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| White House sets out looming climate risks for US, calls for 'urgent action' - CNN Posted: 06 May 2014 09:18 AM PDT STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Washington (CNN) -- Flooded rail lines. Bigger, more frequent droughts. A rash of wildfires. Those are some of the alarming predictions in a White House climate change report released Tuesday, part of President Barack Obama's broader second-term effort to help the nation prepare for the effects of higher temperatures, rising sea levels and more erratic weather. "Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present," the National Climate Assessment says, adding that the evidence of man-made climate change "continues to strengthen" and that "impacts are increasing across the country." "Americans are noticing changes all around them," the report says, echoing a draft version from last year. "Summers are longer and hotter. ... Rain comes in heavier downpours." In a statement released to coincide with the report's publication, the White House called for a rapid response. "The findings in this National Climate Assessment underscore the need for urgent action to combat the threats from climate change, protect American citizens and communities today, and build a sustainable future for our kids and grandkids," the White House said. Obama and his administration have long said that climate change is already affecting communities. More than 300 experts helped produce the report over several years, updating a previous assessment published in 2009. The President will help mark the release of the new National Climate Assessment by speaking with meteorologists about the report's findings, which his counselor John Podesta said Monday would offer "a huge amount of practical, usable knowledge" for communities as they cope with risks like longer dry spells and increased risk for wildfires. "It begins to take the climate discussion down to a regional level, so it breaks the country apart, anticipates what's going to happen in each region," Podesta said. "That kind of information will help communities plan." The report breaks the country down by region and identifies specific threats should climate change continue. In the densely populated Northeast, flooded rail lines and other infrastructure are named as a concern if sea levels rise. The Great Plains could experience heavier droughts and heat waves with increasing frequency. And more wildfires in the West could threaten agriculture and residential communities. The weeklong focus on climate change continues Wednesday, when the White House convenes a summit focused on green building tactics. Later in the week, Obama will announce new solar power initiatives, Podesta said. Obama has pledged to renew his efforts on climate change during his second term, including using executive actions that bypass Congress. He's introduced new regulations on truck emissions and created "climate hubs" that help businesses prepare for the effects of climate change. Obama and his administration are also approaching a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline, which would transport oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. Environmental groups say the project would contribute to climate change since it wouldn't help reduce the nation's dependence on fossil fuels. Podesta, who advocated against approving the pipeline before he joined the Obama administration last year, has recused himself from internal discussions on the matter and has declined to answer questions about the project. But Podesta did say that the recent energy boom in the United States -- powered by increased extractions of oil and natural gas through a controversial process known as fracking -- could reduce American dependence on fossil fuels. "We think it's a practical and viable way to reduce emissions in the short run," Podesta said. "Obviously, there are environmental issues around the production of gas and oil. But, again, in the administration's view, those can be -- those can be dealt with through the proper application of the best practices to produce that oil and gas." CNN's Kevin Liptak reported from Washington, and CNN's Jethro Mullen reported from London. |
| What It's Like to Be Attacked by Boko Haram: A Survivor's Story - ABC News Posted: 06 May 2014 09:19 AM PDT The Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram gained worldwide notoriety this week after they admitted to kidnapping 300 high school girls last month and threatening to sell them into marriages. But the group has long terrorized residents of northern Nigeria -- especially Christians, according to one survivor of an attack. Habila Adamu, a resident of northern Nigeria, survived a mass killing of Christians by Boko Haram two years ago and came to the United States to share his story last year. He recalled how gunman bearing AK-47s went around his neighborhood shooting and killing Christians who refused to accept Islam. PHOTO: Adamu Habila speaks at the Hudson Institute on Nov. 14, 2013 in Washington, D.C. about his experience surviving a massacre in Nigeria by the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram. "On November 28, 2012, gunmen came to my home at around 11 p.m. and confronted me with my family. I thought they were soldiers on patrol, and when they opened the door, I was shocked to see that they were wearing robes and masks," he said. "The gunmen ordered me to come out with my family. And when I came out, they ordered my family to go back, and my wife begged them not to harm me. They said she should go back, because they were here to do the work of Allah. When I heard that, I knew that they were here to kill me." Boko Haram: Kidnappers, Slave-Owners, Terrorists, Killers Adamu said that his wife brought money from inside the house and begged the men not to kill him. They took the money and the couple's cell phones, and then barged into the home with even more men with AK-47s. The men questioned Adamu, asking him whether he was a member of the Nigeria police, the military, or the state security services. When Adamu said he was a businessman, they asked him about his religion. "I said I am a Christian. They asked me why are we preaching the message of Mohammed to you and you refuse to accept Islam," Adamu testified. He explained to the men that he believed he was preaching the word of God for his Christian faith. Who Are the Kidnapped Nigerian Girls? "Then they asked me, 'Habila, are you ready to die as a Christian?' I told them, 'I am ready to die as a Christian.' For the second time, they asked me, 'Are you ready to die as a Christian?' and I told them, 'I am ready.'" As he spoke the words a second time, the men shot him through the nose and Adamu fell to the ground. They kicked him and, thinking he was dead, yelled out "Allahu akbar," meaning "God is great." As his wife was crying out the men left, and Adamu told his wife he was alive. "I told her that even though I will die I have a message to everyone that will hear my story after I leave this world that 'to live in this world is to live for Christ, to die is a gain' -- that is my message," he said. Adamu's wife went to look for help but found that their Christian neighbors had been murdered, including the elder in his church and 13 others. Adamu lay on the floor bleeding until morning and lost vision. He was finally taken to a hospital to be treated for his wounds. "I am alive because God wants you to have a message. I have a message, just as I told my wife as I was left for dead, I have a message to everyone that will hear my story. Do everything that you can to end this ruthless religious persecution in northern Nigeria," Adamu said in Washington. Following Adamu's testimony in Washington, the U.S. State Department designated the group a terrorist organization. |
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