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    <title><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om]]></title>
    <description><![CDATA[ RSS Feed : Opinion Extras  - Contribution Articles ]]></description>
    <link>https://www.omanobserver.om</link>
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        <title><![CDATA[Japan confronts rising inequality after Abenomics]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1108004/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/japan-confronts-rising-inequality-after-abenomics]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Japan&#39;s stock market has surged and luxury cars are selling fast in Tokyo after eight years of economic stimulus under Abenomics, but that new wealth is concentrated in a small...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Tue, 12 Oct 2021 15:10:26 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Nuclear option... Earth&#039;s climate panacea or poison?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107965/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/nuclear-option-earths-climate-panacea-or-poison]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Julien MIVIELLE    For its supporters, nuclear energy is the world&#39;s best -- perhaps only -- hope to avoid catastrophic climate change. Opponents say it is too expensive, too r...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 11 Oct 2021 15:25:44 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Still no decision on whether IMF chief keeps her job]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107950/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/still-no-decision-on-whether-imf-chief-keeps-her-job]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[The International Monetary Fund said it still had not decided whether its embattled chief would keep her job, with the lack of clarity over Kristalina Georgieva&#39;s future threat...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 11 Oct 2021 14:47:42 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Commit yourself just as you commit to that daily dose of coffee]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107846/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/commit-yourself-just-as-you-commit-to-that-daily-dose-of-coffee]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Sarah al Hamzy -   Even when you end up getting a bad cup of coffee, you still find yourself going back for more. Some people find that extra bitter coffee can be better at waking...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 08 Oct 2021 17:03:02 +0400</pubDate>
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            <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Polish ruling against EU law: A step towards &#039;Polexit&#039;?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107835/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/polish-ruling-against-eu-law-a-step-towards-polexit]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Poland&#39;s Constitutional Court issued a ruling on Thursday that experts have said could threaten the country&#39;s membership of the European Union as well as its funding from t...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 08 Oct 2021 16:12:55 +0400</pubDate>
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            <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Mexico: The US &#039;wall&#039; in migrants&#039; way]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107834/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/mexico-the-us-wall-in-migrants-way]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Samir Tounsi -    With the United States turning away migrants at its southern border, Mexico is also taking a firm stance against undocumented arrivals, including thousands of Hai...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 08 Oct 2021 16:11:59 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[World&#039;s tallest people get that shrinking feeling]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107833/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/worlds-tallest-people-get-that-shrinking-feeling]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Julie CAPELLE -   While the rest of the world literally looks up to the Dutch, the tallest members of the loftiest populace on earth insist it&#39;s not easy being big.So an offici...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 08 Oct 2021 16:11:20 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[A Chilean tree holds hope for new vaccines - if supplies last]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107790/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/a-chilean-tree-holds-hope-for-new-vaccines---if-supplies-last]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Aislinn Laing & Allison Martell   Down a dusty farm track in Chilean country, behind a wooden gate wrapped in chains, forestry experts are nursing a plantation of saplings whose ba...]]></description>
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            <media:title>Wood from quillay trees contain a substance that can be used in Covid-19 vaccines. -- Reuters</media:title>
            <media:text>Wood from quillay trees contain a substance that can be used in Covid-19 vaccines. -- Reuters</media:text>
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                        <pubDate>Thu, 07 Oct 2021 15:34:39 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Worldwide private financial assets hit record]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107788/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/worldwide-private-financial-assets-hit-record]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[According to research carried out by German insurance multinational Allianz for its annual Global Wealth Report, people around the world are richer than ever before.Despite the pan...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 07 Oct 2021 15:29:59 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Air Info, the outlet breaking news in Niger&#039;s Sahara]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107750/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/air-info-the-outlet-breaking-news-in-nigers-sahara]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Amaury HAUCHARD    From the outside, it doesn&#39;t look like much: a two-storey building with a logo in the dusty streets of Agadez in northern Niger.But there has been plenty hap...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Wed, 06 Oct 2021 16:25:33 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[UK tries to kick 25-year imported labour habit]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1107692/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/uk-tries-to-kick-25-year-imported-labour-habit]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Guy Faulconbridge   The United Kingdom&#39;s 25-year-old model of importing cheap labour has been up-ended by Brexit and Covid-19, sowing the seeds for a 1970s-style winter of disc...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Tue, 05 Oct 2021 15:30:29 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[An opportunity for green recovery]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1106113/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/an-opportunity-for-green-recovery]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Muscat: While struggling to overcome the economic and social effects of two years of a global pandemic, the world cannot forget that it continues to face the intensifying impact of...]]></description>
