President Barack Obama plans to withdraw one-third of U.S. forces from Afghanistan by late 2012. The president said Wednesday the recent increase in troop strength is meeting its goals.
President Obama told a nationwide television audience he is beginning the effort to wind down one of America's longest wars. "America, it is time to focus on nation-building here at home," he said.
Mr. Obama said the 100,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan have caused extensive damage to the al-Qaida terror network, which conducted deadly attacks on New York and Washington in 2001.
VOA News Analysts Comment on President Obama's Afghan Speech
Because of the recent gains, the president announced that one-third of those troops will leave Afghanistan by late next year. "Starting next month, we will be able to remove 10,000 of our troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year, and we will bring home a total of 33,000 troops by next summer," he said.
Mr. Obama sent those 33,000 troops to Afghanistan late in 2009, to focus on al-Qaida, reverse the Taliban's momentum and train Afghan security forces to defend their own country.
U.S. forces invaded Afghanistan weeks after the 9-11 attacks in 2001. Recent public opinion polls show that many Americans are tired of the war, and want the Obama administration to focus instead on domestic concerns, such as the economy.
Some members of Congress have been calling for an accelerated withdrawal. But others contend that a quick pullout would compromise the progress that has been made in Afghanistan. A similar debate is said to be taking place among the president's top advisers.
Mr. Obama acknowledged the question Wednesday, saying U.S. policy must strike an appropriate balance. "Some would have America retreat from our responsibility as an anchor of global security, and embrace an isolation that ignores the very real threats that we face. Others would have America over-extended, confronting every evil that can be found abroad. We must chart a more centered course," he said.
The president said the U.S. mission in Afghanistan will change from combat to support, as Afghans assume responsibility for their nation's security. Mr. Obama said that transition will be complete by 2014.
He also announced that NATO will hold a summit in his home city of Chicago next May, to plan the next phase of Afghanistan's transition.
In the meantime, Mr. Obama said the U.S. will support peace talks that include the Afghan government and the Taliban, and that there is reason to believe that progress can be made.
In addition, he said his administration will press Pakistan for greater cooperation in the fight against violent extemists.
Mr. Obama said his overall goal is to leave Afghanistan without a safe haven from which al-Qaida or its affiliates can attack the U.S. or its allies. "We will not try to make Afghanistan a perfect place. We will not police its streets or patrol its mountains indefinitely," he said.
The president promised the American people that the long wars in Afghanistan and Iraq would come to what he called a responsible end.
Watch the full speech:
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The beginning of the expected drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan follows a steady decline in American public support for a war that has gone on for nearly 10 years.
When he ran for president in 2008, then candidate Barack Obama promised to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq, a war he opposed, and to strengthen the U.S. effort against the Taliban and al-Qaida in Afghanistan.
In late 2009, the president announced he was sending 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, a move that was unpopular with some members of his own Democratic Party.
In the past two years, domestic support for the war in Afghanistan has weakened considerably. A recent poll found that 64 percent of those surveyed believe the Afghan war is no longer worth fighting. In late 2009, that number was 44 percent.
Bipartisan opposition
Ohio Democratic Congressman Dennis Kucinich is a longtime opponent of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and of U.S. involvement in the NATO mission in Libya.
"Things are falling apart at home while we are searching the world looking for dragons to slay," said Kucinich.
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In recent weeks, war fatigue over Afghanistan has also crept into the debate among the Republican presidential contenders for 2012, including the frontrunner, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney.
"But I also think we have learned that our troops should not go off and try to fight a war of independence for another nation," noted Romney. "Only the Afghanis can win Afghanistan's independence from the Taliban."
Even the latest Republican to join the race, former Utah governor Jon Huntsman, says the United States should be more aggressive in drawing down troop levels in Afghanistan. Huntsman spoke to NBC's Today program.
"What we need now is a healthy dose of nation-building here at home," said Huntsman. "Our core is weak. We need to focus on getting our own house in order right here."
Shifting priorities
Quinnipiac University pollster Peter Brown says during a period of several months national-opinion surveys have shown a growing level of war weariness among the American public.
"I do not think there is any doubt in Afghanistan, the involvement in Iraq and now the involvement in Libya has for many Americans raised questions about the wisdom of these policies," said Brown.
It is not just that Americans have tired of the Afghan conflict. They also see much more important priorities at home, especially reviving the U.S. economy, says expert Stephen Hess with the Brookings Institution.
"A trio of wars is not exactly what Americans are interested in at this time when they have a very full platter of problems at home," said Hess.
Budget drain
Many Americans believe the war commitments in Afghanistan and Iraq are also a major budget drain on the U.S. government at a time when many Americans are struggling economically.
Political analysts say the U.S. commitment to the Afghan war could become an issue in next year's presidential campaign, especially for anti-war Democrats who are pressing for a speedier exit from Afghanistan.
Analyst Stuart Rothenberg spoke to VOA's Encounter program about the impact of Afghanistan on next year's U.S. presidential election.
"Are we going to have stable environments?" Rothenberg asked. "Are we going to have talk about terrorists being allowed to gather and train? So I think this is another huge problem for the president. The problem here is clearly on his left with the anti-war element of the Democratic Party thinking that the president has violated a promise and a reason why they supported him in the last election."
