Nation Marks 67th D-Day Anniversary

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 3:30 pm (UTC-5)
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France and the United States are commemorating the 67th anniversary of D-Day, the allied invasion of Normandy in Nazi-occupied France during World War Two.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton marked the occasion Monday, saying it is a reminder of the solidarity between the United States and France in the past as well as in the present and future.

She spoke after talks at the State Department with French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe.

The French minister will visit the World War Two Memorial in Washington, where he will lay a wreath and present France's highest award, the Legion of Honor, to three American veterans who took part in the D-Day invasion.

More than 150,000 U.S., Canadian and British Commonwealth troops landed on the beaches of northern France on June 6, 1944, to liberate Europe from the Nazis. Thousands of allied troops were killed, with thousands of others wounded. Minister Juppe said the people of France will never forget those who shed their blood on D-Day.

Commemorations were held elsewhere in the United States Monday, including at the National World War Two Museum in New Orleans and the National D-Day Memorial in Virginia. In France, the anniversary was marked with tours, lectures and moments of reflection at the Normandy beaches.

Portugal’s Victorious Center-Right to Push Austerity

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 3:20 pm (UTC-5)
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Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva has asked Social Democratic Party leader Pedro Passos Coelho to “immediately” start work on forming a new government.

The Social Democrats on Sunday won a comfortable victory in the troubled country's parliamentary elections, ousting the ruling Socialists.

Mr. Passos Coelho said Monday Mr. Silva had asked for the preparations to be finished by the time the final results of the election are published on June 15. After that, the president can formally appoint Mr. Passos Coelho as prime minister.

The Social Democratic Party leader said he will form a coalition government with the conservative Popular Party, giving their bloc a majority in parliament and making it easier to pass legislation aimed at pulling the country away from the edge of bankruptcy.

He has pledged to move forward with tough austerity measures necessary to restore the country's economic credibility.

The center-right leader and former businessman has said he is committed to meeting the terms of the $114-billion bailout set by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

Mr. Passos Coelho has vowed to “go beyond” the bailout demands, and has said he will push to privatize some Portuguese state industries and cut back on large-scale infrastructure projects.

Portugal is one of three Eurozone countries being bailed out. The other two are Greece and Ireland.

New Fighting Erupts on Sudan’s North-South Border

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 3:05 pm (UTC-5)
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United Nations officials are urging restraint along Sudan's north-south border amid reports of new unrest in the region.

Officials say gunfire erupted Monday in Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan state. The U.N. mission in Sudan also reported more looting in the Abyei region, an area claimed by both north and south Sudan.

The U.N. mission in Sudan says it is deeply concerned about security in the two areas, and is calling on all parties to prevent an escalation of violence.

Tensions have risen along Sudan's north-south border in the past few weeks, especially in Abyei.

The south is preparing to declare independence from the north on July 9, and the two sides have not agreed on the future of the oil-rich region.

Northern troops seized control of Abyei last month and have rejected calls by the U.N. Security Council to withdraw their forces.

Officials fear the renewed tensions could plunge Sudan into a new civil war.

North and south Sudan fought for 21 years before the conflict ended with a 2005 peace agreement.

In its statement Monday, the U.N. Mission in Sudan called on the north's armed forces to bring the looting in Abyei to a halt, release civilians in their custody, and allow unrestricted and safe access to people in need of humanitarian aid.

The U.N. says tens of thousands of Abyei residents fled the area after the northern takeover, and witnesses have reported widespread destruction of huts and buildings in Abyei's main town.

Obama to Soon Decide on Troop Pullout in Afghanistan

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 3:00 pm (UTC-5)
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The White House says U.S. President Barack Obama will soon decide on the scope and pace of U.S. troop withdrawals in Afghanistan.

Mr. Obama met with senior advisors and military officials Monday for his monthly meeting on Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, the first since al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was killed May 2 in a U.S. raid in Pakistan.

White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters in Washington that the president will make a decision on the drawdown of U.S. forces in Afghanistan relatively soon, after receiving a recommendation from military advisors.

