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Everyone is under surveillance now, says whistleblower Edward Snowden

Full ArticleThe Guardian 

03 May 2014

 

People‘s privacy is violated without any suspicion of wrongdoing, former National Security Agency contractor claims Edward Snowden joined a debate on surveillance, by video link from RussiaPhotograph: Sunshinepress/Getty ImagesThe US intelligence whistleblower Edward Snowden has warned that entire populations, rather than just …..
File - Edward Snowden talks during a simulcast conversation during the SXSW Interactive Festival on Monday, March 10, 2014, in Austin, Texas.

Afghan rescuers search for survivors under threat of third landslide

Afghan rescuers search for survivors under threat of third landslide

KabulAfghan police and villagers began a dangerous search for more than 2,000 people buried under a massive landslide in a remote mountainous region in the northeast on Saturday, amid concern the unstable hillside may cave in again. The United
photo: US Army / Nikayla Shodeen

India 3rd on list of ‘green buildings’ countries outside US

India 3rd on list of 'green buildings' countries outside US

WASHINGTON: India has been ranked third on the list of top 10 countries in leadership in energy and environmental design outside America, according to the latest US Green Building Council report. Canada followed by Chinaoccupy the top two slots in…
photo: WN / Geeta

GJA Bemoans Poor Remunerations Of Journalists

GJA Bemoans Poor Remunerations Of Journalists

Low wages and salaries paid journalists and other media practitioners took centre stage at this year’s flag raising ceremony to mark World Press Freedom Day in Accra on Friday. Present at the event which was held alongside a news conference at the…
photo: UN / Paulo Filgueiras

UN agencies call for safe access to vulnerable people

UN agencies call for safe access to vulnerable people

Tweet United Nations, May 3 (IANS) UN high commissioner for refugees and the World Food Programme (WFP) urged all conflicting parties inSouth Sudan to provide safe access to reach vulnerable people, official said Friday. The vulnerable people in…
photo: UN / Isaac Billy

Afghanistan landslides kill hundreds, many more missing

Afghanistan landslides kill hundreds, many more missing

Reporting from Kabul, Afghanistan— Hundreds of people were dead or missing after landslides in remote northeast Afghanistan buried a village under as much as 60 feet of mud and rocks, officials said Friday. The United Nations said that at least…
photo: US Army / Nikayla Shodeen

Emergency Ukraine meeting for UN

Emergency Ukraine meeting for UN

The UN Security Council is to hold an emergency meeting onUkraine after Russia called for public talks on the growing crisis. The Russianmission to the United Nations tweeted that Moscow had asked for what will be the council’s 13th meeting on the…
photo: UN / Mark Garten

EU wants one price for Russian gas

EU wants one price for Russian gas

Warsaw – European Union Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said on Friday that the EU wants a uniform price for Russian gas for all its member states, adding Europe‘s common gas infrastructure should includeUkraineGeorgia and the western…
photo: European Community / Adam Chelstowski

How the EU transformed Poland

02 May 2014
Of the 10 mostly post-communist countries that joined the European Union exactly a decade ago today, none has benefited more from membership than PolandFirstand foremost, there’s the cash: the country received £56bn in development funds between 2007 and 2013, money that was used to build hundreds of kilometres of highways and express roads as… 

How the EU transformed Poland

 

 

 

 

 

 

Osama bin Laden: Three years after Abbottabad

Full ArticleAl Jazeera 

02 May 2014

 

Three years ago today, US Special Forces killed Osama bin Laden in his Abbottabadcompound. Occurring in the midst of the Arab Spring revolutions that were taking root, the death of al-Qaeda’s leader seemed to represent a defining moment. Not only had the group lost its leader, its entire ideology was being discredited by regime changes occurring… 

File - Kashmiri muslims offer funeral prayers in absentia for Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden in Srinagar on May 6, 2011.

 

 

 

Toll up to 19 dead in car bomb in Nigerian capital

Full ArticleNew Straits/Business Times 

02 May 2014

 

ABUJA: The death toll from a car bomb that exploded on a busy road in Nigeria’s capital rose to at least 19 overnight, police said Friday from the city that within days hosts an international conference. The bomb was driven near a checkpoint where traffic built up, located across the road from a busy bus station where a massive explosion on April…

  • A car burns following a bomb explosion in Abuja, Nigeria, Thursday, May 1, 2014.

 

How does Europe wean itself off Russian gas?

How does Europe wean itself off Russian gas?

Each escalation of the crisis in Ukraine sends a jolt of nervousness far beyond its borders as Europe worries about its energy supplies. With about one-third of Europe’s gas coming from Russia and about half of that gas flowing through Ukraine,…
photo: European Community / Adam Chelstowski

UN Rights Chief Blames South Sudan Crisis on Country’s Leaders

UN Rights Chief Blames South Sudan Crisis on Country's Leaders

Charlton Doki JUBA — The United Nations‘ human rights chief, Navi Pillay, lashed out Wednesday at South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar, saying the two men have allowed their personal differences to bring the young…
photo: UN / Isaac Billy

Palestinian Unity

Palestinian Unity

For years, Palestinian factions have strived for unity, and for years unity has evaded them. But is it possible that following several failed attempts, Fatah and Hamas have finally found that elusive middle ground? And if they have done so, why, to…
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

Death toll in Philippine clashes rises to 26

Death toll in Philippine clashes rises to 26

MANILA, PhilippinesOfficials say the death toll in fighting between Philippine government troops and Muslim militants who launched a…
photo: WN / Janice Sabnal

IMF approves US$17 billion aid for Ukraine

Christine Lagarde, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, addresses a press conference at the Treasury in London Tuesday May 22, 2012.

WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund approved a $17 billion aid deal for Ukraine on Wednesday, even as Kiev fought to prevent pro-Moscow separatists from grabbing another chunk of the country. Greenlighting a rescue program for an interim…
photo: AP / Oli Scarff

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford to Enter Rehab for Substance Abuse

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford sits in the council chamber as councillors look to pass motions to limit his powers on Monday November 18, 2013.

Toronto mayor Rob Ford will take a leave of absence from office to enter a substance abuse program,…
photo: AP / Chris Young

Afghan flood death toll rises as thousands need aid

Afghan flood death toll rises as thousands need aid

BBC News

The death toll from last week’s flash floods in northernAfghanistan now stands at almost 150. Some areas are still completely cut off, with no help reaching people because roads were swept away. The governor of Jowzjan province, Boymurod…

 

 

‘ARE WE GOING TO DIE?’

Newstapa

South Korean Ferry Students Captured Sinking On Video

 

 

 

China’s Xi demands action after 3 killed in attack

01 May 2014

 

URUMQI, China — Chinese President Xi Jinping demanded “decisive” action against terrorism after a slashing and bomb attack at a Xinjiang train station killed three people and injured 79 while the leader was wrapping up a tour of the far-western region. A group of knife-wielding attackers slashed at passengers and set off explosives near an exit of… 
Heavily armed Chinese paramilitary policemen march past the site of the Wednesday's explosion outside the Urumqi South Railway Station in Urumqi in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Thursday, May 1, 2014.

 

 

Death toll in Philippine clashes rises to 26

Death toll in Philippine clashes rises to 26

MANILA, PhilippinesOfficials say the death toll in fighting between Philippine government troops and Muslim militants who launched a…
photo: WN / Janice Sabnal

Afghan flood death toll rises as thousands need aid

Afghan flood death toll rises as thousands need aid

The death toll from last week’s flash floods in northernAfghanistan now stands at almost 150. Some areas are still completely cut off, with no help reaching people because roads were swept away. The governor of Jowzjan province, Boymurod…
photo: US Army / Nikayla Shodeen

The Army’s Most Iconic Helicopter Will Be Transformed Into A Pilotless Drone

The Army's Most Iconic Helicopter Will Be Transformed Into A Pilotless Drone

The Army’s most iconic helicopter is about to go pilotless.The U.S. Army and defense contractor Sikorsky Aircraft demonstrated hover and flight capability in an “optionally piloted” version of the Black Hawk helicopterlast…
photo: US DoD / Scott Tynes

Here’s How US Arms Dealers Sell Weapons All Over The World

Here's How US Arms Dealers Sell Weapons All Over The World

US Marine waits for a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter carrying supplies for a bilateral exercise with France. See Also On Sept. 11, 2011, anArmenian carrier from Albania landed in Benghazi, Libya. It was carrying 800,000rounds of ammunition…
photo: DOD / Public Domain

 

EU to give $391 mn for environment, climate projects

EU to give $391 mn for environment, climate projects

Tweet Brussels, May 1 (IANSThe European CommissionWednesday approved funding for 225 new projects under the LIFE programme — the European Union‘s environment fund, and…
photo: European Community / EC

How the U.S. Created, then Lost, the War in Afghanistan

How the U.S. Created, then Lost, the War in Afghanistan

It was a typical Kabul morning. Malik Ashgar Square was already bumper-to-bumper with Corolla taxis, green police jeeps, honking minivans, and angry motorcyclists. There were boys selling phone cards and men waving wads of cash for exchange, all…
photo: US Army / Nikayla Shodeen

New pact reflects closer US-Philippine ties

New pact reflects closer US-Philippine ties

WPXI

A new defense pact that will allow thousands of U.S. troops to be temporarily based in Philippines for the first time in more than 20 years signals closer cooperation in the allies’ hot-and-cold relationship that has been shaped over the decades by…
photo: US Navy / Chris Church

 

 

 

 

 

 

Iraq holds key vote as it slides deeper into bloody strife

Full ArticleFox News 

30 Apr 2014

 

Published April 30, 2014Associated Press Facebook0 Twitter0 Gplus0 In this Monday, April 28, 2014 photo, masked anti-government gunmen move with their weapons as they patrol in Fallujah, Iraq. Al-Qaida-linked fighters and their allies seized the city of Fallujah and parts of the Anbar provincial capital Ramadi in late December after authorities… 

Iraqi women give the victory signs while showing their inked fingers after casting votes at a polling center in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 30, 2014.

 

 

 

 

Serbia Will Never Target Russia With Sanctions – Foreign Minister

Serbia Will Never Target Russia With Sanctions – Foreign Minister

BELGRADE, April 30 (RIA Novosti) – Belgrade will never impose sanctions againstRussia and will remain neutral on the crisis in UkraineSerbian Foreign MinisterIvica Dacic said Wednesday. “We respect the territorial integrity…
photo: European Community / EC

International community warns Haiti in for more political crisis if elections don’t happen in 2014

	International community warns Haiti in for more political crisis if elections don’t happen in 2014

Indicating increasing frustration with an ongoing political stalemate in Haiti, the international community warned Tuesday that the country could be headed for another political crisis with unpredictable consequences. The tough stance from theUnited
photo: UN / Nektarios Markogiannis

At NY trial, British shoe-bomb plotter talks of brainstorming US, London al-Qaida targets

Skyline of Canary Wharf, viewed from the west. Canary Wharf is a major business district located in Tower Hamlets, London, United Kingdom.

Published April 29, 2014Associated Press Facebook0 Twitter0 Gplus0 NEW YORK – ABritish shoe-bomb plotter testifying by video for a second time in a New Yorkcourtroom revealed potential U.S. and English terror targets that were discussed…
photo: Creative Commons / Diliff

 

Kiev government powerless as east Ukraine slips out of its control

A pro-Russian activist sitting at a barricade at the regional administration building in Donetsk, Ukraine, Tuesday, April 29, 2014.

Pro-Russian crowd storms regional HQ in Luhansk while Donetsk looks likely to declare autonomy after May vote Pro-Russian separatists outside the regional government headquarters in Luhansk as police stand by, allowing the crowd to take over the…
photo: AP / Efrem Lukatsky

 

Republic of Congo deports thousands to neighboring Congo for lack of immigration papers

Republic of Congo deports thousands to neighboring Congo for lack of immigration papers

Published April 29, 2014Associated Press Facebook0 Twitter0 Gplus0 KINSHASA,Congo – Officials say nearly 40,000 Congolese citizens have been deported from neighboring Republic of Congo because they did not have immigration papers….
photo: UN / Clara Padovan

An influential, vibrant, exciting force: defining African feminism

An influential, vibrant, exciting force: defining African feminism

What does it mean to be a feminist in Africa today? Some of Africa‘s best commentators share their thoughts. Do the issues raised chime with your experiences? Join our debate South African girls bring attention to violence against women for the One…
photo: UN / Evan Schneider

IOC VP: Rio preparations ‘worst I have experienced’

President of the Australian Olympic Committee John Coates

In an unusually blunt public warning, a vice-president of the International Olympic Committee on Tuesday called the delayed preparations for the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro “the worst I have experienced.” John Coates, who has made six…
photo: AP

‘I AM SORRY’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

North Korea plans live-fire drill, South vows ‘strong’ response

29 Apr 2014

 

SEOUL: North Korea announced a live-fire drill near its maritime border with South Korea on Tuesday, prompting Seoul to vow a “strong” response after a similar exercise a month ago triggered an artillery exchange. “Our military is fully prepared,” defence ministry spokesman Kim Min-Seok said after Pyongyangnotified Seoul of its proposed drill. “If… 
File - North Korean soldiers observe through binoculars on the North Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone.

 

 

 

 

 

North Korea says it will conduct live-fire drills

A North Korean soldier looks at the southern side through a pair of binoculars at the border village of the Panmunjom (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas since the Korean War, in Paju, north of Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, March 19, 2013.

SEOUL, South Korea – (AP) — North Korea has notified rival South Korea that it plans a live-fire drill near the countries’ disputed western sea boundary. South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said Tuesday that military officials will…
photo: AP / Lee Jin-man

Kerry backs off Israel ‘apartheid’ comment

Secretary of State John Kerry stands between Israel's Justice Minister and chief negotiator Tzipi Livni, right, and Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat, as they shake hands after the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, Tuesday, July 30, 2013, at the State Department in Washington.

WASHINGTON – (AP) — Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday he had chosen the wrong word in describing Israel‘s potential future after coming under withering criticism for saying the Jewish state could become an “apartheid state” if it doesn’t…
photo: AP / Charles Dharapak

Death for 683 in Egypt trial Minya, April 28 (Reuters): An Egyptian court sentenced the …

The Muslim Brotherhood's General Guide Mohammed Badie speaks onstage as military helicopters fly overhead before tens of thousands of supporters in Cairo, Egypt, Friday, July 5, 2013, his first in public speech since president Mohammed Morsi's ouster.

Minya, April 28 (Reuters): An Egyptian court sentenced the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood and 682 supporters to death today, intensifying a crackdown on the movement that could trigger protests and political violence ahead of an election next…
photo: AP

Noma Named Worlds Best Restaurant

Noma (restaurant)

The suspense has ended with the announcement of the World’s 50 Best RestaurantsList for 2014 at a ceremony in London a short while ago. London has been buzzing with food related chatter and the presence of some of the most celebrated chefs in the…
photo: Creative Commons / Antissimo

‘Highly unlikely’ MH370 debris will be found: PM

Opposition Liberal Party leader Tony Abbott speaks during a press conference in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2010. Labor Party now would need an additional three seats to form a minority government, as would the conservative coalition, but Labor controls the caretaker administration in the meantime under Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Chances of finding floating debris from a missing jetliner are highly unlikely and a new phase of the search will focus on a far larger area, Australian Prime MinisterTony Abbott said yesterday. The search effort for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370,…
photo: AP / Mark Graham

New Serbian Cabinet to press EU bid

New Serbian Cabinet to press EU bid

Serbia’s new center-right coalition government, led by Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, was sworn in on Sunday and is expected to push the country’s EU membership bid and urgently tackle the ailing economy. Vucic, leader of the center-right Serbian
photo: European Community / EC

With rare speech, Algeria’s ailing Bouteflika starts new term

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika speaks at the Supreme Court in Algiers, Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008. Algeria's president, 72, who led his oil-rich and gas-rich North African nation out of a bloody Islamic insurgency, started clearing the way Wednesday to give himself a third term in office, announcing plans to abolish limits that would have prevented his re-election.

By Patrick Markey ALGIERS (Reuters) – Algeria‘s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika was sworn in for a fourth term on Monday after he easily won an election opponents dismissed as unfair and returned to power for another five years. State television
photo: AP

MASS TRIAL




Faithful exult as pope confers sainthood on 2 predecessors with contrasting legacies

Faithful exult as pope confers sainthood on 2 predecessors with contrasting legacies

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis made history on Sunday, elevating to sainthood John XXIII and John Paul II, two of his most famous papal predecessors, in a ceremony bearing themes of hope and reconciliation for the world’s 1 billion Roman Catholics. With…
photo: WN / MArzena J.

60,000 flock to EarthFair

60,000 flock to EarthFair

BALBOA PARK — In any other environment, a giant, bright blue, recycling bin mascot would stick out like a store thumb. But at Sunday’s EarthFair — where mama Earth takes center stage and hordes of people immerse themselves in all things…
photo: WN / MArzena J.

Capital recalls Pope’s visit on day of his canonization

Capital recalls Pope's visit on day of his canonization

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The visit of Pope John Paul II to Shanghumukham two decades ago is special to Selene M, a catechism teacher at St John’s Church, Killipalam. She has something more to cherish on the auspicious day of canonization of the Pope. A…
photo: WN / marzena

Former NASA scientist disputes global warming theory

Former NASA scientist disputes global warming theory

The continued theory by left-leaning Democrats, some in the U.S. government, andPresident Obama keep pushing that increased global warming is caused by man was disputed by former NASA scientist, Professor Dr. Leslie Woodcock, who said there is no…
photo: UN / Mark Garten

South Korean PM resigns over ferry

South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won gets into a car to leave the Central Government Complex in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, April 27, 2014. Chung offered to resign Sunday over the government's handling of a deadly ferry sinking, blaming "deep-rooted evils" and societal irregularities for a tragedy that has left more than 300 people dead or missing and led to widespread shame, fury and finger-pointing.

South Korea‘s prime minister has resigned over the government’s handling of a ferry sinking that left more than 300 people dead or missing. Chung Hong-won ‘s resignation comes amid rising indignation over claims by the victims’ relatives that the…
photo: AP / Yonhap

More suicides for reservists than active-duty soldiers

More suicides for reservists than active-duty soldiers

(The WireThe military suicide rate has dropped among active duty service members, but the deaths of Army National Guard and Reserve soldiers increased, new figures from the Defense Department reveal. Reservist suicides increased from 140…
photo: USMC / Lance Cpl. Zachery B. Martin

Berlusconi comments on WW2 death camps spark German anger

Italian former Premier and Forza Italia, Go Italy, party leader Silvio Berlusconi gestures during a press conference to present his party's candidates for the upcoming European Parliament elections, in Rome, Thursday, April 17, 2014.

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has sparked outrage by saying “for the Germans, concentration camps never existed”. He was referring to a previous gaffe in which he told a German MEP that he could play a Nazi concentration…
photo: AP / Andrew Medichini

 

South Korean PM offers to resign over government response to ferry disaster

27 Apr 2014

 

South Korea’s prime minister offered to resign Sunday over the government’s handling of a deadly ferry sinking, blaming “deep-rooted evils” and irregularities in a society for a tragedy that has left more than 300 people dead or missing and led to widespread shame, fury and finger-pointing. The resignation offer comes amid rising indignation over… 

South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won bows to the nation after offering his resignation at the Central Government Complex in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, April 27, 2014.

More suicides for reservists than active-duty soldiers

More suicides for reservists than active-duty soldiers

(The WireThe military suicide rate has dropped among active duty service members, but the deaths of Army National Guard and Reserve soldiers increased, new figures from the Defense Department reveal. Reservist suicides increased from 140…
photo: USMC / Lance Cpl. Zachery

Berlusconi comments on WW2 death camps spark German anger

Italian former Premier and Forza Italia, Go Italy, party leader Silvio Berlusconi gestures during a press conference to present his party's candidates for the upcoming European Parliament elections, in Rome, Thursday, April 17, 2014.

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has sparked outrage by saying “for the Germans, concentration camps never existed”. He was referring to a previous gaffe in which he told a German MEP that he could play a Nazi concentration…
photo: AP / Andrew Medichini

 

We have to recognise the huge value of arts and culture to society

We have to recognise the huge value of arts and culture to society

Peter Bazalgette: ‘Great art and culture really can be for everyone.’ Photograph:Richard Saker for the Guardian Last week I witnessed the unveiling of an extraordinary sculpture at Heathrow‘s new Terminal 2Slipstream is inspired by the…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Ten years on and Poles are glad to call Britain home

Ten years on and Poles are glad to call Britain home

When Poland joined the EU in 2004, a new wave of immigrants arrived. Now in cities like Southampton they are a major factor in the European elections Tomasz Dyl arrived as a 13-year-old boy. Last year he was named as Southampton’s young entrepreneur…

Ukraine crisis: Separatists offer to exchange OSCE captives for prisoners

Sloviansk ( Sloviansk )city council under control of armed forces.

Pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine have offered to release eight captive international observers in a prisoner exchange, as Western governments prepared new sanctions against MoscowThe government in Kiev blamed Russia for what it called the…
photo: Creative Commons / Yevgen Nasadyuk

Valuable lessons learned from 2012 tragedy in Afghanistan

	Valuable lessons learned from 2012 tragedy in Afghanistan

CAMP MIKE SPANN, Afghanistan — The soldiers weren’t expecting to see themselves in the briefing. Paratroopers from Company B2nd Battalion508th Parachute Infantry Regiment were in Bagram, taking the same classes all U.S. troops take when they come…
photo: USMC / Zachery B. Martin

 

Afghan election appears headed for June runoff

Afghan election appears headed for June runoff

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan’s presidential elections are headed for a runoff after full preliminary results released Saturday showed the front-runners failed to win to a majority and avoid a second round of voting. Former Foreign
photo: UN / Fardin Waezi

WINTER WORLD CUP?

Afghans brace for another round of voting, bargaining begins

Afghans brace for another round of voting, bargaining begins

The leading candidates in the race to become Afghanistan’s next president have started lobbying in anticipation of a run-off with final preliminary election results on Saturday expected to show none of the eight runners winning an absolute majority….
photo: UN / Fardin Waezi

Senegal ex-president Wade returns from exile

Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade prepares to address journalists at a press conference in the presidential palace in Dakar, Senegal Monday, Feb. 27, 2012. As votes were being tallied on Monday from Senegal's Sunday presidential election, leading opposition candidate Macky Sall declared that no candidate had gotten the necessary 50 percent, making a runoff "inevitable."

Abdoulaye WadeSenegal’s exiled former president has made a controversial homecoming with security forces on high alert, two years after he lost office in an election marred by violent protests. Wade, 87, who held power from 2000 to 2012,…
photo: AP / Rebecca Blackwell

Former Barca coach Tito Vilanova dies of cancer aged 45

Barcelona manager Tito Vilanova, look's on ahead of their Champions League Group G soccer match against Celtic at Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Wednesday Nov. 7, 2012.

MADRID, April 25 (Xinhua) — Former FC Barcelona coach, Tito Vilanova died on Friday afternoon aged 45 following a two and a half year fight against cancer of the parotid gland, the FC Barcelona announced on its website on Friday afternoon. Vilanova…
photo: AP / Scott Heppell

NRA Slams Michael Bloomberg As ‘Arrogant Hypocrite’

Wayne LaPierre

See Also Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is spending $50 million against the powerful US gun lobby, was the target Friday of an angry NRA, which hailed firearm freedoms at its annual convention. “Mr. Bloomberg, you’re an arrogant…
photo: Creative Commons / Gage Skidmore

Dozens killed in Nigeria clashes

File - Nigeria troops man a checkpoint in Maiduguri, Nigeria, Wednesday, Sept, 28. 2011. Security forces have arrested a commander of a radical Muslim sect known as Boko Haram, who allegedly ordered various sectarian killings in the northeastern city.