President Obama received a modest boost in the polls following the killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. But that bump has largely dissipated as Americans refocus on the struggling domestic economy and a stubbornly high unemployment rate of 9.1 percent.
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Britain, Germany and France all say they plan to follow the U.S. lead and withdraw their troops from the Afghan warfront.
The three European allies on Thursday quickly announced the eventual end of their involvement in fighting Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan after U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday night spelled out his plan to withdraw 33,000 of the 100,000 American troops over the next 14 months. The three allies have much smaller contingents in Afghanistan as part of a U.S.- and NATO-led operation.
British Prime Minister David Cameron spoke to President Obama before his televised address and confirmed that, like the U.S., Britain would end its military role in Afghanistan by the end of 2014, leaving Afghans responsible for their own security. Britain has about 9,500 troops in Afghanistan, the second biggest total.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said his country plans to start to reduce its contingent of 5,000 armed forces by the end of this year. German involvement in the Afghan war is deeply unpopular on the home front, with 52 German soldiers killed since it joined the effort in January 2002.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said his country's troops would be withdrawn on roughly the same proportion and schedule as that of the U.S. It has 4,000 troops in Afghanistan and 62 of its troops have been killed.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
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Activists say Syrian soldiers and tanks have entered a village near the Turkish border, as European Union diplomats prepare to expand sanctions against Syria.
Witnesses said Thursday the troops entered Khirbet al-Jouz, continuing a government crackdown on a pro-democracy uprising that began in March.
Turkey has set up tent camps to house 10,000 Syrians who have fled to escape the violence.
EU diplomats say the 27-nation bloc is due to adopt new sanctions Thursday against seven individuals, including three Iranians, which would then come into force on Friday.
The diplomats said Wednesday the seven individuals will be added to a list of 23 people and entities already under an EU asset freeze and travel ban. The list includes Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The Iranians and other newly-targeted individuals are suspected of providing military equipment and support to the Syrian government in suppressing the opposition movement that began in March. The crackdown has killed at least 1,400 people.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem denounced the EU action Wednesday, saying it is hurting the livelihood of Syrians and represents an "act of war."
Speaking at a news conference in Damascus, he said Syria "will forget Europe is on the map" and rejects foreign interference in its internal affairs.
Moallem denied that Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah are helping Syria's government to crack down on the unrest. He said some of the violence may be the work of al-Qaida.
The Syrian foreign minister also singled out EU power France for criticism, accusing Syria's former colonial ruler of pursuing a "colonialist agenda under the guise of human rights."
France is one of several Western nations lobbying for a U.N. Security Council resolution that would condemn Syria for its crackdown. Russia and China, veto-wielding members of the council, have opposed such action.
Seven well-known authors sent a letter to the council urging it to adopt the measure. The letter, published Wednesday on the website of French intellectual and writer Bernard-Henry Levy, is also signed by Salman Rushdie, Umberto Eco, David Grossman, Amos Oz, Orhan Pamuk and Wole Soyinka.
Also Wednesday, Assad's dissident cousin told British media that Syria could slip into civil war and spark a regional conflict if there is no rapprochement between the Damascus government and opposition protesters.
The Reuters news agency reported that Ribal al-Assad, who lives in London, also said religious extremists are hijacking the three-month uprising, and that a corrupt inner circle is manipulating the president into resisting concessions to the protest movement.
Assad says he is willing to hold a national dialogue on possible reforms to parliamentary election laws, the media and Syria's constitution.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday the Syrian president's offer does not have "much credibility" because the crackdown is continuing. Ban said U.N. Security Council action on the Syria crisis would be "helpful."
Western powers also have dismissed Assad's comments, saying they did not meet popular demands for an end to his family's decades-long authoritarian rule.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.
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Celebrated artist Ai Weiwei is at home on bail after almost three months in Chinese detention, but officials say his movements will be restricted for one year.
At a foreign ministry briefing Thursday, spokesman Hong Lei said the investigation of the 54-year activist will remain open during that time. He said Ai remains confined to the place where he is living, which was taken to mean Beijing.
The outspoken artist offered apologies to reporters and television crews who gathered outside his suburban Beijing studio following his release late Wednesday.
Ai said he is in good health and happy to be home. But he begged the reporters to understand that he cannot give any interviews because of the situation he is in.
Ai was arrested in early April at the height of a crackdown on Chinese dissidents and activists, possibly prompted by fears of Middle East uprisings spreading to China. Weeks after the arrests, Beijing announced he was being held for tax evasion.
The official Xinhua news agency said Ai was released because he had confessed to tax evasion and promised to repay what he owes. It also said the diabetic artist was released on medical grounds.
The release was immediately welcomed by foreign governments and in the international art community, though many urged that diplomatic pressure be maintained until Ai is cleared of all charges. Rights groups believe the real reason for Ai's arrest was his repeated criticism of government policies.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the release just a first step toward clearing up the charges against Ai. Amnesty International warned that he must not be put under illegal house arrest like many other Chinese dissidents.
