Saturday, February 14, 2009
International
CREW NOTED ICE BUILDUP BEFORE U.S. CRASH
Investigators say they have recovered flight data recorders that
might offer some clue into why a Continental commuter flight
crashed in New York State, killing 49 people on board and one
man on the ground.
.
CLINTON WARNS, WOOS NORTH KOREA
The United States is prepared to seek a permanent, peace with
North Korea as long as it pursues disarmament and does not
engage in aggression against neighboring South Korea, U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on the eve of her trip
across Asia.
U.S. CONGRESS APPROVES MASSIVE STIMULUS PLAN
The U.S. Senate gives final approval to a $787 billion
economic-stimulus package backed by President Obama, with
Democratic Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown returning from his mother's
wake to cast the 60th vote in favor of it.
2 HURT IN LONDON CITY AIRPORT CRASH
A British Airways jet carrying 67 passengers and five crew
members crashed on landing at London City Airport on Friday,
injuring two people.
PAKISTAN: 20 DEAD FROM AIRSTRIKE
Twenty people were killed early Saturday after a suspected U.S.
airstrike in northwest Pakistan, a intelligence official said.
G7 MINISTERS FOCUS ON REFORMS, TRANSPARENCY
Finance ministers from the world's leading industrialized
nations were holding their second and last day of meetings in
Rome on Saturday with an agenda squarely focused on the world
financial crisis.
WOMEN, KIDS AMONG 38 KILLED NEAR IRAQ FESTIVAL
A female suicide bomber detonated in a crowd of primarily women
and children on their way to a religious festival Friday,
killing at least 35 people and wounding 45 others, an Interior
Ministry official said.
__________________________________
BUSINESS
$250K MICROSOFT BOUNTY ON WORM CREATOR
Software giant Microsoft is offering a $250,000 reward for
information leading to the arrest and conviction of hackers
behind a powerful computer virus that could lead to millions of
PCs being hijacked.
AUSTRALIA APPROVES $26.5B STIMULUS PLAN
Australian leaders passed a $42 billion (US $26.5 billion)
stimulus package Friday in response to the global recession.
LLOYDS SHARES PLUNGE FOLLOWING HBOS LOSSES
Lloyds Banking Group saw its share price tumbled Friday after
reporting worse-than-expected profits for its subsidiary HBOS.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Breaking News: Congress passes $787B stimulus plan
WASHINGTON -- Congress passes President Obama's $787 billion stimulus plan.
International
PLANE CRASHES IN NEW YORK, KILLING 49 PEOPLE
Police say 44 passengers and four crewmembers on Continental
Flight 3407 were killed when their plane crashed in New York
State. The plane was en route from Newark, New Jersey, to
Buffalo when it went down. Authorities say a person on the
ground was also killed.
MAN CHARGED WITH ARSON IN AUSTRALIA WILDFIRES
Police have arrested a man in connection with one of the myriad
wildfires that have laid waste to parts of southeastern
Australia and killed at least 181 people.
ANOTHER OBAMA CABINET NOMINEE WITHDRAWS
U.S. Republican senator Judd Gregg has withdrawn his nomination
as U.S. President Barack Obama's commerce secretary, citing
"irresolvable conflicts" over Obama's stimulus bill and the
upcoming 2010 census.
HAMAS: GAZA TRUCE AGREEMENT NEAR
Israeli and Hamas negotiators have "almost reached agreement" on
a long-term truce for Gaza, a spokesman for Hamas told CNN early
Friday. Tahir Annono, who is in Cairo for the truce meetings,
said an announcement would be made on Sunday. It was not
immediately clear if Israel was in agreement.
KARZAI: U.S. MUST STAY IN AFGHANISTAN FOR NOW
President Hamid Karzai said that with a resurgent Taliban, a
still-flourishing drug trade and a border with Pakistan believed
to be home base for al Qaeda, Afghanistan can't afford for U.S.
troops to leave any time soon.
U.S. 'SOUGHT GENEVA CONVENTIONS LOOPHOLES'
The Pentagon tried to find loopholes in the Geneva Conventions
for its "ghost detainee" program of housing people at secret
facilities, and to delay the release of Guantanamo Bay
prisoners, three human rights groups contend.
DEAD RODENTS AT PEANUT PLANT LEAD TO RECALL
The Texas Department of State Health Services on Thursday
ordered the recall of all products ever shipped from the Peanut
Corporation of America's plant in Plainview, Texas, after
discovering dead rodents, rodent excrement and bird feathers in
the plant.
