British Prime Minister David Cameron speaks at a news conference during the G-20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, on June 19, 2012
Updated: Sept. 4, 2012 at 8:40 a.m. EST
Cabinet Reshuffle — The BBC tracks British Prime Minister David Cameron‘s first major cabinet reshuffle since taking office in 2010, which has been dubbed the first “Twitter reshuffle,” as “outgoing and incoming members tweet their moves.” (Baroness Warsi is being replaced as co-chair of the Conservative Party and announced her departure on Twitter). Meanwhile, the Guardian notes that the reshuffle provides “a moment of great power for the prime minister, as well as supreme danger” and observes that Cameron is seeking a “comprehensive clear-out of ministers who have failed to deliver and the promotion of a new generation.”
‘Hitler’ Store — A shop in India, named after the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, has been causing a stir in the city of Ahmedabad, according to Al Jazeera. The small Jewish community in the city, located in the western Gujarat state, is believed to be smaller than 500, and has demanded that shop owner Rajesh Shah change the name of his men’s clothing store. But Shah originally insisted on keeping the name because it would cost him money to change the shop logo. But he bowed to pressure Monday night and will be coming up with a new name, according to the Times of India. “Unlike most countries in the world, in India it is not uncommon for the name Hitler to represent businesses, movies, TV programs, and even people’s names – a strange reality to outside observers, but one that is accepted without much thought by ordinary Indians,” notes Al Jazeera.
Gutter Oil — Officials in China have asked pharmaceutical companies to check their suppliers following claims that some have used gutter oil to make antibiotics, reports the BBC (gutter oil is reprocessed kitchen waste gathered from restaurant drains). “It is not clear whether these antibiotics pose a risk to public health, but the incident highlights how some firms cut corners to pursue profits,” the BBC reports. The scandal, which has caused widespread public alarm, is the latest of a spate of contaminated food scandals in China.
Clinton and China — The Daily Telegraph reports on Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urging southeast Asian nations at odds over completing claims to islands in the South China Sea to “work collaboratively together to resolve disputes, without coersion, without intimidation, without threats and certainly without the use of force.” Despite Clinton’s assertion that “the United States does not take a position on competing territorial claims,” with her imminent arrival in Beijing for talks, Reuters writes that Chinese officials have warned the U.S. to “abide by its promises.”
Dying Elephants — The illegal elephant ivory trade is reaching new heights and “Africa is in the midst of an epic elephant slaughter,” writes the New York Times. As demand for elephant ivory grows in China, more and more poachers, including some of Africa’s most infamous armed groups, are killing elephants to cash in. Poachers, according to the Times, and even “members of some of the African armies that the American government trains and supports with millions of taxpayer dollars,” are killing tens of thousands of elephants yearly, more than at any time in the past 20 years.
Back to School — CNN covers the hunger strikes and mass protests in Hong Kong, marking the beginning of the school year, by students, teachers and parents “against what they perceive as Beijing-led interference in the public school curriculum.” Linda Wong, a parent on hunger strike, said: “I want to safeguard for my child the environment in Hong Kong in the future, so my son can learn and think independently,” while university student Ken Chan told the Wall Street Journal: “The government ignores our feeling, so I use my body against my government.”