Ai is one of China's best-known artists and an international celebrity. He has exhibited in the world's top art museums and had a hand in designing Beijing's "Bird's Nest" Olympic stadium.
His detention had become an issue in many of China's diplomatic encounters with other countries. The release comes ahead of an important trip to Europe by Premier Wen Jiabao and a high-level U.S.-Chinese diplomatic meeting Saturday in Hawaii.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
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Hours before President Barack Obama's address on the future of U.S. military engagement in Afghanistan, lawmakers in Washington passionately debated the costs and benefits of a war that has lasted nearly 10 years.
Polls show Americans increasingly weary and disillusioned about the war in Afghanistan. Many of their representatives on Capitol Hill say they, too, are fatigued and frustrated.
"I implore the president: end the war, bring our troops home," noted Democratic Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey of California who took to the House floor with a message for President Obama. "This must not be a token withdrawal. How many more lives have to be destroyed, how many more Americans have to leave limbs behind in Afghanistan, and how many more billions in taxpayer money do we have to waste?"
That sentiment is not limited to Democrats. Republican Congressman Walter Jones of North Carolina urged the United States to declare victory in Afghanistan and end the war.
"Bring the troops home," said Jones. "History has proven you will never change Afghanistan. They [Afghans] do not want to change themselves. Quite frankly, the Taliban are Afghan people. It is a civil war."
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House Speaker John Boehner told reporters he understands public sentiment on the matter.
"The American people are weary about Afghanistan," said Boehner. "You cannot blame them. You have 100,000 of our men and women fighting in this desert over there. But remember why we are there. We are there because the Taliban had taken over Afghanistan. They had provided a safe haven to al Qaida. The goal here is to make sure they do not have that safe haven."
Boehner added that, having invested so much in Afghanistan, the United States should not jeopardize gains made in the country.
The chairwoman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Democrat Patty Murray of Washington, reminded fellow-lawmakers of the hidden costs of war.
"With all the talk about troop levels, I want to make sure that we remember this is not just about numbers," said Murray. "It is about real people with real families. We all hear about how expensive war is while we are fighting it. But for so many of our servicemembers, what happens on the battlefield is just the beginning. We are seeing suicide rates that are much higher among active-duty servicemembers and veterans than among civilians. We are watching as these men and women are sent out on tour after tour. Too often, they are having a tough time finding a job when they come home."
The tough economy and America's fiscal woes were clearly on the mind of Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia when he spoke late Tuesday.
"We can no longer have it all," said Manchin. "The question the president faces is quite simple. Will we choose to rebuild America or Afghanistan? In light of our nation's fiscal perils, we cannot do both."
Manchin's comments drew a swift rebuke from Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona.
"We withdrew from Afghanistan onetime [after the Soviet withdrawal in 1989]. And the Taliban came, followed by al Qaida, followed by attacks on the United States of America. If we leave Afghanistan in defeat, we will repeat the lessons of history," added Manchin.
From the beginning of his administration, President Obama has promised to listen to his commanders when making decisions about America's foreign military commitments. House Speaker Boehner counseled the president to continue that practice when it comes to Afghanistan.
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Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem told a news conference Wednesday that Syria is not receiving any help from Iran in its continuing crackdown on dissidents. He also blasted Europe, insisting that Syria plans to "forget Europe is on the map" as the European Union tightened sanctions against Damascus.
The veteran Syrian foreign minister repeated his government's claim of an "outside plot" against Damascus. He insisted that European nations are spearheading the effort by ignoring a speech by President Bashar al-Assad this week that Western observers say failed to put forth meaningful reforms.
Moallem says European Union foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg Monday commented on the speech without having listened to it. That, he argues, proves that there's a plot to sow chaos and strife in Syria.
The Syrian foreign minister also slammed European Union sanctions, which were expanded on Wednesday, saying that Damascus has decided to turn its back to Europe. He said Syria has decided to freeze ties with Europe.
Moallem appealed to Turkey to reconsider its recent criticism of Damascus, saying that the neighbors "share a long common border" and have longstanding ties. Ankara has asked Syria's government to stop repression of its people as Turkey deals with a growing tide of Syrian refugees.
Moallem added that Syria has not received military help in its crackdown from Iran or its proxy ally in Lebanon, the Hezbollah.
He acknowledged, however, that Damascus receives political support from Iran and Hezbollah.
Hilal Khashan, who teaches political science at the American University of Beirut, echoed analysts' views and Western intelligence information that Syria has received military help from Lebanon's Hezbollah:
"Last month there was a minibus near Homs that was attacked and there were 10 people on board," said Khashan. "These people who were killed turned out to be Hezbollah fighters who were sent there to help the regime."
Fouad Ajami, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution in California, sees little doubt that Hezbollah and Iran are helping Syria. He casts Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah as meddling in Syria.
"Hezbollah is in Syria. Hezbollah units are in Syria, and it's the biggest mistake that Nasrallah will render his people, to get the Shia of Lebanon involved in a fight in Syria between really the Alawi-based regime and the large Sunni majority," said Ajami. "This is a fight for Syria, among Syrians."
Both analysts say the Syrian regime can hold its own without help from Iran or Hezbollah. They say Syria seems intent, though, in turning its internal crackdown into a regional issue pitting pan-Arab interests against Western economic and political intervention.
