NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
_1 Climate action: The European Union’s executive branch proposed Wednesday that the bloc should cut its emissions of greenhouse gases to net zero by 2050, a measure that scientists say needs to be adopted worldwide in order to avoid catastrophic global warming. The European Commission is the first major economy to set its sights on achieving climate neutrality in the next three decades. The plan, which was announced days before a global climate summit being held in Poland, is far more ambitious than the national targets set so far by many of the EU’s 28 member nations and is likely to meet with resistance. The EU’s climate chief, Miguel Arias Canete, cited a recent scientific report that warned of deadly consequences for many species on Earth from rising temperatures. Experts say ending the use of fossil fuels is one of the most important measures needed to achieve the 2015 Paris climate accord’s goal of limiting global warming to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century.
_2 Lebanon civil war: Families of people who went missing during Lebanon’s civil war called on the government Wednesday to expedite the formation of a commission to look into the fate of relatives and urged those who know what happened to come forward nearly three decades after the conflict ended. The families say they are not seeking punishment but want to find out what happened to their loved ones, find closure and bury remains that can still be unearthed. Parliament passed a law this month calling for the commission and affirming the right of relatives to know for families of an estimated 17,000 people missing in the 1975-90 war. The law was a milestone — an official recognition of the problem after years of campaigning by the families. Some argued the law and the commission would ignite old hatreds. But family members have sought to encourage people with information to come forward, stressing that they have chosen to trade forgiveness for the right to know.
_3 Bear attack: A grizzly bear has killed a woman and her 10-month-old baby in Canada. The Yukon Coroner’s Service says 37-year-old Valerie Theoret and infant Adele Roesholt died in the attack in the Yukon near the Northwest Territories border. Trapper Gjermund Roesholt reportedly told authorities he was returning from a walk when he was charged by a grizzly bear near a cabin he shared with his wife and infant daughter. He told police he shot the bear dead, but when he returned to his cabin, he found the bodies of his wife and child just outside.
_4 Extremist attacks: Nigeria’s military finally revealed a death toll of 39 from a new series of extremist attacks on soldiers, while President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday declared that Boko Haram fighters should be wiped “from the surface of the earth.” Another 43 soldiers were wounded in five attacks between Nov. 2 and 18, the army announced after days of silence. Shocked by the deaths, Buhari backed off past declarations that Boko Haram has been defeated.
_5 Transgender rights: Chile’s president has signed a law that lets people over the age of 14 change their name and gender in official records. President Sebastian Pinera says the measure signed Wednesday will help overcome “painful, discriminatory experiences.” But he says a full solution to discrimination against transgender people “requires a cultural change, which has to be in the soul, in the heart of all Chileans.” The measure will take effect after rules to implement it are drafted.