WorldcrunchLE TEMPS (Switzerland), THE FINANCIAL TIMES (UK) Worldcrunch ZURICH – Swiss bank UBS officially announced Tuesday it is cutting 10,000 jobs worldwide after losing $42 billion during the financial crisis. The Zurich based bank, which currently employs 64,500 people, is aiming to reduce its workforce by 2015, Swiss daily Le Temps reports. The bulk of […]
Worldcrunch Wait a minute. Ok, so Sandy is on its way and the race for the White House is up for grabs, but the rest of us are fretting about our Halloween costumes. We global news types naturally look for inspiration from other events that have been happening around the world over the past few […]
NEW YORK TIMES (U.S.), THE BBC (UK) Worldcrunch BEIJING – China’s foreign ministry Friday blocked access to the website of the New York Times in response to the newspaper’s investigation into the wealth of Chinese premier Wen Jiabao’s family. The article by David Barboza, which was published late Thursday, reported that Wen’s extended family have […]
LE NOUVELLISTE (Haiti), CNN, THE MIAMI HERALD (US) Worldcrunch Hurricane Sandy has torn across the Caribbean, leaving 21 people dead in its wake, and is expected to make landfall in New England early next week. Forecasters warned that the late-season storm could wreak havoc along America’s east coast, making landfall sometime before Halloween, provoking many […]
CAIRO – As Egypt struggles to emerge from a period of deep financial uncertainty; government officials are looking towards the country’s vital shipping artery — the Suez Canal — as a major source of revenue and jobs. Officials from several government ministries have announced massive public-private partnerships aimed at developing the region. The hope, they […]
NEW YORK TIMES (US), THE TELEGRAPH (UK), REUTERS Worldcrunch An unfolding sex abuse scandal at the BBC risks spilling over to another premier global news source across the Atlantic. The New York Times’ public editor, Margaret Sullivan, has questioned whether former BBC chief, Mark Thompson, who has been tapped to be the new Times CEO […]
CHIRANG – “Around 50 of them came and opened fire on our village.” Rebayal Ali still seems stunned, his eyes glazed over. His vest clings to his skinny torso because of the humidity, as the Muslim farmer tells Le Monde of his night of terror. It was July 23 in his village in Assam, a […]
LISBON – Manuela, an animal rights activist, is standing outside the entrance to the Entrecampos train station in Lisbon, calling out to the occasional passersby, who pretend they don’t see her. The majority of the shops in the station’s arcade are empty, and even though the building is new, there is a feeling of neglect. […]
GENEVA – The female mice are chasing the males around the cage; they raise their behinds in order to sniff their genitals, some even biting the males’ private parts. It is a strange spectacle, monitored by researchers from the University of Geneva (Unige). The phenomenon is described in an article in the latest issue of […]
THE TELEGRAPH, THE BBC (UK) Worldcrunch LONDON – That mindless — and seemingless harmful — act of leafing through waiting-room magazines can pose real health risks, according to National Health Service (NHS) officials in the UK. Officials have warned dentists around the country that old magazines may be responsible for spreading bacteria and should be […]
AMBOSELI TRUST FOR ELEPHANTS (Kenya), AAP (Australia) Worldcrunch They say elephants never forget. We humans don’t either. When the Amboseli Trust for Elephants organization in Kenya learned of a baby elephant calf stuck in a 1.5-meter well somewhere on the savannah, there was only one thing to do: Jump in the SUV, hurtle toward the […]
PANAMA CITY – Panama’s fiscal incentives are luring more and more people to its shores: multinationals, retirees in search of sun and investors seeking new opportunities. Real estate prices are ballooning into a mini Manhattan-on-the-Pacific. The latest notable arrival is PKB Privatbank, the first private Swiss bank to open a “banking center” in Panama City. […]
KCNA (North Korea), YONHAP (South Korea), YLEISRADIO (Finland) Worldcrunch North Korea announced Friday that it would launch a “merciless military strike” on South Korea, if the country allows anti-North activists to disseminate propaganda leaflets in the communist country next week. Yonhap news agency, citing the North’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), quoted the warning statement […]
THE NEW TIMES (Rwanda), LE MONDE (France), BBC (UK), REUTERS Worldcrunch Rwanda is tipped to take one of five UN Security Council seats today, despite mounting pressure on the country over the allegations that it is backing an armed rebellion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A confidential UN report, leaked to Reuters on […]
