In Coup-Torn Guinea, Women Raped in Public

And Liz Trotta is not happy with how much money we're spending on the issue

(NEWSER) - The military's easing of the ban on women in combat came just a few weeks after news that sexual violence in the military has risen sharply —and in a recent segment on Fox News, contributor Liz Trotta (who has seen her share of gaffes in the past) found a way to combine the two news items in quite possibly the most controversial way possible. "Women once more, the feminists, [want] to be warriors and victims at the same time," she said in a clip picked up by Media Matters . Noting the 64% increase in violent sexual assaults since 2006, she asked, "Now, what did they expect? These people are in close contact." More»

Susan Rice makes claim at UN

(NEWSER) - Moammar Gadhafi’s forces have been issued Viagra, to help them better rape the people of Libya, US ambassador Susan Rice told several other UN diplomats at a closed-door Security Council meeting yesterday. “She spoke of Gadhafi’s soldiers targeting children, and other atrocities,” one diplomat tells Reuters . Rice offered no evidence for her allegations, which diplomats said were designed to win over countries that have grown skeptical of the UN mission in Libya—namely China, India, and Russia. More»

Camara shot, wounded in attack blamed on former aide

(NEWSER) - The leader of Guinea's ruling military junta has survived an attack on his convoy by a renegade faction of his presidential guard. Moussa Dadis Camara was shot and wounded but his life is not in danger, a regime spokesman said. The attack was blamed on Lt. Toumba Diakite, a former aide of Camara's who is believed to have been a leading figure in the September massacre of over 150 pro-democracy protesters. More»

Clinton sends diplomat, accuses junta of 'criminality'

(NEWSER) - Hillary Clinton has stepped into the crisis in the junta-ruled nation of Guinea, calling for "appropriate actions" against the military government, which she said "cannot remain in power." Clinton took the unusual step of dispatching a senior diplomat, who pinned blame for the recent killings and rapes of unarmed protesters squarely on coup leader Capt. Moussa Dadis Camara: "You are responsible for Sept. 28. The buck stops with you." More»

(AP) - Hillary Clinton traveled to war-ravaged eastern Congo today, where the nation's top diplomat demanded an end to the sexual violence that has claimed at least 200,000 victims. Clinton came to Goma aboard a UN plane over the objections of some top aides who were concerned about security and logistics for the visit. She is the first secretary of state to visit the city. More»