Millions are braced for the onslaught of Hurricane Irene as it rakes across the U.S.’s eastern seaboard. For the tens of thousands forced to flee the storm’s path, its name will only be remembered as the source of panic and destruction, an unwelcome conclusion to the summer months. Fair enough. As TIME’s Kayla Webley explained during …
Mourning Monterrey: Drug Mafias Darken Mexico’s “Lighthouse”
It’s getting harder and harder to remember the Monterrey, Mexico, I first visited in 1990. Not because I’m 21 years older, but because the city now seems frighteningly darker. Monterrey in those days, on the eve of NAFTA, wasn’t just Mexico’s new business capital. It was the country’s window to the developed world – a …
Q&A with Mahmud Nacua, Libyan Charge d’Affairs in London
Mahmud Nacua, 74, never expected to be an ambassador. Nor did he ever expect to step foot in Libya’s embassy in London, let alone run it. But that’s exactly where the former journalist for Arabic language papers Asharq Al-awsat and Alhayat, who spent two years in prison in Libya for his writings in the 1970s, finds himself – …
De-escalation Easier Said than Done in Gaza, As Each Side Picks Its Spots
It’s a peculiar cease-fire that sees 20 missiles and mortars launched in a single night, but that’s the kind of cease-fire in effect in the Gaza Strip, despite the professed efforts of the two major players, Israel and Hamas, to draw down hostilities. Neither side may want to see the conflict spiral into full-on battle, with Israeli …
Channelling Buffet, French Rich Demand Higher Taxes
It’s a small, real-time world, and it’s now evident no niche is too elite or removed from it to withstand a fad that has gone viral. Take France’s rich folk, who have turned billionaire businessman Warren Buffet into the hottest trend-setter among the globe’s super-wealthy by echoing his attention-grabbing New York Times …
With Gaddafi (Nearly) Gone Terrorism Victims Seek Justice, Or Compensation
Maria del Carmen Diaz was just 15 years old when terrorists in Tel Aviv’s Lod airport lobbed grenades at her Puerto Rican tour group on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, killing her aunt and severely wounding her. Six surgeries and 39 years of intense therapy later, she still gets nervous talking about the attack. “I couldn’t …
The Bloody History of London’s Infamous Libyan Embassy
Senussi el-Bijou and Muftah Abdelsamad spent the last 34 years protesting outside the Libyan embassy in London. Today, they can come and go as they please, honored guests of the building’s new management: the National Transitional Council. “It is thanks to these men, our elders, that we are here,” says Emad Elgaziwe, one of …
French Austerity Measures Also Cut Touted Sarkozy Reforms
As polls have persistently shown both leading candidates in France’s Socialist Party presidential primary beating conservative incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy in mock elections over the months, Elysée advisers have confidently predicted voters will again swing behind their champion en masse once he starts campaigning on his bilan—or, …
The Dismissed DSK Case: Everyone’s A Loser
After a certain point, it was probably fated to be so. But less than 24 hours after a New York judge dismissed the criminal case against former International Monetary fund chief for sexual assault, it’s clear the outcome of the drama that mesmerized much of the world leaves everyone a loser. In the end, virtually everybody will …
Despite Rebel Surge, Gaddafi’s Vindictive Resolve Endures
No one thought Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his hard-core supporters would go away easily, and more than 48 hours after rebel forces stormed the capital of Tripoli, that determination to dig in was still evident. But if few observers believe Gaddafi’s renewed efforts to prove his regime remains a force to reckon with can turn …
China’s Security Chief Goes on Tour—How Is Asia Reacting?
Over the past week, as I’ve traveled across Asia, I’ve discovered an unlikely partner in my continental peregrinations: China’s security chief Zhou Yongkang. The senior Chinese envoy’s travels have taken him to Nepal, Laos, Cambodia and Tajikistan. The final stop is Mongolia, where Zhou is expected to head on Tuesday.
In …
Fighting Gaddafi: How NATO and the Rebels Dovetailed Toward Tripoli
The first time the NATO allies had an inkling that Muammar Gaddafi’s regime might be on its last legs was two weeks ago when Libyan rebel forces opened up a third front in the western half of Libya. Eastern Libya, of course, had the most publicized front, one that the …
Abbas Postpones Palestinian Local Elections Yet Again
Not for the first time, the Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is postponing local elections in the West Bank. He made the announcement on Monday by decree — the form that laws have taken on the West Bank since the 2007 split with Hamas left the Palestinian legislature unable to meet, many its members marooned …