Seems like one Chechen rebel leader should’ve thought twice before clicking “Upload” on his you-tube resignation video! Two days after his original clip appeared to announce his resignation in favour of Aslambek Vadalov, indecisive Doku Umarov says he changed his mind. “In connection with the situation shaping up in the Caucasus, I consider it impossible […]
Ten years ago the crash of the Concorde marked the end of the first generation of European cooperation in the Aerospace industry that has lead to numerous military and commercial cooperative projects. The creation of Airbus and their growing domination of the commercial aircraft industry started in the 1970s when BAC from the UK and […]
Let’s play a game! How many pernicious African stereotypes can you find in this Leigh Montville article from Sports Illustrated a few weeks ago on the death of Sudanese basketball player Manute Bol? (Hint: The number is alarmingly high for a quite short piece.)
President Barack Obama and the Department of State are hosting 115 young African leaders from 46 sub-Saharan African nations at the President’s Forum with Young African Leaders underway in Washington, DC. The forum, which started on Tuesday, August 3-5, aims to broaden and deepen the U.S. Government’s understanding of Africa as well as to reflect […]
The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) apparently exchanged fire today in Southern Lebanon. One high-ranking officer was killed on the Israeli side, and at least two soldiers and one journalist, were killed on the Lebanese side. It may be too early for analysis, but it looks like the violence has […]
Tomorrow (Wednesday) Kenya will face a huge test of its fragile democratic systems as the country will go to the polls for a referendum on the country’s proposed new constitution. Political, religious, and civil society leaders have been calling for calm in the run-up to the voting. The violence that followed Kenya’s December 2007 elections […]
The Washington Post yesterday and a few other sources pointed out that, interestingly, Fidel Castro has not appeared publicly alongside his brother Raúl since he stepped down from the presidency four years ago. And so the seed was planted, and everything begins to look like evidence. Raúl’s recent agreements to release Cuban prisoners and Fidel’s […]
Totally moderate! That’s what Akhmed Zakayev, another former rebel leader now living in London, says. And naturally, that’s what’s been obediently parroted by the English language press (the Russian press has been (UN)surprisingly silent on the matter, believe it or not!). Reuters printed unchallenged Zakayev’s comments that the new leader, Aslambek Vadalov, represents a moderate […]
A day after India celebrates the 141st birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the man who led a non-violent struggle against the British rule, India will showcase her continued nominal ties with the British Empire by hosting the Commonwealth Games (CWG). However, the 2010 CWG have become more an arena of political wrangling and administrative corruption […]
Some might remember a certain incident a few years back. Very hush-hush. Israeli bombed something in Syria, only no one was sure what exactly was bombed or why. For some background reading try here, here, and here. The Israeli’s eventually said they had attacked a nuclear reactor of North Korean vintage. The Syrians have remained […]
We’ve hit an emotional milestone in Iraq. The end is in sight. Major combat is over and the troops are coming home. And we can expect many more of these talks, with appearances planned throughout the month by the president, Vice President Biden and other senior administration officials as they wax eloquent on Obama’s steadfast commitment to ending the war.
As previously discussed in this blog, Syria and Turkey have become much closed in recent years. That trend has continued in an issue especially close to this bloggers heart. Syria and Turkey are cooperating in efforts to save the endangered Northern Bald Ibis, a species thought to have only one active breeding pair left in […]
Well, apparently those along the Israeli Lebanese border didn’t read my birthday plea for peace. Today was only the latest clash along the often contested border. Since the fighting took place between the IDF and Lebanese Army, I don’t think this particular skirmish is going to be the catalyst for anything bigger. The alarming thing […]
Its hard to imagine the stake-holder that he had in mind when President Asif Ali Zardari had his chat with a reporter for Le Monde. He is on record to have claimed: “The international community, to which Pakistan belongs, is losing the war against the Taliban. “This is above all because we have lost the […]
South Africa’s disgraced former police commissioner (and former president of Interpol) Jackie Selebi has been sentenced to fifteen years in prison after being found guilty of corruption last month. South Gauteng High Court Judge Joffe Meyer described Selebi as “an embarrassment” and a “stranger to the truth” in the witness box. “At no stage during […]