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EU Grants Serbia Membership Candidate Status

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 8:40 pm (UTC-5)
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The European Union has granted Serbia membership candidate status, citing the country’s improved ties with Kosovo. The 27 EU leaders announced their decision at Thursday’s summit in Belgrade. European Council Herman Van Rompuy calls it a remarkable achievement for Serbia — a country that was bombed by NATO forces just 13 years ago because of […]

Tags: , , Posted in Europe

Syrian Rebels Retreat From Besieged Homs Stronghold

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 6:00 pm (UTC-5)
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Syrian rebel fighters say they have pulled out of the besieged Baba Amr district of Homs after a punishing, monthlong military assault by President Bashar al-Assad’s security forces. Calling themselves the Baba Amr Revolutionary Brigades, the rebels Thursday said they are leaving to spare some 4,000 civilians who have insisted on remaining in their homes. […]

Tags: , , , Posted in Middle East

US Senate Defeats Attempt to Reverse Birth Control Coverage Mandate

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 5:40 pm (UTC-5)
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Lawmakers in the U.S. Senate have narrowly blocked a Republican party challenge to President Barack Obama’s order that most employers or their insurers cover the cost of contraceptives. The Democratic-led Senate defeated the measure by a vote of 51-48 Thursday. The Republican measure sought to allow employers and insurers to opt out of parts of […]

Tags: , , , , Posted in US

ICC Issues Arrest Warrant for Sudan Defense Minister

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 5:25 pm (UTC-5)
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The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Sudan’s defense minister, Abdel Raheem Muhammed Hussein, for his alleged crimes in the conflict in Sudan’s Darfur region. The court said Thursday that Hussein is wanted on 41 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, rape, torture, pillaging and attacks against civilians. […]

Tags: , , , Posted in Africa

Iran to Vote in Parliamentary Election Boycotted by Reformist Opposition

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 5:05 pm (UTC-5)
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Iranians are preparing to go to the polls Friday in a parliamentary election boycotted by the reformist opposition, reducing the vote to a contest between conservatives who support or oppose President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has appealed for a big turnout that he says would represent an act of defiance toward […]

Tags: , , Posted in Middle East

US Forecasters: More Severe Weather Possible After Deadly Tornadoes

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 4:55 pm (UTC-5)
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U.S. weather forecasters are warning that more severe weather is possible Friday, after tornadoes cut a path of destruction in the mid- and southern U.S., killing 13 people. The powerful storm system tore through neighborhoods, flattening homes and causing deaths in the states of Illinois, Missouri, and Tennessee on Wednesday. Residents are assessing the damage […]

Tags: , , , , Posted in US

US Condemns Bombing Oil Wells in South Sudan

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 3:15 pm (UTC-5)
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The United States has strongly condemned an air strike against South Sudan’s oil wells blamed on neighboring Sudan. In a statement Thursday, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said such attacks on civilian targets are “deplorable.” She said the U.S. “demands” the Sudanese government end its aerial bombardments, which it says violate international law. A spokesman […]

Tags: , , , Posted in Africa

Obama Takes Aim at Gas Companies, Rising Prices

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 2:55 pm (UTC-5)
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U.S. President Barack Obama is taking aim at oil and gas companies, saying they are profiting even as consumers pay more to drive their vehicles and heat their homes. President Obama Thursday called on lawmakers to end $4 billion in subsidies for the oil and gas industry, saying companies are making record profits despite instability […]

Tags: , Posted in Economy, US

Syrian Rebels Retreat From Besieged Homs Stronghold

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
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Syrian rebel fighters say they have pulled out of the besieged Baba Amr district of Homs after a punishing, monthlong military assault by President Bashar al-Assad’s security forces. Calling themselves the Baba Amr Revolutionary Brigades, the rebels said Thursday they are leaving to spare some 4,000 civilians who have insisted on remaining in their homes. […]

Tags: , , , Posted in Middle East

Cambodian Police Name Mayor as Suspect in Shootings

Posted March 1st, 2012 at 2:15 pm (UTC-5)
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Cambodian authorities have named the mayor of a small border town as the prime suspect in the shooting of three factory workers who were wounded last week as they protested for higher pay and better working conditions. Interior Minister Sar Kheng confirmed the suspect’s identity to reporters Thursday in Phnom Penh. Witnesses say the suspect […]