Worldcrunch
As Muammar Gaddafi’s 42-year reign comes to an end, Libya’s rebel forces must now focus on establishing an orderly transition in a nation with built-in political, historical and tribal fault lines.
Seventeen winners of the Nobel Prize for economics are gathered this week on Lindau, an island in Germany’s Lake Constance. Die Welt asked the laureates for their take on the ongoing debt crisis and the splintering of the euro zone. The bad news is they a
A debate over child custody laws is one example that things could be changing for Egyptian women following the country’s April revolution. Women are also being kept out of the new government, where Islamist parties now have far more influence than in the
After the anti-Pope protests in Madrid, politicians and church officials alike have rushed to assure His Holiness that the demonstrators were little more than social parasites and vandals. That could prove a dangerous move, because the anger of Spain’s yo
China’s media and general public are abuzz about the country’s first aircraft carrier, a converted Soviet-built behemoth that set off earlier this month on its maiden voyage. But they’re missing some key information, like how much it cost, and what it’s e
With its handling of an ongoing spill in the North Sea, it would seem oil multinational Shell has not absorbed the lesson of BP’s 2010 catastrophe. Small compared to last year’s Gulf of Mexico spill, the Shell leak is nevertheless the worst for the North
Security problems in Somalia have kept Western aid workers at arm’s length. Famine relief efforts are instead being coordinated by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which works with humanitarian groups from a host of Muslim countries.
Analysis: In a recent nationally-broadcast interview, President Medvedev reminisced about Russia’s 2009 war with Georgia. His recollections have Russian pundits wondering if Medvedev is now preparing for a new fight – on the political front.
Russia has just reached a deal that gives Belarus discounted natural gas in exchange for control of the satellite country’s Beltransgaz utility. Will the agreement encourage Ukraine to the same?
Chile’s Colonia Dignidad is infamous as a place where children were raped and opponents of the Pinochet regime tortured. The sect’s founder, serial child abuser and ex-Nazi doctor Paul Schäfer, died last year. But his right hand man, Hartmut Hopp, is on t
ISTANBUL – Earlier this month, a federation of Balkan and Greek Turkic organizations held a huge Iftar dinner to end the Ramadan daily fast. Held at the Topkapi-1453 public grounds, the dinner included notables from the art, business and political worlds. Many of the guests were Turkish citizens, but with family roots in the Balkan […]
Up close as the Russian Prime Minister takes an archaeology tour, by land and by sea — and resurfaces with some loot. A surreal snapshot of the spectacle of contemporary Russian politics.
Canada is looking for ways to exert its authority in the Great North, as global warming invites competition for the region’s valuable resources. Of particular concern is Russia, which is seeking permission from the UN to extend its Arctic borders.
Some Palestinians take pride in knowing the ongoing protests in Israel were inspired by revolts in the Arab World. But others fear the demonstrations could justify more Israeli settlements – or even a violent crackdown — in Palestinian territory.
Op-Ed: deep uncertainty in markets around the world doesn’t change two basic structural facts that will stave off recession: credit is available, and emerging countries are joining the world economy’s top ranks.
Russia has drawn up a list of Americans who will be banned from entering Russia. The move comes as a response to Washington’s blacklisting of Russian officials linked to suspected human rights violations.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا TARGET: MINARETA Syrian television station showed footage of the Othman Mosque in the besieged eastern city of Deir a-Zor, now reportedly occupied and subdued by the Syrian military. The top of the minaret has been blown off as gunfire crackles and artillery booms in the background. This […]
Lebanon’s recent history has long been inextricably linked to its northern neighbor. In the face of Damascus’ crackdown on a popular uprising, the current pro-Hezbollah government has been loathed to criticize the Syrian regime. But the
A court in Kiev has rejected a request to free opposition leader Yulia Timoshenko from detention during a trial of abuse of office. Russia has surprised many by siding with the former Prime Minister.
Hana Gaddafi supposedly died 25 years ago during an American bomb attack. Die Welt has turned up evidence that the Libyan leader’s daughter is alive and well, as doubts swirl around other reported Gaddafi family deaths.
