ICC elects Gambian as chief prosecutor

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) ― International Criminal Court member states on Monday unanimously elected Fatou Bensouda of Gambia as the new chief prosecutor for the main genocide and war crimes tribunal.The post has become more prominent with the growth of international criminal justice over the past decade and Bensouda vowed to keep up pressure on leaders who order killings and violate rights.Bensouda, a former justice minister in Gambia, is currently the ICC deputy prosecutor. She will take over next

Dec. 13, 2011

Tunisia elects rights activist as president

TUNIS (AP) ― Tunisia’s new assembly chose a veteran rights activist Monday as the country’s first democratically elected president.Moncef Marzouki of the Congress for the Republic Party on Monday became interim president with 153 out of 217 votes in the assembly, with three voting against, two abstentions and 44 blank ballots cast as a protest vote by some members.“It is the greatest honor that anyone could dream of being elected by two thirds of the vote,” he said after the election that was fo

Dec. 13, 2011

Japan lawmaker eyes base on disputed islands

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Japan should consider building a military base on islands disputed with China to counter Beijing’s rising assertiveness, a leader of Japan’s opposition said Monday on a visit to the United States.Nobuteru Ishihara, sometimes seen as a future prime minister if his Liberal Democratic Party returns to power, said that Japan should also look more broadly at stepping up defense spending in the face of a rising China.Asia’s two largest economic powers dispute control of a set of uni

Dec. 13, 2011

Canada becomes 1st to pull out of Kyoto Protocol

Ottawa: Climate deal that doesn’t cover U.S. and China will not workTORONTO (AP) ― Canada pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change Monday, saying the accord won’t help solve the climate crisis. It dealt a blow to the anti-global warming treaty, which has not been formally renounced by any other country.Environment Minister Peter Kent said that Canada is invoking its legal right to withdraw and said Kyoto doesn’t represent the way forward for Canada or the world.Canada, joined by Japan

Dec. 13, 2011

Fish may have started walking underwater: study

 

Dec. 13, 2011

Chinese media say 15 killed in school bus crash

BEIJING (AP) _ Chinese state media say a school bus belonging to a primary school has overturned, killing at least 15 students, despite a recent government pledge to improve school safety after an earlier crash of a school van. The official Xinhua News Agency did not give the ages of the victims

Dec. 13, 2011

Canada pulls out of Kyoto Protocol

TORONTO (AP) _ Canada's environment minister said Monday his country is pulling out of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change.Peter Kent said that Canada is invoking its legal right to withdraw and said Kyoto doesn't represent the way forward for Canada or the world.Canada, joined by Japan and Russia,

Dec. 13, 2011

Taliban spokesman denies peace talks

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) ― A Pakistani Taliban spokesman denied Sunday an earlier announcement by the militant group’s deputy chief that it was holding peace talks with the government.The conflicting claims are a clear sign of splits within the movement, which could make it harder for Islamabad to strike a deal to end the violent insurgency gripping the country. At the same time, the cracks could make it easier to suppress the insurgency militarily.The Pakistani government, meanwhile, said the U.

Dec. 12, 2011

Mexico finds tunnel at northern border

MEXICO CITY (AP) ― The Mexican army says it has found a 50-meter long tunnel starting under a building in the northern city of Nogales, which is across the border from Nogales, Arizona.The Defense Department says the tunnel two meters under the surface may have been used to cross the border into the United States. However, the department’s statement Sunday does not say whether the tunnel actually reaches into U.S. territory or whether any entrance on the U.S. side has been found.Such tunnels fou

Dec. 12, 2011

Ivory Coast legislative polls see low turnout

ABIDJAN (AP) ― Ivory Coast’s second national poll in 11 years drew little voter interest, a stark contrast to last year’s massive presidential election which later sent the West African nation spiraling into violence.The parliamentary election, the first the country has had since 2000, saw voters trickling into polling stations in the commercial capital, the scene of months of violence after the former strongman refused to accept his loss in last year’s poll.Some 1,100 candidates vied for 255 le

Dec. 12, 2011

Libyan militia, army clash near airport

TRIPOLI (AP) ― Revolutionary fighters clashed with national army troops near Tripoli’s airport, leaving one person dead, officials said Sunday. The violence reflects the difficulties Libya’s new leaders face as they try to stamp their authority on the disparate militias that overthrew Moammar Gadhafi.Army spokesman Sgt. Abdel-Razik el-Shibahy said fighters from the western mountain town of Zintan, who control Tripoli’s international airport, opened fire on two occasions on Saturday on the convoy

Dec. 12, 2011

Syria activists call strike, fears of Homs invasion grow

DAMASCUS (AFP) ― A general strike was observed on Sunday in several regions of Syria to step up the pressure on the regime, activists said, as fears grew of an “invasion” of the besieged protest hub of Homs.In the latest bloodshed, 12 civilians were killed by security forces across Syria on Sunday, including three children, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.Five people, including two of the children, were killed by gunfire in Homs, the group said, adding that at least 46 were also

Dec. 12, 2011

‘NATO to halt Iraq mission at year-end’

LONDON (AFP) ― NATO will withdraw its Iraq training mission at year-end after Baghdad refused to grant it legal immunity, Iraq’s top security adviser said on Sunday, mirroring the nearly-complete pullout of U.S. forces.But a NATO official in Brussels denied that any decision had been taken.Iraq said the end of the mission was a surprise, with NATO previously having agreed in principle to staying through to the end of 2013.“NATO surprised us with this decision,” National Security Adviser Falah al

Dec. 12, 2011

U.S. Democrats encouraged about Obama

WASHNGTON (AP) ― After a dreary summer marred by the fight over government borrowing, rank-and-file Democrats say they are growing more optimistic about President Barack Obama’s re-election prospects in 2012. They cite his tougher, more populist tone and what they view as a chaotic presidential primary fight among Republicans.Many Democrats acknowledged that high unemployment and economic uncertainty create formidable obstacles for the incumbent. But interviews with more than a dozen Democratic

Dec. 12, 2011

New method boosts blood-clotting for hemophiliacs

ATLANTA (AP) _ In what's being called a landmark study, researchers used gene therapy to successfully treat six patients with severe hemophilia, a blood-clotting disorder.The study was preliminary and involved only six patients, and other promising early attempts to use gene therapy against hemophil

Dec. 12, 2011