Timeline 2010 October - December
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2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1,
Pres. Obama bid farewell to chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and
announced that he will be replaced by Pete Rouse.
   (SFC, 10/2/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, California’s Gov.
Schwarzenegger signed a measure making marijuana possession up to
ounce an infraction, on par with traffic and littering tickets.
Schwarzenegger opposed Proposition 19, the upcoming marijuana
initiative.
   (SFC, 10/2/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Medicago, a
Canadian company, broke ground at Durham, NC, on its first American
facility. The company genetically manipulates tobacco plants to
produce proteins used in making flu vaccines.
   (Econ, 10/23/10, p.36)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In southern
Afghanistan 2 coalition soldiers were killed in a blast while on
patrol. NATO said it has captured more insurgent leaders and
announced it has detained at least 438 suspected militants over the
last month. Just north of Kandahar, two Romanian soldiers were
killed and one injured when their Humvee was struck by an improvised
explosive device some 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Qalat in Zabul
province.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Britain most
provisions of the 2010 Equality Act took effect, including a measure
to stop pay secrecy clauses being used to hide unfair differences
between men and women's pay. But 10 percent of the legislation,
which was passed by Parliament in April, will be left out, while the
government reviews certain sections of it.
   (AFP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, China launched its
second lunar exploration probe, boosting the country's efforts to
rise as a major space power eventually capable of landing a man on
the moon and perhaps one day exploring far beyond.
   (Reuters, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Ecuador was under a
state of siege, the streets quiet with the military in charge of
public order. Three police colonels were arrested for failing to
prevent a massive protest by their subordinates that left 5 people
dead.Â
   (AP, 10/1/10)(AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, European oil majors
resisted pressure from the US to stop all business with Iran, in
spite of Washington's drive to isolate Tehran over a nuclear program
the West suspects is aimed at making bombs.
   (Reuters, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, The European
Commission said it has decided to more than double its Pakistan
flood aid to 150 million euros (205 million dollars). The UN has
issued a record two-billion-dollar appeal for funds to cope with the
disaster, which UN agencies say affected 21 million people and left
12 million in need of emergency food aid.
   (AFP, 10/1/10)
2010      Oct 1, In Finland
tobacco sales were pushed under shop counters as a new law, set to
progress in stages, came into effect. Finland is the first country
to target an end to smoking through legal means.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Germany’s
Chancellor Angela Merkel called for calm after riot police used what
critics called "Rambo" tactics to disperse thousands of opponents of
a contentious rail project.
   (AFP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Haiti gunmen
killed Pierre Richard Denis (42), an engineer supervising the
building of shelters at the Corail-Cesselesse relocation camp for
Haitian earthquake survivors, forcing construction to be suspended
on part of the site. Denis worked for International Organization for
Migration.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Indian cinema's
most expensive movie "Endhiran" (Robot), starring former bus
conductor Rajinikanth, opened. The weekend opening of the $35
million film broke box office records.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Iran Ebrahim
Yazdi (80) the head of a banned liberal party, was arrested. He was
released on March 20, 2011.
   (AFP, 3/20/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Iraq aides said
Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has agreed to support the bid by
Iraq's PM al-Maliki to retain power. A roadside bomb exploded and
killed at least three people, including two members of an
anti-insurgent militia, and wounded seven others in a mostly Sunni
district of southern Baghdad. In Mosul gunmen killed a policeman and
a roadside bomb killed an Iraqi soldier on foot patrol.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Mexico a
shootout between rival drug-dealing gangs broke out in the town of
San Jose de la Cruz. 14 people were left dead. Assailants tossed a
grenade into a square in the northern business city of Monterrey,
injuring 12 people in an attack the government blamed on drug gangs.
   (AP, 10/2/10)(Reuters, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In the Netherlands
more than 100 people protesting the outlawing of squatting at unused
buildings clashed with police in Amsterdam's historic center,
throwing stones, setting fires and erecting barricades.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Nigeria car bomb
explosions killed 12 people and injured 17 near a parade Abuja
marking the 50th anniversary of independence. Two blasts, which also
destroyed three cars, came an hour after the Movement for the
Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), warned it had planted
several bombs and told people to evacuate the area.
   (Reuters, 10/1/10)(Reuters, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Pirates off the
coast of Nigeria's southern delta kidnapped two foreign sailors from
the MV Eckhardt tanker. A naval spokesman later suggested the crew
worked in the black market trade of stolen crude from the region.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Northern Ireland
Paul McCaugherty (43), a self-described senior Irish Republican Army
dissident, received a 20-year prison sentence for trying to buy
guns, explosives and other weapons from undercover British agents.
He had been convicted in June of attempted arms smuggling.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Red Cross officials
from the two Koreas agreed to hold reunions for families separated
by the Korean War amid mixed signals from North Korea on easing
tensions over the sinking of a South Korean warship.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Pakistan's
ex-military ruler Pervez Musharraf launched a new political party in
London. Musharraf said the only way to tackle Pakistan's ailing
economy and its political infighting, problems exacerbated by recent
floods, is to further bolster the army's role.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In southern
Pakistan assailants launched two separate attacks on vehicles
carrying fuel for NATO and American forces in Afghanistan,
highlighting the vulnerability of the US-led mission a day after
Pakistan closed a major border crossing.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Peru former
President Alberto Fujimori's right hand man, Vladimiro Montesinos,
two top ex-generals and a major were sentenced to 25 years in jail
for ordering murders during Peru's so-called dirty war. They were
found guilty of ordering the Colina Group, a secret army hit squad,
to kill 24 people in two massacres in 1991 and 1992. Twenty other
members of the Colina Group were sentenced to 15-25 years behind
bars.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Moscow police
detained several gay rights opponents at the first sanctioned gay
rights protest in years. Former Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, fired on Sep 28,
had compared gay people to the devil and forbade gay rights rallies.
   (SFC, 10/2/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Spanish energy
giant Repsol announced the sale of 40 percent of its Brazilian
affiliate to China's Sinopec for 7.1 billion dollars, securing
funding for the development of oil fields in Brazil.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, In Sudan Darfur
rebels accused Sudan's army of killing 27 people in a week-long
campaign of air and ground assaults on their positions, as peace
efforts in the arid region continued to flounder.
   (Reuters, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, Ukraine's
Constitutional Court shifted key powers from parliament to the
presidency, a move that boosted the influence of pro-Russian
President Viktor Yanukovych, but also threw the country into legal
uncertainty.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 1, The UN released its
545-page report into mass killings in Congo over a ten-year period.
Rwanda and Uganda insisted the $3 million report is flawed and could
harm security in Africa's volatile Great Lakes region.
   (AP, 10/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In Afghanistan at
least three civilians were killed along with 17 insurgents in a NATO
air strike targeting senior Taliban commanders in southern Helmand
province. ISAF accidentally killed two civilians when insurgents
attacked a military base in Baraki Barak district of Logar province
south of Kabul.
   (Reuters, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Australian PM Julia
Gillard met the chief of international forces in Afghanistan and
vowed support for the US-led mission in a surprise visit to troops
on her first overseas trip as leader.
   (AFP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Britain’s Druids
hailed a semi-governmental Charity Commission’s decision to grant it
charitable status just like mainstream religions such as the Church
of England. The Druid Network, a group of about 350 Druids, will
receive exemptions from taxes on donations.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, China offered to
buy Greek government bonds in a show of support for the country
whose debt burden triggered a crisis for the euro zone and required
an international bailout. Premier Wen Jiabao made the offer at the
start of a two-day visit, where he says he expects to expand ties in
all areas.
   (Reuters, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In China 8 workers
were killed and three others were injured when the residential
building toppled in Xi'an, the capital of northwestern Shaanxi
province.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Ecuador agreed to
raise wages in the armed forces by up to $35 million annually, days
after soldiers battled rebel police to rescue President Rafael
Correa from what he called a coup bid. Defense Minister Javier Ponce
said it was chance the wage were agreed two days after the assault
on Correa. He said the increases will cost $30 million to $35
million a year.
   (Reuters, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, French families,
students and private sector workers joined mass demonstrations
against the government's pension reforms, and unions hoped as many
as 3 million protesters would take to the streets.
   (Reuters, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Guatemalan police
captured a suspected drug trafficker wanted in the US for cocaine
smuggling and seized nearly $2 million in cash that his brother was
carrying in two bags. Mauro Ramirez Barrios, alias "The Purple One,"
was arrested in the southern town of San Bernardino after a four-day
search. Ramirez, an alleged lieutenant of Juan Ortiz Lopez, was
arrested two weeks after he escaped police during a shootout at a
Guatemala City shopping mall that killed two officers.
   (AP, 10/3/10)(AP, 3/31/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In central
Indonesia a train crashed into another parked at a railway station,
killing at least 36 people and injuring dozens, many seriously. The
next day Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said Halik Rudianto,
the train’s engineer, had failed to stop at a red signal. Rudianto
was arrested for negligence.
   (AP, 10/2/10)(AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Visiting Iran
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad assured Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
that their ties were solid, a view unlikely to please Washington
which is working to isolate the Islamic state.
   (Reuters, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Latvians went to
the polls, as the Baltic nation emerges from a savage economic
slump, with polls showing the Moscow-tied left being poised for big
gains. PM Valdis Dombrovskis's center-right coalition took 63 seats
in the 100-member parliament in the election. His Unity Party won 33
seats, while the Moscow-linked, left-wing Harmony Center won 29.
   (AFP, 10/2/10)(AP, 10/3/10)(Econ, 10/9/10, p.74)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In Mexico 33
murders took place in Chihuahua state over the last 2 days with 9 of
the dead in Ciudad Juarez. In the northeast an explosion at a plaza
in Guadalupe injured 15 people. Authorities blamed the attack on
drug cartels targeting the civilian population to cause chaos. In
the northeast an explosion at a plaza in Guadalupe injured 15
people. Authorities blamed the attack on drug cartels targeting the
civilian population to cause chaos.
   (AFP, 10/2/10)(AFP, 10/3/10)(AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In Moroccan
publisher Ahmed Benshemsi said his Arab-language weekly magazine
Nichane has gone bankrupt and been forced to close because "the
highest circles of power" had organized a boycott of advertisers.
The boycott was launched in August last year after Nichane, its
French-language stablemate Telquel and France's prestigious Le Monde
conducted an opinion poll on the monarchy.
   (AFP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In Pakistan 2
suspected American missile strikes killed 16 alleged militants in a
northwestern tribal region, a sign the US is unwilling to stop using
the tactic despite heightened tensions between the two countries
over NATO's recent border incursions. Those killed were believed to
be insurgents working for warlord Hafiz Gul Bahadur. Gunmen killed
Farooq Khan, a moderate Islamic scholar who was the vice chancellor
of Swat University, and his assistant.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, Senior Palestinian
politicians backed President Mahmoud Abbas' demand to link peace
talks to restrictions on Israeli settlement building, delivering a
new setback to bogged down US efforts to salvage the negotiations.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, In Peru a small
plane carrying British tourists crashed near the famed Nazca Lines,
killing all six people on board.
   (AP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, At least seven
Somali civilians were killed in a fire fight between African Union
forces and hardline Islamist rebels.
   (AFP, 10/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 2, South African
authorities arrested Henry Okah, an ex-leader of a militant group
that claimed responsibility for the Oct 1 dual car bombing that
killed 12 people in Nigeria. A day before the bombings, security
agencies in South Africa had raided Okah's home and seized a laptop,
though they did not arrest him. On Jan 21, 2013, a South African
court found Okah guilty of masterminding the bombings. On March 26,
2013, Okah was sentenced to 24 years in prison.
   (AP, 10/3/10)(AP, 1/21/13)(AP, 3/26/13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, The US and Britain
warned their citizens of an increased risk of terrorist attacks in
Europe, with Washington saying al Qaeda might target transport
infrastructure.
   (Reuters, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Rohm Emanuel,
former US White House chief of staff, said in a video on his website
that he’s preparing to run for mayor of Chicago.
   (SFC, 10/4/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Aug 3, Lawrence Salander
(61), NYC owner of a lavish Upper East Side gallery, was sentenced
to six to 18 years in prison. He had pleaded guilty earlier this
year to 29 counts of grand larceny and fraud.
   (AP,
10/24/10)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Salander)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, The SF Giants
baseball team clinched a division title with a 3-0 win over the San
Diego Padres.
   (SFC, 10/4/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, San Francisco’s
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, sponsored by financier Warren
Hellman, drew some 350,000 listeners to Golden Gate Park. The 10th
annual weekend festival drew some 600,000 all together.
   (SFC, 10/4/10, p.C2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, In NYC a potential
recruit for the Latin King Goonies street gang and 2 other men were
beaten and sodomized for their sexual contacts. 8 suspects were
later arrested and one more was sought in the gruesome assaults. 2
more suspects were charged on Oct 12.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A7)(SSFC, 10/10/10, p.A10)(AP,
10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, The Afghan
government said it has started dissolving private security firms in
the country by taking steps to end the operations of eight
companies, including the firm formerly known as Blackwater and three
other international contractors. An insurgent with the Haqqani
network responsible for attacking coalition and Afghan troops was
captured in an operation in eastern Khost province. 3 insurgents
died in an Afghan and NATO operation in Kandahar province's
Arghandab district. The raid in Khisroo village also recovered
explosive material and an anti-personnel mine that were destroyed.
At least 3 Afghan civilians were killed along with 17 insurgents in
a NATO air strike in Helmand.
   (AP, 10/3/10)(AP, 10/4/10)(Reuters, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Bolivia’s President
Evo Morales kneed an opposing player in the groin during a soccer
match against a team of political rivals after an apparent hard foul
by the opponent. Images of the altercation were broadcast and posted
to YouTube.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Voters in
Bosnia-Herzegovina cast ballots in elections likely to further
entrench their nation's ethnic divisions and threaten possible EU
entry. Some 3 million voters uneasily split between Serbs, Bosniaks
and Croats chose from 8,000 candidates for the central and several
regional parliaments, the Bosnian Serb presidency and the federal
presidency. Preliminary election results indicated that the
three-person presidency will remain deadlocked over the nation's
future, with two leaders of the ethnically divided country
advocating unity and a third pushing for the country's breakup.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Brazil held
presidential elections. Ruling party candidate Dilma Rousseff looked
poised to sweep to victory. Rousseff, who is trying to become
Brazil's first female leader, fell short of getting a majority of
votes in presidential elections and faced a runoff in four weeks
against an experienced, centrist rival. Francisco Everardo Oliveira
Silva (45), better known by his clown name Tiririca, received more
than 1.3 million votes in Sao Paulo state in Brazil's presidential
and congressional elections. "What does a congressman do? The truth
is I don't know, but vote for me and I'll tell you," he said in his
campaign advertisements. On Nov 11 Silva convinced the Sao Paulo
Electoral court that he could read and write.
   (AP, 10/3/10)(AFP, 10/3/10)(AP, 10/4/10)(Reuters,
10/5/10)(SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, In China 6 people
were killed when the wall of a factory under construction fell in
Qingzhou city, Shandong province. 5 people were injured, 2 of them
severely.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Egypt backed the
Palestinians' refusal to negotiate with Israel as long as it
continues to build West Bank settlements, even as officials urged
for continued diplomacy to salvage the month-old talks.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Egyptian and
Iranian airlines agreed to resume direct flights between the two
countries for the first time since 1979.
   (SFC, 10/4/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, In India the
troubled Commonwealth Games got underway with a glittering opening
ceremony in a fortress-like New Delhi after a shambolic run-up that
threatened to derail the event.
   (AFP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, In Iran a top
official said Industrial computers infected by Stuxnet have been
cleaned and returned to their units, following reports that the
malware was mutating and wreaking havoc with equipment.
   (AFP, 10/3/10)
2010      Oct 3, An Israeli
military court convicted two soldiers of using a Palestinian child
as a human shield by forcing him to check for booby traps on Jan 15,
2009, during the 2008-2009 Gaza war. Israeli police shot and killed
Izzedine Qawasmeh (35), a father of five and a construction worker
from the West Bank village of Sair, after he used a rope to scale a
towering wall meant to keep Palestinians from sneaking into Israel.
On Nov 21 the two soldiers received suspended sentences and
demotions.
   (AFP, 10/3/10)(AP, 10/3/10)(AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Nigeria's federal
police force named two men, Ben Jessy and Chima Orlu, as the
"masterminds" behind the Oct 1 bombings in Abuja.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Thousands of Serb
pilgrims gathered in a medieval monastery in western Kosovo amid
tight security to attend the enthronement ceremony of the new
Serbian Patriarch Irinej.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, In Somalia fighting
in Mogadishu left at least eight people dead.
   (AP, 10/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 3, Spain's beleaguered
PM Zapatero suffered an embarrassing setback in a local election
race, and a poll showed his party trailing ever further behind the
opposition conservatives at the national level.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, President Barack
Obama said the United States was facing an "untenable fiscal
situation" and would have to get serious about tackling its federal
deficit.
   (Reuters, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, US federal agents
spread out across Alabama to arrest 11 people on charges of
conspiracy, bribery and honest services fraud related to attempts to
legitimize bingo halls in 2009 and 2010.
   (SFC, 10/5/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In New Jersey Craig
Mueller (45) killed his brother with sniper fire from a second-floor
window in the home they shared, took down a neighbor who came to the
victim's aid and turned the gun on himself.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Afghanistan 3
NATO service members were killed by bombings in the south and an
insurgent attack killed another in the east, raising the coalition's
death toll to 11 in the first four days of October. NATO announced
that a joint Afghan-coalition unit launched a night mission that
killed a senior Taliban leader named Farman and two other militants
in eastern Paktia province. A police convoy was ambushed in Khash
Rod district. 5 militants were killed, 3 others wounded and two
captured during a gunbattle. Habibullah Aghonzada, a former district
chief, was gunned down by assailants as he prayed at a packed mosque
in Kandahar city. 3 night time explosion in Kandahar City killed up
to 4 Afghan police officers. Noor Ahman, deputy mayor in Kandahar,
was killed in an insurgent attack. In the southwest 2 civilians
riding a motorcycle died when a roadside bomb exploded as they
passed. 2 others were killed by rockets in the country's east.
   (AP, 10/4/10)(AP, 10/5/10)(SFC, 10/5/10,
p.A5)(AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Belgium European
and Asian leaders opened a formal summit amid high security and
palace opulence, hoping to agree on commitments to keep the global
financial system on an even keel and find a better balance on the
Europe-dominated IMF.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Britain’s treasury
chief George Osborne said payments to jobless families will be
capped and child benefits for high earners scrapped in a sweeping
overhaul of the country's welfare system.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Millions of
commuters in London endured a grim journey to work after staff on
the Underground network walked out for the second time in a month,
sparking calls for tougher strike laws.
   (AFP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, British biologist
Robert G. Edwards, whose contributions to the technology of in vitro
fertilization have made more than 4 million couples parents, was
awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. Louise
Brown, the first test-tube baby, was born Jul 25, 1978.
  Â
(www.latimes.com/health/la-sci-nobel-medicine-20101005,0,7666490.story)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Central African
Republic government troops regained control of Yalinga, a town held
by rebels since September 18. On Oct 6 a spokesman for the rebel
group, the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace (CPJP),
claimed its fighters still held the town in the unstable east of the
country.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Colombia's defense
minister Rodrigo Rivera said authorities have seized $29 million and
17 million euros in cash in a home in a poor district south of the
capital, Bogota. Rivera said the money belonged to drug traffickers
including Daniel "El Loco" Barrera. Authorities were offering a $2.7
million reward for Barrera's capture.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, A Cuban human
rights leader revealed the names of nine inmates apparently offered
early release by the government in exchange for accepting exile,
including some convicted of violent crimes such as hijacking,
assault and piracy.
   (AP, 10/4/10) Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Ethiopian PM Meles
Zenawi was sworn in for another five-year term, almost five months
after controversial polls propelled his party to victory.
   (AFP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, France's
Sanofi-Aventis launched an $18.5 billion hostile takeover offer for
Genzyme Corp., stepping up its effort to capture the US biotech
company's promising drugs for high cholesterol and lucrative
treatments for rare genetic disorders.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Hungary a
torrent of toxic red sludge from an alumina plant tore through
Kolontar and two other villages. The next day Hungary declared a
state of emergency in three counties. After some days 9 people were
reported killed and some 150 injured.
   (Reuters, 10/5/10)(AFP, 10/8/10)(AP,
10/11/10)(Econ, 10/16/10, p.63)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Indonesia heavy
rain unleashed flash floods and mudslides, killing at least 91
people in West Papua province's village of Wasior. Rescuers
struggled to reach the area.
   (AP, 10/5/10)(AP, 10/6/10)(AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Iraq 5 people
were killed in violence in Baghdad and central Iraq, including a
roadside bomb targeting a junior minister.
   (AFP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Japan issued a
travel alert for Europe, joining the United States and Britain in
warning of a possible terrorist attack by al-Qaida or other groups,
but tourists appeared to be taking the mounting warnings in stride.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Tokyo-based Toshiba
unveiled the world's first high definition liquid crystal display
3-D television that does not require special glasses, one of the
biggest consumer complaints about the technology.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, The Pakistani
Taliban claimed responsibility for a pre-dawn attack on tankers
carrying fuel to Afghanistan for US and other NATO forces, left
vulnerable on the side of the road after Pakistan shut down a key
border crossing. Some 20 trucks went up in flames and four people
were killed and seven injured. A US drone strike killed eight
militants, including five Germans, in North Waziristan, where
Western intelligence had traced an alleged plot to attack
high-profile targets in Europe.
   (AP, 10/4/10)(AFP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Arsonists torched a
mosque in a Palestinian village in the West Bank, scrawling
"revenge" on a wall in Hebrew and charring copies of the Muslim holy
book in a blaze that threatened to stoke new tensions over
deadlocked Mideast peacemaking.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In the northern
Philippines motorcycle-riding gunmen killed a regional trial court
judge, prompting calls to exempt judges from a current gun ban.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Russia Yuri
Luzhkov, the former mayor of Moscow who was fired by Pres. Medvedev,
said in a published interview that he plans to form his own
political movement.
   (AP, 10/4/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Russia's VimpelCom
Ltd and Weather Investments, the investment company headed by
Egyptian telecom mogul Naguib Sawiris, said they are merging to form
what would become the world's fifth largest mobile telecommunication
service provider in a deal valued at over $6.5 billion. Under the
agreement VimpelCom, which is Russia's second largest mobile phone
service provider, would own via Weather 51.7 percent of Egypt's
Orascom Telecom and all of Italy's Wind Telecomunicazioni SpA, both
of which are headed by Sawiris.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, In Somalia two
women, a boy and two men were killed in Mogadishu by stray bullets
from fighting taking place between pro-government forces and
Islamist militants.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, An official said
Syria has accused a 19-year-old blogger who is in prison of being a
spy in the first comment from authorities on a case that sparked
calls by a leading rights group for the young woman's release. Tal
al-Mallohi was taken into custody in December. Her blog, known for
poetry and social commentary, focused mostly on the suffering of
Palestinians.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, It was reported
that Syria has ordered the arrest of 33 people over false testimony
given in the UN-backed probe into the assassination of Lebanese
ex-premier Rafiq Hariri. Observers said the warrants carried no
legal weight in Lebanon as the crime in question took place on
Lebanese soil and the complainant as well as most of the defendants
are Lebanese.
   (AFP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 4, Vietnamese
officials said weekend floods triggered by heavy rains have
displaced thousands of villagers in central Vietnam, and left 3
people dead and 3 others missing.
   (AP, 10/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Two Russian-born
scientists shared the Nobel Prize in physics for groundbreaking
experiments with ultrathin carbon. In 2004 University of Manchester
professors Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov used Scotch tape to
isolate graphene, a form of carbon only one atom thick but more than
100 times stronger than steel, and showed it has exceptional
properties, the strongest and thinnest material known to mankind.
   (AP, 10/5/10)(Econ, 12/5/15, TQ p.9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, US ATF deputy
director Kenneth Melson and Mexico Attorney General Arturo Chavez
signed a memorandum of understanding that will increase to 30 a
month the number of people trained to use the program, known as
eTrace, an electronic database that can trace the manufacture,
import, sale and ownership of guns.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â May 5, Faisal Shahzad
(30), a US citizen who on May 1, drove a bomb-laden SUV meant to
cause a fireball in Times Square, was sentenced to life in prison.
The Pakistani immigrant had pleaded guilty on June 21 to 10
terrorism and weapons counts.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, San Francisco
unveiled its Kindergarten to College program, the nation’s first
city-bankrolled college savings plan. Public school kindergartners
will get one-time payments of at least $50 as part of a program to
be rolled out over 3 years. Additional contributions were to come
from EARN and the San Francisco Foundation based on parental
contributions.
   (SFC, 10/5/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Illinois police
officer Brian Dorian (37) of Lynwood, allegedly began a spree of
random shooting that left one person dead and 2 wounded. Dorian was
arrested on Oct 8. Dorian was freed on Oct 13. An attorney said he
was the victim of a botched investigation.Â
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A5)(SFC, 10/14/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Afghanistan
roadside bombings in Kandahar city killed 9 people, including 5
children, and 30 left injured, including many police officers. A
major shipment of drugs was intercepted by a combined force after a
highway gunbattle in Kandahar that killed an unspecified number of
"insurgents." A NATO airstrike killed Qari Ziauddin, identified as
the Taliban's "shadow" governor of Faryab province, and four other
insurgents. In neighboring Badghis province, a helicopter-borne raid
by a joint force led to a gunbattle that killed Mohammad Ismail
Quarisaderdin, another Taliban leader described as a shadow
governor. Five other Taliban commanders also died in the operation.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In the Bahamas a
twin-engine Cessna 402 carrying a pilot and at least eight
passengers crashed into Lake Killarney near the international
airport in, Nassau, after one of its engines caught fire. Officials
soon found the body of a 9th victim from the crash of what may have
been an illegal charter flight to a cultural festival. They said a
10th passenger may missing as well.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Brazil a ruling
posted on the Sao Paulo electoral court's website said there is
sufficient doubt about whether comic performer Tiririca, which means
"grumpy" in Portuguese, meets a constitutional mandate that federal
lawmakers be literate. Francisco Silva, who got more votes than any
other candidate for Congress, will have to convince authorities he
can read and write if he wants to take office.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Fellow rebels
handed over Congolese commander Sadoke Kokunda Mayele. He was
arrested for allegedly leading fighters in the mass gang-rapes of
more than 300 people from July 30 to August 2.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Zagreb, Croatia,
artists Olinka Vistica and Drazen Grubisic opened the first
permanent gallery of their Museum of Broken Relationships.
   (Econ, 11/27/10,
p.96)(http://new.brokenships.com/en)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, A leading
independent Egyptian daily, Al-Dustour, announced that it has fired
chief editor Ibrahim Eissa, an outspoken government critic, amid
what journalists are calling a state crackdown on the media ahead of
parliamentary elections.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In France former
Societe Generale SA trader Jerome Kerviel was convicted on all
counts in one of history's biggest trading frauds. He was sentenced
to three years in jail, with 2 years suspended, and was ordered to
repay the bank euro4.9 billion ($6.7 billion) in damages.
   (AP, 10/5/10)(Econ, 10/9/10, p.110)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Police in southern
France arrested 12 suspects in sweeps against suspected Islamic
militant networks, including three men linked to a network
recruiting fighters for Afghanistan.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Iran claimed that
the Stuxnet computer worm, found on the laptops of several employees
at the country's nuclear power plant, is part of a covert Western
plot to derail its nuclear program.
   (AP, 10/5/10) Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Iraq gunmen in
the northern city of Mosul ambushed and killed the director of the
city's crime lab in the latest targeted killing of security
officials and government workers.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Myanmar detained
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi launched a legal battle against
the ruling military junta, suing to keep her political party intact
after it was disbanded earlier this year under Myanmar's new party
registration law.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Medecines Sans
Frontieres (MSF) said lead poisoning has killed more than 400
children under five in the past six months in the northern Nigerian
state of Zamfara.
   (AFP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Northern Ireland
a dissident Irish Republican Army car bomb damaged a hotel, bank and
other businesses but caused no injuries in Londonderry, the sixth
such attack this year in the British territory.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In northwestern
Pakistan a small bomb damaged a truck that was carrying oil to NATO
troops in Afghanistan, the latest attack on stalled supply convoys
since Pakistan shut a key border crossing to international forces
last week.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, Portugal's Pres.
Anibal Cavaco Silva opened a new cancer and neuroscience research
center in Lisbon that aims to be among the world's best.
   (AP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Somalia fighting
in Mogadishu left seven people dead.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, South Africa
launched a special wildlife crime unit to tackle a dramatic surge in
rhino poaching driven by demand for the animal's horn in Asia for
use in traditional medicines.
   (AFP, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 5, In Thailand a blast
blew out the side of a residential building in a Bangkok suburb
killing 4 people and injuring nine. Police found bomb-making
materials in the apartment, including fertilizer contained in fire
extinguishers, electrical circuit boards and high-voltage batteries.
Samai Wongsuwan, a Red Shirt supporter, was believed to be one of
the dead.
   (AP, 10/5/10)(AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Documents were
released in which the national oil spill commission's staff
described "not an incidental public relations problem" by the White
House in the wake of the April 20 accident. The report said, the
administration made erroneous early estimates of the spill's size,
and President Barack Obama's senior energy adviser went on national
TV and mischaracterized a government analysis by saying it showed
most of the oil was "gone." The analysis actually said it could
still be there. The explosion in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11
workers, spewed 206 million gallons of oil from the damaged oil
well, and sank the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, The American Civil
Liberties Union filed suit on behalf of Prison Legal News against a
county jail in Moncks Corner, SC, over a policy barring inmates from
having any reading material other than the Bible.
   (SFC, 10/7/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, An American and two
Japanese scientists won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for finding new
ways to bond carbon atoms together, methods now widely used to make
medicines and in agriculture and electronics. Richard Heck, Ei-ichi
Negishi and Akira Suzuki were honored for their development in the
1960s and '70s of one of the most sophisticated tools available to
chemists today, called palladium-catalyzed cross coupling.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Facebook launched a
new way for members to organize their friends, archive personal
information and a new dashboard to control personal information
sought by 3rd party applications and Web sites.
   (SFC, 10/7/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Logitech introduced
Revue, a $299.99 set-top box for Google’s new TV service. The device
allows users to access websites, Internet video, digital pictures
and music from their televisions. Apple’s set-top box was introduced
on Sep 1 for $99.
   (SSFC, 10/10/10,
p.D5)(http://tinyurl.com/2vzxpar)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Cisco introduced
its $599 Cisco Umi, a consumer product for video chats on home TVs.
The service would also require a monthly fee of $24.99.
   (SSFC, 10/10/10,
p.D5)(http://tinyurl.com/2vzxpar)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Researchers
reported in the journal PLoS ONE that samples collected from hives
affected by the colony collapse disorder (CCD) indicated the
presence of a virus as well as a fungus. The two pathogens were not
found in bee colonies not affected by the syndrome.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, The US and EU said
that UN climate talks in Ttianjin, China, were making less progress
than hoped due to rifts over rising economies' emission goals, while
China pushed back and put the onus on rich nations.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, American Airlines,
British Airways and Iberia launched their transatlantic joint
business, unveiling new routes and detailing benefits for customers
that include a shared frequent flyers program.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, San Francisco
unveiled new equipment allowing luxury liners to plug into the
city’s power grid, part of an effort to cut diesel suit along the
waterfront.
   (SFC, 10/7/10, p.C2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Northern Arizona
was hit by 3 tornadoes. 28 cars of a parked freight train were
derailed. 15 homes in Bellemont were made uninhabitable.
   (SFC, 10/7/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, It was reported
that Afghan Pres. Karzai has begun secret talks over a negotiated
end to the war. Sources said that for the first time Taliban
representatives are fully authorized to speak for the Quetta Shura,
the Afghan Taliban organization based in Pakistan, and its leader
Muhammad Omar. Taliban commander Maulawi Jawadullah, accused of
organizing deadly ambushes, roadside bombings, and abductions of
Afghan police and soldiers in northern Afghanistan, was killed in an
airstrike in Yangi Qala district. A NATO service member died in a
roadside bombing in the south. An Afghan-NATO force killed six
insurgents and destroyed a compound used for making improvised
explosive devices in Arghandab district of Kandahar province. 3
militants were killed in Zabul province during a firefight with a
joint force. 16 militants were killed in air raids and ground
fighting overnight in the Darqad, Yangi Qala and Khwaja Bahawuddin
districts of Takhar province.
   (SFC, 10/6/10, p.A2)(AP, 10/7/10)(AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Britain Halima
Bashir (30), a doctor who says she was gang-raped in 2004 by
Sudanese soldiers after speaking out about atrocities in Darfur, won
the Anna Politkovskaya award for women human rights defenders. She
wrote about her experiences in her memoir, "Tears of the Desert"
(2008).
   (Reuters, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Canada Quebec
presented legislation to award Bombardier Inc a contract worth more
than C$1 billion ($980 million) to build nearly 500 subway cars for
Montreal, short-circuiting a bidding process that has dragged on for
five years.
   (Reuters, 10/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Chinese Premier Wen
Jiabao told the EU to stop piling pressure on Beijing to revalue its
currency, saying a rapid shift could unleash disastrous social
turmoil.
   (Reuters, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Cuba a
resolution from the Foreign Relations Ministry was published into
law making the guayabera Cuba's official formal dress garment and
mandating that government officials wear them at state functions.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Ecuador's interior
minister said 46 police officers have been detained for alleged
participation in the Sep 30 police revolt against President Rafael
Correa that claimed 5 lives.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Ethiopia freed
opposition leader Birtukan Mideksa (36), saying it had granted a
plea for pardon from her. Birtukan and other opposition figures were
charged with plotting against the constitution in connection with
those skirmishes, but were released in 2007 after being pardoned.
She was sent back to prison in December 2008 after claiming she had
never asked for pardon.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Former US president
Bill Clinton returned to Haiti to participate in a meeting on
rebuilding the quake-ravaged nation, as his foundation pledged
500,000 dollars to a huge tent city.
   (AFP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Hungary scrambled
to contain a toxic mud spill that left four people dead and more
than 100 injured in what is being described as an ecological
catastrophe. The spill raised fears that pollution leeching from it
could reach the Danube River, which courses through Croatia, Serbia,
Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine before flowing into the Black Sea.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Ratings agency
Fitch cut Ireland's credit worthiness another notch, citing the
country's long fight to emerge from record deficits, the toughest
bank-bailout effort in Europe and a lagging economy.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Italy Concetta
Serrano was participating in a live TV show that focuses on missing
people when the anchor told her brother-in-law had confessed to have
allegedly murdered her daughter. The Italian news agencies broke the
story of the alleged confession while the show was being broadcast
from inside the uncle's house in the southern Italian town of
Avetrana, where Sarah Scazzi (15) disappeared on Aug. 26.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Indian Kashmir
50 students arrested during months of deadly protests were released
from custody in a latest move to defuse tension in the Himalayan
region.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Indonesia
helicopters dropped food to isolated villages and security forces
helped clear debris and search for survivors as the number of people
killed by floods and landslides across Asia climbed to nearly 110.
Three-quarters of the deaths were in eastern Indonesia. In Vietnam
11 bodies were recovered in the worst-hit province of Quang Binh,
where authorities were also searching for five sailors from a sunken
barge. At least seven other bodies were found in Ha Tinh province,
five in Nghe An and three in Quang Tri. On China's nearby island
province of Hainan, seven straight days of heavy rains left two
people missing and forced 64,000 to evacuate.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Malaysia a
newborn baby died after being snatched by a monkey from her family's
living room in Negri Sembilan state. Wildlife authorities fatally
shot the monkey, which had remained near the house and might have
been attracted by a female pet monkey the family kept in a cage.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Nigeria
suspected members of Boko Haram, a northern radical Muslim sect,
shot and killed Awana Ngala, the leader of the ruling All Nigeria
People's Party, the latest attack by a group that engineered a
massive prison break last month.
