Category: Other
432 Chinese babies get kidney stones from tainted milk powder
BEIJING, September 13, 2008 (AFP) – China’s health minister said 432 babies had kidney stones after drinking contaminated milk powder and vowed to punish those responsible as the country’s latest product safety scandal escalated Saturday. Gao Qiang said production had been halted at Sanlu Group after industrial chemical melamine, added by farmers and milk sellers […]
Three dead in New Delhi blasts: report
NEW DELHI, September 13, 2008 (AFP) – Three people were killed as a series of blasts hit the Indian capital New Delhi on Saturday, television reports said. India’s Star News network said the three died in an explosion in the central Connaught Place district.Another Indian television network CNN-IBN also reported three people had died. Police […]
Venezuela expels US ambassador, threatens to cut oil
CARACAS, September 12, 2008 (AFP) – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez expelled the US envoy to Caracas late Thursday and threatened to halt crude exports to the United States on a day he highlighted the recent arrival of two Russian Tu-160 strategic bombers. Chavez on Thursday ordered US ambassador Patrick Duddy to leave the country within […]
Suspected US missile kills 12 in Pakistan: official
MIRANSHAH, September 12, 2008 (AFP) – A missile from a suspected US drone killed 12 people Friday in a Pakistani tribal area where US forces have been aggressively targeting Al-Qaeda militants — fuelling anger from its key “war on terror” ally. The missile hit a house on the outskirts of Miranshah, the main town in […]
Major quake shakes northern Japan, tsunami warning
TOKYO, September 11, 2008 (AFP) – A 7.0 magnitude earthquake shook northern Japan on Thursday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said, which warned of mild tsunami seismic waves. The undersea earthquake occurred at 9:21 am (0021 GMT) about 20 kilometres deep (12.4 miles) off Hokkaido island’s Tokachi region, some 700 kilometres north of Tokyo, the agency […]
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WASHINGTON, September 11, 2008 (AFP) – US Department of the Interior employees who handled billions of dollars in oil contracts improperly engaged in sex with energy company employees, a report released Wednesday said. The report drafted by the department’s inspector general Earl Devaney deplored “a culture of ethical failure” and said the investigation uncovered a […]
Kuwaiti shares nosedive on cash drain
KUWAIT CITY, September 11, 2008 (AFP) – Kuwaiti stocks ended the week through Thursday down six percent on lack of cashflow drained by huge IPOs and a strict monetary policy to combat inflation, analysts said. The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) Index finished the week at 13,123.90 points, the lowest level in eight months. The index […]
OPEC a spectator as oil sinks below US$100
VIENNA, September 9, 2008 (AFP) – Oil prices dipped below 100 dollars for the first time since April on Tuesday as OPEC met in Vienna, with pressure growing within the exporter group for Saudi Arabia to rein in its production. OPEC is expected to announce an unchanged production policy that in theory binds 12 of […]
Lehman Brothers in freefall as hopes fade for new capital
NEW YORK, September 9, 2008 (AFP) – Shares of Lehman Brothers went into a freefall Tuesday as hopes faded for an injection of fresh capital for the ailing Wall Street investment bank, analysts said. Lehman, one of Wall Street’s most prominent investment firms, saw its shares tumble 44.95 percent to end at 7.79. The shares […]
” found in Afghanistan
KABUL, September 8, 2008 (AFP) – An Afghan archaeologist has discovered the remains of an ancient 19-metre-long (62-foot) “sleeping Buddha” in central Afghanistan’s Bamiyan a government official said Monday.Bamiyan, about 140 kilometres (90 miles) northwest of Kabul, is on the ancient Silk Route between Europe and Central Asia. A team led by Zameryalai Tarzi had […]
Asif Ali Zardari sworn in as Pakistan president
ISLAMABAD, September 9, 2008 (AFP) – Asif Ali Zardari became Pakistan’s president Tuesday and faced immediate pressure to combat the Islamic militant insurgency that has engulfed the nation in the past year, as well as a struggling economy.Zardari, the controversial 53-year-old widower of slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, was sworn in at a closely-guarded ceremony […]
Oil prices fall to US$102, a five-month low, before OPEC meet
LONDON, September 9, 2008 (AFP) – Oil prices slumped to 102 dollars a barrel on Tuesday, the lowest level since the start of April, as the market waited to see whether OPEC would announce a change to its crude output levels. Brent North Sea crude for delivery in October hit exactly 102 dollars a barrel […]