Poland's faith divide | Sophia Deboick

Faith under fire … a sea of candles laid by mourners outside the presidential palace following the Smolensk crash. Photograph: Sean Gallup/Getty Images When 96 Polish dignitaries, including President Lech Kaczyński, were killed in a plane crash near Smolensk in April, the world briefly turned its gaze to Poland and its often tragic history.

Indonesia death toll reaches 300 with more feared after twin disasters

The tsunami caused by the earthquake washed away hundreds of wooden and bamboo homes, killing over 100 people and displacing 20,000 more. Photograph: Mast Irham/EPA
The combined death toll from the twin tsunami and earthquake disasters which struck Indonesia within 24 hours has risen to more than 300, government officials said ..

Chaos over restraint rules for deportees

Jimmy Mubenga died after being 'heavily restrained' for a deportation flight to Angola.
The government's deportation policy has been thrown into confusion after it emerged that the Home Office banned private security firms from forcing detainees on to flights following the death of a refugee, then lifted the moratorium 10 days later.

Investment Strategies: Three Ways to Profit - No Matter Who Wins Tuesday's Midterm Elections

By William Patalon III, Executive Editor, Money Morning

If you're worried that next week's midterm elections could further cloud an already-uncertain investment landscape, take a page from the investment playbook of Money Morning's Keith Fitz-Gerald: Position yourself to profit no matter which party wins on Tuesday.

Question of the Week: Mortgagegate Makes Investors Wary of U.S. Banking Industry

By Kerri Shannon, Associate Editor, Money Morning

A potentially crippling crisis is flashing through the banking industry and threatening to derail the already struggling housing market and U.S. economic recovery.

YAHOO News, Oct 28, 2010

• Fears hundreds more dead in Indonesia tsunami (AP)
• Wild storm leaves behind damage, injuries (AP)
• College tuition costs climbing again this fall (AP)
• Myanmar says top general will not run in elections (AP)
• High exposure to BPA linked to low sperm count (AP)
• Candidates use children to make final pitch (AP)

» More News

  

Small Business Confidence Improves In October

Small business economic confidence rebounded in October as more small business owners report economic conditions for their businesses and for the country are getting better, according to the Discover Small Business Watch report.

ICI Meeting, Tel Aviv, Israel, 5-7 December, 2010

The 2010 ICI Meeting is a continuation of the series of international conferences in interventional cardiology held in Israel since 1995, which have helped shape Israel as a leading force in innovative technology in this field.
ICI 2010 will focus on innovative technology and therapies. The program will include presentations of new therapies, thematic live cases and emerging technology sessions.

Chile's president apologises to Germany for slogan - Telegraph

 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chilean President Sebastian Pinera listen to their national anthems during the welcoming ceremony in Berlin
The phrase Sebastian Pinera wrote was "Deutschland uber alles," or "Germany above all." It became infamous under the Third Reich and after World War II was excised from Germany's national anthem as too nationalistic.

Former Nelson Mandela charity boss in court for taking diamonds from Naomi Campbell - Telegraph

Jeremy Ractliffe and Naomi Campbell

Jeremy Ractliffe, 74, head of the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund between 1995 and 1999, spoke briefly to confirm his name as he appeared at Alexandra Magistrates Court in Johannesburg.

Israel's right wing starts their own Tea Party - Telegraph

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets Israeli naval commandos who participated in the raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla last May Photo: AFP
The new movement, which has taken inspiration from the US conservative group, is being spearheaded by disaffected former and present members of Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party,

The Hobbit dispute resolved

ohn Key, the New Zealand prime minister, said the government had agreed to increased financial incentives for the $500-million (£315 million) production.

Vatican calls for clemency for Tariq Aziz

 

Iraqi Deputy Premier Tareq Aziz passes a poster of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein at the end of a press conference in Baghdad 24 November 1999 Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Iraq's supreme criminal court earlier on Tuesday found the long-time international face of the Saddam Hussein regime, who is a Christian, guilty of "deliberate murder and crimes against humanity."

French parliament passes pension reform

The National Assembly voted 336 for and 233 against the final draft of the law, which will increase France's minimum retirement age from 60 to 62, amid ongoing protests that have threatened to bring the country to a standstill.

