Good news from Zimbabwe where, despite Western media reports of political crisis, economic stagnation and widespread poverty, the electoral roll indicates the country is actually one of the healthiest on earth. The October 2010 count finds 41,100 voters in Zimbabwe aged 100 or more – four times the number of centenarians in Britain, …
Conflict
China’s Military Tries to Reassure Wary Neighbors
Years of sharp increases in military spending coupled with territorial disputes with some of its neighbors have contributed to growing suspicions over Chinese intentions. So China’s military brass is on a campaign to reassure governments in the Asia-Pacific region that the modernization of the People’s Liberation Army poses no …
The Trouble with Non-Violence: A Tale of Two Palestinian Marches
On Sunday, the anniversary of the 1967 defeat of Arab armies that led to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights, the Palestinian efforts at channeling the energies of the so-called “Arab Spring” were on display with varying results.
Television images on Sunday from the Golan Heights village of …
The “Death” of Ilyas Kashmiri: Has Another Key al-Qaeda Leader Bitten the Dust?
BBC Urdu reports that U.S. drone strikes in the Pakistani tribal agency of South Waziristan have killed eight militants, including Ilyas Kashmiri, a notorious jihadist who some suspect could even be al-Qaeda’s top operational commander. The U.S. had placed a $5 million bounty on Kashmiri’s head — the grizzled fighter is linked to …
The DSK Effect: French Media Starts Reporting the Peccadilloes (and Pedophilia) of Politicos
The after-shocks of the rape charges against ex-IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn in the U.S. seem to be eroding France’s unwritten media rule against publicly delving into the private sexual affairs of national politicians. This week, the press has paid rapt attention to allegations of criminal sexual behavior by two French political …
Dispatch from Yemen: Portraits of a Broken Nation
In Yemen, over three decades of authoritarianism are unraveling in a bloody maelstrom. The regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh has brutally staved off protests against its rule, fueled by frustrations over a lack of political freedoms in the country and the perceived graft of Saleh’s family and cronies. At least 350 people have …
Despite Corruption Outcry, FIFA Reelects Blatter to Run World Soccer
FIFA president Sepp Blatter may have survived the storm ravaging soccer’s global governing body, but don’t expect his reelection to quiet the growing challenges to the organization’s status quo. Nor will critics be placated by the procedural changes Blatter has outlined for the way FIFA will choose which countries host the 2026 …
A Tale of Two Videos: Two Ways to Make an Argument About Gaza
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The release of another fabulous video by Gisha, a small Tel Aviv nonprofit that champions freedom of movement for Palestinians, points to what a professor of rhetoric might term the vital importance of tone when making a persuasive argument. If your field is advocacy, it never hurts …
FIFA’s Deepening Crisis: Global Soccer’s “Arab Spring”?
The line may well earn a spot aside infamous expressions of denial like Richard Nixon’s “I am not a crook”, Bill Clinton’s “I did not have sexual relations with that woman”, and MLB star Roger Clemmons’ suggestion a fellow pitcher “misremembers” their discussions about The Rocket’s use of banned steroids. Like other …
What Kandahar’s New Police Chief Says About Afghanistan’s Sorry State of Affairs
To get an idea of just how badly things are going in Afghanistan, take a look at the latest “good” news coming out of the prominent southern city (and Taliban strong hold, and heroin trafficking center) of Kandahar: the appointment of a new police chief, Brig. Gen. Abdul Razik, to replace the earlier one who was killed in a suicide …
Burma’s Suu Kyi Announces High Stakes Political Tour
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Pro-democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi confirmed Monday that she’s planning a visit to Burma’s provinces this summer. “I hope to be able to travel out of Rangoon in the month of June, as soon as I have got rid of all the work that has piled up,” she said in a video …
Can Zuma Pull Off a Surprise in Libya?
South African President Jacob Zuma flies into Tripoli Monday to try to forge peace between Libyan leader Mouamar Gaddafi and the country’s rebels. Top of the agenda, according to Agence France-Presse: persuading Gaddafi to go. Zuma’s initiative, conducted on behalf of the African Union (AU), has met widespread skepticism, particularly …
Bring Your Family: The Secrets of a Hizballah Arms Smuggler
The illicit arms business is booming in Lebanon today, as my colleague Nicholas Blanford pointed out in a story a few days ago.
And while Hezbollah arms dealer Abu Jihad claims that he doesn’t sell weapons to the Syrian opposition, since it would be akin to arming his enemies, he does allow that many Syrians are stocking up for …