Daily News Channel
Michael and Steven Roberts didn’t have two quarters to rub together a couple of decades ago. Now, the two African-American business leaders estimate their holdings — from hotels to TV stations — are worth $1 billion. One St.
Adm. Michael Mullen, the highest-ranking man in the U.S. military, said the situation in Afghanistan is getting worse, as fresh indications emerge that President Obama soon could be asked to commit more American troops.
Seven members of a banned militant group with links to al Qaeda and the Taliban were arrested with explosives and narcotics over the weekend in Karachi, Pakistan, and their planned attacks were thwarted, authorities said. The group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which then-Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf banned in 2001, was planning to conduct attacks in Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi, according to Police Chief Waseem Ahmad. The suspects were arrested in Karachi on Sunday
More than 200 allegations of irregularities in last week’s presidential elections in Afghanistan have been registered, according to the independent commission set up to handle such complaints. Despite domestic accusations from one of the presidential candidates that the vote was rigged, the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan called the election “a very well-organized campaign.” “The Afghan-led independent electoral commission looks like it managed a pretty good process,” Ambassador Karl Eikenberry said Sunday
Israel on Sunday withheld the press credentials of a Swedish newspaper in retaliation for a controversial piece that suggested the Israeli army kidnapped and killed young Palestinians to harvest their organs. The journalists need the credentials to report from Gaza
Ramadan, the holy month of Islam, began Saturday with Iraqis hoping for tranquility but fearful after recent attacks that have shaken the country. Al-Iraqia state TV interrupted regular programming Saturday afternoon to broadcast Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s address to Iraqis on the occasion of the start of the holy month. The prime minister said that as he congratulates Iraqis, his “heart is full of sadness and sorrow.” Four Iraqi soldiers and a government worker were killed Saturday in attacks in Baghdad and Mosul, according to an official of the Interior Ministry.
South Korea bade farewell to former President Kim Dae-jung Sunday in a ceremony attended by thousands of citizens, dignitaries and politicians. The solemn Sunday afternoon ceremony was held outside parliament, with a large portrait of Kim placed on a shrine surrounded by flowers. The funeral followed six days of mourning for Kim, who died Tuesday of a heart failure
Greek firefighters planned to continue to work through the night to contain dozens of wildfires, including a massive blaze outside Athens, authorities said. Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis called for calm on Saturday and said ground forces “will continue their superhuman efforts” until dawn, when air operations and water drops will resume. Authorities reported 75 fires across the country.
Making good on a threat of election day violence, the Taliban sliced off the index fingers of at least two people in Kandahar province, according to a vote monitoring group.
After hours of back and forth between members, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America decided Friday evening to accept noncelibate clergy members and lay leaders who are in "lifelong" and "monogamous" same-sex relationships. One of the country’s largest Protestant denominations, the Lutheran church approved four recommendations to its ministry’s policies that underscore a new approach to homosexuality. While the recommendations passed at the weeklong Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis, Minnesota, do not address recognizing same-sex marriage or civil unions, they do allow congregations to support same-sex relationships among their members and allow individuals in same-sex relationships to hold clergy positions.