Clipmarks | rmowery's International Events collection

1,000 Tibetans arrested in Chinese crackdown

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 05:31:45 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

1,000 Tibetans arrested in Chinese crackdown

Rioters in Lhasa: many have been rounded up by the Chinese authorities

Close to 1,000 Tibetans have been detained in two days of sweeps across Lhasa, the capital, by paramilitary police hunting down those who took part in last week’s deadly anti-Chinese riots.

Sources in the city said 600 people had been detained on Saturday and another 300 had been picked up on Sunday. They said it was not clear where those rounded up were being detained because the main Drapchi prison in Lhasa is believed to be virtually full.

Tags: china, tibet, protests, arrests

Bolton Says Cheney Has ‘Enormous Credibilty’ In Iraq, But Iraqis Suggest Otherwise

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 04:49:42 GMT

clipped by: rmowery
clipper's remarks: This is coming from the guy who looks like a muppet character. And besides that - I am surprise Cheney can even speak words of one syllable....

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

Bolton Says Cheney Has ‘Enormous Credibilty’ In Iraq, But Iraqis Suggest Otherwise

As the Iraq war’s fifth anniversary approaches, Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Baghdad today on an unannounced trip to meet with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Gen. David Petraeus, and Amb. Ryan Crocker. Cheney said he seeks to reaffirm “the unwavering commitment” of the U.S. in Iraq.

Commenting on the surprise visit, conservative war hawk and former U.N. ambassador John Bolton said Cheney can make the Iraqis “get their act together” because he has “enormous credibility” in Iraq:

“He’s got enormous credibility there, and is able to say to them in words of one syllable that they need to get their act together,” John Bolton, the former UN ambassador, said.

Tags: bolton, cheney, government, iraq

World Banker and His Cash Return Home

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 12:31:09 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

World Banker and His Cash Return Home

SINDHEKELA, India — An important man from the World Bank recently arrived in this isolated village, where monkeys prowl rutted roads, rain pours through the school roof and the native son who achieved the most did so by going away.

Lessons about global poverty were waiting, but so were his sisters’ chapattis. Migrant and migration scholar, Dilip Ratha was home.

No one has done more than Mr. Ratha to make migration and its potential rewards a top-of-the-agenda concern in the world’s development ministries. And no place has done more to shape his views than this forgotten hamlet, where he studied under the lone streetlight and began a poor boy’s improbable journey to the front ranks of an elite field.

“When I think about the effects of migration, I think about Sindhekela,” he said.

Tags: cash, money, migration, india

Dalai Lama: China causing 'cultural genocide'

Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:12:17 GMT

clipped by: rmowery
clipper's remarks: In WW2 their was genocide and it was by the country hosting the Olympics that year. Is there a parallel here with China who is not hosting this year - the genocide they are causing within their own region?

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Dalai Lama: China causing 'cultural genocide'

(CNN) -- The Dalai Lama on Sunday called for an international probe of China's treatment of Tibet, which he said is causing "cultural genocide" of his people.

The exiled spiritual leader of Tibet spoke at a news conference Sunday in Dharmsala, India, two days after violent clashes between pro-autonomy demonstrators and Chinese security forces in the Tibetan capital Lhasa.

A spokesman for the Tibetan exile government said it has confirmed at least 80 deaths in Friday's violence and that protests were continuing outside the capital on Sunday, further undermining China's hopes of a smooth run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Tags: genocide, china, dali lama, tibet

RUSSIA MAKES FINANCIAL GAMBLE TO RETAIN CONTROL OF CENTRAL ASIAN ENERGY EXPORTS

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:22:34 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.eurasianet.org

RUSSIA MAKES FINANCIAL GAMBLE TO RETAIN CONTROL OF CENTRAL ASIAN ENERGY EXPORTS

Kazakhstan, along with its Central Asian neighbors Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, will receive a huge increase in energy-related revenue following a flurry of regional diplomatic activity. Ukraine, meanwhile, stands to lose the most under the new pricing framework for Central Asian natural gas.