   (AFP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Pakistan a US
missile strike killed five people in North Waziristan. Militants
earlier attacked a depot housing 40 NATO oil tankers on the
outskirts of Quetta, killing a member of staff and destroying at
least 18 vehicles, in the fourth such attack in a week.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Scientists unveiled
a spectacular array of more than 200 new species discovered in the
Pacific islands of Papua New Guinea, including a white-tailed mouse
and a tiny, long-snouted frog.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Paraguayan
President Fernando Lugo returned home and resumed his office after
undergoing treatment in Brazil for a blood clot that doctors say
resulted from chemotherapy for cancer.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Puerto Rico FBI
agents began arresting police officers accused of corruption. Local
newspaper El Nuevo Dia reported that police and corrections officers
were among 133 people named in the federal indictments, yet to be
opened.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Russia’s President
Dmitry Medvedev headed a top level business delegation to Algeria,
seeking to use his clout to push through delicate energy and
telecoms deals with a traditional Moscow ally. Algeria and Russia
signed six deals in sectors including energy and transportation.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)(AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, A Moscow court said
it has sentenced 3 ultranationalists, convicted of hate killings and
bombings, to long prison sentences. They were part of a militant
neo-pagan cult that preyed on labor migrants from Central Asia and
the Caucasus. From 2008-2009 they killed 10 people and arranged a
number of bombings.
   (SFC, 10/7/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Somalia sporadic
clashes between Islamic fighters and government soldiers killed four
men in Mogadishu.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Ugandan President
Yoweri Museveni called for financial support to increase his
country's troop levels in the African Union force in Somalia.
   (AFP, 10/6/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, Local media
reported that Ukraine has adopted a dress code for government
workers. The code called on men working at the Cabinet of Ministers
to wear mostly gray and dark blue suits and not wear the same suit
to work two days in a row. Women were asked to stick to business
suits and low-heeled shoes, as well as refrain from excessive makeup
and jewelry.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Vietnam
fireworks intended for Hanoi's upcoming 1000th birthday celebration
exploded prematurely, killing four people and injuring three others.
   (AP, 10/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 6, In Yemen assailants
fired a rocket at a convoy carrying Britain's No. 2 diplomat and
killed a Frenchman working for an Austrian oil company in a pair of
attacks that heightened fears over the safety of Westerners in a
country facing a growing militant threat. Hisham Assem (19), a guard
who worked at the French engineering firm SPIE, was later arrested
and charged with killing the Frenchman.
   (AP, 10/6/10)(AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Afghan President
Hamid Karzai hosted the inaugural session of a new peace council set
up to guide efforts to reconcile with the Taliban and other
insurgent groups. In the north a Taliban suicide attack killed a
German soldier and wounded six others in Baghlan province. The death
brought to 44 the number of German troops killed in the Afghan war.
A senior Taliban leader, accused of commanding an "assassination
cell" in Kandahar city, was captured. 4 militants were killed and
one captured by an Afghan-NATO force in eastern Wardak province's
Chaki Wardak district. A joint force also recovered and destroyed
almost 2,200 pounds (1,000 kg) of narcotics during two operations in
Kandahar and Nangarhar provinces.
   (AP, 10/7/10)(AFP, 10/7/10)(AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Australian PM Julia
Gillard dropped her unpopular "citizens' assembly" to guide climate
change policy after the plan drew fierce criticism during the recent
election campaign.
   (AFP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Bangladesh boat
operators said at least 200 fishermen were missing after 15 fishing
boats capsized in the Bay of Bengal during a storm. A storm surge
over the past two days has sent waves five feet high crashing into
several towns and villages along the coast.
   (Reuters, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Brazil Globo
TV's website said that a 13-year-old boy was killed in the crossfire
of a gunbattle during a police operation to recover a stolen vehicle
in a shantytown. A 67-year-old woman died and two people were
injured in an unrelated shootout between police and gang members.
Dozens of armed drug gang members have been setting up roadblocks
and robbing drivers en masse in recent days in the Rio de Janeiro
area, prompting the firing of 19 police battalion leaders a day
earlier.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Researchers at
London’s Kew Gardens said they have discovered that the Paris
japonica has a genetic code 50 times longer than that of a human
being. To date this was the longest genome discovered.
   (SFC, 10/8/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Canada mercury
was discharged during a reconfiguration of pipes at the Teck
Resources Ltd. lead smelter waste-treatment plant in Trail, British
Columbia. The work has since been completed and the leak stopped.
   (Reuters, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In China a new
regulation that took effect saying mine bosses who don't go
underground with their workers will be severely punished in the
latest bid to improve safety in the world's deadliest mines.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, China says at least
38 people in the southern part of the country have been infected
with a mosquito-borne virus that causes an illness similar to dengue
fever. This was thought to be China's largest-ever outbreak of the
chikungunya virus, which can cause fevers, joint pain, headaches and
rashes.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In eastern Congo
children in Burinyi village found an unexploded grenade on their way
to fetch water from a well. 5 children died when it detonated as
they were playing with it.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Ecuador a court
was issued authorizing the jailing of 12 police officers and a
police colonel while prosecutors investigate the Sep 30 police
uprising that resulted in 5 deaths.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Hungary's most
prestigious organization of scientists and researchers said tests of
the red sludge flowing into the Danube show no dangerous heavy metal
levels. Disaster relief officials said more than 150 people, most of
them suffering chemical burns, were treated in hospitals after part
of the MAL Zrt company metals factory reservoir collapsed and a
toxic torrent swept through three villages killing 8 people.
   (AP, 10/7/10)(AP, 10/8/10)(AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Interpol notified
its members that India has issued arrest warrants for five Pakistani
citizens, including two army officers, for alleged involvement in
the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Iran a pair of
gunmen opened fire on a police patrol in its Kurdish region, killing
four officers and a bystander.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Iraq
back-to-back bombings at a vegetable market south of Baghdad killed
at least five people, including a policeman who was searching for
explosives.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Israel signed a
contract with the United States to buy 20 F-35 fighter jets after
Washington offered "incentives" for the Jewish state to help
sputtering peace talks.
   (AFP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Italy Chinese
Premier Wen Jiabao sealed Sino-Italian business deals worth €2.25
billion ($3.15 billion), after fending off European pressure to
raise the value of the yuan.
   (AFP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, The assembly in
Indian-controlled Kashmir erupted in violence when opposition
lawmakers scuffled with security guards to protest a suggestion that
only a deal between India and Pakistan could bring peace to the
region.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Kazakhstan a
Russian Soyuz TMA-01M rocket blasted off for the Int’l. Space
Station carrying one American and 2 Russian astronauts.
   (SFC, 10/8/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Pakistan 2
suspected suicide bombers blew themselves up inside a crowded Sufi
shrine compound in the southern city of Karachi, killing 8 people
with 65 injured.
   (Reuters, 10/7/10)(AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, A top Palestinian
negotiator says the Palestinians have accepted a US proposal calling
on Israel to extend a West Bank settlement slowdown for another two
months.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, The 2010 Nobel
Prize in literature was awarded to Peruvian writer Mario Vargas
Llosa (b.1936) "for his cartography of structures of power and his
trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt and defeat.”
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Russian
Technologies chief Sergei Chemezov told reporters that Russia is
reimbursing Iran for its down payments on a deal for advanced S-300
ground-to-air missiles, which Moscow halted in the face of tough new
UN sanctions.
   (AFP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, South Korean
financial regulators said they will suspend the operations of an
Iranian bank for two months, as part of international sanctions over
Tehran's suspected nuclear weapons program.
   (AFP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Sudan's army said
it attacked rebel positions in the Darfur region hours before the
arrival of a delegation of UN Security Council envoys in the
territory. Armed men abducted a civilian peacekeeper in the capital
North Darfur state hours after the arrival of UN Security Council
envoys.
   (Reuters, 10/7/10)(Reuters, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, In Vietnam the
death toll from vicious rains nearly doubled to 48 after disaster
officials were finally able to access areas that had been cut off by
high waters. Another 23 people remained missing as villagers started
returning to areas where the water was receding.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 7, Yemeni authorities
announced the arrest of seven suspects in the attack on the
motorcade of the British embassy's No. 2, all from Nuqum, an area in
the capital that has become synonymous with militancy.
   (AP, 10/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, The Nobel Committee
named imprisoned Chinese scholar Liu Xiaobo the 2010 Peace Prize
winner for "his long and nonviolent struggle for fundamental human
rights in China." The decision by the five-member committee
appointed by the Norwegian Parliament came over the objection of the
Chinese government, which considers Liu a criminal.
   (AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, President Barack
Obama praised outgoing national security adviser Jim Jones and named
close aide Tom Donilon (55) as his top security adviser, elevating a
skeptic of the US troop surge in Afghanistan to oversee a major
review of the war.
   (Reuters, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Pres. Obama signed
a law on providing the disabled easier access to technology.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, A US Senate report
said US funds for private security contractors in Afghanistan have
flowed to warlords and Taliban insurgents, undermining the war
effort and fueling corruption. A congressional report called
"Warlord, Inc." said trucking contractors pay tens of millions of
dollars annually to local warlords across Afghanistan in exchange
for guarding their supply convoys, some of which are suspected of
paying off the Taliban.
   (AFP, 10/8/10)(AP, 7/31/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, The US Labor Dept.
said a wave of government layoffs in September outpaced weak hiring
in the private sector, pushing down the nation's payrolls by a net
total of 95,000 jobs. The unemployment rate held at 9.6 percent last
month.
   (AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, The Dow Jones
industrial average closed above 11,000 for the first time in five
months.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Bank of America
said it will suspend sales of foreclosed homes nationwide. A
suspension in 23 other states had been announced a week earlier. The
“Foreclosuregate” flared up when an employee at GMAC Mortgage
admitted to having approved thousands of repossessions without
properly reviewing the documents.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A1)(Econ, 10/16/10, p.87)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, California’s Gov.
Schwarzenegger signed an $86.6 billion state budget, 100 days after
beginning the fiscal year. He used his line-item veto power to cut
nearly $1 billion from the plan approved by the Legislature. An
independent analyst later estimated that the budget remained $25.4
billion in deficit.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A1)(Econ, 12/4/10, p.37)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, The remains of
Lexis Roberts (12) from Nevada were found in Louisiana. A warrant
was later issued for Thomas Steven Sanders (53). In 1994 family
members had declared Sanders dead, seven years after he vanished. In
November the remains of a woman, believed to be her mother, Suellen
Roberts (31) were found in Arizona.
   (http://tinyurl.com/2dwr8pa)(SFC, 11/5/10,
p.A8)(SFC, 11/16/10, p.A18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Albertina Walker
(81), Grammy-winning gospel vocalist, died in Chicago.
   (SSFC, 10/10/10, p.C9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, In northern
Afghanistan Kunduz provincial governor Mohammad Omar and at least 19
other people were killed by a massive bomb blast inside a packed
mosque during Friday prayers in Takhar province. NATO helicopters
killed six Afghan militiamen in eastern Khost province. An insurgent
attack killed a NATO service member and two others died in separate
roadside bombings in the south. Armed men burst into a mosque and
shot dead religious scholar Molvi Mohammad during Friday prayers in
Kandahar city. Linda Norgrove (36) a British aid worker was killed
during a botched US rescue raid. She had been abducted at gunpoint
on Sep 26. A rescue team was closing in on the house where Norgrove
was being held when a grenade was thrown into the room where she was
kept, killing her. Troops opened fire and killed all the captors. An
investigation over her death confirmed that a grenade thrown by US
forces had killed Norgrove.
   (AP, 10/8/10)(AFP, 10/9/10)(AFP, 10/11/10)(AP,
12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, In Australia plan
was released by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority to restore ailing
rivers, posing a new headache for the Labor minority government.
Farmers would lose more than a third of irrigation water in the
major food bowl.
   (Reuters, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Bolivia’s Pres. Evo
Morales enacted an anti-racism bill opposed by most of the nation’s
newspapers, which said it limited free speech.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Organizers said a
ticket-holder in Britain has won a record 129 million euros (181
million dollars) on the Euromillions lottery, although nobody has
yet come forward to claim the prize. The Euromillions lottery,
launched in 2004, is now played by nine countries across western
Europe.
   (AFP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, China said on rich
nations must lock in fresh vows to slash greenhouse gas output to
unblock talks for a new climate change deal, while some negotiators
said Beijing was holding progress hostage.
   (Reuters, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, French President
Nicolas Sarkozy met with the pope and top Vatican officials in a
fence-mending visit following France's controversial crackdown on
Gypsies, while a top Vatican cardinal urged France to welcome
immigrants and those who have been persecuted.
   (AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, The YM Uranus, a
chemicals tanker loaded with 6,000 tons of solvent, ran into trouble
after a collision off the coast of France but authorities said its
crew was rescued and its cargo did not seem to be leaking. The
120-meter-long YM Uranus had been in a collision with the 179,000
dead-weight ton bulk carrier Hanjin Rizhao.
   (Reuters, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Ireland's police
force detectives arrested nine suspected Irish Republican Army
dissidents and seized weapons. Police arrested two men aged 20 and
33 at a house near the Northern Ireland border and seized a gun and
ammunition. They arrested seven people aged 19 to 71 in southeast
Ireland and sealed off a home where they found bomb components.
   (AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Israeli troops
killed two senior Hamas militants in an early-morning raid in the
West Bank city of Hebron, raising tensions as peace talks remain
stuck over Israeli settlement building. The two gunmen were wanted
in connection with the killing of four Israelis near Hebron on Aug.
31. An incident captured on film and widely broadcast showed two
masked boys standing in the road among a group throwing stones when
a car driven by David Beeri, the local leader of Elad, drove round
the corner and ploughed into them. One boy was thrown into the air
and bounced off the car's windscreen before crashing to the ground.
The car stopped briefly before driving off.
   (AP, 10/8/10)(AFP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, In Mexico Antonio
Jimenez Banos (47), who would have taken office in January in
Martires de Tacubaya, was killed by an assailant as he was returning
to his farm. Eleven sitting mayors have been killed so far this year
in Mexico.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, In Mozambique a
settling pond breached its wall at the Irish mining firm Kenmare
Resources’ Moma titanium and zircon mine in the northern province of
Nampula, flooding the area with a mixture of water, sand and clay. A
four-year-old girl was missing after the dam burst, flooding an area
housing 3,000 families.
   (AFP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, A Nigerian court
handed a 6-month jail sentence to Cecilia Ibru, one of the country's
most prominent women, over millions of dollars loaned by her bank in
a case linked to a financial crisis in the oil-rich nation.
   (AFP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, A top North Korean
official confirmed to broadcaster APTN that Kim Jong Il's youngest
son will succeed him as the next leader of the reclusive communist
nation.
   (AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, Pakistan's army
chief ordered an inquiry into video clips that show men in soldiers'
uniforms gunning down a group of bound and blindfolded detainees.
The footage has raised concern over possible extrajudicial killings
by a military that receives billions in US aid.
   (AP, 10/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 8, The Swiss Im
Grueene Foundation awarded Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales $104,000
for “democratizing the access to knowledge.”
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, The IMF wrapped up
2 days of talks in Washington DC. Global leaders failed to resolve
deep differences that threatened a full-blown currency war.
   (SSFC, 10/10/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, It was reported
that Madeleine Pickens, the wife of billionaire T. Boone Pickens,
has acquired a Nevada ranch for use as a wild horse sanctuary, the
Mustang Monument Preserve. The 14,000 acre property included grazing
rights to 540,000 acres of public land. She was also said to be
negotiating for and adjoining 4,000-acre ranch with grazing rights
to 24,000 acres. She hoped to return all 34,000 in government funded
holding facilities and pastures to their natural habitat.
   (SFC, 10/9/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In North Carolina
the parents of Zahra Baker (10) reportedly saw her alive for the
last time. Stepmother Eliza Baker told police on Oct 24 that Zahra
was dead and that her body had been dismembered. On Nov 12 police
found a bone that matched Zahra’s DNA. On Feb 21, 2011, Elisa Baker
was indicted for the murder of Zahra.
   (SFC, 11/16/10, p.A18)(SFC, 2/22/11, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In southern Utah a
small plane crashed and killed 2 National park Service law
enforcement agents in the Dixie National Forest.
   (SSFC, 10/10/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, President Hamid
Karzai told Afghans in Kandahar that it was their duty to return to
their homes and help protect their villages in the Kandahar region
where international troops are trying to rout insurgents. 4 Italian
soldiers were killed in an insurgent attack in the west.
Intelligence sources tracked a Taliban commander, identified as
Mullah Jamaluddin, as he traveled in western Badghis province's
Murghab district. A gunbattle erupted and the Taliban leader and two
militants were killed. Taliban leader, Ajmal Agha Jan, was killed in
southern Helmand province's Marjah district after he pulled a pistol
on a joint force that raided his compound.
   (AP, 10/9/10)(AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, The Arab League
opened a summit in Libya with the pressing Israeli-Palestinian
conflict and Sudan added to the original agenda.
   (AFP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In Bangladesh three
days of incessant rains have left at least 17 people dead and 41
fishermen missing across the southern coast.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In Chile a drilling
rig punched through to the underground purgatory where 33 miners
have been trapped for 66 agonizing days under the desert at Camp
Hope. If close video examination persuades engineers that the shaft
is smooth, strong and uniform enough to let the capsule pass without
significant obstacles, then rescuers plan to start pulling the men
out one by one as early as Oct 12.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, China and the
United States clashed on the final day of climate change talks in
Tianjin, accusing each other of blocking progress ahead of a major
summit next month on global warming.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In China a
collision between an intercity bus and a cement truck on a foggy
eastern China highway killed at least 17 people outside Nanjing
city.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, It was reported
that Cuba will release into exile in Spain a lawyer jailed for
allegedly revealing state security secrets and two hijackers, none
of whom were on a list of 52 political prisoners the government has
agreed to free in a deal with the Roman Catholic Church.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, Hungarian police
and soldiers evacuated 800 from the village of Kolontar as
authorities said a second flood of toxic sludge from a chemicals
plant was likely after new cracks appeared in a dyke.
   (AFP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, Erwin Arnada (47),
the former editor-in-chief of Playboy Indonesia, began a two-year
prison sentence for publishing pictures of scantily clothed women,
riling free speech activists in the world's most populous Muslim
nation. The Supreme Court had found Arnada guilty of violating
indecency laws during a closed-door session in August, overruling a
2007 acquittal by the South Jakarta District Court.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, Iran said it is
ready to hold talks over its nuclear program with the US and other
major powers in late October or early November. Iran also revealed
for the first time that some personnel at the country's nuclear
facilities were lured by promises of money to pass secrets to the
West, but said increased security and worker privileges have put a
stop to the spying.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, A 650-foot
Lithuanian-flagged ferry was ablaze in the Baltic Sea after an
explosion on the upper deck. Firefighting ships sprayed the vessel
with water to keep it from breaking apart and spilling some 170 tons
of fuel. 249 people aboard were rescued by six ships that moved in
to help after the explosion on the Lisco Gloria around midnight. A
four-person team was lowered to the ferry by helicopter and managed
to anchor the vessel off the southern tip of the Danish island
Langeland to keep it from drifting farther ashore.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In northern Nigeria
gunmen on motorcycle taxis killed Islamic cleric Sheikh Bashir
Mustapha. He had been an outspoken critic of Boko Haram, a radical
Muslim sect blamed for a rash of recent shootings. Authorities
believed Sheikh Bashir Mustapha was slain by members of Boko Haram,
which means "Western education is sacrilege" in the local Hausa
language.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, Pakistan announced
it would reopen a key border crossing and allow convoys to resume
delivering supplies to NATO troops in Afghanistan, ending a 10-day
blockade during which trucks were stranded on their way to the
border and almost 150 were destroyed by attackers. Just hours before
the announcement of the reopening, gunmen armed with a rocket
attacked 29 tankers carrying NATO fuel supplies which had been
stopped outside a roadside restaurant in the southwest, setting them
ablaze. The border is normally closed on Sundays, so Oct 11 appeared
to be the soonest the flow of supplies over the crossing would
resume.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas urged Arab leaders to press the United
States to recognize a unilateral declaration of statehood if peace
talks with Israel collapse. Extremist Jews ripped off branches and
cut the roots of Palestinian olive trees in the West Bank village of
Burin, as the yearly 45-day harvest of the important crop began.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, Somali pirates
attacked the 241-ton Kenya-registered trawler. 2 South Koreans, 2
Chinese and 39 Kenyans were aboard the trawler when it was attacked
in the waters off Kenya's Lamu Island.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In Sudan some 30
separatists in Khartoum clashed with police as some 3,000 opponents
of the country's potential breakup in a southern independence vote
due in January demonstrated during a visit by UN ambassadors. Envoys
from the 15 UN Security Council members were in the capital on the
final stage of a four-day visit in which they expressed the
international community's concern that the referendum go ahead on
schedule.
   (AFP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In central Vietnam
the death toll in devastating floods rose to 62 as authorities
rushed aid to about 100,000 people facing food shortages.
   (AP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 9, In Yemen
self-confessed militant Saleh al-Shaoush admitted to carrying out
deadly attacks on military targets and oil facilities, as four other
suspected Al-Qaeda members went on trial for planning attacks.
Al-Shaoush was arrested on January 30 as he prepared to carry out a
suicide bombing in the southeastern port of Mukalla. The US-based
SITE monitoring service reported that Al-Qaeda in the Arabian
Peninsula (AQAP) claimed it had assassinated a colonel named Abdul
al-Karim al-Baan in the southern Lahij province. AQAP also said it
had shot an intelligence officer named Al-Hashidi in the province.
   (AFP, 10/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Virgin Galactic’s
space tourism rocket, SpaceShip Two, achieved its first solo glide
flight. Manned by 2 pilots it flew for 11 minutes before landing in
Mojave, Ca.
   (SFC, 10/11/10, p.A5)(Econ, 10/16/10, p.100)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In Chandler,
Arizona, Martin Alejandro Cota-Monroy's body was found in a suburban
Phoenix apartment, his severed head a couple feet away. Detectives
suspected that Cota-Monroy's killing was punishment for stealing
drugs. A police report on Feb 2, 2011, said that Cota-Monroy stole
400 pounds of marijuana and some meth from the PEI-Estatales/El
Chapo drug trafficking organization. Cota-Monroy told the cartel
that the Border Patrol had seized the drugs, but the cartel learned
the truth and hired men to kidnap and kill him in Nogales, Mexico.
Cota-Monroy fled to the Phoenix area, leading the cartel to hire
assassins to go to Arizona, befriend Cota-Monroy and kill him. One
man, Crisantos Moroyoqui, was later charged in the killing, and
three others were believed to have fled to Mexico.
   (AP, 10/30/10)(AP, 3/3/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Solomon Burke
(b.1940), the larger-than-life "King of Rock and Soul," died at
Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. The Philadelphia-born singer was
revered as one of music's greatest vocalists but never reached the
level of fame of those he influenced. He joined Atlantic in 1960 and
went on to record a string of hits in a decade with the label. He
wrote "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" in 1964 and it was later
featured in the Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi movie "The Blues
Brothers."
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Dame Joan
Sutherland (83), renowned Australian opera soprano, died at her home
in Switzerland.
   (SFC, 10/12/10, p.C3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, The Afghan
government named former President Burhanuddin Rabbani as the chief
of a new peace council tasked with talking to insurgent groups. A
roadside bomb killed 5 members of a family in Paktia province. 2
NATO troops were killed by a roadside bomb in the south. A suicide
bomber blew up his vehicle near a military convoy, killing a child
and wounding two other people in Khost province.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, The 10/10/10 event
known as the "Global Work Party" kicked off in Australia and New
Zealand before spinning its way across the globe with events in 188
countries. Environmental campaigners planted trees, collected
rubbish and rallied against pollution for what organizers aimed to
make the world's biggest day of climate-change activism.
   (AFP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In Austria the
far-right anti-immigration Freedom party drew 27% of the vote in
local elections in Vienna giving them 28 seats in the regional
parliament.
   (SFC, 10/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In Bangladesh a
speeding bus veered off the road and into the water. Many of some 50
passengers swam to safety after the crash. 11 bodies were soon
recovered and the search continued for more.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In the Central
African Republic rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) abducted
a number of girls during an attack on the town of Birao. at
least 5 people were taken by the rebels, who retreated when
government troops arrived on the scene.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In China the wife
of construction worker Luo Yanquan (36) was taken kicking and
screaming from their home by more than a dozen people and detained
in a clinic for three days by family planning officials, then taken
to a hospital and injected with a drug that killed her baby. Xiao
Aiying (36) delivered the dead baby on Oct 14.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Curacao, St
Maarten, Bonaire, Saba and St Eustatius were scheduled to go their
own ways. The former Dutch Caribbean colonies of Curacao and St.
Maarten became autonomous countries within the Kingdom of the
Netherlands in a change of constitutional status dissolving the
Netherlands Antilles.
   (Econ, 5/1/10, p.38)(Reuters, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, A Hungarian
official said the wall of a reservoir filled with caustic red sludge
will inevitably collapse and unleash a new deluge of red sludge that
could flow about a half-mile (1 km) to the north.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In India a boat
carrying dozens of farm workers capsized on the flooded Ganges River
killing at least 22 people.
   (SFC, 10/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Iranian Sunni
rebels said they had kidnapped a nuclear scientist and would publish
secrets he knows about Iran's nuclear program unless 200 political
prisoners were released.
   (Reuters, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Iran arrested two
German nationals in Tabriz as they approached the home of Sakineh
Mohammadi Ashtiani, a woman whose sentence of death-by-stoning on an
adultery conviction has drawn international condemnation. Ashtiani's
son, Sajjad Qaderzadeh, and lawyer Houtan Kian were arrested along
with two the German nationals, who were seeking to interview the
son. On Feb 5, 2012, reporter Marcus Hellwig told the Sunday
newspaper Bild am Sonntag that he was regularly beaten up during the
first 10 "brutal" days in captivity until a German diplomat
intervened. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle traveled to
Tehran for a rare meeting with Iranian President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad. Westerwelle brought Hellwig and his German photographer
Jens Koch home after 5 months imprisonment.
          Â
(AP, 10/12/10)(AP, 11/4/10)(AP, 2/5/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Israel's Cabinet
approved a bill that would require new citizens to pledge a loyalty
oath to a "Jewish and democratic" state, language that triggered
charges of racism from Arab lawmakers who see it as undermining the
rights of the country's Arab minority.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In Kyrgyzstan
about 56% of eligible voters turned out to elect a new and empowered
parliament with the right to approve a government and appoint a
prime minister. The nationalist Ata-Zhurt party, which opposed the
new constitution, pulled ahead with around 8.6 percent of eligible
votes. The Social Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan, trailed in second
place with 8.2 percent of the eligible vote.
   (AP, 10/10/10)(AP, 10/11/10)(Econ, 10/16/10,
p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Kim Jong Un (26),
the youngest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il (68), joined his
father at a massive military parade in his most public appearance
since being unveiled as the nation's next leader. South Korean
activists also sent some 20,000 leaflets packed with $1 bills and
CDs carrying anti-Kim Jong Un rap songs floating across the border
in hopes of reaching ordinary North Koreans.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Norwegian oil firm
Statoil is expanding further its shale gas operations in the United
States, saying it has created a joint venture with Canada's Talisman
to acquire acreage on the Eagle Ford prospect in Texas for $1.325
billion.
   (Reuters, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Pakistan reopened
a key border crossing to NATO supply convoys heading into
Afghanistan, ending an 11-day blockade imposed after a US helicopter
strike killed two Pakistani soldiers.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In Serbia a gay
rights parade in Belgrade descended into violence as thousands of
police deployed to protect marchers clashed with gangs of anti-gay
protesters, sparking riots, injuries and dozens of arrests.
   (Reuters, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Somali pirates
seized the Panama-flagged Izumi, a Japanese-owned cargo ship with 20
Filipino crew members onboard. The Izumi was released on Feb 25,
2011.
   (AP, 10/11/10)(AP, 2/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In South Korea
Hwang Jang-yop (87), the key architect of North Korea's isolationist
state policy, was found dead at his Seoul residence. He once
mentored authoritarian leader Kim Jong Il before defecting to South
Korea in 1997.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, Some 7,200 South
Korean and foreign couples exchanged or reaffirmed marriage vows in
the Unification Church's second mass wedding this year.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 10, In Yemen 2
attackers on a motorbike in the southern town of Zinjibar gunned
down, Ghazi al-Samawi, a criminal investigations officer who was
featured on an Al-Qaeda hit list of policemen to be killed.
   (AFP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Two Americans and
a British-Cypriot economist won the 2010 Nobel economics prize for
developing a theory that helps explain why many people can remain
unemployed despite a large number of job vacancies. Federal Reserve
board nominee Peter Diamond was honored along with Dale Mortensen
and Christopher Pissarides for their analysis of the obstacles that
prevent buyers and sellers from efficiently pairing up in markets.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, President Obama
signed a major NASA act that turns his vision for US space
exploration of asteroids and Mars into law.
   (http://tinyurl.com/26w555z)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, The San Francisco
Giants beat the Atlanta Braves 3-2 at Turner Field to clinch the
National League Championship Series.
   (SFC, 10/12/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Microsoft unveiled
a new mobile phone operating system as it seeks to regain ground
lost to the iPhone, Blackberry and devices powered by Google's
Android software.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, In Afghanistan a
coalition airstrike killed Taliban commander Shirin Agha and another
militant in northern Kunduz province.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Al Arabiya TV said
Al Qaeda's north African arm wants a repeal of a ban on the Muslim
face veil in France, the release of militants and 7 million euros to
free hostages who include five French. Al Qaeda in the Islamic
Maghreb (AQIM) is holding seven foreigners in the Sahara desert
after kidnapping them last month.
   (Reuters, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, The emir of Kuwait
arrived in Algeria for a two-day visit on the latest step of a north
African tour.
   (AFP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Queen Elizabeth
named a new British cruise ship the Queen Elizabeth. British
monarchs have launched seven merchant ships bearing royal names
since the Queen Mary in 1934. The newest vessel is the third named
Queen Elizabeth.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Officials said
Canadian troops are being forced to pull out of a military base in
the United Arab Emirates that supports their mission in Afghanistan
amid an ongoing dispute over airline landing rights.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, China blocked
European diplomats from meeting with the wife of the jailed Nobel
Peace Prize winner, cut off her phone communication and canceled
meetings with Norwegian officials, acting on its fury over the
award.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Chinese state
media reported that more than 440,000 people have been evacuated in
Hainan after the heaviest rains for decades inundated 90 percent of
the Chinese island in the South China Sea.
   (AFP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Dubai media
reported that a key suspect in the killing of a Hamas operative in
Dubai on Jan 19 has been arrested abroad but details of the capture
are secret. The arrest took place in a Western country about two
months ago.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Callixte
Mbarushimana, a Rwandan leader of the FDLR rebel group, was arrested
in Paris on charges of leading rebels accused of mass rapes and
killings in Congo. The International Criminal Court said he is
charged with 11 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes,
including killings, rape, persecution based on gender and extensive
destruction of property committed by the FDLR during most of 2009.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, The rights group
EG Justice said in a statement that a letter signed by 125 African
scholars and human rights defenders has denounced the UNESCO-Obiang
Nguema Mbasogo Prize for Research in the Life Sciences, a prize
named for the president of Equatorial Guinea. Mbasogo seized power
more than 30 years ago and has been accused of human rights
violations including unlawful killings, torture, and arbitrary
arrests.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Hungary took over
control of the Hungarian Aluminum Production and Trade Company
(MAL). PM Orban said that Zoltan Bakonyi, the managing director of
MAL, has been arrested. Bakonyi’s father, Arpad Bakonyi, had played
a central role in the privatization of the country’s aluminum
industry and remained its largest shareholder.
   (SFC, 10/12/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Krishna Poonia won
India's first Commonwealth Games athletics gold medal in 52 years
when she led a stunning host nation clean sweep in the women's
discus.
   (AP, 10/11/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Iran's Supreme
Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a decree paving the way for a
state takeover of Islamic Azad University, the country's largest
private university, in a crushing blow to the nation's moderates.
Khamenei's decree declared the university's 2009 endowment, which
keeps it financially independent, to be religiously illegitimate and
therefore null and void.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, In Iraq gunmen
wearing military uniforms raided the homes of several anti-al-Qaida
Sunni fighters. They killed four men in an execution-style slaying
and left 2 wounded before dawn near the town of Youssifiyah.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Irish police
uncovered a major arms and explosives cache hidden in a wood in
County Louth. The find included a machine gun, bomb-making equipment
and assorted ammunition. They described it as a significant blow to
dissident republicans.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, The Israeli
government endorsed a bill requiring a national referendum be held
before any withdrawal from occupied east Jerusalem or the Golan
Heights. PM Netanyahu spelled out recognition of Israel as a Jewish
state as his price for a renewal of a ban on construction in the
occupied West Bank. The offer was rejected out of hand by the
Palestinians, who said it had "nothing to do with the peace
process."
   (AFP, 10/11/10)(AFP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, In Mexico 8 police
officers were killed in an ambush in Sinaloa state. In Tijuana
police found the decapitated bodies of two men hung by their feet
off a bridge. Their heads were found in a car abandoned on the
bridge.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, A Nigerian
official said scores of slum residents in Lagos have been left
homeless by flooding from the Ogun River following last month's
opening of a dam.
   (AFP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, In northern
Nigeria suspected members of a radical Islamic sect set a police
station ablaze, wounding three officers in an attack similar to one
that sparked rioting and a government crackdown that left 700 dead
last year.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, North Korea’s Kim
Jong Nam, the casino-loving eldest son of Kim Jong Il, said he
opposes a hereditary transfer of power to his youngest half-brother.
Analysts say Kim Jong Nam spends so much time outside his native
land that his opinion carries little weight. He spoke to Japan's TV
Asahi in an interview from Beijing.
   (AP, 12/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Russia's ruling
party swept regional elections in several provinces this weekend,
easily maintaining its grip on power, according to early returns.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Russian
researchers said traces of a previously unknown Bronze Age
civilization have been discovered in the peaks of the Caucasus
Mountains thanks to aerial photographs taken 40 years ago. the
civilization dated from the 16th to the 14th centuries BC, high in
the mountains south of Kislovodsk.
   (AP, 10/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, Somali pirates
kidnapped Said Mohamed Rage, fisheries minister of the regional
Puntland government. A soldier guarding the minister was killed and
a civilian wounded. Pirates ambushed Rage's convoy because they
thought he wanted to expel them from their bases. Rage was freed 2
days later.
   (AP, 10/12/10)(AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 11, In Yemen 2 bombs,
timed to go off one after the other, killed two people and injured
12 others in San’a.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, The Obama
administration lifted the deep-water drilling ban in the Gulf of
Mexico. Actual resumption was still weeks to months away.
   (SFC, 10/13/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, A US federal judge
ordered an immediate halt to military discharges under the “don’t
ask, don’t tell” policy. District Judge Virginia Phillips of
Riverside, Ca., had ruled the 1993 law unconstitutional on Sep 9.
   (SFC, 10/13/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Afghanistan a
commander and 3 other militants from the Haqqani network, a
Pakistan-based faction of the Taliban with close ties to al-Qaida,
were killed in a firefight overnight with NATO and Afghan forces in
eastern Khost province's Spera district.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Afghanistan a
cargo plane, carrying NATO supplies went down east of Kabul shortly
after taking off from Bagram Air Field. The bodies of 5 of 8 people
on board were recovered the next day. The plane, owned by United
Arab Emirates-based TransAfrik, was under contract by the US-based
company National Air Cargo.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Algeria 5
people were killed when a remote control bomb exploded on a
construction site in Tlidgen.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, Australian PM
Julia Gillard renewed her backing for a controversial Internet
filter, saying it was driven by a "moral question."
