The leader of one political party accusing the leaders of another political party of doing grave and deleterious harm to a country’s democracy, as th Congress of the People’s (COPE) Terror Lekota claimed about the African National Congress (ANC) recently, is pretty much par for the course in South Africa and globally. The real surprise […]
In Sunday’s New York Times, Denise Grady has an important feature on the disturbing death rates of women during childbirth and labor, most of which are easily avoidable. Of some 536,000 women who die a year giving birth, more than half live in Africa.
Anti Americanism doesn’t seem to go away in Pakistan. Normally, you’d think that because of America’s aid and assistance to help Pakistan, there would be widespread support for Washington in the country, but that is not the case. On the contrary, everyone in the country is all worked up and listening to these people, and […]
The State Department clarified the Administration’s posture towards Jerusalem as a final status issue in the midst of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu comments that the holy city will remain under Israeli control. Question: What is the U.S. response to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s comments that all of Jerusalem will remain under Israeli sovereignty and “will never […]
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told his cabinet today that building in existing settlements could continue despite U.S. pressure to halt all settlement construction and expansion. Even though the Israeli government agreed to dismantle some illegal outposts following the meeting between Netanyahu and President Barack Obama, many members of the Likud-led coalition expressed a furor over […]
German news website Spiegel Online is reporting, according to “sources close to the tribunal”, that Hizballah was behind Rafik Hariri’s 2005 assassination. Until recently, Syria was thought to be responsible for the murder, which also claimed the lives of 22 others. The new allegations come just two weeks before the Lebanese parliamentary elections. It is […]
Antisemitism isn’t only relevant when talking about parts of the Arab world and Europe, where hate crimes against Jews remain on the rise. Our readers in and around the United States also assuredly encountered bias directed towards Jewish-Americans, most recently outside Washington, D.C. An elementary school and police car in Bowie, MD were recently spray-painted […]
As the Likud-led government prepares to dismantle some illegal outposts in the West Bank, some members of the coalition expressed deep dissatisfaction with the anticipated move. Reportedly, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister- and Labor Chairman- Ehud Barak agreed to withdraw some of the illegal outposts at Barak’s discretion. The U.S. government repeatedly pressured […]
For some news on the lighter side, extreme wilderness photographer Martin Hartley has just returned home after taking part on the Catlin Arctic Survey, a team of three British explorers who spent two and a half months walking across frozen sea ice, charting its thickness as they went. In total, Hartley has been on nineteen expeditions to […]
It is very easy to just sit here and write about US political and military strategy in Afghanistan and discuss how these battles are either won or lost and lose track of what is actually happening in the lives of the individuals actually doing the fighting (and dying), both Americans, Europeans, Afghanis, etc. The iconic […]
Stories floating around that are worth your time: Timothy Kustusch has a feature for GlobalPost on the usually-overlooked conflict in Western Sahara. He thinks it might get worse before it gets any better. New York Times East Africa correspondent Jeffrey Gettleman has a travel feature on Uganda. Travel pieces on Africa tend toward fetishization — […]
On Tuesday, Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg visited Russian President Dmitri Medvedev at his residence outside Moscow. The two leaders discussed cooperation in the Arctic, mainly regarding the issue of gas. Medvedev said, “The development of the region as a whole depends on how we form a coordinated position on exploring the gas fields on […]
Finally, Pakistan army is reporting success against the vicious and brutal Talibans in Swat. Thank God! The fact is, these nut jobs were destined to lose because they are only good for intimidating unarmed civilians. These so-called fighters lack every trait necessary for success on the battlefield. But, I am not ready to celebrate, at […]
Even though some reports indicated that the recent talks between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and President Barack Obama succeeded in establishing a foundation for the renewal of the peace process, some contadictory reports indicate that the status quo has not changed. Netanyahu, speaking at a rally in Jerusalem, unequivcally asserted that the holy city remains […]
There is a fine, indeed possibly indiscernible, line between neo-imperialism and investment. Exhibit A? The Chinese, not known for being concerned about niceties such as human rights when self-interest is involved, are teaming up with Great Britain on what they purport to be a benign investment program.. According to The Guardian: China has embarked on […]