Greater Middle East
Next: Turkish spring?
Istanbul police raided a protest camp in Taksim Gezi Park, slated to be bulldozed for a new shopping mall. Demonstrations continue, and have spread to Ankara.
North Africa
Niger mine attack launched from Libya: France
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said in Niger that the attackers who carried out double suicide bombings on a military camp and uranium mine likely came from Libya.
Palestine
Alice Walker: off her rocker
Until Alice Walker repudaites David Icke's fascistic conspiranoia, she isn't doing the Palestinians any favors by speaking on their behalf.
Greater Middle East
‘Sunni cleansing’ in Syria?
Turkey sees in the battle for Qusayr a strategy to create an Alawite mini-state within Syria, purged of Sunni Muslims, to which the ruling elite can withdraw for a last stand.
Europe
The London attack: context vs. apologia —again
Reactions to the jihadist slaying of a British solider in London are polarized along predictable lines—emphasizing either the context of imperial wars or the threat of political Islam.
Whither Iran’s democratic opposition?
A protester for women’s equality in Tehran. As we approach the June 2013 Iranian presidential election, the real frontrunners of the 2009 election, as well as many young activists, remain in prison. But several defining issues continue to fuel the grassroots… Read moreWhither Iran’s democratic opposition?
North Africa
Mali to resume talks with Tuareg rebels
Mali’s government and the MNLA, at odds over whether army troops will be allowed into the rebels’ northern stronghold for upcoming elections, will resume talks in Burkina Faso.
Palestine
Israeli settlers use chemicals to destroy olive trees
A group of Israeli settlers destroyed over 100 olive trees in a Nablus village after spraying them with toxic chemicals, a Palestinian Authority official said.
The Andes
Bogotá, FARC reach deal on land reform
Negotiators from Colombia's government and the FARC rebels signed an agreement on agrarian reform, calling for redistribution of illegally held or underused lands.
South Asia
India: para chief among dead in Naxal ambush
A controversial paramilitary leader was among 28 killed in a Naxalite ambush on a convoy accompanying politicians from a rally in India’s Chhattisgarh state.
Violence and impunity in Xalapa
On April 28, 2012, journalist Regina Martínez was found strangled in the bathroom of her home in Xalapa, capital of the Mexican state of Veracruz. Martínez was a renowned journalist with the Mexican weekly magazine Proceso, which for the past… Read moreViolence and impunity in Xalapa
Greater Middle East
Turkey to build wall on Syrian border
Turkey will build a 2.5-kilometer wall along the Cilvegözü post on the border with Syria, near where a twin bomb attack killed 51 and wounded more than 100 earlier this month.