Shell slashes $18bn from Kashagan costs

Royal Dutch Shell has radically simplified the design of the Kashagan oil development, slashing $18bn (£11.5bn) from the cost of the second phase of development as it strives to make the project economically viable.

China news, all the latest and breaking Chinese news

Wuer Kaixi, the former Chinese student leader, will represent Liu Xiaobo, the imprisoned dissident, at a meeting of Nobel Peace Prize laureates in Hiroshima next month.

Barack Obama and Asif Ali Zardari urge more action against terror groups

 

Americans who embraced 'hope and change' two years ago are now rejecting the change they were given Photo: REUTERS
"Both President Obama and President Zardari acknowledged that more work needed to be done to address the direct threat to our countries posed by terrorist groups in Pakistan," the statement said.

Video: Protesters clash at Kentucky debate

Supporters of Rand Paul, a Tea Party backed politician, stomped on the head of a liberal activist during a debate between senate candidates in Kentucky.

Mikhail Gorbachev: victory in Afghanistan is 'impossible'

Heads of government are expected to endorse a new blueprint for the nine-year war Photo: REUTERS

Mr Gorbachev, who pulled Russian troops out of Afghanistan in 1989 after a 10-year war, said the US had no alternative but to withdraw troops.

"Victory is impossible in Afghanistan. [Barack] Obama is right to pull the troops out. No matter how difficult it will be," he told the BBC.

BBC News - The Hobbit will be made in New Zealand, PM confirms

Protestors took to the streets of New Zealand earlier this week
Two movies based on The Hobbit will be filmed in New Zealand as planned, the country's prime minister has confirmed.
The announcement follows two days of talks with Hollywood executives over whether the Lord of the Rings prequels should be shot in the country.

Virgin Media races to offer fastest UK network

Virgin Media is set to turn up the dial on its cable network, offering users speeds of up to 100Mbps (megabits per second).

It aims to provide the service to over 50% of the UK by mid-2012, beginning in December with 200,000 homes in London, the Home Counties and West Yorkshire.

It is the latest move in the race to bring super-fast broadband services to the UK.

More species slide to extinction

Some 13% of birds qualify for inclusion on the Red List

One fifth of animal and plant species are under the threat of extinction, a global conservation study has warned.

Scientists who compiled the Red List of Threatened Species say the proportion of species facing wipeout is rising.

Testicular cancer risk 'greater' for tall men

The risk goes up the taller the man

Taller men may have a higher risk of getting testicular cancer, say experts in the United States.

After looking at data on more than 10,000 men, researchers found that for every extra two inches or 5cm in height above average, the risk went up by 13%.

US new home sales pick up speed

Sales of new homes remain subdued thanks to a glut of repossessed houses on the market
Sales of new homes in the US rose 6.6% in September to a seasonally-adjusted annualised rate of 307,000.
The figure beat market expectations of a rise to just 300,000.
However, the rate is still 21.5% below the level of a year ago and near historic lows.

Mexico's Calderon: US not doing enough in drugs war

Mexican President Felipe Calderon has told the BBC the US should do more to reduce the demand for drugs that is fuelling violence in Mexico.

Building collapse kills Afghan wedding guests

At least 60 people have been killed after part of a building collapsed on guests at a wedding in northern Afghanistan, officials say.

Clashes as nationalists march in Israeli Arab town

Israeli police have clashed with Arab demonstrators in the northern town of Umm al-Fahm, where Israeli right-wing activists staged a protest march.

French MPs adopt pension reform

Students protested in Paris on Tuesday but numbers were down

France's National Assembly has voted to raise pension age by two years after weeks of industrial action across the country.

The bill will now face legal challenges before President Nicolas Sarkozy can sign it off next month.

Indonesia tsunami: Death toll soars to 272

The death toll from a tsunami in western Indonesia rises to 272, officials say, as doubts emerge about whether an early warning system was working properly.

Cape Town opera snubs Tutu plea to cancel Israel tour

South Africa's Cape Town Opera has turned down an appeal from Nobel peace prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu to call off a tour of Israel.