ZHEJIANG DAILY, ECONOMIC OBSERVER, HUBEI DAILY (China), CHINA TIMES (Taiwan) Worldcrunch BEIJING – Is Feng Shui a superstition or a true form of wisdom? A confessional article by a Chinese official published by the Zhejiang Daily recently sparked enthusiastic discussions among the Chinese public and press. “Put a screen at the entrance to block the […]
Author: Bertrand Hauger
Bertrand Hauger is a graduate of La Sorbonne Nouvelle school of bilingual journalism, and joined Worldcrunch after working briefly as a reporter in a local newspaper in his native eastern France. He now serves as Worldcrunch’s deputy editor-in-chief and director of content.
NBC NEWS (USA) Worldcrunch Southern California firefighters early Friday were battling a growing, brush-fueled wildfire that had reached the beach in Ventura County and was pushing toward the upscale city of Malibu, officials said. The so-called Springs Fire, made worse by howling Santa Ana winds and unusually dry vegetation, was within “seven or eight miles” […]
ISLAMABAD – A senior prosecutor investigating the 2007 murder of Pakistan’s ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was shot down in an ambush on Friday morning near Pakistan’s capital Islamabad. Chaudhry Zulfikar Ali was also Pakistan’s main state prosecutor in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, in which 166 people were killed. Zulfikar was shot multiple times by gunmen […]
The “dual” vocational training system used to be derided as limiting university degrees. Now it is being lauded in the U.S., and exported to struggling southern European countries.
BD NEWS 24 (Bangladesh), THE TIMES OF INDIA (India), BBC NEWS (UK), REUTERS Worldcrunch DHAKA – Tens of thousands of Bangladeshis joined May Day protests Wednesday demanding the death penalty for the owner of the garment factory building that collapsed last week near Dhaka, as the number of people killed in the disaster moves past […]
School life can be pretty merciless. Kids have an astonishing repertoire of nasty things they inflict on other kids. But what factors play a role in which kids are the victims and which the perpetrators? Why do some wind up on the receiving end of the nastiness, and others become the ones meting it out? […]
UKRAINIAN ARMED FORCES PUT ON FULL ALERT Acting Ukrainian President Olexandr Turchynov announced that the country’s armed forces had been put on combat alert, as he fears Russia could launch a continental war, Interfax reports. According to Ria Novosti, Turchynov also admitted that “the power structures are incapable of operatively taking control of the situation […]
MOSCOW WORRIED BY NATO BUILDUP Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Moscow was concerned by the “unprecedented” increase in U.S. and NATO activity along the Russian border and urged U.S. counterpart Chuck Hagel to help “turn down the rhetoric” over the ongoing Ukrainian crisis, Reuters reports. This comes after U.S. troops were deployed in the […]
IN UKRAINE, MAYOR OF KHARKIV SHOT The Mayor of Ukraine’s northeastern city of Kharkiv, Gennady Kernes, was shot in the back and admitted to a hospital where “doctors are fighting for his life,” The Kyiv Post reports. It is unclear who shot him, with the newspaper explaining that although Kernes was a supporter of ousted […]
Meet Bjoern Werner, who was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft this week. And yes, soccer came first.
RIA NOVOSTI, KOMMERSANT, THE MOSCOW TIMES (Russia) Worldcrunch MOSCOW – At least 38 people have died in a fire that broke out early Friday at a psychiatric hospital outside of Moscow. The death toll may rise further as many are still believed to be in the one-story facility in Ramenye, 120 kilometers north of Moscow. […]
RUE 89 (France) Worldcrunch PARIS – When Britain’s former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher died on April 8, 2013, the Office of the President of the French Republic issued a communiqué on its official homepage that paid tribute to the “Iron Lady“. So far, nothing to write home about. But when they tried to come up […]
WEST STRENGTHENS ANTI-RUSSIA RHETORIC In what marks a further escalation of the war of words between the pro-Ukraine and Russian Federation factions, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk said Moscow wanted “to start World War III.” The comment came after Russian President Vladimir Putin increased military exercises along the border following yesterday’s deadly fights in Eastern […]
BANGLADESH NEWS 24 HOURS (Bangladesh), BBC NEWS (UK), AP Worldcrunch DHAKA – Police said Thursday that the owners of the eight-story building housing garment factories that collapsed in Bangladesh, killing at least 187, had ignored warnings not to allow their workers into the building. Search for survivors is continuing as hundreds are still unaccounted for, […]
KIEV LAUNCHES NEW ASSAULT IN EASTERN UKRAINE The Ukrainian military launched an offensive against pro-Russian militants just outside the eastern city of Sloviansk, sending armored vehicles and a helicopter, according to RTÉ, with Ukraine’s Interior Ministry reporting at least five dead on the pro-Russian side. According to AFP, civilians in the town hall have been […]
BANGLADESH NEWS 24 HOURS (Bangladesh), THE HINDU (India), REUTERS Worldcrunch DHAKA – At least 70 people have died and many more are feared trapped after an eight-story building housing garment factories and a shopping center collapsed on the outskirts of Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka. “We assume scores of people are still trapped inside and many of […]
Will Catholic nuns and orthodox Jews be next to point to their religious headwear?
