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


Saturday


  • Nov-07-2009 -- PM's Afghanistan policy criticised
    The best comments will appear alongside it in the print edition.
    Our leaders maintain the rhetoric, but not the aim, the momentum, the will. More...

  • Nov-07-2009 -- Troops 'injured in Afghan air raid'
    NATO defence ministers, meeting last month in Bratislava, approved a plan to focus the strategy in Afghanistan on protecting civilians from Taliban attacks while accelerating the training of Afghan security forces.
    Members of the joint force were searching for two missing U.S. Army soldiers," ISAF said in a statement. More...

  • Nov-07-2009 -- Thailand-Cambodia Tensions Rise Over Appointment of Fugitive Thai Official
    BANGKOK: Thailand and Cambodia have recalled their respective ambassadors in a diplomatic row sparked by Phnom Penh's decision to install the fugitive former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser.
    A source at pharmaceutical manufacturer Thai Nakorn Pattana, owner of the Phokeethra Country Club in Seam Reap, said the hotel-sponsored Johnnie Walker Cambodian Open golf tournament would still take place from November 19-22 as planned. More...

  • Nov-07-2009 -- Expanded Role Seen for S. Africa's Zuma in Zimbabwe Unity Gov't Patchup
    Johannesburg; and Harare, Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe's on-again, off-again coalition government is on again.
    Selection forms for the BEAM programme were being distributed by the Zanu PF local ward chairperson, David Mpala, and MDC supporting parents were having difficulty accessing the forms. More...

  • Nov-07-2009 -- Why Iran Is Object Of Concern
    "To start with more sophisticated designs speaks of level of technical ambition that is surprising."
    The diplomatic push for a solution continues, even after the recent disclosure that Iran has been building another secret enrichment facility near the city of Qom. More...

  • Nov-07-2009 -- Obama administration would talk to North Korea: aide
    No longer could the Chinese be telling the Americans to at least talk to these people, and no longer could anyone anywhere accuse the U.S. of not wanting to deal.
    Cha then called on North Korea to put something different on the negotiating table other than offering to disable nuclear facilities as it had done in the past. More...

Friday (Update 1)


  • Nov-06-2009 -- Thailand, Cambodia dispute not good for ASEAN: Singapore
    BANGKOK: Thailand and Cambodia have recalled their respective ambassadors in a diplomatic row sparked by Phnom Penh's decision to install the fugitive former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an economic adviser.
    For the government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, Cambodia's action is a slap in the face it feels compelled to respond to, calling it "interference in Thailands domestic affairs." More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- No worries at Iran uranium site: IAEA chief
    NEW YORK -- The departing director of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency declared Wednesday that efforts to curb nuclear proliferation were in "tatters," but he held out hope that current talks over Iran's nuclear program could open "a new era" between the West and Tehran.
    "We have no indication, no complete proof, that Iran has an ongoing nuclear weapons program," said Mohamed ElBaradei. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- US says open to nkorea visit
    Obama goes on a weeklong tour of Japan, Singapore, China and South Korea starting Nov. 12.
    The plutonium reprocessing plant had been closed as part of an agreement the country negotiated with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- India Bars Foreign Media from Border State During Dalai Lama Visit
    Maria Otero, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs, told journalists in the Indian capital New Delhi that "the Dalai Lama is a religious leader and he was visiting a monastery, a holy place.
    According to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu Thursday, the three-day visit "further exposes the anti- China and separatist nature of the Dalai clique." More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- Japan vows $5.5 bln aid to Mekong region at summit
    TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan struggled with the touchy issue of reorganizing U.S. military bases on the southern island of Okinawa on Wednesday, just a week ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama's first visit to Japan as leader.
    About 200 Burmese dissidents demonstrated outside Japan's Parliament House in Tokyo on Friday, the second of three planned protests against Burma's military government during a visit by Prime Minster Gen Thein Sein who arrived in the Japanese capital on Thursday to attend the first Mekong-Japan Summit. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- Spanish Captives in Somali Waters Plead for Help
    MADRID (Reuters) - Somali pirates have threatened to kill three captive crew members from a Spanish fishing vessel if two suspected pirates being held in Spain are not freed, a senior officer aboard the vessel said on Friday.
    Spanish policemen escort to a juvenile court in Madrid an alleged pirate suspected of helping to seize the Alakrana. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- China hopes APEC summit conducive to global economic recovery
    To be held at the Istana, Singapore President's office, over two days (Nov. 14 and 15), the Leaders of the 21 APEC member economies will discuss long-term economic issues as the world emerges from recession.
    "Leaders of ten ASEAN member countries have confirmed to join the meeting." More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- Chinese President's Malaysia, Singapore visits to further ties,FM official
    Chilton met with Gen. Xu Caihou, one of two vice chairmen of the People's Republic of China's Central Military Commission, during Xu's visit to Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base south of Omaha, Neb.
    Chinese President Hu Jintao has reassured visiting Air Force delegations that China's military intentions are peaceful, as the country commemorates the 60th anniversary of its Air Force. More...

