More than 40 killed in airstrike in Syria
The Associated Press Published Thursday, Aug. 16, 2012
Showing posts with label world news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label world news. Show all posts
August 16, 2012
More than 40 killed in airstrike in Syria Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/more-than-40-killed-in-airstrike-in-syria-1.916332#ixzz23j2xJAW4
Published Thursday, Aug. 16, 2012
August 14, 2012
Egypt's Mursi seizes early chance to take on army
Egypt's Mursi seizes early chance to take on army
CAIRO | Tue Aug 14, 2012
(Reuters) - A blunder by the Egyptian army that left 16 border guards dead at the hands of Islamist militants gave President Mohamed Mursi an unexpectedly early chance to claw back powers from a military whose political influence he had always wanted to restrict.
A week after the raid on Egypt's Sinai border that outraged ordinary Egyptians and some soldiers, angry at what they saw as a failure in military leadership, Mursi on Sunday dismissed the country's
August 13, 2012
Norway Needs Urgent Fix in Terror Preparedness, Commission Says
Norway Needs Urgent Fix in Terror Preparedness, Commission Says
By Josiane Kremer on August 13, 2012
Norway needs to make a number of urgent changes in its ability to respond to terror attacks, said Alexandra Bech Gjoerv, head of the commission in charge of reviewing the response to last year’s twin attacks.The group’s review found “large weaknesses” and agreed on six main findings, she said today as she handed the July 22 Commission report to Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg. The 10- person group is headed by lawyer and former Statoil ASA executive Gjoerv and also includes the former head of the Norwegian Intelligence Service, academics, executives as well as police officials from neighboring Denmark and Finland.
The report is “very important” because it will give us common knowledge of what happened and will
August 9, 2012
Clear skies reveal messy scope of Philippine flood
Clear skies reveal messy scope of Philippine flood
Aug. 9, 2012
By cbsnews.com
MANILA, Philippines — Thousands of Filipinos shoveled muck and debris from flood-ravaged homes, shops and roads under a shining sun Thursday after nearly two weeks of nonstop rain shut down the capital and forced hundreds of thousands to flee from the deluge.At least 23 people died and nearly 2 million people were affected by Manila's worst flooding since 2009. More than half of the sprawling metropolis of 12 million was submerged at the peak, and schools and offices have been closed for days.
Under a hot sun Thursday as the rain finally stopped, residents began to fix disheveled homes and
US starts landmark cleanup of Agent Orange nearly 4 decades after Vietnam War’s end
US starts landmark cleanup of Agent Orange nearly 4 decades after Vietnam War’s end
By Associated Press 2012 August 9
DANANG, Vietnam — The United States began a landmark project Thursday to clean up a dangerous chemical left from the defoliant Agent Orange — 50 years after American planes first sprayed it on Vietnam’s jungles to destroy enemy cover.Dioxin, which has been linked to cancer, birth defects and other disabilities, will be removed from the site of a former U.S. air base in Danang in central Vietnam. The effort is seen as a long-overdue step toward removing a thorn in relations between the former foes nearly four decades after the Vietnam War ended.
“We are both moving earth and taking the first steps to bury the legacies of our past,” U.S. Ambassador David Shear said during the groundbreaking ceremony near where a rusty barbed wire fence marks the site’s boundary. “I look forward to even more success to follow.”
The $43 million joint project with Vietnam is expected to be completed in four years on the 19-hectare (47-acre) contaminated site, now an active Vietnamese military base near Danang’s commercial airport.
Washington has been quibbling for years over the need for more scientific research to show that the herbicide caused health problems among Vietnamese. It has given about $60 million for environmental restoration and social services in Vietnam since 2007, but this is its first direct involvement in cleaning up dioxin, which has seeped into Vietnam’s soil and watersheds for generations.
Shear added the U.S. is planning to evaluate what’s needed for remediation at the former Bien Hoa air base in southern Vietnam, another Agent Orange hotspot.
The work begins as Vietnam and the U.S. forge closer ties to boost trade and counter China’s rising influence in the disputed South China Sea that’s believed rich in oil and natural resources. The U.S. says protecting peace and freedom of navigation in the sea is in its national interest.
The Danang site is closed to the public. Part of it consists of a dry field where U.S. troops once stored and mixed the defoliant before it was loaded onto planes. The area is ringed by tall grass, and a faint chemical scent could be smelled Thursday.
The contaminated area also includes lakes and wetlands dotted with pink lotus flowers where dioxin has seeped into soil and sediment over decades. A high concrete wall separates it from nearby communities and serves as a barrier to fishing there.
The U.S. military dumped some 20 million gallons (75 million liters) of Agent Orange and other herbicides on about a quarter of former South Vietnam between 1962 and 1971, decimating about 5 million acres (2 million hectares) of forest — roughly the size of Massachusetts.
