News
Coral reefs at risk of being wiped out in western Indian Ocean
Some of the world’s most picturesque coral reefs are at risk of being wiped out in the next 50 years, said a report by The Guardian.
The report said: A combination of overfishing and climate change threatens these ecosystems of the western Indian Ocean, putting species, economies and human lives on the line.
A swathe of the world’s coral reefs are at high risk of collapse as climate change and overfishing take their toll.
A team of international scientists found that all the reefs of the western Indian Ocean, an area covering Africa’s east coast as well as islands such as the Maldives, are at risk of ecosystem collapse and irreversible damage in the coming years.
As well as being an ecological catastrophe, a collapse of these reefs would also be a humanitarian disaster for the region, with many residents dependent on the reefs for their food and income.
Dr David Obura, the lead author of the study, says, ‘We’ve known for some time that coral reefs are in decline, but now we know more precisely to what degree, and why. This assessment reaffirms the urgency of the interlinked climate and biodiversity crises addressed by COP26 last month in Glasgow, and COP15 in a few months in Kunming.
‘We need to take decisive action to address both global threats to corals from climate change, and local ones, such as overfishing.’
The study, led by scientists at Coastal Oceans Research and Development in the Indian Ocean (CORDIO) was published in Nature Sustainability.
The Indian Ocean is the world’s third largest ocean, spanning from the east coast of Africa to the western shores of Australia.
Due to its position along the equator, it is home to almost half of the world’s coral reefs, primarily around Indonesia, Australia and India.
However, the western half of the ocean still has a significant amount of biodiversity, with countries such as Madagascar, Mozambique and the Seychelles estimated to each have hundreds of species of coral.
These support a wealth of fish, with island nations like the Maldives having over a thousand species found in their waters. Fisheries are incredibly important to the region’s economy to such an extent that if these seas were a country, they would represent the fourth-largest economy in the western Indian Ocean.
The reefs also provide food security for the people that live in the region and provide added benefits as a draw for tourists.
However, the exploitation of the ocean has led the fragile ecosystems found there to the brink of collapse. Fishing from both countries within and outside the region is one of the leading causes, followed by oil extraction and climate change.
To assess the state of these corals, they were assessed using the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Ecosystems. While similar to the red list for animal species which assesses their vulnerability to extinction, it instead asks how close the ecosystem is to collapse.
The answer was that the region’s reefs are perilously close to the edge.
The scientists compiled their report by splitting the reefs across the western Pacific into 11 sub-regions, running north up the east coast of Africa from Kenya to South Africa and east to the island states of the Seychelles and Mauritius.
Each area was assessed individually for its status, allowing the researchers to know the state of around 5% of the world’s reefs.
They found that all sub-regions were at risk of collapse, with reefs around island nations with unique biodiversity, such as the Comoros and the Mascarene Islands, assessed as Critically Endangered.
The same assessment was given for east and south Madagascar, though its north and west coasts were found to be less threatened and judged instead to be Endangered.
The greatest threat to these island reef systems was climate change, which is causing ocean temperatures to rise in the shallow waters in which tropical corals thrive. Rising temperatures put the corals more at risk of bleaching and being unable to recover.
The situation was better on the continental African coast, where the entire stretch was assessed to be Vulnerable. Here, overfishing was found to pose the greatest threat to the reefs.
‘We detected overfishing of top predators on all the reefs from which we had data,’ said co-author Mishal Gudka. ‘These results highlight the need to improve local fisheries management to ensure the health of reef systems and secure sustainable fish stocks, which support jobs for a quarter of a million people in the region.’
The scientists hope that similar assessments will be carried out for the rest of the world’s reefs using the same framework they have, providing a stocktake of the world’s coral. By knowing the state of these ecosystems, the scientists hope that politicians will take the necessary steps to pull coral reefs back from the brink.
Over 40 persons have been injured (some critically) as two buses one travelling from Galle to Ampara and the other from Tangalle to Matara crashed head on at Talalla Matara this morning.
The injured have been admitted to the Matara General Hospital and Bathhegama District Hospital.
Turkiye beat a heavily changed United States 3-2 with a late Kaan Ayhan winner in an action-packed dead-rubber clash that gave the 2026 World Cup cohosts their sternest test so far ahead of the knockout rounds.
