The Irish Times - World

Town hosts its 100th repatriation of Afghan war dead

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 10:36:41 GMT

THE BELLS of St Bartholomew and All Saint’s Church in Wootton Basset tolled at 1.55pm yesterday. Silence descended upon the hundreds gathered on the main street of the Wiltshire town. Old men stood erect and saluted.

In Short

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:46 GMT

A round-up of today's world news stories in brief

Ecological change means it's sink or swim down on the bayou

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:46 GMT

LOUISIANA LETTER:If the marsh areas are destroyed, the consequences for the flow of the Mississippi will be significant – with serious and lasting repercussions for the US economy

Alleged killers who harvested human fat arrested in Peru

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:46 GMT

POLICE IN Peru have arrested members of a gang which allegedly killed scores of peasants, drained their bodies of fat and sold it abroad as an anti-wrinkle cosmetic.

Oprah Winfrey announces show to end in September next year

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:46 GMT

CHICAGO – Oprah Winfrey said yesterday she would end her popular TV show in 2011 because it “feels right in her bones” after 25 years. She urged her viewers not to believe rumours as to why.

Violence after Algeria's soccer win prompts lockdown in Cairo

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

PARTS OF Cairo were under police lockdown last night amid some of the worst football violence ever seen in the region.

US military to investigate Fort Hood shooting

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

WASHINGTON – The US military will investigate the circumstances surrounding the shootings at Fort Hood, including possible “gaps and deficiencies” in identifying those in all service branches who may pose a threat to their colleagues, defence secretary Robert Gates said.

Transsexual in Italian political scandal found murdered

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

ROME – A Brazilian transsexual caught up in a scandal that prompted the resignation of a senior Italian politician – the centre-left governor of Lazio region, which includes Rome – was found burnt to death in her home yesterday.

Sarkozy hopes to honour Camus by transferring ashes to Paris Panthéon

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

PRESIDENT NICOLAS Sarkozy has signalled his hope that the remains of the writer Albert Camus should be transferred to the Panthéon, the Parisian burial place of great Frenchmen.

Lithuania investigates claim it ran secret prison

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

LITHUANIA’S PARLIAMENT is investigating claims that the US Central Intelligence Agency turned an exclusive riding school outside the capital, Vilnius, into a secret interrogation centre for high-value al-Qaeda prisoners.

Ashton rejects claims she lacks correct experience

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

INCOMING EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, a Briton who has never been elected to public office, has defended her appointment against critics who claim she lacks relevant experience.

Iran urged to back plan on processing uranium abroad

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

BERLIN – The UN nuclear watchdog chief yesterday urged Iran to accept an offer to process its enriched uranium abroad by the end of 2009, and advised western powers not to impose further sanctions on Tehran.

Suicide attack and bomb kill 22 in latest attacks

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:26:45 GMT

HERAT – A suicide bomber in southwestern Afghanistan killed 17 people yesterday, and an Afghan deputy escaped a separate blast on the outskirts of Kabul but five of his bodyguards were killed, officials said.

In short

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

A roundup of today's other world news in brief

Investigation into alleged activities of SA mercenaries in Guinea begins

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS have launched an investigation into whether South African mercenaries have been training supporters of Guinea’s military dictatorship following allegations they have been seen near Conakry, the capital.

US healthcare battle moves to Senate as new Bill published

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

WASHINGTON – US Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid has released a long-awaited healthcare reform plan that budget analysts say will extend coverage to tens of millions of the uninsured and reduce the deficit over 10 years.

Katrina claims could run to billions on negligence ruling

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

THE US government faces compensation claims worth billions of dollars from victims of Hurricane Katrina after a federal judge found that negligence on the part of the army’s corps of engineers was directly responsible for some of the most extreme flooding.

Melting Arctic sea ice diluting water which puts food chain at risk

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

HONG KONG – Melting of Arctic sea ice due to global warming is diluting surface waters and this is endangering some species of shellfish which need minerals in the water to form their shells and skeletons, scientists have found.