Friday


  • Nov-06-2009 -- Tsvangirai ends Zimbabwe boycott
    The meeting will bring together the members of Zimbabwe's stalled unity government -- President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and deputy premier Arthur Mutambara.
    The host Mozambican President Armando Guebuza has also invited South Africa President Jacob Zuma to help the troika that also has Zambian President Rupiah Banda and Swaziland'''s King Mswati 111 to tackle one of the region'''s longest running conflicts. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- Shinawatra stokes tensions by taking job with Cambodian government
    BANGKOK - THAILAND recalled its ambassador to Phnom Penh on Thursday, a day after Cambodian Premier Hun Sen appointed fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra a special adviser on economic affairs.
    'Mr Thaksin is well-known and very successful in business,' Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan said Thursday. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- Karadzic Gets Delay, and Lawyer, in War Crimes Trial
    Karadzic can continue to represent himself, but will have to work with the appointed lawyer, according to the ruling by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
    In a first reaction, Marko Sladojevic, one of Karadzic's three current legal counsels, said appointing a new legal counsel would not solve anything. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- In South Waziristan, hopes that Taliban's exit will bring progress
    DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan — The leader of the Pakistani Taliban urged his fighters to stand fast against a military offensive in tribal South Waziristan, warning them in an intercepted message obtained Thursday that cowards will go to hell.
    In exchange for the pullout of the non-Pashtun Abdullah, Pakistan's military has agreed to actively mediate between Washington and the Taliban over a reconciliation plan that will allow the U.S. to exit from Afghanistan, as it is doing in Iraq, with a semblance of success. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- S.Lanka DFCC Q2 net jumps on high interest rate margins
    The Sri Lankan government was concerned that the DHS was seeking testimony from Fonseka against Sri Lankan Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on allegations of human rights violations.
    Nov 05, Colombo: Sri Lankan government is considering to develop a nuclear power programme to meet the country's growing power demand. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- India Bars Foreign Media from Border State During Dalai Lama Visit
    High in the Himalayas, the biggest Buddhist monastery in India is preparing for a visit from the Dalai Lama that is set to anger and antagonise China as much as it will delight the red-robed monks that he meets.
    I would be embarrassed to privately exhibit the amount of hypocrisy that the Dalai Lama revels in flaunting on the global stage. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- International Prosecutor to Seek Inquiry Into Kenya Violence
    "The Swedish Presidency of the EU welcomes the visit by the Chief Prosecutor of the ICC Moreno-Ocampo.
    Foreign investigators are camping in Eldoret ahead of the arrival of International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo on Thursday. More...

  • Nov-06-2009 -- Indonesia extends Oceanic Viking's stay
    Confirmation that the boat was carrying Tamil asylum seekers adds to the political pressure on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd over the issue.
    THE Indonesian Government is facing mounting anger in the media and from local politicians over the ''Indonesia solution'' to asylum seekers trying to come to Australia. More...

Thursday (Update 1)


