International
Number of smokers worldwide shrinking: WHO
AFP
The number of smokers worldwide has dropped steadily in recent years, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, urging countries to step up control measures further to kick deadly tobacco addiction.
In 2020, some 1.30 billion people were using tobacco globally, down from 1.32 billion two years earlier, the WHO said in a fresh report.
And that number, it said, is expected to dwindle to 1.27 billion by 2025, indicating a decrease of some 50 million tobacco users over a seven-year-period, even as the global population has swelled.
The report showed that while nearly a third of the global population over the age of 15 used tobacco products back in 2000, only around a fifth is expected to be doing so by 2025.
“It is very encouraging to see fewer people using tobacco each year,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.
But “we still have a long way to go, and tobacco companies will continue to use every trick in the book to defend the gigantic profits they make from peddling their deadly wares.”
– Over 8 million deaths —
Tobacco use is estimated to kill more than eight million people each year, most of them directly due to their own tobacco use, while 1.2 million of them are non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke, according to WHO numbers.
Tuesday’s report cautioned that the annual numbers of deaths would continue climbing for some time even as tobacco use declines “because tobacco kills its users and people exposed to its emissions slowly.”
The report hailed that 60 countries were now on track to reduce tobacco use by 30 percent between 2010 and 2025.
When WHO published its last report on global tobacco trends two years ago, only 32 countries were on track to do so.
“We are seeing great progress in many countries” but “this success is fragile,” said Ruediger Krech, head of the WHO’s health promotion department.
The report called on countries to scale up their use of recognised measures to reduce tobacco use, including enforcing advertising bans, plastering health warnings on cigarette packages, raising tobacco taxes and providing assistance to those who want to quit.
The WHO calculated that investing just $1.68 per capita each year in cessation interventions like providing advice via text message could help 152 million tobacco users successfully quit by 2030.
While the numbers are coming down, the report, which did not include electronic cigarette use, highlighted that 36.7 percent of all men and 7.8 percent of the world’s women were still using tobacco products last year.
Even more concerning, it said that 38 million teens between the ages of 13 and 15 were also doing so.
That accounts for 10 percent of all adolescents in that age group, with boys far more likely to smoke than girls.
Europe is the region of the world where most women use tobacco products — a full 18 percent, the report showed.
The Western Pacific region is where most men smoke, with over 45 percent of men expected to still be using tobacco there by 2025.
International
King Charles III Says U.S.-UK Alliance Is “Irreplaceable and Unbreakable”
King Charles III of the United Kingdom reaffirmed the strength of the British-American relationship on Tuesday during a speech before the United States Congress, describing the alliance between the two nations as “irreplaceable and unbreakable.”
The address, delivered at the Capitol, marked the first speech by a British monarch before Congress since Queen Elizabeth II in 1991 and comes at a time of political tensions between Donald Trump’s administration and the Labour government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
“As President Trump himself observed during his state visit to Britain last autumn, the bond of kinship and identity between the United States and the United Kingdom is invaluable and eternal. It is irreplaceable and unbreakable,” the king said.
While reflecting on the upcoming 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, which will be commemorated this year, Charles III stated that the partnership between the two countries “was born out of disagreement, but is no less strong because of it.”
The monarch emphasized the democratic values shared by both nations and noted that major global changes have occurred whenever the two allies found common ground.
“When we have found that way to agree, great changes have taken place not only for the benefit of our peoples, but for all peoples,” he said.
King Charles also quoted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently described the relationship as “an indispensable alliance.”
Concluding his speech, the monarch described the shared history of the United States and the United Kingdom as “a story of reconciliation, renewal, and an extraordinary partnership.”
He added that Washington and London have forged “one of the most consequential alliances in human history.”
“I pray with all my heart that our alliance continues to defend our shared values, together with our partners in Europe, the Commonwealth, and around the world, and that we ignore calls urging us to become increasingly isolationist,” Charles III stated.
The king ended by urging both nations to “recommit to one another in selfless service to our peoples and to all peoples of the world.”
International
Trump Administration Considers Denying Green Cards Over Political Views
The administration of President Donald Trump is evaluating new immigration guidelines that could deny permanent residency to immigrants based on their political views, according to a report published by The New York Times.
The proposed measures, outlined in internal Department of Homeland Security documents, would instruct immigration officials to take applicants’ public expressions and ideological positions into account when reviewing green card applications.
According to the report, cases involving “possible anti-American and/or antisemitic conduct or ideologies” would need to be referred to higher authorities for additional review.
Even if applicants have not violated any laws, authorities could still reject residency requests if they determine that individuals have “endorsed, promoted, or supported anti-American views.”
Among the factors listed in the guidelines are participation in pro-Palestinian activities, actions considered antisemitic, and the burning of the U.S. flag.
The documents reportedly describe such actions as “heavily negative” factors in immigration evaluations, potentially blocking applicants from obtaining permanent residency and, eventually, U.S. citizenship.
The directives also place particular attention on demonstrations held on university campuses following the 2023 Hamas attacks against Israel.
However, flag burning has previously been recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court as a form of protected free speech under the Constitution.
The proposal has sparked criticism from immigrant advocacy organizations, including the New York Immigration Coalition.
Its president, Murad Awawdeh, warned that the policies could pose a threat to fundamental rights and freedoms.
International
Mexico Arrests CJNG Leader “El Jardinero” in Nayarit
Mexican authorities arrested Audias Flores, known as “El Jardinero,” on Monday during a naval operation in the western state of Nayarit, delivering another major blow to the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).
Flores was considered one of the top regional leaders within the cartel and had reportedly overseen criminal operations along Mexico’s Pacific coast. Security analysts viewed him as a potential successor to slain drug kingpin Nemesio Oseguera.
The arrest was carried out by Mexico’s Navy Special Forces in a planned operation, according to Security Minister Omar García Harfuch.
The United States Department of the Treasury had previously identified Flores as a “significant foreign narcotics trafficker,” while U.S. authorities offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his capture and extradition.
A U.S. grand jury indicted Flores in 2021 on charges including conspiracy to distribute cocaine and heroin.
His capture comes months after the reported death of “El Mencho,” an operation that Mexican authorities considered a priority due to the cartel leader’s alleged involvement in a 2020 assassination attempt against García Harfuch.
King Charles III Says U.S.-UK Alliance Is “Irreplaceable and Unbreakable”
Trump Administration Considers Denying Green Cards Over Political Views
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