The latest political polls indicate U.S. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is surging ahead of rival candidate Newt Gingrich in Florida, just two days before that southern state holds its primary. A new (NBC/Marist) poll Sunday showed Romney with the support of 42 percent of Florida Republicans, while Gingrich trailed with 27 percent. Romney, a […]
US Republican Presidential Candidates in Heated Battle for Florida
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 3:30 pm (UTC-5)
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Egyptians Vote for Upper House Amid Low Turnout
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 3:10 pm (UTC-5)
Turnout was decidedly low as Egyptians voted Sunday for the upper house of parliament, with Islamist parties widely expected to build on their success from lower house elections in November, when voters turned out in record numbers. Few voters showed up to cast their ballots at polling stations in Cairo, one of 13 provinces where […]
African Leaders Urged to Respect Gay Rights
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 2:40 pm (UTC-5)
The secretary-general of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon. has told African leaders it is time for them to respect gay rights. Speaking Sunday before the annual African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Mr. Ban said discrimination based on sexual orientation has prompted some governments to treat people as second-class citizens or even criminals. “Let […]
Activists: Syrian Troops Enter Damascus Suburbs, Fight Rebels
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 1:50 pm (UTC-5)
Syrian opposition activists say government troops have launched an assault on several Damascus suburbs to drive out rebels who have been trying build a stronghold near President Bashar al-Assad’s center of power. The activists say pro-Assad soldiers backed by dozens of tanks and armored vehicles battled rebels of the Free Syrian Army on the eastern […]
Burma Democracy Leader Begins Political Campaigning
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 1:50 pm (UTC-5)
Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi hit the campaign trail Sunday ahead of by-elections seen as a key test of the military-backed government’s commitment to reform. Thousands of cheering supporters lined the roads of several towns in the southern district of Dawei, as the Nobel Peace laureate made her first political trip outside Rangoon […]
Sudan-South Sudan Dispute Dominates African Summit
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 1:30 pm (UTC-5)
South Sudan has followed through on its threat and shut down all oil production as its dispute with Sudan shows no sign of resolution. The leaders of both countries held talks in Addis Ababa late last week on the sidelines of the annual gathering of African leaders to work on a deal to share oil […]
Police Kill 4 in Bangladeshi Protests
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 1:05 pm (UTC-5)
Police in Bangladesh fired guns and used tear gas on protesters at opposition rallies in the southeast, killing at least four and injuring more than 200 others. Authorities say the shootings took place Sunday in two towns — Chandpur and Laksmipur — where Bangladesh Nationalist Party activists were demonstrating for the reinstatement of a caretaker […]
Iraq’s Sunni-backed Iraqiya Alliance to End Parliament Boycott
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 12:45 pm (UTC-5)
An Iraqi political alliance backed by many Sunnis says it will end a month-long boycott of parliament, easing a political crisis that has exposed deep sectarian divisions in Iraq’s national unity government. Iraqiya spokeswoman Maysoon al-Damluji said Sunday the alliance’s lawmakers will resume attendance of parliamentary sessions this week for the first time since mid-December […]
IAEA Team in Iran to Ask About Nuclear Weapon Allegations
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 11:25 am (UTC-5)
U.N. nuclear inspectors have begun a mission to Iran to investigate allegations of secret military dimensions to the Iranian nuclear program. The International Atomic Energy Agency team led by Herman Nackaerts arrived in Tehran on Sunday for a three-day visit. Before Nackaerts left the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, he said he wants Iran to “engage” […]
Sarkozy Outlining New Economic Plan
Posted January 29th, 2012 at 11:10 am (UTC-5)
The embattled president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, is outlining new economic proposals during a broadcast Sunday that observers say is aimed at boosting his poor standing with voters ahead of April’s general election. Though Mr. Sarkozy has yet to announce his candidacy, he is widely expected to face Socialist Francois Hollande, who is polling ahead […]