Mr. Obama sent 30,000 extra troops to Afghanistan in December 2009 and vowed to begin a pullout by mid 2011. There are some 100,000 American forces in Afghanistan.

The president is scheduled to hold a videoconference with his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on Wednesday.

Outgoing U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Sunday that he would prefer that support troops, not combat soldiers, be pulled out first.

The defense secretary, who is on his last official trip to Afghanistan, also warned President Karzai that his country needs to increase security, and that failure to do so would put the smooth withdrawal of U.S. forces at risk.

Gates wrapped up his trip Monday, visiting U.S. troops in several Afghan provinces.

In violence Monday, Afghan officials say unknown gunmen killed 11 people, including at least one Afghan soldier, in central Logar province.

In Nimroz province, insurgents attacked an Afghan checkpoint, killing two police officers and abducting five others.

And NATO says two of its service members were killed in southern Afghanistan Monday — one in a roadside bombing, the other in an insurgent attack.

Major Roadblock Cleared for Serbia to Join EU

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 2:45 pm (UTC-5)
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European Union President Herman Van Rompuy says that Serbia's arrest and extradition to The Hague of wanted war criminal Ratko Mladic has moved the Balkan nation significantly closer to EU membership.

Speaking after a meeting Monday with Serbian President Boris Tadic, Van Rompuy said that while the path ahead for Serbia's joining the European bloc is still difficult, Mladic's arrest represents the removal of a major roadblock. But Van Rompuy also called on Mr. Tadic to work on strengthening Serbia's democratic institutions and enhance its rule of law as it moves forward with its EU bid.

Mr. Tadic said he hopes to hold full EU membership talks in early 2012.

Mladic is accused of masterminding the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and boys and the three-year siege of Bosnia's capital, Sarajevo, in which 10,000 people died.

The former Bosnian Serb wartime commander was captured in Serbia May 26, after 16 years on the run. He has been charged with genocide and war crimes.

Van Rompuy called Mladic's trial at the international war crimes court in The Hague a triumph of international justice.

Former Coup Leader Questioned in Turkey

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
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A former Turkish president who came to power in a military coup has been questioned by officials deciding whether to indict him.

Prosecutors on Monday questioned 93-year-old Kenan Evren at his home in Ankara as part of a preliminary inquiry into the coup. The former army chief led the coup in 1980 and then served as president until 1989.

Calls for Mr. Evren to stand trial began after constitutional amendments passed last year lifted immunity for the coup leaders.

Officials also plan to question former air force chief Tahsin Sahinkaya, the only other living member of Mr. Evren's military junta.

The coup leaders were initially hailed as heroes but subsequently resorted to torture, disappearances and restricting freedom.

It is unclear if the former leaders will ever stand trial because legal experts say the statute of limitation may have expired.

The 1980 coup was the third and latest in Turkey's history, although authorities are currently investigating what they say was a military plot to overthrow the government.

Authorities have detained more than 300 people as part of a wide-reaching investigation into Ergenekon, a secularist network the government alleges was planning bombings and other attacks to discredit the government and trigger a military coup.

US, Israel Blame Syria for Inciting Border Clashes

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 2:20 pm (UTC-5)
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The United States has joined Israel in blaming Syria for inciting the lethal confrontations that occurred Sunday along the Israeli-Syrian border.

Syrian state media say 23 people were killed and more than 325 wounded when Israeli troops opened fire on pro-Palestinian protesters who were attempting to breach the frontier. The Israeli military has termed the death toll “exaggerated.” It counted 10 people killed, and said none of the deaths was caused by Israeli fire.

A State Department spokesman said Syria was seeking to divert attention from its internal conflict, a charge leveled earlier by Israeli officials. The spokesman said Israel “like any sovereign nation” has the right to defend itself.

Israeli soldiers and dozens of protesters remained Monday on opposite sides of the border, which at latest report was said to be quiet.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has expressed his “deep concern” about the situation and said attempts are being made to determine exactly what happened.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said numerous warnings were issued and that in the end Israeli forces shot at the feet of the approaching protesters.

