N.Korea says has made more arms-grade plutonium

N.Korea says has made more arms-grade plutonium


N.Korea says has made more arms-grade plutonium

Posted: 03 Nov 2009 12:54 AM PST

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea said on Tuesday it had completed reprocessing spent fuel rods at its Yongbyon nuclear plant and weaponised plutonium from the material, giving it more material to produce atomic arms.


China blocks Taiwan ex-VP's Egypt trip, party says

Posted: 03 Nov 2009 12:54 AM PST

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Egypt has bowed to pressure from China by barring a former top Taiwanese official who was critical of Beijing from visiting Cairo ahead of a China-Africa summit, the opposition said on Tuesday.


North Korea says has reprocessed nuclear fuel rods

Posted: 03 Nov 2009 12:25 AM PST

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has completed reprocessing spent fuel rods at its Yongbyon nuclear plant and weaponised plutonium from the material, its KCNA news agency said on Tuesday.


Release jailed Iranian women, Mousavi's wife urges

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 11:54 PM PST

TEHRAN (Reuters) - The wife of Iran's opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi has called on the authorities to release women jailed since the disputed June presidential election, the reformist Kaleme website reported on Tuesday.


Fiji orders expulsion of Australia, NZ envoys

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 11:54 PM PST

SUVA, Fiji (Reuters) - Fiji coup leader and self-appointed Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama on Tuesday ordered Australia and New Zealand recall their envoys within 24 hours, accusing them of interfering in its internal affairs.


Afghan leader Karzai vows inclusive government

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 11:54 PM PST

KABUL (Reuters) - Re-elected Afghan President Hamid Karzai vowed to form an inclusive government on Tuesday after stern warnings from Western supporters he would have to work harder to root out corruption.


Four albino killers sentenced to hang in Tanzania

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 11:54 PM PST

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) - Tanzania's high court has sentenced four men to death by hanging for killing a 50-year-old albino man, local media reported late on Monday.


Afghan leader Karzai vows inclusive government

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 11:25 PM PST

KABUL (Reuters) - Re-elected Afghan President Hamid Karzai vowed on Tuesday to include all Afghans in his new government to be formed after a disputed election process ended with the withdrawal of his only rival from a run-off vote.


Karadzic 'will attend court'

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:12 PM PST

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic is expected to appear at his trial for war crimes in The Hague for the first time.


Magnitude 5.9 quake hits off Greece - USGS

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:23 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A magnitude 5.9 quake struck off Greece on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.


More swine flu vaccine ready in US; kids need 2 doses

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:23 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Up to 30 million doses of vaccine against the H1N1 swine flu virus have been delivered to the U.S. government and production is now picking up, officials said on Monday.


ANALYSIS - Ethiopian opposition impotent as elections loom

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:23 PM PST

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - When Ethiopia's opposition leaders were freed from jail in 2007, the three most prominent were hailed by fanatical supporters as leaders-in-waiting for sub-Saharan Africa's second most populous nation.


U.S. Navy chief favors speeding up unmanned programs

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:53 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy's top admiral said on Monday he hoped to speed up work on unmanned weapons systems, including underwater vehicles and an unmanned combat plane being developed by Northrop Grumman Corp.


Pirate threat continues off Africa

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 08:58 PM PST

The idyllic east African coast is a huge draw for adventurous tourists, but yachtsmen and shipping companies alike are nervous about pirates in the area.


Japan PM racing up music charts

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 08:59 PM PST

Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama is doing well in the country's music charts with a collection of songs he recorded more than 20 years ago.


China launches "strike hard" crackdown in restive west

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 08:52 PM PST

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese forces have launched a "strike hard" security campaign in the restless far western region of Xinjiang, vowing to wipe out lawlessness and "change the face" of the public security situation there.


Lawsuit against gene patents can proceed - U.S. judge

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 08:23 PM PST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A lawsuit challenging patents on two human genes associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer can move forward, a U.S. federal judge ruled on Monday.


FACTBOX - Major issues between South Korea and the U.S.

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 07:22 PM PST

SEOUL (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama is scheduled to visit South Korea this month as a part of his Asian trip.


Czech court expected to lift last barrier to EU treaty

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 07:22 PM PST

PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech Constitutional Court is expected to throw out a complaint against the EU's Lisbon treaty on Tuesday, removing the last obstacle to its ratification.


China's Wen tells EU to stick to current climate pact

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 06:25 PM PST

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will insist key global climate change negotiations next month build on current treaties that limit the obligations of poor countries in controlling greenhouse gas emissions, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said.


