Political Conflict Hurts Egyptian Economy On many Cairo shopping streets, it's hard to tell there's an economic crisis. At a women's clothing store, however, manager Abdel Aziz Mohammed can see the impact. It's normal anywhere that you get affected b...
Security Challenges Await Somalia After Historic Year In August, members of Somalia's new parliament took the oath of office in a parking lot outside the Mogadishu airport. The selection of the 275-seat body represented one of the most substantial ac...
Egyptians Face Christmas Amid Fears Seleem Wassaf and his family are are performing their annual tradition, decorating their Christmas tree. But he says, for Egyptian Christians, the joy of the season is tempered by concern. At present they feel that...
Christmas Celebrations Underway Around the World It is an annual tradition in Thailand -- elephants dressed as Santa Claus on parade, handing out toys to school children. And it is not just the children who get excited. Oh this is the best day of the...
Mali on Brink of Becoming a Terrorist Safe Haven 2012 was the year that armed men seized control of Mali. And their grip looks stronger than ever -- both in the north and the south. Analysts say a military junta pulls the strings in the capital, Bama...
Kremlins Syria Policy Hurts Russias Position in Arab World In Syria, President Bashar al-Assad is using Russian-made rockets, rifles and tanks to battle rebels. But in Moscow, Russian officials are trying to put daylight between the Kremlin and the A...
Putin's Start Points to Authoritarian Rule Through 2018 In May, angry protests greeted Vladimir Putin's return to the Kremlin for a third term as president of Russia. On inauguration day, Putin's motorcade swept through eerily empty streets of Moscow...
Analysts Note Serious Problems in Egyptian Constitution Egyptians waited patiently to vote on their new constitution. But the lengthy document is fraught with contradictions. It guarantees many freedoms. But it also limits them. Among the examples, i...
Thai Migrant Worker Process Flawed, Awareness Low Hnin Hnin Win has worked in Thailand since she was 15 and has been cheated three times by past employers. They charged her altogether $1,000 for work permits she never received and then terminated her...
Around the World, 2012 Holiday Shopping is Subdued At U.S. shopping centers, parking lots were full - as thousands of last minute shoppers descended into crowded malls. But the big crowds mask larger concerns. Consumer confidence has fallen to a 6-mo...
Burma's Ex-Political Prisoners Face Challenges In Burma's main city, progress edges forward slowly as economic development and political reform take shape. But while many foreign businesses have been quick to forget Burma's troubled past, many reside...
Malaria Programs at Risk From Funding Cuts Ami Diabate, has brought her three children to a rural clinic to get the latest anti-malarial drugs. The aid agency Mdecins Sans Frontires - or Doctors Without Borders - is rolling out the pilot program acro...
Afghanistan's Neighbors Prepare For Post-2014 The Afghan army has been preparing to take over the countrys security as NATOs 2014 deadline to withdraw all combat troops moves a year closer. But even with 300,000 national security forces now hired, Af...
Health Experts Ask for New Funds for Mental Health Programs In recent years, the U.S. has been racked by a number of mass shootings. In Tuscon in 2011, Jared Loughner opened fire outside a grocery store, killing six people, injuring 13. Then-Congress...
Nigeria Sees Bloodiest Year of Boko Haram Attacks The building was the office of ThisDay, a prominent Nigerian newspaper. While a suicide bomber rammed a car into the building, an accomplice stood by with a camera, later posting the destruction on Yo...
