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Iran’s Crisis: The Opposition Weighs Its Options

Iran’s political crisis would end pretty quickly if the opposition went toe-to-toe with the security forces — and no matter how courageous and determined the demonstrators, the likelihood of them toppling the regime on the streets right now is pretty remote. Although at least 30 and perhaps many more opposition supporters have been killed and hundreds have been arrested, the regime has used only a fraction of its capacity for violent suppression, and its security forces show no sign of wavering or splintering. The authorities have warned that defiance of bans on demonstration will no longer be tolerated, and reports out of Iran Tuesday suggested that the regime may be moving to arrest opposition presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi.

Guardian Council rules out nullifying election

Iran’s Guardian Council has ruled out the possibility of nullifying the results of the country’s disputed presidential election, saying irregularities were reported before the balloting — not during or after. The announcement, reported by Iran’s government-funded Press TV on Tuesday, was another in a series of inconsistent stances by the council on how to handle the unrest stemming from the disputed June 12 race. “If a major breach occurs in an election, the Guardian Council may annul the votes that come out of a particular affected ballot box, polling station, district or city, like how it was done in the parliamentary elections,” council spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei was quoted as saying late Monday

Sex and the Priestly: Father Cutie Renews Celibacy Debate

It’s hard out there for a pope these days. On Thursday, Pope Benedict XVI launched what he is calling “The Year of Priests,” exhorting Roman Catholics to spend the coming year honoring the sacrifice of their local pastors and directing priests to encourage each other so that they might, among other things, “be able to live fully the gift of celibacy and build thriving Christian communities.” Overshadowing the Pope’s declaration, however, was the news that earlier in the week Father Alberto Cutie — the Miami-based priest and television personality who left the Catholic church last month amid soap opera-worthy scandal — had married his girlfriend of two years.

Russia vetoes U.N. mission in Georgia

The rift between Russia and Western powers over Georgia burst back into full view on the U.N. Security Council when Russia vetoed a resolution that would have extended the U.N. observer mission in Georgia

Researchers may have found Cleopatra’s final resting place

An archeological team is set to break new ground in its excavation of an Egyptian temple where doomed lovers Cleopatra and Mark Antony may be buried. A ground-penetrating, radar survey of the temple of Taposiris Magna and its surrounding area, west of Alexandria, was completed in March, following three years of digging, according to a statement from Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.

U.S. calls for conference on Afghanistan

The United States is calling for a conference on Afghanistan and the broader regional challenge to take place March 31, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced Thursday. Clinton made the announcement in her first address as secretary of state to the North Atlantic Council at NATO.

Castro: ‘Honey of power’ led top Cuban officials to ‘unworthy role’

A day after a wholesale shake-up in the Cabinet of President Raul Castro, brother Fidel said Tuesday that two of the leaders were ousted after they became seduced by the "honey of power," which led them to an "unworthy role." The elder Castro said in a posting on a state-run Web site that he was consulted about the appointments, though that had not been necessary “since I gave up the prerogatives of power quite a while ago.” In an article headlined “Reflections of comrade Fidel, healthy changes in the Cabinet,” Castro said he did not propose most of the replacements. “Almost without exception, they arrived at their jobs proposed by other colleagues from the address of the party or the state,” he wrote. “I never dedicated myself to that job.” The ailing former Cuban president, who handed power to his brother a year ago, referred to two of the ousted leaders cited in news reports.

Raul Castro shakes up Cuban Cabinet

In a major shake-up the likes of which Cubans have not seen for decades, President Raul Castro on Monday reorganized his Cabinet, replacing long-time aides to his brother Fidel, who resigned from office a year ago, citing poor health. Some analysts said the changes appear to be an attempt by Raul Castro to replace long-time Fidel Castro loyalists with his own supporters

Green burials: A dying wish to be ‘home for fish’

Carole Dunham, 69, loved the ocean. Last July, she was diagnosed with cancer and had only a few months to live

The Unkindest Cut: A Czech Solution for Sex Offenders

A doctor makes an incision in a man’s scrotal sac and, deftly wielding his scalpel, quickly removes both testicles. In the Czech Republic, that simple operation is the punishment for male sex offenders. But to the Council of Europe, the region’s leading human-rights body, the procedure is “invasive, irreversible and mutilating.” In a report issued last week, the council called the punishment “degrading” and demanded it be scrapped immediately