Breaking World News from One World, Many Peaces

Germany, India, South Africa and Colombia Elected on the U.N Security Council.

The U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday elected Germany, India, South Africa and Colombia to two-year seats on the U.N. Security Council, while Canada and Portugal went to a second round of voting.

Either Canada or Portugal will join the other four countries to serve two-year terms beginning in January 2011 and ending in December 2012 as non-veto-holding members of the 15-nation body, the powerhouse of the United Nations with the authority to impose sanctions and deploy peacekeeping forces.

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Does Israel Want Peace?

An Israeli Cabinet minister said Tuesday that top officials doubt a peace deal with the Palestinians can be reached soon even though the prime minister has committed to try to reach an agreement within a year.

The Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, which resumed last month after a breakdown of nearly two years, have already run aground over Israel's refusal to renew a moratorium on West Bank settlement construction.

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Will US Take Afghan Peace Council Advice?

Releasing Taliban figures detained at Guantanamo Bay and scratching scores of others off the U.N. sanctions list would jump-start peace talks aimed at ending the 9-year-old war, members of Afghanistan's new peace council said Tuesday.

The council members, who hold their first business meeting on Wednesday, said goodwill gestures from the U.S. and international community could spur reconciliation talks — perhaps at a neutral location in Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Egypt or Turkey.

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Imprisoned Chinese Dissident Liu Xiaobo Wins Nobel Peace Prize.

 Imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo won the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for using nonviolence to demand fundamental human rights in his homeland. The award ignited a furious response from China, which accused the Norwegian Nobel Committee of violating its own principles by honoring "a criminal."

Chinese state media immediately blacked out the news and Chinese government censors blocked Nobel Prize reports from Internet websites. China declared the decision would harm its relations with Norway — and the Nordic country responded that was a petty thing for a world power to do.

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First Meeting of Afghan Peace Council Held.

Calling the meeting a "source of hope" for the Afghan people, President Hamid Karzai on Thursday hosted the inaugural session of a new peace council set up to guide efforts to reconcile with the Taliban and other insurgent groups.

Karzai has long called on insurgents to renounce violence, sever ties to terrorists and embrace the Afghan Constitution. Contacts are increasing between the government and insurgents to find a political resolution to the conflict, which is key to any U.S. exit strategy in Afghanistan.

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Israelis And Palestinians Reach a Temporary Agreement on Settlements.

In the clearest sign that a deal may be emerging to keep the troubled U.S. Mideast peace push alive, a top Palestinian official said Thursday that his side would accept an American proposal for Israel to curtail settlement construction for two months.

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China Warns of Strained Relationship With Norway if New Nobel Peace Prize Winner is a Chinese Dissident.

A Norwegian television station predicted on Thursday night that the Nobel Peace Prize would most likely go to a Chinese dissident.

Norwegian commercial television Channel 2, which correctly predicted the long-shot award to US President Barack Obama last year, put jailed democracy activist Liu Xiaobo at the top of its list for likely Peace Prize winners.

"The most likely (choice) will probably be an imprisoned dissident in China," the network said in a news report.

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Peace Process With Maoist Rebels Stalled in Nepal.

The peace process is incomplete in Nepal nearly four years after the Maoist rebels signed a peace agreement with the government, ending a decade-long armed insurgency, says the UN.

“Too little attention has been paid to the peace process this year,” Karen Landgren, Special Representative to the UN Secretary-General in Nepal and head of the UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), which is monitoring the 2006 peace accord, told IRIN.

A 1996 Maoist uprising to overthrow the monarchy displaced more than 100,000 people and killed thousands of others over the next decade.

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Nobel Peace Prize Winner To Be Deported By Israel.

Israel's Supreme Court has upheld a deportation order against pro-Palestinian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire.

Maguire, who is 66, has been held in an airport detention facility since arriving last week. Israel banned her from entry because she took part in an attempt to break Israel's Gaza sea blockade in June.

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While Pakistan Warns Against More NATO Raids, Pentagon Is Hosting Indian Minister of Defense for Pending Arms Deal.

US and Indian defense chiefs met on Tuesday amid efforts by Washington to step up arms sales to New Delhi and ease restrictions on hi-tech weaponry.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates hosted India Defense minister AK Antony for talks as both countries touted a growing strategic alliance and expanding military ties, including a pending multi-billion-dollar deal for American C-17 cargo planes.

US and Indian officials have been negotiating an agreement that would see New Delhi buy at least 10 C-17 planes, manufactured by Boeing.

