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Automatically compiled digests of WORLD news stories
(originally aggregated by the Google News)


Saturday


  • Feb-04 -- Nigeria Boko Haram spokesman arrested, victims buried
    Since 'Abu Qaqa' is a pseudonym for the Boko Haram spokesman, we want to be sure of who we have with us.
    The problem with Nigeria's security is that the number of security personnel are not sufficient when compared to the population of the country, while 60 per cent are guarding highly placed private Nigerians. More...

  • Feb-04 -- Hague: 'There is an opportunity' to end piracy and terrorism in Somalia
    William Hague has warned more action is needed to tackle the terrorist threat from Somalia as he became the first British Foreign Secretary to visit the strife-torn African nation for 20 years.
    At the height of the crisis, 750,000 people were at risk of death. More...

  • Feb-04 -- Pakistani Taliban Kill 7 Soldiers, Abduct 4
    Afghan and Pakistani Taliban and Islamic movement of Uzbekistan are all connected to each other."
    PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Seven Pakistani soldiers were killed and three others wounded in a Taliban attack on their check post in the country's northwestern tribal belt, according to security officials. More...

  • Feb-04 -- Attention turns downstream as NSW floodwaters peak
    "Famine conditions have ended in war-torn Somalia six months after they were declared, but the situation remains dire with a third of the population needing emergency aid, the U.N. said on Friday," Agence France-Presse reports (Vincenot, 2/3).
    'Millions of people still need food, clean water, shelter and other assistance to survive and the situation is expected to deteriorate in May,' warned the UN office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. More...

Friday


  • Feb-03 -- UN declares end to Somalia famine but warns crisis not over
    William Hague has warned more action is needed to tackle the terrorist threat from Somalia as he became the first British Foreign Secretary to visit the strife-torn African nation for 20 years.
    While aid deliveries to some 180,000 people in camps in the capital Mogadishu have improved the situation there, fighting in southern and central Somalia is still hampering food deliveries to the worst-hit areas. More...

  • Feb-03 -- 100 passengers missing after ferry sinks
    MORE than 100 people are still feared missing from a ferry that sank off Papua New Guinea yesterday.
    More than 100 missing passengers were feared trapped inside an overloaded ferry when it sank off Papua New Guinea, a maritime official said as rescuers scoured the ocean for more survivors. More...

  • Feb-03 -- Philippines says no ransom demand yet for 2 Europeans, kidnappers not likely ...
    Planes bombed the outskirts of a village on Jolo island where intelligence sources had informed the military that about 30 Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah figures were based, Coballes said, adding no ground troops was deployed.
    Authorities said the bodies of two of the main targets of the strike, the leader of the Philippine-based Abu Sayyaf, Umbra Jumdail, as well as terror suspect Abdullah Ali, had been identified by troops on the ground. More...

  • Feb-03 -- Coal mines shut as Australia evacuates flooded towns
    Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch, gestures in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, March 29, 2011.
    Dozens of young Cambodians had gathered in the outdoor cafe which serves as an overflow area, following proceedings on big screens. More...

Friday


  • Feb-03 -- Nigeria's Boko Haram refutes claim of spokesman's arrest
    Since 'Abu Qaqa' is a pseudonym for the Boko Haram spokesman, we want to be sure of who we have with us.
    The impotence of the police, military and security services so far indicates that the Abuja government does not have the ability or resources to destroy Boko Haram. More...

  • Feb-03 -- Pakistan PM says he will respect court verdict
    Pakistan's Supreme Court said it will charge Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani with contempt for failing to revive a corruption case against the president, a ruling that threatens to force Gilani from office.
    The 7-member bench headed by Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk of the apex court was hearing the contempt case against the PM. The court said a clear instruction was issued by it but the PM went by the opinion of the law division. More...

  • Feb-03 -- UN chief calls for Israeli goodwill gestures, warns time for peace deal ...
    About 500,000 Jews live in more than 100 settlements built since Israels 1967 occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
    Many accuse Ban of having a double-standard in favor of Israel but Nesirky insists there's no double-talk at least not on illegal settlement building. More...

  • Feb-03 -- Costa Concordia 'will be refloated and removed whole'
    One man died just feet away from the Interior Ministry, which has become a target for demonstrators furious that the police failed to prevent a soccer riot that killed 74 people in the Mediterranean city of Port Said on Wednesday.
    Meanwhile activists were using Twitter to summon more people to the square. More...

Friday


  • Feb-03 -- Britain: Assange Hearing Ends
    LONDON (AFP) - WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange took his extradition fight to Britain's Supreme Court on Wednesday, arguing that sending him to Sweden to face rape allegations would breach legal principles dating back 1,500 years.
    According to the British High Court this is incorrect. More...

  • Feb-03 -- Ontario child porn bust snares 60
    Officers from 24 forces acted on 76 warrants yesterday in what is being called the biggest child pornography bust in Canadian history .
    OTTAWA, ONTARIO, Feb 02, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- The Minister of Public Safety, Vic Toews and the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Rob Nicholson, today commended members of a joint police operation that successfully arrested 60 individuals in connection to a child pornography investigation. More...

  • Feb-03 -- Leveson Inquiry recalls editor of The Times over email hacking
    Police are investigating allegations of email hacking at The Times.
    Mr Justice Eady, who denied Horton an injunction, agreed that Foster "had been able to arrive at the identification by a process of deduction and detective work, mainly using information available on the Internet". More...

  • Feb-03 -- Kuwait opposition seen making gains in snap election
    In equal measure, the UPA government - and particularly Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ]] Manmohan Singh and (then) Finance Minister P Chidambaram - stand exposed as having failed to check Raja's blatant attempt to hijack the telecom policy for gain.
    For a beleaguered government, the saving grace was that the court refused to comment on the petition to make home minister P Chidambaram a co-accused and left the matter to the trial court. More...

Thursday


  • Feb-02 -- Pakistan's Foreign Minister Visits Afghanistan to Boost Relations
    Following talks with President Karzai Wednesday, Foreign Minister Khar said Pakistan has no "hidden agenda" in Afghanistan.
    More...

  • Feb-02 -- US diplomat says US open to North Korea diplomacy
    The North, in turn, was expected to suspend uranium enrichment, which could give Pyongyang another possible route to making nuclear bombs and is a crucial hurdle to restarting six-nation aid-for-nuclear disarmament talks that have been stalled since early 2009.
    More...

  • Feb-02 -- Kuwait opposition seen making gains in snap election
    "The situation cannot remain as it was," opposition candidate Faisel al-Mislem told hundreds of supporters at a campaign event in the run-up to the election.
    More...

