An Cosantóir

10 | world strategic review EUROPE Violence erupted along the Serbian Kosovo border. Kosovo police attempted to seize two border crossings in order to en- force a ban on Serbian imports. Ethnic Serbs responded with gunfire, killing one Kosovo po- liceman, and set fire to a border checkpoint. Norway suffered its worst peacetime atrocity. A far right extremist, Anders Behring Breivik, went on a shooting rampage at a political youth camp run by the ruling Labour Party and set off a car bomb in central Oslo. The final death toll was 77. The Sellafield plant is to be shut down. The decision was made by the British Nuclear Au- thority based on the Fukushima disaster in Japan. AMERICAS In Mexico the war on drugs continues. Police captured José Antonio Acosta, aka 'El Diego'. He is the alleged leader of a drug gang in Ciudad Juárez. Police say he con- fessed to ordering the murder's of more than 1,500 people. In Guatemala a court sen- tenced four former soldiers to more than 6,000 years in prison each for their role in a massacre in the 1982 civil war. President Barrack Obama signed an order that will for- mally end the ban on homo- sexuals openly serving in the US armed forces on Septem- ber 20th. An Cosantóir September 2011 AFRICA On June 27th the UN Security Council estab- lished Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) in Sudan. The Security Council was deeply con- cerned by the violence, escalating tensions and population displacement. The operation will moni- tor the flashpoint border between north and south, and is authorised to use force in protecting civilians and humanitar- ian workers in Abyei. After a six year man- date UNMIS (UN Mission in Sudan) wound up its operations on the same date as South Sudan's independence. In sup- port of the new nation, the UN Security Council established a successor mission to UNMIS, the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on July 9th, for an initial period of one year. Famine worsened on the Horn of Africa. The UN estimates that more than 12million people in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are in need of immediate help. Thou- sands have died and hun- dreds of thousands more are on the brink of starva- tion. Since last November the UN has received $1 billion in emergency relief, it will need $1 billion more by the end of this year. UN General Secretary, Ban Ki- moon, has appealed for help. ASIA Only after a month since the leadership in Pyongyang announced a return to talks North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire across their maritime border. General David Petraeus, commander of NATO and allied forces in Afghanistan, stepped down to head up the CIA. The US and allied forces have started scaling down in the country. The mayor of Kandahar was killed by a Taliban insurgent who concealed a bomb in his turban; mak- ing it three high ranking officials killed in the last month. NATO suffered its worst single death toll since the start of the war. A helicopter with 38 on board was shot down by the Taliban. On board were 7 Afghanistan army personnel, one translator and 30 U.S. troops, 22 of which were members of the elite Navy SEAL's, some of which were members of the teams which killed Osama bin Laden. The Tal- iban insurgents were later tracked down and shot. An American spy plane was chased by Chinese fighter jets in late June into airspace claimed by Taiwan. The Chinese aircraft withdrew when Taiwan scrambled fighters of its own. The Chinese defence minister de- manded that the US cease surveillance flights along its coast. MIDDLE EAST The Turkish military leader- ship resigned on mass in protest against the government's decision to block promotions for officers accused of plotting a coup. The government quickly moved to appoint replacements avoiding a crisis. Six French UNIFIL peacekeep- ers were wounded by an IED. The bomb was deliberately set to target a UN convoy. In Libya Rebel forces captured the town of Bir al-Ghanam, only 80km from Tripoli. Mustafa Abdul Jalil, leader of the Rebel movement, dismissed his cabi- net after the assassination of his military commander, General Abdel Fatah Younis, by a faction on the Rebel side. Rebel forces have been recognised as the legitimate government in Libya by the US and others. The trial of former Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarrak, be- gan in Cairo. He is charged with corruption and ordering the killing of protesters. After being carried into court on a stretcher he pleaded not guilty. On trial at the same time are Mr Mubarak's sons Alaa and Gamal, and six other officials from his regime. In Syria unrest continued. Since July 31st it is reported secu- rity forces have killed more than a 100 people. In recent weeks the government has moved their focus from Hama to Deirez- Zor, a city further east. Human rights activists claim that over 1,800 civilians have been killed in the government crackdown on civil protest. The Arab League, Turkey and Saudi Arabia pressed the Syrian government to relent.

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