Excellent Observer Story On Censorship in Art

Excellent Observer Story On Censorship in Art
Kazakh voters back campaign to extend leader's rule
Koreas restore cross-border hotline
Rising floodwaters threaten Brisbane
TV heroes inspired Haiti quake survivor
TV heroes inspired Haiti quake survivor
Storm kills 10, injures seven in Mozambique
Violent unrest breaks out in Tunisian capital (Reuters)
Iran says talks could be West's "last chance": report (Reuters)
Portugal debt cost seen up at auction, but no bailout trigger (Reuters)
US vice president in Pakistan for talks (AP)
Iran says talks could be West's "last chance": report
Chinese general to visit U.S. base in small sign of thawing military ties
AIG sells stake in Taiwan insurance unit (AP)
China wants "positive" statement from U.S. on dollar (Reuters)
Deadly suicide bombing hits Kabul
Gates, China Discuss Nuclear Strategy
Floods threaten Brisbane
Toy Marketers Eye Social Media: Many Questions Yet Few Answers
India eye World Cup ahead of S. Africa series (AFP)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:35 PM PST

Alexandra Peers explores what?s behind the new rise in censorship in the art world ? a d

Kazakh voters back campaign to extend leader's rule

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 11:01 PM PST

ASTANA (Reuters) - More than half of Kazakhstan's 9 million voters have backed a referendum to extend veteran leader Nursultan Nazarbayev's rule of the oil-rich Central Asian state for a third decade, organisers of the plan said on Wednesday.

Koreas restore cross-border hotline

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:48 PM PST

North and South Korea reopen crucial communications line, the first time since the North shelled an island in the South.

Rising floodwaters threaten Brisbane

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 09:33 PM PST

Brisbane is expected to be swamped by floodwater by the time the river system reaches its peak on Thursday.

TV heroes inspired Haiti quake survivor

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:32 PM PST

One year on, Roudy Colin about the day the earthquake struck and how he has earned a living in the past 12 months.

TV heroes inspired Haiti quake survivor

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:32 PM PST

One year on, Roudy Colin about the day the earthquake struck and how he has earned a living in the past 12 months.

Storm kills 10, injures seven in Mozambique

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:52 PM PST

MAPUTO (Reuters) - A heavy storm killed 10 people and seriously injured seven others in Mozambique's central province of Manica, state-run Mozambique Television said on Wednesday.

Violent unrest breaks out in Tunisian capital (Reuters)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 03:57 PM PST

Reuters - Police fired into the air to disperse a crowd ransacking buildings in a Tunis suburb on Tuesday, the first time a wave of violent unrest that officials say has killed 23 civilians has hit the capital.

Iran says talks could be West's "last chance": report (Reuters)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:41 PM PST

Reuters - Talks between Iran and major powers concerned about its nuclear program to be held in Turkey next week could be the "last chance" for the West, a senior Iranian official was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

Portugal debt cost seen up at auction, but no bailout trigger (Reuters)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:20 PM PST

Reuters - Portugal is likely to pay record high premiums to place debt on Wednesday, but recent bond buying by the European Central Bank should avert a dramatic rise in yields to levels that prompt the country to seek a bailout.

US vice president in Pakistan for talks (AP)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:43 PM PST

AP - Vice President Joe Biden has arrived in Pakistan to strengthen a vital but often troubled alliance in the fight against Islamist extremism.

Iran says talks could be West's "last chance": report

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:41 PM PST

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Talks between Iran and major powers concerned about its nuclear program to be held in Turkey next week could be the "last chance" for the West, a senior Iranian official was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

Chinese general to visit U.S. base in small sign of thawing military ties

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:21 PM PST

BEIJING -- The commander of China's nuclear rocket forces has accepted an invitation to visit the United States, in a small but significant breakthrough for U.S. efforts to improve military relations with China.

AIG sells stake in Taiwan insurance unit (AP)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:15 PM PST

AP - U.S. insurer American International Group Inc. has sold its 97.6 percent stake in a Taiwanese insurance business to conglomerate Ruentex Group for $2.16 billion, five months after regulators nixed AIG's first attempt to sell the business.

China wants "positive" statement from U.S. on dollar (Reuters)

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 10:10 PM PST

Reuters - China would welcome assurance about the security of its financial assets in the United States, a senior diplomat said on Wednesday ahead of President Hu Jintao's visit next week, while playing down rifts between the two powers.

Deadly suicide bombing hits Kabul

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 09:59 PM PST

At least eight security personnel killed and some 27 injured as a suspected bomber detonates motorbike next to minibus.

Gates, China Discuss Nuclear Strategy

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 09:50 PM PST

U.S. and Chinese officials began a dialogue about China's nuclear strategy Wednesday during a visit by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to a key Chinese military base.