Thursday, June 23, 2011

Philippines wants U.S. diplomacy, aid in sea dispute (Reuters)

Philippines wants U.S. diplomacy, aid in sea dispute (Reuters)

Philippines wants U.S. diplomacy, aid in sea dispute (Reuters)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 11:33 AM PDT

Reuters - The Philippines is counting on "unwavering" U.S. help in beefing up its naval capabilities to defend its territories in the South China Sea, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said on Thursday.

Waning US support weighed on Afghan move: Gates (AFP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 11:32 AM PDT

US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates speaks with an AFP reporter during an exclusive interview inside the Secretary's office at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. Flagging American public support for the war was a key factor in deciding to bring all 33,000 US surge troops home from Afghanistan by next summer, Gates told AFP Thursday.(AFP/Paul J. Richards)AFP - Flagging American public support for the war was a key factor in deciding to bring all 33,000 US surge troops home from Afghanistan by next summer, Defense Secretary Robert Gates told AFP Thursday.

Philippines seeks US arms amid China tension (AFP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 11:22 AM PDT

Philippines Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario addresses an audience at the Washington, DC think tank CSIS in Washington, DC. The Philippines said Thursday it hoped to lease naval equipment from the United States, calling for a AFP - The Philippines said Thursday it hoped to lease naval equipment from the United States, calling for a "reset" in the two nations' alliance in the face of rising friction at sea with China.

India beat West Indies by 63 runs (AFP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 11:21 AM PDT

Indian bowler Praveen Kumar (R) celebrates with Suresh Raina after taking the wicket of West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul during the fourth day of the first test match between West Indies and India at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica. India beat West Indies by 63 runs in the first Test at Sabina Park on Thursday, taking a 1-0 lead in their three-Test series.(AFP/Emmanuel Dunand)AFP - India beat West Indies by 63 runs in the first Test at Sabina Park on Thursday, taking a 1-0 lead in their three-Test series.

Obama awaits political verdict on Afghan speech (AFP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 11:06 AM PDT

US President Barack Obama makes his way to board Marine One at the White House in Washington, DC. Obama's big Afghan war speech pleased almost no one in Washington but its impact will only be clear when his prime audience -- American voters -- get to weigh in in 2012.(AFP/Mandel Ngan)AFP - President Barack Obama's big Afghan war speech pleased almost no one in Washington but its impact will only be clear when his prime audience -- American voters -- get to weigh in in 2012.

Japan cleaning radioactive water, says PM aide (AFP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 10:40 AM PDT

This handout picture taken by the Japanese government panel to investigate the accident at Fukushima nuclear power plant on June 17, and distributed by Jiji Press, shows members of the panel inspecting the damaged building housing reactor number three at the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.(AFP/Japanese Gov. via Jiji Press/File)AFP - Despite technical glitches, Japan is confident it can decontaminate vast amounts of radioactive water at its stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, Tokyo's point man on the accident said Thursday.

Four jailed for touting tainted milk in China (Reuters)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 10:38 AM PDT

Reuters - Four people were sentenced to prison on Thursday for producing and selling melamine-tainted milk powder in north China's Hebei Province, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Meet the Japanese Robot Culture That Gave Us a Fake Pop Star (The Atlantic Wire)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 10:35 AM PDT

The Atlantic Wire - A new ad campaign in Japan enthralled the fans of the pop idol group AKB 48. It revealed a new member of the band named Aimi Eguchi. The fact that AKB 48 had a new member wasn't so surprising--the all-female group has been adding members with a systematic auditioning regimen since their formation in 2005. However, this time around, there was no audition, and fans could find few details about Aimi on the internet. On Sunday, the candy company running the ad released a new video that revealed what many already suspected. Aimi Eguchi was a robot.

Thai PM rallies crowds at sensitive protest site (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 10:27 AM PDT

A Thai Democrat party supporter holds a poster of Thai Prime Minister and leader of the party, Abhisit Vejjajiva, during a campaign rally in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, June 23, 2011. Despite opposition fears of violence, Vejjajiva vowed to go ahead with a campaign rally Thursday at a Bangkok intersection that was the center of anti-government protests last year that ended with more than 90 people dead. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)AP - Thailand's prime minister rallied thousands of campaign supporters Thursday at the scene of last year's deadly anti-government protests, defending his crackdown on demonstrators there as the best he could do under difficult circumstances.

Mom in Philippines told Vargas in US to keep quiet (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 10:21 AM PDT

This undated handout photo provided by Define American shows Jose Antonio Vargas. Vargas, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who covered presidential politics and the 2007 Virginia Tech shootings in a high-profile reporting job at The Washington Post is going on network television to announce he is an illegal immigrant. (AP Photo/Define American)AP - The Filipino mother of a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who came out as an illegal immigrant in the U.S. told The Associated Press that she tried to persuade him to keep quiet.

