31 August: Roughly 1/10 of the population of New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward has returned, two years after Hurricane Katrina unraveled the social and material fabric of the city; a hopeful campaign of regeneration is underway and volunteers are working to help restore the neighborhood and rebuild... Government Accountability Office reports says US mission in Iraq is failing to meet the "vast majority" of goals set by Congress in January; only 3 of the 18 key benchmarks have reportedly been met, with increasing doubt in Washington as to the viability of the government under PM Nouri al-Maliki... Texas governor Rick Perry, a Republican, yesterday commuted the death sentence of Kenneth Foster (a man who never killed anyone), just hours before he was due to be executed by lethal injection; the state parole board voted 6 to 1 to recommend that Perry commute the sentence, based on the fact that Foster was not involved in the fatal shooting for which he was convicted of driving the 'getaway car', and under Texas' "law of parties", he was considered automatically of equal guilt to the shooter at the time of trial; Perry himself told the press "I am concerned about Texas law that allowed capital murder defendants to be tried simultaneously and it is an issue I think the legislature should examine"... Sympathetic citizens are being allowed to deliver food and water to protesters who have occupied a stand of coastal oaks on Berkeley University's campus, after at least one man was arrested by police for doing the same on 29 August; the 'tree-sitters' are protesting the university's plan to cut down the trees to make way for a new athletic training facility...

30 August: GAO to report at least 13 of 18 'benchmarks' set by Congress have not been met, ahead of 15 September deadline, when Pres. Bush will give major speech detailing progress in planned "troop surge" to quell violence, instability in Iraq; White House is expected to claim measures of progress were "designed to lock-in failure", while critics say the GAO report will demonstrate that current policy is inadequate... Ousted PM Nawaz Sharif, in exile since being deposed by Musharraf's military coup in 1999, to return to Pakistan, seek presidency, after court ruling says his exile may end; top prosecutor says Musharraf may "revoke pardon", ask for Sharif's arrest, though Musharraf gov't has been forced to make promises about respecting judicial orders, opposition, since failed effort to remove chief justice... US gov't has reportedly informed UK no witnesses will be sent to UK for inquests into the deaths of UK soldiers in Iraq; the UK ministry of defence has released a document that states "The US have confirmed categorically that they will not provide witnesses to attend UK inquests. While coroners may continue to ask for US witnesses to attend ... they should be aware that there will in all cases be a refusal"... Republicans calling for resignation of Sen. Larry Craig, who pleaded guilty earlier this month to "disorderly conduct" after being accused of soliciting "lewd behavior" from an undercover agent in a men's restroom...

29 August: US judge approves Manuel Noriega's extradition to France to stand trial for money laundering after his shortened 40-year sentence in Florida runs out next month; the Guardian reports "Judge William Turnoff said Noriega's status as a prisoner of war under the Geneva conventions did not mean he should immediately be sent back to the central America country he ruled in the 1980s. An extradition order would be issued today, said the judge"... Presidential candidate John Edwards tells forum US needs to give up SUV's and move to fuel-efficient vehicles; he said he believes Americans are "actually willing to sacrifice" to make a cleaner, sustainable future, adding "We are the worst polluter on the planet. We are 4% of the world's population, we're putting out 25% of the world's greenhouse gas... America's going to have to change"... US sub-prime mortgage crisis deepens as home price index hits 20-year low, stock markets react with significant declines...

28 August: Bolivian pres. Evo Morales threatens to take "radical decisions" regarding foreign diplomats who support US policy in Bolivia; Morales alleges US diplomats have been openly supporting the opposition, seeking foreign support for effort to remove him from office; US has expressed concerns over Morales' ties to Venezuelan pres. Hugo Chávez, and ailing Cuban dictator Fidel Castro... Brazil to try 36 people, including Lula's former right-hand man, for bribery and corruption charges...

27 August: Iran has successfully tested a "smart bomb" that it says can be launched from two of its fighter jets at 20km distance; the missile will be produced domestically, along with four new production lines for armor-piercing bullets; it says the arms advances are strictly defensive, and announcements come after the US gov't announced it willl authorize the sale of $20 billion in military hardware to Saudi Arabia...

26 August: Another 74 people have been killed in floods across south Asia this weekend; Reuters reports "Nearly 2,000 people have been killed by snake bites, drowning, diarrhea and in house collapses since July when swollen rivers burst their banks, inundating huge areas in eastern India and Bangladesh"... After NIE says Iraq further splitting into warring factions, reconciliation unlikely, faulting PM for not acting to promote reconciliation, Sen. John Warner (R-VA) has called on Pres. Bush to announce an initial withdrawal of US troops by October, to provoke action on part of Iraq political apparatus, security forces... Iraq PM al-Maliki, facing increasing opposition from US Congress, Washington analysts, criticized two Democratic senators for "interfering" in Iraq's domestic policy: "Carl Levin and Hillary Clinton are from the Democratic Party and they must demonstrate democracy," said Maliki, adding "I ask them to come to their senses and to talk in a respectful way about Iraq"; Clinton had called for Maliki to be replaced, after the NIE blamed him for not acting to curb spreading chaos...