More than 40 armed men and four Nigerian soldiers died in clashes near the scene where scores of abducted schoolgirls are believed to be held in the north of the country, the military has said. “The capture of a number of terrorists believed to be…
photo: AP / Sunday Alamba

South Sudan children in the firing line

South Sudan children in the firing line

NAIROBI, 25 April 2014 (IRIN) – The conflict in South Sudan is taking a heavy toll on children who are being killed or injured in attacks and recruited into armed groups. They are also witnessing traumatic events and missing out on school. For the…
photo: UN / Albert Gonzalez Farran

 

 

 

MISIDENTIFIED

NICOLAS ASFOURI via Getty Images

South Korea Sent Some Wrong Bodies To Ferry Disaster Families

 

 

 

 

 

Climate change and the food security dimension

25 Apr 2014

 

The world‘s most authoritative body on climate change science recently published a report emphasising that climate change is happening even faster, and with more damaging effects, than previously anticipated. The United NationsIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change‘s Fifth Assessment Report made clear that climate change will be… 
File - A resident at a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) near Mogadishu, Somalia, following the 2011 drought, 8 May, 2012.

 

 

Oil prices on the rebound

Oil prices on the rebound

London – Oil prices rebounded on Thursday as heightened tensions in Ukraineovershadowed data showing US commercial crude inventories reaching an all-time high, analysts said. New York’s West Texas Intermediate for delivery in June, rose 24…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

A world free of wartime rape is within our reach

A world free of wartime rape is within our reach

According to a press released published by the UN Information Center here (UNIC), Under-Secretary-General and the Special Representative of the Secretary-Generalon Sexual Violence in Conflict Zainab Hawa Bangura made the remarks while commenting on…
photo: UN / Albert Gonzalez Farran

Spain’s economy to grow, says minister

Spain's economy to grow, says minister

Tweet Madrid, April 24 (IANS/EFESpain’s economy will grow at an average of 1.5 percent in 2014-15, authorities said. “Everything indicates that the Spanisheconomy’s recovery has continued in the first quarter of the year,” Xinhua quoted Economy…
photo: Creative Commons / S de Santi

Four out of five hospitals short on midwives, NHS figures reveal

Four out of five hospitals short on midwives, NHS figures reveal

Shortages are so acute in some parts of England that hospitals have almost one in five posts in their maternity units unfilled National Audit Office said in November that NHS needed 2,300 more midwives, although the Royal College of Midwives puts the…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Afghanistan Delays Election Results

Afghanistan Delays Election Results

VIDEO: Bite of Noor in Dari below and in Central News OCN video folderAfghanistan&aposs election commission has delayed releasing preliminary results from the country&aposs April 5 presidential election to allow more time to investigate possible…
photo: UN / Fardin Waezi

Asia secure with us, says Obama

President Barack Obama, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shake hands as they arrive to participate in a bilateral meeting at the Akasaka State Guest House in Tokyo, Thursday, April 24, 2014. Facing fresh questions about his commitment to Asia, Obama will seek to convince Japan's leaders Thursday that he can deliver on his security and economic pledges, even as the crisis in Ukraine demands U.S. attention and resources elsewhere.

ON his first of eight days in Asia intended to affirm that the US’s “pivot” back to the region remains on course, President Barack Obama yesterday in Tokyo laid down a clear line on a sensitive strategic issue: the Senkaku/Diaoyu
photo: AP / Carolyn Kaster

 

 

 

Armenian ‘genocide’: Turkey has lost the battle of truth

24 Apr 2014

 

“In actuality, how Turks and Armenians, as the owners of this common history, can together, through dialogue and empathy, reach a just memory of the tragic events of 1915, which occurred during the great human sufferings of World War I, is already being examined thoroughly and in all its dimensions. In this context, our proposal to establish a… 
An Armenian town left pillaged and destroyed after the massacres in Adana in 1909 showing a Minaret from which Turks fired on Christians.

 

 

A world free of wartime rape is within our reach

A world free of wartime rape is within our reach

According to a press released published by the UN Information Center here (UNIC), Under-Secretary-General and the Special Representative of the Secretary-Generalon Sexual Violence in Conflict Zainab Hawa Bangura made the remarks while commenting on…
photo: UN / Albert Gonzalez Farran

Spain’s economy to grow, says minister

Spain's economy to grow, says minister

Tweet Madrid, April 24 (IANS/EFESpain’s economy will grow at an average of 1.5 percent in 2014-15, authorities said. “Everything indicates that the Spanisheconomy’s recovery has continued in the first quarter of the year,” Xinhua quoted Economy…
photo: Creative Commons / S de Santi

Afghanistan Delays Election Results

VIDEO: Bite of Noor in Dari below and in Central News OCN video folderAfghanistan&aposs election commission has delayed releasing preliminary results from the country&aposs April 5 presidential election to allow more time to investigate possible…
photo: UN / Fardin Waezi

Asia secure with us, says Obama

President Barack Obama, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shake hands as they arrive to participate in a bilateral meeting at the Akasaka State Guest House in Tokyo, Thursday, April 24, 2014. Facing fresh questions about his commitment to Asia, Obama will seek to convince Japan's leaders Thursday that he can deliver on his security and economic pledges, even as the crisis in Ukraine demands U.S. attention and resources elsewhere.

ON his first of eight days in Asia intended to affirm that the US’s “pivot” back to the region remains on course, President Barack Obama yesterday in Tokyo laid down a clear line on a sensitive strategic issue: the Senkaku/Diaoyu
photo: AP / Carolyn Kaster

Lance Armstrong manager Johan Bruyneel banned for 10 years over doping

Lance Armstrong, Johan Bruyneel

Lance Armstrong‘s long-time team manager Johan Bruyneel has been banned from professional sport for 10 years for helping to organise widespread doping by teams led by the disgraced cyclist. The US Anti-Doping Agency announced the verdicts of an…
photo: Creative Commons / Paul Coster

FIFA suspends Barcelona transfer ban during appeal

Barcelona's Lionel Messi kicks the ball in front of Atletico players

Share Photo??? FC Barcelona‘s Alexis Sanchez, from Chile, left, duels for the ball against Athletic Bilbao‘s Iker Muniain during a Spanish La Liga soccer match at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, April…
photo: AP / Andres Kudacki

How I’ll End the War: The Trip Over to Afghanistan

How I’ll End the War: The Trip Over to Afghanistan

On his way to Afghanistan, an officer is surprised by a strange sight at a layover in the middle of the night. Editor’s NoteNick Willard is the pen name of a service member serving in Afghanistan during the closing days of America’s longest war. He…
photo: USMC / Lance Cpl. Zachery B. Martin

 

 

SHERPAS BOYCOTT EVEREST



Ukraine crisis: US runs the show in Kiev, says Sergei Lavrov

23 Apr 2014

 

The US is “running the show” in UkraineRussian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrovhas said. Mr Lavrov told Russia Today it was “quite telling” that Kiev had re-launched its anti-terror operation against pro-Russian gunmen during a visit by US Vice-President Joe Biden. Kiev and the West say Moscow commands the gunmen – claims… 
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov addresses the media at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Friday, Dec. 4, 2009. Some two dozen countries will send an estimated 7,000 more troops to Afghanistan next year, the chief of NATO said Friday as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told her allied counterparts that an infusion of forces is crucial to turning the tide in the long war.

 

Kerry: Cold War diplomacy was ‘easier’ than today

Kerry: Cold War diplomacy was ‘easier’ than today

Secretary of State John Kerry waxed a little bit nostalgic for the Cold War on Tuesday, saying the era of civil defense drills and mutual assured destruction was an “easier” or “simpler” time in which to lead American diplomacy. “It may not have…
photo: EC / © EU

Talking without saying

In a context of deepening confrontation and sporadic violence in eastern Ukrainewhich has so far left three people dead and many more injured, Russia, the United States, and the European Union reached an agreement of sorts in Geneva on April 17. The…
photo: EC / © EU

Nigeria Abduction: At Least 230 Girls Still Missing

In this photo taken Monday, April, 21. 2014, soldiers stand guards in front of government secondary school Chibok, were gunmen abducted more than 200 students in Chibok, Nigeria

According to an earlier report by The Inquisitr, the Islamic extremist group, theBoko Haram, is being accused of breaking into a school and kidnapping well over two hundred students in the dead of night. According to ABC News, education officials…
photo: AP / Haruna Umar

These 23 Countries Have More Than Doubled Military Spending In The Last Decade

These 23 Countries Have More Than Doubled Military Spending In The Last Decade

Members of the Afghan National Army attend a briefing. Bucking a global trend of , 23 countries around the world at least doubled their military spending between2004 and 2013, according to a fact sheet released by The Stockholm InternationalPeace
photo: USMC / Zachery B. Martin

Toyota wants to use more hybrid system parts made in China

Toyota wants to use more hybrid system parts made in China

CHANGSHU, China (Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) wants locally procured parts to make up at least half the components in the gasoline-electric hybrid propulsion systems for the Corolla and Levin cars it plans to start making in China next year….
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Everest Sherpas Pack Up for the Season After Deadly Avalanche

North Ridge of Mount Everest. April 23, 2008.

Some Nepalese Sherpas who take paying customers up the world’s tallest mountain are quitting for the season following an avalanche on Mount Everest that killed 16 people, including 13 of their own. After the tragedy, the Sherpa community asked the…
photo: AP / Dave Watson, File

Travelers Like Airlines, Loathe Flying

Travelers Like Airlines, Loathe Flying

Travelers don’t hate everything about the airlines. Consumers gave the industry good marks in several categories, including making reservations, check-in procedures and even baggage handling, according to the latest AmericanCustomer Satisfaction
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Tony Blair: west must take sides against growing threat of radical Islam

23 Apr 2014

 

In keynote speech on Middle East, former PM blames Islamic extremism for failures of western intervention in region Tony Blair: ‘What is absolutely necessary is that we first liberate ourselves from our own attitude. We have to take sides.’ Photograph:Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images Western military intervention in the Middle East has so far failed… 


File - A man walks past a burnt out building following an attacked by Boko Haram in Bama, Nigeria, Thursday, Feb, 20. 2013. The latest attack by suspected Islamic extremists in Nigeria's northeast has left 115 people dead.

 

Acts of bravery emerge from pilloried ship crew

22 Apr 2014

 

FOSTER KLUG Associated Press= MOKPO, South Korea (AP) â?? As the ferry sank, some crew members gave their lifejackets to passengers. One refused to leave until she shepherded students off the ship, and was later found dead. Others worked from rescue boats to break windows with hammers and pull people trapped in cabins to safety. Nearly a week after… 
Acts of bravery emerge from pilloried ship crew

 

 

 

South Korean ferry crash death count tops 100

South Korean ferry crash death count tops 100

Videos SKorea PresidentFerry crew actions ‘murderous’ Captain of sunken SoutKorean ferry arrested Police question captain, crew on ferry disaster GalleriesJINDO, South Korea – One by one, coast guard officers carried the newly arrived bodies…
photo: US Navy / Adam D. Wainwright

Manchester United sacks manager Moyes

Manchester United's manager David Moyes looks on during their English Premier League soccer match against Everton at Goodison Park in Liverpool, England, Sunday April 20, 2014.

Manchester United sacks manager Moyes Updated: 2014-04-22 16:09 (Agencies) MANCHESTER, England – David Moyes left Manchester United on Tuesday after a hugely disappointing season as manager since replacing Alex Ferguson last July. Announcing the…
photo: AP / Clint Hughes

U.N.: South Sudan rebels separate residents by ethnicity, kill hundreds

U.N.: South Sudan rebels separate residents by ethnicity, kill hundreds

April 22, 2014 — Updated 0754 GMT (1554 HKT) Students take notes during anEnglish language class at the Juba Nabari Primary School in Juba, South Sudan, on Wednesday, April 9. Recent conflict in the country has made resources scarce; many civil…
photo: UN / Albert Gonzalez Farran

Stowaway teen forces review of airport security

Hawaiian Airlines

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A 16-year-old boy scrambled over an airport fence, crossed a tarmac and climbed into a jetliner’s wheel well, then flew for five freezing hours toHawaii — a misadventure that forced authorities to take a hard look at the security…
photo: Creative Commons / merfam

Families’ hopes for ferry victims painfully humble

Families' hopes for ferry victims painfully humble

Photos JINDO, South Korea – (AP) — Lee Byung-soo says he knew, when he saw his 15-year-old son’s body in the tent. It could not have been more horrifically obvious. But he wanted so much for him to be alive. “Stop sleeping!” the truck driver yelled…

Ancient Tundra Landscape Discovered Beneath Greenland’s Ice Sheet Provides Climate Change Clues

Ancient Tundra Landscape Discovered Beneath Greenland's Ice Sheet Provides Climate Change Clues

Ever wonder where the ‘green’ in ice-covered Greenland comes from? According toIcelandic lore, viking explorer Erik the Red gave Greenland its name to lure settlers after discovering the territory in the 10th century. New evidence of…
photo: UN / Mark Garten

Russian FM says impossible to isolate Moscow

Russian FM says impossible to isolate Moscow

MOSCOW, April 21 (Xinhua) — Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday any attempt to isolate Russia was bound to fail and he urged European Union countriesto make responsible and independent decisions on sanctions. “Isolation has never led anyone…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

 

 

 

S.Korea president likens ferry tragedy to murder

21 Apr 2014

 

JINDO, South Korea – South Korean President Park Geun-hye said on Monday the actions of the captain and crew of a ferry that sank last week with hundreds feared dead were tantamount to murder, as authorities arrested four more officers of the vessel. Sixty-four people are known to have died and 238 are missing, presumed dead, in the sinking of the… 
South Korean Coast Guard police officers on a boat carry the body of a passenger believed to have been trapped in the sunken ferry Sewol in the water off the southern coast near Jindo, south of Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, April 20, 2014.

 

No sign of MH370 after two-thirds of underwater search completed

21 Apr 2014

 

Two-thirds of the planned underwater search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 has been completed, with no signs so far of the jet, Australian officials said on Monday. As many as 10 military aircraft and 11 ships are taking part in the search for the aircraft, which was carrying 239 people when it vanished on March 8 en route from Kuala… 
Operators aboard the Australian navy vessel ADF Ocean Shield move U.S. Navy's Bluefin-21 into position for deployment. Using side scan sonar, Bluefin will descend to a depth of between 4,000 and 4,500 meters, approximately 35 meters above the ocean floor to spend up to 16 hours at this depth collecting data. Joint Task Force 658 is supporting Operation Southern Indian Ocean, searching for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.

 

 

Syria to hold presidential election on June 3

Syrian citizens pass by a poster of Syrian President Bashar Assad, in the southern city of Daraa, Syria, on Monday March 21, 2011.

Syrian Parliament speaker announced on Monday that the country will hold presidential elections on June 3, a vote President Bashar Assad is likely to contest as his nation sinks deeper into a bloody civil war, now in its fourth year. Mr. Assad has…
photo: AP / Hussein Malla

Britain's new Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha outside 10 Downing Street in London,Tuesday, May, 11 2010

LONDONBritish Prime Minister David Cameron is now in the line of fire for asking Britons to be unashamedly “evangelical” about its Christian faith and announcing that he wanted to see a bigger role for religion in UK. More than 50 writers,…
photo: AP / Tim Hales

Malaysia Airlines jet makes midair turnaround

Malaysia Airlines

Another Malaysia Airlines plane has made a midair turn-back from its scheduled flight, causing a tense few hours for the 166 people on board. The Boeing 737-88 plane that was scheduled to fly from Kula Lumpur to Bangalore landed safely atKuala
photo: Public Domain / Arpingstone

On eve of marathon, festivities and tight security

Police officers guard the entrance to Franklin street where there is an active crime scene search for the suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings, Friday, April 19, 2013, in Watertown, Mass

BOSTON: In many ways, it felt like any other pre-marathon Sunday in Boston.Families celebrated Easter, diners enjoyed the spring weather at sidewalk cafes, and runners — easily identified by their trim builds and colorf

Ukraine PM: New Soviet Union Would Be “Disaster”

Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament Arseniy Yatsenyuk, center, announces a break in the parliamentary session as deputies of Prime Minister Tymoshenko's party block the rostrum in protest in Kiev, Ukraine, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2008. Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko set a Dec. 7 date for new parliamentary elections Thursday after dissolving the legislature following failed efforts to replace his shattered pro-Western coal

Ukraine&aposs prime minister says Russian President Vladimir Putin may be trying to restore the Soviet Union with the recent annexation of Crimea and pro-Russian unrest in eastern Ukraine. Arseniy Yatsenyuk spoke on NBC television&aposs “Meet
photo: AP / Sergei Chuzavkov

Abdullah ahead in election race

Abdullah Abdullah, former Afghan Foreign Minister, gestures during a press conference in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009. Afghan President Hamid Karzai's challenger in the recent presidential election said Wednesday that the current government will not be able to rein in corruption and has wasted the resources and lives of its international allies.

New partial results in Afghanistan‘s presidential election show candidate Abdullah Abdullah is still the front-runner. The winner will replace Hamid Karzai, the only president the country has known since the 2001 US-led invasion ousted the Taliban,…
photo: AP / Anja Niedringhaus

Survivors recall chaos, fear in Everest avalanche

Mount Everest Tibet

KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Survivors of Mount Everest‘s deadliest avalanche recalled scenes of panic and chaos, describing Sunday how they dug through snow with their hands and ice axes in hopes of finding their friends alive. Just minutes before the…
photo: WN / Yeshe Choesang

 

 

 

 

 

 

EASTER SUNDAY SHOOTOUT

KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV via Getty Images

Clashes Turn Deadly In Eastern Ukraine.. Russia Accused Of Staging Attack

 

 

 

 

Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem find their path to the Via Dolorosa is an ever harder road

20 Apr 2014
Pilgrims wait with crosses near the third Station of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa inJerusalem’s Old City on Good Friday 2014. PhotographPeter Beaumont for theObserver The limestone stairs of the Nuns’ Ascent are glassy-slick from the countless feet that have polished them. Descending steeply, they emerge by theChapel Sanctuaries of the…


Serbian pilgrims carry crosses during Good Friday in Jerusalem Friday, April 18, 2014, as Christians commemorated the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Divers begin pulling bodies from sunken ferry

20 Apr 2014
MOKPO, South Korea — The confirmed death toll from South Korea’s ferry disaster rose past 50 on Sunday as divers finally found a way inside the sunken vessel, quickly discovering more than a dozen bodies in what almost certainly is just the beginning of a massive and grim recovery effort. About 250 people are still missing from the ship,…

The body of a passenger aboard the Sewol ferry which sank in the water off the southern coast, is carried by rescue workers upon its arrival at a port in Jindo, south of Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, April 20, 2014.

 

 

French journalists arrive home after Syria hostage ordeal

French President Francois Hollande, third from left, speaks upon arrivals of released French hostages, from left, Didier Francois, Edouard Elias, Nicolas Henin and Pierre Torres, at the Villacoublay military airbase, outside Paris, Sunday, April 20, 2014. The four French journalists kidnapped and held for 10 months in Syria returned home on Sunday to joyful families awaiting them. The four were freed by their captives a day earlier at the Turkish border. At right is French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.

Hollande said on Saturday the four men were ‘in good health despite the very challenging conditions of their captivity’. Four French journalists held hostage inSyria for nearly a year arrived in France on Sunday after they were found abandoned in…
photo: AP / Jacques Brinon

Angry Relatives Of South Korea Ferry Passengers Clash With Police

South Korean rescue helicopters fly over a South Korean passenger ship

A family member of a passenger missing after the South Korean ferry “Sewol” capsized demonstrates in front of police during a protest in Jindo calling for a meeting with President Park and demanding the search and rescue operation be speeded up,…
photo: AP / Yonhap

Iran slams U.S. justice verdict on Manhattan skyscraper

Brooklyn Bridge, Across the East River from Brooklyn to Manhattan New York

DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran on Saturday criticized a U.S. government move to seize aManhattan skyscraper owned largely by a foundation that promotes its language and Islamic culture, saying this violated the right to religious freedom in theUnited
photo: Creative Commons / Taniafa

Water level warning to boat users on the River Thames

Water level warning to boat users on the River Thames

19 April 2014 Last updated at 16:23 BST As the boating season gets under way, river users are being urged to take extra care on the Thames because of higher than usual water levels. The Environment Agency says there are strong currents and lots of…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Experts predict soggy Easter Sunday

Experts predict soggy Easter Sunday

Weather forecasters are predicting a soggy Easter Sunday for large parts of Britain as the dry start to the Bank Holiday weekend looks set to come to an abrupt end.Heavy showers and thunder are expected in places as rain spreads from the south east…
photo: WN / marzena

 

Opposition cries foul as Bouteflika wins fourth term as president

Pro-government demonstrators, one holding a portrait of Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in Algiers, Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011. Algerian police thwarted a rally by thousands of pro-democracy supporters Saturday, breaking up the crowd into isolated groups in a bid to keep them from marching. Police brandishing clubs, but no firearms, weaved their way through the crowd in central Algiers, banging their shields, tackling some protesters and keeping traffic flowing through the planned march route.

Preliminary official results showed Bouteflika had won with 81.53 per cent of the vote, Interior Minister Tayeb Belaiz told a news conference. Algerian PresidentAbdelaziz Bouteflika, the ageing independence veteran already in power for 15 years, won…
photo: AP / Sidali Djarboub

British drivers are in a hole and must dig deep in their wallets

British drivers are in a hole and must dig deep in their wallets

Related Articles Five days of tube strikes announced 17 Apr 2014 Race cyclist’s road crash death ‘accidental’ 17 Apr 2014 Why? Because we don’t spend any money on the upkeep? Anyone who drives a car has to pay a pretend Road Fund Licence that…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

 

 

S. Korea Ferry Incident: Anger mounts when bodies found trapped inside ferry

19 Apr 2014

 

JINDO/MOKPO (South Korea): Angry relatives of more than 200 people, mostly children, missing inside a sunken South Korea ferry demanded authorities act now to raise the vessel and hit out at officials, including the country’s president, as hopes of finding survivors faded. Divers saw three bodies floating through a window of a passenger cabin… 
South Korean frogmen talk at each other as they search passengers of the sunken ferry Sewol off the southern coast near Jindo, south of Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, April 19, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Attack on S Sudan UN base may be ‘war crime’

19 Apr 2014
The United Nations Security Council has said an attack on a UN base in South Sudan which killed at least 58 people and injured 100 others may “constitute a war crime”. A mob of armed civilians pretending to be peaceful protesters delivering a petition to the UN had forced their way on to the base sheltering some 5,000 civilians…


File - Officers from the UNMISS Japanese contingent providing water to civilians that seek refuge in UN House, the UNMISS compound on the Southwestern outskirts of Juba, South Sudan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

TRAGEDY ON EVEREST

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘THEY MUST BE SO COLD AND SCARED, DEEP UNDERWATER’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deal reached on calming Ukraine tension

18 Apr 2014

 

GENEVA • Top diplomats from the United StatesEuropean UnionRussia andUkraine reached agreement after marathon talks Thursday on immediate steps to ease the crisis in Ukraine. The agreement does not set out specific directions for Ukraine’s future, but it requires all sides to halt any violence, intimidation or provocative actions. 
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry holds a one-on-one discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov before the two joined with Ukrainian and European Union officials for four-way talks about Ukraine in Geneva, Switzerland, on April 17, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

Pro-Russia groups refuse to quit

Denis Pushilin, foreground center, spokesman of the self-appointed Donetsk People’s Republic, speaks to reporters inside the regional administration building seized earlier in Donetsk, Ukraine, Friday, April 18, 2014. Pushilin told reporters that the insurgents do not recognize the Ukrainian government as legitimate. Pro-Russian insurgents in Ukraine’s east who have been occupying government buildings in more than 10 cities said Friday they will only leave them if the interim government in Kiev resigns.