  • Feb-02 -- Philippine Military: Senior Militants Killed In Raid
    The strike significantly weakens a regional militant network that has relied on the restive southern Philippines -- sometimes called Southeast Asia's Afghanistan -- as a hideout, a headquarters for planning bombings and a base for training and recruitment.
    Most recently, all three of the militant leaders were among the prime suspects in the kidnappings of three Red Cross workers from Switzerland, Italy and the Philippines in 2009. More...

Thursday


  • Feb-02 -- Pakistan will use any leverage with Haqqani for 'Afghan-led' peace
    Pakistan on Wednesday said it had not hidden agenda in Afghanistan and aimed at enhancing bilateral goodwill and all-round cooperation between the two brotherly states.
    The U.S. has signaled its intention to leave Afghanistan early, even as reports suggest that the Taliban, with Pakistan's backing, is ready to pick up the pieces. More...

  • Feb-02 -- Treasure hunters must return $500m haul
    The Florida firm that salvaged $500 million in gold and silver coins from the bottom of the Atlantic in May 2007 will be forced to hand over the treasure to unless the U.S. intervenes.
    James Goold, a Washington lawyer representing the Spanish government, said once the mandate is returned to the federal court in Tampa, the original order from the court will be reinstated. More...

  • Feb-02 -- Lawmaker: Police Probe London Times Email Hacking
    Police are investigating allegations of email hacking at The Times.
    The Met police have confirmed to me they are investigating @rupertmurdoch's newspaper The Times over email hacking. More...

  • Feb-02 -- Egyptians Blame Military for Deadly Soccer Riot
    The numbers were huge," said Ahmed Ghaffar, one of the visiting Al-Ahly fans at the stadium.
    More...

Thursday


  • Feb-02 -- Kuwait opposition to press for change in snap election
    Manama: Kuwait's parliamentary election campaigns descended into violence after angry tribesmen torched the tents of a candidate who allegedly insulted the name of their tribe.
    KUWAIT CITY, Feb 1: The closure of the Strait of Hormuz in case of a military attack on Iran might lead to dire consequences, reports Al-Wasat daily quoting First Constituency candidate Abdullah Al-Roumi. More...

  • Feb-02 -- Presidential frontrunner covered in flour
    The woman ran to the side of the podium where Socialist Francois Hollande stood to sign a "social contract" in favor of housing for all.
    The Socialist candidate, tipped by opinion polls to win the April-May two-round election, was unharmed but left covered in white powder after the attack by a woman who was swiftly removed from the room in Paris. More...

  • Feb-02 -- Heavy fighting in Pakistan tribal areas kills dozens
    PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistani warplanes pounded militant hideouts in the northwestern tribal area before dawn on Wednesday, killing at least 20 Taliban insurgents, security officials said.
    The reports said helicopter gunships were mobilized to repulse the attack in which 32 security personnel were also injured. More...

  • Feb-02 -- Nobel peace prize jury under investigation
    STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) -- Nobel Peace Prize officials were facing a formal inquiry over accusations they have drifted away from the prize's original selection criteria by choosing such winners as President Barack Obama, as the nomination deadline for the 2012 awards closed Wednesday.
    More...

Wednesday


  • Feb-01 -- Nobel peace prize jury under investigation
    UPDATED: The Norwegian Nobel Institute denies any wrongdoing following Swedish Nobel Prize watchdog Länsstyrelsen warnings it is to investigate alleged committee bias when picking Laureates.
    UPDATED: The Norwegian Nobel Institute denies any wrongdoing following Swedish Nobel Prize watchdog Länsstyrelsen warnings it is to investigate alleged committee bias when picking Laureates. More...

  • Feb-01 -- Timeline of Tibetan protests in China
    The Lama temple where the monk lives is a 15-hour drive away, high up on the Tibetan plateau in the southwestern province of Sichuan where rights groups say police have fired on demonstrators three times in the past week, killing at least three and leaving dozens wounded.
    Journalists have been turned back from areas of reported unrest by the police, who have kept the region under lockdown, and have been unable to confirm events. More...

  • Feb-01 -- UN Nuclear Experts Plan Another Visit to Tehran
    "Talks between Iran and the visiting team of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency were constructive and. the two sides agreed to continue the talks," the semi-official Fars news agency quoted an unnamed source as saying on Tuesday.
    The United Nations nuclear agencys chief inspector says there is "still a lot of work to be done" with Iran after three days of "intensive" talks about its atomic energy program. More...

  • Feb-01 -- Group releases close-up photos of 'uncontacted' tribe in Peru
    The photos, which were released by Survival International, were reportedly taken by an anthropologist and a tourist.
    One wounded a forest ranger, while the other led to the death of an indigenous man, Nicolás "Shaco" Flores, who had been leaving food and gifts for a group of Mashco-Piro people for twenty years. More...

Wednesday


  • Feb-01 -- The Business podcast: Fred Goodwin's knighthood shredded
    London - The former Royal Bank of Scotland chief who infuriated the British public by leading the bank to near-collapse and then walking away with a fat pension was stripped of his knighthood, a rare punishment that puts him in the company of criminals and dictators.
    "I think we've got a special case here of the Royal Bank of Scotland symbolising everything that went wrong in the British economy over the last decade," Treasury chief George Osborne said. More...

  • Feb-01 -- Pakistan Carries Out Deadly Bombing Raids Near Afghan Border
    PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistani warplanes pounded militant hideouts in the northwestern tribal area before dawn on Wednesday, killing at least 20 Taliban insurgents, security officials said.
    Islamabad - At least 25 militants and 10 soldiers were killed on Tuesday in fighting between the security forces and suspected Taliban militants in Pakistan's north-western region, a security official said. More...

  • Feb-01 -- Ahmadinejad Seeks to Cut Iranian Budget by 5.6 Percent
    TEHRAN — President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday officially launched Iran's latest foreign-language news channel, a 24-hour satellite broadcaster aimed at Spanish speakers worldwide.
    Iran's state TV said the channel, which had been on air on a trial basis since October with a 16-hour daily program, will target millions of Spanish-speaking people throughout the world. More...

  • Feb-01 -- French council to review genocide denial law
    The French legislation which would punish denial of the Armenian genocide with fines and jail time has been referred to France's constitutional court, according to AFP. French politicians, from both the Senate and the lower house of parliament, who opposed the law called for it to be examined by the constitutional council, saying they had gathered more than the required 60 signatures to question the law's constitutionality.
    While it has recently become possible for Turkish historians to discuss the events of 1915 without facing jail, it was only in 2007 that Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was shot dead in broad daylight for daring to write about the genocide. More...

Wednesday


  • Feb-01 -- Spanish Judge Defends Investigation Into Civil War-Era Crimes
    Spanish judge Baltazar Garzon, testifying at his own trial, said relatives of victims of dictator General Francisco Franco have a right to justice despite a 1977 amnesty.
    The son of a petrol station attendant from the southern town of Torres, Garzon became Spain's youngest judge to sit in the National Court at 32. More...

