Obama signs order allowing $85B in spending cuts
Houston Chronicle
Houston Chronicle
Associated Press | March 1, 2013 | Updated: March 1, 2013 9:44pm Comments (0) E-mail Print Tweet Page 1 of 1 WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has signed an order authorizing the government to begin cutting $85 billion from federal accounts, officially enacting across-the-board reductions that he...
Nigerian City’s Homeless Are Increasingly Paying the Price of Progress
The New York Times
The New York Times
LAGOS, Nigeria — The young man with the crowbar stood on a heap of rubble — planks, pallets, remains of pots, bits of cardboard, wisps of clothing, chunks of concrete — indistinguishable from every other pile in a field of debris stretching far into the distance. Connect With Us on...
Odds against him, Obama still betting on big deal
Star Telegram
Star Telegram
Associated Press WASHINGTON — A fiscal deadline all but blown, President Barack Obama says he once again wants to seek a big fiscal deal that would raise taxes and trim billions from expensive and ever growing entitlement programs. But with automatic federal spending cuts ready to start taking...
South Africa suspends 8 policemen who dragged man behind vehicle
The Times of India
The Times of India
PRETORIA: South Africa suspended eight police officers on Friday after the death of a man they had bound to a vehicle and dragged through a busy street in a videotaped incident that has further blackened the reputation of the police. Mido Macia, a 27-year-old taxi driver from Mozambique, was found...
Syria crisis: John Kerry in Ankara for US-Turkey talks
BBC News
BBC News
New US Secretary of State John Kerry is visiting Turkey for talks expected to focus on the conflict in Syria. The two Nato allies both oppose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but differ on how best to support the opposition. On Thursday Mr Kerry promised direct aid to Syrian rebels in the form of...
US stares down start of steep 'automatic' budget cuts
The Times of India
The Times of India
WASHINGTON: The US government hurtled on Friday toward making deep spending cuts that threaten to hinder the nation's economic recovery, after Republicans and Democrats failed to agree on an alternative deficit-reduction plan. Locked in during a bout of deficit-reduction fever in 2011, the...
Hugo Chavez 'fighting for his life'
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Venezuela's vice president has said that President Hugo Chavez is fighting for his life while he continues to undergo treatment more than two months after his latest cancer surgery. Vice President Nicolas Maduro said on television on Thursday that Chavez "is battling there for his health, for his...
Benedict Departs Vatican, Pledges Obedience to Next Pope
Voa News
Voa News
Pope Benedict pledged his "unconditional reverence and obedience" to his successor Thursday, then left the Vatican as the first Roman Catholic Church leader to resign in 600 years. Benedict flew from the Vatican by helicopter to the papal residence of Castel Gandolfo near Rome, several...
Fresh violence threatens DR Congo peace deal
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Less than a week after the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring African nations signed a peace accord to hold off hostilties, a fresh wave of violence has erupted in the central African nation. Fighting erupted on Thursday between the Congolese troops and the rebel group Alliance of...
UK defeated as EU agrees to cap bankers' bonuses
The Independent
The Independent
European Union chiefs have agreed a package of financial laws that includes capping bankers' bonuses at a maximum of one year's basic salary. The bonuses will only be allowed to reach twice the annual fixed salary if a large majority of a bank's shareholders agrees, said Othmar Karas, the European...
U.S. Offers Training and Other Aid to Syrian Rebels
The New York Times
The New York Times
WASHINGTON — The United States is significantly stepping up its support for the Syrian opposition, senior administration officials said on Wednesday, helping to train rebels at a base in the region and for the first time offering armed groups nonlethal assistance and equipment that could help...
Pope recalls 'joy,' difficulties in final audience
The Guardian
The Guardian
NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press= VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Benedict XVI bid an emotional farewell Wednesday to his flock on the eve of his retirement, recalling in his final speech as pontiff moments of "joy and light" during his papacy but also times of difficulty when "it seemed like the Lord was...
Italy election: Beppe Grillo snubs deal with Bersani
BBC News
BBC News
Italian comedian-turned-politician Beppe Grillo, whose Five-Star Movement (M5S) defied expectations to come third in last weekend's elections, has ruled out a coalition with the centre-left. Pier Luigi Bersani's Democratic Party...
Putin calls for upgrade of Russian army
Jakarta Post
Jakarta Post
Russian President Vladimir Putin told the country's top brass on Wednesday to drastically upgrade the armed forces in the next few years as part of response to attempts by the United States and NATO to "tip the strategic balance" in the world. In his address to Russia's defense ministry and top...