  • Nov-05-2009 -- Pakistan Taliban chief urges troops to fight army
    North Waziristan is a known sanctuary of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, who use the rugged territory to carry out deadly raids on the Western forces in neighbouring Afghanistan.
    If we get that, then we will go to the borders and help fight the Indians," TTP chief Hakimullah recently stated brazenly. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- CIA verdict in Italy challenges Obama on renditions
    ROME -- A judge in Milan on Wednesday convicted 23 Americans of the kidnapping of an Egyptian cleric in 2003, culminating a landmark trial that gave a look into the secret world of CIA renditions of terrorism suspects.
    The idea of an American CIA agent ever spending 1 minute in Italian jail is ludicrous. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Karadzic counsel appointed, trial resumes March 2010
    AMSTERDAM, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Yugoslavia war crimes tribunal judges ordered the appointment of legal counsel for Radovan Karadzic on Thursday because the former Bosnian Serb leader had refused to attend his trial since it started last week.
    The ICTY has had considerable success in arraigning secondary war-criminals of all nationalities, but no settling of the accounts of the post-Yugoslav wars of the 1990s will be complete until Mladic joins Karadzic in the dock. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Shinawatra stokes tensions by taking job with Cambodian government
    Bangkok/Phnom Penh - Thailand on Thursday recalled its ambassador to Cambodia after its neighbour formally offered fugitive former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra a position as an adviser to the government and Prime Minister Hun Sen. The Thai Foreign Ministry announced the recall of Ambassador Pasas Pasasbinitchai the day after the Cambodian government announced Thaksin's honorary appointment.
    The Thai Foreign Ministry announced the recall of Ambassador Pasas Pasasbinitchai the day after the Cambodian government announced Thaksin's honorary appointment. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Kenyan leaders fail to sanction tribunal to investigate post-election violence
    The discussions were candid and frank," said the statement in part.
    "The ICC is just doing a piece -- prosecuting the most responsible -- but then there are other efforts needed." More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Poll, econ woes drag S.Lanka shares to near 2-mo low
    The Sri Lankan Embassy statement further said, The U.S. Department of Homeland Security was asked to desist from any endeavour to interview General Fonseka.
    Gonsalves said the government was "not going to bother" with a campaign mounted by prominent intellectuals in the country and abroad to head off "Operation Green Hunt" - code name for the deployment of 70,000 paramilitary troops in the so-called "Red Corridor" that runs through parts of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and West Bengal states In a letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, dated October 12, the intellectuals, including Booker Prize-winning author Arundhati Roy and American political activist Noam Chomsky, charged that the government's offensive was an attempt to crush "democratic and popular resistance against dispossession and impoverishment'' and a move that seemed to be geared towards facilitating the entry and operation of "large corporations and paving the way for unbridled exploitation of the natural resources and people" in the affected regions. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Abbas Aides: Palestinian Leader Will Not Seek Re-Election
    Fatah Central Committee renewed its confidence in the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as it supported his candidacy for a new term after he expressed his willingness to run as a candidate for the presidential elections, officials who attended the movement'''s meeting in Ramallah on Wednesday, said.
    Mahmoud Abbas will not seek re-election as Palestian President. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Ousted Honduran leader asks Clinton stand on coup
    TEGUCIGALPA, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Enterprise Council for Latin America (CEAL) on Sunday asked the international community to keep a close eye on the implementation of the political agreement reached in Honduras.
    Hilda Solis, the U.S. labour secretary, and Ricardo Lagos, a former Chilean president, are on the panel along with Jorge Arturo Reina, a representative for Zelaya, and Arturo Corrales, who is representing the Honduran interim government. More...

Thursday


  • Nov-05-2009 -- Honduras: Ousted Leader Questions US Policy
    TEGUCIGALPA, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Enterprise Council for Latin America (CEAL) on Sunday asked the international community to keep a close eye on the implementation of the political agreement reached in Honduras.
    Negotiations were brokered by representatives of the United States and the Organization of American States. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Italian judge convicts 23 in CIA kidnap case
    The government of Silvio Berlusconi, a close ally of President George W. Bush, has previously refused.
    The convictions might have little other practical effect. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Australia launches inquiry into major oil spill
    Embassy public affairs official Angky Septiana said the oil leak began on Aug. 21, spilling light crude oil into the Timor Sea.
    An inquiry set up to examine what caused a 10-week long oil leak off the Western Australian coast has been given tough coercive powers equivalent to a royal commission. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Academic fearful before expulsion from Fiji
    WELLINGTON, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully on Tuesday night confirmed that New Zealand's Acting Head of Mission in Fiji has been ordered out of the country by the interim government of Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama.
    The decision to expel senior Fijian diplomats comes as relations between the Pacific neighbours hit a new low. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- In unified Germany, split over the past
    Every train taking Soviet tourists to East Germany rattled like a liquor store on the move: Short on cash, the "colonizers" smuggled in vodka and champagne to sell it to hotel maids in Dresden and East Berlin.
    I was relieved when we got through! When I heard that the wall had come down I was so happy, particularly for my relatives in the East who had to live in poverty for many years. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- In pictures: Sri Lanka art camp
    A Tamil child sleeps in a refugee camp in Sri Lanka.
    A Sri Lankan government minister has said some 80,000 people have now been resettled and nearly 190,000 remain in the camps. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- Talks aim to end Zimbabwe crisis
    HARARE Zimbabwe's feuding political leaders today travel to Maputo, Mozambique, for Thursday's Southern African Development Community (SADC) defence and security organ summit to discuss Harare's fragile coalition, officials from the parties said on Wednesday.
    After meeting Mugabe earlier on Monday, Kabila met Tsvangirai at a local hotel in the evening. More...

