Foreign Policy Public Health Blog

How good is Meryl Streep’s take on Margaret Thatcher?

We're a long way from Streep's inevitable Oscar nomination for her performance as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher -- the film doesn't even open until early next year -- but it's never too early to start grading her performance...

Published Fri, Jul 08 2011 8:04 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Europe, Britain

Top 5 News of the World scandals

For fans of sensationalistic headlines, shady reporting tactics, and outright despicable behavior, the British tabloid News of the World will surely be missed. This week, the Murdoch-owned rag officially became the most-hated brand in England after it...

Published Thu, Jul 07 2011 4:35 PM by FP Passport

Bush in Bronze

Not to be outdone by all the Ronald Reagan-love in Europe these days, President George W. Bush is getting his own statue in a European square ... in Fushe Kruje, Albania. (I'll give you a moment to check your atlas... What's that, you can't...

Published Thu, Jul 07 2011 9:03 AM by FP Passport

3 Quick Questions: Karzai’s brother assassinated

Hamid Karzai's younger half brother, Ahmad Wali, was a master of balancing various powerful forces in southern Afghanistan -- tribal leaders, U.S. and NATO military and intelligence interests, allegedly even powerful drug lords. It's what made...

Published Tue, Jul 12 2011 9:19 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Afghanistan, South Asia

Fighting a lion for the revolution

The best thing on the Internet today is al-Masry al Youm 's interview with al-Sayed al-Essawy, a 25-year-old "gladiator" who is planning to fight a lion with his bare hands in front of the Great Pyramids of Giza. Why is he doing this? I...

Published Wed, Jun 08 2011 11:57 AM by FP Passport

The return of Russian anarchists?

It's been a while since their 19th century heyday, but Russian anarchists might be making a comeback: An obscure anarchist group linked to anti-government attacks on an $8 billion highway project in the Moscow region has claimed responsibility for...

Published Thu, Jun 09 2011 10:05 AM by FP Passport

Morning Brief: Syrian army moves on border town

Syrian army moves on border town Top news: The Syrian army has begun operations to crack down on the northern city of Jisr al-Shugour, ending days of anticipation which sent almost 3,000 refugees streaming across the border into Turkey. The Assad regime...

Published Fri, Jun 10 2011 4:57 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Morning Brief

Americans still unenthused about Arab Spring

President Obama may see the recent uprisings in the Middle East as a " moment of oppotunity, " but most Americans are not particularly enthusiastic about it, according to a new foreign policy poll from the Pew Research Center for the People...

Published Fri, Jun 10 2011 10:25 AM by FP Passport

U.S. ambassador reportedly killed in Libya

The news in Libya is going from bad to worse: U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens has reportedly been killed in a rocket attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. Stevens is said to have died from smoke inhalation; journalist Zaid Benjamin tweeted a photo...

Published Wed, Sep 12 2012 3:00 AM by FP Passport

Libya attack overshadows Vanity Fair's big Obama profile

President Obama hasn't mentioned the unpopular Libyan intervention much on the campaign trail, making only a passing reference to the successful operation in his convention speech last week (Senator John Kerry was the only speaker who addressed the...

Published Wed, Sep 12 2012 11:00 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Election 2012, 2012 Election Poster 1, Barack Obama

Great moments in Osama speculation: Biogeographic data edition

This post was a big hit for Passport back in 2009 and seems to be getting traffic again today: Geography Professor Thomas Gillespie of UCLA has employed a technique typically used for tracking endangered species in order to pinpoint the most likely location...

Published Mon, May 02 2011 3:12 PM by FP Passport

Iran to launch monkey into space

One small step for the primates of the Islamic Republic: Iran plans to send a live monkey into space in the summer, the country's top space official said after the launch of the Rassad-1 satellite, state television reported on its website on Thursday...

Published Thu, Jun 16 2011 1:57 PM by FP Passport

Video of Saudi women behind the wheel in protest

If something could be poignant in its banality, the protests today in Saudi Arabia by women defying the authorities and daring to drive would fit the category. Though their act of mass civil disobedience may be small in scale, the women have gotten worldwide...

Published Fri, Jun 17 2011 10:13 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Middle East, Saudi Arabia

Morning Brief: Greek prime minister reshuffles cabinet

Greek prime minister reshuffles cabinet Top news: Faced with growing criticism of his economic policies and nearly three weeks of daily street protests, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou named a new finance minister as part of a broad cabinet reshuffle...

Published Fri, Jun 17 2011 5:38 AM by FP Passport