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                        <pubDate>Sun, 29 Aug 2021 16:47:26 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[This time will be different: Taliban fights trust deficit with PR blitz]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105642/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/this-time-will-be-different-taliban-fights-trust-deficit-with-pr-blitz]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[David Fox & Qasim Nauman    Smiling and waving at journalists, posing for selfies in the streets and even sitting down for a TV interview with a woman journalist, the Taliban appea...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 19 Aug 2021 16:32:23 +0400</pubDate>
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            <item>
        <title><![CDATA[By chance, ozone treaty prevented &#039;scorched Earth&#039; climate]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105641/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/by-chance-ozone-treaty-prevented-scorched-earth-climate]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Marlowe HOOD    A 1987 treaty to repair a thin layer of ozone in the atmosphere that shields life on Earth from cancer-causing ultraviolet rays probably had the unintended benefit...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 19 Aug 2021 16:30:03 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[The day Gorbachev was liberated: &#039;I welcome you all!&#039;]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105640/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/the-day-gorbachev-was-liberated-i-welcome-you-all]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Thirty years ago, communist reactionaries attempted a coup against the reformist Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev.The overthrow bid on August 18, 1991 failed, and three days late...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 19 Aug 2021 16:27:43 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Libya political upturn boosts migrant exodus]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105519/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/libya-political-upturn-boosts-migrant-exodus]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Jihad Dorgham   As violence in Libya has waned this year, the number of would-be migrants to Europe intercepted so far has doubled compared to the same period of 2020, experts say....]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Tue, 17 Aug 2021 16:36:48 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Swift Taliban takeover leaves US image in tatters]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105443/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/swift-taliban-takeover-leaves-us-image-in-tatters]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Shaun TANDON     After two decades in Afghanistan, America’s longest war was ending with the image of the United States in tatters.With the swift collapse on Sunday of the governme...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 16 Aug 2021 16:25:19 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Lebanon reels from latest deadly blast]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105442/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/lebanon-reels-from-latest-deadly-blast]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Rouba el Husseini    Lebanon on Monday reeled from a deadly explosion that burned alive people desperate to fill plastic containers with fuel in a country sinking ever deeper into...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 16 Aug 2021 16:24:09 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Taliban surge exposes failure to build Afghan army]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105360/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/taliban-surge-exposes-failure-to-build-afghan-army]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Jonathan Landay and Idrees Ali      The rout of Afghan forces as Taliban fighters take one provincial city after another provides a stark answer to anyone wondering about the succe...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Sun, 15 Aug 2021 15:42:59 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Biden faces mounting blame for Afghan debacle]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105295/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/biden-faces-mounting-blame-for-afghan-debacle]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Shaun TANDON     The Taliban&#39;s stunning advances in Afghanistan threaten to be a stain on President Joe Biden&#39;s record, but he has stood firm on withdrawing US troops and b...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Sat, 14 Aug 2021 15:58:28 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Clashes in Syria&#039;s Daraa al-Balad: what is the fighting about?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105253/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/clashes-in-syrias-daraa-al-balad-what-is-the-fighting-about]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105253/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/clashes-in-syrias-daraa-al-balad-what-is-the-fighting-about</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Rouba El-Husseini     Three years after Syrian government retook control of the flashpoint southern province of Daraa, the country&#39;s forces have clashed with rebels again, trap...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 13 Aug 2021 16:21:05 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Kabul pullout -- echoes of US exit from Saigon?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105252/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/kabul-pullout---echoes-of-us-exit-from-saigon]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Sylvie LANTEAUME     Thousands of American soldiers being sent to Afghanistan to evacuate embassy staff from Kabul as the Taliban push towards the city has revived painful US memor...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 13 Aug 2021 16:20:05 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Finally, you&#039;re fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Now what?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105251/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/finally-youre-fully-vaccinated-against-covid-19-now-what]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Marijan Murat    Finally, fully vaccinated: For many people, this means a return to everyday life with fewer restrictions and worries.But what about masks, social distancing and te...