Pro-Russian insurgents in Ukraine‘s east who have been occupying government buildings in more than 10 cities said today they will only leave them if the interim government in Kiev resigns. Denis Pushilin, a spokesman of the self-appointedDonetsk
photo: AP / Sergei Grits

Robotic submarine scours ocean for missing Malaysian jet

Robotic submarine scours ocean for missing Malaysian jet

PERTH: A robotic submarine headed back down into the depths of the Indian Oceanon Friday to scour the seafloor for any trace of the missing Malaysian jet one month after the search began off Australia’s west coast, as data from the sub’s previous…
photo: US Navy / Official U.S. Navy Page

Avalanche sweeps Everest; 6 killed, 9 missing

Avalanche sweeps Everest; 6 killed, 9 missing

A Nepalese tourism official said six local guides have been killed and nine more are missing after an avalanche swept a route used to ascend the world’s highest peak. All those killed and missing had gone early in…
photo: Creative Commons / shrimpo1967

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Nobel laureate, dies at 87

 Gabriel Garcia Marquez of Colombia talks during an interview with the Associated Press nf2

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez crafted intoxicating fiction from the fatalism, fantasy, cruelty and heroics of the world that set his mind churning as a child growing up on Colombia‘s Caribbean coast. One of the most revered…
photo: APphoto

Astronomers discover Earth-like planet

The artist's concept depicts Kepler-186f , the first validated Earth-size planet to orbit a distant star in the habitable zone.

Astronomers have discovered what they say is the most Earth-like planet yet detected – a distant, rocky world that is similar in size to our planet and orbiting in a life-friendly zone around a distant star. The find, announced on Thursday,…
photo: NASA / NASA Ames/SETI Institute/JPL-Caltech

Eurostar delays: Trains cancelled at St Pancras station

A Eurostar train waits at an empty platform as a woman uses a mobile phone outside transparent barriers, at St. Pancras Station in London as the Eurostar train services is suspended, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009.

17 April 2014 Last updated at 21:50 BST Gavin Leisfield had been waiting at St Pancras station since 17.30 BST after Eurostar trains were cancelled. He was one of hundreds of passengers who were waiting for news after a Eurotunnel train broke down in…
photo: AP / Akira Suemori

7 Steps to take to Better Health

7 Steps to take to Better Health

The following steps are the beginning to guide your body towards that optimal goal of health and wellness. 1. Personal responsibilityAre you ready to make some lifestyle changes for yourself? The first step is to make the commitment. The second…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

 

 

 

THE LITTLE GREEN MEN WERE OURS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Putin Admits Russian Soldiers Were In Crimea.. ‘There Was No Other Way’

 

Israel and PLO swap blame for peace breakdown

17 Apr 2014

 

-Ismat Mansour was only 16 years old when he was arrested and sentenced to 22 years in prison for complicity in killing an Israeli settler. At the time, the first Intifada – the Palestinian uprising against Israel‘s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip – was in its final throes. Today, 37-year-old Mansour is a writer, journalist and… 
Palestinians, hoping to cross into Egypt, wait at the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the southern Gaza Strip on March 29, 2014. Egyptian authorities partially reopened Rafah border crossing, Gaza's main window to the world, on Saturday for three days after 50 days of closure. its Islamist rulers Hamas said. Photo by Ahmed Deeb / WN

 

 

Fighting Intensifies in Northern Burma

Kachin refugees wait for rations by Kachin Independence Army at Je Yang IDP camp, the biggest and closest camp to Laiza, northern Myanmar, Friday, Jan. 4, 2013.

Sumon Aye, Aye Aye Mar Fighting has intensified in northern Burma as government troops continue a weeklong offensive against ethnic Kachin rebels. Presidentialspokesman Ye Htut on Wednesday confirmed that several government troops, including a…
photo: AP / Yadana Htun

Nigeria’s President Calls Special Meeting to Address Violence

Der Praesident von Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, traegt sich am Freitag (20.04.12) in Schloss Bellevue in Berlin in das Gaestebuch von Schloss Bellevue ein. Gauck traf sich mit Jonathan zu einem Gespraech

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has summoned his National Security Council to a Thursday meeting in Abuja, after suspected militants carried out a string of deadly attacks and abducted more than 100 school girls. A presidential adviser says Mr….
photo: AP / Maja Hitij/dapd

Best holiday: Thailand’s paradise smorgasbord

Best holiday: Thailand's paradise smorgasbord

Phuket, Thailand, a smorgasbord of colour, culture, beaches and food. It’sparadise. After travelling around Europe and North America I decided it was time to set my sights on some less developed and not so Western countriesI’ve started focusing…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Boston bomb squad investigates backpack near Boston Marathon finish line

A Boston police officer pauses on the finish line during a tribute in honor of the one year anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings

Boston Police bomb squad investigates backpack near the finish line BOSTON — A moment of silence at the finish line, the tolling of church bells and a solemn flag-raising ceremony capped the first anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing…
photo: AP / Charles Krupa

EU Agrees to Train Mali Police, Extends Army Training Mission

A Malian soldier takes cover behind a truck during exchanges of fire with jihadists in Gao, northern Mali, Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013.

Reuters LUXEMBOURG — The European Union agreed on Tuesday to send civilian advisers to train and advise Mali‘s police while extending by two years a mission to train the army. The decisions, taken by EU defense ministers at a meeting in…
photo: AP / Jerome Delay

UN Rights Office Urges Ukraine to Stop Propoganda

UN Rights Office Urges Ukraine to Stop Propoganda

Wednesday, 16 April 2014, 11:14 am Press ReleaseUkraine: Un Rights Office Urges Halt To PropagandaIncitement To Hatred New York, Apr 15 2014 1:00pm While corruption and widespread inequality were among the root causes of the massive street…
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

U.N. says not right moment for peacekeepers in Ukraine: paper

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with H.E. Mr. Vladimir V. Putin, President of the Russian Federation.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – It is not the right moment for any United Nations peacekeeping troops to be sent to UkraineU.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moonwas quoted as saying on Tuesday. “At this moment, it…
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

 

 

Passenger boat sinks of South Korean coast

16 Apr 2014

 

At least one person has been reported dead, and six people were injured when aSouth Korean ferry carrying hundreds of passenegrs sank off the country’s south-west coast. The country‘s coast guard… 
People watch a TV news program showing a sinking passenger ship, at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 16, 2014

 

 

Best holiday: Thailand’s paradise smorgasbord

Best holiday: Thailand's paradise smorgasbord

Phuket, Thailand, a smorgasbord of colour, culture, beaches and food. It’sparadise. After travelling around Europe and North America I decided it was time to set my sights on some less developed and not so Western countriesI’ve started focusing…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Boston bomb squad investigates backpack near Boston Marathon finish line

A Boston police officer pauses on the finish line during a tribute in honor of the one year anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings

Boston Police bomb squad investigates backpack near the finish line BOSTON — A moment of silence at the finish line, the tolling of church bells and a solemn flag-raising ceremony capped the first anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing…
photo: AP / Charles Krupa

EU Agrees to Train Mali Police, Extends Army Training Mission

A Malian soldier takes cover behind a truck during exchanges of fire with jihadists in Gao, northern Mali, Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013.

Reuters LUXEMBOURG — The European Union agreed on Tuesday to send civilian advisers to train and advise Mali‘s police while extending by two years a mission to train the army. The decisions, taken by EU defense ministers at a meeting in…
photo: AP / Jerome Delay

UN Rights Office Urges Ukraine to Stop Propoganda

UN Rights Office Urges Ukraine to Stop Propoganda

Wednesday, 16 April 2014, 11:14 am Press ReleaseUkraine: Un Rights Office Urges Halt To PropagandaIncitement To Hatred New York, Apr 15 2014 1:00pm While corruption and widespread inequality were among the root causes of the massive street…
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

U.N. says not right moment for peacekeepers in Ukraine: paper

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with H.E. Mr. Vladimir V. Putin, President of the Russian Federation.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – It is not the right moment for any United Nations peacekeeping troops to be sent to UkraineU.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moonwas quoted as saying on Tuesday. “At this moment, it…
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

Berlusconi Told To Work In Old People’s Home

Silvio Berlusconi speaks at a rally in Brescia, Italy, Saturday, May 11, 2013.

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has been ordered to do a year of community service for his tax fraud conviction. A Milan court on Tuesday ruled he must spend at least four hours a week working at an old people’s home, reportedly a…
photo: AP / Antonio Calanni

Boston Globe wins Pulitzer for bombing coverage

This undated photo provided by Stack’s Bowers Galleries shows the first Pulitzer Prize for Public Service to ever come to auction.

NEW YORK – An award that usually is met with cheers and jubilation instead came with a moment of silence, as The Boston Globe won the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news for its “exhaustive and empathetic” coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing and the…
photo: AP / Stack’s Bowers Galleries

 

 

Asian air pollution strengthens Pacific storms

15 Apr 2014

 

Air pollution in China and other Asian countries is having far-reaching impacts on weather patterns across the Northern Hemisphere, a study suggests. Researchers have found that pollutants are strengthening storms above the Pacific Ocean, which feeds into weather systems in other parts of the world. The effect was most pronounced during the winter…. 
Vehicles clog a highway during a hazy day in Beijing, China, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2014.
photo: AP / Ng Han Guan

 

 

Boston Globe wins Pulitzer for bombing coverage

This undated photo provided by Stack’s Bowers Galleries shows the first Pulitzer Prize for Public Service to ever come to auction.

NEW YORK – An award that usually is met with cheers and jubilation instead came with a moment of silence, as The Boston Globe won the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news for its “exhaustive and empathetic” coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing and the…
photo: AP / Stack’s Bowers Galleries

India recognises transgender people as third gender

India Kolkata Transgender Members join the rally at Kolkata in Eastern India City

Activists say landmark ruling by supreme court will help millions of people who face discrimination in India‘s conservative society Indian transgender dancers put on makeup before a performance in KolkataPhotograph: DibyangshuSarkar/AFP/Getty…
photo: WN / Bhaskar Mallick

US Airways pornographic tweet sets Twitter on fire

US Airways

We apologize for an inappropriate image recently shared as a link in one of our responses. We’ve removed the tweet and are investigating. — US Airways(@USAirways) April 14, 2014 Think of the most lewd, embarrassing, shocking and…
photo: Creative Commons / FlyingJ31

Army general denies Chelsea Manning clemency over WikiLeaks case

Bradley Manning

An Army general upheld Private Chelsea Manning‘s 35-year prison sentence on Monday for turning over classified files to WikiLeaks. With Major General Jeffrey S.Buchanan denying Manning, formerly…
photo: AP / Patrick Semansky

Israeli man killed, 2 hurt in West Bank shooting

Members of a Palestinian youth skate team in the Gaza Strip wear ghost face masks as they take part in a rally to show solidarity with Palestinian prisoners held inside Israeli jails, ahead of Palestinian prisoner's day in the southern Gaza town of Rafah on April 16, Palestinians across the Israeli occupied West Bank and in the Gaza Strip mark this day annually. Photo by Ahmed Deeb / WN

JERUSALEM (AP) â?? An assailant opened fire on Israeli motorists in the West Bank on Monday, killing a man and wounding a woman and a boy in two separate cars, police said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. The attack could further…
photo: WN / Ahmed Deeb

Obama: Religious intolerance has ‘no place in our society’

President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks at Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network's conference, Friday, April 11, 2014, in New York.

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Monday called on Americans to stand up against religious bigotry as he offered his support to the families of those killed in shootings at two Jewish community centers in the Kansas City area. “Nobodyshould…
photo: AP / Carolyn Kaster

Indian troops kill 2 rebels in Kashmir fighting

Indian policemen unload the body of one of the two suspected militants from a car at a police station in Khrew some 14 kilometers from Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian Kashmir, 13 April 2014. Two policemen and two militants were killed in a rebel attack on a politician's house in India-administered Kashmir on Sunday, officials said. The attack was the first in Kashmir during multi-phased Indian elections, with the next round of polling in the state due on April 17. Militants opened gunfire at the residence of Masoodi, an organizer for the youth wing of the ruling National Conference party in the Khrew village near state capital Srinagar.

GalleryIndian troops kill 2 rebels in Kashmir fighting Travel Deals $799 — Puerto Vallarta 4-Star, 6-Night Trip from Philly   See all travel deals &#187The Associated Press Posted: Monday, April 14, 2014, 7:28 AM SRINAGAR, India (AP) – A…
photo: WN / Imran Nissar

 

 

 

Malaysia Airlines MH370: undersea robot hunts for missing plane

14 Apr 2014

 

The search for Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 goes underwater as the robot submersible Bluefin 21 is used for the first time as officials announce the fresh sighting of an oil slick 8:28AM BST 14 Apr 2014 The head of the Australian agency supervising the hunt for a missing Malaysia Airlines plane has confirmed that an autonomous underwater vehicle… 
In this photo taken from the Royal New Zealand air force (RNZAF) P-3K2-Orion aircraft, co-pilot Squadron Leader Brett McKenzie looks out of a window while searching for debris from missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, in the Indian Ocean off the coast of western Australia on Sunday, April 13, 2014.

 

 

Oscar: I did not fire at Reeva

Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius stands inside the court as a police officer looks on during his bail hearing at the magistrate court in Pretoria, South Africa, Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013.

Pretoria – Oscar Pistorius has broken down on the stand for a second time today, as the prosecution continues its attempts to slowly tear apart his version of the night he shot and killed Reeva Steenkamp. Pistorius claims he thought an intruder was…
photo: AP / Themba Hadebe

Cost of fighting warming ‘modest,’ says UN panel

Fears of 3C global warming by 2050

BERLIN — The cost of keeping global warming in check is “relatively modest,” but only if the world acts quickly to reverse the buildup of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere, the head of the U.N.‘s expert panel on climate change said Sunday….
photo: WN / Denise Yong

China’s anti-graft drive leads to space of suicides by officials

The Great Hall Of The People

BEIJING: China is witnessing a sudden spurt in suicides by government and Communist officials as anti-corrupt officials have stepped up efforts to expose bribery and other misdeeds. Chinese social media is agog with speculation that the mysterious…
photo: Creative Commons / Thomas.fanghaenel

 

UN: ‘Massive shift’ needed on energy

Solar panels on buildings will help save energy.

A UN report on climate change is expected to call for a trebling of the planet’s use of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power. The report is also expected to argue that the trend of increased carbon emissions can only be reversed…
photo: Public Domain /

Obama lets NSA keep some Internet security flaws secret

President Barack Obama signs H.R. 3210, Pay Our Military Act, which provides continuing appropriations for pay and allowances for members of the Armed Forces during any period for which interim or full-year appropriations for FY 2014 are not in effect, in the Oval Office, Monday night, Sept. 30, 2013.

But documents released by Edward J. Snowden, the former NSA contractor, make it clear that two years before Heartbleed became known, the NSA was looking at ways to accomplish exactly what the flaw did by accident. A program code-named Bullrun,…
photo: White House

White House to send Biden to Kiev as conflict with Russia escalates

United States' Vice President Joe Biden speaks to media prior to a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, unseen, at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House said on Saturday that Vice President Joe Biden would travel to Kiev this month to show support for the Ukrainian government as U.S. officials expressed new concern over “violence and sabotage” by militants it…
photo: AP / Markus Schreiber

The 2014 Blood Moon is Monday and it could mean the end of NASA’s lunar mission

A large version of the NASA insignia, one of three official NASA logos, at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.

Stay up late for a lunar treat Monday night and watch the moon turn red. The occasion is a rare lunar eclipse, when Earth steps between its steady sidekick and the sun, blocking most of the light that makes it shine. “If you have a good…
photo: Creative Commons

 

 

 

 

 

 

04.13.14

Using Black Holes to Measure Dark Energy, Like a BOSS

Thanks to something called “dark energy,” our Universe is expanding. We don’t understand much about it yet, but a project called BOSS is aiming to change that.

 

 

 

 

GUNFIGHT IN UKRAINE’S EAST

 

 

 

 

Anti-austerity protest in Italy turns violent

13 Apr 2014

 

An anti-austerity protest in Italy has turned violent as demonstrators clashed with police in the capital RomePolice fired tear gas and made a number of arrests in attempts to bring the crowd under control on Saturday as clashes with the police left several people injured, according to medics and an AFP news agencyphotographer. Protesters threw… 
A man throws objects at police during an anti-austerity demonstration in Rome, Saturday, April 12, 2014.

 

 

Japan orders chicken cull after bird flu outbreak in south

13 Apr 2014

 

TOKYOJapan has ordered the slaughter of some 112,000 chickens after officials confirmed Sunday bird flu infections at a poultry farm in the south. DNA testsconfirmed the H5 strain of the virus at a farm in Kumamoto prefecture that kept 56,000 birds, after its owner reported… 
Health workers slaughter all the chickens at the wholesale poultry market in Hong Kong Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2008. Three dead chickens tested positive for bird flu in Hong Kong, prompting the city to suspend poultry imports for 21 days and begin slaughtering 80,000 birds, an official said Tu

 

 

UN: ‘Massive shift’ needed on energy

Solar panels on buildings will help save energy.

A UN report on climate change is expected to call for a trebling of the planet’s use of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power. The report is also expected to argue that the trend of increased carbon emissions can only be reversed…
photo: Public Domain / Slick-o-bot

Obama lets NSA keep some Internet security flaws secret

President Barack Obama signs H.R. 3210, Pay Our Military Act, which provides continuing appropriations for pay and allowances for members of the Armed Forces during any period for which interim or full-year appropriations for FY 2014 are not in effect, in the Oval Office, Monday night, Sept. 30, 2013.

But documents released by Edward J. Snowden, the former NSA contractor, make it clear that two years before Heartbleed became known, the NSA was looking at ways to accomplish exactly what the flaw did by accident. A program code-named Bullrun,…
photo: White House / Pete Souza

White House to send Biden to Kiev as conflict with Russia escalates

United States' Vice President Joe Biden speaks to media prior to a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, unseen, at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House said on Saturday that Vice President Joe Biden would travel to Kiev this month to show support for the Ukrainian government as U.S. officials expressed new concern over “violence and sabotage” by militants it…
photo: AP / Markus Schreiber

The 2014 Blood Moon is Monday and it could mean the end of NASA’s lunar mission

A large version of the NASA insignia, one of three official NASA logos, at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.

Stay up late for a lunar treat Monday night and watch the moon turn red. The occasion is a rare lunar eclipse, when Earth steps between its steady sidekick and the sun, blocking most of the light that makes it shine. “If you have a good…
photo: Creative Commons

Hungary’s Orban retains two-thirds parliament majority

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, center, and President of the World Jewish Congress Ronald S. Lauder, right, arrive at the opening dinner of the World Jewish Congress in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, May 05, 2013.

BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban‘s party has retained its two-thirds majority in parliament, and with it the ability to change the constitution, according to a final tally of votes from last weekend’s election…
photo: AP / Szilard Koszticsak

 

Salmond: It is time to say Yes

Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister and Deputy First Minister of Scotland. Scotland has partial self-government within the United Kingdom as well as representation in the UK Parliament.

Scotland’s First Minister addressed the final party conference before the country’s independence referendum and declared it was “time to say Yes“. With voters inScotland to decide the country’s future in just over five months time, Alex Salmond
photo: Creative Commons / Scottish Government

 

Internet Speeds In South Korea Really Do Blow Away The Rest Of The World

Employees of Korea Internet Security Center work after computer networks at two major South Korean banks and three top TV broadcasters went into shutdown mode en masse, at a monitoring room in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, March 20, 2013.

One of the most fascinating things I learned after spending a week in Seoul, South Korea was how connected the country is. There’s free WiFi just about anywhere you go, even at the airport. And if you travel a lot, you know free WiFi at an airport is…
photo: AP / Han Jong-chan

 

 

 

Fading signals add urgency to search for missing Malaysian jet

12 Apr 2014

 

PERTH: The search for a missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner resumed on Saturday, five weeks after the plane disappeared from radar screens, amid fears that batteries powering signals from the black box recorder on board may have died.Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott warned on Friday that signals picked up during the search in the remote… 
Naval Aircrewman (Operator) 2nd Class Karl Shinn, assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 16, searches out the window of a P-8A Poseidon while flying over the Indian Ocean during a search mission to locate Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, 10 April, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

G7 backs more sanctions if Russia escalates Ukraine crisis: US

12 Apr 2014

 

Finance ministers and central bankers from around the world are in Washingtonfor the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund. A group of the world’s leading rich nations will support increasing… 
A group of pro-Russian activists warm themselves at a bonfire next to barricades in front of an entrance to the Ukrainian regional office of the Security Service in Luhansk, 30 kilometers (20 miles) west of the Russian border, in Ukraine, Friday, April 11, 2014.

 

 

Major economies express confidence about growth

Cube Houses in Rotterdam seen from the Oude Haven. In 1898, the 45 meter high-rise office building the White House (in Dutch Witte Huis) was completed, at that time the tallest office building in Europe.

The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP)—Finance officials of the world’s major economies expressed confidence Friday that they can meet an ambitious goal of boosting global growth by $2 trillion over the next five years. That’s despite a variety of…
photo: Creative Commons / Hanselpedia

Facebook Is Trying To Change Its Huge Privacy Problem

A Palestinian youth displaying a logo Facebook and the WhatsApp's on the computer and Galaxy in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 22, 2014. Facebook Inc's purchase of fast-growing mobile-messaging start-up WhatsApp for 9 billion stunned the markets but analysts said the deal made strategic sense as it will solidify the social network's position as a leader in mobile. Photo Ahmed Deeb / WN

Facebook wants people to stop getting frustrated with the company’s privacy settings. Well, good luck with that. Almost any change Facebook makes to privacy controls triggers outcries and accusations that the social network is continuing to…
photo: WN / Ahmed Deeb

Sylvia Mathews Burwell nominated for U.S. Health Secretary

Budget director Sylvia Mathews Burwell, President Barack Obama's nominee to replace Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, smiles in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Friday, April 11, 2014, where the president made the announcment. The moves come just over a week after sign-ups closed for the first year of insurance coverage under the so-called Obamacare law.

President Barack Obama announced his nomination to succeed Kathleen Sebeliuson Friday as the Health Secretary, the day after Sebelius handed in her resignation.Obama chose Sylvia Mathews Burwell, who currently is the director of the…
photo: AP / Charles Dharapak

 

 

Australian PM ‘very confident’ signals are from MH370 black box

11 Apr 2014
(CNN) — Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters in China on Friday that authorities are “very confident” the signals picked up by acoustic detectors are coming from the black box of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, CNN affiliate Sky News Australia reported. The remarks came after search officials reported a possible fifth signal…
Ben Pelletier, marine operations engineer for Bluefin Robotics, attempts to retrieve a submarine in Quincy, Mass., Wednesday, April 9, 2014.

 

 

Cyclone Ita downgraded but remains a threat: forecasters

Cyclone Ita downgraded but remains a threat: forecasters

CYCLONE Ita has lost some of its fury but remains a severe threat to far northQueenslandLate this afternoon the cyclone was downgraded to a category four from the earlier maximum strength five. However the Bureau of Meteorologywarned it still…
photo: NASA / MODIS

 

Drug ban a big blow to Powell’s career (Roundup)

Drug ban a big blow to Powell's career (Roundup)

Tweet Kingston (Jamaica), April 11 (IANS/CMC) Sprint star Asafa Powell‘s career has been dealt a severe blow with Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO) slapping on him an 18-month ban for failing a drug test. The Jamaican, a former world record…
photo: Creative Commons / Chell Hill

Venezuela’s Maduro and opposition talk as death toll hits 40

Supporters attend the closing rally of Venezuela's acting President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday April 11, 2013.

