World

Nuclear Confusion at Fukushima

For days, scientists and engineers scrambled to plug a leak in Reactor 2 at the tsunami-struck Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Thousands of tons of radioactive water spewed into the ocean, prompting howls of protest from local fishermen fearful of the potential environmental damage to their livelihood. Japanese seafood exports are expected to plummet. The plant's operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Co., has been widely criticized for its inability to contain the disaster. On April 6, workers stemmed the radioactive outflow with "water glass" made of sodium silicate--earlier failed attempts had included newspaper and sawdust. It's a minor victory in what will still be a prolonged battle to safely cool the fuel rods at the plant's four crippled reactors.

JAPAN

REACTOR 1

REACTOR 2

REACTOR 3

REACTOR 4

World by the Numbers

[The following text appears within a map. Please see hardcopy or PDF for actual map.]

$107 billion

PORTUGAL

Estimated amount the E.U. and the IMF may need to bail out the debt-ridden Portuguese economy

20,000

ITALY

Pages of evidence that prosecutors submitted for President Silvio Berlusconi's upcoming sexual-misconduct trial

95.5%

KAZAKHSTAN

Percentage of votes won by President Nursultan Nazarbayev in an election; he has ruled the Central Asian state for its entire independent existence

118 million

INDIA

Increase in India's population over the past decade, according to new census results. India is on pace to eclipse China's population by 2030

$10.1 million

CHINA

Price paid at a Hong Kong auction for a work by artist Zhang Xiaogang, the highest yet for a painting in the increasingly fashionable contemporary-Chinese-art market

An Israeli Stealth Attack?

SUDAN

The Israel Defense Forces had nothing to say April 6 about the previous evening's mysterious air strike on a car near Port Sudan, a city on the Red Sea coast near Sudan's border with Egypt. Sudanese officials claim that the attack, which killed the car's two occupants, was carried out by Israeli aircraft. Palestinian militant groups like Hamas have relied on the Red Sea route via Sudan and Egypt to obtain weaponry, often sent from Iran. If the pair in the car were gunrunners, they weren't the first to be targeted. In 2009, Israel attacked a convoy in the same area, killing dozens.

Musician Wins Election Runoff

HAITI

Supporters greeted smooth-headed former Carnival musician Michel "Sweet Micky" Martelly with chants of "Tet Kele" (bald head) in celebration of his presumed victory in the March 20 presidential runoff. Early results showed Martelly with a commanding lead over former First Lady Mirlande Manigat. Martelly campaigned as a rebel aiming to shake up the establishment, but in speeches, he has bared a soft spot for the authoritarian rule of Haiti's past, leaving many to ponder whether the popular showman will be a true democrat or a demagogue.