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 13 Aug 2021 16:18:25 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Childcare options get scarce in US]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104895/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/childcare-options-get-scarce-in-us]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[The arrival of Covid-19 vaccines has allowed US businesses to rehire more than half of the 22 million workers laid off as the pandemic began, but many mothers are not returning to...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 05 Aug 2021 16:36:31 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Kenya holds first national wildlife census]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104894/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/kenya-holds-first-national-wildlife-census]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Elephants are the key animals, but when you are able to locate (any) endangered species, you feel like the census is on the right trackChris CheruiyotAircraft pilotHILLARY ORINDE...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 05 Aug 2021 16:32:51 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[&#039;Lost generation&#039; fears as Covid locks out India&#039;s poor students]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104893/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/lost-generation-fears-as-covid-locks-out-indias-poor-students]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[NIVRITA GANGULY    C S Satheesha spells out &quot;A-P-P-L-E&quot; into his phone as he teaches remotely from the only place he can get a signal -- a treehouse in his back garden in...]]></description>
                <media:thumbnail url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/08/05/1714559.jpg"  />
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            <media:title>Children of a low-income neighbourhood attend a class at an open-air school 'Vidyachaya' set up by the non-profit Unique Foundation at Porajhar village on the outskirts of Siliguri. - AFP </media:title>
            <media:text>Children of a low-income neighbourhood attend a class at an open-air school 'Vidyachaya' set up by the non-profit Unique Foundation at Porajhar village on the outskirts of Siliguri. - AFP </media:text>
        </media:content>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 05 Aug 2021 16:31:41 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Afghan forces face intense Taliban test]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104849/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/afghan-forces-face-intense-taliban-test]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Mushtaq Mojaddidi & Qasim NaumanTaliban territorial gains have raised doubts about the Afghan military&#39;s strength with foreign troops all but gone -- a showdown between two ver...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Wed, 04 Aug 2021 16:13:01 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Why the EU is paying more for new Covid shots]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104785/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/why-the-eu-is-paying-more-for-new-covid-shots]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Francesco GuarascioThe European Union has agreed to pay a premium on new orders of Covid-19 vaccines because it is requiring tougher terms to be met, European officials said, as th...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Tue, 03 Aug 2021 16:16:08 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[No &#039;eureka moment&#039; in climate science]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104714/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/no-eureka-moment-in-climate-science]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Kelly MACNAMARAWhat if Earth&#39;s atmosphere was infused with extra carbon dioxide, mused amateur scientist Eunice Foote in an 1856 research paper that concluded the gas was very...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 02 Aug 2021 16:21:08 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[In Spain, dozens of villages struggle for drinking water]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104535/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/in-spain-dozens-of-villages-struggle-for-drinking-water]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[THOMAS PERROTEAULess than two hours from Madrid, 76-year-old Francisca Benitez has to brush her teeth every night with bottled water because her village has no supply of drinking w...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 30 Jul 2021 15:55:42 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Absent crowds, Tokyo Olympics have a shot at being green]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104182/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/absent-crowds-tokyo-olympics-have-a-shot-at-being-green]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Initially, the Tokyo Organising Committee had estimated the mega-event would result in emissions of some 2.73 million tonnes of planet-warming carbon dioxideKanupriya KapoorNo fans...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Jul 2021 14:57:17 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Speeding ships killing endangered N Atlantic right whales]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104181/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/speeding-ships-killing-endangered-n-atlantic-right-whales]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Killing even one is a problem, as scientists estimate that even a single human-caused North Atlantic right whale death a year threatens the species&#39; chances of recoveryWhitney...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Jul 2021 14:56:14 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Bangladesh rice farmers invent new varieties to withstand salt, storms]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104180/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/bangladesh-rice-farmers-invent-new-varieties-to-withstand-salt-storms]]></link>
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        <description><![CDATA[Farmer Tarafdar said his new type of rice called Charulata can produce up to 1,680 kg of rice per quarter hectare, more than double what he was getting from conventional varieties...]]></description>
                <media:thumbnail url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/22/1701015.JPG"  />
        <media:content url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/22/1701015.JPG" type="image/jpeg" medium="image">
            <media:title>Farmer Dilip Chandra Tarafdar cultivates the rice variety he invented, called Charulata, in an exhibition plot in Chandipur village, Shyamnagar, Bangladesh.  </media:title>
            <media:text>Farmer Dilip Chandra Tarafdar cultivates the rice variety he invented, called Charulata, in an exhibition plot in Chandipur village, Shyamnagar, Bangladesh.  </media:text>
