The World
By Alex Altman, Harriet Barovick, Gilbert Cruz, Alyssa Fetini, Andrea Ford, Frances Romero, M.J. Stephey, Claire Suddath
1 | Khartoum Sudan's Most Wanted Sudanese officials confirmed Oct. 13 that they had arrested notorious janjaweed militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb. The International Criminal Court (ICC) charged Kushayb with crimes against humanity in 2007 for orchestrating militia attacks in the Darfur region that led to the rape and murder of civilians and the destruction of entire villages. But given that Sudan's government had previously ignored orders to extradite Kushayb, its sudden willingness to cooperate raises suspicion that his arrest may have been merely an attempt to ease international pressure on Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir--whom the icc has also recently accused of war crimes and genocide in Darfur.
2 | Damascus Love Thy Neighbor In a joint statement on Oct. 15, one day after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad issued a decree formally recognizing Lebanese sovereignty, Syria and Lebanon formally established diplomatic ties for the first time since both nations gained their independence in the 1940s. Political and military tensions between the two countries have increased in recent years amid a string of assassinations of anti-Syrian Lebanese officials. International observers are hopeful that the normalization of relations will help bring stability to the region.
3 | Zimbabwe Power Struggle Continues On Oct. 14, Zimbabwe's Parliament held its first working session since the highly disputed election between President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai early this year. But power-sharing negotiations have hit setbacks, as Tsvangirai threatened to back out of talks after Mugabe unilaterally appointed his loyalists to vice-presidential posts.
4 | Washington Worrying Words for the Market As they scramble to soothe panicked traders, George W. Bush and his financial team might consider a strategy of silence--at least during market hours. A look at their recent speeches suggests that saving their remarks for after the 4 p.m. closing bell might be a bit easier on the Dow.
[This article contains a complex diagram. Please see hardcopy of magazine or PDF.]
Oct. 7 Ben Bernanke, Bush Time of speech 12:30 p.m. 2:35 p.m. Close -5.1%
Oct. 8 Hank Paulson 3:08 p.m. -2%
Oct. 10 Bush 10:25 a.m. -1.5%
Oct. 14 Bernanke, Paulson 8:45 a.m. -0.8%
Oct. 15 Bernanke 12:15 p.m. -7.9%
5 | North Korea Game On? Just days after being removed from a U.S. blacklist of states that sponsor terrorism, North Korea told the International Atomic Energy Agency that it would resume dismantling its Yongbyon nuclear reactor and would welcome international inspectors, ending nearly two months of stalled talks and threats of a second nuclear test. The announcement drew praise from China, which had led disarmament negotiations among the U.S., North Korea and its regional neighbors. Meanwhile, officials in Pyongyang released a purportedly recent photograph of Dear Leader Kim Jong Il, in an attempt to refute rumors of his failing health. But experts in South Korea and the U.S. say summer foliage in the background indicates that the pictures are months old, raising further questions about the reclusive leader, who has not been seen in public since Aug. 14.
6 | California WHERE THERE'S SMOKE Wildfires fueled by gusting Santa Ana winds burned at least 27,000 acres (11,000 hectares) in Southern California, forcing thousands from their homes. Despite the state's budget woes, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who declared states of emergency in two counties on Oct. 14, assured residents in a press conference, "We always get the money somehow to fight the fires."
7 | Cambodia Not-So-Friendly Fire Two Cambodian soldiers were killed Oct. 15 when Thai and Cambodian troops exchanged fire at a border spot occupied by a disputed ancient temple. Each nation claimed that the other fired first. Cambodia also announced it had captured 10 Thai soldiers, though Thailand accounted for all its troops. Tensions have been high since July, when Cambodian troops detained three Thai protesters for crossing the border in order to enter the disputed area.
8 | Connecticut Gay Marriage Upheld Connecticut became the third U.S. state to legalize gay marriage when its supreme court ruled 4-3 that a law against gay marriage discriminated against sexual orientation and was thus unconstitutional. The law, passed in 2005, legalized civil unions but specified that marriage involved "one man and one woman." A University of Connecticut poll found that 53% of residents supported the ruling, although Connecticut governor M. Jodi Rell said she disagreed with it.
9 | Canada A Win for Harper Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative Party prevailed in Oct. 14 elections, earning a broader mandate amid economic turmoil but falling short of the outright majority Harper had sought by calling the vote. In the nation's third elections in four years, the Conservatives captured at least 143--up from 127--of 308 House of Commons seats, while its primary opposition, the Liberal Party, notched just 76.
10 | Beijing Clearing the Air, Again For two months this summer, the Chinese capital saw some of its clearest skies in a decade, thanks to antipollution measures in place for the Olympics and Paralympics. But when restrictions were lifted Sept. 21, pollution returned. Beijing has now reinstated Olympic traffic rules that ban each of the city's 3.5 million cars one day a week, on the basis of license-plate number. The plan may take 800,000 cars off the road.
[This article contains a complex diagram. Please see hardcopy of magazine or PDF.]
Air Pollution Index (monthly averages) MAY 142 JUNE 90 JULY 77 AUG. 56 SEPT. 57 OCT. 73
SOURCE: CHINA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
* | What They're Stealing in Arizona: National Park Service officials will soon embed microchips in Arizona's signature saguaro cactus plants to deter thieves who dig them up and sell them to landscapers and nurseries. The microchips, which are inserted with a syringe, will help authorities identify stolen plants. Seventeen Carnegiea gigantea were stolen from Arizona's Saguaro National Park last year; they sell for about $1,000 each. The saguaro isn't the only cactus to be microchipped; Arizona and Nevada put chips in barrel cacti in 1999.