Domine, in adjuvandum me festina - 4/25/2008

Tibet - China
In Shift, China Offers to Meet With Dalai Lama Envoys
New York Times - 2 hours ago
By JIM YARDLEY BEIJING - China appeared to bend to international pressure on Friday as the government announced it would meet with envoys of the Dalai Lama, an unexpected shift that comes as violent Tibetan demonstrations in western China have ...
China says it's ready to meet with aide to Dalai Lama The Associated Press
China Offers to Meet with Dalai Lama Representative Voice of America

World leaders hail China's nod for talks with Dalai's envoy
Hindu - 1 hour ago
London (PTI): World leaders on Friday welcomed China's decision to reopen dialogue with a representative of the Dalai Lama as a "major" and "first" step in resolving the vexed Tibet issue and to end the recent unrest there.
China, Dalai Lamato talk Melbourne Herald Sun
Sarkozy hails China's decision to meet Dalai Lama envoy Times of India

UE satisfecha por próxima reunión entre China y representantes de ...
Terra España - hace 1 hora
La Unión Europea manifestó hoy su satisfacción por el anuncio de una próxima reanudación del diálogo entre representantes de China y del Dalai Lama, líder espiritual del Tíbet. La agencia oficial Xinhua informó de que miembros del Gobierno central ...
Barroso dice en Pekín que sus conversaciones sobre el Tíbet fueron ... Público
Economía/Macro.- La visita de Barroso da inicio a las ... Finanzas.com

United Nations - US - Syria - North Korea
UN probes US Syria reactor claim
BBC News - 4 hours ago
The UN's nuclear watchdog says it will investigate US claims that Syria was building a secret nuclear reactor with North Korean help.
Video: Syrian ambassador rejects US nuclear charges AlJazeeraEnglish
Amanpour: Is US trying to force nuke standoff? CNN International

US Syria claims raise wider doubts
BBC News - 4 hours ago
By Jonathan Marcus More than half a year after the Israeli air strike that destroyed the alleged nuclear reactor under construction in Syria, Washington's release of what it says are still images of the facility before the raid amounts to the ...
UN Nuclear Watchdog Head Slams US for Withholding Syrian Nuclear Info Voice of America

Consideran peligrosa táctica de EU hacia Corea del Norte
Milenio - hace 4 horas
“El gobierno de Estados Unidos decidió encender una “bomba política” a su manera”, subrayó el periódico Suddeutsche Zeitung. Berlín.- El diario alemán Suddeutsche Zeitung consideró hoy como drástica y peligrosa la táctica utilizada por el servicio ...
Damasco denuncia las acusaciones estadounidenses como medio de presión Univisión
Funcionario de la ONU critica a EE.UU. Voice of America


Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe police raid opposition, election offices
The Associated Press - 1 hour ago
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - Heavily armed police swooped down on opposition headquarters and independent election observers' offices on Friday, arresting hundreds and beating and shoving scores of people in the clearest signal to date that the government ...
Mugabe's future may hold key to resolving Zimbabwe's crisis International Herald Tribune
Zimbabwe: SADC Pushes for GNU AllAfrica.com

Scores held as Zimbabwe police raid opposition HQ
AFP - 52 minutes ago
HARARE (AFP) - Zimbabwean police raided the headquarters of the opposition and independent election observers on Friday as the United States ratcheted up the diplomatic pressure on veteran President Robert Mugabe.
Video: Violence mars Zimbabwe election recounts - 23 Apr 08 AlJazeeraEnglish
Zimbabwean Riot Police Raid Opposition Party Offices Voice of America

US backs off comments on Zimbabwe election
International Herald Tribune - 46 minutes ago
AP WASHINGTON: The US State Department is backing off comments by its top Africa official asserting that Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai had won the country's presidential elections.

Israel - Palestine
Israel downplays Hamas peace offer
AFP - 47 minutes ago
JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israel on Friday dismissed as "not serious" a Hamas proposal for a six-month truce in Gaza, where UN agencies suspended aid distribution and warned that shortages hurt the peace process.
Security and Defense: Combat boosts Jerusalem Post
Israel firm on no talks with Hamas United Press International
West Bank shooting follows failed peace effort Euronews.net
Egypt sends police reinforcements to Gaza border Reuters South Africa

Pakistan
Car bomb kills at least three in Pakistan
Reuters - 2 hours ago
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pro-Taliban militants exploded a car bomb outside a police station in northwestern Pakistan on Friday, killing at least three people, police and a militant spokesman said.
US and Afghans doubt Pakistan's impending deal with militants International Herald Tribune
Police official says bomb kills 3 in northwestern Pakistan The Associated Press

Pakistan closing in on pact with militant's tribe
Reuters - 1 hour ago
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistan is close to clinching a peace pact with one of the most recalcitrant tribes in its lawless border regions to rein in a Taliban leader regarded as a cohort of al Qaeda.

