Is piracy in the Gulf of Aden helping to create the (im?)perfect storm leading to one of Barack Obama's first serious crises upon taking office? It sure seems that way. Shipping firms, which are suffering some of the worst losses at the hands of the Somali brigands, are demanding action. India's navy is stepping up […]
How many international sporting programs would look at a season of nine wins and four losses as a disaster? One such situation is playing out in South Africa, where the Springboks are in England to play the hosts at Twickenham this weekend. From The Mail & Guardian, “The End of a Dismal Year“: A disappointing […]
With the announcement that it plans to lay 2,300 kilometers of fiber-optic cable in the next year, Rwanda has taken the lead in communications technology in Central Africa. Nearly any discussion about Rwanda, whether positive or critical, takes place against the backdrop of the 1994 genocide and the context that created it. This decision marks […]
Robert Worth of the NYT looks at the ways Hezbollah reaches out to Lebanese mothers, children and young men. Could we call this “a battle for hearts and minds”?
Time magazine argues in a recent piece on Mugabe that the intransigent president “clings on, but his power is waning.” I have no quarrels with the article, which hits all of the necessary marks in a piece written for a genralist audience that has little background on Zimbabwe (or most any other particular African issue). […]
You can watch their commentary through the link on the transcript page. They agree that a 2011 withdrawal date is unrealistic and that we should expect renegotiations; the challenges of the agreement reflect Iraqi domestic politics above all.
… and, according to the NYT, it's manifestation is somewhat sexist. Apparently, the informal, non-binding shariah courts deal with divorce cases primarily (one representative quoted in the article estimates 99% of the cases are divorce proceedings) and have been operating for several years under the radar of ‘mainstream’ British society. There is considerable upset communicated […]
… at the US Institute of Peace this month. Click here for the full event briefing and list of participants (it's unclear whether the event was off the record; I couldn't find a transcript or anything of that nature). The USIP gathered six Iraqis of note who are now resident in the United States to […]
Piracy in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali Coast continues apace. The Economist tries to figure out what it all means.
Many observers inside and outside of South Africa worry whether the country will be able to pull off the Fifa World Cup in 2010. South Africa will be fine. There will be occasional stumbles, and the masses descending on South Africa will have to deal with periodic glitches that might frustrate those expecting another Germany, […]
Recent rebel pullbacks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have inspired some tepid hope that full-scale chaos is avoidable. But while we all want good news to emerge from the beleaguered Congo, the reality is that good news usually ends up being fleeting. Anneke van Woudenberg, a senior researcher on the DRC for Human […]
Today marks the deadline for the new Congress of the People (Cope) to respond in writing to the ANC's legal demands that the new organization change its name. The ANC's attempts to force a name change from Core strikes me as a petty and frivolous nuisance. It would be hard for the ANC to claim […]
It appears that the Taliban's leader Mullah Omar may yet still have his day in the hot Afghan sun as President Karzai has publicly invited him to negotiations to end the violent conflict that has plagued the state since 2001. Karzai has promised the Taliban leader, who was ousted from power by the US in […]