Afghanistan: attacks on Shiite mosques and Taliban targets

Today's headlines: Shanghai tightens anti-Covid measures; Indonesia's only glacier is disappearing; in the Philippines, online ldisinformation against the daughter of Marcos Jr's challenger; Indian government's free meals program has not yet fully recovered; in Russia, members of the Donetsk Philharmonic have been sent to frontline.

AFGHANISTAN

The Islamic State has claimed a series of explosions across several cities. The attacks occurred in Kunduz, Mazar-i Sharif, and Kabul and targeted Shiite mosques and Taliban targets (Isis fanatics consider the Taliban moderates).

INDONESIA

Indonesia's only glacier may soon disappear: experts say the ice on the Jayawijaya Mountains will melt completely between 2025 and 2027 after enduring more than 5,000 years. Mount Jayawijaya is located in the Lorentz National Park, at an altitude of 4,884 meters above sea level. It is the highest peak in Indonesia and some people also call it the Carstensz Pyramid.

CHINA

Five weeks after the start of the Shanghai lockdown , Chinese authorities said they will tighten containment measures against covid-19: on the one hand, electronic alarms will be placed on the doors of homes to prevent infected people from leaving; on the other hand, families will be evacuated in order to disinfect their homes.

INDIA

Indian schools resumed the government free lunch program in April. While schools were closed due to covid, thousands of Indian children skipped the meal. However, the situation ha syet to return to normal: the pandemic has increased the vulnerability of rural areas, forcing NGOs to intervene in place of the government.

PHILIPPINES

The daughter of current Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo has called on the Philippine National Bureau of Investigation to investigate the spread of fake and obscene videos of her. Several civil society groups have united to fight online misinformation referring to the May 9 presidential election, which in most cases discredits Robredo and helps the Ferdinand Marcos camp.

JORDAN

Amman has let it be known that it has sufficient grain reserves to cope with declines due to the war in Ukraine. This was said by Finance Minister Mohammad al-Ississ referring also to fuel and foreign currency reserves. However, it is likely that inflationary pressure will also be felt in Jordan, reducing economic growth.

RUSSIA

The members of the Donetsk Philharmonic were invited to hold a concert to be broadcast on television, but as soon as they were assembled they were forced to go to the front to fight and without any preparation were sent to Mariupol, throwing them against the fire of the Azov battalion. Several of them died immediately, including the well-known jazz musician Nikolaj Zvjagintsev.

CENTRAL ASIA.

China has officially opened a new rail route to Germany that will avoid going through Russia, passing through Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic and crossing the Caspian and Black Seas by combining rail and ferry transport.