Will Rwanda go the way of Burundi? “Rwandan lawmakers backed a motion on Tuesday to let President Paul Kagame run for a third term in office, paving the way for a referendum to amend the constitution…Rwanda’s Kagame, whose ruling party has controlled the country for the last decade, has not directly said he wants to run again. But he has said he is open to persuasion that the two-term limit in the constitution needed to be changed, and a petition to that effect has collected 3.8 million signatures. Members of parliament voted unanimously to back the petition, said speaker Donatille Mukabalisa, adding that a referendum would be called on whether to amend the constitution. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1DeLfuH)
Iran Nuke Deal…It Happened! Lots of interesting analysis and opinion. Here’s a selection:
-Ali Gharib in The Nation on the broader geo-politcal implications of this deal. http://bit.ly/1K6vvPg
– Joseph Cirincione in Slate makes the case that this deal is a boon for non-proliferation and global security. http://slate.me/1K6vBXi
– Mark in UN Dispatch dissects a unique diplomatic mechanism that could get the sanctions to “snap back” into place should Iran be found to be cheating. http://bit.ly/1CEbQGv
He’s King of the World! The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation announced $15M in grants to more than 30 organizations implementing innovative and impactful conservation projects around the globe. Organizations include: World Wildlife Fund, Amazon Watch, Virunga Fund, and more. (Leo Di Caprio Foundation http://bit.ly/1K6v8Ev)
Calling All Journalists in the Middle East…The Thomson Reuters Foundation and United Nations Foundation are holding a seminar on the Sustainable Development Goals and Climate Change, taking place in Doha on July 26-28. Apply here → http://buff.ly/1f1mFYd
Africa
Nairobi’s Westgate Mall is to re-open Saturday, nearly two years after it was attacked by Somalia’s Islamic extremist rebels who killed at least 67 people, Kenyan officials said Tuesday. (Globe and Mail http://bit.ly/1K6w4sl
A group of Ugandan youth activists and their supporters who were arrested for holding a press conference to demand free and fair elections have been released, activists said. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1O9QUIF)
The United Nations mission in war-torn South Sudan said it was trying verify reports the government may be seeking to expel another UN official, this time over the release of a damning human rights report. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1HZPUb6)
A Niger appeal court in Niamey gave a criminal court the go-ahead for a child-trafficking case involving the former head of the national assembly, his wife and some 30 other members of the political and social elite, who might now face long jail terms. (Reuters http://bit.ly/1HZPTUI)
Public health and environmental experts say the consequences of gold mining in Zimbabwe are disastrous. Mercury is contaminating drinking water for miles around and causing neurological damage, especially to children. (TRF http://yhoo.it/1UYaYCv)
A Sudanese Christian woman arrested for wearing trousers has narrowly escaped the punishment of 40 lashes, in a case that human rights groups say is further damning evidence of the government’s intolerance to its Christian population. (Guardian http://bit.ly/1Rwp0ft)
MENA
UN chief Ban Ki-moon is “very much disappointed” by Yemen’s failed ceasefire but was clinging to hope that the fighting might still be halted, his spokesman said. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1UYaWut)
The WHO said on Tuesday it had delivered life-saving medical supplies to the southern city of Aden in Yemen, where most health facilities are “non-functional” due to fighting and critical shortages of supplies. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1DeJTQo)
At least 142 civilians have been killed in Yemen over the past 10 days, bringing the civilian death toll in more than three months of violence to 1,670, the United Nations said Tuesday. (AP http://yhoo.it/1DeJQnI)
Asia
Two journalists, including an Australian editor, went on trial in Thailand Tuesday over a report they published implicating the navy in human trafficking, as the United Nations urged the junta-ruled nation to drop the case. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1UYaYTa)
A plan by officials in Myanmar to issue new identity cards in troubled Rakhine state has fallen well short, with only 1,600 Rohingya applying for the so-called green cards. (VOA http://bit.ly/1HZRCte)
Myanmar’s navy has discovered more than 100 Bangladeshi migrants stranded for nearly a month on a southern island, state media said on Tuesday, following a regional migrant crisis in which people smugglers abandoned thousands at sea. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1UYaZ9B)
Despite ongoing protests the Cambodian government today passed a new piece of legislation which will give them great powers over associations and NGOs. (Guardian http://bit.ly/1RwoSwG)
The Americas
Twenty-eight Brazilian children and adolescents are murdered every day, double the number a quarter century ago, when Latin America’s biggest country passed a law to protect minors, UNICEF said. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1UYaWKT)
Millions of Latin Americans have better access to clean water and decent housing than 25 years ago. But the region still faces serious environmental challenges, such as deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions – a legacy of the model of development followed in the 20th century. (IPS http://bit.ly/1eZya2w)
Patients seeking long-term treatment at Philadelphia’s multitude of renowned specialty care centers might find no room at the inns this September, when a visit by Pope Francis during the World Meeting of Families is expected to bring hundreds of thousands of pilgrims to the region. (AP http://yhoo.it/1O9QUbV)
…and the rest
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday the world was headed for a “generation free of AIDS”, after UNAIDS reported a 35-percent drop in new HIV infections from 15 years ago. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1UYaX1p)
Backers of a new initiative, dubbed “tax inspectors without borders“, say it can help poor countries crackdown on tax dodging and fund their own development, but advocacy groups were skeptical that it would work. (TRF http://yhoo.it/1O9QUsq)
When international donors pledge millions of dollars either for post-conflict reconstruction or for humanitarian aid, deliveries are rarely on schedule: they are either late, fall far below expectations or not delivered at all. (IPS http://bit.ly/1RwoYEy)
Opinion/Blogs
For Development Finance, There is No One-Size-Fits-All Solution (Africa Renewal http://bit.ly/1HZRz0n)
Secret aid worker: I’m a sanitation specialist but I’m squeamish about poo (Guardian http://bit.ly/1eZxJVW)
‘The Worst Atrocity You’ve Never Heard Of’ (New York Times http://nyti.ms/1DeI9qB)
Can WHO learn the lessons from Ebola? (IRIN http://bit.ly/1SkOUOk)
U.N. Can Help Reform the International Financial System (IPS http://bit.ly/1RwowWB)
Higher education in Africa: Race is an invention (Guardian http://bit.ly/1eZxABT)
Fewer aid worker attacks. That’s good, right? (IRIN http://bit.ly/1RwoTR3)
Africa: Can Africa Fund Its Own Growth? (Africa Renewal http://bit.ly/1HZRvxH)