News Archive - 25 March 2011

>Dozens of people have been killed over the past week around the southern city of Deraa, medical officials have said, and there were reports of more than 20 new deaths on Friday, during demonstrations that would have been unthinkable a couple of months ago in this most tightly controlled of...

>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Some day soon, when pro-democracy campaigners have their cellphones confiscated by police, they'll be able to hit the "panic button" -- a special app that will both wipe out the phone's address book and emit emergency alerts to other activists. The panic button is one of the...

>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Workers involved in mustard-gas production during the World War II era showed heightened odds of lung cancer at a relatively young age -- with the excess risk fading in old age, a new study finds. Japanese researchers found that of workers employed at a poisonous-gas...

>SANAA (Reuters) - Yemeni President Ali Abdullah said on Friday he was ready to cede power, the third Arab ruler who may be forced out by popular protests which began in North Africa and have now spread into the Gulf, Syria and Jordan. Saleh said he would cede power only...

>RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Robert Gates on Friday became the first U.S. Defense Secretary to visit the West Bank, meeting Palestinian leaders keenly aware of every little nod to their hopes of achieving statehood. Children in Ramallah stared as the long motorcade of U.S. cars wound through...

>In guidance issued on Thursday, the Federal Reserve Board, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and other regulators said they do not expect financial institutions to define or treat foreign mission customers as necessarily posing a higher level of risk than other customers.It is up to the...

Shia protesters have staged rallies in two villages near Qatif in the oil-rich eastern province of Saudi Arabia, renewing demands for the release of prisoners and the withdrawal of Saudi forces in Bahrain in spite of requests from senior Shia clerics to halt protests.

Associated Press DAMASCUS, Syria — Troops opened fire on protesters in cities across Syria and pro- and anti-government crowds clashed in the capital’s historic old city as one of the Mideast’s most repressive regimes sought to put down demonstrations that exploded nationwide Friday demanding reform.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Americas Behrouz Kamalvandi says the recent UN resolution calling for more study into Iran's human rights record is politically motivated.

Here's a crucial fact that you may not realize, given the week's headlines: Libya is only a tragic sideshow to the historic...

Elizabeth Taylor bewitched the world with her violet eyes, her sheer screen power and the news-making swings of her outsized personal life. The daughter of an art dealer and who became a voracious art collector later in life - she was also a muse to artists, most famously Andy Warhol...

Two Brandon authors are among the nominees for the 2011 John W. Dafoe Book Prize. Reinhold Kramer and Tom Mitchell's take on the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike, "When the State Trembled," is one of five titles on the shortlist, the Dafoe Prize committee announced this week.

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s security forces clashed with protesters in several cities after his promises of freedoms and pay increases failed to prevent dissent from spreading across the country.

The WikiLeaks disclosures should make the public aware of this and provoke a strong response in favour of a fiercely autonomous foreign policy, says Praful Bidwai.

ON A clear moonless night in the outback, a stargazer can look to the heavens and see a blanket of a few thousand stars.

Syria exploded on Friday with major public demonstrations held in towns and cities across the country, involving tens of thousands all calling for change.

Sean Christie breaks down the issues and suggests what to look out for in 2011.

CARLSBAD — Foreign films offer insight into other cultures. Carlsbad Arts and Humanities Alliance and Carlsbad Museum & Art Center are sponsoring "The Gish Foreign Film Festival Spring 2011.

An anonymous reader writes "Microsoft has removed HTTPS from Hotmail for many US-embargoed or otherwise troubled countries. The current list of countries for which they no longer enable HTTPS is known to include Bahrain, Morocco, Algeria, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Lebanon, Jordan, Congo, Myanmar, Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan.

THE ISSUE: Pres. Obama’s South American tour and his discussions with Brazil on oil investments. * After President Obama's trip to Brazil, it is obvious that he puts the interests of other nations above our own ("You Can't Blame It on Rio," Michael A. Walsh, PostOpinion, March 21...

Syria's fledgling anti-government movement snowballed into a national protest Friday when thousands of marchers gathered in defiance of President Bashar Assad, whose security forces fired live ammunition, witnesses and human-rights groups said.

IDG News Service - A cyber-attack linked to Iran this week is the latest in a string of cyber-events that some say represents a new step in a shadowy and long-running war between the Iranian government and those who criticize it on the Internet.

In addition to being too slow, Obama failed to consult sufficiently with Congress and now is paying the price by the constant second-guessing from both Republicans and Democrats.

