Marching Toward a Third Uprising?

While the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip hasn’t been so quiet for the past two decades, it’s now the turn of the occupied West Bank to show signs of eruption.

General Assembly Votes to Ban Female Genital Mutilation

The international NGO Coalition to Ban Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) held a press conference Thursday to celebrate the adoption of the recent General Assembly resolution “Intensifying Global Efforts for the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation.”

Q&A: Mutant Fruit Trees to Grow in Saline Soils in Cuba

During some parts of the year, a layer of salt can be seen on the ground in eastern Cuba, which makes it difficult, and sometimes impossible, to farm. Since agronomist Orlando Coto saw this with his own eyes, he has been searching for salt-tolerant fruit trees.

Girls Fight to Stay in School

Balancing her school bag on one shoulder and holding her three-year-old son by the hand, Farida Haque (19) ignores her in-laws’ complaints and her husband’s frown as she heads each morning for the tiny school in her remote village of Allah Bachayo, located in the Thatta district of Pakistan’s Sindh Province.

First Strike in Quarter Century Exposes Treatment of Migrant Labour in Singapore

The first workers strike in 26 years in this affluent Southeast Asian city-state has triggered some soul-searching about the treatment of migrant labour and the low wages they are paid.

Q&A: Fighting to Save Africa’s Richest Rainforest

Protests against a controversial palm oil plantation in the Korup National Park, Africa’s oldest and richest rainforest in terms of floral and faunal diversity, in Mundemba, southwest Cameroon will continue despite the arrests and intimidation of local environmental campaigners.

Drug-Resistant Malaria Pushes Rural Thailand to Shoulder Global Role

As Thailand braces itself to combat drug-resistant malaria, a spread of small, nondescript buildings scattered close to corn and rice fields along its hilly, western border are being cast into a bigger, international role.

Funding Restored for U.S. Military Biofuels Programme

Reversing attempts to eliminate the U.S. military’s advanced biofuels programme, both houses of Congress on Tuesday approved major legislation that now presents no obstacles to broad-reaching Defence Department plans to mainstream and spread the use of alternative fuels throughout its operations.

Obama’s Victory a Boon for Clean Air, Water Acts

With Barack Obama’s re-election last month as U.S. president, key environmental protections escaped a likely Republican chopping block, and new regulations are expected when his second term begins in January.

Full List of Recent Actions by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Credit: EPA)

South Korea’s Park Wins Presidential Election

The daughter of South Korea's former military ruler has won the country's presidential election, promising in a speech to her supporters to heal a "divided society".

Surprise Visits to Prisons in Argentina to Prevent Torture

Representatives of the Argentine state and of non- governmental organisations will be visiting prisons without prior warning, beginning next year, to prevent inmates from being tortured and abused – a problem that persists three decades after the end of the dictatorship, often with fatal results.

Endangered Bird Falls Prey to Royal Hunting Games

Every year, between November and January, the Indus Flyway bears witness to a migration of an endangered bird species – the houbara bustard – from Central Asia to the deserts of Pakistan.

Emotional Creatures Around the World

‘‘I am sixteen. I am owned by them. They do what they want. Sometimes they refuse to use condoms. If we refuse them, we are beaten,’’ said Molly Carden who portrayed a girl who tells of being sex trafficked in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Community Water Management Stuck in Legal Limbo*

Community-based water supply systems, which serve thousands of rural communities in Mexico, are seeking official recognition under the new federal legal framework currently under development.

Curbing Tanzania’s “Land Grabbing Race”

From January 2013, Tanzania will start restricting the size of land that single large-scale foreign and local investors can “lease” for agricultural use. The decision follows both local and international criticism that major investors are grabbing large chunks of land here, often displacing small-scale farmers and local communities.

A Third Intifada on the Horizon?

A new Palestinian group called the National Union Battalions (NUB), comprising Palestinians from across the political spectrum, has called for a third Palestinian uprising or Intifada. Simultaneously, Israeli intelligence is warning that conditions on the ground in the West Bank are ripe for another Palestinian revolt.

BRICS Tracking Where the Money Flows

The five leading developing nations grouped in the BRICS alliance – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – are planning to intensify efforts to collect accurate trade data, so they can get a better picture of trade flows.

Neo-Cons, Israel Lobby Mobilise to Pre-empt Obama Pentagon Favourite

Neo-conservatives and leaders of the powerful Israel lobby are mobilising their forces in what looks like an all-out campaign to pre-empt the nomination by President Barack Obama of an outspoken former Republican senator and decorated Vietnam War hero to replace Leon Panetta as secretary of defence.

Ahead of Mali Resolution, Worries Grow over Military Intervention

Even as U.S. and French officials suggest that a United Nations resolution on military intervention in Mali could come by the end of the week, concerns are rising that such action could do far more harm than good.

Q&A: In “Black and Cuba”, A New Approach to Discussing Race

Robin J. Hayes has always been one to break boundaries. Most recently, she is doing so with her latest documentary film, "Black and Cuba", which explores how African-Americans and Afro-Cubans can learn from each other about community-building and public debates on racism in their countries.