   (AFP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, Egypt's Muslim
Brotherhood accused the government of cracking down ahead of
November's parliamentary election. Police had arrested at least 28
members of the Islamist group over the last 2 days. An Egyptian
regulatory body set new rules for companies sending text messages to
multiple mobile phones, a step that activists say will stifle
efforts to mobilize voters before the elections, which are to be
held in the last week of November.
   (AFP, 10/12/10)(AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Ethiopia senior
leaders of the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), a breakaway
rebel faction, gathered in Addis Ababa to sign a peace deal with the
government. The government claimed the breakaway group represents
around 80 percent of the ONLF.
   (AFP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In France hundreds
of thousands of workers, students and functionaries staged protests,
the 4th this month, aimed to reverse a new law requiring people to
work until 62 rather than 60 before receiving their retirement
pensions.
   (SFC, 10/13/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, A Greek tanker,
the Mindoro, collided with a container ship, the Cypriot-flagged
Jork Ranger, 20 miles (30 km) off the Dutch coast and briefly leaked
jet fuel into the North Sea.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In India a second
doping case in two days, and again involving a Nigerian runner, was
reported. Both cases involved Methylhexaneamine. It was also found
in about a dozen Indian athletes in recent months.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Iran 18 members
of the powerful Revolutionary Guard were killed in an explosion that
struck the force's base in the city of Khoramabad. The blast was
caused by a fire that had reached the ammunition storage area. 14
other troops were wounded.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Iraq Al-Qaida's
umbrella group threatened to kidnap family members of Iraqi
politicians and ministers unless the wife and children of its slain
leader, Abu Ayyub al-Masri, are released from prison.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Japan residents
of Taiji village, notorious for the dolphin hunt documented in the
film "The Cove," slaughtered a pod of dolphins but spared the
youngest animals.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, Mexican soldiers
captured Seiki Ogata, an alleged Tabasco state Zetas gang leader,
along with 5 other gang members. Ogata was suspected of organizing
the massacre of a dead marine Melquisedet Angulo’s family last Dec.,
just days after Angulo had been killed during a raid in Cuernavaca,
that left drug kingpin Arturo Beltran Leyva dead. Authorities in
Sinaloa state said they found 3 beheaded bodies along a highway that
leads to the town of Imala. The bodies were accompanied with a
message that accused them of being kidnappers. The decapitated head
of police commander Rolando Flores was found in a suitcase outside a
Mexican Army base. He had been investigating the reported shooting
of an American tourist on Falcon Lake. Pirates have robbed boaters
and fisherman on the Mexican side. Motorists found a decapitated
body underneath a bridge on a road leading to the beachside
neighborhood of Playas de Tijuana. Earlier in the day police found a
human head inside a bag in another Tijuana neighborhood, but it did
not belong to the body found underneath the bridge.
   (AP, 10/13/10)(AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, Hurricane Paula,
the ninth hurricane of the busy 2010 Atlantic season, churned toward
the east coast of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula.
   (Reuters, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Mozambique 17
prisoners cut the bars at Nampula Industrial Penitentiary before
escaping. They were among 99 inmates recently transferred to Nampula
from neighboring provinces. One fugitive was soon re-captured.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In northwestern
Pakistan suspected militants killed 3 anti-Taliban tribal elders in
the Bazai area of the Mohmand tribal region, the latest in a string
of attacks against tribesmen who dare stand up to the Islamist
insurgents.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, Philippine
President Benigno Aquino III granted amnesty to officers and
soldiers accused of plotting to overthrow his predecessor. Only a
handful of the original 300 troops who took up arms against
then-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in July 2003 remained in
military custody on charges of mutiny and coup attempt.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In central Poland
a van crammed with farm workers crashed head-on into a truck after
apparently trying to overtake another vehicle in dense fog, killing
all 18 people on board.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In eastern Ukraine
a train crashed into a crowded bus, killing 43 people on the bus,
including two children, and injuring nearly a dozen others. PM
Mykola Azarov ordered his government to pay the family of each of
the dead victims 100,000 hryvna ($12,600). He also instructed
transport officials to install automated crossing gates at all the
nation's railway crossings to prevent cars, buses and trucks from
ignoring the siren.
   (AP, 10/12/10)(SFC, 10/13/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, At the United
Nations Colombia, Germany, India, Portugal and South Africa were
elected to join the big guns on the UN Security Council for two
years, starting in January.
  Â
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20101012/ts_csm/331624)(Reuters,
10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, Pope Benedict XVI
formally created a new Vatican office to revive Christianity in
Europe, his latest attempt to counter secular trends in
traditionally Christian countries.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 12, In Yemen
Al-Qaida's offshoot warned it is setting up a "new army" to
overthrow the country's president in response to his US-backed
counterterrorism campaign and said it would fill its ranks with
snipers and bomb makers.
   (AP, 10/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, It was reported
that officials in 50 US states and the District of Columbia have
launched a joint investigation into allegations that mortgage
companies mishandled documents and broke laws in foreclosing on
hundreds of thousands of homeowners.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, US authorities
said a vast network of Armenian gangsters and their associates used
phantom health care clinics and other means to try to cheat Medicare
out of $163 million, the largest fraud by one criminal enterprise in
the program's history. Federal prosecutors in New York and elsewhere
charged 73 people. The reputed boss, Armen Kazarian (46), was in
custody in Los Angeles.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Tax officials in
Billings, Montana, said developer Tim Blixseth and his wife owe the
state $57 million in taxes on the money they drained from the
Yellowstone Club. The state faced a deficit of $300 million.
   (SFC, 10/14/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Mexican national
Jose Antonio Medina Arreguin (36) was booked into a Ventura, Ca.,
county jail after being extradited from his home country. Court
documents later showed Medina, accused of being Mexico's "King of
Heroin," caught on wiretap conversations talking to coconspirators
about drug transactions involving hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In March 2011 Arreguin pleaded guilty and faced up to 24 years in
prison.
   (AP, 11/13/10)(AP, 3/17/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Gen. David
Petraeus, NATO's top commander in Afghanistan, offered a cautiously
optimistic assessment of the transition of security duties to Afghan
forces during a briefing with alliance representatives in Brussels.
A senior NATO officials said the alliance had facilitated contacts
between senior Taliban members and the highest levels of the Afghan
government. In Afghanistan insurgents killed 6 NATO service members,
including 4 who died in a single bomb blast in the volatile south.
Insurgents at a market fatally shot Ahmed Khan, chief of Dihrawud
district in southern Uruzgan province.
   (AP, 10/13/10)(SFC, 10/14/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Australia and
Indonesia agreed to further discuss plans for a refugee centre in
East Timor to stem the flow of asylum seekers through Southeast Asia
on their way to Australia.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In Bahrain top
justice official said 23 Shiite activists, detained in a sweeping
crackdown by the country's Sunni rulers, have been charged with
terrorism and conspiring against the government.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Bangladesh said it
would deploy the army at the country's main seaport to keep cargo
moving after days of strikes by dock workers hit crucial garment
shipments.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In Brazil Milton
Marcondes of the Humpback Whale Institute said at least 75 humpback
whales have died in 2010. The previous high was 41 in 2007.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Britain's Lloyds
Banking Group said that it will axe another 4,500 jobs, including
1,750 posts outside the UK, as the crisis-hit lender continues its
painful restructuring.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Canada declared
that bisphenol A is a toxic chemical, prompting calls for
far-reaching curbs on the industrial chemical that is used in
everything from the linings of aluminum cans to coatings on
electronic till receipts.
   (Reuters, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In Chile the 33
miners trapped for 69 days climbed into a rescue capsule and made a
smooth ascent to the surface. All the miners were pulled up through
a narrow escape chute from nearly a half-mile down in under 23
hours.
   (AP, 10/13/10)(AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Egypt was reported
to have handed down new media requirements that will effectively put
all live broadcasts, including TV talk shows and news bulletins,
under the control of state television. Several private broadcast
service providers said that they received letters from the telecom
regulator ending their standing permits to offer live broadcast
feeds from Egypt starting from Oct 15.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Hungarian
authorities said the threat of another chemical spill had been
averted and villagers could return home, as the plant responsible
prepared to resume production. The municipal court in Veszprem
released MAL's managing director Zoltan Bakonyi, who had been
brought in for questioning.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)(AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, welcomed by thousands of Shiite supporters
throwing rose petals, sought to pull Lebanon firmly into his
country's fold in a visit that underscored the growing power of
Tehran and its Lebanese ally, Hezbollah.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Tehran's chief
prosecutor said authorities have arrested five people on suspicion
of spying for the country's "enemies," a common reference in Iran
for the US and Israel.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In Iraq targeted
explosions in Baghdad and northern Iraq wounded 28 people, among
them 7 Iranian pilgrims and 9 policemen.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Italy became the
latest NATO ally to detail plans to scale down its military presence
and hand over territory to Afghan security forces by the end of next
year.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Kuwait gave 28
million euros to Mauritania during Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah's
whistle-stop visit to the poor northwest African nation.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Malaysia
criticized the WHO for failing to tackle the spread of dengue in the
region, which saw 242,000 cases of the mosquito-borne disease in
2009 and 831 deaths so far this year.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In Mexico six
prison guards were killed while driving to work in Chihuahua city,
capital of Chihuahua state. In the northern state of Sinaloa, two
police officers were killed when gunmen ambushed their patrol in
Mazatlan.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, A Pakistani
government official said international lenders are estimating that
this summer's floods caused $9.5 billion in damage to Pakistan's
infrastructure, agriculture and other sectors. Gunmen killed
Nooruddin Mengal, an ethnic Baluch political activist, as he headed
from his suburban home to the city of Kalat. In central Pakistan
police arrested a group of Islamist militants plotting to kill the
prime minister in a gun and suicide bomb attack at his house. The 7
men were also accused of targeting other government leaders for
assassination. A suspected US drone launched 4 missile strikes in
North Waziristan killing 11 militants, including 3 foreigners.
   (AP, 10/13/10)(AP, 10/14/10)(SFC, 10/14/10,
p.A2)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, The Palestinians
called on the US administration and Israel to define Israel's
borders after Washington invited proposals to get peace talks back
on track.
   (AFP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In Senegal
dancers, traditional praise singers and leaders of three African
nations greeted 163 Haitian students who left their
earthquake-ravaged country and flew to Senegal, where victims of the
calamity are being offered free housing and scholarships.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad told visiting Iraqi premier Nuri al-Maliki that
better ties between the two nations will be strengthened by the
formation of a new Iraqi government.
   (AP, 10/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 13, In the Ukraine for
the second time in two days, a vehicle ignored a warning light at a
railroad crossing and was hit by a train in a fatal accident killing
2 people.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, On the Arizona and
Nevada border a soaring bypass bridge high above the Colorado River
near Hoover Dam was dedicated after nearly eight years and $240
million worth of work. The bridge, which officially opens next week,
is named for former Nevada Gov. Mike O'Callaghan and Pat Tillman.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Regulators in New
York approved Verizon's request to stop mass-printing residential
phone books. There, the company estimates it will save about 3,575
tons of paper per year and conserve the energy associated with
printing, binding and distributing the directories. The company's
August request with Virginia regulators was estimated to save about
1,640 tons of paper annually.
   (AP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Antinette Keller
(18), a Northern Illinois University freshman from Plainfield, Ill.,
was last seen as she left for a walk in a 150-acre nature preserve
in DeKalb, Ill. Her body was found on Oct 23 in a heavily wooded
area of Prairie Park in DeKalb.
   (http://tinyurl.com/2f8tuqb)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Benoit Mandelbrot
(b.1924), the father of fractal geometry, died in Cambridge, Mass.
His seminal book, “The Fractal Geometry of Nature,” was published in
1982. He was born to a Lithuanian Jewish family in Warsaw. In 1936
his family fled the Nazis, first to Paris and then to the south of
France, where he tended horses and fixed tools. In 2012 His wife
completed his memoir: “The Fractalist: Memoir of a Scientific
Maverick.”
  Â
(www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/us/17mandelbrot.html?_r=1)(Econ,
10/23/10, p.106)(Econ, 10/27/12, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Afghan officials
requested NATO's support in smoothing new peace efforts with the
Taliban, including by halting military operations in areas where
reconciliation talks could take place. 7 NATO soldiers were killed
in separate bomb attacks, bringing to 586 the total number of
personnel killed so far this year. ISAF said 13 civilians had been
killed in militant attacks over the past week, including nine who
died in a single IED blast.
   (AFP, 10/14/10)(Reuters, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Australian police
seized half-a-ton of cocaine from a luxury yacht in one of the
country's largest ever hauls of the drug. 3 Australians were charged
in connection with the yacht seizure.
   (AFP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, British actor
Simon MacCorkindale (58), who starred on British television in
"Casualty" and in the United States in "Falcon Crest," died in
London of bowel cancer. His film roles include the murderer Simon
Doyle in "Death on the Nile" in 1977 and as Philip FitzRoyce in
"Jaws 3-D" ("Jaws III").
   (AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Margot Wallstrom,
the UN special representative for sexual violence in armed conflict,
told the 15-nation Security Council that a man known as "Colonel
Serafim" was among those believed to be responsible for the rape of
over 300 people. She also said Congolese government troops are
raping, killing and looting civilians in the same area of eastern
Congo where militias carried out mass rapes over two months ago.
   (AP, 10/14/10)(AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Rival Cypriot
leaders opened a new crossing point linking the ethnically split
island's Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities, offering a boost to
plodding reunification talks.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In India the
Commonwealth Games ended after 11 days of fiery competition that
went some way to mending the damage done to Indian pride and
prestige tarnished by the chaotic buildup to the event.
   (AFP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In Iraq a roadside
bomb hit the car of Abdul Karim al-Mohammadawi, a prominent member
of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya alliance, killing four people and
wounding six others, including the politician.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In Madagascar
conservationists said a new species of carnivorous mammal, likely
highly endangered, has been discovered in the wetlands of Lake
Alaotra, the largest expanse of fresh water on the Indian Ocean
island. It has been baptized Durrell's vontsira (Salanoia durelli)
after the late British naturalist Gerald Durrell, who led
conservation projects in Madagascar.
   (AFP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In Mali a 2-day
meeting of the G8 countries, looking at how to counter the threat
posed by Islamic militants in northwest Africa, concluded. An
al-Qaida-linked group was currently holding five French citizens and
two others hostage in the area. The meeting brought together
counterterrorism experts in the G8's Counter Terrorism Action Group
as well as participants from African countries in the region, the
United Nations and regional bodies.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In Mexico the W
Radio station broadcast what it described as a telephone
conversation between federal lawmaker Cesar Godoy and one of
Mexico's biggest drug lords. W Radio said the alleged conversation
took place last year between Godoy and La Familia cartel leader
Servando Gomez, known as "La Tuta." In it Godoy and Gomez express
support for each other and discuss bribing a reporter. Mexican
marines battled suspected drug cartel gunmen whose allies erected at
least a dozen roadblocks in the northeastern city of Monterrey. One
marine and three gunmen were killed.
   (AP, 10/14/10)(AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Mozambique state
radio said a court in has sentenced two men to 20 years in prison
each for mutilating a 12-year-old boy and trying to sell his body
parts to a witchdoctor. The report said the two men, the boy's uncle
and another, held the boy down, cut out his eyes and removed his
genitals, intending to sell them to a Malawian witchdoctor. The boy
survived.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Khagendra Thapa
Magar, a Nepalese fruit seller’s son, was named the world’s shortest
man as he turned 18 years old. He measured 26.4 inches.
   (SFC, 10/15/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Dutch Queen
Beatrix swore in her country's new right-wing minority Cabinet,
ushering in a new era of budgetary austerity and tighter immigration
rules.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In Nigeria gunmen
in the southern delta kidnapped, Lakshmi Tombush, the principal of a
school sponsored by Exxon, and killed 2 police officers in a
firefight. Gunmen attacked a police roadblock northern Bauchi state
and two policemen were killed. Police officers recovered Tombush on
Oct 28.
   (SFC, 10/15/10, p.A2)(AFP, 10/15/10)(AP,
10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Asian Development
Bank (ADB) and World Bank said Pakistan's floods caused an estimated
$9.7 billion in damage to the country's infrastructure, farms and
homes.
   (Reuters, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Somalia’s Pres.
Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed named Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, a Somali
American, as the new prime minister. In western Somalia masked
gunmen abducted a Briton, Frans Barnard, and a Somali working for
aid agency Save the Children from a compound in town of Adado. The
Somali worker was soon released. Barnard was released on Oct 20.
   (SFC, 10/15/10, p.A2)(AP, 10/15/10)(AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, A senior Sudanese
official said it is impossible to hold a referendum on the future of
the north-south border region of Abyei as planned. Dirdiri Ahmed, a
member of Sudan's northern ruling party, said that
internationally-mediated talks over Abyei failed to yield an
agreement on who is eligible to vote in the region.
   (AP, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, Taiwan's
government reported plans to allow sex workers to set up small
businesses in the latest change to laws that had once forced the
huge industry underground. Prostitution was legal only in
Taiwan's capital, Taipei, until 1997 when the city authorities
made it a criminal offence to be a prostitute though not to
patronize one. In 2009 it stopped punishing sex workers. Estimates
from activists put the number of people involved in sex-related jobs
in Taiwan at 600,000.
   (Reuters, 10/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 14, In south Yemen a
police chief was shot dead during a protest marking the 47th
anniversary of the launch of its uprising against British colonial
rule. Abdullah al-Baham was shot in the head in Mudia in Abyan
province. The attack by suspected al-Qaida militants triggered
a series of clashes between soldiers and militants that killed eight
people, mostly government troops.
   (AFP, 10/14/10)(AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, US federal
authorities aid they have rounded up over 40 people in New York and
Florida during a takedown of a wholesale marijuana ring. Agents
seized $1 million and almost 200 pounds of marijuana.
   (SFC, 10/16/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, A security
researcher said criminals are using a Zeus botnet to pillage Charles
Schwab investment accounts. Although police in the US, the UK and
Ukraine collared more than 100 members of a Zeus crimeware gang
three weeks ago, experts warned that the arrests wouldn't stop the
botnet. Other gangs can simply step into the void.
  Â
(http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=B7C76BC0-1A64-67EA-E459F0D62DD95E83)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Mike Ehredt (49) a
US Army veteran of Hope, Iowa, completed a coast to coast jog in
Rockland, Maine. He had placed a flag in the ground every mile to
honor military personnel killed in Iraq. He averaged about 29 miles
a day with 4 days off.
   (SFC, 10/16/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, A light plane
carrying four US citizens on a medical aid flight crashed in Baja
California, killing all four aboard. The plane that went down was
one of three on a mission from the San Luis Obispo, Ca., area.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, The Afghan
government said a system meant to ensure Afghan officials are
consulted on sensitive international military operations has been
"ineffective." 3 NATO troops were killed in a surge of attacks that
raised the death toll to 17 over the past three days for
international troops in the country. In the southeast 6 civilians
were killed when a roadside bomb detonated beside their vehicle near
Kalat.
   (AP, 10/15/10)(AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, China's Communist
Party opened its secretive annual meeting to discuss the nation's
next five-year economic plan against the backdrop of unusually
outspoken calls for political reform.
   (AFP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, China's basketball
association fined a series of coaches and players in the national
team after a bench-clearing brawl put an end to a friendly match
with Brazil. The fight had erupted the night of Oct 12 at a game in
central Henan province.
   (AFP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Roger Meece, heads
of the UN peacekeeping mission in Congo, said more than 15,000
people were raped in the volatile eastern region of Congo last year,
according to the best data available.
   (AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Adrian Edwards,
the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said the rebels of the Lord's
Resistance Army have killed at least 2,000 people and forced 400,000
to flee in three countries in less than two years. A UNHCR
communique documented a mounting "campaign of terror against
civilians" in the DR Congo, South Sudan and the CAR.
   (AFP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, The Costa Rican
government said it is receiving nearly $56 million in donations and
debt write-offs to expand its forest and marine conservation
programs and has become the first developing country to meet UN
goals on protected areas. Under the plan, the US agreed to buy back
$27 million of Costa Rica's foreign debt, money that will be used
instead to invest conservation programs. The US already trimmed $26
million of Costa Rican debt in 2007 as part of the US Tropical
Forest Conservation Act. The debt now stands at $77 million.
   (AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In Ecuador a
tunnel collapsed in a gold mine in the south, trapping four miners
490 feet (150 meters) underground. Authorities said rescue efforts
were under way. The bodies of 2 miners were found the next day as
rescue efforts continued for 2 others. Their bodies were found on
Oct 20.
   (AP, 10/15/10)(AP, 10/17/10)(Reuters, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, French President
Nicolas Sarkozy sent in riot police to reopen fuel depots blocked by
strikes, as the pipeline to Paris airports was cut in an escalating
battle over pension reform.
   (AFP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In Indonesia a
rabies outbreak on the resort island of Bali has to date killed 100
people. Bali, an island of 3 million people and one of Asia's top
tourist destinations, has been grappling with the outbreak for
nearly two years.
   (AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Iran’s Foreign
Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said that Tehran was ready to resume
talks about its nuclear program with the international community
within a matter of weeks.
   (AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Israel signed off
on the construction of 238 homes in Jewish neighborhoods in east
Jerusalem, bringing an end to an unofficial building freeze in the
traditionally Arab sector of the city and further complicating peace
talks stuck over the broader fate of West Bank settlements. A report
released by aid organization Oxfam said attacks and other acts of
harassment by Jewish settlers against Palestinian olive farmers "are
common and often increase during the time of the harvest." The
Israeli army says it does all it can to protect Palestinian olive
growers. So far this year there have been no casualties at least.
But neither have the police made any arrests.
   (AP, 10/15/10)(AFP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Israeli police
arrested Staten Island resident Eric Bellucci (30), a US citizen who
escaped to Israel after allegedly stabbing his parents to death in
their New York home earlier this week. Bellucci's parents, Arthur
(61) and Marian (56), were found dead the night of Oct 13 in their
Staten Island home.
   (AP, 10/15/10)(AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In Italy judicial
sources said prosecutors have launched an investigation against PM
Silvio Berlusconi for tax evasion linked to his Mediaset media
empire. The allegations, which were immediately rejected by
Mediaset, were linked to tax declarations for 2003 and 2004 and are
part of a wider inquiry.
   (AFP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In Jamaica a bus
plunged over a cliff on the island's north coast, killing a teenage
girl and injuring 39 people. The bus driver fled after the accident.
   (AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In Mexico armed
men entered through the back of a house in a residential
neighborhood near the center of Ciudad Juarez, surprising the
party-goers with an assault-rifle attack that killed 6 people.
   (Reuters, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In southeastern
Mexico a helicopter carrying oil workers crashed killing all 8
people aboard.
   (SSFC, 10/17/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Pakistan said it
was willing to assist talks between the Afghan government and the
Taliban, and NATO confirmed its forces had helped ensure a senior
Taliban commander reached Kabul. In an early morning attack in South
Waziristan 5 Pakistani soldiers were killed when militants sprayed
an army checkpoint with gunfire. A suspected US unmanned aircraft
launched two missiles in North Waziristan. 3 were killed in the
first missile strike, which hit a vehicle in Machi Khel. The 2nd
strike occurred several hours later, killing six suspected militants
at a house in Aziz Khel. Gunmen ambushed a truck early in the
morning as it was returning home after delivering NATO supplies in
Afghanistan, killing the driver and his assistant.
   (Reuters, 10/15/10)(AP, 10/15/10)(AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Russian PM
Vladimir Putin's chief of staff, Sergei Sobyanin, was nominated as
Moscow's next mayor, a move seen as bringing the capital's sizable
political and business interests under the direct control of the
Kremlin.
   (AP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Russia agreed to
help build Venezuela's first nuclear power plant and buy $1.6
billion of oil assets, reinforcing ties with President Hugo Chavez,
who shares Moscow's opposition to US global dominance.
   (Reuters, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, The Saudi
government said Jaber Jabran al-Faifi, a former Guantanamo detainee,
has turned himself in to Saudi authorities. He had rejoined Al-Qaeda
in Yemen after graduating from Saudi Arabia's rehabilitation
program.
   (AFP, 10/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, Swiss engineers
smashed through the last stretch of rock to create the world's
longest tunnel (35.4 miles), The Gotthard Base rail tunnel, sparking
a national groundswell of elation over a costly, technically
difficult project that has been 60 years in the making.
   (AP, 10/15/10)(SFC, 10/15/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 15, In Zambia nearly a
dozen miners were shot in a pay dispute.
   (AP, 1/4/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In Afghanistan a
bomb blast struck the police headquarters in the southern city of
Kandahar, killing one civilian and wounding 4 others. Two Taliban
commanders, identified as Kaka Abdul Khaliq and Kako, were killed in
an operation in Kandahar's Zhari district. Taliban fighter, Mullah
Rahmatullah, was captured in the raid. Afghan and American troops
made an air assault on the horn of Panjwai, a Taliban base. A
motorized rickshaw carrying explosives was detonated behind police
headquarters in Kandahar killing one bystander. Insurgents attacked
an oil tanker on the other side of the city. The resulting explosion
killed one civilian.
   (AP, 10/16/10)(AP, 10/17/10)(SSFC, 10/17/10,
p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, Armenia's
president has opened an aerial tramway that the country claims is
the world's longest. The tramway across the Vorotan River gorge in
the country's south spans 5.7 km (3.5 miles), longer than the 4.5 km
(2.8 mile) Sandia Peak Tramway in New Mexico, known as the world's
longest passenger tramway. The $45 million tramway links the highway
from the capital of Yerevan with the 9th century Tatev Monastery.
   (AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In Belarus
visiting Pres. Chavez of Venezuela promised that Belarusian
refineries, the backbone of the country's economy, would see no oil
shortages for the next 200 years.
   (AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, Thousands of
Chinese marched in the streets in sometimes violent protests against
Japan and its claim to disputed islands. Thousands of protesters
marched through Tokyo to demonstrate against what they called
China's invasion of disputed islands that both countries claim.
Beijing expressed "deep concern" at anti-China protests by Japanese
nationalists over a diplomatic spat centered on a group of disputed
islands.
   (AP, 10/16/10)(Reuters, 10/16/10)(AFP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In central China
rescuers battled dangerous levels of gas, tons of coal dust and the
risk of falling rocks as they worked to free 11 miners trapped by an
explosion at a mine. 26 miners were confirmed killed at the
state-run Pingyu Coal & Electric Co. Ltd mine.
   (AP, 10/16/10)(AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In China Li Qiming
(22) reportedly hit two students with his car at a university campus
in the northern province of Hebei. Chen Xiaofeng (20) was killed.
The drunk man shouted "sue me if you dare" when a crowd stopped him
from fleeing. On Oct 26 state media reported that Qiming, the son of
a senior police officer, was arrested after the incident sparked
outrage on the Internet. The young woman’s father, Chen Guangqian,
said on Nov 18 that Li Gang gave him 460,000 yuan, or more than
$69,250. On Jan 30 Qiming was sentenced to six years in prison.
   (AFP, 10/26/10)(AP, 11/18/10)(AP, 1/30/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In France diesel
and jet fuel supplies were running low in parts of the country as
workers took to the streets for another nationwide protest against
President Nicolas Sarkozy's plan to raise the retirement age to 62.
   (AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, German Chancellor
Angela Merkel told a meeting of young members of her conservative
Christian Democratic Union that while immigrants are welcome,
they must learn the language and accept the country's cultural
norms. "This multicultural approach, saying that we simply live side
by side and live happily with each other has failed. Utterly
failed."
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, German Economy
Minister Rainer Bruederle said Germany will help Japan gain access
to vital rare earth minerals which are being withheld by China in a
territorial dispute.
   (AFP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, Iranian local
media reported that a judge has ordered the amputation of the hand
of a man (21) who confessed to robbing a candy shop. The ruling came
days after authorities amputated the hand of another man convicted
of theft in the northeastern city of Mashhad.
   (AP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In Mexico gunmen
in the border city of Ciudad Juarez killed a local official and his
son. Rito Grado Serrano was regional president of the community of
El Porvenir outside Ciudad Juarez but lived with his family in
Ciudad Juarez.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, In Mexico the body
of Lane Gilbert (46) of Marin County, Ca., was discovered in a lot
behind a police station in Santa Maria Coyotepec, a town southwest
of Oaxaca City. He had suffered multiple machete wounds. Gilbert was
last seen leaving his home in San Andres Huayapan on Aug 27.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, A Nigerian army
spokesman said soldiers have arrested this month about 100 suspected
kidnappers and armed robbers in the southeastern state of Abia,
including a Roman Catholic priest. Nigerian investigators raided a
Lagos home of Charles Okah, the brother of former militant group
leader Henry Okah, taking him into custody over his alleged role in
funding the Oct 1 bombings that struck independence anniversary
celebrations in Abuja.
   (AFP, 10/16/10)(AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, North Korea said
it is willing to resume six-nation nuclear disarmament talks but
would not be "hasty" because the US and some other parties were not
ready. North Korean media threatened a "1,000-fold" military buildup
as the US ruled out lifting sanctions to try to coax the North into
resuming talks aimed at its nuclear weapons programs.
   (AP, 10/16/10)(AFP, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 16, Russia’s
state-owned RIA news agency reported that flooding in the southern
region of Krasnodar has killed 11 people with three missing.
   (Reuters, 10/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, The New York Times
reported that possibly hundreds of members of Iraq's Awakening
Councils, a group affiliated with the US military, have switched
their loyalty to Al-Qaeda.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, The Washington
Post reported that the United States believes some Chinese firms are
helping Iran improve its missile technology and develop nuclear
weapons and has asked Beijing to prevent such activity.
   (AFP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Arizona a
commercial tour bus drifted off a highway near Meadview and rolled
over several times killing 2 people and injuring several others.
   (SFC, 10/18/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In New York Danroy
"D.J." Henry (20), a college football player driving away from the
scene of a fight, ended up dead hours after the team's homecoming
game, struck in a burst of police gunfire that pierced his
windshield in the Westchester County hamlet of Thornwood. He was
shot and killed by Westchester Police Officer Aaron Hess outside
Finnegan’s Grill. A grand jury later cleared Hess of wrongdoing in
the shooting.
   (AP, 10/19/10)(Yahoo News, 7/30/20)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Afghanistan issued
a statement issued by the president's office saying that private
security firms will not only be able to operate inside international
compounds, but also travel with diplomats and work as protection for
international military installations. A NATO service member was
killed by a bomb blast in the south. Afghan and Western officials
said that fraud was pervasive in the Sep 18 elections and that 25%
or 800,000 to a million votes would be likely thrown out. air
strikes killed a Taliban "military leader" and 15 other insurgents
in the northern province of Baghlan. A Taliban prisoner, Mullah
Muhebullah, was found shot dead while under US guard in an Afghan
holding facility. Pfc. David Lawrence (20) was soon placed under
custody in a criminal investigation of Muhebullah’s death.
   (AP, 10/17/10)(SFC, 10/18/10, p.A3)(AFP,
10/19/10)(SFC, 12/1/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Afghanistan
about this time 3 Taliban leaders secretly met with Pres. Karzai in
an effort to weaken the Haqqani network, the US-led coalition's most
vicious enemy.
   (AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Brazil three
men broke into the home of Wanderley dos Reis, the owner of a small
newspaper in Sao Paulo state, and shot and killed him.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In southeastern
Brazil a bus carrying people back from a sports festival for special
needs athletes fell from a bridge into a river, killing 11 and
injuring nearly 30.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Congo's first
lady, Olive Lembe Kabila, led thousands of women marching in the
country's volatile east to demand an end to a wave of mass rapes. 3
residents were killed when soldiers looted homes in Congo's South
Kivu province.
   (AP, 10/17/10)(AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Haiti 2 inmates
were shot to death trying to escape from the roof of the
quake-damaged national penitentiary. A third was trampled to death
inside during a prison riot. Police officials familiar with the
prison said some inmates had escaped.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In northern India
an argument over sacrificing goats during a Hindu festival triggered
a stampede that killed 10 people in a packed temple.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Iran's Pres.
Ahmadinejad endorsed the idea of new talks with the international
community over his country's nuclear program, while warning that
negotiations would fail if the West does not clearly come out
against Israel's suspected nuclear arsenal.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Iran freed Reza
Taghavi (71), an Iranian-American businessman. The next day he said
he had spent some of his more than two years in prison alongside
protesters detained in Iran's postelection crackdowns and praised
his first taste of freedom as a blessing "no one can imagine.”
Taghavi, who regularly visits Iran to conduct business and see
family, had been jailed for 29 months for passing $200 to someone
suspected of links to a rebel group known as Tondar, which seeks to
topple the Islamic system and was implicated in the mosque bombing.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Iraq two
policemen and two gunmen were killed in gunfights between security
forces and armed groups attempting to rob Baghdad jewelry stores. 5
gunmen escaped.
   (AP, 10/17/10)(SFC, 10/18/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Kuwait some 100
people stormed the offices of privately owned Scope TV’s studios and
destroyed its equipment after the channel aired shows critical of
the ruling Al Sabah family.
   (SFC, 10/19/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, The Mexican Navy
said two men were killed in a confrontation with marines in
Tamaulipas state. A Sonora state police officer was found dead,
apparently from a blow to the head, alongside the road in Benito
Juarez municipality. Ciudad Juarez gunmen burst into a home where a
family was having a party. 3 women and 2 men died at the scene, and
a man and a woman died at the hospital. Assailants attacked a second
home in the neighborhood minutes later, killing 2 men.
   (AP, 10/17/10)(AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Morocco world
leaders at the World Policy Conference (WPC) in Marrakech examined
frameworks for global governance ahead of a G20 summit in Seoul,
with UN chief Ban Ki-Moon stressing no single power could tackle key
issues alone.
   (AFP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, A Nigerian
government spokesman said a Dubai court found cause to honor an
extradition request for former Delta state Gov. James Ibori, a
prominent politician in the ruling People's Democratic Party.
Authorities have said Ibori faces charges over stealing $292 million
in state funds while in office.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, In Pakistan gunmen
killed at least 25 people in Karachi over the past 24 hours, raising
tensions in Pakistan's largest city as voters cast ballots to
replace a provincial lawmaker murdered in August.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Two Palestinians
were killed and a third wounded in a pre-dawn Israeli air strike
north of Gaza City. The Israeli military said the air force had
struck a "squad of terror operatives who were preparing to fire
rockets from the northern Gaza Strip into Israel."
   (AFP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Thousands of
Thailand's anti-government "Red Shirts" joined a mass rally in the
latest large-scale demonstration by the movement in recent weeks.
   (AFP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Pope Benedict XVI
proclaimed Australia's first saint, canonizing Mary MacKillop
(1842-1909), a 19th-century nun. The Vatican also declared five
other saints in an open-air Mass attended by tens of thousands.
Brother Andre (1845-1937), a Canadian, Italian nuns Giulia Salzano
and Battista Camilla da Varano, and Spanish nun Candida Maria de
Jesus Cipitria y Barriola were also canonized.
   (AP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, The official
Vatican newspaper said that beer-swilling, doughnut-loving Homer
Simpson and son Bart are Catholics, and what's more, it says that
parents should not be afraid to let their children watch "the
adventures of the little guys in yellow." Executive producer Al Jean
told Entertainment Weekly the next day he was in "shock and awe" at
the latest assertion, adding that the Simpsons attend the
"Presbylutheran" First Church of Springfield. "The Simpsons" is the
longest-running prime-time TV series in the United States and is now
in its 22nd season.
   (Reuters, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Vietnamese
officials said more flooding has killed at least 14 people and
forced around 78,000 people to be evacuated from their homes in the
centre of the country.
   (AFP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 17, Zambian police
said managers at a Chinese-run coal mine who shot at workers
protesting poor working conditions will be charged with attempted
murder. 12 workers at Collum Coal Mine in the southern town of
Sinazongwe were injured a day earlier when mainly Chinese managers
fired randomly at the protesting workers.
