by Haru Mutasa, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Zimbabwe's education system is now in crisis and its poorly paid teachers are leaving government-run schools in the thousands.

by Subina Shrestha, Al Jazeera, Qatar - For decades, Tibetan refugees in Nepal have been living in relative peace, a situation that may be about to change.

by Zeina Khodr, Al Jazeera, Qatar - In Afghan culture, only women are allowed to search beneath the veils of other women, which is becoming a growing security problem.

by Helen Mould, Al Jazeera, Qatar - People living with HIV are often discriminated against because the condition is associated with so-called 'immoral' behaviour, such as drug-use and prostitution.

by Judy Pasternak, The Real News, Canada - The Obama administration may soon guarantee as much as $18.5 billion in loans to build nuclear reactors to generate electricity, and Congress is considering whether to add billions more to support an expansion of nuclear power.

by Fauziah Ibrahim, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Religious tensions are rising in Malaysia following a High Court ruling which declared non-Muslims could use the Arabic word 'Allah' when referring to God.

by Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!, USA - Haiti has been devastated by a massive 7.0-magnitude earthquake, the largest to strike the Caribbean nation in more than two centuries.

by Rachel Maddow, MSNBC, USA - As recently as 1996, gay marriage was seen as a fundamentally conservative idea.

by Helen Mould, Al Jazeera, Qatar - There are currently in excess of 350,000 people who have been displaced by inter-ethnic conflict in south Sudan, largely due to growing tensions over scarce resources such as water, as well as an increase in cattle raiding.

by Nisreen El-Shamayleh, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Jordan has stood at the front-line of the Arab-Israeli conflict since 1948, and in the six decades since has been de-mining battlefields where opposing armies once roamed.

by Amy Goodman, Democracy Now, USA - John Perkins calls himself a former economic hit man. He has seen the signs of today's financial meltdown before. The subprime mortgage fiasco, the collapse of the banking industry.

by Mona Moussly, Al Arabiya News Channel, United Arab Emirates - Two weeks before American superstar Beyonce Knowles is scheduled to hold her first ever concert in Egypt, an Islamist MP publically blasted the government for accepting to host the event and accused the government of violating Sharia law.

by Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!, USA - We speak to New York Times reporter Charles Duhigg about the latest in his investigative series "Toxic Waters," which examines the worsening pollution in the nation's water systems.

by Tatiana Mossot, France 24, France - Around 30 women have alleged they were brutally raped by soldiers during the September 28 massacre in Guinea that the UN says left at least 150 dead. FRANCE 24's Tatiana Mossot heard some of their harrowing testimonies.

by Lesley Stahl, CBS 60 Minutes, USA - If coal ash is safe to spread under a golf course or be used in carpets, why are the residents a Tennessee town being told to stay out of a river where the material was spilled?

by Laura Flanders, GRITtv, USA - Earlier this month and one year after the financial collapse Barack Obama told a group of Wall Street executives that he would not allow them to return to an age of excessive risk and disregard for the consequences of financial speculation. If only those words were true. Laura Flanders talks with Nomi Prins, Dean Baker and James Mumm about why banks keep getting bigger.

by Laura Flanders, GRITtv, USA - Majora Carter, an urban redeveloper and the founder of Sustainable South Bronx (SSBx), has worked since the late 1990s to bring together the worlds of urban renewal and environmental sustainability. The connections are many but often overlooked.

by Rebecca Bowring, France 24, France - French riot police have detained 278 migrants in a dawn operation to dismantle the "jungle", a network of makeshift camps set up by illegal migrants, mostly Afghans, near the northern Channel port of Calais.

by Tanya Goudsouzian and Fatima Rabbani, Al Jazeera, Qatar - "It is not Islam, but mostly customary beliefs and practices that work against women in Afghanistan. So, instead of trying to impose international values of gender equality, Islamic teachings on women's status and rights should be enforced, but enforced seriously."

by Sarah Leduc, France 24, France - French photographer Miquel Dewever-Plana has devoted more than ten years to uncovering the violence that continues to plague Guatemala. He presents 'The other war', an exhibition on the "maras", the gangs of Guatemala City.

by Haru Mutasa, Al Jazeera, Qatar - More than 320,000 Zimbabweans are in need of anti-retroviral (ARV) drug treatment and of the 1.7 million living with HIV, only about 150,000 are receiving medication from the public health sector.

by Laura Flanders, Grit TV, USA - While President Obama's declared an end date for Americans in the Iraq war, will it ever be that simple for Iraqis? We talk to Yanar Mohammed, President of the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq and Yifat Susskind, communications director at MADRE who are helping women survive in the mess that is today's Iraq.

by Nisreen El-Shamayleh, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Due to a shortage in funding from international donors, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has recently been forced to suspend the crucial tertiary health care it had once offered to chronically ill Iraqi refugees in Jordan.

by Tanya Goudsouzian & Fatima Rabbani, Al Jazeera, Qatar - In the final days before millions in Afghanistan begin to vote in the country's second democratic presidential election since a US-led invasion ousted the Taliban in 2001, candidates for the top job have gone into eleventh hour campaigning to try and win over undecided voters.

by Jobeda Ali, Current TV, UK - Jobeda Ali, a British Muslim, bravely rebels against the recent acceptance of the hijab and embarks on a journey to unwrap the liberal western tolerance of the hijab and discover the degree to which women in the Muslim world are prepared to rebel against the hijab.

