BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) -- Brazil's supreme court has voted to authorize abortions in cases of fetuses with no brains.Abortion is illegal in Brazil except when a pregnancy threatens the life of the mother and in cases of rape. The Supreme Federal Tribunal's 8-2 vote Thursday now decriminalizes abortions involving anencephalic fetuses. Such fetuses develop without brains and cannot survive outside th

April 13, 2012

South Korea's central bank on Friday left the key interest rate unchanged for the 10th straight month in April, as lingering inflationary concerns and weak pace of economic recovery challenge policymakers. Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Kim Choong-soo and his fellow policymakers froze the benchmark 7-day repo rate at 3.25 percent for this month, as widely expected. All 20 analysts polled by Yonhap Infom

April 13, 2012

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - The UN Security Council will meet in emergency session on Friday to discuss the situation in North Korea after Pyongyang launched a long-range rocket, a UN diplomat said Thursday.The diplomat told AFP the 15-member Council would meet "to decide its next step" following the launch, which the United States and several other nations have claimed is in fact a disguised missile t

North Korea April 13, 2012

BEIJING (AP) -- The World Bank cut its growth forecast for China on Thursday, adding to warnings the world's second-largest economy might slow too abruptly, and said Beijing should be ready to launch a new stimulus if needed.The bank stressed it expects a ``soft landing'' but trimmed its growth outlook this year to a still-robust 8.2 percent from 8.4 percent. It cited U.S. and European economic wo

World Business April 12, 2012

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (AP) -- An Arkansas judge fined Johnson & Johnson and a subsidiary more than $1.1 billion Wednesday for downplaying and concealing risks associated with the antipsychotic drug Risperdal, a ruling that could affect dozens of pending lawsuits over the drug.Circuit Judge Tim Fox ruled that Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. and its parent company must pay $5,000 for each of 240,000 Ri

Industry April 12, 2012

Park Geun-hye, the leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, vowed Thursday to use her party's crucial win in the general elections to deliver on its promise of a better life for the people."(We) will be sure to put into practice all the things we promised to the people," she said during a press conference at her party's headquarters in Seoul. "(We) will start anew with the mindset that we will be remem

Politics April 12, 2012

New scientific research raises the possibility that advanced versions of T. rex and other dinosaurs -- monstrous creatures with the intelligence and cunning of humans -- may be the life forms that evolved on other planets in the universe. "We would be better off not meeting them," concludes the study, which appears in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.In the report, noted scientist Rona

Technology April 12, 2012

TORONTO (AP) -- A spokeswoman for Korean Air says no bomb was found after authorities searched a Boeing 777 that was diverted to a Canadian military base after the airline's U.S. call center received a bomb threat.Korean Air spokeswoman Penny Pfaelzer said Wednesday the 149 passengers are on their way to Vancouver, British Columbia's airport where the plane will be refueled before heading to Seoul

Social Affairs April 12, 2012

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Justice Department sued Apple and five publishing firms Wednesday alleging a conspiracy to raise prices and limit competition for e-books, and immediately announced a partial settlement in the case.As the antitrust suit was unveiled, officials said three of the publishers agreed to end the scheme to force retailers such as Amazon to accept a new pricing plan that ended th

Technology April 11, 2012

MOSCOW (AP) -- A large opposition faction stormed out of Russia's parliament on Wednesday to protest Vladimir Putin's refusal to look into claims of vote-rigging in a mayoral election that has sparked nationwide anger.Putin, who returns for a third term as Russian president on May 7, told the Duma he had no authority over local elections and suggested that critics go to court instead to contest th

World News April 11, 2012

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Prime Minister Lucas Papademos on Wednesday called a general election in Greece for May 6, after his coalition government pushed through landmark financial relief deals that rescued the country from the threat of bankruptcy but doomed recession-hit Greeks to greater hardship.``The main goals of our government were achieved,'' Papademos told a Cabinet meeting, according to a

World News April 11, 2012

Rival parties were neck-and-neck Wednesday in South Korea's closely contested legislative election, a key test of sentiment before December's presidential vote, according to exit polls conducted by three major TV stations.The polls showed a tight race between President Lee Myung-bak's conservative Saenuri Party and the main opposition centre-left Democratic United Party.An exit poll by public broa

Politics April 11, 2012