The war ended on April 30, 1975, when northern Communist forces seized control of Saigon, the U.S.-backed capital of former South Vietnam. Some 58,000 Americans died, along with an estimated 3 million Vietnamese. The country was then reunified under a one-party Communist government. Following years of poverty and isolation, Vietnam shook hands with the U.S. in 1995 and normalized diplomatic relations.
The Agent Orange issue has continued to blight the U.S.-Vietnam relationship because dioxin can linger in the environment for decades, entering the food supply through the fat of fish and other animals.Although the chemical remains at the Danang site, U.S. officials said Thursday that containment measures implemented in recent years temporarily ended the public health threat to the local community.
In 2007, Vietnamese authorities — with technical assistance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and funding from the nonprofit U.S.-based Ford Foundation — poured a 6-inch (15-cm) concrete slab half the size of a football field over the contaminated area where Agent Orange was mixed. Dioxin is not water-soluble and only spreads when rainfall and runoff move contaminated mud.
Vietnam’s Ministry of Defense and the U.S. now plan to excavate 73,000 cubic meters (2.5 million cubic feet) employing technology used to clean superfund sites in the U.S.
Workers will first dig down about 2 meters (6.56 feet). The soil will then be heated to 335 degrees Celsius (635 Fahrenheit) in special containers where the dioxin will break down into oxygen, carbon dioxide and other substances that pose no health risks.
Vietnam’s deputy defense minister, Nguyen Chi Vinh, said Thursday he hopes to receive more support from the international community and the U.S. government to help remediate dioxin hotspots elsewhere.
The former U.S. air base in southern Phu Cat has already been identified, but he said many contaminated areas in Vietnam have not been adequately assessed.
It is still unclear how much dioxin the U.S. will help clean up in the long term and how much it will allocate for people who claim to be Agent Orange victims.
August 6, 2012
Hillary Clinton Meets with Nelson Mandela
Hillary Clinton Meets with Nelson Mandela
By BAZI KANANI (@bazikanani)JOHANNESBURG, South Africa Aug. 6, 2012
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's first order of business on her three day visit to South Africa is a trip to Nelson Mandela's ancestral village of Qunu for a private meeting with the anti-apartheid hero and former president.
The State Department said she is going to "pay her respects" to Mandela before a series of meetings focused on strengthening the U.S. trade relationship with South Africa.
August 4, 2012
Iran Says Test-Firing Of Missile a Success
Iran Says Test-Firing Of Missile a Success
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSPublished: August 4, 2012
TEHRAN (AP) — Iran said Saturday that it had successfully test-fired an upgraded version of a short-range ballistic missile with improved accuracy, increasing its capacity to strike land and naval targets.Iran’s defense minister, Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, said the solid-fueled Fateh-110 missile had a range of 185 miles. He also said the weapon could strike with pinpoint precision, making it the most accurate weapon of its kind in Iran’s arsenal.
“By reaching this generation of the Fateh-110, a new capability has been added to our armed forces
August 3, 2012
U.N. Condemns Syria's Campaign
August 3, 2012
![[image]](http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WO-AK668B_SYRIA_G_20120803204216.jpg)
The United Nations General Assembly reprimanded Syria for its use of heavy weaponry against its civilians in a largely symbolic vote that comes as relief agencies warn of a growing humanitarian catastrophe inside the Arab country.
The U.N. resolution condemns Syria's use of heavy weapons in Aleppo, Damascus and other cities. It calls for implementation of a six-point international peace plan that calls for a political transition away from President Bashar al-Assad's rule.
By MARGARET COKER and JOE LAURIA
The U.N. resolution condemns Syria's use of heavy weapons in Aleppo, Damascus and other cities. It calls for implementation of a six-point international peace plan that calls for a political transition away from President Bashar al-Assad's rule.
Heywood murder: China sets Bo Xilai wife trial date
Heywood murder: China sets Bo Xilai wife trial date
3 August 2012 By .bbc.co.uk
Prosecutors announced last week that Ms Gu and Zhang Xiaojun, employed at Mr Bo's home, had been charged with intentional homicide.
Mr Heywood was found dead in a hotel in Chongqing on 15 November 2011.The alleged murder of Mr Heywood triggered Mr Bo's downfall in a scandal that has rocked Chinese politics.
The trial is expected to take place in the eastern city of Hefei, even though the crime allegedly took place hundreds of miles to the west in the city of Chongqing.
Legal experts have previously told BBC Chinese that authorities would have had concerns about the political influence Mr Bo and his family may still exert in Chongqing and whether that would affect a fair trial.
Local officials initially said Mr Heywood died of excessive drinking, but the government announced in April it was investigating Mr Bo's wife in connection with the case.
The exact nature of Mr Heywood's role and his relations with the Bo family have been the subject of much speculation inside and outside China. At the very least, there were close business contacts between the Bo family and Mr Heywood.
Mr Bo, the former high-flying leader of the south-western Chinese megacity of Chongqing, was sacked in March and is under investigation for allegedly flouting Communist Party rules.
He made his name tackling corruption in Chongqing and had been expected to be elected to an important position during the once-in-a-decade leadership change due at the Communist Party congress this autumn.
