President Obama made a secret trip to Afghanistan to sign an agreement with President Karzai of Afghanistan on the US-Afghan relationship after American troops withdraw after 2014. There are two significant aspects of the agreement. First, all American forces will be based on Afghan, not US, bases. This concession is important and also extraordinary because it signals the end of US territoriality within Afghanistan. Second, the agreement outlines an economic relationship between the US and Afghanistan between 2014 and 2024, suggesting that the US is not going to leave Afghanistan in the lurch the way it did after 1985. Obama clearly wants to chart a new course that is more responsible.
The May Day rallies in Europe were quite large, but largely peaceful. Nonetheless, there was an very angry tone to most of the rallies, targeted against the austerity programs. The Occupy movement in the US also led several rallies which were also largely peaceful. There were, however, some isolated acts of violence. The police presence at the Occupy protests was quite large and substantial.
Two West Bank residents have entered the 64th day of their hunger strike protesting Israeli detention policies which afford virtually no legal protections. In sympathy, almost 1,500 other Palestinians have initiated hunger strikes. These peaceful acts of protests are designed to she light on a very common practice in the Occupied Territories.
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