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Kurds, Arabs and Turkmen each claim the oil-rich northern city as their own. Tensions have stalled plans for provincial elections, and some Iraqi leaders say they'd rather shed blood than compromise over Kirkuk's future.

Big-box retailers, including Target and Wal-Mart, started by building their discount businesses out where land was cheap and space was plentiful. But now they have big-city plans for smaller stores in places like Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

Afghan election results have given Shiite Muslims a strong voice in the new Afghan parliament. But tensions are accompanying the rise of the long-suffering Hazara minority: Pashtuns are fearful of Hazaras seeking revenge, while Hazaras worry their newfound security isn't guaranteed.

It is National Day of Reconciliation in South Africa, a public holiday created in 1994 after the end of apartheid to promote racial harmony and heal past divisions. But 16 years after the official end of apartheid, a new survey shows that there is still deep distrust between blacks and whites. Host Michel Martin discusses reconciliation and race relations in South Africa with Ferial Haffajee, editor of the weekly City Press newspaper and Jan Hofmeyr, who's with the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation.

The California Citizens Redistricting Commission’s final six members were chosen Wednesday. Now, the commission has about half a year to redraw political district lines.

Next month, the people of Southern Sudan will choose whether to break up Africa's biggest state and create the world's newest nation. Much is at stake, including most of Sudan's oil reserves and -- potentially -- peace in one of the continent's more volatile countries.

In October, Grant Barrett asked readers of VoiceofSanDiego to suggest books he could read to quickly get acquainted with San Diego, his new home. He received dozens of suggestions and he shares some of them with us.

A referendum next month in Sudan will decide whether the country will be divided between the Arab, mostly Muslim north and the ethnic African south. Whether things turn bloody may hinge on what happens in Abyei, a disputed region along the border of north and south.

County Supervisors are once-again looking at ways to improve the food stamp program. The supervisors this week discussed increasing enrollment in the food stamp program, and asked county staff to report back with a plan in 90 days. We discuss the food stamp recommendations, and assess what might be different this time as the county board remains the same.

With the measure stalled in the Senate and unlikely to come up for a vote, Latino scholars and organizers weigh in on the implications of its likely failure to pass Congress.