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For the past year, far from the front pages of Western newspapers, the southern African country of Malawi has faced increasing political and economic turmoil, mainly at the increasingly oppressive hand of President Bingu wa Mutharika. So when news hit Twitter yesterday that the septuagenarian president had collapsed from a massive heart attack, it was […]

So the National League for Democracy (NLD) of Myanmar achieved a dramatic victory in recent parliamentary elections. Its polarizing leader, Aung San Suu Kyi (she’s the one on the cell phone in the picture above), will now be part of the government that kept her under house arrest for about 15 years. Reforms introduced by […]

Nikkei.com and Dow Jones Newswires reported referring to a press conference on Thursday by Japan’s government spokesman Mr. Fujimura that four Cabinet ministers in charge of deciding whether to restart the country’s idled nuclear plants will meet to discuss putting reactors at the Oi plant in western Japan (Fukui prefecture) back online. These four ministers […]

I wanted to note some follow-up discussion to material that I have flagged here recently at the blog.  The first was my post On the Denialists from March 2nd.  The NY Review of Books has printed a reply to William Nordhaus’s refutation of the claims of the climate denialists, that I discussed at earlier post.  […]

As promised, here are my thoughts and reflections on the 2012 Security Jam. First of all, over this weeklong discussion, the numbers have been quite impressive with over 15.000 logins, 3.000 posts, and experts from 110 countries. These facts give an idea of the extent and depth of the discussions taking place in the eight […]

  My colleague Andreas Persbo, the director of the UK-based VERTIC, has recently highlighted the existence of a very useful resource provided by the IAEA.  The page, which includes a newly-released document entitled Guidance for States Implementing Comprehensive Safeguards Agreements, helps to shed light on the ” how, what, when and why of practical safeguards implementation”. While […]

This post originally appeared on CIVIC From the Field I’ve been in Jalalabad this week, in eastern Afghanistan, where people are very concerned about their safety and future. One doctor told me, “When I leave in the morning, I am not sure I will see my son again.” Civilians live in fear of roadside bombs, […]

Meningococcal disease, or meningitis, is a bacterial infection of the meninges, or lining around the brain and spinal cord.  If left untreated, it has a 50% mortality rate, and it spreads most easily through crowded areas where people are in close and prolonged contact, from college dorms to informal settlements.  Meningococcal disease can result in severe, permanent […]

Huff Post draws attention today to an interview on the subject of the Iranian nuclear dilemma that Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman did with the daily Yedioth Ahronoth on March 18. In it, amazingly, the hard-right, ultra-nationalistic Lieberman said: “If, God forbid, a war with Iran breaks out, it will be a nightmare. And we […]

It’s getting hot in Mali. Every day this week Timbuktu temperatures will top 100 degrees (F). This is typical for the season in the land-locked Saharan country, but a drought that has been building for months means Malians will feel the heat more than ever.   Even before the coup, the rebellion, the sanctions, Malians […]

In a second post on global health news for this week, U.S. President Barack Obama’s budget request for next year has reduced funding for neglected tropical diseases.  This decrease may have wide-reaching effects on one-sixth of the world’s population.  Additionally, a writer tells his story of life in a serodiscordant relationship and navigating the American health care […]

In post one of two on global health news this week, a new study found that malaria prevention efforts over the last decade have saved the lives of almost one million children.  The Global Fund’s new General Manager, Gabriel Jaramillo,  discusses his plans for the organization going forward in an interview with Spanish newspaper El […]