CARACAS: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro hosted opposition leaders on Thursday at the start of mediated talks intended to stem two months of political unrest that has killed dozens in the OPEC nation. The meeting, brokered by foreign ministers…
photo: AP / Ariana Cubillos

 

Beijing dust storm expected to linger until Sunday

This May 1, 2008 file photo shows Chinese women cycling through smog and pollution over Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

The dust storm that has enshrouded the Chinese capital since Wednesday night won’t disperse until Sunday, the city’s environmental watchdog said. Beijing was hit by another wave of floating dust and sand on Thursday, with the intensity of PM10
photo: AP / Oded Balilty, File

Longtime Canadian finance minister dies

 Canada´s Finance Minister Jim Flaherty  (rks2)

TORONTO — Former Canadian finance minister Jim Flaherty, a fixture on the world financial stage who stepped down last month, has died. He was 64. Flaherty‘s family released a statement that said he died Thursday in Ottawa. No cause was made…
photo: AP

Real IRA man charged with 29 Omagh bomb murders

Royal Ulster Constabulary Police officers stand on Market Street, the scene of a car bombing Saturday, August 15, 1998, in the centre of Omagh, Co Tyrone, 72 miles west of Belfast, Northern Ireland. The bomb tore apart the crowded center of this market town, killing 25 and injuring some 200 others.   (js1)

DUBLIN (AP) — An Irish Republican Army veteran was charged Thursday with 29 murders over the 1998 car bomb attack on Omagh, the deadliest bombing of the entire Northern Ireland conflictPolice long have considered Seamus Daly, 43, a prime suspect in…
photo: AP / Paul McErlane

UN votes to send peacekeeping force into Central African Republic

A French soldier waves to children as his jeep patrols between the airstrip and a makeshift camp housing an estimated 100,000 displaced people, at Mpoko Airport, in Bangui, Central African Republic, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014.

Security council authorises the deployment of up to 10,000 troops in attempt to stop violence spiralling into genocide The mainly Muslim Séléka seized power a year ago, leading to thousands of deaths and displacing hundreds of thousands.Photograph:…
photo: AP / Rebecca Blackwell

 

 

 

UN: 3,600 raped in DRC in four-year period

10 Apr 2014

 

The United Nations has said more than 3,600 women, children and men were subjected to rape and other sexual violence in Congo over a four-year period by the country’s defense and security forces or armed rebels. A UN report published on Wednesday documented 3,645 victims of sexual violence between January 2010 andDecember 2013, with… 
A delegation of United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) female staff visited a women's shelter for victims of sexual abuse in Goma and donated much needed supplies.
photo: UN / Marie Frechon

 

 

 

Missing Malaysia plane: Search area narrows

10 Apr 2014

 

Teams are focusing on a narrowed search area in the hunt for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, after more signals were heard earlier this week. Thursday’s search was set to involve up to 14 aircraft and 13 ships, the agency co-ordinating the search announced. They will search 57,923 sq km (22 364 sq miles) – the smallest designated search… 
A submarine built by Bluefin Robotics is lowered into the water by systems engineer Cheryl Mierzwa in Quincy, Mass., Wednesday, April 9, 2014.

 

 

 

 

In Libya, politicians in fear of powerful militias

10 Apr 2014

 

TRIPOLI, Libya — In a humiliating video, Libya’s top politician — the head of parliament — is seen begging with a militia commander, trying to explain to him why he was caught with two women in his residence and insisting nothing scandalous was going on. “In God’s name,” Nouri Abu Sahmein tells the militiaman, Haitham al-Tajouri…. 
In this March 5, 2011 file photo, an anti-government rebel sits with an anti-aircraft weapon in front an oil refinery, after the capture of the oil town of Ras Lanouf, eastern Libya.

 

In Libya, politicians in fear of powerful militias

10 Apr 2014

 

TRIPOLI, Libya — In a humiliating video, Libya’s top politician — the head of parliament — is seen begging with a militia commander, trying to explain to him why he was caught with two women in his residence and insisting nothing scandalous was going on. “In God’s name,” Nouri Abu Sahmein tells the militiaman, Haitham al-Tajouri…. 
In this March 5, 2011 file photo, an anti-government rebel sits with an anti-aircraft weapon in front an oil refinery, after the capture of the oil town of Ras Lanouf, eastern Libya.

 

 

‘Don’t panic over Heartbleed bug’

 Computer, laptop, IT, information technology, keyboard (td1)

Security experts have urged internet users not to panic and instantly change their passwords in wake of the Heartbleed bug security flaw, despite suggestions to do so from prominent sites like Tumblr. Hugh Boyes, cyber security lead at the UK-based…
photo: WN / Tara

US and Russia urge peaceful solution to Ukraine crisis

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov walk through the Russian Ambassador's house in Paris, France, on March 30, 2014, before a meeting focused on Ukraine.

US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart have agreed on the need to resolve the security situation in eastern Ukraine peacefully, officials say. It comes as pro-Russia activists continue to occupy state buildings in eastern cities…
photo: US DoS

Afghan probe begins in attack on AP journalists

File - Afghan President Hamid Karzai takes the stage to speak at the National Military Academy's (NMA) third graduation ceremony at the NMA in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 22, 2011.

KIM GAMEL Associated Press= KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) â?? Afghan central government authorities on Wednesday began questioning the police commander who killed an Associated Press photographer and wounded an AP reporter, a day after he was transferred…
photo: US Navy / MCS2 John Fischer

 

N.Korean Regime Reshuffles Top Posts

A man, center, supervises a dancing group during a mass folk dance in front of the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday, April 15, 2013.

North Korea‘s newly elected parliament met for the first time Wednesday to rubber-stamp a reshuffle of high-ranking officials, including the re-election of leader Kim Jong-un. Military politburo chief Choe Ryong-hae was elected as vice chairman of…
photo: AP / Alexander F. Yuan

Atletico end Barca hopes

Barcelona's Lionel Messi covers his face during the Champions League

Koke, right, celebrates scoring the opening goal (AP) Atletico Madrid reached the semi-finals of the Champions League for the first time following a 1-0 win overSpanish rivals Barcelona. Koke’s fifth-minute strike was enough to send Atletico…
photo: AP / Andres Kudacki

US in talks with France on Holocaust compensation

In this Aug. 18, 2010 file photo, Palestinian students visit the Hall of Names at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial during their tour in Jerusalem. Six decades after the German Nazis murdered 6 million Jews, Israel's national Holocaust memorial has launched a new effort to educate the country's Arab minority, many of whom either deny the horror or undermine its scope.

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration on Wednesday warned several state legislatures against initiatives that would punish the state-owned French railway company SNCF for carrying out Holocaust-era deportations to Nazi death and labor camps….
photo: AP / Tara Todras-Whitehill, file

Lassana Diarra denies jihadist rumours April 9, 2014

Real Madrid players from left; Javi Garcia from Spain, Raul Gonzalez from Spain, Lassana Diarra from France, and Fabio Cannavaro from Italy react at the end of their Spanish La Liga soccer match against Villarreal at the Madrigal stadium in Villarreal, Spain, Saturday, May 16, 2009. Villarreal won the match 3-2

Lokomotiv Moscow midfielder Lassana Diarra has denied claims that he is a jihadist in the war in Syria. GettyImagesLassana Diarra is a former Arsenal player. It was rumoured that Diarra, 29, had moved to the war-torn…
photo: AP / Daniel Leiva

 

 

 

Over 20 killed, nearly 70 injured in blast in Pakistan

09 Apr 2014

 

ISLAMABAD: Over 20 people were killed and nearly 70 others injured on Wednesday in a blast that ripped through a bustling fruit market on the outskirts of thePakistan’s capital, even as peace talks are on with the banned Taliban. The blast occurred in the fruit market in Sector I-11 of the capital, bordering the garrison city of Rawalpindi. No… 
Police cordon off the area of a blast in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, April 9, 2014.

 

 

Newly Discovered ‘Heartbleed’ Bug Can Compromise Data Of Major Websites

A man browsing through the internet using a laptop computer

A major new security vulnerability referred to as Heartbleed was disclosed late Monday night with severe implications for the entire Web. Hundreds of thousands of web and email servers worldwide could easily have this software flaw that lets…
photo: WN / Trigedia

Train Blast Kills 14 in Southwest Pakistan

Pakistan army soldiers patrol in the vicinity of the army training camp in Mardan near Peshawar, Pakistan  Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011. A teen suicide bomber in a school uniform attacked soldiers during morning exercises at a Pakistani army training camp killing many troops and injuring dozens of others, police and the military said.

A bomb has ripped through a passenger train in southwest Pakistan, killing at least 14 people. Police say Tuesday&aposs blast occurred after the train stopped…
photo: AP / Mohammad Sajjad

Spanish Parliament to Vote on Catalonia’s Independence Bid

Supporters of center-right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU) leader, Artur Mas, wave their pro-independence "estelada" flags during the last day of campaigning in a meeting in Barcelona, Spain, Friday, Nov. 23, 2012.

MOSCOW, April 8 (RIA Novosti) – Spanish lawmakers are set to debate a request on Tuesday by Catalonia‘s regional assembly to hold a referendum on independence from Spain….
photo: AP / Emilio Morenatti

 

Germany summons N Korean envoy over nuke threat

Pyongyang

Germany’s Foreign Ministry said it summoned North Korea’s envoy in Berlin overPyongyang’s threat to carry out…
photo: Creative Commons / Michael Day

Special Event:  Commemoration of World Press Freedom Day 2012  Opening remarks by:  - The United Nations Secretary-General, - H.E. Mr. Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland; - H.E. Mutlaq Al-Qahtani, Chef de Cabinet of the President of the General Assembly; - Mr. Mogens Schmidt, Director of Field Coordination for UNESCO; - H.E. Eduardo Ulibarri-Bilbao, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the United Nations; Chairperson, Committee on Information; - Giampaolo Pioli, President, United Nations Correspondents Association  Moderated by: Mr. Maher Nasser, Acting Head, Department of Public Information

April 2014, 2:40 Irish President Makes Historic State Visit Tweet Irish PresidentMichael D Higgins and his wife Sabina will be guests of the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh at Windsor Castle. The two heads of state have met informally butPresident
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

Venezuela’s Maduro agrees to Unasur-brokered opposition talks

Nicolas Maduro takes the presidential oath from National Assembly's President Disodado Cabello during a swearing-in ceremony at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, March 8, 2013.

Venezuela‘s PresidentNicolas Maduro, is set to meet opposition leaders for the first time since the start of street protests that left 39 dead. The meeting was proposed by foreign ministers belonging to the South American regional group…
photo: AP / Fernando Llano

150 killed in Nigeria attacks

A victim of Friday's bomb blast and gun attacks lies in Murtala Muhammad specialist hospital in Kano, Nigeria Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012.

ABUJA, April 7 (Xinhua) — At least 150 people were killed in separate weekend attacks in northwest and northeast regions of NigeriaAfrica‘s most populous country, officials and witnesses said here on Monday. In the northwestern state ofZamfara,…
photo: AP / Salisu Rabiu

 

 

 

 

North Korean minister ‘executed by flamethrower’

 

 

‘FORGIVENESS IS POSSIBLE’

ASSOCIATED PRESS

20 Years After The Rwandan Genocide, Victim And Perpetrator Reconciled

 

 

Fund crunch forces UN to cut Syria food aid

08 Apr 2014

 

The United Nations has been forced to cut the size of food parcels for those left hungry by Syria‘s civil war by a fifth because of a shortage of funds from donors, a senior official has said. Nevertheless, the United Nations’ World Food Programmemanaged to get food to a record 4.1m people inside Syria last month, just short of its target of 4.2m,… 
In this picture taken on Monday Feb. 24, 2014, and released by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), residents of the besieged Palestinian camp of Yarmouk wait for a possible new UNRWA humanitarian aid distribution, in Damascus, Syria.

 

 

Germany summons N Korean envoy over nuke threat

Pyongyang

Germany’s Foreign Ministry said it summoned North Korea’s envoy in Berlin overPyongyang’s threat to carry out…
photo: Creative Commons / Michael Day

Irish President Makes Historic State Visit

Special Event:  Commemoration of World Press Freedom Day 2012  Opening remarks by:  - The United Nations Secretary-General, - H.E. Mr. Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland; - H.E. Mutlaq Al-Qahtani, Chef de Cabinet of the President of the General Assembly; - Mr. Mogens Schmidt, Director of Field Coordination for UNESCO; - H.E. Eduardo Ulibarri-Bilbao, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the United Nations; Chairperson, Committee on Information; - Giampaolo Pioli, President, United Nations Correspondents Association  Moderated by: Mr. Maher Nasser, Acting Head, Department of Public Information

April 2014, 2:40 Irish President Makes Historic State Visit Tweet Irish PresidentMichael D Higgins and his wife Sabina will be guests of the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh at Windsor Castle. The two heads of state have met informally butPresident
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

Venezuela’s Maduro agrees to Unasur-brokered opposition talks

Nicolas Maduro takes the presidential oath from National Assembly's President Disodado Cabello during a swearing-in ceremony at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, March 8, 2013.

Venezuela‘s PresidentNicolas Maduro, is set to meet opposition leaders for the first time since the start of street protests that left 39 dead. The meeting was proposed by foreign ministers belonging to the South American regional group…
photo: AP / Fernando Llano

150 killed in Nigeria attacks

A victim of Friday's bomb blast and gun attacks lies in Murtala Muhammad specialist hospital in Kano, Nigeria Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012.

ABUJA, April 7 (Xinhua) — At least 150 people were killed in separate weekend attacks in northwest and northeast regions of NigeriaAfrica‘s most populous country, officials and witnesses said here on Monday. In the northwestern state ofZamfara,…
photo: AP / Salisu Rabiu

U.S. Warns Russia Against Further Moves in Ukraine

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry walks with French President Francois Hollande after their meeting at Elysee Palace in Paris on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013.

The White House is telling Russia to stop intervening in eastern Ukraine, or face more sanctions. The warning from the White House came after groups of pro-Russian demonstrators took over government buildings in at least three cities in eastern…
photo: AP / Jacquelyn Martin

India elections: High turnout on first day of voting

Crowd gathered during the Left Front public rally to counter Trinamool Congress at Brigade Parade Ground on February 9, 2014 in kolkata, India. CPI-M veteran Prakash Karat said in Modi's Gujarat only big business had gained, not the general people. After a 34-year reign in West Bengal, the Left Front lost to TMC in 2011 election

April 2014 Last updated at 23:42 BST The first day of voting in India‘s month-long parliamentary election has seen a high turnout. One of the big issues is getting the economy back on track with growth having dropped to less than 5%, from a peak of…
photo: WN / Bhaskar Mallick

Dutch Priest Killed in Syria

In this citizen journalism image provided by Shaam News Network SNN, taken on Wednesday, July 11, 2012, smoke leaps the air from purported forces shelling in Homs, Syria.

The Vatican says a Dutch priest has been shot dead at his monastery in the besieged Syrian city of Homs. The 75-year-old Jesuit priest, Frans Van Der Lugt, had lived in Syria for decades and had refused to leave…
photo: AP / Shaam News Network, SNN

 

 

WHY WE CAN NEVER LET A TRAGEDY LIKE THE RWANDAN GENOCIDE HAPPEN AGAIN

 

 

 

Smooth Afghanistan poll raises questions about Taliban strength

07 Apr 2014

 

KABUL: A bigger-than-expected turnout in Afghanistan‘s presidential election and the Taliban’s failure to derail the vote have raised questions about the capacity of the insurgents to tip the country back into chaos as foreign troops head homeThe Taliban claimed that they staged more than 1,000 attacks and killed dozens during Saturday’s… 


An Afghan woman searches voters before they enter a polling station to cast their ballots, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, April 5, 2014.

Ukraine rejects Russia’s federalisation push

Ukraine rejects Russia's federalisation push

FirstRussia took over a chunk of their country. Now, to the astonishment of manyUkrainiansMoscow is telling them how to run the rest of their nation. The lectures do not sit well here. Russia has been insisting that Ukraine adopt a federal form…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

 

 

 

Panic as deadly Ebola virus spreads across West Africa

06 Apr 2014

 

When everyone is an apparent threat, a potential carrier of the deadly Ebola virus, panic inevitably rises. Yesterday, as rumours spread that Ebola could be caught by breathing the same air as the victims, that fear turned into violence. Since the outbreak of the deadly strain of Zaire Ebola in Guinea in February, around 90 people have died as the… 
Health workers teach people about the Ebola virus and how to prevent infection, in Conakry, Guinea, Monday, March 31, 2014.

 

 

 

More ships rush to probe signals in plane search

06 Apr 2014

 

PERTH, Australia (AP) — Three separate but fleeting sounds from deep in the Indian Ocean offered new hope Sunday in the hunt for the missing Malaysian airliner, and officials rushed to confirm or rule out they were signals from the plane’s black boxes before their beacons fall silent. The head of the multinational search being conducted off… 
The Bluefin 21 Artemis autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is hoisted back on board the Australian navy vessel Ocean Shield after successful buoyancy testing in search of the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, 1 April, 2014.

 

 

Ban on e-liquids for e-cigarettes proposed in State Senate

Workers place partially assembled electronic cigarettes in a tray after testing their amber LED lights at the Ruyan factory in Tianjin, China,

Galleries Web links A Long Island state senator has introduced legislation that would ban for sale in New York all so-called e-liquids, the fluids popularly used in e-cigarettes. State Sen. Kemp Hannon (R-Garden City) said he is well aware that his…
photo: AP / Greg Baker

Flight 370: Ship detects ‘ping’

USS Pinckney assists with Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 recovery efforts

Chinese patrol ship hunting for a missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner has detected a pulse signal in the south Indian Ocean, the state news agency Xinhua reported, in a possible indicator of the underwater beacon from a plane’s “black box”….
photo: Creative Commons / U.S. Navy photo by Senior Chief Petty Officer Chris D. Boardman/Released)

France to shun Rwanda genocide ceremony after Kagame accusations

A young girl passes by posters of Rwandan president Paul Kagame in the capital Kigali, Rwanda, Friday, Aug. 6, 2010, during a rally for the upcoming presidential elections which will be held on Aug. 9 2010

PARIS (Reuters) – France said on Saturday it had canceled plans to attend a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide following accusations ofFrench involvement in the massacre by Rwandan President Paul KagameThe Africanweekly…
photo: AP / Marc Hofer

Russian PM attributes economic slowdown to global factors, Crimea

Russian PM attributes economic slowdown to global factors, Crimea

MOSCOW, April 4 (Xinhua) — The Russian economy is stalling due to a range of global and domestic factors, including events over CrimeaPrime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Friday. “Everyone has lately come to a conclusion that traditional factors of…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Soldiers occupy Brazil slum ahead of World Cup

Policemen place a Brazilian flag at a top point of the Complexo do Alemao slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Nov. 28, 2010. Rio's most dangerous slum that was the backbone of the city's biggest drug gang was taken by 2,600 police and soldiers Sunday, an unprecedented accomplishment by authorities in their fight to secure this seaside metropolis that will host the 2016 Olympics.

RIO DE JANEIRO: Thousands of soldiers in armored vehicles, trucks and on foot entered one of Rio de Janeiro’s most notorious slums Saturday to provide security less than three months before the World Cup. The move is the latest attempt to drive drug…
photo: AP / Silvia Izquierdo

Floriculture department in Kashmir offers treat to hobby growers

Floriculture department in Kashmir offers treat to hobby growers

Srinagar, April 05: The Floriculture Department in Jammu and Kashmir has started selling flower seedlings and saplings at subsidised rates to its residents, flower growers and enthusiasts, in the valley. With the arrival of spring season, the…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Did Adolf Hitler marry a woman of Jewish descent? DNA tests ‘show Eva Braun associated with Ashkenazi Jews’

Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun

Eva BraunAdolf Hitler‘s long-term lover who married the Nazi leader hours before their joint suicide in his Berlin bunker, may have had Jewish ancestry, ground-breaking DNA testing has found. DNA analysis of hair samples from a hairbrush claimed to…
photo: Creative Commons

 

 

 

 

 

Breaking  News……..

Chinese ship detects ‘pulse signal’ in search for missing Malaysia Airlines jet, report says

China’s official news agency says a Chinese ship that is part of the multinational search effort looking for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane has detected a “pulse signal” in southern Indian Ocean waters.

Malaysia pinger graphic

 Most intensive hunt yet underway in the southern Indian Ocean for missing flight MH370.

 

 

 

 

 

 

North Korea says US ‘hell-bent on regime change’

05 Apr 2014

 

UNITED NATIONS — North Korea on Friday accused the United States of being “hell-bent on regime change” and warned that any maneuvers with that intention will be viewed as a “red line” that will result in countermeasures. Pyongyang’s deputy U.N. ambassador Ri Tong Il also repeated that his government “made it very clear we will carry out a new… Wn.com/
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrives for the unveiling ceremony for statues of late leaders Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung on Mansudae in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, April 13, 2012.

 

 

 

 

 

Why is Arctic ice disappearing more rapidly than expected?

ARCTIC OCEAN - The bow of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea, homeported in Seattle, moving through pancake ice floes at dawn, Sept. 30, 2009. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Pamela J.  Manns (728478) ( Bow of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea )

Washington: In a new study, researchers have discovered unexpected climate-driven changes in the mighty Mackenzie River‘s ice breakup. This discovery may help resolve the complex puzzle underlying why Arctic ice is disappearing more rapidly…
photo: US Coastguard / Petty Officer 3rd Class Pamela J. Manns

McDonald’s exits Crimea

In this July 21, 2010 photo, people make their way past the McDonald's restaurant at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco.

NEW YORK (AP) — McDonald’s has closed its three restaurants in Crimea as it evaluates the “evolving situation” on the Black Sea peninsula. The world‘s biggest hamburger chain said Friday that the closures were “strictly a…
photo: AP / Eric Risberg

First candidate says to contest Lebanon’s presidential race

Samir Geagea, leader of the Christian Lebanese Forces party, enters a hall to meet with his senior party officials to announce his candidacy for the Lebanese presidency, in Maarab east Beirut, Lebanon, Friday April 4, 2014. The former Lebanese warlord who now leads a Christian right-wing party has announced he will run for president in the tiny Arab country's elections later this spring. According to Lebanon's power-sharing system, the president must be a Maronite Christian, the prime minister a Sunni Muslim and the parliament speaker a Shiite Muslim.

BEIRUT (Reuters) – Lebanese Christian politician Samir Geagea announced on Friday he will run for president in an election due next month, the first candidate to formally enter a race overshadowed by growing violence and months of political…
photo: AP / Hussein Malla

Afghan cop kills AP photog, wounds reporter

Afghan police officers, one with flowers in the barrel of his weapon, leave their checkpoint

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A veteran Associated Press photographer was killed and an AP reporter was wounded on Friday when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan. Anja Niedringhaus, 48, an…
photo: AP / Anja Niedringhaus

Pakistan: Nine-month-old boy accused of planning murder

Afghan refugee women wearing burqa as they carry their children, as they walk next to a refugee camp on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan

A nine-month-old boy has appeared in court in Pakistan on charges of planning a murder, threatening police and interfering in state affairs, it appears. BabyMuhammad Mosa Khan is one…
photo: AP / Emilio Morenatti

Scientists Dismiss Claims That Yellowstone Volcano Is About To Erupt

A herd of American bison (Bison bison) sharing the road with motorists at Yellowstone National Park. The motorists are afraid to pass between the bison, as it could be dangerous.

(Reuters) – Yellowstone National Park assured guests and the public on Thursday that a super-volcano under the park was not expected to erupt anytime soon, despite an alarmist video that claimed bison had been seen fleeing to avoid such a calamity….
photo: Creative Commons / Ildar Sagdejev

Malaysia plane MH370: Pinger locators deployed in search

A Towed Pinger Locator (TPL), used to detect black box recorders, sits on the wharf at naval base HMAS Stirling in Perth, Australia, ready to be fitted to the Australian warship Ocean Shield to aid in the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, Sunday, March 30, 2014.

Towed pinger locators will begin to search the southern Indian Ocean for signs of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, Australian officials say. Two ships with pinger locator capabilities will search a 240km (150 mile) track under water, in the…
photo: AP / Rob Griffith

 

 

 

MH370: Underwater search for black box begins

04 Apr 2014

 

Retired Australian Air Chief Marshall Angus Houston says the search for MH370 will also continue on the surface. Photo: AP The hunt for the missing Malaysia Airlinesplane has shifted below the surface, with the “towed pinger locator” deployed on Friday to search for the black box before its batteries expire. Former Defence Forcechief… 
Relatives of Chinese passengers onboard the Malaysia Airlines MH370 stand near candles arranged as a memorial in a prayer room in Beijing, China, Thursday, April 3, 2014.

 

 

Malaysia plane MH370: Pinger locators deployed in search

A Towed Pinger Locator (TPL), used to detect black box recorders, sits on the wharf at naval base HMAS Stirling in Perth, Australia, ready to be fitted to the Australian warship Ocean Shield to aid in the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, Sunday, March 30, 2014.

