Worldcrunch
Behind the rigidity of its political system, the North Korean capital offers evidence of a slow evolution, from construction projects to an emerging underground economy. Will Kim Jong-un accelerate the evolution or nip it in the bud? A close-up look.
Analysis: The Egyptian army is trying to reassert its control as leftist protesters have returned to the streets. The Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, assured by its electoral success, needs to ally with the protesters to show it isn’t only after pow
The largest US military base in Asia is Yongsan, in the South Korean capital. Long considered a plum and relatively safe posting, there is new uncertainty in the face of an untested new leader in North Korea, and growing US interest in containing China&am
Analysis: In the aftermath of his party’s poor showing in parliamentary elections, Vladimir Putin is focused now on his race to return to the Russian presidency. Though he is still strongly positioned, Putin now faces a new dynamic where he can &
Op-Ed: As North Korea bids farewell to its all-powerful leader Kim Jong-il, foreign powers look with uncertainty toward his son and successor Kim Jong-un. Its giant neighbor China could be both model and power broker for Pyongyang, but the West may have o
Op-Ed: Ankara’s is coming down hard against Kurdish opposition forces, including dozens of new arrests of journalists. It is a bad sign for the health of Turkey’s democracy, with the West watching and the Muslim world holding it up as a model in
The French National Assembly’s decision last week to approve a bill criminalizing public denial of the 1915-16 Armenian Genocide in Turkey triggered a stiff rebuke from Ankara. Over the weekend, Turkish hackers took down the French Senate’s website.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie BAHRAIN, BELOW THE SURFACEThough largely ignored by the English-language media, Bahrainis continue to press for revolution. Soldiers were brought in earlier this year from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and other countries in an effort to keep the Sunni Al Khalifa family from overthrow. With […]
Analysis: When a Chinese fisherman was accused of the fatal stabbing of a South Korean coast guard officer public outrage came quickly from both countries. The incident shows the fragility of all the new talk of regional cooperation when ancient mistrust
![Israeli air power on display [nivs]](https://worldcrunch.com/assets/uploads/2025/03/israeli-air-power-on-display-nivs-1568x1175.jpg)
The Sudanese press insists that between Dec. 15 and 20, Israel carried out air raids that destroyed at least two convoys headed across Sudan toward Egypt. This is not the first time in recent years Israel is accused of launching attacks in the African cou
Massive protests, economic worries and Mother Nature made 2011 a particularly turbulent year. Latin America was hardly exempt. Hugo Chávez came down with cancer. Dilma Rousseff took on government corruption. And in Mexico, a bloody drug war killed thousan
Essay: A Beijing-based Taiwanese writer picks apart the twisted attempts by mainlanders to make sense out of Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election.
Analysis: After Vladimir Putin’s ruling party lost major ground in Russia’s recent parliamentary elections, opposition parties have done little to take advantage of the momentum. Why? They’re “spooked” by their own success.
Essay: Politicians used to work behind closed doors, now their days are spent moving from one public appearance to the next. A glance at how leadership fashion sense matters more and more, from country to country, from East to West.
Essay: Soldiers ripping off the shirt and veil of a female demonstrator, and dragging her across Tahrir Square by her hair has set off unprecedented outrage. But there is a deep paradox in the reaction, even in the post-Revolution Arab world — and even f
Essay: For citizens of France and the world, there is much to be grateful for — and much to worry about. Looking back at what good has and hasn’t come from past Christmas wishes, this French writer has a special request for Santa that can never
A presidential committee studying Mikhail Khodorkovsy’s second conviction found no evidence of a crime by the onetime billionaire oil baron and Vladimir Putin opponent. With a touch of absurdism, experts ask if someone can be convicted for someth
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie DISPATCH, BAGHDADThe ruling political coalition in Kurdistan, the Kurdistan Alliance, said on Tuesday that it would not order the arrest of wanted Vice President Tareq al-Hashimi, accused of being part of an assassination plot targeting Iraq’s Shiite prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki. “The investigation of […]
The Soviet Union once held vast political and economic influence in Africa. Today, Russians see major opportunities there, but some fear that China may have already won the race to conquer the continent’s vast natural resources and economic poten
Christian Wulff entered the office of the German presidency last year with his glamorous second wife seen as a major new asset. But a rolling series of allegations of financial and ethical improprieties — including a luxurious new house in her hometown –
Analysis: The death of North Korea’s Kim Jong-Il opens major questions for his nation and the region. During his 16 years in power, the supreme leader — pushed by President Bush’s ‘axis of evil’ showdown – achieved nuc
Analysis: As crackdowns continue against pro-democracy protesters, a closer look at recent events shows that Egypt’s military powers and other key players are taking their cues from the old Pakistan model rather than the new Turkish one.
