O.K Washington doubles Pakistan’s aid and Zardari is assured full support for his government. O.K Washington is doing everything possible to help Islamabad where according to Obama the government is fragile. While there, Zardari has said all the right things. So, what is next? Will the hunger and poverty, joblessness, and other economic problems in […]
The World Bank, via IRIN, has a report listing the ten African nations most vulnerable to rising sea levels. The list includes: Mozambique, Madagascar, Nigeria, Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Cote D’Ivoire, Gabon, South Africa, and Somalia.
The African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim) has granted Zimbabwe an additional $250 million line of credit to help the country with its on going economic restructuring and reconstruction. This would seem to be a sign that in some circles, at least, there is a modicum of faith that Zimbabwe has stepped back from the brink even […]
Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer deconstructs the ten-year truce deal offered by Hamas leader Khalid Meshal in an interview earlier this week with the New York Times. He asserts that the ceasefire would only serve to permit Hamas to rearm itself and gain momentum to eventually rid the Middle East of Israel, a staple in the […]
Renewable energy plan ready for government approval China’s new plan for renewable energy development is finalized and waiting for government approval, according to the State Administration of Energy (SAE). The new energy blueprint calls for total investment in renewable energy projects of more than 2 trillion yuan ($293.3 billion). Priority will be given to wind […]
It seems that president Zardari’s trip to Washington has been a success, even though, before he arrived there, there were rumors of tension between Washington and Islamabad. Well, there is some truth to the rumors of serious differences between Pakistan and the U.S., so eloquently described by Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister (no relation) […]
On March 26, at a meeting in Almaty of state-sponsored environmentalists and ecologists, the Syr Darya was declared too polluted to even be used for irrigation in Kazakhstan. By the time the river weaves through the other Central Asian states, including through the Ferghana Valley, the river has accumulated the runoff from massive amounts of […]
When dealing with a terrible post-conflict environment there are often few good choices as to how to deal with those who have committed human rights atrocities. In negotiation processes people are unlikely to put down arms without some hope for amnesty. Think of the negotiations that led to the end of Apartheid in South Africa. […]
The Obama Administration’s refusal to condition Egypt’s military aid on political and human rights reform is congruent with Bush Administration’s policy. It is a good move, aimed at maintaining the strategic relationship. In interviews in Egypt, Hillary Clinton and Robert Gates have both gone on record as opposing conditions as a matter of policy. Secretary […]
At The Guardian Richard M. Kavuma has an article showing how Ugandan football is suffering even as the country’s fans continue to show their love for the game through their support not of the local clubs, but of the English Premiere League. Part of the explanation for the flagging fortunes at the local professional and […]
At the History News Network blog Cliopatria Aaron Bady has a useful post summarizing an ongoing debate at Making Sense of Darfur, the blog edited by respected Sudan expert Alex de Waal. The debate centers around Mahmoud Mamdani’s book Saviors and Survivors: Darfur, Politics, and the War on Terror. I should be honest in saying […]
First signs of recovery in China’s textile sector? Order volumes at the Canton Import and Export Fair, China’s biggest trade fair, exceeded forecast, sparking hope amidst exporters and producers for a recovery of the struggling textile sector. While orders fell 15.6 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2009, participants at the Canton Fair were […]
While the world uses science and health advisories to combat the swine flu (officially referred to in Israel as the Mexican flu to avoid offending observers of Kashrut where pigs are forbidden), some rabbis in Israel are urging a different approach– prayer and a day of fast. The Israeli government already posted advisories and quarantined […]
PESHAWAR: Shop owner Saeed Khan has already buried one child killed in fighting between the Taliban and government forces in northwest Pakistan. He cannot bear to lose another, AFP reports. So the 50-year-old bundled his wife, son and daughter onto a bus in the Taliban-infested town of Mingora in the Swat valley and […]
MINGORA/BATKHELA: Forty-seven militants, 15 security personnel and 36 non-combatants were killed and several others wounded on Wednesday in fierce clashes and explosions in the Swat valley and Malakand region. Sources said security forces killed 30 militants near emerald mines and 15 others in Takhtaband area, in the outskirts of Mingora. The ground forces […]