South Africa: The water crisis in Mothutlung started about three months ago, sparking protests in the area. Four people have already been killed and the death toll is expected to increase. Read local at the South Africa News.

Ghana: The legality of a 949 million GHS deal between the Ghanaian government and Lonrho Ports Limited has been brought into question by authorities of the Ghana Port. They allege that the deal is actually an Estate Development Plan intended to acquire land and tax exemption. Read local at The New Statesman.

Nigeria: Fifty armed members of the Boko Haram radical islamist group invaded Kawuri District of Konduga. Over 300 houses were set on fire and the casualties numbered 51 civilians and one soldier, as well as several wounded policemen. This is the second time the town is witness to Boko Haram attacks after the group confronted a group of armed youths in December. Read local at the Vanguard.

Canada: Snowden files reveal that Canada's electronic spy agency had been using the free Wi-Fi networks at airports to track and collect information from passengers. Security experts who review the file claim that these activities by the Canadian government were “almost certainly illegal.” Read local at the CBC.

Peru: Six years after Peru took a maritime border dispute with Chile to The Hague, the International Court of Justice granted Peru 50,000 square kilometer of ocean. Incoming Chilean president Michelle Bachelet said the Court’s ruling was a “painful loss,” but both she and current President Sebastián Piñera agreed to comply with the decision. Read local at Peruvian Times.

Cuba: Last week the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States held its second summit in Cuba. In his address, Cuban president Raul Castro urged present leaders to fight inequality. Moreover, Fidel Castro’s brother invited the heads of state to revise their policies regarding foreign investment and transnational companies’ activity. Read local at Granma International.

China: Chinese foreign minister responds to the U.S. State Department’s statement regarding a New York Times journalist who was forced out of the country. Read local at ChinaDaily.

Japan: 1,400 plaintiffs are currently suing the company that manufactured the Fukushima No. 1 plant. The plaintiffs want to hold the company financially liable for the damage caused by the 2011 meltdown. Read local at Japan Times.

Thailand: On the eve of what is proving to be a decisive election, gun violence has erupted in Northern Bangkok. Hostilities have forced the Election Commission to keep 158 polling units closed. Rival demonstrators have opened fire on each other, shut down public services and blocked polling stations. Read local at the Bangkokpost.

Ukraine: Amid increased violence between Ukrainian protesters and police forces, Russian president Vladimir Putin urges Ukraine into forming a new government. Putin says Moscow will hold on delivering the promised 129 billion UAH lifeline it had promised Kiev until a new government is formed. Follow up on the protests and read local at The Ukrainian Journal.

United Kingdom: The Guardian released a video of a July 2013 incident in which Guardian editors were forced to destroy the computers in which the Snowden files were stored while supervised by the Government Communications Headquarters, a British intelligence agency. The event has sparked a debate on freedom of the press in the UK. Read local at The Guardian.

Sweden: The Open Society Foundation published a report on the Somali Diaspora in Europe. In Malmö, Sweden’s third largest city, 80 percent of Somalis are out of work. The report indicated that these African immigrants are in a “black hole” as a result of not being able to find jobs, not interacting with Swedes and not having opportunities to practice the language. The report also listed possible avenues for improvement, such as providing more information on available resources and doing so in different languages as well as increasing the number of volunteers helping the newcomers. Read local at The Local.

Israel: Orders from the Israeli government were issued instructing asylum seekers to report within 30 days to the Holot detention center in the South of Israel. Sixty-five Africans have been ordered to report to Holot which has been criticized for the sub-par living conditions of its inmates. Read local at Hareetz.

Yemen: A 2.88 trillion YER budget was approved by the Yemeni parliament. Yemen is currently the poorest country in the Gulf region: 40 percent of the population lives on less than two U.S. dollars a day. Read local at National Yemen.

Bahrain: Human rights activists urge Bahrain banks and telecom companies to stop imposing travel bans on foreign workers with outstanding debts. The workers are said to be “stuck in the country with no work and have to repay debts that keep accumulating with additional interest.” Official figures list 725 people living in Bahrain with travel bans ordered by the court, but the Bahrain Human Rights Society calculates the numbers to be above 3,000. Read local at the Gulf Daily News.