Overseas news archive

31.07.2006 Congo's historic elections began Sunday with much optimism and enthusiasm and a high turnout, though all did not go smoothly everywhere in the massive and beleaguered central African country.

31.07.2006 At least 30 families in India's Belwa village are starving--with many cooking food only once every four or five days--even though local news agencies have reported on the problem and human rights groups have lodged complaints with authorities, activists warned Friday after the death of a nine-month-old girl.

31.07.2006 A new Chicago law will force mega-retailers like Wal-Mart, Target, and Home Depot to pay their employees a minimum of $9.25 (£4.98) an hour.

28.07.2006 Eighteen members of parliament resigned Thursday, saying Somalia's transitional government is not interested in peace or reconciliation, and is instead preparing for war against the Islamic movement that recently took control of the capital.

28.07.2006 Western inattention after the Andijan massacre of May 2005 has granted Uzbekistan's president a green light to further repress freedoms, the country's opposition leaders told international human rights advocates this week.

27.07.2006 Discover the two-minute cartoon story that's delivering a powerful, complex, and revolutionary view of what often passes as "development."

27.07.2006 Reversing the process of deforestation--a feat rarely accomplished--has been achieved by a Costa Rican environmentalist, whose inventive policy of economic incentives for maintaining forests has decreased illegal logging at a rapid rate.

27.07.2006 SAN FRANCISCO, Jul 26 (OneWorld) - Despite a 46-year effort to eradicate poverty, hunger remains a problem in many parts of the world, says a new report arguing that a re-think of political priorities in the United States and elsewhere could boost efforts to get food to hungry people around the globe.

27.07.2006 Projects aiding disabled orphans and at-risk Egyptian girls have caught the attention of the online community, being among the winners in an online contest for aid projects.

27.07.2006 CODEPINK and Global Exchange co-founder Medea Benjamin, who is on day 23 of her "Troops Home Fast," was hauled out of Congress today and booked after loudly interrupting Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's speech with calls to remove U.S. troops from Iraq.

27.07.2006 As the Aral Sea continues to shrink beyond recognition between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, millions have suffered from the after effects: the resulting toxic dust has contaminated drinking water and air, spreading cancer and tuberculosis throughout the region.

26.07.2006 A treaty to control the global arms trade--like the one tabled at the UN Monday--is badly needed, said a coalition of human rights and development groups, but the initial draft would not prohibit selling arms to countries where human rights are a grave concern.

26.07.2006 The seemingly unstoppable expansion of soya farming--for animal, not human, consumption--has become one of the main threats to the world's largest rainforest. After receiving thousands of emails and letters, McDonald's has announced it will no sell chickens fed on this soya.

26.07.2006 The UN has launched a "flash appeal" for $150 million in humanitarian aid for Lebanese civilians. It is also asking for Israel to provide "humanitarian corridors"--passageways safe from Israeli attack--in order for aid workers to provide assistance to those in need.

26.07.2006 SAN FRANCISCO, Jul 25 (OneWorld) - Humanitarian agencies in war-torn Lebanon are calling on the Israeli government to open a "humanitarian corridor" so they can help the sick without risking their lives.

26.07.2006 As part of his Broken Music Tour in Russia, British musician Sting is singing for forest conservation.

25.07.2006 Some aid groups were elated Monday that the world trading system wasn't tipped further toward those in rich countries; others were disappointed that after four years, a deal to help poor countries couldn't get done.

25.07.2006 According to a new report released by UNICEF, children have been at the heart of the conflict that has raged in the Democratic Republic of Congo since 1998. Documenting their plight through photos, videos, and words, UNICEF portrays "the world's deadliest humanitarian crisis."
+ Learn more through the DRC photo gallery and donate online.

25.07.2006 Kofi Annan said the UN and U.S. want the same thing in the Middle East, but he is calling for a humanitarian truce to allow aid to flow to the victims and refugees, while the U.S. has called this approach a "false promise."

25.07.2006 Amnesty International is seeking clarification on why the Iranian government has ordered the activities of its Baha'i minority be scrutinized and reports sent to the armed forces.