  • Feb-01 -- No Sir: CEO's Knighthood Is Nixed
    Voices from across the political spectrum said the behavior of bankers has to change.
    The honours system is a forelock-tugging anachronism which has no place in the 21st century. More...

  • Feb-01 -- Netanyahu wins Likud primary following tense day of voting
    JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won the leadership race of his Likud Party over his ultranationalist rival early Wednesday, hours after his government approved new incentives to entice people to move to West Bank settlements.
    The more determined side will win." More...

  • Feb-01 -- Deaths from Europe Cold Spell Near 60
    KIEV — A cold snap that killed 30 people in Ukraine over the past five days spread Tuesday to swathes of eastern and central Europe with record lows in Bulgaria and heavy snow in Switzerland and parts of Italy.
    Elderly and homeless people were amongst the victims as the country was hit by heavy snow. More...

Tuesday


  • Jan-31 -- Ed Miliband: David Cameron's 'phantom' veto exposed
    BRUSSELS The U.K. is reserving its position on the use of European Union institutions for a new European fiscal treaty, and will be watching to make sure it doesn't encroach on the workings of the bloc or undermine the single market, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday.
    Cameron's problem is that what offends in Europe plays well at home, and vice-versa. More...

  • Jan-31 -- The revolution will not be tweeted
    If Twitter found the complaint was justified under local laws, the tweet would be replaced with a gray box -- in that country only -- explaining that it had been censored and linking to an explanation of the complaint.
    Zeynep Tufekci, an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, took the other side. More...

  • Jan-31 -- London mayor pitches City to French
    PARIS French President Nicolas Sarkozy's proposed payroll tax cut wouldn't lower labor costs significantly, the French Banks Federation said Tuesday.
    The financial transactions tax is among measures Sarkozy unveiled to shrink the French budget deficit and spur growth. More...

  • Jan-31 -- China Detains Seven People Over Cadmium Spill, Xinhua Says
    A 2005 explosion at a unit of PetroChina Co. in northern China caused 100 tons of toxins to be spilled into the Songhua river, forcing authorities to shut off tap water for more than 3 million people in the city of Harbin.
    More...

Tuesday


  • Jan-31 -- UN panel aims for 'a future worth choosing'
    The report links the world body's goals of reducing poverty and inequality to promoting the use of wind, solar and other renewable sources of energy to run the economies of nations rich and poor.
    "The need to integrate the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development so as to achieve sustainability was clearly defined a quarter of a century ago. More...

  • Jan-31 -- Ex-Pakistani envoy to US wins court victory
    Washington, Jan 31 (ANI): The United States has expressed its 'gratification' at the Pakistan government's decision of lifting the travel curbs imposed on Islamabad's former ambassador to Washington Husain Haqqani, following the Memo Gate controversy.
    In the order, the bench headed by CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry said the letter's authenticity could not be ascertained, adding that the request to keep it confidential would be decided as per law. More...

  • Jan-31 -- Myanmar says will put stability ahead of economy-report
    Myanmar President Thein Sein arrived on Sunday for a three-day state visit that will mark closer ties between his country - currently undergoing political reforms - and Singapore.
    Myanmar President Thein Sein has arrived in Singapore hoping to tap the financial centers expertise as the country emerges from political and economic isolation, analysts said. More...

  • Jan-31 -- China presses Sudan to help free workers
    Chinese workers and engineers in Sudan were also abducted in 2004 and 2008.
    More...

Tuesday


  • Jan-31 -- NKorea's young leader gets rock star treatment during visits modeled on ...
    Kim Il Sung's image as a daring young general fighting Japanese colonial troops is powerfully engraved in the minds of North Koreans.
    The official added the North's military may be targeting the 100th birthday of the country's founder, Kim Il-sung, on April 15, or the 80th founding anniversary of the military on April 25. More...

  • Jan-31 -- Obama Defends Drone Use
    President Obama on Monday offered his first confirmation that the United States has engaged in drone strikes in Pakistan.
    The AFP news agency says 64 missile strikes were reported in 2011 in the lawless tribal areas along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. More...

  • Jan-31 -- Two convicted of al-Qaeda terror plot in Norway
    Mikael Davud, a Norwegian of ethnic Uyghur origin with links to al-Qaeda, was sentenced to seven years in prison, reported the Aftenposten newspaper.
    Mikael Davud, Shawan Sadek Saeed Bujak Bujak and David Jakobsen were convicted in connection with a plot to carry out explosions at offices of the Jyllands-Posten newspaper. More...

  • Jan-31 -- Official: Pakistan yet to decide on charges against doctor in bin Laden raid
    Panetta said the United States chose not to inform Pakistan of the raid due to security concerns.
    The goal was to try to obtain DNA evidence from bin Laden family members, the newspaper said, citing unnamed Pakistani and U.S. officials. More...

Monday


Monday


  • Jan-30 -- Putin Pledges Govt. Support to Large Infrastructure Projects
    THOUSANDS of cars flying white ribbons or white balloons circled central Moscow overnight in a show of protest against Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
    A VCIOM poll from December 2011 states that 34% of the Russians support the demands of the protesters against electoral manipulation. More...

  • Jan-30 -- Greeted by supporters lining roads for miles, Suu Kyi galvanizes politics in ...
    BURMESE opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has called for changes to the military-drafted constitution, on her first political trip since ending a boycott of the country's political system last year and announcing plans to run for parliament.
    In 2011, nearly 16 billion in foreign investment was promised, which is nearly two-thirds of gross domestic product. More...

  • Jan-30 -- Peru's health minister vows crackdown
    A FIRE swept through a Lima private rehabilitation centre for addicts on Saturday, killing at least 26 people and injuring 10.
    The rehab center was located in the densely populated San Juan de Lurigancho district of eastern Lima, where some 1.5 million people live. More...

  • Jan-30 -- RBS chief agrees to waive bonus
    Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc Chief Executive Officer Stephen Hester came under further pressure to give up his 963,000 pound ($1.5 million) bonus after Chairman Philip Hampton waived a 1.4 million-pound shares award.
    The source said it wanted to hold an Opposition Day debate the week after next to heap pressure on the Government over the payment. More...

