February 9, 2010
Fresh from his electoral victory, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has dissolved parliament to pave the way for new parliamentary elections. Rajapaksa’s main rival in the recent presidential election, former Sri Lankan Army chief General Fonseka was arrested on what are said to be “military matters,” New York Times.
New video obtained by Al Jazeera apparently shows Nigerian security forces executing members of Boko Haram, an Islamic group, Al Jazeera.
An appeals court in Saudi Arabia has upheld the conviction of a man who was sentenced to 5 years in jail and 1,000 lashes for speaking about his sex life on television, BBC News.
A shop owner in Britain has started using a fingerprint scanner to identify his customers in an effort to stop minors from buying cigarettes and liquor. Customers voluntarily submit their identification to verify their age and then allow their fingerprints to be scanned, BBC News.
February 7, 2010
Iran has ordered its nuclear chief to begin enriching uranium. Iran says the enriched uranium will be used in a research reactor, BBC News.
55 nations submitted their plans for reducing carbon emissions this week, New York Times.
U.S. President Barack Obama released his proposed 2011 budget. One of the cuts will scrap plans by NASA to sends humans back to the moon by 2020, CNN.
The British medical journal, The Lancet, retracted publication of a 1998 study that suggested the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine was linked to autism, Boston Herald.
February 5, 2010
27 Shiite pilgrims on their way to the holy city of Karabala in Iraq were killed when a suicide car bomber struck. Over 60 were injured. Violent car bombings had increased in Iraq in the lead-up to the March 7 parliamentary elections, Wall St. Journal.
2 bombs in Pakistan also targeted Shiite Muslims, BBC News. Ethnic violence in Karachi, Pakistan, Al Jazeera.
4 British politicians, including 3 members of parliament, have been charged of theft in an expense scandal. Politicians charged personal expenses to their government accounts, Times Online.
February 4, 2010
A problem with the braking system has prompted a recall the 2010 Toyota Prius. Toyota recently recalled several models for a problem with the brakes, though in that case the floor mat was in danger of getting caught under the brake pedal. The U.S. Department of Transportation is investigating the timeliness of Toyota’s announcement, BBC News. Recall Q & A, BBC News. How to stop a car with a stuck gas pedal, CNN.
3 U.S. special forces servicemembers died after a suicide car bombers struck in Pakistan earlier this week. 35 people have been arrested in connection with the bombing, Voice of America. The U.S. offers military assistance to Pakistan, but is not formally fighting in the country, New York Times.
People in Pakistan protested the conviction of a Pakistani scientist for the attempted murder of U.S. service members. Aafia Siddiqui is said to have grabbed a weapon and fired on her interrogations as she was being questioned in Afghanistan in 2008, Al Jazeera.
February 3, 2010
U.S. President Barack Obama unveiled his $3.8 trillion 2011 budget. The budget will include a $1.56 trillion deficit as the U.S. attempts to climb out of recession, BBC News.
A suicide bomb attack in Iraq killed 46 pilgrims on their way to Karbala. The suicide bomber was a woman, Al Jazeera.
France has denied citizenship to a man who forces his wife to wear a full Islamic veil, Al Jazeera.
An Indian man in Melbourne who said he was attacked by 4 Australians has now admitted to maing the story up. Tensions are high between Australians and Indians living and visiting Australia, BBC News.
January 31, 2010
A group reportedly trying to help orphaned Haitian children was arrested on charges of child trafficking. 10 Americans were arrested for attempting to take 33 children across Haiti’s border. The children had no documentation, ABC.
U.S. President Barack Obama gave his first State of the Union address on Wednesday night in front of both houses of Congress. He called for Congress to work together to pass meaningful legislation. He also pledged to create more jobs. Full text of the address, New York Times.
Reclusive novelist J.D. Salinger died this week. Salinger wrote the groundbreaking novel “The Catcher in the Rye” about the disaffected teenager Holden Caulfield, New York Times.
American historian Howard Zinn also died this week. Zinn wrote the alternative history textbook, “A People’s History of the United States” which looked at American history through the lens of disenfranchised groups who fought to be included in American democracy, New York Times.
January 30, 2010
In response to this week’s Supreme Court ruling that corporations are entitled to the same freedoms of speech held by individuals, Murray Hill, a Maryland public relations firm, announced that it intends to run for Congress, Baltimore City Paper.
In his State of the Union address, President Obama rebuked the Supreme Court for its controversial 5-4 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission, prompting a response from Justice Samuel Alito, Christian Science Monitor.
The ruling may have unintended consequences, including opening the door to political campaign contributions from foreign entities, Washington Post.
Full coverage of Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission from Bill Moyers Journal.
A new study by the Highway Loss Data Institute concludes that distraction, not cell phones are to blame for most car crashes, CNET.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced this week that it will spend $10 billion on research and distribution of vaccines, Reuters.
Gunmakers in Pakistan, even working with limited resources, can produce 1,000 guns a day. First hand account from CNN.
January 29, 2010
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair is testifying on his decision to partner with the United States to take Great Britain into the Iraq War in 2003 today, Voice of America. Key points of Blair’s testimony, the Guardian. Guide to the inquiry, BBC News.
Members of the Uighur ethnic group living in China who fled to Cambodia after riots caused by ethnic unrest last July were forcibly returned to China in December. Their whereabouts now are unknown, Human Rights Watch says. HRW is calling for the Chinese government to say where they are being held and to give those detained fair trials, BBC News.
Aid is still not reaching many of the needy in Haiti, even 2 weeks after the earthquake that reduced the capital city of Port-au-Prince to rubble, Al Jazeera.
