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By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK (IDN) — Young military officers who ousted Guinea’s President Alpha Condé on September 5 are wasting no time taking on the duties of heads of state.
Meetings have been scheduled with leaders of political parties and religious groups to be followed by civil society organizations and representatives of diplomatic missions.
BERLIN (IDN) — The Non-profit global media agency International Press Syndicate, with IDN-InDepthNews as its flagship, had invited two renowned international relations practitioners and diplomats to join it to support its global mission and outreach activities. We are pleased to announce that the former Sri Lankan career Ambassador A.L.A. Azeez and the former Secretary General of the Organization of ACP States Ambassador Dr. P.I. Gomes have accepted our invitation.
By Thalif Deen
NEW YORK (IDN) — When the last of the US troops pulled out of Kabul on August 31—after a prolonged 20-year military occupation of Afghanistan—they left behind a treasure trove of weapons but most of them abandoned by retreating Afghan forces who were American allies.
These weapons, including combat helicopters, armoured vehicles, battle tanks and transport aircraft, were apparently de-activated by the departing Americans, but some reportedly remain functional and battle-ready.
Viewpoint by John Scales Avery*
COPENHAGEN (IDN) — Twenty years after the events of 9/11, 2001, and in the midst of the messy withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan, it seems appropriate to question the validity of the so-called “War on Terror”. The Costs of War project estimates that America's 20-years of wars, initiated with the supposed intention of fighting terrorism, have killed almost a million people, displaced 37 million, and have cost the US government 8 trillion dollars.
By Thalif Deen
NEW YORK (IDN)— Since its creation 76 years ago, the United Nations has been preoccupied with one of its primary mandates, namely, maintaining international peace and security.
But over the years, that mandate has been extended to include peacekeeping, peace-building, nuclear disarmament, preventive diplomacy, and more recently, a culture of peace.
Viewpoint by Azu Ishiekwene
The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of LEADERSHIP newspaper based in Abuja, Nigeria.
ABUJA (IDN) — Zambia’s peaceful and orderly election in August offered a glimmer of hope that Africa’s story might be changing. For the third time in three decades, an opposition leader defeated the sitting president sending a message to the world that the continent may not be the incumbent’s lair after all.
Analysis by Kalinga Seneviratne
SYDNEY (IDN) — Since the attacks on the United States by 15 Saudi Arabian Islamic fanatics on September 11, 2001 (now known as 9/11) the world has been divided by a ‘war on terror’ with any protest group defined as “terrorists”. New anti-terror laws have been introduced both in the West and elsewhere in the past 20 years and used extensively to suppress such movements in the name of “national security”.
Viewpoint by David C. Speedie
This article was produced by Globetrotter in partnership with the American Committee for U.S.-Russia Accord. David C. Speedie, a Board Member of ACURA, was formerly Senior Fellow and Director of the Program on U.S. Global Engagement at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. Prior to this, he chaired the Program on International Peace and Security at Carnegie Corporation. Source: Globetrotter.
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power
TAIPEI (IDN) — “And then, there is Taiwan, the issue administration officials and national security experts agree is most likely to tip the scales from power struggle to military conflict. At the White House, the State Department and the Pentagon, officials are trying to figure out if the long-time American policy of “strategic ambiguity”—providing political and military support to Taiwan, while not explicitly promising to defend it from a Chinese attack—has run its course. Pentagon officials say the matter could come to a head within six years,” wrote New York Times recently.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK (IDN) — Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan appears to be taking a page from her predecessor, the late John Magufuli, by cracking down on members of the opposition who have been calling for constitutional reform for decades.
Freeman Mbowe, leader of the opposition Chadema party, has been detained on “terrorism” charges that his party has branded a bid by President Hassan’s government to muzzle the opposition.
IDN-InDepthNews offers news analyses, features, reports and viewpoints that impact the world and its peoples. It has been online since 2009. Its network spans countries around the world.