Sunday


  • Jan-29 -- UN Chief Urges Africa to Respect Gay Rights
    The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has told African leaders that they must respect gay rights in an unusually outspoken declaration made at an African Union summit in Ethiopia.
    The Ugandan government, however, said that while it did not condone discrimination, it remained firmly opposed to homosexuality and continued to view the practice as a crime. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Suu Kyi Galvanizes Once-Repressed Myanmar Politics
    European Pressphoto Association A picture with Burmese opposition politician Aung San Suu Kyi is projected behind the podium during a plenary session at the 41st Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on 28 January 2011.
    "We are now reconstructing our party and preparing to contest by elections scheduled for first April. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Panetta on bin Laden's hideout: Someone had to know
    Afridi ran a vaccination programme for the CIA to collect DNA and verify bin Laden's presence in the compound.
    Doctor: Panetta also expressed concern about Pakistan's treatment of a doctor who helped the U.S. find bin Laden. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Sunni-backed political bloc ends boycott of Iraq Parliament
    Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, a Sunni.
    Security officials say 31 people, including eight police officers, were killed by a suicide car bomb near a funeral procession in a Shiite neighborhood in Baghdad, bringing the number of Iraqis killed in attacks since mid-December to 434, The New York Times reported. More...

Sunday


  • Jan-29 -- Rebels Kill Four at Indian Polling Station
    Sources said police and para-military forces were also patrolling at many parts of the state particularly in valley districts to detect and movement of ultras who might disrupt the poll process.
    What makes the one-and-a-half-hour journey from Imphal to Churachandpur, the second biggest town in the state, time-consuming isn't traffic or the narrow highway but the numerous checkpoints manned by heavily armed Manipur police commandos and Assam Rifles men. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Cuba Communist Party eyes term limits at gathering
    HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba's Communist Party will consider reforms this weekend that could impose term limits on its leaders in what would be a striking change on an island that Fidel Castro ruled for 49 years and was succeeded by his brother.
    Within the Cuban politburo, " the presence of young people, blacks, and women is minimal ," writes Arturo López Levy, an expert in U.S. -Cuban relations. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Egypt says it ended US lobbyists' contract
    The rupture occurred as Cairo comes under criticism in Washington for banning at least 10 Americans and Europeans from leaving the country as part of an investigation into foreign-funded civil society organizations.
    Several Washington lobbyists announced Saturday that they are ending their contract with the Egyptian government, as the controversy deepens over raids conducted on the offices of American advocacy groups. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Papua New Guinea mutiny leader Yaura Sasa arrested
    The court also ruled in a 3-2 decision that Sir Michael should be restored to the office of prime minister.
    More...

Sunday


  • Jan-29 -- Cuba Communist Party conference considers term limits
    HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba's Communist Party will consider reforms this weekend that could impose term limits on its leaders in what would be a striking change on an island that Fidel Castro ruled for 49 years and was succeeded by his brother.
    Romney also accused President Barack Obama of taking the "wrong direction" by trying to be conciliatory toward Cuban President Raul Castro and leaders of other countries that have been U.S. adversaries. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Pentagon Looking at Bigger Bomb, Navy SEALs Mothership for Persian Gulf
    The efforts have been speeded up as part of contingency planning for a possible strike against Iranian nuclear sites, the Wall Street Journal reported quoting U.S. officials.
    American Defense Secretary Leon Panetta saying Washington was "still trying" to develop more powerful bombs. More...

  • Jan-29 -- Turkey's Erdogan attacks France on genocide law
    About 20 other nations including Russia and Canada recognize the events in Anatolia as genocide.
    ANKARA, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- In a frantic bid to avert the " genocide" bill, Turkey has canvassed in Paris to convince 60 French senators to apply to Constitutional Court to abolish the legislation. More...

  • Jan-29 -- War of words over protest fiasco
    Mr Abbott said the incident on Australia Day was the most serious security breach involving Australian leaders since the 1970s.
    Mr Anderson said the decision to tip off the crowd, given the heady emotions on the day, was a set-up. More...





Saturday


  • Jan-28 -- Egyptians Prepare for Third Day of Protest After Anniversary
    CAIRO (AP): Thousands of Egyptian protesters have converged on Cairo's downtown Tahrir Square to mark the first anniversary of "Friday of Anger," a key day in the popular uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
    On 25 January, I knew we had overcome our fear when I saw the central security forces running away from Tahrir Square." More...

  • Jan-28 -- Hope of Survivors Diminishes in Rio Building Collapse
    RIO DE JANEIRO - Rescue workers feverishly dug through the wreckage of three destroyed buildings in downtown Rio on Friday, hunting for survivors of the collapse that killed at least nine people and left another 20 missing, according to police and municipal authorities.
    A Rio de Janeiro fire department official says rescuers pulled four more bodies from the debris overnight. More...

  • Jan-28 -- Libyans face tough challenges in building a new nation
    Armed residents attacked the barracks of the NTC force in the town, killing four fighters by the account of the government militia, and forced the unit to retreat to beyond the desert city's limits.
    Misrata witnessed one of the biggest clashes during the uprising against Muammar Qaddafi last year. More...

  • Jan-28 -- Aboriginal people remain disadvantaged socially and economically in Australia
    Black anger. an Australian flag is burnt and spat upon yesterday by protesters who marched from the tent embassy to the front doors of Parliament House.
    Abbott did not call for the tent embassy to be pulled down, as was claimed. More...

Saturday


  • Jan-28 -- Israelis Say Settlements Must Be Part of Israeli State
    The meeting took place as a deadline for Israel and the Palestinians to submit proposals on borders and security, which the Middle East Quartet of diplomatic peacemakers had set three months ago, expires on Thursday.
    Palestinian officials said the verbal presentation by Israeli negotiator Yitzhak Molcho at a meeting on Wednesday was a non-starter, envisaging a fenced-off territory of cantons that would preserve most Jewish settlements. More...

  • Jan-28 -- ACTA anger: Protesters hopeful as official resigns
    HACKTIVIST GROUP Anonymous has turned its attention to the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), an international treaty that arguably is even worse than the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) stalled in the U.S. Congress.
    Wired.com cited reports that on Wednesday, protestors by the thousands clogged streets in several Polish cities, chanting and carrying signs protesting the signing of the treaty. More...

  • Jan-28 -- Survey: Record number of Israeli Jews believe in God
    WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday remembered the 6 million Jewish victims murdered by German Nazis on the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
    As wacky as Adler's column was, it was an extreme expression of a viewpoint that carries great currency among Obama's Jewish critics: that the president represents a serious danger to Jews and to Israel. More...

  • Jan-28 -- RBS chairman waives share-based bonus
    LONDON - Politicians are fuming about a bonus of nearly a million pounds ($1.5 million) given to the chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland, which cost the U.K. government 45 billion pounds to bail out and nationalize.
    A contract is a contract and that's the end of it. More...

Saturday


  • Jan-28 -- Pervez Musharraf postpones Pakistan return, aide says
    DUBAI: Pakistan's former president Pervez Musharraf has postponed his return home as advised by the core committee of his party citing the current political situation there.
    DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - (AP) -- An aide to former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf says he's called off a planned return to his homeland, where he faces arrest in connection with the killing of an ex-prime minister in 2007. More...