  • Nov-05-2009 -- US soldier dies in drug attack in Mexico strip bar
    CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) - A gang of gunmen killed six men in a bar in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez on Wednesday, prosecutors in northern Chihuahua state reported.
    Blinded by death, shrouded in secrecy and driven by recklessness could be used to describe the Mexican drug cartels - however, these terms are used to describe our own government agency, ICE. It started with cold-blooded murder and it ended with at least a dozen lives ripped apart all with the knowledge and approval of the U.S. government, which included the slaying of a U.S. citizen as well as related murder that took place in El Paso. More...

Wednesday (Update 1)


  • Nov-04-2009 -- Washington to take steps to improve ties with Myanmar: US official
    Kurt Campbell, the Assistant Secretary of State responsible for Asia, will meet Burma's Prime Minister, Thein Sein, and the detained democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, in a two day visit that brings to an end an official policy of isolating the junta.
    Campbell is the senior most U.S. official to visit Burma in the past 14 years. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- The Berlin Wall 2.0
    Every train taking Soviet tourists to East Germany rattled like a liquor store on the move: Short on cash, the "colonizers" smuggled in vodka and champagne to sell it to hotel maids in Dresden and East Berlin.
    After the day's shooting, Snow and I walked through the Brandenburg Gate to the former East Berlin, a place that once appeared drab and lifeless but now pulsed with color and energy. (In a building that had once housed a branch of the old Communist government, Snow and I discovered a particularly vivid demonstration of the victory of free markets: a Rolls-Royce dealership.) More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Tropical depression forms in southwest Caribbean
    Tropical Depression 11 has formed in the Southwestern Caribbean Sea with winds near 35 mph.
    TAMPA - The year's latest tropical depression ]] tropical depression formed today from an area of low pressure tucked near Central America and is expected to become Tropical Storm Ida, possibly today. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Fiji's Diplomatic Tussle With Australia, New Zealand Escalates
    "I wish to declare that my government fully supports the Chief Justice.
    Shortly afterwards, Prof Lal, an outspoken critic of the military regime, was being questioned by military officials and told to leave the country, according to media reports. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- United Nations Begins Debate on Gaza Inquiry
    The sponsors of the draft can count on broad support among nonaligned, African and Muslim-majority countries, which make up the majority of the UN membership.
    Israel also pursued other diplomatic avenues in an effort to avoid any further embossment during the UN meeting, enlisting the support of the U.S., France, the UK and dozens of other countries in order to foil an unfavorable resolution. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Deaths as storm rages in Vietnam
    Floods in Vietnam's Phu Yen province killed 10 people after the storm hit, drenching the region with heavy rains on Monday, said disaster official Duong Van Huong.
    While the government is trying to provide better land for the so-called illegal settlers, it faces an uphill task to reverse years of poor urban planning that has left large sections of the population living in at-risk areas, particularly in shanty towns around big cities like Manila, which has been inundated with people from the provinces seeking work. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Sri Lanka's top general leaves us unquestioned
    The government on Monday had asked U.S authorities not to question General Sarath Fonseka, the Chief of Defence Staff and a U.S. permanent resident, who led the army to victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in May.
    Did anyone verify the authenticity of the call made to Gen. Fonseka? It could be an LTTE supporter trying to fuel a contention between SL and U.S. governments. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Sri Lanka's asylum solution
    Confirmation that the boat was carrying Tamil asylum seekers adds to the political pressure on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd over the issue.
    Australian officials are aware of the ''interesting'' background of the asylum seekers. More...

