New York City

WHY WE FIGHT

As we have pointed out over and over, a driver’s license in New York City is literally a license to kill. Meanwhile, police crack down on the solution. From Transportation Nation, Feb. 15: NYPD Issued Almost 50,000 Bicycle Tickets in… Read moreWHY WE FIGHT

Iran

Protests in Tehran; brinkmanship in Strait of Hormuz

Protesters took to the streets of Tehran one year after opposition leaders were put under house arrest for supporting Iran’s last protest wave. An Iranian patrol boat meanwhile had a “close encounter” with a US fleet in the Strait of Hormuz.

North Africa

Libya: Nafusa militias defy NTC; Sufis defy Salafists

The National Transitional Council has lost control of Libya’s west to a new federation of militias that accuses the NTC of trying to “hijack the revolution.” Sufis celebrated the birth of the Prophet in Tripoli despite threats and attacks from Salafists.

Iran

Israel blames Hezbollah, Iran in twin embassy attentats

Benjamin Netanyahu blamed “Iran and its proxy Hezbollah” after a deadly attack on an Israeli diplomat’s wife and attempted bombing in Tbilisi, Georgia— the day after the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Hezbollah’s operations chief.

Palestine

Gaza: new air-strikes as power cuts loom

A 69-year-old Palestinian man was killed in an attack by the Israeli Air Force on tunnels and a weapons depot in Gaza—as managers of the Strip’s only power plant warned of impending blackouts if more fuel is not delivered.

The Andes

Peru: last “historic” Shining Path leader captured

Peru’s President Ollanta Humala flew into a remote jungle military base in the Upper Huallaga Valley to announce the capture of “Comrade Artemio,” the last Shining Path commander dating back to the high noon of the insurgency 20 years ago.

Inner Asia

Tibetan village prevails in mining struggle

Chinese authorities agreed to halt a mining project on Mount Kawagebo, which is sacred to Tibetans, after local villagers, their pleas rebuffed, pushed some $300,000 worth of mining equipment into the Salween River.

Southern Cone

Thirty years later: Falklands flashpoint for more Malvinas mayhem?

As the 30-year anniversary of the 1982 Falklands War approaches, Argentina accuses the UK of sending a nuclear-armed submarine to the islands Buenos Aires claims as the Malvinas. The UN has been called in mediate in a conflict over offshore rights.