The deal is certain to hit Gazprom’s bottom line. It could also potentially cause supply disruptions down the road by sparking pricing disputes, likely involving Ukraine, which is the key transit nation for European energy exports. But the Russian conglomerate’s action helps solidify Moscow’s position as the gatekeeper for Central Asian energy exports to Western European markets. Over the past year, the competition over Caspian Basin energy has intensified, with the United States, European Union and China all seeking to break Russia’s current stranglehold over regional export routes.

Tags: energy, russia, asia

International Olympic Committee concern over China's clashes in Tibet

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:15:35 GMT

clipped by: rmowery
clipper's remarks: I will hedge a bet the Olympics are boycotted by some countries.

Clip Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

International Olympic Committee concern over China's clashes in Tibet

With the start of the Beijing Olympics now just 145 days away, clashes between protesters and Chinese security forces in Tibet have sparked serious concerns among senior officials at the International Olympic Committee.

International Olympic Committee concern over China's clashes in Tibet

Following film director Steven Spielberg's decision last month to pull out as an adviser to the Beijing Games opening ceremony over China's support for Sudan, the IOC were already bracing themselves for a wave of protests in the run up to the start of this summer's Olympics.

Tags: olympics, china, beijing, tibet

Wife of missing ex-agent wants answers from Iran

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 05:21:37 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Wife of missing ex-agent wants answers from Iran

MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- It has been a year since retired FBI agent Robert Levinson disappeared in Iran, and his family still has no idea where he is.

Christine Levinson, his wife of 33 years, and their family and friends staged a "rally of hope" in their South Florida hometown of Coral Springs on Sunday -- a day before his 60th birthday.

Outside a restaurant whose owners know and miss Bob Levinson, a crowd gathered wearing yellow ribbons. They signed a petition that will be sent to Iran's Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, appealing for the Iranian leader to help find their missing relative.

"The rally of hope is to let everyone know that we have not forgotten Bob, that we will continue to search for him and that we hope that anyone that might have information about him will get in touch with us ... and help us bring him home," Christine Levinson said. Watch an interview with Christine Levinson »

Tags: government, iran, levison

Senators: Where is Iraq's oil money going?

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 05:16:27 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Senators: Where is Iraq's oil money going?

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Two senators are asking congressional investigators to look at Iraq's oil revenues and see if the war-ravaged nation can pay for its own reconstruction, an effort that has been bankrolled to this point mostly by U.S. taxpayers.

Carl Levin, D-Michigan, and John Warner, R-Virginia, said in their Friday letter to the Government Accountability Office that Iraq has "tremendous resources" in banks worldwide but is doing little to improve security and reconstruction efforts.

Iraqi officials did not immediately respond to the senators' allegations.

"We believe that it has been overwhelmingly U.S. taxpayer money that has funded Iraq reconstruction over the last five years, despite Iraq earning billions of dollars in oil revenue over that time period that have ended up in non-Iraqi banks," wrote the senators, who are their party's top members on the Armed Services Committee.

Tags: iraq, revenue, oil, us

Leviev: Zionism is bankrupt because of 'new American religion'

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 03:12:29 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.haaretz.com

Leviev: Zionism is bankrupt because of 'new American religion'

Businessmen Lev Leviev - who, in addition to being the richest person in Israel, operates a 100-school educational network in Israel, the former Soviet Union and eastern Europe - does not accept secular Jewish culture and believes that Zionism is bankrupt.

In a wide-ranging interview with Haaretz Magazine that will appear on Friday, Leviev also said that a prime minister who is prepared to negotiate over Jerusalem is betraying the Jewish people.

Tags: israel, jewish, zionism, lev leviev

Iraq:Beyond Quagmire (a must read!)

Wed, 14 Mar 2007 03:07:56 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.rollingstone.com

Beyond Quagmire

A panel of experts convened by Rolling Stone agree that the war in Iraq is lost. The only question now is: How bad will the coming explosion be?

WORST-CASE SCENARIO

WORLD WAR III

Freeman: This could become the Islamic equivalent of the Thirty Years War between Protestants and Catholics in Europe in the 1600s -- a religious schism that blossoms into overt mayhem and murder and massacres and warfare. The various Iraqi factions will obtain the backing of other Middle Eastern states as they conduct their ideological and ethnic struggles. It will be a free-for-all that spreads beyond the anarchic zone of Iraq.

