Western sanctions tighten squeeze on Iran oil exports

Western sanctions tighten squeeze on Iran oil exports


Western sanctions tighten squeeze on Iran oil exports

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 11:02 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Western trade sanctions against Iran are strangling its oil exports even before they go into effect, a U.S. advisory body has found, amid warnings that any shortages will only push up crude prices and strain a weak global economy.


Israel unveils sophisticated shelters in Tel Aviv (AP)

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:25 PM PST

AP - Underneath the plaza outside Israel's Habima national theater, Israel has put the finishing touches on a new gathering place that it hopes will never host a crowd: the country's most advanced public underground bomb shelter.


EU to Ireland: your referendum won't stop EU financial treaty (The Christian Science Monitor)

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 01:32 PM PST

The Christian Science Monitor - Despite German anger at Ireland's decision to hold a referendum on the European Union financial treaty, Europe will go ahead â€" with or without Ireland.


Haiti sees large anti-government protest

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:51 PM PST

President Michel Martelly strongly criticised as supporters of former leader Jean-Bertrand Aristide take to streets.


Raven Drone Spotted in Act of Valor

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:16 PM PST

If you are wondering if the man-portable drone in the movie Act of Valor is real, the answer is yes.?? The particular UAS in the film is a Raven, manufactured by Aerovironment out of Monrovia, . The Raven is one of the small systems in Aerovironment?s fleet of man-portable UASs which include the smaller Wasp ...


Crippled Costa cruise ship arrives in Seychelles capital

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:47 PM PST

VICTORIA (Reuters) - A crippled Costa cruise line with more than 1,000 people on board arrived at the capital of Seychelles on Thursday after three days at sea without power.


Disabled cruise ship arrives in Seychelles port (AP)

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:14 PM PST

AP - A disabled cruise ship arrived in port in the island nation of the Seychelles on Thursday morning after three days at sea without power.


Malaysia court rejects appeal of gay festival ban (AP)

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:35 PM PST

AP - Malaysia's High Court on Thursday dismissed a bid by activists to challenge a police ban on a gay arts festival, in a rare legal case involving gay rights in the Muslim-majority nation.


How President Obama Plans to Implement the NDAA's Military Custody Provisions

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:31 PM PST

The National Defense Authorization Act?s (NDAA) controversial military custody provisions have been largely nullified through implementing procedures ordered by President Obama.?? The President, through Presidential Policy Directive 14 has crafted a broad set of waivers which allow domestic law enforcement agencies to easily abrogate the military custody requirements found in Section 1022. As a refresher, ...


Lin-Sanity and Nurturing Talent

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:23 PM PST

If you aren?t sure who Jeremy Lin is and don?t know about the impact he?s had on the New York Knicks, you probably don?t have a television. ?There have been two big questions asked in regards to the Jeremy Lin Phenomenon which has lead the two-year-fringe-player to the heights of NBA stardom and reinvigorated the ...


VIDEO: Radiation check before playtime

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 07:14 PM PST

Child evacuee Ayaka explains how her life has changed since the 2011 tsunami which devastated parts of Japan.


VIDEO: Radiation check before playtime

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 07:14 PM PST

Child evacuee Ayaka explains how her life has changed since the 2011 tsunami which devastated parts of Japan.


VIDEO: Rugged waterproof mobiles on show

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 07:26 PM PST

Rory Cellan-Jones went on the hunt for a phone that stands out from the crowd at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.


Trade Spat Strains China-Iran Ties

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 07:51 PM PST

Iranian iron-ore exporters accused some Chinese buyers of not paying on time for deliveries, adding to already tense commercial ties between the two political allies.


White House Pushes for Russia Trade Agreement

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 07:10 PM PST

The Obama administration began a public push for Congress to permanently lower trade barriers with Russia, arguing the move would benefit U.S. exporters and aid a crack down on trading violations by Moscow.


RIM: Feb Qtr Earnings Warning Likely, Analyst Asserts

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:40 PM PST

Research In Motion is likely to issue a negative pre-announcement on February quarter results, Jefferies analyst Peter Misek asserts in a research note. ?We are cutting our RIM estimates and target based on our belief that there is a greater than 50% chance that RIM will negatively pre-announce the February quarter,? he writes. ?We believe ...


China exports may stay strong despite weak Europe (Reuters)

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:11 PM PST

Reuters - Workers at an electrical products factory in eastern China received a pleasant shock when they returned to their jobs after the Chinese Lunar New Year holidays.


China's top Tibet official orders tighter control of Internet (Reuters)

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:12 PM PST

Reuters - China's top official in Tibet has urged authorities to tighten their grip on the Internet and mobile phones, state media reported on Thursday, reflecting the government's fears about unrest ahead of its annual parliamentary session.


The 40 Highest-Earning Hedge Fund Managers

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:05 PM PST

Ray Dalio, the new king of hedge funds, tops the list of traders and investment titans who made the most in 2011. He made $3 billion.


On The Anthropocene Age

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 08:55 PM PST

The term, the Anthropocene Age, is now common. It represents the time since the early 1800s when man began to have an impact on the Earth?s climate. There is still some debate about its use though. Scientists have traditionally called the current period the Holocene Age, meaning entirely new. The Holocene Age started around 10,000 ...


