taliban bomb targets foreign compound in kabul, no casualties reported

A massive truck bomb exploded outside an international housing compound in Kabul early Monday morning, sending shock waves across the Afghan capital and causing a temporary power blackout. There were no official reports of casualties in the attack, which the Taliban immediately claimed through a spokesman. Afghan security officials said the 1:25 a.m. assault outside […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/31/taliban-bomb-targets-foreign-compound-in-kabul-no-casualties-reported/

Eight years after they helped wreck the economy, Ireland sends 3 bankers to jail

In the aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008, amid the destruction of businesses, lives and trust, many clamored for accountability. People wanted trials, convictions, the closing of tax loopholes, and a broad repudiation of bankers being above the law. Nearly a decade after Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy and the financial crisis unraveled, those calls have […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/31/eight-years-after-they-helped-wreck-the-economy-ireland-sends-3-bankers-to-jail/

Brazil’s national guard will provide gate security at Olympic venues

Brazil will recruit an extra 3,000 national guard agents for Olympic duty because of a security company’s last-minute admission that it failed to hire enough workers to man gates and operate X-ray machines during the games, the country’s justice minister said on Friday. It was the latest setback for Olympic organizers, who were also forced to contract […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/brazils-national-guard-will-provide-gate-security-at-olympic-venues/

Brazil’s very bad year

Copenhagen, October 2009 When International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge opened the envelope and announced that Rio de Janeiro had won its bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games, crowds watching a live broadcast on Rio’s famous Copacabana Beach exploded into a delirious uproar. Ticker tape swirled, a giant banner reading “Rio Loves You” was […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/brazils-very-bad-year/

Russia accuses Google Maps of ‘topographical cretinism’

It's been more than two years since Russia re-claimed the peninsula of Crimea from Ukraine. At the time, Russia pointed towards historical precedents and a referendum as justification for its move, but many countries viewed it as an aggressive and belligerent act of annexation. The controversy over the move has faded from view over time and […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/russia-accuses-google-maps-of-topographical-cretinism/

Why Iranian men are putting on the veil

The annals of Internet activism in Iran have spanned from the serious to the frivolous: highlighting political crackdowns as well as tweaking conservative sensibilities with selfies of rich kids partying poolside in Tehran. Now add cross-dressing to the list. A campaign encouraged by the site My Stealthy Freedom — a gathering point for images and […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/why-iranian-men-are-putting-on-the-veil/

South Korea came up with a plan to cut down smoking. The opposite happened.

When it comes to men in wealthy nations, few smoke more than South Korean men. In 2014, according to the latest available Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development data, 37 percent said they smoked every day. At a time when people in developed nations are cutting back on smoking, that might comes as a surprise — particularly […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/south-korea-came-up-with-a-plan-to-cut-down-smoking-the-opposite-happened/

Venezuela was once an aviation gateway to South America. Now it’s an outcast.

Perched on a coastal plain at the very northern tip of South America, Caracas’s Simón Bolívar International Airport was once the aviation gateway to the continent. Charles Lindbergh scouted the airport’s location in 1929, according to Venezuelan aviation lore, and by 1959, Pan Am was routing its New York-Buenos Aires flights with a stop in Caracas. By […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/venezuela-was-once-an-aviation-gateway-to-south-america-now-its-an-outcast/

The Forbidden City’s 600-year-old plumbing keeps it dry as the rest of China floods

During China's Ming Dynasty, only government officials and royalty were granted access to the Forbidden City, a sprawling palace complex commissioned by the emperor in the early 15th century. Aptly named and built with strict adherence to feng shui, the walled residence was home to majestic halls, tranquil gardens and political plots galore. Today the Forbidden City sits […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/the-forbidden-citys-600-year-old-plumbing-keeps-it-dry-as-the-rest-of-china-floods/

Norway’s prime minister says it might give Finland a mountain

This week, a spokesman for the Norwegian prime minister told reporters that the country was considering giving its neighbor Finland a pretty big gift for its 100th birthday. How big exactly? Well, put it this way: It's literally a mountain. The unusual proposal is spurred by the differences in topography between the two nations. Norway has lots of […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/29/norways-prime-minister-says-they-may-give-finland-a-mountain/

Sarcasm? Some Russian leaders think Trump’s praise for Russia was sincere.

