North Korea replaces hard-line defense chief

North Korea replaces hard-line defense chief


North Korea replaces hard-line defense chief

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:27 PM PDT

FILE - In this April 23, 2007 file photo released by Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service in Tokyo, Gen. Kim Kyok Sik, right, stands with then-North Korean leader Kim Jong Il during the leader's inspection of Korean People's Army Unit 1637 at an undisclosed location in North Korea. North Korea replaced hard-line defense chief Kim Kyok Sik with little-known army general Jang Jong Nam. Mention of Jang's new role was buried Monday, May 13, 2013 in a state media dispatch listing those who attended an art performance with leader Kim Jong Un. (AP Photo/Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service, File)SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has replaced its hard-line defense chief with a little-known army general, according to a state media report Monday, in what outside analysts call an attempt to install a younger figure meant to solidify leader Kim Jong Un's grip on the powerful military.


Whither Japan Stocks: ORIX and Rakuten

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:22 PM PDT

For examples of charismatic and visionary Japanese business leaders who have inculcated highly innovative

Analysis: Malta unlikely to follow Cyprus into crisis

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:52 PM PDT

Malta's FM Scicluna presents the 2013 Budget speech in parliament in VallettaBy Martin Santa BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Cyprus and Malta have a lot in common: Mediterranean islands enjoying 10 months of sunshine a year, they joined the European Union in 2004, use the euro and have banking sectors that dwarf their economies. There are so many similarities that some investors have wondered whether Malta might follow Cyprus in needing a bailout to survive the region's economic crisis. But Malta's risk profile is far different to that of Cyprus, which received a 10-billion-euro aid package last month aimed at preventing its collapse and a possible exit from the euro zone. ...


Taliban say will 'soon' release remaining Turks

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:42 PM PDT

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A Taliban spokesman says four remaining Turks held by the militant group will be released shortly, without offering further details.

Hong Kong transgender woman wins right to marry

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:29 PM PDT

HONG KONG (AP) — A transgender woman has won the right to marry her boyfriend in a watershed ruling from Hong Kong's top court.

Oil falls below $96 as dollar strengthens

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:24 PM PDT

BANGKOK (AP) — Oil prices fell Monday as the dollar strengthened against the yen and other major currencies.

Analysis: Malta unlikely to follow Cyprus into crisis

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:52 PM PDT

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Cyprus and Malta have a lot in common: Mediterranean islands enjoying 10 months of sunshine a year, they joined the European Union in 2004, use the euro and have banking sectors that dwarf their economies.

Science On The Space Station

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:41 PM PDT

Astronaut Chris Hadfield Sings David Bowie As He Departs The International Space Station

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:41 PM PDT

International Space Station Expedition 35 Commander Chris Hadfield ends his time on the space station by paying tribute to David Bowie.

Here's What Cool New Stuff Might Debut This Week At The Google I/O Conference

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:41 PM PDT

For a conference aimed strictly at software developers, Google I/O now commands a lot of attention from the general public--or at least the large portion of the public that cares about new smartphones, tablets, Google services, and cool new stuff coming out of the world's most influential technology company.

S Korea president sorry for 'unsavoury' act

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:48 PM PDT

Park Geun-hye apologises after spokesman sacked over claims he sexually harassed intern during president's visit to US.

VIDEO: Diplomatic row over Taiwan death

Posted: 12 May 2013 08:49 AM PDT

The government of Taiwan has given the Philippines 72 hours to apologise for the death of a Taiwanese fisherman whose vessel was fired on by the Philippines' coastguard.

Bulgaria rightists seek to cobble together government

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:30 PM PDT

A protester waves the Bulgarian flag during a protest outside the National Palace of Culture, where the political parties in the elections will be holding news conferences, in SofiaSOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgaria's center-right GERB party was scrambling to form a government on Monday, determined to cobble together an alliance that could ease concerns over the future of the EU's poorest country. Boiko Borisov's GERB, which won 31.4 percent of the vote in Sunday's election, according to partial results, will have first chance to form a government but will struggle to find partners, with its image tarnished by nationwide protests and allegations of illegal activity. Six years after joining the European Union, many of Bulgaria's 7. ...


VIDEO: Relatives remember Sichuan victims

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:18 PM PDT

China marks the fifth anniversary of one of the most destructive earthquakes ever recorded.

Bulgaria rightists seek to cobble together government

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:30 PM PDT

SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgaria's center-right GERB party was scrambling to form a government on Monday, determined to cobble together an alliance that could ease concerns over the future of the EU's poorest country.

After bombings,Turkey says world must act against Syria

Posted: 12 May 2013 08:47 PM PDT

Protesters shout slogans against Turkey's PM Erdogan during a demonstration against the Turkish government's foreign policy on Syria, in IstanbulBy Jonathon Burch REYHANLI, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkey accused a group with links to Syrian intelligence of carrying out car bombings that killed 46 people in a Turkish border town, and said on Sunday it was time for the world to act against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. The two car bombs, which ripped through crowded shopping streets in Reyhanli on Saturday, increased fears that Syria's civil war is dragging in neighboring states, despite renewed diplomatic moves to end it. ...


Pakistan's Sharif gets resounding election victory

Posted: 12 May 2013 08:52 PM PDT

Supporters of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif celebrate the victory of their leader in Islamabad, Pakistan on Sunday, May 12, 2013. Sharif looked set Sunday to return to power for a third term, with an overwhelming election tally that just weeks ago seemed out of reach for a man who had been ousted by a coup and was exiled abroad before clawing his way back as an opposition leader. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash)LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif looked poised to return to office with a resounding election victory — a mandate that could make it easier to tackle the country's daunting problems, including growing power outages, weak economic growth and shaky government finances.