  • Jan-28 -- France's proposed genocide law fuels Turkey's anger
    About 20 other nations including Russia and Canada recognize the events in Anatolia as genocide.
    "I hope at least 60 senators who believe that the law is unlawful will take it to the Constitutional Court," Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on Tuesday, warning that "otherwise Turkish-French relationship will enter into a different track." More...

  • Jan-28 -- Chinese Police Fire on Tibetan Protesters Again
    The government's news agency, Xinhua, quoting local authorities, said police opened fire after on Tuesday after a "mob charged a police station in a Tibetan prefecture in southwest China's Sichuan Province on Tuesday, injuring 14 police officers one day after a similar attack in the same prefecture."
    According to a BBC report at least 16 ethnic Tibetans have set themselves on fire since March 11 in what are described as protests at perceived cultural and religious repression under Chinese rule. More...

  • Jan-28 -- RBS chief Stephen Hester's £963000 bonus criticised
    Last year, Mr Hester received a bonus of more than £2m and the prime minister said: "If there is a bonus, it will be a lot less than it was last year."
    TUC leader Brendan Barber said the bonus was "a very bad decision", especially at a time of public sector pay restraint. More...

Friday


  • Jan-27 -- Brazil buildings collapse; at least 4 dead, 18 missing
    Sao Paulo, Brazil (CNN) -- Four people died and 22 remained missing after the collapse of three buildings in the historic center of Rio de Janeiro, Mayor Eduardo Paes said Thursday, according to CNN affiliate TV Record.
    Three people have been reported dead and 19 missing after the buildings came down late Wednesday night, reportedly after a loud explosion. More...

  • Jan-27 -- Dakar Tense Ahead of Senegal Elections Ruling
    Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Senegal's Constitutional Court may rule today on whether President Abdoulaye Wade can extend his term in office as protests against his re-election bid mount.
    Senegal's political discourse has almost exclusively focused on President Wade's eligibility for a third term, which critics argue is unconstitutional. More...

  • Jan-27 -- Islamists, Protesters Scuffle at at Egypt Rally
    The security forces had killed and wounded hundreds of protesters who had marched into the square amid massive protests against the Mubarak regime on January 27, 2011.
    Apart from identifying it with "destructive acts" usually perpetrated by the regime itself, the nature of that damage is never specified, let alone the identity of the Foreign Agenda propagators. More...

  • Jan-27 -- France to Speed Troops' Withdrawal from Afghanistan
    PARIS — President Nicolas Sarkozy said Friday that France would pull its forces out of Afghanistan a year earlier than planned, a week after the killing of four French servicemen by a renegade Afghan soldier.
    'We have two years in front of us to organize the whole transition,' Longuet, who travelled to Afghanistan following the killing of the soldiers. More...

Friday


  • Jan-27 -- Gingrich, Romney agree to blame the Palestinians, Obama for lack of progress ...
    "Israelis would be happy to have a two-state solution.
    Ashton's comments on January 26 came after Palestinians said the talks were over after a fifth meeting in just over three weeks between the two sides ended with no progress. More...

  • Jan-27 -- Ex-Guatemalan dictator faces genocide trial
    Former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt speaks with the media after a judge placed him under house arrest, at the Supreme Court of Justice in Guatemala City January 26, 2012.
    To win, public prosecutors will have to prove that the army's brutal scorched earth tactics were part of a coherent state policy designed by the president (not just the work of individual rogue officers). More...

  • Jan-27 -- Sarkozy opponent pledges to make rich pay for crisis
    PARIS (Reuters) - French presidential frontrunner Francois Hollande says he will raise taxes on the rich, cut tax on profits for smallest firms and cancel billions of euros of tax breaks introduced by conservative Nicolas Sarkozy if he replaces him in May.
    Hollande didn't mention Sarkozy by name, but implicitly targeted his tenure by citing a litany of gloomy French economic indicators and missed budget targets. More...

  • Jan-27 -- India's Republic Day Celebrations
    Camel troops of Indian Border Security Force saluted as they marched down Rajpath during the Republic Day parade, Thursday.
    More...

Friday


  • Jan-27 -- Cocaine Is Delivered to UN
    The New York City Police Department and U.S. authorities are investigating two sacks containing more than 16 kg of cocaine that arrived in the UN mailroom last week, police and United Nations said.
    The bags had no address on them, nor any return to sender details. More...

  • Jan-27 -- Turkey and France in diplomatic rift as Sarkozy courts Armenians in ...
    About 20 other nations including Russia and Canada recognize the events in Anatolia as genocide.
    Almost a century later, any mention of the genocide is still taboo. More...

  • Jan-27 -- Afghanistan: Suicide Bomber Kills 4
    The comment came in the wake of an incident in which a purported Afghan National Army soldier shot and killed four French troops and wounded at least 15 others in the eastern Kapisa Province, the site of the main French base in Afghanistan, on January 20.
    Top French officials in recent days have sought to dispel concerns abroad about a possible crack in the NATO-led alliance in Afghanistan and a hasty exit by France. More...

  • Jan-27 -- Putin Ratchets Up Anti-US Rhetoric as Kremlin Race Grows
    Russia's economy grew 4.2 percent in 2011, faster than the previous year's 4 percent expansion, Putin said Jan. 12.
    More...

Thursday


  • Jan-26 -- Kenyan Resigns Finance Post After International Charges
    NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenyan Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta resigned on Thursday, days after being indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity during violence that followed the disputed election of 2007.
    Activist groups have gone to court to block Kenyatta, son of Kenya's first president, from running for the presidency in elections due by March 2013 following the ICC charges. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Former High-Ranking US Officials Voice Skepticism on Afghanistan Plan
    In other Afghanistan news, Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, International Security Assistance Force commander, joined Afghan President Hamid Karzai in condemning a recent insurgent rocket attack on a home in the Allasai district of Kapisa province that killed a woman and a child and injured seven other people.
    KAPISA - A civilian woman and her child were killed, and seven other civilians injured, during an insurgent rocket attack on a residence in the Allasai district of eastern Kapisa province, Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai and U.S. General John Allen -- commander of the International Security Assistance Force coalition -- said in a joint statement of condemnation. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Egypt bans Americans from leaving as tensions rise
    CAIRO, Egypt -- Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians thronged major squares Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak.
    A year later, Abul-Gheit is in retirement and Zaki is awaiting a nomination to head an Egyptian mission overseas; the foreign ministry is all but side-lined. More...

  • Jan-26 -- French Socialist Pledges Retirement Age Cut in Platform
    PARIS (Reuters) - French presidential frontrunner Francois Hollande says he will raise taxes on the rich, cut tax on profits for smallest firms and cancel billions of euros of tax breaks introduced by conservative Nicolas Sarkozy if he replaces him in May.
    "I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the French presidential candidate had quoted me," Shakespeare said, The Telegraph reports. More...

