Stories about War & Conflict from June, 2008
Zimbabwe: Murders and violence
Violence and murders continue in Zimbabwe: Four MDC youths were this morning found dead after Zanu PF and state security agents had abducted them in Chitungwiza yesterday morning.
Lebanon: Condoleezza Rice's Surprise Visit
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made an unannounced, five-hour visit to Lebanon on Monday, June 16. She declared her government’s support for the newly elected Lebanese president, as well as for the Lebanese government, the parliament’s speaker and the democratic system in the country. Rice last visited Lebanon during...
Lebanon: on going clashes
“Last night, three people were killed and four wounded [in Taalbaya and Saadnayel, two tiny villages in the Bekaa] in fighting that lasted from late evening to early morning and included RPGs and mortars…The victims, predictably, are all civilians who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong...
Israel: Keffiyah Seen as Symbol of “Terrorist Chic”
Israellycool blogger Aussie Dave responds to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine's image of Che Guevara wearing a traditional Arab headdress that “the keffiyeh [is] the latest symbol of terror chic.”
The Balkans: Ingeborg Beugel
Say: Macedonia quotes from an interview with Ingeborg Beugel, “a Dutch reporter and author of several documentaries about the crimes committed in Bosnia”: “In an interview for the online site Sarajevo-x.com, she talks about the rise of the Greek nationalism and the participation of Greek mercenaries in the war in...
Lithuania: Deportations Anniversary
Lituanica writes about the 67th anniversary of the mass deportations of Lithuanians to Siberia.
Hungary: Violence Against Roma
Hungarian Spectrum writes about the Hungarian extreme right and the anti-Roma violence.
Iraq: Hospitals Getting Better
Iraqi hospital care is improving, notes Inside Iraq in this post.
Jordan: Attacks which will not happen
Jordanian blogger Hareega asks how come the UK is able to warn of terrorist attacks in the UAE — but not when they happen on its own turf. “Do they just warn us from the attacks that will not happen?” he asks.
Afghanistan: Toward Genuine “Afghanization”
Barnett R. Rubin offers a guest post by Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh, PhD, Director of the Center for Studies of International Relations (CERI) Program for Peace and Human Security, CERI/Institute of Political Science, Paris. Her article was scheduled to appear in Le Figaro on June 12, the day of the International Conference...
Iraq: Return of a Kidnapped Neighbour
Iraqi Sunshine shares with us different aspects of her life in this post – the return of a kidnapped neighbour, sitting her physics exam and extracting her wisdom tooth.
Iraq: 10 Things I Hate About My Colleagues
Neurotic Iraqi Wife shares with us 10 things she hates about her colleagues at work in the enclosed Green Zone.
Iraq: Chinese Food
Do Arabs like Chinese food? Read the reactions a story Sunnyraindrops links to about a Chinese restaurant in Iraq to know the answer.
Iraq: Black – The Colour of Grief
Iraqi women are now accustomed to wearing black - the colour of grief and mourning, notes Inside Iraq. But amid the darkness and gloom, some young women admit to wearing brown, green and even pink!
Sri Lanka: On Ethnic Conflict
Beyond Borders on a study circle in Sri Lanka exploring issues of ethnicity and conflict.
Czech Republic: Greenpeace's “Peaceland”
“The last reason for taking the Greenpeace seriously is gone,” comments The Czech Daily Word on the Greenpeace activists’ initiative to declare independence of the Czech military installation where a U.S. National Defense System radar is to be built.
Russia, U.S.: “Antiquated Kremlinology”
Scraps of Moscow posts scanned samplings of an “antiquated Kremlinology” item, found in one of Washington, D.C., used bookstores: “To be honest, I can't decide whether this book is more interesting as a compendium of enduring Russophobic stereotypes or as a monument to some of the actual (if perhaps superficial)...
Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia: Top war crimes suspect Župljanin arrested
Stojan Župljanin, one of the four top remaining war crimes suspects from the 1990s Balkan Wars wanted by the International War Crimes Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), was arrested on Wednesday near Belgrade. The ICTY had been seeking Župljanin since 1999, and the US government had even offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to Zupljanin's arrest or conviction. The Balkan blogosphere has been abuzz with the news.
Afghanistan: Landmines
Peter Marton analyzes the situation around security in Afghanistan amidst the fact that last year still over 600 people were killed by landmines and other unexploded explosive ordnance remaining behind from the 1980s or from later times.
Guatemala: Activism Helps Remember the Disappeared
Guatemala's recent dark history includes approximately 40,000 citizens who disappeared during the armed conflict. Many bloggers keep their memory alive by discussing recent performance art exhibits and activism that helped end the annual military parades.
Serbia: Three War Criminals Sentenced
LimbicNutrition Weblog writes about Serbian reactions to the sentencing of three “former paramilitaries convicted of the 1992 killings of Muslim civilians in eastern Bosnia.”
