Syria Special: Syria’s Sons of No One (Shadid)

Abdullah (left) and Ahmed in a safe house in Homs, Syria.Abdullah, a 26-year-old computer engineer and pious Muslim, is a wanted man. He joined the first protest in Homs in March, and since then he has emerged as one of the dozen or so leaders of the youth resistance. His savvy with technology has made him a target for the police, and this was the fifth place he had slept in in less than a week. He hadn’t been to his family’s home in two months. Around his neck he wore a tiny toy penguin that was actually a thumb drive, which he treated like a talisman, occasionally squeezing it to make sure it was still there. I sat next to him on the mattress and watched as he traded messages with other activists on Skype, then updated a Facebook page that serves as an underground newspaper, then marked a Google Earth map of Homs with the spots of the latest unrest. “If there’s no Internet,” Abdullah said, “there’s no life.”

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Pakistan: Never Mind the Checkpoint, Just Enjoy the Ads (Nakamura)

In Islamabad, Pakistan, where preventing terrorist attacks is a growth industry, the police department and private entrepreneurs have teamed up on a creative method of protecting the public while marketing to a uniquely captive audience.At the city's 60-plus police checkpoints, slowing motorists are greeted by officers armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles - and by a dazzling display of brightly colored advertisements plastered on jersey barriers, metal gates, guard booths and sun umbrellas. Juxtaposed with the stern-faced gunmen peering out from nearby snipers' nests, the ads create an awkward tableau of peppy marketing and deadly serious force.

"Zefra Restaurante - Bar-B-Que with a twist," announces the wrap-around, red-and-orange wallpaper encircling one guard booth.

"Stop. Security Check. Tasty," reads the lettering on a metal gate sponsored by Tasty snack foods, producer of "supari sweets," which are made of betel nuts and saccharine menthol. Pepsi, Wateen telecommunications, Ufone mobile and Murree Brewery are among the other companies shelling out cash for the prime marketing real estate.

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