10/31 International News

Abdullah Plans Runoff Boycott To Delay Afghan Vote

President Hamid Karzai's challenger plans to call for a boycott of next weekend's runoff election in an attempt to force the vote's postponement until spring — a move that would dim U.S. hopes for a stable Afghan government for months. President Karzai rejected Abdullah Abdullah's conditions for next Saturday's vote, including removing top election officials whom the challenger accused of involvement in cheating in the first-round balloting in August. A clouded electoral picture would further complicate the Obama administration's efforts to decide whether to send tens of thousands more troops to Afghanistan to battle the Taliban and its al-Qaida allies. The White House has been waiting for a new government in Kabul to announce a decision, but the war has intensified in the meantime. October was the deadliest month of the war for U.S. forces with at least 57 American deaths.

Nigeria Space Agency Is No Joke

The West African nation’s National Space Research and Development Agency is already celebrating its 10th anniversary. It has been launching satellites since 2003 (which have helped the country identify illegal tankers trying to steal Nigeria's oil supplies; the agency has also sold 1,000 of its satellite images). It wants to send a Nigerian up into space by 2015, making it home to the first black African astronaut. Gerald Okeke, 28, is one of 27 Nigerian engineers being trained how to design and build an earth observation satellite in the U.K., at private British company Surrey Satellites Technology. He said it would be an honor to be picked as Africa’s first black space sailor — who must be aged 27 to 37 at the time of lift-off and whose selection will begin next year ahead of four years of training. Nigeria spends $20 million a year on its space program, in a country in which for every thousand children born, 137 will die before they are five years old. A collapse in the value of Nigeria's naira currency — in part attributable to the global downturn — has meant the costs of its payments in U.S. dollars have also rocketed by a third. South Africa, Algeria and Egypt are also marshaling their own satellite facilities.

'Michelle Obama Effect' Sees Black Barbie Doll Launched In UK

A new range of black and mixed-race figures with "fuller lips, a wider nose, more distinctive cheek bones and curlier hair" will appear in UK shops from next Easter. This will be the first time in 29 years that a black doll from the Mattel line will be sold in Britain. A black version of Barbie appeared in Britain in 1980 but was not a big seller and disappeared from the shelves.

Mattel's new dolls have raised eyebrows in the U.S. because it comes with a hairstyling set so girls can curl, straighten and style their dolls' hair, prompting concerns that it reinforces body image worries among young black girls who do not like their hair. However, the arrival in Britain was welcomed by Irene Shelley, editor of Black Beauty & Hair magazine, who said: "This is obviously part of the 'Michelle Obama effect' because there has been a lot of interest in her and the girls and that will make retailers rethink what they can sell." She said the straight hair of some of the girls in the range simply reflected current trends.