September 1 – Latina America: BRAZIL
According to a report by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Brazil’s Mamiraua Institute for Sustainable Development, explorers find new species of plants or animals in the Brazilian Amazon every day. Between 2014 and 2015, the team collected credible reports of 381 newly described species, including 216 plants, 93 fish, 32 amphibians, 20 mammals, 19 reptiles, and one bird. The most surprising finds include a new monkey named the fire-tailed zogue-zogue and a new river dolphin.[1] However, all the newly discovered animals and plants are in areas of the Amazon at risk from human activity, such as farming and logging. Some of the new species have been already labeled as endangered.
Report on New Species of Vertebrates and Plants in the Amazon
September 1 – Latin America: COLOMBIA
As it is transitioning into a new civilian political party, Colombia’s former armed rebel group FARC – the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – changes its name to the Alternative Revolutionary Force for the Common People, retaining the same acronym. As part of the peace process, the group finished disarming, ending the 50-year armed conflict with the government. In 2018, FARC will run in the country’s general elections. These elections are important in making sure that the terms of the settlement between the group and the government are upheld over time, which will build a long-lasting peace.[2]
September 7 – Latin America / North America:
THE CARIBBEAN / UNITED STATES
The highest level category-five Hurricane Irma, with sustained wind speeds of 180 miles/h, roars through Caribbean countries and territories, hits the U.S. state of Florida, then weakens to a tropical storm as it moves through the state of Georgia and South Carolina. The hurricane cuts off power to large areas and causes massive destruction and flooding, especially in the Caribbean and Florida Keys, leaving millions without power. The storm will have a huge long-term economic impact on these areas. Estimates for the costs of Hurricane Irma range between $50 billion to $100 billion, just a few weeks after disastrous Hurricane Harvey estimated to be the costliest in US history with economic impact of $190 billion.[3] According to FEMA, Hurricane Irma destroyed a quarter of the homes in the Florida Keys and badly damaged many more.[4]
Hurricane Irma: Damage mapped
September 11 – East Asia / South Asia:
MYANMAR / BANGLADESH
In response to recent persecutions of the Rohingya minority in Myanmar, which has led to more than 430,000[5] of them fleeing to Bangladesh, UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein denounces their treatment and says “the situation seems a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.”[6] The recent violence was sparked by attacks by Rohingya militants on 30 police posts in northern Rakhine region on August 25. The militants claim to protect the Rohingya Muslim minority from state repression. In response, Myanmar’s security forces and local militia initiated a brutal crackdown on the Rohingya civilian population killing many of them and burning their villages. Aid agencies and the UN are working to provide food, water and shelter for the huge influx of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. The Rohingya are one of the most persecuted minorities in the world with no home or citizenship.[7]
More on the Rohingya people from Amnesty International
September 14 – Former Soviet Republics / Europe / International Organizations:
RUSSIA / BELARUS / NATO
Russia and Belarus launch large-scale joint military exercises, called Zapad-2017 (“West-2017”), held across Belarus, as well as Russia’s military district of Kaliningrad, Russia’s small territory on the Baltic Sea between Poland and Lithuania. Russia says that fewer than 13,000 troops are participating, which means they don’t have to invite international observers. But NATO and Western military experts believe as many as 100,000 troops may be involved in the drills.[8] These troops include armored units, warships, and aircrafts. This show of Russia’s force and power makes its neighbors nervous, especially Ukraine, which is not part of NATO and its eastern part is under pro- Russian separatists. In 2014, Russia has also already invaded and annexed Crimea, which is part of Ukraine.
Map showing the area of the Zapad-2017 military exercises
In 2016, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) established a forward presence with four multinational combat-ready battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland on a rotational basis. They serve as a deterrent on eastern flank of the Alliance.[9]
Map of NATO Enhanced Forward
September 18 – Latin America / North America:
THE CARIBBEAN / PUERTO RICO
Another category-five storm, Hurricane Maria, with sustaining winds of up to 175 m/h, roars through the Caribbean, hitting a small island of Dominica and then the US Virgin Islands. It causes widespread destruction and kills 34 people.[10] (September 20): With winds as strong as 140 m/h, Hurricane Maria hits Puerto Rico, unleashing torrential rains, catastrophic flooding, and killing a dozen people. It causes widespread structural damage and knocks out power and telephone services across the entire island. Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello described the hurricane as “the most devastating storm in a century” and said that Maria had hit the island’s electricity grid so badly that it could take months to restore power.[11] Puerto Rico is the U.S. island territory with more than 3.3 million people who are U.S. citizens.[12] The hurricane devastation makes Puerto Rico’s economic situation even harder. Approximately $123 billion in debt that has accumulated since the territory’s 2006 recession, Puerto Rico sought bankruptcy relief in federal court in May of this year.[13]
In pictures: Dominica’s desolation ‘beyond imagination’
Puerto Rico profile
September 24 – East Asia / North America:
NORTH KOREA / CHINA / UNITED STATES
North Korea carries out its sixth nuclear test, threatens to fire off missiles towards the US island territory of Guam and says it might test a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean. It is also believed that North Korea may have succeeded in miniaturizing a nuclear weapon that could fit on an inter-continental missile.[14] (September 25): North Korea’s Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho says that U.S. President Donald Trump declared war on North Korea by tweeting that North Korea “won’t be around much longer.” Ri says that “since the United States declared war on our country, we will have every right to make all self-defensive counter measures, including the right to shoot down United States strategic bombers at any time even when they are not yet inside the aerospace border of our country.”[15] (September 28): In compliance with new sanctions by the United Nations against North Korea, in response to its latest nuclear test, China agrees to shut down North Korean companies operating in China, including joint Chinese-North Korean ventures. China, North Korea’s only major ally and main trading partner, has been under pressure to take action.
