Zimbabwe Seizes Food Aid for Children

Steer clear of these dangerous locales

(NEWSER) - If you're jonesing for a trip on the wild side, well, you'd probably still better steer clear of the 10 worst places in the world. Gadling.com rounds up these impoverished and war-stricken locales, and advises avoiding them in 2012:

• Harare, Zimbabwe: This city spiraled into turmoil when inflation surged, eventually hitting 231,150,000% per year in 2008. Unemployment hit 80%, services collapsed, and now most of Harare is in ruins.

'Last dictator standing' spoof didn't amuse his supporters

(NEWSER) - A fast-food chain in South Africa has pulled a spot spoofing Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe because his supporters threatened to retaliate against staff, reports the BBC . The commercial for Nando's chicken was called "Last Dictator Standing," and it showed a Mugabe stand-in frolicking with fallen dictators—think a water fight with Gadhafi, sand angels with Saddam, karaoke with Mao, etc. It got broadcast in Zimbabwe via satellite and also became a YouTube smash. More»

Police say women using victims' semen for magic

(NEWSER) - A nationwide syndicate of suspected witches is operating in Zimbabwe, kidnapping men and raping them to use their semen in magic rituals—or at least that's what the Zimbabwe police apparently believe, reports the BBC . After a year-long investigation, three women are going on trial today on 17 counts of aggravated assault (there are no provisions in Zimbabwe law for women raping men), after police found them driving around with 31 used condoms in their car. More»

They reportedly assaulted scores of male hitchhikers

(NEWSER) - A late but strong contender for crime story of the week: Police in Zimbabwe say three women sexually assaulted scores of male hitchhikers over the last two years, apparently so they could collect semen in condoms for religious rituals, reports CNN . The trio, in their 20s, were arrested after a car accident when police found 33 used condoms in their vehicle. More»

Developing world doesn't need our cast-offs: Charles Kenny

(NEWSER) - The common practice of sending hand-me-downs or excess merchandise to developing countries seems like a good idea—after all, if the NFL can’t sell all those “Pittsburgh Steelers: Super Bowl XLV Champions” shirts, what’s wrong with sending them to Zambia? The problem is, Zambians don’t need our old shirts, even if they're free, writes Charles Kenny in Foreign Policy . Even if they needed shirts, sending them ours only serves to hurt the local economy. “Want to really help a Zambian? Give him a shirt made in Zambia.” More»