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- UN, Seychelles establish piracy court
The Seychelles, an island nation in the Indian Ocean, has agreed to establish courts backed by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime for the purpose of trying suspected held on piracy charges. The move is expected to relieve strain on the international piracy court in Kenya. Google/Agence France-Presse (5/6)       - Amano: Iran must engage to create "credible confidence"
Iranian efforts to address concerns about the country's nuclear program will be incomplete without significant engagement with the International Atomic Energy Agency that includes answering all queries on research, technology procurement and scientist activities, IAEA head Yukiya Amano says. Amano's comments follow statements from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that the IAEA has no authority to insist on information about the program. The New York Times (free registration) (5/6)  - Africa needs to do more with the water it has
 Africa continues to underutilize its store of renewable water sources contributing to the continent's perpetual irrigation and electricity supply problems. Instability and mismanagement have hobbled most efforts to build dams to harness water power. The Economist (5/6) - EU considers changes to carbon-offset program
The European Union is considering rule changes for the third phase of its carbon-offset program that would require emitters to purchase multiple credits per ton of output instead of the current one-to-one ratio. The new rules are being proposed because of doubts in the current methodology for measuring offsets. Bloomberg Businessweek (5/6) - Can China balance energy demand with efficiency goals?
The realities of soaring demand for oil and coal powered energy is in stark contrast with Beijing's commitments to developing sustainable energy sources and cutting greenhouse-gas emissions. Over the past six months, China posted the largest increase in human generated greenhouse gases ever, prompting authorities to convene high-level meetings to strategize ways to achieve China's five-year target of 20% improved energy efficiency. The New York Times (free registration) (5/6) - Fresh ash cloud forces new flight path in Europe
Trans-Atlantic flights were forced to chart new routes after the volcano in Iceland sent up a new ash cloud Thursday. Some ash was sent as high as 35,000 feet, and it could reach the Iberian Peninsula, according to Eurocontrol. Reuters (5/7)  | - U.K. elections result in hung parliament
The conservative Tories won the largest share of votes in the U.K. election but failed to seize an outright majority, leading to the first hung parliament since 1974. Tory leader David Cameron could look to a coalition with the Liberal Democrats, but at the price of election reforms. Alternatively, Cameron could settle for a minority administration with the support of Northern Irish unionists. Incumbent Prime Minister Gordon Brown did not indicate that he would step down immediately but rather signaled that Labor will seek to form its own majority with the Liberal Democrats. The Independent (London) (5/7) - Germany takes steps toward bailout of Greece
After a prolonged debate centered in Germany, where European opposition to a bailout for Greece has been fiercest, Germany's lower parliament house voted to support a plan that would see eurozone countries give Greece 80 billion euros over 3 years. Chancellor Angela Merkel will join other G7 heads of state for a discussion on the Greek debt crisis's implications for the global economy -- where fears of contagion have grown. BBC (5/7) - Pakistani officials slow to act against Kashmir-focused extremist groups
Jaish-i-Muhammad -- the militant Pakistani-based organization with whom the would-be Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad has been linked -- is just one of a number of extremist groups that calls Pakistan home. It is unclear how Pakistani officials would respond if clear proof of a Jaish-i-Muhammad plot against New York were uncovered, as Pakistani officials have historically tolerated groups such as Lashkar-i-Taiba -- whose have focused their ire on Indian foes in the disputed region of Kashmir. The Washington Post (5/7) - Preval asks Haitian parliament to consider term extension
Haitian President Rene Preval has put forward a request to the country's lawmakers to extend his term of office by three months if presidential elections cannot be effectively managed in time to choose a successor before his term expires in February. Preval cited a desire to avoid a power vacuum, but opposition politicians immediately denounced the move as a power play for personal advantage. The Miami Herald (free registration) (5/5) - Russians retake oil tanker hijacked by Somali pirates
A Russian warship fired on a Russian oil tanker that had been hijacked by Somali pirates, who eventually surrendered to the Russians. The pirates seized the tanker and the $50 million in oil that it carried, but the ship's crewmen were able to hide away and alert authorities. Los Angeles Times (5/7) - Nigerian President Yar'Adua dies of heart complications
Three months after Nigerian President President Umaru Yar'Adua left Nigeria for Saudi Arabia to seek medical treatment, he died from acute inflammation of the lining of the heart. Yar'Adua, who helped negotiate a cease-fire with Nigerian militants operating from the oil-rich Niger River delta in 2008, took office in 2007 -- an election that marked the first peaceful transfer of power from one civilian leader to another since it gained independence. Though he was anointed by his predecessor, Olusegun Obasanjo, Yar'Adua overturned key Obasanjo policies and strove to reverse corruption. The Washington Post (5/6) - Israel won't agree to nuclear disarmament
Israel is pushing back on U.S. calls for nuclear disarmament in the Middle East, an effort designed to draw Arab support in waging sanctions on Iran. "There is nothing new here, and no reason for a change of direction on our part," an Israeli representative said. Reuters (5/7)
- Reader Poll: To achieve Millennium Development Goal #5, improving maternal health, international organizations should focus their efforts on which of the following:
| Helping girls to stay in school. |  55.26% | | Improving prenatal care. |  25.73% | | Improving emergency obstetric care. |  14.54% | | Preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission. |  4.47% | |
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