The owner of Russia’s Kommersant Publishing has fired an editor and a senior manager over what he described as a breach of ethics for its coverage of alleged voting fraud during parliamentary elections earlier this month. Alisher Usmanov criticized the Kommersant Vlast weekly magazine, saying its coverage of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party […]
Kommersant Senior Management Fired Over Parliamentary Election Coverage
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 11:25 am (UTC-5)
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Vietnamese Buddhist Activist Handed 5-Year Jail Term
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 11:10 am (UTC-5)
A 71-year old Vietnamese Buddhist activist from a minority sect has been sentenced to a five-year prison term for possession of anti-government literature and videos. The jail term for Hoa Hao Buddhist Nguyen Van Lia was issued Tuesday in Hanoi. It follows his arrest in April, when police seized books and dozens of audio and […]
Disappointing US Retail Sales
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 11:00 am (UTC-5)
U.S. retail sales rose a meager two-tenths of a percent in November, which is less than the previous month, and less than most economists expected. Tuesday’s data comes from the Commerce Department. Experts watch retail sales closely because consumer demand drives about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity. Later Tuesday, officials of the U.S. cental […]
Unemployment Rises in Advanced Economies
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 10:55 am (UTC-5)
Unemployment rates remain stubbornly high in the world’s most advanced economies, causing more headaches for policymakers trying to avoid another global recession. Data released Tuesday by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development shows unemployment across the group’s 34 countries rose slightly to 8.3 percent in October, from 8.2 percent the month before. The OECD […]
2 Killed in Attack in Belgium
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 10:55 am (UTC-5)
Belgian media are reporting that two people were killed and at least 10 others wounded in a grenade attack in the eastern city of Liege. Reports quoting witnesses say at least two assailants lobbed hand grenades and opened fire at a bus stop in Saint Lambert Square, a busy area in Liege. One of the […]
Panetta in Afghanistan, Calls 2011 a ‘Turning Point’ in US-Led War
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 10:40 am (UTC-5)
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is in Afghanistan to check on the progress of U.S.-led counterinsurgency efforts, which he says reached a “turning point” this year after a decade of fighting the Taliban. Panetta arrived in Kabul on Tuesday for meetings with U.S. military commanders and Afghan officials. On the flight to the Afghan capital, […]
US Drone Crashes in Seychelles
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 10:00 am (UTC-5)
A U.S. drone aircraft has crashed at an airport in the Seychelles. The U.S. embassy in nearby Mauritius says the remote-controlled MQ-9 aircraft crashed Tuesday while trying to land at the Seychelles International airport on the island of Mahe. An embassy statement says no one was injured. The embassy did not comment on the plane’s […]
China Considers Seychelles Naval Port Offer
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 9:40 am (UTC-5)
China says it may use the Seychelles to rest and resupply its navy ships while they carry out anti-piracy missions. The statement from the Chinese defense ministry late Monday was in response to an offer extended by the Seychellois government last week. Some media reports said the Seychelles was offering to host a Chinese military […]
US Envoy: Improved Ties with Burma Not a Threat to China
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 8:50 am (UTC-5)
The U.S. special envoy to Burma says Washington’s improved relations with the southeast Asian country should not be seen as a threat to China. Derek Mitchell told reporters Tuesday at the end of a visit to Beijing that the U.S. does not intend for its relationship with Burma to have any “negative influence on Burma-China […]
Swiss Indict 3 in Nuclear Smuggling Case
Posted December 13th, 2011 at 8:50 am (UTC-5)
Swiss prosecutors have charged three people with breaking arms export laws to help smuggle nuclear weapon technology to Libya. The activity occurred under the Gadhafi regime. Marco and Urs Tinner and their father Friedrich were formally indicted Tuesday after a nearly decade-long investigation. The three men are suspected of providing technology to the nuclear smuggling […]