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Protests Against FBI's Raids Against Anti-War Activists.

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside FBI offices in Minneapolis and Chicago on Monday, bearing signs and shouting chants condemning the agency's recent searches of homes and offices of anti-war activists in both cities.

About 150 people protested in Minneapolis, with signs reading: "Stop FBI harassment. Opposing war is not a crime." Roughly 120 people marched in Chicago, chanting, "Hey, hey! Ho, ho! FBI raids have got to go!"

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Read Antony Adolf's commentary on this subject here.

Will a New Bill Introduced in the French Parliament Create Second-Class Citizens?

Does France have second-class citizens? A new bill introduced Tuesday in parliament aimed at toughening immigration rules would strip naturalized citizens of their nationality if they threaten the lives of police.

Opponents say the measure would drive a new wedge between those born French and those who become French in a country that sees itself as a haven for the world's oppressed.

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Why Is NATO Allowed to Airstrike Targets in Pakistan?

Pakistan vehemently protested NATO helicopter strikes that killed more than 70 militants, saying Monday that U.N. rules do not allow the choppers to cross into its air space even in hot pursuit of insurgents.

NATO said it launched the strikes in self-defense after militants attacked a small security post in Afghanistan near the border.

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Possible Internet Wiretap Bill Raises Privacy Concerns.

In a move that's frightening privacy advocates, federal officials want to expand their authority to wiretap e-mails, Facebook accounts and other Internet services. Authorities argue that criminals are increasingly communicating online and merely monitoring their phone activity isn't sufficient.

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Progress Seen In the Peace Discussions Between the Afghan Goverment and the Taliban.

The top American commander in Afghanistan said Monday that senior Taliban leaders had reached out to President Hamid Karzai in the context of early efforts to start reconciliation discussions that could pave the way to end the fighting in Afghanistan.

For months, efforts at reconciliation have been stalled at every level, and this is the first explicit public suggestion that there is extensive behind-the-scenes activity between insurgents and the Afghan government.

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Texas State Board of Education Adopts Resolution to Limit References to Islam in World History Textbooks.

The Texas State Board of Education has adopted a resolution seeking to curtail references to Islam in textbooks.

Social conservatives on the board had asked that the resolution be put on Friday's agenda. It was approved by a 7-6 vote.

The one-page resolution calls on textbook publishers to limit what they print about Islam in world history books and says the board "will look to reject future prejudicial social studies submissions."

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IRA- A "Substantial" Terror Threat?

Britain raised the terror threat level Friday posed by Irish Republican Army dissidents, who have mounted repeated attacks in Northern Ireland and recently threatened to start targeting London bankers.
The level has changed from "moderate" to "substantial," the middle rung on the five-point threat scale. This means the threat has risen to a point where an attack is considered a strong possibility.

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Will the US Congress Approve Trade Sanctions Against China?

A US Congress committee has approved a bill that would place retaliatory trade sanctions on China. It means the House of Representatives - the lower chamber of Congress - will vote on the bill next week.

The bill would allow the US to impose import duties on countries who have fundamentally undervalued currencies.

 

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After the Slaying of Its Second Journalist in as Many Years,El Diario de Juarez Asks the Cartels: "What Do You Want From Us?"

A newspaper's stunning, front-page editorial of seeming surrender to drug capos has set off a national debate from the presidential palace to Mexico's equivalent of the water cooler — its ubiquitous town squares.

"What do you want from us?" El Diario de Juarez asked the cartels whose war for control of the border city across from El Paso, Texas, has killed nearly 5,000 people — including two El Diario journalists — in less than two years. "You are currently the de facto authorities in this city. ... Tell us what you expect from us as a newspaper?"

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In his UN Address Obama Pushes for Peace between Israel and Palestinians.

Exhorting world leaders to push past years of cynicism and pessimism, President Barack Obama challenged the countries of the United Nations on Thursday to unite around peace efforts that he said could achieve agreement within a year to create an independent Palestine and a secure Israel.

Obama, in a speech to the U.N. General Assembly, urged fellow world leaders to press forward with renewed determination in the quest for Mideast peace, an effort that he acknowledged has encountered "few peaks and many valleys."

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While World Watches its Disputes with Japan and US, China is Quietly Making Huge Investment in African Country.

China has agreed to loan Ghana some 13 billion dollars for infrastructure, a minister said Thursday, with Beijing having expressed interest in the West African country's newly discovered oil fields.

