WHALING THREAT
Iceland is threatening to return to scientific whaling and catch 250 whales in the space of two years, starting in 2003 or 2004. Unlimited scientific whaling is permitted by the International Whaling Commission, which will discuss Iceland鈥檚 proposal in June.
But critics say there is no scientific need for the proposed hunt of minke whales, fin whales and sei whales, and that the bid represents an attempt to return to commercial whaling, which is banned.
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Fisheries officials in Iceland are reportedly seeking an agreement to export leftover whale meat to Japan, which kills about 700 whales each year in the name of scientific research.
DEATH IN CONGO
Civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo has led to the deaths of more than three million people, according to a report from the International Rescue Committee released this week. But over 85 per cent of these deaths are a result of easily treatable diseases and malnutrition, the report says. The health system has been reduced to tatters since the fighting started in 1998, and families have fled their homes. The resulting humanitarian crisis persists even though the number of violent deaths is falling.