Spending our days on the interwebs has its advantages, one being that we come across lots of excellent pieces of journalism. Every week, we'll bring you our favorite online reads that didn't appear on our site. Disagree with the selections? Leave your suggestions in the comments or tweet #bestreads at @HuffPostWorld.
Makers Of WarWired -- Matthieu AikinsAs Syria's bloody war continues, rebel fighters increasingly rely on home-made weapons to fight the troops of President Bashar al-Assad. Aleppo's bomb makers -- in previous lives engineers, merchants or professors -- experiment day and night to provide their fellow rebels with the cheapest, strongest and deadliest weapons.
HIV Divides Lesbians In South AfricaBuzzfeed -- J. Lester FederAlmost one in 10 women having sex with other women in South Africa is HIV positive. However, the stigma surrounding the disease, particularly in the case of lesbians, prevents them from getting adequate care.
In Kenya, Using Tech To Put An Invisible Slum On The MapNPR-- Gregory WarnerLast year, a group of cartographer-activists started documenting the ins and outs of one of Kenya's largest slums. According to the group, the map makes all the difference. "Because it's technology, it can shame some of the people," Isaac Mutisya says.
Anything But Humane: Tibetan Exposes China From The InsideSpiegel Online -- Andreas LorenzSince March 2011, more than 100 Tibetans have set themselves on fire to protest Chinese control over their homeland. The mood in the region has rarely been so low, the living conditions rarely this dramatic. Now, a Tibetan-born high-ranking official of China's Communist Party is preparing to publish a history of Tibet, written from his own perspective. "The way the members of the Armed Police behave is anything but humane. They kill people as cold-bloodedly as poisonous snakes. They indiscriminately beat local residents, loot their property and kill them if they defend themselves," he writes.
Conflicting InterestsThe New Yorker -- George PackerIn this week's New Yorker, George Packer evaluates the White House's handling of the political crisis in Egypt and the options the administration has in dealing with Egypt's new government in coming months. On Obama's decisions until now, Packer observes: "In the two and a half years since the popular protests that overthrew the Mubarak regime, the Administration has followed a pattern: express concern about tumultuous events, then accept their outcome as a fait accompli and make the best of the new status quo, without a perceptible effort to use whatever influence the U.S. still has over the main actors in Egypt’s political drama."