Essay: A Beijing-based Japanese writer looks at history, diplomacy and body language to try to explain the chilly reception new Japanese Prime Minister Noda has received from China’s Hu Jintao. What could it mean for a region at the center of shi
Author: Worldcrunch
Taiwan’s president urged China on Friday to respect the artistic freedom of outspoken Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who was detained for nearly three months earlier this year and is currently confined to Beijing.
U.S. stock futures declined, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will drop for a seventh day, as the euro area’s leaders grappled with how to contain their region’s debt crisis.
Iraq, tourist destination? The central city of Najaf will be declared cultural capital of the Islamic world in 2012, which is expected to help jump-start tourism in Iraq nearly a decade after the beginning of the American-led war to oust Saddam Hussein.
Categories
Egypt protests: ‘Friday of the last chance’
Thousands gather in Cairo’s Tahrir Square demanding immediate end to military rule, while Washington urges a shift to civilian government as soon as possible.
Western European employers had hoped for a flood of new qualified workers from the new E.U. member states of Eastern Europe. And though requests jumped as soon as the last barriers were lifted, more and more from Poland and elsewhere are deciding to stay
Germany has registered a rise in pet owners shelling out big bucks for complicated procedures like organ replacement or chemotherapy. Not surprisingly, dog and cat life expectancy is on the rise.
British researchers used in utero video imaging to conclude that babies develop the basic muscle mechanisms for smiling well before they’re even born. This would offer evidence that laughter and smiles are inherent to humans, not necessarily only
Famous for its traffic and pollution, Mexico City is joining the green revolution, urging residents to swap their cars for bicycles and walking shoes. On Sundays, pedestrians have preference downtown. The city also boasts a European-style bike system call
Typically mild-mannered, Russian President Dimitri Medvedev let loose in a nationally televised speech against American and NATO plans for a missile defense system. His probable successor, Vladimir Putin, may even boycott the next NATO summit in Chicago n
Germany had been seen as a healthy heart in the troubled body of the euro zone. But when not enough buyers lined up for its 6 billion euro debt auction, it was seen as yet another sign that the single-currency union is facing a fight for its survival.
Categories
Tensions Rise Between North and South Korea
North Korea threatens to engulf the presidential office in Seoul in a “sea of fire.”
Sarkozy intends to pressure Merkel to allow the European Central Bank to rescue the euro zone.
Egyptian military leaders apologize for the violence that led to 38 deaths, including 33 in Cairo.
Today it sounds a bit stuck-up, cheeky maybe. But when it was created in 1971, L’Oréal’s “Because I’m Worth It” slogan was downright revolutionary. Invented by a young woman not unlike Mad Men’s Peggy Olson, the catch phrase is still a L’Oréal standard.
First brought to Sicily by Arab conquerors, rice farming was eliminated over the past century for Italian political reasons. Now a local “farmer-archeologist” has brought it back to satisfy local desires of Sicilian star chefs.
The Russian Space Agency’s most recent “sputnik” is looking grim. The unmanned spacecraft was supposed to reach Phobos, one of Mars’ moons. Though the probe’s signal was picked up Wednesday after vanishing for two weeks
Besim Kabashi, the Kosovo-born, Munich-based world heavyweight kickboxing champion, is alleged to have let loose a flurry of punches and kicks on a waiter who’d told him to leave a table under an Oktoberfest tent. Kabashi says he was too drunk to
Boom times in Brazil have pushed several of its cities up the annual AméricaEconomía urban competitiveness ranking. Other Brazilian towns made it on to the list for the first time. But it is another country that boasts Latin America’s most competitive cit
Op-Ed: Except for soccer and the Eurovision Song contest, there isn’t much common ground holding Europe’s diverse nations together. Then there are problems like trust, language and mobility – plenty of reasons, in other words, why the euro was a bad idea
Categories
UN Human Rights Chief Condemns Cairo Deaths
Navi Pillay, UN human rights Chief, condemns Egyptian security forces’ use of excessive force.
The state Lutheran Church currently provides only short blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples, but the government wants to change that.
Yemini President is in Saudi Arabia to sign an agreement brokered by other Arab states that involves him stepping aside.
Essay: A Chinese commentator notes a disturbing uptick in U.S. drumbeating in the Pacific region. But China’s response, he warns, should be diplomatic pragmatism not more nationalistic posturing.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie TAHRIR – THE MARSHALWith an estimated 35 Egyptians dead from the crackdown during recent days of protesting, the leader of the country’s ruling military junta gave an address on state television, announcing that the ruling government cabinet’s resignation has been accepted and that presidential […]
Activists have called for a mass showing in Cairo’s central square on Tuesday to call for the ouster of Egypt’s military leadership. The Muslim Brotherhood, the country’s largest opposition group, has said it will not participat
Analysis: Both inside and outside the Middle East, a consensus appears to be forming that the Assad regime in Damascus must go. But if it does, be prepared for the reverberations to be felt from Tehran and Beirut to Ankara and Riyadh.
It’s been a year since Google Street View became available in Germany – and very little of the negative stir that greeted its initial arrival has survived. The service has come to be seen as a useful tool, and some former opponents even want their homes i
After working in the shadow of José María Aznar and losing twice to José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the unassuming former “registrador della propriedad” is now set to lead Spain in a moment of great challenge.
Chinese carmakers have made some inroads in the automotive industry, but don’t yet pose much of a threat to their major European, Japanese and American counterparts. That could change – and quickly.
At least 20 have been killed in recent protests in Cairo and elsewhere in Egypt, as the government responds with a major crackdown on demonstrators. A review of how Egypt’s recently liberalized press is covering the most severe unrest since Mubar
The so-called Super Committee was supposed to rescue the United States from sinking in a sea of debt. The Congressional group is now being written off as a flop – mainly because Republicans want to save the super-rich from having to pay more taxes.
Two Turkish citizens were wounded when gunmen opened fire on a convoy of Turkish buses carrying pilgrims in northern Syria.
Categories
Stock futures signal weaker Wall Street open
Stock futures pointed to a sharply lower open for equities on Wall Street on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 down 1.1 to 1.4 percent.
Categories
Casualties mount from protests in Egypt
At least 20 people have died, and an estimated 1,700 people were wounded in confrontations between protesters and security forces in Cairo.
Chinese-American mother Amy Chua’s bestseller “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother,” opened debate about severe parenting techniques. Now, a Chinese businessman has written about even harsher treatment of his kids — and of course,
A trio of German entrepreneurs is hoping to convert an old industrial building in Berlin into the world’s largest rooftop farm. Plans for the self-sustaining organic spread, which should be up and running by 2013, include a fertilizing fish farm
Just because something’s new doesn’t mean it’s better — or even different. According to the German Medical Association, most “new” drugs are little more than repackaged – and re-priced – versions of their predcessors.
Brazil’s richest 10% earn in one month what the poorest 10% make in more than three years. To find out how much the richest 1% earn, multiply that figure by three, according to the South American giant’s latest census numbers.
Nutella may be tasty, but the creamy chocolate spread is not nearly as healthy as its labels would suggest. A court in Frankfurt has ruled that Ferrero, Nutella’s parent company, needs to change its labels, which consumer groups call downright deceptive.