(Al Jazeera English: 0600 PST, March 7, 2011) The international forces have made some progress in securing areas of Afghanistan and training Afghan forces to take over security in their country. However, the violence continues, and as Al Jazeera's Sue Turton discovered, many civilians in Kandahar province are still living in fear of the Taliban.
(Channel 4 News: March 1, 2011) Jon Snow from the UK's Channel 4 News interviews Afghan President Hamid Karzai about the military surge in Afghanistan, talking to the Taliban, corruption, and WikiLeaks.
(Euronews: March 3, 2011) The small Italian island of Lampedusa, closer to Africa than Italy, is facing an influx of illegal immigrants from Tunisia. As the situation in Libya deteriorates, there are fears of a fresh wave of refugees.
(Al Jazeera English: March 4, 2011) After freeing itself from the grip of dictatorship more than a decade ago, Indonesia offers an example of how Islam and democracy and go hand-in-hand.
(ITN News: March 1, 2011) What appear to be two time capsules have been discovered in the base of a statue in the aftermath of the recent earthquake in New Zealand.
(Al Jazeera English Headlines: 0635 PST, February 14, 2011) The opening of Egypt's stock exchange has been delayed until the economy stabilizes. The new military rulers are trying to assert their control over the country, and have warned they will act against chaos and disorder. Meanwhile transportation workers are striking in the capital, demanding better pay and an end to corruption.
In other news, the Taliban says it was behind an attack on a hotel in the Afghan capital Kabul that killed at least two people. Anti-government protests in Yemen enter their fourth straight day. The entire Palestinian cabinet has resigned and President Mahmoud Abbas has asked Prime Minister Salam Fayyad to form a new government. And, in Indonesia, cleric Abu Bakar Bashir has gone on trial over weapons terror charges.
Link TV editor Kyung Lee reports from the Pusan International Film Festival in South Korea. Currently the biggest film festival in Asia, PIFF showcases new talents and films from the Asian countries. This blog offers rare interviews with Asian directors who discuss their filmmaking experiences in their native countries.
The current situation of Afghanistan is hard for outsiders to grasp. Almost every day we hear the news of heightened insurgency in the country, but little beyond that. In this extremely uncertain situation, there is a filmmaker who has managed to make films that reflect the reality of Afghanistan.
Siddiq Barmak is currently one of only a few filmmakers in Afghanistan who is able to make feature films in his native country. His first feature film, "Osama", portrays a young girl who is forced to don a disguise as a boy in order to support her mother in the Taliban era. The film won a Golden Globe Award, and made a great demonstration of Afghanistan's film heritage and its possible future to the world.
Siddiq, who was born in Afghanistan and studied film in Moscow, was exiled to Pakistan during the Taliban regime from 1996 to 2002. The current reemergence of the insurgency is a reminder for him that another dark time may be ahead. He was at the Pusan International Film Festival this year to present his second feature film "Opium War" which is, according to the director, "an exact reflection of the situation." I was able to catch the director and asked a few questions on the current state in Afghanistan.
In recognition of Veterans Day, explore has released a new short called "Fish Out of Water", a documentary about the effects of war on the thousands of U.S. soldiers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan. To help these selfless heroes cope with the trauma they've suffered -- often in the form of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, or loss of limbs and other physical injuries -- Sun Valley Adaptive Sports in Idaho hosts stunning and peace-filled nature trips through their "Wounded Warrior Veterans Program", where vets can meditate through fishing and convene with their natural surroundings. This moving film illustrates how the body may heal its injuries over time, but often the mind takes much longer to recover.
Take a moment to watch this film - it is a beautiful tribute to those serving our country so selflessly.
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