India’s Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid has sought to downplay the row with Washington over an Indian diplomat who was arrested in the US. There was “no stand-off” with the US, he told reporters in Delhi, and predicted problems would be sorted out. The row erupted after the diplomat, Devyani Khobragade, was arrested in New York on charges of visa fraud and underpaying her housekeeper. She is now back in […]
Scientists have discovered the first-ever dinosaur fossils in Saudi Arabia, dating back to 72 million years. Dinosaur fossils are exceptionally rare in the Arabian Peninsula and the newly identified specimen were excavated in the northwest part of Saudi Arabia along the coast of the Red Sea. An international team of scientists from Uppsala University, Museum Victoria, Monash University, and the Saudi Geological Survey unearthed a string of vertebrae […]
STORY HIGHLIGHTS Venezuela has arrested 7 suspects in the double homicide Official says the killers are among the suspects The country was shocked by the killing of soap opera star Monica Spear The killers of a Venezuelan soap opera star and former beauty queen are among seven suspects who have been arrested, Venezuela’s interior minister said. The shooting deaths of actress Monica Spear and her ex-husband have galvanized the public […]
Tributes have been pouring in for a Pakistani teenager who was killed on Monday when he tackled a suicide bomber targeting his school in the Hangu area. Aitzaz Hasan, 15, was with friends outside school when they spotted a man wearing a suicide vest. Despite the pleas of his fellow students, he decided to confront and capture the bomber who then detonated his vest, his cousin told the BBC. Aitzaz […]
New York: Over 20 Indian-origin young entrepreneurs are among Forbes magazine’s annual list of the world’s “brightest young stars” under the age of 30 from diverse fields like finance, media, sports and education, described by the publication as “prodigies reinventing the world right now.” The Forbes third annual ’30 Under 30′ list comprises young achievers in 15 different fields and includes icons like pop singers Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus and […]
A North Carolina sheriff has pulled off a deal that should make everyone but the bad guys happy. When two vintage Thompson fully automatic submachine guns — better known as “Tommy Guns”– were discovered collecting dust in the Forsyth County armory, Sheriff William Schatzman immediately realized their value. They weren’t worth anything in the hands of his officers, but to a collector, it was like a law enforcement version of […]
STORY HIGHLIGHTS Anti-poaching leader is convinced Chinese construction camps are conduits for the ivory trade The Congolese government vows to punish anyone found to be connected to poaching A wildlife protection group works with Congolese authorities to find and shut down poachers The Republic of Congo’s main north-south road runs right on the edge of Odzala-Kokoua National Park. For now, it remains nothing more than a narrow dirt track and […]
Loud explosions heard in parts of Canada are being blamed on a phenomenon called frostquakes. What are they? Ontario is no stranger to temperatures approaching -20C (-4F) but in recent days the winter freeze has been accompanied by unusual sound effects – bangs waking people up during the night. @sydney_grieve was one of many to tweet: “Heard a loud bang outside of my room at 2am. My whole family was […]
The Chinese ice-breaker that helped rescue passengers stranded on the Akademik Shokalskiy vessel in Antarctica is now stuck itself. An Australian ice-breaker carrying the rescued passengers is no longer on standby and is returning to shore. On Thursday, a helicopter from the Chinese ship, Xue Long, transferred 52 passengers from the Akademik Shokalskiy to the Aurora Australis. The Russian boat has been trapped by thick floes of ice since […]