        </media:content>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Jul 2021 14:54:59 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Global quest under way to speed vaccine trials]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104151/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/global-quest-under-way-to-speed-vaccine-trials]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104151/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/global-quest-under-way-to-speed-vaccine-trials</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Julie Steenhuysen and Ludwig BurgerScientists are working on a benchmark for Covid-19 vaccine efficacy that would allow drugmakers to conduct smaller, speedier human trials to get...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Wed, 21 Jul 2021 16:29:30 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Organic crops join push to ease rural poverty]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104112/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/organic-crops-join-push-to-ease-rural-poverty]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104112/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/organic-crops-join-push-to-ease-rural-poverty</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Christophe KOFFIAgathe Vanie looks proudly at the products on the shelves of her shop, the first organic stall in the southern central Ivory Coast city of Divo.&quot;We can make mo...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Tue, 20 Jul 2021 16:13:41 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Indonesia&#039;s poor miss out on Covid care]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104076/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/indonesias-poor-miss-out-on-covid-care]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104076/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/indonesias-poor-miss-out-on-covid-care</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Kate Lamb and Stanley WidiantoIn the teeming, North Jakarta neighbourhood of Muara Baru, people have made a grim joke out of the acronym for the Indonesian government&#39;s lockdow...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2021 17:48:45 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Environmental concerns grow as space tourism lifts off]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104043/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/environmental-concerns-grow-as-space-tourism-lifts-off]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104043/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/environmental-concerns-grow-as-space-tourism-lifts-off</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Issam AhmedAfter years of waiting, Richard Branson&#39;s journey to space this month on a Virgin Galactic vessel was supposed to be a triumphant homecoming. Instead, the jaunt attr...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Sun, 18 Jul 2021 16:09:56 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Human, animal world overlap leading to deadly disease]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104003/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/human-animal-world-overlap-leading-to-deadly-disease]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1104003/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/human-animal-world-overlap-leading-to-deadly-disease</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Jonathan McCambridge and Cate McCurryThe increasing overlap of the human and animal world is in part responsible for the rise of deadly diseases like coronavirus, the Prince of Wal...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Sat, 17 Jul 2021 16:35:58 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[EU forces pace on carbon cuts, challenges others to follow]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103967/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/eu-forces-pace-on-carbon-cuts-challenges-others-to-follow]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103967/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/eu-forces-pace-on-carbon-cuts-challenges-others-to-follow</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[The question now is whether the EU gambit becomes an established benchmark upon which investors and sectors like the auto industry set transition strategies and how big emitters re...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2021 16:29:09 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Japan&#039;s Suga risks becoming short-term premier]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103966/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/japans-suga-risks-becoming-short-term-premier]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103966/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/japans-suga-risks-becoming-short-term-premier</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[QUOTEHe&#39;s not doing a good job at handling the party and policy, and nobody likes him being in powerSteven ReedA professorLINDA SIEGStruggling with rising coronavirus cases and...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2021 16:28:25 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Afghans in conflict zone confront Taliban on Clubhouse]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103965/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/afghans-in-conflict-zone-confront-taliban-on-clubhouse]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103965/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/afghans-in-conflict-zone-confront-taliban-on-clubhouse</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[USMAN SHARIFIAs war rages across the countryside, young Afghans are plugging in their earphones and logging into audio-based app Clubhouse to argue with the Taliban and pitch count...]]></description>
                <media:thumbnail url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/16/1697955.jpg"  />
        <media:content url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/16/1697955.jpg" type="image/jpeg" medium="image">
            <media:title>This photo illustration shows the Clubhouse app icon (2nd R) on a mobile phone screen. - AFP  </media:title>
            <media:text>This photo illustration shows the Clubhouse app icon (2nd R) on a mobile phone screen. - AFP  </media:text>
        </media:content>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2021 16:27:47 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[The adventures of a blonde and a very old car...]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103952/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/the-adventures-of-a-blonde-and-a-very-old-car]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103952/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/the-adventures-of-a-blonde-and-a-very-old-car</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[RACHAEL MACIVER“Ok, ok, okaaaaaaaay!”The joke goes that you know you are in Oman when the driver behind you at the traffic lights, honks his horn impatiently a nano-second before t...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2021 15:29:33 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[For war-scarred Iraq, climate crisis the next great threat]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103587/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/for-war-scarred-iraq-climate-crisis-the-next-great-threat]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103587/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/for-war-scarred-iraq-climate-crisis-the-next-great-threat</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[DAWOOD AL YASEEN WITH SALAM FARAJAs Iraq bakes in the blistering summer heat, its hardscrabble farmers and livestock herders are battling severe water shortages that are killing th...]]></description>
