Global Quickies: Norse Gods, Pangolins, and Abducted Girls Going Back to School

GERMANY (From Amy)
“Members of Germany’s neo-Nazi National Democratic party (NPD) were forced to cancel a protest in the south-west city of Freiburg after they got on to a train to Mannheim by mistake.”

ICELAND
“Icelanders will soon be able to publicly worship at a shrine to Thor, Odin and Frigg with construction starting this month on the Iceland’s first major temple to the Norse gods since the Viking age.”

JAPAN (From Michael)
“Japanese police have arrested a man for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting more than 100 women who believed they were taking part in a medical study. Detectives say scores of women responded to adverts seeking volunteers for “clinical research measuring blood pressure during sleep” over two years to November 2013.”

PERU
A Canadian woman died after drinking a “tobacco purge” intended to make her vomit to cleanse her body an give her “clarity on her future path.”

NIGERIA
This is a great read: Chibok girls who escaped Boko Haram defy militants by returning to school.

IRAQ
“Self-styled Islamist censors are on a tear again, destroying entire library collections by setting them ablaze or carting them off – except for certain Islamic texts they approve of.”

NIGERIA
Twelve men have been arrested accused of participating in a gay wedding. The punishment for homosexuality is death, though the sentence is rarely enforced.

INDIA (From Amy)
Indian women armed with smartphones are using the clout of social media to fight sexual harassment by filming and publicly shaming men who molest them as greater awareness of violence against women spreads.

ANGOLA
“The producers of a popular television soap in Angola have apologised after an episode which showed a gay couple kissing caused outrage among viewers.”

CHINA/VIETNAM
“The gentle, solitary pangolin has a tongue as long as its body and curls into a ball when threatened. It is also the world’s most trafficked mammal, and threatened with extinction.” In both China and Vietnam their meat is considered a delicacy, and their scales and blood are believed to have magical medicinal properties.

SYRIA/JORDAN
“Last year, Malala visited the Zaatari Camp in Jordan, where thousands of Syrian refugees are living to escape the civil war in Syria. It was there where she met and became friends with Mezon, a 16-year-old student who goes from tent to tent to encourage girls in her camp to go to school.”

Featured image: Some of the Chibok schoolgirls who escaped Boko Haram.