From Dr CHANDRA MUZAFFAR, President, International Movement for a Just World

It's official: OMG and LOL are no longer just time-saving shorthands. They're real English. In a decision that may drive English teachers across the nation to despair, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the venerable last word on proper language, has...

What is next in Libya?

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is likely to stick to a cautious, hands-off stance toward the protests in Syria while it watches whether they spread widely or spark a brutal crackdown.

Teachers at Chicago's 3-year-old Gary Comer College Prep sure know how to surprise (and motivate) their students. This afternoon at their Third Quarter Town Hall, the South Side charter school's staff staged an awesome flash mob performance to Michael Jackson's "Thriller"—and it was all caught on video by a student.

Many established brand names from Asean can be introduced to Mongolia, and Malaysia hopes to be in the forefront with property and infrastructure development, IT products and services and education.

Protests spread across Syria yesterday, challenging the rule of the Assad family after government forces killed dozens of demonstrators in the south.

Iran's Red Crescent Society says it has sent its first batch of relief items as well as a 12-member medical team to the Tunisian border to assist displaced Libyans.

PEACE-LOVING citizens of the world should appeal to the governments of France, Britain, the United States and others involved in the aerial bombardment of Libya, the Muammar Gaddafi government, and the rebels opposing it to cease all military operations immediately.

MUMBAI: The U.S. Embassy in New Delhi was not unduly worried about an irate statement that India made in April 2008, just before Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's New Delhi visit on April 29, rejecting America's call for India to urge Iran to curtail its nuclear programme.

Protests spread across Syria on Friday, challenging the rule of the Assad family after their forces killed dozens of demonstrators in the south.

CHENNAI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reportedly told Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh that he could not “rely on” anyone in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) leadership to give him proper advice, except Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and some scientists, according to an American Embassy cable sent on October 24,...

When the major political parties all run vacuous, negative campaigns based on slogans a step away from "Don't vote for him, he smells of poo", which is what we were treated to last May, while concealing their true intentions and keeping all the nasty things out of the manifesto until...

Maulana Fazlur Rehman sent a message to the U.S. Embassy offering to mediate with the Taliban. CHENNAI: Prominent Muslim leaders in New Delhi stayed away from a high-profile Pakistani politician when he visited the city in May 2006.

Expectations of economic prosperity are rising faster than actual capacity, as prolonged turmoil plagues region.

Is Libya in 2011 just like Iraq in 2003? Well, no. There are some pretty important differences , including, among others, a popular uprising versus preemptive strike, issues of moral obligation versus national security, and authorization from the United Nations. But the way we talk about the two wars--sorry, "...

Once again, I see Michael Gerson’s phenomenal hypocrisy ( U.S. dragged its feet in Libyan action, March 22, Other Views). It was OK when George Bush pulled off a phony “coalition of the willing” to launch the biggest military and foreign-policy failure in U.S. history — the invasion...

While the role of the United States in Libya is dominating the news, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) and Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks) are also keeping an eye on foreign policy elsewhere.

DAMASCUS, Syria -- Troops opened fire on protesters in cities across Syria and pro- and anti-government crowds clashed in the capital's historic old city as one of the Mideast's most repressive regimes sought to put down demonstrations that exploded nationwide Friday demanding reform.

KUALA LUMPUR: In the absence of national No. 1 Mohd Azlan Iskandar, world No. 23 Ong Beng Hee has been given the top billing in the 16th Asian individual squash championships, which will be held at the newly-renamed Nicol David Inter-national Squash Centre (NDISC) at Bukit Dumbar, Penang from April...

CAIRO — Syria's fledgling anti-government movement snowballed into a national protest Friday when thousands of marchers gathered in defiance of President Bashar Assad, whose security forces fired live ammunition, witnesses and human rights groups said.

Politics! Jokes! Now! Today's topics: Congressman Ron Paul blasts the Department of Education for "indoctrinating" children. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says capitalism may have destroyed life on Mars. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann explores a Presidential bid. Glenn Beck may move his show to the Internet. Iran debuts a flying saucer.

The United States is likely to stick to a cautious, hands-off stance toward the protests in Syria while it watches whether they spread widely or spark a brutal crackdown.

There's a panic button included in a software program provided by a Palo Alto, Calif.-based nonprofit called Benetech . The program itself is designed to safely store data about torture, murder, killings and other human rights abuses in countries around the world. It's meant to help human rights workers who...

DAMASCUS, Syria - Troops opened fire on protesters in cities across Syria and pro- and anti-government crowds clashed in the capital's historic old city as one of the Mideast's most repressive regimes sought to put down demonstrations that exploded nationwide Friday demanding reform.

