The Andes

Colombia to get truth commission

In the ongoing peace talks in Havana, Colombia's government and the FARC rebels agreed to a truth commission to addresses the deaths of thousands in five decades of conflict.

Iraq

Iraqi troops repel ISIS assault on Mosul

The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched an assault on Samarra in central Iraq and then attempted to seize the northern city of Mosul, pointing to a renewed insurgency.

The Amazon

Peru: no justice five years after Bagua massacre

On the fifth anniversary of the Bagua massacre, Amnesty International called on Peru's authorities to ensure that all suspected of criminal responsibility are brought to justice.

Greater Middle East

Syria war fuels Lebanon hashish boom?

Afraid of war spilling across the border from neighboring Syria, Lebanon's government has halted cannabis eradication in the Bekaa Valley, allowing a dope-for-guns pipeline to flourish.

East Asia

Tiananmen Square: futility of revisionism

The hyper-security in Tiananmen Square on the 25th anniversary of the 1989 massacre speaks to well-grounded fear of a social explosion on the part of China's rulers.

Planet Watch

Obama climate plan: too little, too late

The EPA's Clean Power Plan, bashed by the GOP and industry as draconian, would cut carbon emissions by a grossly insufficient 7% by 2030—and of course through market mechanisms.

The Andes

Colombia: FARC renounce narco-profits

Colombia's government and the FARC guerillas announced an agreement, entitled "Solution to the Problem of Illicit Drugs," in which they pledge to work together agianst the narco trade.

Greater Middle East

ISIS behind Brussels Jewish Museum killings?

News that a suspect in the Brussels Jewish museum killings fought in Syria with the insurgent group ISIS comes as European police escalate their crackdown on Syria "returnees."