REBELS ACCUSED OF COLOMBIAN INDIAN KILLINGS
Marxist guerrillas in southwest Colombia are believed to have
killed a second group of Indians the rebels accused of helping
the government, a state governor said.
---------------------------------
BUSINESS
CRUNCH TIME FOR U.S. STIMULUS
Congress is set to send a $789 billion economic stimulus package
to President Obama's desk by Monday after lawmakers worked
around a disagreement over education funding in the package.
CHINALCO TO INVEST $19.5 BILLION IN RIO TINTO
Global mining giant Rio Tinto announced Thursday that China's
state-owned aluminum producer Chinalco would invest $19.5
billion in the Anglo-Australian resource giant.
Breaking News Thu., February 12, 2009
A Continental Plane With 48 People Onboard Has Crashed in Buffalo,
N.Y. [12:15 a.m. ET]
Breaking News
A Continental plane has crashed into a house in Buffalo, New York.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Breaking News Thu., February 12, 2009
Senate Confirms Leon Panetta as CIA Director [8:27 p.m. ET]
Sen. Judd Gregg withdraws from consideration to be Obama's commerce secretary
Sen. Judd Gregg withdraws from consideration to be Obama's commerce secretary
2/12/2009 4:23:41 PM EDT
International
OCTUPLETS' MOM SEEKS ONLINE DONATIONS
Nadya Suleman, the single mother of newborn octuplets, is using
the Internet to help support her family of 14 children. She's
started a Web site seeking donations.
PAKISTAN: ARRESTS MADE OVER MUMBAI ATTACKS
The Pakistani government acknowledgesay that "some part of the
conspiracy" behind the November attacks in India's financial
capital, Mumbai, took place in Pakistan.
AUSTRALIA PM SETS DAY OF MOURNING
A national day of mourning and a memorial service will honor the
victims of the past week's wildfires in southeastern Australia,
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced Thursday.
CLINTON MAY NAME N. KOREA ENVOY BEFORE TRIP
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton could appoint a special envoy
for North Korea before leaving for Asia next week, senior
administration officials said.
POWERFUL QUAKES RATTLE INDONESIA
A powerful series of earthquakes shook northeastern Indonesia
Thursday, injuring at least 11 people and damaging a number of
homes and other buildings, officials said.
SOURCES: U.S. STIMULUS BILL SNAG RESOLVED
Negotiators have worked out a disagreement between the U.S.
Senate and House over education funding that threatened to throw
a last-minute roadblock in front of the economic stimulus bill,
Democratic leadership sources have said.
U.S. NAVY ARRESTS PIRATE SUSPECTS OFF AFRICA
The U.S. Navy has captured seven suspected pirates in the Gulf
of Aden, the first arrests by a U.S.-led task force set up to
curb rampant piracy off the Horn of Africa, a Navy spokesman
said Wednesday.
REPORT: COLOMBIAN GUERRILLAS KILL 17 INDIANS
Guerrillas in Colombia tortured and killed 17 Indians who they
believed were helping the government, a governor and two human
rights organizations said Wednesday.
---------------------------------------
BUSINESS
SECOND SWISS BANK LOSES BILLIONS
Switzerland's Credit Suisse joins the list of banks revealing
disastrous results for 2008 after it reports losses of $7.1
billion (8.2 billion Swiss francs).
CHINA FARMERS STRUGGLING UNDER SEVERE DROUGHT
Fifty-year-old farmer Du Jianmin says if it doesn't rain soon in
his corner of northern China, his winter wheat crops -- which
his village of 120 people relies on for food for the year --
will die.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Breaking News Wed., February 11, 2009
Deal Reached Between House and Senate on Stimulus Bill [3:00 p.m. ET]
U.S. trade deficit falls to six-year low
BULLETIN: U.S. trade deficit falls to six-year low
2/11/2009 8:31:06 AM EDT
International
ISRAELI ELECTION RIVALS CLAIM VICTORY
Israel's elections end in rival claims of victory by Tzipi
Livni's ruling Kadima party and conservative Benjamin
Netanyahu's Likud -- a standoff likely to delay the formation of
a ruling coalition and hamper peace initiatives in the region.
TSVANGIRAI TO BE SWORN IN AS ZIMBABWE PM
Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai is expected to be sworn in
as prime minister Wednesday as part of a new unity government
that Zimbabweans hope will signal an end to the political and
economic crises that have gripped the nation for months.
