LIBYA: Water Emerges as a Hidden Weapon

Libya’s enormous aquatic reserves could potentially become a new weapon of choice if government forces opt to starve coastal cities that heavily rely on free flowing freshwater.

INDIA: Supreme Court Verdict Revives Euthanasia Debate

In a secluded hospital bed in this bustling Indian metropolis, a woman who has lain brain dead for 37 years after a brutal sexual assault is at the centre of a national debate on mercy killing.

Syrians Running Out of Refuge in Lebanon

Syrians from the border town Tell Khalakh have been fleeing a wave of violence over recent weeks to cross into neighboring Lebanon. But those seeking refuge now face an uncertain fate.

Global Refugee Problem Bigger Than Ever

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the landmark 1951 U.N. Convention on the Status of Refugees defining their rights and states' legal obligations to protect them.

PAKISTAN: Militancy Keeps Refugees Far From Home

Back home, Abdur Rehman’s family had a spacious house that could easily fit the 10 members of his family. Now they all have to squeeze into a small tent in a refugee camp near Peshawar in north-west Pakistan.

Spring Not New to Arab Women

Women have been taking leading roles in the Arab uprisings of Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Libya, Morocco and Bahrain - shattering many decades old Western myths that Arab women are powerless and enslaved.

GREECE: Athens Plunges Deeper Into Crisis

The murder of Manolis Kantaris, 44, last week has initiated a vicious circle of violence in the Greek capital that deepens the existing wounds of the country and makes many wonder what the future holds for Athenians.

HEALTH: Rich and Poor Suffer Both Infectious and Noncommunicable Diseases

The world is experiencing a change in the geographic distribution of diseases. Traditionally, infectious diseases, which claim the lives of so many children, affected poor countries, and noncommunicable diseases like diabetes, cardiac ailments and cancer plagued rich countries.

U.S.: Gay, Grey and Groundbreaking

People in the U.S. are becoming more and more open towards homosexuality, in part due to the trendy Hollywood culture that conveys the image of young, hip and good looking gay men and women. But the situation changes when it comes to the elderly.

Humanity Hitting the Resource Ceiling

Better living through using far fewer material resources is the only possible future, experts agree. Humanity is pressing up against the limits of a finite planet to provide resources like water, oil, metals and food, according to a new report released Thursday.

MIDEAST: Egyptian Activists Gear Up For Third Intifadah

Following the February ouster of Egypt’s longstanding President Hosni Mubarak, calls have been circulating in Egypt and throughout the region for a ‘Third Intifadah’ to begin May 15.

POPULATION: Promise Rises With a Problem

On the face of it, a rapidly rising population among the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) spells the usual doom about adequate resource distribution. But the least developed are also among the youngest in the world - and well channelled, they can be a valuable asset, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) head Babatunde Osotimehin told IPS.

North and South Korea Far Apart

Young North Koreans who have defected to the South are determined to see their dream - a unified Korea - become reality, even if their counterparts in the South don't quite agree.

JAPAN: Nuke Refugees Face Uncertain Fate

Tadanori Anzai and his wife Michiko left their town in Minamisoma, Fukushima prefecture, more than a month ago to escape the radioactive contamination spewing from the earthquake-damaged nuclear power plant located close to their home and tiny eatery.

U.N. Predicts 9.3 Billion Population by 2050

The United Nations is predicting that come Oct. 31, the world population will hit the seven billion mark - and keep expanding till it reaches 9.3 billion by the year 2050.

LATIN AMERICA: Violence in the Age of Innocence

The countries of Latin America are working slowly to overcome barriers in the fight against the often brutal violence suffered by children and adolescents in their homes, schools, workplaces or juvenile detention centres.

JAPAN: Foreigners Show Solidarity Amidst Tragedy

When the massive 9.0 magnitude quake and tidal waves hit their little coastal village on March 11, Mariline Shoji and her husband lost everything they owned.

Arab Refugees Suffer Mind Disorders

Amidst the political upheavals across the Arab world, a new U.N. study highlights the need for neurological health services to monitor brain disorders among displaced people.

Libyan Choice: Starve or Run

Rights groups have condemned the indiscriminate attacks on residential areas in Misrata, that have worsened an already dire situation.

No Homecoming for Bhutanese Refugees

A knock on the door of his home in Bhutan one midnight turned middle-level government official Balaram Paudyal into a fugitive overnight, after he managed to elude policemen arresting him for "anti-government activities", and then fled the country.

Uncertain Flows the Mekong

Countries around the lower Mekong have failed to reach a consensus on a controversial proposal that could see Laos build the first hydropower dam on this part of the vital river.