Where in the World

Caracas, Venezuela

Anti-government protests that swept the Venezuelan capital ended in violence when three protesters were shot. More than 10,000 people, mostly students, gathered to protest the lack of security and the state of the economy. President Nicolas Maduro, whose resignation was demanded amidst the protests, has called the deaths the result of a “neo-fascist uprising” and has promised that the actions of the protesters will not go unpunished.

According to the BBC, inflation in Venezuela rose to 56.2 percent in 2013, the highest figure in South America.  The country also suffers from one of the steepest murder rates in the world and fierce political polarity.

Bowling Green, Kentucky

It is not just Florida that should be worrying about sinkholes. According to CBS news, at the Corvette Museum in Kentucky, eight vintage cars were swallowed when the ground beneath them opened up.

The hole that opened up is an estimated 40 feet wide and 25-30 feet deep. General Motors Design has stepped in and taken over the restoration process. Among the vehicles subjected to the sinkhole was the millionth Corvette ever made, a gem in the already-impressive collection of cars. They will be taken to Warren, Michigan, to begin the painstaking process of repair.

Geneva, Switzerland

After  lengthy investigations involving commissions in Tokyo, London, Seoul and Washington, the UN announced that North Korea has committed crimes against humanity and should be referred to the International Criminal Court, based out of The Hague, Netherlands.

According to The Guardian, North Korea is accused of the starvation and extermination of its own people, as well as the kidnapping of people in North and South Korea. Witnesses have provided horrifying accounts of what happens behind prison walls, and statistics indicate that roughly one third of infants in the country are severely stunted from lack of proper nutrition.

Java, Indonesia

The eruption of Mt. Kelud, situated fifty miles southwest of Indonesia’s second biggest city, Surabaya, has forced the evacuation of tens of thousands, and is responsible for the death of at least three people. As reported by NPR and The Guardian, the explosion sent ash and debris an estimated 12 miles into the sky. Airports in neighboring countries, such as Australia, canceled flights into the affected areas. Up to two inches of ash has settled on roads and buildings as far away as the city of Yogyakarta, which is 135 miles west of the volcano, while closer locations saw 3-5 inches.

Brussels, Belgium

As reported by the BBC, Belgium has become the first country in the world to allow child euthanasia. Twelve years after first allowing euthanasia, the Belgian Parliament removed the age restriction for making the decision.

The Catholic Church in Belgium has called the law immoral. “The law says adolescents cannot make important decisions on economic or emotional issues, but suddenly they’ve become able to decide that someone should make them die,” said Brussels Archbishop Andre-Joseph Leonard, head of the Catholic Church in Belgium.

These conditions must be met before a child can undergo euthanasia: the patient must be of sound mind to make the decision, the request must be approved by both the parents of the child and their medical team, the illness must be terminal, and the patient must be in great pain with no available treatment to alleviate their suffering.