African Ministers and civil society groups are to oppose the launch of a new round of negotiations at the fourth coming World Trade Organisation conference in Doha, capital of the Persian Gulf emirate of Qatar.

Few Arabs share Bin Laden's fundamentalism, but his militancy on Palestine and Iraq strike a chord that resonates widely.

World Trade Organization delegates from 52 developing countries on Sept. 19 asked other WTO ministers to approve a proposal that would clarify language in the Trade-Related Aspects of International Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement to say that TRIPS would "not prevent governments from taking measures necessary to protect public health," including the production or importation of generic AIDS drugs.

Many of the world's largest banks have been ordered by the UK High Court to freeze accounts linked to General Sani Abacha as part of Nigeria's search for more than $3bn looted during the late dictator's rule.

The United States and the other industrial nations should launch a global Marshall Plan to provide everyone on earth with a decent standard of living, argue the Worldwatch Institute.

Pages