United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon leaves Friday for South America, where he will visit Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. The U.N. says Mr. Ban will meet with the presidents and foreign ministers of each of the four countries. He is scheduled to go first to Colombia, where he also will meet with the head of […]
UN Chief Begins Trip to South America This Week
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 2:20 pm (UTC-5)
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Switzerland Planning to Phase Out Nuclear Energy
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 2:15 pm (UTC-5)
The lower house of Switzerland’s parliament has approved a proposal to phase out the use of nuclear power in the country by 2034. The plan calls for existing power plants to be shut down when their current licenses to operate expire. Lawmakers also agreed to prohibit any replacement nuclear plants from being built. The government […]
More Deaths in German E. Coli Outbreak
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 2:15 pm (UTC-5)
Two more people have died in Europe’s worst E. coli outbreak in recent history, even as German health officials say the number of new infections is dropping. At least 25 people have now died and more than 2,600 have been sickened since late May as a result of the mysterious bacteria. Nearly all the victims […]
Gadhafi Forces Attack Misrata
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 2:10 pm (UTC-5)
Government forces in Libya have carried out a heavy assault on the rebel-held city of Misrata on the same day that NATO vowed to keep up its air campaign against the embattled Libyan leader. Witnesses say the port city came under heavy shelling Wednesday as thousands of pro-Gadhafi troops advanced from the south, east and […]
US Stocks Decline
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 2:05 pm (UTC-5)
U.S. stock market indexes fell in Wednesday’s midday trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated one-tenth of a percent, the S&P 500 lost three-tenths and the NASDAQ dropped nine-tenths of a percent. European stock markets were lower at the close of trading. London’s Financial Times 100 index lost one percent to close at 5,809. The […]
Turkish PM Unveils Plans to Restructure Ministries
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 1:45 pm (UTC-5)
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has unveiled a plan to restructure the Cabinet by merging some ministries, scrapping others and creating six new ones, including one to oversee Turkey’s bid to join the European Union. Mr. Erdogan announced the changes at a press conference Wednesday, just four days before Turkey holds parliamentary elections. The […]
Credit Agency Warns Washington
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 1:40 pm (UTC-5)
One of the major global credit rating agencies says it is worried about the direction of political debate in Washington as members of Congress bicker over raising the legal limit on borrowing by the U.S. Government. U.S. officials say Congress must raise the “debt ceiling” by August 2, or the country will be in danger […]
Fighting Intensifies in Sudan’s South Kordofan State
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 1:15 pm (UTC-5)
The United Nations Mission in Sudan says fighting in a state along Sudan’s north-south border has intensified and spread. Spokeswoman Hua Jiang said Wednesday the mission has received reports of more deaths in the capital of South Kordofan state, Kadugli. She added that U.N. patrols have not been able to verify the claims because of […]
Lagarde; Carstens Campaign for Top IMF Job
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 1:10 pm (UTC-5)
Both of the announced candidates to head the International Monetary Fund are visiting key economic powers, seeking support for their rival bids to become the next managing director of the global lender. French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde is in Beijing for a series of meetings with top Chinese financial and political officials. She arrived Wednesday, […]
ICC Prosecutor: Bashir Still Committing Crimes in Darfur
Posted June 8th, 2011 at 1:05 pm (UTC-5)
The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor says Sudan’s government continues to commit genocide and crimes against humanity in Darfur. In comments Wednesday to the U.N. Security Council, Luis Moreno-Ocampo said the Sudanese Armed Forces continue to carry out aerial attacks and killings aimed at ethnic groups believed to support Darfur rebels. Similar assertions came earlier […]