Analysts say the authorities are keen to resolve the case quickly before China undergoes that politically sensitive transition.
August 2, 2012
Former spymaster says Iran should be worried by Israeli threats
Former spymaster says Iran should be worried by Israeli threats
The Associated Press Published Thursday, Aug. 2, 2012
JERUSALEM -- A former Israeli spymaster says if he were an Iranian, he would be "very worried" by Israel's talk about possibly attacking Iran's nuclear facilities.
Ephraim Halevy says the next 12 weeks will be "very critical" to Israel's decision on whether to strike. Halevy told Israel Radio on Thursday that if the Iranians "continue to play their games" in nuclear talks with world powers, they're underestimating Israel's resolve.
He says the Iranians' "math is off if they think they have open-ended immunity" in these talks.
August 1, 2012
Power Is Restored Across India After Crippling Blackout
Power Is Restored Across India After Crippling Blackout
By GARDINER HARRIS and JIM YARDLEYPublished: August 1, 2012
NEW DELHI — As electric power was restored across India on Wednesday, the nation’s new power minister sought to tamp down a growing argument between state and federal ministers over who was to blame for Tuesday’s unprecedented blackout.
“I don’t think one can have a blame game between the state and the center,” said the minister, Veerappa Moily.
July 31, 2012
German Bunds Rise 2nd Day on Concern ECB Measures to Fall Short
German Bunds Rise 2nd Day on Concern ECB Measures to Fall Short
By Emma Charlton and Lucy Meakin on July 31, 2012
German government bonds rose for a second day amid speculation European policy makers will be unable to follow through on their pledge to shore up the single- currency area when they meet this week.Ten-year bund yields fell from the highest level in three weeks as investors returned to the region’s safest assets after a German report showed retail sales dropped in June and euro- area unemployment was at a record high. European Central Bank PresidentMario Draghi, who sparked a global market rally last week by pledging to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro, is trying to build consensus among governments and central bankers for a plan to ease borrowing costs in Spain and Italy.
India hit by second huge power outage, this one larger than before
India hit by second huge power outage, this one larger than before
By Harmeet Shah Singh, CNNupdated 8:23 AM EDT, Tue July 31, 2012
New Delhi (CNN) -- India suffered its second huge, crippling power failure in two days Tuesday, depriving as much as half of the vast and populous country, or up to 600 million people, of electricity and disrupting transport networks. The first power grid collapse, on Monday, was the country's worst blackout in a decade. It affected seven states in northern India that are home to more than 350 million people. But Tuesday's failure was even larger, hitting eastern and northeastern areas as well. Both blackouts cut power in the Indian
July 30, 2012
Iran expects to hold more nuclear talks: foreign minister
Iran expects to hold more nuclear talks: foreign minister
(Reuters) - Iran expects to hold more talks with world powers on its nuclear program following an inconclusive round of negotiations in Istanbul earlier this month, its foreign minister said in a newspaper interview published on Monday.
The failure of the talks to secure a breakthrough over Tehran's uranium enrichment, which the West fears is aimed at developing nuclear weapons, has raised international concerns that Israel may carry out a military strike.
"I can't say it with certainty but if everything proceeds normally then there should be further negotiations," Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Salehi told Austria's Der Standard.
"A breakdown (in talks) is in nobody's interests. The gaps can only be closed through talking."
July 27, 2012
24.6% Unemployment Rate in Spain
24.6% Unemployment Rate in Spain
By RAPHAEL MINDERPublished: July 27, 2012
MADRID — A day after markets registered relief at comments from the European Central Bank president in strong support of the euro, data from Spain showed the fragility of the underlying economy as the region’s debt crisis drags on.Just over 5.69 million Spaniards ended the second quarter jobless, raising the unemployment rate to a record 24.6 percent, compared with 24.4 percent in the first quarter, according to the latest national employment statistics published Friday.
July 26, 2012
China Charges Wife of Bo Xilai in Killing of British Man
China Charges Wife of Bo Xilai in Killing of British Man
By ANDREW JACOBS
Published: July 26, 2012BEIJING — Gu Kailai, the wife of the disgraced political leader Bo Xilai, has been charged with the intentional homicide of a British businessman, a crime that triggered China’s most serious political crisis in decades, the state media reported Thursday evening.
The official Xinhua news agency published a brief dispatch announcing that Ms. Gu and an aide employed by the family had been formally charged in the poisoning death of Neil Heywood, the 41-year-old Briton whose body was found in November in a hotel in Chongqing, the municipality in southwest China led by Mr. Bo until he was deposed by Communist Party leaders.
Although the announcement repeated earlier accusations that tied the murder of Mr. Heywood to “a conflict over economic interests,” it added fresh detail, saying that Ms. Gu committed the crime in order to protect her son, Bo Guagua. The article did not mention Mr. Bo’s full name, suggesting prosecutors have decided not to implicate him in the crime.
The announcement said no trial date had been set.
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