WINDS SPREADING AUSTRALIAN WILDFIRES
Through a smoky haze, flames continue to dance around the
remains of a house, a shed and the blackened trunks of trees on
remarkable video footage filmed by a local resident Brad Price,
moments after a deadly firestorm swept through the rural
Victorian town of Kinglake, in southeast Australia.
U.S.: N. KOREA MISSILE SITE SHOWS ACTIVITY
A U.S. spy satellite snapped an image within the last several
days of preparations at a North Korean missile site previously
used for Taepodong-2 missile launch operations, a senior U.S.
official said.
MILITANT ATTACKS IN AFGHANISTAN LEAVE 13 DEAD
Taliban militants carried out attacks on two government
buildings in Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing 10 civilians and
three officials.
CHINA KILLS 13,000 BIRDS TO CONTROL 'EPIDEMIC'
China has killed 13,000 birds in the country's far northwest to
control what it called an epidemic of bird flu, state media
reported Tuesday.
.
BELGIAN 'AL QAEDA CELL' LINKED TO AIRLINE PLOT
Last December 11, fourteen individuals were arrested in the
early hours of the morning in one of the largest
counterterrorism operations in Belgian history. Six were
eventually charged with participation in a terrorist group. The
others were released.
ASIAN MARKETS FOLLOW WALL STREET'S DECLINE
Asian and Pacific stocks dipped Wednesday following Wall
Street's negative reaction to U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy
Geithner's plan to overhaul the nation's bank bailout plan.
_______________________________
BUSINESS
UBS POSTS RECORD LOSS, CUTS 1,600 JOBS
Switzerland's biggest bank UBS on Tuesday posted a worse than
expected loss of nearly $17 million -- the largest ever by a
Swiss group -- and announced 1,600 new job cuts.
REPORT: CHINA'S EXPORTS, IMPORTS DOWN
China's exports plunged 17.5 percent, to $90.45 billion, in
January, compared with the previous year, state-run media
reported Wednesday.
OBAMA URGES ACTION ON STIMULUS PROPOSAL
U.S. President Barack Obama used his first prime-time news
conference to push the American Congress to approve his
administration's economic stimulus plan.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Breaking News: Stocks plunge on bank bailout news
NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks fell more than 4% Tuesday as investors turned
skeptical about the government's latest bank bailout plan. Financial
stocks led the market lower after Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner
unveiled his revamped plan to deal with the country's financial
crisis. The Dow Jones industrials were down 382 at 7,889. The Standard
& Poor's 500 index is down 42 at 827, and the Nasdaq composite is down
66 at 1,524.
Breaking News Tue., February 10, 2009
Dow Drops More Than 400 Points as Investors Express Frustration With
New Bailout Plan [3:23 p.m. ET]
Senate moves economic recovery plan big step forward, passing $838 billion bill that must now be reconciled with House version.
Senate moves economic recovery plan big step forward, passing $838
billion bill that must now be reconciled with House version.
News Alerts!
FBI raids peanut butter plant suspected in outbreak
02/10/09 03:52 AM, EST
FBI agents Monday raided a rural Georgia peanut butter plant suspected
as the source of a nationwide salmonella outbreak : reports.
International Headline News
TOP STORIES
OBAMA: U.S. LOOKING FOR DIALOGUE WITH IRAN
The United States is looking for opportunities for
"face-to-face" dialogue with Iran after nearly three decades
without diplomatic ties, President Barack Obama said Monday, but
still has "deep concerns" about Tehran's actions.
PALESTINIANS DESPAIR AHEAD OF ISRAEL ELECTION
As Israel prepares to vote Tuesday after an election campaign
dominated by issues of security and war, CNN's Ben Wedeman finds
a pervasive mood of hopelessness and despair amid growing
pessimism about the prospects of Palestinian statehood.
U.S. STIMULUS BILL CLEARS KEY SENATE HURDLE
The Senate will continue debate Monday over the proposed $800
billion stimulus package while President Obama's top economic
advisers said action must be taken now to avert disaster.
OBAMA URGES ACTION ON STIMULUS PROPOSAL
U.S. President Barack Obama used his first prime-time news
conference to push the American Congress to approve his
administration's economic stimulus plan.
PHILIPPINES WORKS TO SAVE 200 DOLPHINS
Authorities in the Philippines were trying to drive back to sea
a pod of about 200 dolphins that had swarmed to shallow waters
in Manila Bay on Tuesday morning.
