Topic: Yemen

Guantanamo still in use for US war on terror, 10 years after

President Obama promised to close the Cuban detention facility, but US terror suspects continue to be housed there a decade after its opening.

The Monitor's View Arab Spring justice – but a free pass for Yemen's Saleh

Under a plan backed by Obama and Saudi Arabia, Yemen's interim cabinet agreed Sunday to amnesty for President Ali Abdullah Saleh in return for him stepping down. But democracy can't take root without rule of law.

Global News Blog World reacts to Obama's new military focus on Asia

Chinese newspapers call on China to assert itself, while India and African nations ponder the implications of becoming 'strategic partners' with the US. 

The Circle Bastiat Is frankincense doomed?

Trees that produce the substance are in serious decline due to over-harvesting  and other environmental factors.

Rebels seize two military checkpoints in Syria

Syrian rebels captured dozens of Army soldiers at two checkpoints. Arab League monitors are assessing Syria's compliance with a peace plan.

Correspondent reflections: The 10 news events that shaped 2011

In this special section, we look at the year’s biggest stories, and seven staff correspondents reflect on events in hot spots from Latin America to the Libyan front. 
12/31/2011 12:24 pm

Global News Blog 2011 Reflections: Suddenly, a new era in the Middle East

Seven Monitor correspondents reflect on the world's hot spots. In this installment, Dan Murphy says that if you'd told him in 2008 that Mubarak would be gone today, he'd have laughed out loud.
12/31/2011 10:34 am

The Monitor's View Women on the front lines of faith vs. state

As recent events in Israel and Egypt show, religious norms that treat women differently or as inferior can irritate those who want fair, secular rule. And Hillary Clinton tries to define a fine line between faith-based bias and human rights.
12/28/2011 04:54 pm

Cover Story The (surprisingly upbeat) state of the world

A different perspective on the state of the world: four major areas where mankind's long-term progress is striking.
12/26/2011 12:47 pm

State of the world: Mideast boosts global democratic progress

Part 3 of the surprisingly upbeat state of the world: Mideast change boosts striking global democratic progress.
12/26/2011 12:46 pm

As Christmas arrives, crisis for Mideast Christians

While Christians in Iraq have long faced the threat of growing Islamism and violence, now Christians in Egypt – and Syria – are facing new pressures as a year of dramatic change wraps up.
12/24/2011 09:00 am

US man found guilty of conspiracy to assist Al Qaeda

Tarek Mehanna, a Massachusetts resident, was convicted Tuesday of conspiracy to help the militant Islamic group and trying to kill US soldiers overseas.
12/20/2011 02:08 pm

Kim Jong-il's death brings end to era of cruelty, mystery

'Dear Leader' Kim Jong-il's death ends 17 years of leadership defined by oppression, bizarre stories of grandeur, and tensions with the West over its nuclear program. 
12/19/2011 02:04 pm

Opinion Eight ingredients for a peaceful society

What makes for a peaceful society? Hot spots from Congo to the Middle East would benefit from such knowledge. But so would the United States, which, at home, isn’t always so harmonious and abroad, is still at war in Afghanistan. The Institute for Economics and Peace, an international research group, has come up with eight ingredients for more peaceful societies. They’re laid out in a report, “Structures of Peace,” based on the institute’s annual Global Peace Index and more than 300 data sets from around the world. The US does pretty well on five of them, but falls far short on three key ingredients. Michael Shank, vice president of the institute’s US office gives his take on eight ingredients America needs to reap the economic and social benefits of peace.
12/19/2011 09:20 am

Does defense bill's anti-terror provision deprive Americans of key rights?

The defense bill has cleared the Senate, and President Obama has withdrawn his veto threat, but concerns linger for some over whether a counterterrorism rider to the bill could deprive Americans of due process rights.
12/16/2011 08:41 am

Seychelles becomes site of another US drone crash

Seychelles became the latest foreign country to see a US drone crash. The US Embassy says the drone was unarmed.
12/14/2011 01:02 am

In Pictures Nobel Peace Prize 2011

Global News Blog Good Reads: Was 2011 a banner year for human rights?

From the downfall of North African regimes to the humanitarian interventions in Ivory Coast and Libya, 2011 appears to have been the year when citizens and leaders took a stand on human rights. 
12/12/2011 10:25 am

How the Iraq war has changed America

A conflict that was supposed to be a quick in-and-out operation lasted nearly nine years – and has left a deep imprint on the policy of American intervention. 
12/10/2011 12:45 pm

Opinion Nobel Peace Prize 2011: Groundbreaking recognition that women get the job done

When the The Nobel Peace Prize 2011 is awarded to three women tomorrow, the committee will recognize what policymakers have long ignored: the work of women in peace building. It's time to move beyond 'peace' that depends on warlords to engage all key stakeholders, especially women.
12/09/2011 11:45 am

Backchannels Is kidnapping older, unarmed civilians all that's left for Al Qaeda?

Ayman Zawahiri, the current Al Qaeda boss, released a recorded speech claiming credit for the kidnapping of veteran US aid worker Warren Weinstein.
12/02/2011 01:19 pm

Syria now in a civil war with 4,000 dead: United Nations

Civil war has been the worst-case scenario in Syria since the revolt against Assad began eight months ago. Damascus has a web of allegiances that extends to Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah movement and Iran's Shiite theocracy, raising fears of a regional conflagration.
12/01/2011 03:29 pm

Egyptian elections stir disquiet in Israel

The Arab Spring could open the door for Islamists – as seen in Egypt elections – and threaten Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned.
11/29/2011 11:46 am

Global News Blog Good Reads: When to shelve 'Arab Spring' jargon, and China's 'little emperors'

With so many North African rebellions falling short of their goals, has the term 'Arab Spring' lost its usefulness? And since when did China's young people become obsessed with 'lifestyle' issues?
11/28/2011 09:18 am

NYC police arrest 'lone wolf' in terror bomb plot

New York City police have taken a man into custody in association with an alleged bomb plot where US soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan were targeted.
11/21/2011 08:39 am