Activists in military fatigues in the Eastern European country of Crimea were seen handing out flowers to women ahead of International Women’s Day.

The activists were dressed as ‘the polite people’, a term coined for Russian soldiers who were involved in the annexation of Crimea five years ago.

An activist explained that in 2014 the women were happy about the ‘polite people’ because they felt protected.

A new study has revealed that rain is falling in Greenland despite the usually freezing Arctic winter, and scientists say this is accelerating the melting of ice in the region.

The findings show that while there were roughly two spells of winter rain every year in the early phase of the study period, it has risen to 12 spells a year since 2012.

A massive Greenland ice sheet is being closely watched, and if it was to melt, the world’s sea level would rise by seven metres, threatening coastal populations.

Employees at the Ibis Styles Alice Springs Oasis Hotel have been  instructed by directing staff to segregate aboriginal people into inferior rooms while charging the same as other guests.

Six rooms of unclean and unfit conditions were set aside for guests from ‘the communities’, a local expression describing the indigenous people from Alice Springs.

A staff member at the hotel said the segregation was ‘pretty standard’ after employees received an email in June with instructions to racially profile the guests.

Australian citizens could privately sponsor up to 10,000 new refugees each year under a new Greens plan.

The proposed program, based on a Canadian model would allow private citizens to provide financial support and settlement assistance for up to one year after arrival until the refugee becomes self-sufficient.

The initiative was one of several points in the Greens’ refugee policy launched yesterday .

Researchers from the University of Queensland will investigate how existing drugs could be repurposed  to fight Parkinson’s disease thanks to a new grant.

The research will be funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research and Shake It Up Australia Foundation and headed by UQ Centre for Clinical Research Group Leader Dr Richard Gordon.

Dr Gordon says that if they can prove that existing drugs can be used to treat Parkinson’s disease, they can be used in clinics to treat patients faster than developing new drugs.  

The search is on for 20 Queensland women who are paving the way in their chosen field to feature in a new four-month campaign, ‘Queensland Voices’ with nominations opening yesterday.

Minister for Women Die Farmer, made the announcement at the Queensland Women in Business Summit on the Gold Coast, saying Queensland Women’s Week was a perfect backdrop to highlight women’s voices in media.

The European Commission has declared the migration crisis over, as it reinforced its stance against “fake news” and “misinformation” about the issue.

Frans Timmermans, the European Commission’s first vice-president said Europe is no longer facing a migration crisis, adding that structural problems remain.

In 2018, UN refugee agency, UNHCR, identified 116,647 people crossing the Mediterranean, which was an 89% reduction on people making the journey at the height of the crisis in 2015.

Two white South African farmers were sentenced to prison on Wednesday for killing a black teenager who they had accused of stealing sunflowers.

During a hearing at the High Court in Mahikeng that was attended by black and white South Africans, Judge Ronald Hendricks described the killing as “disgraceful” and “appalling”.

The farmers have been sentenced to a combined 41 years in prison, resulting in the closure of a case that had fuelled tensions in the rural town of Coligny and showed the nation’s continuing racial divisions.

A desalination order is likely to be made to secure Victoria’s drinking water supply.

The State water Minister Lisa Neville said extremely dry conditions mean Melbourne’s water supply is down to 55.7 per cent and places like Geelong are at 41 per cent.

Ms Neville also said dry and fire-damaged ground means rain will not end up in the water system.

The minister said that the order will be critical for Victorian water security going forward.