Thursday


  • Jan-26 -- Pune rampage: Driver sent to police custody till February 3
    Pune woke up to a morning of horror as a state transport bus driver went on a rampage from Swargate depot ramming into vehicles and mowing down pedestrians who came in his way.
    Near the bus stand, Mane mowed two autorickshaws, whose drivers had a very narrow escape. More...

  • Jan-26 -- EU wants "bold" peace bids by Palestinians, Israel
    Abbas suggested that exploratory talks could continue if Israel presented a detailed border plan.
    UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - UN leader Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday that he will visit Israel and the Palestinians territories next week to reinforce efforts to revive the deadlocked peace process. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Scotland 'needs alternative to loaded referendum question'
    Jan. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond said his planned referendum on independence will ask a simple question on whether the country should go it alone, though he didn't rule out a third option of more power within the U.K. Voters in Scotland will be asked: "Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?" Salmond told the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh today as he put forward a consultation document for the vote.
    The consultation excludes the commission from setting or authorising the questions, a demand of the Cameron government, leaving Mr Salmond open to accusations of attempting to gerrymander the vote. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Poles protests against anti-piracy pact
    ACTA is the acronym for the international Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which Poland was to sign in Tokyo on Thursday.
    Leaders of the Polish government agreed to meet today to review their stance on copyright protection policies after Anonymous this weekend took down government Web sites. More...

Thursday


  • Jan-26 -- Scotland: Let 16-Year-Olds Have Vote
    Jan. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond said his planned referendum on independence will ask a simple question on whether the country should go it alone, though he didn't rule out a third option of more power within the U.K. Voters in Scotland will be asked: "Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?" Salmond told the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh today as he put forward a consultation document for the vote.
    Of that there can be no doubt. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Leader's Exit Spurs Grim Reckoning in Yemen
    Outgoing Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh arrives in the United States this week for medical treatment from wounds he suffered during an assassination attempt last year, or so the story goes.
    SANAA (AFP) - A controversial decision to offer immunity to President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his family was the key to ending a political crisis and avoiding civil war, the U.S. ambassador in Sanaa said on Tuesday. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Sarkozy: I'll quit politics if I lose power
    ODESSA, Ukraine — The eldest son of French President Nicolas Sarkozy left Ukraine on Wednesday after spending a day in hospital with apparent food poisoning, officials said.
    "A plane with Nicolas Sarkozy's son has already taken off from the Odessa International Airport," the source said. More...

  • Jan-26 -- Fiji declares a state of disaster over severe flooding
    Heavy rains are expected to continue to affect Fiji's main island of Viti Levu through to Thursday, with severe flood warnings for all major rivers and low lying areas of Viti Levu and the closure of roads in Nadi including the road between the resort area of Denarau Island and Nadi International Airport.
    A travel alert for the Pacific island of Fiji has been issued by the Foreign Office following severe flooding caused by heavy rainfall. More...

Wednesday


  • Jan-25 -- Landslide Hits Papua New Guinea
    CANBERRA Jan 24 (Reuters) - A landslide swept through two villages in Papua New Guinea on Tuesday, covering much of the settlements in mud and leaving up to 40 people missing, officials and residents told Australian media.
    A landslide in the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea has blocked a road which provides access to the PNG LNG project, shutting down work close to the construction site in the Hides and Komo area, project operator Esso Highlands, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil said Tuesday. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Analysis: Libyans losing faith in fair division of power
    Armed residents attacked the barracks of the NTC force in the town, killing four fighters by the account of the government militia, and forced the unit to retreat to beyond the desert city's limits.
    BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) - Forces loyal to Libya's late leader Moammar Gadhafi launched a series of attacks on Monday across several cities, killing seven fighters who helped topple the former regime, officials and residents said. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Watchdog releases annual global media freedom index
    In 2011, Taiwan was placed ahead of the United States which ranked 47th.
    Tajikistan is in 122nd place. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Turkey's Erdogan lambasts France on genocide law
    Jan. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused France's parliament of racism for a measure criminalizing the denial of genocide against Armenians in Anatolia, while holding back on announcing additional sanctions.
    The first proposal was to simply make denying that a crime, just as denying the Holocaust has been a crime since 1990. More...

Wednesday


  • Jan-25 -- Libyan Defense Minister Seeks Deal in Seized Town
    The fierce clashes in the town, about 90 miles southeast of Tripoli, come as the Libya's new leaders struggle to stamp out lingering resistance from pro-Khadafy forces and unify a deeply fractured country after eight months of civil war and more than 40 years of Khadafy's authoritarian rule.
    The revolutionary brigade had kept only a superficial control over the mountain city, a longtime Gadhafi stronghold which was one of the last to fall to NTC rule late last year. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Deadly Blasts Hit Shiite Neighborhoods in Baghdad
    BAGHDAD: Bombs in two parked cars exploded in a mainly Shia area of Iraq's capital on Tuesday, killing at least 10 people and wounding 31, police and hospital sources said.
    The first, in the northeastern Sadr City, targeted a group of labourers as they gathered for work, killing eight. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Students Bear the Burden of State Higher Ed Cuts
    Barack Obama has called on state departments to prioritise higher education in their budgets - but has warned universities that spiralling tuition will be met with a cut in taxpayer funding.
    While legislation to allow private companies getting rich at the expense of the UK taxpayer appears to have been put to the backburner, we will remain vigilant and ensure that no similar measures are brought in through the back door and without proper scrutiny. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Pope calls for silence against Internet noise
    In a world inundated by Tweets and 24-hour news coverage, that precious time to think and reflect gives words greater value, he said.
    Benedict wrote that in today's world, "various types of websites, applications and social networks" can help people "find time for reflection and authentic questioning." More...

Wednesday


  • Jan-25 -- Kenyans face trials over election deaths
    The International Criminal Court ruling on presidential contenders Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto and two others is likely to pose a major headache for Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki in the light of provisions in the country's new constitution.While the ICC has said that the four accused can proceed with their lives as usual as they await the outcome of the impending trial, Kenyan new law demands that anyone facing criminal charges must step down until their matter is resolved.Yesterday's ruling especially jeopardises the position of Mr Kenyatta, who is the country's deputy prime minister and also minister for Finance.
    All of the suspects have denied Moreno-Ocampo's accusations of crimes including murder, forced displacement, persecution and rape. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Fraud Cases Tossed by Russia Judges
    MOSCOW — Russia's election authorities said Monday they may reject the presidential candidacy of liberal opposition leader Grigory Yavlinsky after finding alleged violations in his registration forms.
    The Central Election Commission (CEC) said it would make a final decision on the liberal leaders participation in the poll in the coming days, after inspecting another sample of signatures. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Listen to the silence in your lives, pope says
    In a world inundated by Tweets and 24-hour news coverage, that precious time to think and reflect gives words greater value, he said.
    IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have a lengthy comment, copy it before entering the CAPTCHA code and hitting reply. More...

