EGYPT: Arab Spring Gives Way to Military Chill

When Egypt’s dictator was ousted during a popular uprising last February, the military leaders who assumed control of the country pledged to "protect the revolution" and ensure a swift transition to civilian rule within six months. One year later, the ruling generals appear to have hijacked the transition to preserve the military institution’s economic autonomy and secure their own political future.

U.S. Condemns Boko Haram Attacks

The U.S. State Department Tuesday "strongly" condemned recent lethal attacks carried out by the Islamist group Boko Haram in northern Nigeria, but also warned against an excessive reaction by the government's security forces.

War Crimes Immunity for Ousted Leaders Under Fire

As ousted political and military leaders in the Middle East continue to seek immunity from war crimes prosecutions, the United Nations and international human rights groups are taking an increasingly tough stance against such legislation in Yemen, Egypt, and possibly in a post-conflict Syria.

KENYA: Four Years On, IDPs Remain in Camps

Six-year-old Victor Muruga points to a hole in the bush that he calls his "bedroom". "I sleep there, under that tree and my mother sleeps under that blanket," says Muruga.

SPAIN: Trials of Judge Garzon Called Scandalous by Rights Groups

Another trial opened Tuesday with Spain's best-known judge, Baltasar Garzón, in the dock for attempting to investigate crimes against humanity committed during the 36-year dictatorship of Francisco Franco.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Informal Economy Ensures Equitable Development

Although Papua New Guinea is known as a resource-rich country, 85 percent of the population depends on the informal economy for a living.

Cracks Widen in Syrian Economy

As the Syrian uprising enters its tenth month, the country’s economy is suffering. Since last March, the Syrian government has been cracking down on pro-democracy protests, and the once peaceful uprising has morphed into a full-blown armed rebellion in areas such as Homs, Hama and Jabal al-Zawiya.

BELARUS: Political Prisoners Facing Oppression

"I had to fight to be treated like a human, not animal," dissident Nikolai Avtukhovich wrote from prison. Last month Avtukhovich, Belarusian political activist and entrepreneur, convicted to five years in the penal colony for illegal storage of five cartridges for a hunting rifle, cut his veins.

Cuba Rebuts International Criticism Over Prisoner’s Death

The Cuban government energetically rebutted what it regards as another campaign to discredit it, following the death in prison of a man who, according to the authorities, was not a dissident nor on hunger strike, as the opposition alleges.

Britain Boosts Economic Ties with the Caribbean

As China sees its influence continue to grow in this part of the world, a delegation from the United Kingdom arrived in Grenada last weekend with a proverbial carrot for its former colonies, vowing to create new opportunities for trade, investment and innovation "in our respective economies".

CHILE: Recovery from Forest Fire Could Take 80 Years

"It's extremely serious, a full-blown environmental catastrophe," environmentalist Sara Larrain told IPS, describing the impact of the fire that has been raging through the Torres del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia since Dec. 27.

BURMA: Dismantling a Dictatorship – Peacefully

As he dismantles a 50-year military dictatorship without a shot being fired, Burmese President Thein Sein is resorting to the political art of compromise.

Romanians Discover Street Protest

For more than a week, thousands have been demonstrating in cities across Romania. Participants from all walks of life bring to the fore the broadest array of demands in what looks like a celebratory discovery of street protest. The main call is against lack of transparency and accountability in decision-making.

JAPAN: Tsunami Brings Sea Change to Tohoku

Yumi Goto, 60, lives with her husband in a temporary shelter on a windy hill that overlooks vast stretches of tsunami-devastated seacoast where her home was once located.

EGYPT: A Year On, Tiring of Demonstrations

Several revolutionary groups are calling for mass demonstrations against military rule on Wednesday to coincide with the first anniversary of the January 25 uprising that ultimately toppled the Mubarak regime. But many express doubt the event will succeed in replicating last year's revolutionary fervour on the part of the masses, most of whom express a desire for stability and a smooth transition to democratic governance above all else.

CZECH REPUBLIC: Castration for Sex Offenders Triumphs

The Czech government has defied calls from international human rights groups to stop the "degrading" practice of surgically castrating sex offenders.

MIDEAST: Into an Unsettled New Year

An elderly Palestinian woman spent last week on hunger strike to protest violent attacks by Israeli settlers. Hana Abu Heikel went on the hunger strike on behalf of her family after settlers burned the family car during the previous weekend. Since Israeli settlers moved into the houses surrounding the Abu Heikel family home in Hebron in 1984, the Abu Heikels have seen eight cars burned. Six vehicles were also smashed by settlers.

U.S.: “Money Isn’t Speech, Corporations Aren’t People”

In most mainstream media the words "corruption" and "election fraud" accompany images of makeshift polling stations manned by armed guards in Burma or burning tires beside tattered ballot boxes in South Sudan – the insidiousness of stolen elections and a crumbling democracy is very seldom associated with the United States.

U.S.: A Credit Union to Bail Out People, Not Big Banks

Occupy activists from Wall Street to San Francisco's financial district have dramatised their anger with big financial institutions by blocking JP Morgan Chase Bank doorways, dancing atop Wells Fargo counters, pitching a tent in a Bank of America lobby, hanging banners across Citibank windows, and accompanying the actions with the now-familiar chant "Banks got bailed out, we got sold out."

RUSSIA: ‘Repression May Lead to Revolt’

The Russian opposition movement which has risen to prominence since the Dec. 4 parliamentary elections has not said its last word, says 35-year-old Sergey Udaltsov, one of its most visible figures.

HONDURAS: Pressed by the U.S., Lobo Amends Extradition Laws

Following a surprise meeting between President Porfirio Lobo and U.S. government officials, Honduran lawmakers voted to amend the constitution to allow extradition of its nationals.