News Watch

On Sept. 1, the British Commonwealth voted to make Fiji a “suspended member” after that country refused to set a date for elections by 2010. Primarily a symbolic gesture of protest over the current military government’s recalcitrance, this means that Fiji cannot attend any Commonwealth meetings, take part in the 2010 Commonwealth Games or receive technical aid or training.

The Commonwealth now is made of 53 former British colonies, dependencies and territories. Fiji also was suspended...

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As ITN went to press, the State Department had travel warnings on 28 destinations: Mali, Eritrea, Central African Republic, Israel/West Bank/Gaza, Kenya, Afghanistan, Burundi, Nigeria, Haiti, Iran, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Chad, Nepal, Lebanon, Georgia, Sudan, Colombia, Algeria, Syria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Philippines, Côte d’Ivoire and Somalia.

For details, call the State Department at 202/647-5225 or visit http://travel.state.gov/...

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Rioting between ethnic Uighurs and Han Chinese in China’s western region of Xinjiang in July resulted in 197 dead and more than 1,600 wounded.

In the city of Urumqi on July 5, a march protesting the deaths of two Uighur miners turned violent after police intervened. Two days after the riot, vigilante groups of ethnic Han retaliated against Uighurs. Government forces restored order, but tensions remain high.

In nearby Kazakhstan, there were protests and strikes by ethnic Uighurs...

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In the southern Philippines, 12 people died and more than 90 were wounded in bomb blasts in July.

A cathedral in Cotabato, Mindanao, was hit on July 5; a bomb went off near a gas station on Jolo on July 7, and a third blast occurred two hours later in Iligan on Mindanao. Since January, there have been more than 50 bombings in the Sulu Archipelago, most linked to Islamist extremists demanding an independent homeland.

In Jakarta, Indonesia, two suicide bombers carried out...

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A car bomb blast outside a paramilitary police force barracks in Burgos, Spain, injured more than 40 people on July 28. On July 30 another car bomb outside a paramilitary station on the holiday island of Majorca killed two policemen. Both bombings are attributed to the Basque group ETA, which is trying to disrupt tourism.

The US Embassy in Nairobi has designated a small portion of Kenya bordering Somalia and Ethiopia as “restricted without prior authorization” for purposes of travel by US government employees. This is based on reports of Somali-based armed groups that have crossed into Kenya to stage attacks or commit crimes. 

This restriction does not apply to people not associated with the US government but should be taken into account when planning travel. The State Department lists the restricted...

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The Department of State warns that travel in all areas of Afghanistan is unsafe due to military operations, land mines, banditry, armed rivalry among political and tribal groups, and the possibility of terrorist attacks. The number of attacks in the south remains high due to insurgent and drug-related activity.

In February 2009 insurgents launched an attack on government buildings in Kabul. Between October 2008 and April 2009, several American citizens were kidnapped.

The Department of State lifted the Travel Warning for Madagascar on July 7. It had been in place since March due to rising violence and unrest in the country after the military forced the removal of President Ravalomanana and a transitional government headed by Rajoelina was put in power. The four political parties agreed to meet in August 2009 to try to resolve the crisis. 

In mid-July, two people were killed while carrying a homemade bomb, and 20 unexploded bombs were discovered in...

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