Towed pinger locators will begin to search the southern Indian Ocean for signs of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, Australian officials say. Two ships with pinger locator capabilities will search a 240km (150 mile) track under water, in the…
photo: AP / Rob Griffith

Lebanon registers 1 million Syrian refugees

This citizen journalism image provided by Aleppo Media Center AMC which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows Syrian refugees filling their buckets at Atmeh refugee camp, in the northern Syrian province of Idlib, Syria, Friday, April 5, 2013.

TRIPOLI, Lebanon (AP) — Yahya was trapped in his hometown for two years bySyria‘s civil war, moving from house to house to avoid shells and bullets. His father was killed by a sniper. His family then fled to another town that came under a fierce…
photo: AP / Aleppo Media Center AMC

Israel says it won’t release Palestinian prisoners, seeks review of talks

Trucks transporting construction materials are seen through a crack in a police post after entering the Gaza Strip through the Kerem Shalom crossing, on September 22, 2013. Israel began allowing construction materials for private projects into the Gaza Strip on Sunday for the first time in six years, in response to a request from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, an Israeli defence official said. Photo by Ahmed Deeb / WN

JERUSALEM: Israel has called off a planned release of Palestinian prisoners meant to advance the US-sponsored peace process and called for a review of how the troubled negotiations can make progress, an official briefed on the talks said on Thursday….
photo: WN / Ahmed Deeb

Armenia’s prime minister steps down

Armenian Premier Minister Tigran Sargsyan

YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — Armenia’s prime minister says he has submitted his resignation, a move that comes in the wake of a court…
photo: Creative Commons / World Economic Forum

Queen gives honey to pope, who has gift for George

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II as the Guards march pass outside Buckingham Palace after the Trooping The Colour, at the Horse Guards Parade in London, Saturday, June 15, 2013.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Queen Elizabeth II — bearing a basket of honey, whiskey and other goodies from the royal estates — paid a visit to Pope France at the Vatican on Thursday. The pontiff returned the courtesy with a gift for Prince George,…
photo: AP / Sang Tan

Harvard issues report on marathon bombing response

Investigators in haz-mat suits examine the scene of the second bombing on Boylston Street in Boston Tuesday, April 16, 2013 near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon, a day after two blasts killed three and injured over 170 people.

BOSTON (AP) — The manhunt for the Boston Marathon bombing suspects culminated in a chaotic gunfight that placed police and the public in danger because it lacked coordination and restraint, according to an otherwise largely positive report released…
photo: AP / Elise Amendola

Segolene Royal joins ex-partner Francois Hollande’s French government

 ** FILE ** Former socialist presidential candidate Segolene Royal, right, her partner of three decades Francois Hollande, are seen in Paris in this Nov. 26, 2006 file photo. One of France´s most famous power couples, Royal and Socialist Party leade

April 2014 Last updated at 05:42 BST Segolene Royal, the former partner ofPresident Francois Hollande has joined the government in a major reshuffle. MsRoyal, the mother of President Hollande‘s four children, will serve as environment minister in…
photo: AP Photo/Eric Feferberg; Pool

 

 

 

Chile Hit By Second Powerful Earthquake

03 Apr 2014

 

A second powerful earthquake has struck off northern Chile, a day after the region was hit by a deadly 8.2-magnitude tremor. The 7.6-magnitude quake rattled buildings and triggered a new round of evacuations, although a tsunami alert issued for coastal communities was soon lifted. It… 


People evacuate their homes after a strong aftershock in Iquique, Chile, early Thursday, April 3, 2014.

 

 

7 portions of fruits and veggies MUST daily

7 portions of fruits and veggies MUST daily

Researchers have suggested that eating at least seven daily portions of fruit and vegetables could be the best chance to stave off death from any cause. According to the data, vegetables may pack more of a protective punch than fruit. The authors…
photo: WN / Geeta

Officials: 4 dead at Fort Hood, including gunman

An entrance to Fort Hood Army Base in Fort Hood, Texas, near Killeen remains in lock-down following a mass shooting on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009.

WILL WEISSERT Associated Press= FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) â?? A gunman opened fire Wednesday at the Fort Hood military base in an attack that left four people dead, including the shooter, at the same post where more than a dozen people were killed in a…
photo: AP / Jack Plunkett

Ketamine ‘exciting’ depression therapy

Sadness, Depression

The illegal party drug ketamine is an “exciting” and “dramatic” new treatment for depression, say doctors who have conducted the first trial in the UK. Some patients who have faced incurable depression for decades have had…
photo: Creative Commons / nicco_napo

New Ai Weiwei Exhibition Unveiled in Berlin, but Artist Can’t Attend

Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei works in front of a computer at home in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011. Thousands of people have sent more than $800,000 to Ai, some tossing cash folded into airplanes over his gate, to help him pay a tax bill they see as government harassment, he said Monday. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Reuters BERLIN — Chinese artist Ai Weiwei‘s biggest solo show, featuring a reproduction of the white cell where he was held for 81 days by Chinese authorities, was unveiled on Wednesday in Berlin without Ai in attendance because the government…
photo: AP / Ng Han Guan

Yanukovych: ‘I Was Wrong’ To Ask Russian Troops Into Crimea

Ukrainian opposition leader and presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych is seen at a polling station during the presidential election in Kiev, Ukraine Sunday, Feb. 7, 2010.

Former Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted after asking Russiantroops into Crimea, admits that his decision was wrong, calling Moscow‘s annexation of the Black Sea peninsula “a major tragedy.” In an interview with The Associated…
photo: AP / Efrem Lukatsky

Democracy not for China, say Xi Jinping

Chinese soldiers march outside the Great Hall of the People before the closing ceremony of the National People's Congress in Beijing, China, Sunday, March 17, 2013.

President Xi Jinping has reaffirmed China’s commitment to socialism, saying multi-party democracy had failed his country in the past, and China needed to follow its own path of political development to avoid disaster. There are regular calls from the…
photo: AP / Alexander F. Yuan

NATO Announces Plans for Improved Defenses in Eastern Europe

NATO's new Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen addresses the media at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Monday Aug. 3, 2009

By Global Security Newswire Staff April 2, 2014 NATO announced on Tuesday it would prepare plans for bolstering defenses in Eastern Europe in response to concerns about possible Russian incursions. The decision to order new military defense plans…

 

 

Chile earthquake: five dead, tsunami hits northern coast

02 Apr 2014

 

Locals sit on the street following a tsunami alert after a powerful 8.0-magnitude earthquake. PhotoAFP Chile earthquake: as it happened SantiagoA majorearthquake has struck off the coast of Chile, triggering a tsunami, causing landslides that blocked highways and leading to at least five deaths. The earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck at… 
A fire burns at a restaurant after an earthquake in Iquique, Chile, Tuesday, April 1, 2014.

 

 

Hollande’s former partner Segolene Royal named to new French cabinet

 French Socialist Presidential candidate Segolene Royal applauds as she attends a campaign meeting in Toulon, southeastern France, Wednesday, Jan.17, 2007. (mb1)

Published April 02, 2014Associated Press Facebook0 Twitter0 Gplus0 PARIS – French President Francois Hollande has approved a new Cabinet that includes his ex-companion Segolene Royal as minister of environment and energy. The new
photo: AP /Lionel Cironneau

Air pollution: High levels ‘to spread across England and Wales’

The setting sun seen from Battersea Park; sinking behind the Albert Bridge, London, UK

April 2014 Last updated at 08:25 BST People in many parts of England and Walesshould be braced for “very high” levels of air pollution on Wednesday. Environmentdepartment Defra says the pollution is a mix of local emissions and dust blown from…
photo: Creative Commons / Duncan Harris

 

Massive Earthquake strike Northern Chile, Warning of Tsunami

A view of the city of Iquique, Chile, after an earthquake struck late Tuesday, April 1, 2014.

Tweet Normal life in Chile come to a halt when it witnesses a magnitude-8.0 earthquake to its cost which has been assume for a warnings of Tsunami for all ofLatin America‘s Pacific coastThe US Geological Survey (USGS) has said that it can be a…
photo: AP / Cristian Viveros

Obama scores victory with 7 million healthcare signups

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama

Tweet Washington, April 2 (IANSPresident Barack Obama claimed a major victory as over seven million people signed up for medical insurance under his signature healthcare law at the end of the six-month open enrolment period. After a floundering…
photo: Public Domain / Pete Souza

Missing plane MH370: Malaysia mystery ‘may not be solved’

Captain of the Japan Coast Guard Gulfstream Makoto Hoshi left, and his co-pilot Shunichi Yumiza sit in the cockpit during a search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 in Southern Indian Ocean, near Australia, Tuesday, April 1, 2014.

Malaysia has warned that the reasons for the Malaysia Airlines plane’s disappearance may never be known, as Prime Minister Najib Razak heads toAustralia for talks on the search. Malaysia’s police chief said that their investigation could…
photo: AP / Rob Griffith, Pool

Facebook CEO reaps $3.3B gain from stock options

Mark Zuckerberg - South by Southwest

Facebook Follow @washtimes Will John Kerry’s talks in Paris bring the Ukrainecrisis any closer to an end? Login to Vote View results SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg reaped a $3.3 billion gain last year by exercising stock…
photo: Creative Commons / Jason McELweenie

Jury selection starts in Apple-Samsung case

Jury selection starts in Apple-Samsung case

Jury selection began on Monday in a new patent trial between Apple and Samsung that could have dramatically impact the future of smartphones. The case is the second major patent battle between the two companies, after Samsung was ordered to pay about…
photo: WN / Geeta

 

 

 

 

 

Malaysia Missing Plane Hunt Continues As Search Resumes West Of Perth

Reuters  | by  Stuart Grudgings and Michael Martina
Updated: 


MALAYSIA PLANE

 This shadow of a Royal New Zealand Air Force P3 Orion aircraft is seen on low cloud cover while it searches for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, over the Indian Ocean on March 31, 2014. No time limit will be imposed on the search for MH370 because the world deserves to know what happened, Australian Prime MinisterTony Abbott said, as a ship equipped to locate the plane’s ‘black box’ prepared to set sail. (ROB GRIFFITH/AFP/Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images

 

 

 

 

China ex-general Gu Junshan charged with corruption

01 Apr 2014

 

China has charged former General Gu Junshan with corruption, misuse of state funds and abuse of power, state media report. Gen Gu, who was deputy logistics chief in China’s army, is the most senior officer to be tried at a military court since2006, reports said. He was removed from his… 


A People's Liberation Army guard stands in front of a door way during U.S .Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond Odierno meeting with Fan Changlong, Deputy Chaiman of the Central Military Commission at Bayi Building in Beijing, China, on Friday, Feb. 21, 2014

 

 

Facebook CEO reaps $3.3B gain from stock options

Mark Zuckerberg - South by Southwest

Facebook Follow @washtimes Will John Kerry’s talks in Paris bring the Ukrainecrisis any closer to an end? Login to Vote View results SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg reaped a $3.3 billion gain last year by exercising stock…
photo: Creative Commons / Jason McELweenie

Jury selection starts in Apple-Samsung case

Jury selection starts in Apple-Samsung case

Jury selection began on Monday in a new patent trial between Apple and Samsung that could have dramatically impact the future of smartphones. The case is the second major patent battle between the two companies, after Samsung was ordered to pay about…
photo: WN / Geeta

Ex-TV star Smriti Irani to stand against Rahul Gandhi

Parliamentarian Smriti Irani with BJP activists take part in a rally for 'Unity' at Shyambazar in Kolkata on Sunday 15 December 2013

India‘s main opposition BJP has chosen actor-turned politician Smriti Irani to stand against Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi in the general elections. Ms Irani, who was the leading actress in one of India’s most popular TV soaps, will…
photo: WN / Bhaskar Mallick

 

Obama Admin Confirms: We May Free Israeli Spy to Save Peace Talks

President Barack Obama holds a National Security Council meeting in the Situation Room of the White House, April 5, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

For years President Obama has resisted Israeli requests to free Jonathan Pollard. Now with its peace process on the verge of collapse the White House is taking a second look at releasing Israel‘s most notorious spy. The Obama administration,…
photo: White House / Pete Souza

 

Brazil’s president remembers coup victims 50 years on

Dilma Rousseff, presidential candidate for the governing Workers Party, gestures to photographers after voting in Brazil's presidential election runoff in Porto Alegre, Brazil, Sunday Oct. 31, 2010.

Brazil‘s President Dilma Rousseff has said the atrocities committed during 21 years of military dictatorship in the country must never be forgotten. A day before the 50th anniversary of the 1964 coup, she said Brazil was able to bear the wounds…
photo: AP / Felipe Dana

US envoy to India, Nancy Powell resigns

U S Ambassador to India Nancy J. Powell and U S Consul in Kolkata Dean R. Thomoson during the interactive session in Kolkata on Tuesday 21 May 2013

The announcement of her resignation to her colleagues in the US mission here today came a week after media reports here that she may be shipped out by theObama Administration to clean the state with IndiaPowell has been in India for less than…
photo: WN / Bhaskar Mallick

Turkey hijacks Google’s internet domain in cyber crackdown

Ein Messebesucher bedient auf der Buchmesse in Frankfurt am Stand des Internetportals Google eine Computer-Maus auf einem mit dem Google-Logo bedruckten Mousepad

Turkey‘s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses crowds in AnkaraPhoto: Reuters WashingtonGoogle says Turkey has been intercepting its internet domain and redirecting users to other sites in the latest battle between Ankara and web giants….
photo: AP / Torsten Silz

 

 

 

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Kerry, Lavrov hold talks as Russia vows no Ukraine invasion

31 Mar 2014

 

MOSCOW: US Secretary of State John Kerry will hold impromptu talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Paris Sunday, after Russia pledged not to invade mainland Ukraine following its seizure of Crimea. The meeting in France comes amid heightened diplomatic efforts to resolving the worst East-West crisis since theCold War. Tensions have… 
Ukrainian armored vehicles are prepared for loading onto a train at a railway station near Simferopol, Crimea, Saturday, March 29, 2014.

Scarlett Johansson doesn’t feel like a sex symbol

Scarlett Johansson at a press conference for Captain America: The Winter Soldier in March 2014.

Scarlett Johansson doesn’t feel ”sensual”. The ‘Captain America: The WinterSolider’ actress has opened up about her status as a sex symbol, insisting she doesn’t feel more in touch with her ”sexuality” than anyone else. She told…
photo: Creative Commons / Elen Nivrae

 

Russia Says It Doesn’t Plan To Invade Ukraine

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks at a news conference in Moscow, Friday, March 26, 2010

The Russian troops who are holding Crimea won’t be sent into UkraineRussian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says. “We have absolutely no intention of – or interest in – crossing Ukraine’s borders,” Lavrov told a Russian TV stationSaturday,…
photo: AP / Ivan Sekretarev

Dr. Iron Fist Bows Out of Ukraine Presidential Bout, Endorses Chocolate King

Lawmaker and chairman of the Ukrainian opposition party Udar (Punch), and WBC Heavyweight Champion boxer Vitali Klitschko, center, attends a rally in central Kiev, Ukraine, Sunday, April 7, 2013. Ukraine's president on Sunday pardoned former Ukrainian Interior Affairs Minister Yuri Lutsenko, 48, a close ally of imprisoned former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, moving toward fulfilling a key demand on Kiev's path to integrate closer with the European Union.

Former world champion boxer-turned-politician Vitali Klitschko bowed out of the race for Ukrainian president on Saturday, throwing his weight behind billionaire oligarch Petro Poroshenko, known as the “Chocolate King” for owning the country’s largest…
photo: AP / Efrem Lukatsky

Xi reaffirms adherence to peaceful development

The President of China Xi Jinping applauds during a meeting of the Koerber Foundation in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 28, 2014. The Koerber Foundation brings together people from different political, social and cultural backgrounds.

BERLIN – Chinese President Xi Jinping said in Berlin Friday that his country will firmly stick to the path of peaceful development and pursue an independent foreign policy of peace. Addressing an audience at the invitation of the KorberFoundation,…
photo: AP / Michael Sohn

 

FBI denies it wanted marathon suspect as informant

File - An FBI release shows one of the suspects, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, wanted in connection with the Boston Marathon Bombings.

BOSTON — The FBI has denied a claim made by lawyers for Boston Marathonbombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (joh-HAHR’ tsahr-NY’-ehv) that his brother and fellow suspect was…
photo: FBI

One World Trade Center security chief resigns after embarrassing breaches

One World Trade Center, center, rises above the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center, Thursday, Sept. 6, 2012 in New York.

March 29, 2014 — Updated 0205 GMT (1005 HKT) (CNN) — The security chief at One World Trade Center in New York City has stepped down after embarrassing security breaches at the site. David Velazquez, a former FBI agent, resigned Friday, saidJordan
photo: AP / Mark Lennihan

 

 

 

Kerry, Lavrov hold talks as Russia vows no Ukraine invasion

30 Mar 2014

 

MOSCOW: US Secretary of State John Kerry will hold impromptu talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Paris Sunday, after Russia pledged not to invade mainland Ukraine following its seizure of Crimea. The meeting in France comes amid heightened diplomatic efforts to resolving the worst East-West crisis since theCold War. Tensions have.
Ukrainian armored vehicles are prepared for loading onto a train at a railway station near Simferopol, Crimea, Saturday, March 29, 2014.

 

 

 

Russia Says It Doesn’t Plan To Invade Ukraine

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks at a news conference in Moscow, Friday, March 26, 2010

The Russian troops who are holding Crimea won’t be sent into UkraineRussian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says. “We have absolutely no intention of – or interest in – crossing Ukraine’s borders,” Lavrov told a Russian TV stationSaturday,…
photo: AP / Ivan Sekretarev

Dr. Iron Fist Bows Out of Ukraine Presidential Bout, Endorses Chocolate King

Lawmaker and chairman of the Ukrainian opposition party Udar (Punch), and WBC Heavyweight Champion boxer Vitali Klitschko, center, attends a rally in central Kiev, Ukraine, Sunday, April 7, 2013. Ukraine's president on Sunday pardoned former Ukrainian Interior Affairs Minister Yuri Lutsenko, 48, a close ally of imprisoned former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, moving toward fulfilling a key demand on Kiev's path to integrate closer with the European Union.

Former world champion boxer-turned-politician Vitali Klitschko bowed out of the race for Ukrainian president on Saturday, throwing his weight behind billionaire oligarch Petro Poroshenko, known as the “Chocolate King” for owning the country’s largest…
photo: AP / Efrem Lukatsky

 

 

 

 

Russia says has “no intention” of further Ukraine incursion

BY KATYA GOLUBKOVA

MOSCOW Sat Mar 29, 2014 9:21am EDT

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with his Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides in Moscow March 28, 2014. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with his Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides in Moscow March 28, 2014.

 


No debris recovered in new search for missing Malaysia plane

29 Mar 2014

 

PERTH, Australia: No debris spotted in an area off the west coast of Australia has been recovered, a Malaysian minister involved in the search for Malaysia AirlinesFlight 370 said on Saturday, adding he hoped for some news soon. Defense ministerHishammuddin Hussein told reporters near Kuala Lumpur after meeting several families of passengers on… 
Naval Aircrewman (Operator) 1st Class Robert Pillars, assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 16, looks for floating debris while on a P-8A Poseidon during a mission to assist in search and rescue operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, 24 March, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thousands of anti-government protesters march in Bangkok

29 Mar 2014

 

Thousands of anti-government protesters took to the streets of Bangkok Saturday demanding political reforms before the next general election is held. Suthep Thaugsuban, a former deputy prime minister who now heads the People’sDemocratic Reform Committee (PDRC), led supporters from their base at Lumpini Park in central Bangkok… 
Thousands of anti-government protesters march in Bangkok

 

 

 

 

FBI denies it wanted marathon suspect as informant

File - An FBI release shows one of the suspects, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, wanted in connection with the Boston Marathon Bombings.

BOSTON — The FBI has denied a claim made by lawyers for Boston Marathonbombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (joh-HAHR’ tsahr-NY’-ehv) that his brother and fellow suspect was…
photo: FBI

One World Trade Center security chief resigns after embarrassing breaches

One World Trade Center, center, rises above the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center, Thursday, Sept. 6, 2012 in New York.

March 29, 2014 — Updated 0205 GMT (1005 HKT) (CNN) — The security chief at One World Trade Center in New York City has stepped down after embarrassing security breaches at the site. David Velazquez, a former FBI agent, resigned Friday, saidJordan
photo: AP / Mark Lennihan

Putin calls Obama to discuss U.S. proposal on Ukraine: White House

Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an address to the Federal Assembly at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 12 December, 2012.

By Steve Holland RIYADH (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin called U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday to discuss a U.S. diplomatic proposal forUkraine, the White House said, adding that Obama told him that Russia must pull back its…
photo: Russian Presidential Press and Information Office

First Gay Weddings: PM Hails ‘Equal Marriage’

Britain's new Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha arrive in Downing Street in London,Tuesday, May, 11 2010

29 March 2014, 0:23 First Gay Weddings: PM Hails ‘Equal Marriage‘ Tweet David Cameron has hailed the first same-sex marriages in England and Wales as sending a “powerful message” about equality in Britain. The law changed at midnight, with a number…
photo: AP / Tim Hales

At least three killed in Cairo clashes

An Egyptian protester throws a tear gas canister back at riot police, not seen, during clashes near Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013.

CAIRO (Reuters) – At least three people were killed in clashes in Cairo on Friday amid protests by the Muslim Brotherhood days after hundreds of its supporters were sentenced to death, official sources said. Newspaper Al Dustour said on its website…
photo: AP / Khalil Hamra

20 Killed in Attack on Funeral in Bangui

An African Union peacekeeper from Burundi participates in a joint patrol with French forces in the Fouh neighborhood of Bangui Central African Republic, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2014.

Officials in the Central African Republic say a grenade attack on a funeral ceremony has killed 20 people and left another 11 wounded. The attack occurred about 11 p.m. Thursday night local time in Fatima, a Muslim neighborhood of the capital,…
photo: AP / Rebecca Blackwell

 

France apologies to Morocco after minister searched at Paris airport

Laurent Fabius

PARIS (Reuters) – France apologised to Morocco on Friday after the kingdom’s foreign minister was searched while transiting at a Paris airport, the latest incident that has strained ties between Rabat and its former colonial ruler. The two countries…
photo: AP / Claude Paris

‘WE HAVE MOVED ON’
Malaysia Plane Search Turns To New Area, Finds Objects

 

 

 

 

 

 

UN warns of Syria spillover into Iraq

Full ArticleAl Jazeera 

28 Mar 2014

 

The United Nations has warned that armed groups are increasingly forging links across the border of Syria and Iraq, fuelling sectarian tensions in a region that has suffered from years of bloodshed. Speaking at the UN Security Council, the special envoy to Iraq, Nickolay Mladenov, said the conflict in Syria was “affording… 
Free Syrian Army fighters ride a motorbike to approach Syrian Army tanks in Idlib, north Syria, Sunday, March 11, 2012.

 

 

Coroner: Berezovsky death remains unexplained

 Russian exile Boris Berezovsky, a close friend of former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko who was

LONDON — Boris Berezovsky‘s death remains unexplained, a British coroner said Thursday, saying it wasn’t possible to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt whether the self-exiled Russian tycoon and opponent of President Vladimir Putin was killed or…
photo: AP Photo

Saudi king decrees half brother Moqren to be a future monarch

In this Thursday, March 27, 2008 photo, Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, left, speaks with his brother King Abdullah as they attend to welcome Arab leaders in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

March 27: King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia today appointed his half-brother Moqren bin Abdul Aziz as the next heir to the throne, paving the way for him to become a future king. The move was announced by a royal decree broadcast by state television…
photo: AP / Hassan Ammar

China to Strengthen Internet Security After US Spying Report

In this July 14, 2010 file photo, Chinese use computers at an Internet cafe in Beijing. The news agency of China's ruling Communist Party launched an Internet search site Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011, giving its own sanitized view of the Web following Google's closure of its China-based search engine last year over censorship.