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Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been under growing pressure from his party's much-needed ally, the Northern League, to decide an end date to withdraw from Libya. Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini spoke Wednesday about the NATO-led military operation.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been battling to keep his coalition together with an increasingly frustrated partner, the Northern League. The League has been demanding an end to Italy's costly involvement in the NATO-led campaign in Libya. It also wants to see a resolution to the continuing arrival of immigrants from Libya on the Italian coastline.
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini on Wednesday spoke about the ongoing hostilities in Libya. In particular, he addressed the need for humanitarian aid for the civilian population in the North African country.
Frattini's comments were made to a parliamentary commission. His spokesman, Maurizio Massari, later outlined to the Arab television network Al Jazeera the Italian foreign minister's position.
"What Minister Frattini said this morning was that if there is an appeal from international organizations such as African Union, Arab League, EU, UN for a humanitarian pause in order to allow unhindered and unrestricted access to humanitarian health to the civilian population, Italy will take into account with interest such an appeal," he said. "But of course, for that to happen, we would need broad international consensus, the consensus of our NATO partners and all the partners of the contact group."
Aid is needed mostly in areas around the Western stronghold of Misrata and around the Libyan capital, Tripoli. While Italy feels there is a need for at least a temporary pause in the hostilities, other countries like France and Britain disagree.
The NATO-led bombing campaign that began in March was aimed at protecting civilians under a United Nations resolution.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen says the alliance's military operations in Libya will continue. He says this is because if they are interrupted, an infinite number of civilians would lose their lives.
Rasmussen added that he is deeply saddened by the loss of human life in this conflict. But he said it was the government of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi that began the conflict by attacking its own people - not NATO.
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The leader of Burma's opposition movement has urged the U.S. Congress to do what it can to make sure that her government adheres to a United Nations Human Rights Council resolution on Burma.
Aung San Suu Kyi told members of Congress a resolution that the U.N. Human Rights Council passed in March is a clear guide for what needs to be done to bring democracy to Burma.
Among other things, the resolution calls on Burma's government to free political prisoners, grant civil liberties such as the freedom of expression, and allow regular visits by the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Burma.
VOA's Ira Mellman interviews Representative Manzullo, Chairman of the subcommittee on Asian and Pacific affairs.
"This resolution covers all the needs of Burma today, all the political needs, let me say, of Burma today. The requests, the urgings, the demands of this resolution are very much in line with what we in Burma think is needed to start Burma along a genuine process of democratization," she said.
Her videotaped comments were played Wednesday to members of the U.S. House subcommittee on Asian and Pacific affairs. They held a hearing on last November's elections, the first in Burma in 20 years.
The leader of the National League for Democracy was cautious in her criticism of Burma's new government. But she called for an independent judiciary to ensure the rule of law, and she said that if the government is sincere in wanting to bring democracy to the country, it should free political prisoners.
She closed her message by thanking Congress for its support for democratic reform in Burma. "With the help and support of true friends, I'm sure we will be able to tread the path of democracy, not easily and perhaps not as quickly as we would like, but surely and steadily," she said.
Watch the Nobel Laureate's videotaped remarks to the U.S. Congressional hearing:
Burma's opposition, human rights activists and many governments, such as the United States, say the elections merely solidified military rule, because military members and a party backed by the military dominate the parliament.
The Burmese government is considered one of the most repressive in the world. Human rights activists and opposition members say Burma holds more than 2,000 political prisoners, and uses forced labor, long prison sentences and military attacks against minority groups to suppress opposition.
The National League for Democracy won the last free elections held in 1990, but the military never let the party take power.
The NLD did not participate in last year's election because it refused to purge Aung San Suu Kyi and other imprisoned members from its rolls, which was required under new election laws.
Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent most of the past 20 years under some form of detention, was released shortly after the November elections.
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Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou is now pushing for approval of unpopular austerity measures that are aimed at securing emergency international bailout funds to keep the country from defaulting on its debt.
Earlier Wednesday, Papandreou survived a crucial parliamentary confidence vote, making passage of the controversial economic reforms more likely.
Crowds in the square outside parliament reacted angrily to the vote. Riot police used tear gas to disperse protestors who broke off from the main rally.
Many Greeks said that while they understand the need to get the public debt under control, they feel the government, the European Union and International Monetary Fund are not going about it the right way.
But EU leaders are adamant that Greece move ahead with sharp economic reforms including increased taxes and privatizations of the public sector before they release the next $17 billion of last year's promised $160 billion bailout funds.
Wednesday's confidence vote fell strictly along party lines, indicating that Papandreou will continue to face challenges to the reform program. The vote passed with 155 lawmakers backing the government and 143 voting against it. Two abstained.
Following the vote, Asian stock markets rose, with Tokyo's Nikkei gaining 1.8 percent. The euro also managed short term gains.
EU leaders are to meet in Brussels Thursday to further discuss the debt crisis.
Papandreou is appealing to lawmakers to pass his package of spending cuts, tax hikes, and the sale of state assets. He warned parliament that Greece would face bankruptcy and default next month if it fails to back his reforms and secure the loan payment.
