World Now
Ebola outbreak: Virus mutating, scientists warn
Full ArticleBBC News
29 Jan 2015
Scientists tracking the Ebola outbreak in Guinea say the virus has mutated. Researchers at the Institut Pasteur in France, which first identified the outbreak last March, are investigating whether it could have become more contagious. More than 22,000 people have been infected with Ebola and 8,795 have died in Guinea,Sierra Leone and Liberia.…
Hagel Lauds US Service Members in Farewell Speech
VOA News Outgoing U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Wednesday thanked the men and women of the armed forces for what he said was their unequaled service…
Supreme Court halts Oklahoma executions pending lethal injection case
The US Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to halt the scheduled executions of three death-row plaintiffs who are challengingOklahoma’s lethal injection protocol at the high court. The case, likely to be argued in April, will examine whether…
Raul Castro: US must return Guantanamo for normal relations
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — Cuban President Raul Castrodemanded on Wednesday that the United States return the U.S. base atGuantanamo Bay, lift the half-century trade embargo on Cuba and compensate his country for damages before the two nations…
Treasure hunter who found a fortune in gold is captured
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A treasure hunter accused of cheating his investors out of their share of one of the richest hauls in U.S. history — $50 million in gold bars and coins from a 19th-century shipwreck — was captured at an upscale Florida hotel after…
4 Israeli Soldiers Killed in Hezbollah Attack
TRANS ASIA NEWS BEIRUT: At least four Israeli soldiers were killed and half a dozen others injured in a Hezbollah attack in the occupied Shebaa Farms, in south Lebanon Wednesday, reports said. Media reports quoting anIsraeli military source,…
Himachal has succeeded in reducing poverty: World Bank
Over the years Himachal Pradesh has taken strides in reducing extreme poverty and has emerged as one of the states with the best human development outcomes in India, a new World Bank report said Wednesday. The report, ‘Scaling the Heights: Social…
ISIS threatens to behead Obama and ‘transform America into Muslim province’
Full ArticleThe Times of India
29 Jan 2015
An ISIS fighter has threatened to behead Barack Obama “in the White House and transform America into a Muslim province” before murdering a Kurdish soldier in a gruesome propaganda video. The footage, entitled “Bombardment of PeacefulMuslims in the City of Mosul” showed damage from shelling allegedly carried out by Peshmerga forces in the Iraqi…
Apple profit hits US$18bn world record
Full ArticleTaipei Times
28 Jan 2015
Apple Inc quarterly results smashed Wall Street expectations with record sales of big-screen iPhones in the holiday shopping season and a 70 percent rise in Chinasales, powering the company to the largest profit in corporate history. The company sold 74.5 million iPhones in its fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 27 last year, while many analysts had…
photo: AP / Kin Cheung
Feared snowstorm fizzles in New York but clobbers New England
Full ArticleThe Los Angeles Times
28 Jan 2015
It was to be “crippling” and “potentially historic.” It was to dump up to 3 feet of snow onto New York City, bringing Gotham to its knees and causing hardened locals to huddle inside as drifts inched up the sooty walls of buildings and encased humans, subway rats, feral cats and cockroaches in a thick layer of ice. It was to…
Obama: Netanyahu’s visit too close to election for meeting
Washington (CNN)President Barack Obama says he will not meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in March because his trip to Washington comes too close to Israel‘s upcoming elections. “I’m declining to meet with him simply because our…
Ukraine’s Government Is Losing Its War. Here Is Why:
On January 27th, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense headlined “Militants Continue to Suffer Losses,” and reported that four helicopters, and other weapons of the “militants,” were destroyed in battle, but no evidence was…
Snow expected on west coast as high winds sweep the country
Wet, windy and even snowy weather is expected to sweep across the country on Wednesday, with Met Éireann issuing two status yellow weather warnings. The first is a snow and ice warning…
Save my IS-held son, mum begs PM
The mother of a Japanese hostage held by Islamic State (IS) extremists has made an emotional appeal to prime minister Shinzo Abe to save her son after his captors issued what they said was a final death threat. Junko Ishido, the mother of freelance…
Oxfam: Rich countries must support Ebola recovery
Abidjan (Ivory Coast), January 27: Rich countries must act swiftly to repair battered health systems and get cash to millions of families in the three countries hit hardest by the world’s worst Ebola outbreak, the international development agency…
See how Brooklyn looked the morning after the ‘blizzard’
With Winter Storm Juno bearing down on New York on Monday afternoon, I was among the workers sent home early in hopes of avoiding the blizzard. By 3 pm, the streets were already partially deserted – and partially snow-covered – and the subways were…
Ex-KGB spy told UK cops Putin ordered his death
Ex-KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko, who died after drinking tea poisoned with a rare radioactive isotope, told British police beforehand thatRussian President Vladimir Putin was personally behind it, an inquiry into his killing heard. British…
Kurds oust Islamic State militants from Kobani
27 Jan 2015
Development is a significant victory for coalition Jubilant Kurdish fighters oustedIslamic State militants from the key Syrian border town of Kobani on Monday after a four-month battle — a significant victory for…
Scientists ask if Ebola immunises people too?
