U.S. Military Joins Ebola Response in West Africa

The U.S. military over the weekend formally began to support the international response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

OPINION: ISIS Primarily a Threat to Arab Countries

Millions of words have been written about the rise, conquests, and savagery of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria, and Boko Haram in Nigeria. Both have declared an “Islamic State” in their areas although Boko Haram has not claimed the mantle of a successor to the Prophet Muhammad as ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has done in Greater Syria. The two groups are the latest in a string of terrorist organisations in the past two decades.

OPINION: Sanctions and Retaliations: Simply Unconscionable

The crisis in Ukraine is a man-made disaster created by world leaders who have been trying to pull Ukraine apart - either towards Europe or Russia.

OPINION: Iraq On the Precipice

The catastrophic events in Iraq that are unfolding daily are more significant than at any point in recent memory.

Criminalisation of Homelessness in U.S. Criticised by United Nations

A United Nations panel reviewing the U.S. record on racial discrimination has expressed unusually pointed concern over a new pattern of laws it warns is criminalising homelessness.

OPINION: Civil Society Calls For Impartial Inquiry on Air Crash and Catastrophe in Ukraine

It is ironic that at this moment in history when so many people and nations around the world are acknowledging the 100^th anniversary of our planet’s hapless stumble into World War I, great powers and their allies are once again provoking new dangers where governments appear to be sleepwalking towards a restoration of old Cold War battles.

Africa-U.S. Summit – Catching Up With China?

A few years ago, nobody could have imagined that some 50 Heads of States and Prime Ministers from Africa would meet the President of the United States for a summit. Yet, the first Africa/United States Summit took place in Washington from August 4 to 6, making headlines around the world.

The Age of Survival Migration

“Survival migration” is not a reality show, but an accurate description of human mobility fuelled by desperation and fear. How despairing are these migrant contingents? Look at the figures of Central American children travelling alone, which are growing.

New York’s Homeless Pushed Deeper into the Shadows

Joe sits on newspapers spread on the sidewalk by the entrance to midtown's Grand Central Station. His head rests in his hands, only looking up when coins from passersby clink into his paper cup.

Obama Mulling Broader Strikes Against ISIS?

This week’s video-taped beheading of a U.S. journalist by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) has spurred renewed calls for President Barack Obama to broaden Washington’s military efforts to strike the terrorist group, including in Syria.

U.S., Brazil Nearing Approval of Genetically Engineered Trees

The U.S. and Brazilian governments are moving into the final stages of weighing approval for the commercialisation of genetically engineered eucalyptus trees, moves that would mark the first such permits anywhere in the world.

OPINION: Violations of International Law Denigrate U.N.

The United Nations was founded “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war” and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights.

Public Offers Support for Obama’s Iraq Intervention

Despite rising criticism of his foreign policy– even from his former secretary of state – U.S. President Barack Obama’s decision last week to carry out airstrikes against Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shams (ISIS) militants in northern Iraq enjoys relatively strong public support, at least so far.

Despite Current Debate, Police Militarisation Goes Beyond U.S. Borders

The shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer in the southern United States earlier this month has led to widespread public outrage around issues of race, class and police brutality.

Does Iceland Gain From Whaling?

Although fin whaling by Icelanders has encountered increasing opposition over the last year, Icelandic whaling boats headed off to sea again in mid-June for the first hunt of the summer and by August 14 had killed 80 fin whales.

Protecting America’s Underwater Serengeti

U.S. President Barack Obama has proposed to more than double the world’s no-fishing areas to protect what some call America’s underwater Serengeti, a series of California-sized swaths of Pacific Ocean where 1,000-pound marlin cruise by 30-foot-wide manta rays around underwater mountains filled with rare or unique species.

U.S. Urged to Put Development Aid over Border Security

When U.S lawmakers departed Washington for a month-long recess, they left behind a simmering debate over what to do about the tens of thousands of Central American children and adults that continue to cross the U.S. southern border.

U.S. Waives Sanctions on Myanmar Timber

Civil society groups are split over a decision by the U.S. government to waive sanctions on Myanmar’s timber sector for one year.

Cry for Argentina: Fiscal Mismanagement, Odious Debt or Pillage?

Argentina has now taken the U.S. to The Hague for blocking the country’s 2005 settlement with the bulk of its creditors. The issue underscores the need for an international mechanism for nations to go bankrupt.

OPINION: Islamic State in Iraq: Confronting the Threat

The Islamic State’s territorial expansion and barbaric executions in Iraq and Syria are a gathering threat and must be confronted. American air bombardment, however, is the wrong course of action, and will not necessarily weaken ISIS or DA’ISH, as it’s known in Arabic.

U.S. Avoided Threat to Act on Israel’s Civilian Targeting

United Nations officials and human rights organisations have characterised Israeli attacks on civilian targets during the IDF war on Gaza as violations of the laws of war.