Thailand is voting in a closely fought election that voters hope will end the country’s long-running political crisis. The poll is the first major electoral test for the government since mass opposition rallies in Bangkok last year. Security is tight for the vote, with around 170,000 police deployed nationwide to protect voting booths. Dozens of […]
Oil Pipeline Ruptures in Western US
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 8:25 pm (UTC-5)
An oil pipeline that runs under the Yellowstone River in the western U.S. state of Montana has ruptured, dumping an unknown amount of oil into the waterway. The ExxonMobil pipeline ruptured late Friday near the town of Laurel and prompted an evacuation of local residents. Witnesses reported seeing an oil slick in the river. Exxon […]
Britain, Pakistan Stress Need for Intelligence Sharing
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 6:30 pm (UTC-5)
British Home Secretary Theresa May and visiting Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari have stressed the need for further enhancing intelligence sharing in the fight against militancy and terrorism. Mr. Zardari’s spokesman told reporters in London Saturday that during talks with the interior secretary on bilateral relations, the Pakistani leader highlighted the historical ties between the […]
Russia Resumes Wheat Exports
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 5:35 pm (UTC-5)
Russia has resumed the export of wheat after a one-year gap following catastrophic fires and drought that destroyed one-third of the country’s crop. Russia, once the world’s third largest wheat exporter, banned exports to preserve supplies for domestic consumption. However, this year’s harvest is expected to be better than projected, and, based on rainfall in […]
Gunmen Kill Peacekeeper in Sudan’s Darfur
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 5:25 pm (UTC-5)
Peacekeepers in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region say an Ethiopian peacekeeper was shot dead. The joint African Union – United Nations force said Saturday that attackers opened fire on a U.N. vehicle in the west Darfur city of El-Geneina on Thursday. The mission says another peacekeeper was wounded in the attack. It says the motive for […]
New Details Surface About Accuser in Strauss-Kahn Case
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 5:00 pm (UTC-5)
More potentially damaging details emerged Saturday about the hotel maid who accused former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault. A law enforcement official says soon after the incident, the maid spoke of possibly making money off of it in a recorded telephone conversation with her boyfriend, who was jailed at the time […]
Eurozone Releases Another Greek Bailout Installment
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 4:25 pm (UTC-5)
Eurozone finance ministers have cleared the way for Greece to receive a $17-billion installment by July 15, which is part of the $156-billion bailout for the debt-ridden country secured last year from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. Following a late Saturday teleconference, the ministers said they will also determine the details of […]
India’s Goa Beaches Unfit for Swimming
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 4:00 pm (UTC-5)
Indian scientists have warned that the popular beaches in the southwestern state of Goa have become unfit for swimming and fishing because of contamination from raw sewage. The National Institute of Oceanography, based in Goa, says the level of fecal bacteria off the coast of Goa and in its rivers is much higher than the […]
Hezbollah Rules Out Arrests in Hariri Murder Case
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 3:40 pm (UTC-5)
Hezbollah’s leader says Lebanese authorities will never be able to arrest the four members of his militant group who have been indicted by a U. N.-backed tribunal in the murder of a former Lebanese prime minister. Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said Saturday in a televised address the suspects will not be turned in “even in 300 […]
French Woman Dies from New E. Coli Strain
Posted July 2nd, 2011 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
An elderly French woman has died from a deadly kidney disease linked to E. coli bacteria, but not the strain that has recently killed 50 people. French health authorities said Saturday that the 78-year-old woman died at a Bordeaux hospital. She had contracted hemolytic uremic syndrome, the rare kidney condition that the most seriously ill […]
