News Watch

A volcano on Stromboli, an island off the coast of Italy, erupted on July 3, killing one person, a hiker, and injuring one other. The eruption, which occurred on the west side of the island, caused fires and a heavy ashfall across the popular tourist spot but caused no other damage.

Stromboli is one of the most active volcanoes on Earth, having been in a state of constant eruption since 1932. However, that continual eruption is usually not explosive.

The US Department of State posts up-to-date travel advisories on every country and many territories, ranking each 1 (Exercise normal precautions), 2 (Exercise increased caution), 3 (Reconsider travel) or 4 (Do not travel). Note: A country’s regions are also ranked and may have different rankings than the country as a whole. Visit travel.state.gov and click on “Travel Advisories” at the top of the page.

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In the streets of Hong Kong, beginning June 9 and continuing at press time, people protested against a proposed bill that would allow mainland China authorities to arrest and extradite Hong Kong citizens suspected of crimes against the state.

With peak numbers estimated from 240,000 to 2,000,000 on the day of the highest turnout, these were the largest protests in Hong Kong since the city was returned by the UK to China in 1997.

On June 17, Hong Kong’s chief legislator,...

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At least 100 people were killed at a Dogon village in central Mali in early June. The attackers were suspected to have been Fulani.

Conflict between the Dogon, farmers who practice a traditional religion, and the Fulani, nomadic Muslim herders, has been ongoing for decades and was formerly handled through negotiation. However, since an Islamist insurgency was attempted in Mali in 2012, government services in the center of the country have been limited, despite the insurgency’s...

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In the village of Konduga in northeastern Borno state, Nigeria, on June 17, at least 30 people were killed and 40 others were injured when three suicide bombers targeted a video hall where people had gathered to watch soccer. Islamist militant group Boko Haram was blamed for the attack.

Boko Haram once controlled large areas of northeastern Nigeria, including parts of Borno, but has been driven back by Nigerian and African Union soldiers in recent years. The group continues to use...

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A roadside bomb in Kenya, near the border with Somalia, killed at least eight police officers on June 15. As of press time, no group had claimed responsibility for the bombing, but, according to reports, at the time of the incident the police were pursuing members of al-Shabaab, an Islamist militant group that controls parts of Somalia and has made incursions into Kenya in the past.

Two suicide bombers targeted police in separate attacks in Tunis, Tunisia, on June 27, killing one officer and injuring at least eight people, including civilians. One bombing occurred on Charles de Gaulle Street in the center of the city, while the second bomb was detonated in the el-Gorjani district. At press time, no group had been identified as responsible for the attacks.

After the bombings, hundreds of people gathered near the site of the first bombing in defiance of terrorism...

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A cruise missile fired by rebel Houthi forces in Yemen struck the Arrivals hall at Abha International Airport in Abha, southwestern Saudi Arabia, on June 12, injuring 26 civilians. The rebel group released a statement saying that the airport had been the intended target.

Yemen has been engaged in a civil war against ethnic Houthi rebels since 2015. A Saudi-led coalition of eight Arab states, including the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, has assisted the internationally recognized...

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