From page 5, below the fold, of the New York Times, Aug. 25: 8 Killed in Raid by U.S. Forces in Afghanistan KABUL — Eight civilians, including a child, were killed in an operation by American forces in eastern Afghanistan… Read moreAfghanistan: US kills more civilians
This report from India’s northeastern Bihar state is analogous to situations we have noted in Colombia. Caught bewteen the government and guerillas, self-governing peasant communities are finding a voice of their own via village-based radio. From the Christian Science Monitor,… Read moreGrassroots radio empowers India’s peasants
From Newsday, Aug. 24: Muslim, Arab and South Asian passengers are being profiled by Homeland Security officers at Kennedy Airport, civil liberties groups said Wednesday, citing a New Jersey family that was detained and interrogated after a flight from Dubai… Read moreEthnic profiling at NY’s JFK airport
From the Indiana Daily Student, Aug. 23: Officers killed in charity ride accident A traffic accident during a charity bicycle ride killed two police officers Tuesday afternoon and injured three others. The charity, Concerns of Police Survivors, exists to help… Read moreWHY WE FIGHT
Don’t dismiss this as a local story, as similar reports are growing around the world. From the New York Times, Aug. 23: NEWPORT, Ore., Aug. 17 — On the north shore of Yaquina Bay rests the rusty fishing fleet of… Read moreMeanwhile, the oceans are dying…
Jennifer Pagonis, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees offered the following comments on the situation in Colombia Aug. 8 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. From the UNHCR website: To mark World Indigenous Day tomorrow, UNHCR in… Read moreColombia: UN sees crisis for indigenous peoples
“With the world’s eyes on Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the deteriorating human rights situation in the country is being forgotten,” writes Robert Tait for the UK’s Guardian, Aug. 23 (emphasis added): Seven years ago, he was the symbol of a brave… Read moreIran: harsh crackdown on dissidents
The trial of Saddam Hussein is once again in the headlines. The first case against him, concerning the 1982 mass arrests and killing of Shi’ites at the town of Dujail, has been concluded. Presiding Judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman charged Saddam with… Read moreSaddam trial tackles Kurdish genocide: grim test for historical memory
The Bush administration has been meeting with quite a few reversals at the hands of the judiciary lately, as we have noted. From CNN, Aug. 21: MIAMI — A federal judge in Miami on Monday dismissed a terror count against… Read moreJudge drops Padilla terror charge, calling it redundant
Citing “lack of evidence,” on Aug. 14 a Haitian criminal tribunal in Port-au-Prince headed by Judge Fritznel Fils-Aime ordered the immediate release of Annette Auguste (“So Ann”), Georges Honore, Yvon Antoine (“Zap-Zap”) and Paul Raymond, prominent supporters of former president… Read moreHaiti: Lavalas activists freed; Constant convicted
According to the Indianist Missionary Council (CIMI), a Catholic church-based group which works in solidarity with Brazil’s indigenous communities, 15 Tupinikim and Guarani indigenous people and seven non-indigenous people have been jailed since Aug. 9 in the city of Aracruz,… Read moreBrazil: land barons set up arrests of indigenous leaders
Simon Romero writes for the New York Times, Aug. 21 (emphasis added): Venezuela, Tired of US Influence, Strengthens Its Relationships in the Middle East CARACAS — Venezuela has long cultivated ties with Middle Eastern governments, finding common ground in trying… Read moreVenezuela-Iran alignment grows