S Africa's ruling party expels youth leader

S Africa's ruling party expels youth leader


S Africa's ruling party expels youth leader

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 01:04 PM PST

African National Congress ousts Julius Malema following earlier criticism for bringing party into disrepute.


Egypt Lifts Travel Ban on U.S. Workers

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 11:53 AM PST

Egyptian officials say a travel ban on seven Americans employed by pro-democracy U.S. groups has been lifted.


YPF Shares Fall on Nationalization Worries

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:21 PM PST

Shares of YPF, Argentina's largest oil-and-gas company, fell as much as 18% on Wednesday as speculation the government might nationalize the firm pushed the stock to a fresh 52-week low.


India's GDP Growth Slows to 6.1%

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:20 AM PST

India's quarterly economic growth slowed to 6.1% at the end of 2011, its slowest pace in more than two years, as high inflation and the euro-zone debt crisis weighed on the economy.


EU Leaders to Meet on Greece, Growth Efforts

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 11:15 AM PST

European leaders and finance ministers will meet Thursday and Friday in Brussels to finalize the second Greek bailout package and discuss measures to promote long-term growth.


Greece Invites Bids for Assets

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:10 PM PST

Greece invited bids for state-owned gas company DEPA and natural-gas grid operator DESFA, moving ahead with a long-awaited privatization program aimed at raising €19 billion by 2015 to aid in addressing its huge debt crisis.


Israel raids Palestinian TV stations

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:35 PM PST

JERUSALEM — Israeli troops raided two private Palestinian television stations in the West Bank city of Ramallah early Wednesday, seizing transmitters and other equipment, the army and Palestinian officials said.

Read full article >>

Add to Facebook Add to Twitter Add to Reddit Add to StumbleUpon


Guantanamo detainee makes plea deal with US

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:52 PM PST

Majid Khan pleads guilty to war crimes, including terrorism, in exchange for reduced prison sentence in Cuba.


Bernanke: US recovery continues

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:21 PM PST

US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says the US economic recovery is continuing but growth remains weak and unemployment high.


Rail firm to 'admit' crash guilt

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 09:11 AM PST

Network Rail indicates it is to plead guilty to health and safety breaches over the 2007 Grayrigg crash in Cumbria in which a woman died.


Egypt’s presidential elections to begin May 23

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:17 PM PST

CAIRO — Egypt's first presidential elections since the ouster of longtime ruler Hosni Mubarak will begin on May 23, election officials announced Wednesday.

A new president will be named by June 21, officials said, a timeframe that allows the country's military rulers to meet their pledge to transfer power to a civilian government by the end of June.

Read full article >>

Add to Facebook Add to Twitter Add to Reddit Add to StumbleUpon


North Korea agrees to halt uranium enrichment: A timeline of key events

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:18 PM PST

North Korea has agreed to halt its uranium-enrichment program as well as its nuclear and long-range missile tests, in return for food aid from the United States.

(Click here to see more photos from Yongbyon nuclear complex)

Read full article >>

Add to Facebook Add to Twitter Add to Reddit Add to StumbleUpon


Asma al-Assad: The fashionable face of tyranny

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 11:52 AM PST

Behind every successful man, there is a woman, as the saying goes. Expand that to: Behind every dictator, there is a Louboutin-loving woman. The Guardian offers a glimpse at the lives of dictators' wives, who must stand by their men in good times (Chanel shopping sprees, archaeological artifacts as home decor, St. Tropez ice cream parties) and bad (fleeing the country after a violent uprisings).

Read full article >>

Add to Facebook Add to Twitter Add to Reddit Add to StumbleUpon


ANC youth leader Malema expelled

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:27 PM PST

South Africa's governing ANC expels its controversial youth leader Julius Malema after he was found guilty of fomenting divisions in the party.


Americans From Nonprofits May Leave, Egypt Says

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:30 PM PST

Egyptian officials said they would lift a travel ban after weeks of diplomatic wrangling, apparently resolving a crisis for the alliance between Egypt and the United States.


ArtsBeat: Davy Jones, Monkees Heartthrob, Dies at 66

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 12:51 PM PST

A former jockey and stage actor, Davy Jones was an important member of the first and arguably the best of the pop groups created for television to capitalize on the success of the Beatles.


VIDEO: Life in Tokyo disrupted by snowfall

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 11:46 AM PST

An unusual heavy snowfall has caught Tokyo residents off guard.


In Putin’s Russia, allegations of a KGB-like plot

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 11:15 AM PST

MOSCOW — Sounding as if he was quoting from a dusty KGB manual or a bad movie script, Vladi­mir Putin warned Wednesday that his opponents are prepared to murder one of their own so they can blame it on him.

Read full article >>

Add to Facebook Add to Twitter Add to Reddit Add to StumbleUpon


James Murdoch steps down as head of NI

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 06:57 AM PST

News Corp has moved to distance James Murdoch from its troubled newspaper brands in the UK announcing that he would step down as executive chairman of News International.


Monkees Singer Davy Jones Dies in Florida at 66

Posted: 29 Feb 2012 10:59 AM PST

Davy Jones, the lead singer of the 1960s group The Monkees, died of a massive heart attack Wednesday in Florida, his spokeswoman said. He was 66.