RUSSIA: GAS DISPUTE RAISES POLITICAL HEAT Kester Kenn Klomegah
MOSCOW (IPS) - Disputes over gas supply from Russia to Europe have again taken on a political dimension.
MIDEAST: OBAMA SILENCE 'ENDS HOPES FROM U.S.' Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani
CAIRO (IPS) - With the Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip now in its second week -- and as the Palestinian death toll approaches 600 -- U.S. president-elect Barack Obama has continued to remain silent. Obama's reticence, say Egyptian commentators, indicates that he will be no more even-handed on the issue of Palestine than preceding U.S. administrations.
MIDEAST: OBAMA ENIGMATIC ON MIDEAST CRISIS Daniel Luban
WASHINGTON (IPS) - As U.S. President-elect Barack Obama settles into Washington and meets with congressional leaders about his stimulus plan, he and his incoming administration remain silent about the intensifying crisis in the Gaza Strip.
MIDEAST: ISRAEL ATTACKS SCHOOLS, AMBULANCES Mel Frykberg
RAMALLAH (IPS) - At least 42 Palestinians sheltering in a UN school in the Jabaliya refugee camp near Gaza city were killed Tuesday afternoon after two Israeli tank shells exploded outside the school.
SOUTHERN AFRICA: NO TAKERS FOR FUNDS FOR WATER PROJECTS Moses Magadza
WINDHOEK (IPS) - Nearly nine million dollars of donor aid intended to support transboundary water management projects in southern Africa was diverted elsewhere after governments in the region failed to submit proposals for funding.
