Crowds of Syrians loyal to President Bashar al-Assad surged into the U.S. embassy compound in Damascus on Monday and caused damage. The Associated Press reported that attackers broke windows, raised a Syrian flag on the U.S. grounds, and wrote anti-U.S. graffiti on walls. The attackers reportedly left after the brief incursion. Reuters news agency quotes […]
Assad Loyalists Storm US Embassy in Syria
South Sudan to Launch New Currency
Newly-independent South Sudan says it will introduce its own currency next week, the latest step toward establishing the new nation. Finance Minister David Deng Athorbei told reporters Monday that the first shipment of South Sudan pounds will arrive from a British printer on Wednesday. He said the money will be distributed beginning July 18 and […]
Global Stocks Fall
U.S. stock market indexes fell sharply in Monday’s early trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated eight-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 fell one percent and the NASDAQ lost seven-tenths of a percent. European stock markets were lower in afternoon trading. London’s Financial Times 100 index nine-tenths of a percent, the CAC-40 in Paris […]
Panetta: US Will Act Against Iran’s Arming of Iraqi Militants
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta says U.S. forces in Iraq will act against Iran’s arming of Shi’ite militants blamed for a wave of deadly attacks on American soldiers. Attacks by suspected Iraqi Shi’ite insurgents killed 14 U.S. soldiers in June. It was the deadliest month for U.S. forces in Iraq in two years. Two […]
Indian Sports Centers Raided for Banned Drugs
India’s National Anti-Doping Agency has conducted raids at two of the country’s top sports centers in search of banned drugs. A raid Monday at the the center for elite athletes in the southern city of Bangalore comes after a string of doping cases earlier this month. The agency also searched the National Institute of Sports […]
12 Dead as Massive Explosion Rocks Cyprus Naval Base
At least 12 people are dead and more than half of the Mediterranean island of Cyprus is without power, after a huge explosion at a local military base. Shortly after the blast, the government’s defense minister and its army chief both resigned. Authorities linked the explosion to munitions seized from an Iranian vessel heading to […]
Crowds of Syrian Loyalists Storm US Embassy
Crowds of Syrians loyal to President Bashar al-Assad attacked the U.S. embassy compound in Damascus on Monday and caused damage. The attack comes as rights activists and residents say Syrian troops backed by armored vehicles pushed into the central city of Homs, killing at least one person and wounding 20 others. The witnesses said the […]
Obama, Congressional Leaders Meet for Debt Reduction Talks
U.S. President Barack Obama and opposition Republicans are scheduled to resume tense negotiations Monday over proposed budget cuts and tax increases intended to cope with trillions of dollars in debt. They face a fast-approaching August 2 deadline to reach an agreement or face an unprecedented default on U.S. debt. An unusual Sunday negotiating session between […]
Pakistan Says It Doesn’t Need US Military Aid
Pakistan says a U.S. decision to suspend $800 million in military aid to the country will not affect its operations against Islamist militants. In an interview with VOA Monday, Pakistani military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas says the military is conducting its operations in the country’s tribal region without external support. He says the Pakistani […]
Death Toll in Russian Boat Disaster Rises to 41
Russian authorities say the death toll from a cruise boat sinking on the Volga River has risen to 41, as rescuers continue their grim search Monday for more than 80 people who remain missing a day after the disaster. Authorities say the vessel — more than a half century old — was carrying 208 people […]