Fraud,insecurity and the weather all threaten to make next month's run-off elections difficult for one of the world's newest democracies.

VOA: standard.2009.10.21

Dagne says highly de-centralized and mobile al-Shabaab forces threaten the Transitional Federal Government, and noted that African Union forces are constrained because they are not authorized to take offensive action.

VOA: standard.2009.06.26

Mr.Netanyahu's base of support is among Israelis who fear that an independent Palestinian state might fall to radical Islamist rule and threaten the Jewish State - much like has happened in the Gaza Strip.

VOA: standard.2009.04.09

The visit by Secretary of State Clinton to Iraq comes on the heels of a wave of bloody suicide-bombings which threaten to destabilize the country, just weeks before U.S.troops are set to withdraw from major Iraqi cities.

VOA: standard.2009.04.25

He is replacing it with a plan that would provide a combined land- and sea-based capability more quickly, focused on shorter range missiles Iran could use to threaten Europe, with the option of expanding later to cover longer range missiles if necessary.

VOA: standard.2009.10.23

Peter Pham, Associate Professor of Justice Studies, Political Science and Africana Studies at James Madison University, says conditions in Somalia threaten security and stability of the Horn of Africa: "Even without toppling the TFG, al-Shabaab has already achieved a major objective by securing a territorial base from which like-minded militants and terrorists can carry out attacks elsewhere, especially against targets in the Arabian Peninsula as well as participating in the current violence against Somalis,".

VOA: standard.2009.06.26