Reuters BEIJING — China will beef up its Internet security after recent reports that the U.S. government spied on a major telecommunications firm, the nation’sDefense Ministry said on Thursday. Reports that the U.S. National Security Agency
photo: AP / Ng Han Guan

Former defense secretary James Schlesinger dies

James R. Schlesinger

WASHINGTON: Onetime economics professor and longtime nuclear strategistJames R. Schlesinger was a political man for all seasons, holding a long string ofCabinet and other high-level posts through three administrations. He was hired — and…
photo: Creative Commons / DoD photo by Robert D. Ward

 

Ebola outbreak continues in Guinea, Liberia backtracks on Ebola statement

File - A 43 year old Congolese patient, right, who has been confirmed to have Ebola hemorrhagic fever, following laboratory tests, is comforted by Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors without Borders) nurse Isabel Grovas, left, and Doctor Hilde Declerck, not pictured, in Kampungu, Kasai Occidental province, Congo, Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007.

The outbreak of Ebola hemorrhagic fever in the West African country of Guineacontinues to increase in both suspected cases and deaths, according to a U.S. Embassy in Conakry, Guinea message Mar. 26. In a World
photo: AP / WHO, Christopher Black

US STOCKS-Wall St dips after GDP data, Citigroup shares tumble

Traders work the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday, July 15, 2009 in New York

Citigroup shares slump after Fed rejects capital plan * GDP grew 2.6 pct in Q4; jobless claims unexpectedly drop * BofA to pay $9.3 bln to settle mortgage bond claims * Indexes down: Dow 0.3 pct, S&P 0.3 pct, Nasdaq 0.4 pct (Updates to open, adds…
photo: AP / Frank Franklin II

Obama tells Pope Francis he is a ‘great admirer’

Pope Francis and President Barack Obama meet at the Vatican Thursday, March 27, 2014

VATICAN CITY (AP) — A visibly energized President Barack Obama held a nearly hourlong audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Thursday, expressing his great admiration for the pontiff and inviting him to visit the White House. AlthoughObama and…
photo: AP / Gabriel Bouys, Pool

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oleg Klimov/Epsilon,

03.27.14

U.S. Official: Putin Could Invade Ukraine ‘At a Moment’s Notice’

 An Obama administration official warned Thursday that the Russian army is now fully prepared to invade eastern Ukraine if Putin decides to take further military action.

 

 

 

 

 

Egypt’s Sisi announces run for presidency

27 Mar 2014

 

Sisi, who was also defence minister, faces no serious competition in the election ‘ likely before June ‘ and is expected to win comfortably. Egyptian army chief Abdel Fattah al Sisi said Wednesday he had quit the military to run for president and vowed to rid the country of “terrorism” almost nine months after he toppled its elected… 
In this Wednesday, April 24, 2013 file photo, Egyptian Defense Minister Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi salutes during an arrival ceremony for U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, at the Ministry of Defense in Cairo.

 

 

 

 

Thai satellite spots 300 objects in search for missing Malaysia jet

27 Mar 2014

 

Thai satellite has detected 300 floating objects in the southern Indian Oceanwhere an international search is under way for a missing Malaysian jet liner,Thailand’s Geo Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency said. The objects were spotted around 2,700 km southwest of Perth by the satellite “Thaichote” on Monday, the agency said in… 
Flight Lt. Jayson Nichols shields his face from the sun as he looks out the cockpit of a Royal Australian Air Force AP-3C Orion aircraft during a search operation of the missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 over the southern Indian Ocean, Thursday, March 27, 2014. Planes and ships searching for debris suspected of being from the downed Malaysia Airlines jetliner failed to find any Thursday before bad weather cut their hunt short in a setback that came as Thailand said its satellite had spotted even more suspect objects.

Martin gifts parting painting to Paltrow

Martin gifts parting painting to Paltrow

Singer Chris Martin has reportedly bought a painting as a special parting gift for his wife of 11 years, Gwyneth Paltrow. The two have announced their split via an official statement. Paltrow and Martin, who married…
photo: Creative Commons / Benson Kua

This smart phone App won’t let you frequent bars!

This smart phone App won't let you frequent bars!

Tweet New York, March 27 (IANS) Just out from an alcohol treatment programme but still cannot avoid thinking about the bar evenings? This smart phone App will help you say good bye to those risky drinking days. The App contains the locations of your…
photo: WN / Geeta

Egypt’s Sisi announces presidential bid

A man sits under a banner with the photo of Defense Minister Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi as he drinks his tea at the " Al Mosheer Cafe" or "Marshal Cafe" in Cairo, Egypt, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2014.

CAIRO – Egypt‘s military chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi announced in a televised statement on Wednesday night his bid for the upcoming presidential elections, which is expected by the public after he toppled the former president in July last year. “This…
photo: AP / Mohammed Abu Zaid

John Kerry holds ‘constructive’ talks with Palestinian president on peace plan

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sits with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas before a meeting in Ramallah, West Bank, on December 5, 2013.

AmmanUS Secretary of State John Kerry and Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas held “constructive” talks on the Middle East peace process, a US official said on Thursday, as crunch decisions loom in the coming days. After earlier talks withKing
photo: US DoS

Iran And Iraq Responsible For ‘Sharp Global Spike’ In Executions

Blindfolded Mahmoud Asgari, 16, left, and another unidentified teenager are set to be publicly hanged, in Mashhad, Iran, on charges of raping boys in this photo taken on July 19, 2005.

See Also Rights group Amnesty International says in its annual report on the death penalty that Iran and Iraq were responsible for a “sharp global spike” in executions last year. The report released on March 27 says 778 executions are known to…
photo: AP /

Security Council to meet on N Korea missiles

In this photo provided by the United Nations, a U.N. conference officer distributes ballots to delegations as the UN General Assembly prepares to elect five new non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, Thursday, Oct 18, 2012 at United Nations headquarters in New York.

The UN Security Council will hold closed-door consultations on Thursday to discuss a possible condemnation of North Korea‘s latest ballistic missile launches, UN diplomats said. The request for a special session on North Korea came…
photo: AP / Evan Schneider

Obama underlines EU-US ties in first visit to Brussels

President Barack Obama, center rear, gathered with G7 world leaders

US president Barack Obama yesterday underlined the longstanding links between the US and Europe on security and defence policy, as he made his first official visit to the headquarters of the EU. Speaking after a meeting with the heads of theEuropean

 

 

 

 

Flight MH370 search resumes in Indian Ocean

26 Mar 2014

 

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — As frustration was setting in, calmer seas returned Wednesday and the search for the remains of Flight 370 began anew in remote waters of the Indian Ocean off western Australia. Gale-force winds that forced an all-day delay Tuesday died down, allowing a total of 12 planes and two ships from the United StatesChina, Japan,… 
In this Monday, March 24, 2014 photo, a crewman of an RAAF AP-3C Orion aircraft looks out his observation window whilst searching for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 over the Indian Ocean.

 

 

Defiant North Korea test-fires more rockets

26 Mar 2014

 

North Korea has fired two mid-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast and towards JapanSouth Korea‘s military said as the leaders of South Korea, Japan and the United States discussed North Korea’s arms programs. The missiles, which appeared to be Rodong class, were launched from an area north of… 


In this March 7, 2013 photo released by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and distributed March 8, 2013 by the Korea News Service, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, uses binoculars to look at the South's territory from an observation post at the military unit on Jangjae islet, located in the southernmost part of the southwestern sector of North Korea's border with South Korea.

 

 

 

Michelle Obama ‘distracts’ self from turmoil in office with tai chi

Michelle Obama 'distracts' self from turmoil in office with tai chi

Tweet New York, March 26 (ANI): Michelle Obama has reportedly taken up tai chi on her tour of China as a distraction from the discord in her East Wing office…
photo: Public Domain / Rudolph.A.furtado

3 Secret Service Agents Sent Home From Netherlands After Drunken Escapade

Secret Service agents keep watch as President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrive in Tucson, Ariz., to attend a memorial service for victims of last Saturday's shooting rampage that killed six people and left 14 injured, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2011.

See Also WASHINGTON (AP) — The Secret Service sent three agents home from theNetherlands just before President Barack Obama‘s arrival after one agent was found inebriated in an Amsterdam hotel, the Secret Service said Tuesday. The three agents…
photo: AP / J. Scott Applewhite

North Korea fires 2 missiles as its rivals meet

Visitors walk near the mock North Korea's Scud-B missile, right, and other South Korean missiles at Korean War Museum in Seoul, Friday, May 21, 2010. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Friday his country was caught in a "perfect military ambush" when a North Korean torpedo sank a naval warship, but called for a cautious response to the disaster that left 46 sailors dead. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea test-fired two medium-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday, South Korea and the U.S. said, a defiant challenge to a rare three-way summit of its rivals SeoulTokyo and Washington that focused on the North‘s…
photo: AP / Lee Jin-man

Bayern Munich lift 24th German Bundesliga title

Players of Bayern Munich celebrate the 24th German soccer championship

BERLIN, March 25 (Xinhua) — Bayern lift their 24th Bundesliga title as they beatBerlin 3-1 while pursuers Dortmund and Schalke shared the spoils at the opener of the 27th round on Tuesday. Bayern Munich completed their title defence and wrapped up…
photo: AP / Markus Schreiber

Venezuela President Maduro arrests ‘three plotting generals’

Nicolas Maduro

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has said that three air force generals have been arrested for plotting an uprising against his government. Mr Maduro said that the authorities had been tipped off by “young officers”. The three generals,…
photo: ABr

Soyuz Rocket Launches New US-Russian Crew Toward Space Station

In a photo provided by NASA, Family of the newly arrived International Station Expedition 33/34 crew members, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy, front left, NASA astronaut Kevin Ford, front center, and Russian cosmonaut Evgeny Tarelkin, front right, talk via phone to the crew from the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev, Russia shortly after the three joined Flight Engineer Aki Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, back left, Expedition 33 Commander Sunita Williams of NASA, back center, and Yuri Malenchenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency on Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012.

The latest three spaceflyers launched to the International Space Station from theBaikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on March 25, 2014. CreditNASA TV View full size image A Russian Soyuz rocket launched an international trio of crewmembers to the…
photo: AP / Bill Ingalls

Russia is preparing legislation to lower foreign films

Russia is preparing legislation to lower foreign films

A dangerous cold war like atmosphere has been evolving between Russia and theUnited States ever since the annexation of Crimea by Russia. In a show of disapproval of this move the Obama administration imposed asset bans and travel freezes on several…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

 

 

 

 

 

25 Mar 2014

 

US President Barack Obama and major industrialised allies have warned Russia it faces damaging economic sanctions if President Vladimir Putin takes further action to destabilise Ukraine following the seizure of Crimea. Leaders of the Group of Seven nations, meeting without Russia, agreed to hold their own summit this year instead of attending a…
President Barack Obama, center, participates in a G7 Leaders meeting at Catshuis, the official residence of the Dutch Prime Minister, in The Hague, Netherlands, Monday, March 24, 2014.
photo: AP / Pablo Martinez Monsivais

 

 

 

Scientists meet in Japan after grim climate forecast

Full ArticleThe Times of India 

25 Mar 2014

 

YOKOHAMA: International scientists gathered near Tokyo on Tuesday for a week-long meeting centred on a grim climate change report that warned of floods and drought that could stoke conflicts and wreak havoc on the global economy. A draft of their document, seen by AFP, is part of a massive overview by theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change… 
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and other agencies have started relocating thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) sheltering in the protection of civilians area of the Tomping IDP camp outside of Juba to a new location at UN house in the capital due to heavy rains and flooding.  A mother and children walk amongst flooded shelters at the Tomping IDP camp, 12 March 2014.

 

 

Pollution kills 7 million people every year, World Health Organization says

A cyclist and a bus pass by the high rise buildings shrouded in a haze of smog, in Beijing, Monday, Sept. 17, 2007. China launched its first nationwide urban public transport week on Sunday in an attempt to raise residents' awareness on energy saving and environmental protection. The "Green Transport and Health" campaign which covers 108 cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin, encourages people to walk, ride bicycles and take public transportation like buses, subways and taxies rather than drive private cars, to ease the pollution, the ministry

Air pollution kills about 7 million people worldwide every year, with more than half of the fatalities due to fumes from indoor stoves, according to a new report from the World Health Organization publishing Tuesday. The agency said air pollution is…
photo: AP / Andy Wong

Rough weather causes delay in search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

USS Kidd conducting search off Andaman sea for flight MH370 ( Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 )

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Attempts to recover physical evidence of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in the southern Indian Ocean will have to wait another day:Australian officials postponed the search Tuesday because of rough weather. With forecasts…
photo: Creative Commons / Naval Surface Warriors

Shigeru Ban wins 2014 Pritzker Architecture Prize

Shigeru Ban

The Pritzker Architecture Prize went to Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, it was announced on Monday. Ban won for his inventive ways of building temporary housing out of available materials in countries hit by a…
photo: Creative Commons / MOSSOT

Nearly 100 dead in DR Congo boat accident

Lake Edward or Edward Nyanza is the smallest of the African Great Lakes. It is located in the western Great Rift Valley, on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, with its northern shore a few kilometers south of the Equator. The lake was named by the explorer Henry Morton Stanley in honour of Prince Albert Edward, The Prince of Wales.

At least 98 people have died after a boat capsized at the weekend on Lake Albert, which lies between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said. “Based on information UNHCR has…
photo: Creative Commons / Sabine’s Sunbird

China and Huawei Demand Explanations on NSA Spying

Redaktionshinweis: Das Bild wurde mit einem Spezialobjektiv Fisheye aufgenommen +++ Besucher stehen am Freitag (09.03.12) in Hannover auf der CeBIT 2012 am Stand des Telekommunikationsausruesters Huawei

After new Edward Snowden documents revealed NSA operations against Huawei, the tech company and China want answers. Since at least 2007, the NSA has been conducting a sophisticated operation against Huawei, hacking into its servers, stealing its…
photo: AP / Nigel Treblin

US STOCKS-Wall St falls, Nasdaq under 50-day moving average

Trader Anthony Pugliese, left, uses his handheld device as he works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Nov. 1, 2010.

Ukraine conflict continues; Russia seizes marine base * Weak China data raises hopes for stimulus * Nasdaq hit as Internet, biotech names tumble * Herbaliferallies, Icahn to get more reps on board * Dow off 0.4 pct; S&P 500 down 0.7 pct; Nasdaq…
photo: AP / Richard Drew

Ebola outbreak kills dozens

 Ebola

(CNN) – An Ebola outbreak has killed at least 59 people in GuineaUNICEF said, as the deadly hemorrhagic fever has quickly spread from southern communities in theWest African nation. Experts in the country had been…
photo: AP Photo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Search for MH370 intensifies on new debris sighting

Full ArticleKhaleej Times 

24 Mar 2014

 

Chinese air crew spotted ‘two relatively big floating objects with many white smaller ones scattered within a radius of several kilometres’. Ships and planes from several nations swarmed over a lonely corner of the southern Indian Ocean on Monday as mounting evidence of floating debris energised the search for Malaysia’s missing passenger… 
Naval Aircrewman Operator 1st Class Robert Pillars, an acoustic systems operator attached to Patrol Squadron (VP) 16, searches the water for debris on a P-8A Poseidon during a mission to assist in search and rescue operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 March 20, 2014.

Kiev orders troop pullout from Crimea

Kiev orders troop pullout from Crimea

KIEVUkraine (AP) â?? Ukraine’s acting president says the country’s troops stationed in Crimea will be pulled from the region after it was annexed by Russia. Oleksandr Turchnynov said Monday that the Defense Ministry has been instructed to redeploy…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

Mitt Romney calls Barack Obama ‘naive’ on Russia and Vladimir Putin

Former Governor Mitt Romney speaking at CPAC FL in Orlando, Florida.

In the 2012 presidential electionMitt Romney was criticised for saying Russia was the ‘number one political foe’ of the US. PhotographJacquelyn Martin/AP Mitt Romney said on Sunday that President Barack Obama is naive when it comes to Russia, has…
photo: Creative Commons / Gage Skidmore

Nato warns of Russian army build-up on Ukraine border

Ukrainian border guards have a break in their training at a military camp in the village of Alekseyevka on the Ukrainian-Russian border, eastern Ukraine, Friday, March 21, 2014.

Nato’s top military commander said today Russia has a large force on Ukraine’s border and he is worried it could pose a threat to Moldova’s separatistTransdniestria region. The warning comes a day after Russian troops, using armoured vehicles,…
photo: AP / Sergei Grits

How to defeat Russia

How to defeat Russia

Russia‘s recent annexation of Crimea threw the West into confusion, scrambling to respond, while Ukraine is still dealing with the aftershock or losing territory. Questions about the legitimacy of the referendum still remain. The official results…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Russia moves to consolidate control over Crimea

Russia moves to consolidate control over Crimea

updated 4:48 AM EDT, Sun March 23, 2014 Kiev, Ukraine (CNN) — Pro-Russia demonstrations were planned for Sunday in Ukrainian cities, as Russian forces continued consolidating their control over Crimea over the weekend. But the shows of favor for…
photo: WN / marzena

Hagel Calls Out Israeli Defense Minister For Slamming The US

Hagel Calls Out Israeli Defense Minister For Slamming The US

See Also Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel phoned his Israeli counterpart Thursday to register “deep concern” over the Israeli’s charge that the Obama administrationwas weak on IranUkraine and terrorism. In the call, Israeli Defense MinisterMoshe
photo: US DoD / Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo

Malaysia flight MH370: China jets boost Indian Ocean hunt

This image provided by China's State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense shows a floating object seen at sea next to the descriptor which was added by the source. The image was captured around noon, on March 18, 2014 (Tuesday) by a Chinese satellite in S44’57 E90’13 in south Indian Ocean.

Two Chinese military planes have arrived in Perth in Australia to join international search operations for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet. Crews are set to scour southern areas of the Indian Ocean for a fourth day. Two sets of satellite images…
photo: AP / China State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense

Breakthrough?

North Korea steps up missile launches

Full ArticleBBC News 

23 Mar 2014

 

North Korea has test fired dozens of short-range rockets in the past 24 hours, theSouth‘s military says, in an apparent show of anger with Seoul. Analysts say the launches are Pyongyang‘s way of protesting against joint military drills… 
File - People watch TV reporting North Korea's missile test at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, March 4, 2014.

 

 

Malaysia flight MH370: China jets boost Indian Ocean hunt

This image provided by China's State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense shows a floating object seen at sea next to the descriptor which was added by the source. The image was captured around noon, on March 18, 2014 (Tuesday) by a Chinese satellite in S44’57 E90’13 in south Indian Ocean.

Two Chinese military planes have arrived in Perth in Australia to join international search operations for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet. Crews are set to scour southern areas of the Indian Ocean for a fourth day. Two sets of satellite images…
photo: AP / China State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense

Embrace freedom of speech, Michelle Obama tells Chinese youth

U.S. first lady Michelle Obama, third from right, greets a group of American schoolchildren who are visiting China during their spring break, before they watch a Peking opera performance at the Summer Palace in Beijing, Saturday, March 22, 2014.

Tweet Beijing, March 22 (IANSUS First Lady Michelle Obama Saturday called onChina’s youth to embrace freedom of speech and keep an open mind learning values and ideas, a leading daily reported. “When it comes to expressing yourself freely, and…
photo: AP / Alexander F. Yuan

Russian Forces Surround Air Base, Call for Ukrainians’ Surrender

Russian Forces Surround Air Base, Call for Ukrainians' Surrender

Russian troops have blockaded Crimea&aposs Belbek air base outside the Black Sea port city of Sevastopol, and they are said to be calling on Ukrainian forces there to surrender. Russian military units moved in to surround Belbek Saturday without any…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Ukraine crisis gives new impetus to EU-U.S. trade talks, U.S. says

Ukraine crisis gives new impetus to EU-U.S. trade talks, U.S. says

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Russia‘s annexation of Crimea underlines the need for theUnited States and the European Union to substantially deepen their economic ties,Washington’s top trade official said on Saturday, opening the door to U.S. exports of…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Crimea celebrations as region joins Russia

Full ArticleAl Jazeera 

22 Mar 2014

 

Thousands of people celebrated in the Crimean capital of Simferopol after the region broke away from Ukraine and was formally accepted into the Russian Federation. Celebrations continued into early Saturday, hours after the Russian presidentVladimir Putin, signed a treaty making Crimea part of RussiaFireworksburst in the sky in Simferopol, as… 
People smile as they watch fireworks at the central Lenin square in Simferopol, Crimea, on Friday, March 21, 2014.

Libyan army in heavy fighting with oil port rebels

A former rebel fighter rests at the northern gate of Bani Walid, Libya, Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011.

Anti-aircraft gunfire and explosions were heard late at night and again after dawn on Saturday in Ajdabiya, the hometown of rebel leader Ibrahim Jathran. Libyan rebels occupying oil ports clashed with troops on Saturday after attacking an army base…
photo: AP / Alexandre Meneghini

Crimea celebrates as region joins Russia

Crimea celebrates as region joins Russia

Thousands of people celebrated in the Crimean capital of Simferopol after the region broke away from Ukraine and was formally accepted into the Russian Federation. Celebrations continued into early Saturday, hours after the Russian president,…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Monitoring Mission Agreed As Crimea Annexed

Monitoring Mission Agreed As Crimea Annexed

22 March 2014, 4:27 Monitoring Mission Agreed As Crimea Annexed Tweet Russia has consented to the deployment of scores of civilian observers to monitor the political and security situation in Ukraine. The 57 member countries of the Organisationfor…
photo: WN / Agnieszka Dziubinska

Can Europe Wean Itself Off Russian Gas?

Can Europe Wean Itself Off Russian Gas?

2:50 PM hide captionThe Russian gas giant Gazprom’s Adler thermal power plant inSochi, RussiaEurope gets about one-third of its natural gas from RussiaYuri
photo: European Community / EC

Russia’s finance ministry admits sanctions bite

Russia's finance ministry admits sanctions bite

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia‘s Finance Ministry said on Friday it may be forced to cancel plans to borrow abroad this year, admitting that sanctions imposed by theWest are already stinging. The United States imposed sanctions on Russian President
photo: WN / Marzena J.

EU Ads $1.4Bln to Ukrainian Aid After Political Deal Signed

EU Ads $1.4Bln to Ukrainian Aid After Political Deal Signed

KIEV, March 21 (RIA Novosti) – The European Union announced a $1.4 billion increase in its aid package to Ukraine on Friday, hours after Kiev signed the political part of its association agreement with Brussels. “The EU decided to increase financial…
photo: European Community / EC

Uruguay to take Guantanamo inmates

Uruguay's President Jose Mujica is named president of the South American trading bloc Mercosur, during their summit at the Itamaraty Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, Friday, Dec. 7, 2012.

The Obama administration wants to close the much-criticised detention centre.Photo: Reuters Montevideo: Uruguay has agreed with the United States to accept some prisoners held in the much-criticised detention centre at the US military base of…
photo: AP / Cadu Gomes

U.S., Russia swap sanctions over Crimea

Full ArticleDenver Post

21 Mar 2014
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama expanded sanctions against top aides and reputed financial associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday as punishment for the annexation of Crimea and laid the groundwork for far broader measures against “key sectors of the Russian economy” if Putin further escalates his actions in Ukraine….

President Barack Obama talks on the phone in the Oval Office with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the situation in Ukraine, March 1, 2014.

Uruguay to take Guantanamo inmates

Uruguay's President Jose Mujica is named president of the South American trading bloc Mercosur, during their summit at the Itamaraty Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, Friday, Dec. 7, 2012.