Archbishop challenges Catholic Church

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

THE ARCHBISHOP of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, speaking in Rome last night, appeared to throw down a challenge to the Catholic Church when he suggested that issues which separate Anglicans and Catholics may not be as “fundamentally church-dividing as our Roman Catholic friends generally assume”.

Prince Charles opposes plans critics say will make 'theme parks' of schools

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

PRINCE CHARLES has opposed plans by the British government to reform the teaching of history and geography in English schools, following warnings by one of his closest advisers that they threaten to turn schools into ‘globalised theme parks”.

US to send envoy to N Korea to get talks restarted

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

BARACK OBAMA ended his first trip to Asia as US president in Seoul yesterday, saying an American envoy would visit North Korea early next month to try and kick-start stalled negotiations about quelling the North’s nuclear ambitions.

Formidable task facing newcomer to diplomacy

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

STILL VIRTUALLY unknown in international politics, EU trade commissioner Baroness Catherine Ashton took a unexpected leap forward last night when she was made foreign policy chief of the EU.

Van Rompuy set to be consensus-driven president

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

HERMAN VAN Rompuy is a low-key intellectual, a Christian Democrat with a penchant for writing haiku poems and a conciliatory political style.

Ryanair denies aircraft flew too low

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

A GERMAN pensioner has been taken to hospital after a Ryanair aircraft allegedly flew so low that it knocked tiles off her roof.

Karzai sworn in as Afghan president for second term

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

AFGHANISTAN PRESIDENT Hamid Karzai yesterday said he was determined that the Afghan army should be built up so it can take over responsibility from foreign troops for securing the entire country within five years.

Marathon session ends with choice of low-key figures

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:54:10 GMT

FOR A long time it looked like there might not be a deal but a compromise was emerging even as EU leaders and their police outriders zoomed into the Justus Lipsius building in Brussels.

Government courageous on Gaza, says retired colonel

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:31:09 GMT

The Irish Government made a "courageous" decision in supporting a UN resolution calling for investigations into allegations that war crimes were committed during the conflict in Gaza earlier this year, the retired Irish colonel who participated in a fact-finding mission whose report prompted the resolution said yesterday.

Scotch whisky industry in litigious mood in defence of wee dram

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:31:09 GMT

LONDON LETTER:FEW ORGANISATIONS are as litigious. Every week, the Scotch Whisky Association has 70 legal actions on the go around the world in a never-ending battle to protect its members’ brands and reputation, writesMARK HENNESSY

In short

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:27 GMT

A roundup of today's other world news in brief

McCain defends top presidential campaign advisers

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:27 GMT

WASHINGTON – US Republican senator John McCain yesterday strongly defended the top advisers from his 2008 presidential campaign in the face of sharp criticism from his vice-presidential running mate, Sarah Palin.

Thousands of illegal settlers leave forest in Rift valley

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

SEVERAL THOUSAND people who had settled illegally in Kenya’s most important forest have left their homes at the beginning of an eviction plan designed to end rampant environmental degradation in the Rift valley.

Israel dismisses concerns over Gilo houses

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

ISRAELI LEADERS have dismissed mounting international criticism over plans to build an extra 900 homes in the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Gilo, on land captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

Women neglected by debate on climate change

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

WOMEN IN developing countries are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, but their plight has been largely overlooked in the debate over how to tackle the issue, according to a United Nations report published yesterday.

German spy on trial for sharing data with gay lover

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

A FORMER German spy has gone on trial in Munich accused of sharing classified information with his gay lover.

Presidency and foreign affairs representative: the main runners

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL:

Leaders in stalemate over filling of top EU positions

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

SWEDISH PRIME minister Fredrik Reinfeldt is making last-ditch attempts to stitch together a compromise deal between deadlocked EU leaders before a summit tonight to choose the first president of the European Council and the bloc’s new foreign policy chief.

Say sorry for slavery, Africans told

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

TRADITIONAL AFRICAN rulers whose ancestors collaborated with European and Arab slave traders should follow Britain and the US by saying sorry, according to human rights organisations.