The loan deal, still subject to approval from Ghanian lawmakers, points to China's growing interest in the country which is set to pump its first barrels of oil by year's end from its offshore Jubilee field.

Of the total loans, three billion dollars from the China Development Bank will go towards building oil and gas infrastructure, Ghana's Deputy Finance Minister Fiifi Kwetey told AFP by phone from Beijing.

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Diplomatic Row Between China and Japan Deepening: No UN Meeting.

China on Tuesday ruled out prospects for fence-mending talks between its premier and Japan's leader this week in New York as the worst diplomatic crisis in years between the Asian powers deepened.

Japan urged all players in the dispute -- sparked by the arrest of a Chinese boat captain whose trawler collided with two Japanese vessels in disputed waters -- to avoid resorting to "extreme nationalism".

China has denounced the captain's arrest and repeatedly demanded his unconditional release, summoned Tokyo's ambassador no fewer than six times, and called off several official visits and planned negotiations.

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Priests' Sex Abuse Scandal Not the Only Headache for Vatican: Money-Laundering Inquiry Under Way.

The head of the Vatican Bank, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, is under investigation as part of a money-laundering inquiry, police sources say.

Prosecutors also seized 23m euros ($30m; £19m) from the bank's accounts with another smaller institution.

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Chinese Investment in Eastern and Central Europe Increasing Significantly.

The classroom walls at the Hungarian-Chinese bilingual primary school here are decorated with Chinese calendars and banners. Chinese lanterns hang from the ceilings of the main entrance hall. There are stacks of new Chinese language books in the staff room, provided by the Chinese authorities, who also send two teachers a year, depending on the school’s needs.

 [...]

Education is not the only area in which China is making inroads in Central and Eastern Europe. From the Baltic states to the Balkans, Chinese companies, flush with money, are buying real estate and competing for public infrastructure contracts, especially as Poland and Ukraine work at breakneck speed to jointly host the 2012 European soccer championship.

 

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Why Is Anyone Surprised About Election Fraud in Afghanistan?

Afghan election observers urged President Hamid Karzai's government on Monday to allow an independent investigation into reports of widespread fraud during last weekend's parliamentary elections, including intimidation of voters and interference by powerful warlords.

Also Monday, Britain's military handed the U.S. responsibility for a dangerous district in southern Afghanistan that has been the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting by British troops for the past four years.

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China Severs High-Level Goverment Contacts With Japan.

China on Sunday broke off high-level government contacts with Japan over the extended detention of a fishing boat captain arrested near disputed islands. The rare move pushed already tense relations to a new low, and showed China's willingness to play hardball with its Asian rival on issues of territorial integrity.

It came a day after anti-Japanese protests broke out across China on the anniversary of the start of a brutal Japanese invasion of China in 1931 that has historically cast a shadow over ties between what are now the world's second and third-largest economies.

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Unity of Palestinian Factions Seen as Vital In Achieving Peace with Israel.

Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman met Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Saudi Arabia this month in an attempt to push for reconciliation between Palestinian factions, the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat reported.

Forging Palestinian unity is seen as crucial to any prospect for a Palestinian state based on peace with Israel. But the Islamist group Hamas has so far rejected a pact proposed by Egypt to end its row with President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah group.

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Despite Japan's Protest, China Sees its Activities in East China Sea Gas Fields as Legitimate.

China said yesterday it had the right to do what it wants in gas fields in the East China Sea where Japan has challenged Chinese drilling.

Japanese media quoted outgoing Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada as saying equipment which appears to be for drilling has been brought to a Chinese facility in the Chunxiao gas field in the sea, though drilling has not been confirmed.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said China exercises full sovereign rights over the gas field, and the Chinese side's activities in Chunxiao are entirely reasonable and legitimate.

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Israel's Refusal to Extend Settlement Construction Curbs Endangers Peace Talks

Israel reiterated on Friday its refusal to extend curbs on settlement building that expire this month, despite US pressure and Palestinian threats to walk out of peace talks.

Meanwhile, US envoy George Mitchell met Lebanese President Michel Sleiman as part of Washington's target of forging a comprehensive Middle East peace.

"The prime minister has not changed his position on this issue, there is no question of extending the moratorium," a senior Israeli government official told AFP, asking not to be named.

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Will Taliban's Intimidation Campaign Succeed in Keeping Afghan Voters Away?

The Taliban have written threats on leaflets passed out at mosques, whispered them in villages, proclaimed them to journalists and posted on the Internet: If you vote in Saturday's parliamentary elections, prepare to be attacked.

