When Adm. William Fallon was named to replace Gen. John Abizaid as chief of Central Command in January, we recognized it as part of a tilt to the “pragmatists” and away from the hubristic neocons in Washington. Now comes word… Read moreCentCom chief blocking Iran attack?
A new blue-and-green-throated hummingbird species, dubbed the gorgeted puffleg, has been discovered in a threatened cloud forest of southwest Colombia. The name comes from the iridescent emerald green and electric blue patch on the throat—or gorge—of the males, and from… Read moreColombia: coca economy threatens new species
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer threw his support behind a proposal to curtail the president’s recently expanded powers to take charge of the National Guard in domestic crises. “Given the Guard’s growing importance in local emergencies, we are concerned about… Read moreSpitzer: No to National Guard “federalization”
The “Islamic State of Iraq,” having claimed responsibility for an ambush on a US patrol south of Baghdad May 12, has warned the US military to stop searching for three soldiers missing after the incident, if they want them to… Read moreIraq: civil war in the insurgency
Excerpts from an April 22 editorial in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: A community debate over religious freedom surfaced in Western Pennsylvania last week when Dutch feminist author Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali refugee who has lived under the threat of death… Read moreAyaan Hirsi Ali faces death threats —in Pennsylvania
The First Summit of Latin Americans Migrant Communities concluded May 14 with a “Declaration of Morelia,” named for the city where the meeting was held in Michoacan, Mexico. The declaration called for modifying national and international laws on immigration, calling… Read moreMexico: migrants summit demands greater rights
Gunmen fatally shot a high-ranking Mexican intelligence official as he drove to work at the federal Prosecutor General’s office in Mexico City May 14. Jose Nemesio Lugo, who investigated drug trafficking and illegal migration, was shot several times. The assailants… Read moreMexico: hitmen take out federal police, army jefes
On May 14 at 7 AM, Francisco Puerta, a leader of the Colombian “peace community” of San José de Apartadó, was assassinated by paramilitaries outside the bus terminal in the town of Apartadó, the municipal seat. Two para gunmen approached… Read moreColombia: another killing at “peace community”
Street fighting in Karachi, Pakistan’s biggest city, left at least 39 dead over the weekend, as competing rallies timed for a visit by suspended chief justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry exploded into violence. Fighting spread to neighborhoods dominated by rival ethnic… Read morePakistan: death toll rises in political violence
Gamaliel López Candanosa and Gerardo Paredes Pérez, two journalists with Mexico’s national network TV Azteca in Nuevo León, have been “disapeared” for the last four days, the network says in a May 14 statement. “The atmosphere of violence generated in… Read moreMexico: more journalists “disappeared”
Downtown San Salvador was rocked by clashes between police and protesters May 12 after authorities tried to clear the stalls of street merchants who were peddling pirate CDs and other contraband. The elite riot squad, the Unit for the Maintenance… Read moreProtests in El Salvador: “acts of terrorism”?
Jo Tuckman in Mexico City writes for The Guardian, May 12: Man in the mask returns to change world with new coalition and his own sexy novel A bead of sweat is visible through the eyehole of his famous black… Read moreSubcommander Marcos writes erotica, predicts social upheaval
