The U.S. formally recognized the Somali government for the first time in 20 years on Thursday when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mahamud at the State Department. Hassan is the first permanent Somali president since 1991 and faces a daunting task of rebuilding a nation torn by conflict and Islamist insurgencies.
Algerian forces attacked the oil and gas facility being held by Islamist militants in the eastern part of Algeria on Thursday. Reports indicated that some hostages were freed, some were killed and some were still in the compound with their captors. Before the Algerian forces attacked, militants said they held about 40 hostages from a variety of countries. Reports say that some militants were also killed in the military operation.
Originally published on Thu January 17, 2013 4:04 pm
Hours after French troops launched a ground offensive in Mali to quash an Islamist rebellion, militants retaliated by seizing dozens of hostages, reportedly including Americans, in neighboring Algeria — an attack that underscores Western fears of a deteriorating security situation in northwestern Africa.
In an ongoing crisis in North Africa, the Algerian military has reportedly launched an operation in response to the dozens of hostages taken by extremist groups at a gas field near the Libyan border. NPR's Neal Conan talks with University of Cambridge lecturer George Joffe about the evolving situation.
After huge critical and commercial success last year, breakthrough British sensation Emeli Sande has her sights set on America.
It's a long way from her roots. Born to a Zambian father and English mother, the singer-songwriter was raised in Scotland. She tells NPR's Michel Martin that being the only mixed-race family in a small village had a big impact on her.
From 1980 to 2011, Thailand's per capita GDP soared from $680 to nearly $5,000.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
The Klong Toei slum is notorious for drugs and fires.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
The shopping district surrounding Central World Mall was the scene of violent demonstrations in 2010. Protesters set the mall on fire and clashes with the government resulted in 100 deaths.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
The Central World Mall in downtown Bangkok caters to "hi-so," Thai slang for "high society."
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
A young girl watches cooks at the Central World Mall.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
From 1980 to 2011, Thailand's per capita GDP soared from $680 to nearly $5,000.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
Anti-terrorism police arrest a drug addict as part of rehabilitation program in Klong Toei.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
The disparity between classes in Thailand mimics that of America where the wealthiest 20 percent control more than half of the national income.
Credit Ed Kashi/VII / GlobalPost
The Klong Toei slum in Bangkok is 5 miles away from a glamorous shopping center that caters to an emerging middle class.
Editor's note: Our partner GlobalPost is launching a series that looks at wealth and poverty worldwide by comparing U.S. metro areas with foreign cities that have similar levels of income inequality. The findings may surprise you.
Originally published on Thu January 17, 2013 4:57 pm
Events are happening quickly at the gas facility in eastern Algeria where Islamist militants seized a large group of hostages — perhaps as many as 41 of them foreigners who apparently include some Americans — on Wednesday.
In West Africa, the push to prevent militant Islamists from expanding beyond their base in northern Mali is shifting into a ground war. French and Malian troops are now directly engaging al-Qaida linked rebels in combat. They've surrounded a desert village that jihadists overran when they began pushing south toward Mali's capital. This escalates the battle that began last week, when France sent in fighter jets to attack the rebels.
In southern Algeria, Islamist militants are holding scores of Western hostages who were kidnapped from an oil refinery. The militants say the kidnappings are in retaliation for French intervention in the Mali crisis.
