Stories about War & Conflict from April, 2008
Russia: TV, Chechnya and the West
Valery Dzutsev writes about a documentary recently aired on a Russian state-owned channel, “in which western security services were accused of an attempt to promote Chechnya’s secession from Russia.”
Iran: Armenians remember Anniversary of Genocide
Armenians remembered 93th anniversary of Armenian Genocide in Tehran,Iran. You can watch related photos of this event here.
Iraq: The Plight of the Faili Kurds
Alive in Baghdad sheds light on the Faili Kurds – one of the most oppressed groups of Kurds. Like other Kurds, they were abused during Saddam Hussein’s regime. Statistics from the United Nations show that more than 450,000 Faili Kurds were deported to Iran in the 1980s and nearly 10,000...
Georgia: Drone Downed
Registan comments on the latest scandal to hit Russian-Georgian relations after the alleged shooting down of an apparently unarmed Georgian drone by what appears to be a Russian MiG-29. For a variety of reasons outlines in the post, the blog concludes that the true circumstances of the incident may never...
Armenia: Alternative Genocide Action
Hrag Vartanian remembers an unconventional action staged thirty-nine years ago by American-Armenian artist Kardash Onnig outside an Armenian Church in New York. The protest which called on ethnic Armenians to “Un-hate a Turk” was held on 24 April, the day Armenians worldwide remember the 1915 Armenian Genocide.
Afghanistan: Rising Numbers of Suicide Bombings
Patrick Frost tells about an upcoming US government report describing a dramatic increase in suicide bombings in the last five years with Iraq and Afghanistan being the location of a large majority of these attacks.
Afghanistan: Progress, Problems, and Passageways
Patrick Frost reviews an optimistic appraisal of Afghanistan’s stability by the US Commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, Gen. Dan K. McNeill, who has stated that the Afghan army and police forces should be able to secure most of the country by 2011.
China: Netizens defend Zimbabwe arms sales
As China's latest shipment of weapons and ammunition sits stranded off the coast of southeastern Africa and president Mugabe of landlocked Zimbabwe digs in against accusations of a fixed election, the majority of Chinese netizens are defending their government's arms sales to the country, at the same time accusing the US and its allies of double standards.
Serbia: Biljana Srbljanovic
Balkan Baby writes about Biljana Srbljanovic, Belgrade mayoral candidate for the Liberal Democratic Party.
Albania: “Albanosphere”
Douglas Muir of A Fistful of Euros posts a new installment on the “Greater Albania” – an extensive overview of the myths and facts about the “Albanosphere.”
Armenia: Rock Against Genocide
Unzipped says that it is thrilled to discover that there will be a Rock Against Genocide rally in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, tomorrow. The following day will mark the 93rd Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Turkey.
What's Carter Doing in the Middle East?
Former US President Jimmy Carter just concluded talks with Palestinian Hamas leaders in Cairo, Egypt. First, it was the turn of the US Presidential elections to snub the visit. Now, bloggers from the region join them to rebuff it.
China: American Teacher Attacked
Love Hunan posted at Zhuzhouwang about an American teacher being beaten up by secondary school students[zh] outside Carrefour in Hunan Zhuzhou district in April 20. Shanghaiist has an update.
Uzbekistan, Ukraine: Tashkent Blacksmith and His Children
A monument to an Uzbek family that adopted 15 children during WWII has recently been dismantled in Tashkent. Below is a Ukrainian blogger's moving story of how her father helped one of these adopted children find his biological family.
Pakistan: Held by the Taliban
CHUP! on Pakistan’s envoy to Afghanistan, Tariq Azzizudin being held hostage by the Taliban.
Lebanon: Media reporting on Gaza
“So now the headline is that there is ‘unrest’ in the Gaza strip. Last week, I felt unrestful: I didn't know whether to take chicken taouk or shwarma – but I didn't kill five children in the process…” Burghol commenting on how the media reports about Gaza.
Myanmar: Bomb blasts in Yangon
Ashin Mettacara reports that two bombs exploded in the largest city of Myanmar. No casualties were immediately reported.
Japan: Comfort Women Video Calls Attention to a Still Unresolved Issue.
More than 60 years have passed since the World War II, but women who claim to have been abducted under Japanese Military's orders to serve as sexual slaves on military “Comfort Stations” are still waiting for the government's public apologies and material compensation even as the government still denies the...
Zimbabwe: Chinese troops Mutare?
Curly wonders what the Chinese troops are doing in Zimbabwe: “These blue suited marathon running highly trained policemen probably know the identities of the Chinese troops who have been reported as being seen on the streets of Mutare in Zimbabwe, after checking into a hotel resplendent with nice shining pistols....
Zimbabwe: Take Action Against Chinese Ship Carrying Arms
Call to action to stop a Chinese ship carrying arms destined for Zimbabwe: “Please can all those amazing people who have been following this issue – finding contact email addresses and brainstorming ideas – leave consolidated comments at the end of this post bringing us up to speed on what...
Sudan's Looming War
Sudan's Comprehensive Peace Agreement may possibly collapse if the bad pile up of misfortunes continues, but before we go into that, let's proceed with the good news first. Drima is ecstatic about a new book by the Sudanese Muslim scholar Abdullahi An-Na'im whom Irshad Manji hosted as a guest recently at her latest initiative, the Moral Courage Project.
