· August, 2010

Stories about War & Conflict from August, 2010

Mexico: Fleeing Monterrey

  30 August 2010

Hernando y la Silla writes [es] about why people are leaving Monterrey, a city that “has become the center of the conflict between the various criminal gangs.”

Guinea-Bissau: An Armored Mercedes Benz

  29 August 2010

António Aly Silva on Ditadura de Consenso [pt] tells of the battles between the widow of assassinated head of state Nino Vieira and the President over an armored Mercedes Benz, given by Muammar al-Gaddafi. He then mentions other security measures taken by politicians – saying “but here, in this country,...

Afghanistan: The Helmand Food Zone Fiasco

  29 August 2010

Joel Hafvenstein writes about the British “Food Zone” program, which was considered to be a better effort comparing to other counternarcotics activties in Afghanistan. But “when examined closely, there’s no reason to think the Food Zone program was effective’, he says.

Azerbaijan: Lilit

  26 August 2010

Gulara Azimzadeh's blog [AZ/EN/RU] reflects on a meeting between Armenia and Azerbaijani youth at an event in Georgia. In particular, she writes, although nationalists and a rhetoric of hatred exists on both sides, there are so many similarities between the two nations still locked in bitter conflict over the disputed...

Lebanon: Giving Palestinian Refugees the Right to Work

Lebanon is home to over 400,000 Palestinian refugees, who are not allowed to own property, cannot access the health care system, and need a special permit to leave their refugee camps. On August 17, the Lebanese parliament passed a law granting Palestinian refugees the same employment rights as other foreigners. Bloggers and tweeps react to this development.

Global: Spreading Peace Through Images

  23 August 2010

Recently, a group of young entrepreneurs and photographers came upon the idea of spreading humanity, good will and positivity through images. On Aug. 16, their project - International Guild of Visual Peacemakers (IGVP) - came alive on-line. Danica Radisic interviews IGVP's co-founder and president Mario Mattei.

Armenia: Suicide soldier

  23 August 2010

Following the recent suicide of an officer in the Armenian army who is believed to have suffered from victimization and intimidation from fellow soldiers, Unzipped posts a photograph of graffiti that has since appeared in Yerevan, the Armenian capital.

Liberia: Charles Taylor Trial Update

  20 August 2010

Alpha Sesay writes about the testimony Isa Sesay, the former interim leader of the Sierra Leonean rebel group that Charles Taylor is accused of providing support at the Charles Taylor trial at the Hague.

Russia: 19 Years Since Coup d'Etat Attempt

RuNet Echo  20 August 2010

Bloggers share recollections [RUS] of the 1991 events [EN] in Russia when a group of Soviet generals tried to seize the control over the country. User s01101 posts pictures [RUS] of the commemoration of the events in Saint-Petersburg. Oleg Kozlovsky asks [RUS] his readers, what if coup d'etat would succeed. “We'd be...

Colombia: Ongoing Online Reactions to Mass Grave La Macarena

  20 August 2010

The discovery of a mass grave holding more that 2,000 bodies next to a military base in Colombia has sparked a heated and ongoing debate. Although the story was reported months ago, the lack of transparency and clear facts from the media and the government have kept the online discussion going. Colombians have turned to social networks to try to make sense of the macabre discovery.

Honduras: Police Brutality Toward Resistance Group

  19 August 2010

Juan Carlos Rivera in Mirada de Halcón provides a personal account [es] (including photographs) of what he calls a police “attack” on a bridge blockade by the Resistance Front (Frente de Resistencia). Juan Carlos says he had to run away to avoid tear gas from police and bullets from civilians;...