Without coordinated international leverage, the talks underway between the Congolese government and the M23 rebels in Kampala, Uganda, will not resolve the conflict in eastern Congo. The current process, under the auspices of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, or ICGLR, and chaired by Uganda, has neither the necessary parties at the table nor sufficient international involvement to give it any chance of success.

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COLOMBIA: Peace talks survive first "test"

The fourth round of talks between the Government and the FARC concluded on Sunday with the recognition of the two parties that the peace dialogues are advancing. Colombian officials and FARC representatives said that they are making progress toward an agreement on land reform, a key point of contention in the peace process.  Comment: The peace negotiations are built on a five-point agenda addressing the issues that provoked and prolonged the war, starting with land reform and rural development. Remaining issues to be discussed include the FARC's future political participation, reintegration of former guerrillas in Colombian society, compensation for victims of the war, and drug trafficking. (El Tiempo, BBC, Relief Web,  Reuters, DW).

MEXICO: Six arrested over rape of Spanish tourists in Acapulco

On Wednesday, Mexican authorities arrested six men in connection with the rape of six Spanish women near the holiday vacation town of Acapulco last week. The women were raped by masked gunmen who broke into their rented beach house, tied up and held at gunpoint six Spanish men, and attacked the women for several hours. Local media reports the attack is a blow to Mexico's attempts to boost its reputation as a tourist destination. Comment: According to local authorizes, Acapulco - the biggest city in the state of Guerrero - has been increasingly plagued by drug-related violence and other security problems. This violence turned Acapulco into the murder capital of Mexico last year, with more than 1,000 murders reported by the Mexican media in a city of approximately 800,000 people. Mexican President Pena Nieto has vowed to reduce the violence and boost tourism in the area, pledging to create a new militarized police force and increase spending on security to cut crime. (BBC, The Guardian, CNN, Reuters)

PERU: Heavy rain causes flooding

Last Saturday, storms in the southern Peruvian city of Arequipa caused serious flooding, killing six people and inundating hundreds of homes with water. The authorities in Peru declared a state of emergency as nearly 9,000 people are said to have been affected. Many residents are without electricity or drinking water, and have also lost vital crops to the storm. Comment: The national meteorological service stated that the storm brought down the equivalent of three months of rain in about seven hours. As a consequence, drinking water has been contaminated throughout the country. Neighboring countries have also been affected by the floods; even Chile's Atacama Desert, one of the driest places in the world, received heavy rain. (BBC News, Al Jazeera, El Pueblo, Diario Noticias).

NORTH KOREA: Third nuclear test defies UN resolution

North Korea (DPRK) confirmed on Tuesday through the Chosun Central News Agency (KCNA) that they had conducted a successful nuclear underground test earlier that day. The test created an artificial seismic event, registering a 4.9 on the Richter scale. Past nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009 revealed DPRK's weapons were plutonium based; intelligence analysts are trying to determine if the latest nuclear test involved uranium, which is a more difficult substance to monitor and easier to create weapons from. Comment: DPRK blames hostile U.S. policies for its nuclear activities, stating that that the tests were done in self-defense to protect national security. South Korean (ROK) President Lee Myung-bak and President-elect Park Geun-hye jointly condemned DPRK's actions, perceiving the test as a provocation to the ROK during a leadership transition. President Obama addressed the event in his State of the Union speech on Tuesday, promising "firm action," while the Chinese government also expressed strong opposition to North Korea's actions.  (NK Daily, Xinhua, Korea Times, AP)

THAILAND: Violence escalates between government and insurgents

On Wednesday, a Thai marine base was attacked by 30 to 50 insurgents, of whom 16 were killed. The military forces were prepared beforehand by knowledge from defectors and now are searching for insurgents who fled after the failed attack. The incident follows an attack against a military truck in the Yala province on Sunday that killed five soldiers and wounded two.  Since 2004, Buddhist-majority Thailand has experienced a rise in violence in the southern region, which is dominated by Muslims who share more linguistic and religious similarities with Malaysia. Comment: The Barisan Revolusi Naitonal Coordiante (BRN), a branch of the independence group Patani Malay National Revolution Front, is largely thought to be responsible for the recent violence that has targeted both military and civilians associated with the Thai state. Another group, the Patani United Liberation Front (PULO), also demands a separate state. The three southern provinces, Pattani, Narathiwat, and Yala, were once an independent Malay Muslim sultanate before annexation by Thailand in 1909. (Reuters, Bangkok Post, AFP, AP)

