LIBYA

A brewing crisis in the Middle East is causing an almost daily uptick in oil prices but early signs of a rebound in the U.S. economy is indeed offering substantial tailwind to crude too.

The Obama administration will unveil a more realistic vision for the military Thursday, with plans to cut tens of thousands of ground troops and invest more in air and sea power at a time of fiscal restraint, officials familiar with the plans said Wednesday.

Byron Wien, vice chairman at Blackstone Advisory Partners issued his list of surprises for 2012 on Wednesday. The tradition of giving his views on a series of economic, financial market and political surprises for the coming year started in 1986.

Rick Santorum surprised voters Tuesday by nearly winning the Iowa Caucus, the first indication in the 2012 Election as to which candidate may win the Republican nomination. Santorum was only eight votes shy of Mitt Romney, the GOP frontrunner, and the Caucus has been deemed an essential tie between the two leading candidates. Here are the thirteen top political, social and economic issues and Santorum's position on the issues.

Ron Paul’s 2012 campaign is the only hope of ending the political theater of Democrats vs Republicans.

Militias clashed with government security troops in Tripoli, Libya on Tuesday, casting a blow to the country's attempt at forming a new government.

Crude prices started their jolly ride to the top in February last year when simmering discontent in the Middle East erupted into several violent anti-government protests.

Syrian security forces shot dead 25 people on Thursday, including in cities being visited by Arab League monitors to check whether President Bashar al-Assad is keeping a pledge to end a crackdown on popular unrest.

The best Twitter feeds to follow in the new year.

Rumors have persisted for many years that Gaddafi might have been Jewish.

It surely has been an eventful year with popular uprisings, dictators being deposed or slain, royal marriages, celebrity divorces, and thrilling sports achievements, so here's a look at some of the top moments of 2011 as compiled by the IBTimes.

A list of the ten most important people in world politics from the past year.

Herewith follows some of my predictions for what may happen in 2012 with respect to some key foreign countries.

The incredible events of 2011 will likely influence global history for decades to come.

Respected commodities hedge fund BlueGold has veered from its energy-focused strategy, betting half its money on equities and other trades that are worrying investors as it turns in its first down year.

At least 43 journalists were killed worldwide in direct relation to their work this year according to the year-end survey on journalists killed in the line of duty by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) .

No doubt 2011 was a major year for technology in part because it touched everyone differently. Following are some of the highlights and lowlights of the year:

While the world agonized about the death of Kim Jong-il and the future of North Korea, the Chinese city with a front-row view into the isolated state shrugged.

Kim Jong Il, like Muammar Gaddafi , has died at age 69 after decades of tyrannical rule. But as North Korea scrambles to determine the country's future, many more dictators remain in power. From Arab Spring autocrats in Syria and Sudan to the leaders of Ethiopia and Uganda, here are the eight worst dictators still in power today.

Commodities trader Trafigura's profits soared nearly two-thirds to a record over $1 billion this year, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing a note to bondholders.

The International Criminal Court is suspicious about the manner in which Moammar Gaddafi was killed in October.