Wednesday


  • Nov-04-2009 -- Lone Karadzic finally appears
    RADOVAN Karadzic finally faced judges in The Hague early today, ending his three-day boycott of the war crimes tribunal.
    Karadzic, who is representing himself, faces 11 counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- UN to urge credible probe of alleged Gaza war crimes
    The sponsors of the draft can count on broad support among nonaligned, African and Islamic states, which make up the majority of the UN membership.
    The Ros-Lehtinen/Berman resolution, which is also co-sponsored by Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) and Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY) and more than 130 other House Members, denounces the report as "irredeemably biased," applauds the administration's previous rejection of the report, urges the administration to "unequivocally oppose" further consideration of the report at U.N. bodies, and expresses support for Israel's right to self-defense. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Missing boat disaster victims had no chance
    Confirmation that the boat was carrying Tamil asylum seekers adds to the political pressure on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd over the issue.
    There were 35 people from Indonesia settled in Australia in the year to June 30, immigration department figures cited in the report show. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Australia, PTTEP to Probe Timor Sea Oil Spill, Blaze
    THE Federal Government will conduct a full inquiry into an oil leak which has been spewing oil into the Timor Sea for 10 weeks when the spill is contained, Resources Minister Martin Ferguson said.
    The rig's operators have been struggling for weeks to stop the leak, which environmentalists fear poses long-term risks to the area's wildlife. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- US officials to meet Aung San Suu Kyi
    Campbell's Nay Pyi Taw trip is marked as the highest-level one to Myanmar of the U.S. in 14 years since 1995.
    Myanmar Prime Minister Thein Sein is expected to attend, Lee said. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- President Obama Still to Decide Whether to Send More US Troops to Afghanistan
    Within weeks, the White House agreed to a new war plan submitted by General Stanley McChrystal that was supposed to lead to a U.S. victory.
    An unquiet ghost stalks the White House Situation Room as Barack Obama, increasingly Hamlet-like, ponders what to do in Afghanistan: it is the spectre of the Vietnam War, America's enduring historical hang-up. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Simon Mann flies home to face tough questions and lucrative offers
    Freed mercenary Simon Mann is due home in Britain today to face questioning by Scotland Yard detectives investigating the botched Equatorial Guinea coup.
    The South African department of international relations and co-operation confirmed the men's release into the custody of the South African embassy in the Equatorial Guinea capital, Malabo. More...

  • Nov-04-2009 -- Famed anthropologist focused on commonalities of cultures
    Died at 100 on Friday, Levi-Strauss was buried at a private service, local media reported.
    PARIS — After weeks crossing the high seas, Claude Levi-Strauss breathed in his first lungful of the New World, a perfume tinged with pepper or tobacco. More...

Tuesday (Update 1)


  • Nov-03-2009 -- Australia oil well leak 'plugged'
    THE Federal Government will conduct a full inquiry into an oil leak which has been spewing oil into the Timor Sea for 10 weeks when the spill is contained, Resources Minister Martin Ferguson said.
    "The best way to stop the fire is to complete the well kill and stop the flow of gas and oil at the surface from the H1 well cutting off the fuel source for the fire." More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Pull the Plug on Afghanistan
    Within weeks, the White House agreed to a new war plan submitted by General Stanley McChrystal that was supposed to lead to a U.S. victory.
    An American success in Afghanistan is important not just to prevent terrorism, but to make sure that the Taliban's influence does not overwhelm Pakistan, the nuclear-armed nation next door, Lee said. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Jews take over Jerusalem house from Palestinians
    Israeli police and Shin Bet last month arrested Jack Teitel, a 37-year-old American immigrant living in the West Bank outpost of Shvut Rachel, The Jerusalem Post reported, citing security sources.
    Teitel was arrested in early October by Shin Bet and police forces. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Hamas Improved Rocket Abilities Since War - Israel
    Amnesty International has called for an independent investigation into war crimes in the Gaza Strip and Israel ahead of a General Assembly meeting on Goldstone report.
    Israel has criticized the report as unbalanced and says the 47-nation Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council, which commissioned the report, is biased against the Jewish state. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Senior US Diplomats Meet With Burma's PM
    Campbell's Nay Pyi Taw trip is marked as the highest-level one to Myanmar of the U.S. in 14 years since 1995.
    A spokesman for Ms Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy, Nyan Win, said: ''Mr Campbell's visit is the beginning of new U.S. engagement policy toward. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- New video on missing British girl Madeleine mccann
    The little girl vanished in May 2007, during a family vacation in Portugal.
    Statisticians do that most awful of thing, taking away people's hope." More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Berlin Wall Anniversary Sparks Look At History
    If Nov. 9, 1989, was the D-Day of the Cold War, it'''s true that Americans weren'''t the ones breaching East Germany'''s defenses.
    As the Grand Old Men chatted about the past only Mr Gorbachev, once the leader of the Soviet Union, mentioned her in passing. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- World's largest passenger ship sets sail - with a squeeze
    It cost $1.5 billion, is 20 stories tall and five times larger than the Titanic and has 2,700 cabins for 6,300 passengers, a crew of 2,100, an ice rink, a golf course and a 750-seat outdoor amphitheater.
    The world's largest cruise ship, Oasis of the Seas, is set to make a brief, but dramatic, appearance in the Solent today. More...

