15 July 2014

SHARES News Items Overview: 16 June 2014-15 July 2014

This is our News Items Overview of 16 June 2014-15 July 2014, a summary of recent news relating to shared responsibility. (more…)

11 July 2014

UK: probable that British chemicals were used for Syria’s chemical weapons programme

On 9 July, the United Kingdom stated that is was probable that chemicals that were legally exported to Syria by British firms in the 1980s had been used for Syria’s chemical weapons programme. In a written statement to parliament, Foreign Secretary William Hague said that ‘from the information we hold, we judge it likely that these chemical exports by UK companies were subsequently used by Syria in their programs to produce nerve agents, including sarin’. (more…)

Source: The New York Times | UK Says Likely That Syria Used British Chemicals to Make Sarin Gas

10 July 2014

Italy and EU discuss sharing responsibility for boat migrants

In a meeting with EU interior ministers in Milan on 8 July, Italy and other European Union states discussed sharing responsibility for rescuing migrants from North Africa, who cross the Mediterranean Sea in packed boats. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), this year over 63,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by sea, and more than 500 have died in their attempt to make the dangerous sea crossing. (more…)

Source: Reuters | Italy in talks with EU to share responsibility for boat migrants

8 July 2014

West African countries and international health organizations adopt common strategy to fight Ebola epidemic

On 3 July, at a two-day conference in Accra, the capital of Ghana, West African countries and international health organizations adopted a new common strategy to fight the Ebola epidemic. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the virus has killed at least 467 people in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia since February 2014. (more…)

Source: Reuters | West African authorities adopt common strategy to fight Ebola

3 July 2014

Human rights groups: more planes than admitted used for extraordinary renditions, raising possibility that British overseas territory is used as secret US prison

Human rights groups have revealed previously undisclosed evidence that more planes than had been admitted were involved in the extraordinary rendition of terrorist suspects around the world. This has raised new questions about the alleged use of the British overseas territory Diego Garcia as a United States secret prison. According to human rights groups, the atoll in the Indian Ocean that is leased to the US has been used to detain suspects in conflict with basic human rights. (more…)

Source: The Guardian | UK urged to tell all on US rendition flights