Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Zambia’s Stary Mwaba mines the toxic legacy of the Copperbelt’s ‘black mountains’
Stary Mwaba Zambia’s notorious “black mountains” – huge heaps of mining waste that scar the Copperbelt skyline – are deeply personal to Stary Mwaba, one of the country’s leading visual artists. “As kids, we used to call it ‘mu danger’ – meaning ‘in the danger’,” Mwaba tells the BBC. “The ‘black mountain’ was this place…
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UK condemns Hong Kong cash offer for help in arresting activists
The UK has condemned the latest cash offer from Hong Kong authorities for people who help in the arrest of pro-democracy activists living in Britain. In a joint statement, Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the move as “another example of transnational repression”. People are being offered between $25,000 (HK$200,000) and…
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Mother of starving baby speaks to BBC
Hedaya al-Muta’wi’s 18-month-old son Mohammed suffers from malnutrition due to famine and weighs just 6kg. He suffers from fatigue and can no longer stand or sit up. She told the BBC “my husband was killed in the war and I don’t have a breadwinner, except God”. She said she works hard and labours to provide…
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Taiwan holds controversial vote targeting ‘pro-China’ lawmakers
Tessa Wong BBC News, Asia Digital Reporter BBC / Tessa Wong Several of the Kuomintang lawmakers facing the recall vote appeared at an anti-recall rally last weekend Thousands of Taiwanese are heading to the polls in an unprecedented and controversial vote aimed at ousting lawmakers accused of being too close to China. More than 30…
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‘I witnessed war crimes,’ former worker at GHF aid site tells BBC
A retired US special forces officer has revealed to the BBC why he resigned from his work with US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid distribution centres. “I witnessed the Israeli Defense Forces shooting at the crowds of Palestinians,” Anthony Aguilar told the BBC. He added that in his entire career he has never…
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Kristin Cabot resigns from Astronomer after viral Coldplay clip
A US tech company’s chief people officer who was apparently caught on a big screen at a Coldplay concert embracing the company’s CEO has resigned. Kristin Cabot is no longer working for Astronomer, the firm told the BBC in a statement. Her departure follows that of Andy Byron, the company’s former CEO, who left last…
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Almost a third of people in Gaza ‘not eating for days,’ UN warns
Reuters International concern has risen this week with warnings that starvation has gripped Gaza Almost one in three people in Gaza are going days without eating, the UN’s food aid programme has warned. “Malnutrition is surging with 90,000 women and children in urgent need of treatment,” the World Food Programme (WFP) said in a statement…
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220 MPs call for Keir Starmer to recognise Palestinian state
Sam Francis Political reporter Reuters More than a third of MPs have signed a letter to Sir Keir Starmer calling for the UK to recognise a Palestinian state. Some 220 MPs from nine political parties have backed the call – more than half of them Labour – arguing that UK recognition would send a “powerful”…
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Protesters pack Tel Aviv square to demand Gaza ceasefire
Thousands of demonstrators packed Tel Aviv’s Habima Square on Thursday, calling on the Israeli government to agree a deal to end the war in Gaza and bring all the hostages still held by Hamas home. Footage shows huge crowds, with some people holding signs aloft to show their objection to the ongoing conflict. Following the…
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The political feud behind the fight
Jonathan Head South East Asia correspondent Watch: People take shelter after gunfire breaks out between Thailand and Cambodia troops Cambodia and Thailand have a history of occasional conflict. The two countries share a long and forested border with areas that both sides claim. There have been serious exchanges of fire in the past, too –…
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