Conference Renews Eroded Efforts to Combat Desertification

Degradation of land is the world's quiet crisis, undercutting food production, increasing water scarcity, impoverishing hundreds of millions of people and affecting two billion overall. Nearly 20 million square kilometres of the earth's arable lands – an area twice the size of Canada – have already been degraded.

SOUTH KOREA: Opposition Resists U.S. Trade Pact

South Korea's opposition party has said it will resist any bid to force a sweeping free-trade agreement with the U.S. through parliament, following ratification of the deal by the U.S. congress.

Libya’s Governing Council Accused of Detainee Abuse

Libya's governing National Transitional Council (NTC) is holding about 2,500 detainees in the capital Tripoli alone, many of whom have been beaten and subjected to other ill-treatment and not given access to lawyers or judicial proceedings, says London-based human-rights watchdog Amnesty International.

Worsening Economy Hardening Views on Migrants

"Since the economic crisis, migrants are increasingly at risk from racism and xenophobia," president of the United Nations General Assembly Nassir Abdulaiziz Al-Nasser said at a meeting on migration and communication in Helsinki Thursday.

EGYPT: ‘Invisible Hand’ Playing With Sectarian Fire

Violent clashes in Cairo that left at least 25 Egyptians dead and over 300 injured on Sunday have deepened suspicions that unseen forces are manipulating the country's sectarian divisions for political gain.

To Be Black in Iraq

"Before being deployed to Iraq I never thought I’d come across people who physically resemble my friends and family back in Buffalo," says U.S. marines sergeant William Collins on a rare patrol around Basra’s Zubeir district.

U.S.: Alleged Iranian Assassination Plot Suspicious, Experts Say

U.S. Justice Department charges that elements of Iran's government were behind a foiled plot on the life of Saudi Arabia's U.S. ambassador have boggled the minds of many Americans knowledgeable about both Iran and terrorism.

Farmers’ Networks Urge Government Action Against Land Grabbing

Civil society organisations and global farmers' networks are gathered in Rome this week to ask governments to stop the "disastrous practice of land grabbing", ahead of next week's Committee on World Food Security.

New Methods Aim to Reduce Child Soldier Recruitment

In the last decade, more than two million children have died as a result of armed conflicts and over one million have been orphaned or separated from their families. Yet for children affected by wars, these costs are only a few of the high price children pay, says the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF).

Imperative Libyans Decide Their Own Future

The African Union must take the lead in helping Libya achieve peace by ensuring the formation of a unity government between pro-Muammar Gaddafi forces and the National Transitional Council, as this and not foreign intervention will pave the way for peace and stability in Libya.

Hamas and Israel Confirm Prisoner Swap

Scenes of celebration in the Gaza Strip and in Jerusalem have greeted the announcement of a landmark Palestinian-Israeli prisoner-swap deal.

CAMBODIA: Resignation Raises Doubts Over Khmer Rouge Tribunal

The United Nations must address a "crisis of confidence" at the beleaguered Khmer Rouge war crimes tribunal in Cambodia following the resignation of a controversial judge, critics say.

TUNISIA: Social Media Lift the Silence

After 23 years of enforced silence, media professionals and artists in Tunisia are enjoying a period in which their freedom of expression is being respected for the first time.

Iranians Charged in Alleged Plot to Kill Saudi Envoy

In a move certain to escalate tensions on a number of fronts, the U.S. Justice Department Tuesday charged a dual Iranian- American national and an alleged member of the Islamic Republic's special operations unit of conspiring to assassinate the Saudi ambassador here.

Liberians Turn Out in Numbers to Vote

Liberians cast their ballots Tuesday in an election that has so far been described as orderly and peaceful, though concerns persist that a disputed result could anger voters and fuel minor unrest.

U.S. Arms Bahrain While Decrying Russian Weapons in Syria

Peeved at Russia's Security Council veto derailing a Western- sponsored resolution against Syria last week, U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice implicitly accused the Russians of protecting the beleaguered government of President Bashar al-Assad primarily to safeguard their lucrative arms market in the Middle Eastern country.

GERMANY: Anti-Nuclear Exhibit Calls for Culture of Peace

The question which is safer - the heavily armed world we live in now, or a world in which all peoples' basic needs are met - is one core issue of an antinuclear exhibition that has reached Germany after touring more than 220 cities in 28 countries.

BRAZIL: ‘Green Grant’ May Do Little to Protect Amazon

The Bolsa Verde or Green Grant programme, which gives financial assistance to poor families that help preserve Brazil's Amazon jungle, may turn out to be only a drop in the ocean if legislation that undermines forest protection is adopted.

INDIA: Unauthorised Clinical Trials on Bhopal Victims

Ajay Shrivastav from Bhopal, the central Indian city that witnessed one of the worst industrial disasters of the world in 1984 from a deadly gas leak, is an angry man seeking justice.

Line Blurs Between Pro-India and Separatist Politics

As the blistering summer heat gives way to the first undertones of winter’s chill, the political landscape in the highly contested north Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir also appears to be changing colour.

“The Death Penalty Has No Dissuasive Effect”

Capital punishment continues to exist because in some countries people are barraged with propaganda depicting it as a curb on crime, which it is not, said Federico Mayor Zaragoza, chair of an international commission against the death penalty that inaugurated its new headquarters in Geneva Monday.