UBS posts 564 mln francs loss for third quarter (AFP)

UBS posts 564 mln francs loss for third quarter (AFP)


UBS posts 564 mln francs loss for third quarter (AFP)

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:57 PM PST

File photo shows a UBS bank logo near the Swiss Parliament in Bern. Swiss banking giant UBS plunged into further losses of 564 million francs (373 million euros, 552 million dollars) for the third quarter, but said it expected the situation to improve in coming months.(AFP/File/Nicholas Ratzenboeck)AFP - Swiss banking giant UBS plunged into further losses of 564 million francs (373 million euros, 552 million dollars) for the third quarter, but said it expected its situation to improve in coming months.



China in new Xinjiang crackdown: state media (AFP)

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:55 PM PST

File photo shows a member of the Chinese security forces armed with a bayonet-mounted rifle patrolling the streets of Urumqi. Police in China's restive Xinjiang region have launched a fresh manhunt aimed at capturing fugitives wanted in connection with deadly ethnic violence in July this year, state media said Tuesday.(AFP/File/Frederic J. Brown)AFP - Police in China's restive Xinjiang region have launched a fresh manhunt aimed at capturing fugitives wanted in connection with deadly ethnic violence in July this year, state media said Tuesday.



Ex-KGB spy shot dead in Moscow

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:48 PM PST

Successful businessman who once was jailed in Israel for espionage is gunned down.


Many who stormed US embassy now oppose Iran regime

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 05:43 PM PST

TEHRAN -Many of the Iranians who led the storming of the US embassy in Tehran 30 years ago, inspired by the newly-created Islamic Republic, have become severe critics of the regime they helped to establish.

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Russian-Israeli businessman shot dead in Moscow

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:09 AM PST

MOSCOW - Colourful Russian-Israeli businessman Shabtai von Kalmanovic, a convicted spy who became owner of a top Moscow women's basketball team, was shot dead Monday in the Russian capital, prosecutors said.

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Iraq urges UN to stop neighbours' meddling

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 08:52 AM PST

BAGHDAD - Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki appealed Monday to the United Nations to take action against Iraq's neighbours for meddling in its internal affairs as he met with a UN special envoy.

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Refugee Issue Hurting Australia's Rudd

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 07:07 PM PST

Australia's center-left Labor government has suffered a sharp fall in voter support as it faces growing pressure over its handling of asylum seekers, according to new polls.


Bollywood star Kaif takes success in her stride (AFP)

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:09 PM PST

25-year-old Indian Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif, whose latest film AFP - Katrina Kaif is one of Bollywood's leading actresses -- the most searched-for Indian female film star on the Internet and a former top model with an A-list boyfriend.



Karadzic 'will attend court'

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:12 PM PST

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic is expected to appear at his trial for war crimes in The Hague for the first time.


US envoys arrive in Myanmar

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:55 PM PST

Highest-profile visit in 14 years comes as US looks to engage military government.


Magnitude 5.9 quake hits off Greece - USGS

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:23 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A magnitude 5.9 quake struck off Greece on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.


More swine flu vaccine ready in US; kids need 2 doses

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:23 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Up to 30 million doses of vaccine against the H1N1 swine flu virus have been delivered to the U.S. government and production is now picking up, officials said on Monday.


ANALYSIS - Ethiopian opposition impotent as elections loom

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:23 PM PST

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - When Ethiopia's opposition leaders were freed from jail in 2007, the three most prominent were hailed by fanatical supporters as leaders-in-waiting for sub-Saharan Africa's second most populous nation.


Magnitude 5.9 quake hits off Greece: USGS

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:47 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A magnitude 5.9 quake struck off Greece on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.


Karadzic 'will attend court'

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 10:12 PM PST

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic is expected to appear at his trial for war crimes in The Hague for the first time.


U.S. Navy chief favors speeding up unmanned programs

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:53 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy's top admiral said on Monday he hoped to speed up work on unmanned weapons systems, including underwater vehicles and an unmanned combat plane being developed by Northrop Grumman Corp.


GM board to meet, decide fate of Opel, Vauxhall (AP)

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:21 PM PST

AP - The board of General Motors Co. is expected to decide Tuesday the fate of Opel and Vauxhall, ending more than a year of uncertainty surrounding its business and restructuring in Europe and the U.S.


Tropical storm kills 11 in Vietnam (AP)

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:27 PM PST

AP - Tropical Storm Mirinae unleashed severe flooding in parts of central Vietnam, killing 11 people, leaving two missing and forcing families onto rooftops, disaster officials said Tuesday.


Time to End 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' (OneWorld.net)

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 09:16 PM PST

OneWorld.net - SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 2 (New America Media) - Ten months ago, I was kicked out of the Army. My crime? I refused to continue violating my integrity and told a superior officer I was gay. My nine years in the military, including four years as a cadet at West Point and almost two years deployed to Iraq where I was awarded the Bronze star, came to an abrupt end when the Army discharged me under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy.


Pirate threat continues off Africa

Posted: 02 Nov 2009 08:58 PM PST

The idyllic east African coast is a huge draw for adventurous tourists, but yachtsmen and shipping companies alike are nervous about pirates in the area.