Overseas news archive

07.08.2006 As UN Indigenous Peoples' Day is celebrated Wednesday, advocates are hailing a UN vote recognizing the rights of indigenous peoples to their land and to live as they wish.

07.08.2006 Afraid that attacks on schools--up six-fold since last year--could reverse the country's progress, UNICEF and Afghanistan's Ministry of Education have launched a task force to monitor and respond to incidents.

07.08.2006 South Lebanon's biggest city has nearly doubled in size as shelters and food kitchens have been set up for 100,000 refugees. As the city's water, medical, and other facilities are stretched to the limit, Israeli warplanes dropped leaflets Saturday warning they intend to target the region.

07.08.2006 As officials in Serbia and Kosovo are digging in their heels once again, a newly formed lobby for peace, security, and justice in Southeast Europe is calling for a vote on Kosovo's independence to be held soon.

07.08.2006 In video interviews, Kenyan women explain why condoms are vital forms of protection against HIV and why, in their culture, abstinence-only programs can sometimes do more harm than good.

07.08.2006 South Lebanon's biggest city has nearly doubled in size as shelters and food kitchens have been set up for 100,000 refugees. As the city's water, medical, and other facilities are stretched to the limit, Israeli warplanes dropped leaflets Saturday warning they intend to target the region.

03.08.2006 California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and UK Prime Minister Tony Blair outlined a partnership Monday to address climate change and promote new clean fuel technologies. Executives from nine of the world's largest companies were on hand to express their solidarity.

03.08.2006 Anti-landmine campaigners are welcoming the introduction of a bill that would stop the U.S. from making landmines that are "unable to distinguish between the boot of a solider and the foot of a child."

03.08.2006 Three years after the Indian NGO Center for Science and Environment found pesticides in Indian carbonated drinks it has again taken the fizz out of the multinational soft drink industry by proving that their products continue to have dangerous levels of pesticides.

03.08.2006 A new peace process has been initiated to end ethnic clashes in Sri Lanka. With an imminent danger of a full-scale war breaking out in the island nation, prominent personalities in India and neighbouring countries will work on evolving a long-term peace solution.

03.08.2006 President General Pervez Musharraf has said that the government is paying special attention to progressing in the field of science and technology that is imperative for country’s development and global standing among the community of nations.

02.08.2006 The IMF's long-running interest in aiding low-income and developing countries will be better tailored to the needs of such countries if they have more influence over the organization's operations, managing director Rodrigo de Rato said Monday.

02.08.2006 Motorbike taxi drivers are swarming around Benin in pro-education t-shirts, chatting with women about the importance of educating girls.

02.08.2006 To inform locals of the social and environmental costs of mining, as well as their rights to oppose it, a "Central American Week of Action Against Mining" was organized recently.

02.08.2006 What is the best way to provide affordable housing? Ashoka's Changemakers project has put that question to the online community, allowing users to submit ideas for a chance to win money to put their dreams into action.

02.08.2006 The relief effort for Kashmir earthquake victims has switched from fulfilling immediate needs to the longer-term reconstruction effort, but that has left the thousands still living in camps to slip through the cracks.

02.08.2006 Farmers from across Europe are calling for urgent help after prolonged hot dry weather.

02.08.2006 Nepal's state-run newspaper editorializes on community-level programs across the nation this week informing and encouraging mothers about the importance of breastfeeding.

02.08.2006 NATO, which had already assumed responsibility for security in the west and north of Afghanistan, took control of military operations for the volatile south of the country as well Monday, with a force of 8,000 comprised largely of Canadian, British, and Dutch soldiers.

01.08.2006 The Israeli army has built an "inner" barrier in the southern Hebron hills of the West Bank in an attempt to circumvent a major ruling by the Israeli Supreme Court and prevent Palestinian villagers from using agricultural land, according to Israeli and Palestinian advocates.