World

The United Nations on Sunday accused the Russian government of denying aid workers access to Moscow-controlled areas of southern Ukraine that were impacted by the devastating collapse of the Kakhovka dam earlier this month.

Denise Brown, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement that Russia has "so far declined our request to access the areas under its temporary military control" and implored Moscow officials to "act in accordance with their obligations under international humanitarian law."

Four far-right suspects accused of planning attacks on mosques and Jewish targets went on trial on Monday in Paris, with a judge surprising the court by ordering the hearings be made public.

One of the accused was a teenager when police arrested the suspects in 2018 and 2019, making a closed-door trial for all four men likely under French law.

Europe should brace for more deadly heatwaves driven by climate change, said a sweeping report on Monday, noting the world's fastest-warming continent was some 2.3 degrees Celsius hotter last year than in pre-industrial times.

Crop-withering drought, record sea-surface temperatures and unprecedented glacier melt are among the consequences laid out in a report by the World Meteorological Organization and the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Nearly 170 people have died in two of India's most populous states in recent days amid a sweltering heatwave, officials said Monday, as hospitals are overwhelmed with patients and routine power outages add to the challenges.

In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, 119 people have died from heat-related illnesses over the last several days while in neighboring Bihar state 47 people have died, according to local news reports and health officials.

Australia has allowed a sexist culture to fester inside its parliament, a prominent lawmaker has told AFP, as sexual assault allegations again ring through the country's halls of power.

The macho nature of Australian politics was highlighted in late 2021 when a scathing review found Parliament House rife with heavy drinking, bullying, and sexual harassment.

Israeli helicopter gunships struck targets Monday in the occupied West Bank as a gunbattle raged in the city of Jenin between Israeli troops and militants, killing three Palestinians, including a 15-year-old boy, officials said.

The violence marked a rare use of Israeli airpower in the territory. During the clashes, Palestinian militants detonated a roadside bomb next to an Israeli military vehicle. At least 29 Palestinians were wounded, six seriously, and Israeli media said a number of Israeli soldiers were hurt.

Puri’s followers formed a community that has spawned a number of organizations since its founding, and although it doesn’t have a single comprehensive moniker, the community is often referred to by two key organizations connected to it: 3HO, which gets its name from the “three H’s” that stand for happy, healthy and holy, and Sikh Dharma International, or SDI. Although the community has acquired members across the world, it remains largely U.S.-based.

Since 2019, the community has not gathered to mark the summer solstice. After a hiatus of three years, 3HO and SDI will once again hold a large-scale summer solstice event in June 2023. This gathering serves as an important opportunity for members scattered across the U.S. and across the globe to meet. As a sociologist of religion, I have spent years researching this community, and I was also raised within it. This gives me a strong sense of the stakes of reopening the annual solstice celebration.