Rocky Mountain PEACE Institute

More than 20 people killed in Congo mining collapse, government says:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/more-than-20-people-killed-in-congo-mining-collapse-government-says/2013/05/16/75bff506-be77-11e2-b537-ab47f0325f7c_story.html

More than 20 people killed in Congo mining collapse, government says KINSHASA, Congo — The government of Congo says more than 20 people have died in a collapse at a bush mine in the region of Masisi in North Kivu province. That’s in the far eastern part of the country.

15 facts about our beautiful planet - Earth!

http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2013/04/22/earth_day_15_facts_about_our_planet.html

15 Facts About Our Planet for Earth Day Today, Apr. 22, is Earth Day, a time to appreciate our planet and the two-way relationship we have with it. It’s easy to take Earth for granted, since we see it every day. It becomes—it is—part of life’s background. But when you see the world through the eyes of science,...

Comments on Bahrain, in an outstanding article on the deep splits within the ruling Al-Khalifa family.

Royal Rift in Bahrain Bedevils U.S. Naval Base A widening split between rival bloodlines within Bahrain's royal family is empowering anti-American hard-liners in this strategically important island-state, palace insiders say, stoking U.S. concerns about its primary naval base at the heart of the Persian Gulf.

BRUSSELS — Eight masked gunmen forced their way through the security fence at Brussels’ international airport, drove onto the tarmac and snatched some $50 million worth of diamonds from the hold of a Swiss-bound plane without firing a shot.

The gang responsible for one of the biggest diamond heists in recent years used two black vehicles with a flashing blue police lights in their daring raid late Monday, said Anja Bijnens, spokeswoman for the Brussels prosecutor’s office.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/8-armed-men-drive-onto-tarmac-of-brussels-airport-and-steal-diamonds-from-planes-hold/2013/02/19/b12faf52-7a6e-11e2-9c27-fdd594ea6286_story.html?hpid=z3

Iranian-backed militant group in Iraq is recasting itself as a political player

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/iranian-backed-militant-group-in-iraq-is-recasting-itself-as-a-political-player/2013/02/18/b0154204-77bb-11e2-b102-948929030e64_story.html

Great piece on Cameroon:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/discovering-cameroon-a-microcosm-of-the-african-continent/2013/02/14/a1ef86f4-7247-11e2-ac36-3d8d9dcaa2e2_story.html?hpid=z12

HARARE, Zimbabwe — A world monitoring group on conflict diamonds says it wants restrictions on the sale of Zimbabwe diamonds tightened in the face of calls to relax them by diamond companies in Belgium.

Global Witness said that St. Valentine’s Day, marked Thursday, coincides with calls by Belgium to ease controls on diamonds from the eastern Zimbabwe fields of Marange, long mired in allegations of killings, human rights violations and corruption.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/monitors-criticize-belgium-for-valentines-day-calls-to-ease-controls-on-zimbabwe-diamonds/2013/02/13/e644e93e-75ee-11e2-9889-60bfcbb02149_story.html

JOHANNESBURG — Angola received a boost to its free speech from the Portuguese courts, which refused to allow Angolan generals to stop the publication of a book exposing corruption and human rights abuses in the southern African country’s lucrative diamond mines.

Portuguese prosecutors this week threw out a libel suit against a book that alleges Angolan generals own a diamond company and a security firm that carried out killings and the torture of workers toiling in the southern African nation’s mines.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/prosecutors-drop-libel-claim-for-book-on-angola-generals-alleged-ties-to-bloody-diamond-trade/2013/02/13/b66d33ce-75f3-11e2-9889-60bfcbb02149_story.html

Bahrain talks off to shaky start Talks aimed at resolving political unrest in Bahrain will start on Sunday, justice minister announces, the BBC's Bill Law reports.

China’s coal use grew 9 percent in 2011, rising to 3.8 billion tons. At this point, the country is burning nearly as much coal as the rest of the world combined.

Coal, of course, is the world’s premier fossil fuel, a low-cost source of electricity that kicks a lot of carbon-dioxide up into the atmosphere. And China’s growing appetite is a big reason why global greenhouse-gas emissions have soared in recent years, even as the United States and Europe have managed to curtail their coal use and cut their carbon pollution.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/01/29/china-is-burning-nearly-as-much-coal-as-the-rest-of-the-world-combined/

9 questions about Mali you were too embarrassed to ask.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/01/16/9-questions-about-mali-you-were-too-embarrassed-to-ask/?hpid=z1

9 questions about Mali you were too embarrassed to ask 9 questions about Mali you were too embarrassed to askPosted by Max Fisher on January 16, 2013 at 7:00 amText SizePrintReprintsShare:More » FacebookTwitterStumbleUponDiggDeliciousDiabaly is highlighted because rebels have just seized it, their furthest advance yet. (Staff and wire reports/The Washin...

Check out this great article on mining in India from Heather Plumridge Bedi!

Environmental Mis-Assessment, Development and Mining in Orissa, India - Bedi - 2013 - Development an Bedi, H. P. (2013), Environmental Mis-Assessment, Development and Mining in Orissa, India. Development and Change, 44: 101–123. doi: 10.1111/dech.12000