Haiti’s Prime Mnister Garry Conille submitted a letter of resignation as rumors grew of tension between him and President Michel Martelly; the US embassy appeared unhappy with the development.
About 1,000 indigenous people and campesinos in Mexico's Chiapas state marched to protest high rates for electricity, to oppose the construction of more dams in the region, and to demand that electric utilities not be privatized.
The Honduran government signed an accord with two campesino organizations to finance the purchase of land for campesino cooperatives in an area where land disputes have left more than 50 dead in two years.
A coalition of fishing people, unionists, cab drivers and students blocked roads and bridges for 13 days to demand more resources for Chile’s isolated southern Aysén region.
Unionists are pointing to lax standards since privatization of Argentina’s extensive state-owned rail system as lying behind the horrific accident onf a Buenos Aires commuter line that killed 51 passengers and injured more than 700.
Syria held a referendum on a new constitution, with much of the international community dismissing it as a “sham.” The vote comes just one day after 89 people were reportedly killed in Homs, the center of the opposition.
The high-tech industry hopes the new rare earth refinery in Malaysia’s Pahang state will break China’s “stranglehold” on the essential precious metals. But local residents concerned about radioactive contamination have launched a protest campaign.
Some 60,000 Azeris gathered in Baku to mark the 20th anniversary of the Khojaly massacre in the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian forces that control the enclave have opened it to copper, lead and barite exploration.
Just as the presidential horserace starts to gain velocity, so do oil prices. Are the Koch brothers manipulating prices to undermine Obama in November? Their recent dabblings in “contango” oil market speculations indicate this may be the case…
With Khader Adnan still recovering after his 66-day hunger strike against his “administrative detention” by Israel, a Palestinian woman, Hana Yahya al-Shalabi, began her own hunger strike against her detention without charge or trial.
Hamas turned against its long-time ally President Bashar Assad of Syria, throwing its support behind the rebellion aimed at overturning his rule. Meanwhile in Tunis, Hillary Clinton bashed Russia and China for opposing UN action against Assad.
Former Somali prime minister Mohamed Ali Samantar accepted legal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity in US federal court. The civil suit was brought by survivors of his repression who now have asylum in the US.
