Officials from the US and Mexico signed an agreement that opens the way for oil and gas development along the two countries’ maritime boundary in the Gulf of Mexico. A moratorium on drilling had been extended after the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
Indian police detained two members of an Italian navy security team over the fatal shooting of two fishermen from an oil tanker off the coast of Kerala, sparking a diplomatic fracas. Italy says the naval guards mistook the fishermen for pirates.
Some 50 black-clad gunmen armed with grenades and bombs stormed the city jail at Kidapawan, Mindanao. They were repulsed by police in a chaotic night battle that killed three—two civilian by-standers and an ambulance driver.
A new report by British scientists finds that the current level of carbon dioxide emissions will wipe out about 30% of the world’s marine species by the end of the century. Released carbon dioxide is leading to acidification of the oceans.
The European Union approved a second bailout for Greece, signing off on a $170 billion rescue package—a day after thousands of protesters took to the streets to oppose austerity measures in both Greece and Spain.
Representatives of indigenous organizations in Peru met in Lima to announce that they have rejected proposed implementing regulations for the new Law of Prior Consultation for Indigenous and Original Peoples, and submitted proposals for improving it.
Thousands of Puerto Ricans marched to protest right-wing governor Luis Fortuño’s plan for a 92-mile, $450-million natural gas pipeline cutting through the island. Pipeline opponents fear explosions and damage to farmland, forests and archeological sites.
Mining supporters held a “protest” after authorities violently dispersed roadblocks set up by locals opposed to the Bajo de la Alumbrera gold mine. The pro-mine “protest” appears to have been organized with the support of the ruling Justicialist Party.
With little fanfare, the Mexican government is now starting to end the ban on the commercial development of transgenic corn. Monsanto and other GMO multinationals are set to go, with lands set aside in Sinaloa and other northern states.
World War 4 Report editor Bill Weinberg will be on assignment in Peru for much of March. Please support on-the-scene journalism from the struggle in the Andes. Your small donation will go a long way…
At least 44 prisoners were killed in a clash between adherents of Los Zetas and the Gulf Cartel at the Center for Social Readaptation (CERESO) in Apodaca, Nuevo León. The CERESO, with an official capacity of 1,500, was holding some 3,000.
President Obama signs a bill requiring the FAA to permit the use of domestic drones, both for commercial purposes and police surveillance. Meanwhile, the Pentagon’s DARPA announces it is developing robot “avatars” for battlefield use…