by Yuka Royer, France 24, France - Exactly a year after the devastating conflict in South Ossetia between Russia and Georgia, the two neighbours continue to trade in a war of words. Tension is running high in the region with each accusing the other of provocative steps.

by Teresa Bo, Al Jazeera, Qatar - In a country ensnared by residual violence from Central America's longest-running internal conflict, where many of the crimes committed by the state and anti-government fighters remain unpunished, murders are not front-page stories - especially when those killed are women in what is a predominantly paternalistic Guatemalan society, critics say.

by Nicole Johnston, Al Jazeera, Qatar - In Sudan, people living with Aids are faced with prejudices and ignorance about their disease.

by Gaëlle Le Roux, France 24, France - Little was known about Nigeria’s Boko Haram when deadly clashes broke out in northern Nigeria in July. Also known as the “Nigerian Taliban”, the group emerged in 2004, and its aim is the imposition of strict Islamic law.

by Nisreen El-Shamayleh, Al Jazeera, Qatar - With the help of African Union peace keepers, government troops are battling al-Shabab and other armed groups. Civilians in the area say the fighting has turned their lives into a "living hell".

by Clea Caulcutt, France 24, France - Executives and engineers at a Nortel France plant near Paris are taking their cue from disgruntled French auto parts workers who, earlier this week, threatened to commit acts of violence to highlight their plight.

by Florence Villeminot, France 24, France - Leading Russian human rights activist Natalya Estemirova has been found dead in Ingushetia. Estemirova is the latest victim in a spate of killings targetting human rights activists and journalists, and pressure is mounting on Russia to take action.

by Alexandra Renard, France 24, France - In France, an estimated 60,000 women have been subjected to female genital mutilation, having been circumcised in secrecy in France or sent back to their family's home country.

by Dinah Gardner, Al Jazeera, Qatar - The riots that rocked the city of Urumqi in China's northwestern Xinjiang region are the area's worst for more than a decade.

by Nicole Johnston, Al Jazeera, Qatar - With proven oil reserves of around 112 billion barrels and up to another 150 billion barrels of probable reserves, Iraq is the greatest untapped prize for international oil companies.

by Phoebe Greenwood, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Refugees are unable to work in Montenegro because they don't have the correct documentation and many of the children don't go to school because of poverty and fear of bullying.

by Alice Gomstyn, ABC News, USA - Retired health insurance executive blows the whistle on his former industry.

by Sarah Leduc, France 24, France - Despite Romania’s entry into the European Union, the Roma people are not wanted in several European countries.

by Ilhame Taoufiqi, France 24, France - Since 2006, half a million Russian gypsies have been affected by forced expulsions. Despite condemnation by Human Rights groups and a warning from the UN, the Russian federation has so far done nothing to solve the problem.

by Leela Jacinto, France 24, France - Afghan women are increasingly seeking help against domestic violence and the tyranny of certain customs. For some, protection is available at shelters. But it’s not nearly enough in a country where violence against women is rampant.

by Claudia Chaufan, MD, PhD, KQED, USA - Any system that sends people “shopping around” for policies while leaving the for-profit motive at the center of the system intact is likely to fail.

by Laura Flanders, Grit TV, USA - Imagine if we'd declared an Economic Health Emergency after Enron, and the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and the collapse and devaluation of the Russian ruble?

by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, PBS, USA - The city of Peshawar is on high alert. The Taliban are closing in, regularly attacking police convoys, kidnapping diplomats, and shooting foreigners. The fighting across this volatile region has driven thousands of families from their homes and many have found shelter in Peshawar.

by Diana Worman, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Speaking of peace in relation to Palestine and Israel seems almost incongruous. But if you put aside politics and look at the many grassroots activities taking place there you can find a multiplicity of initiatives in which divided communities co-operate peacefully.

by Siobhán Silke, France 24, France - French police say 300 people have been arrested in clashes with police during anti-NATO protests held in the French city of Strasbourg, which hosts a NATO summit on Friday. Last month Paris announced its return to NATO's military command.

by Lucia Newman, Al Jazeera, Qatar - Given the changing global political and economic map, South America and the Arab region are attempting to join forces, so their voices carry more weight, especially in multi-lateral forums such as the G20 group of leading industrialised nations.

by Lindsey Hilsum, Channel 4, Ireland - Next week seven members of the Baha'i religion are to go on trial in Iran accused of spying for Israel. The Foreign Office has expressed concern about the Baha'is, who are persecuted in Iran even though their faith is an offshoot of Islam.

by Catherine Norris Trent, France 24, France - School and work re-opened on Monday for many Antananarivo inhabitants but hundreds continued to protest in the main square in support of Mayor Andry Rajeolina, who is trying to oust President Marc Ravalomanana.

by Kari Huus, MSNBC, USA - Shelters and related services for the homeless are facing funding shortfalls as the downturn takes its toll on state budgets and corporate donations.

by Judy Woodruff, PBS NewsHour, USA - Dozens of people died Wednesday in Mumbai, India, in a series of gun and grenade attacks targeting hotels and other sites. Washington Post reporter Rama Lakshmi provides details from the scene. "This is a huge -- this is a huge and unprecedented attack, terrorist attack in India. We have had, you know, a string of attacks in the last few months, but this is the most dramatic."