Top Ten News Stories of 2006

In 2006, the earth could hardly be called a peaceful planet. Wars, conflicts and preparations for more wars and conflicts seemed to monopolize the newspapers and make their way onto this list of "Top Ten News Stories of 2006".

1. Upheaval In Iraq Perhaps more dominant than any other news story of 2006 is the ongoing strife in Iraq. Naturally this is true in the United States because of the presence of American troops in the midst of the conflicted area. But the ongoing civil strife (even if not an announced "civil war"), in Iraq also holds the potential for enveloping the entire area in a more general conflict between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims and among Christians, Jews and Muslims.

2.Nuclear Testing by North Korea Long showing signs of aggression, in 2006, North Korea seemed to step across the line of acceptable behavior in the international community by conducting what appears to have been underground nuclear testing. This provocative act threatens regional peace and stability in China, Japan and South Korea. The action by the North Koreans also created world wide anxiety about the proliferation of nuclear weapons that might be sold to terrorist groups in the black market.

3.Genocide in Darfour . Nuclear weapons are not the only way to destroy enemies or move on to the list of Top Ten News Stories in 2006. In the Darfour region of the Sudan, militias don't yet use nuclear devices but continue to carry out ethnic cleansing, a sad euphemism for genocide, against non-Arab people. Their hatred has led them to burn villages, execute civilians and force millions into exile and starvation with little international assistance coming forward.

4.Resurgence of the Taliban After some years of respite, the radical Muslim group, the Taliban, has resurfaced violently in Afghanistan in 2006. As long as Taliban elements remain and are confrontational, they continue to be a deadly and uncomfortable distraction from the larger conflict in Iraq and continue to take innocent human life.