South Asia
India: Naxalite hand in opium trade?
Authorities in India say that the Naxalite guerillas, following a series of reversals, have taken refuge in the northeast, where they are trading opium for guns from Burma.
Southeast Asia
Burma: Kachin rebels agree to peace talks
With fighting escalating after a 17-year ceasefire broke down last year, Burma’s Kachin Independence Army (KIA) has agreed to talks with the government.
Afghanistan
US blacklists Afghan airline for opium trafficking
One of Afghanistan’s top airlines has been officially blacklisted by US authorities for allegedly trafficking opium on civilian flights. The Kabul regime is demanding evidence.
Greater Middle East
Egypt: Ikhwan Holocaust denial abets Zionists
Fathi Shihab-Eddim, a senior aide to Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, spews Holocaust-denying malarky—seemingly oblivious to how he legitimizes Zionist political logic.
Greater Middle East
Israeli air-strikes on Syria-Lebanon border
Israeli warplanes carried out an air-strike on Syrian territory, allegedly targeting an arms convoy bound for Hezbollah. Damascus claims a research facility was the real target.
North Africa
US drone base for Niger: report
The US military is preparing to establish a drone base in Niger along the eastern border of Mali, where French forces are currently waging a campaign against jihadist rebels.
North Africa
Mali: fleeing jihadists burn Islamic manuscripts
Jihadist forces upon fleeing Timbuktu for the desert torched the Ahmed Baba Institute—a library housing a priceless collection of centuries-old Islamic manuscripts.
Southern Cone
Brazil: landless leader assassinated
Cícero Guedes dos Santos, a leader of the Landless Workers Movement (MST) who led an occupation of unused property in Rio de Janeiro state, was shot dead by unknown gunmen.
Central America
Panama Canal expansion fuels inter-oceanic race
With Chinese investment, Nicaragua is moving ahead with a new inter-oceanic canal plan—in a race with Panama, which is expanding its own canal for a new era of global trade.
Mexico
Mexico: campesinos bear arms against narcos
Cmpesinos in Mexico’s southern Guerrero state have taken up arms to defend themselves from drug-trafficking gangs that terrorize residents and demand protection payments.
The Andes
Colombia: prosecutor’s transfer sparks outcry
Jurists in Medellín are protesting the decision by Colombia's prosecutor to transfer attorney Patricia Hernández, who has spent years working against local paramilitaries.
The Andes
Colombia: FARC assassinate indigenous leader
A Nasa indigenous leader was assassinated in an ambush by FARC guerillas at the village of Jámbalo, Cauca department, just as the rebels announced an end to their ceasefire.