Europe
Cold War déja vu in NATO mega-maneuvers
NATO is just winding up its biggest military exercise since the end of the Cold War—Operation Trident Juncture, involving 36,000 troops from over 30 countries.
Tag: Spain
Iraq
Spanish anti-ISIS volunteers face ‘terror’ charges
Two Spanish volunteers who went to Iraq to fight ISIS in an "International Brigade" were arrested upon their return and face charges of membership in a "terrorist organization."
Europe
Spain: some justice for Jews; Moors have to wait
A new law allows for the return of Jews descended from those expelled from Spain in 1492, but no such effort is being made for descendants of the Moors exiled that year.
Europe
British ship embarks on migrant rescue mission
A British warship in the Mediterranean launched a mission to rescue over 500 migrants stranded at sea, but no word was given on what would be their fate after "rescue."
Europe
Spain: holograms protest anti-protest law
Activists in Spain staged a creative protest against the country's new "Citizen Safety Law"—projecting holograms of themselves that marched on the parliament building in Madrid.
Europe
Spain passes anti-protest, anti-immigrant law
Spain's conservative-led parliament passed a law that outlaws unauthorized protests, bans filming police, and allows summary deportations of African migrants.
Europe
Spain: court suspends Catalonia independence vote
The Spanish Constitutional Court suspended Catalonia’s upcoming vote on independence—turning what had been a symbolic poll into a political showdown with Madrid.
Central America
Guatemala: ex-police head convicted —in Europe
The fight against impunity in Guatemala moves to Europe: an ex-police chief is convicted in Switzerland, and an ex-interior minister awaits trial in Spain.
Europe
Burgos and Gezi Square: contradiction?
Protesters in Burgos, Spain, defeated a redevelopment plan that included replacing traffic lanes with greenways—a contrast to the struggle to save Istanbul's Gezi Park.
Europe
Next: Free Catalonia?
Over one and a half million Catalans formed a human chain stretching 400 kilometers across the territory to press demands for independence—despite Madrid's intransigence.
The Andes
Leaks show massive US spying throughout Americas
The US has been spying on telecommunications in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and 11 other Latin American countries—with a focus on oil and other economic issues.
The Andes
Latin leaders react to blocking of Bolivian flight
What appeared to be a clumsy effort to catch US secret leaker Edward Snowden seems to have backfired: three Latin American countries have now offered Snowden asylum.