World

  • Shell admits arming Nigerian police

    By Norm Dixon The Shell oil company has been forced to admit that it imported weapons to help Nigerian police "protect" its oil installations in Ogoniland after the Nigerian press revealed the company had called for tenders from arms suppliers. The

  • Can British socialists get together?

    Can British socialists get together? Since breaking with the British Labour Party in 1992, Militant Labour has rapidly gained an independent profile and is perhaps the most influential socialist group in Britain today. This was reflected in its role

  • Beijing raises the heat on Taiwan

    By Eva Cheng China's Prime Minister Li Peng warned on January 30 that Beijing would "use force" against Taiwan if it declared independence or was "encouraged by anti-China forces to do so". The warning came shortly after the New York Times reported

  • Camilo Torres: priest and guerilla fighter

    February 15 is the 30th anniversary of the death in combat of the Colombian priest and revolutionary, Camilo Torres. LUIS AUGUSTO GARCIA GUERERO of the Camilista Union — National Liberation Army (UCELN) remembers Torres' life and work, and reflects

  • Siberian tunnel workers strike

    By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — For large numbers of Russians who grew up during the 1970s, the tunnel at Severomuysk, east of Lake Baikal in Siberia, remains an icon of their youth. The Severomuysk project was vigorously propagandised during the later

  • Russian environmentalist held for 'espionage'

    By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — Emboldened by President Boris Yeltsin's open shift to authoritarian-nationalist positions, Russia's security services are resurrecting an ugly practice — arresting and prosecuting dissidents under vague catch-all

  • Accident at Russian reactor

    On January 31, radioactive steam was released through a reactor valve in an experimental fast breeder reactor in Dimitrovgrad's Scientific Research Institute of Atomic Reactors (NIIAR). The reactor was shut down after the alarm system turned on. The

  • Russian teachers, miners walk out

    By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — From late January, a powerful strike wave has swept across Russia, involving close to three-quarters of a million workers. A massive stoppage by teachers has been followed by an exceptionally large and well-coordinated

  • Britain expels Saudi dissident

    By Jennifer Thompson In early January the British government rejected an application for asylum by Saudi dissident Mohammed al-Mas'ari. Home Office minister Ann Widdecombe acknowledged that the decision to deport al-Mas'ari to the Dominican Republic

  • Swaziland democracy strike ends

    By Norm Dixon Swaziland's trade unions called of their general strike for democracy on January 29. The strike, which began on January 22, was the longest in the small, landlocked kingdom's history and paralysed the country. It is estimated to have

  • US plants agent in Haiti police

    In an article to be published in the February 26 issue of the US left/liberal weekly The Nation, investigative reporter Allan Nairn charges that the US Central Intelligence Agency has placed agents inside the newly created Haitian National Police.