REGIONAL: Conflict in southern Philippines pushes rebels into Malaysia

About 100 armed Filipinos dressed in military fatigues were apprehended by Malaysian authorities on Thursday in the city of Lahad Datu in the state of Sabah. The militant group was likely pushed out of the Philippines by conflict with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), which launched an unsuccessful hostage rescue attack on February 4 against the al-Qaeda linked Abu Sayyaf rebels. The conflicts are occurring amidst negotiations between the government and a larger rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, who are negotiating for better social services and resources for southern Philippines. Comment: Though predominantly a Catholic nation, the autonomous southern region of the Philippines is majority Muslim. The MNLF signed a peace treaty with the government in 1996, but has since had periodic clashes with the government. The Sabah state of Malaysia is only an hour away from the closest Philippine islands and has a history of crime committed by Filipino Muslim militants, as well as illegal immigration problems. (AP, ABS-CBN, Philstar)

FRANCE: Same-sex marriage bill passed

On Tuesday, the National Assembly, led by President Francois Hollande's Socialist Party, endorsed the "Marriage for All' bill that will legalize same-sex marriage if passed in the Senate in April. In the Senate, the bill will need to be supported by a majority coalition composed of the Socialist Party and other parties. The opposition, orchestrated by the Catholic Church, has engaged in demonstrations and protests arguing that the same-sex marriage bill could impose future consequences for France. Sources reveal that public opinion is split between pro- and anti-same-sex marriages. Comment: The debates in the National Assembly have been taking place for months and the "Marriage for All" bill was one of the pledges President Hollande made while campaigning for the presidency last year. Despite past controversies, France and the UK are both heading towards legalizing same-sex marriages; the UK approved a second reading of a similar bill in the House of Commons led by Prime Minister David Cameron last week. (Reuters, CNN, France 24, Al Jazeera, Hurriyet Daily News)

KYRGYZSTAN: Former President sentenced to jail

On Tuesday, former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev was sentenced in absentia to 24 years in jail by a Bishkek military court for abuse of power, corruption, and the ordering of mass killing of protesters. Bakiyev has been criticized by opposition parties for creating a political deadlock during his time in office and for becoming progressively more authoritarian. Comment: In the Tulip Revolution of 2005, Bakiyev came to power after a popular revolt removed President Askar Akayev. Bakiyev was subsequently ousted from office in another popular uprising in 2010 in which 80 to 90 people were killed and hundreds of others injured. The uprising in 2010 ultimately forced Bakiyev to flee to Belarus where he sought asylum, and the Belarusian authorities will most likely not comply with the demands by the Kyrgyz court to extradite Bakiyev. (Reuters, BBC, Times of Central Asia)

RUSSIA: Arms export contract upheld with Syria

On Wednesday, Anatoly Isaikin, the head of the Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport, announced that Russia will continue to uphold its obligations under the contracts with the Assad regime and deliver military hardware to Syria. Isaikin specified that the arms trade, which does not include the outstanding delivery of Yak-130 Mitten Jets, deals solely with air defense systems and not combat aircrafts. Comment: In the UN Security Council, Russia has vetoed sanctions against Syria. Russia has previously been accused of supplying the Assad regime with helicopters, but Isaikin denied these allegations. (RIA Novosti, Hurriyet Daily News, France 24, Digital Journal)

Researched/Written by Caroline Larsson

EGYPT: Islamic clerics hope for improved relations with new pope

Sunni clerics of Al-Azhar University, the seat of Sunni authority, in Cairo are hopeful that Pope Benedict XVI's successor will help re-establish a relationship between Islam and Catholicism based upon mutual respect and understanding. The relationship between the Al-Azhar and the Catholic Church was damaged in 2006 after Pope Benedict XVI recalled an anecdote that referred to the Prophet Muhammad as a warmonger. Interfaith dialogue was further damaged in 2011 when the Pope called for increased protection for Christian minorities in Egypt after a suicide bombing at a church in Alexandria killed 20 people and wounded 70 others. Comment: Al-Azhar essentially cut ties with the Catholic Church in 2011, but with the pope's resignation this week, its clerics are optimistic that dialogue could resume. Senior Al-Azhad cleric Mahmoud Ashour said that the new relationship should be based upon the principle that religions "complete one another, rather than compete." (Saudi Gazette, BBC, Huffington Post) 