   (AFP, 10/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Southern
California Crystal Cathedral, the megachurch birthplace of the
televangelist show "Hour of Power," filed for bankruptcy after
struggling to emerge from debt that exceeds $43 million.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Tennessee
workers Judy Spray (58), a rural carrier associate, and Paula
Robinson (33), a retail clerk, were gunned down at a rural post
office that doubles as a community center in Henning.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Abu Dhabi-based
newspaper The National reported that the UAE's highest judicial body
has ruled that a man can beat his wife and young children as long as
the beating leaves no physical marks.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Afghan and NATO
forces killed "numerous insurgents" in Shah Wali Kot district of
Kandahar province.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, An Algerian court
sentenced Bouchouta Fares (27) to two years in prison for breaking
the fast of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan late in August. He was
also fined 100,000 dinars (€972, $1,359) for "breaching a precept of
Islam." Practicing a faith, Muslim or otherwise, is conditional in
Algeria on obtaining a document stating the place of worship and
another giving the name of the preacher, under a law passed in
February 2006.
   (AFP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Australia’s
Justice Minister Brendan O'Connor said illegal pornographic material
must be declared on arrival, watering down recent rules that asked
for all pornography to be revealed. The government said it changed
the wording on passenger arrival cards after becoming aware of
confusion among travelers about what pornography to declare.
   (AFP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, A UN official said
flooding in the West African nation of Benin has killed 43 people
and left nearly 100,000 homeless, citing numbers collected since the
beginning of October.
   (AFP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In northeastern
Brazil Francisco Gomes de Medeiros, a veteran reporter who had often
received death threats for his reports on crime, died instantly when
he was shot five times in the city of Caico.
   (AP, 10/2o/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, A new British
government strategy was published saying International terrorism and
cyber attacks pose the biggest threat to national security, ahead of
a major shake-up of the defense budget.
   (AFP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Cambodia 20
people remained hospitalized after 14 people died over the weekend
from drinking wine tainted with weed killer at a ceremony where
villagers were appealing to spirits to protect children.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, French truck
drivers staged go-slow operations on highways, rail strikes
intensified and petrol stations ran out of fuel as protests gathered
pace ahead of a Senate vote on an unpopular pension overhaul.
   (Reuters, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Germany, yielding
to French pressure, softened its stance on stricter eurozone budget
rules, angering governments that counted on Berlin to force through
sanctions for nations living beyond their means.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Haiti civil
protection officials said steady rains toppled hillsides and turned
streets into rivers in Port-au-Prince over the weekend, leaving at
least 12 people dead and three missing.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In India Yertward
Mazmanian (aka Eight Finger Eddie, 1924-2010), an American-born
hippie died of a heart attack in Anjuna's hospital. In 1965 he and
some other hippies had settled in Anjuna, Goa state, and helped put
the area on the travel map for global backpackers and stoners.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Human rights
activists said Indonesian security forces have been captured on
video torturing an alleged separatist in Papua province, burning his
genitals as he screams out in agony and then threatening to shoot
him in the mouth.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Iran took part for
the first time in talks in Rome with the international contact group
on Afghanistan that set "sufficient stability" and basic human
rights as the most realistic aims for the war-torn nation.
   (AFP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Iraqi PM Nuri
al-Maliki was in Tehran to drum up support for his premiership bid,
as his chief rival Iyad Allawi accused Iran of meddling in Baghdad's
political affairs. In Iraq a roadside bomb hit a convoy carrying
Jassim al-Saiedi, a member of Baghdad's local government, killing
him and wounding eight people. Two Associated Press journalists were
among those assaulted by Iraqi soldiers while trying to cover the
bombing.
   (AFP, 10/18/10)(AP, 10/18/10)(AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Mexico a bus
has crashed into the back of a trailer truck and caught fire,
killing 19 people outside the city of Queretaro. Security forces
seized at least 105 tons of US-bound marijuana in Tijuana, by far
the biggest pot bust in the country in recent years. The estimated
weight was soon revised to 134.2 tons and said to likely belong to
the Sinaloa cartel, run by Mexico's most wanted fugitive, Joaquin
"El Chapo" Guzman.
   (AP, 10/18/10)(AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Myanmar election
officials said foreign journalists will not be allowed to cover its
Nov 7 elections, the first in 20 years.
   (SFC, 10/19/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Pakistan’s
election commission said 148 lawmakers from national and regional
assemblies have been suspended for failing to disclose details of
their wealth.
   (SFC, 10/19/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In the Philippines
the strongest cyclone in years killed at least 36 people, leaving a
wasteland of fallen trees and power poles and sending thousands
scampering to safety in near-zero visibility. Super Typhoon Megi was
forecast next to head toward China and Vietnam.
   (AP, 10/18/10)(AP, 10/19/10)(AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, Somali officials
said an offensive launched a day earlier by government troops has
killed at least 15 people. The weak, UN-backed government was
attempting to win back control of areas held by militants. Al-Shabab
announced that residents in areas under its control can no longer
use mobile money transfer services.
   (AP, 10/18/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, The UN said it is
sending 100 more troops to Sudan's oil-producing Abyei region to
step up security ahead of a referendum that could pitch the area
back into bloodshed.
   (Reuters, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Vietnam a local
official was sentenced to life in prison for accepting bribes on a
Japanese-funded road project he managed, in a scandal that prompted
Japan to suspend aid for several months. Huynh Ngoc Si was convicted
of receiving $262,000 from executives of Pacific Consultants
International, or PCI, a Japanese company hired as consultants.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, In Vietnam 20
people on a bus were swept away by strong currents from a flooded
river. They were presumed dead. Another 17 managed to save
themselves by swimming or clinging to trees or power poles.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 18, A court in Yemen
sentenced an al-Qaida militant to death after convicting him of
involvement in terror attacks and manufacturing explosives. Saleh
al-Shawish was arrested in February and later charged with
involvement in attacks on security facilities, training would-be
suicide bombers and bomb making.
   (AP, 10/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Texas Hosam
Smadi (20), a Jordanian national, was sentenced to 24 years in
prison. In May he had pleaded guilty to attempted use of a weapon of
mass destruction. An FBI sting in 2009 had caught him trying to blow
up a Dallas skyscraper.
   (SFC, 11/3/10, p.A5)(http://tinyurl.com/2ac44d8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, TV and film Actor
Tom Bosley (1927) died. His films included “The World of Henry
Orient” (1964). He was best known for his role at the father in the
“Happy Days” TV series (1974-1985).
   (SFC, 10/20/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, The Afghan
government said it had ordered an audit of all private banks
following a corruption scandal that threatened to bring down the
country's top lender. In the south 3 NATO soldiers were killed,
bringing to 596 the number of foreign troops to die in the Afghan
conflict so far this year. US officials said they have begun
training Afghans on how to disrupt the flow of billions of dollars
in cash being smuggled out of their country.
   (Reuters, 10/19/10)(AFP, 10/19/10)(AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Austria tens of
thousands of students, backed by university staff, marched to demand
more money for higher education.
   (SFC, 10/20/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Bolivia and Peru
signed an agreement giving Bolivia a dock, a free-trade zone and the
right to run some naval vessels.
   (SFC, 10/20/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Britain will lose
thousands of troops, build new aircraft carriers, without new
fighter jets, and delay a multibillion pound upgrade to its nuclear
deterrent under sweeping defense cuts announced following the first
major military review in more than a decade.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Chechnya
Islamic insurgents including a suicide bomber stormed the
Parliament, leaving six people dead and 17 injured in one of the
most brazen attacks on the provincial capital in months. The dead
included one parliamentary official, 2 policemen and 3 insurgents.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, China's central
bank surprised with its first increase of interest rates in nearly
three years. The People's Bank of China said it was raising
benchmark rates by 25 basis points, taking one-year deposit rates to
2.5 percent and one-year lending rates to 5.56 percent. The impact
was felt by markets across the board. Oil and gold prices tumbled,
stocks turned negative in Europe and the dollar jumped.
   (Reuters, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Egypt's main
satellite operator said it shut down 12 private television channels
on grounds of violating broadcasting licenses. Egypt's largest
opposition Islamist group said that police detained 164 Muslim
Brotherhood members, most of them election campaign workers, in a
spate of raids across the country.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Egyptian and South
African leaders met in Cairo for talks aimed at strengthening
economic ties between the two African powerhouses and working
towards a free trade deal for the continent.
   (AFP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Human Rights Watch
said in a report that Ethiopia is denying opposition supporters
food, other aid, loans and government services in a widespread
effort to suppress political dissent.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, European Union
finance ministers sealed a deal to regulate the trillion-dollar
hedge fund industry after Britain and France settled a long-running
conflict.
   (AFP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, The European
Commission said it will temporarily suspend its human rights
complaint against France for its expulsions of Gypsies, or Roma,
after Paris promised to alter some of its laws to match EU
regulations.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, The EU announced
plans for a five-year ban on animal cloning for food production as
well as a traceability system for imports of semen and embryos of
clones.
   (AFP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In France masked
youths clashed with police and set fires in cities across the
country as protests against a proposed hike in the retirement age
took an increasingly radical turn. Hundreds of flights were
canceled, long lines formed at gas stations and train service in
many regions was cut in half.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Deutsch Bahn’s
high-speed train, ICE-3, became the first German train to pass
through the Channel tunnel on its way to London’s St Pancras
station.
   (Econ, 10/23/10, p.77)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Guinea 2
political demonstrators were killed by police in the capital, in one
of several violent street clashes ahead of a planned presidential
poll.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, India announced
the creation of a tribunal to punish those who sully the forests or
rivers or otherwise break its environmental laws, in the hopes of
clearing a backlog of some 5,000 such cases languishing in a
sluggish court system.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In India the
Microfinance Institution Network petitioned the Andhra Pradesh state
high court to block new provisions designed to protect impoverished
people. High interest and coercive loan collection by some
microfinance groups had led to some 30 suicides.
   (SFC, 10/20/10, p.D7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Ingushetia
unidentified gunmen shot and killed a police officer in this
southern Russian province hours after other Islamic insurgents
raided Chechnya's regional parliament.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Iran said some
Western companies were refusing to refuel its planes in Europe and
warned it would "confront" such measures, which it deemed illegal
under international law.
   (AFP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Iran
Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez held talks with leaders expected
to focus on boosting cooperation between the countries' oil, gas and
petrochemical industries.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Iraq a bomb
exploded near the house of a policeman in Saddam Hussein's hometown
of Tikrit, killing his 6-month-old niece, both her parents and five
other members of the same family. In Samarra a roadside bomb struck
a police patrol, killing two policemen and wounding two. In Baghdad
two bombs attached to buses exploded and wounded 15 Iranian
pilgrims. Chief UN envoy AD Melkert finished meeting with Grand
Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and was leaving the Shiite city of Najaf
when his convoy hit a roadside bomb. A member of the Iraqi security
forces was killed and several others were injured in the attack.
   (AP, 10/19/10)(AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Nicaragua health
officials reported 17 deaths and 600 suspected cases of
leptospirosis in the past month. Most of the cases were in Leon and
Chinandega.
  Â
(www.osac.gov/Reports/report.cfm?contentID=123022)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, In Pakistan
violence continued in the southern city of Karachi, with at least 16
people killed in different attacks, including eight in one incident.
   (Reuters, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, South African
journalist Mzilikazi wa Afrika, arrested after writing about alleged
police corruption, said a proposed media bill could transform a
country known for being among Africa's most free and transparent to
one more like autocratic Zimbabwe. He spoke at a protest of more
than 300 people marching against the government's media proposals.
   (AP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Tibetan students
in western China marched to protest unconfirmed plans to use the
Chinese language exclusively in classes, an unusually bold challenge
to authorities that reflects a deep unease over the marginalization
of Tibetan culture.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, The UN said that
377 people had died in flooding in central and west Africa, with
nearly 1.5 million people affected since the start of the rainy
season in June. The highest toll was in Nigeria with 118, followed
by Ghana (52), Sudan (50), Benin (43), Chad (24), Mauritania (21),
Burkina Faso (16), Cameroon (13), Gambia (12), with other countries
reporting less than 10 dead.
   (AFP, 10/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 19, Two employees of
the US Virgin Islands' tax bureau were accused of leading a scheme
that pilfered as much as $500,000 from the government using
fraudulent tax refund checks. Tax bureau employees Tiffanne Sutton
and Colette Hacket-Browne and others had allegedly taken part in tax
fraud since 2006.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, In its biggest
arms deal ever, the United States announced it will sell up to 60
billion dollars worth of warplanes, helicopters and other weapons to
Saudi Arabia, partly to help it counter Iran.
   (AFP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, The United States
relaxed sanctions on Sudan to exempt farm equipment, a move seen as
part of a wider scheme of carrots and sticks before a sensitive
referendum that could split Africa's largest country.
   (Reuters, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, In Kansas Dr.
Stephen Schneider was sentenced to 30 years in prison for unlawfully
writing prescriptions, health care fraud and money laundering. His
wife was sentenced to 33 years in prison.
   (SFC, 10/21/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Bob Guccione
(b.1930), founder of Penthouse magazine, died of lung cancer in
Plano, Texas. He started Penthouse in England in 1965 to subsidize a
career in art. He introduced the magazine to the American public in
1969.
   (SFC, 10/21/10, p.A8)
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Robert Katz (77),
American writer and historian, died in Italy. His meticulous
reconstruction of an infamous Nazi massacre in Rome brought him fame
and sparked a trial over whether he defamed the pope. His book
"Death in Rome" (1967) and the subsequent movie based on it, called
"Massacre in Rome," stirred controversy because it suggested Pope
Pius XII did not intervene to stop the massacre even though he knew
about the Nazis' plans.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Afghanistan
released full preliminary results from last month's parliamentary
election. About 1.3 million votes were disqualified out of 5.6
million. That means about 23 percent of ballots were discarded
because of ballot-box stuffing or re-jiggered totals. A four-day
operation ended in which NATO troops and the Afghan army killed more
than 10 insurgents and recovered four weapons caches in Kunar
province.
   (AP, 10/20/10)(AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Britain’s treasury
chief George Osborne announced 81 billion pounds ($128 billion) in
spending cuts through 2015, which will ax welfare payments, savage
government services and see as many as half a million public sector
jobs lost.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, British Justice
David Bean sentenced Prince Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser Al SaudÂ
to a life sentence without the possibility of parole for 20 years
for the brutal assault at the Landmark Hotel in London on Feb 15.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Britain's Supreme
Court ruled in favor of German heiress Katrin Radmacher (40),
seeking to protect her considerable fortune from her ex-husband
Nicolas Granatino (39). The decision gave new strength to prenuptial
agreements in England.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, In France workers
opposed to a higher retirement age blocked roads to airports around
the country, leaving passengers in Paris dragging suitcases on foot
along an emergency breakdown lane. Pres. Sarkozy sent in police to
clear access to barricaded fuel depots and restore supply as trade
unions kept up their resistance to an unpopular pension reform due
for a final vote this week.
   (Reuters, 10/20/10)(AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Italian police
arrested Antonio Cortese. He is suspected of planting an unloaded
bazooka and carrying out a bomb attack earlier this year that
damaged the entrance of the Reggio Calabria courthouse in southern
Italy. Turncoat Antonino Lo Giudice, a former top 'Ndrangheta boss,
accused Cortese of planting the explosives in an attempt to
intimidate prosecutors.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, A court in
Mauritania condemned three alleged al-Qaida members to death,
including the former leader of the African nation's local terrorist
network. Former al-Qaida leader, El Khadim Ould Semene, was accused
of helping organize an attack on the Israeli embassy here two years
ago.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, In northern Mexico
Marisol Valles Garcia (20) was sworn in as the police chief of the
township of Praxedis G. Guerrero, a township of 8,500 on a drug
trafficking route along the Texas border. Soldiers battled gunmen in
two cities across the border from Texas, prompting panicked parents
to pull children from school and factories to warn workers to stay
inside. In Nuevo Laredo 5 gunmen were killed and 3 soldiers
were wounded during shootouts. Assailants in a third city threw a
grenade at an army barracks. In Ciudad Juarez a Texas National Guard
soldier (21) was reportedly one of two men killed.
   (SFC, 10/21/10, p.A4)(AP, 10/20/10)(AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Parts Karachi,
Pakistan, shut down after an attack on a scrapyard pushed to 51 the
number of people killed in four days, a spasm of politically
motivated violence in a country already wracked by Islamist
militancy.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Palestinians said
Jewish settlers set fire to a girls school near the northern city of
Nablus. A powerful explosion ripped through a Hamas military
compound in the Gaza Strip, wounding more than a dozen people,
including women and children.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Spain enacted a
tough new anti-smoking law, eliminating its status as Western
Europe's last country where lighting up in indoor public places is
allowed.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Swiss mining giant
Xstrata said that it would spend 4.9 billion rands (710 million
dollars, 510 million euros) on expanding a ferrochrome smelter in
South Africa.
   (AFP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, In Turkey police
detained five people, including three university students, suspected
of providing financial and technical support to the al-Qaida network
in Afghanistan.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Pope Benedict XVI
named 24 new cardinals, putting his mark on the body that will elect
his successor and giving a boost to Italian hopes to regain the
papacy.
   (AP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 20, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez left Iran after signing 11 deals focused on
energy cooperation between the two major oil producers who are foes
of the United States.
   (AFP, 10/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, US federal
authorities charged Miami-based American Therapeutic Corp. with
Medicare fraud. Prosecutors said the company preyed on patients with
severe dementia and billed some $200 million for services it never
rendered.
   (SFC, 10/22/10, p.A13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Northern
California an entire arm of the Roseville Galleria, a high-end
regional mall, was destroyed after Alexander Corney Pigee (Piggee,
23), barricaded himself inside a video game store and started a
fire.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Oregon a former
Bend police captain and his wife, who have been under investigation
by the FBI and IRS over their real estate dealings in Oregon and
Indiana, were indicted on fraud charges. Kevin (56) and Tamara (47)
"Tami" Sawyer were charged with 21 counts of various crimes that
include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud and
money laundering. Prosecutors claim the fraud cost investors more
than $4.4 million.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, The Guinness World
Records confirmed that a pumpkin grown in Wisconsin is officially
the world’s heaviest. Chris Stevens of New Richmond grew the 1,810.5
pound gourd. It was 85 pounds heavier than the record set in Ohio in
2009.
   (SFC, 10/22/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, A partnership
backed by Amazon.com, Comcast, Facebook and other technology firms
established the “S Fund,” a $250 million fund led by venture capital
firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, to capitalize on the
growing reach of social networking.
   (SFC, 10/22/10, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, Afghanistan's new
peace council said it would be willing to make concessions to bring
insurgents to the negotiating table, and called for Saudi Arabia's
help in mediating peace talks.
   (Reuters, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Austria
Christian Kandlbauer (22), man who was able to drive because of an
innovative high-tech artificial arm, died. He had been in intensive
care since Oct 19 after his vehicle veered off the road and into a
tree. It was unclear whether the crash was caused by problems with
Kandlbauer's artificial arms.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Britain the
Privileges and Conduct Committee of the House of Lords suspended
Pola Uddin, Swraj Paul and Amirali Bhatia after declaring they did
not act in good faith in filing their expense claims. They were
ordered to repay amounts ranging from 27,000 pounds ($45,000) to
just over 125,000 pounds ($197,000).
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, China rejected a
UN report that says Chinese bullets were used in attacks on
peacekeepers in Sudan's troubled Darfur region, calling the charge
groundless.
   (AFP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, At least 160,000
people were evacuated from southern China as Typhoon Megi, one of
the most powerful storms to hit the region in years, bore down,
bringing with it the threat of devastation.
   (AFP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In CongoDRC a
small plane was owned by a local airliner Starec Congo crashed into
a gorilla park in eastern Congo killing its pilot and co-pilot. It
was carrying some 3,300 pounds (1,500 kg) of commercial goods.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Cuba the office
of Havana Roman Catholic Cardinal Jaime Ortega announced the names
of five more Cuban inmates who have accepted exile in Spain in
return for freedom, though none are among a group of 52 political
prisoners jailed in a 2003 roundup of dissidents.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In the Dominican
Rep. 126 students were sickened after eating free school breakfasts
despite the government's efforts to resolve past problems with
tainted school food.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In El Salvador
Benitez Canales, one of the owners of the Deportivo Vista Hermosa
football club, was among a group making a deal over 2 kg (4.4
pounds) of cocaine when they were arrested.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, The European
Parliament awarded its annual human rights prize to Guillermo
Farinas (48), the Cuban dissident whose 134-day hunger strike helped
draw attention to the plight of political dissidents jailed in a
2003 crackdown on dissent.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, Finland’s Nokia,
the world's top mobile phone maker, announced 1,800 jobs cuts right
on the heels of stellar third-quarter results and just one month
after a new chief executive took the helm.
   (AFP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In France
protesters blockaded Marseille's airport, Lady Gaga canceled
concerts in Paris and rioting youths attacked police in Lyon ahead
of a tense Senate vote on raising the retirement age to 62.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Israel the
Elders, a group of retired world figures, visited a flashpoint east
Jerusalem neighborhood, vowing to help Palestinian residents whose
homes are facing demolition.
   (AFP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Italy
demonstrators in Naples set vehicles ablaze and hurled stones and
firecrackers at police over plans to build a garbage dump in the
Vesuvio National Park. 20 officers were left injured.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, Toyota said it is
recalling 1.53 million Lexus, Avalon and other models, mostly in the
US and Japan, for brake fluid and fuel pump problems, the latest in
a string of quality lapses for the world's No. 1 automaker.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, Mexican police
found the bullet-ridden bodies of seven people in different parts of
southern Guerrero state. Among them was Antonio Valdez, leader of
the Institutional Revolutionary Party in the resort city of
Acapulco. Valdez and three other men were found dead on the
outskirts of the city with a message accusing them of being allied
with Edgar Valdez Villarreal, alias "The Barbie."
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In central Mexico
Canadian industrial giant Bombardier and Mexican President Felipe
Calderon opened a new 250-million-dollar plant where it will produce
components for the Learjet 85 business aircraft.
   (AFP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, Military-ruled
Myanmar unveiled a new national flag. The new flag has horizontal
stripes of yellow, green and red with a big white star in the
middle. (The three horizontal colors, minus the white star,
are identical to the Lithuanian national flag.)
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Niger a
statement read on national radio and television said the removal of
the junta's second-in-command, intelligence minister, head of the
national guard and minister of equipment were related to a coup plot
within the national armed forces.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In northwestern
Pakistan a roadside bomb killed six Taliban militants, including a
prominent local commander, an attack that could have been motivated
by tensions between different insurgent groups.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In the southern
Philippines a bomb ripped through a passenger bus, killing at least
10 people and wounding nine in an attack authorities say may have
been carried out by an extortion gang with links to Muslim
militants.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Russia the
Moscow legislature voted to approve Sergei Sobyanin, PM
Putin’s chief of staff, as mayor of the city replacing Yuri Luzhkov,
who was fired by Pres. Medvedev last month after 18 years in office.
Luzhkov has said he believes the true reason behind his ouster was
the Kremlin's desire to have a more pliant mayor before
parliamentary elections next year and the 2012 presidential vote.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Somalia a
failed offensive by al-Shabab left at least 20 people dead as the
Islamist group attempted to recapture a district in the southwest
from government forces.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, In Syria
Venezuelan Pres. Chavez met with his Pres. Bashar Assad on the
Mideast leg of an international tour partly intended to counter what
he calls US "imperialism."
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, Thailand said
floods in the northeast have left 17 people dead over the last 2
weeks with damages estimated at $650 million. 28 of the country’s 77
provinces were affected.
   (SFC, 10/22/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 21, UNESCO, the UN's
cultural and education agency, suspended plans to grant a prize
named after Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, Equatorial Guinea's longtime
dictator, after human rights groups slammed the award by citing the
leader's poor human rights record.
   (AP, 10/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, The Obama
administration laid out a five-year, $2 billion military aid package
for Pakistan as it pressed the Islamabad government to step up the
fight against extremists there and in neighboring Afghanistan.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, Ephren Taylor
resigned from City Capital and has since been replaced by Jeff M.
Smuda. Taylor allegedly took one million dollars from members at New
Birth Missionary Baptist Church near Atlanta. Smuda was elected
chairman of the failing company shortly after Taylor’s resignation.
According to their SEC, filing Jeff M. Smuda is an expert in
restructuring companies to profitability. Taylor was soon dubbed
“the black Bernie Madoff.”
   (Econ, 1/28/12,
p.63)(http://tinyurl.com/8a6vrqw)Â Â Â Â Â Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Virginia Glenn
Shriver (28) of Detroit pleaded guilty to trying to get a job with
the Central Intelligence Agency in order to spy for China and to
hiding contacts and money he got from Chinese intelligence agents.
Shriver acknowledged that he met with Chinese officials about 20
times beginning in 2004 and that he received a total of about
$70,000 from Chinese intelligence officers. His plea agreement
called for a sentence of 48 months in prison.
   (Reuters, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, The WikiLeaks
website released 391,831 purported Iraq war logs in the biggest leak
of secret information in US history. The documents date from the
start of 2004 to Jan 1, 2010. They suggested that far more Iraqis
died than previously acknowledged during the years of sectarian
bloodletting and criminal violence unleashed by the American-led
invasion in 2003. Accounts of civilian deaths included deaths
unknown or unreported before now, as many as 15,000 by the count of
one independent research group.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, The Lancet journal
published a study online reporting that low doses of aspirin, taken
daily and over the long term, cut cases of colorectal cancer by a
quarter and the death toll from this disease by a third. Aspirin is
believed to have a preventive effect because it inhibits an enzyme
called COX-2, which promotes cell proliferation in colorectal
tumors.
   (AFP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, A shark attack off
the coast of Santa Barbara County, Ca., killed surfer Lucas Ransom
(19).
   (SFC, 10/23/10, p.A12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In southeastern
Afghanistan Taliban fighters attacked a NATO convoy and killed three
drivers before setting 13 fuel tankers ablaze.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, A British judge
sentenced James Robinson (73), a former Roman Catholic priest, to 21
years in jail after he was convicted of 21 charges of sexual
offenses against boys. Ordained in 1971, he was accused of abusing
boys from 1959 to 1983.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, A nuclear-powered
British submarine, the HMS Astute, was grounded in an accident off
the coast of Scotland. Officials said the incident was not serious
and no one was injured.
   (AP, 10/22/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Canada Alberta
Provincial Court Judge Ken Tjosvold found Syncrude, one of Canada's
largest oil sands producers, guilty in the deaths of the 1,600 ducks
in a toxic waste pond last June. Syncrude accepted the C$3 million
sentencing proposal.
   (Reuters, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In China Kigali
and Beijing agreed to enhance their military cooperation during a
visit to China by Rwandan Defence Minister James Kaberebe. Kaberebe
held talks with his Chinese counterpart, Liang Guanglie, as part of
a five-day visit to China.
   (AFP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, Costa Rica sent
some 70 police reinforcements to the border area after receiving
reports of Nicaraguan soldiers on its soil. This was one day after
Costa Rica formally complained to Nicaragua's ambassador about the
dredging in the San Juan River. Nicaragua's army chief of staff,
Gen. Julio Aviles, later said the soldiers were on the Nicaraguan
side of the border as part of an anti-drug operation.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, French riot police
forced a strategic refinery to reopen, aiming to halt growing fuel
shortages. The French Senate voted 177-153 to back the contested
retirement reform.
   (AP, 10/22/10)(SFC, 10/23/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, Guinea announced
an indefinite delay of a presidential election run-off two days
before it was to be held, casting doubt on the West African state's
hopes for civilian rule and provoking fresh protests.
   (Reuters, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Haiti aid
groups rushed in medicine and other supplies to combat a suspected
cholera outbreak. At least 135 people had already died in the rural
Artibonite region, host to thousands of quake refugees. By 2016 more
than 770,000 9,200 people were sickened by the disease and over
9,200 had died.
   (AP, 10/22/10)(SFC, 3/4/16, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In eastern India
suspected Maoist rebels triggered a land mine as a police vehicle
drove past, killing six officers in the Sheohar district of Bihar
state.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In eastern
Indonesia the Tersanjung, a small passenger ship, sank off the cape
of Watumanuk on Flores island. It was reportedly carrying 66 people.
44 people were rescued and 22 remained missing.
   (AP, 10/22/10)(AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, Human Rights Watch
said banditry, violence, and rape are widespread in Ivory Coast's
western provinces even as the country gears for historic national
elections.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Mexico at least
13 young people (aged 13 to 32), including 6 women and girls, were
shot dead and 20 wounded in an attack on a house party in Ciudad
Juarez. A 14th person died soon after from wounds.
    (AP, 10/23/10)(AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, Mexican
authorities said federal police have captured Huang Chen Yaowei, the
suspected leader of a gang that trafficked Chinese migrants through
Mexico to the US.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In the central
Netherlands a collision between the German cargo ship Duisburg
Ruhror and a small Dutch passenger ferry on a canal took the life of
ferry skipper Hendrik Plomp (56). Divers soon recovered his body.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Nigeria Mallam
Tukur, a local government official, died after being shot in the
body and head at his home in Bauchi state.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, The UN Children's
Fund said about 1,555 people have died of cholera in Nigeria this
year, marking a likely peak in a three-year-old surge in the disease
in the country.
   (AFP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Pakistan bombs
hit a mosque and a group of soldiers in Peshawar, killing 9 people.
Army airstrikes later in the day killed 22 suspected insurgents in
the area where the soldiers had been traveling. A roadside bomb
killed 6 paramilitary soldiers in the Orakzai tribal region.
   (AP, 10/22/10)(AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In the Philippines
ex-convict Fely Mateo stabbed 9 people at the Talisayan Elementary
School in Zamboanga City, killing 3, before parents wrestled away
his knife and stabbed him to death with it. The man killed a
teacher, a 5th-grader and an elderly man who was among those who
tried to grab the attacker's knife.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Singapore an
American (37), who already may be caned for overstaying his visa,
was charged with fraud for allegedly scamming an Australian man out
of thousands of dollars. Prosecutors alleged that calls made from
Kamari Charlton's mobile phone in March deceived Mirko Prskalo into
sending 17,145 Australian dollars ($16,853) in four payments.
Prskalo was told that his nephew and family in Singapore urgently
needed the money.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, World Wildlife
spokeswoman Marie von Zeipel, speaking at a seminar in Sweden,
estimated that only 3,200 tigers remain in the wild and that this
population would shrink 97% over the next 100 years.
   (SFC, 10/23/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Taiwan at least
7 people died when a temple collapsed in Suao, a coastal town in the
northeast Ilan county. Torrential rains unleashed by Typhoon Megi
triggered landslides that also left dozens missing and hundreds
stranded. 19 Chinese bus passengers were among 23 people still
missing on the island. As many as 31 people were left dead.
   (AFP, 10/22/10)(AP, 10/23/10)(SFC, 10/25/10,
p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, Thai police raided
a warehouse where wildlife smugglers were storing thousands of
illegally collected reptiles for shipment overseas.
   (AP, 10/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In Vietnam
disaster officials said the death toll from severe flooding in four
central provinces had climbed to 75, including 14 victims from a bus
swept off a road by strong currents, with six passengers still
missing.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 22, In eastern Yemen
suspected al-Qaida gunmen killed Lt. Col. Abdul-Aziz Abu Abed, a
senior intelligence officer, outside his house in Mukalla.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, The whistleblowing
organization WikiLeaks said it will soon publish 15,000 more secret
Afghan war documents.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, The SF Giants won
a trip to the World Series. In Pennsylvania Juan Uribe hit a
tiebreaking homer off Ryan Madson with two outs in the eighth inning
and the Giants held off the Phillies 3-2 in Game 6 of the NL
championship series. This finished off the Phillies' bid to become
the first NL team in 66 years to win three straight pennants.
   (AP, 10/24/10)(SSFC, 10/24/10, p.1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In western
Afghanistan a suicide car bomber and three armed militants wearing
explosives vests and dressed as women attacked a UN compound, but
Afghan security forces killed the attackers and no UN employees were
harmed. NATO forces killed two civilians, including a teenage boy,
during a fight with insurgents in Wardak province. In Kandahar a
suicide bomber on a motorbike blew himself up before reaching a
checkpoint, killing two civilians and wounding two others. A Danish
soldier was killed in Helmand province after insurgents attacked his
patrol. Joao Silva (44), a photographer for The New York Times, was
seriously injured when he stepped on a mine in Kandahar province.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, Bahrainis voted
for the third time since reforms which turned the Gulf state into a
constitutional monarchy, with the Shiite majority demanding an
easing of the Sunni dynasty's grip on power. The embattled
Shiite-led opposition held on to all of its parliament seats in the
elections, but fell short of the majority it hoped to win as a show
of strength against the island kingdom's Sunni rulers.
   (AFP, 10/23/10)(AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, Bangladeshi police
used rubber bullets and teargas to disperse thousands of people
protesting against plans to acquire land for army housing.
   (Reuters, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, Barbados PM David
Thompson (48) died following a struggle with pancreatic cancer.
Thompson had become PM of the Caribbean nation of 270,000 people in
Jan 2008.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Belgium police
and demonstrators opposed to President Joseph Kabila of the
Democratic Republic of Congo clashed in Brussels during a protest
over the Oct 1 death in jail of Armand Tungulu, a visiting Congolese
dissident who lived in Belgium.
   (AFP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In the Czech
Republic opposition Social Democrats won an election for one-third
of Parliament's upper house, gaining a majority in the Senate for
the first time. Voters were selecting 27 senators for the 81-seat
Senate in the two-day balloting. The top two finishers from last
week's first round were facing runoffs.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Dagestan a
suicide bomber in a car tried to attack a police dormitory in the
town of Khasavyurt but an armored vehicle blocked his way. The
explosion killed the suspected militant and a police officer, and
wounded seven people. In the village of Komsomolskoye two suspected
militants were holed up in a house when police attacked, killing
both of them.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, An Egyptian court
issued a final ruling against the permanent presence of police on
university campuses, saying they restricted academic independence.
   (AFP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, The European
Commission warned Italy that it may face sanctions if it doesn’t
remove some 2,400 tons of trash piled up in the streets of Naples.
   (SSFC, 10/24/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, French unions took
their battle against extending retirement from 60 to 62 to the
courts, challenging orders to return to work the day after the
Senate backed the fiercely-contested reform.
   (AFP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Haiti 194 dead
were confirmed dead of cholera in the poor Caribbean nation's worst
health crisis since the Jan 12 quake. Authorities said more than
2,000 people were sick. Experts were investigating possible cases in
Croix-des-Bouquet, a suburb of the capital, and radio reports said
there were two dozen cases of diarrhea on Gonave island.
   (AP, 10/23/10)(SFC, 10/23/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, New Delhi
Commonwealth Games organizers informed Sri Lanka that boxer Manju
Wanniarachchi (30), Sri Lanka's only gold medalist at this month's
games, had tested positive for the performance-enhancing steroid
nandrolone.
   (AFP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Indonesia a
small freighter with seven crew was reported to be going down off
Flores. Three people were apparently missing while the others
survived.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Ingushetia
police shot and killed two militants in a car chase. The men were
later identified as being wanted on terrorism charges. Police found
two machine guns and ammunition inside their men's car.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23Â Â Â ,
Iraq's PM Nouri al-Maliki accused WikiLeaks of releasing documents
that detail prisoner abuse by Iraqi security forces to sabotage his
re-election hopes.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Italy mafia
fugitive Gerlandino Messina (38) was nabbed by Carabinieri in
Favara, near Agrigento, his power base in Sicily. He had been on the
run for 11 years before being caught.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Kenya 7 fans
died in a stampede while trying to enter a stadium where a football
match between two of the country’s most popular teams in Nairobi.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In the southern
Mexico state of Oaxaca Heriberto Pazos, the leader of a leftist
Indian group left disabled in 2001 by a previous assassination
attempt, was shot to death by gunmen riding on a motorcycle.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, Pakistani army
airstrikes killed 12 suspected insurgents in the Orakzai tribal
region near the Afghan border.