Bulgaria nationalists say will not back leading party

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:30 PM PDT

SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgarian nationalist party Attack will not support the center-right GERB, which exit polls show will be the largest group in a new parliament, to form a government, its leader said on Sunday. "There is no way we can support GERB," Volen Siderov told reporters after polling closed in Sunday's election. "We cannot support someone who has declared anti-state and anti-Bulgarian policies." (Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Sam Cage)

Rightist GERB has lead in Bulgaria vote: exit polls

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:30 PM PDT

SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgarian center-right party GERB held the lead in a Sunday election prompted by widespread protests, exit polls showed, and would have first chance at forming a government. GERB, which resigned from office during protests against low living standards in February, had about 31 percent support and was set for roughly 97 seats in the 240 member parliament, according to polls by Alpha Research and Sova Harris agencies. The Socialists had 25-27 percent and were set for 85 seats. ...

Myanmar Pipelines to Benefit China

Posted: 12 May 2013 08:28 PM PDT

Two pipelines in the highlands of northeast Myanmar will soon begin pumping oil and gas into China, representing a major step in Beijing's quest for energy security.

Republicans seek probe into US tax targeting

Republicans seek probe into US tax targeting


Republicans seek probe into US tax targeting

Posted: 12 May 2013 01:18 PM PDT

Broad investigation urged after IRS admission it applied extra scrutiny of conservative groups during 2012 elections.

Bodies found after US standoff

Posted: 12 May 2013 01:15 PM PDT

US police discover two bodies after ending a 37-hour standoff with a man who held three people captive in a house in New Jersey.

For Witness to Nagasaki, a Life Focused on Science

Posted: 12 May 2013 12:59 PM PDT

Osamu Shimomura, a Nobel Prize-winning chemist, who as a teenager lived through the dropping of an atomic bomb, recently visited to the birthplace of the atomic era.
    


Bits Blog: Disruptions: Even the Tech Elites Leave Gadgets Behind

Posted: 12 May 2013 08:59 AM PDT

Some people find that minimizing technological distractions helps them focus on themselves and the outside world.
    

Five men arrested over pub death

Posted: 12 May 2013 06:04 AM PDT

Police arrest five men on suspicion of murder after a man died during a disturbance at a pub.

Analysis: Iran election race opens up as surprise candidate enter

Posted: 12 May 2013 12:29 PM PDT

DUBAI (Reuters) - After the huge protests that followed the 2009 election, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei may have hoped June polls would quietly install a loyal conservative president, but the surprise candidacies of two major independents may scupper that.

Alonso confident of title challenge

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:49 AM PDT

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso said he was confident of making a strong world title challenge after winning in Spain.

Guatemala's Maya finally find justice over civil war crimes

Posted: 12 May 2013 12:02 PM PDT

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Ana Caba fled her home to live in remote mountains for nearly a decade after Guatemalan troops razed her indigenous Maya village and dozens like it in a brutal counter-insurgency campaign in the early 1980s.

After the joy of victory, the hard work begins for Nawaz Sharif

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:03 AM PDT

M Ilyas Khan on the work facing Nawaz Sharif in Pakistan

What Sharif's win means for region

Posted: 12 May 2013 05:48 AM PDT

What Pakistan's election result means for the neighbours

Engineering the $325,000 In-Vitro Burger

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:45 AM PDT

A researcher in the Netherlands wants to show the world — including potential donors — that in-vitro meat is a reality.
    


Malian army approaches rebel-held northern town of Kidal

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:47 AM PDT

BAMAKO (Reuters) - Malian troops approached the remote northeastern town of Kidal on Sunday ahead of a mid-May deadline set by the government to wrest it from the control of Tuareg separatist rebels.

Italy PM Letta seeks to calm cabinet tensions at Tuscan retreat

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:41 AM PDT

SARTEANO, Italy (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta took his ministers to a conference center in a former abbey in Tuscany for a retreat on Sunday to thrash out differences that have already threatened the stability of his fragile coalition.

VIDEO: Creeping ice destroys Canadian homes

Posted: 12 May 2013 10:59 AM PDT

Several homes have been destroyed and many damaged in the Canadian province of Manitoba after ice from a nearby lake was pushed up onto land by the wind.

Afghan protest at Iran 'shooting'

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:13 AM PDT

Afghanistan summons the Iranian ambassador in protest at an alleged fatal shooting of illegal migrants by Iranian border guards.

VIDEO: Dhaka survivor: 'I didn't think I'd live'

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:14 AM PDT

A woman who survived Bangladesh's worst ever industrial disaster speaks to the BBC about being found alive after 17 days under rubble.

Republicans Call for I.R.S Inquiry After Disclosure

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:19 AM PDT

Republican lawmakers on Sunday called for a full investigation of actions by the Internal Revenue Service, which apologized some conservative groups for heightened scrutiny.
    


After the joy of victory, the hard work begins for Nawaz Sharif

Posted: 12 May 2013 09:03 AM PDT

M Ilyas Khan on the work facing Nawaz Sharif in Pakistan

With an Eye on College, Chinese Students Enroll in New York Private Schools

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:06 AM PDT

A growing number of teenagers from wealthy families in China are attending schools in New York City, seeking an advantage in admission to American universities.
    


Seth Meyers to Succeed Fallon on ‘Late Night’

Posted: 12 May 2013 11:00 AM PDT

Mr. Meyers, the longtime head writer on "Saturday Night Live," will succeed Jimmy Fallon, who is to take over NBC's "Tonight Show."