Tuesday


  • Nov-03-2009 -- `Grave fears' for those missing in boat disaster
    The fishing vessel responded to a call for assistance from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) after it received a distress signal from the stricken boat on Sunday at 7.10am (AEDT).
    The RAAF and Australia's Royal Flying Doctors Service will today join the search for survivors, with grave fears now held for more than 20 people unaccounted for after 17 were rescued. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Czech court to rule on key EU reform treaty
    In a referendum, Ireland conclusively endorsed the Lisbon Treaty, an administrative reform plan that supporters say will make the common market more efficient.
    Informal talks about the future EU president also took place at the leaders' summit. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- US diplomats seek facts in Burma
    Campbell's Nay Pyi Taw trip is marked as the highest-level one to Myanmar of the U.S. in 14 years since 1995.
    The visit of Messrs Campbell and Marciel was made possible after the U.S. secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, announced a policy shift on Myanmar a few months ago. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Honduras Congress not yet called back into session
    TEGUCIGALPA, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Enterprise Council for Latin America (CEAL) on Sunday asked the international community to keep a close eye on the implementation of the political agreement reached in Honduras.
    Llorens said the Nov. 29 elections were essential to solving the long-pending crisis in the country following a June 28 coup that deposed Zelaya. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Refugee Issue Hurting Australia's Rudd
    There is something wrong with what is happening in the current asylum-seeker standoff.
    The Australian Government should have read the writing on the wall during the period when the civil war was ending, and realised that there would be a significant refugee problem. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Tropical Depression Weakens on Path to Hit Central Philippines
    The Philippines have been hit hard by a number of typhoons over the last month, including Kujira, which left at least 27 dead, and Ketsana, which took at least 300 lives and caused the worst flooding in over 40 years in the area.
    Mirinae hit the Philippines with typhoon strength over the weekend, killing 20 people before losing strength as it moved across the South China Sea toward Vietnam. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- 'Respectful disagreement' in Moscow
    Lavrov also noted successful cooperation between Moscow and London on the international arena.
    Miliband is Britain's first top diplomat to visit Russia in five years. More...

  • Nov-03-2009 -- Iran students carry on protests
    Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards warned the moderate opposition not to stage any rallies on Nov 4, when the Islamic Republic marks the 30th anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. '''''' Opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi, who says the June election that he lost to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was rigged, appeared to urge his supporters two days ago to take part in rallies on that day. '''' In mid-September, his supporters clashed with police and government backers at annual demonstrations in support of the Palestinians.
    The idea was first proposed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the expediency council rubber-stamped the idea. More...

Monday (Update 1)


  • Nov-02-2009 -- Outlook: How the Berlin Wall came down
    As has been established above, Mrs. Camphausen disagrees that Honecker was a crucial actor of Cold War History when it comes to the Berlin Wall.
    In one bloody crackdown by the Stasi (The Ministry of State Security) secret police, dissidents were beaten up and arrested as they left the church. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Many missing near Cocos Islands
    A merchant ship and Taiwanese fishing vessel are searching for more survivors in rough, pre-dawn seas after the boat got into trouble about 700 nautical miles northwest of the Cocos Islands.
    "The purpose of the voyage has yet to be determined. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Nature gets a helping hand as snow blankets Beijing
    Beijing (ChattahBox) - Meteorologists have began seeding the clouds over Beijing in order to create snow fall, in an attempt to break the current drought that region has been suffering.
    Chinese meteorologists covered Beijing in snow after seeding clouds to bring winter weather to the capital in an effort to combat a lingering drought. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Rescue under way after boat sinks off Australia
    Confirmation that the boat was carrying Tamil asylum seekers adds to the political pressure on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd over the issue.
    To do so would establish a whole new precedent in which people smugglers no longer would need to reach Australian waters, says one minister. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Iran Warns Opposition Over Anti-US Day Rallies
    TEHRAN, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for European Affairs Ali Ahani said Sunday that European Union should revise its approach towards Iran, the official IRNA news agency reported.
    The EU'''s stance against the court decree is illogical and unjustified, Ahani told Swedish ambassador to Iran Magnus Werndstedt whose country holds the rotating EU presidency. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Miliband visits Russia to thaw frosty ties, yet differences remain
    Lavrov also noted successful cooperation between Moscow and London on the international arena.
    Miliband's trip to Moscow — falling on the third anniversary of Litvinenko's poisoning — angered Litvinenko's London-based widow, Marina. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Iraqi PM meets UN envoy over deadly bombings in Baghdad
    The bombings were the deadliest to hit Iraq since 2007.
    Police say a booby trapped bicycle exploded at a popular fruit and vegetable market near Hillah, the capital of Iraq's Babil province, 60 miles south of Baghdad. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Russia conditionally supports new climate deal: Putin
    MOSCOW — Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned the European Union on Sunday that gas supplies via Ukraine may be disrupted because of a payment dispute with Kiev, news agencies quoted his office as saying.
    Russia provides about a quarter of the natural gas consumed in the European Union. More...