KERRY AND LAVROV EXCHANGE BLAME In a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Moscow to “tone down escalatory rhetoric,” criticizing Russia for failing “to de-escalate” the crisis, The Guardian reports. During the conversation, Lavrov replied that Ukrainian ultranationalists were responsible for the collapse of the deal […]
20 MINUTES, LE MONDE, LE FIGARO (France), REUTERS Worldcrunch PARIS – French President François Hollande has condemned a car bomb attack that hit France’s embassy in Libya’s capital Tripoli early Tuesday, injuring two French guards. “France expects the Libyan authorities to shed light on this unacceptable act so that the perpetrators are identified and brought […]
BIDEN VISITS KIEV IN SHOW OF SUPPORT U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met with Ukrainian leaders Tuesday in a show of support for the new government. Speaking in the capital’s Parliament building, Biden said the U.S. stood with Ukraine in the face of “humiliating threats,” the BBC reports. Earlier, a phone conversation between Biden and […]
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Embalming 101, With A Polish Master
WARSAW – Plasdopake is produced in Whitchurch, Hampshire, a small town 90 kilometers west of London. Plasdopake is a chemical solution that contains 18% formaldehyde. It is perfect for embalming the bodies of people who have died young – it gives them a fresh and natural look, making them look alive in their coffin. Obviously, […]
BOSTON GLOBE, BOSTON HERALD, CNN (USA), REUTERS Worldcrunch BOSTON – Amidst conflicting reports, the around-the-clock investigation continues three days after bombs killed three people and wounded more than 180 during the Boston Marathon. U.S. President Barack Obama is scheduled to fly to Boston on Thursday to lead an interfaith service for the victims of the […]
UKRAINE TALKS BEGIN AFTER DEADLY CLASHES The four-way talks between Ukraine, Russia, the U.S. and the EU began this morning in Geneva, after deadly clashes in the southeastern city of Mariupol as pro-Russian protesters tried to seize a military base. Three people were killed and another 13 injured, while 63 were detained, Russia’s Ria Novosti […]
BBC RADIO 4, THE INDEPENDENT (UK) REUTERS Worldcrunch LONDON – Former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was honored Wednesday at a solemn funeral at St. Paul’s Cathedral in central London. An estimated 2,300 people from 170 different countries attended the ceremony, which Reuters compared to Winston Churchill’s funeral in 1965. The scene inside St Paul’s […]
UKRAINE STANDOFF CONTINUES At least five armored vehicles flying Russian banners were reported to have entered the town of Slaviansk, north of Donetsk, as the standoff between Kiev and pro-Russian protesters continues in the eastern part of Ukraine. Although most Western media organizations initially described the vehicles as Russian, Moscow media outlets and Der Spiegel […]
BBC NEWS (UK), UNITED STATES FORCES KOREA, YONHAP (South Korea), REUTERS Worldcrunch SEOUL – As tensions mount on the Korean peninsula, a U.S. helicopter crashed Tuesday near South Korea’s border with the North while conducting routine flight operations. All 21 people aboard the helicopter survived. The exact cause of the crash is not yet known, […]
LA DEPECHE, SUD OUEST (France) Worldcrunch METZ – What is it with French old-timers getting stuck in weird places? On Sunday in Metz, northeastern France, an 82-year-old patient was rescued from the Sainte-Blandine hospital after trying to flee John-McLane-style via the ventilation ducts. “The patient, who was undergoing treatment for diabetes, managed to climb into […]
UKRAINE LAUNCHES MILITARY OPERATION Acting Ukraine President Olexandr Turchynov announced the launch of a military “anti-terrorist” operation in the northern region of Donetsk, The Kyiv Post reports. Speaking to the country’s parliament, Turchynov said that the operation “will be conducted step by step, responsibly, deliberately. The goal of these actions, I want to underline, is […]
BBC NEWS (UK), AL JAZEERA (Qatar), REUTERS, AP Worldcrunch BAGHDAD – A wave of coordinated attacks Monday in Baghdad, Kirkuk, and other towns has left dozens killed and hundreds of injured across Iraq. The exact number of people killed in the bombings is still unclear, with Al Jazeera reporting at least 19 casualties and AP […]