   (AP, 10/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, Somali pirates
seized the MV York, a Singapore-registered liquefied gas tanker, 105
miles (165 km) off the coast of Kenya in the Somali Basin.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 23, In Vietnam Le
Nguyen Huong Tra, who blogged under the pen name of Do Long Girl,
was taken into police custody from a home in Ho Chi Minh City for
allegedly slandering a senior government official. Police in Ho Chi
Minh City also arrested blogger Phan Thanh Hai, known as Anhbasg,
over the weekend and continued to detain Nguyen Van Hai, a blogger
known as Dieu Cay, even though he had served out his 30-month
sentence on "trumped-up" tax evasion charges.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Lady Gaga became
the first singer to reach 1 billion hits on YouTube.
   (SSFC, 12/12/10, Par p.9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Afghan President
Hamid Karzai signaled his willingness to backtrack on a blanket ban
on all private security firms, asking the foreign community for a
list of projects needing protection. ISAF said one of its service
members was killed by a homemade bomb in the south of country.
   (AFP, 10/24/10)(Reuters, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, In CongoDRC
militia attacked a UN base near Virunga National Park. Some 100
attackers were members of the shadowy Mai Mai militia. Peacekeepers
killed 8 militiamen.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, A quarter of
French petrol stations were short on fuel as refinery strikes over
pension reform continued to drain supply, and one official said
several holiday spots were likely to be particularly hard-hit.
   (Reuters, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, In Haiti a cholera
outbreak, that already left 250 people dead and more than 3,000
sickened, was at the doorstep of an enormous potential breeding
ground: the squalid camps in Port-au-Prince where 1.3 million
earthquake survivors live.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Tropical Storm
Richard lashed Honduras' Caribbean coast with heavy rain and wind
and was expected to strengthen into a hurricane as it roared toward
Belize and southeastern Mexico.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Iran state radio
reported that the government has imposed new restrictions on 12
university social sciences deemed to be based on Western schools of
thought and therefore incompatible with Islamic teachings. The list
includes law, philosophy, management, psychology, political science
and the two subjects that appear to cause the most concern among
Iran's conservative leadership, women's studies and human rights.
State radio also reported that authorities have amputated the hand
of a convicted thief in front of other prisoners.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Iraq's highest
court ordered parliament back to work after a seven-month political
impasse that has blocked the formation of a new government. In the
Sunni-dominated northern city of Mosul, a car bomb killed two
passers-by and wounded 19.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, In Tijuana,
Mexico, a gang of armed men burst into the building of a drug rehab
center and gunned down 13 recovering addicts there. Police said at
least 10 were killed. In the southern Pacific coast state of
Guerrero, state police found the bound, executed bodies of six men
on a highway outside the resort city of Acapulco. 3 people were
killed in the crossfire of a shootout between gunmen, police and
soldiers in northern Coahuila state.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, In southeastern
Nigeria fighting erupted linked to a land dispute between the
feuding Nsadop and Boje communities in Cross River state. Fighting
led to the burning of dozens of houses and churches. After 2 days of
unrest police recovered 13 burnt corpses.
   (AFP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Pakistani soldiers
allegedly fired machine guns and rockets on an Indian military post
killing an Indian soldier in the Poonch sector of Kashmir.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Slovenia elected
Peter Bossman (54), a Ghana-born physician, as its first black
mayor. He is known as the "Obama of Piran," the town where he lives.
   (AP, 10/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, Somali pirates
seized the Beluga Fortune, a German freight ship, off the coast of
Kenya, the second foreign vessel to be captured in the region in as
many days. Rescue forces the next day freed the ship, but the
hijackers got away.
   (AP, 10/24/10)(SFC, 10/26/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, In Sudan the
Darfur-based rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) said it was
ready to start discussions with international mediators in Qatar,
but was not yet prepared to re-join full peace negotiations.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 24, In northern Uganda
a bus collided with a truck killing 21 people.
   (SFC, 10/25/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In Wyoming a
single-engine plane disappeared after takeoff from the Jackson
airport. The plane’s wreckage was found Nov 1. Luke Bucklin (40) of
Minneapolis and his 3 sons were killed. Bucklin was co-founder of
Sierra Bravo Corp., a web development company.
   (SFC, 11/1/10, p.A6)(SFC, 11/3/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Afghan President
Hamid Karzai said that once or twice a year Iran gives his office
$700,000 to $975,000 for official presidential expenses, and that
Washington also provides "bags of money" because his office lacks
funds. Gunmen seized a Dutch aid worker and his Afghan driver in
Takhar province. The NATO-led International Security and Assistance
Force (ISAF) said at least 15 insurgents were killed in a NATO raid
and air strike targeting a Taliban commander overnight in southern
Afghanistan. In Logar province a senior Taliban leader, who is
believed to have played a role in the kidnapping and subsequent
murder of two US sailors in July, was captured along with two of his
associates. An air strike killed Qari Mahmad Umar, a senior leader
of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, who was serving as a Taliban
chief in the northern Takhar province where violence is on the rise.
   (AP, 10/25/10)(Reuters, 10/25/10)(AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, The Australian and
Singapore stock exchanges announced an 8.3 billion dollar merger
that would create one of the world's largest and most diversified
financial trading hubs.
   (AFP, 10/25/10)(Econ, 10/30/10,
p.78)Â Â Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Bolivian President
Evo Morales was in Tehran on a 3-day visit aimed at securing Iranian
investment in the South American country.
   (AFP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Toronto voters
elected conservative Rob Ford as mayor of Canada's biggest city,
tilting away from their recent liberal leanings and opting for his
platform of small government, fewer taxes and big spending cuts.
   (Reuters, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Omar Khadr, a
Canadian prisoner at Guantanamo accused of killing an American
soldier, pleaded to five charges including murder in a plea
agreement with military authorities. Khadr had been facing a
possible life sentence if convicted at a trial that was scheduled to
start today. He was 15 at the time of his capture.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In Egypt a planned
website, Harrasmap, will allow women to quickly report instances of
harassment via text message or Twitter, to be loaded onto a digital
map of Cairo to show hotspots and areas that might be dangerous for
women to walk alone. The data will be shared with activists, media,
and police. Cairo's online map will run off a platform called
Ushahidi, an open-source software first developed to report violence
in Kenya after 2008 elections there. Since then test models of it
have run in South Africa, Gaza and India.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, President Nicolas
Sarkozy's government warned that strikes against pension reform have
cost up to three billion euros and threaten to derail France's still
fragile economy recovery. Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said
the strikes are costing the economy up to euro400 million ($562
million) each day.
   (AFP, 10/25/10)(AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In Haiti gunmen
shot up and robbed a bus carrying journalists covering the campaign
of a presidential candidate, killing the driver and injuring a
reporter.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, The leaders of
India and Japan signed a broad agreement in Japan aimed at
increasing trade and agreed to speed up talks toward a civilian
nuclear energy deal despite sensitivity in Japan over India's past
atomic test blasts. PM Naoto Kan and PM Manmohan Singh also agreed
to speed up talks toward a civilian nuclear cooperation deal that
would allow Japanese companies to export nuclear power generation
technology and equipment to India.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In western
Indonesia a 7.7 magnitude earthquake off Sumatra’s coast triggered a
10-foot (3m) tsunami that pounded remote island villages, killing
over 400 people and leaving scores more missing.
   (AP, 10/26/10)(AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In Iraq masked
gunmen in Baghdad stole more than $27,000 in cash intended for
university workers' salaries in a daylight ambush of a money
courier's car.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, A senior Israeli
settler official said that work has begun on up to 600 new homes in
West Bank settlements since Israel lifted its curb on such
construction Sep 26. Palestinian Pres. Mahmoud Abbas has said he
will only resume talks once building restrictions are reimposed,
arguing there is no point negotiating while Israel continues to
build on land the Palestinians want for a future state.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Libya's Kadhafi
Foundation announced projects costing eight million dollars to help
Darfur refugees displaced by the conflict in western Sudan to return
to their homes.
   (AFP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Humans Rights
Watch said in a new report that suspects detained under Morocco's
counterterrorism laws are routinely subjected to human rights
violations.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Myanmar state
television reported that at least 27 people were killed and tens of
thousands displaced when Cyclone Giri struck its western coast a
week earlier.
   (SFC, 10/26/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In Pakistan a bomb
blast outside the Sufi Farid Shakar Ganj shrine in Pakpattan killed
at least 5 people, including 2 women. 12 people were wounded.
   (AP, 10/25/10)(AFP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, South African
soldiers strayed into neighboring Mozambique and exchanged fire with
civilians, leaving 2 people dead and one injured.
   (AP, 10/26/10)(AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, South Korea
prepared to send 5,000 tons of rice to flood victims in North Korea
in its first humanitarian rice shipment to its communist neighbor
since a conservative, pro-US government took office in 2008.
   (AP, 10/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez announced the expropriation of the local
affiliate of the US-based glassmaker Owens Illinois, accusing it of
causing environmental damage and exploiting its workers. To date
almost 400 companies have been nationalized since Chavez became
president in 1999.
   (AFP, 10/26/10)(Econ, 11/20/10, p.44)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 25, In Zimbabwe Kobus
Joubert (67), a prominent white farmer, was shot dead in a robbery
at his home. The Commercial Farmers Union, representing about 300
whites still on their land after a decade-long violent land seizure
program that ousted some 4,000 white farmers, said the killing
showed "the flagrant disregard for the rule of law" in farming areas
ahead of proposed elections.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Arizona executed a
convicted murderer by lethal injection in a case that stirred
controversy after it emerged that one of the drugs being used to end
the inmate's life was obtained in Britain. Jeffrey Landrigan (50),
convicted of the murder of Chester Dean Dyer in 1989, was executed
at a state prison in Florence. Dyer, who was strangled to death, was
found by a co-worker on December 15, 1989, after he failed to show
up for work. Landrigan was the 24th person executed in Arizona since
the state resumed capital punishment in 1992. 132 inmates remained
on the state's death row.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, An annual report
by Transparency Int’l. marked Somalia as the most corrupt county in
the world, followed by Afghanistan, Myanmar and Iraq. Denmark, New
Zealand and Singapore tied as the world’s least corrupt nations. The
US declined to 22nd from 19th last year.
   (SFC, 10/27/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, In western
Afghanistan a bombing killed four Afghan policemen, including a
local police chief in Herat province.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, The UN Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said at least 30
women were kept as prisoners in a dungeon-like structure and
gang-raped over multiple weeks at the Congo and Angola border before
being left in the bush without their clothes. The deportees said
they were held by Angolan authorities in a dingy building. At least
three were killed, including two men and a woman (27) who died after
being raped repeatedly.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Armenian police
arrested Georg Avanesov (27). He allegedly operated the “Bredolab”
botnet of nearly 30 million PCs. Investigators alleged that Avanesov
made up to US$139,000 each month renting the botnet to criminals who
used it for sending spam and for installing password-stealing
malicious software.
  Â
(www.securelist.com/en/analysis/204792148/Spam_report_October_2010)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, In Belize the body
of Bruce Cullerton, an American who also held Belizean citizenship,
was found. He had been killed by a 30-pound (59 kilogram) jaguar,
that had escaped from its cage last week during Hurricane Richard.
Max, the jaguar, was recaptured and euthanized On Oct 27.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Authorities in
Bosnia and Serbia said they had recovered the skeletal remains of at
least 97 people from the banks of a border lake that was partially
drained this summer for maintenance. Most were killed by Serbs in
the nearby town of Visegrad at the start of the 1992-1995 Bosnian
War. But on the Serbian side experts found the remains of what they
presume to be 11 Albanians killed during the Kosovo war in
1998-1999.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, In Brazil a man
accused of raping 40 women turned himself in, only to be let go
because Brazilian law prohibits voters from being arrested five days
before elections unless they are caught red-handed. The no-arrest
provision was included in the Brazilian electoral code enacted in
1932 after a period in which election fraud and arrests to
intimidate voters were common.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, A Brazilian court
ordered McDonald's to pay a former franchise manager $17,500 because
he gained 65 pounds while working there a dozen years. The
32-year-old man says he was forced to sample food products each day
to ensure that quality standards remained high because McDonald's
hired "mystery clients" to randomly visit restaurants and report on
the food, service and cleanliness.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, China rolled out
its fastest train yet and announced that the Three Gorges Dam, the
world's biggest hydroelectric project, is now generating electricity
at maximum capacity. Inauguration ceremonies were held for the
super-fast line from Shanghai's western suburb of Hongqiao to the
resort city of Hangzhou. The train will cruise at a top speed of 220
mph (350 kph), making the 125-mile (200-km) trip in 45 minutes.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, The Czech Republic
became the second European Union country after Spain to grant asylum
to a Cuban political prisoner. Jimenez Posada, a lawyer, arrived
with his wife, brother, son and niece. He was arrested in 2003 and
received a 12-year prison term three years later for subversion.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Egyptian security
forces detained 70 campaign workers from the opposition Muslim
Brotherhood while hanging election posters in the Mediterranean city
of Alexandria ahead of next month's parliamentary vote.
   (AFP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Germany's Defense
Minister said the country will begin a major restructuring of the
military next year as it moves from a Cold War conscript army to one
better positioned to face today's threats, while also cutting costs.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, UN officials
counted 3,769 cases of cholera in Haiti and raised the death toll to
284.
   (SFC, 10/27/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Indonesia’s Mount
Merapi volcano erupted, prompting terrified villagers to flee and
join the thousands already evacuated from its slopes.
   (Reuters, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Iran acknowledged
that it has been sending funds to neighboring Afghanistan for years,
saying the money was intended to aid reconstruction of the embattled
country.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Iran began loading
fuel into the core of its first atomic power plant, moving closer to
the start up of the Bushehr facility that leaders have touted as
defying of international efforts to curtail the country's nuclear
ambitions.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, In Iraq Saddam
Hussein's longtime foreign minister, Tariq Aziz, was sentenced to
death by hanging for persecuting members of Shiite religious parties
under the former regime. Thieves armed with guns and hand grenades
stormed a jewelry shop in northern Iraq and killed 10 people during
a robbery attempt.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, In Mexico the
bodies of two men, one of them decapitated, were found inside an SUV
in Ciudad Juarez. Police suspected they may have been behind the
massacre of 14 young people at a birthday party. The entire police
force of the small northeastern town of Los Ramones quit, Nuevo Leon
state, a day after gunmen attacked their headquarters. Oaxaca state
police found the bound, tortured bodies of four people in a
clandestine grave in a vacant lot near the state capital. In Morelos
state the bodies of four men were found near a roadside with about
30 shell casings. A 25-year-old American was shot to death outside a
restaurant in Ciudad Juarez. Gunmen killed three undercover Mexican
federal police officers as they waited for a person to cross a
bridge from El Paso, Texas.
   (AP, 10/27/10)(AFP, 10/27/10)(AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Nigerian police
arrested 10 local chiefs from Boje community accused of murder in a
land dispute with neighbors after which 13 burnt corpses were
recovered.
   (AFP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Somali pirates
failed to get control of the French flagged Maido, a liquefied
petroleum gas carrier, because the crew had locked itself in a safe
room.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Deborah Calitz and
Bruno Pelizzari of South Africa were captured by Somali pirates from
a yacht, the SY Choizil, off the coast of Tanzania. Skipper Peter
Eldridge (61) escaped. A ransom of $10 million was later demanded.
   (http://tinyurl.com/4nen4cw)(AP, 1/31/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, The UN refugee
agency said some 60,000 civilians in Somalia have fled their homes
over the past week as fresh fighting between Islamist insurgents and
a government-allied militia claimed the lives of at least 10 people.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, A Southern Sudan
official said that northern Sudan leaders are holding an oil-rich
region "hostage" in negotiations being held before a January
independence referendum.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, The UN General
Assembly voted 187-2 to end US sanctions against Cuba. Only the US
and Israel voted in favor.
   (SFC, 10/27/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 26, Yemen ordered the
confiscation of all firearms in the possession of its citizens after
canceling weapons' licenses not carrying the Interior Minister's
signature. Some 50 million firearms are thought to be in the
possession of Yemen's estimated 23 million people.
   (AP, 10/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, US officials said
the Obama administration has granted a waiver allowing Chad,
CongoDRC, Sudan and Yemen to continue receiving US military aid
despite their use of child soldiers. Officials said cutting off aid
would do more damage than good.
   (SFC, 10/28/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Farooque Ahmed, a
Pakistani-born Virginia man, was arrested and charged with trying to
help people posing as Al-Qaida operatives to bomb Washington-area
subway stations. The plot was a bombing ruse by the FBI who
monitored his activities the whole time. On April 11, 2011, Ahmed
pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
   (SFC, 10/28/10, p.A8)(SFC, 4/12/11, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, The SF Giants
battered the Texas Rangers 11-7 in Game 1 of the World Series.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Elon Musk
officially unveiled a new Tesla sign for the former Nummi plant in
Fremont, Ca., where the new electric Tesla cars will be
manufactured.
   (SFC, 10/28/10, p.A11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, BrightSource
Energy of Oakland, Ca., broke ground on its Ivanpah Solar Electric
Generating System in the Mohave Desert. Plant operator NRG Energy
Inc. agreed to invest $300 million into the $2 billion project. On
April 11, 2011, BrightSource finalized $1.6 billion in loans for the
project.
   (SFC, 10/28/10, p.D1)(Econ, 4/16/11, p.69)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In San Diego, Ca.,
police officer Christopher Wilson (50) was fatally shot as officers
tried to serve warrants on Holim Lee (30). Hours later Lee was found
dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. His girlfriend,
Lucky Xayasene (27) was also fatally shot. Wilson died of his wounds
the next day.
   (SFC, 11/1/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In Michigan police
Raymond R. Bush (38) and Taylor E. Manley, a 15-year-old girl he
knew, dead in a van in a cemetery, hours after the man was to appear
in court on charges alleging he sexually assaulted the girl.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Lisa Blount (53),
actress and Oscar-winning filmmaker, was found dead in her home in
Little Rock, Ark. Blount received a Golden Globe nomination for her
supporting turn as the best friend of Debra Winger's character in
"An Officer and a Gentleman" (1982). Her other credits included
"Prince of Darkness" (1987) and "Great Balls of Fire!" (1989).
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Actress Denise
Borino-Quinn (46), who unexpectedly won a TV role as a mafia wife on
"The Sopranos," died of liver cancer in New Jersey.
   (AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Al-Qaida leader
Osama bin Laden threatens in a new audio tape to kill French
citizens to avenge their country's support for the US-led war in
Afghanistan and a new law that will ban face-covering Muslim veils.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, President Karzai
said Afghanistan will extend a deadline for private security firms
to disband through early next year in a face-saving compromise that
could preserve foreign reconstruction projects worth billions of
dollars. A roof collapsed at an Afghan wedding party, killing
more than 40 women and children in Warchi village of Jalga district
of Baghlan province. The international military coalition said nine
insurgents were killed in a battle in the southern province.
   (AP, 10/27/10)(AFP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Nestor Kirchner
(60), former Argentine President (2003-2007) and the husband of
current leader Cristina Fernandez, died after suffering from heart
trouble.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Croatian PM
Jadranka Kosor survived a no-confidence vote in Parliament, with the
opposition complaining about Croatia's economic decline and
corruption in the upper echelons of her party. Parliament voted 79
to 62 in Kosor's support, 15 votes short of what was needed to oust
her in the 151-seat chamber.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, The French
Parliament passed Pres. Sarkozy’s pension bill raising the minimum
retirement age to 62 from 60, and the full-pension age to 67 from
65. Most French oil refineries were set to start outbound deliveries
of fuel as work stoppages ended at two plants, further easing a
strike movement that has led to pump shortages across France.
   (Reuters, 10/27/10)(SFC, 10/28/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In Indonesia
helicopters with emergency supplies finally landed on the remote
islands slammed by a tsunami that killed over 400 people. Elsewhere
in the archipelago the toll from a volcanic eruption rose to 30,
including the mountain's spiritual caretaker.
   (AP, 10/26/10)(AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In Iraq a bomb
blast near a Sunni religious organization in Baghdad killed two
security guards. Elsewhere in Baghdad, a bomb hidden in a pickup
truck exploded, killing the driver and injuring three passers-by.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Japan offered $2
billion in aid to help developing nations reach species-preserving
goals that are being debated at a UN conference, a move that could
jolt the stalled talks forward.
   (AP, 10/27/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Jewish settlers
said Israel's defense minister is holding up construction on 4,300
apartments that could be built immediately in the West Bank. Dozens
of Jewish extremists hoisting Israeli flags defiantly marched
through the Arab-Israeli town of Umm el-Fahm, chanting "death to
terrorists" and touching off clashes between rock-hurling residents
and police who quelled them with tear gas. An Israeli court
convicted Amir Makhoul, a prominent Arab-Israeli activist, of spying
for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in a plea bargain that
will send him to prison for up to 10 years.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Kenya's foreign
minister Moses Wetangula said he is resigning to allow
investigations into allegations of a multimillion dollar scandal
involving five Kenyan embassies in Africa, Europe and Asia.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In Mexico gunmen
killed 15 people at a car wash in Tepic, Nayarit state, where
drug-gang violence has risen this year. It was the third massacre in
Mexico in less than a week. A Chihuahua state police officer was
killed in his Ciudad Juarez home.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Scientists said a
new type of snub-nosed monkey has been found in a remote forested
region of northern Myanmar, which is under threat from logging and a
Chinese dam project.
   (Reuters, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Nigerian officials
allowed journalists to see the 107 mm rockets, rifle rounds and
other weapons seized at Apapa Port. Authorities said the shipment
also contained grenades, explosives, mortars and possibly rocket
launchers. However, journalists visiting the holding yard just
inside of the port's main gate did not see those weapons. the
manifest for the weapons described the shipment as "packages of
glasswool and pallets of stone." The next day customs officials said
the shipment of 13 containers came from a ship that had just left
India and investigators continued to trace the weapons' origins.
   (AP, 10/27/10)(AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In Pakistan
suspected US drones fired missiles at a house and a vehicle in a
militant-infested area of North Waziristan, killing seven people. A
bomb planted on a motorcycle exploded as a member of a militia drove
up to a market in the village of Qamberkhel in the Khyber tribal
region, wounding the militiaman and five other people in the
vehicle. A bomb apparently targeting a police patrol in Baluchistan
province killed two civilians and wounded 9 other people, including
four police officers.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Romania government
survived a no-confidence, as some 30,000 people demonstrated in
Bucharest against the nation's wage cuts and austerity measures.
   (AP, 10/27/10)(SFC, 10/28/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, In Somalia
al-Shabab executed two girls by firing squad for spying for
government soldiers. Ayan Mohamed Jama (18) and Huriyo Ibrahim (15)
were brought before hundreds of residents. Ten masked men opened
fire on the girls, who were blindfolded, soon after the sentencing.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, South Korea's Red
Cross said North Korea is demanding that South Korea resume
large-scale food aid and joint economic projects in return for
regular reunions of family members separated by the Korean War more
than a half century ago.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, Thailand
authorities said heavy downpours that caused rivers to burst have
killed 57 people in nearly two weeks of flooding.
   (AP, 10/27/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, UAR Sheik Saqr bin
Mohammed Al Qasimi (b.1918), a ruler of Ras the al Khaimah emirate
and one of the world's longest-reigning monarchs, died.
   (AP, 10/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 27, A Yemeni court
charged Sharif Mobley (26), an American of Somali descent, with the
murder of a Yemeni soldier and the wounding of another during a
failed escape attempt. He had been arrested for suspected al-Qaida
ties.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, A White House
panel said that Halliburton Co. used flawed cement in BP Plc's
doomed Gulf of Mexico well, which could have contributed to the
blowout that sparked the worst offshore oil spill in US history.
Halliburton had run a series of tests that showed the material was
unstable in the weeks before the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater
Horizon rig. An interim report BP issued in September said
Halliburton used an "unstable" cement mixture that allowed
hydrocarbons to flow up the drill pipe and onto the floor of the
rig, where they ignited.
   (Reuters, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, US federal
regulators said Verizon Wireless has agreed to pay $25 million to
the US government and at least $52.8 million in refunds to customers
who inadvertently racked up data charges on their phones over the
last three years.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, The SF Giants at
home won game 2 of the world series, 9-0, over the Texas Rangers.
   (SFC, 10/29/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Nvidia Corp. said
China’s National University of Defense Technology has designed the
world’s fastest supercomputer. Its Tianhe-1A set a performance
record of 2.507 petaflops per second.
   (SFC, 10/29/10, p.C5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, The
Washington-based nonprofit, the National Association of Clean Air
Act Agencies, surveyed the states on whether they would be ready to
comply with the new EPA rules by the Jan 2, 2011, deadline. In a new
report the association said 49 states have either changed their laws
to allow regulation of greenhouse gases or will allow the EPA to
issue permits. Texas is doing neither.
  Â
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101029/ap_on_bi_ge/us_epa_vs_texas)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, James MacArthur
(b.1937), stage and screen actor, died. He played "Danno" in the
original version of television's "Hawaii Five-O" (1968-1980). His
breakout role was in the 1957 "Climax!" television series production
of "The Young Stranger," in which he starred as the 17-year-old son
of a movie executive who has a run-in with the law.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, US microchip giant
Intel said it plans to team up with Taiwan to set up a multi-million
dollar Internet computing research laboratory.
   (AFP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In southern
Afghanistan a roadside bomb targeting the car of a district police
chief killed three police officers in Zabul province. A NATO
airstrike killed a Taliban leader and another militant in southern
Zabul province as he was showing his fighters a new anti-aircraft
heavy machine gun mounted on the back of his vehicle. Militants shot
and killed a government official in charge of the water supply in
Dand district of Kandahar province as he was walking near his home.
A NATO service member died following a bomb attack in southern
Afghanistan. In Khost province a NATO airstrike killed one insurgent
believed to be a senior leader of the Haqqani network. In
neighboring Mando Zayi district of Khost, one civilian was killed
and two others were wounded in fighting. US and Russian special
forces and Afghan police ended an operation raiding 4 drug labs in
an unprecedented collaborative military operation, destroying some
$56 million worth of heroin in Nangarhar province. Months earlier
Russia had provided US officials in Kabul with the coordinates of
175 laboratories where heroin is processed but the US failed to act.
A NATO helicopter killed more than 20 insurgents after it was fired
on during an operation in Kandahar province.
   (AP, 10/28/10)(AP, 10/29/10)(AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In Bahrain more
than two dozen Shiite Muslims accused of plotting against the Sunni
rulers described abuses including beatings and electric shocks at a
trial observed by US envoys.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Bangladesh police
said arrested 20 members of the country’s largest Islamic party and
seized homemade bombs from a house where they were holding a
meeting.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In China Guo
Xianliang, an engineer from the southern province of Yunnan,
disappeared while on a business trip in the southern city of
Guangzhou. He had been handing out fliers on the streets and in
public parks there. Police told Guo's wife on Nov 2 that Guo had
been criminally detained.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In China 4
driverless vehicles arrived at the Shanghai Expo ending an 8,000
mile test drive from Italy.
   (SFC, 10/29/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Liang Congjie
(78), historian and modern China’s first environmentalist, died. In
1994 he and 3 colleagues founded Friends of Nature, China’s first
legal NGO and the first committed to protecting the country’s
environment.
   (Econ, 11/20/10, p.100)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In France further
strikes disrupted rail and air transport, but the broader protest
over plans to raise the retirement age appeared to be waning a day
after parliament adopted pension reform legislation.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, A French
helicopter crashed in Antarctica during rough weather conditions
killing all 4 aboard. The downed AS350 Squirrel helicopter was
operated in Antarctica from the French research vessel, L'Astrolabe,
which was currently icebound about 230 miles (370 km) northeast of
the Dumont-d'Urville station.
   (AP, 10/29/10)(AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Former Greenland
premier Jonathan Motzfeldt (72) died. He had spearheaded a drive for
more self-rule and opposed US bases on the semi-autonomous Danish
territory. Motzfeldt led the Arctic island's government between
1979-1991 and again between 1997-2002 and is considered one of the
founding fathers of its home rule agreement with Denmark.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Guinea officials
said thousands of people from the Peul ethnic group have been forced
to flee their homes in ethnic clashes ahead of the country's
upcoming presidential election, overshadowing a looming poll in a
country that has never succeeded in freely electing its leader.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Indonesia's Mount
Merapi erupted for the second time in a week, blasting vast plumes
of ash into the sky, as the death toll from the initial eruption and
a tsunami that hit remote western islands reached 377.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Ali Shakouri-rad,
a leader of the Islamic Iran Participation Front and former MP, was
freed on bail, two weeks after his arrest for what Tehran prosecutor
Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi termed "security reasons." On Dec 9 he was
sent back to jail for "propagating against the regime and spreading
lies."
   (AFP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In Iraq a suicide
bomber blew up his car outside a police checkpoint in Mosul, killing
one policeman and injuring seven. In Baghdad small bombs stuck on
cars owned by ranking police officials killed one and wounded
another.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Israeli officials
said that the military-grade armaments seized at a shipping terminal
in Nigeria came from Iran and were bound for the Hamas-controlled
Gaza Strip. On Oct 30 an international shipping company said the
weapons cache originally came from Iran. Last week, the Iranian
shipper filed a request for the containers to be picked up again and
this time shipped to the West African nation of Gambia. On Feb 1,
2011, Azim Aghajani of Iran and his alleged accomplice, Nigerian
national Usman Abbas Jega, both maintained their innocence against
three charges over the shipment.
   (AP, 10/28/10)(AP, 10/30/10)(AP, 2/1/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Ehud Netzer (76),
leading Israeli archaeologist, died of injuries suffered in a fall
at an excavation at the King Herod-era site near Bethlehem.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Kuwait's court of
appeals upheld the acquittal of eight nationals, two of them tried
in absentia, of charges of forming an Al-Qaeda cell and plotting
attacks against a US military base. Five of the men were arrested in
August last year while a sixth suspect was already serving a life
sentence for a 2002 attack on the US military in Kuwait that killed
an American soldier. The accused said that purported confessions
presented to the court had been extracted under torture.
   (AFP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, Sheik Hassan
Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, called on all Lebanese to
boycott the UN tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of a
former prime minister, saying all information gathered by the team
was being sent to Israel. He spoke a day after a crowd of women
attacked two UN investigators and a Lebanese interpreter as they
gathered evidence at a private gynecology clinic in Beirut. He
confirmed that the wives and relatives of Hezbollah commanders and
officials were among the clinic's patients. A 13-year-old boy was
killed and four other people wounded in a grenade blast outside a
scrap metal yard in northern Lebanon's Nahr al-Bared camp.
   (AP, 10/29/10)(AFP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In Mexico gunmen
killed 6 young men in a gritty neighborhood of Mexico City. Gunmen
ambushed a convoy of 5 police vehicles in Jalisco state, killing 9
officers and leaving one missing. In Zapopan, a suburb of the
Jalisco state capital of Guadalajara, two boys (2) and 3 other
people were wounded by grenade fragments during an attack on a
private home. The United States delivered three mobile X-ray
inspection vehicles to Mexico as part of the Merida Initiative
anti-drug aid plan. Francisco Javier Gomez Meza, the director of the
Puente Grande prison, was arrested for alleged ties to drug gangs.
   (AP, 10/28/10)(AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In Karachi,
Pakistan, gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire on a Japanese consular
vehicle, wounding two local employees and underscoring the fragile
security in the country. An American missile strike killed 7
suspected militants in North Waziristan.
   (AP, 10/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, In Yemen clashes
between Shiite rebels and a pro-government tribe in the northern
mountains killed a tribesman and two rebels.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Authorities on 3
continents thwarted attacks when they seized explosives on cargo
planes in the United Arab Emirates and England. The plot sent
tremors throughout the US, where after a frenzied day searching
planes and parcel trucks for other explosives, officials temporarily
banned all new cargo from Yemen. The next day police in Dubai said
that the bomb discovered there contained the powerful explosive PETN
and bore the hallmarks of al-Qaida. One of the two powerful bombs
mailed from Yemen to Chicago-area synagogues traveled on two
passenger planes within the Middle East. A tip of the plot came from
Jabir al-Fayfi, a Saudi who was held for years at the US military
prison at Guantanamo Bay. On Nov 5 al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing
claimed responsibility for the explosive parcels.
   (AP, 10/30/10)(AP, 10/31/10)(AP,
11/2/10)(Reuters, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In southern
California 2 doctors were arrested along with 5 others for leading a
scam in which mentally ill homeless patients were paid $100 each for
unnecessary treatments that were fraudulently billed to Medicare and
Medi-Cal.
   (SFC, 10/30/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In San Francisco
Kathleen Horan (46) was beaten to death by Gary Scott Holland. She
had opened her door at 900 Chestnut to Holland who was posing as a
utility worker. On Nov 8, 2011, Holland (44) pleaded guilty to
murder and faced 25-50 years in prison.
   (SFC, 11/9/11, p.C2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In Afghanistan’s
western Herat province, insurgents surrounded a checkpoint manned by
local police in the Chishti Sharif district and opened fire, killing
10 officers and wounding 12. A NATO soldier died in an attack in the
south.
   (AP, 10/29/10)(AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Britain’s PM David
Cameron claimed that the days of "crazy" European Union spending are
finished after a deal to keep Brussels in line with reduced national
budgets.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In the Central
African Republic rebels of the Convention of Patriots for Justice
and Peace (CPJP) abducted 21 census agents updating voters' rolls
for forthcoming elections.
   (AFP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, A feud between
China and Japan deepened at the East Asian Summit in Vietnam, as
China accused its rival of making false comments and hopes for
landmark talks between their leaders evaporated.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, An Egyptian
security official said a man from Sudan's Darfur region was shot
dead trying to sneak across the border into Israel. 2 others were
taken into custody as smugglers and others scattered into the
desert.
   (AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In Finland the
Allure of the Seas, the second in a pair of the largest cruise
liners in the world, set sail for its new home port in Florida.
Sister ship, the Oasis of the Seas, was also delivered to Royal
Caribbean Cruise Lines last year with a price tag of about $1.5
billion.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, French unions said
they have decided to end strikes at all oil refineries and several
major ports.
   (SFC, 10/30/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In Haiti the death
toll from the cholera epidemic rose to 330, as medical teams
desperately sought to contain the outbreak.
   (AFP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, A leading ratings
body warned that India may have to step in to avert collapse of the
6.7-billion-dollar microfinance industry, as lenders once hailed as
saviors of the poor faced a major crisis.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Iran notified the
EU that it is willing to restart international negotiations over its
nuclear program after Nov. 10, potentially reviving talks that
foundered a year ago.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In Iraq a suicide
bomber blew himself up inside a popular café in Balad Ruz, Diyala
province. 22 people were killed with 68 wounded.
   (AFP, 10/30/10)(Reuters, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 28, A Milan court
convicted three doctors of performing unnecessary surgeries.
Prosecutors produced evidence that unneeded operations, including
amputations, were performed on 83 patients at the Santa Rita clinic
in Milan with the aim of getting large reimbursements from the state
health system. Pier Paolo Brega Massone, the hospital's chief
surgeon, was sentenced to 15 1/2 years in prison.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In Mexico a man
was found shot to death and left in the Pacific resort city of
Acapulco. Lorena Izaguirre (24), a US citizen and El Paso resident,
was killed inside a tortilla shop in Ciudad Juarez. A Mexican man
was also found dead in the store.
   (AP, 10/30/10)(AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Morocco’s
communications ministry said it has suspended the operations of the
Qatar-based Al-Jazeera television news channel in Rabat and
withdrawn the accreditations of its staff. A government official who
declined to be named said the authorities took exception to the way
Al-Jazeera handles the issues of Islamists and Western Sahara.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Morocco’s interior
ministry said two Al-Qaeda linked cells have been broken up and that
9 people have been arrested including a Yemeni national and a former
Italian resident.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, In Nigeria Italian
oil firm Eni SpA said a pipeline carrying some of its crude out of
Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta has erupted after an "act of
sabotage."
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, North and South
Korea exchanged gunfire across their heavily armed land border,
despite an apparent thaw in tensions on the divided peninsula in the
past few months.