24 August: US National Intelligence Estimate —report on information, analysis from all US spy agencies— reportedly contradicts official US policy in Iraq; IHT reports "security gains remain too modest to reverse Iraq's dynamic of violence and fear", saying women in Baghdad avoid buying 'river fish' at market for fear they may be purchasing human remains, and "according to Iraqi political analysts and officials, Iraq has become a cellular nation, dividing and redividing, where the constituency for chaos now outnumbers the constituency for compromise"...

23 August: World Health Organization says infectious diseases spreading at "unprecedented rate" globally; UN agency says diseases also becoming increasingly difficult to treat, warns another outbreak of something akin to AIDS, Ebola or SARS, is likely in coming decades... March against price hikes in Rangoon (now officially called Yangon) shows rare opposition to military junta policy in Myanmar (formerly Burma); 13 demonstration organizers were arrested the night before in an effort to punish protesters for previous demonstrations against inflation and steep fuel price increases; as IHT reports, "In 1990, the junta held elections that it lost and later annulled. It has detained the pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest for most of the 17 years since then"... Major in US Army indicted on charges of conspiracy to accept bribes for millions of dollars in Iraq contracts... New study shows 87% of Americans "seriously concerned" about environmental degradation, 73% expecting federal gov't to enforce environmental protections, a majority saying economic growth should take 2nd place to environmental stewardship... Recognizing growing popularity of 'green' products, environmentally-friendly consumption, GreenforGood.com launches guide to 1,400 entities, services and products that help to live 'green lifestyle' in day to day life... Effective 27 August this year, the US gov't will screen for terror ties anyone linked to funds received from USAID agency for international assistance...

22 August: Venezuelan pres. Hugo Chávez has proposed amending the constitution to allow himself to be re-elected indefinitely; the move is seen by some as sign that his gov't, which has been aggressively reformist and controversial, but democratic until now (each time he has been elected, int'l observers have declared the vote free and fair), may be moving away from pluralist democracy... 2-day outage of internet phone service Skype affects millions who depend on VOIP calling technology; experts say outage shows strength, not weakness of VOIP, as new standard in voice telecommunications...

17 August: After 5 consecutive days of downward trending stocks, and losses of 1,300 points on the Dow, Asian markets are beginning to feel crunch from US credit crisis; US Federal Reserve injected another $5 billion into the banking system, followed by a second injection of $12 billion; last week, some $76 billion was released to banks to increase liquidity and try to halt negative reaction to credit crisis... Estimated 450 dead after Peru quake; search for survivors continues as reports suggest whole villages leveled... US citizen Jose Padilla, held for more than 3 years as an "enemy combatant", convicted of terrorist conspiracy charges, after 3-month trial, in which Reuters reports defense presented zero witnesses or evidence; gov't originally accused Padilla of plotting a "radiological 'dirty bomb' attack", an accusation later dropped for lack of evidence; Padilla faces life in prison... 3 members of a team sent to rescue or recover the miners trapped in a Utah mine have died, several others were injured, including three members of the Mine Safety and Health Administration... US housing market falls further: new home construction fell to lowest level in 10 years, leading to concerns mortgage-related housing crisis deeper than previously thought; European Commission goes after credit-rating agencies that gave top-level ratings to US sub-prime mortgage lenders which seemed evidently unable to meet obligations...

16 August: Coordinated bomb attacks in north of Iraq kill at least 250 people in several villages; attack is worst single massacre since Iraq invasion of 2003... US Federal Reserve Bank injects $17 billion into banking system, as sub-prime crisis worsens, int'l markets struggle to maintain equilibrium... US official says Iran Revolutionary Guard may soon be labeled a terrorist organization by the US; move would permit US to take action against financing apparatus for state militia, while speculation circulates that such a move would provoke 'hostility' and hard-line diplomatic reactions... Major earthquake strikes 145 km southeast of Lima, at 25 km depth, killing at least 337 people, with hundreds reported missing; experts report there may have been 9 separate, powerful aftershocks...

14 August: European Central Bank injects another 7.7 billion euros into the banking system, in effort to forestall further losses from US sub-prime mortgage crisis... Iranian gov't confirms two Belgian tourists taken hostage by gang of armed "bandits" near Bam; alleged gang-leader demands release of brother jailed by Iranian gov't...

10 August: Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen the widest margin in four years, amid fears of a housing-credit crisis in the US, falling 387.18, or 2.83%; it is the 2nd worst decline of the year, and the worst percentage-wise since 2003... European Central Bank has reportedly injected a record amount of new currency into the market in hopes of forestalling a negative reaction across the EU economy; the record loan amount $94.8 billion, far exceeding the $69.3 billion put into circulation after the attacks of 11 September 2001...