Near a half million protesters jammed the streets of the flashpoint city of Hama in an anti-Syria government rally on Friday, as the U.S. ambassador traveled there to show American solidarity with protesters. Rights activists told Western news media that crowds in Hama topped more than 450,000 – one of the largest gatherings since the […]
Syrian Forces Storm Damascus Suburb, Huge Protest in Hama
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 9:05 am (UTC-5)
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South Sudan Readies for Independence
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 8:55 am (UTC-5)
Performers are dancing through the streets of Juba while workers sweep and clean, all part of Friday’s last minute preparations for the birth of the world’s newest county. The people of South Sudan are counting down the hours until they can mark their independence Saturday with world leaders and other dignitaries looking on. But the […]
US Unemployment Rate Climbs to 9.2 percent
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 8:50 am (UTC-5)
The unemployment rate in the United States increased to 9.2 percent in June. Friday’s report from the Labor Department showed that American employers added only 18,000 jobs in the month of June, the smallest increase in nine months and another indication that the U.S. economy is still struggling to recover from a deep recession. The […]
Rival Rallies Across Yemen After President Appears on TV
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 8:40 am (UTC-5)
Thousands of Yemenis are rallying on Friday, a day after President Ali Abdullah Saleh made his first public appearance since traveling to Saudi Arabia to receive treatment for injuries. Yemeni state-run television says pro-government rallies are underway in several cities while a Western news report says government opponents are holding rival demonstrations. The nation remains […]
Demonstrators Rally Across Egypt For Faster Reforms
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 8:35 am (UTC-5)
Thousands of Egyptians have taken to the streets to protest what they say is a slow pace of government reforms and justice for victims of this year’s pro-democracy crackdown. A huge crowd filled Cairo’s Tahrir Square on Friday, where some protesters have pitched tents. Others waved signs and Egyptian flags. Smaller demonstrations are getting underway […]
Astronauts Board Shuttle for Final Launch
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 8:25 am (UTC-5)
The final crew of the space shuttle Atlantis has boarded the spacecraft at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center for the 135th and final flight of the 30-year-old space shuttle program. As many as 1 million people are gathering to witness the historic lift-off, but the weather forecast remains questionable, with a 70 percent chance for clouds […]
Shoot on Sight Orders as Violence in Karachi Kills Up to 85
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 8:15 am (UTC-5)
Pakistani security forces have been ordered to shoot on sight in Karachi, after several days of political and ethnic violence in the city have left up to 85 people dead. Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters Friday that dozens of suspects have been detained in connection with the series of targeted killings that have taken […]
UN Report: Poverty Rates Falling in Burma
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 7:50 am (UTC-5)
The United Nations Development Programme says progress has been made in reducing poverty rates in Burma. A survey of 18,660 households across Burma between 2009 and 2010 found that overall poverty and cases of people not having enough food in Burma had fallen by six percent from a similar study conducted from 2004 through 2005. […]
European Stocks Higher in Midday Trading
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 7:50 am (UTC-5)
European stock prices are higher in midday trading Friday. London’s Financial Times index is up nearly one-quarter of one percent. The CAC-40 in Paris is up a fraction of one percent, and trading on the DAX index in Frankfurt is up four-tenths of one percent. In New York, the S&P futures contract is down one […]
Georgia: Photographers “Infiltrated” Institutions
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 7:35 am (UTC-5)
Georgia’s president has defended the arrest of four photographers suspected of spying. President Mikheil Saakashvili said Friday the news photographers conducted, in his words, a “serious infiltration of our institutions.” The four news photographers, including the president’s personal photographer, were arrested Thursday. They are accused of passing confidential information to a foreign country. Tbilisi often […]
