Once Upon a Time, When Israel Was a Democracy

Once upon a time, Israel for all its shortcomings, was regarded by much of the world as a true and vibrant democracy. Israelis themselves were never shy of parading their country as "the only democracy in the Middle East."

Tourists Now in Their Land of Birth

Beyond the pernicious well-documented aspects of the Israeli Occupation, all sorts of niggling fragments of Israeli control over Palestinian life, and individual petty cases of nastiness leave new Israeli talk of "gestures" towards peace hollow.

US: Women Fight More Than Fire in the FDNY

Leaning back in a squeaking plastic chair, one leg crossed over the other, the lieutenant is at once relaxed and commanding. She smiles often, absent- mindedly running her hands through short brown hair before speaking. Her words are thoughtful, her manner candid.

Palestinians Remain Split, US Doesn’t Adjust

Last summer, a tight consensus formed in Washington around Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s plans to build up state-like institutions in the West Bank and revive the territory’s sagging economy from the lingering effects of the Second Intifada.

Window of Opportunity For Sahel Rapidly Closing

Over the past six months, the levels of food insecurity and malnutrition in the Sahel belt of West Africa have increased at alarming rates, putting over 10 million people at risk across the region - particularly in Niger and Chad.

TRINIDAD: Death Penalty Debate Revived

Faced with a steep escalation of the murder rate since it came to power on May 24, the new People’s Partnership government in Trinidad and Tobago is considering resuming capital punishment as a means of dealing with the situation.

MIDEAST: Can’t Digest This Occupation

Nasser Abdulhadi is a mild-mannered man who runs a restaurant. He was always known as the jovial sort. One day, his friends say, he stopped being jovial. He chose instead to fight for a world title for one of his country's national dishes, and through that to gain worldwide recognition for Palestine.

Canada Coming With Worse Than Oil

Fears of a trade dispute with Canada have made European Union officials reluctant to categorise tar sands from North America as a more polluting fuel than conventional petrol.

Ecobreves – CHILE-ARGENTINA: Binational Campaign Against Mining

Environmental activists from Chile and Argentina have come up with a plan to defend the Andean glaciers from mining and are challenging the 1997 treaty signed by the two countries on mining integration.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Construction Begun on Wind Park

Venezuela's state-owned oil company PDVSA this month began building a wind energy park in the northwestern peninsula of Paraguaná, with 76 turbines that in two years will provide 100 megawatt/hour to the region, an area of oil refineries, shopping centers and tourism.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Timber Companies Propose New Forest Management

The Honduran Association of Timber Companies has proposed to work with the authorities to formulate a forest management plan to halt illegal logging and negative farming practices.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Cellulose to Drive Ethanol Industry

Sugar-based ethanol, the agro-fuel with the best energy results according to Brazil's agricultural research agency EMBRAPA, could be even more competitive if it makes use of the cane stalks and pulp as cellulose ethanol. It would boost Brazil's ethanol production 30 percent without having to expand sugarcane crops.

RIGHTS-CHINA: Migrants Are Badly Needed, But Get Little Support

Thirty-six-year-old Luo Fusheng left his hometown in China’s Jiangxi province a decade ago to look for work to help support his family. Unskilled and with limited education, Luo eventually ended up in the factory city of Shenzhen, more than 700 kilometres to the south, where he now works as a security guard.

Nigeria Suffers Acute Lead-Poisoning Outbreak

The Nigerian government is trying to cope with an outbreak of lead poisoning which has killed over 200 people in Zamfara State since early July.

PAKISTAN: Swat Valley’s Festival Speaks Up for Peace

The threats against officials and ordinary people alike have not stopped, with yet another suicide bomber sowing terror in the district’s main town just on Jul. 15.

RIGHTS-BURMA: Youngsters, Families Evade Recruitment into Armies

They are novices at a Buddhist monastery just outside Rangoon, but they are also young boys who will always find time for a friendly game of football.

North Korea in Dire Need of Food, Medical Aid, Amnesty Says

The fragile health system in the cash-strapped Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), long described as one of the world's most secretive countries, is on the verge of collapsing, Amnesty International (AI) warned Thursday.

Major Strides Seen in Halting Illegal Logging

A comprehensive report, released Thursday by Chatham House, finds that production of illegal timber worldwide has declined by 22 percent since 2002, a trend that is benefiting both communities dependent on tropical forests and the global climate.

CHINA: A Year After Xinjiang Riots, Ethnic Tensions Simmer

More than a year after the riots in China’s remote Xinjiang autonomous region, the country’s bloodiest ethnic clash in decades, calm has returned to the capital Urumqi. But the underlying tensions remain – tensions that Beijing will be forced to address as it moves forward in its campaign to develop the country’s west.

World Bank, NGOs Spar over Indonesian Mine Project

The World Bank's Board of Directors said studies for a potential mining project in Indonesia could move forward Tuesday but civil society groups, citing studies that have already been done, condemned the decision.

Big Tobacco Profits from Kazakh Child Labour, Report Says

Hoping for better opportunities than they can find at home, many families from Kyrgyzstan travel to find work. Neighbouring Kazakhstan has the strongest economy in Central Asia, and tobacco farms attract workers fleeing Kyrgyzstan's high unemployment.