Erstellt am: 16. 4. 2014 - 13:23 Uhr

Shocking pictures of torture in Syria

Reality Check: France wants to take Assad regime before the ICC; Global Witness says over 900 Eco-activists have been murdered and the EU tackles plastic bags.

Syria/ UN / ICC

France has presented the UN Security Council with horrific pictures it says are evidence of systematic torture by the Assad regime in Syria. The pictures portray people with signs of severe starvation, some bearing the marks of strangulation and repeated beatings, and eyes having been gouged out. However, getting a resolution to take the Assad regime before the International Criminal Court could prove extremely difficult.

908 Eco-activists murdered…

…and only 10 convictions in the last 12 years: That, says the independent group GLOBAL WITNESS, is the situation faced by ordinary people trying to protect their land and their environment. Indigenous people, fighting for their rights against powerful and often politically connected local and corporate business interests, suffered the most, accounting for 115 dead.

EU battles plastic bags

The EU Parliament today votes on a proposed new law aimed at reducing by 80% the amount of plastic used by EU residents. Statistically, each of us throws away 198 plastic bags every year – often after using them for an average of just 20 minutes; the time it takes to get home from the supermarket.