The opposition and some members of the prime minister's own Socialist Party say the reforms will not work.
Economic analysts say a default by Greece could spark another global financial disaster.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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At the High Court in Kolkata, India, lawyers for Tata Motors contested a new law that allows the government to cancel its lease for a large plot of land that was to be used to produce the world's cheapest car.
The land in Singur was acquired from farmers by West Bengal's former communist government in 2006. It was part of a push to industrialize the state.
But farmers bitterly opposed the project, many refused to accept compensation for their land, saying it was too little. As their protests turned violent Tata moved the project to another state, although the factory had already been built.
On the forefront of the protests was a fiery political leader, Mamata Banerjee. Last month, she became the state's chief minister after defeating the communists in state elections. Her campaign pledges included a promise to return the Singur land to farmers.
Earlier this month, Banerjee's government passed a law allowing it to reclaim 400 acres of land, given to Tata, for which farmers had never accepted compensation. Tata Motors challenged the law, but has not elaborated.
Economist D.H. Pai Panandiker heads the independent research group RPG Goenka Foundation. He says it is important to the industry that commitments are kept.
"If one government enters into a contract, gives it to a business enterprise and now a new government comes and disturbs that contract altogether... in a democracy one government cannot undo what a previous government had done. Contracts are sanctimonious," noted Panandiker.
In India, Singur has become a symbol of rising conflicts over land as farmers resist giving up their land for industrial, mining and infrastructure projects.
In the eastern Orissa state, thousands of villagers have been protesting the state government's efforts to acquire land for India's largest foreign investment project - a $12 billion steel plant to be built by South Korea's Posco. This month, women and children were among those who formed a human ring to prevent government officials from taking over the land. The protests have prompted the government to put its acquisition drive on hold.
Economists say foreign investors are being deterred by such protests.
Meanwhile, the Indian government is under growing pressure to balance the interests of industry and farmers through new legislation that tries to ensure farmers get fair compensation for their land and guarantees of an alternate livelihood.
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China has freed internationally known artist and dissident Ai Weiwei after nearly three months in detention.
The official Xinhua news agency says he was freed after confessing to tax evasion and because he suffers from a chronic illness.
But Ai told British television that his health is fine. The conditions of his release forbids him from giving any details about his time in detention.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel calls his release just a first step on clearing up the charges against him.
Amnesty International says now that Ai is out of prison, he must not be put under illegal house arrest like so many other Chinese dissidents.
Ai, whose works have been exhibited all over the world, was arrested in early April. Human rights activists, fellow artists and several foreign governments, including the United States, demanded his release. They say he committed no crimes, but was jailed because of his politics.
China has arrested large numbers of dissidents, rights activists, lawyers and others in the past several months. It also has clamped down on the news media, including foreign journalists and the Internet. Many regional analysts say China is making an effort to ensure the popular uprisings in the Middle East this year do not spread there.
Rights activists say Chinese officials often use charges of economic crimes to silence government critics.
This development comes ahead of a high-level U.S.-Chinese diplomatic meeting Saturday in Hawaii.
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It's the sole New York school reachable only by ferry, a short ride from the lower tip of Manhattan to Governors Island, a 70-hectare former military base where birds and trees greatly outnumber human visitors. The Urban Assembly New York Harbor School is located in a renovated Coast Guard building. A basketball court and a garden tended by students flank the entrance; inside, the rooms include a greenhouse, an aquaponics lab where tilapia and oysters are raised, and a boat-building workshop, where a sloop patterned on one that sailed the harbor in 1849 is under construction.
Although the Harbor School may look traditional, its curriculum and philosophy are not. Founder and program director Murray Fisher got the idea for the school when he worked for the environmental group Hudson Riverkeeper and helped establish its global network, the Waterkeeper Alliance.
"I was inspired by this model of communities taking control and taking care of their local marine ecosystems," Fisher said. He saw an opportunity to organize a high school curriculum around an ecological restoration project, one that would give New York teens a relationship with what he says is the city's greatest resource - the Harbor.
"I didn't see a lot of them having the kinds of experiences I did when I was young, the fun, safe, engaging experiences on the water, which made me get into this line of work," he said. "There is an environmental crisis happening right now. Why are schools not centerpieces of that battle? Why are [students] being shuffled from classroom to classroom and taught stuff they think is irrelevant, when right now, everywhere, there's degraded ecosystems that need help?"
Fisher got in touch with Richard Kahan, a New York developer and leader of Urban Assembly, a nonprofit that operates 20 other small public schools around the city. They proposed creating a public-private academy through a program called "New Visions for Public Schools," and later received a $34 million grant to renovate the school building.
But for its first seven years in operation, while Fisher lobbied for a permanent home on Governors Island, the school was located in Bushwick, a section of the city that is about as far from the water as it's possible to be in New York. Students had to take the subway to see the city's hundreds of miles of shoreline, and to practice rowing and sailing.
