Colombia: FARC arms traced to Venezuela

Shoulder-launched anti-tank weapons purchased by Venezuela have ended up in the hands of guerrillas, Colombian Vice President Francisco Santos said. In an interview with Caracol Radio Monday, Santos addressed local reports of anti-tank weapons manufactured in Sweden being seized from members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and traced to Venezuela. “This is not the first time that this happens,” Santos said

Share

Nigeria: At least 40 die as police battle militants

At least 40 people were killed as Islamic militants battled Nigerian government police and troops Sunday and Monday in the north-central part of the nation, officials said. Police and troops were dispatched to the militants’ hideouts after militants began attacks on government establishments early Sunday, said Mohamed Maigari, spokesman for Nigeria’s Bauchi state

Share

London marks three years until Olympics

Three years from Monday, the eyes of the world will be on London for the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games. The city is celebrating the three-year mark by showcasing the event’s centerpiece — the under-construction Olympic Park — and highlighting the progress made on everything from building work to transportation to getting sponsorship money

Share

Democracy groups plan global Iran rallies

Human rights supporters in dozens of cities around the world plan to rally Saturday to show solidarity with Iranians seeking democracy and civil rights, one of the organizing groups said. United4Iran said it expects protests at Iranian embassies and other sites to condemn the Iranian government’s violent response to citizens who claim the June 12 re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was fraudulent.

Share

The Outrage of South Africa’s Poor Threatens Their President, Jacob Zuma

South African President Jacob Zuma has a problem: the very underclass that swept him into office last April on his promise to deliver them a better life have run out of patience, and they’re venting their outrage on the streets. Little more than a year after the country’s impoverished black townships erupted in a wave of violence directed at migrants from neighboring African countries, tires are once again burning on the streets as crowds protesting the lack of resources in their communities clash with police in images sometimes reminiscent of the apartheid era. Recent weeks have seen a wave of angry and at times violent protests and strikes break out across the country.

Share

Ousted President Zelaya begins caravan back to Honduras

Behind the wheel of a sport utility vehicle, deposed Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya on Thursday started his journey from Managua, Nicaragua, to the country’s border with Honduras. A caravan of Zelaya supporters and reporters headed north to the city of Esteli, close to the Honduran border.

Share

Israel strips ‘catastrophe’ of nation’s birth from books

Israeli textbooks for Arab school children will no longer say that Arabs refer to the period surrounding the birth of Israel as al-Nakba, or "the catastrophe," Israel’s education minister said Wednesday. In a statement explaining the decision, Gideon Sa’ar said there is “no reason” for the birth of Israel “to be presented as a ‘catastrophe or shoah.'” After Israel was created in 1948, a war broke out between the Israelis and Arabs, and some 700,000 Palestinians either fled or were expelled from their homes. Arabs commemorate the displacement every year with Nakba Day

Share

Iraq: 5 killed in attack on Iranian pilgrims

At least five Iranian pilgrims were killed and dozens more wounded Wednesday in an attack northeast of Baghdad, security officials said. Foreign Office minister Lord Malloch-Brown, who is resigning from the government later this week, said: “We definitely don’t have enough helicopters,” adding that “mobility” was vital for operations in southern Afghanistan, where British troops are battling a resurgent Taliban.

Share