Headscarf Returns to Trouble Turkey

A ruling by an administrative court banning female candidates for academic posts from being veiled during an admission examination has brought the headscarf back to the front of Turkish politics, and reignited tensions between secularist and religious forces.

TAIWAN: Media Fights Propaganda Masked as News

A coalition of journalist and civic organizations is waging a campaign to rid the Taiwan media of government propaganda masquerading as news, and signs are that the campaign has taken "the first steps" towards victory.

Serbs Turn Back to Arms for Money

A long-running joke in Serbia goes that the country’s most successful export products are berries, grains, maize, and world-renowned tennis players like Novak Djokovic and Jelena Jankovic.

EGYPT: ‘Planned Anarchy’ Playing Into Mubarak’s Hands

The city squares where protesters battled riot police for four consecutive days were unexpectedly quiet late Sunday night, as Egyptians fighting to topple the Mubarak regime returned home to defend their neighbourhoods from looters and thugs.

EGYPT: Endgame Approaches for Mubarak

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak named a vice-president and agreed to form a new government, but protesters calling for Mubarak’s removal said that they would not let up until the 83-year-old "Pharaoh" stepped down.

EGYPT: Army Loyalty to Mubarak Will be Crucial

Columns of tanks and armoured personnel carriers moved in to take up position vacated by weary riot police on Friday night as Egypt’s embattled president attempted to restore order to his nation’s capital.

EGYPT-U.S.: Washington Struggles to Catch Up

With tens of thousands of demonstrators still milling around the streets of Cairo and other Egyptian cities Friday night, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama was struggling to come up with a policy response to an uprising that may be on the verge of ousting Washington's most important ally in the Arab world.

U.S.: Spate of Trade Deals Move Toward Passage

On the heels of U.S. President Barack Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday in which he focused squarely on resuscitating the economy, pressure is mounting in the nation's capital to move forward with free trade agreements (FTAs) whose passage would promote exports and create jobs.

EGYPT: Mubarak to Dissolve Govt in Wake of Mass Protests

After a day in which thousands of protesters called for his ouster and clashed with security forces, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced on state television after midnight Friday that he was dismantling the current government immediately and will announce a replacement cabinet on Saturday.

US: Lethal Drug Shortage Creates Ethical Quagmire

As the domestic and overseas sources that U.S. states relied upon for sodium thiopental (ST), a key drug used in lethal injections, have stopped producing or exporting the drug, state governments are scrambling to find another way to carry out planned executions.

Uncertain Fate for Egypt’s U.S.-Supplied Weapons Systems

Besieged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, a former air force officer whose 30-year old authoritarian regime is under attack, presides over a country described as one of the major military powers in the region, ranking next to Israel and Turkey.

Arms Treaty Campaigners Seize on “Merchant of Death” Case

When Andrew Niccol wrote and directed the feature film "Lord of War", the story was partly inspired by the life of Viktor Bout, a Russian businessman suspected of using his air cargo company as a cover for arms dealing.

EGYPT: Eerie Silence Follows ‘Unprecedented Brutality’

Tear-gas and smoke wafted through the air of the Egyptian capital on Friday as police moved swiftly to disperse anti-government demonstrations throughout the city.

EGYPT: Embattled Regime Cuts Internet Services

Twitter was an early casualty. Then Facebook access became spotty. But when the Internet itself went down, Egyptian pro-democracy activists knew their protests were having an effect.

SOUTH AFRICA: New, Assertive Women’s Voices in Local Elections

Noncedo Pulana lacks many things, but she is certainly not short of confidence as she prepares to stand for election as Khayelitsha ward councillor. She feels her long years as an activist in the sprawling township have prepared her to do a better job.

Russia Struggles to Get a Grip on Corruption

A government initiative aimed at rooting out deep-seated corruption in Russia has hit a number of stumbling blocks since its implementation. According to experts, the initiative, adopted by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at the beginning of his term, has been unsuccessful in combating the pervasive issue of corruption, particularly in regional administrations and offices, in this eastern European country.

Dams Threaten Aboriginal Tribe

Over the years, the Kadars, a dwindling aboriginal tribe who live on the borders of the southern Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, have survived pestilences, extreme exploitation and even mass sterilisations. But a new government plan to build a hydroelectric dam across the Chalakudy River would have been the death knell for the group who now number about 1,500.

U.S.-MIDEAST: Obama Riding a Tiger

Suddenly faced with an unprecedented number of challenges across the Arab world, the administration of President Barack Obama is scrambling hard to keep up.

RIGHTS-CUBA: Few Advances, Besides Release of Prisoners

A dissident group in Cuba described the human rights situation in the country as "very unfavourable," although it recognised that the number of people prosecuted or imprisoned for "political motivations" has gone down in the last 12 months.

Global Muslim Population Growing but Slowing

The world's Muslim population will increase by 35 percent in the next 20 years, according to new estimates by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life.

ARGENTINA-BRAZIL: Powerful Women Leaders Face Similar Challenges

The high popularity levels of their predecessors smoothed the way for Cristina Fernández and Dilma Rousseff to become presidents of Argentina and Brazil. But they also share the challenge of governing the two biggest countries in South America's Mercosur trade bloc, in the shadow of the leaders who went before them.