L’affaire DSK: The arrest of International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn on sexual-assault charges in New York has plunged France into a bout of “soul searching” and probably removes the greatest threat to unpopular French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s rule in upcoming elections. TIME’s global business correspondent Michael Schuman weighs in on what it means for the IMF itself and the future of the global economy. Misdemeanors
Marking the Nakba: In a number of countries bordering Israel, deadly protests marked the 63rd anniversary of the Nakba, or “Catastrophe” — what many Palestinians deem the creation of Israel, an act that chased whole communities away from their ancestral homes into what has become a permanent exile. TIME’s Nicholas Blanford reports on protests that turned deadly in South Lebanon, with Israeli soldiers gunning down at least ten Palestinian refugees. And Rania Abouzeid writes how, perversely, the upheaval on the Israeli border provides the embattled Syrian regime a brief respite.
More Carrot, Less Stick: In the New York Times, veteran Pakistani political commentator Talat Masood argues that the U.S. must remain patient with Pakistan in the aftermath of Osama bin Laden’s death, and avoid the tough talk now coming from many Beltway politicos. “Any overreaction by Washington,” writes Masood, “could endanger Pakistani democracy and further empower the military — or even lead to an outright military takeover.“
No Place Left for Gitmo: After the killing of bin Laden, David Cole calls once more for the closure of Guantanamo Bay as a toxic legacy of a war on terror that ostensibly is winding down. But, as he points out, rather than shutting it down, lawmakers in Washington seem hell-bent on keeping the infamous prison indefinitely in operation.
All in the Family: As expected, the International Criminal Court has named Muammar Gaddafi and his son Seif al-Islam among a list of members of the Libyan regime suspected for war crimes.
The Wind that Shakes the Monarchy: With the revived threat of IRA attacks, Queen Elizabeth II heads to Ireland for the first ever state visit of a British monarch to the republic. For many in the Emerald Isle, reports Pamela Duncan, there’s little love lost for the old English royals who once governed Ireland as a colony.
Contact with the Disappeared: The wife of detained Chinese artist-activist Ai Weiwei was taken to meet her husband in an undisclosed location, more than five weeks since he was forcibly removed off a flight bound for Hong Kong from Beijing and effectively disappeared. Ai is in decent health, but his wife claims she was unable to speak frankly with him as numerous Chinese officials remained with them.