Taliban commander in Pakistan orders halt to attacks
Town Hall - 11 hours ago
By MUNIR AHMAD The top Taliban commander in Pakistan called a cease-fire Thursday and ordered followers to halt attacks, while the government said it was pursuing peace talks with tribal elders in the volatile border region.
Car bomb at police station kills 3 in northwestern Pakistan; 24 ... PR-Inside.com (Pressemitteilung)
Militant Orders His Fighters to Stop Attacks in Pakistan Pakistani Newspaper

Iraq
Iraqi journalist killed in drive-by shooting north of Basra
International Herald Tribune - 1 hour ago
AP BAGHDAD: Iraqi police say a radio journalist has been killed in a drive-by shooting near the southern city of Basra. Adnan al-Asadi, the head of the local al-Nakhil radio station and police have identified the slain journalist as Jassim al-Batat.
Al-Sadr calls for end to Iraqi bloodshed The Associated Press
US planes strike Sadr City neighborhood of Baghdad, Iraqi official ... CNN International

Sadr Says Not to Attack Iraq Forces
New York Times - 57 minutes ago
He said he would oppose any American military bases in Iraq. He also issued a “final warning” to the Iraqi government to end its crackdown or face an “open war until liberation.
FACTBOX: Security developments in Iraq, April 25 Reuters
Aide to Iraq's al-Sadr: Threat of open war aimed at US The Associated Press

Pentagon Reports on Iraq's Military Are Suspect, Audit Says
Bloomberg - 2 hours ago
By Tony Capaccio April 25 (Bloomberg) -- The US public and lawmakers should be skeptical of the Pentagon's quarterly reports on Iraq's progress toward building a viable military and police force, according to a new audit. The reports from the Defense ...
IG: Dead count toward Iraq force strength ArmyTimes.com
Report: Iraqi forces lacking USA Today

Sunnis Agree to End Boycott, Rejoin Iraq Government
New York Times - 4 hours ago
By JAMES GLANZ BAGHDAD - Iraq’s largest Sunni bloc has agreed to return to Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki’s cabinet after a boycott that lasted nearly a year, several Sunni leaders said on Thursday, citing a recently passed amnesty law and the ...
Iraq's Maliki says factions agree to rejoin government Reuters
Sunni bloc ready to rejoin Iraq Cabinet Los Angeles Times

Nepal
Nepal results affirm Maoist victory
Aljazeera.net - 55 minutes ago
Final results from Nepal's elections show former Maoist fighters have won 220 seats, making it the largest group in the 601-seat constituent assembly.
Final results declared in Nepal BBC News
Nepal's ex-rebels win 220 seats in final assembly results Hindu

New Mexico - U.S. Senate
New Mexico Sen. Domenici Admonished by Ethics Panel
AHN - 1 hour ago
David Iglesias, the US Attorney for the District of New Mexico before he became one of nine US attorneys fired by the White House in 2006, said in a congressional hearing last year that Domenici contacted him to ask about whether charges against a ...
Domenici Rebuked for Call to US Attorney Before Election Washington Post
Ethics committee criticizes retiring Sen. Domenici The Associated Press

Sri Lanka
Explosion hits bus in Sri Lanka
BBC News - 1 hour ago
There has been an explosion inside a bus in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, which is believed to have caused a number of casualties, police say.
At least 12 die in Sri Lanka bus blast -officials Reuters
Seven killed in Lanka blast Hindu

Explosion meurtrière à bord d'un bus à Colombo, au Sri Lanka
L'Express - Il y a 55 minutes
Au moins seize personnes ont trouvé la mort lors d'une explosion d'origine indéterminée dans un autobus à Colombo, la capitale du Sri Lanka, annonce un porte-parole de la police, qui a également fait état d'une quarantaine de blessés. ...
Sri Lanka: 23 morts dans l'explosion d'une bombe dans un bus AFP
Explosion mortelle en banlieue de Colombo Radio-Canada

Scientific break from political stuff
Tyrannosaurus rex protein proves dinosaurs
Times Online - 6 hours ago
For all its appearance as a ferocious predator, Tyrannosaurus rex was just an overgrown chicken, researchers have found. Analysis of protein preserved within a fossil bone has provided molecular evidence to support the theory that dinosaurs evolved ...
Terrifying Tyrannosaurus Rex had close links to the humble chicken Daily Mail
T. rex kinship with chickens confirmed New Scientist (subscription)


Iran
Iran 'stepping up arms to Iraq'
BBC News - 1 hour ago
The most senior US military official has accused Iran of increasing the flow of weapons to Iraqi insurgents. Adm Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also said Iraqis were being trained in Iran to fight against US troops.
Top US officer warns of Iran efforts in Iraq and region Reuters
US official: Iran boosting support for Iraqi insurgents The Associated Press

Cargo ship contracted to US military fires towards Iranian boat
Daily Mail - 55 minutes ago
A cargo ship under contract to the US military has fired at least one shot towards and Iranian boat, it was confirmed today. A US defence official said the ship contracted to the US Military Sealift Command had fired at the Iranian craft.
US-contracted ship fires toward Iranian boat Reuters South Africa
Navy-Contracted Vessel Fires Warning Shots on Iranian Boats KPTM-TV

Russia
Putin signs law curbing referendum rights
Reuters UK - 4 hours ago
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into force changes to a law on Friday that Kremlin critics say will further stifle democracy by curbing the topics that can be put to referendums.
Russia amends media law following disputed report alleging Putin's ... International Herald Tribune
Russia Remembers Yeltsin Voice of America

By Thy Cross, O Christ Saviour, guide us unto Thy truth, and deliver us from the snares of the enemy. Thou Who didst arise from the dead, extend Thy hand and, by the intercession of Thy Saints, raise us up who have fallen in sin, O mortal-befriending Lord.
--Friday of the Samaritan Woman, Pentecostarion

--the BB