Already crowned the Group D winners, the US arrived in Los Angeles seeking to extend a perfect start with a third win, but with more than an eye on next Wednesday’s last 32 meeting against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
For Turkiye, already eliminated and without even a goal after disastrous losses to Paraguay and Australia, the only objective was to restore some pride.
Despite the low stakes and substantially reshuffled lineups for both teams, a packed Los Angeles Stadium was in a deafening mood.
For the third game running, the US got off to a dream start. One of nine changes, backup centre-back Auston Trusty, was unmarked at the far post from a US corner, given time to cushion the ball with his left foot, then blast it home.
It was the Celtic defender’s first international goal, and – at just under three minutes – the second-fastest by the US at a World Cup.
But Turkiye did not surrender. Having not scored in 62 efforts across their first two games, it was the 63rd time lucky for the Turks, and their star man, Arda Guler.
The Real Madrid forward duped Mark McKenzie with a clever dummy, allowing the ball to run down the right flank to Baris Alper Yilmaz.
Yilmaz crossed it back to Guler, who smashed it past Matt Turner to equalise in the 10th minute.
With Brad Pitt and Edward Norton among the Hollywood crowd, the game threatened to become a fight club, as Turkiye’s bench rushed the field to protest a foul by the combative Sebastian Berhalter, who earned a yellow.
The Americans thought they had restored the lead, with McKenzie the second US centre-back to put the ball in the net. But his sharp response to Ricardo Pepi’s saved shot was ruled offside.
In the 31st minute, the US found themselves behind for the first time this World Cup.
Guler spotted Eren Elmali’s overlapping run, feeding it to the wing-back, who cut the ball back from the left byline to Yilmaz, who steered it beyond the keeper.
‘Captain America’ returns
The half-time break proved the perfect tonic for the US. In the 49th minute, they were back level from a long throw by McKenzie.
The ball was cleared by Turkiye only as far as Berhalter, who did well to smash his shot low into the bottom corner.
The crowd erupted again just before the hour mark as Mauricio Pochettino sent on Christian Pulisic, undoubtedly the US’s biggest star, who will shoulder much of the cohosts’ hopes of a deep run into the knockouts.
Nicknamed “Captain America”, Pulisic earned his own round of “USA” chants, having not appeared since aggravating an injury in the first half of the opening win against Paraguay two weeks ago.
Pulisic immediately looked lively, twice having his effort blocked from close range after darting runs from the left. He knew less about a ball that looped off his shin onto the post.
Turkiye began to knock on the door again. A Yildiz effort curled inches wide in the 72nd minute.
And deep into stoppage time, Ayhan spoiled the US party, slamming the ball home from close range.
Turkiye were jubilant, while the American players clustered in a circle after the final whistle, seemingly determined not to let the gut punch spoil a campaign that had been off to a flying start.
[Aljazeera]
A delegation from UNICEF, accompanied by the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children (VAC), Dr. Najat Maalla M’jid, met with Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya on Thursday [25 June] at the Parliament premises.
The discussion was focused on further strengthening cooperation and engagement with the Government of Sri Lanka on ensuring the protection and well-being of children, and efforts to prevent and respond to all forms of violence against children.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister acknowledged UNICEF’s continued support to Sri Lanka, particularly during the response to Cyclone Ditwah, as well as its longstanding contributions to reforms in education and early childhood education and initiatives aimed at preventing and addressing violence against children.
The Prime Minister noted that while Sri Lanka has made significant progress in developing policies, the challenge lies in ensuring their effective implementation. She emphasized the need to address gaps in institutional capacity and human resources, while strengthening coordination among the various parts responsible for child protection while highlighting the critical role of frontline workers in the delivery of child protection services.
During the discussion, representatives of UNICEF emphasized the importance of bringing together all relevant stakeholders to address gaps in child protection procedures and referral pathways. Particular attention was given to ensuring that children have clear and accessible mechanisms through which they can report abuse and seek assistance.
Dr. Najat Maalla M’jid highlighted the importance of strengthening the competencies of frontline professionals on psycho social support, early detection, defining direct signs, techniques of effective listening, and safeguarding privacy. The discussions also underscored the growing importance of protecting children from online violence and abuse, and the need to strengthen measures to ensure children’s safety in digital environments.
The meeting was attended by Dr. Najat Maalla M’jid, United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children; Ms. Emma Brigham, UNICEF Representative; Mr. Marc-André Franche, United Nations Resident Coordinator; officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and additional secretaries and officials from the Ministry of Education.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
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