LONDON – British Airways cabin crews walked off the job for a second day Sunday, upsetting travel plans for scores of customers, but the airline said its contingency plans were working well and more planes were taking off than expected.The airline — locked in a bitter dispute with workers over a pay freeze and changing working conditions — said it was able to add several extra f
BANGKOK – Thailand's prime minister said Sunday he will send representatives to hold talks with protesters who have been calling for him to step down, but his antagonists want to meet with him personally.Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has so far held firm against demands from the so-called Red Shirt movement that he dissolve Parliament and call new elections, though he has said he is will
CAIRO – Investment in infrastructure, health, education and agriculture is vital to ending conflict in Sudan's Darfur region and nurturing the relative peace from recent ceasefire deals, Egypt said at a donor meeting on Sunday.The one-day development and reconstruction conference, co-chaired by Turkey, aims to raise $2 billion for projects such as cement plants, roads and villages for disp
JERUSALEM – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he would not restrict construction in east Jerusalem, a step requested by the U.S , but would upgrade upcoming indirect talks with the Palestinians to include the main issues dividing them.Netanyahu originally had wanted to put off a discussion of issues like the status of contested east Jerusalem, final borders and the fate
BEIJING – China's commerce minister warned the United States on Sunday against imposing trade sanctions over Beijing's currency controls, and said his country was likely to report a trade deficit in March.Washington and other trading partners are pressing China to ease controls that have kept its yuan currency steady against the dollar for 18 months to help its companies compete amid weak g
DOHA, Qatar – Conservationists say the Internet has emerged as one of the greatest threats fueling the illegal wildlife trade, making it easier to buy everything from live baby lions to wine made from tiger bones, conservationists said Saturday.The web's impact was the focus Sunday at the meeting of the 175-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, or CITES.Iran propos
BAGHDAD – Iraq's prime minister is pressing the electoral commission to respond to calls from several political blocs for a recount in the March 7 parliamentary elections.A statement on Nouri al-Maliki's official Web site late Saturday said he was asking the commission to respond to the recount demands to preserve the legitimacy of the electoral process.However, he appeared to stop short of
United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has pledged continued backing for Gazans living under a blockade, during a visit to reinvigorate the peace process.He told Gazans that we stand with you as he visited a neighbourhood damaged by the Israeli offensive 14 months ago.His visit to the region comes amid tension over Israel's plans to build more settlements in East Jerusalem.Building materials are rest
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