As international envoy Kofi Annan negotiated a cease-fire in Syria, government forces raided opposition strongholds, killing and detaining residents in attacks amounting to war crimes, a rights group said Wednesday.

Boredom is an unlikely new frontier in workplace research. Commonly associated with goofing off, taking absurdly long lunch-breaks, and playing internet games on the sly, new studies suggest it’s something that affects high-performing employees as well as those in menial jobs.

Pressure is mounting on Ukraine to clean up its human rights record ahead of the Euro 2012 finals next month, with the EU Commission’s president the latest high-profile leader to boycott the football championships.