The Caribbean
Violence in Haiti —from police and “peacekeepers”
As the media sensationalize reports of looting and violence in Port-au-Prince, police and UN peacekeepers have opened fire on hungry crowds demanding food.
Author: CounterVortex
Watching the Shadows
Canada: high court rules government not required to seek Khadr repatriation
Canada’s Supreme Court ruled that the treatment of Canadian Gitmo detainee Omar Khadr violated his rights, but the government does not have to press for his return to Canada.
Planet Watch
Obama orders government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2020
President Barack Obama ordered the federal government to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 28% by 2020, pursuant to Executive Order 13514, signed in October.
South Asia
Kashmir: new terror blast follows border skirmish
Eight were injured in a bomb blast in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir a day after Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged heavy fire over the disputed line.
Iran
Iran executes two for post-election violence, nine others sentenced to death
Two Iranians were executed and nine others sentenced to death for their roles in last summer’s post-election protests. The two executed men were convicted of “enmity against God.”
Watching the Shadows
Washington war crimes ambassador says US unlikely to join ICC
US Ambassador for War Crimes Issues Stephen Rapp said that no US president is likely to present the Rome Statute to the US Senate for ratification in the “foreseeable future.”
New York City
NYC: Bloomberg asks feds to consider moving 9-11 trials
Mayor Bloomberg cited costs and potential disruptions in urging the federal government not to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other accused 9-11 conspirators in New York City.
Greater Middle East
Yemen to build rehabilitation center for Guantánamo Bay detainees
A Sana’a government official said that Yemen will build a rehabilitation center for transfered Guantánamo Bay detainees. The US has supposedly pledged $11 million for the project.
Watching the Shadows
US transfers Uzbek Gitmo detainee to Switzerland
The US Department of Justice announced that an Uzbek Guantánamo Bay detainee has been transferred to Switzerland. The detainee’s identity will not be disclosed.
South Asia
Four explosions rock Sri Lanka’s Jaffna peninsula on election eve
Four explosions rocked Sri Lanka’s Jaffna peninsula in the wee hours of the day slated for the first national election since the government declared victory over the Tamil Tigers.
Iraq
Iraq: Interior Ministry targeted in car bombing
A suicide bomber detonated a car bomb outside of the Forsenics Lab of the Iraqi Ministry of Interior’s Criminal Investigation Department, killing 21 people and injuring 80.
The Caribbean
Haiti: anger rises as food aid mired in bureaucracy
PORT-AU-PRINCE — More than 100 people were pressed against the iron gates of the mayor’s office in the Port-au-Prince suburb of Petionville. “When will we get that food?” voices called out to the mayor, Claire Lydia Parent, who stood behind… Read moreHaiti: anger rises as food aid mired in bureaucracy