Pakistan: After 11 months, pirates' hostages freed (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 09:52 AM PDT

Pakistani Wasee Ahmed, right, the captain of the ship which was held captive by Somali pirates for nearly a year, kisses his daughter Laila, 11, in Karachi, Pakistan, Thursday, June 23, 2011. A group of 22 South Asian and Egyptian men held captive by Somali pirates for nearly a year received an emotional welcome in this southern port city Thursday after payment of a $2.1 million ransom secured their release. (AP Photo/Shakil Adil)AP - A group of 22 South Asian and Egyptian men held captive by Somali pirates for nearly a year received an emotional welcome in this southern port city Thursday after payment of a $2.1 million ransom secured their release.

Bangladesh: Ex-PM's son sentenced over bribes (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 08:38 AM PDT

AP - A Bangladesh court Thursday sentenced the fugitive son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to six years in jail for laundering money taken as bribes from two global companies — a verdict that could trigger violent protests by opposition parties.

Fear, relief in Afghanistan at US withdrawal plan (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 07:37 AM PDT

Spc. Gavin Fruge, 22, of Crowley, La., left, watches a rebroadcast of President Barack Obama's speech on proposed troop withdrawal with fellow soldiers at Kandahar Airfield Thursday, June 23, 2011 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Obama's withdrawal plan for Afghanistan marks the beginning of the end of a troop-intensive approach to countering a Taliban insurgency that until recent months had fought the U.S. and its NATO allies to a standstill. (AP Photo/David Goldman)AP - Afghanistan's president on Thursday welcomed U.S. plans to withdraw 33,000 troops over the next year as a chance to show his nation can defend itself, but many of his countrymen worried it would bring more violence to a country that's known decades of war.

New China-Vatican row brewing over bishops (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 07:06 AM PDT

AP - China's state-controlled Catholic church says it will move swiftly to appoint new bishops in dioceses where there are none, in a step that is certain to worsen frictions with the Vatican.

Chinese warships cross high seas off Japan island (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 06:24 AM PDT

Chinese Navy Sovremenny-Class destroyer DDG 138 Taizhou sails through the high seas between Okinawa and Miyako islands into the East China Sea Wednesday, June 22, 2011. Japan's Defense Ministry said Thursday 11 Chinese warships were spotted in international waters off the country's southern island of Okinawa. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREAAP - Japan's Defense Ministry said Thursday 11 Chinese warships were spotted in international waters off the country's southern island of Okinawa.

China pushing for end to renewed violence in Sudan (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 06:22 AM PDT

AP - China is pressing both sides in Sudan to end renewed violence that is threatening a landmark peace agreement, Beijing's special envoy for African affairs said Thursday.

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei: Free in body, not voice (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 05:55 AM PDT

Activist artist Ai Weiwei gestures while speaking to journalists gathered outside his home in Beijing, China, Thursday, June 23, 2011. Ai, the most high-profile target of a sweeping crackdown on activists in China, has returned home late Wednesday after nearly three months in detention. The official Xinhua News Agency said Ai confessed to tax evasion, accusations his family had long denied and which activists had denounced as a false premise for detaining him. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)AP - Outspoken artist and government critic Ai Weiwei talked about giving himself a haircut Thursday but said little else in his first day out of detention, living under a gag order that underscores concerns about China's growing use of extralegal methods to muzzle dissent.

Japan nuke plant struggles with contaminated water (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 04:45 AM PDT

In this photo taken on June 22, 2011 and released on Thursday, June 23, 2011 by Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), workers in protective suits set up temporary pressure gauges in the Unit 2 reactor building at the tsunami-damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, northern Japan. (AP Photo/Tokyo Electric Power Co.)AP - A system to treat contaminated water that is impeding repairs at Japan's damaged nuclear power plant is not performing as well as hoped but should be functioning fully next month, a government official said Thursday.

Fraud tribunal throws out quarter of Afghan MPs (AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 04:14 AM PDT

Defeated candidates of Afghanistan's September 2010 election, wait for the resumption of proceedings of a special electoral tribunal in a Kabul courtroom, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 23, 2011. The special Afghan tribunal began throwing out election results Thursday from last year's parliamentary poll, alleging massive fraud and putting in question who will control the legislative body that acts as one of the few checks on President Hamid Karzai. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)AP - A special Afghan tribunal overturned nearly 25 percent of last year's legislative election results Thursday, alleging massive fraud and putting into question who will control the parliament — one of the few checks on President Hamid Karzai.

(AP)

Posted: 23 Jun 2011 02:57 AM PDT

AP - Afghan tribunal overturns nearly 25 percent of parliamentary elections in voting fraud probe.
Posted by Harshad at 11:51 AM

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