Foreign Policy Public Health Blog

Yanukovych Emerges From Hiding and Promptly Makes a Fool of Himself

If Marx, riffing on Hegel , is right that all world-historical persons appear twice -- first as tragedy, again as farce -- then on Friday ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych claimed his place among the world's pantheon of delusional and deranged...

Published Fri, Feb 28 2014 2:54 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Europe, Corruption, Politics, Democracy

Jailbreak Season Continues as al Qaeda Issues Threat Against Gitmo

It's officially jailbreak season. In a little over a week, inmates in Iraq, Libya, and now Pakistan have escaped from what were supposed to be secure prisons (the phenomenon has even reached Arkansas ). Just this morning, al Qaeda leader Ayman al...

Published Wed, Jul 31 2013 9:50 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Terrorism, al Qaeda, Pakistan, Taliban, Iraq, Libya, National Security

WikiLeaked: Drone Envy

After you read through enough of these WikiLeaks cables, you realize that most of it is fairly mundane. And then you stumble on a line like this : Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to CENTCOM Commander John Abizaid: "The...

Published Tue, Nov 30 2010 6:45 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Media, Somalia

Will Afghanistan actually hurt the Democrats?

Tom Ricks shares an interesting theory from researcher Kyle Flynn about why the Obama administration is delaying a decision on a new Afghanistan strategy: Nov. 3, gubernatorial elections in both Virginia and New Jersey. The latter of which is my reasoning...

Published Thu, Oct 29 2009 11:28 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Politics, Elections, Afghanistan, Obama Administration

Merry Christmas from Passport

I'm officially shutting down the blog for the rest of the week starting now. We'll have some light posting next week depending on the news and return to full-service blogging and the Morning Brief on Jan. 3. Be sure to check in on the main site...

Published Thu, Dec 23 2010 10:22 AM by FP Passport

Syrian Opposition Needs Weapons, Not Fighters

"We want weapons," Syrian opposition leader Ahmad Jarba said during an appearance at the United States Institute of Peace Wednesday, his first public address in Washington, D.C.. "And we commit to keeping them in the right hands."...

Published Wed, May 07 2014 1:36 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Middle East, U.S. Foreign Policy, Military, State Department, Syria, Peace

Let's Get the Old Blackwater Team Back Together

Chinese Stealth Fighter Takes Off Under Obama’s Nose

Colombian hostage released after 12 years

Pablo Emilio Moncayo, a soldier, was only 19 when he was kidnapped by the leftists Colombian rebel group FARC. Last night, at age 32, he was released. He looks to be in good health, with only a minor parasitic condition . It's pretty unimaginable...

Published Wed, Mar 31 2010 1:50 PM by FP Passport

Argentina busts beauty queen drug smuggling ring

This, apparently, actually exists: Colombian model accused of leading a drug-trafficking gang that persuaded pretty young women to smuggle cocaine to Mexico was arrested Wednesday after evading Argentine police for five months. Angie Sanclemente Valencia...

Published Thu, May 27 2010 9:33 AM by FP Passport

Chinese Officials Ask Muslim Women to Unveil in the Name of Beauty

In the Chinese region of Xinjiang, home to a large population of the country's Muslim Uighur minority, government workers are encouraging women to cast off their headscarves in the name of good looks. Called "Project Beauty," the government...

Published Tue, Nov 26 2013 2:28 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: East Asia, China, Women, Islam, Race/Ethnicity, Religion

Al Qaeda Core Down, but Terrorist Attacks Up, Says State Department

The Obama administration has spent years arguing that the killings of Osama bin Laden and numerous al Qaeda lieutenants have defeated what it describes as the "core" of the terror group. On Wednesday, though, the State Department warned in its...

Published Wed, Apr 30 2014 4:39 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Terrorism, al Qaeda, Middle East, Central Asia, Iran, North Africa, Syria

A Week of Iron-Fist Flexing

It's been a rough week for activists, dissidents, and opposition movements of all types across Asia. On Friday, Christmas Day, the Chinese intellectual Liu Xiaobo was sentenced to 11 years in prison on charges of "subversion" for his role...

Published Tue, Dec 29 2009 11:14 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: East Asia

Bad Metaphor Watch: Iranian Nuclear Deal Edition

In the war of words over the nuclear deal with Iran, any metaphor is fair game. Skeptics of the agreement hashed out in Geneva see parallels between this deal and, well, just about every bad, no good, awful, catastrophic moment in international politics...

Published Mon, Nov 25 2013 5:19 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Middle East, Media, U.S. Foreign Policy, Nukes, Iran

Hey Justin Bieber, We Made You a Travel Itinerary!

Tattooed pop star Justin Bieber is a Canadian, but you'd be forgiven for assuming that he's a millennial version of the stereotypical "ugly American." In Brazil, he raised eyebrows by allegedly visiting a brothel and leaving with two...

Published Wed, Apr 23 2014 6:00 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Japan, East Asia, China