DRUGS: Central America Throws Ball into Consumer Nations’ Court

The leaders of Central America, Colombia and Mexico called on the governments of the world's main drug-consuming countries to play a stronger role in fighting drug trafficking and organised crime by stepping up control of weapons sales and taking effective measures to crack down on consumption.

VENEZUELA: Ambitious Promises of Affordable Housing

"I want my own roof over my head, my own home. I don't want to live in a curtained-off cubicle surrounded by masses of people," says Elena Díaz, who does ironing for a living and lives in a temporary shelter in the centre of the Venezuelan capital.

Prescription Drug Abuse on the Rise

Some 13 million people across Europe, Russia, and other parts of the world remain largely dependent on Afghanistan's poppy production to fuel their addiction to heroin, according to a new U.N. report on global use of illicit drugs.

Chinese Dissident Artist Ai Weiwei Freed

Ai Weiwei, the renowned artist who is among the most prominent dissidents detained in China's sweeping recent crackdown on dissent, has been released on bail after confessing to tax evasion.

SUDAN: Feeling the Economic Impact Before Secession

Amira Amer* becomes very picky the minute she reaches the bus station. One by one she lets the new air-conditioned busses pass her by. She is waiting for a cheaper bus. They are limited in the expensive city of Khartoum and are constantly packed to the point of overflowing.

Obama Leaves Door Open to Long-Term U.S. Afghan Combat

President Barack Obama's speech announcing that the 33,000 "surge" troops in Afghanistan will be withdrawn by "summer" 2012 indicates that he has given priority to the interests of the military and the Pentagon over concerns by key officials in his administration over the impact of the war's costs on domestic socioeconomic needs.

Chinese Model Showing Cracks

The Chinese Communist Party likes claiming credit for the success of the country’s model of steady rule and economic prosperity. But as it prepares to celebrate its 90th birthday on Jul. 1, the party has seen the attractive China brand lose appeal with once enthusiastic followers abroad and being outright rejected by violent protests at home.

Uphill Battle to Save Australians From Execution

Any Australian government efforts to have two of its citizens spared from the death penalty in Indonesia have been made more difficult by past refusals to intervene on behalf of three Indonesian Islamists in the lead-up to their executions in 2008.

PAKISTAN: ‘Ethnic Cleansing’ Feared in Balochistan

The pain and anger in 25-year-old Rukhsana Langho’s voice could be heard over the telephone line from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, 700 kms north of the port city of Karachi. "We hate Pakistan and we want freedom," she says, bitter over the disappearance of her brother more than a year ago.

AFGHANISTAN: Obama Takes the Centrist Option on Withdrawal

In a much-anticipated decision, U.S. President Barack Obama announced here Wednesday evening that he will withdraw 10,000 of the 100,000 U.S. troops currently deployed in Afghanistan by the end of this year and a total of 33,000 by some time next summer.

Second Humanitarian Flotilla Prepares to Sail for Gaza

As the second Freedom Flotilla, made up of some 10 ships carrying 1,000 activists from 20 countries, gets ready to sail for the besieged Gaza Strip, Israeli authorities are stepping up their threats.

U.N. Chief Quashes Reports of Run for President of Korea

Ban Ki-moon, who has been re-elected Secretary-General of the United Nations for a second five-year term beginning next January, dismissed longstanding speculation that he plans to run for the office of president in his home country, South Korea.

Libya Deaths Trigger Rift Over NATO Campaign

Civilian deaths have raised serious misgivings about the U.N.-authorised NATO intervention in Libya among the most ardent supporters of the ongoing air campaign.

Amidst ‘Dire’ Humanitarian Crisis, U.S. Urges Ceasefire in South Kordofan

As the date for South Sudan’s long anticipated Jul. 9 secession inches closer, on-going violence in the Northern state of South Kordofan threatens to destroy the country’s hopes for peace.

Pew Survey Reaffirms Pakistanis Hostility Toward the U.S.

The Pakistani public’s perceptions of the United States have hit their lowest levels since the 2002 invasion of Afghanistan, according to a new survey released here Tuesday by the Pew Global Attitudes Project (GAP).

Carbon Markets Are Not Cooling the Planet

Carbon markets have been widely promoted as the only way to generate enough money to enable industries and countries to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions, which are largely responsible for global warming. The only problem is that nearly 20 years after their conception, they have failed to work, and have also been subject to fraud and other financial crimes.

Syria Accuses EU of Fomenting ‘Chaos’

Walid al-Muallem, Syria’s foreign minister, has said the European Union’s reaction to President Bashar al-Assad’s speech on Monday showed it wanted to "plant strife and chaos" in the country.

HUMAN RIGHTS-MEXICO: Overdue Homework

Although four of the five sentences in which the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has found the Mexican state guilty involved cases from the southwestern state of Guerrero, the effects of the rulings have not yet had an impact on that area, one of the poorest parts of the country.

SOUTH SUDAN: Fuel Shortages Grip Country

South Sudan is facing severe fuel shortages less than three weeks before it gains independence from the rest of the country. Many gas stations have shut down and those that remain open have people lining up overnight for fuel.

ITALY: ‘They Saw Numbers, We Saw People’

It’s only a few hundred metres from the rocky hillside overlooking Lampedusa’s commercial port to the other side of the protected bay. For more than a decade this narrow strip of ocean has been a migratory gateway into Europe for tens of thousands of mostly African migrants. The numbers have risen and fallen in response to shifting government policies and geopolitical developments.

INDIA: Noose Not Mandatory for Drug Crimes, Rules Court

By striking down a law that makes the death penalty mandatory for drug-related offences, the Bombay High Court has raised hopes among rights activists that other countries in the region will follow suit.