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Afghanistan
Photojournalist killed by Taliban
A Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist was killed by the Taliban in the town of Spin Boldak, on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border on Friday morning. Danish Siddiqui, who works for Reuters, was on assignment with Afghan forces covering the fighting when the Taliban ambushed the border town, initially wounding Siddiqui, and eventually killing him. Siddiqui won the Pulitzer Prize for his work covering the Rohingya refugee crisis in 2018. The town of Spin Boldak is a vital border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Taliban has been closing in on vital border crossings in recent weeks as the US withdraws its troops, tightening their grip on the country. The fighting in the town is ongoing as Afghan forces try to hold off the Taliban from overtaking it.
This map depicts the border town of Spin Boldak, where Danish Siddiqui was killed by the Taliban. Click on the map to learn more.
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Russia & Ukraine
Russian President’s Essay
President Vladimir Putin has caused concern among world leaders and analysts with a new essay questioning the basis of the statehood of neighboring Ukraine. In his essay, “On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians,” published on July 12th, Putin made observations that lead some analysts believe he may be laying the rhetorical groundwork to justify further military action against Ukraine. Russia has already seized the Crimean peninsula and is believed to be heavily involved in supporting separatists in the Donbass region. Thousands of troops have already deployed to the border of the disputed region. Putin wrote that Ukrainians and Russians are “one people.” Despite Russia currently dealing with a deadly wave of COVID-19 infections, President Putin continues to direct much of his focus on Russia and Ukraine’s past and future ties.
This map depicts the current areas of territorial conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: The Sun
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Brazil
Amazon Is Now Carbon Source
According to a new study in Nature, parts of the Amazon, home to the world’s largest tropical rainforest, are now emitting more CO2 than they absorb. Historically, the Amazon has played a crucial role in absorbing and storing large amounts of carbon but the combination of deforestation and climate change have dramatically altered the rainforest’s ability to absorb carbon. The study estimates the Amazon is emitting a billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere annually, accelerating climate change, causing dramatic environmental impacts on the planet, and indicating emissions cuts are increasingly critical.
This map depicts spatial distributions of aboveground biomass (AGB) and (FAF) from a study in Nature of the Amazon’s CO2 emissions. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Which are the only two countries in the world that are doubly-landlocked, meaning they are landlocked countries surrounded by other landlocked countries?
A: Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) has highlighted the challenges for landlocked developing countries, given high transport and resource costs when a country doesn’t have access to the open sea, and those difficulties are only exacerbated when a country has to transit at least two other countries to get there. Liechtenstein, which enjoys one of the highest gross domestic products per capita in the world, has found ways to successfully navigate the challenges, while Uzbekistan continues to struggle with the long-term consequences of the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Source
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Q: Covering 156 square miles (404 km sq) of forested and mountainous terrain, what is the world’s oldest national park?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in Monday’s DailyGeo.
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