The protests were marking the 44th anniversary of the Arab defeat in the 1967 Middle East war, when Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria It also seized the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan and the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula from Egypt in just six days of fighting.

Israel returned Sinai to Egypt under a 1979 peace deal, and withdrew from Gaza in 2005.

Indian PM Defends Crackdown on Corruption Protest

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 2:20 pm (UTC-5)
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Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is defending a police crackdown on an anti-corruption protest led by a popular yoga guru.

Authorities used batons to break up Baba Ramdev's peaceful hunger strike during a pre-dawn raid early Sunday, injuring dozens of people. The mass fast was part of a populist campaign to fight corruption.

India's Supreme Court questioned the government action on Monday.

Prime Minister Singh later told reporters that it was “unfortunate” that the police operation had to be conducted, but there was “no alternative.”

Mr. Singh added that the government is serious and concerned about corruption and “black money,” but there is no “magic” solution to the problem.

Baba Ramdev began his hunger strike to demand the government bring back money illegally stashed overseas and introduce tough anti-corruption legislation. He wants the death penalty for corrupt officials.

Police say Baba Ramdev did not have permission to hold such a large protest and that Sunday's massive gathering in the Indian capital could have posed a law and order problem. The government says the guru went back on promises to call off the hunger strike.

On Monday, India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party joined the Supreme Court in questioning the crackdown on the protest.

BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani demanded the government convene a special parliamentary session to explain the police action.

Baba Ramdev is continuing his campaign in Haridwar, the Hindu holy town in northern India where he was taken by police after being detained. He vowed Monday to build his campaign into a national movement.

The yoga guru's protest began two months after the government was caught unaware by massive popular support for another anti-graft campaign started by a social activist (Anna Hazare) in April.

India's ruling Congress party has been under pressure following a series of corruption scandals. Authorities are currently investigating whether the organizers of last year's Commonwealth Games in New Delhi received kickbacks amounting to billions of dollars. And the Indian government says it lost up to $40 billion in revenue due to the sale of mobile phone licenses at below-market prices.

Egypt Lifting Nightly Curfew Imposed During Uprising

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 1:55 pm (UTC-5)
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Egypt's military rulers are lifting a nightly curfew that was imposed during the height of the country's popular uprising that ousted longtime leader Hosni Mubarak.

Military officials said Monday the curfew would end on June 15 in order to “encourage the return to normal life.”

The curfew was imposed on January 28 when Mr. Mubarak was still in power. The curfew currently lasts three hours, from 2 o'clock in the morning until 5 o'clock in the morning local time.

Mr. Mubarak handed his power to the army in February after 18 days of popular protests.

Shark Guardians Cite Momentum in Push to Save Species

Posted June 6th, 2011 at 1:50 pm (UTC-5)
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A leading environmental group is calling for more marine sanctuaries to protect the global shark population, which is in sharp decline because over-fishing and a ravenous human appetite for shark fin soup.

Global Shark Conservation, in a report released Monday, called for sanctuaries in the Bahamas, and heaped praise on the Pacific island nation of Palau, which in 2009 became the first country to declare its territorial waters a safe haven for sharks. The document also voices support for a national law in Chile that is expected to protect more than 50 shark species found off its Pacific coast.

The organization, a division of the U.S.-based Pew Charitable Trusts, cites studies showing up to 73 million sharks are killed yearly, primarily for their fins, which end up in shark-fin soup — a delicacy in China and other Asian countries. The document, titled “Sharks in Trouble: Hunters Become the Hunted,” also quotes marine scientists who estimate that 30 percent of all shark species are threatened with near or total extinction.

The report lauds the Maldives and Honduras for banning shark finning — a practice in which shark fins are hacked from the live animals before they are thrown back into the sea to drown. Global Shark Conservation also calls on fishing countries to ban the removal of shark fins at sea.

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The report also notes legislation under consideration in California that would ban shark finning, and says the practice is responsible for a 90 percent decline in some shark species. The state of Hawaii last year became the first government in the world to ban the sale and consumption of shark-fin soup.

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