Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has arrived in Israel where he begins a tour of the Middle East.He is visiting Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan ahead of a more controversial visit to Iran in May.While in the region Lula will throw his country's growing diplomatic weight behind the Middle East peace process.The visit comes amid an ongoing US-Israeli row over the announce
WASHINGTON — The Mexican government pledged Sunday to investigate the brutal killings of a U.S consulate employee and two family members of consulate employees in violent, drug-plagued Ciudad Juarez , across the border from El Paso, Texas .The Mexican government and officials in the border state of Chihuahua confirmed the drive-by shooting deaths Saturday of an American woman who worked at
CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico – A U.S consulate employee and her husband were shot to death as they drove in this drug-plagued Mexican city with their baby in the back seat, minutes after gunmen killed the husband of another consular employee and wounded his two children, officials said Sunday.President Barack Obama expressed outrage over the killings, and Mexican President Felipe Calderon promise
HONG KONG The investment would give CNOOC a 50 percent stake in Bridas, a subsidiary of Argentina's Bridas Energy Holdings,, the Chinese firm said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange.The venture would be managed by CNOOC and Bridas Energy.The Bridas unit currently has exploration and production operations for oil and gas in Argentina, and Chile.The deal fits CNOOC's plan to broaden i
BERLIN – German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said there was no reason for Euro zone finance ministers to make any decision on financial aid for debt-ridden Greece when they met on Monday. There are always rumors, especially ahead of such meetings, he told German newspaper Bild, in an interview published on its online service on Sunday. But there are no new factors.Therefore, there
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – The Taliban have called their deadly bomb attacks on the southern city of Kandahar a warning to NATO's top general that the insurgents are ready for the war's next major offensive in their heartland.The series of bombings Saturday night demolished buildings and killed dozens — including 10 people at a wedding — and prompted the provincial governor to plea
KHARTOUM – Two French aid workers abducted in the Central African Republic and held for four months were on Sunday freed in Darfur, the Sudanese region gripped by civil war and a wave of kidnappings.Olivier Denis and Olivier Frappe were working for a French charity, Triangle Generation Humanitaire, when they were kidnapped in November 2009 in the Central African Republic, across the border
JOS, Nigeria – The latest sectarian massacre in Jos has brutally exposed the failure of the Nigerian authorities to end bloodshed and bring stability to a region which has long been a religious powderkeg. The security forces have failed in their primary responsibility to maintain law and order in the case of Jos killings.This is a flagrant violation of the constitution for which they have
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