MoveOn.org has some excellent coverage of the 1,627 vigils which were held on Wed. to support Cindy “Peace Mom” Sheehan. People all over the United States gathered to show their support for Sheehan and mourn those who died in Iraq.
Undoubtedly her protest outside President Bush’s ranch has sparked much needed debate in the United States.
Aljazeera.net is reporting that the curfew on Sudan’s capital has ended. The country has been marred in violence for years, but 111 recent deaths in Khartoum provoked the authorities to place a curfew on the city. News of the death of a rebel leader sparked riots that ravaged the capital.
The situation within the city has calmed and order has been restored. Since the civil war ended in January the country has had to still deal with violence from both sides of the conflict. With order being restored the re-development of Sudan can continue.
Aljazeera.net has more info on the curfew and recent developments in Sudan.
Aceh is coloured light green.
For 29 years the Free Aceh Movement has been fighting the Indonesian government for independence and this struggle may come to an end soon. On Aug. 15 in Helsinki the two sides signed a peace agreement. The deal hinges on rapid disarmament of the rebels and removal of half of the Indonesian troops in the disputed territory.
The Dec. 2004 earthquake and tsunami actually helped to bring about a peace accord. Having to deal with the crisis helped the sides look beyond their differences. Another factor that helped lead to the peace was the election of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono who wants to stop the conflict.
$14 million has been raised to compensate Jewish settlers in the Gaza Strip who give up their greenhouses to the Palestinians. The donors are American and are techincally giving the money to the Aspen Group who will then redistribute the funds. Many Palestinians rely on jobs provided in the greenhouses, some settlers originally planned on disassembling the greenhouses because they felt that the Isreali government wasn’t giving them enough compensation.
The deal, brockerd by the former World Bank president James D. Wolfensohn, will ensure that the greenhouses stay and the Palestinians can contiune working in them. Ownership of the greenhouses will be transffered to the Palestinians which means that the greenhouses have the potential to become a large contriubution to the Palestinian economy.
India and Pakistan are taking steps to reduce the threat of nuclear war in their region. The two atomic rivals have recently begun steps to thaw their chilly relationship, which has seen them rattle their nuclear sabers more than once. But, atomic weapons and dense populations don’t mix. (Well, nuclear weapons don’t really mix will with anything.)
India and Pakistan will now warn each other before they test their weapons. As well, a new nuclear hotline will allow the two governments to contact each other in an effort to disarm tense situations. Hey, it’s a step in the right direction.