  • Jan-25 -- Landslide hits Papua New Guinea, deaths reported
    A landslide swept through two villages in Papua New Guinea yesterday, covering much of the settlements in mud and leaving up to 40 people missing, officials and residents told Australian media.
    The country's National Disaster & Emergency Office is involved following the early morning incident on Tuesday at the PNG LNG project in the Southern Highlands. More...

Tuesday


  • Jan-24 -- Putin harnesses Russian nationalism to boost presidential bid
    MOSCOW — Russia's election authorities said Monday they may reject the presidential candidacy of liberal opposition leader Grigory Yavlinsky after finding alleged violations in his registration forms.
    "And we will live together in the future. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Megaupload boss says he's innocent, rival stops file-sharing
    AUCKLAND (Reuters) - The founder of file-sharing website Megaupload was ordered to be held in custody by a New Zealand court on Monday, as he denied charges of internet piracy and money laundering and said authorities were trying to portray the blackest picture of him.
    Immigration New Zealand boss Warwick Tuck said 10 applicants from Belgium, Malaysia, the United States, China, Great Britain, Singapore and South Korea had entered New Zealand through the investor category, including Dotcom. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Shhh! Pope praises value of short tweets, silence
    In a world inundated by Tweets and 24-hour news coverage, that precious time to think and reflect gives words greater value, he said.
    Pope: Message for the 46th World Day of Social Communications Pope Benedict XVIth has released his message for the 46th World Day of Social Communications which falls on May 20th. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Summary Box: Polish activists protest treaty deemed threat to Internet freedom
    Post Forum members consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on politics, national and international affairs.
    More...

Tuesday


  • Jan-24 -- Memogate case teetering
    Islamabad: The Pakistani judicial commission probing the memo scandal today questioned the failure of star witness Mansoor Ijaz to appear before it and summoned Interior Minister Rehman Malik to respond to allegations regarding security to be provided to the controversial businessman.
    ISLAMABAD: Backtracking of Mansoor Ijaz, the central character of the Memogate, from his earlier announcement to appear before the probing commission, is a result of a deal between the conflicting parties in the case. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Is There Still Hope for a Democratic Egypt?
    The military institution in Egypt consumes more than 25% of the government expenditure, owns about 30% of the national economy, and has been receiving a hefty military aid package from the USA for almost three decades in billions.
    A timetable is set, the governing generals say publicly and U.S. officials confirm privately, for a transition of power in July when the first civilian president is modern history is expected to take office. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Europe Looks on the Bright Side
    ZAGREB (Reuters) - Croatia voted on Sunday to join the European Union next year, shrugging off concerns over the economic turmoil in the bloc and fears that membership will compromise its hard-won sovereignty.
    HRVOJE POLAN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES - Croatian President Ivo Josipovic, right, and Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic raise glasses of champagne in front of a painting of the first Croatian Parliament as they watch the first results of the EU referendum on a TV screen in the Croatian Parliament building in Zagreb on January 22, 2012. More...

  • Jan-24 -- China 'protecting Kim Jong-nam'
    Agence France-Presse/Getty Images Kim Jong-Nam, the eldest son of the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, waves to the press in Macau in 2010.
    Little is known about Kim, who is thought to be about 28. More...

Tuesday


  • Jan-24 -- Tokyo 'has 70% chance of powerful earthquake within four years'
    The Japanese government has forecast that the chance of a major quake of magnitude seven or more in the Tokyo region is 70 percent over the next 30 years.
    "Intensified seismic activity will continue from several to 10 more years," Hirata said. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Pakistan Rejects US Account of Clash That Ended With Airstrike
    ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Army rejected on Monday the findings of a U.S. probe into the NATO air strikes on border posts in Mohmand Agency in November last year, saying it did not agree with several portions and findings of the investigation report as they were factually incorrect.
    The Pakistani report also notes that the mandate of a concurrent NATO probe of the incident implies that "Pakistan was considered in an adversarial role and not part of friendly forces." More...

  • Jan-24 -- Ex-US envoy sees little power for young Kim
    The holiday comes as new leader Kim Jong Un makes a round of visits to military units.
    "We, however, witness a slight increase in the number of air force flights taking part in training," an unnamed government official was quoted as saying. More...

  • Jan-24 -- Report: China police fire on Tibetans, killing 3
    According to the rights group and government-in-exile, the man killed was called Yonten and his body was reportedly taken to a nearby monastery.
    The Tibetan government and London-based rights group Free Tibet cited eyewitnesses saying the protest began on Monday in Draggo county. More...

Monday


  • Jan-23 -- A day without Saleh, Yemenis remain cautious
    The United States says it will allow outgoing Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh to come to the U.S. for a limited time to undergo medical treatment.
    "The president. is on his way to the U.S. to continue what is left of his medical treatment" for wounds sustained in a June bomb attack on his compound, SABA news agency said on its website. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Covert War on Iran Heats Up
    The U.S. is so concerned over a possible attack on Iran that Obama sent General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff to meet with Israeli leaders last Thursday.
    According to a poll conducted by Israel's Dahaf Institute (an equivalent of the Gallup organisation) and cited in a New York Times piece by Steven Kull and Shibley Telhami, that is simply not true. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Palestinian woman tastes freedom after being locked in dark by father for 10 years
    The woman was found by Shreim and the police in a small bathroom with a tiny window.
    Ultimately it was Baraa's paternal aunt who persuaded Shreim to alert the police. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Figure at center of Pakistan 'memogate' wants to testify from abroad
    I trust Husain Haqqani more than I trust Rehman Malik.
    "The matter is sub-judice in the judicial commission and the parliamentary committee. More...

