Billions of dollars' worth of gold continue to be extracted illegally from Brazil’s Amazon rainforest, according to a Greenpeace study, despite President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s pledges to curb wildcat mining.
Lula pledged in 2023 to eliminate illegal gold mining from Indigenous lands and protected areas after years of expansion under far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro. Last year, Brazil’s Federal Police seized a record 447kg of illegally mined gold.
The Greenpeace study found that miners are adapting to the crackdown by using permits from areas with no mining activity to falsify the origin of gold.
Researchers analysed 187 forest areas near Indigenous lands and protected areas that had been issued mining permits by Brazil’s National Mining Agency (ANM). They found that 98 of these areas showed no signs of active mining.
Despite this, so-called "ghost permits" were used to justify the sale of 26.8 metric tonnes of gold, worth an estimated $3.88 billion, between 2018 and March 2026.
Investigators believe much of this gold is extracted from protected and Indigenous areas, including the Kayapó territory in Pará state.
Kayapó chief Megaron Txucarramae criticised the government’s failure to halt illegal mining.
“I don’t know what else is needed to solve illegal mining on Indigenous land,” he said. “It destroys the land, pollutes the rivers, and Indigenous people, without realising it, end up eating poisoned fish.”
In response, the ANM said it was monitoring the permits identified by Greenpeace for possible irregularities.
“With thousands of permits issued, the Amazon region imposes large-scale logistical and oversight challenges,” the agency added.
Record-high gold prices amid global geopolitical instability continue to drive illegal mining, creating new loopholes that make enforcement more difficult.
Environmentalists warn that without stricter oversight, the Amazon’s fragile ecosystems and Indigenous communities will continue to bear the brunt of the gold rush.
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The Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is "outpacing containment efforts" amid conflict, weak disease surveillance and limited access to healthcare, according to London-based pharmacist and health commentator Thorrun Govind.
Kazakhstan has reiterated that no existing route can replace the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which carries more than 80% of the country's crude oil exports through Russia to the Black Sea.
Iran has strongly condemned U.S. threats to impose sanctions on and bomb Oman following reported talks between Muscat and Tehran on jointly overseeing the Strait of Hormuz, reiterating that the Islamic Republic’s actions in the strategic waterway are “lawful”.
The U.S. and Iran have reportedly reached a preliminary 60-day ceasefire and nuclear talks deal, pending Donald Trump’s approval, Axios reports. Meanwhile, the GCC condemned Iran’s missile strike on a U.S. airbase in Kuwait, which Tehran said was retaliation for a U.S. strike near Bandar Abbas.
Bolivia’s President Rodrigo Paz has taken steps towards potentially declaring a state of emergency as anti-government protests intensify in the early months of his administration.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says ongoing conflict, funding pressures and international travel restrictions are complicating efforts to contain a fast-growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Kazakhstan on Wednesday for a three-day state visit focused on energy, transport and economic cooperation with one of Moscow’s closest regional partners.
Muslims around the world have marked Eid al-Adha with prayers, celebrations and acts of charity, though for many Palestinians the holiday unfolded amid conflict, restrictions and loss.
Kenyan authorities have arrested eight students on suspicion of arson following a fire at a girls’ boarding school that killed 16, according to the country’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations. The blaze, which happened in Kenya's Rift Valley, also injured dozens of students.
The British government has unveiled 300,000 new work experience and training placements for young people after a major review warned that rising youth unemployment could leave more young people disconnected from work, education and training.
Soaring temperatures across Europe have broken records in Portugal and sparked heat alerts in Italy and France, affecting events including the French Open tennis tournament.
NATO member Romania reported on Friday that a Russian drone injured two people in the southeastern city of Galati during an overnight attack on neighbouring Ukraine. The incident marks the first time in the war that a drone has struck a densely populated area in Romania and caused injuries.
Jeff Bezos’ space venture suffered a dramatic launchpad explosion during a hot-fire test, delaying plans to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX in lunar and satellite missions.
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