Representational Image File Photo A recent sharp drop in newEbola infections in West Africa is prompting scientists to wonder whether the virus may be silently immunising some people at the same time as brutally killing their…
Fidel Castro Appears to Lend Support to Cuba Talks with US
Reuters HAVANA— Retired Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Monday appeared to lend his support to talks with the United States in his first comments about his longtime adversary since both countries agreed last month to restore diplomatic ties. But Castro…
Small drone crashes on White House grounds
A small drone crashed on the grounds of the White House in the early hours of Monday without endangering anyone and US officials said they had identified the operator. A person has come forward to take responsibility for…
Millions brace for monster blizzard in US north-east
NEW YORK: Tens of millions of Americans from New Jersey to the Canadian border braced themselves on Monday for a ferocious blizzard thatNew York’s mayor warned could be one of the worst in history. Winter Storm Junois expected to dump up to three…
FBI says it has arrested Russian spy in NYC
New York: The FBI has arrested what it calls a Russian spy inNew York City who is suspected of taking part in an intelligence-gathering ring and trying to recruit residents, the agency announced Monday. The arrest of Evgeny Buryakov in the Bronx…
The New Greece of Alexis Tsipras
Alexis Tsipras promised voters an end to austerity and a new beginning for Greece. Will he deliver on that pledge? Greece’s prime minister designate, Alexis Tsipras, has delighted his voters, scared the German government, and rattled the markets. The…
After turmoil, Church of England consecrates first woman bishop
The Church of England will consecrate its first woman bishop on Monday, the culmination of years of efforts by Church modernisers to overcome resolute opposition from traditionalists. More than two decades after the Church allowed women to become…
Tsipras moves to form anti-austerity government after crushing victory
26 Jan 2015
Greek leftwing leader Alexis Tsipras will move on Monday to build a stable government that can take on international lenders and reverse years of painful austerity following a crushing election victory by his Syriza party. Fresh from his defeat of conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, the 40-year-old Tsipras will meet the head of the small…
Obama and Modi laud ‘new trust’ era
President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared an era of “new trust” in the relationship between their nations as the US leader opened a three-day visit to New Delhi. Standing side by side at the stately Hyderabad House, Mr…
Nasa’s New Horizons probe to start taking pictures of Pluto
Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft, which has travelled three billion miles and nearly nine years in its journey to Pluto, is expected to start taking pictures of the dwarf planet from today. The New Horizons probe marks humanity’s first trip to the…
Unlikely buddies Obama and Modi aim high on India trip
NEW DELHI Jan 25 (Reuters) – In a fresh bid to make India an enduring strategic partner, U.S. President Barack Obama lands in New Delhi on Sunday for a highly symbolic parade and to nurture friendship with a prime minister who until last year was…
Boko Haram kills 15 villagers in Nigeria’s northeast
The terrorists attacked Kambari village which is less than five kilometres to Maiduguri and killed 15 people and set the entire hamlet ablaze.Boko Haram fighters have killed 15 villagers near Maiduguri, the city which is the epicentre of the…
Police arrest four suspected Islamist militants in Spain
Spanish police arrested four people on Saturday in its North African enclave of Ceuta suspected of belonging to a militant Islamist network, the interior ministry said. Spain has stepped up security as well as efforts to prevent…
Exclusive: CIA’s Top Spy Steps Down
The secretive head of the agency’s National Clandestine Serviceis retiring amid reports of infighting over a reorganization of the intelligence service. The director of the CIA’s National Clandestine Service, the storied home of the agency’s most…
New Horizons probe eyes Pluto for historic encounter
25 Jan 2015
The American space agency’s (Nasa) mission to Pluto is about to get under way in earnest. Its New Horizons probe will take the first of a set of critical pictures on approach to the icy world on Sunday. At a separation still of 200 million km, Pluto will be hardly discernable in these images – just a speck of light against the stars. But the…