WASHINGTON (BP)--A United Nations body finally disregarded the "defamation of religions" concept March 24, but the assassination of two Pakistani leaders apparently was required to ensure it did so.

Brent McKenzie is a University of Guelph marketing professor and an expert on the retail and service sectors of the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. He recently visited Tallin in Estonia and wrote the story that follows:

Is Libya more vital to our national interest than Iran or North Korea or the Kurds of Turkey? After recent experiences with conflict and social engineering, how can anyone believe we can effectively institute democracy in the Middle East? And how can so many Americans be so sure we're doing...

MOSCOW, March 25 (UPI) -- Russia is interested in utilizing spent nuclear fuel dry storage technology developed by the United States.

Fourth-quarter figures put the Linux vendor on track to join the billion-dollar league next fiscal year.

Physical demand for gold and silver is strong as investors seek protection of wealth against uncertainty in the Middle East. It has already been reported that Col. Qaddafi has been a wise gold investor preparing for this crisis by hoarding a large amount of the precious metal to fund his...

>NEW YORK/BRASILIA, March 25 - With an election looming in 2006, Brazilian central bank chief Henrique Meirelles asked the United States to lobby his own government to provide the institution with greater independence, according to an unpublished U.S. State Department cable. During an August 9, 2006, conversation with U.

Iran on Friday deplored the U.S.-sponsored human rights resolution and labeled it as `unfair` and `biased`, the semi-official Fars news agency reported. On Thursday, the United Nations Human Rights Council (OHCHR) approved a resolution for the appointment of a special human rights rapporteur for Iran. The motion received...

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The establishment of a UN special rapporteur on the Islamic Republic of Iran today marks the UN Human Rights Council's most significant achievement to date and represents the crown jewel of the Obama administration's performance on the body since it became a member. The landmark resolution establishes the first...

DAMASCUS : Violence erupted around Syria on Friday as troops opened fire on protesters in several cities and pro- and anti-government crowds clashed on the tense streets of the capital in the most widespread unrest in years, witnesses said, the New York Times reported and published on it's website.

Twitter will eventually have to deal with China despite disagreements over censorship, but has no plans to do so soon, according to co-founder Biz Stone. Along with Facebook and LinkedIn, San Francisco-based Twitter is among a whole slew of social...

Israel will deploy its "Iron Dome" multi-million-dollar missile defence system in southern Israel for the first time next week in the wake of rocket attacks from Gaza, officials said Friday.

THE battle for top seat between top two contenders Class ’73 and Class ’82 is still wide open with one more playing date left for the Negros Occidental High School Inter-Class Alumni Bowling Tournament at the Super Lanes of the Goldenfield Commercial Complex in Bacolod City. read more

MANAMA (Reuters) - Small protests broke out in Bahrain's capital for a planned "Day of Rage" on Friday despite a ban under martial law imposed last week, but were quickly crushed by security forces fanned out across Manama.

On March 10, Lt. Gen. Ronald Burgess, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, testified that North Korea “may now have several plutonium-based nuclear warheads that it can deliver by ballistic missiles and aircraft as well as unconventional means.”

Dozens of security holes have been found in industrial programs, and the European Commission is launching research to defend critical infrastructure

DAMASCUS/DERAA, Syria (Reuters) - Protests spread across Syria Friday, challenging the rule of the Assad family after their forces killed dozens of demonstrators in the south.

Elisabeth Braw wrote this story for...

Clearly billionaire Donald Trump is enjoying all the attention he is receiving as he deliberates a run for the White House in 2012. But should he throw his hat into the ring he will not enjoy the scrutiny his political positions, extensive investments and personal life will receive. For...

The Tulane Israel Public Affairs Committee and Tulane University for Israel teamed with Tulane Hillel to organize Israel Peace Week, a series of activities and presentations to promote awareness of Israeli culture. Events took place all week and will continue through Sunday. TUFI Treasurer Zena Schulman said the clubs decided...

The U.N. Human Rights Council drew rare praise from Jewish groups for creating a position for a special rapporteur on Iran.

Too many U.N. members care more about protecting the principle of state sovereignty than stopping massive human rights abuses.

DAMASCUS, Syria -- Troops opened fire on protesters in cities across Syria and pro- and anti-government crowds clashed in the capital's historic old city as one of the Mideast's most repressive regimes sought to put down demonstrations that exploded nationwide Friday demanding reform.

