U.S. President Barack Obama is offering beleaguered American homeowners a chance to refinance their housing loans to take advantage of near-record-low borrowing costs. Mr. Obama said Wednesday the value of millions of homes has sharply fallen during the country’s economic downturn, leaving many homeowners with loans that are bigger than the value of their houses […]
China Bans Palm Reading in Kindergartens
Authorities in northern China have banned kindergartens from performing palm-reading tests — a practice deeply embedded in Chinese culture and tradition, and promoted as a method for determining a child’s intelligence and academic potential. The official Xinhua news agency quotes an education chief in Shanxi province as saying measures have been taken to “criticize” three […]
Cold Weather Kills Nearly 80 in Europe
Nearly 80 people have died in central and eastern Europe as a severe cold spell brought some of the lowest temperatures seen in decades. In Ukraine, officials reported 43 deaths from hypothermia over the past six days. Most of the deaths were homeless people, but seven others died in their homes. In Romania, six people […]
Growing Concern About ‘Insider Attacks’ by Afghan Forces
A growing number of attacks by Afghan troops on U.S. and NATO forces is raising questions as Afghanistan prepares to take more responsibility for security. NATO said Wednesday a man wearing an Afghan army uniform shot and killed a coalition service member in southern Afghanistan, the same day U.S. lawmakers demanded better screening to prevent […]
South Africa Sentences Trio to 25 Years for Rhino Poaching
South African officials say a court has sentenced three people to 25 years in prison for rhinoceros poaching and possession of illegal firearms. Wildlife authorities say the punishment is the harshest to date for the illegal killing of a rhino. The poachers were sentenced by a court in Phalaborwa, near Kruger National Park, which borders […]
WTO Approves Waiver for Pakistan Flood Recovery
The World Trade Organization has approved a European Union waiver on duties for 75 Pakistani products in a plan aimed at helping Pakistan recover from devastating floods in 2010. The waiver, announced Wednesday, affects many of Pakistan’s most important export products, including textiles. It covers 27 percent of Pakistan’s exports to the EU. Competing textile […]
UN Nuclear Experts Plan Another Visit to Tehran
The United Nation’s nuclear agency’s chief inspector says he had a “good” visit to Iran and plans to make another trip in the “very near future” to discuss Iran’s controversial nuclear program. Speaking Wednesday in Vienna after returning from Tehran, Herman Nackaerts said his team of International Atomic Energy Agency experts had three days of […]
US: Obama Proposing Home Loan Relief
U.S. President Barack Obama is offering beleaguered American homeowners a chance to refinance their housing loans to take advantage of near-record-low borrowing costs. Mr. Obama said Wednesday the value of millions of homes have sharply fallen during the country’s economic downturn, leaving many homeowners with loans that are bigger than the value of their houses […]
Pakistan Carries Out Deadly Raids Near Afghan Border
Pakistan says its fighter jets have bombed militant hideouts in the country’s northwest along the Afghan border, killing at least 31 insurgents. The bombing in the Kurram tribal region came a day after dozens of militants attacked a security post there. At least 10 Pakistani soldiers and 40 Taliban militants were killed in subsequent fighting […]
Four Plead Guilty to London Stock Exchange Plot
Four men in Britain have pleaded guilty to plotting to bomb the London Stock Exchange and other targets. The men were among nine defendants arrested in December 2010 and set to stand trial on charges of plotting to send a series of mail bombs. All had initially entered pleas of not guilty, but on Wednesday […]