Al Shabaab Splintering – Foreign Affairs investigates the splintering of the al-Qaeda-linked militant group, al Shabaab, in Somalia and its potential fallout for the West. “In a sense, with the gains made in recent months, there …
U.K.
Disgraced British Knights: A Not-So-Chivalrous History
The British government’s decision to strip former Royal Bank of Scotland CEO Fred Goodwin of his knighthood places the banker in conspicuous company
$5.2 billion
Meet the Assads: A Look at the Syrian Strongman’s Family
As the conflict in Syria reaches a critical phase, TIME looks at some of the regime’s key figures.
Must Reads from Around the World: Jan. 31, 2012
Europe’s Soccer Clubs: The Continent’s Other Looming Debt Crisis
Euro zone governments aren’t the only entities seriously needing to get their debt levels down these days. Information revealed this past week showed Europe’s leading soccer clubs are similarly spending their way into a …
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Human Rights Under Threat: Five Not-So-Usual Suspects
Human Rights Watch this week released its 2012 World Report. The 676-page write-up covers some of the biggest stories of the year, including China’s crackdown on dissent, ongoing attacks on civilians in the Democratic Republic …
London’s Russian Tycoon Trial: How Boris Berezovsky Has Already Triumphed
Roman Abramovich recently threw an $8 million New Year’s Eve party. He once dropped $86 million on a Francis Bacon painting. And he owns a $90 million vacation home in St. Bart’s. That’s in addition to his chateau on the …
Sarkozy Considers Withdrawal from Afghanistan After Death of French Soldiers
Is the outraged French response to the shooting death of four of its forces in Afghanistan by a suspected Afghan soldier Friday a sign that Paris may speed the pull out of its troops from the NATO-led operation? Or is the …
Republic of Jamaica: Why Ditching the British Queen Isn’t Enough
Jamaicans don’t have a lot to celebrate as they mark their golden anniversary of independence this year. Their unemployment rate is almost twice that of the Caribbean region as a whole; their government is still reeling from a …
Global Briefing, Jan. 18, 2012; Intervention, Inaction, Independence, Iran — and Iceland’s Funnyman Mayor
“It’s Time to Think Seriously About Intervening in Syria”— CFR fellow Steven A. Cook argues in the Atlantic the West must reconsider the assumption Bashar al-Assad’s regime will fall on its own. Meanwhile, the Guardian‘s Middle …
For Now, the Eurozone and the Markets Pooh-pooh the Downgrades. But the Long-Term Looms
Modestly positive trading on European stock markets Monday morning appeared to confirm what euro zone leaders had predicted for weeks: that the decision Friday by Standard & Poor’s to cut the credit rating of nine European …