Internet security company Comodo Group says a recent round of failed attacks on major websites of Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Mozilla and Skype were most likely the work of the Iranian government.

Meet Andrew Draffen who has had a significant involvement with Brazil for almost 30 years. Read the following interview in which he tells us about some of his most memorable experiences and gives some useful advice to newcomers.

Washington said a move by the U.N. human rights council to monitor Iran was a breakthrough for political freedom, though Tehran said it was a lopsided decision.

The bodies of two Iranian security officials martyred in two separate acts of terrorism in the western city of Sanandaj have been buried with state honors.

At least two Iranian pilgrims have lost their lives and 18 others have sustained injuries after their bus overturned in Iraq's eastern province of Wasit.

WASHINGTON, DC, United States – The United States-led attacks against an autocrat in oil-rich Libya have opened the Obama administration to questions about why it’s holding back from more robust support for opposition forces challenging other dictators. What is the difference, some have asked, between the situation in Libya and...

MANAMA (Reuters) - Thousands of Bahrainis turned out for a sermon of a major Shi'ite cleric on Friday ahead of "Day of Rage" protests planned across the Gulf Arab country despite a ban imposed under martial law.

As Europe takes the lead on the Libyan intervention, it's a powerful signal of America's weakening global influence. Peter Beinart on Obama's Jeffersonian turn—and the end of an empire.

Sanders Market Report Bulletin on Global CrisesMarch 2011By Emily Sanders, President and CEO, Sanders Financial Management www.sandersfinancial.comContact: Mitch Leff, mitchleffassociates.com, 404861-4769Recently two major events unfolded around the world leading to a spike in volatility in the global financial markets.JapanWhile the human impact of the natural and ...

Social movements, such as those currently gaining momentum in the Middle East and North Africa, can open the door for democracy, but that does not always benefit women's rights, says a Purdue University sociologist.

Bahrain's security forces fired tear gas at anti-government protesters in the Gulf kingdom on Friday after a prominent Shiite cleric vowed that their demands for the Sunni monarchy to loosen its grip on power will not be silenced by "brutal force."

Protests have spread across Syria on Friday, challenging the rule of the Assad family after their forces killed dozens of demonstrators in the south.

Jersey City, NJ based internet-security company Comodo Group Inc. has said that it was tricked into trying to lure Iranian users to fake versions of major websites and suspects the hack was perpetrated by the Iranian government. The hack, somewhat different from others that tend to seek out money, was...

Death toll from the weeklong crackdown on protests unclear, reports say 37 killed

Senior Iranian cleric Ayatollah Kazem Seddiqi has called on Iranian officials and people to try their best and lay the foundation for the country's economic prosperity.

A U.S. diplomatic cable on the WikiLeaks website indicates Washington was unhappy with Mohamed ElBaradei in his last months as head of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

DARAA, Syria - Thousands of Syrians took to the streets Friday demanding reforms and mourning dozens of protesters who were killed during a violent, weeklong crackdown that has brought extraordinary pressure on the country's autocratic regime, activists and witnesses said.

Local, national and global economies are recovering with job gains and consumers returning. Problems still exist, but are working themselves out.

Iran has clinched three victories on the first day of the freestyle wrestling World Cup to move closer to a final match against Russia. Iran has clinched three victories on the first day of the freestyle wrestling World Cup to move closer to a final match against Russia.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran will host an international celebration of its new year next week despite critics who say it glorifies a pre-Islamic festival and will invoke memories of the last shah.

Security forces appear to be trying to reduce tension in a Syrian city where authorities launched a deadly, weeklong crackdown on protesters.

Mozilla has released the first release candidate of Firefox 4 for Android and Maemo, which the company said offers...

Hackers who were traced to Iran were able to exploit a vulnerability in the internet's design, related to the certification of secure HTTPS channels ( ZDNet UK - Security Threats )

Holiday booking firm TripAdvisor has warned customers that their email addresses may have fallen into the hands of...

(RTTNews) - The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has decided to appoint a Special Rapporteur on Iran who will help the international community monitor and respond to Iran's continued human rights abuses.

The company has confirmed that the forthcoming tablet will have 'app players' that can run apps created for Android 2.3 ( ZDNet UK - Mobile Devices )

MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain has made a formal complaint to the Lebanese government over Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah's offer of support to mainly Shi'ite protesters demanding reforms in the Sunni-ruled Gulf Arab kingdom.

The company has said it will temporarily limit access to the source code of its tablet OS, Android Honeycomb, although current hardware partners will not be affected ( ZDNet UK - Application Development )