When Donald Trump told reporters at a news conference in Florida that he would welcome the Russians' help in unveiling tens of thousands more of the Democratic National Committee's emails, he elicited shock, and even allegations of treason. But in typical Trump fashion, he walked back his comments the next morning, saying he was merely […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/28/sarcasm-some-russian-leaders-think-trumps-praise-for-russia-was-sincere/

Seven-year-old girl dies after elephant throws stone in Morocco zoo

A 7-year-old girl died Tuesday from injuries she sustained when an elephant threw a stone out of its enclosure and struck her on the head at Rabat Zoo in Morocco. Cellphone video taken moments after the incident shows the rock that allegedly hit the girl and a group of bystanders huddled near her, tending to her injuries […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/28/seven-year-old-girl-dies-after-elephant-throws-stone-in-morocco-zoo/

The Americans who think Vladimir Putin isn’t so bad

For many Americans, Vladimir Putin is perceived of as some kind of international boogeyman, with alleged links to nefarious plots all over the world. This perception helps explain why many Americans find Donald Trump's seemingly admiring comments about the Russian president so unnerving. And yet, Trump seems unmoved by critics of this rhetoric. On Wednesday, after widespread speculation that Russian-backed hackers had helped […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/28/the-americans-who-think-vladimir-putin-isnt-so-bad/

Protesters in Brazil halt Olympic torch relay and extinguish its flame

Protests have continued to roil the lead-up to the 2016 Summer Olympics, with the opening ceremony just over a week away. On Wednesday night, government employees angry over delayed salary payments took to the streets in Angra dos Reis, a city near Rio de Janeiro, and confronted the procession carrying one of the Olympic torches. […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/28/protesters-in-brazil-halt-olympic-torch-relay-and-extinguish-its-flame/

‘Poor girls, they cannot play': Pokémon Go holds a mirror up to Saudi society

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Pokémon Go fever has spiked as high in Saudi Arabia as anywhere. But in the conservative kingdom, the addictive game isn’t just a game — it’s a social mirror. For a start, half the population has to figure out how to play a roaming outdoor game in a country that severely […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/28/poor-girls-they-cannot-play-pokemon-go-holds-a-mirror-up-to-saudi-society/

‘Fireman Sam’ slipped on a page from the Koran. Now people are upset and confused.

Islamaphobia in @FiremanSamUK ?Why are there Quran pages on the floor & flying over the place 😠‼️ pic.twitter.com/SouktSsTgy — سيف الله (@BirdsOfJannah) July 25, 2016 An episode of the British cartoon show “Fireman Sam” has been removed from circulation this week after a character on the show appeared to trip over a page from the Koran, Islam’s […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/28/fireman-sam-slipped-on-pages-from-a-koran-now-people-are-upset-and-confused/

Olympic teams are complaining about the pathetic state of Rio’s Athletes’ Village

RIO DE JANEIRO -- The Summer Olympic Games are just over a week away, and already organizers have been forced to mount a “massive operation” to fix a deluge of plumbing and electricity problems at the Athletes' Village in Rio. This is the latest upset for an Olympics taking place amid a severe economic recession, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/olympic-teams-are-complaining-about-the-pathetic-state-of-rios-athletes-village/

In Germany, anti-Muslim extremists may pose as big a threat as Islamist militants

DRESDEN, Germany — When an 18-year old German-Iranian killed nine people and then shot himself on Friday in Munich, speculation that it was an Islamist attack circulated for hours. But doubts arose when a video was uploaded in which the attacker can be heard shouting: "I am German." On Wednesday, German media cited police sources as saying that they now had […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/in-germany-anti-muslim-extremists-may-pose-as-big-a-threat-as-islamist-militants/

Can an opera singer become prime minister of Georgia?

