U.S. stock indexes were mixed in Friday’s midday trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off four-tenths of a percent, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell two-tenths of a percent while the NASDAQ gained one-tenth of a percent. European stock markets were lower at the close of trading. London’s Financial Times 100 index fell […]
US Soldier Charged in Connection with Planned Attack
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 2:00 pm (UTC-5)
A U.S. soldier arrested after bomb-making material was found in his motel room shouted defiantly following his first court appearance. Federal prosecutors Friday charged Private Nasser Jason Abdo with possessing an illegal firearm. Charging documents say Abdo also had ammunition, gunpowder, clocks, wires and an article titled, “Make a bomb in the kitchen of your […]
UN Calls for $1.4 Billion More in Aid for Horn of Africa
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:50 pm (UTC-5)
The United Nations has appealed for a further $1.4 billion to provide humanitarian aid to more than 12 million people in drought-stricken countries in the Horn of Africa. The U.N. humanitarian aid agency said Friday that if aid response does not increase along with the region’s rising needs, famine in two regions of Somalia could […]
At Least Four Killed During Protests in Syria
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:35 pm (UTC-5)
At least four people have been killed after Syrian security forces fired shots at protesters who gathered for massive rallies across the country on Friday. Rights groups and witnesses say the deaths occurred in the seaside town of Latakia. State-run media reports say “masked saboteurs” fired shots and threw dynamite at security forces and civilians […]
Polish Defense Minister Resigns Over Smolensk Plane Crash
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:35 pm (UTC-5)
Polish Defense Minister Bogdan Klich has resigned after the release of a government report that blamed Polish officials and Russian air traffic controllers for a plane crash that killed Poland’s president, Lech Kaczynski, and 95 other people. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Friday he accepted Klich’s resignation, which he offered on Thursday. The long-awaited report […]
German Football Great Klinsmann Named US Men’s National Coach
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:25 pm (UTC-5)
Former German football great Juergen Klinsmann has been named as the new coach of the U.S. national men’s team. U.S. Soccer said Friday that Klinsmann will immediately take over the American team, with his contract extending through the 2014 FIFA World Cup competition in Brazil. His first match coaching the U.S. team will be an […]
Pakistani Taliban Claim They Have Swiss Hostages
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:20 pm (UTC-5)
Pakistani Taliban militants say they are holding a Swiss couple kidnapped earlier this month as they traveled through the country’s restive southwestern province of Baluchistan. The deputy head of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan , Wali-ur Rehman, told media outlets Friday that the couple was in good condition and that his group would release them in exchange […]
India’s Supreme Court Bans Iron Ore Mining After Corruption Scandal
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:15 pm (UTC-5)
India’s Supreme Court has banned iron ore mining in a key area of southern Karnataka state due to concerns about damage to the environment. The order to halt all mining in the Bellary district came Friday, a day after the state’s chief minister agreed to quit after being implicated in a $3.6 million illegal mining […]
Eritrean Minister Says No Food Shortage in His Country
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 1:05 pm (UTC-5)
Eritrea’s information minister has told VOA that the Horn of Africa nation does not share its neighbors’ food shortages, despite concern voiced by the U.S. State Department. Ali Abdu said in an interview with VOA Friday that Eritrea has plenty of food reserves to feed its people and can deal with the drought without external […]
Yemen’s Opposition Rallies in ‘Friday of Patience’
Posted July 29th, 2011 at 12:40 pm (UTC-5)
Opposition protest organizers in Yemen urged their supporters to persist during a rally in Sana’a on Friday as they continued to press for President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s resignation. Thousands of anti-government demonstrators turned out in the capital after midday prayers while Mr. Saleh’s supporters held a separate rally in the city. Opponents have for six […]
