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‘Tea Party’ Candidate Battles Veteran Republican in Texas Senate Primary Race

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 5:55 am (UTC-5)
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Republican Party voters in the U.S. state of Texas may hand the party’s staunchly conservative Tea Party movement another victory when they cast ballots in Tuesday’s runoff vote in a U.S. Senate primary race. Longtime Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst easily won the first round of the primary in June, but failed to win the majority […]

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Blackout Cuts Power to 600 Million in India

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 5:40 am (UTC-5)
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A massive grid failure has left more than 600 million people in India without power, the second large-scale outage to hit the country in as many days. Tuesday’s blackout hit the northern and eastern parts of the country, including major cities like New Delhi and Kolkata. It brought rail service to a halt and knocked […]

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Japan Warns About Growing Influence of China’s Military

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 5:05 am (UTC-5)
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Japan is warning about the influence of China’s military on the country’s foreign policy, saying relations between the army and ruling Communist Party are “getting complex.” The Japanese assessment is part of an annual defense review, released Tuesday, which said the shift in China is a “risk management issue.” The report also highlighted the 30-fold […]

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US Congressional Negotiators Agree on New Iran Sanctions

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 4:50 am (UTC-5)
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U.S. lawmakers are moving forward with tough new sanctions against Iran, aimed at further reducing the nation’s oil revenues to undercut its nuclear program. Negotiators from the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives reached agreement on the compromise legislation late Monday. The bill would target Iran’s energy and shipping sectors. It would penalize anyone who […]

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Syrian Activists Report Continued Fighting

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 4:00 am (UTC-5)
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Syrian opposition activists have reported widespread clashes Tuesday, including continued fighting in the country’s largest city, Aleppo. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said government forces were shelling several neighborhoods in Aleppo, and that soldiers were clashing with rebels in the city. The Observatory, whose reports from witnesses inside the country cannot be confirmed […]

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Chinese Media Criticizes US Religious Freedom Report

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 3:35 am (UTC-5)
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Chinese state media criticized a U.S. report on worldwide religious freedom, saying the release is “counterproductive.” The state-run Xinhua news agency said in a commentary Tuesday that the report is a “political tool” and that the United States is imposing its own religious policy standards. The annual State Department report released Monday said there has […]

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Australia Seizes Drugs Worth Up To $525 Million

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 1:45 am (UTC-5)
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Australian police say they have seized a stash of crystal methamphetamine and heroin with a street value of up to $525 million. Authorities said Tuesday the drugs were smuggled into the country in a shipment of terracotta pots, but did not say where the shipment originated. Police arrested seven people, including four from Hong Kong […]

Democratic Party to Officially Support Gay Marriage

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 12:40 am (UTC-5)
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The U.S. Democratic Party is ready to formally include same-sex marriage in its official campaign platform for the first time in its history. An unnamed Democratic official says the party’s platform drafting committee approved language endorsing homosexual marriages during a meeting Sunday in Minneapolis. The issue will be voted on in September during the Democratic […]

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UN to Visit Flood-Hit North Korea

Posted July 31st, 2012 at 12:35 am (UTC-5)
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A United Nations team will visit parts of flood-hit North Korea Tuesday to assess the damage and consider possible aid. An official with the U.N. Children’s Fund said U.N. workers already in North Korea would go to the two areas most affected by the flooding that began July 18. North Korea says torrential rains spawned […]

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Romney Closes Foreign Trip in Poland

Posted July 30th, 2012 at 9:35 pm (UTC-5)
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((writethru w/new info in grafs 1-3) U.S. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will wrap up his foreign trip Tuesday with a major speech in Poland aimed at showing that he would be a stronger leader than President Barack Obama. Romney arrived in Poland’s Baltic port city of Gdansk Monday, after stops in Britain and Israel […]

Tags: , , , Posted in Middle East