   (AP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Tens of thousands
of Palestinians turned out for a rally in the Gaza Strip to mark the
23rd anniversary of the founding of the hardline militant group
Islamic Jihad.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Togo’s government
said flooding has killed 21 people and affected more than 82,000 in
recent months and that aid was needed.
   (AFP, 10/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 29, Venezuelan health
workers said an epidemic that may be malaria has killed dozens of
people, decimating three villages of the Yanomami Indians, whose
struggle for survival in a remote part of the Amazon rain forest has
attracted worldwide support.
   (AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In Texas the SF
Giants lost game 3 of the World Series 4-2 to the Texas Rangers
leaving SF up 2 games to 1.
   (SFC, 11/1/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Afghan President
Hamid Karzai demanded that NATO forces explain why they had carried
out a joint counter-narcotics operation with Russian forces inside
Afghanistan, calling it a violation of sovereignty. At least 40
Taliban insurgents were killed during a failed attack on a NATO
combat outpost in Barmal district near the North Waziristan border.
A NATO soldier died in an attack in the volatile south. Afghan and
NATO troops killed 17 insurgents in an hours-long gunbattle in
southern Helmand province.
   (Reuters, 10/30/10)(AFP, 10/30/10)(AP,
10/31/10)(AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Bahraini voters
went to the polls for a run-off poll with three groups, two Sunni
Islamist and a leftist alliance, contesting the last seats in
parliament. Official results showed pro-government candidates won
all nine parliamentary seats. The results gave pro-government Sunni
candidates a combined total of 22 seats in the 40-member
legislature.
   (AP, 10/30/10)(AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Bolivia’s
President Evo Morales confirmed that his country plans to build a
nuclear plant with Iran's help, stressing the facility would be for
peaceful purposes.
   (AFP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In China
Alexandria Mills, a soft-spoken 18-year-old from Louisville,
Kentucky, was named the winner in the 60th Miss World Competition,
held on Hainan Island. Second place went to Emma Wareus of Botswana,
and Adriana Vasini of Venezuela came third.
   (AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In Honduras a
carful of attackers armed with assault rifles drove up to a soccer
field in a poor neighborhood of the northern city of San Pedro Sula
and opened fire, killing 14 people. Officials said members of the
Mara 18 gang were responsible.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(SFC, 11/1/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In eastern India
rescuers battled to find survivors after a ferry overcrowded with
Muslim pilgrims capsized and sank in the Hooghly River near the Bay
of Bengal. The 60 person capacity boat was carrying around 224
people. After 3 days 69 bodies were recovered.
   (AFP, 10/30/10)(AFP, 11/1/10)(SFC, 11/3/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In Indonesia
clouds of gray ash rumbled down the slopes of Mount Merapi in its
most powerful eruption of a deadly week, prompting soldiers to force
reluctant villagers to evacuate amid fears of a larger blast as the
death toll reached 36. Storms again prevented aid deliveries to
increasingly desperate survivors of a tsunami, including a teenage
girl with an open chest wound, that killed 413 people in the
Mentawai islands. The number of missing dropped by half to 163 as
searchers discovered survivors who had fled to the hills.
   (AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In Mexico City an
explosion inside a home where illegal fireworks were stored wrecked
two houses, killing at least three adults and two children. A US
woman and an American boy were slain shortly after crossing an
international bridge from El Paso to Ciudad Juarez. Giovanna Herrera
(26) and Luis Araiza (15) were shot to death along with a Mexican
man traveling with them.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Northern Ireland
police seized a dissident IRA bomb packed into a beer keg and were
inspecting a potential car bomb parked outside Belfast International
Airport, the latest efforts to undermine peace in the British
territory.
   (AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Hundreds of North
and South Korean family members separated for more than half a
century by the Korean War embraced each other in tearful reunions.
   (AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, A Russian unmanned
cargo ship manually docked with the International Space Station,
bringing 2.5 tons of food, water, oxygen and fuel for the orbiting
laboratory and its US-Russian crew.
   (AP, 10/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In eastern Rwanda
11 miners died in an accident at a tin mine in the Rwamagana
district.
   (AFP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Somali pirates
overnight took control of the MV Polar, a cargo vessel with 24 crew
members aboard. Pirates seized the Liberian-owned ship some 684
miles (1,100 km) east of the Indian Ocean island of Socotra. One of
them, Prudente Cabral, died of a stroke in captivity in November.
Pirates released the vessel on Aug 26, 2011.
   (AP, 10/30/10)(AFP, 8/26/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Hurricane Tomas,
the 12th of the Atlantic season, hit a cluster of Caribbean islands
including St. Vincent and St. Lucia and moved toward Jamaica. 3
deaths were reported on St. Vincent.
   (SSFC, 10/31/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Sudan began
arresting Darfur activists, just weeks ahead of a southern
referendum on secession. 9 activists including a prominent human
rights lawyer were arrested over the next 24 hours.
   (Reuters, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Police in
Goteborg, Sweden, were on high alert over the weekend after
receiving reports about a bomb threat and arrested the two men in
early morning raids. Both men were soon released due to lack of
evidence.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Turkey said it was
lifting a ban on YouTube more than two years after it blocked the
site because of videos deemed insulting to the country’s founder.
   (SSFC, 10/31/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, In Zimbabwe a
supporter of Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was
beaten and stabbed by supporters of President Robert Mugabe's
Zanu-PF party at a constitution meeting in Harare.
   (AFP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 30, Zimbabwean
businessman Peter Evershed (59) was mauled by five lions while
showering under a tree at the Chitake Springs bush camp.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, A US military
judge, under a plea bargain, sentencing Omar Khadr (24) to eight
more years in custody for war crimes. The young Canadian had
admitted to five war crimes charges, including killing a US soldier
in Afghanistan. The sentence called for him to stay at the
Guantanamo prison another year before he can ask Canada's government
to allow him to return to his homeland to serve out his sentence or
seek early release on parole.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, In Texas the SF
Giants won game 4 of the World Series 4-0 against the Texas Rangers
putting them up 3 games to 1.
   (SFC, 11/1/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Theodore Sorenson
(b.1928), special counsel to Pres. John F. Kennedy, died in NY. His
memoir “Counselor” was published in 2008.
   (SFC, 11/1/10, p.C8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Afghan militants
attacked a convoy carrying supplies for the police, Education
Ministry, and the UN's World Food Program in western Nimroz
province. Six militants were killed and one policeman was wounded in
the gunbattle. A two-day battle over a bomb-making factory in
Reg-i-Khan Nishin district ended with NATO and Afghan troops killing
15 insurgents.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Brazil held
elections. Dilma Rousseff (62), the hand-picked candidate of Pres.
Lula da Silva was the heavy favorite to replace him in the runoff
election. Dilma Rousseff was elected over centrist rival Jose Serra
56 percent to 44 percent and will be the first woman to direct Latin
America's biggest nation.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, China wrapped up
its record-breaking World Expo with a lavish display of national
pride, as organizers of the mammoth event pledged to continue
pursuing more sustainable, balanced growth. Over 72 million visitors
surpassed the record 1970 fair in Osaka, Japan, which drew 64
million.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(SFC, 11/1/10, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, A French airliner
landed at Baghdad International Airport, becoming one of the first
passenger planes to fly into the Iraqi capital direct from western
Europe since the Gulf War and opening a potential new route to
stronger international business ties.
   (AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, In Iraq an al
Qaeda attack left 68 people dead including 46 hostages, 7 police and
5 attackers, at the Sayidat al-Nejat Syriac Christian cathedral (Our
Lady of Salvation) in Baghdad. The attack ended with police storming
the church to free more than 100 hostages. Officials said most of
the casualties were killed or wounded when the security forces
raided the place and that the attack was aimed at driving the
Christian minority out of the country. Al-Qaida cited the cases of 2
Egyptian women, wives of Coptic priests, who had converted to Islam
in order to get away from their abusive husbands. On August 2, 2011,
a Baghdad court convicted 3 Iraqis and sentenced them to death for
their role in the church siege. A fourth man was sentenced to 20
years in prison.
   (Reuters, 11/1/10)(AFP, 11/1/10)(SFC, 12/27/10,
p.A2)(AP, 8/2/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Ivory Coast held a
long-awaited presidential election, the first since civil war
erupted in 2002 and split the world's leading cocoa producer in
half. Pres. Laurent Gbagbo won 38% followed by 32% for Alassane
Ouattara, the main opposition leader. Former Pres. Henri Konan Bedie
came in third with 25% and later endorsed Ouattara in a run-off, set
for Nov 28.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/3/10)(SFC, 11/3/10,
p.A2)(AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Japan’s PM Naoto
Kan said Vietnam has chosen Japan as a partner to mine rare earth
metals and develop nuclear power.
   (SFC, 11/1/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, In Kenya a
suspected elephant poacher was killed on the outskirts of Meru
National Park. 2 suspected poachers were killed last week in Tsavo
National Park following the poaching deaths of 4 other elephants.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Mexican police
found the missing rental car of Canadian businessman Daniel Dion
just north of the state capital of Chilpancingo. It was found
completely burned with a corpse in the trunk. Dion was last seen
about a week ago in Acapulco. Edgar Lopez (35) of El Paso, Texas,
was killed along with two Mexican men when gunmen opened fire on a
group standing outside a house in Ciudad Juarez.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Niger voters
weighed in on a new constitution that would impose presidential term
limits and pardon members of a military junta that seized power
earlier this year. The country's new constitution passed with 90
percent of the vote.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Walid Husayin
(26), a Palestinian blogger, was arrested in the West Bank. He had
set off an uproar in the Arab world by sarcastically claiming he was
God and hurling insults at the Prophet Muhammad. He was caught in a
sting that used Facebook to track him down. Husayin later posted the
letter on his blog in hopes of winning release.
   (AP, 11/12/10)(AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Saudi Arabia's top
government-sanctioned board of senior Islamic clerics endorsed a
fatwa that calls for a ban on female vendors because it violates the
kingdom's strict segregation of the sexes.
   (AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Somalia's
parliament approved Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, a Somali-American as
the country's prime minister.
   (AP, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Sudan shut the
Khartoum office of Radio Dabanga, whose reports on Darfur have
angered it, and arrested 13 staff from the radio station and a
rights group that shares its offices. 9 journalists and four HAND
activists were detained during the weekend raids.
   (Reuters, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Tanzania's ruling
party, which has been in power for close to half a century, faced an
energized opposition in national elections, following corruption
scandals that have undermined the government's popularity. On Nov 5
election officials said Tanzania's Pres. Jakaya Kikwete won a 2nd
term in office with 61% of the vote. In Zanzibar Ali Mohammed Shein
(62) won the election with 50.1% of the vote. He was sworn in as
president on Nov 3.
   (AP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/3/10)(AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, In Turkey a
suspected suicide bomber wounded 15 officers and 17 civilians in
Istanbul's main square, as an extended unilateral ceasefire by the
separatist PKK came to an end. The radical Kurdistan Freedom Falcons
(TAK) later claimed responsibility.
   (AFP, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/1/10)(AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Ukraine voted for
local councils and mayors in an election which should provide the
first real clues to Pres. Yanukovich's standing at home since his
election last February. Exit polls said Yanukovych’s swept elections
to regional councils throughout the country.
   (Reuters, 10/31/10)(AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct 31, Venezuela's Pres.
Chavez ordered the nationalization of local steel company Sidetur in
the latest of several recent government takeovers.
   (Reuters, 10/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct, It was made public
that some $34 million in funds from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis and Malaria was misused in Mali, Mauritania, Djibouti
and Zambia.
   (Econ, 2/19/11, p.65)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct, In Texas Anthony
Graves was released from death row after spending nearly 20
years in prison. He had been charged in 1992 with helping another
man murder a family of 6. The other man had admitted lying just
before he was executed in 2000.
   (Econ, 4/9/11, p.34)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct, Roko Tevita Uluilakeb
Mara, the commander of Fiji’s biggest regiment, was suspended and
soon fled to Tonga. Mara was the youngest son of founding father
Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara. From Tonga he denounced the Fiji government
and called for regime change.
   (Econ, 5/21/11, p.43)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct, The Times of India
newspaper reported that the Adarsh Housing Society in Mumbai,
intended to giving shelter to wounded Indian war veterans and the
widows of those slain in battle, appeared to have been a huge scam.
Nearly every one of the valuable units was sold for a song to a
clutch of top politicians, their kin and retired generals. The land
had been earmarked for a six-story building of apartments for
disabled veterans, war widows and heroes of the 1999 Kargil conflict
between India and Pakistan that raged for three months across the
disputed Kashmir region. But the original blueprints for a modest
building were cast aside and in its place arose a 31-story luxury
high-rise. The scandal rocked India's ruling Congress Party.
On Jan 16, 2011, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said the
building must be demolished within three months for violating
coastal zoning laws.Â
   (AP, 11/1/10)(AP, 1/16/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct, India began assigning
its 1.2 billion citizens a universal identity number (UID) based on
biometric markers. The program under Nandan Nilekani was assigned to
3 vendors: Accenture, L-1 Identity Solutions of America and Morpho
of France.
   (Econ, 1/29/11, p.61)(Econ, 1/14/12, p.39)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oct, In North Korean Choi
Jin-I in co-operation with Asia Press (Tokyo) began publishing the
Rimjingang magazine. Rimjin-gang aimed to bring objective news to
the people of North Korea. The reporters were trained in undercover
recording techniques in China.
   (Econ, 1/22/11,
p.51)(www.asiapress.org/rimjingang/english/)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, The US White House
said President Obama is extending economic sanctions on Sudan for at
least one year, ahead of the country's January referendum on
independence for the south. Sudan rejected the decision.
   (AFP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger said welfare recipients can no longer use
state-issued debit cards at medical marijuana shops, psychics and
other businesses whose services have been deemed "inconsistent with
the intent" of the program. In June Schwarzenegger barred welfare
cards at casino ATMs.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, The SF Giants won
the Baseball World Series beating the Texas Rangers 3-1 in Game 5 in
San Francisco. Edgar Renteria blasted his second home run of the
2010 Fall Classic, a three-run shot, to win the championship.
Renteria had the game-winning hit in the 11th inning of Game 7 in
the 1997 World Series for the Florida Marlins.
   (AP, 11/2/10)(http://tinyurl.com/29joxc3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Salesforce.com
announced the purchase of 14 acres in the Mission Bay area of San
Francisco and planned a new corporate campus to be built over the
next 10 years.
   (SFC, 11/2/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, McKesson corp., the
biggest US drug distributor, announced an agreement to buy closely
held US Oncology Inc. for $560 million.
   (SFC, 11/2/10, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In eastern
Afghanistan the Taliban briefly overran a district seat and torched
government buildings there. Government forces who regained control
of Ghazni province's Khogyani district headquarters a few hours
later discovered that the 16 Afghan policemen stationed there were
missing. (The bodies of four of the policemen were found a few days
later in Ghazni city. 5 more bodies were found on Nov 6. Seven
remained missing) 2 Afghan women were found shot to death in Helmand
province. They had been running a small organization helping other
women set up businesses before their bodies were found in
Naway-e-Barakzayi district. A bomb that killed two coalition
service members. A suicide attack aimed at NATO troops in Zhari
district killed one civilian.
   (AP, 11/1/10)(AP, 11/2/10)(AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Australian police
said a mother (55) and son (28), along with a 33-year-old Hong Kong
man, have been charged over one of the country's biggest heroin
hauls after drugs with a potential street value of 405 million US
dollars were found in a shipment of doors.
   (AFP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Britain's BG Group
announced it will spend 15 billion US dollars on a liquefied natural
gas (LNG) project in Australia, an investment Canberra hailed as a
boost for the national economy.
   (AFP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, The UN said
flooding in Benin has affected more than half a million people,
destroyed more than 300,000 acres of crops and killed 81,000
livestock.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, British scientists
said alcohol is a more dangerous drug than both crack and heroin
when the combined harms to the user and to others are assessed.
   (Reuters, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, China kicked off a
once-a-decade census. Some 6 million people were mobilized to
conduct a 10-day survey.
   (AP, 11/1/10)(Econ, 11/6/10, p.56)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In Cuba Roman
Catholic officials announced the names of three more Cuban prisoners
who have accepted exile in Spain in return for freedom.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Egypt’s Information
Minister Annas el-Fiqi ordered all companies providing the service
or television networks with uplinks to reapply for permits. The
measure will affect about a dozen uplink providers and TV stations.
Providers have complained it is aimed at controlling live TV
broadcasts such as political talk-shows.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Police in Greece
arrested two terrorism suspects carrying letter bombs addressed to
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and western embassies in Athens.
The two Greek men, aged 22 and 24, were arrested in central Athens
after a parcel bomb addressed to the Mexican embassy in Athens
exploded at a mail delivery service.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In northern
Honduras 5 armed men broke into a military base at the major
international airport and made off with a small airplane that
authorities seized last year in an anti-drug operation.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Icelandic
Meteorological Office geophysicist Gunnar Gudmundsson said that
floodwater is coming from the subglacial Grimsvotn volcano, but
there are no signs of the underground tremors that would signal an
eruption.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Indonesia's most
volatile volcano, Mount Merapi, one of 22 that have been
increasingly active, spewed searing clouds of gas and debris for
hours in its most powerful eruption in a deadly week that has left
38 dead.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Ireland's health
minister, Mary Harney, was pelted with red paint as tempers flared
over government plans to slash euro1 billion ($1.4 billion) from the
costs of running an overloaded hospital network.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In Morocco IMF
director general Dominique Strauss-Kahn said world leaders gathering
at the Group of 20 summit must take action to fix the financial
sector.
   (AFP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, ExxonMobil in
Nigeria announced the discovery of rich gas condensate off the West
African country's coast as the government seeks to boost gas supply
to help solve electricity shortages.
   (AFP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In northwest
Pakistan a US drone attack killed five people. 4 militants stormed a
police complex in Swabi, killing two officers. Gunmen near Peshawar
attacked tankers carrying fuel for NATO and US troops, wounding a
driver and his assistant.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Philippine
investigators arrested Rolando Fajardo, one of the country's most
elusive fugitives. He was wanted over the 1986 kidnapping of a
Japanese executive.
   (AFP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In Romania a MiG-21
Lancer fighter jet crashed during a training exercise, killing two
experienced pilots.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Russia's Pres.
Medvedev visited Kunashiri Island in the Pacific Ocean claimed by
both Russia and Japan, triggering immediate protests from Tokyo,
which is already involved in a heated dispute with China over
islands to the south.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In Tanzania Gasper
Kanyarukiga, a former Rwandan businessman, was found guilty of
ordering bulldozers in 1994 to demolish the Nyange Church where
2,000 Tutsis had sought shelter. Judge Taghrid Hikmet said he
intentionally participated in the genocidal act and sentenced him to
30 years in prison.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Turkey's main
Kurdish rebel group extended a truce until elections next summer,
denying responsibility for a suicide attack in Istanbul thought to
have been the work of its own hardliners.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, In Uganda a
controversial newspaper in Kampala published photos, names and home
addresses of gay Ugandans, the second time the paper has done so,
prompting a rights group to seek a legal injunction against the
publication.
   (AP, 11/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 1, Uruguay's Supreme
Court said an amnesty given for any crimes committed by the
country's 12-year dictatorship (1973-1985) is unconstitutional. The
ruling meant that about 20 murders in a case against former dictator
Juan Maria Bordaberry can be investigated.
   (AP, 11/1/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, The US held
mid-term elections. Early returns showed the GOP picked up at least
60 House seats and led for four more, far in excess of what was
needed for a majority. About two dozen races remained too close to
call. Republicans also gained at least six Senate seats, and tea
party favorites Paul in Kentucky, Mike Lee in Utah and Marco Rubio
in Florida were among their winners. Nevada Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid kept his seat.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Iowa (Terry
Branstad), Kansas (Sam Brownback), Maine (Paul LePage), Michigan
(Rick Snyder), New Mexico (Susana Martinez), Ohio (John Kasich),
Oklahoma (Mary Fallin), Pennsylvania (Tom Corbett), Tennessee (Bill
Haslam), Wisconsin (Scott Walker), Wyoming (Matt Mead) all replaced
the Democratic governors with Republicans. Snyder (R) defeated
Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) by bragging about his managerial
skills.
   (Econ, 11/6/10, p.45)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Arizona voters by a
narrow margin approved a measure to legalize medical marijuana.
   (SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In California
federal agents arrested Adam Gitschlag, a retired US Marine, for
allegedly selling illegal assault weapons to members of Florencia
13, a Los Angeles street gang. On Nov 8 ATF agents arrested 2 more
retired Marines associated with Gitschlag, and 2 others for
smuggling machine guns from Iraq.
   (SFC, 11/10/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In California Jerry
Brown defeated Meg Whitman (54%-41%) in his bid for a comeback to
the governor's office he occupied for two terms more than a
quarter-century ago. California Sen. Barbara Boxer was elected to a
fourth term, overcoming a challenge from Carly Fiorina.
   (AP, 11/3/10)(SFC, 11/4/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Nikki Haley (38)
won election as governor of South Carolina, the first
Indian-American female governor in US history. The Tea Party-backed
Republican candidate won 51% of the vote against Democratic state
Sen. Vincent Sheheen, who received 47%.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, The US attorney’s
office indicted 3 San Diego residents on charges of conspiring to
provide money to Al Shabab, a terrorist group in Somalia.
   (SFC, 11/3/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, California voters
rejected Proposition 19 declining to make their state the nation's
first to legalize marijuana use and sales, heeding warnings of legal
chaos and that pot smokers would get behind the wheel and show up to
work while high. Voters approved Prop. 25 to allow lawmakers to pass
a budget with a simple majority vote.
   (AP, 11/3/10)(SFC, 11/3/10, p.A17)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Missouri passed the
Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act. The state was home to 1,462
licensed commercial dog breeders. A newly elected legislature soon
gutted the meat of the proposition.
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.36)(Econ, 5/14/11, p.20)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Oklahoma voters
approved a measure that would forbid judges from considering
international law or Islamic law when deciding cases. The "Save Our
State Amendment" was approved by 70 percent of state voters. A
federal judge in Oklahoma City issued a court order in November 2010
barring the measure from taking effect. On Jan 10, 2012, a federal
appeals court upheld an injunction against the voter-approved ban on
Islamic law in Oklahoma, saying it likely violated the US
Constitution by discriminating against religion.
   (SFC, 11/4/10, p.A9)(AP, 1/11/12)(AP, 1/10/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Oregon Democrat
Gov. John Kitzhaber won a historic third term.
   (SFC, 11/4/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, San Francisco’s
Mayor Gavin Newsom was elected as state lieutenant governor.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, San Francisco’s
Board of Supervisors passed a law that cracks down on the popular
practice of giving away free toys with unhealthy restaurant meals
for children. The law, which would take effect on December 1, would
allow toys to be given away with kids' meals that have less than 600
calories, contain fruits and vegetables, and include beverages
without excessive fat or sugar. Mayor Newsom vetoed the measure on
Nov 13. On Nov 23 the board overrode the veto.
   (Reuters,
11/3/10)(http://tinyurl.com/25458to)(SFC, 11/24/10, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, US motorcycle maker
Harley-Davidson said it will open an assembly plant in India next
year to meet demand for its luxury two-wheelers in the country's
booming economy.
   (AFP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Oracle Corp.
announced an agreement to buy Art Technology Group, a provider of
e-commerce services, for $1 billion in cash.
   (SFC, 11/3/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In southern
Afghanistan a NATO service member died after an insurgent attack.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Algeria’s interior
minister Dahou Ould Kablia said that Algeria will resume a policy of
arming people to reinforce the fight against terrorism in the north
African country.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, BP lifted its
estimate of the likely cost of its Gulf of Mexico oil spill to $40
billion, denting profits, but its underlying performance beat all
expectations on higher refining margins and a lower tax rate.
   (Reuters, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Britain and France
vowed to work hand-in-glove as their leaders ushered in an
unprecedented era of defense cooperation by agreeing to create a
joint force and share nuclear test facilities.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Reprieve, a
London-based legal advocacy group opposed to the death penalty,
filed suit to try to prevent a British company from exporting a drug
that could be used in the execution of an American inmate.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In Greece bombs
exploded at the Swiss and Russian embassies in Athens. Police then
found explosive devices at the Bulgarian Embassy and one addressed
to the Dutch embassy at a central Athens courier company, where
German embassy had returned a suspicious package.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, India's central
bank raised key interest rates for the sixth time this year to
contain persistently high inflation, another sign of the gulf
between fast growing emerging Asian economies and tepid growth in
the developed world.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In Iraq Shiite
Baghdad neighborhoods were targeted in a series of bombings and
mortar strikes that took place over the span of about an hour. In
Sadr City 21 people were killed by car bomb near a market. In 12
other neighborhoods at least 55 more were killed. In total some 91
people were killed and some 232 people were wounded. The Islamic
State of Iraq, an umbrella group that includes al-Qaida in Iraq and
other Sunni insurgent factions, soon claimed responsibility.
   (AP, 11/3/10)(SFC, 11/3/10, p.A3)(AP,
11/4/10)(AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Israel's military
intelligence chief said Iran possesses enough enriched uranium to
build one nuclear bomb and soon will have enough to produce a
second.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In Mexico 4 men
were shot dead in the Pacific port city of Acapulco and at least 18
others were killed elsewhere in the latest gang-style violence. Eder
Diaz (23) a student across the border at the Univ. of Texas at El
Paso, was attacked along with classmate Manuel Acosta (25). Acosta
was killed at the scene, while Diaz died the next day at a Juarez
hospital.
   (AFP, 11/3/10)(AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Myanmar election
authorities canceled voting in Nov 7 elections in 12 more village
tracts in six constituencies in Kayah state, where restive ethnic
minorities are dominant. The commission in September announced the
cancellation of voting in about 300 village tracts in 33 townships
where restive ethnic minorities are dominant. Six armed ethnic
groups in Myanmar forged an agreement to join forces, fearing they
will be attacked by the regime after the elections. The "landmark
deal" was struck in the Thai-Myanmar town of Mae Hong Son and
included organizations from the Karen, Karenni, Chin, Kachin, Mon
and Shan minorities.
   (AP, 11/2/10)(AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Russia said Pres.
Medvedev planned more trips to a group of islands seized by the
Soviet Union from Japan at the end of World War Two, deepening a
serious rift with Tokyo.
   (Reuters, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Thailand battled to
rescue thousands of people stranded in their homes after flash
floods, several meters deep in places, swept through a southern
city, cutting power and communications. The floodwaters swamped vast
areas of southern Thailand and inundated its largest city killing 12
people. The death toll from across the country soon passed 120.
   (AFP, 11/2/10)(AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, In Venezuela
President Hugo Chavez and his Colombian counterpart Juan Manuel
Santos signed a string of accords seeking to improve relations
despite ideological differences and recent bitter disputes.
   (AP, 11/2/10)(AFP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, State Vietnam News
said blogger Le Nguyen Huong Tra (35), who blogged as Co Gai Do
Long, has been detained for "infringing on the interests of the
state" after she criticized a security official and his family.
   (AFP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 2, Yemen put Anwar
al-Awlaki, a US-born radical cleric, on trial in absentia, accusing
him and two other men of plotting to kill foreigners and being
members of al-Qaida.
   (AP, 11/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, The United States
announced that it is bolstering its presence in Afghanistan with a
500 million dollar expansion of its Kabul embassy and the
construction of two consulates. Taliban militants carried out two
attacks against Afghan security forces, targeting a police station
and a border patrol in strikes that left nine people dead. NATO said
insurgents killed one service member in the north, while a roadside
bomb killed another in the south. A coalition airstrike killed 5
militants planting a roadside bomb in Khost province.
   (AFP, 11/3/10)(AP, 11/3/10)(AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, The United States
officially designated Jundallah, shadowy Sunni rebel group, a
foreign terrorist organization, blaming it for a series of attacks
in Iran.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, The US Federal
Reserve announced a 2nd round of quantitative easing (QE2) to
invigorate the economy by buying $600 billion more in Treasury bonds
between now and next June in order to drive down interest rates on
mortgages and other debt.
   (SFC, 11/4/10, p.C1)(Econ, 11/6/10, p.89)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, The US Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted that unlicensed high-frequency
traders will no longer be able to gain unfettered or "naked" access
to public markets.
   (http://tinyurl.com/27glv26)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, In Colorado Richard
Paul (34) was arrested and federal agents seized five pounds of C-4
military explosives from his home in Durango. In Las Vegas Andrew
Kaufman (36) was arrested. In San Diego Navy SEAL Nicholas Bickle
(33) was arrested. They were accused of conspiring to smuggle and
sell weapons to an undercover federal agent in Nevada and Colorado.
Bickle, his close friend Paul, and their associate Kaufman allegedly
sold machine guns for $1,300 to $2,400 each, and handguns for $300
to an undercover federal agent who told them they would be shipped
to Mexico.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Federal authorities
in San Diego said they have made one of the largest marijuana
seizures in the United States, confiscating more than 20 tons of pot
that was smuggled into the country through an underground tunnel
connecting warehouses on either side of California's border with
Mexico.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, A federal judge in
Reno ordered 6 months of prison time for 2 men who admitted to
shooting wild horses while drinking and leaving them to die.
   (SFC, 11/4/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, In San Francisco
tens of thousands of baseball fans flocked downtown to toast the SF
Giants' World Series championship and see their hometown heroes take
a victory lap in a ticker-tape parade.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Studios Inc, one of Hollywood's most storied film studios, filed for
bankruptcy protection after struggling for years to reduce its debt
load.
   (Reuters, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Australian
Treasurer Wayne Swan vowed to crack down on "arrogant" banks in an
extraordinary attack as major lenders face mounting anger over
rising interest rates and fees.
   (AFP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Cuban President
Raul Castro joined an American archbishop and other Roman Catholic
leaders to open a national seminary on the outskirts Havana, the
first religious construction on the communist-run island in more
than a half century.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, The Czech
Parliament approved a government plan to increase the number of
Czech troops in Afghanistan during the next two years. It allows the
deployment of up to 720 service members in Afghanistan in 2011, and
up to 640 in 2012. The current mandate was no more than 535.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, A Paris appeals
court said Callixte Mbarushimana could be extradited to the court in
the Hague, Netherlands, but only on condition that he not be later
sent to Rwanda. Rwanda has the death penalty, which France opposes.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Greece stopped all
airborne parcels headed overseas and screened thousands of packages
in an attempt to stop a spate of bombings blamed on Greek militants
targeting diplomatic missions and European leaders.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Purushottama Lal
(81), Indian poet and publisher, died. He published some 3,500
titles of Indian writers in English.
   {India, Poet}
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.105)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Israel suspended a
special strategic dialogue with London as long as Israeli officials
visiting Britain face possible arrest for suspected war crimes
against Palestinians. The two countries announced the dialogue two
years ago to boost relations. But Israel put them on hold at the
beginning of the year after former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni
canceled a trip to London for fear of arrest.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, In Kashmir two
clashes broke out in Srinagar between police and stone-throwing
youths chanting pro-independence slogans. Police said government
forces have killed seven suspected Muslim rebels in four gunbattles
this week.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, In Mexico police
recovered 18 bodies from a mass grave announced in a YouTube
posting, a video saying the victims were from a tourist group
kidnapped in Acapulco a month ago. In the video two men say they
killed the "Michoacanos" in an act of revenge against La Familia, a
powerful drug cartel based in Michoacan state. Two bodies reported
in the tip were found wearing the same clothes as the pair seen in
the video and were lying on top of the mass the grave.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Northern Nigeria
began deporting hundreds of illegal immigrants from neighboring
Niger, Chad and Cameroon amid tight security and military patrols
over a series of attacks blamed on an Islamist sect. Immigration
officials said they were deported some 700 illegal immigrants to
prevent them from casting votes in next year's presidential
election.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)(AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, In Pakistan a US
drone attack targeted Islamist fighters in North Waziristan, killing
four militants and blowing their vehicle into a fireball. In
neighboring South Waziristan, a Pakistan army soldier was killed and
two others wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their vehicle.
   (AFP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, A car exploded
outside the police headquarters of Gaza's Hamas rulers, killing a
Palestinian militant (27) and wounding a second man. Ihab Ghussein,
spokesman for the Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry. The Israeli
military said the target was Mohammed Namnam (25) of the Army of
Islam group.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Viktor Chernomyrdin
(72), former Russian prime minister (1992-1998), died. He served as
the country was throwing off communism and developing as a market
economy.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Serbia declared a
state of emergency in the area around Kraljevo after a 5.3
earthquake rattled its central region, killing at least two people
and injuring 50 others.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Slovakia’s
government agreed to deploy up to 348 service members in the
NATO-force in Afghanistan next year, up from the current 299. The
decision still needed parliamentary approval.
   (AP, 11/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Somali pirates
seized the Aly Zoulfecar, a Comoros-flagged ship, en route to the
Tanzanian port city of Dar es Salaam with 29 people on board.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 3, Sudanese
intelligence agents arrested Gaafar al-Subki, a Darfuri journalist
working for one the country's leading independent newspapers,
As-Sahafa. Darfur rebels clashed with government troops in South
Darfur, marking a resumption of fighting after heavy rains had
largely subdued hostilities in Sudan's war-torn west.
   (AFP, 11/3/10)(Reuters, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Microsoft released
Kinect, a motion-tracking peripheral for the Xbox console.
Scientists soon found uses multiple other uses for the device.
   (SFC, 1/10/11, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Sparky Anderson
(76), Hall of Fame big league baseball manager, died from
complications of dementia in Thousand Oaks, Ca. He was the first
manager to win World Series titles in both leagues and the only
manager to lead two franchises in career wins. Anderson won 863
games in nine years with the Cincinnati Reds and 1,331 in 17 seasons
with the Detroit Tigers.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In eastern
Afghanistan Taliban militants killed a NATO service member.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In a new audio
message Ayman al-Zawahri, al-Qaida's No. 2, vowed revenge for the
imprisonment of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani female scientist
convicted of trying to kill US interrogators in Afghanistan.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, British Foreign
Secretary William Hague pledged that Britain would act fast to amend
a law that puts visiting Israeli officials at risk of arrest for
alleged war crimes.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, The Bank of England
voted to keep its key interest rate at a record low 0.50 percent and
opted against following in the footsteps of the US Federal Reserve
with fresh stimulus measures.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, China's President
Hu Jintao landed in Paris for a three-day state visit set to see the
signing of billions of dollars in deals for nuclear, aviation and
energy technology.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In Costa Rica a
rain-sodden hillside collapsed on homes in the suburb of San Antonio
de Escazu, killing at least 20 people, many as they slept. At least
14 people were missing.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In Cuba all 68
people on board Flight 883 of Aero Caribbean were killed when their
plane crashed in the central mountains after issuing an emergency
call. The plane was a 15-year-old ATR-72-212 twin turboprop built by
ATR, a joint venture of Europe's EADS and Italian group
Finmeccanica.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In the Czech Rep. a
two-day informal gathering of NATO experts opened in Prague. They
planned to consider the impacts of defense budget cuts by member
countries.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Egypt and the World
Bank signed two new loan agreements worth 820 million dollars, in
the largest financing provided by the institution to the country's
electricity sector.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, European computer
guards battled against a simulated attempt by hackers to bring down
critical Internet services in the first pan-continental test of
cyber defenses. All 27 of the EU member nations as well as Iceland,
Norway and Switzerland took part in the simulation. The USA held its
own major exercise against a large-scale cyber attack on critical
infrastructure in late September with 12 international partners and
60 private companies. Cyber security will be one of the top issues
that NATO leaders will tackle at a summit of the 28-nation military
alliance in Lisbon on November 20-29.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In India Irom
Sharmila, an extremely frail 38-year-old woman dubbed "The Iron
Lady," marked 10 years without voluntarily taking food or water, a
hunger strike launched to protest an anti-terror law that grants
Indian soldiers sweeping powers to crack down on rebels. She had her
last voluntary meal on Nov. 4, 2000, in Imphal, capital of Manipur,
one of several northeastern states facing armed rebellions against
Indian rule. She was arrested three days later and has been
force-fed through her nose ever since.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In Indonesia clouds
of hot ash gushed from the Mount Merapi volcano, forcing motorists
in cities 20 miles (30 km) away to use their headlights in broad
daylight and raising aviation concerns. The death toll climbed to
44.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Thousands of
Iranians chanted "Death to America" as they staged a mass protest
against the "Great Satan" to mark the 31st anniversary of the
capture of the American embassy by Islamist students. Iran reported
the arrest of four Kurdish rebels of the banned Komala group, who
worked for commander Jalil Fattahi, a militant based in Britain.
