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Myanmar’s government and the armed wing of one of the country’s leading ethnic groups signed a cease-fire on 12 January 2012, raising hopes of bringing to an end to one of the world’s longest-running civil conflicts. A delegation of ministers from the capital Naypyidaw and senior members of the Karen National Union (KNU) signed the pact.

Without much media attention, thousands of American troops are being deployed to Israel, and Iranian officials believe that this is the latest and most blatant warning that the US will soon be attacking Tehran.

We will walk with one main objective: to be open to all in order to create a convergence in a common fight and in order to support the idea which consists in ​​creating a constituent assembly. A statement of precise claims is being currently written, and it will be presented during the marches and discussed during the citizens meetings which would be organized by theme.

Famous Senegalese singer Youssou N’dour has decided to quit music for politics and to run for next month elections. The musician’s widespread popularity will make him a significant force in Senegalese politics, but his political ambitions are currently unclear.

Washington DC – Christmas has receded. Wishes and gifts have been exchanged, groaning boards have been emptied. Those who associate Christmas not only with “happy holidays” but with their faith have attended church services where prayers were said, sermons were delivered, and some of the most galvanizing choral music composed in the West, would have been heard.

“For centuries, Uzbekistan was famed as a hub of trade and rich cultural exchange on the Silk Road connecting China to Western Europe. More recently, however, the Central Asian country has come to be known for something far darker: torture,”‘ says Human Rights Watch report “No One Left to Witness” on Uzbekistan’s record of rights abuses.

Iran has warned the United States it will take action if its fleet returns to the Persian Gulf. Meanwhile, France is pushing European countries to follow the US in freezing Iranian central bank assets and imposing an embargo on oil exports.

Geneva – The UN human rights office voiced alarm at reports that the Egyptian military has carried out raids against the offices of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in what would be the first documented incidents of their kind in the country’s recent history.

Since northern African nations gained independence in the late 50s and early 60s, and long before the Arab Spring, the dream of North African unity has existed amongst the peoples of the region. North Africans are naturally united by a shared history, culture and language.

Libya is heading into the New Year with new leaders and hopes. But it turns out, as the immediate post-revolutionary excitement fades, the different factions of the former rebels are turning on each other in what may become a competition for power.