Wildlife Poaching Thought to Bankroll International Terrorism

Top diplomats and retired U.S. military officials are urging Western and African governments to step up the global fight against illegal wildlife poaching.

Major Parts of World Ignored by U.S. TV News in 2013

If people outside the United States are looking for answers why Americans often seem so clueless about the world outside their borders, they could start with what the three major U.S. television networks offered their viewers in the way of news during 2013.

Gates Conceals Real Story of “Gaming” Obama on Afghan War

Criticism in the memoirs of former secretary of defence Robert M. Gates of President Barack Obama’s lack of commitment to the Afghan War strategy of his administration has generated a Washington debate about whether Obama was sufficiently supportive of the war.

Four Years Later, USAID Funds in Haiti Still Unaccounted For

As the fourth anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Haiti approaches on Jan. 12, development analysts are decrying an ongoing lack of transparency in U.S. foreign aid to the country, even as those assistance streams are drying up.

U.S. Moves to End “School-to-Prison Pipeline”

The U.S. government has released landmark new guidelines aimed at tackling overreliance on punitive disciplinary measures within the national school system, with students being expelled or even referred to law enforcement for minor infractions.

The Virtual Doctor Will See You Now

There are thousands of miles between Chanyanya Rural Health Clinic, a basic medical centre in Zambia's rural Kafue District with no resident doctors despite being the main centre for nearly 12,000 people, and the New York University (NYU) Teaching Hospital, one of the world's most prestigious medical schools.

Fall of Fallujah Refocuses U.S. on Iraq

Two years after the last U.S. combat soldiers left Iraq, the past week’s takeover of the western city of Fallujah by the Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has refocused Washington’s attention on a country that it had hoped to put permanently in its rear-view mirror.

Despite Legal Attacks, Conflict Minerals Ban Gets Stronger

Major manufacturing and business groups on Tuesday urged a court here to roll back a new U.S. regulation that would soon require major manufacturers to ensure that their global supply chains are free of minerals used to fund violence in the Great Lakes region of central Africa.

OP-ED: Arms and Athletes in Bahrain – Al Khalifa’s Deadly Game

A few days ago, Bahraini officials announced that they had “foiled an attempt to smuggle explosives and arms, some made in Iran and Syria, into the country by boat.” Around the same time, the government also contended it had defused a car bomb and seized weapons in different locations in the country.

Many More Snakes Than Ladders for U.S. Policy in 2014

If U.S. President Barack Obama conceived his foreign policy prospects for 2014 as a popular child’s board game, the snakes he will have to jump over significantly outnumber the ladders that can propel him to success.

Hospitality, Agriculture Firms Vulnerable to Human Trafficking

Shareholders are calling on 15 U.S.-based multinational corporations to ensure that their global supply chains are not facilitating human rights abuses, particularly labour and sex trafficking.

OP-ED: NAFTA’s 20 Years of Unfulfilled Promises

Twenty years after it took effect, NAFTA has failed the vast majority of Mexicans.

Coal Trains Run into Stiff Resistance in U.S.

Citizens and activists in the U.S. Pacific Northwest are fighting three different proposed coal terminals, including one in Oregon and two in Washington.

Iran Sanctions Bill Big Test of Israel Lobby Power

This week’s introduction by a bipartisan group of 26 senators of a new sanctions bill against Iran could result in the biggest test of the political clout of the Israel lobby here in decades.

Syrious Paralysis on Pennsylvania Avenue

Three months after averting a military strike against Syria with a last-minute deal to deprive it of its chemical weapons arsenal, U.S. policy toward the world's most violent conflict appears increasingly at sea.

U.S. Wind Industry Buffeted by Uncertainty

The U.S. wind industry looks set to enter a period of uncertainty, with an important government subsidy expiring at the end of the month and no clear plan for lawmakers to work towards an extension.

Guantanamo Transfers Hint at Momentum Towards Closure

The U.S. government announced Monday it has repatriated two Saudi detainees held at the Guantanamo Bay prison, less than two weeks after two Algerian detainees were likewise sent back to their home country.

Native Americans Seek Equal Access to Voting Precincts

In a lawsuit that could have nationwide implications for ballot-box access for tribes across the United States, Native Americans from Montana are pushing for early voting precincts to be placed closer to the locations of three tribal reservations - the Crow, Northern Cheyenne, and Fort Belknap reservations.   

In Minimum Wage Debate, A Battle Over Inequality and Job Loss

In the midst of a nationwide movement for policymakers to raise minimum wages for millions of workers in the United States, experts here continue to debate the advantages and drawbacks of raising the federal rate.

U.S. Still Playing Catch-up in Asia

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden wrapped up his finger-wagging tour of Asia on Friday, with a busy week of lecturing the Chinese, trying to get the South Koreans and Japanese to play nice with one another, and damning North Korea with faint praise for releasing an 85-year-old American after more than a month of detention.

Orphaned by Poverty

Seated at a table in the dimly lit café in Philadelphia’s public library, Carolyn Hill looks no different from her fellow diners. A few minutes of conversation, though, are enough to reveal the extent of her distress.