BOOK-BURMA: On the New Road to Mandalay

Condemned for decades as an international pariah, Burma is enjoying a diplomatic spring with droves of former critics heading towards the Southeast Asian nation.

AFGHANISTAN: Land Triggers New Conflicts

A small plot of urban land has pitted Assadullah, 55, against an unwelcome neighbour in a bitter personal property dispute that has stretched on for almost a decade.

Rejecting Apology, U.S. May Hasten End of Pakistan as Client

President Barack Obama has sided with U.S. military and Defence Department officials in rejecting a proposal by the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan for a U.S. apology for last weekend's attack on two Pakistani border posts, and approving an investigation into the attack that won't be completed until Dec. 23 at the earliest.

U.S. Inaction on Climate is “Criminal”, Activists Say

The United States' delegation at the 17th annual Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UN FCC) in Durban, South Africa has come under heavy fire from civil society leaders and activists around the globe for standing in the way of real solutions to climate change.

EGYPT: Round One Goes to the Islamists

Islamists appear poised for a landslide victory in the first round of Egypt's parliamentary elections, putting them on track to secure a majority in the country's first parliament since the fall of president Hosni Mubarak.

RIGHTS-COLOMBIA: Int’l Mission Says Dire Situation Getting Worse

The human rights situation in Colombia is extremely serious, and getting worse, reported an International Verification Mission made up of 40 delegates from 15 countries who visited the country this week.

ELECTIONS-DR CONGO: Will the Candidates Accept the Results?

While the Congolese are awaiting the official results of the late November presidential elections, three of the eleven candidates have already called for them to be annulled.

GUATEMALA: Archives on Decades of Police Terror Accessible Online

Millions of documents from the Guatemalan national police archive, shedding light on torture, forced disappearances and murders committed during the1960-1996 counterinsurgency war in this country, are now available on-line thanks to a collaboration with the University of Texas at Austin.

INDIA: Bhopal Victims Oppose Dow as Olympics Sponsor

India’s sport stars have joined the survivors of the 1984 gas leak tragedy in this city, capital of the central Madhya Pradesh state, to protest against a sponsorship deal between Dow Chemical and the organisers of the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Q&A: ‘For Fragile States Aid is Life, Not Money’

The new deal for the ‘fragile states,’ from the g7+ – a group of 19 countries that struggle with poverty, instability and violent conflict - has been hailed as a major breakthrough at the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness here, earlier this week.

PERU: Government Expands Scope of Military Activity

The armed forces in Peru, which already have an active role in fighting drug trafficking, are being given greater responsibility for maintaining public order under the government of President Ollanta Humala. They will now also be expected to crack down on illegal mining, and to intervene in social protests.

Taliban Slide ‘From Hero to Zero’

Religious and political forces in Northern Pakistan, which hitherto drew strength from their association with the Taliban have begun to distance themselves from the militants, as the latter’s legitimacy plummets in the border regions.

Workers Send More Money Home, Surpassing Development Aid

Despite a global economic crisis, worsening employment prospects for immigrants and hardening views on immigration in the U.S. and Europe, migrant workers are sending more money home, according to a World Bank report on global remittances released Wednesday.

Most Israelis Favour a Nuclear-Free Middle East, Poll Shows

A clear majority of Israeli Jews would support a nuclear weapons-free Middle East, even if it meant that Israel too would have to give up its stockpile of nuclear weapons.

U.N. Says Syria Death Toll Above 4,000

The United Nations says the death toll in Syria’s nine-month-old uprising has reached "much more" than 4000, characterising the situation as a civil war.

Busan Skirts Gender Equality

Gender champions have lauded the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness for providing gender equality and the empowerment of women a special session, but there is dissatisfaction with Thursday’s Busan outcome document.

Andean Migrant Women Create Opportunities

Women make up a majority of migrants from South America's Andean region and they send more money home to their families than men, according to a study carried out in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

Inclusiveness Wins at Busan Aid Forum

Inclusiveness was the winner as donors, recipient governments, emerging economies, multilateral lenders and civil society representatives hammered out a consensual document at the close of a major meeting in this South Korean city to boost development aid effectiveness.

PAKISTAN: DNA Lab Comes to Track Terrorists

A much-needed DNA laboratory is to be set up at the Forensic Science Department of the Khyber Medical College in Peshawar, capital of the violence- battered Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region in Pakistan.

EGYPT: Muslim Brotherhood Looks Beyond Tahrir

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood came under fire from various political quarters for its decision to stay out of last week's clashes in and around Cairo's Tahrir Square. But as Egyptians vote in the country's first post-Mubarak parliamentary polls, many local analysts believe the controversial decision may have ended up paying political dividends.

For Big Financial Institutions, Profit Trumps Women’s Rights

This year, for the first time, the World Bank dedicated its 2012 annual flagship World Development Report to women as indispensable players in the global economy and launched a media campaign to "think equal".