“The North Korean economy is actually growing despite sanctions” from Vox
September 24 – Europe: GERMANY
German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union CDU/CSU alliance wins the country’s general elections, gathering 33 percent of the votes. This gives it 246 seats in the 709-seat federal parliament, the Bundestag. However, this is 65 seats fewer than the current seat allocation. The opposition Social Democratic Party (SPD) came second winning 20.5 percent of the votes. It also lost seats to total of 153. The liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP) will reenter the Bundestag with 80 seats (10.7 percent of vote) after it failed to win any seats in 2013. The Green party increased its seats by 4 seats to 67. The biggest upset of this election, however, is the success of a new right-wing nationalist Alternative for Germany party (AfD), which garners 7.9 percent of the vote and will enter the parliament as the third largest party with 94 seats.[16] The party was founded in 2013 in opposition to the EU bailouts of indebted EU countries within the eurozone, quickly becoming an anti- immigration party. AfD rejects Angela Merkel’s decision to open doors to one million refugees, particularly those from the Middle East, calling Islam incompatible with German culture.[17] Angela Merkel, who has been Germany’s leader since 2000, will maintain her position as a chancellor for the fourth term. Her party will form the next government, but building a coalition is expected to take several months.
September 25 – Middle East: IRAQ / TURKEY / IRAN
Ninety-two percent of Iraqi Kurds who voted in a controversial referendum on independence support the idea of becoming a separate state.[18] There are 3.3 million ethnic Kurds in Iraq, about 23 percent of Iraqi population.[19] Kurdistan Regional President Massoud Barzani says that the Kurds will not automatically trigger a declaration of independence, but want to start negotiations on secession with the Iraqi government.[20] Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi rules out such talks, saying the referendum was unconstitutional. Governments in Iran and Turkey also voice strong opposition to the referendum, fearing the impact it might have on their own Kurdish minorities (Kurds make up 13 percent of population in Iran and 19 percent in Turkey).[21] Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatens to close borders and impose sanctions on the Iraqi Kurds’ vital oil export pipeline. Overall Kurdish population is estimated at around 30 million in the world.[22] They have been pushing for their own statehood for decades.
Who are Kurds
Video (4:21 min) Iraqi Kurdish leader: “Our right to seek independence”
September 25 – Europe / Former Soviet Republics / International Organizations:
RUSSIA / UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGTHS (UNHR)
A report issued by the United Nations Human Rights (UNHR) accuses Russia of violating human rights in Crimea, which it annexed from Ukraine in 2014. It details “grave human rights violations, such as arbitrary arrests and detentions, enforced disappearances, ill-treatment and torture, and at least one extra-judicial execution.” It says that Ukrainian laws and citizenship were replaced with the Russian ones in violation of the obligation under international humanitarian law to respect the existing law of the occupied territory. Hundreds of prisoners and pre-trial detainees have been transferred to Russia despite the practice being strictly prohibited by international humanitarian law. Education in the Ukrainian language has almost disappeared from Crimea, jeopardizing one of the pillars of an individual’s identity and cultural affiliation. The report also says that while those human rights violations have affected Crimeans of all backgrounds, Turkic-speaking minority, the Tatars, have been particularly targeted, especially those with links to the Mejlis organization, which initiated public protests against Russia’s annexation.[23]
To access the full report
September 26 – Middle East: SAUDI ARABIA
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman issues a decree that ends a ban on women to drive cars. The move is a great victory for women and reformers. However, the religious conservatives accuse the government of “bending the verses of Sharia.”[24] Saudi Arabia was the only country in the world that did not allow women to drive. Those who defied the rule risked being fined and imprisoned. Families had to hire chauffeurs to drive Saudi women to their destinations. However, women in Saudi Arabia still face many restrictions such as strict dress codes, gender segregation, and written permissions from male guardians to travel, work, or access healthcare.
Restrictions on women in Saudi Arabia and around the world