The Obama administration wants to close the much-criticised detention centre.Photo: Reuters Montevideo: Uruguay has agreed with the United States to accept some prisoners held in the much-criticised detention centre at the US military base of…
photo: AP / Cadu Gomes

Police clash in Venezuela with anti-government protestors

Venezuela protests against the Nicolas Maduro government, Altamira Square

Riot police in Venezuela have clashed with anti-government demonstrators who were protesting against the arrest of two opposition mayors. Hundreds of demonstrators in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, threw rocks and sticks at the police. They…
photo: Creative Commons / Wilfredor

Remains of Bird-Like Dinosaur Species Identified in North America

Anzu wyliei

Jessica Berman Paleontologists have identified the remains of a previously unknown, bird-like species of dinosaur that roamed North America nearly 70 million years ago. The giant feathered creature belongs to a group of plant- and meat-eaters…
photo: Creative Commons / Kabacchi

Sarkozy denounces “Stasi” phone-tapping

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, listens to the national anthem as he attends the traditional autumn military review at the Hotel des Invalides in Paris, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011.

PARIS (Reuters) – Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has attacked the phone-tapping conducted by magistrates investigating him, breaking his silence on the subject to liken the actions to those of the “Stasi” police of former CommunistEast
photo: AP / Christophe Ena

Ivory Coast to hand over Ble Goude to ICC

Ivory Cost President Laurent Gbagbo, center, shows a peace sign, as he walk's next to Ivory Coast youth leader Ble Goude, far right, at a rally in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, Friday, Nov. 26, 2010. Ivory Coast will have a second round off elections on Sunday.

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Ivory Coast’s government plans to hand over a former youth leader who is wanted on charges of crimes against humanity at theInternational Criminal Court, the justice minister said Thursday. Charles Ble Goude, who also had…
photo: AP / Schalk van Zuydam

US soldiers walk toward the Serena Hotel after a suicide attack in the city of Kabul, Afghanistan on Monday, Jan. 14, 2008. An explosion and several rounds of gunfire went off Monday at a luxury hotel frequented by foreigners, and a Taliban spokesman said a suicide bomber and three militants with grenades and guns were responsible for the attack

Four gunmen who stormed a hotel used by foreigners in the Afghan capital Kabulhave been killed in a shootout with security forces. The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the attack at the Serena
photo: AP Photo / Musadeq Sadeq

Russia Announces Sanctions Against US Officials

A general view of Russia's lower parliament chamber during a session in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2011. The State Duma is debating the ratification of the New START treaty with the U.S.

MOSCOW, March 20 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday imposed sanctions against nine senior US officials in retaliation to US visa bans and asset freezes. The White House authorized sanctions on Monday against Russian
photo: AP / Mikhail Metzel

Italy rescues 2,000 migrants in 48 hours

Full ArticleAl Jazeera 

20 Mar 2014

 

Italian naval and coastguard vessels have rescued more than 2,000 migrants travelling in boats from North Africa in just 48 hours, according to authorities. Wednesday’s rescue came a day after some 500 people forced their way intoSpain‘s North… 
File - A Coast Guard boat maneuvers past a buoy marking the exact point of the sunken ship which was carrying African migrants towards Italy and capsized Thursday off the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2013.

 

 

Obama: US military not getting involved in Ukraine

File - President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden meet with Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in the Oval Office, Feb. 28, 2012.

WASHINGTON (AP) â?? President Barack Obama is ruling out use of the U.S. militaryin the West‘s dispute with Russia over UkraineObama says nobody wants to “trigger an actual war…
photo: White House / Pete Souza

Malaysia Airlines Flight: Obama Calls Missing Plane ‘Top Priority’ As Search Area Narrows

President Barack Obama addresses the nation in a live televised speech from the East Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2013.

The Inquisitr

“We have put every resource that we have available at the disposal of the search process,” Obama told the Dallas TV station KDFW. “There’s been close cooperation with the Malaysian government. Anybody who typically deals with…

photo: AP / Evan Vucci

 

US, NATO Warn Russia Faces ‘High Costs’ Over Crimea

President Barack Obama listens as NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen makes remarks to the media at the conclusion of their meeting, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.

Jeff Seldin WASHINGTON — Russia is refusing to back down in the face of U.S. andEuropean sanctions imposed over Moscow‘s annexation of Crimea. Russia’s latest actions have touched off a new round of worry for Russia’s…
photo: AP / Gerald Herbert

Jacob Zuma told to repay cash spent on private home

Ruling party African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma looks back over his shoulder, during the nominations for the new leadership of their elective conference at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa, on Monday, Dec. 17, 2012. South Africa's African National Congress, the nation's governing party, has begun accepting nominations for its top officials. At their meeting Monday, officials announced that there would be only two candidates contesting to be the party's president: Current President Jacob Zuma and Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe.

President used £13.7m of state funds for upgrade, watchdog’s report says, as findings lead to calls for resignation Jacob Zuma must repay the costs of a pool, amphitheatre and chicken coop added to his home in Nkandla in a security upgrade….
photo: AP / Themba Hadebe

London gives massive push to cycling

London gives massive push to cycling

LONDONLondon is going cycling-crazy with mayor Boris Johnson announcing a whopping £100 million fund to create what is being called a ‘mini-Holland’ revolution. Cycling on London’s main roads has risen by 173% since 2001 and the government has now…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

World War One shell kills two workers in Belgium’s Ypres

Polygon Wood was the scene of several major battles in 1914 and 1917. It was here that the British 7th division decisively halted the German advance to Ypres on 24 October 1914

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A World War One shell exploded and killed two construction workers in the Belgian town of Ypres on Wednesday, nearly 100 years after the…
photo: Creative Commons / Harm@frielink.net

The apartment where British girl Madeleine McCann disappeared one year ago is seen with her picture on a windscreen Saturday May 3, 2008 at Praia da Luz beach, jsa1

LONDON — British police investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann said Wednesday they are seeking an intruder who sexually assaulted five girls in the region of southern Portugal where the British toddler was last seen. Police have linked…
photo: AP / Paulo Duarte

 

 

 

DRAMATIC SEIZURE
Russian Forces Storm Ukrainian Naval Headquarters In Crimea

ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘They Stormed The Compound. They Cut The Gates Open’.. Russia Tightens Control Over Black Sea Peninsula.. Says It’s Not Responsible For Soldier Shooting.. Germany’s Merkel Gets Involved.. Crimea Sees Its First Casualties..

 

 

 

 

 

 

Israel attacks Syrian army sites in Golan Heights clash

Full ArticleBBC News 

19 Mar 2014

 

Israel says it has attacked several Syrian military sites in retaliation for a bombing that wounded four of its troops in the occupied Golan Heights. Israel’s military said its targets included a Syrian army headquarters, a training facility and artillery units. It comes after four Israeli soldiers were hurt in an explosion on Tuesday. Syrian… 
File - A Syrian flag is placed by a Druse man on the Israeli Syrian border during a rally, demanding the return of the Golan Heights, captured by Israel in 1967, in Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights, Friday, Feb. 14, 2014.

 

Pistorius’ defence team accuses police photographer of ‘disturbing evidence’ at crime scene

Oscar Pistorius

Tweet London, Mar 19 (ANI): The defence team of murder-accused Oscar Pistoriushas reportedly accused the South African police staff of mishandling the crime scene during the 12th day of the Paralympian’s trial at Pretoria. According to theBBC, the…
photo: Creative Commons / Will Clayton

Italian court upholds public office ban for Silvio Berlusconi

Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi smiles before casting his ballot in a polling station, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, March 28, 2010

Italy‘s highest appeals court has upheld a two-year ban from public office imposed on former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi after he was found guilty of tax fraud. The ban means Berlusconi will be unable to stand in elections for the European
photo: AP / Luca Bruno

US orders Syria to close embassy in Washington

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney pauses during the daily news briefing at the White House in Washington

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration marked the third anniversary of the start of Syria‘s civil war Tuesday by ordering Damascus to close its embassy inWashington and expelling its diplomats, though it did not break diplomatic relations with…
photo: AP / Jacquelyn Martin

UN: Thousands killed and abused in South Sudan

File - A view of the deserted streets in the town of Malakal, in the Upper Nile State of South Sudan where residents have fled due to ongoing violence between rebel groups and government troops on January 24, 2014.

UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. peacekeeping chief says politically fueled ethnic violence in South Sudan since mid-December has led to the brutal killing and abuse of thousands of civilians and sparked a government campaign to vilify the United
photo: UN / Isaac Billy

Iran says woman sentenced to stoning given ‘leave’ from prison

Iranian Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, who has been sentenced to death by stoning for adultery, arrives for a news briefing, in the northwestern city of Tabriz, Iran, Saturday, Jan. 1, 2011.

DUBAI (Reuters) – An Iranian woman sentenced to die by stoning for adultery and later given a 10-year jail term instead has been allowed to leave prison, the judiciary said, in a new twist to a case that has triggered years of criticism ofIran‘s…
photo: AP / Vahid Salemi

Why Europe can’t hit Russia with its biggest club: energy sanctions

Why Europe can't hit Russia with its biggest club: energy sanctions Full Text: New database	Europe has acute concerns about Russia's military intervention and annexation of Crimea – it's doling out aid to Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russian individuals.

Europe has acute concerns about Russia‘s military intervention and annexation ofCrimea – it’s doling out aid to Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russianindividuals. But its potentially most punitive weapon – blocking Russian energy exports…
photo: European Community / EC

Migrants storm Spain’s Melilla

Melilla desde los tejados

Melilla – A crowd of migrants stormed over the border fence from Morocco into theSpanish territory of Melilla on Tuesday, an official said, the latest in a string of perilous crossings. A Spanish government official in…
photo: Creative Commons / Paco Solís

 

 

 

 

 

China begins hunt for missing Malaysian jet in Chinese territory

Full ArticleCNTV 

18 Mar 2014

 

KUALA LUMPUR, March 18 (Xinhua) — China has started search and rescue operation in the Chinese territory of the northern corridor area for the missingMalaysia Airlines flight MH370, said Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Huang Huikang Tuesday. Related stories No sign missing Malaysian jet on 9/11 type attack:Indian FM 2014-03-17 25 countries… 
A student from the Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino High School looks at a mural depicting the missing Malaysia Airlines plane Tuesday, March 18, 2014 at their campus at Makati city, east of Manila, Philippines. Officials revealed a new timeline Monday suggesting the final voice transmission from the cockpit of the missing Malaysian plane may have occurred before any of its communications systems were disabled, adding more uncertainty about who aboard might have been to blame.

Courtney Love posts ‘suspected crash’ pics of missing Malaysian jet on Facebook

Courtney Love posts 'suspected crash' pics of missing Malaysian jet on Facebook

Tweet London, Mar. 18 (ANI): Singer Courtney Love has reportedly posted satellite images on Facebook, claiming to have found the ill-fated Malaysian Airline plane.Love
photo: Creative Commons / Scottdoesntknow

China’s home price growth slows

China's home price growth slows

Tweet Beijing, March 18 (IANS) The cost of buying a home in major Chinese citiesslowed in February, with fewer cities seeing month-on-month price rises, official…
photo: Creative Commons

Subways in Brazil’s World Cup host cities problematic

Subways in Brazil's World Cup host cities problematic

Tweet Rio de Janeiro, March 18 (IANS) Subways in Brazil‘s largest cities, Rio andSao Paulo, have been facing problems as the FIFA World Cup approaches. Three of the…
photo: Creative Commons / Gabriel Da Sobreira

Putin recognizes Crimean independence

An elderly Chechen woman watches Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's national call-in TV show in Grozny, Chechnya, Russia, Thursday, Dec. 15, 2011.

KIEVUkraine (AP) — Ignoring the toughest sanctions against Moscow since the end of the Cold WarRussian President Vladimir Putin recognized Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula as an “independent and sovereign country” on Monday, a bold challenge to…
photo: AP / Musa Sadulayev

European stocks surge higher

European stocks surge higher

European and US stock markets have shrugged off Crimea‘s decision to join Russia, focusing instead on some positive corporate news, dealers say. London’sbenchmark FTSE 100 advanced 0.62 per cent to 6,568.35 points on Monday, bolstered by news that…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

HS2: Government scraps link from Brussels to northern England

HS2: Government scraps link from Brussels to northern England

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin axed the £700 million section after a report by new HS2 boss Sir David Higgins branded it a millstone around the project’s neck. It should stop rows over one of the most bitterly disputed sections of the…
photo: WN / Marzena J.

UN: North Korea Is As Bad As The Nazis; ‘No Excuse’ For Refusing To Act

UN: North Korea Is As Bad As The Nazis; 'No Excuse' For Refusing To Act

North Korea‘s regime has committed crimes as chilling as those of the Nazis, South Africa’s apartheid regime or Cambodia‘s Khmer Rouge and must be stopped, the head of a UN inquiry said on Monday. “Contending with the great scourges ofNazism,…
photo: UN / JC McIlwaine

WINS CRIMEA, LOSES WORLD

 

Obama Announces Sanctions Against Top Russian Officials… EU Slaps Travel Bans On 21 People… BLOWBACK: Sanctions ‘Toothless’… Russia Laughs…Annexation Could Happen Within Days… Putin Declares Crimea ‘Sovereign And Independent’ State… U.S. Official: Mass Evidence Of Voting Anomalies…REPORT: Russia To Sanction U.S. Senators..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crimea moves to join Russia as West readies sanctions

Full ArticleThe Australian 

17 Mar 2014

 

CRIMEA will formally apply to join Russia after voting to split from Ukraine, asEurope prepared to hit Moscow with a wave of sanctions in the worst East-West stand-off since the Cold War. An overwhelming 95.5 per cent of voters on the mostly Russian-speaking peninsula chose to secede from Ukraine, according to partial results from Sunday’s… 
Pro-Russian people celebrate in the central square in Sevastopol, Ukraine, early Monday, March 17, 2014.

 

 

 

 

10,000 metres Olympic champ passes out after NY City Half Marathon, says ‘no big deal’

Mo Farah

Tweet Sydney, Mar. 17 (ANI): Olympic champion Mo Farah, who collapsed after finishing the New York City Half Marathon, dismissed the incident and has said that it is ‘no big deal’. Farah, who fell during the race and finished at second position…
photo: Creative Commons / Brian Minkoff- London Pixels

14 die in Russia of suspected methanol poisoning

Alcoholic beverage - Drinking alcohol

MOSCOW (AP) — Investigators in Russia say at least 14 people in a village in the Far East have died of apparent methanol poisoning after drinking counterfeit liquor.Officials in the…
photo: WN / Rubielyn Bunag

Flight into unknown horror: the mystery of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370

A woman walks past a banner filled with signatures and well wishes for all involved with the missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner MH370 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Sunday, March 16, 2014 in Sepang, Malaysia.

DISBELIEF and disgust. A state-of-the art airliner, 74m x 70m, goes missing, at the hands of terrorist-pirates, or terrorist-pilots, with 239 people aboard. It could be, we are told, anywhere from Kazakhstan, just below central Russia, to the…
photo: AP / Wong Maye-E

EU calls Crimea referendum ‘illegal’, US says it won’t recognize outcome

EU calls Crimea referendum 'illegal', US says it won't recognize outcome

BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON/MOSCOW: Crimea‘s referendum on joining Russia is “illegal and illegitimate”, the European Union said on Sunday, announcing that it would decide on sanctions on Monday. “The referendum is illegal and illegitimate and its outcome…
photo: European Community / EC

Venice votes in referendum on splitting from Rome

Venice votes in referendum on splitting from Rome

Voting has begin in Venice and the surrounding region on whether to break away from Italy. Recent opinion polls suggest that two thirds of the four million electorate favour splitting from Rome, but the vote will not be…
photo: Creative Commons / Paste

Honda Odyssey recall ties 900,000 minivans to fire risk

2010 Honda Odyssey photographed in Bowie, Maryland, USA.

By Gregory Wallace @gregorywallace March 16, 2014: 12:02 PM ET The nearly 900,000 minivans include models years 2005 through 2010. Here, the Odyssey is pictured at a dealership in 2010. NEW YORK (CNNMoney) Honda is recalling nearly 900,000…
photo: Public Domain / IFCAR

Former Afghan defense minister drops out of presidential race

FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2014 file photo, Afghanistan presidential election candidate and former Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak listens during the first presidential election debate at the Tolo TV building, a private TV station, in Kabul, Afghanistan.

By Mirwais Harooni and Katharine Houreld KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan‘s former defense minister became on Sunday the second candidate to drop out of a presidential election race, with his departure possibly helping consolidate support for a…
photo: AP / Massoud Hossaini, File

Partition of Libya looms as fight for oil sparks vicious new divide

Full ArticleThe Guardian 

16 Mar 2014

 

The farcical battle between the Tripoli government and a rebel militia over the refuelling of a tanker laid bare the central role that oil is playing in the splits and tensions that bedevil the country A rebel under Ibrahim Jathran holds the Cyrenaica flag while standing on a boat at Es Sider port. Photograph: Esam Al-Fetori/Reuters No one paid… 
File - In this Friday, Feb. 15, 2013 photo, a Libyan rebel gives the victory sign during a celebration to commemorate the second anniversary of the revolution that ousted Moammar Gadhafi, in Benghazi, Libya, Friday, Feb, 15, 2013.

 

 

Paris restricts car use after pollution hits high

 Eiffel Tower - France - Paris - History / ntf1

Alternative driving days are being introduced in the French capital, Paris, in an attempt to tackle dangerous levels of air pollution. From Monday, drivers will only be able to use their vehicles every other day. This is only…
photo: public domain

Malaysian PM: Someone on Plane Likely Turned Off Communications

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak speaks to media during a press conference as he unveiled a new Cabinet in Putrajaya, outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Thursday, April 9, 2009.

Malaysia&aposs prime minister, Najib Razak, says there is a “high degree of certainty” someone deliberately shut off the communications systems on the missing Malaysian jetliner, but he stopped short of saying the plane was hijacked. Mr….
photo: AP / Lai Seng Sin

France bans Monsanto GM maize ahead of sowing season

-A mellow corncob of bioengineered corn MON 810 of U.S. company Monsanto is seen on a field near the village of Badingen north of Berlin Thursday, Sept. 27, 2007. The corn will be harvested in the next days. In spring, German Minister for Agriculture Horst Seehofer forbid the sale of the seed, it had been seed weeks before. In Europe, genetic engineering in agriculture is very controversial

PARIS, March 15 (Reuters) – France‘s agriculture ministry on Saturday banned the sale, use and cultivation of Monsanto‘s MON 810 genetically modified maize, the only variety currently authorised in the European UnionThe French
photo: AP / Sven Kaestner

Shakil Afridi’s sentence reduced by 10 years

Jamil Afridi, right, brother of a Pakistani doctor Shakil Afridi speaks at a news conference in Peshawar, Pakistan on Monday, May 28, 2012.

Tweet Islamabad, Mar. 15 (ANI): The Commissioner of Frontier Crimes Regulation(FCR), retd Captain Munir Azam, has reduced Pakistani Dr. Shakil Afridi’s conviction by 10 years and also reduced the fine by one million rupees as he announced…
photo: AP / Mohammad Sajjad

 

 

 

 

 

 

CRISIS IN SYRIA

Goran Tomasevic/Reuters

The Syrian conflict has been growing in intensity and scope for more than two years, with the United Nations estimating more than 100,000 dead and millions displaced.

The Historic Scale of Syria’s Refugee Crisis
 PHOTOGRAPHS: The Historic Scale of Syria’s Refugee Crisis

Dramatic images from the Syrian refugee crisis, which has exploded to encompass six million people.

 

 

 

 

 

Ukraine braces for Crimea breakaway vote

Full ArticleThe Times of India 

15 Mar 2014

 

KIEVUkraine braced on Saturday for a highly-charged breakaway vote in Crimeawhich is likely to see the peninsula annexed by Russia despite the threat of stiff sanctions, and push east-west tensions to breaking point. An eleventh-hour diplomatic push by the United States to stop the referendum from going ahead failed on Friday, with Moscow… 
Members of the Crimean self defense forces check a passenger at the main railway station in Simferopol, Ukraine, Friday, March 14, 2014, ahead of the March 16 referendum that will ask residents if they want the territory to become part of Russia.

Syria conflict anniversary: most deadly weapons of the war

In this Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012 photo, a Free Syrian Army fighter poses as he carries his weapon in the northern province of Aleppo, Syria. Syria's civil war has killed more than 40,000 people.

Related Articles Syria conflict anniversary: most deadly weapons of the war 15 Mar 2014 Syria anniversary: worst refugee crisis of the age 13 Mar 2014 Syria conflict anniversary: who controls what 14 Mar 2014 Israeli doctor treating Syrians says…
photo: AP / Manu Brabo

US Government To Relinquish Control Over The Internet

Internet users browse their Facebook website by the free wifi internet service in an underground station in Hong Kong Sunday, June 16, 2013.

See Also SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The U.S. government announced on Friday it will give up its most direct means of control over the Internet’s infrastructure, but said it will insist that the job be taken on by a group that includes the…
photo: AP / Kin Cheung

US re-indicts Indian diplomat Khobragade

In this Dec. 8, 2013 file photo, photo shows Devyani Khobragade, who served as India’s deputy consul general in New York, during the India Studies Stony Brook University fund raiser event at Long Island, New York.

An Indian diplomat has been re-indicted on US visa fraud charges that touched off an international stir after she was arrested and strip-searched in New York last year. The new indictment was filed on Friday. It essentially reinstates the…
photo: AP / Mohammed Jaffer, File

 

Missing plane: Piracy theory gains more credence

Lt. Col Bambang Sudewo, commander of the 5th Air Squadron "Black Mermaids" examines a map following a search operation for the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 that was conducted over the Strait of Malacca, at Suwondo air base in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Friday, March 14, 2014.

JOAN LOWY Associated Press= KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) â?? Piracy and pilot suicide are among the scenarios under study as investigators grow increasingly certain the missing Malaysian Airlines jet changed course and headed west after its last radio…
photo: AP / Binsar Bakkara

Oscar Pistorius watch vanished while police combed house, court told

Investigating officer Hilton Botha, sits inside the court witness box during the Oscar Pistorius bail hearing at the magistrate court in Pretoria, South Africa, Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013.

PRETORIA – South African police faced further embarrassment at the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius on Friday when it emerged that a valuable watch had vanished from the crime scene and a ballistic expert had handled the athlete’s gun without gloves….
photo: AP / Themba Hadebe

Iraq May Legalize Child-Marriage

Iraqi lawmakers attend the parliament session in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010. Iraq's parliament approved key leadership positions Thursday in the first step toward forming a new government, after a breakthrough deal that returns Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to office for a second term but falls short of Sunni hopes for greater political power.

Mar 14, 2014 7:35 am And require wives to submit to husbands. Sharefacebooktwittergoogle plusemailprint0 A law being considered in Iraq for the country’s majority Shiite population would legalize marriage to girls as young as nine and allow a…
photo: AP / Karim Kadim

French President Nicolas Sarkozy speaks with the media as he arrives for an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday, March 1, 2012.

Reuters PARIS — A French court on Friday ordered a news website to withdraw recordings an adviser secretly took of ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy during his 2012 election campaign. In an emergency ruling sought by Sarkozy, who is expected by many to…
photo: AP / Remy de la Mauviniere

 

UK-Syria aid viewed through ‘lens of terror’

14 Mar 2014

 

British volunteers delivering aid and ambulances to Syria face the double danger of being attacked by regime forces and arrested on suspicion of terrorism on their return home because of irresponsible comments by public officials linking them to jihadist groups, representatives of Muslim charities have warned. Convoys largely funded by donations… 

This picture taken on Saturday, March 1, 2014, provided by the anti-government activist group Coordination Committee In Kfar Takharim, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows Syrian citizens inspecting destroyed cars and buildings which were attacked by a Syrian government forces airstrike in the town of Kfar Takharim in the northwest province of Idlib, Syria.

 

 

 

 

Missing Malaysian plane: Search expands to Indian Ocean

Full ArticleThe Times of India 

14 Mar 2014

 

WASHINGTON/KUALA LUMPUR: US officials helping in efforts to locate a missingMalaysian plane on Friday said they are shifting their search to the Indian Oceanregion amid reports that the aircraft could have flown for several hours before it disappeared nearly a week ago. “It’s my understanding that based on some new information that’s not… 
A crew member of a Royal Malaysian Air Force CN-235 aircraft looks out the window during a search and rescue operation for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane over the Straits of Malacca, Thursday, March 13, 2014.