As of last September, though, when the move to Governors Island took place, everything happens within a few meters of the Harbor. A freshman class, for example, recently spent a day aboard an educational sailing ship, the Spirit of Massachusetts. Rotating among work stations, the students studied navigation, took turns steering the ship, and learned sailing basics. They took water samples, and tested them for oxygen levels and pollutants. Casting out a trawling net, they hauled up some of the Harbor's animal life, which experts say remains extraordinarily varied, despite worrisomely low populations of many species. "Look at this guy," said teacher Ann Fraioli, holding one specimen. "He's a spider crab. We haven't seen a lot of these this year, so it is pretty exciting to get one."
As at other Urban Assembly schools, the great majority of Harbor School's approximately 400 students are African-American or Hispanic, from low-income and immigrant families. The school is open to any student who shows interest by visiting, said principal Nate Dudley. He said few arrive with much awareness of the Hudson River estuary and other waters that surround New York. But they graduate with the skills necessary to make a living from them.
In addition to completing a college preparatory program, each student earns an industry-approved certificate in one of six maritime vocational areas: vessel operations, aquaculture, marine resource management policy, marine robotics or commercial diving. Dudley said that of the 70 percent who graduate, almost all go on to college, often the first in their families to do so.
Todtiyana Bowen, a junior, plans to study marine biology. "When I first came to the school, I wasn't really that interested in the water," she said. "But once you come here and start to learn and care for the environment, you can see all the bad things that are actually happening. You want to help, you're saying to yourself, 'Okay, I want to make a change.' So you basically grow a love for the Harbor and nature itself."
The school's biggest project, a partnership with 16 other organizations, is to re-seed New York Harbor with one billion live oysters over the next 20 years. That number would filter Harbor waters every few days, Fisher said, doing much to restore its health. He said the project also offers a new model for a more meaningful high school education, one where students know their work is a real contribution. "It's not just that we're raising oysters because it's cute, we're raising oysters as part of a huge multi-state project to restore this estuary to its historic richness," he said.
In the aquaponics lab, for example, Harbor School students are adjusting water temperatures and adding ground-up oyster gametes to jumpstart the spawning process. "Our students [who are] learning to drive boats are driving out to the reefs," Fisher said. "Our SCUBA students are actually planting oysters. So, we're realizing we may be on to something, because our students are really engaged. They like the idea of participating in something that's greater than themselves, that gives more meaning to their work."
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Mexican President Felipe Calderon says police have arrested the leader of a powerful drug cartel, dealing a major blow to organized crime.
Calderon congratulated police for the arrest of one of Mexico's "most wanted criminals" on his personal twitter account Tuesday.
A government spokesman identified the gang leader as Jose de Jesus Mendez Vargas, also known as El Chango, or "The Monkey." He said Mendez had been apprehended without violence in the central state of Aguascalientes.
The spokesman told reporters Mendez' arrest destroyed the last remnants of the La Familia drug cartel's command structure.
Authorities say Mendez had been running the cult-like La Familia cartel since its founder and leader Nazario Moreno Gonzalez was killed in a shoot-out with police in December.
But the gang has splintered into factions since Gonzalez' death, and rival leaders remain at large.
The government had been offering a more than $2 million reward for Mendez' capture.
President Calderon launched an offensive against the cartels in 2006 when he took office.
Security officials in Yemen say about 60 al-Qaida-linked militants have escaped from a southern prison after gunmen attacked the facility.
Officials say the attackers and escaping prisoners clashed with guards Wednesday at the prison in Mukalla, leaving one guard dead and two others wounded.
The escape came as a senior U.S. envoy met in Sana'a with Yemeni officials to push a Gulf Arab initiative to end a political stalemate paralyzing Yemen's government.
The plan calls for President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who is recovering in Saudi Arabia from an attack on his palace compound, to leave office. Mr. Saleh has waffled on the plan.
Yemeni media say envoy Jeffrey Feltman, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, met Wednesday with several high-ranking government figures and opposition members in the Yemeni capital.
Washington is growing concerned about increased activity by Islamic militants in Yemen as the country struggles with a broader opposition uprising against President Saleh. Insurgents have launched several attacks in southern Yemen during the country's political unrest.
On Sunday, military officials said clashes killed 12 al-Qaida-linked militants and at least two Yemeni soldiers outside the city of Zinjibar.
Armed militants also renewed attacks earlier this month against government buildings near the town of Houta.
Some information for this report was provided by Reuters.
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Young people in the Balkans have created an interactive map of Europe's worst massacre since World War II. The map and audio-visual presentations are about the Bosnian town of Srebrenica, where thousands of Muslim men and boys were killed by Serbian forces in 1995. The Internet initiative comes as Europe prepares to remember next month what is known as the Srebrenica Massacre.
"Srebrenica, mapping genocide," a voice says, as he explains what online visitors to the website can expect.
It seems like a science fiction film or computer game as a camera and radar equipment search for targets.
But soon, familiar faces appear, including those of former Bosnian Serb President Radovan Karadzic and his wartime commander, Ratko Mladic. Both men are accused of ordering Serbian troops to kill as many as 8,000 Muslim men and boys after they overran the Bosnian town of Srebrenica in 1995 during the Bosnian War, following the break up of Yugoslavia.
