INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP Guinea-Bissau: Beyond Rule of the Gun Dakar/Brussels, 25 June 2009: Without outside help to end military involvement in politics and impunity, it may be impossible to halt Guinea-Bissau’s slide into further violence. Guinea-Bissau: Beyond Rule of the Gun*, the latest policy briefing from the International Crisis Group, warns that the killings of [...]

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP Afghanistan’s Election Challenges Kabul/Brussels, 24 June 2009: The enormous resources and attention now focused on Afghanistan’s elections must be channelled into strengthening the country’s political and electoral institutions. Afghanistan’s Election Challenges,* the latest report from the International Crisis Group, evaluates the challenges of the presidential and provincial council elections in August 2009 [...]

Official Notification of Intent to Enter June 24, 2009 To: The Israeli Ministry of Defense, Fax: 972-3-697-6717 To: The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fax: 972-2-5303367 From: The Free Gaza Movement This letter serves as a formal notification to you, as the Occupying Power and belligerent force in the Gaza Strip, that on Thursday, June [...]

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP Georgia-Russia: Still Insecure and Dangerous Tbilisi/Brussels, 22 June 2009: Russian diplomatic pressure is dismantling the critical international conflict resolution machinery in Georgia, leaving the region facing a potentially explosive situation in which even a small incident could spark new fighting. Georgia-Russia: Still Insecure and Dangerous,* the latest policy briefing from the International [...]

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP Recruiting Militants in Southern Thailand Bangkok/Brussels, 22 June 2009: Unless the Thai government can give more attention to tackling the Muslim insurgency in the South, moving from a military toward a political solution, the violent conflict will intensify as the recruitment of young militants will accelerate. Recruiting Militants in Southern Thailand,* the [...]

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP North Korea: Getting Back to Talks Seoul/Brussels, 18 June 2009: Last Friday’s UN Security Council Resolution was an appropriately strong and united condemnation of North Korea’s second nuclear test and should be accompanied by strong containment measures and continued effective military deterrence to ensure that the situation does not further deteriorate. But [...]

Upon returning home from Gaza, a friend commented, “It must have been horrifying seeing all the destruction.” And it was. The 22-day Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip laid waste to an already ravaged territory. The landscape is dotted with piles of rubble of bombed out buildings, the twisted iron and aluminum of destroyed factories, [...]