Croatia is poised to become the 28th member of the European Union in July 2013 after signing a long-awaited accession treaty with the bloc. The treaty was signed Friday in Brussels, and comes after six years of accession talks that involved pledges from Croatia to crack down on corruption. Its membership must still be ratified […]
Croatia Signs EU Accession Treaty, Decision on Serbia Delayed
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 11:10 am (UTC-5)
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UN Chief Urges Somalia to “Seize Moment”
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 10:55 am (UTC-5)
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is urging Somali leaders to “seize the moment” and finally restore stability and hope to the troubled east African nation. During a historic visit to the capital, Mogadishu, on Friday, Mr. Ban warned Somalia has “a very limited window of opportunity” to turn around its state of affairs. He stressed Somalia […]
Syrian Forces Kill At Least Six as Protests Spread
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 10:00 am (UTC-5)
Syrian activists say security forces killed at least six people across the country on Friday, including two children, as anti-government protests spread nationwide. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says two boys, ages 10 and 12, were shot and killed at separate security checkpoints near the restive city of Homs. Despite a surge in […]
UN to Move Refugees as Fighting Nears South Sudan Camp
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 9:55 am (UTC-5)
The United Nations says it is speeding up efforts to move refugees from a camp in South Sudan threatened by fighting along the border with Sudan. The U.N. refugee agency said Friday the violence appears to be nearing the Yida refugee settlement. Spokesman Melissa Fleming said the agency will move the camp’s 20,000 refugees to […]
New Treaty for Eurozone, But Britain Opposed
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 9:30 am (UTC-5)
Most European leaders agreed to a proposed revision of EU treaties to require more budget discipline and other measures designed to address the continent’s debt crisis. All 17 EU members that use the common euro currency agreed to the plan, promoted by Germany and France, at an EU summit Thursday and Friday. Some non-eurozone countries […]
News Conference Passes With No DRC Election Results
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 9:00 am (UTC-5)
Waiting continues in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the release of full presidential election results, delayed since Tuesday. VOA’s West Africa correspondent reports that Congo’s electoral commission was expected to announce the results at a news conference Friday in the capital, Kinshasa. But he says three hours passed with no announcement, and that foreign […]
Moscow Braces for Anti-Putin Rally
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 8:45 am (UTC-5)
Russian authorities have decided to allow the opposition to hold a massive protest against election fraud. Rally organizers said Friday up to 30,000 protesters are expected at the demonstration Saturday, on a square across the river from the Kremlin. The announcement of the rally follows a violent crackdown on a series of demonstrations earlier this […]
Family of Missing Ex-FBI Agent Releases Hostage Video
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 8:35 am (UTC-5)
The family of a retired FBI agent thought to have been kidnapped in Iran in 2007 has released a hostage video showing him to be alive. In the the 54-second video released Friday, an exhausted-looking Robert Levinson is seen in a makeshift cell pleading for the U.S. government to “answer the requests” of the unspecified […]
Hospital Fire Kills More Than 70 in Eastern India
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 8:30 am (UTC-5)
A fire has killed more than 70 people at a private hospital in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata. Authorities say the blaze swept through the AMRI Hospital early Friday in the capital of West Bengal state. Local television channels showed patients being rolled out on stretchers and distraught relatives waiting outside the hospital as […]
New Treaty to Save Euro Splits EU
Posted December 9th, 2011 at 8:30 am (UTC-5)
((New lead, info thruout) European leaders pledged stricter budget discipline Friday to tackle the continent’s debt crisis, but could not agree on an EU treaty change prompted by the situation. France and Germany failed to persuade all 27 EU members to agree on the change during a summit in Brussels. Paris and Berlin wanted to […]
