"Europe corrupts Africa"

Ivory Coast Govt, rebels agree to disarm
Government and rebel forces in west Africa's Ivory Coast have agreed to start disarming by the end of June in a step to end a long-running civil war.

African youngsters 'vanish' in UK
LONDON: British police and welfare experts expressed shock at findings which showed that hundreds of young African boys "disappear" from schools in London on a regular basis.

Missing: the mystery of 300 boys who have disappeared from school
Torso in the Thames case reveals 'scandal' of vanished children as welfare groups urge action

China-Africa trade surges in first quarter
Two-way trade between China and Africa grew 31 percent in the first quarter of 2005, a growth rate higher than China's overall foreign trade growth volume, the Ministry of Commerce said Friday.

Leprosy did not originate in India: Study
NEW DELHI: Leprosy, one of oldest diseases on earth, originated probably in East Africa or the Middle East and not as was previously thought, in India, researchers claim in a study.

Pope: Europe corrupts Africa
Rome - In a stern criticism of colonialism, Pope Benedict XVI said on Friday that along with Christianity, Europe had brought corruption and violence to the African continent.

Brazil's 'slave' ranch workers
On a recent trip to several African countries, Brazil's President Inacio Lula da Silva made a point of apologising for historical slavery in his country.

Landless peasant army marches on Brasilia
Thousands of landless Brazilian peasants were marching toward the capital on Friday after a 14-day trek across the country in protest against President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's failure to carry out land reforms.

Mexico to send letter to U.S. protesting border wall

Horror Of US Depleted Uranium In Iraq Threatens World
American use of DU is "A crime against humanity which may, in the eyes of historians, rank with the worst atrocities of all time." US Iraq Military Vets "are on DU death row, waiting to die."

More Phony Jobs Hype
April's job growth is consistent with the depressing pattern of US employment growth in the 21st century: The outsourced US economy can create jobs only in domestic nontradable services.

Osama's Head on Ice:
CIA and Bush Administration Fire up "Mighty Wurlitzer"

Army Recruiter caught on tape threatening youth with arrest
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Latin strongman rebels against US-centric news
CARACAS, VENEZUELA – Television is a window on the world. But if you're sitting in Latin America, that window is more likely to be facing Baghdad than Buenos Aires. Or show Michael Jackson instead of Mexico City. Or offer a clearer view of Ukraine's Orange Revolution than the one in Ecuador last month. Those networks that do cover regional news, like CNN Español, based in Atlanta, or Spain's TVE, are often considered US- or Eurocentric, with pundits sitting in Washington or Madrid. International news from the Latin American perspective is almost nonexistent, critics say.

Television of the South
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, tireless polemist and Bush nemesis, has a new pet project: a continent-wide television network slated for broadcast throughout South America in the coming weeks. Telesur, or "Television of the South," aims to be a competitor of CNN, Univison and other global giants seen by southern neighbors as minions of American hegemony.

Described by its new director, Aram Aharonian, as South America's "first counter-hegemonic media project," Telesur reportedly has 20 employees but hopes to work its way up to at least 60. The Chavez government has coughed up $2.5 million for the project thus far and is permitting Telesur to operate as an affiliate of Venezuelan state television.

Wheelchair-bound man shot by police
A police officer in North Carolina shot and killed a double-amputee when the man refused to put down a handgun.

China Says US Impeded North Korea Arms Talks
A senior Chinese diplomat on Thursday accused the Bush administration of undermining efforts to revive negotiations with the North Korean government and said there was "no solid evidence" that North Korea was preparing to test a nuclear weapon.