1 KILLED, 7 WOUNDED IN CHINA HOTEL FIRE
Police in China say a fireworks display may be to blame for a
massive fire at a newly constructed, unoccupied luxury hotel
that killed a firefighter and wounded seven other people in
central Beijing Monday.
TOLL RISES FROM AUSTRALIA BUSH FIRES
The number of people confirmed killed in Australian bushfires
has risen to 170, and officials warn it could go higher. Arson
investigations have begun into some of the blazes sweeping
through the state of Victoria. More than 3,000 people have been
displaced, and Australian troops are being deployed to help
rescue and recovery.
LIBERIANS FACE MASS DEPORTATION FROM U.S.
Thousands of Liberians living in the United States face
deportation March 31 when a federal immigration status created
for humanitarian purposes expires.
-----------------------------
BUSINESS
ECONOMY: STARBUCKS OFFERS COFFEE PERKS
Starbucks, better known for amusingly complicated premium coffee
offerings, took a cue from fast-food chains and announced a plan
Monday to sell pairings of coffee and breakfast for $3.95,
citing the economic downturn.
WORKERS WALK OUT OF HONG KONG'S PCCW
Hundreds of workers from one of Hong Kong's largest
telecommunications companies stormed out of work Tuesday,
chanting protests about possible job cuts.
DISNEY STRIKES DEAL WITH DREAMWORKS
Walt Disney Studios has reached a distribution deal with Steven
Spielberg's DreamWorks Studios, the companies announced Monday.
Geithner unveils rescue: Spurs private investors to buy toxic assets; commits $1 trillion to boost lending; adds bank 'stress test.'
Geithner unveils rescue: Spurs private investors to buy toxic assets;
commits $1 trillion to boost lending; adds bank 'stress test.'
Selling gains steam on Wall Street: Dow sinks 300 points, falling below 8,000; Nasdaq and S&P 500 both off 3%.
Selling gains steam on Wall Street: Dow sinks 300 points, falling
below 8,000; Nasdaq and S&P 500 both off 3%.
GM to cut 10,000 more jobs in 2009: report
GM to cut 10,000 more jobs in 2009: report
2/10/2009 9:03:12 AM EDT
Monday, February 09, 2009
Breaking News: Stimulus bill advances in Senate
WASHINGTON (AP) - The economic stimulus legislation backed by
President Obama has passed a key test in the Senate over strong
Republican opposition. The vote late Monday was 61-36, one more than
the 60 needed. The $827 billion bill is expected to pass the Senate on
Tuesday, then go to the House for a final compromise.
Breaking News Mon., February 9, 2009
Alex Rodriguez Admits Using Performance Enhancing Drugs in Exclusive
ESPN Interview [2:18 p.m. ET]
International
DEATH TOLL RISES IN AUSTRALIAN BUSH INFERNO
Australia mobilizes its armed forces as wildfires continue to
decimate huge swathes of land in the southeastern state of
Victoria, claiming at least 131 lives and leaving thousands more
homeless. "This has been a devastating event for our state,"
said state premier John Brumby, whose own parents narrowly
escape the flames.
ISRAEL LAUNCHES FRESH GAZA AIR STRIKES
Israel launched air strikes against a number of targets in Gaza
Monday to retaliate against Palestinian militants who have fired
a "barrage" of rockets inside the Jewish state in recent days,
the military said.
BOMBER KILLS 17 IN SRI LANKA REFUGEE CAMP
At least 17 people were killed and 45 others wounded Monday when
a female suicide bomber blew herself up at a camp where
civilians had sought refuge from the fighting between government
troops and Tamil rebels in northern Sri Lanka, the defense
ministry said.
NISSAN TO SLASH 20,000 JOBS WORLDWIDE
Nissan, Japan's third-largest automaker, announced a series of
steps Monday to deal with the economic downturn, including
slashing its workforce by 20,000.
SRI LANKA SAYS 10,000 CIVILIANS FLEE FIGHTING
The Sri Lankan government said Sunday that more than 10,000
civilians have fled fighting between government forces and Tamil
rebels in northern Sri Lanka over the past week, a "sudden
increase" in people displaced by the violence.
SOURCES: IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN PULLOUTS DELAYED
Decisions about withdrawing troops from Iraq and sending more
troops to Afghanistan have been delayed until the Pentagon
provides U.S. President Barack Obama with more detail about the
risks and implications of the issues confronting him, according
to two senior Pentagon officials.
