Most Clicked UN Wire Stories
1. UN critic becomes U.S. ambassador to UN Human Rights Council
UN Wire | Nov 23, 2009
FoxNews.com (11/22)
2. Qaddafi seeks to convert Italian women to Islam
UN Wire | Nov 17, 2009
Some 200 women who answered a modeling agency advertisement were taken to a villa in Rome, where Libyan leader Muammar el-Qaddafi offered each a Koran and made an appeal for them to convert to Islam. The women were each paid $75 to attend. New York Times, The (11/16)
3. Report: Corruption on the rise worldwide
UN Wire | Nov 18, 2009
Iraq and Afghanistan, whose recently established democratic governments have the close support of the U.S. government, are among the most corrupt nations on the planet, according to a report by Transparency International. The index of public-sector corruption in 180 nations lists the U.S. as the 19th-least corrupt government, a prize that offers little consolation to supporters looking at the significant cost associated with bolstering the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. The report found corruption has blossomed worldwide as government efforts to fight the financial crisis have slackened. Bloomberg (11/17) Los Angeles Times (11/18)
4. UN celebrates 20 years of children's rights
UN Wire | Nov 20, 2009
Signed in 1989 by every UN member nation but the U.S. and Somalia, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child guarantees children to the right to life, education and protection from abuse. Since the advent of the treaty -- which enjoys the widest support of any international treaty -- some 30% more children live beyond 5 years old, while 80% more children attend primary school. BBC (11/20)
5. Embattled Pakistan president suffers after amnesty revelation
UN Wire | Nov 23, 2009
Authorities from Pakistan's state department released a list of more than 8,000 names of politicians who benefited from the National Reconciliation Ordinance, a sort of amnesty issued in 2007 by former President Pervez Musharraf to bring about the return of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto from exile. The revelation comes as a blow to President Asif Ali Zardari as many of the dropped charges of corruption and abuse belonged to members of his Pakistan Peoples Party. New York Times, The (11/22)
6. Islamic nations seek accord against blasphemy
UN Wire | Nov 20, 2009
Algeria and Pakistan are among the Islamic nations leading a charge to bring a vote forward within the UN General Assembly on a treaty to protect religious symbols -- a ban on blasphemy that would conflict with free-speech values cherished in the West. The U.S. -- which has ignored other UN treaties, including one that protects migrant workers -- has expressed resistance to the treaty. Though a showdown is not expected at any point soon, experts believe a concentrated effort by a confederation of Islamic nations is likely to achieve some success eventually. CBC.ca (Canada) (11/19)
7. U.S. to engage ICC but will not join
UN Wire | Nov 17, 2009
Washington Post, The (11/17)
8. EU rejects Palestinian bid for statehood
UN Wire | Nov 17, 2009
The European Union rejected a bid by the Palestinian Authority to unilaterally create an independent Palestinian state without Israel's consent. Israel threatened to cancel all past agreements with the Palestinians if the bid was accepted by the UN Security Council. CBC.ca (Canada) (11/17)
9. Venezuela destroys two bridges at Colombian border
UN Wire | Nov 20, 2009
Venezuelan forces destroyed two bridges that cross the border with Colombia, an escalation of relations that have soured since Colombia agreed to allow the U.S. to expand its military activities within Colombian territory -- an agreement Venezuela views as a provocation and a threat. Though the agreement caps the number of soldiers that can be placed on Colombian soil at 800, it does appear to allow for U.S. troops to operate beyond Colombian borders. Christian Science Monitor, The (11/20)
10. Bribes an aspect of daily life in Afghanistan
UN Wire | Nov 18, 2009
In one of the most brazen examples of corruption yet to stem from Afghanistan's government, the nation's mining minister stands accused of accepting a $30 million bribe to award the country's top development contract to a Chinese mining firm. The news the $2.9 billion contract to mine Afghanistan's vast Aynak copper deposit -- considered one of the largest untapped mineral resources in the world -- has further diminished confidence in Afghan President Hamid Karzai's ability to root out graft. Graft presents a pervasive problem in Afghanistan, where opium pays for massive mansions, and most official interactions result in bribes. Los Angeles Times (11/18) Washington Post, The (11/18)
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