Monday


  • Nov-02-2009 -- Final round for UN climate talks
    The developed countries have to commit to deep emissions cuts, at least by 25%-40% by 2020 compared to 1990.
    China's top leaders, including Hu and vice-Premier Li Keqiang, have been determinedly upbeat about success at Copenhagen. Rifts have narrowed on issues such as establishing a central body to manage the spread of climate-friendly technology and financing poor countries' climate needs, said Seligsohn. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Johnson defends drugs row sacking
    LONDON — The government's top adviser on drugs was forced to resign Friday after saying that cannabis, LSD and ecstasy were no more dangerous than alcohol and cigarettes.
    Meanwhile Professor Nutt stepped up his attack on the Government's drugs policy, particularly the decision to upgrade the status of cannabis. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- More Officials Stepped Down as Push for Freedoms Grew
    The three statesmen from the United States, Soviet Union and West Germany - whose steady-handed leadership paved the way for the Wall's opening on November 9, 1989 -- recalled the events that led to the end of the Cold War at a ceremony attended by 1,800 people.
    I knew it would happen. The process had long been started already," he said. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Vatican decision received with some applause, some apathy
    K'ng, a Swiss Catholic priest and an outspoken opponent of Catholic teaching on clerical celibacy, said the decision is a signal that "Pope Benedict is set upon restoring the Roman imperium."
    According to the release, the members welcomed the Roman Catholic Church's acknowledgement of a substantial overlap in faith and the legitimacy of many Anglican traditions, a recognition that is the fruit of over 40 years of official dialogue between the two churches. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Philippines: No ransom for kidnapped Irish priest
    THE Irish and Filipino governments along with the Columban Fathers yesterday appeared to rule out paying the 1.36m ransom demanded by gunmen who kidnapped an Irish priest and who released a proof-of-life video yesterday.
    In a statement yesterday afternoon, Minister for Foreign Affairs Michel Martin said the Government will continue to work to secure the safe release of Fr Sinnott. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Asylum seekers threaten suicide
    Some of the 78 Sri Lankan asylum seekers onboard Australian Customs ship the Oceanic Viking have threatened to kill themselves rather than go to Indonesia.
    In April more than 1000 ethnic Tamils blockaded the gates of Kirribilli House, the Prime Minister's Sydney residence, calling for a ceasefire in the Sri Lankan Government's military offensive against the Tigers. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Militants attack police officers in Srinagar
    Addressing a massive gathering in Baramulla, Syed Ali Gilani said; We are not against talks but before holding any dialogue India should accept Kashmir as a dispute, release all the political prisoners, withdraw troops and revoke draconian laws.
    In order to deter China and bolster defence along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), India is to deploy BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, reported Times Now.tv Oct 11. More...

  • Nov-02-2009 -- Beijing's first snow of season 'artificially induced'
    The municipal weather modification office used artificial means to increase the snow in order to ease the lingering drought.
    Besides the snow, which the Beijing Evening News said was the earliest to hit the capital in 10 years, the cold weather and strong winds also delayed air travel from Beijing's Capital Airport, while interrupting passenger shipping services off the coast of Shandong province in the east, Xinhua said. More...

Sunday (Update 1)


