The World

10 ESSENTIAL STORIES

By Harriet Barovick, Laura Fitzpatrick, Alexandra Silver, Claire Suddath, Frances Romero, Kristi Oloffson and Kayla Webley Monday, June 14, 2010

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    A U.N. agency reported that Iran has enough unenriched nuclear fuel to produce two nuclear weapons. The announcement makes Iran's much delayed agreement to ship nuclear material out of the country somewhat pointless; even if it immediately fulfilled its promise to export the previously agreed-upon amount of fuel, the U.N says it would still have enough for at least one weapon. Most nuclear weapons need uranium to be enriched to 90% or more, so while Iran cannot yet build a bomb, a new set of upgrades is slowly bringing it closer to that target. Iran is increasing its uranium enrich-ment capacity from the current 4% up to 20%--the level required by its medical-research reactor in Tehran, yet still below weapons level. The U.N.'s findings will likely lead to a new round of proposed sanctions against Iran.

    6 | Guatemala

    DEEP IMPACT

    A 100-ft. (30 m) sinkhole in downtown Guatemala City swallowed a three-story building May 29 as Tropical Storm Agatha lashed residents with torrential rains and 45-m.p.h. (75 km/h) winds. The storm, coupled with thick black ash from a volcano 20 miles (32 km) south of the city that had erupted just one day before, set off floods and mudslides, requiring the evacuation of more than 155,000 locals. The first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, Agatha left a path of destruction across Central America, killing at least 179.

    7 | Pakistan

    Al-Qaeda's No. 3 Killed

    Al-Qaeda announced the death of Mustafa al-Yazid, a.k.a. Sheik Saeed al-Masri. U.S. officials believe that Yazid, considered the terrorist network's ranking leader behind Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, was killed in a CIA drone strike in May. Several others said to have occupied the No. 3 spot have been killed since 2001.

    8 | Tokyo

    Prime Minister Steps Down

    Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned June 2 after reneging on a campaign promise to move a U.S. Marine base off the island of Okinawa. Hatoyama, who entered office eight months ago following a landslide victory, is the fourth Japanese PM to step down in four years. In recent weeks he has faced heavy criticism for his flip-flopping on the issue of whether or not to expel the installation. Possible successors include Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada and Finance Minister Naoto Kan.

    9 | Malawi

    Gay Couple Released

    Despite publicly denouncing homosexuality, which remains illegal in his largely Christian nation, Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika pardoned a gay couple on May 29 during a visit by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. After holding a public engagement ceremony, Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza were convicted May 17 of "unnatural acts and gross indecency" and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

    10 | Vatican City

    The Pope's Next Step in Ireland

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