Quickie

China Seeks to Relocate 12 Million Quake Survivors (Correct)
Bloomberg - 47 minutes ago
By Eugene Tang and William Bi May 20 (Bloomberg) -- China will relocate more than 12 million people made homeless by the country's deadliest earthquake in 32 years as the threat of rain heightened concern disease will spread.


Ma, New Taiwan President, Calls On China to Embrace Democracy
Bloomberg - 1 hour ago
By Tim Culpan May 20 (Bloomberg) -- President Ma Ying-jeou urged China in his inaugural speech to move toward democracy and allow Taiwan a larger international role, testing his relationship with a government that claims sovereignty over the island.

Iraqi forces enter Sadr's Baghdad bastion
Reuters - 45 minutes ago
By Wisam Mohammed and Adrian Croft BAGHDAD, May 20 (Reuters) - Iraq's army moved on Tuesday to take control of Baghdad's Sadr City, power base of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, in another step to stamp government authority over areas previously ...

40000 troops told of fall deployment
Baltimore Sun - 3 hours ago
By David Wood | Sun reporter WASHINGTON - The Pentagon alerted about 40000 active-duty and National Guard soldiers yesterday that they will be deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in the fall, a sign that the military expects hard fighting to continue ...
New Troops in Iraq Will Keep Number at 140000 Washington Post

Highlights of Senate Iraq war funding bill
The Associated Press - 3 hours ago
Highlights of a Senate bill to pay for military and diplomatic operations in Iraq and Afghanistan into next spring. The House passed companion legislation last week after an unusual coalition of anti-war Democrats and Republicans unhappy with domestic ...
The Senate Revisits Iraq New York Times

Saddam Henchman Trial Resumes In Iraq
Sky News - 51 minutes ago
The trial of Tariq Aziz, a senior figure in Saddam Hussein's brutal regime, has re-started in Iraq. Aziz, who served as foreign minister and deputy prime minister under Saddam, is facing the death sentence over the execution of 42 Baghdad merchants in ...

Birmanie: la junte consent à entrouvrir ses frontières à l'ASEAN
Romandie.com - Il y a 19 heures
La Birmanie a décrété trois jours de deuil national. Elle a également donné son feu vert à ses voisins d'Asie du Sud-Est pour coordonner l'aide étrangère aux 2,4 millions de sinistrés du cyclone Nargis, qui a également fait 134'000 morts ou disparus. ...

Dernière offre du Qatar, le temps presse pour le Liban
La Tribune.fr - Il y a 28 minutes
DOHA (Reuters) - Les médiateurs de la crise libanaise ont présenté une proposition de dernière minute aux parties réunies à Doha, où le temps presse afin de parvenir à un accord avant le départ annoncé à l'étranger du Premier ministre qatari. ...

South Africa: Pogroms Expose Citizens' Ugly Insularity
AllAfrica.com - 3 hours ago
WHILE it is well and good to blame the government for not having proper policies in place to deal with SA's refugee crisis, the violence against foreign Africans is a reflection of something far uglier.
South Africa moves to quell xenophobic attacks Reuters South Africa

Zimbabwe scoffs at plot fantasy
BBC News - 43 minutes ago
Zimbabwe's ruling party has poured scorn on opposition claims that the military is plotting to assassinate its presidential candidate using snipers.

Israeli officials estimate Gaza cease-fire close
International Herald Tribune - 1 hour ago
AP JERUSALEM: Israeli aircraft launched two strikes on Palestinians Tuesday, killing a 13-year-old boy and an unidentified man, Palestinian doctors said.
Israeli strike kills Palestinian in Gaza Reuters
Fresh Israeli airstrike kills Jihad militant Xinhua

Pakistan to release 99 Indian nationals
Hindustan Times - 1 hour ago
The two countries resumed their composite dialogue with both the Foreign Secretaries discussing various bilateral issues including terrorism, Kashmir and CBMs.

Myanmar mourns for 78000 cyclone victims
The Associated Press - 1 hour ago
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - Myanmar began three days of mourning for some 78000 cyclone victims Tuesday, after its ruling junta appeared to relent to foreign pressure to allow more outside help for its storm survivors.

A Prayer attributed to St. Francis

Lord, make us instruments of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is discord, union;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
Grant that we may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.


--the BB