Apr 4
‘Blackwater’ Founder Under Investigation, Vietnam Seizes Chinese Vessel, UN Peacekeeping Troops Flunk Corruption Probe, and More Picks
PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
Erik Prince, Founder of Notorious Mercenary Army ‘Blackwater’, Under Investigation for Money Laundering and Offering Military Services to Foreign Governments (Reader Pat)
The investigation looks at a connection between ‘Blackwater-like services’ to war-torn Libya funded by the Bank of China.
Massive Leak of ‘Panama Papers’ Exposes How Political Elites Store Their Money (Reader Pat)
Some connections in this complex shell game are close friends of Vladimir Putin, prime ministers of Iceland and Pakistan, a ‘bagman’ for Assad, a ‘close pal’ of Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto, and ‘companies linked to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Vietnam Seizes Chinese Vessel for Intruding its Waters (Trevin)
After chasing 110 Chinese fishing boats out of Vietnamese waters in the last two weeks of March, the country’s coast guard just captured a Chinese vessel disguised as a fishing boat carrying 100 liters of diesel oil. The ship, its captain, and two sailors are being held by Vietnamese authorities.
UN Peacekeeping Troops Receive ‘D’ and ‘F’ Ratings (Dan)
A new report finds that the 30 countries that provide the most UN troops are most ‘susceptible to corruption’. Out of the 30 countries, Italy is the only country that scored higher than a ‘D’.
Bernie Sanders is Actual Winner in Nevada Caucus (Trevin)
Following February’s loss, Sanders has been pronounced the winner of Nevada according to Saturday’s Clark County Democratic Convention.