They were arrested in Iran's western city of Marivan.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In northern Iraq a
rocket confiscated by authorities blew up in the back of a police
pickup truck, killing four people. Two people died in a roadside
bomb explosion west of Baghdad.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Ireland’s
government said planned budget cuts worth €6 billion in 2011.
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.85)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In Israel the
global diamond industry's oversight body upheld restrictions
preventing Zimbabwe from exporting its vast stockpile of diamonds
from a large mine after efforts to reach a compromise ended in
deadlock. Extending the approval to all the fields dominated this
week's Kimberley Process plenary meeting in Jerusalem, where the
unanimous agreement of members is required to certify the trade of
diamonds. Israel is this year's sponsor of the conference.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Nigerian lawmakers
approved constitutional changes allowing the postponement of
presidential elections set for early next year after warnings there
would not be enough time to prepare.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In Russia on
National Unity Day a group of men armed with knives killed 12
people, including four children, who had gathered for a celebration
at a home in Kushchevskaya village. One of the children was
strangled and another died of smoke inhalation when the attackers
tried unsuccessfully to burn down the house. On Nov 15 prosecutors
said that they had arrested Sergei Tsapok, and a member of his gang,
Sergei Tsepovyaz. Four other suspects, including two teenagers, were
arrested a week earlier. The farmer who was killed had refused to
hand over some of his land.
   (AP, 11/15/10)(Econ, 12/11/10, p.30)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Serbian President
Boris Tadic apologized at the Ovcara site near Vukovar of the 1991
bloody massacre of more than 200 Croats, offering the strongest
condemnation yet by a Serbian leader of Serb wartime atrocities.
   (AP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, A Qantas A380 with
more than 450 people on board made a dramatic forced landing in
Singapore, trailing smoke from a blackened engine after the Airbus
superjumbo's first mid-air emergency. In response Qantas Airways and
Singapore Airlines suspended flights of the Airbus A380 superjumbos.
In 2013 the engine failure was traced to an oil pipe that failed to
conform to design specifications.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)(Reuters, 11/4/10)(AP, 6/27/13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In western Sudan 3
Latvian helicopter crew working for the United Nations were
kidnapped. They were contracted to the UN Humanitarian Air Service,
which delivers aid to poverty-stricken Darfur. On Dec 8 officials
said the men had been freed with no ransom paid.
   (AP, 11/5/10)(AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, In south Yemen a
car bomb tore through a market near security headquarters in the
town of Daleh, killing two people, one a policeman, and wounding 22.
   (AFP, 11/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, The UN named
oil-rich Norway as the country with the best quality of life, while
Asia has made the biggest strides in recent decades. Australia, New
Zealand, the United States and Ireland followed at the top of the
standings. Zimbabwe came in last among the 169 nations ranked,
behind Mozambique, Burundi, Niger and Democratic Republic of Congo.
   (AFP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 4, Vietnam disaster
officials say new flooding in the central part of the country has
killed 16 people, bringing the death toll over the past month to
159.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, President Barack
Obama launched a 10-day trip to Asia aimed at boosting exports and
creating US jobs.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, In Los Angeles
ex-BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle (28) was sentenced to a
minimum term of 2 years for fatally shooting unarmed train rider
Oscar Grant (22) at the Oakland Fruitvale BART station on Jan, 2009.
Protesters marched in downtown Oakland and mobs smashed about a
dozen cars. 152 people were arrested.
   (SFC, 11/6/10, p.A1)(SSFC, 11/7/10, p.C10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Jill Clayburgh
(66), Hollywood and Broadway actress, died in Connecticut after a
21-year battle with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. She was known for
portrayals of empowered women in a career spanning five decades,
highlighted by her Oscar-nominated role of a divorcee exploring life
after marriage in the film "An Unmarried Woman" (1978).
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, In Afghanistan a
teenage suicide bomber blew himself up in a crowded bazaar in the
northwest, killing at least nine people and wounding 30 others. The
attack targeted the head of the Faryab provincial council, Mullah
Rahmatullah Turkistani. NATO said three of its service members were
killed. An Afghan and NATO force captured the Haqqani network's
shadow governor for Spera district in Khost province during an
overnight operation. An Afghan soldier reportedly shot and killed 2
NATO service members on their base in the Sangin district of Helmand
province and then defected to the insurgency.
   (AP, 11/5/10)(AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Algeria’s newspaper
El-Watan Week-end reported that local police have dismantled a group
of currency forgers who put more than 48 million euros in fake
banknotes on to the market.
   (AFP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Britain began a
3-day hearing on Iraqi civilian claims of abuse. Lawyers for 222
Iraqi civilians were suing the British government, claiming their
clients were subjected to a regime of systematic abuse by British
soldiers and interrogators, and that their only realistic remedy is
a far-reaching public investigation into how the U.K. treated its
captives in Iraq.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, The British
government said it has sold the right to run the rail line from
London to the Channel Tunnel to a Canadian consortium for 2.1
billion pounds.
   (AFP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, China and India
received long-sought recognition as global economic heavyweights as
the International Monetary Fund gave them and other emerging powers
a significantly larger role in stabilizing the world economy. IMF
chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn announced planned reforms to the fund's
voting power after a meeting of the organization's board in
Washington, DC.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, France and China
reached a "real convergence" over the need to reform the global
financial system after two days of talks between President Nicolas
Sarkozy and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao. France told China
that balanced trade and close cooperation was the best way to shield
the world from future crises and the menace of protectionism, and
China promised its support for Paris as it takes over the G20
presidency this month.
   (Reuters, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, In France
environmentalists handcuffed themselves in front of a train carrying
what activists claim is "the most radioactive ever" cargo of nuclear
waste. The shipment was returning German waste for storage after it
was treated in France by the Areva group.
   (AFP, 11/6/10)(SFC, 11/6/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Georgia's
government announced the arrests of 13 people, including four
Russian citizens, who are accused of spying for Russia's armed
forces. The arrests, which took place in October, were announced on
the day Russia's military intelligence agency celebrates its
professional holiday, Day of the Military Intelligence Officer.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Haiti was lashed by
heavy rains and wind from Hurricane Tomas. Leaders of the quake-hit
nation called for mass evacuations from tent cities. 6 people were
killed. Tomas weakened the next day and was downgraded from a
hurricane to a tropical storm as it passed over the Turks and Caicos
Islands.
   (AFP, 11/5/10)(AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, In Indonesia
searing gas avalanched down the Mount Merapi volcano with a
thunderous roar, torching houses and trees and incinerating
villagers as they fled. About 70 more people were killed raising the
death toll to 122.
   (AP, 11/5/10)(Econ, 11/13/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Iraqi civil society
groups said they are to launch a legal battle for Iraqi MPs left
idle since a March 7 poll to return 40 million dollars received in
salaries and allowances over the past eight months.
   (AFP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Mexico's federal
police said they have found the tortured body of Mario Gonzalez, the
brother of Patricia Gonzalez, the former Chihuahua state attorney
general. He was kidnapped on Oct 21 and eight people have been
arrested in the slaying. A video had surfaced online showing the
kidnapped man saying at gunpoint that he and his sister protected a
street gang tied to the Juarez cartel and was behind several
murders. Reputed Gulf cartel leader Antonio Ezequiel Cardenas
Guillen (48), also known as "Tony Tormenta" or "Tony the Storm," was
killed along with four of his gunmen and three marines in the city
of Matamoros. A soldier and local reporter Carlos Guajardo were also
killed in related mayhem that began in the morning and lasted into
the evening. The arrest of two alleged drug traffickers in the
historic city of Patzcuaro outside of Morelia sparked roadblocks and
car fires on the road between the two cities in the western state of
Michoacan, which is controlled by La Familia cartel.
   (AP, 11/5/10)(AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, In northwestern
Pakistan a suicide bomber struck a mosque frequented by anti-Taliban
tribal elders during afternoon prayers, killing at least 65 people
in Peshawar. A second bombing later in the day wounded several
people at another mosque in the Badhber area on the outskirts of
Peshawar.
   (AP, 11/5/10)(SFC, 11/6/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, In Pakistan a
private plane chartered by an Italy-based oil company crashed near
the airport in Karachi after the pilot warned of engine trouble. All
21 people on board, including an Italian, were killed.
   (AP, 11/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, A Peruvian judge
ordered convicted rebel collaborator Lori Berenson freed from
prison, ruling her initial parole decision sound. Berenson was freed
on Nov 8, but the New Yorker's legal troubles remained unresolved.
   (AP, 11/5/10)(AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 5, Swiss adventurer
Yves Rossy (51) jumped from a hot-air balloon near Lake Geneva and
completed two aerial loops using his custom-made jet-propelled
wingsuit.
   (SFC, 11/6/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, President Barack
Obama announced a host of new trade deals with India supporting tens
of thousands of US jobs as he began a 10-day trip through Asia on a
determinedly domestic note.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, US Secretary of
State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Australian Foreign Minister Kevin
Rudd said their countries would enhance their military and defense
cooperation by expanding joint exercises and the use of each other's
training facilities. They also pledged to work together to influence
the behavior of an increasingly assertive China.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, The Afghan attorney
general's office said that it plans to indict an ex-minister for
allegedly overcharging the government nearly $20 million for fuel,
one of 20 cases involving government officials accused of corruption
or misuse of power. An insurgent attack killed a NATO service member
in the south. In the southeast a joint Afghan and coalition force
killed Mullah Mohammadullah, a Taliban leader in Shahidi Hassas
district of Uruzgan province, along with an associate as they were
trying to escape on a motorcycle.
   (AP, 11/6/10)(AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Argentina
thousands marched in a Gay Pride parade, celebrating the country's
status as the first in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage
and vowing to campaign for new rights for transgender people. More
than 500 same-sex couples have been married since President Cristina
Fernandez signed the law on July 21. The theme of the parade was
"let's go for more," specifically, a "gender identity" law to enable
individuals to change their gender on birth certificates and
identity cards.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, BBC reporters
planned further strikes after a two-day walkout over pension changes
successfully disrupted the broadcaster's TV and radio programs.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Tens of thousands
of French protesters took to the streets once more for what might
prove to be the last in their recent series of marches against
President Nicolas Sarkozy's pension reform.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, A train carrying
what activists claim is "the most radioactive ever" cargo of nuclear
waste ran the gauntlet of hundreds of protesters as it crossed the
Rhine from France to Germany. The shipment was returning German
waste for storage after it was treated in France by the Areva group.
   (AFP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Airlines cancelled
at least 36 flights to and from Jakarta, affecting international
carriers from Europe to Asia, because of ash from the Mount Merapi
volcano.
   (AFP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Iraq's political
rivals reached a breakthrough power-sharing deal in which Nuri
al-Maliki, a Shiite, retains the premiership. The deal came 8 months
after inconclusive elections. The deal was between the National
Alliance, which represents the main Shiite parties, and the Kurdish
coalition, while the Sunni-backed Iraqiya's support hinged on its
agreement over the posts of speaker and president. A roadside bomb
killed two Sunni anti-Qaeda militiamen and two Iraqi soldiers died
in separate attacks on checkpoints north of Baghdad. Twin mortar
attacks in Baghdad wounded two people. 25 people were wounded when
three car bombs exploded outside the homes of officials of the
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk.
   (AFP, 11/6/10)(AFP, 11/7/10)(AFP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Italy Michael
Seifert (86), a former Nazi SS prison guard known as "the beast of
Bolzano" for his cruelty, died in an Italian hospital. The
Ukrainian-born Seifert was serving a life sentence at the Santa
Maria Capua Vetere prison in southern Italy.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Kenya a police
officer in Siakago town went on a shooting rampage, killing 10
people in three different bars. The man was said to be accusing a
girl of having infected him with HIV and when he went to look for
her he did not find her.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Libyan authorities
arrested 10 reporters for criticizing Libya's leadership. They
worked for Libya Press, a news agency controlled by the son of
leader Moammar Gadhafi. A further 10 journalists working for Al-Ghad
titles were rounded up in a second wave of arrests. All the
reporters were released on Nov 8, and Moamer Kadhafi asked that an
inquiry be opened into the matter.
   (AP, 11/7/10)(AFP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Mexico the
decapitated body of a 30-year-old man was found in an Acapulco
neighborhood. Another man was found shot to death and a 27-year-old
woman who had been kidnapped last month was found strangled and
dumped in a trash bin, a black hood covering her face. Seven men at
a family party in ciudad Juarez were gunned down. 11 other people
were killed in the city, including two whose bodies were found
dismembered. Police in Oaxaca city found a human head in a
gift-wrapped box left on the side of a cliff popular for its view of
the picturesque colonial center.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Palestinian
militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket into southern Israel on
Saturday but caused no casualties or damage.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Poland a
gigantic statue of Jesus that Poles claim is the world's largest
rose majestically above the small town of Swiebodzin, as the
grandiose dream of a local priest finally came to pass. Residents
believed it will put their town of 22,000 on the map for tourists.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Russia Oleg
Kashin (30), a reporter for the Kommersant newspaper, was left in a
coma after two men smashed his head, legs and fingers in an attack
that prosecutors believe was linked to his work. Among his more
contentious reporting topics has been efforts by environmentalists
and opposition activists to protect trees in the Khimki forest near
Moscow from being cut down for a new highway.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Saudi Arabia's
foreign minister said Riyadh has halted mediation efforts between
the Afghan government and the Taliban because the fundamentalist
movement has refused to break ties with al-Qaida.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Pirates near
Somalia fired on French naval forces from a private yacht they had
captured. The yacht ran aground the next day and the South African
skipper escaped captivity, but the pirates took two crew members
hostage onto land.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, In Spain Pope
Benedict XVI blasted the "aggressive" anti-church sentiment he said
was flourishing in Spain as he sought to rekindle the faith in a
once-staunchly Roman Catholic nation that is now among Europe's most
liberal.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, Swedish police
arrested Peter Mangs (38) on suspicion of shooting at people with
immigrant backgrounds in a yearlong rampage in Malmo, Sweden's third
largest city. The first shooting was Oct. 10, 2009, when a
21-year-old convicted drug smuggler on furlough from prison was shot
in the head in a parked car. Swedish media said he was hospitalized
for a month with a bullet in his brain but survived. A 20-year-old
woman sitting next to him was also hit in the head and died. On May
7, 2012, Mangs was charged with three counts of murder and 12 counts
of attempted murder. On Nov 23, 20112, Mangs was sentenced to life
in prison and ordered 40-year-old Peter Mangs to pay 1.2 million
kronor ($180,000) in damages to survivors and their families.
   (AP, 11/7/10)(AP, 11/9/10)(AP, 5/7/12)(AP,
11/23/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, United Nations
officials said they were investigating reports that some 700
Congolese women were sexually attacked along the country's border
with Angola. Many women had said Angolan soldiers were responsible
for their attacks.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 6, A Yemeni judge
ordered police to find Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical US-born cleric,
"dead or alive" after the al-Qaida-linked preacher failed to appear
at his trial for his role in the killing of foreigners.
   (AP, 11/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Senior US officials
said the United States will drop Sudan from its list of state
sponsors of terrorism as early as July 2011, if Khartoum ensures two
key referendums take place on schedule in January and the results
are respected.
   (Reuters, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Douglasville,
Georgia, Bobby Tillman (19) was shot and killed following a random
attack at a house party in an Atlanta suburb. 4 men were soon
charged with his murder.
   (SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In eastern
Afghanistan two NATO service members died in two different
insurgents attacks. A vehicle hit a mine in Helmand province,
killing five civilians. In Kandahar a government employee working at
a prison in the city was shot and killed by insurgents. Afghan and
NATO forces targeted suspected insurgent strongholds in a joint
operation in southern Kandahar province, killing 15 and capturing
13. A rocket exploded in Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province,
killing one civilian and wounding four. Gunmen set fire to the
girls' middle school in Laghman province, burning the structure and
its contents.
   (AP, 11/7/10)(AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Azerbaijan voted in
parliamentary elections set to cement President Ilham Aliyev's grip
on power but condemned by the opposition as a charade whose results
have already been decided. Nearly 700 candidates competed for the
125 seats in the single chamber of the parliament. Azerbaijan's
ruling party won a landslide victory. The next day international
vote monitors said that ballot box stuffing and an uneven playing
field for candidates marred Azerbaijan's parliamentary elections.
   (AFP, 11/7/10)(AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Egypt Ahmed
Shabaan (19) went missing. His body was recovered in a canal four
days later. The family of Shabaan said police officers beat him at
the Sidi Gaber police station in Alexandria. On Nov 16 Amnesty
International called on Egyptian authorities to investigate
allegations that police tortured the young man to death.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Germany
activists rappelled down from a high bridge, broke through police
lines and chained themselves to train tracks, trying to halt a
shipment of nuclear waste as they protested Chancellor Angela
Merkel's plans to keep using nuclear energy.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Greeks cast ballots
in local polls that could trigger a general election unless voters
show support for the governing Socialists' austerity measures in the
debt-strapped country.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Guineans cast
ballots in a vote that has been delayed multiple times following
violent ethnic clashes that pitted the nation's two largest ethnic
groups against each other, a vote that progressed calmly into the
afternoon despite its underlying tensions. A week later Alpha Conde,
a member of the Malinke ethnic group, was named the winner over
Cellou Dalein Diallo, a member of the Peul ethnic group.
   (AP, 11/7/10)(AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Iran proposed that
a new round of international talks on its nuclear program be held in
Turkey, an ally that also has close ties to the West and has sought
to mediate in the standoff.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Israeli court
documents were published showing the government had sold or leased
property in Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem to Israeli settlers at
exceptionally low prices, helping them cement a Jewish presence
there. Israeli police demolished an illegally built mosque in the
impoverished Arab city of Rahat, touching off rock-throwing protests
by residents and fueling new grievances for the country's Arab
minority against the government.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Mexico two
Ciudad Juarez police officers, a man and a woman, were shot to death
inside their patrol car.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Myanmar held its
first election in 20 years under tight security, a scripted vote
that assured army-backed parties an easy win. Complex rules for the
election thwarted any chance of a pro-democracy upset as Myanmar
ended half a century of direct army rule. Minority Karen rebels
seized government buildings in clashes with troops in the border
town of Myawaddy. Myanmar's biggest military-backed party won the
country's first election in 20 years by a landslide, after a
carefully choreographed vote denounced by pro-democracy parties as
rigged to preserve authoritarian rule.
   (Reuters, 11/7/10)(Reuters, 11/8/10)(Reuters,
11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Pakistan a pair
of US drone attacks in North Waziristan killed 14 suspected
militants.
   (AFP, 11/7/10)(SFC, 11/8/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Portugal Chinese
President Hu Jintao pledged to support Portugal's efforts to emerge
from financial crisis, but he did not commit to purchasing
Portuguese debt as was widely anticipated.
   (AFP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Russia more than
1,000 military veterans and active servicemen rallied to demand the
ouster of Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, a civilian who is
carrying out a radical reform of Russia's armed forces. Many of the
participants in the rally said they were angry that Serdyukov did
not want to see churches built on military bases.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In South Korea
thousands of people chanted anti-globalization slogans in Seoul to
protest this week's Group of 20 summit. Part of the crowd attempted
to march down nearby streets but were stopped by riot police, who
fired pepper spray.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Spain Pope
Benedict XVI consecrated a world monument to family, the Sagrada
Familia church, but faced a gay kiss-in protest before he attacked
abortion and defended male-female marriage.
   (AFP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, In Sri Lanka
inmates resisting a search for prohibited items at a prison in
Colombo wounded 46 police and five prison officials.
   (AP, 11/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 7, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez said on Cuban television that Colombia will
extradite Walid Makled, known as "The Turk," a businessman accused
of being a major drug kingpin back to his native Venezuela to face
justice. Makled has said in a television interview that he poured $2
million into a 2007 Chavez political campaign and in return got a
concession at Venezuela's Puerto Cabello, his alleged shipping point
for drugs.
   (Reuters, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, President Barack
Obama backed India for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council,
a dramatic diplomatic gesture to his hosts at the end of his first
visit to this booming nation. The White House said Indian and US
companies have discussed or signed over $14.9 billion in deals
around President Barack Obama's trip that will support 53,670 US
jobs.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, David Cordova (56),
a retired Denver fire lieutenant, was among 35 alleged traffickers
indicted by a US federal grand jury on suspicion of smuggling 20 kg
(44 pounds) of cocaine a week from Mexico to Colorado. Cordova was
arrested last week in a roundup of the alleged ring.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, An indictment was
unsealed that charged 29 people in a sex trafficking ring in which
Somali gangs in Minneapolis and St. Paul allegedly forced girls
under age 14 into prostitution. 17 people were arrested in
Minnesota, 9 in Tennessee and 3 remained at large.
   (SFC, 11/9/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Video posted on the
CBS News website showed an object flying through the evening sky
over southern California that left a large contrail, or vapor trail.
A news helicopter owned by KCBS, a CBS affiliate in Los Angeles,
shot the video. Pentagon officials were stumped by the event.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, The American
Carnival Splendor luxury liner, carrying nearly 3,300 passengers and
almost 1,200 crew members, became crippled after fire erupted in its
engine room. The blaze crippled the ship's propulsion system,
leaving the vessel dead in the water and forcing Carnival to cancel
the rest of its voyage. The next day the nuclear-powered USS Ronald
Reagan began delivering supplies to the marooned vessel and plans
were made to tow the ship to San Diego.
   (Reuters, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Oakland, Ca.,
Derrick Jones (37) was shot a killed by police a block from his hair
salon. Officers said they mistook a scale he was carrying for a gun.
In 2013 Oakland agreed to pay $225,000 to settle a suit filed by his
parents and daughter.
   (SSFC, 2/24/13, p.C12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Michigan high
school freshman Samantha Kelly hanged herself after enduring
taunting from classmates for accusing a senior of rape. Prosecutors
were forced to drop criminal charges against Joseph Tarnopolski
(18), saying they had no case without the accuser’s testimony.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In eastern
Afghanistan a NATO service member was killed by a bomb. Another died
following an insurgent attack in the east.
   (AP, 11/8/10)(AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Argentina 1976
coup leader Emilio Eduardo Massera (85) died after suffering for
years from a heart condition and dementia that left him too ill to
be tried for crimes against humanity.
   (AP, 11/8/10)(Econ, 11/27/10, p.98)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Australia’s PM
Julia Gillard said the government plans to hold a referendum within
three years on whether to amend its constitution to acknowledge the
Aborigines as the first Australians.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Qantas extended the
grounding of its Airbus A380 superjumbos for at least three more
days after finding oil leaks in some engines, heightening safety
fears after two mid-air blow-outs last week.
   (AFP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Britain’s PM David
Cameron departed for a 2-day trip to China. He brought along 4
cabinet ministers and 50 businessmen. Cameron hoped to double trade
with China over the next five years.
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.65)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Five Church of
England bishops announced they are converting to Catholicism
following an invitation to disaffected Anglicans from Pope Benedict
XVI, the highest-profile defectors among conservatives opposed to
gay bishops and female clergy.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Chile two mine
workers, 24 and 40 years old, were killed at the Los Reyes mine on
their first day on the job. The National Geology and Mining Service
said the mine was illegal and unregistered.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In south-central
Congo at least 42 people were killed when a truck overturned on the
country's poorly maintained roads. 16 children were among the dead
from the crash in Kasai-Oriental province.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Germany a
shipment of nuclear waste arrived at a railway depot in Dannenberg
after a nearly three-day trip from France that was regularly
disrupted by protests. The waste was set to be loaded onto trucks
for the final 12-mile (20-km) leg of the trip to a storage site at
Gorleben.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Haiti health
officials said the cholera epidemic has spread into the capital,
imperiling nearly 3 million people living in Port-au-Prince, nearly
half of them in unsanitary tent camps for the homeless from the Jan.
12 earthquake. The outbreak had already killed at least 544 people.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In India Bodo
militants in Assam state began killing innocent people to avenge the
killing of a suspected rebel. 22 people were killed by the end of
the week.
   (SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Indonesia
frightened residents abandoned their homes in Yogyakarta, a bustling
city of 400,000 at the foot of Mount Merapi, as authorities warned
the volcano could erupt again at any time. 153 people have been
killed in the last two weeks.
   (AP, 11/8/10)(AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Iranian Nobel
laureate Shirin Ebadi said that opposition to the Iranian government
is growing, spurred by an increase in government violence, more
human rights violations and deepening poverty. Ebadi has lived
outside her homeland since a day before last year's disputed
presidential elections.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Iraq leaders of
all the main political blocs met for the first time since March
elections in a new push to break the eight-month deadlock over
forming a new government. Car bombs struck Karbala and Najaf killing
14 people.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Israel said it is
moving ahead with plans to build 1,300 new apartments in disputed
east Jerusalem. The new $11 million performing arts center opened in
Ariel, an Israeli enclave of 19,000 people. In August, more than 60
Israeli actors and playwrights signed a letter saying they would not
perform in the new cultural center.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Mexican police
arrested Manuel "The Sow" Fernandez Valencia, a reputed Sinaloa
cartel associate. He was suspected of plotting with cartel capo
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, one of Mexico's most wanted drug lords,
to smuggle eight tons of marijuana into the US by the end of this
year. Gregorio Barradas Mirabete, the mayor of Juan Rodriguez Clara,
a small town in southern Veracruz state, was kidnapped and killed,
along with two others.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Myanmar fighting
between ethnic rebels and government troops has sent at least 10,000
refugees fleeing into Thailand just after a widely criticized
election expected to usher in a parliament sympathetic to the
military regime. Thai officials said that fighting had died down,
and government troops had regained control of Myawaddy.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Nigeria an oil
rig in the volatile Delta region was attacked and 7 crew members
were taken hostage. A security source said the crew included 2
Americans, 2 French, 2 Indonesians and a Canadian.
   (AFP, 11/8/10)(AFP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Pakistan a local
court in Nankana district, Punjab province, sentenced to death Asia
Bibi (45), a farmworker and Christian mother of five, for blasphemy.
In 2014 the Lahore High Court of appeals upheld the death sentence.
   (AFP, 11/11/10)(SFC, 10/17/14, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Russia Anatoly
Adamchuk, a journalist who works for a suburban Moscow paper, was
beaten up by two unknown men. He had written about efforts to
protect forests around Moscow.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Slovakia Ernest
Valko (57), the former chief judge of Czechoslovakia's
Constitutional Court, was shot to death in his home in Limbach. As a
lawyer, he represented the Slovak government and served as a legal
adviser for the National Property Fund, an institution in charge
state property privatization.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Three gunmen from
Somalia crossed the Kenyan border and killed a community organizer
working with Somali refugees.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Turkey’s Pres.
Abdullah Gul received this year’s Chatham House prize from Britain’s
queen.
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.60)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Uruguay Gen.
Miguel Dalmao was convicted of murder and sent to prison, becoming
the first active member of Uruguay's military to be jailed for human
rights violations committed during the country's 1973-85
dictatorship. Also imprisoned was Col. Jose Chialanza, who like
Dalmao was convicted of "especially aggravated homicide" in the 1974
death of Nibia Sabalsagaray. Sabalsagaray was found hanged in her
cell shortly after being captured.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, In Western Sahara a
paramilitary gendarme and a fireman were killed and almost 70 people
badly injured when Moroccan forces raided a camp outside Laayoune. A
Moroccan raid to clear a refugee camp in the Western Sahara left at
least 12 refugees dead and more than 700 wounded, while another 159
are missing. Moroccan authorities announced 11 deaths on their side
after the clash.
   (AFP, 11/8/10)(AFP, 11/9/10)(AFP, 11/11/10)(AFP,
11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 8, Anwar al-Awlaki, a
US-born radical Yemeni cleric linked to previous attacks on the US,
called for Muslims around world to kill Americans in a new video
message posted on radical websites.
   (AP, 11/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, President Barack
Obama arrived in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.
He voiced support for Pres. Yudhoyono's efforts to nurture a rapidly
growing society even in a time when Indonesia has been hit by
earthquakes, a tsunami, and now a volcanic eruption. He also
expressed deep concern that Israelis and Palestinians aren't making
the "extra effort" to secure a breakthrough for achieving Middle
East peace.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Chevron Corp. said
it will buy Atlas Energy for $4.3 billion giving it a big stake in
natural gas from underground shale formations.
   (SFC, 11/10/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, The $60 Activision
Blizzard video game “Call of Duty: Black Ops” was released. It raked
in a record $360 million in the first 24 hours of sales and $650
million in the first 5 days.
   (SFC, 11/12/10, p.D3)(Econ, 12/10/11, SR p.3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Afghan security
forces arrested a member of the deadly Haqqani network and three
other associates after ordering the plane flying him to Saudi Arabia
to return to the capital. A NATO service member was killed in a bomb
attack in the south. In the eastern province of Paktia, militants
killed the chief of Shewak district by blowing up his car with a
roadside bomb. NATO announced the capture of a senior Taliban leader
responsible for attacks in the Dand and Panjwai districts of
Kandahar province, as well as another Taliban member linked to
multiple bombings in the provincial capital. In Zabul province
Afghan and coalition forces captured a Taliban insurgent responsible
for moving weapons and coordinating attacks in the Shahjoy district.
4 policemen were killed in an ambush as they were driving through
Imam Sahib district along the border with Tajikistan. A NATO service
member was killed by a bomb blast in the south.
   (AP, 11/9/10)(AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Bangladesh said it
would cap the annual interest rate for microfinance institutions at
27%.
   (Econ, 11/20/10, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Brazilian President
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva began a 2-day visit to Mozambique,
focusing on education and health care in his last trip to Africa
before leaving office.
   (AFP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, In Brazil
authorities negotiated an end to a rebellion in an overcrowded
prison in the northeastern state of Maranhao after fighting between
rival gangs left 18 inmates dead, including six who were
decapitated.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Londoners Tom
Freeman (26) and Katherine Doyle (26), after having their
application to form a civil partnership rejected by officials at
their local town hall in Islington, north London, said they will go
to court to win the right. They were being backed by gay rights
activists, who hope a ruling that allows straight couples the right
to a civil partnership would mean, in turn, that gay couples have
the right to wed.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, China signaled its
intention to drain excess cash from its financial system by
unexpectedly raising the yield on bills at a central bank auction
and announcing new rules to curb hot money inflows.
   (Reuters, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, The WHO said a
polio outbreak in the Congo Republic affected 201 people and caused
104 deaths in the last two weeks. The government in Brazzaville has
declared an emergency and announced plans to vaccinate the entire
population.
   (SFC, 11/10/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Ethiopia's Ogaden
rebels said they had killed more than 200 soldiers in a string of
successful military operations since the beginning of October, a
claim promptly ridiculed by the government.
   (AFP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, France's
constitutional watchdog ruled that the bill raising the minimum
retirement age to 62 is perfectly legal, marking a political victory
for Pres. Sarkozy.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, French detained 5
people (ages 25-30) suspected of a role in a network that allegedly
sends French citizens to the tribal zone bordering Pakistan and
Afghanistan to train for war. 2 of the five were detained at Charles
de Gaulle airport, north of Paris, on their return from Egypt on Nov
8. Three others were picked up in Paris today. A woman was soon
released. On Nov 13 four men were charged with "criminal association
linked to a terrorist enterprise."
   (AP, 11/9/10)(AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, France's highest
court authorized a probe into the assets of three African heads of
state, after two rights groups' alleged that the leaders laundered
money through French villas, cars and bank accounts. The probe will
target Gabon's late leader Omar Bongo, the Republic of Congo's
President Denis Sassou-Nguesso and President Teodoro Obiang of
Equatorial Guinea.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, India’s ruling
Congress party sacked 2 officials, Suresh Kalmadi and Ashoka Chavan,
over graft relating to the Commonwealth Games.
   (Econ, 11/27/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Ireland's human
rights watchdog appealed to the government to investigate the abuse
of women and girls in prison-style Catholic laundries, an issue left
unresolved by state probes into scandals inside other church-run
institutions. The so-called Magdalene Laundries, a network of 10
workhouses, operated in independent Ireland from the 1920s to the
mid-1990s.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Jordanians lined up
to cast ballots for a new parliament in a vote that was dominated by
anger at Israel over stalled peace talks and widespread frustration
over an economic crisis. Loyalists of King Abdullah II won a
majority of seats in the next parliament. The Islamist opposition
boycotted the elections in protest of electoral laws they said were
unfair. Votes in the capital carried only a quarter of the weight as
ones cast in the hinterlands.
   (AP, 11/9/10)(AP, 11/10/10)(Econ, 11/6/10, p.60)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, A judge in Kenya's
second-highest court said that the country does not have
jurisdiction to try pirates if attacks have taken place outside
Kenya's waters, a decision that could harm US and international
efforts to have pirates tried in East Africa.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, In Mexico members
of the Inter American Press Association concluded a four-day
assembly in Merida and issued a report citing concerns that both
government censorship and organized crime pose threats to
journalists in the region.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, In Mexico a
one-page letter allegedly signed by "La Familia Michoacana" drug
cartel was dropped in the streets of some mountain towns in the
western state of Michoacan. It also showed up as a banner above an
overpass and was sent as an e-mail to reporters. The letter offered
to dissolve the gang if the government promises to protect citizens
in Michoacan.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Mexican bread maker
Grupo Bimbo, the world’s largest bread maker, said it has agreed to
buy Sara Lee Corp.’s North American bakery business for $959 million
to boost sales outside Mexico.
   (SFC, 11/10/10, p.D4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, About 20,000
refugees from Myanmar headed home after fleeing to Thailand as
fighting followed a general election that is certain to keep
Myanmar's military and its allies in power.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Nigerian
authorities announced 23 new arrests announced, bringing the number
of suspected Boko Haram sect members in police custody to 128.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Representatives of
Hamas and the Fatah party of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas
started a meeting in Damascus for reconciliation talks.
   (AFP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, Turkey’s Pres.
Abdullah Gul received this year’s Chatham House prize from Britain’s
queen.
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.60)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, The United Arab
Emirates said it will force Canadians to get a visa to travel to the
Persian Gulf federation as of Jan 2, as ties soured between the
once-close countries. Emirati officials have ratcheted up the
pressure on Ottawa after failing to secure additional landing rights
for their growing government-backed airlines.
   (AP, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 9, A UN report
suggesting North Korea may have supplied Syria, Iran and Myanmar
with banned nuclear technology headed to the Security Council. The
latest report by the so-called Panel of Experts on Pyongyang's
compliance with UN sanctions was delivered to the Security Council's
North Korea sanctions committee in May, but did not move for nearly
six months due to Chinese objections.
   (Reuters, 11/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Miranda Lambert
won three CMA awards, including the coveted album of the year,
celebrating her 27th birthday by leading a sea change in country
music that also included two wins for her fiance, Blake Shelton, and
entertainer of the year for long-suffering Brad Paisley.
   (AP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Leaders of Pres.