How many Afghans ignore this intimidation campaign and turn out at the polls will be one measure of whether the vote is considered a success.

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Is Arab States' Pressure on Israel to Sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty Harming Middle East Peace Talks?

Arab states pledged on Thursday to step up pressure on Israel to join a global anti-nuclear arms pact, defying U.S. warnings their action could harm Middle East peace talks.

Signalling they were in no mood to compromise, Arab member nations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) also sharply criticised a report by its head on Israeli Nuclear Capabilities, saying it was "weak" and "devoid of substance."

The United States and its Western allies urged the group to withdraw a planned resolution at the IAEA's annual assembly next week calling on Israel to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty and put all of its atomic sites under the U.N. body's watch.

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In Interview, Ahmadinejad Insists: Muslims 'Are Not Against Americans, Jews, Christians'

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says there is no hate between Muslims and Americans despite an apparent escalation in tensions fueled by controversies over a proposed mosque near ground zero in New York and a plan by a Florida pastor to burn Qurans.

"People (in Islamic countries) are against that ugly behavior," he said in an exclusive interview with NBC News' Andrea Mitchell. "They are not against the people of the United States. They are not against Americans, they are not against Jews. They are not against Christians or Christianity."

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Pope Begins U.K. Visit Amid Sex Abuse Scandal

Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged Thursday that the Catholic Church had failed to act decisively or quickly enough to deal with priests who rape and molest children.

As he began a controversial visit to Britain, the pope said the church's top priority now was to help the victims heal.

His comments, made to reporters traveling with him from Rome, marked his most thorough admission to date of church failures to deal with pedophile priests.

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EU Calls France's Gypsy Expulsions 'A Disgrace'

France's deportations of Gypsies are "a disgrace" and probably break EU law, the European Union's executive body declared Tuesday in a stinging rebuke that set up a showdown with French President Nicolas Sarkozy's conservative government.

In recent weeks, French authorities have dismantled more than 100 illegal camps and deported more than 1,000 Gypsies, also known as Roma, mainly back to Romania, in a crackdown that has drawn international condemnation.

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No Progress Seen on Israeli Settlements in Talks.

Under pressure to compromise, Israeli and Palestinian leaders on Tuesday dug into the central issues blocking a peace deal but the latest talks produced no visible progress on the divisive issue of Jewish settlements.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas held an extra, unscheduled session with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, but there was no word on signs of a breakthrough. After the leaders' first meeting at this Red Sea resort, U.S. peace envoy George Mitchell offered reporters a mildly positive assessment.

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French Senate Passes Ban on Full Muslim Veils

The French Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed a bill banning the burqa-style Islamic veil in public, but the leaders of both parliamentary houses said they had asked a special council to first ensure the measure passes constitutional muster amid concerns its tramples on religious freedoms.

The Senate voted 246 to 1 Tuesday in favor of the bill, which has already passed in the lower chamber, the National Assembly. It will need President Nicolas Sarkozy's signature.

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Cuba to Cut One Million Public Sector Jobs

Cuba has announced radical plans to lay off huge numbers of state employees, to help revive the communist country's struggling economy.

The Cuban labour federation said more than a million workers would lose their jobs - half of them by March next year. Those laid off will be encouraged to become self-employed or join new private enterprises, on which some of the current restrictions will be eased.

It is biggest shift to the private sector since the revolution in 1959.

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Indian Cabinet Approves Caste-Based Census for 2011

India's first caste-based census since 1931 will take place next year, the cabinet has announced.

It said the controversial count would last from June-September 2011, after a full census had been held. Answering questions on caste will be optional.

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Congress to be Told of $60-bln US-Saudi Arms Deal

US President Barack Obama's administration will soon notify Congress of plans to offer advanced military aircraft to Saudi Arabia in a deal worth up to 60 billion dollars, congressional sources said Monday.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the transaction has not yet been formally announced, confirmed a Wall Street Journal report about the deal but warned that key US lawmakers would block the move.
 

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In Referendum, Turks Reject Military-Era Laws

Turks approved sweeping changes to their military-era constitution Sunday — a referendum hailed by the government as a leap toward full democracy in line with its troubled bid to join the European Union.

With 99 percent of the vote counted, 58 percent had cast ballots in favor of the constitutional amendments, state-run TRT television said. About 42 percent voted "no," heeding opposition claims that the reforms would shackle the independence of the courts.

