The Trump administration will rebuff a recent U.N. appeal to contribute millions of dollars to a cash-short trust fund established last year to provide relief to victims of a cholera epidemic that has killed more than 9,000 Haitians and sickened more than 800,000 more, according to U.S. and U.N. officials. The move will be the latest blow to U.N. efforts to raise $400 million dollars from member states to provide assistance to the Haitian victims of cholera. The disease is widely believed to have been introduced into Haiti more than six years ago by infected U.N. Nepalese peacekeepers. Since the fund was set up in October, the U.N. has collected only a pittance, about $2.7 million, from Britain, Chile, France, India, Liechtenstein, South Korea and Sri Lanka. The Trump administration has not contributed a penny to the fund, and it has no intention of doing so in the future, according to U.S. and U.N. officials. (Foreign Policy http://atfp.co/2rgxChO)
Bye, bye, bye…President Trump announced Thursday that he will withdraw the United States from participation in the Paris climate accord, weakening global efforts to combat climate change and siding with conservatives who argued that the landmark 2015 agreement was harming the economy. But he will stick to the withdrawal process laid out in the Paris agreement, which President Barack Obama joined and most of the world has already ratified. That could take nearly four years to complete, meaning a final decision would be up to the American voters in the next presidential election. (NY Times http://nyti.ms/2rvVCOT)
What’s next? UN Dispatch and Humanosphere on what it will take for the U.S. to withdraw.
Stat of the day: People smugglers make about $35 billion a year worldwide and they are driving the tragedy of migrants who die trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe, the head of the International Organization for Migration said. (VOA http://bit.ly/2stFdrj)
Top Stories
Top diplomats from across the Western Hemisphere fell short in their bid to reach agreement on how to address Venezuela’s deteriorating democratic crisis, with some countries insisting that foreigners had no right to intervene in Venezuela’s internal affairs. (AP http://bit.ly/2rvJygz)
The United Nations warns a new spiral of escalating violence in the Central African Republic is threatening to wipe out progress made since 2013 toward peace and reconciliation. (VOA http://bit.ly/2stxoSq)
Thousands of Yezidis slaughtered by the Islamic State are awaiting exhumation. But a row between Baghdad and Erbil has left them in the ground for more than a year. (Foreign Policy http://atfp.co/2qL4WtS)
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar are facing a major clean-up after Cyclone Mora hit the area earlier this week. Overall, government officials estimate that 17,500 houses were destroyed in Bangladesh and search operations continue for dozens of missing people. (UN Dispatch http://bit.ly/2qLlFx6)
The world pays the least attention to humanitarian crises when they force Africans from their homes, dashing hopes of peace, hindering reconstruction and increasing the risk of radicalization, an aid agency said. (VOA http://bit.ly/2rvyfVC)
Ethiopia cut off internet access nationwide until at least June 8 to try to stop cheats from posting high school exam papers on social media, a government official said on Thursday. (Reuters http://bit.ly/2rK7Kwz)
An Indian soap opera whose themes include acid attacks, domestic violence and high rates of abortion of female fetuses has quietly become one of the most-watched programs on the planet. (Guardian http://bit.ly/2qGBERW)
Environmentalists are urging Brazilian President Michel Temer to veto a plan to remove land the size of Puerto Rico from the country’s protected areas in the Amazon rainforest, fearing the move would hurt local land rights and exacerbate climate change. (Reuters http://bit.ly/2stufSs)
In the United States and many other parts of the world, this is a worrisome time for LGBT activists, as the pace of civil rights victories has grown uneven and reports of anti-LGBT violence and persecution surface relentlessly. (AP http://bit.ly/2rvneDy)
Opinion/Blogs
A Small Cyclone Just Caused Major Damage in South Asia. (Yet Another Reason Trump Should Stick With the Paris Agreement) (UN Dispatch http://bit.ly/2rJTunn)
What would the US leaving the Paris climate deal look like? (PRI http://bit.ly/2qFx0Qq)
Would more trade facilitation lead to lower transport costs in the East African Community? (ODI http://bit.ly/2qLcWv4)
South Africa: Levels of Child Sexual Abuse Even Higher Than Activist Claimed (Africa Check http://bit.ly/2rgsuui)
Congo-Kinshasa: This Homemade Refugee Crisis (DW http://bit.ly/2rpSp0U)
How Restricting Abortion Access Affects Rural America (1A http://bit.ly/2qGrRvk)
Egypt Can Only Blame Itself for President’s Crackdown (Bloomberg View https://bloom.bg/2rgwbQF)
Mixed Reactions to U.S. Withdrawal from Climate Deal (Inter Press Service http://bit.ly/2rvTS8d)
Explaining the Bangladeshi migrant surge into Italy (IRIN http://bit.ly/2stNZFz)
The Gentleman’s Agreement That Could Break Apart Nigeria (Foreign Policy http://atfp.co/2qGqhcR)
