World

A Drone Strike Downs al-Qaeda’s No. 2

1 | PAKISTAN

A U.S. official confirmed that Abu Yahya al-Libi, al-Qaeda’s second in command under Ayman al-Zawahiri, was killed in a drone strike on June 4 in Pakistan’s northwest region. This is the most significant gain against al-Qaeda since the killing of Osama bin Laden by Navy SEALs in Abbottabad last year. Al-Libi was known for escaping from a U.S. prison in Afghanistan in 2005 and for making a series of videos calling for attacks on the U.S.

President Obama has continued to support drone strikes despite ongoing criticism from the Pakistani government and human-rights groups. The two countries have also been unable to reach a deal on reopening the main NATO supply lines along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. Pakistan shut down the main route into Afghanistan in November after a U.S. air strike killed 24 Pakistani soldiers. The drone campaign has intensified over the past month; the strike on al-Libi was the third in three days in North Waziristan, a haven for al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The attack took place against a backdrop of increased tension in the region as NATO begins to prepare to pull combat troops out of Afghanistan by the middle of next year.

Hidden Meaning in a Market Drop?

2 | CHINA

In a bizarre incident that sent the Chinese establishment into overdrive, the Shanghai Composite Index fell 64.89 points on June 4, echoing the date of the Tiananmen Square crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations–June 4, 1989–exactly 23 years earlier. The Chinese blogosphere was abuzz with reactions–“Maybe God does exist?” one person wrote–but the country’s censors, already tasked with erasing references to the tragedy, quickly began blocking online searches for stock market, Shanghai Composite Index, Shanghai stock market and other such phrases. Still, in a nation that puts great emphasis on numerology–hence the Beijing Olympics’ starting time of 8:08 p.m. on Aug. 8, 2008; multiple eights are considered very lucky–that number had already resonated.

FIaming Computers

3 | IRAN

High-ranking Iranian officials confirmed that their computers had been exposed to a data-mining virus called Flame. The new virus is very similar to the Stuxnet worm that had previously compromised the Iranian nuclear-weapons program but is potentially even more destructive. Though no one has taken responsibility for the attack, Iranian officials said the virus resembled Israeli malware. (Israel never comments on such matters.) Under President Obama, the U.S. has reportedly been expanding the cyberweapons program that was started during the Bush Administration.

VENEZUELA

‘This is the happiest day of my life!’

NATALIA VALDIVIESO, 19, who received a new home from President Hugo Chvez for becoming his 3 millionth follower on Twitter

Mubarak’s Sentence Sparks Outrage

4 | EGYPT

Thousands of Egyptians gathered in Tahrir Square, above, to protest the outcome of the trial of former President Hosni Mubarak. Along with his sons Alaa and Gamal, Mubarak was acquitted on charges of corruption. And though prosecutors had asked for the death penalty, he and his Interior Minister got life in prison as accessories to murder in the deaths of protesters during the revolution. Protestors also want Egypt’s interim military government to enforce legislation barring top Mubarak officials from seeking the presidency. That would disqualify former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafik from the second round of voting, on June 16 and 17.

Buzz Masters

5 | SCANDINAVIA

Why does the region drink so much coffee? Easy. “It’s dark in the winter, and coffee is invigorating,” says Jacob Ostberg, a professor at Stockholm University. Plus, he adds, “in Sweden, coffee breaks are written into employee contracts.”

MIAs in Vietnam: The Search Goes On with Hanoi’s Help

6 | VIETNAM

In the continuing search for the remains of some of the 1,284 U.S. service members still missing in Vietnam, an agreement between Vietnamese Defense Minister Phuong Quang Thanh and U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta will allow Americans to excavate three sites in Vietnam that were previously off-limits. As the U.S. prepares to expand its strategic presence in the Asia-Pacific region, it has been exploring ways to increase military cooperation with its former enemy and resolve remaining questions about American MIAs.

World’s biggest coffee consumers*

FINLAND 26.5

NORWAY 21.8

ICELAND 19.8

DENMARK 19.2

NETHERLANDS 18.5

SWEDEN 18.0

*IN POUNDS CONSUMED PER PERSON PER YEAR; 1 POUND=0.45 KG

COLOMBIA 97.4%

Portion of Colombian cocaine profits (about $300 billion) reaped by criminals and laundered by banks in first-world countries