Analysis: Changes are afoot in Latin America, where the influence of Venezuela’s cancer-stricken president, Hugo Chavez, is waning. President Obama, meanwhile, is looking to forge new ties – in both Latin America and Asia – via the Trans-Pacific Partnersh
Op-Ed: The violence of Jewish settlers on the West Bank is no longer only aimed at Palestinians. Some settlers are attacking soldiers who are there for their protection. In the end, though, Jerusalem’s leadership has no one to blame but themselves.
The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) looks set to finish first following Thursday’s second round election for the People’s Assembly. Early results have the Nour Party in second place in most of the country’s governorates.
Macedonia has become a new transit country for clandestine Afghan and Pakistani immigrants who gather near the Serbian border as they try to find their way into the European Union. Macedonian police turn a blind eye, and humanitarian groups aren’
A Belgian M.P. in the European Parliament is so livid over David Cameron’s E.U. treaty veto that he is refusing even to speak the English language. Another accused the British Prime minister Tuesday of selling out to London bankers.
After two Senegalese men were slain in a central Florence market by a local man inspired by racist hatred, immigrants turned out in the Tuscan city to demand justice and insist that the murder was the fruit of years of official tolerance of xenophobic att
Exclusive: Pushed by human rights groups, the European Union is set to ban the sale to the United States of one of the main active substances needed for lethal injections. Sodium thiopental is already in short supply, and executions are now set to be furt
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie TUNISIA TURNS PAGENewly sworn-in Tunisian President Monsef al-Marzouki said his primary task is “building the republic into a pluralistic democracy and tolerant society.” The challenges ahead are due largely to the “enormous devastation left by dictatorship,” with Marzouki pledging to strive for the “development […]
Before Afghanistan descended into civil war, a French geologist collected massive data on the country’s mining resources. His findings, recently rediscovered, could unlock huge wealth in the troubled nation. But look who’s already busy exploiting it…
Russian billionaire and New Jersey Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov has thrown his hat in the ring for next spring’s presidential election. Is it the most serious challenge to Vladimir Putin’s cake walk back to the Kremlin or a bit of Russia
Op-Ed: Britain’s Tories are elated over David Cameron’s recent E.U. Summit veto. On closer examination, however, the prime minister’s move may not be as “heroic” as they and the country’s conservative newspapers insist – especially if it causes a rupture
Michele Zagaria’s arrest was hailed by Italian law enforcement as a key victory in the war against the Camorra crime syndicate in and around the southern city of Naples. But in the small town where Zagaria had been sheltered, his arrest means les
Analysis: Long shut out from ruling, Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood achieved success in parliamentary elections that exceeded even their own expectations. But they must now navigate between potential extremism of Salafists and liberal forces’
Elio Di Rupo’s arrival as Prime Minister ends more than 500 days of political gridlock in Belgium, which saw threats of the country splitting in two. But Di Rupo, the last of seven children of poor Italian immigrants, has his own dramatic story to tell.
Filmmaker Stanislav Govorukhin, who has also served for six years in Parliament, has been plucked to lead Putin’s campaign to return to the Russian presidency. It may be an attempt by Putin to shine a tarnished image. But who will really be pulli
Tibetan refugees continue to brave harrowing journeys across the Himalayas to Nepal and beyond. Back home Chinese repression has triggered a new wave of self-immolations. But in Nepal too, “pressure from China is visible,” says one Tibetan refugee.
Following his United Russia’s narrow parliamentary victory, Putin responds to allegations of voter fraud, which have led to demonstrations and hundreds of arrests. Amongst party loyalists, the Russian leader stands his ground with a mix of imperi
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie SYRIA: DEFINE DISOBEDIENCEThe Syrian New Media group has posted a primer to explain to Syrians the meaning of the term “civil disobedience.” The first of multiple installments, the two-and-a-half minute clip explains that any country is comprised of a regime, the people and the […]