Author: Tony Ricardo Chambers

For many years, Tajikistan has been gravely affected by drug trafficking. At least 15-20 tons of opium and between 75 and 80 metric tons of heroin are smuggled into the country each year from Afghanistan either for local consumption or for transfer to Russia and Europe. Despite an official Tajik government policy to fight illicit drug trafficking in cooperation with foreign governments and international organizations, trafficking continues to increase. The volume of drug transit through Tajikistan is now equivalent to 30 percent of the country’s GDP. So far, the success of domestic Tajik policies and international assistance has been minimal. Trafficking is a product of numerous complex…

Amid an outbreak of bird flu, also known as the H5N1 virus, in poultry and cattle, there is no risk of humans getting sick from America’s food supply, if meat is cooked and milk is pasteurized, according to federal agencies and veterinarians that spoke to ABC News. “Commercial food, so, milk and meat are going to be fine. Especially with pasteurization and cooking, it kills this virus,” Dr. Jeff Bender, a public health veterinarian and professor at the school of public health at the University of Minnesota, told ABC News. “The concern, or the unknown is, what about unpasteurized milk…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh resigned on February 26 in anticipation of postwar governance challenges. “I see that the next stage and its challenges will require new governmental and political arrangements,” Shtayyeh said, emphasizing “the emerging reality in the Gaza Strip, the national unity talks, and the urgent need for an inter-Palestinian consensus.” American and Palestinian officials expect that Abbas will nominate Mohammed Mustafa, the chairman of the Palestine Investment Fund, as Shtayyeh’s successor. Expert Analysis “Bringing in Palestine Investment Fund chief Mohammed Mustafa and pushing out the current prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh is the rearranging of the…

Key Moment Third-quarter woes appear to be a thing of the past for the Boston Celtics, as they’ve emerged from the All-Star break with two straight wins, both of which were fueled by big runs right after halftime. On Thursday night a 37-21 third-quarter advantage sparked a 129-112 win in Chicago. Then on Saturday night, a 33-13 third-quarter stretch served as the climax for a 116-102 victory in New York. Now, let’s dive into the latter performance that just took place at Madison Square Garden. It was a close game for most of the first half and it was all…

Copenhagen (13/11 – 37.5) When Ranil Wickremesinghe took over as Sri Lanka’s president in July after a popular uprising ousted his predecessor, the South Asian island nation was engulfed in its worst economic meltdown in 75 years. Since then, President Wickremesinghe has managed to a keep a lid on mass protests, improve supplies of essentials and on Monday, secured a nearly $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that opens the door to restructuring about $58 billion of debt and receive funding from other lenders. He has done that despite a deeply unpopular government, his own party commanding just one…

Berlin (24/11 – 50) The Supreme Court of the Republic of Tajikistan sentenced five Pamiri leaders from the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) to life imprisonment. They are Tolib Ayombekov, Nazhmiddin Sherchonov, Imumnazar Shoishirinov, Munavvar Shanbiev and Niyozsho Gulobov. The press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Tajikistan announced their detention in June of this year, presenting everyone as “leaders of an organized criminal group in the city of Khorog” – the administrative center of GBAO. According to information from the law enforcement agency, Shanbiev and Ayombekov were among those with whom the country’s authorities signed separate agreements in October…

Commercial real estate markets in the U.S. and China are economic pain points to monitor in a higher-for-longer rate environment, said Singapore’s United Overseas Bank. But the bank remains optimistic about one key region. “The U.S. commercial real estate remains a hotspot, especially with the low occupancy rates that we have,” Lee Wai Fai, chief financial officer of UOB told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.” Vacancy rates for office buildings climbed to a record high of 18.2% in late 2022. “The other hotspots will be China, there [are] worries about the quality and whether they can manage the property uncertainty in China,”…

Two houses on the south side of Belize City were destroyed by fire this morning. The fire broke out in a densely populated area of Arlington Drive just after seven-thirty. The fire began at the home of Marlon Usher and spread to the structure next to it. Usher, who works in construction, had already left for work. Many area residents told Love News they are convinced that Usher’s house was set ablaze, and Brenda Usher, Marlon’s mother, says she knows the identity of the suspected arsonist. She said that she hopes authorities can act quickly to address the situation because…

Frankfurt (11/09 – 20) Two international human rights organizations have called on the Tajikistan government to immediately release jailed lawyer and human rights activist Manuchehr Kholiknazarov, as well as other activists and journalists. The International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) and the international non-profit organization CIVICUS, which bills itself as “a global alliance aimed at strengthening the action of citizens and civil society around the world,” in their message published specially on the eve of Independence Day, September 8, focus on the fact that Tajik human rights activist and civil society activist Manuchehr Kholiknazarov was falsely sentenced to a long…

What you need to know HP unveiled its first-ever foldable PC last month. Now, the company has shared that the HP Spectre Fold will be available in 11 additional countries. Before today, the PC was only available for preorder in the United States, though it was known that the foldable would make its way to additional countries. Specifically, the HP Spectre Fold will be available in Australia, France, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The foldable PC will also be available in the UK, though HP shared that information a few weeks ago. Our Zachary Boddy took…