Monday


  • Jan-23 -- France votes on genocide law, faces Turkish reprisals
    Ankara froze political and military ties with France when the French lower house approved the bill last month, and promised further measures if the bill is passed by the Senate or is approved by President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose right-wing UMP party introduced it.
    Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Ankara would take new measures against France unless the bill was rejected. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Russian fans set for free flights to Euro 2012
    Russians have rallied in vast numbers since the December 4 vote, which handed ruling party United Russia a majority in the Duma, calling for change in the system dominated for nearly 12 years by Vladimir Putin.
    "There's a great distrust to the group, which tries to present itself as a voice of protesters' interests," Kudrin said in an interview for Kommersant TV. The former finance minister, who lost his job last September over disagreement with President Dmitry Medvedev on key issues, appeared at a demonstration on December 24 against alleged vote-rigging in parliamentary elections but was booed by some protesters. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Pakistan: Suspected US Drone Strike Kills 4
    The missiles hit a vehicle and a house Monday in North Waziristan tribal agencys Degan village, near the Afghan border.
    ISLAMABAD, Jan 23 (KUNA) -- At least four suspected militants were killed and three others were wounded in the second U.S. missile strike since Pakistani-US relations were strained in the aftermath of last year's attack on a Pakistani security point. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Hungary sees EU/IMF loan deal by April
    The Commission launched infringement procedures against Budapest last week, zeroing in on the central bank law, which allows for the merger of the bank with the financial regulator and lets Orban name a third deputy Governor among other changes.
    More...

Monday


  • Jan-23 -- Buoyed by 'Islamic Spring,' Hamas considers new direction
    Last month, the two men agreed on a process that could pave the way for the Islamist group to join a reformed Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and for long-delayed Palestinian elections across Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
    Amin Maqboul, a Fatah negotiator in the talks with Hamas, told AP: "Meshaal had a significant role in pursuing reconciliation. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Sarkozy Opponent Calls Finance Sector His 'Foe'
    The Socialist candidate for France's presidency sought to consolidate his front-runner status with a pledge to pull French troops out of Afghanistan and to combat international financial speculators that he blamed for much of the country's problems.
    Stock options would be banned, big bonus payouts strictly limited and laws introduced to separate traditional retail bank business from risky investment banking if voters made Hollande the first Socialist president in 17 years, since the late Francois Mitterrand. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Kim Jong Il portrait back up at main plaza as NKoreans pay New Year's respects ...
    Every family has its black sheep but few families are as shrouded in myth as the reclusive Kim regime of North Korea.
    Alejandro Cao de Benos - or 'Zo', as his comrades call him - is a devoted follower of the late Kim Jong-il and vigorously defends the North Korean government he represents. More...

  • Jan-23 -- Hungarians rally to demand opposition radio stay on air
    "Prime Minister Viktor Orban's conservative Fidesz Party has been condemned by the international community for introducing measures that threaten the independence of the media, the judiciary and the central bank since sweeping to power in 2010."
    "But because the weight of the issues is not significant and I would like to reduce the conflicts between Hungary, the EU and the Commission. More...

Sunday


  • Jan-22 -- MegaUpload Story Filled With Drama
    The call follows an arrest in Auckland of four alleged internet pirates who are being held in custody.
    The hacker group Anonymous retaliated for the arrests by claiming responsibility for taking down websites run by Universal Music, the Justice Department and the Recording Industry Association of America. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Orban and the EU
    "Prime Minister Viktor Orban's conservative Fidesz Party has been condemned by the international community for introducing measures that threaten the independence of the media, the judiciary and the central bank since sweeping to power in 2010."
    Organizers marching at the front of the crowd carried a banner saying "We won't become a colony," a slogan Bayer repeated outside Hungary 's neo-gothic parliament. More...

  • Jan-22 -- As region changes, Hamas movement shifts
    Last month, the two men agreed on a process that could pave the way for the Islamist group to join a reformed Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and for long-delayed Palestinian elections across Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
    GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories — Buffeted by the winds of the Arab Spring, the Hamas movement is transforming, with power shifting from its exiled leadership towards its government on the ground in Gaza, analysts say. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Madagascar: Coup leader wants to fly rival home
    Johannesburg - An attempt by Madagascar's toppled president to end his exile in South Africa was thwarted in the air on Saturday when his plane was forced to turn back after authorities on his Indian Ocean island closed their airspace to prevent his return, his spokesperson said.
    Relations between the two men have not thawed, helping to keep Madagascar in a state of flux for the last three years. More...

Sunday


  • Jan-22 -- Pakistan's political soap opera
    Says every institution should work within its limits; challenges opposition in elections.
    The unusual appearance by a head of government before a high court on Thursday was the latest move in a high-stakes struggle between the civilian regime, the judges and Pakistan's powerful army generals, who have seized power three times since 1947. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Iraq becoming 'police state', says rights group
    BAGHDAD - (AP) -- An international human rights group says Iraq's Shiite-led government has cracked down harshly on dissent during the past year of Arab Spring uprisings, turning the country into a "budding police state" as autocratic regimes crumbled elsewhere in the region.
    Outside the Arab world, the last year has not witnessed significant progress in countries with poor human rights records, including China and North Korea, according to the report. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Jonathan Meades on France, BBC4, Wednesday Putin, Russia and the West, BBC2 ...
    Russians have rallied in vast numbers since the December 4 vote, which handed ruling party United Russia a majority in the Duma, calling for change in the system dominated for nearly 12 years by Vladimir Putin.
    Around 2,000 Communist party stalwarts gathered yesterday near Moscow's Red Square to mark the 88th anniversary of Vladimir Lenin's death and protest elections they say were rigged against their candidates. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Karzai: French troops killed in 'isolated' attack
    Karzai was speaking after meeting French Defence Minister Gerard Longuet who flew to Kabul in the wake of the shooting at a French base on Friday.
    Earlier Sunday, Longuet and General John Allen, the U.S. commander of foreign troops in Afghanistan, presided over a solemn repatriation ceremony for the bodies of the four French troops at a snowy Kabul airport. More...

Sunday


  • Jan-22 -- US Senators Signal Conditional Support for Lifting Burma Sanctions
    Burma's President Thein Sein has said that recent reforms in the country are irreversible, and even hinted that Aung San Suu Kyi - once one of the world's most celebrated political prisoners - could be given a cabinet post.
    The 88 Generation Students will support and surround her," said Kyaw Min Yu on behalf of the 88 Generation Students Group. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Hungarian Mass Demonstration Shows Support for Orban Amid EU Row
    "Prime Minister Viktor Orban's conservative Fidesz Party has been condemned by the international community for introducing measures that threaten the independence of the media, the judiciary and the central bank since sweeping to power in 2010."
    Hungary disagrees with the commission on the lowering of the mandatory retirement age for judges, over which the European Union has threatened a lawsuit, government spokesman Andras Giro-Szasz said today in a television interview. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Pakistan hurtles towards 2012 polls
    Says every institution should work within its limits; challenges opposition in elections.
    The testimony capped days of speculation about whether Gilani would apologize, agree to the court's demands, or resign, and about the implications for a civilian government facing collapse amid duels with the military and the judiciary. More...

  • Jan-22 -- Beijing releases pollution data; US figures higher
    Beijing: Beijing has started releasing hourly readings for key air quality data that are expected to better indicate the extent of the city's air pollution.
    The effort by the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center comes in response to repeated calls from the public for better information about what exactly is in Beijing's smog-filled air. More...









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