Foreign Policy Public Health Blog

Does North Korea have kamikaze torpedo units?

A few weeks back, via Wired 's Danger Room , I saw this truly weird story in South Korea's Chosun Ilbo newspaper about reports that the North Korean navy has a "human torpedo" unit, that may have been involved in the sinking of the South...

Published Tue, Jun 01 2010 3:10 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: North Korea

Will Sri Lankan politics overshadow India's Oscar night?

The Bollywood royalty who show up to Colombo, Sri Lanka for the 11th annual Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards on June 3 should expect more than just shiny hardware -- they should brace themselves for boycotts from their showbiz colleagues, too. In order...

Published Wed, Jun 02 2010 8:23 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Culture, South Asia, International Relations

How extremist is the IHH, really?

When I flipped open Evan Kohlmann's 2006 report on Insani Yardim Vakhi (IHH), the Turkish organization that helped organize the Gaza-bound flotilla raided by Israel on Monday, I was half-expecting a series of thinly-sourced allegations that attempted...

Published Wed, Jun 02 2010 12:07 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Terrorism, Middle East, Turkey

U.S. Embassy in Iraq loses millions worth of junk

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Yesterday, the U.S. Embassy in Iraq reported about 23 million dollars worth of property -- including 563 DVD players, 631 televisions, 159 vehicles, and 614 mattresses -- had gone...

Published Thu, Jun 03 2010 9:00 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Iraq, Arab World

Morning Brief: Obama cancels Asia trip to focus on oil spill

Obama cancels Asia trip to focus on oil spill Top story: President Barack Obama has cancelled a planned trip to Asia and Australia to focus his attention on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. This is the second time Obama has postponed the trip to Indonesia...

Published Fri, Jun 04 2010 6:03 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Morning Brief

What do terrorists look like?

This account by an Israeli commando is getting wide play online today: On Thursday, S. sat down with The Jerusalem Post at the Shayetet’s base in northern Israel for an exclusive interview, during which he described the dramatic events aboard the Mavi...

Published Fri, Jun 04 2010 1:34 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Israel/Palestine

Is Israel winning the YouTube war?

Since Monday's clash between Israeli military forces and pro-Palestinian activists, both sides have issued video recordings to support their version of events (and, maybe more importantly, to unload blame onto their adversaries). So far, there's...

Published Fri, Jun 04 2010 3:05 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Internet, Israel/Palestine

Is North Korea's World Cup team any good?

As World Cup fever heats up around the world, there's huge interest in the tournament's biggest underdog: North Korea, which debuts against soccer juggernaut Brazil on June 15 in its first cup appearance since a Cinderella showing in 1966 . Kim...

Published Sat, Jun 05 2010 4:18 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Africa, North Korea, Sports

Costa Rica cracks down on stem cell tourism

Costa Rica, increasingly known as a haven for medical tourism, is putting a stop to one controversial practice: The health ministry last month ordered the country's largest stem cell clinic to stop offering treatments, arguing there is no evidence...

Published Mon, Jun 07 2010 3:50 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Latin America, Health

Japan's prime minister is married to his first cousin

It would be hard top Miyuki Hatoyama in terms of eccentricity. The former Japanese first lady was best known for the fact that she claimed that she was abducted by aliens and knew Tom Cruise in a former life. Naoto Kan's wife Nobuko, according to...

Published Tue, Jun 08 2010 8:46 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Japan

Tuesday map: Put the oil spill wherever you want

A few weeks ago, Jon Stewart poked some fun at the media's need to compare the Gulf oil slick to other similarly sized areas -- "the size of Puerto Rico," "the size of Delaware and Rhode Island combined!" The new site "If...

Published Tue, Jun 08 2010 4:02 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Tuesday Map, Oil / Energy Disaster / Problem / Shennanigans

Flemish secesionists leading in Belgian election

Loyal readers of this blog know that we have a long-running obsession with the ongoing cultural-linguistic dispute in Belgium -- Leffe-anon for short. The situation is looking a bit more serious this week a party led by outspoken Flemish nationalist Bart...

Published Wed, Jun 09 2010 8:44 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Europe

Remarks by Syrian envoy spark controversy at U.N. Human Rights Council

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Big news at the U.N. today is the passage of a resolution to impose new Iranian sanctions -- a document that, if nothing else, epitomizes the delicate (read: watered down) diplomatic...

Published Wed, Jun 09 2010 12:15 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Israel/Palestine, United Nations

First comes love, then comes...jail?

Love was momentarily in the air in Saudi Arabia -- until the cops showed up. AP reports this morning that a young Saudi man from Riyadh will face 90 lashes and four months in the clapper as punishment for "engaging in immoral movements" (read...

Published Thu, Jun 10 2010 9:49 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Law, Religion, Arab World

Exiled emirate prince plans coup with British lawyer

Here's an unlikely advocate in the enforcement of sanctions against Iran: Sheikh Khalid, the former crown prince of the UAE emirate Ras al-Khaimah (RAK). In 2003, his own father and half-brother staged a takeover and exiled him to Muscat, Oman. Now...

Published Thu, Jun 10 2010 2:15 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Middle East