Worldcrunch
SRINAGAR – An eagle boldly splits the air, to and fro, between disputed territories. On the ground, an electrified fence hurtles down the jagged flank of the mountain, bumps into the river, then resumes its straight race up heights. In the Uri district, in Silikot, the fence sharply cuts an odd borderline: dividing the Muslim […]
On April 15th, India announced that an “intrusion” of around 50 Chinese military personnel had crossed onto the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, and set up a tent camp. The Indian military immediately responded with tit for tat camp of tents nearby. Thus started the so-called “Tents Confrontation” standoff. The […]
GAZA – At first sight, it is just a wasteland. Sand – blown in from a nearby beach – covers the scattered bushes. Here and there, ruins, where sometimes children play, barefoot. Welcome to what used to be the spectacular Anthedon Harbor, one of the crossroads of antique civilizations, which for 2000 years was used […]
TOKYO – While he was Prime Minister of Japan from September 2009 to June 2010, Yukio Hatoyama did not demonstrate a particularly acute political vision. But when he visited Beijing recently, he showed common sense shared by many Japanese but seldom seen in their leaders – he admitted that there was a “territorial disagreement” between […]
-Editorial- PARIS – The problem with making statements when you are the President is that you have to follow through. Before the French intervention in Mali, President François Hollande said on Jan. 11 that in Mali, France had “no other purpose than to fight terrorism.” On Jan. 15, he revised his motives: now, on top […]
ALEPPO – As a man cleans his Kalashnikov, another next to him is peeling garlic for supper. At his feet, the assigned cook has left his pistol and his knitting, with the needles stuck inside – it is a striped scarf with the colors of the rebellion. A small fire is lighting up the walls […]
BBC NEWS (UK), AL JAZEERA (Qatar) Worldcrunch ISLAMABAD – Senior Pakistani militant leader Mullah Nazir has been killed by a US drone strike, Pakistani security officials say. The drone attack killed at least least five fighters including the militant Wednesday night in the northwest tribal district of South Waziristan, according to security officials, reports BBC […]
BUKAVU – During the occupation of the Congolese city of Goma by the M23 rebels last month, the nearby border with Rwanda remained open, and daily exchanges between the two central African neighbors continued as usual. “We have no problem with the Rwandans as people. They are our brothers, our neighbors,” explains a Congolese teacher […]
NBC NEWS (USA) Worldcrunch ISTANBUL – NBC News’ chief correspondent Richard Engel and members of his production team were freed from captors in Syria after a firefight at a checkpoint on Monday, NBC News said early Tuesday. “After being kidnapped and held for five days inside Syria by an unknown group, NBC News Chief Foreign […]
GOMA – Following the withdrawal of the M23 rebel troops that for 12 days occupied the eastern city of Goma, locals remain cautious and fearful, despite reassurances from government authorities. Meanwhile, those who had supported the M23 are keeping a low profile. The M23 rebels took control of Goma, the capital of the North Kivu […]
ABC NEWS, CNN (USA), BBC NEWS (UK), Worldcrunch WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama has recognized the leading Syrian opposition coalition as the legitimate representative of the country’s people. “We’ve made a decision that the Syrian Opposition Coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population that we consider them […]
AL JAZEERA (Qatar), BBC NEWS (UK), CNN (USA) Worldcrunch GAZA CITY – Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal set foot in Gaza on Friday, ending 45 years of exile from the Palestinian Territories, reports Al Jazeera. After passing across the Egyptian border at Rafah, Meshaal knelt on the ground to offer a prayer of thanks and was […]
-OP-ED- PARIS – Israel and Palestine, two states living side by side in fair and sustainable peace. This is, for any genuinely pro-democracy advocate – be they Jewish or Arab – the deeper meaning and the real political impact of the vote that took place Thursday at the United Nations General Assembly. Yet this upgrade […]
TOKYO – The conflict between Japan and China over the sovereignty of the inhabited Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu in Chinese) is symptomatic of Tokyo’s diplomatic weakness. In its duel with Beijing, Japan appears isolated in its claim and abandoned by its allies. The United States announced that the islands were covered by the U.S.-Japan security treaty, […]
MASISI – Every day at 6 a.m., a parking lot near a roundabout in this northeastern Congo city fills with minibuses, motorbikes and heavy cargo trucks. The atalakus (ticket sellers) shout out names of destinations: “Masisi! Nyabiondo!” Passengers board with their packages: manufactured goods, drinks, salted fish…Everyone is pushing each another, trying to get the […]
CHIRANG – “Around 50 of them came and opened fire on our village.” Rebayal Ali still seems stunned, his eyes glazed over. His vest clings to his skinny torso because of the humidity, as the Muslim farmer tells Le Monde of his night of terror. It was July 23 in his village in Assam, a […]
SANA, AL IKHBARIYA (Syria), BBC (UK), AP (USA) Worldcrunch A bomb attached to a fuel truck shook the Syrian capital Damascus, injuring three people, Syrian state-television reports Wednesday morning. The bomb exploded in the car park of the Dama Rose Hotel, which is popular among UN observers — however, none of the injured parties is […]