June 2 – Middle East: PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
After seven years of often violent division between the Fatah-run West Bank and the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, a new Palestinian unity government is sworn in. The new cabinet is headed by the Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah from the Fatah-led Palestinian government in the West Bank and none of its members are affiliated with Hamas. The new government says it will uphold all previous agreements with Israel. The United States and the European Union vow to work with the new government as long as it abides by its promises. Ismail Haniya, the leader of the Hamas-led government in Gaza stepped down.
June 3 – Middle East: SYRIA
The embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad wins a third term as president getting more than 88 percent of the vote in elections conducted only in the areas controlled by the government. The north and the east of the country that is held by the rebels criticize the idea of elections in the midst of the civil war and call it as a sham.
June 4 – Europe: POLAND
Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski awards the country’s first annual Solidarity Prize of 1 million euros, which was set up to commemorate the 25th anniversary of its first partly democratic elections since WWII. The prize is designed to honor individuals who fight for democracy and human rights. The recipient of the first award is Mustafa Dzhemilev, leader of Crimea’s Tatar minority who dedicated his life to defending the rights of his people.
June 4 – Europe / North America / Former Soviet Republics / International Organizations:
POLAND / UNITED STATES / UKRAINE / NATO
The United States President Barack Obama meets with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Poland’s transition to democracy. While in Poland, he also meets with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and pledges $5 million in military aid in support of Ukraine’s fight with rebels who want to split the country. He also reaffirms the NATO principles of collective defense and announces a $1 billion plan of the European Reassurance Initiative to strengthen defenses in Europe. On his part, President Komorowski pledges an increase in military spending to 2 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.
June 10 – Middle East: ISRAEL
The Israeli parliament elects Reuven Rivlin from the Likud party as the country’s next president. Rivlin supports Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank and opposes a separate Palestinian state. The post of president in Israel, however, is largely ceremonial and the president does not take part in negotiations in the peace talks with the Palestinians.
June 16 – North America / Latin America:
UNITED STATES / EL SALVADOR / GUATEMALA / HONDURAS
A surge of unaccompanied children from Central America crossing illegally into the United States creates a humanitarian crisis and political challenges for the Obama Administration. This year alone, the U.S. border patrol detained about 50,000 juveniles. Ninety percent of the children come from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. The surge is caused by poverty, gang and drug violence in their home countries and the belief that the U.S. immigration law has special provisions for children.
June 16 – Europe / Former Soviet Republics:
UKRAINE / RUSSIA
Russia cuts off gas supplies to Ukraine, saying it failed to settle its debt. Russia says Ukraine owes $4.5 billion. This is another step in tense relations between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine says it has enough reserves to last until December. (June 24): Pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine shoot down a Ukrainian military helicopter, killing all nine people on board. (June 27): Ukraine signs a partnership agreement with the European Union, the deal strongly opposed by Russia and the one that has been at the heart of the recent conflict between the two sides. Previous President Viktor Yanukovych was pressed by Russia not to sign it and was then overthrown through popular protests.
June 18 – Europe: SPAIN
King Juan Carlos of Spain abdicates in favor of his son, Felipe VI, after reighing for 40 years. The 76-year old King helped transition Spain to democracy after the death of dictator General Franco in 1975 who ruled the country for 36 years. Spain is now a parliamentary monarchy with the king as head of state who carries out mostly ceremonial duties.
June 18 – Africa / International Organizations:
WEST AFRICA / WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATIONS
The deadly Ebola virus strikes West Africa, with Guinea as the worst affected country. Since the beginning of the outbreak in February, the country registered 264 deaths. The virus then has spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone. There is no cure or vaccine for Ebola, with a case fatality rate of up to 90 percent. It is one of the world’s most virulent diseases. The infection is transmitted by direct contact with the body fluids of infected animals or people. The World Health Organization (WHO) is working with the West African countries on containing the disease.
June 25 – Latin America: BOLIVIA
Bolivia’s government reverses the clock on the façade of the country’s parliament to show time counter-clockwise. The clock’s hands turn left and numbers go also to the left from one to 12. The government says changing the clock fosters creativity; it challenges the people to view things from different perspective.
June 25 – Africa: LIBYA
Libya is holding parliamentary elections, in which about 2,000 candidates are competing for 200 seats in the lower house of the parliament. All the seats are contested individually rather than by party association. It is hoped that the elections will stabilize the country grappling with anarchy since the overthrow Colonel Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The old parliament has been paralyzed by divisions and political deadlock. The weak government also competes with various militant groups often associated with politicians.
June 29 – Middle East: IRAQ
An Islamic militant group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), announces that it has established an Islamic state, a Caliphate, on the territories under its control in Iraq and Syria. It also declares its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi a caliph. The ISIS controls northwestern territories of Iraq and Syria, including major cities of Falluja, Mosul, and Tikrit, and threatens to advance on the capital, Baghdad. The ISIS was formed in April 2013 as an offshoot of al-Qaeda in Iraq. At first, the ISIS’s funding came from wealthy sponsors in such Middle Eastern countries as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Today, however, its assets come from oil fields and stolen money from banks in controlled territories, and amount to $2 billion. The group is made up of Sunni Muslims and foreign fighters who accuse the government of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, a Shia, of monopolizing power and discriminating against the Sunnis.