Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh have signed a strategic partnership agreement aimed at strengthening their countries’ ties. The agreement covers a wide range of issues, including security cooperation, trade and economic ties, and social and cultural exchanges. It is the first comprehensive pact the Afghan government has finalized with any […]
Afghanistan, India Sign Comprehensive Partnership Deal
UN to Consider Resolution Targeting Syria
The U.N. Security Council may vote later Tuesday on a draft resolution condemning Syria’s brutal crackdown on anti-government activists. The European-drafted proposal threatens “targeted measures” against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government if it does not stop its deadly assault on pro-democracy demonstrators calling for his departure. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Tuesday the U.S. […]
Obama Criticizes Republican Rival Over Jobs Bill
Title: OBAMA 2nd UPD HEAD: Obama Criticizes Republican Rival Over Jobs Bill DATE: 10/04/11 NUMBER: 1453666 TYPE: CN )) U.S. President Barack Obama is calling on a leading Republican in the House of Representatives to bring a $447 billion jobs bill up for a vote in his chamber. The White House Tuesday released the president’s […]
World Markets Mostly Fall Again on Tuesday
World stock indexes mostly fell for a second straight day Tuesday as worries about a Greek debt default continued to roil financial markets. In the United States, stocks are mixed in midday trading. The bellwether Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 key stocks slid eight-tenths of one percent. The broader S&P 500 is down one-tenth […]
Study: Contraceptive Popular in Africa Doubles HIV Risk
A major study has found that a hormonal contraceptive widely used in Africa appears to double a woman’s chance of getting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. The study also suggests that when HIV-positive women used the injectable contraceptive, their male partners were twice as likely to become infected compared to male partners of women […]
New Jersey Governor: ‘Not the Time’ for Presidential Bid
The governor of the U.S. state of New Jersey says “this is not the time” for him to run for president. Republican Chris Christie told reporters Tuesday he was not prepared to walk away from the commitment he made to lead his home state, despite the urging of prominent party members. Christie had long rejected […]
US Stock Index Flirts with ‘Bear Market’
A closely watched U.S. stock market index has slipped briefly into the dreaded “bear market” territory, the negative point at which it had fallen more than 20 percent from its recent peak last April. The world’s stock markets mostly plunged again Tuesday on continued worries about a Greek debt default and a slowing world economy. […]
Iran Puts Student on Trial for Studying at US University
An Iranian lawyer says a physics student arrested in Tehran earlier this year, while on leave from an American university, has gone on trial on suspicion of having relations with a hostile country. The student’s lawyer, Saeed Khalil, says authorities also accused the man of receiving illicit payments. Khalil says the student, Omid Kokabee, denied […]
Russia Hardens Penalties for Pedophiles
Russian lawmakers have given preliminary approval to a bill that would stiffen penalties for those convicted of sex offenses against children, including either chemical castration or life in prison for repeat offenders. Deputies from the lower house of Russia’s parliament, the State Duma, passed the bill Tuesday in the first of three required readings. The […]
US Defense Chief Holds Regional Security Talks in Cairo
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in Cairo on Tuesday discussed security in the Sinai Peninsula, after recent cross-border attacks there sparked a diplomatic dispute between Egypt and Israel. He brought up regional security issues with the head of Egypt’s ruling military council, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi during a wide-ranging discussion that included Egypt’s response to […]