World Politics News   Articles for World Politics Course

There has been another escalation in the Syrian crisis: the assassination of Wissam al-Hassan, the intelligence chief of Lebanon’s internal security forces.  al Hassan was killed in a massive car bomb blast that killed 7 others.  As of this writing, no one has claimed responsibility for the attack, and Hezbollah, a close ally of Syria has condemned the attack.  But most analysts suspect that Syria had some role in the killing.  The Guardian is posting live updates to this story for those who wish to follow it carefully.

As Greece struggles with its third general strike in a month, and as the deadline for reaching agreement with the IMF, the EU, and the European Central Bank grows closer (mid-November when Greece literally runs out of money), perhaps an even more serious crisis is affecting Greek society: the rise of the neo-Nazi party, Golden Dawn.  The party is doing remarkably well in the polls, and its members are taking to the streets attacking those it regards as immigrants with impunity.