  • Nov-01-2009 -- Pakistan security forces kill at least 7 militants
    Dozens of weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition were seized across South Waziristan over the past day, the army announced, including rocket-propelled grenades, heavy machine guns, anti-tank mines, a missile launcher and jammers to interfere with government communications equipment.
    A Pakistani soldier in the tribal regions aims at hills where Taliban militants seek shelter in caves. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Trio of fugitive Mafia brothers arrested
    NAPLES, Italy — Italian police on Saturday arrested one of the country's most wanted mafia fugitives after tearing down a wall in a dawn raid at a chicken farm where he had built a hideout, authorities said.
    Man accused of killing his children Zimbabwe's state media say a man allegedly killed three of his children with an ax and wounded two others in what police describe as Zimbabwe's most brutal crime in recent years. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Jacques Chirac ordered to stand trial
    FORMER French president Jacques Chirac is to be tried on allegations that he gave 21 political allies false contracts as ghost workers in Paris city hall.
    I can't imagine that President Sarkozy will let it go very far. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Iraqi Officer Delving Into Bombings Is Killed
    The massive blasts at the justice ministry and the Baghdad provincial administration angered many Iraqis, who questioned how the bombers could have got explosives-laden vehicles through an area packed with checkpoints and security personnel.
    The attacks revealed the security situation facing the country that insurgents still have the ability to carry out deadly attacks in the heart of Baghdad. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Cold War leaders recall fall of Berlin Wall
    The three statesmen from the United States, Soviet Union and West Germany - whose steady-handed leadership paved the way for the Wall's opening on November 9, 1989 -- recalled the events that led to the end of the Cold War at a ceremony attended by 1,800 people.
    I hope the spirit of the Berlin Wall will make the unification come true." More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Pope offers olive branch after move to 'poach' traditionalist Anglicans
    K'ng, a Swiss Catholic priest and an outspoken opponent of Catholic teaching on clerical celibacy, said the decision is a signal that "Pope Benedict is set upon restoring the Roman imperium."
    Of course, what the Anglican offer communicates to female and gay Catholics who yearn to become clerics is clear. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Leaking Timor Sea oil rig catches fire
    The Western Australian Greens have called on Chinese oil and gas company Sinopec to release more information about a gas leak in the Timor Sea, off Australia's north coast.
    THE gas leak at the Sinopec-operated Puffin oil field in the Timor Sea is small, unlike the oil spill from PTTEP Australasia's nearby Montara field. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Brazilian Indians find plane survivors
    Members of the Matis, a tiny tribe of some 300 people first contacted by modern Brazilian officials in the 1970s, discovered the plane and its crew and passengers "in the middle of the Amazon jungle" between the Matis village of Aurelio and another tribe's village, the air force said in a statement.
    According to the Brazilian air force, the nine survivors were in good health. More...

Sunday


  • Nov-01-2009 -- No 10 backs David Miliband for Brussels
    A shortlist compiled by the Party of European Socialists, seen by The Times, included Foreign Secretary David Miliband.
    Surely, to entrust the fate of nations to the decision of one man of dubious character was folly writ large ; here was madness on an unparalleled scale. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Charm is best weapon for scandal-hit Jacques Chirac
    FORMER French president Jacques Chirac is to be tried on allegations that he gave 21 political allies false contracts as ghost workers in Paris city hall.
    The decision to indict Mr. Chirac can be appealed by the government-appointed Paris prosecutor, who had urged that no charges be pressed against Mr. Chirac. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Suspect in bombings kills investigator
    The massive blasts at the justice ministry and the Baghdad provincial administration angered many Iraqis, who questioned how the bombers could have got explosives-laden vehicles through an area packed with checkpoints and security personnel.
    The Al-Qaeda declaration contrasted with statements from other Sunni insurgent groups, whose representatives have been quick to blame the attacks either on intra- Shia rivalry ahead of the forthcoming elections or disputes between the Shia- controlled government in Baghdad and the Kurds. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Obama's Afghan decision not likely before Nov. 11
    The needs in Afghanistan now are a strong police force ? that will take ten to twenty years to build, a less corrupt central government ? no reasonable time frame exists for success here ? and continued foreign assistance to rebuild the economy once the Taliban has been neutralized.
    The Taliban was never a threat to outside countries before 9/11 and will never have the resources to be a threat beyond their own borders. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Pakistan road blast kills seven
    The attacks have increased ever since the Pakistani security forces launched a major offensive against the Taliban in the South Waziristan region of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) along the border with Afghanistan.
    The militants based in Khyber district are also believed to be behind suicide attacks on government and civilian targets in Peshawar, the capital of North-West Frontier Province. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- 'Puzzlers' reassemble shredded Stasi files, bit by bit
    The three statesmen from the United States, Soviet Union and West Germany - whose steady-handed leadership paved the way for the Wall's opening on November 9, 1989 -- recalled the events that led to the end of the Cold War at a ceremony attended by 1,800 people.
    On 4 October, Gorbachev came to East Berlin to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the GDR. There was nothing the Stasi could do about pro-Gorbachev demonstrations, but the evident impatience of the Soviet leader with Honecker's resistance to reform sparked protests immediately after the visit. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Brazilian Indians find plane survivors
    Members of the Matis, a tiny tribe of some 300 people first contacted by modern Brazilian officials in the 1970s, discovered the plane and its crew and passengers "in the middle of the Amazon jungle" between the Matis village of Aurelio and another tribe's village, the air force said in a statement.
    A native Amazonian tribe has found a missing military plane and some survivors, Brazilian authorities say. More...

  • Nov-01-2009 -- Italian news agency says Naples killer has been identified
    Perhaps more disturbing is the reaction of witnesses, who can be seen in a video that has been released by Naples prosecutors in an unprecedented step to try and to find the killer.
    Passersby appear unfazed. More...












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