NEW YORK TIMES, CNN, CBS (U.S.) Worldcrunch After his dismal performance in the first debate, President Barack Obama rebounded Wednesday night with a feisty performance in his “town-hall” style face-to-face against Republican challenger Mitt Romney. Democrats appeared widely pleased with an Obama who appeared much more focused and forthright against Romney compared to his overly […]
CNN (U.S.), AFP (France) Worldcrunch Republican Senator John McCain has praised U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for taking responsibility for the security failure in Benghazi, Libya, last month that led to four American deaths. After Clinton’s statements in a CNN interview Monday night, AFP reports that McCain issued a joint statement with fellow Republican […]
LE MONDE (France), DW-TV (Germany) EFE Worldcrunch From London, Barcelona, and Rio de Janeiro, the list of cities worldwide that are being enticed by the allure of suspended cable cars is growing, heralded as a cheap, green and safe means of transport suspended above the normal rush of urban traffic. Although the cable car systems […]
HET LAATSTE NIEUWS (Belgium), THE SCOTSMAN (UK) Worldcrunch After Catalonia stepped up its bid to secession, separatist parties in Belgium and the United Kingdom have made major gains amid a crisis-hit Europe. British Prime Minister David Cameron is set to meet Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond in Edinburgh Monday to sign a historic deal that […]
CNN, WALL STREET JOURNAL, THE DAILY CALLER (US) Worldcrunch Joe Biden and Paul Ryan battled through a tough vice presidential debate Thursday, with commentators largely suggesting that the result was a draw. Immediate polls showed that voters were split on who won the debate with CNN putting Ryan at 48% and Biden on 44%. CNBC […]
YEMEN OBSERVER (Yemen), REUTERS Worldcrunch SANA’A – A U.S. Embassy employee was assassinated on his way to work in the Yemeni capital Thursday. Yemen Observer reports that Qassem Aqlan, a Yemeni senior security officer working at the U.S. Embassy, was shot dead by masked gunmen on a motorcycle around 10 am Thursday. Gunmen opened fire […]
KIGALI – In Rwanda, getting married has always been a complicated affair. Before anything, the families of the bride and groom sit down for a long negotiation. Once they have exchanged gifts and agreed that the couple should indeed marry, and of course settled on what the dowry will be, the traditional wedding can start. […]
ISTANBUL – “Will we go to war with Syria?” That is the singular question on everyone’s mind these days. We journalists are being pounded with it every day from friends and close relatives — but how can we give a direct answer? I say talk of war between Turkey and Syria is overblown and I […]
Worldcrunch LONDON – Lady Gaga, fresh from a public presentation of her new perfume Fame at London’s Harrods, paid WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange a five-hour visit at the nearby Ecuadorian embassy, where the famous whisteblower has been granted asylum since June. The meeting between the undisputed Queen of Twitter — Lady Gaga has recently reached […]
THE GLOBAL TIMES (China), CHINA TIMES (Taiwan) Worldcrunch BEIJING – What do the Chinese people appreciate most from Japan? Adult videos and their actresses, answered the Chinese according to a large-scale online survey conducted last week by the Global Times, a state-owned Beijing daily. Just as China and Japan have marked the 40th anniversary of […]
MARRAKESH – In the French Quarter of Gueliz, past the trendy Café de la Poste, you need only walk down the street to see the soliciting for yourself. In this very European neighborhood, where youths gather around the McDonald’s, it is more visible than in the infamous Djemaa El-Fna Square, in Marrakesh’s old town. Here, […]
HAARETZ, JERUSALEM POST, ISRAEL RADIO (Israel) Worldcrunch EILAT – A U.S. tourist opened fire in an Israeli hotel resort on the Red Sea coast Friday, killing one person. The Jerusalem Post reports that Israeli counter-terrorism units arrived on the scene after the gunman barricaded himself in the kitchen. Counter-terrorism units subsequently killed him in an […]
SÃO PAULO – Brazil is the most expensive developing nation for doing business and has costs similar to developed countries, according to a study by consulting firm KPMG. “Competitive Alternatives” is a regular KPMG report that compares the structure of costs for companies in different countries and localities, taking into account taxes, labor, rent, cost […]