One month before the United States vote in its own presidential election, Georgia (the country, not the state) will have its own parliamentary election, hoping to stabilize a political scene that has seen a variety of issues over the past few years. And much as in America, a newcomer with no political background is hoping to […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/can-an-opera-singer-become-prime-minister-of-georgia/

Facebook is censoring posts on Indian Kashmir, some say

  NEW DELHI -- Film makers, activists and journalists accused Facebook of blocking their accounts this week after they posted messages and images related to the violence in the trouble-torn province of Kashmir. In recent weeks, the India-administered, Muslim-majority Kashmir state has been facing violence and curfews after protests erupted against the killing of a […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/facebook-is-censoring-posts-on-indian-kashmir-some-say/

How one French newspaper is drawing the line amid terror wave

PARIS — In a summer of bloodshed and fear in France, one newspaper is digging in. On Wednesday — a day after two apparent Islamic State-inspired attackers stormed a French village church and slit the throat of an 85-year-old priest — the major French newspaper Le Monde said it would no longer publish photographs of […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/how-one-french-newspaper-is-drawing-the-line-amid-terror-wave/

Canadian police under scrutiny after black man dies after an altercation with officers

Around 9:30 a.m. Monday, police in Ottawa were called to a coffee shop in the Canadian capital city's downtown. Patrons said a man was there, and that he was groping people. When two responding officers arrived, they encountered Abdirahman Abdi, 37, a mentally ill man who lived nearby. "Multiple callers called police reporting multiple assaults," Ottawa […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/canadian-police-under-scrutiny-after-black-man-dies-after-an-altercation-with-officers/

India sends elite commandos to guard billionaire’s wife; outrage ensues

Imagine, if you will, the kind of outcry that would occur in the United States if the government sent a Secret Service detail to protect Melinda Gates, wife of Bill Gates. That explains a bit of the furor that in India this week after a Hindustan Times report that the Indian government was dispatching a […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/india-sends-elite-commandos-to-guard-billionaires-wife-outrage-ensues/

Climate change is as dangerous as ISIS, says Kerry, and part of the problem is your airconditioning

When Secretary of State John F. Kerry was in Austria's capital Vienna recently to join discussions on climate change, chances were low that he encountered too many air conditioned rooms. To Americans used to cooler rooms in summer, this may just have been a simple cultural difference. But for the climate negotiators, it most likely reflect a bigger divide […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/27/climate-change-is-as-dangerous-as-isis-says-kerry-and-part-of-the-problem-is-your-airconditioning/

When ISIS claims terrorist attacks, it’s worth reading closely

The terrorist attacks seem to come one right after the other, by truck, handgun, ax, assault rifle, machete, bomb and knife. Each day, a string of news alerts on your phone. Or worse, the sound of shots fired, or sirens blaring in your city. In a show of the Islamic State's increasing influence, we now await, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/26/when-isis-claims-terrorist-attacks-its-worth-reading-closely/

Why mass violence is so rare in Japan

Amid a remarkable wave of mass killings around the globe, an event in Japan stands out. Early on Tuesday morning, a man identified as Satoshi Uematsu attacked a care home for disabled people in Sagamihara, about 35 miles west of Tokyo. Armed with three knives and tie cables, he killed 19 people and wounded many before he drove to a police […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/26/why-mass-violence-is-so-rare-in-japan/

The world’s longest hunger strike will end soon

  NEW DELHI – An Indian human rights activist says she will finally end her epic 16-year-old hunger strike next month. Irom Sharmila, 43, has not eaten for years as a protest against the immunity enjoyed by the Indian military in cases of abuse in the country’s conflict zones. The government has said her protest […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/26/the-worlds-longest-hunger-strike-will-end-soon/

