World

Syria: Terrorists are behind the unrest, says Assad

Syria: Terrorists are behind the unrest, says Assad Beirut: In his first interview since December, Syrian President Bashar al Assad insisted on Tuesday his regime is fighting back against foreign mercenaries who want to overthrow him, not innocent Syrians aspiring for democracy in a yearlong uprising. The interview with Russian TV showed Assad is still standing his ground, despite widespread international condemnation over his deadly crackdown on dissent. "There are foreign mercenaries, some of them still alive," Assad...
02:43:54 AM May 17, 2012

Sri Lanka to free jailed ex-army chief Fonseka

Sri Lanka to free jailed ex-army chief Fonseka Colombo: A member of parliament in Sri Lanka said on Wednesday he believed President Mahinda Rajapaksa would soon order the release of the country's former army chief Sarath Fonseka, revered by many of his compatriots for helping end a 25-year civil war. The jailing of General Fonseka has prompted criticism in Western countries, and if he were freed it would be seen as a sign that Colombo is addressing concerns...
02:24:07 AM May 17, 2012

FBI confirms leak probe on al Qaeda plot

FBI confirms leak probe on al Qaeda plot Washington: FBI Director Robert Mueller said on Wednesday the bureau has started an investigation into who leaked information about an al Qaeda plot to place an explosive device aboard a US-bound airline flight. In an appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Mueller said a leak like this one threatens continuing operations, "puts at risk the lives of sources, makes it much more difficult to recruit sources" and damages relationships with...
11:42:46 PM May 16, 2012

Euro twilight zone beckons for Greece

Euro twilight zone beckons for Greece London: Speculation about an endgame in Greece's protracted crisis has flooded markets with euro exit scenarios this week, but investors reckon there's still every chance that uncertainty will simply drag on for months. Seeking clear-cut outcomes to the euro saga to date has proven fruitless for investors, who have instead been forced to live with the "muddle through" of European politics. And more used to precedent, probabilities and precise numbers,...
11:25:17 PM May 16, 2012

UK: Man jailed for keeping Pak bride as sex slave

UK: Man jailed for keeping Pak bride as sex slave London: A 56-year-old man has been jailed for keeping his son's 22-year-old Pakistani bride as a sex slave till the time she learnt enough English to call the police. The "depraved" man stripped the bride of her jewellery and passport after she came to Britain following an arranged marriage, a court heard. "He made her swear on the Koran that she would keep the abuse a secret and promised to...
08:10:20 PM May 16, 2012

Judge to lead Greece to fateful June 17 election

Judge to lead Greece to fateful June 17 election Athens: Greece put a senior judge in charge of an emergency government on Wednesday to lead it to new elections on June 17 and bankers sought to calm public fears after the president said political chaos risked causing panic and a run on deposits. Greeks have been withdrawing hundreds of millions of euros (dollars) from banks in recent days as the prospect of the country being forced out of the...
06:45:06 PM May 16, 2012

Michelle contemplated divorcing Obama in 2000: Book

Michelle contemplated divorcing Obama in 2000: Book London: Michelle Obama contemplated divorcing Barack Obama in 2000 after he ignored her advice not to run for a House seat in Chicago, making him so "depressed" that friends feared he might commit suicide, says a new book. According to the book, Michelle prepared divorce papers in 2000 following Barack's disastrous attempt to win a House seat in Chicago - in fact, as she was upset that he ignored her...
04:31:35 PM May 16, 2012

Cyber space played key role in 26/11: US commander

Cyber space played key role in 26/11: US commander Washington: The Mumbai attack perpetrated by Pakistan-based LeT was an example of how terror outfits use latest available IT tools for their decisive motives, a top US commander said, highlighting the role of cyber space in such events. "All the mission planning (for Mumbai terrorist attack) was done via Google Earth. There was no investment in technology of (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) platforms or anything like that," US Marine Corps...
03:18:54 PM May 16, 2012
US puts sanctions on Dawood aides Chhota Shakeel, Tiger Memon

US puts sanctions on Dawood aides Chhota Shakeel, Tiger Memon

The United States on Tuesday slapped sanctions against Dawood Ibrahim's two top aides, Chhota Shakeel and Tiger Memon, for their role in drug trafficking in the region. ...
09:46:15 AM May 16, 2012

Greece to hold new election, jolts euro markets

Greece to hold new election, jolts euro markets Athens: Attempts to form a government in Greece collapsed on Tuesday, jolting financial markets at the prospect that leftists opposed to the terms of an EU bailout could sweep to victory in a June election and tip the euro zone deeper into crisis. The turmoil in Athens sent shock waves around other troubled members of the 17-nation European single currency area. The euro slipped below $1.28, world stocks slid and...
08:50:43 AM May 16, 2012

Historic diamond sold for $ 9.7 mn at auction

Historic diamond sold for $ 9.7 mn at auction Geneva: Marie de Medici wore it at her coronation as Queen Consort of Henry IV in France in 1610, and now the Beau Sancy diamond is a lavish accessory owned by an anonymous bidder who paid $9.7 million for it at Sotheby's auction. The spring auction season for jewelry and watches is upon Geneva, where elegant lakefront hotels fill with well-heeled buyers and bidders in a scene far removed from...
08:31:39 AM May 16, 2012

US puts sanctions on Dawood Ibrahim's 2 top aides

US puts sanctions on Dawood Ibrahim's 2 top aides Washington: The United States on Tuesday slapped sanctions against underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's two top aides, Chhota Shakeel and Tiger Memon, for their role in drug trafficking in the region. The US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Chhota Shakeel and Ibrahim 'Tiger' Memon as Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act) for their roles as part of...
03:02:08 AM May 16, 2012

Somali leader backs Indian action against pirates

Somali leader backs Indian action against pirates New Delhi: Against the backdrop of Somali pirates currently holding over 60 Indian sailors as hostages, the African country's Puntland state has backed military operations to rescue them and to fight piracy, even as its President Abdirahman Mohammed Mohamud Farole is in India to work out a naval capacity building agreement. "I always support the military operations to fight piracy," Farole told reporters on the sidelines of an event he...
02:18:41 AM May 16, 2012

Syria attack kills 21; rebels say protect UN monitors

Syria attack kills 21; rebels say protect UN monitors Beirut: At least 21 people were killed on Tuesday in an attack in northern Syria, activists said, and members of a team of UN monitors caught in the incident said they were in rebel hands "for their own protection." When Reuters asked one of the four monitors by phone if they were being held prisoner, he said: "We are safe with the (rebel) Free Army." A spokesman for the rebel...
02:03:51 AM May 16, 2012

Lightning hits new French President's plane

Lightning hits new French President's plane Paris: Socialist Francois Hollande took over as France's President on Tuesday and jetted off to Berlin hours later for talks on Europe's debt crisis - only to have his plane struck by lightning. No one was hurt. It was a startling beginning for a man who promised to be a more "normal" President, and less flashy than his predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy, who was ousted by voters after a single term...
01:02:24 AM May 16, 2012