                <media:thumbnail url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/08/1690217.jpg"  />
        <media:content url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/08/1690217.jpg" type="image/jpeg" medium="image">
            <media:title>A view of a plough in a dried up agricultural field in the Saadiya area, north of Diyala in eastern Iraq. - AFP</media:title>
            <media:text>A view of a plough in a dried up agricultural field in the Saadiya area, north of Diyala in eastern Iraq. - AFP</media:text>
        </media:content>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 08 Jul 2021 14:35:33 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Hope for South Sudan dashed after horror decade]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103586/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/hope-for-south-sudan-dashed-after-horror-decade]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103586/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/hope-for-south-sudan-dashed-after-horror-decade</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[WAAKHE SIMON WUDUIn July 2011, Nunu Diana smiled through tears as South Sudan gained independence, envisioning the future for her homeland: a great nation, peaceful and prosperous,...]]></description>
                <media:thumbnail url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/08/1690194.jpg"  />
        <media:content url="https://www.omanobserver.om/omanobserver/uploads/images/2021/07/08/1690194.jpg" type="image/jpeg" medium="image">
            <media:title>Nunu Diana, a social worker and mother of four, poses at her house in Lemon Gaba, near Juba. - AFP</media:title>
            <media:text>Nunu Diana, a social worker and mother of four, poses at her house in Lemon Gaba, near Juba. - AFP</media:text>
        </media:content>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 08 Jul 2021 14:35:12 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[US heatwave &#039;virtually impossible&#039; without climate change]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103585/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/us-heatwave-virtually-impossible-without-climate-change]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103585/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/us-heatwave-virtually-impossible-without-climate-change</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Recent record-shattering temperatures in the US and Canada which caused deaths and wildfires would be &quot;virtually impossible&quot; without climate change, analysis has found. A...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Thu, 08 Jul 2021 14:34:40 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Asylum law to give border police more powers]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103537/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/asylum-law-to-give-border-police-more-powers]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103537/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/asylum-law-to-give-border-police-more-powers</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Flora ThompsonBritain’s Border Force officers could be given powers to turn migrants away from the UK while at sea under laws proposed as part of sweeping reforms of the asylum sys...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Wed, 07 Jul 2021 16:49:31 +0400</pubDate>
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            <item>
        <title><![CDATA[What next for Afghanistan as foreign troops leave]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103498/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/what-next-for-afghanistan-as-foreign-troops-leave]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103498/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/what-next-for-afghanistan-as-foreign-troops-leave</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Jay DESHMUKHWith the United States military presence in Afghanistan effectively over, the country faces an uncertain future with Taliban attacks rampant and the threat of civil war...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Tue, 06 Jul 2021 17:49:54 +0400</pubDate>
    </item>
            <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Organ transplant achieves milestone]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103447/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/organ-transplant-achieves-milestone]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103447/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/organ-transplant-achieves-milestone</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[@kabeeryousefMarking a milestone in organ transplant in the country, the first Oman Transplantation Society under the Oman Medical Specialty Board came into force, setting humanita...]]></description>
                        <author>observerkabeer@gmail.com (Kabeer Yousuf) </author>
                <pubDate>Mon, 05 Jul 2021 16:27:07 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[A weak link in vaccination campaign]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103423/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/a-weak-link-in-vaccination-campaign]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103423/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/a-weak-link-in-vaccination-campaign</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[Catherine TRIOMPHEWith a sizable Black minority traditionally mistrustful of vaccines and with many conservative rural whites convinced that the vaccine is more dangerous than Covi...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Mon, 05 Jul 2021 14:55:25 +0400</pubDate>
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        <title><![CDATA[Ethiopia govt withdrawal opens new chapter in war]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103394/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/ethiopia-govt-withdrawal-opens-new-chapter-in-war]]></link>
        <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1103394/opinion-extras/contribution-articles/ethiopia-govt-withdrawal-opens-new-chapter-in-war</guid>
        <description><![CDATA[The capture of the Tigray regional capital by its ousted rulers this week was a dramatic setback for Ethiopia&#39;s government, diplomats and analysts say, opening a new chapter in...]]></description>
                        <pubDate>Sun, 04 Jul 2021 20:25:09 +0400</pubDate>
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