The Syrian army is moving their chemical weapons for what is being called “security reasons” by U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.
Panetta believes all the weapons caches are still under military control.
“We’ve continued to monitor,” Panetta told CNN. “We are working with countries in the region to ensure that we have the best information possible.” Continue reading
Kenya’s military reports that African Union forces have launched an assault and control large parts of Kismayo, the biggest city still held by Islamic extremists. Operation “Sledge Hammer” launched at 2 a.m. local time.
Local witnesses told the Associated Press that the troops captured the port but that Al-Qaeda related extremists from Al-Shabab controlled other parts of the city. The city is the major source of revenue for the terrorist group as they assess “taxes” on all imported items. Continue reading
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights is reporting that Wednesday marked the bloodiest day of the 18-month-old civil war with 305 people killed in the fighting. SOHR reported that 199 of the dead were civilians.
“If we count the unidentified bodies [which are not counted in official totals,] the figure will be much higher,” Rami Abdel Rahman of SOHR told the BBC. Continue reading
Police in Pakistan have told CNN that Rimsha Masih, the 14-year-old girl accused of blasphemy for allegedly burning a Koran, is innocent and was framed by a local imam.
“There was no legal evidence against Rimsha,” officer Munir Jafri said. Her case was moved from adult to juvenile court according to her lawyer.
The Pakistani director of Human Rights Watch hailed the news. Continue reading
A 28-year-old German woman has confessed to police that she killed five of her newborn children shortly after birth and dumped their bodies in various locations around northern Germany.
The confession brings to an end an investigation that started in 2006 when a newborn baby’s body was found in a paper-recycling plant near Flensburg. A second body was found in a parking garage in 2007. Continue reading
Greek police used tear gas to disperse a crowd of anti-austerity protesters who attacked the government’s parliament using gasoline bombs.
The protesters are angry about spending cuts of 11.5 billion euros ($15 billion U.S.) the government needs to put in place to secure the country’s next round of bailout funds. The country’s next 31 billion euro ($39.8 billion U.S.) installment is being sought to help continue government operations. However, record unemployment and 1/3 of the country’s citizens under the poverty line many citizens are upset about the cuts to government services. Continue reading
Uruguay’s lower house of Congress has given approval to a bill that would allow abortion in the first three months of pregnancy. The Uruguayan Senate approved a similar measure last December and will soon vote on the new bill. President Jose Mujica said he will approve the law if passed.
The bill would make Uruguay the most liberal country in South America for abortion. Continue reading
Heavy monsoon flooding in Pakistan has destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes and in one province more than 80% of the population has been forced to leave their homes and land.
Officials say that in the provinces of Balochistan and Sindh about 120,000 homes have been confirmed as destroyed and they are distributing tents to homeless families. Continue reading
A storm being called the “most intense September storm in 30 years” is causing flooding that is threatening thousands of homes across England.
The flooding has even caused Tadcaster, North Yorkshire to be split in two after damaging a bridge forcing it to be closed “as a precaution.” Continue reading
Two people were killed and 48 wounded when the Al-Qaeda affiliated Islamic extremist group Boko Haram attacked a church on Sunday.
The attack was launched by a homicide bomber who detonated a car bomb outside the gates of St. John’s Church in Bauchi. Doctors tell the BBC that many of the injuries are serious and that the death toll will likely rise over the next few days. Continue reading