A prime minister acting unlawfully, an opposition in disarray and a president facing impeachment – yet again, the news has been dominated by the actions of elected officials apparently competing to have the worst week possible.
It’s easy to forget there is an entire world outside the halls of political power, where drama, mystery and the odd solid gold coffin still make an appearance.
Here are five stories you may have missed this week... 1) The other side of the Thomas Cook CrisisThe collapse of Thomas Cook has been devastating for both its staff and customers in the
UK, but in destination countries like Tunisia, those that rely on tourism for their livelihoods are also feeling the effects.
The country’s government is being forced to provide loans to around 45 hotels used by Thomas Cook, and pictures of local markets show stalls packed with goods but no customers.Tourism is a vital sector of Tunisia’s
economy and a key source of foreign exchange earnings, Reuters reports. It accounts for around 8% of economic output and employs 400,000 people.2) Climate crisis steps up another notchThe world stood up and paid attention when Greta Thunberg gave her emotional speech in the UN earlier this week, but the effects of climate change pause for no one. Here are some of the crucial stats and stories that were missed from the headlines:
Government study finds
China sea levels on the rise
The Ministry of Natural Resources reported on Thursday that coastal sea levels around China were 48 millimeters higher last year than the 1993-2011 average, with winter ice floes shrinking and temperatures on the rise.
The study also stated temperatures have also risen by an average of 0.37 degrees Celsius per decade over the same period.
As a result, many of China’s coastal cities will start to create contingency plans and new ways to cope with rising sea levels.
Last five years have been the hottest on record
The UN released a new report by the World Meteorological Organisation warning the world was not making enough ground in the fight to avert a climate disaster as a result of runaway warming, with the last five years ending 2019 set to be the hottest ever.
To stress the significance of these findings, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres plans to push countries to increase their greenhouse gas reduction targets at a climate change summit on Monday.
The report states that temperatures are “currently estimated to be 1.1 degrees Celsius [34F] above pre-industrial [1850-1900] times and 0.2 degrees Celsius [32.4F] warmer than 2011-2015”. Reports have already stated that the past four years have been the hottest since records began in 1850.
Professor Dave Reay, chair in Carbon Management at the University of Edinburgh has warned “our global carbon credit is maxed out. If emissions don’t start falling there will be hell to pay.”3)
Uber is granted two month extension while TFL decides its fate.Uber’s right to operate in
London has been extended by just two months after Transport for London refused to grant the firm a full five-year licence.
After a string of public safety incidents, the company lost its license to operate in London in 2018
In June 2018, Uber was granted a 15-month licence by a judge after it appealed against a TfL decision made the previous September not to renew its licence over safety and security concerns.
These included: the company’s approach to reporting serious criminal offences, how drivers’ medical certificates were obtained, how criminal record checks were carried out and its use of technology which allegedly helped it evade law enforcement.
That extension ended on Wednesday and was renewed for just two months while Transport For London (TFL) requests more information from the company.
The next decision on Uber’s future will be made in November, and could see them either granted another full five-year license or ordered to cease trading altogether. 4) The view from spaceNASA’s scientists were treated to a glorious sight when one of their planet-hunting probes captured the moment a humongous black hole tore apart an unfortunate star.
With a combination of “being good and being lucky”, the entire event was captured from beginning to end.The event that took place 375 million light years away was picked up by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, known as TESS.
Astronomer Thomas Holoien, of the Carnegie Institution for Science, said: “We are able to measure the rate at which it gets brighter after it starts brightening, and we also observed a drop in its temperature and brightness that is unique.”5) The Met give back relic after being stolen a decade agoAn ancient gold coffin, which has been on display at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, is being returned to Egyptian officials after it was smuggled out of the country a decade ago.
The coffin is worth around $4million, just over £3million, and was once the resting place of influential priest Nedjemankh.
The relic was initially smuggled from Egypt’s Minya region during the country’s 2011 revolution, and transported through the United Arab Emirates. From there, it was taken to
Germany and then
France, before being sold to the Met Museum in July 2017.The Met museum have been working with the Manhattan District Attorney’s office to get the artefact back to where it belongs.
For years,
Egypt has been trying to retrieve its stolen artefacts from around the world. Another successful repatriation happened in January, after it managed to recover a section of tablet engraved with an ancient king’s royal symbol from a London auction house.
The tablet had been stolen from an Egyptian museum in 1988.Related... Who Had The Worst Week – Johnson, Corbyn Or Trump? These Are The Cheapest City Break Destinations (And The Most Expensive)