought that Abdeslam was planning another attack in Belgium. On March 21, the government announced the search for Najiim Laachraoui, who has the alias of Soufiane Kayal, as an accomplice in the attacks.

Obama’s Cuba Visit

President Obama arrived in Havana, Cuba (province #3) Monday, March 21, 2016. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

President Obama is making a historic visit to Cuba this week. According to The New York Times, he appeared with President Raul Castro on Monday, March 21 to kick off the first official talks between the two countries since before the Cold War. This is the third in-person meeting since December 2014 when they announced that diplomatic relations would be restored. The two leaders hope to discuss how to smooth out their relationship and deal with differences that divide them. Obama has said that he wants to address the issue of Cuba’s repressive governmental procedures, which were evident in the detainment of civilians that had the potential to cause concern before Obama’s arrival.

Scores of People Die in Paris Terrorist Attack

By Shy Hardiman and Niki Kottmann

Reports say that at least 128 people died in six different Paris locations after ISIS suicide bombers and shooters attacked the French capital on Nov. 13.

“I got the news about the attacks because I got a cellphone alert of BBC saying that there have been attacks,”  says Santiago Martinez, an exchange student from Mexico studying at Sciences Po de Paris. Martinez studied alongside Mizzou exchange students in Reims, France last spring.

Martinez was at a bar not too far away from some of the incidents when he and his friends were instructed to stay put because it was not safe outside. They were  eventually escorted to safety by locals using #porteouverte to offer those in danger, rides and refuge.

TIME and other news outlets used the hashtag when tweeting about their coverage of the tragedy on Friday. Photo Courtesy of @TIME.

On Nov. 14, the French interior minister issued a statement saying that France is under a state of emergency, which could add strict measures to France’s border control.

Martinez says that there have been large search parties created to look for more victims, and that he and other students are still not sure if their classes will be resumed due to safety precautions.

ISIS or ISIL as they are also commonly referred to is the terrorist group who is responsible for the public beheading videos of journalists from all over the world. On the same day as the Paris attack, a US drone strike aimed at Jihadi John, the man in the now infamous beheading videos, is believed to have killed him and other members of the organization, although, no reports have been issued by ISIS or French authorities stating that the Nov. 13 Paris attacks are an act of terrorist retaliation.

“I am afraid about the reaction,” Martinez says. “On one hand, they are keeping the people informed, having massive search parties and a shitload of security. They have a good response in the sense that it is a reaction. However, it is so complicated to try to prevent these kinds of attacks.”

Martinez is concerned with the large amount of coverage regarding the response of the US and UK expressing condolences for France in comparison to the little coverage and lack of response to the attacks that took place in Beirut earlier this week.

“…meanwhile, people have died, and not just here in Paris, but in Beirut, yet no media coverage nor high-profile statements were made for them,” Martinez says.

The Beirut attack that Martinez is referring to was a double suicide bombing that occurred on Thursday, Nov. 12 and killed 43 people in a predominantly Shiite region of southern Beirut. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Aside from the dozens of fatalities in the Paris attacks, there were also 180 people injured during the attacks. Nearly 200 were wounded in Beirut.

“It has been a deep wound as humanity,” Martinez says.

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Putting Everything in Perspective

The six locations where the Paris attacks occurred:

1. Stade de France, where a France v Germany soccer game was being played.
2. At the Bataclan, a concert hall where American rock band, Eagles of Death Metal, were playing.
3. Other locations include restaurants and bars near the theater.

Recent violence in France

This attack comes just 10 months after the terrorist attack on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in January.

12 people were killed in the attack on the magazine as well as another four in a standoff during a grocery store shooting. All three assailants responsible for the attacks, including two brothers who said the attack was because the magazine mocked the prophet Mohammed, were killed by police.