 

 

 

6 killed in yet another China knife attack

Chinese paramilitary police officers prepare for their patrol as they stand guard at an ethnic Han neighborhood in Urumqi, Xinjiang, China, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2009.

A knife-wielding attacker hacked five persons to death in central China on Friday before being shot dead by the police, two weeks after deadly stabbing spree at a railway station left 33 people dead. The…
photo: AP / Andy Wong

Russia blocks websites of Putin critics

Alexei Navalny

Moscow – Russia blocked access to the Internet sites of prominent Kremlin foesAlexei Navalny and Garry Kasparov on Thursday under a new law critics say is designed to silence dissent in President Vladimir Putin’s third term. The prosecutor general’s…
photo: Creative Commons

Sun emits mid-level solar flare

Sun emits mid-level solar flare

Tweet Washington, March 14 (ANI): NASA spotted the sun emitting a mid-level solar flare on Wednesday. The sun emitted a mid-level solar flare, peaking at 6:34 p.m.EDT on March 12, 2014, and NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO,…
photo: Creative Commons / NASA, ESA, L. Calçada

Bloodstains on walls in Pistorius’ home

Oscar Pistorius, the first round of the 400m at the London 2012 Olympic Games, 4 August 2012

PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) — Prosecutors on Thursday displayed photos of the inside of Oscar Pistorius’ home at his murder trial, showing a court some images of the bloody scene where the double-amputee track star killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp…
photo: Creative Commons / Jim Thurston

Rockets strike Israel, jeopardizing truce talk

Islamic Jihad militants stands guard during a rally marking the 26th anniversary of the movement's foundation and marking the 18th anniversary of the death of the group's leader Fathi Shikaki, in Rafah Refugee Camp, southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, Oct. 24, 2013. Shikaki, the founder of the Islamic Jihad group, was gunned down in Malta by a man on a motorcycle in an attack widely attributed to Israel. Photo by Ahmed Deeb / WN

JERUSALEM (AP) — The Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad said Thursday it had agreed to halt a wave of rocket fire on Israel, signaling an end to the heaviest fighting between the sides since 2012, though soon after the announcement seven…
photo: WN / Ahmed Deeb

Strong 6.3-magnitude quake hits off southern Japan

Japan National Route 10 at Oita, Oita .The principal railway station of the city is ?ita Station where Nipp? Main Line, Kyudai Main Line, and Hohi Main Line of JR Kyushu gathers.

A strong 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck off Japan’s southern Kyushu island today, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported, but no tsunami warning was issued. The epicentre of the quake — which…
photo: Creative Commons / Hide

Herders kill more than 100 in Nigeria

 Nigerian police patrol near the US embassy in Lagos, Nigeria, Friday, June 17, 2005.   (js1)

KANONigeria (AP) — Survivors say dozens of gunmen on motorbikes in northern Nigeria have killed more than 100 villagers in an ongoing conflict over land. They say scores of people are fleeing on foot from four attacked villages about 110 miles (180
photo: AP / George Osodi

PUTIN MASSES TROOPS NEAR UKRAINE

 



Obama backs interim Ukraine PM, rebukes Putin

13 Mar 2014

 

–> Obama also said after meeting interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk that he hoped US diplomacy with Moscow over the next few days could cause a “rethinking” of plans for a secession referendum in Crimea on Sunday. Obama said that Russia had infringed international law… 
Obama backs interim Ukraine PM, rebukes Putin

 

 

 

 

 

Malaysia Airlines MH370: China ‘will not give up’ on plane

13 Mar 2014

 

China‘s Premier Li Keqiang has pledged to continue search efforts for the missingMalaysia Airlines flight “as long as there is a glimmer of hope”. His comments came as Vietnam and Malaysia investigated satellite images released by China that appeared to show possible debris in the South China Sea. However, previous sightings… 


Vietnamese Air Force Col. Pham Minh Tuan uses binoculars on board a flying aircraft during a mission to search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in the Gulf of Thailand over the location where Chinese satellite images showed possible debris from the missing Malaysian jetliner, Thursday, March 13, 2014.
photo: AP

 

 

 

China warns of dangerous Russia sanctions ‘spiral’

China warns of dangerous Russia sanctions 'spiral'

BERLIN (Reuters) – China’s top envoy to Germany has warned the West against punishing Russia with sanctions for its intervention in Ukraine, saying such measures could lead to a dangerous chain reaction that would be difficult to control. In an…
photo: UN / Mark Garten

 

7 Things to Know About the U.S.’s Future in Afghanistan

7 Things to Know About the U.S.'s Future in Afghanistan

By Sara Sorcher Follow on Twitter March 13, 2014 American combat operations inAfghanistan officially conclude at year’s end, but does that mean the war is totally over and all the troops are coming home? Not exactly. The post-2014 U.S. role in…
photo: USMC / Lance Cpl. Zachery B. Martin

Afghan forces kill insurgents in gunbattle in southern city

Afghan forces kill insurgents in gunbattle in southern city

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — It began with a rattle of gunfire when insurgents attacked a former intelligence headquarters in this southern Afghan city. For more than an hour Wednesday, automatic weapons and machine gun fire resounded as police and…
photo: USMC / Lance Cpl. Zachery B. Martin

Art really can change the world: Commission on the Status of Women

Art really can change the world: Commission on the Status of Women

Female artist activists told their inspiring stories yesterday, March 11, as part of theCommission on the Status of Women (CSW), a two-week conference held by theUnited Nations every year. The CSW58 began on Monday, March 10 and continues through…
photo: UN / Paulo Filgueiras

 

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer Will Not Seek Another Term

Governor Jan Brewer at a book signing in Phoenix, Arizona.

www.npr.org ; Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, whose tenure has been marked by controversial decisions on immigration policy and a contentious relationship with the White House, says she will not seek another term in office, according to NPR.Photo via NPR…
photo: Creative Commons / Gage Skidmore

Tony Blair Texted Rebekah Brooks: ‘I May Be Some Help’

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair leaves the High Court in London Monday, May 28, 2012 after he gave evidence to the Leveson media inquiry.

Private messages were published in a London court Wednesday as prosecutors alleged that former members of Blair’s Labour government offered support to the former executive of Rupert Murdoch’s News InternationalTony Blair’s private text message…
photo: AP / Lefteris Pitarakis

Washington React: Kerry to Meet Lavrov on Ukraine

Secretary Kerry Tours Red Square

Jeff Seldin The United States is sending Secretary of State John Kerry to London for a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, part of the effort to end the crisis in UkraineAmerica‘s top diplomat said the face-to-face…
photo: Public Domain / State Department photo

 

 

Oil Rig Worker Thinks He Saw Malaysia Air Flight 370 Go Down In Flames

The Wire
ABBY OHLHEISERTHE WIRE
MAR. 12, 2014, 
malaysia
(AP/Na Son Nguyen)A vessel is seen from an Antonov AN-26 aircraft of the Vietnam Air Force during a search operation for a missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 over the Gulf of Thailand between Malaysia and Vietnam on Tuesday, March 11, 2014.

See Also

 

In yet another odd twist to the mysterious story of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, a New Zealand man working on an oil rig in the South China Sea has come forward to say he believes he saw the airplane on fire right around the time it disappeared. 

Mike McKay, a worker on the “Songa Mercur” drilling platform, sent an email to his bosses detailing his version of events. McKay said that he “observed the plane burning at high altitude…in one piece” about 50-70 KM from his location.

He gave coordinates for the location of the rig, which recently moved from Cuba to the shores of Vietnam. McKay’s employer confirms that the letter, posted online by several news outlets today, is authentic.

ABC’s Bob Woodruff spoke with the Japanese Idemitsu Oil & Gas Co after acquiring the letter to confirm the letter’s veracity. McKay, who carries a New Zealand passport, said that he tried to contact Malaysian and Vietnam officials about what he saw “several days ago,” adding that he’d received no confirmation that they got his message.

Vietnamese officials confirmed toABC that they’d received the letter. Apparently, they found nothing in the water at the location specified by McKay. 

Given the apparent location of the rig, and the original flight path of MH370, it’s possible that McKay is correct. But that would also seem to discount the theory that the plane turned andheaded in the complete opposite direction, as some military authorities have (at least temporarily) claimed.

Meanwhile, officials are expanding their search for the still-missing plane, and the 239 people on board. There are several reports indicating that the plane may have veered off its intended flight path and changed direction before disappearing from radar, but those reports conflictas to where, exactly it went.

At least 10 countries are involved in the Malaysian-led search for the missing jet, which carried passengers from at least 13 different countries, although most of the passengers were Chinese citizens.

 

 

 

 

 

NO REAL ANSWERS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Malaysian Response To Missing Airliner Falls Under Scrutiny.. Officials Repeatedly Backtrack.. No Scenario Ruled Out.. Investigators Probe Potential Sabotage, Hijacking And Mechanical Failure.. Jet May Have Strayed Toward Andaman Sea.. Search Now Covers Area Size Of Indiana..

 

 

Ukraine president: Russia ‘is refusing crisis talks’

12 Mar 2014

 

Russia‘s leaders are refusing all negotiations with their Ukrainian counterparts,Ukraine‘s acting President Oleksandr Turchynov has said. Mr Turchynov told theAFP agency that Ukraine would not intervene militarily in Crimea, even though a secession referendum there was a “sham”. Meanwhile interim Prime MinisterArseniy… 
A man gestures during a pro Russia rally in Donetsk, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 11, 2014.

 

Wild theories fill void left by missing Malaysian plane

12 Mar 2014

 

BEIJING/SINGAPORE: Shot down by a military jet. Blown up by terrorists. Hijacked by elves. Ranging from the barely believable to the wildly absurd, popular theories about the fate of a missing Malaysian airliner circulate widely even as anguished relatives wait for news of its 239 passengers and crew. Flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing… 


Malaysia Airlines booth at the 18th PTAA Travel and Tour Expo 2011 at SMX Mall of Asia, as seen in this February 20, 2011 photo.

 

Libyan PM ousted after tanker escape

Ali Zeidan, Prime Minister of Libya delivering remarks to the press during a meeting at the US Department of State with Secretary of State John Kerry.

Tripoli – The Libyan parliament ousted Prime Minister Ali Zeidan Tuesday after a tanker laden with crude oil from a rebel-held terminal broke through a naval blockade and escaped to sea. The no-confidence motion was approved by 124 of the 194 members…
photo: US DoS

Corporal Geoffrey McNeill murder: Police given more time to question soldier over Army barracks death

Corporal Geoffrey McNeill murder: Police given more time to question soldier over Army barracks death

Police probing the death of a Co Antrim soldier at an Army barracks in Englandhave been granted more time to question a serving soldier on suspicion of murder. Detectives launched a murder investigation following the discovery of the body ofRoyal
photo: US Army / Clay Beyersdorfer

Death of Turkish boy hurt in protests triggers further unrest

Standing People at Taksim Square

Reuters Image Caption: A man looks on as riot policemen pass by during a demonstration in Ankara (reuters tickers) March 11, 2014 – 18:43 By Mehmet EminCaliskan and Parisa Hafezi ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) – Protesters clashed with police in…
photo: AP / Petr David Josek

Sen. Feinstein: CIA Hacked Congress and Possibly ‘Violated’ Constitution

Senate Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., speaks with reporters as the Senate returned to work at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2012.

By Dustin Volz Follow on Twitter March 11, 2014 The powerful leader of the Senate Intelligence Committee charged the CIA Tuesday morning with covertly removing key documents from computers used by her panel’s staff to investigate the government’s…
photo: AP / J. Scott Applewhite

In Ukraine, UN official discusses human rights measures to de-escalate current crisis

In Ukraine, UN official discusses human rights measures to de-escalate current crisis

Print 11 March 2014 – Senior United Nations official Ivan Šimonovic is meeting with local authorities in Kharkiv, Ukraine, today to discuss human rights-related measures that can be taken to help de-escalate tensions in the country….
photo: UN / Mark Garten

3 Years After Fukushima, Nuclear Industry Still Recalibrating

A radiation detection device sits as new evacuees arrive for screening at an evacuee center for leaked radiation from the damaged Fukushima nuclear facilities, Monday, March 21, 2011, in Fukushima, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. Despite living in such proximity to the Fukushima nuclear facility, evacuees at the shelter had never had an emergency drill to prepare them for a nuclear disaster.

The disaster at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant in Japan on March 11, 2011, destroyed tens of thousands of lives and had ripple effects around the world as nations reliant upon or considering nuclear power rethought their plans. The meltdown of three…
photo: AP / Wally Santana

 

 


 

 

 

‘At Fukushima, meltdown deaths top tsunami toll’

11 Mar 2014

 

As Japan observes a third anniversary of the earthquake-tsunami-nuclear meltdown that hit its northwestern coast on March 11, 2011, a new survey by the paper Asahi Shimbun showed that in Fukushima prefecture, more people died in the aftermath of the nuclear meltdown than due to the earthquake and tsunami.Physical and psychological fatigue were the… 
Members of the media and Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) employees in protective suits and masks walk toward No. 1 reactor building at the tsunami-crippled TEPCO's Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, northeastern Japan, Monday, March 10, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ukraine’s Crimea seeks to become Independent state

11 Mar 2014

 

KIEVUkraine (AP) — The Crimean parliament voted Tuesday that the Black Seapeninsula will declare itself an independent state if its residents agree to split off from Ukraine and join Russia in a referendum. Crimea‘s regional legislature on Tuesday adopted a “declaration of independence of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.” The document… 
Anti-government protesters shout "Glory to the Ukraine" as they man a barricade at Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 21, 2014.

 

Darfur violence: UN warns of new Sudan clashes

Darfur violence: UN warns of new Sudan clashes

The UN has warned about an upsurge in violence in Sudan‘s Darfur region, saying some 50,000 people had been displaced since the end of February. Peacekeepersand aid agencies had been blocked from entering affected areas, UN human rights chief…
photo: UN / Jean-Marc Ferré

Yanukovych: I Am Still President And Commander-In-Chief Of Ukraine

Ukraine's fugitive president, Viktor Yanukovych speaks to the media in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, Tuesday March 11, 2014. Yanukovych repeated the Russian claim that the new Ukrainian authorities are kowtowing to radical nationalists, and that they posed a threat to Russian-speaking eastern regions. Yanukovych, who fled last month after months of protests, said he would soon return to Ukraine.

ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia (Reuters) – Ukraine‘s ousted leader, Viktor Yanukovich, reiterated on Tuesday that he was the country’s legitimate president and commander-in-chief, saying he was sure the armed forces would refuse to obey any…
photo: AP / Klim Novgorodtsev

Australia offers $9 mn aid for Somalia

Australia offers $9 mn aid for Somalia

Nairobi, March 10: The Australian government said Monday it will provide $9 million in assistance to enhance stability and support state building efforts inSomaliaAustralia said it will be allocating $1.8 million to support the objectives of the…
photo: UN / Paulo Filgueiras

Ukraine starts army drills as Russian military guards border with Crimea

Ukraine starts army drills as Russian military guards border with Crimea

Ukrainian soldiers and a Ukrainian army tank stand just inside the gate at aUkrainian military base that was surrounded by several hundred Russian-speaking soldiers in CrimeaPhotoGetty Images Ukraine began military drills as Russianforces…
photo: UN / Paulo Filgueiras

Sarkozy seeks publication ban on recordings

France's President and candidate for re-election in 2012, Nicolas Sarkozy, gestures as he delivers a speech during a campaign meeting in Poitou, central France, Monday, April 16, 2012.

PARIS (AP) — His conversations secretly recorded by a trusted adviser and investigating judges, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his singer-songwriter wife sought an emergency injunction Monday to block further publication of their private…
photo: AP / Michel Euler

Russia faces sanctions ‘within days’

Russia faces sanctions 'within days'

Russia will face targeted sanctions “within days” if Moscow does not agree to talks with the new Ukrainian government in KievDavid Cameron told MPs today. The deadline – agreed between the prime minister and German Chancellor Angela
photo: European Community / EC

Pistorius vomits in court at Steenkamp autopsy details

In this undated handout publicity photo supplied by Stimulii taken on the island of Jamaica, Reeva Steenkamp poses on set during the shooting of the reality show Tropika Island of Treasure which premieres on state television Saturday, Feb 16, 2013. South Africa's national broadcaster says it will screen the show featuring the dead model girlfriend of double-amputee athlete Oscar Pistorius, two days after she was shot and killed at Pistorius' home.

PRETORIA – Track star Oscar Pistorius, on trial for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, wept and vomited into a bucket in a South African courtroom on Monday after hearing graphic details from her autopsy. Pathologist Gert…
photo: AP / Courtesy of Stimulii-HO

Nuns held by rebels in Syria are freed, arrive at border

10 Mar 2014

 

Witnesses at the Syrian border with Lebanon said the nuns arrived at the crossing late on Sunday night and headed toward Damascus in a minibus. Nuns, who were freed after being held by rebels for over three months, arrive at the Syrian border with Lebanon at the Jdaydeh Yaboos crossing, early March 10, 2014. Reuters About a dozen nuns held by… 
An official Lebanese security convoy carrying a group of released nuns arrives at the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa, eastern Bekaa valley, Lebanon, early Monday March 10, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

INTO THIN AIR?

AFP/Getty

CLAIM: Plane May Have Disintegrated Mid-Flight… 1 Man Who Used Stolen Passport Identified… Investigators Probing ‘Every Angle’… Hopes Dashed After Floating ‘Yellow Object’ Is Identified As Sea Trash… Oil Slick Not From Plane…Interpol: Security Lapse Of ‘Great Concern’… 

 

 

 

Vanished Malaysia plane an ‘aviation mystery’

10 Mar 2014

 

The disappearance of a Malaysian jetliner is an “unprecedented aviation mystery”, a senior official said on Monday, with a massive air and sea search now in its third day failing to find any confirmed trace of the plane or the 239 people aboard. The head of Malaysia‘s Civil Aviation Authority, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, said a hijacking attempt could… 
Chinese relatives of passengers aboard a missing Malaysia Airlines plane wait inside a hotel room in Beijing Monday, March 10, 2014.

 

 

Terror theory for missing Malaysian jet; floating door spotted

A Malaysia Airlines 777-200ER. After the original model, Boeing developed the 777-200ER, an increased gross weight variant with greater range and payload capability.

KUALA LUMPUR: Vietnamese authorities on Sunday said they had spotted what looked like one of the doors of the missing Boeing 777 jetliner that crashed into the sea between Malaysia and Vietnam a day and a half ago. What caused the crash remained a…
photo: Creative Commons / Altair78

North Korea holds single-party election

Voters walk in and out at the entrance of a polling station in Pyongyang during local assembly elections in Pyongyang, North Korea, Sunday, July 24, 2011.

North Korean state media reported on Sunday that nearly all registered voters had cast their ballots to elect members of the Supreme People’s Assembly for the first time since Kim Jong Un took leadership of the…
photo: AP / APTN

Suicide bomber kills 45 in Iraqi city of Hilla

Civilians inspect the scene of a car bomb attack in the Kamaliyah neighborhood, a predominantly Shiite area of eastern Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, May 20, 2013.

Baghdad: A suicide bomber driving a minibus packed with explosives killed at least 45 people and wounded 157 on Sunday in the southern Iraqi city of Hilla, police and medical sources said. The attacker approached a main checkpoint at a northern…
photo: AP / Hadi Mizban

Japan Airlines plane makes emergency landing in Honolulu

Hawaiian Airlines Boeing 767-300 at Honolulu International Airport

TOKYO— A Japan Airlines-operated Boeing 787 made an emergency landing atHonolulu Airport after oil pressure in its right engine dropped, the Japanese carrier said. The two-engined jetliner en route…
photo: Creative Commons / FRED

At Least 40 Killed in Yemen as Houthi Fighters Near Capital

A policeman with his cloth-covered weapon stands guard with other security personnel in a street in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2014.

Reuters SANAA — At least 40 people have been killed in three days of fighting between Shi’ite Muslim rebels and Sunni tribesmen, sources on both sides said on Sunday, as sectarian fighting that flared up in October in the north drew closer to the…
photo: AP / Hani Mohammed

From Afghan warlord to vice-president: Fahim dies in Kabul

Afghan President Hamid Karzai gestures as his First Vice President Mohammad Qasim Fahim, left, looks on during a press conference at the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009.

KabulAfghan Vice-President Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim, formerly one of the country’s most feared warlords, died of natural causes on Sunday after a turbulent life that reflected the country’s recent past. Fahim, a leader of the Tajikethnic…
photo: AP / Musadeq Sadeq

 

 

 

 

 

Libya threatens to bomb N.Korean tanker if it ships oil from rebel port

09 Mar 2014

 

Rebels stand guard at the entrance to the Es Sider terminal in Libya, where a NorthKorean-flagged tanker was docked. Photo: Reuters Libya threatened on Saturday to bomb a North Korean-flagged tanker if it tried to ship oil from a rebel-controlled port, in a major escalation of a stand-off over the country’s petroleum wealth. The rebels, who have… 
File - In this Feb. 26, 2011, file photo, a Libyan man works at a refinery inside the Brega oil complex in Brega, eastern Libya. Libyan officials said Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013, oil exports have plunged to less than 10 percent of their pre-war levels.

 

UN peacekeeping operation accomplished in Sierra Leone: UN chief

UN peacekeeping operation accomplished in Sierra Leone: UN chief

According to a press release issued by the UN Information Center (UNIC) to Tehran, the full text of the message reads: ‘What was once the biggest United Nations peacekeeping operation in the world winds down this month, and the most extraordinary…
photo: UN / Eskinder Debebe

WikiLeaks’ Assange talks NSA, hints at more leaks

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange addresses a meeting via videolink from Ecuador's London embassy during the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters, Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2012.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) ? Speaking over Skype from the Ecuadorian embassy in London, fugitive WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said his living situation is a bit like prison ? with a more lenient visitor policy. He also hinted that new leaks are coming…
photo: AP / Jason DeCrow

Threat Issued in Libyan Oil Export Dispute

A Libyan oil worker, works at a refinery inside the Brega oil complex, in Brega east of Libya, on Saturday Feb. 26, 2011. Production at Brega has dropped by almost 90 percent amid the country's crisis because many employees have fled and few ships are coming to offload the product.

Edward Yeranian CAIRO, EGYPT — Leaders of eastern Libya‘s self-declared autonomous region of Barqa declared Saturday that they had begun exporting oil from the port of Sidra and would share revenues with the central government in accordance with…
photo: AP / Hussein Malla

Met to seek meeting with Lawrences

File - Neville Lawrence, the father of murdered black teenager Stephen Lawrence, during a news conference in London Thursday July 31 1997 where he welcomed the Government's decision to hold an inquiry into his son's killing as a "step in the right direction".

Scotland Yard is to request a private meeting with the parents of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence to share the findings of the criminal investigation into alleged misconduct by undercover officers. The force is writing to Doreen and Neville…
photo: AP / Sean Dempsey,PA

Crimea’s new leader, a man with a murky past

Crimean Premier Sergei Aksyonov, right, attends the swearing in ceremony for the first unit of a pro-Russian armed force, dubbed the "military forces of the autonomous republic of Crimea" in Simferopol, Ukraine, Saturday, March 8, 2014. Some 30 men armed with automatic weapons and another 20 or so unarmed, were sworn in at a park in front of an eternal flame to those killed in World War II.

Click photo to enlarge Crimean Premier Sergei Aksyonov, right, attends the swearing in ceremony for the first unit of a pro-Russian armed force, dubbed the “military forces of the autonomous republic of Crimea” in Simferopol, Ukraine,…
photo: AP / Vadim Ghirda

Malaysia Airlines plane ‘presumed lost’

Malaysia Airlines

Sepang – Several nations searched waters off Southeast Asia on Saturday after aMalaysia Airlines jet carrying 239 passengers disappeared and was presumed lost, leaving stunned relatives demanding answers. Contact with Flight MH370 was lost somewhere…
photo: Public Domain / Arpingstone