Bear hug with Modi gets Obama’s India trip off to warm start
Full ArticleThe Times of India
25 Jan 2015
NEW DELHI: Signalling his determination to take relations with the United States to a higher level, Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke with protocol to meet and bear-hug US President Barack Obama as he landed in New Delhi on Sunday.Obama‘s visit is a fresh bid to make India an enduring strategic partner and he will seek to nurture friendship with…
High-stakes election may put Greece on collision course with European Union
25 Jan 2015
Radical leftists Syriza, led by Alexis Tsipras, promise to renegotiate the international bailout that has imposed five years of austerity on Greece.Photograph: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP/Getty Images After five punishing years of austerity and recession, Greeks have begun casting their votes in a high-stakes election that could set their battered…
Nasa’s New Horizons probe to start taking pictures of Pluto
Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft, which has travelled three billion miles and nearly nine years in its journey to Pluto, is expected to start taking pictures of the dwarf planet from today. The New Horizons probe marks humanity’s first trip to the…
Unlikely buddies Obama and Modi aim high on India trip
NEW DELHI Jan 25 (Reuters) – In a fresh bid to make India an enduring strategic partner, U.S. President Barack Obama lands in New Delhi on Sunday for a highly symbolic parade and to nurture friendship with a prime minister who until last year was…
Boko Haram kills 15 villagers in Nigeria’s northeast
The terrorists attacked Kambari village which is less than five kilometres to Maiduguri and killed 15 people and set the entire hamlet ablaze.Boko Haram fighters have killed 15 villagers near Maiduguri, the city which is the epicentre of the…
Police arrest four suspected Islamist militants in Spain
Spanish police arrested four people on Saturday in its North African enclave of Ceuta suspected of belonging to a militant Islamist network, the interior ministry said. Spain has stepped up security as well as efforts to prevent…
Haiti forms electoral panel for overdue polls
24 Jan 2015
Haiti has installed a Provisional Electoral Council to organise long-delayed elections – after weeks of protests and political uncertainty. The nine-member panel represents different sectors of society. It was sworn in shortly before a UN Security Council delegation arrived on a three-day…
Exclusive: CIA’s Top Spy Steps Down
The secretive head of the agency’s National Clandestine Serviceis retiring amid reports of infighting over a reorganization of the intelligence service. The director of the CIA’s National Clandestine Service, the storied home of the agency’s most…
Dozens dead in Syria air strike
A Syrian government air strike has hit an opposition-held suburb of the capital shortly after Friday prayers, killing at least 35 people, scattering bodies and rubble in the streets and setting at least one building on fire, activists said. An…
Argentine President Now Says Prosecutor’s Death ‘Not A Suicide’
11:21 AM ET Scott Neuman Twitter i i Alberto Nisman, the prosecutor investigating the 1994 bombing of the Argentine-Israeli MutualAssociation community center, talks to journalists in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2013. Nisman was found shot dead in…
FIFA confirms loss of three major sponsors
World governing body FIFA confirmed today that three major sponsors have ended their relationships with the organisation, but said there was nothing unusual about the development. Oil manufacturers Castrol, tyre companyContinental and healthcare…
“Unchecked climate change” causes atomic scientists to push Doomsday Clock closer to midnight
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists just issued their first update to the symbolic Doomsday Clock since 2007, announcing that we have advanced by two minutes and are now at “three minutes to midnight”—with midnight referring to the end…
Police Arrest 153 In South Africa Looting Chaos
23 January 2015, 13:24 Police Arrest 153 In South Africa LootingChaos Tweet Mobs have looted more than 80 foreign-owned shops amid major disorder in South Africa, prompting 153 arrests. President Jacob Zuma has called for order to be restored…
