In every crisis lies opportunity, and in every opportunity lurks crisis. The startling advance of Syria’s opposition in a week is the unintended consequence of two other conflicts, one near and one far. It leaves several key US allies with a new and largely unknown Islamist-led force, governing swathes of their strategic neighbor – if…
Syrian rebels appear to have entered the capital Damascus after facing scant resistance from regime forces, as President Bashar al-Assad’s decades-long grip on power seemed to wane by the minute. Hours before, Syria’s main armed opposition group said it had “fully liberated” the major city of Homs, north of the capital. Syrians were seen tearing…
Buckingham Palace has revealed the official 2024 Christmas card for King Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla. On Saturday, the palace released the image selected for the festive greetings card, which was taken earlier this year by Millie Pilkington. Pilkington, one of the United Kingdom’s most respected portrait photographers, has taken numerous snaps of the…
Ron Davis Alvarez: New life through music “We all need to learn from each other. We are an orchestra for everyone.” Alvarez grew up in the favelas of Caracas, Venezuela. At 10, he joined El Sistema, a globally acclaimed program providing free classical music training to children from under-resourced communities. “I fell in love with music from…
A military police officer has been arrested in Brazil after a video emerged of him throwing a civilian over a bridge in Sao Paulo on Monday, sparking protests in the city. The video, which was shared widely on social media and the Brazilian press, showed an officer grabbing a civilian by the shirt and walking…
The European Union reached a blockbuster free trade agreement Friday with Brazil, Argentina and the three other South American nations in the Mercosur trade alliance, capping a quarter-century of on-off negotiations even as France vowed to derail the contentious accord. Provided it is ratified, the accord would create one of the world’s largest free trade…
Global stakeholders now have to reckon with the geopolitical impact of a rebel offensive led by an Islamist group in Syria that could potentially threaten President Bashar al-Assad’s hold over the country. Syrian rebels have made a lightning advance in the north of the country, taking two major cities: Aleppo, the second biggest city, and…
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has apologized to the nation in his first public comments since his abortive attempt to impose martial law threw the country into political chaos and led to calls for his impeachment. “This emergency martial law declaration stemmed from my desperation as the ultimate responsible party for state affairs,” Yoon…
Property tycoon Truong My Lan was one of Vietnam’s richest businesswomen. She amassed an eye-wateringly valuable portfolio of luxury homes, hotels and commercial properties all over the country and abroad – allegedly by effectively turning a major bank into her own personal ATM. On Tuesday, the 68-year-old lost her appeal against the death sentence for…
Mexico hopes to strike a deal with President-elect Donald Trump to limit the number of third-country deportees it could receive from the US, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Thursday. A similar deal to send deportees directly to their country of origin is already in place with the current Biden administration. “We hope to have…