CNN, CBS, NEW YORK TIMES (US) Worldcrunch Instant reaction polls, conducted late Wednesday night, showed Republican candidate Mitt Romney won the first presidential debate in Denver, in a performance expected to raise GOP hopes just one month before the election. According to a CNN/ORC poll of 430 people who watched the debate, 67% of registered […]
-Analysis- PARIS – A specter is looming over France. That specter is called Qatar. Qatar’s announcement that it would invest 50 million euros in the impoverished suburbs outside Paris, an investment that will be matched by a fund partly financed by the French government and partly by the private sector, has sparked growing controversy. Some […]
MEDIAPART (France), CORRIERE DELLA SERA (Italy) DREAM TV (Egypt) Worldcrunch PARIS – The former intelligence chief for Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC) has alleged that a French secret agent working with the complicity of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad killed the Libyan leader, Colonel Gaddafi. NTC spy chief Rami el-Obeidi told Paris-based news website Mediapart on […]
THE KOREA HERALD (South Korea), THE FINANCIAL TIMES (UK) Worldcrunch Samsung Electronics confirmed Tuesday that it has filed papers with a U.S. court that accuse Apple’s iPhone 5 of infringing its patents. The South Korean electronics giant alleges that the new iPhone 5, launched September 21, infringes eight of its patents, including its wireless data […]
THE INDEPENDENT, FINANCIAL TIMES (UK) Worldcrunch LONDON – Martin Wheatley, the newly appointed chief financial policeman to the UK vowed on Monday that there will be no stone unturned in bringing corrupt bankers to justice in the City- London’s financial hub. Bad bankers warned: repent or go to jail ind.pn/QEdKg3 — The Independent (@Independent) October […]
NEW YORK POST (U.S.), BFM (France), REUTERS Worldcrunch As the rhetorical rollercoaster that is the UN General Assembly draws to a close Friday, amidst some of those heartfelt, or sometimes excruciatingly awkward, moments, we have picked our 2012 All-Star Team of top performers. Mahmoud AhmadinejadBy now, we shouldn’t be surprised by the Iranian President’s blatant […]
ALMATY – The sharp rise in tensions between the European Commission and Russian oil giant Gazprom is worrying the central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, which are highly dependent on their gas and oil exports to the EU. “The relationship between Europe and Russia, in regards to energy, is similar to that of […]
DIE WELT, DER SPIEGEL (Germany) Worldcrunch A 28-year-old woman has been charged with killing five of her own newborn babies over a period of several years, police said Thursday. Die Welt reports that the woman, whose name cannot be disclosed due to German privacy laws, has confessed to killing two of the babies, five years […]
SANA (Syria), CNN (US), REUTERS (UK), AFP (France) The UN’s refugee agency released new estimates Thursday that say the number of Syrian refugees could reach 700,000 by the end of the year. Reuters reports that UN estimates have almost quadrupled since its last forecast in August reported 185,000 refugees. The new figures were published as […]
KATHERIMINI (Greece), THE GUARDIAN (UK), REUTERS Worldcrunch ATHENS – The three-month old Greek coalition government is facing its first anti-austerity general strike Wednesday, with disruptions bringing the country to a standstill. Greek public sector unions have called a strike that is likely to draw thousands of workers out into the street today to protest against […]
CLARIN (Argentina), PERU 21 (Peru) Worldcrunch A Peruvian man is behind bars for allegedly raping and strangling to death his teenage girlfriend, a reality TV participant whose on-air confessions police say led to her murder. The victim, 18-year-old Ruth Thalía Sayas Sánchez, earned 15,000 Peruvian soles (about $5,800) for her recent appearance on El Valor […]
LES ECHOS, METRO, 20 MINUTES (France), BBC, THE TELEGRAPH (UK) Worldcrunch Facebook has been forced to deny reports that private messages have been appearing publicly on the social networking site, as millions of users panic and company share prices plummet. France’s leading business daily Les Echos reports that the French government has summoned Facebook managers […]
BANGKOK POST (Thailand), AFP (France), BBC (UK) Worldcrunch HO CHI MINH CITY – The Vietnamese communist party has jailed three bloggers Monday for disseminating anti-government propaganda. The three bloggers belong to the independent media group Free Journalists Club, which sought to outline human rights violations in the southeast Asian country. The renowned dissident blogger, Nguyen […]