Poll: How Clinton supporters view the world differently that Sanders supporters

As the 2016 election season progresses, it has become readily apparent that supporters of Donald Trump view the world far more differently than other Republicans. A recent poll suggested that core Trump supporters were more likely to want the United States to take an active role in world affairs and that they had more negative […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/25/poll-how-clinton-supporters-view-the-world-differently-that-sanders-supporters/

Prince Harry: ‘I really regret’ not talking about Princess Diana’s death sooner

LONDON — Prince Harry, whose mother, Princess Diana, died when he was only 12, said he regretted not opening up sooner about how her death had affected him. The British prince, now 31, was speaking at a barbecue he hosted at Kensington Palace in honor of a mental health charity. Guests included some of Britain’s top […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/25/prince-harry-i-really-regret-not-talking-about-princess-dianas-death-sooner/

‘Wanted’ posters are popping up all over Tunisia’s capital

  For the past few weeks, Sana Shili, a 23-year-old raven-haired student, has been dedicating less time to her books. Instead, she and her friends have been plastering “wanted” posters in public places in cities all across Tunisia. The posters are often swiftly taken down by authorities, she said. Shili is a founding member of […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/25/wanted-posters-are-popping-up-all-over-tunisias-capital/

Civilian casualties hit record numbers this year in Afghanistan

The U.N. mission in Afghanistan on Monday reported a worrying increase in the number of civilians killed and wounded in the country this year, making it likely that 2016 will be the worst year since 2009, when the organization began keeping track. According to the annual mid-year report by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), 1,601 Afghans have been killed and 3,655 […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/25/civilian-casualties-hit-record-numbers-this-year-in-afghanistan/

Syrian bomber at German festival had been denied asylum. Authorities let him stay.

DRESDEN, Germany — As Germany woke up to the news of a third attack by an asylum seeker within a week on Monday, German authorities faced uncomfortable questions. Worries about what might be next fueled accusations of mistakes and misjudgments by authorities and leading politicians. Last year's influx of more than 1 million refugees into the […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/25/syrian-bomber-at-german-festival-had-been-denied-asylum-authorities-let-him-stay/

A midnight airstrike killed a 2-day-old infant in Aleppo’s Children’s Hospital

Even a 2-day-old baby in a pediatric hospital is not safe in Aleppo. A relative calm in the northern Syrian city on Saturday night was shattered by airstrikes that targeted hospitals. Government forces have been bombarding the city lately, and their helicopters allegedly dropped the missiles. One of them, the Children's Hospital, is run by a Syrian […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/24/a-midnight-airstrike-killed-a-2-day-old-infant-in-aleppos-childrens-hospital/

Bolivia’s president isn’t lowering his sights despite a scandal worthy of a telenovela

LA PAZ, Bolivia — Most democratic leaders would find their political ambitions curtailed by a referendum result spurning their plans for reelection. But Bolivia’s President Evo Morales is different. Despite a narrow loss in a February vote for a constitutional amendment to allow him to run for a fourth consecutive term, the left-wing populist appears intent […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/24/bolivias-president-isnt-lowering-his-sights-despite-a-scandal-worthy-of-a-telenovela/

Germany has some of the world’s strictest gun laws, but illegal weapons remain a threat

BERLIN — Germany has one of the world's strictest gun laws. But that did not stop Friday's Munich attacker — an 18-year old dual Iranian-German national — from carrying out his shooting spree. The assailant most likely obtained his pistol illegally and did not have a license, German police officials said Saturday. That development could have worrisome implications for a […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/23/germany-has-some-of-the-worlds-strictest-gun-laws-but-illegal-weapons-remain-a-threat/

Venezuelan civil servants signed a petition to oust the president. Now they’re losing their jobs.