The website - Srebrenica-mapping genocide - was launched by the Sarajevo-based advocacy group Youth Initiative for Human Rights in Bosnia-Herzegovina, which is funded by the United States and other Western countries as well as several nongovernmental organizations. <!--IMAGE-->
Its director, Alma Masic, says that the project seeks to encourage young people to prevent similar violence.
"We want this website to become part of the alternative educational world and particularly for the future generation in the Balkan region as the future decision makers in this area. So once when they understand what had happened here in the 1990s, that they, when they come in the position of decision makers again, will do anything that is in their power to prevent such horrible things to ever happening again," she stated.
Using documentary animation and digital maps, the website follows the events related to what was Europe's worst atrocity since World War II.
It also shows a key witness at Srebrenica - Drazen Erdemovic - who was part of a Bosnian Serb execution squad that killed hundreds of Muslim men and boys on a collective farm on July 16, 1995.
Speaking before the United Nations War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, Erdemovic says his commander told the execution squad how to stand. Policemen, he says, then brought Muslims to the execution squad. Erdemovic says his unit and another killed between 1,000 and 1,200 people.
Prosecutor Mark Harmon at The Hague asked "Are you able to estimate how many people you killed?"
Erdemovic replied he does not know exactly and that he prefers not to know how many people he killed.
A witness to the massacre testified at The Hague.
He says he was not shot, but that he fell to the ground and that a man fell on him. When the shooting stopped, he says a Serb soldier asked whether anyone was still alive. He recalls that a man said "Yes, I am alive" and that another man said "Me, why don't you shoot me?" The witness says the soldier then pulled the trigger.
Masic of the Youth Initiative for Human Rights in Bosnia-Herzegovina says that tens of thousands of people already have heard this and other testimonies on the website.
Masic says she is pleased there has also been interest in the project from researchers in Rwanda, which suffered the killing of hundreds of thousands mainly ethnic Tutsis, following the killing of Hutu president, Juvenal Habyarimana in 1994.
"We were very happy to see according to our statistics that 46 downloads were happening in Rwanda as well. We are hoping that we will receive some response from our colleagues from Rwanda, hoping that they might consider this educational tool as a possibility for them to map their own genocide. That really shouldn't remain forgotten and should be really raised up [to a] higher level," she said.
Masic says she hopes the website, which was developed by young human rights activists from across the Balkans, can help prevent similar crimes.
Next on her group's agenda is helping to construct an online interactive museum about life during the siege of the Bosnian capital Sarajevo. Masic says that website should be online by early next year. Also in the works is a high-tech museum in Sarajevo that is expected to open in May when the city remembers the 20th anniversary of the beginning of the 44-month siege by Serb forces, that killed at least 10,000 people.
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Japan's governing party pushed through an extension of the current Parliamentary session by 70 days, despite the objections of the opposition. The move came as Prime Minister Naoto Kan is expected to soon announce he will step down after the approval of several critical budget bills. They are, in part, meant to help Japan recover from the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, which killed about 20,000 people, left tens of thousands homeless and triggered the meltdown of several nuclear reactors.
It is not a matter of if, but when Japan's prime minister will resign. Naoto Kan has made clear he intends to step aside but has given no precise indication publicly of when he is going to quit.
Some top officials in his own party, the Democrats, have been pressuring him in recent days to say precisely when he is going to resign. That is seen as critical for avoiding a legislative deadlock.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano says the Democrats have agreed to extend the current Parliamentary session, which was due to end Wednesday, by 70 days.
Edano says Kan will preside over the passage of a second extra budget for the current fiscal year that is aimed at helping those affected by the March 11 natural disaster. But Edano was more vague when speaking about whether the prime minister would be around for a third budget extension that will require parliamentary approval after the end of August.
Some lawmakers within his own party characterize Kan as stubbornly attempting to stay in power long enough to also ensure legislative approval of a bill to promote renewable energy. Opposition politicians say the prime minister should not use the energy bill as a bargaining chip for the timing of his resignation.
Kan was already in deep political jeopardy when a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck on March 11, triggering a devastating tsunami along Japan's northeastern coast. At that time, it was expected that his resignation announcement would come within days. The tragedy brought politics to a brief pause, but the prime minister was soon back under fire for his perceived poor handling of the crisis.
Kan survived a no-confidence motion in Parliament earlier this month after promising he would hand over power to a younger generation. He then signaled he wanted to stay on the job until August.
Democratic Party sources say that former Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara is the apparent favorite among party leaders to succeed Kan. However, Maehara resigned in March over a political donation scandal, giving rise to criticism that it is too soon for his political rehabilitation.
Other potential successors include Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Agriculture Minister Michihiko Kano.
Whoever replaces Kan would become Japan's sixth prime minister in five years.
The political instability is seen as hampering Japan's economic recovery - exacerbated by the March 11 natural disaster which also precipitated what will be a very costly cleanup from reactor meltdowns at a nuclear power plant in Fukushima prefecture.
The frequent changes of leadership are also viewed as complicating Japan's relations with the United States. The two countries are re-evaluating their 60-year-long military relationship. The core controversial issue is a plan to shift some U.S. Marines away from a congested part of Okinawa.
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Afghan officials said Wednesday at least 12 policemen were killed or wounded in two separate Taliban attacks on checkpoints.
