One million people took part in the first day of anti-government protests on Monday, according to strike organizers who expect an even bigger turnout on Tuesday when teachers and health workers join the country-wide protests. The high number is disputed by authorities. The protest organizations’ estimate is in stark contrast to that of the government, whose Interior Minister Fernando Carrillo told press that 60,000 people had taken to the streets and that the situation in the country is “under control.”

Watching the events unfold in Egypt over the past weeks has been akin to watching a slow moving train wreck as two powerful forces – the army and the Muslim Brotherhood – collide together. Both have strong wills, resources, and high stakes in the outcome. Whereas social media played a pivotal role in uniting the Egyptian public during the January 25 revolution in 2011, it appears that mass media may be playing the critical role in dividing the Egyptian public during the current events.

The head of the Olympic Public Authority (APO), Marcio Fortes, delivered his letter of resignation, raising concerns about Brazil’s handling of the preparations for the upcoming Games. The resignation of one of the most senior figures involved in planning of the 2016 Olympics comes just two weeks before a team of inspectors from the International Olympic Committee were scheduled to visit Rio.

Should we have democracy on demand? Spain, Turkey, Brazil, Egypt have experienced forms of it. What other country might be next to feel the wrath of people power? In the past few years, TV news cameras have gone from capital to capital to film the anger of people demanding change from their governments.

Northern Ireland has been suffering from annual outbreaks of violence as leaders of the divided region try to establish a long-term solution to the thorny issue of parades. The parades are held each year to commemorate the Battle of the Boyne, in which the Protestant King William III defeated the ousted Catholic King James II in 1690. After a stand-off between 5,000 marchers and the police, Unionist rioters set fire to cars and threw petrol bombs, bricks and other missiles at police, burned flags of the mainly Catholic Irish Republic and played sectarian tunes outside Catholic churches.

There has been constant "dark propaganda" on media outlets and social media networks about the Turkish police’s attitude during the ongoing Gezi Park protests, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, addressing members of security forces in Ankara July 24.

Blatter was speaking at the start of a two-day conference on sports, media and economy set up by German great Franz Beckenbauer in Austria. FIFA later verified the comments were accurate. The Confederations Cup, which was won by Brazil, angered citizens who are upset with the billions of dollars spent on the tournaments while they endure underfunded schools and hospitals. Protesters aired a wide spectrum of grievances, including the high cost of hosting the 2016 Rio Olympics.