The annual conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the powerful and hawkish pro-Israel lobby, wrapped up on Tuesday with a speech from Vice President Joe Biden, capping three days that were primarily devoted to the threat of a nuclear Iran.

Rebuked in the past for its sluggish response and attempts to cover up the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), China’s measures to curb the spread of the swine flu virus are earning opposite marks of being extreme and 'unjustified.'

Broken arms, dislocated jaws, intimidation and vulgarities are part of the daily routine immigrant woman experience in Arizona's Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) jails, human and civil rights organisations charge.

With the hint of a general election in the air, the largest opposition party in military-ruled Burma is facing a dilemma about its future. Should it or should it not contest the planned poll in 2010?

More than 20 million hectares of farmland in Africa and Latin America are now in the hands of foreign governments and companies, a sign of a global 'land grab' that got a boost from last year's food crisis.

It is a health crisis of alarming proportions. Up to nine million Egyptians have been exposed to hepatitis C, and tens of thousands will die each year unless they receive a liver transplant.

Human rights activists have warned of a 'proliferation' of far-right groups in central and eastern Europe amid an economic crisis fuelling support for extremist movements and political parties.

The theme of the third biennial Knowledge Management Africa (KMA) conference, which opened Monday in the capital of Senegal, is lofty - 'knowledge to reposition Africa in the world economy'. But the aim is more down-to-earth: to find ways to apply vital information to the basic question of improving the lives of Africa's people.

Over the last few days, the Chilean capital has hosted two very different activities that, however, had a common objective: promoting global nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.

Reports circulating in Washington suggest that President Barack Obama may try to revive the military commission system for prosecuting Guantánamo detainees, which Obama himself criticised during the administration of his predecessor, former President George W. Bush.