CARACAS, Venezuela — “You must know what you did,” Eva Belloso’s boss said to her when she was fired without notice this month after 24 years with Venezuela’s tax and customs service. Belloso, who was coordinator of legal services at Seniat (as the agency is known) in Zulia state, said she told her boss she […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/23/venezuelan-civil-servants-signed-a-petition-to-oust-the-president-now-theyre-losing-their-jobs/

How Syrians are using the popularity of Pokémon Go to draw attention to children’s plight

#انقذونا#PokemonInSyria #PokemonGO#PrayForSyria pic.twitter.com/6S72uNTuxB — إعلام قوى الثورة (@RFS_mediaoffice) July 22, 2016 The images capture in stark relief the concurrent realities of 2016: As Pokémon Go sweeps the globe, war rages on in Syria, where more than 3.7 million children were born into the crosshairs of violence. Missives from the conflict have been familiar enough. In September, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/23/how-syrians-are-using-the-popularity-of-pokemon-go-to-draw-attention-to-childrens-plight/

Two years after it vanished, the search for MH370 will be suspended

The search for the Malaysia Airlines plane that disappeared more than two years ago with hundreds aboard will be suspended if the aircraft isn't found in the shrinking current search area, officials announced Friday. Ministers from the three countries leading the effort — Australia, Malaysia and China — met in Malaysia and agreed to suspend the hunt for […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/two-years-after-it-vanished-the-search-for-mh370-will-be-suspended/

Map: The world of coups since 1950

  An attempted coup in Turkey last week shocked and surprised many across the world. But coups and attempted coups have long been an all-too-familiar occurrence around the world. How many exactly? Well, at the time of writing, there have been around 475 coup attempts since 1950. That's according to a dataset compiled by Jonathan Powell and Clayton Thyne, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/map-the-world-of-coups-since-1950/

Israel’s defense minister compares Palestinian’s poetry to Hitler’s Mein Kampf

Jerusalem this week is debating the lines of a dead Palestinian poet, his words again at the forefront of what is acceptable and not in Israel. On Thursday, Israel’s new bombastic defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, blasted Army Radio for discussing on its “University on the Air” program the works of poet Mahmoud Darwish, who died […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/israels-defense-minister-compares-palestinians-poetry-to-hitlers-mein-kampf/

Actor Michael Caine says he changed his name — to Michael Caine — because of ISIS

Until recently, he was Sir Maurice Joseph Micklewhite. No longer. To beat airport security lines, famous British actor Michael Caine has changed his name to Michael Caine, the stage name he picked up in 1954, he told The Sun. “I changed my name when all the stuff started with ISIS and all that," he said. “An airport security […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/actor-michael-caine-says-he-changed-his-name-to-michael-caine-because-of-isis/

Mexico’s president apologized for a corruption scandal. But the nightmare goes on for the reporter who uncovered it.

MEXICO CITY — As he signed into law new anti-corruption measures earlier this week, Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto took the opportunity to apologize for one of the defining scandals of his tenure: the purchase by his wife of a $7 million mansion through a favored government contractor. Peña Nieto acknowledged that the "White House" scandal, as […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/mexicos-president-apologized-for-a-corruption-scandal-but-the-nightmare-goes-on-for-the-reporter-who-uncovered-it/

Trump’s bombast lands with a thud away from U.S. shores

COLOGNE, Germany — Donald Trump's alarmist angst has not spared some of America's key allies. Chancellor Angela Merkel might not have been pleased, for example, to hear that she was "ruining Germany," as Trump has suggested. Meanwhile, British officials were astonished when they heard parts of their country had become violence-ridden "no-go" zones — a claim they refuted. This week, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/trumps-bombast-lands-with-a-thud-away-from-u-s-shores/

If you’re happy and you know it, Silence! Australian school bans clapping

There are many things children cannot do at certain Australian schools. One school outlawed hugging. Another prohibited singing Christmas carols. Another has removed the word “black” from “ba ba black sheep.” And now -- clapping has been banned. Elanora Heights Public School, a primary school in Sydney, is instructing students to “punch the air, pull […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/if-youre-happy-and-you-know-it-silence-australian-school-bans-clapping/

