Spanish workers are staging a boisterous 24-hour general strike to protest the government’s sweeping labor reforms and a new round of austerity measures the government plans to unveil on Friday. Protests in Madrid Thursday disrupted public transportation and factories and sharply curtailed flights into and out of Spain. The country’s Interior Ministry said at least […]
Indian PM Highlights Capital Needs of Developing Countries
Posted March 29th, 2012 at 6:45 am (UTC-5)
India’s prime minister has highlighted the need in developing countries to find funding at the summit of the so-called BRICS nations — the world’s five largest emerging economies. Speaking in New Delhi, Thursday at the conclusion of the one-day summit, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the leaders and delegates discussed how to expand the World […]
Ichiro Sparks Mariners Win in Japan for MLB Opener
Posted March 28th, 2012 at 6:20 pm (UTC-5)
Japanese baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki had four hits and drove in a run, leading the Seattle Mariners to a 3-1 win over the Oakland Athletics in the opener of U.S. Major League Baseball’s 2012 season in Tokyo Wednesday. Suzuki finished 4 for 5 batting third for the first time after playing lead-off nearly all his […]
US Supreme Court Grapples with Scope of Health Care Mandate
Posted March 28th, 2012 at 2:35 pm (UTC-5)
America’s top justices are considering what to do if they strike down the key provision of U.S. President Barack Obama’s health care reform law. The U.S. Supreme Court held its third and final day of arguments Wednesday on the law, examining whether parts of it should survive if the court determines the so-called “individual mandate” […]
Kazakh Authorities Blame Fugitive Banker for Foiled Terror Plot
Posted March 28th, 2012 at 11:35 am (UTC-5)
Authorities in Kazakhstan say they thwarted a plot to carry out terrorist bombings planned for last Saturday in the commercial capital, Almaty. The general prosecutor’s office Wednesday gave few details on how it uncovered the plot. It blames associates of fugitive banker Mukhtar Ablyazov. Investigators say the alleged terrorists planned to set off bombs in […]
Syrian Troops Assault Rebel Strongholds, Arabs Make New Diplomatic Push
Posted March 28th, 2012 at 10:40 am (UTC-5)
Syrian rights activists say government forces have assaulted several rebel strongholds, as Arab nations made a new diplomatic effort to end Syria’s year-long conflict. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Wednesday forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad tried to storm the central town of Rastan, triggering a battle with rebels that killed three […]
Top US, Pakistani Generals to Hold First Talks Since Deadly Cross-Border Strike
Posted March 28th, 2012 at 9:25 am (UTC-5)
Pakistan’s army chief has met with with top U.S. commanders for the first time since a November NATO airstrike on a border post killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, causing relations between the two countries to sink to a new low. General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani met Wednesday with the head of U.S. Central Command, General James Mattis, […]
ECOWAS Threatens Sanctions, Military Intervention in Mali
Posted March 28th, 2012 at 4:05 am (UTC-5)
The West African group ECOWAS is threatening sanctions and a possible military response to the coup by renegade soldiers last week in Mali. ECOWAS said Tuesday it would send a delegation of at least five heads of state within the next 48 hours to try to negotiate a return to the country’s constitutional, elected leadership. […]
Landmark US Health Care Law Faces Crucial Court Session
Posted March 27th, 2012 at 3:05 pm (UTC-5)
The conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme Court have questioned a key provision of the U.S. health care reform law, raising doubts about whether the government can require Americans to purchase insurance. The oral arguments Tuesday were the second of three days on President Barack Obama’s signature domestic policy, the Affordable Care Act. Justice Antonin […]
ECOWAS Chair: ‘Strong Signal’ Needed on Mali Crisis
Posted March 27th, 2012 at 12:25 pm (UTC-5)
The head of a West African regional bloc says the group must send a “strong signal” to renegade soldiers who carried out a coup in Mali last week. Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara told representatives of 15 member states they must take immediate steps to defend democracy in Mali and send a message to all […]