Iraq general election in doubt as vice-president vetoes poll law

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s Sunni Arab vice-president vetoed an election law yesterday over the number of seats for refugees, prompting poll workers to halt some preparations and casting new doubt on whether the vote can take place in January.

Decision to move 9/11 trial to New York defended

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

US PRESIDENT Barack Obama suggested yesterday the self-professed mastermind of the September 11th, 2001, attacks would be convicted and put to death, but later said he was not trying to prejudge the trial.

Church fined but not banned in French ruling

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

IN PARIS last month, a court fined the French branch of the Church of Scientology €600,000 after finding it guilty of fraud, but stopped short of banning the group from operating in the country.

Scientology faces allegations of abuse and covering up deaths in Australia

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

THE CHURCH of Scientology in Australia was last night defending itself from a scathing attack by a politician using parliamentary privilege.

Speech sets out Brown's re-election promises

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

LEGAL COMMITMENTS to cut the UK’s spiralling debt and prevent future banking crises, along with guarantees of quick access to treatment for serious illnesses, will form the key planks of British prime minister Gordon Brown’s bid for re-election next year.

Obama holds trade talks with Chinese premier

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:01:26 GMT

LIKE MANY of his predecessors, Barack Obama visited the Great Wall on the last day of his visit to China, crowning a trip that revealed little chemistry between him and the Chinese leadership but underlined the increasingly close links between the two countries.

London 'Times' editor outlines online charging plans

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:46:24 GMT

JAMES HARDING, the editor of the LondonTimes, yesterday gave the clearest indication yet of how News International is going to start charging for its journalism online.

Mugabe lashes out at western policies

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:14:42 GMT

NOT FOR the first time, controversial Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe yesterday used a United Nations Rome forum to attack western critics and to defend land reform policies which have been blamed for plunging his people into starvation.

In Short

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

A round-up of today's other world news in brief

Study reveals upper classes of ancient Egypt were riddled with heart disease

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

HEART DISEASE plagued human society long before fry-ups and cigarettes, researchers have said.

Dementia patients worse off after UK hospitals, report finds

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

PEOPLE WITH dementia, who occupy one in four of all hospital beds in the United Kingdom, stay longer in hospital than other patients and leave in worse condition, according to a major report published yesterday.

Frenchwoman marries dead fiance

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

A FRENCHWOMAN whose fiance asked her to marry him two days before he was killed in a car crash has been granted a posthumous white wedding in their village.

50m Americans not able to buy sufficient food, survey finds

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

MORE THAN a million children regularly go to bed hungry in the US, according to a government report that shows a startling increase in the number of families struggling to put food on the table.

EU accord obliges Ireland to raise aid spending next year

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

MINISTER OF State for overseas development Peter Power has said most EU states, Ireland among them, are struggling to meet their development aid targets in the economic crisis.

T-Mobile says employee sold customer data to rivals

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:55 GMT

LONDON - An employee of mobile phone operator T-Mobile is facing prosecution after selling personal details of thousands of British customers to rival companies in an alleged major breach of data protection laws.

Czechs mark 1989 protests that broke grip of communism

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:53 GMT

THOUSANDS OF Czechs took to the streets of Prague yesterday to commemorate the start of the 1989 Velvet Revolution, six weeks of protests that toppled one of eastern Europe's most hardline communist regimes and carried dissidents into power.

Austrian government to recognise same-sex civil unions

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:50 GMT

THE GOVERNMENT of Austria has cleared the way for state recognition of same-sex civil unions from the start of next year.

Five sentenced to death over post-election unrest in Iran

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:49 GMT

TEHRAN - Five people have been sentenced to death and 81 have received jail terms of up to 15 years in connection with unrest which followed Iran's disputed June election, state broadcaster IRIB reported yesterday.

Somali pirates release crew of Spanish trawler

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:49 GMT

SOMALI PIRATES have released the 36-man crew of a Spanish trawler held hostage for the past six weeks.

Israeli army punishes soldiers for protesting over settler evictions

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:49 GMT

THE ISRAELI army has moved quickly to punish soldiers protesting against the dismantling of West Bank settler outposts, as the country's leaders warned about the dangers of what appears to be a growing trend in the traditionally apolitical military forces.