Trump blasts China, China, China in Republican National Convention Speech

America can't pry its eyes away from the Republican National Convention. Nor, it seems, can China's Foreign Ministry. On Thursday morning, Asia time, state media published a rare official comment on the U.S. presidential election, blasting the GOP for making "groundless accusations" in its party platform and urging "rational" discussion. On Thursday night in Cleveland, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/trump-blasts-china-china-china-in-republican-national-convention-speech/

KFC and iPhones are the latest targets for Chinese nationalists

Since an international tribunal ruled last week against Beijing's claims to the South China Sea, Chinese nationalists have expressed their contempt in a number of ways. There have been condemnatory editorials in state media, an open letter penned by Chinese students and a militaristic techno music video asking, "Who cares?" In their latest protest against the tribunal's decision, […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/22/kfc-and-iphones-are-the-latest-targets-for-chinese-nationalists/

Donald Trump says U.S. shouldn’t criticize Turkey’s Erdogan over post-coup purge

A lot of people are parsing Donald Trump's very interesting interview with New York Times journalists David Sanger and Maggie Haberman that was published Wednesday night. The Republican presidential nominee, as my colleague Philip Bump notes, called into question whether his administration would fulfill NATO treaty obligations. After reading the Times interview, the Atlantic's Jeffrey […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/21/donald-trump-says-u-s-shouldnt-criticize-turkeys-erdogan-over-post-coup-purge/

NATO allies respond to Trump’s suggestion that the U.S. might not protect them from Russia

Donald Trump has long suggested that he takes a skeptical view of the United States' alliances. However, in an interview with the New York Times on Wednesday evening, the Republican presidential nominee went further than before, appearing to suggest that the United States should not be required to automatically defend NATO allies if they face attack. Trump specifically pointed […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/21/nato-allies-respond-to-trumps-suggestion-that-the-u-s-might-not-protect-them-from-russia/

In Slovenia, people voice anger, ridicule and admiration for Melania Trump

In April, the Slovenian town of Sevnica appeared to be ready to split from the rest of the country -- and it was all thanks to Melania Trump. Sevnica, right in the center of Slovenia, with a population of 5,000, is her hometown. When the mayor announced on television that he would turn the local castle […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/21/in-slovenia-people-voice-anger-ridicule-and-admiration-for-melania-trump/

An airstrike in Syria killed entire families instead of ISIS fighters

The airstrikes at dawn on Tuesday pulverized entire families, including young children. Families that were fleeing Islamic State fighters, but were instead mistaken for being those fighters. Depending on who you ask, the number of bodies found in the rubble is either 56, 85, 160 or 212. Pictures of the mangled bodies, covered in dust, lay testament to the carnage. […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/21/an-airstrike-in-syria-killed-entire-families-instead-of-isis-fighters/

Turkish mayor calls for a ‘graveyard for traitors’ behind failed coup

Kadir Topbas, the mayor of Istanbul's metropolitan municipality, has declared his intent to create a separate plot to bury the corpses of soldiers who died while attempting a coup last week that ultimately failed. “I ordered a space to be saved and to call it ‘the graveyard for traitors.' The passersby will curse the ones buried there," Topbas […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/21/turkish-mayor-calls-for-a-graveyard-for-traitors-behind-failed-coup/

Almost one-third of Turkey’s top military officers charged in coup plot

Here's one of the many astonishing statistics generated by the ongoing purge of the Turkish state in the wake of last week's failed coup: At least 99 Turkish generals and admirals have been charged with involvement in the plot. That, according to the BBC, is almost a third of the country's pool of 356 top military officers. […]

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2016/07/20/almost-one-third-of-turkeys-top-military-officers-charged-in-coup-plot/