President Hugo Chávez announced a measure to nationalize wholesale gasoline distribution in Venezuela—despite the lobbying of British Petroleum, Exxon Mobil and Chevron, whose local subsidiaries currently control the business. Under the measure, which received initial approval in the National Assembly Aug. 27, the state company PDVSA will control Venezuela's fuel distribution network, although privately owned gas stations will not be nationalized. Dominated by Chávez allies, the National Assembly is expected to give its final approval to the legislation soon.

In a critical decision on Aug. 27, one of Brazil's supreme court judges voted in favor of maintaining Raposa Serra do Sol (RSS) as a continuous indigenous land. Although the other judges on the court still need to vote on the matter, this was seen as an important victory for indigenous peoples. Minister Ayres Britto's decision was celebrated by the indigenous peoples of RSS, who had been mobilized in their communities, as well as in the Roraima state capitol and outside the Supreme Court in Brasilia. Raposa Serra do Sol is the traditional home of some 19,000 Ingaricó, Macuxi, Patamona, Taurepang and Wapichana people in Northern Brazil. Located on the boundary of Guyana and Venezuela, RSS is over 6,000 square miles of mountains, savannahs, and forests.

Our August issue featured the story "Hokkaido: The Anti-Climate Summit" by Walden Bello of Foreign Policy in Focus, arguing that the G8 nations derailed meaningful efforts to address global climate change at the July summit in Japan. Bello protests that "like the United States and Japan, the European governments continue to hang on to the position that economic growth can be 'decoupled' from energy use. In other words, they think they can maintain current European consumption levels and only have to achieve the more efficient use of energy and replace oil with other energy sources." Our July Exit Poll was: "Is it possible to meaningfully address global climate change while maintaining current levels of economic growth?" We received the following responses:

On Aug. 25, dozens of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested approximately 595 workers in a raid on an electric transformer manufacturing facility owned by Howard Industries, Inc. in Laurel, Miss., a town of 20,000. The agents sealed off all the plant's exits, trapping workers inside, and executed a federal criminal search warrant for evidence relating to aggravated identity theft, fraudulent use of Social Security numbers and other crimes, as well as a civil search warrant looking for unauthorized immigrants. (ICE news release, Aug. 26; AP, Aug. 27; ABC News, Aug. 29; Washington Post, Aug. 28)

On the weekend before the Republican National Convention, law enforcement agencies in the Twin Cities temporarily detained dozens of people and issued a series of search warrants aimed at groups organizing protests. Attorneys for the National Lawyers Guild said those detained and photographed included both local residents and visitors in town to protest the convention. At least three were also arrested on conspiracy charges. Bruce Nestor, a lawyer at one house, told the New York Times: "In my mind it's a classic preventive detention charge." He said the authorities are permitted to hold those arrested for up to 36 hours—excluding weekends or holidays—in essence detaining them for the length of the convention.

Buried in a White House proposal for hearing legal appeals from detainees at Guantánamo Bay, is a provision that calls on Congress to "acknowledge again and explicitly that this nation remains engaged in an armed conflict with Al Qaeda, the Taliban, and associated organizations, who have already proclaimed themselves at war with us and who are dedicated to the slaughter of Americans."

Iraq has signed its first major oil deal with a foreign company since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime—a 20-year, $3 billion contract with the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) to develop fields in southern Wasit province. The deal marks the first time in more than 35 years that Iraq has allowed a foreign oil company to do business within its borders. Iraq's cabinet must still approve the contract, but Oil Ministry spokesman Assim Jihad said that would happen soon and work could commence within a few months.

Thousands of Iraqis loyal to the Sadr movement protested in Kufa Aug. 29 to denounce the pending Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which they called a plan for the long-term US occupation of the country. Militant cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called for the peaceful protests after Friday prayers. It was the 13th such demonstration against the SOFA.