IRAN: Call for global nuclear disarmament

On Tuesday, in response to North Korea's third nuclear test, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast stated the importance of establishing a world in which no country practice nuclear activities and where all weapons of mass destruction are destroyed. Although he denounced the use and possession of nuclear weapons for military purposes, Mehmanparast argued that every country has the right to "nuclear know-how" for peaceful purposes. The same day, Mehmanparast also announced that the country is prepared to come to a "comprehensive agreement" with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding their nuclear program.  Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. Comment: Whilst calling for the universal destruction of nuclear weapons, Mehhamparast confirmed that the country has resumed converting 20 percent enriched uranium into reactor fuel. News of the conversion calmed, at least momentarily, the fears of the West that Iran was constructing a nuclear weapon as converting the uranium into fuel slows the growth of the nuclear stockpile for testing; however, on Wednesday, director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Fereydoun Abbasi, confirmed that the country has begun installing a new generation of centrifuges at the Natanz uranium plant that enriches uranium more efficiently.  (Al Arabiya, Tehran Times, Reuters)  

TUNISIA: Political unrest sparked by last week's assassination

After the assassination of opposition politician Chokri Belaid last week, Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali, who is considered a moderate within the ruling Islamist Ennahda Party, announced that he would form a new coalition government made solely of technocrats that will serve until the next election. On Tuesday, the leader of the Ennahda Party, Rached Ghannouchi, made a counter-proposal to form a new coalition government comprised of both politicians and technocrats. It is expected that Jebali will agree to the proposal within the next week. Comment: Immediately following Belaid's death, President Moncef Marzouki said that he and fellow Congress for the Republic (CPR) ministers would leave the government; however, on Monday, Marzouki withdrew that decision demanding that improvements be made in the next week. The CPR is against the proposal of forming a "government of technocrats as it would allow for the return of figures from the former regime (that of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali)." (Tunisia Live, Al Arabiya, Al Jazeera, Reuters)  

Researched/Written by Kevin Coughlin

AFGHANISTAN: Civilians killed in NATO air strike

Ten civilians, among them four women and five children, were killed in a NATO air strike targeting Taliban militants in the Kunar province of Afghanistan on Wednesday. Kunar governor Fazlullah Wahidi stated that the attacks were carried out without his knowledge, and President Karzai further condemned the attacks. ISAF is still investigating the deaths, while reiterating that it has decreased civilian casualties in the last few years. Comment: The number of civilian deaths caused by NATO strikes has been a major point of contention between U.S. and Afghan officials since the beginning of the war in Afghanistan. A recent study by the UN stated that as a result of a "lack of precautionary measures and use of indiscriminate force" the amount of civilian casualties, specifically children, had doubled in 2010-2011. The attack occurred only hours after President Obama announced the withdrawal of 34,000 troops from Afghanistan within the year.  (Pajhwok, Al Jazeera, BBC)

BANGLADESH: Protesters demand tougher penalties for war criminals

On February 12, following a week of protests over the verdict of Abdul Quader Mollah, a senior Jamaat-e-Isalmi leader, thousands of counter-protesters gathered in Dhaka demanding even stricter war crime laws. Protesters, consisting mainly of college students, argued the sentence of life imprisonment for Mollah was too moderate and called for an amendment to the law allowing for appeals against any verdict of the war crimes tribunals. Contrastingly, Jamaat-e-Islami supporters condemned the tribunals and held violent demonstrations in which they used machine guns on police, who retaliated with rubber bullets. According to law minister, Shafique Ahmed, a bill to amend the law will be brought before parliament this week. Comment: According to Bhattacharya, a senior fellow at the Center for Policy Dialogue in Dhaka, the growing number of protests by Bangladeshi youth against the ruling political parties is triggering the "rise of a new social force that can change the political calculus in the country." Tensions are likely to remain high as more verdicts are announced in the coming weeks. (The Daily Star, Reuters, The New York Times).

MALDIVES: Former Maldivian President seeks refuge in Indian Embassy

On February 13, former President of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, took shelter at the Indian High Commission in Male after a court-issued arrest warrant for missing a court date.  Nasheed was removed from office last year after unlawfully detaining Abdulla Mohamed, a senior judge of the Criminal Court. The ex-President claims that the charges against him are politically motivated by those who oppose his return as a presidential candidate in the country's coming elections. Nasheed's supporters, as well as anti-riot police, surrounded the High Commission soon after his arrival. Comment: While Nasheed, the country's first democratically elected president, insists he was illegally ousted from power by a coup last year, the National Commission claims that he voluntarily resigned. His resignation incited large demonstrations throughout the Maldives last year. (Hindustan Times, Reuters, Huffington Post).