Tags: iraq, generals, ww3, war, bush, us, muslim

US seizes Afghan shooting footage

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 20:49:56 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: english.aljazeera.net

US seizes Afghan shooting footage

US forces in Afghanistan tried to confiscate video and destroy photographic evidence taken after a shooting incident that left at least 10 civilians dead, witnesses have told Al Jazeera.

Footage obtained by Al Jazeera shows the scene in Nangarhar province immediately after US forces opened fire following a car bomb attack on their convoy.

The footage shows local people in shock, treating the wounded and pulling bodies from the debris left by the shooting.

After the Nargarhar incident, a separate Nato air raid in northern Afghanistan left nine civilians dead, according to a local official.

'Complete lie'

Witnesses say the suicide bomber had acted alone, that there were no accomplices and that US troops had panicked, firing at anything that moved immediately after the attack.

One told Al Jazeera: "There were no gunmen, this is a complete lie. This is a peaceful area, we don't have guns."

Tags: us, war, afgha, video siezure

6.3 mag Earthquake hits Indonesia - 70 dead so far

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 20:31:29 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

PADANG, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake crumpled houses across a large swath of western Indonesia on Tuesday, killing at least 70 people and injuring hundreds, authorities said, predicting that the toll would rise.

The magnitude 6.3 quake struck on Sumatra island and was felt as far away as neighboring Malaysia and Singapore, where some tall buildings were evacuated. It was followed by several strong aftershocks.

Tags: indonesia, sumatra, earthquake, malyasia

Wal-Mart says employee snooped on reporter

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 03:23:25 GMT

clipped by: rmowery
clipper's remarks: Question is if the employee is just the scapegoat.

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Wal-Mart says employee snooped on reporter

Fired worker intercepted calls, messages between PR staffer, journalist

By Bob Sullivan

Technology correspondent

MSNBC

Updated: 2 hours, 52 minutes ago

Retail giant Wal-Mart said federal authorities are investigating a potential electronic spying incident involving one of its employees and a reporter for the New York Times.

Wal-Mart announced Monday that an internal investigation begun in January revealed that a technician had intercepted telephone conversations and text messages between a New York Times reporter and public relations employees over a four-month period last year. That investigation also revealed that the employee had intercepted text messages and pages involving other individuals outside the company, it said.

Tags: walmart, pr, snooping, intercept messages, eavesdrop, corporate giant

Indians shed tears over onions

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 04:49:57 GMT

clipped by: rmowery

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Indians shed tears over onions

By Navdip Dhariwal
BBC News, Delhi

Delhi's popular Radio One breakfast show hosts a daily phone-in - and the hot topic for the past couple of weeks has been the price of onions.

Onions have recently risen 500% in price.

The lines have been buzzing as listeners call in on one of the most politically sensitive issues in India.

One South Indian restaurant owner calls in to complain that he can no longer afford to carry on with his business because all his dishes rely so heavily on onions that cooking them is just too expensive.

This humble root vegetable is a staple of the Indian diet.

Tags: india, onions, food, economy

Iraqis use internet to survive war

Fri, 16 Feb 2007 18:34:48 GMT

clipped by: rmowery
clipper's remarks: I really feel bad for the average people that are caught in the middle of this war. A war of government(s) and corporations - rather then of the common Iraqi. One can almost compare this to the US Civil War and gain an understanding of what it must have been like to be forced into fitting within - brother versus brother.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Iraqis use internet to survive war

One tip - on the Iraq League site, one of the best known - is for people to draw up maps of their local area using Google Earth's detailed imagery of Baghdad so they can work out escape routes and routes to block.

As the communal bloodshed has worsened, some Iraqis have set up advice websites to help others avoid the death squads.

Google is playing an unlikely role in the Iraq war. Its online satellite map of the world, Google Earth, is being used to help people survive sectarian violence in Baghdad.

Consulting Google Earth can help people work out routes to avoid

It's another example of the central role technology plays in the conflict - with the widespread use of mobile phones, satellite television as well as the internet - by all sides and for many purposes.

For some time now, vigilante-style guard forces have been operating in many neighbourhoods, especially in Sunni areas targeted by Shia militias.

Many Sunnis see the Shia-dominated police forces as just as much of a threat, because of evidence of their involvement in kidnappings.

Tags: iraq, war, sunni, iraq league