Abbas vows to pursue declaration of statehood

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:48 GMT

PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT Mahmoud Abbas has vowed to press ahead with plans to win United Nations backing for a unilateral declaration of independence despite yesterday's rejection of the initiative by the European Union.

Obama kowtow to emperor stirs up media storm among US conservatives

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:48 GMT

STAND STRAIGHT, clasp the hands at the side, bend from the waist and tilt the head forward. Keep the eyes cast down and watch for the reaction of your guest.

Brown may withdraw support for Blair in EU job

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:48 GMT

BRITISH PRIME minister Gordon Brown may withdraw support from Tony Blair's still-undeclared candidacy for the presidency of the European Council before European Union leaders meet in Brussels tomorrow.

Obama's remarks on Tibet tempered by praise for China

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:48 GMT

PRESIDENT BARACK Obama made strident comments about his host's human rights record yesterday, but tempered his remarks with praise of Beijing's growing economic sophistication and support for its efforts to reunite with Taiwan.

EU leaders deadlocked over new foreign post

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:31:48 GMT

THE SPANISH government has nominated foreign minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos for the post of EU foreign policy chief, a move that suggests the bloc's leaders remain deadlocked over the appointment with only one day to go before a crucial summit tomorrow night.

Experts warn of risk of stalemate over climate treaty

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:31:30 GMT

Without a firm agreement at the December talks, negotiations could end up dragging on like the Doha trade round, writesALISTER DOYLEin Copenhagen

In Short

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:55 GMT

A round-up of todays' world stories in brief

EU states putting off decision on top posts until the 11th hour

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:55 GMT

EUROPEAN DIARY:There is still little consensus over who should fill the new positions of European Council president and foreign policy chief

Gadafy entertains 200 of Rome's most glamorous

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:55 GMT

ROME – When the hostess agency put out the call for attractive, well-dressed women, under the age of 35 and over 1.7 metres tall, it was inundated with responses from hundreds of Roman women.

Politician says prize-winning writers have 'duty of restraint'

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:54 GMT

DO WINNERS of France’s most prestigious literary prize have a duty to tone down their criticisms of the government and be “mindful of national unity and the image of the country?”

Kosovo PM claims election victory and hails participation of Serbs

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:54 GMT

KOSOVAN PRIME minister Hashim Thaci’s party has claimed victory in the first local elections held in independent Kosovo, and hailed the participation of the fledgling state’s beleaguered Serb minority.

Bruton emphasises his track record

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:54 GMT

FORMER TAOISEACH and former EU ambassador to Washington John Bruton said last night that “canvassing was not an issue” in his bid to become president of the EU .

Nuclear body fears Iran may have more sites

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:53 GMT

THE UN nuclear watchdog has expressed fears that Iran may have other secret nuclear sites following the discovery of the facility hidden in a mountain near the holy city of Qom.

Edward Woodward, star of 'Callan' and 'The Wicker Man', dies aged 79

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:53 GMT

ACTOR EDWARD Woodward, who died yesterday aged 79, found wealth, stardom and acclaim for starring in a series of tough-guy roles, be it as spies, soldiers, cops or as a score-settling private eye.

Russia and EU agree on energy supply alert system

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:53 GMT

RUSSIA AND the EU agreed yesterday to create an alert system to warn of impending energy supply problems, amid mounting fears of a repeat of January’s gas crisis.

Afghan troops to step down from late 2010, says Brown

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:52 GMT

BRITISH SOLDIERS in Afghanistan could start to withdraw from day-to-day fighting with the Taliban next year and transfer responsibility to local security forces, said British prime minister Gordon Brown.

Irish support group calls for Government apology

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:52 GMT

THE IRISH Government should follow the example of the Australian prime minister by singling out the forgotten Irish victims of abuse and giving them an apology, the Templemore Forgotten Victims group said yesterday.

'I know I never felt loved, just lost and bewildered by my life'

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:00:52 GMT

Caroline Carrollwas made a ward of state and placed in a home aged only 14 months. Her troubles were only beginning