STANDOFF CONTINUES IN EAST UKRAINE An ultimatum from acting Ukrainian President Olexandr Turchynov expired this morning, ignored by pro-Russian protesters who have been occupying state buildings in several East Ukrainian cities, increasing fears of further escalation in the region, the BBC reports. Although they were urged to lay down their weapons, armed protesters in Gorlovka […]
SAO PAULO – Even though it’s getting ready to host the World Cup next year and the Summer Olympic Games in 2016, Brazil still has no specific law for fighting terrorism. But specialists, who ask not to be identified, say that the country’s neutral position in recent international conflicts does not assure that it is […]
UKRAINE’S PM TO PUSH FOR MORE REGIONAL POWERUkraine’s Interim Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk pledged to grant regions with more powers, adding that the Parliament should adopt a law allowing local referendums, AP reports. This came as he travelled to the eastern city of Donetsk as an ultimatum for pro-Russian protesters to leave occupied government buildings […]
While U Slept UKRAINE OFFERS AMNESTY TO PRO-RUSSIAN SEPARATISTS Ukraine’s Interim President Olexandr Turchynov offered amnesty to the pro-Russian militants occupying government buildings in eastern cities, provided they surrender their weapons and end their siege, AFP reports. This comes amid yesterday’s ultimatum issued by the country’s acting Interior Minister Arsen Avakov and as the standoff […]
UKRAINE’S ULTIMATUM TO PRO-RUSSIAN PROTESTERS Ukraine’s acting Interior Minister Arsen Avakov has said that the situation in Eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists are still occupying state buildings, will be “resolved in 48 hours,” threatening “the minority who want conflict” with a “forceful answer”, the BBC reports. “There are two options — political and negotiations, and […]
KCNA (North Korea), YONHAP (South Korea), BBC NEWS (UK), REUTERS, AFP Worldcrunch North Korea has warned foreigners to evacuate South Korea to avoid being dragged into a “thermo-nuclear war” – the latest in a series of provocative declarations that led Japan to deploy Patriot missiles in Tokyo on Tuesday. Here’s a look back at the […]
“COUNTERTERRORISM” UNDERWAY IN EAST UKRAINE The Ukrainian police arrested 70 pro-Russian protesters who were occupying government buildings in the eastern city of Kharkiv as part of what acting Interior Minister Arsen Avakov described as “a counterterrorism operation,” Ria Novosti reports. According to Reuters, the standoff continues in Luhansk and Donetsk. VERBATIM“I was besotted,” Oscar Pistorius […]
YONHAP (South Korea), CNN, (USA), REUTERS Worldcrunch SEOUL – South Korea has backtracked from an earlier statement that said there was evidence North Korea was preparing for its fourth nuclear test. South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Monday denied earlier suggestions by South Korean Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae that a nuclear arms test was imminent in […]
RIO DE JANEIRO – Cleide Oliveira, a 45-year-old beauty salon owner specialized in straightening curly hair, says she’ll soon be forced to find a new job. Since November 2011, when a Unidade de Polícia Pacificadora or Police Pacifying Unit (UPP) was created in Rocinha — Brazil’s biggest favela near Rio de Janeiro — she has […]
PRO-RUSSIAN PROTESTERS SEIZE BUILDINGS IN EASTERN UKRAINEPro-Russian protesters seized government buildings last night in the East Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv, Luhansk and Donetsk, following rallies to demand independence referendums there, Reuters reports. FRANCE AND RWANDA ARGUE GENOCIDE Rwanda is launching commemorations today in Kigali to mark the 20th anniversary of genocide there, which lasted 100 […]
XINHUA (China), BBC NEWS (UK), BLOOMBERG, REUTERS Worldcrunch SHANGHAI – Chinese authorities slaughtered more than 20,000 birds and closed a poultry market in Shanghai on Friday, due to the new H7N9 bird flu outbreak that has already killed six people over the past week. State news agency Xinhua said the Huhuai market for live birds […]