Monday is U.S. Independence Day — the holiday informally called the Fourth of July. Americans will celebrate the day the country’s Founding Fathers declared independence from Britain in 1776 with picnics, parades and concerts. Traditional fireworks will light up the nighttime skies over small towns and major cities, including Washington, New York and Philadelphia, where […]
Violence at Protest Against Rail Tunnel in Italy
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 7:15 pm (UTC-5)
Violence broke out Sunday during a protest in northern Italy against plans for a high-speed railroad tunnel to France. At least 200 people were injured, mostly police officers who fired tear gas at masked demonstrators who threw rocks and gasoline bombs. Five people were arrested. Italian President Giorgio Napolitano condemned the violence, which authorities blame […]
Shootings, Bombings Kill 10 in Northern Nigeria
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 6:00 pm (UTC-5)
At least 10 people have been killed in a series of bombings and gun attacks in Nigeria’s troubled northeast. A local police official says an explosion Sunday evening killed at least five people and wounded 10 others at a bar near a police barracks in the city of Maiduguri. In a separate attack, gunmen shot […]
Texas Warns Americans to Avoid Mexican Border Town
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 5:55 pm (UTC-5)
Texas authorities are warning Americans to stay away from the Mexican border town of Nuevo Laredo over the Fourth of July holiday weekend because of a possible surge in drug gang violence. The Texas Department of Public Safety says it has credible information that the Zeta drug cartel is planning to target U.S. visitors for […]
Thaksin’s Sister Poised to Become Thailand’s First Female PM
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 5:50 pm (UTC-5)
The party linked to Thailand’s ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has won a parliamentary majority in Sunday’s general election, and his younger sister is poised to become the country’s first female prime minister. With nearly all the votes counted, the Pheu Thai party secured a clear majority of 264 seats out of 500, well ahead […]
Thousands Protest in Morocco Despite Constitutional Reforms
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 5:30 pm (UTC-5)
Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators marched through Moroccan cities Sunday to protest constitutional changes they say fail to ease King Mohammed VI’s autocratic grip on power. At least 1,000 people marched in the capital, Rabat. Thousands more rallied in Morocco’s main economic hub, Casablanca, where the Associated Press reports that pro-government supporters clashed with demonstrators. There […]
Protesters Greet New British Royal Couple in Canada
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 5:25 pm (UTC-5)
Anti-monarchists turned out in Quebec City, Canada, Sunday to protest the visit of the new British royal couple, Prince William and his wife, Kate. Police kept the 200 protesters away from the celebration welcoming the future British king and queen, whose formal titles are the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The demonstrators call British sovereignty […]
US Senator Calls US Drawdown in Afghanistan ‘Unnecessary Risk’
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 4:55 pm (UTC-5)
Three U.S. Senators visiting Afghanistan have expressed concern that U.S. President Barack Obama’s planned withdrawal of 33,000 American troops from the country by September 2012 could hamper efforts to defeat the Taliban. Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, and Independent Senator Joe Lieberman, commented Sunday during a news conference in the Afghan capital, Kabul. […]
Vietnamese Protesters Denounce China in Maritime Dispute
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 4:45 pm (UTC-5)
About 100 people rallied in Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi, Sunday to protest China’s recent actions in disputed regional waters. Demonstrators shouted that the Spratly and Paracel islands belong to Vietnam, and they accused China of intending to invade Vietnam’s territory. Public protests are rate in communist Vietnam, but authorities have permitted the anti-China protests for a […]
Shootings, Bombings Kill 10 in Northern Nigeria
Posted July 3rd, 2011 at 4:05 pm (UTC-5)
At least 10 people were killed in a series of bombings and gun attacks in Nigeria’s restive northeast. A local police official says an explosion Sunday evening killed at least five people and injured 10 others near police barracks in the city of Maiduguri. Separately gunmen shot and killed one person Sunday. Reuters news identified […]