KHATAMI TO CHALLENGE IRAN'S AHMADINEJAD
Ending weeks of speculation, former Iranian President Mohammad
Khatami announced Sunday that he will run against the hardline
incumbent, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, according to Iranian
media reports.
PLANT, KRAUSS WIN GRAMMY RECORD OF THE YEAR
The Grammy Award broadcast may not have happened yet, but there
already quite a number of people with awards.
---------------------------
BUSINESS
U.S. JOB LOSSES WORST SINCE 1974
U.S. employers slashed another 598,000 jobs in January, pushing
the unemployment rate up to 7.6 percent, according to the U.S.
Labor Department -- the largest monthly loss since December
1974.
STIMULUS WILL LEAD TO 'DISASTER,' SENATOR SAYS
Leading Republicans warned Sunday that the Obama
administration's $800 billion-plus economic stimulus effort will
lead to what one called a "financial disaster."
KBR CHARGED WITH BRIBING NIGERIAN OFFICIALS
The former Halliburton subsidiary KBR has been charged with
bribing Nigerian government officials with "tens of millions of
dollars" to obtain "billions of dollars in contracts," according
to court documents filed late Friday in Houston, Texas.
Sunday, February 08, 2009
Treasury Department says Timothy Geithner's announcement about the new bank bailout plan will be postponed until Tuesday.
Treasury Department says Timothy Geithner's announcement about the new
bank bailout plan will be postponed until Tuesday.
International
DOZENS KILLED IN RAGING AUSTRALIA BUSHFIRES
The death toll from bushfires in southeastern Australia rises to
76 as thousands of firefighters continued to battle the flames,
police say. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced the
creation of a $6.5 million relief fund to help assist the more
than 600 families that have lost homes to the blaze.
EX-INDIAN PM 'STABLE,' REMAINS ON VENTILATOR
Former Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who has been
on a ventilator since Friday, is responding to his treatment,
according to his doctors.
CREWS SEARCH FOR BRAZIL PLANE CRASH SURVIVORS
Brazilian rescue teams brave strong currents looking for
survivors of a plane that crashed a day earlier into a river in
the Amazon.
GERMAN BISHOPS: HOLOCAUST DENIER MUST GO
Germany's Catholic bishops are calling for the expulsion of a
former bishop, recently brought back into the church by Pope
Benedict XVI, after new reports that he denies the Holocaust.
23 DEAD IN MADAGASCAR PROTEST SHOOTINGS
At least 23 people died when a protest rally turned violent
outside Madagascar's Presidential Palace. Some media reports
blamed foreign mercenaries for the shootings; others said army
guards were responsible or that the army was firing at the
mercenaries to protect the crowd.
BIDEN VOWS 'NEW TONE' IN U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden emphasizes a "new tone" in
Washington and around the world as he gives his first major
speech in Germany. Biden told delegates at a security conference
that the United States will work "preventively, not
pre-emptively" whenever possible to avoid conflict, and at the
same time "vigorously defend" the nation's security.
ROADSIDE BOMB KILLS 2 IRAQI PILGRIMS
A roadside bomb targeting Shiite pilgrims headed to Karbala for
a religious holiday killed two and wounded 11 others Sunday, the
interior ministry said.
U.S. SENATORS TO TAKE UP STIMULUS DEBATE MONDAY
U.S. senators continue to debate the massive economic recovery
package after a group of lawmakers reached a compromise
agreement that trimmed billions in spending from an earlier
version.
-----------------------------------------
BUSINESS
U.S. JOB LOSSES WORST SINCE 1974
U.S. employers slashed another 598,000 jobs in January, pushing
the unemployment rate up to 7.6 percent, according to the U.S.
Labor Department -- the largest monthly loss since December
1974.
KBR CHARGED WITH BRIBING NIGERIAN OFFICIALS
The former Halliburton subsidiary KBR has been charged with
bribing Nigerian government officials with "tens of millions of
dollars" to obtain "billions of dollars in contracts," according
to court documents filed late Friday in Houston, Texas.
ITALY SPURS NEW CAR SALES
The Italian government approved a stimulus package Friday that
aims to encourage consumers to purchase durable goods,
especially cars and trucks, but also household appliances and
furniture.
Breaking News
Death toll from Australian bushfires rises to 65 as thousands of
firefighters continue to battle the flames