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Yingluck Shinawatra, Former Thai Prime Minister, Impeached And Banned From Politics For 5 Years
Greek elections: Europe waits on voters’ verdict
23 Jan 2015
When Greeks vote on Sunday they will not just be choosing a new government, they will be delivering a verdict on Europe and its leaders. If the polls are accurate,Greece is on the verge of electing the first anti-austerity party in the eurozone. If that happens, Greece’s future will once again be uncertain. But the election will be judgement…
David Cameron hails Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, dead aged 90
David Cameron today paid tribute to Saudi Arabia‘s King Abdullah after his death at the age of 90. The Prime Minister praised the king’s “commitment to peace” after it was announced he would be succeeded by his 79-year-old half-brother,…
US and Cuba clash on human rights
The United States and Cuba ended two days of historic talks inHavana with some progress toward restoring diplomatic ties after half a century of estrangement. But there remain sharp differences over the role of human rights in their new…
Ex-Thai PM Yingluck to be charged
Former Thailand prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra will be charged for her role in overseeing a rice subsidy programme that lost billions of pounds. Surasak Threerattrakul, the director general of the office of the attorney general’s department, said…
Goosebumps And Gas: New Data From Rosetta Probe Describes Comet
9:16 PM ET Bill Chappell Twitter i i A narrow-angle camera image shows part of a large fracture running across Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko‘s neck. ESA/Rosetta/MPS hide caption itoggle caption ESA/Rosetta/MPS A narrow-angle camera image shows part…
Yemeni president and PM resign
Yemen‘s US-backed president Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi quit under pressure from rebels holding him captive in his home. The move severely complicated American efforts to combat al Qaida’s powerful local franchise and raised fears that the Arab world‘s…
Yemen president resigns under pressure from rebels
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Yemen’s president resigned on Thursday under pressure from Shiite rebels who seized the capital in September and have confined the embattled leader to his home for the past two days. Presidentialofficials said Abed Rabbo Mansour…
Kofi Annan: Leaders in Davos must act now to confront global issues
21 Jan 2015
(CNN)The horrific events in Paris and northern Nigeria have underlined again how troubled and fragmented our world is. Religious extremism and sectarianism is fueling terrorism and widespread conflict which has forced millions in Syria, Iraqand elsewhere to flee. Aggressive nationalism and politics based on prejudice and a false view of identity…
‘We are the victims of our own corrupt government’ – life as an activist in Sudan
22 Jan 2015
LRA rebel, set for war crimes trial, was a child soldier
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) – Lord’s Resistance Army commanderDominic Ongwen, who arrived Wednesday in The Hague to stand trial at theInternational Criminal Court, is remembered by his grandmother as a victim himself, having been kidnapped as a boy by the…
Three ways to protect our precious forests
These top strategies help mitigate climate change by safeguarding forests, which cover nearly one-third of the land area of the planet …
Domestic violence damages health and shortens lives
Research shows that abuse leads to increased risk of low birth weight and premature birth of a woman’s children, sexually transmitted disease and damage to mental health …
UN says despite progress fight against Ebola is far from won
UNITED NATIONS (AP) ? Close to 1,000 new cases of Ebola were recorded in the last three weeks despite progress in combatting the deadly disease and “the fight is far from won,” the U.N. mIssion chief in West Africa said Tuesday. Ismael Ould Cheikh…
US-built Ebola treatment centers in Liberia are nearly empty as outbreak fades
TUBMANBURG, Liberia — Near the hillside shelter where dozens of men and women died of Ebola, a row of green U.S. military tents sit atop a vast expanse of imported gravel. The generators hum; chlorinated water churns in brand-new containers;…
French Mayor Anne Hidalgo: City Of Paris To Sue Fox News
On Tuesday, Hidalgo told CNN that she intends to sue Fox Newsover the network’s incorrect coverage of so-called “no-go zones” for non-Muslims, saying that the channel had “insulted her city.” “When we’re…