Recent race riots and far-right pre-election rhetoric have brought the issue of xenophobia back into the national spotlight in Russia. Prime Minister Putin is proposing a new government body to help keep ethnic tensions at bay, though some activists are s
Millions of people in Somalia are suffering from hunger – not least because militant al-Shabaab Islamists are refusing to let aid organizations in with food supplies. Meanwhile, the group with ties to al-Qaeda is seeking converts to their cause with a biz
A R A B I C A ارابيكا PERSUASIVE BY DESIGN*The Syrian Revolution Facebook group has a new logo, with a face split down the middle; half civilian and half clad in military gear. “We will not serve in an army that is killing us,” the banner reads at the top. The design reflects the […]
Authorities say one stretch of the picturesque region of Puglia is infested with local mob bosses who extort money from beach resort owners and use the coastline for drug trafficking. Locals are scared silent.
Sri Lanka’s government likes to proclaim that the country has put its bloody civil war behind it. But a visit to the Tamil stronghold reveals open scars everywhere.
Vladimir Putin went to an annual summer camp organized by the pro-Putin youth group Nashi, in what was widely seen as an early stop on his election campaign to retake the Russian presidency.
A new bill would give Bolivian authorities permission to listen in on electronic communications in times of emergency. Critics call it a power play against President Evo Morales’ media opponents.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا PARTY LINE, TAKE ONEHezbollah-backed Al-Manar broadcaster reports on Prime Minister Najib Mikati, an ally of Hezbollah, defending his stance that Lebanon should not judge events in Syria. “This position is consistent with the Lebanese position of not interfering in the affairs of other countries,” Mikati told reporters. […]
“Süddeutsche Zeitung” sources reveal an operation last spring where Turkey intercepted an Iranian arms delivery, in bald violation of UN sanctions. The weapons were thought to be headed for Syrian-based members of the Lebanon Shiite grou
The husband and children of a Jordanian woman can never become a citizen, and enjoys no basic rights in the country. Many of those shut out are Palestinian, which makes the law even more difficult to undo.
The Bay of Gibraltar has a serious pollution problem. Efforts to clean up the mess, however, have so far been hindered by historic animosities between British and Spanish authorities, which have conflicting claims over the bay.
Op-Ed: Turkey’s top military brass resigned en masse, setting off speculation of why, and what will happen next. But the origins of the move can be traced to the military’s many attempts to discredit the ruling party of Prime Minister Erdogan.
Recent revelations in the Japanese press suggest that TEPCO and other Japanese nuclear energy firms contribute heavily to the opposition Liberal Democratic Party. The power companies may have bedfellows in the governing Democratic Party of Japan as well.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا RAMADAN’S TOLL *As Ramadan begins, the Syrian government’s campaign to stamp out protests is intensifying, with more than 140 civilians reported dead in the past 48 hours. Meanwhile, the scale of protests is also intensifying as the military shifts its focus back to the central Syrian city […]
Op-Ed: In the halls of power in the United States, some seem to think the old regime is still in power. But big things have changed in Egypt, says the writer, including Cairo’s bowing to Washington’s every whim. A viewpoint on the eve of the Mubarak trial
Survivors say the boat stranded off the Italian island of Lampedusa had absolutely no room on deck. Bodies of victims were found in the hold below, and showed signs of struggle.
Efforts by the government to reorganize the island’s economy have sparked renewed opposition demands for serious democratic reforms. Willing for now to overlook their own differences, dissidents have joined forces under a new declaration.
NATO has pushed Afghanistan to promote women in all sectors of public life. Quraishi, one of only three top-ranking police officers, is charged with pushing gender equality, with limited success. But the real threat is the spectre of a return to power of
While a housing crisis grips the rest of Israel, the 22,000 inhabitants of this East Jerusalem settlement enjoy affordable rents. The political price for the controversial project is not so easy to calculate.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا A NEW ARMY*Syrian Colonel Riyadh al-Aasad announced in a video posted on YouTube the formation of the “Free Syrian Army.” Sitting with a uniform brandished with two stars on each epaulet, al-Aasad read a statement while surrounded by six uniformed soldiers. “The army’s job is to protect […]