Authorities said that in the first incident southwest of Kabul, six policemen were killed in an early morning gunfight.
Hours later, at least six policemen were killed or wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a checkpoint in central Ghazni province. Clashes erupted between insurgents and police after the bombing.
In other violence, two NATO soldiers were killed Wednesday in two separate insurgent attacks in the country's south and east.
The Taliban has stepped up its attacks on government officials and Afghan and international troops in recent months.
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Regal independent department stores were once landmarks and the retail bedrock of every American city. Pampered shoppers could sample perfumes, select suits for which tailors would carefully measure them, take the elevator up to Lingerie or Housewares, linger at animated Christmas-window displays, even meet friends for lunch.
Shopping was an adventure.
But toward the end of the 20th Century, discount stores began luring away bargain-hunters, and chic, designer-brand competitors nibbled away at department stores' high-end customer base. That left them with an unpleasant choice: offer less expensive merchandise, join forces with a rival, or perish.<!--IMAGE-->
Over the past decade, a wider threat has further crippled retailers - especially those tied to so-called brick-and-mortar stores in shopping malls. Americans began doing a lot of their buying on the Internet and their hand-held phones, knowing that the selection of goods would be wider and that their purchases would often be shipped to them for free.
"The only reason I would go inside any kind of department store anymore is to return something I ordered online," one California shopper told The New York Times.
So what are department-store chains doing to survive? Many are reviving the old idea that shopping should be glamorous and are remaking their stores. Taking their cue from discount chains, some are offering specialized food and pharmacy items.<!--IMAGE-->
Others have adopted a look reminiscent of old-fashioned general stores, with bins of merchandise and booths selling frozen custard or fountain drinks such as New York egg creams.
Now one of the nation's largest retailers, the J. C. Penney Company, has hired a top Apple computer company executive to give its tired-looking mall stores a suave new look. The idea is to make going shopping pleasurable again - an experience that cannot be duplicated online.
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European Union diplomats say the 27-nation bloc has agreed to expand sanctions against Syria, adding seven individuals, including three Iranians, linked to a Syrian crackdown on a pro-democracy uprising.
The diplomats said Wednesday the seven individuals will be added to a list of 23 people and entities already under an EU asset freeze and travel ban. The list includes Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The Iranians and other newly-targeted individuals are suspected of providing military equipment and support to the Syrian government in suppressing an opposition movement that began in March. The crackdown has killed at least 1,400 people.
The expanded EU sanctions are due to be adopted on Thursday and come into force on Friday.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem denounced EU sanctions Wednesday, saying they are hurting the livelihood of Syrians and represent an "act of war."
Speaking at a news conference in Damascus, he said Syria "will forget Europe is on the map" and rejects foreign interference in its internal affairs.
Moallem denied that Iran and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah are helping Syria's government to crack down on the unrest. He said some of the violence may be the work of al-Qaida.
Syrian government crackdown on pro-democracy protests:
The Syrian foreign minister also singled out EU power France for criticism, accusing Syria's former colonial ruler of pursuing a "colonialist agenda under the guise of human rights."
France is one of several Western nations lobbying for a U.N. Security Council resolution that would condemn Syria for the crackdown. Russia, a veto-wielding member of the council, has expressed opposition to such a resolution.
Assad said Monday he is willing to hold a national dialogue on possible reforms to parliamentary election laws, the media and Syria's constitution. Western powers dismissed his comments, saying they did not meet popular demands for an end to the Assad family's decades-long authoritarian rule.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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Some U.S. officials are voicing increasing concern about the burgeoning cost of American military involvement in simultaneous wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and now Libya.
By various government and private accounts, the U.S. has spent more than $1 trillion over the last decade on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and already more than $700 million in the three-month-old NATO air war against troops loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
President Barack Obama is preparing to announce U.S. troop withdrawals from the war front in Afghanistan in a televised address Wednesday night, and the U.S. involvement in Iraq is winding down this year. Some Americans, though, weary of a decade of warfare spawned by the 2001 terrorist attacks on the U.S., are saying that with the sluggish national economy, the money spent on the wars instead should be spent on domestic needs.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors this week approved a resolution calling for an early end to the U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, and requesting the savings be spent at home. In Afghanistan, where 100,000 U.S. troops are stationed, the war tab is expected to reach nearly $120 billion this year.
One freshman U.S. senator, Joe Manchin of the eastern state of West Virginia, is a Democrat, as is the president. But on Tuesday, he called for a substantial troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, more than the president appears ready to endorse. Manchin said it is time "to rebuild America, not Afghanistan." In an unusual coupling of political thought in the U.S., some of the most conservative Republican lawmakers have called for a diminished U.S. military force overseas, as have some of the country's most liberal Democrats who normally would be aligned with Obama on other issues.
Yet Senator John McCain, the Republican Obama defeated in the 2008 presidential election, criticized Manchin's call for a quick reduction in U.S. troops in Afghanistan. McCain, a U.S. Navy veteran once held as a prisoner of war in the Vietnam War, said Manchin's comments were indicative of the "isolationist-withdrawal, lack-of-knowledge-of-history attitude that seems to be on the rise in America."
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