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India and China Have Legitimate Roles in Afghanistan

The Special US Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke, has said that India and China have legitimate roles in Afghanistan. In an interview to the Charlie Rose show, Holbrooke said US recognizes that other countries have legitimate interests in the security of Afghanistan The Special US Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke, has said that India and China have legitimate roles in Afghanistan. In an interview to the Charlie Rose show, Holbrooke said US recognizes that other countries have legitimate interests in the security of Afghanistan just the way US has legitimate security interests in regard to its neighbours.

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Colombia and Venezuela Restore Diplomatic Ties

The leaders of Colombia and Venezuela have reestablished diplomatic relations, saying they are starting to repair confidence undermined by years of mutual recriminations. The announcement came after a four-hour meeting Tuesday in the Colombian city of Santa Marta between Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and Colombia's new leader, Juan Manuel Santos. The two restored ties that Chávez severed last month in response to accusations that Venezuela has become a haven for Colombian rebels.

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U.S. Counter-Terrorism Operations Expand in North Africa and Central Asia

In roughly a dozen countries — from the deserts of North Africa, to the mountains of Pakistan, to former Soviet republics crippled by ethnic and religious strife — the United States has significantly increased military and intelligence operations, pursuing the enemy using robotic drones and commando teams, paying contractors to spy and training local operatives to chase terrorists.

New Building Plan for West Bank Announced by Israel, Despite Freeze

The Israeli government approved Sunday a new building plan in the West Bank despite the 10-month settlement freeze and warned against any international conditions to the start of direct dialogue with the Palestinian government, Israeli media reported Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved Sunday a plan to build 23 portable structures in different settlements in the West Bank in order to allow 600 scholars to continue their studies in the coming year.

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China Now World's Second Largest Economy, Beating Japan

Japan's economy was outpaced by China in the second quarter in nominal terms, data showed Monday, as sharply weaker than expected growth triggered fresh fears that the global recovery is losing steam. As cooling exports and flat domestic consumption hit Japan's growth in April-June, the data pointed to the looming prospect of China overtaking Japan as the world's second-largest economy.

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North Korea Fires Weapons off West Coast

North Korea fired about 110 rounds of artillery Monday near its disputed sea border with South Korea, the South's military said, amid high tension over the deadly sinking of a South Korean warship blamed on North Korea. The firing came shortly after South Korea ended five-day naval drills off the west coast that the North called a rehearsal for an invasion, vowing to retaliate. All the artillery shells harmlessly landed into the North's waters and caused no damage to the South, a South Korean Joint Chief of Staff officer said on condition of anonymity, citing department policy.

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Hiroshima Mayor Wins Magsaysay Award, the 'Asian Nobel'

The mayor of Hiroshima, in Japan, and a Chinese photographer who has documented pollution in the face of official harassment are among the winners of this year's Ramon Magsaysay prize. The award, named after an ex-president of the Philippines, is widely seen as Asia's version of the Nobel prize.

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How a Middle East Regional War Can Be Averted by Mediation

Tuesday's cross-border firefight between Israeli and Lebanese government forces might simply have been a misunderstanding. And the rockets fired from Gaza and the Israeli air strikes on the besieged territory over the past week could be viewed as periodic blip in business as usual on that front. By the same token, last Friday's unprecedented joint visit to Beirut by the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Syria could be viewed simply as a move to stop the conflict between their Lebanese proxies turning nasty. And British Prime Minister David Cameron's pleas to Turkey to keep open its communication channels with Israel's leaders are quotidian diplomatic common sense. Viewed in a wider context, however, each of those events could be taken as signs of why many in the Middle East believe that despite the outward calm, the region may be on the brink of another catastrophic war.

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Internet Over-Use Leads to Depression

Teens who use the Internet pathologically appear more likely to develop depression than those who do not, according to a report posted online that will appear in the October print issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. ince the mid-1990s, pathological (uncontrolled or unreasonable) Internet use has been identified as a problematic behavior with signs and symptoms similar to those of other addictions, according to background information in the article. Such use has been associated with relationship problems, physical ill health, aggressive behaviors and other psychiatric symptoms.

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China's Industrial Land-Grab Spurs Real Estate Boom

The Anhui Salt Industry Corporation is a state-owned company that has 11,000 employees, access to government salt mines and a Communist Party boss.  State Dominates Beijing Land AuctionsNow it has swaggered into a new line of business: real estate. The company is developing a complex of luxury high-rises here called Platinum Bay on a parcel it acquired last year by outbidding two other developers to win a local government land auction.

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