Stories about Breaking News from September, 2012
Russia: Nation's Top Blogger Headed to Prison?
The criminal investigation targeting Russia's most prominent oppositionist blogger, Alexey Navalny, is heating up. Viacheslav Opalev, the former director of a logging firm in Kirov, has confessed [ru] to participating in the embezzlement of 16 million rubles (over half a million U.S. dollars), and named Navalny as the scheme's mastermind.
Mexicans Mourn the Death of Senator Alonso Lujambio
Mexicans from the political sphere and from the public in general mourn the passing of Senator Alonso Lujambio due to illness. Some of the tributes that have been shared on Twitter are collected here.
Russia: The Kostin Report & the Trojan Horse of American ICT
Earlier this week, the media got a sneak peek at a new report on the foreign penetration of the RuNet and the potential manipulation of the country's future elections. The Internet's growing popularity is transforming it into a political weapon: a weapon that is increasingly guarded by American, albeit private, media firms.
The Slap that Changed China's History
On September 24, the former police chief of Chongqing, Wang Lijun, was sentenced to 15 years in prison on four charges: bending the law for personal interest, defection, abuse of power and corruption. He is at the center of China's biggest political scandal in recent memory, the murder of a British businessman by the wife of Chongqing Communist Party high flier Bo Xilai.
Russia: Yekaterinburg Police Raid Regional Internet Publication
On September 27th Yekaterinburg-based internet news portal URA.ru was raided by city police, reports [ru] Evgeny Roizman, local anti-drug campaigner. Roizman is dating the editor-in-chief of the portal, Aksana Panova, who has apparently managed to leave the country before masked operatives arrived at her apartment and scared her mother and young son [ru]....
Why Mali's Army is Hesitant about Foreign Intervention in the North
Tiékorobani goes to great length explaining why Captain Sanogo and the Malian Army are hesitant about foreign intervention [fr] in Northern Mali. He argues that Sanogo fears that he will lose control the global military operations and that in turn, his officers might rebel against him because of his loss of...
Saudi Arabia: Families of Uncharged Prisoners Protest on National Day
Imprisonment without charges is the top human rights issue in Saudi Arabia. Families of uncharged prisoners, estimated to be around 30,000 detainees, took the risk to raise awareness about the cause, with a sit-in outside the al-Turfiya prison, near Buraidah. Here's how that sit-in was dispersed.
United States: Occupy Wall Street, One Year Later
September 15-17 2012 marked the first year anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Scenes that took place during the inception of the movement repeated themselves: hundreds of arrests were reported on Saturday the 15th amidst the protests that culminated on Monday the 17th in the neighborhood near the stock exchange.
Guinea: Fightings Between Peuls and Malinkes Erupt in Conakry
Guinée TV1 reports that clashes between Peuls and Malinkes [fr], two of the largest ethnic groups in Guinea erupted in Madina, a borough of Conakry. Protesters blocked Conakry’s main bridge and barricaded other roadways, according to witnesses, who said security forces were deployed but did not intervene right away.
Togo: Waves of Women in Red March Down Lomé for Political Reform
Several thousand women dressed in red marched in Togo's capital Lome on September 2Oth demanding political reforms. The Association Let's Save Togo posted several photos [fr] from the march.
Zambia: Former First Lady, Betty Kaunda, Dies
There was an outpouring of grief on social media networks on Wednesday September 19, following news of the death of former Zambian First Lady, Betty Kaunda, wife of Zambia’s first President Dr Kenneth Kaunda.
Japan: Fukushima Nuclear Cleanup Worker Dangers Revealed
A citizen media news video has revealed the dangerous conditions that cleanup workers in Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant are finding themselves in. The plant was damaged by last year's devastating earthquake and tsunami.
Tunisia: In Defense (sort of) of French Weekly on the Muhammad Cartoons
As the French ministry of foreign affairs decided to temporary shut down 20 embassies [fr] after the publication of Muhammad Cartoons by French weekly Charlie Hebdo, Linda Doufari in Nawaat takes a nuanced defense [fr] of the magazine. Doufari argues that although the decision is on par with the low level quality of...
France: Study Shows GM Corn Fed Rats Display Higher Tumors Levels
Guillaume Malaurie reports that [fr] a team of French researchers led by Pr. Gilles-Eric Séralini found that laboratory rats fed with a steady diet of Monsanto genetically modified corn displayed higher levels of tumors and multiple organ damage than those of control rats. The researchers worked in quasi-clandestine conditions [fr] to prevent...
Saudi Arabia: Authorities Threaten to Block YouTube
Saudi Arabia is threatening to block YouTube, if the latter does not block access to all the clips which lead to the 14-minute trailer of the movie Innocence of Muslims. Saudis, who have ranked first in worldwide YouTube views, overall, reacted to the statement with anger and sarcasm.
Bolivia: 4 Injured in Clash Between Miners
Clashes between private cooperative miners from the La Paz Departmental Federation of Mining Cooperatives (Fedecomin in Spanish) and unionised miners from the state-run Bolivian Mining Corporation (Comibol in Spanish) are reported from downtown La Paz, Bolivia's seat of Government. The confronted groups are attacking each other using dynamite. Four injured...
Central African Republic: The Cities of Sibut and Damara Attacked by Rebels
The RJDH-RCA (The Human Rights Journalists Network of the Central African Republic) reports that [fr] armed rebels claiming to be a faction of the CPJP (Convention of the Patriots for Justice and Peace) attacked the national army in the cities of Sibut and Damara in the North of the country....
Russia: Religiosity & the Murdered U.S. Ambassador
Responding to the attack on U.S. embassies across the Muslim world (specifically the murder of Ambassador Christopher Stevens in Libya), Russian bloggers have addressed the perceived growth of religiosity in their own country, and used the incident as an opportunity to discuss the wider consequences of political unrest.
Macedonia: Human Rights Activist Trajanoski on Trial
Today, at 13:00 CET, the Basic Court Skopje 1 will hold the main session of the trial against human rights activist Zarko Trajanoski, charged with defamation of Milenko Nedelkovski, a pro-government talk show host. Trajanoski is on trial [mk] for using the term “media charlatan” in a statement on the...
Libya: Sorry Chris, Benghazi Couldn't Protect You
A small crowd of Libyans gathered in Al Shajara Square in Benghazi on September 12, to protest against the attack on the US Consulate which killed four Americans including Ambassador Christopher Stevens.
Ecuador: Orlando Ibarra Escapes After Two Years of Captivity
Orlando Ibarra, a 39 year old Ecuadorian businessman, was reunited with his loved ones on Monday, September 10 in a military base in Quito, Ecuador, after 766 days in captivity in Colombia.