Obama’s deficit commission proposed an ambitious plan to rebalance
the federal budget. The plan to slash $4 trillion in red ink
included slashing spending on most federal programs, curbing
increases in Social Security benefits, and wiping out over $100
billion in tax breaks.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A8)(SFC, 11/12/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, President Barack
Obama arrived in South Korea for the G20 summit. He said a strong,
job-creating economy in the United States would be the country's
most important contribution to a global recovery as he pleaded with
world leaders to work together despite sharp differences.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, US investigators
said authorities have dismantled a major cell of a human smuggling
ring that may be responsible for the transportation of thousands of
illegal immigrants from the US-Mexico border to Phoenix and other
parts of the country. 9 people were arrested after a yearlong
investigation and 62 vans were seized from the group. The group was
led by a Mexican man named as Mark Rodriguez-Banks (29), aka Ricardo
Morales-Mejia.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, California’s
Legislative Analyst’s Office said the state faces a $25.4 billion
budget deficit over the next 20 months.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Oakland, Ca., city
Councilwoman Jean Quan was declared the winner of the mayoral
election because she had more second and third place votes than
front runner Don Perata.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, California State
Univ. trustees raised tuition by an expected 15.5% as students
staged a sarcasm-laden carnival outside CSU headquarters in Long
Beach. Tuition has increased from $1,428 in 2001 to $4,884 for the
2011-12 school year.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.C3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, A NASA study said
it would cost at least $6.5 billion to launch and run a replacement
for the Hubble Space Telescope.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Hewlett-Packard
agreed to pay $16.25 million to settle allegations that it showered
public school officials in Dallas with gifts to win contracts funded
by the government’s E-rate program.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Howard, Ohio,
Tina Herrmann (32) and her 2 children went missing along with friend
Stephanie Sprang (41). Sarah Maynard (13) was found alive on Nov 14
in the Mount Vernon basement of the home of Mathew Hoffman (30), an
unemployed tree trimmer. The bodies of Tina, Sprang and Kody Maynard
were found on Nov 18 in a hollow tree central Ohio. On Jan 6, 2011,
Hoffman admitted killing the 3 people and raping a 13-year-old girl.
He was sentenced to life in prison.
   (SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A14)(SFC, 11/19/10,
p.A11)(SFC, 1/7/11, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Dino De Laurentiis
(91), Italian film producer, died at his home in Beverly Hills. Over
6 decades he produced over 500 films including the Oscar winning
“Serpico” (1973).
   (SFC, 11/12/10, p.C7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Afghanistan a
suicide car bomber blew himself up at a bazaar in Khost province in
the country's east, killing a policeman and an Afghan soldier. A
NATO service member was killed in an insurgent attack in the south.
Another coalition service member died in fighting in the east. At
least one de-miner was killed and another was wounded in Chaparhar
district of Nangarhar province when the de-mining team's vehicle hit
a roadside bomb. Attacks across the country left 10 dead altogether.
   (AP, 11/10/10)(SFC, 11/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In an extensive
interview with the Die Presse daily, Ambassador Kadri Ecved Tezcan
said Austria was pushing people of Turkish origin to the fringes of
society instead of learning to live with them and benefiting from
their skills.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Bosnia inaugurated
its new three-member presidency, and the leaders of the Bosniak,
Serb and Croat communities remained deadlocked over key issues
regarding the nation's future.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Some 52,000 people
marched noisily through London to oppose plans to triple university
tuition fees, in the largest street protest yet against the
government's sweeping austerity measures.
   (AP, 11/10/10)(SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Cameroon 2
buses collided head-on in remote Ngoa village, killing at least 14
people in a ghastly nighttime crash.
   (AP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Canada alleged
Mafia patriarch Nicolo Rizzuto (b.1924) was gunned down at his home
in Montreal.
   (SFC, 11/12/10,
p.A2)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolo_Rizzuto)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In China a Beijing
court imposed a 2½ year sentence on Zhao Lianhai, for inciting
public disorder by setting up a web site to help parents with sick
children share information and seek compensation. Lianhai became an
activist after his son suffered from kidney problems linked to
contaminated baby formula.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Human rights
groups said they have filed a complaint with the EU accusing the
Czech government of failing to comply with a court order that it
stop placing thousands of healthy Roma children in schools for the
mentally disabled.
   (SFC, 11/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In El Salvador a
fire tore through a prison north of the capital. The death toll soon
rose to 19 following the deaths of some of the injured.
   (AP, 11/10/10)(AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Indonesia's Mount
Merapi volcano spewed clouds of ash high into the sky, forcing some
international airlines to again cancel flights and President Barack
Obama to cut short his visit.
   (AP, 11/10/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Iraq's fractious
politicians agreed to return Shi'ite Nuri al-Maliki as prime
minister, ending an eight-month deadlock that raised fears of
renewed sectarian war. The deal will see Kurd Jalal Talabani retain
the presidency and give Iyad Allawi's bloc the speaker post in
parliament and other Iraqiya members cabinet jobs, such as foreign
minister. Allawi himself will head a council of strategic policies.
   (Reuters, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Iraq a
coordinated series of at least 11 roadside bombs blew up in
predominantly Christian neighborhoods of Baghdad, killing 6 people
and sowing panic among the minority, many of whom now want to flee.
2 mortar rounds also struck Christian enclaves of the predominantly
Sunni neighborhood of Dora in south Baghdad. An estimated 800,000
Christians lived in Iraq before the 2003 invasion but that number
has since shrunk to around 500,000.
   (AFP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Ireland's
financial troubles loomed large as investors, betting that the
country soon could join Greece in seeking a bailout from the
European Union, drove the interest rate on the country's 10-year
borrowing to a new high.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Israeli forces
arrested senior Hamas MP Mahmud al-Ramahi at his home in the West
Bank city of Ramallah overnight. Omar Abdul Razek, a senior Hamas
official in the West Bank, said Ramahi's arrest appeared to be an
attempt by Israel to undermine the reconciliation talks between
Hamas and the Fatah party that had just begun in Damascus.
   (AFP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Kashmir
suspected Islamist rebels fatally shot two Indian paramilitary
soldiers guarding a busy marketplace in Pattan town in India's
portion of Kashmir.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Kyrgyzstan a
new and more powerful parliament convened for the first time, an
important step in the former Soviet nation's rough path toward
democratic reform. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe (OSCE) said Kyrgyzstan should build on the new constitution’s
provision of media freedoms and decriminalize defamation and libel.
   (AP, 11/10/10)(http://tinyurl.com/3kxgjal)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Malaysia "Dalam
Botol" (In A Bottle), a Malay-language film, earned applause from
movie bloggers invited to its first public screening, three months
before its scheduled nationwide release. It is about a man who gets
a sex change operation because he thought it would satisfy his male
lover, but ends up regretting it. Censors now say depictions of
homosexuality are no longer barred, as long as being gay isn't
condoned.
   (AP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Mexico gunmen
attacked the office of El Sur newspaper in the resort city of
Acapulco, spraying the building with bullets but causing no
injuries.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Nigerian trade
unions called off a strike protesting the minimum wage across the
oil-rich nation, one day into the planned 3-day action. They said
Pres. Goodluck Jonathan made promises to raise the wage. The current
minimum monthly wage was 7,500 naira, or $50.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Pakistan increased
income tax on the relatively well off to raise hundreds of millions
of dollars for the victims of the country's devastating floods.
   (AFP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, In Russia Mikhail
Beketov, a muckraking reporter left handicapped by a 2008 beating,
was convicted of defaming an official he criticized when writing
about highway corruption and the destruction of the Khimki forest
near Moscow. A symbolic fine was ordered.
   (AP, 11/10/10)(Econ, 11/13/10, p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, A South Korean
navy ship was sinking late Wednesday after colliding with a larger
fishing boat off the southern coast. 28 navy sailors were rescued
but two were still missing.
   (AP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 10, Zimbabwe's high
court referred the case of five of six diamond executives charged
with fraud to the Supreme Court while ordering the release of the
sixth.
   (AFP, 11/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Yale, Michigan,
two men, dressed in Halloween masks, climbed through a window into a
home around midnight and attacked a couple as they slept in
their bed. Paul Skinner (47) managed to chase the suspects out of
the home before collapsing from multiple knife wounds. His wife Mara
Skinner (44) suffered more than 20 stab wounds and a punctured lung.
On Nov 14 police arrested Tia Marie-Mitchell Skinner (17), her
18-year-old boyfriend Jonathan Kurtz and James Preston (18). They
were charged with murder, attempted murder and conspiracy.
  Â
(http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8140762)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, The Afghan
election commission said that it had opened an investigation into
allegations that a top government official pressured an election
worker to rig the results of the parliamentary ballot in western
Afghanistan. At least 15 insurgents were killed by in a fierce round
of fighting in Helmand province. 2 Taliban bomb makers were captured
in an area of Kandahar province near the Pakistan border.
   (AP, 11/11/10)(AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, International and
Brazilian human rights organizations submitted a formal petition to
the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), denouncing
grave and imminent violations upon the rights of indigenous and
riverine communities affected by the construction of Belo Monte Dam
on the Xingu River in the Brazilian Amazon.
  Â
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20101111/pl_usnw/DC99718)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, The British
government unveiled plans to stop handouts for up to three years to
jobless who refuse work, in the biggest shake-up in the history of
the welfare state, a day after violent protests rocked London.
   (AFP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Britain an
18th-century Chinese porcelain vase, sold by a family clearing out a
deceased relative's house in a suburb of London, went to a Chinese
buyer for 51.6 million pounds ($83 million), more than 40 times the
pre-sale estimate and a record for a Chinese work of art. The price
included 20% in fees.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, China said it has
toughened rare earth export rules to allow only producers that meet
environmental protection laws and international standards to ship
the precious elements out of the country.
   (AFP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Dagestan
shootouts across the capital of Makhachkala killed at least six
policemen and four suspected militants.
   (AP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Egypt Muslim
Brotherhood lawyer Abdel Moneim Abdel Maqsud said 31 of the group's
members were detained in the port city of Ismailia over the last 24
hours, including the three candidates for the district.
   (AFP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, An EU indictment
revealed that at least 9 people, including former Kosovo senior
health ministry official Ilir Rrecaj, were suspected of involvement
in an international network that falsely promised poor people
payment for their kidneys and then sold the organs for as much as
euro100,000 ($137,000). Five Kosovo nationals, Turkish doctor Yusuf
Sonmez and Moshe Harel, an Israeli citizen, were listed as wanted by
Interpol.
   (AP, 11/12/10)(SFC, 11/13/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Iraq Shi'ite
Nuri al-Maliki was re-nominated as prime minister. Lawmakers from
the Sunni-backed Iraqiya alliance of former PM Iyad Allawi walked
out of the parliamentary session. Parliament met for only the 2nd
time since the inconclusive March 7 election, electing Jalal
Talabani, a Kurd, as president and Iraqiya lawmaker Osama
al-Nujaifi, a Sunni, as speaker.
   (Reuters, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, Israeli police and
stone-throwing youths clashed for a third day running in the Arab
neighborhood of Issawiya in occupied east Jerusalem.
   (AFP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, Israel's
government told its citizens to immediately leave Egypt's Sinai
desert because of a kidnapping threat from the Army of Islam. A day
later Egyptian security officials said they had and confiscated
explosives this week and arrested 20-25 members of a cell planning
to attack Israelis and international forces in Sinai.
   (AFP, 11/11/10)(AFP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Madagascar
police detained three politicians who have called for boycotting a
constitutional referendum scheduled next week.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Nicaragua Jason
Puracal, a former American Peace Corp worker, was working in his San
Juan del Sur real estate office when National Police agents burst in
without a warrant. On Aug 29, 2011, Judge Kriguer Alberto Artola
Narvaez ruled that Puracal was guilty of money laundering, and said
in a sentencing document that the American's bank accounts had
registered deposits and withdrawals of large sums of money. His case
was on appeal.
   (AP, 9/6/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, A Nigerian
government report identified Iranians Azimi Agajany and Sayed Akbar
Tahmaesebi as the men who organized a shipment of arms through a
Tehran-based company called International Trading and General
Construction. The arms containers sat at Lagos' busy Apapa port from
July until Oct. 26, when Nigerian security agents carried out a raid
and discovered the weapons inside.
   (AP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Pakistan a
massive explosion ripped through a security compound on a busy
commercial street in Karachi, killing at least 20 people and
injuring more than 100.
   (Reuters, 11/11/10)(SFC, 11/12/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, A Russian paper
said the head of Russia's deep cover US spying operations betrayed
the network and defected, potentially giving the West one of its
biggest intelligence coups since the end of the Cold War. Kommersant
named the man as Col. Shcherbakov and said he had left Russia days
before US authorities announced the spy ring arrests on June 28.
   (Reuters, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Serbia a law
restricting smoking went into effect. Cafes and restaurants were
required to provide nonsmoking areas. Smoking was banned in offices
and public areas.
   (SFC, 11/12/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, Somali pirates
overran the Panamanian-flagged MV Hannibal II, a chemical tanker,
capturing the vessel and 31 crew members. The hijacking took place
nearly 900 nautical miles east of the Horn of Africa, which is
closer to India than Somalia. In December one crew member was
evacuated for possible appendicitis. The Hannibal II and 30 crew
members were released in March 2011.
   (AP, 11/11/10)(AP, 3/17/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, A 2-day G20
economic summit opened in Seoul, South Korea, with President Barack
Obama and fellow world leaders sharply divided over currency and
trade policies. They hoped to address 3 major concerns: a) the
dominance of the dollar as a reserve currency and America’s
management of it; b) the problem of vast foreign exchange reserves,
particularly in emerging countries; c) The scale and volatility of
capital flows.
   (AP, 11/11/10)(Econ, 11/6/10, p.85)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, A woman (41) made
her way to South Korea from North Korea becoming the 20,000th
defector to do so. The last 10,000 came over the last 3 years.
   (Econ, 11/20/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, In Sudan a Tarco
Airline Russian-built Antonov 26 carrying 36-38 people crashed on
landing in the western Darfur region killing at least 6 and wounding
four others.
   (AP, 11/11/10)(AFP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, The WHO said a
rare parasitic disease has killed 260 people in southern Sudan in
the past year, a figure that is threatening to double in the coming
months. Kala azar, or visceral leishmaniasis, is a rare tropical
disease contracted by the bite of a sand fly.
   (AFP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 11, Taiwan's Supreme
Court cut ex-leader Chen Shui-bian's prison sentence for corruption
in a land deal to 11 years, in its first ruling on the island's most
high-profile graft scandal.
   (AFP, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, The US Supreme
Court allowed the Pentagon to continue preventing openly gay people
from serving in the military while a federal appeals court reviews
the "don't ask, don't tell" policy.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, The California
state Dept. of Education reported 50.4% of the state’s public
schools students identified themselves as Latino. 27% identified
themselves as white, 9% as Asian and 7% as black.
   (SFC, 11/13/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, In Afghanistan a
suicide car bomber targeted foreign forces in Kabul but the device
detonated early, slightly injuring an Afghan soldier and a NATO
service member. An ISAF soldier died after an attack by militant
fighters in the east of the country. 15 militants were detained
during three overnight operations targeting Taliban leaders across
Afghanistan.
   (AFP, 11/12/10)(AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, British detectives
investigating the 2009 theft of nearly 300 brightly colored stuffed
birds from the Natural History Museum in Tring arrested Edwin Rist
(22), a US citizen.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, Canada and India
launched talks on a free trade deal they said could boost gross
domestic product in each nation by C$6 billion ($5.9 billion) a year
and increase existing trade flows by 50 percent.
   (Reuters, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, The UN asked for
$164 million to fight the cholera outbreak in Haiti, as the death
toll reached 724 with 10 of the deaths and 278 cases in the capital
Port-au-Prince.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, Italy's opposition
presented a no-confidence motion against Premier Silvio Berlusconi,
setting the stage for a showdown in parliament that could spell the
end of the government.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, A Lebanese
military court convicted Omar Bakri Mohammed, a radical Muslim
cleric, of terrorism charges and sentenced him in absentia to life
in prison. Bakri was among 54 people sentenced as part of ongoing
trials of militants who fought deadly clashes with the Lebanese army
in 2007. Bakri lived in Britain for 20 years where he headed the
now-disbanded radical Islamist group al-Muhajiroun. He left Britain
for Lebanon in 2005 and the British government barred him from
returning.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, Morelos state
prosecutor said soldiers are hunting a 12-year-old suspected drug
gang hitman accused of helping wage a gruesome turf war in central
Mexico. 2 housewives this week took over the running of the police
near Ciudad Juarez in Chihuahua state, after no one else applied for
the dangerous job. Olga Herrera (43), a mother of five, was
appointed police chief in the town of Villa Luz, while Veronica Rios
will be in charge of the police department in the town of El Vergel,
both just south of Ciudad Juarez.
   (Reuters, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, An ally of
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi said an order for her release
has been signed by Myanmar's ruling generals, as hundreds of
supporters gathered at her political party headquarters and near her
residence in anticipation.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, Philippine
President Benigno Aquino III lashed out at the US and five other
Western allies for issuing what he said were unverified warnings of
a possible terrorist attack in the Southeast Asian nation at a time
when it is trying to bolster its lackluster tourism industry.
   (AP, 11/12/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, Henryk Mikolaj
Gorecki (76), Polish classical composer, died following a serious
illness in Katowice. Gorecki was best known for his Symphony 3
"Sorrowful Songs," which was published in the US in 1994 and became
a best-seller, with more than one million copies sold.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, In South Korea
leaders of the G20 major economies refused to back a US push to make
China boost its currency's value, keeping alive a dispute that
raises fears of a global trade war amid criticism that cheap Chinese
exports are costing American jobs.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, A South Korean spy
plane crashed during routine training and its two pilots were killed
in the 2nd military accident to strike South Korea while it hosted
the G20 summit.
   (AP, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, North Sudan's
military bombed a disputed north-south border area, but a Southern
Sudan army spokesman said the bombing was not a provocation.
Casualties were said to be in the single digits.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 12, After weeks of
delays due to Chinese objections, the UN Security Council received a
report on violations of the arms embargo in Sudan's western Darfur
region that infuriated Beijing. The confidential report said
Khartoum committed multiple breaches of the embargo and China has
done little to ensure its weaponry is not used in Darfur.
   (Reuters, 11/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, US President
Barack Obama used a Pacific Rim summit to press China on its flood
of exports aided by a cheap yuan, but President Hu Jintao said
Beijing would make reforms at its own pace.
   (AFP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Texas Manny
Pacquiao, boxer and Filipino congressman, cemented his claim to
being the best fighter in the world by dominating the bigger but
slower Antonio Margarito of Mexico. Pacquiao earned a guaranteed $15
million.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In California a
gold Honda Accord tried to pass a group of motorcycles and caused a
Dodge car to lose control on two-lane Route 98, a desert highway
near Ocotillo, triggering a crash that killed five people and
injured six others. Authorities were looking for the driver of the
Accord. The driver of the dodge was arrested on suspicion of driving
under the influence.
   (AP, 11/14/10)(SFC, 11/15/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Erie, Pa., an
apparent suicide-murder by a father (29) left the mother and 2
daughters dead.
   (SSFC, 11/14/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In eastern
Afghanistan a group of would-be suicide bombers tried to storm a
major NATO base on the edge of Jalalabad city, but were repelled
before they could enter. Six insurgents were killed, including two
who were wearing bomb-laden suicide vests. Insurgents in the same
area set fire to a NATO fuel convoy. The truck drivers quickly fled
and the insurgents set 12 tankers ablaze A bomb hidden in a
motorbike also exploded on a busy street in the Imam Sahib district
of the northern province of Kunduz, killing 10 people. Insurgents
killed 3 coalition service members in an attack in the south.
   (AP, 11/13/10)(AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Afghan diplomat
Abdul Khaliq Farahi was freed in eastern Afghanistan in a joint
effort by officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan and returned to
Kabul. He was seized by gunmen on Sep 22, 2008, in the Pakistani
city of Peshawar.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Bangladesh at
least three people were killed and five, including a lawmaker of the
ruling party, injured in a suicide bomb attack near Khustia. Police
in Dhaka swung batons to disperse hundreds of activists protesting a
government bid to evict opposition leader Khaleda Zia from the
military-owned house she has lived in for nearly 30 years.
   (Reuters, 11/13/10)(AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Belize a small
plane made a bold midnight landing on a highway to drop off cocaine.
Authorities seized 2 tons of cocaine and also detained five officers
thought to have cordoned off a section of the road so the
twin-engine Beechcraft could land. Authorities found 80 bales of
cocaine in a village near the highway.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Costa Rica boasted
of a "diplomatic victory" in its border spat with Nicaragua after
the Organization of American States approved a resolution calling
for removal of soldiers and security forces from a disputed area
along the San Juan River.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Cuba the first
of 13 remaining Cuban dissidents jailed since 2003 was released from
prison and returned to his home in the capital, a strong signal the
government intends to release all of the men despite their refusal
to go into exile.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Germany a fire
at the Karlsruhe zoo killed 26 animals including Shetland ponies,
goats, sheep and a llama.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Iranian
authorities detained lawyers Maryam Kianersi, Maryam Karbasi and
Sara Sabaghian on their return home from Turkey. All three are women
and were among signatories of an open letter in September that
called for the release of prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin
Sotoudeh. Two other lawyers related to the three were also detained.
Kianersi and Rosa Gharachorlu were released on Nov 19.
   (AP, 11/14/10)(Reuters, 11/14/10)(AP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Iraq the
Sunni-backed Iraqiya political bloc said it will join efforts to
produce a national unity government, backing away from a threat to
boycott parliament. Lawmakers approved an agreement to bring all of
Iraq's feuding political blocs into a new government.
   (AP, 11/13/10)(AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Japan thousands
of demonstrators waving Japanese flags and shouting anti-China
slogans marched against Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit for an
economic summit that comes as a territorial dispute strains ties
between the Asian giants.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Japan's PM Naoto
Kan strongly protested Russian Pres. Medvedev's Nov 1 visit to the
disputed island of Kunashiri and said in a meeting on the sidelines
of a Pacific Rim leaders' conference that the two nations must build
mutual trust. Pres. Obama attended the 2-day APEC summit in
Yokohama.
   (AP, 11/13/10)(Econ, 11/13/10, p.48)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Myanmar's military
government freed its archrival, democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi
(65), after her latest term of detention expired. Several thousand
jubilant supporters streamed to her residence.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, A Nigerian soldier
was killed and another wounded in a suspected attack by a radical
Muslim sect in northeastern Borno state. The assailants fired a
Kalashnikov rifle at the soldiers from a motorbike. Gunmen burst
into a burial vigil outside the oil city of Port Harcourt, firing
shots and kidnapping 4 people.
   (AP, 11/14/10)(AFP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Pakistan a
suspected US missile strike hit a Taliban stronghold in North
Waziristan, killing five alleged militants as they traveled in a
vehicle. At least three of the dead were believed to be foreigners.
Thousands of people protesting the killing of a tribal elder by
unknown gunmen in Chaman district of southwest Pakistan attacked a
NATO supply convoy, setting four oil tankers on fire. Security
forces killed six militants in clashes in the Swat Valley after
militants attacked a security checkpoint near Shakar Dara.
   (AP, 11/13/10)(AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In South Africa
Anni Dewani (28), a British tourist, was found dead after being
abducted by armed men in Cape Town just days after she and her new
British husband, Shrien Dewani, arrived for a holiday. By Nov 18 two
suspects, both 26, were arrested. A 3rd suspect (31) was arrested on
Nov 20. On Dec 7 a court heard allegations that her husband had
connived with a taxi driver to stage a robbery and have his wife
shot dead.
   (AFP, 11/14/10)(AP, 11/18/10)(AP, 11/21/10)(AFP,
12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Spain thousands
of people demonstrated in Madrid against Morocco's recent crackdown
that has left at least 10 people dead in the former Spanish colony
of Western Sahara in northwestern Africa.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Western Sahara
a statement from the prosecution services in the territory's main
town of Laayoune said 67 people accused of crimes against the
security forces and destruction of public and private property had
been arrested, seven of whom had been cleared.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Saudi Arabia’s
first metro transit system, officially the Al Mashaaer Al
Muqaddassah Metro, opened in Mecca.
   (Econ, 1/5/13, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, Sudanese Pres.
al-Bashir left Khartoum for the annual hajj in Mecca, despite an
outstanding arrest warrant issued for al-Bashir by the International
Criminal Court for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and
genocide in Darfur.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 13, In Venezuela
thousands of supporters of President Hugo Chavez filled a downtown
Caracas avenue to demonstrate their backing for the socialist
leader's crackdown on allegedly crooked real-estate and construction
companies. Chavez ordered the expropriation of six residential
complexes and "the temporary occupation" of eight gated communities
in Caracas and other cities more than a week ago, arguing that real
estate and construction companies were unjustly boosting prices.
   (AP, 11/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, NY Gov. David
Patterson announced an agreement with Phusion Products to stop
shipments into NY state of Four Loko, a caffeinated alcoholic drink
already banned in 4 states.
   (SFC, 11/15/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Path, a
photo-sharing startup, emerged from stealth mode. It was founded by
former Facebook executive Dave Morin and Napster creator Shawn
Fanning.
   (SFC, 11/16/10, p.D3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Delvonte Tisdale
(16) apparently fell from the sky after stowing away in an
airplane’s wheel well at the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport
in Charlotte, NC. His mutilated body was found in a Boston suburb.
   (SFC, 12/11/10, p.A4)(http://tinyurl.com/2dmblgm)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Afghanistan a
series of bomb blasts and insurgents attacks killed 11 people across
the country, including five NATO service members and three Afghan
police taking part in Operation Bulldog Bite in Kunar province. A
total of 7 ISAF troops were killed today.
   (AP, 11/14/10)(Reuters, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Bangladesh police
fired tear gas and rubber bullets and swung batons to break up
demonstrations in Dhaka as the opposition party enforced a
nationwide general strike to protest the eviction of its leader from
a military-owned house.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Brazil a gay
youth, Douglas Igor Marques Luiz (19), was shot by men in military
uniforms in Rio de Janeiro following mammoth gay pride parade. 2
sergeants were arrested on Nov 18. An army statement says one of the
suspects acknowledged shooting Luiz.
   (AP, 11/17/10)(AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In China a court
convicted Cheng Jianping (46) of "disturbing social order" after she
added a few words to a message written by her fiance, Hua Chunhui,
whose Twitter post mocked anti-Japanese protesters. On Nov 16
Amnesty Int’l. urged the government to release Cheng, saying she
could be the first Chinese citizen to become "a prisoner of
conscience on the basis of a single tweet."
   (AFP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In the Central
African Republic soldiers opened fire to disperse angry
demonstrators protesting the death of a youth, wounding at least
three people.
   (AFP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In France an early
morning fire in a building housing immigrant workers in Dijon killed
seven people, including two who jumped from the windows to try to
escape. Some 90 other people were injured, of whom 11 are in
life-threatening condition.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Authorities in
Hong Kong detained the Decretive, a Maltese-flagged container
vessel, over a debt dispute with several European banks. The target
of the dispute is the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines
(IRISL), the guarantor of bank loans which funded the Decretive's
construction in 2008. Loan defaults totaled 268 million US dollars.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Indonesia
rescuers digging through several feet of ash discovered nine more
bodies on the slopes of Mount Merapi, whose explosive eruption a
week ago buried whole villages. Confirmation of more deaths trickled
in and the toll from a series of blasts at the volcano rose to
at least 250.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Iranian officials
reported that Iran’s Entekhab Industrial Group has signed a contract
sealing its acquisition of South Korea's Daewoo Electronics for some
$518 million. Daewoo was set up in the 1960s and became one of the
biggest companies in the world before it disintegrated in financial
disarray in the 1990s. Its shipbuilding and auto units are now
independent companies in their own right.
   (AFP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Israel’s Cabinet
approved a proposal to allow 8,000 Ethiopians of Jewish descent to
move to the Jewish state. The would-be immigrants are the last
recognized members of the Falashmura, a community whose ancestors
converted from Judaism to Christianity about 100 years ago.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Japan and Peru
said they have reached an agreement on a free-trade deal. The
21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group ended their
summit in Japan with pledges to press ahead with moves toward freer
trade, with an eventual goal of a region-wide free trade zone.
   (AFP, 11/14/10)(AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Lebanon radical
Muslim cleric Omar Bakri Mohammed was arrested at his home in
Tripoli two days after a military court sentenced him in absentia to
life in prison in a terrorism trial.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Mexico a
powerful explosion killed five Canadian tourists and two Mexican
workers at the 4-year-old Grand Riviera Princess hotel on the posh
Riviera Maya. A build up of swamp gas under the foundation was first
suspected. Evidence later pointed to a gas line leak.
   (AP, 11/15/10)(SFC, 11/17/10, p.A2)(AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Mexico gunmen
burst into a bar called "Desesperados" in the Mexican border city of
Ciudad Juarez and opened fire, killing five people and wounding nine
others. Assailants also killed the Gerardo Ortiz, the Chihuahua
state's prisons director, and his son in a second attack in the
area. Police in Acapulco found the bound, bullet-ridden bodies of
five men on the outskirts of the city. In Guerrero state detectives
reported they had found the bodies of two more men buried in a
clandestine gave in a coconut grove where 18 bodies had been
unearthed last week.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In army-ruled
Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi called for freedom of
speech, urged thousands of supporters to stand up for their rights,
and indicated she may urge the West to end sanctions.
   (Reuters, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, A Nigerian army
spokesman said its special joint military force has arrested 449
suspected kidnappers in four oil-producing states in the Niger Delta
in under 7 weeks. Gunmen attacked an offshore facility operated by
Exxon Mobil off the southern coast. 8 people were missing following
the raid that knocked out 45,000 barrels per day of condensate
production.
   (AFP, 11/14/10)(AFP, 11/15/10)(Reuters, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Pakistan a
suicide bomber apparently targeting a militant commander from a
rival faction attacked a vegetable market on the Afghan border,
wounding 9 people.
   (AP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, An estimated 2.5-3
million Muslims began the annual hajj pilgrimage. The total number
of tourists to Mecca and Medina, home to the prophet Muhammad, is
expected to rise from about 12 million to almost 17 million by 2025.
The Saudi Arabia government's commission for tourism and antiquities
said revenue from tourism this year would reach $17.6 billion and
double by 2015.
   (http://tinyurl.com/25zum7p)(AFP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, Sri Lanka
officials said they are probing allegations that one of its
nationals, a housemaid identified as D.M. Chandima employed in
Jordan, was forced to swallow nails, in the third case involving
alleged torture in three months.
   (AFP, 11/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 14, In Zimbabwe a
report in the Standard Newspaper said retired police and war
veterans are being recalled to direct operations during elections.
Reporter Nqodani Ndlovu was arrested on Nov 17 on charges of
criminal defamation. He was granted bail on Nov 26 after his lawyer
went to the High Court to enforce an earlier magistrate’s decision.
   (AP, 11/18/10)(AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, A California
woman, Nima Ali Yusuf (24), was charged with conspiring to provide
money and people to a Somali terrorist group to help carry out
killings in the African nation, according to a federal indictment
unsealed today. She was the fourth person charged in the past month
in San Diego with helping al-Shabab.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, W. Howard Lester
(b.1935), CEO emeritus of Williams-Sonoma Inc., died at his home in
Indian Wells, California. He and a partner had purchased the company
in 1978 and he served as chief executive from 1978 to 2001.
   (SFC, 11/17/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, Afghanistan's
government played down comments by President Hamid Karzai calling on
the US military to scale back its operations and reduce its
"intrusiveness" on everyday life in the country. Taliban leader
Mullah Omar, rumored to be in Pakistan, said in a statement that
reports of peace talks between militants and the Afghan government
were "misleading rumors" and dismissed the coalition surge as
ineffective.
   (AFP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In China a fire
engulfed a Shanghai high-rise building, killing 58 and injuring 70,
as panicked residents fled and thick smoke spread over China's
commercial hub. Police the next day detained 8 welders on suspicion
of accidentally starting the fire. 3 government officials were later
detained for allowing illegal construction activities at the site.
In June, 2011, prosecutors charged 26 people with bribery and other
crimes related to the fire.
   (AP, 11/15/10)(AP, 11/16/10)(SFC, 11/17/10,
p.A3)(SFC, 12/25/10, p.A2)(AP, 6/25/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In Germany a girl
(14) was slain in Bodenfelde. On Nov 19 a boy (13) was slain nearby.
On June 27, 2011, Jan O. (26), whose last name was withheld in
accordance with German privacy laws, was convicted in Goettingen
state court of two counts of murder for the slayings and sentenced
to life in prison. Jan O., dubbed the "cannibal killer," had
confessed to eating the flesh and drinking the blood of one of his
teenage victims.
   (www.thelocal.de/society/20101127-31449.html)(AP,
6/27/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, Guinea’s National
Independent Electoral Commission declared Alpha Conde the winner
with 52.5% of the nearly 2.9 million ballots counted. Security
forces arrested demonstrators and fired tear gas at those burning
tires in the suburbs of Conakry. Over the next three days, security
forces systematically attacked Peul communities, spraying populated
areas with bullets. They burst into homes where they beat, slapped,
stabbed and burned people.
   (AP, 11/15/10)(Reuters, 11/15/10)(AP,
11/16/10)(AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, Haiti's cholera
toll rose above 900, including dozens of deaths in the teeming
capital, as the epidemic showed no sign of abating just two weeks
ahead of presidential elections. Anti-UN riots spread to several
cities and towns, as protesters blaming a contingent of Nepalese
peacekeepers for a deadly outbreak of cholera barricaded roads and
exchanged gunfire with UN soldiers in clashes that lasted late into
the night. Protests in Cap Haitien left at least 2 people dead.
   (AFP, 11/15/10)(AP, 11/16/10)(AFP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, Indian police
arrested two top former officials of the Delhi Commonwealth Games on
charges of corruption. In New Delhi a five-story building pancaked,
killing 67 people and injuring scores.
   (AP, 11/15/10)(AP, 11/16/10)(AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In Indonesia Gayus
Tambunan (31) broke into tears when he admitted in a hearing at the
South Jakarta District Court that yes, he was the wigged man
captured by photographers at the international tennis match on Nov
5. Tambunan, a midlevel tax official with a salary of just $1,300 a
month, was supposed to be in jail. He has been charged with
pocketing at least $2.7 million from dozens of big companies to help
them avoid paying taxes. 9 wardens have been arrested and face
charges of accepting up to $40,000 from the tax official. Tambunan
allegedly left the jail at least 60 times since his detention in
April. On Jan 19, 2011, he was sentenced to seven years behind bars
for corruption.
   (AP, 11/16/10)(AP, 1/19/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, Iran's foreign
minister Manouchehr Mottaki said that the issue of an alleged
Iranian arms shipment intercepted in Nigeria was a
"misunderstanding" that has been settled.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In northern Iraq
the Badoosh prison commander and his body guard were killed when
twin car bombs detonated outside a residential complex housing
prison guards and staff on the outskirts of Mosul. In downtown
Baghdad an Iraqi policeman was killed when a roadside bomb struck a
patrol, while four policemen were wounded when another roadside bomb
detonated in eastern part of the capital. In the town of Qaim on the
Syrian border some 340 km (210 miles) west of Baghdad, two people
were killed and five others wounded by two roadside bombs, including
one in a market. Gunmen in Mosul killed two Christians, in the
latest assault on the country's dwindling Christian community.
   (AFP, 11/15/10)(AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In Italy the
political crisis engulfing Premier Silvio Berlusconi deepened with
four members of the Cabinet quitting their jobs, a move that does
not topple the government but further weakens the leader. Berlusconi
stands accused of having an "uncontrollable sickness" when it comes
to women, and of hosting "bunga-bunga" parties that culminate in
sex.
   (AP, 11/15/10)(http://tinyurl.com/2anggqg)(Econ,
11/6/10, p.63)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In northwest
Pakistan a bomb exploded near the house of a slain anti-Taliban
tribal elder Abdul Malik, killing two people and wounding three
others. His son, Noor Malik, was getting in his car to leave the
residence when the attack occurred, but he was not hurt.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In Palestinian
Gaza Strip Hamas freed 80 prisoners on the eve of the Muslim
festival of Eid al-Adha. Over the past week, Hamas has ordered the
release of 284 prisoners in the run-up the four-day festival.
   (AFP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In Saudi Arabia
nearly 3 million Muslims performing the annual hajj pilgrimage began
making their way up the rocky desert Mount Arafat, chanting that
they have come to answer God's call.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, South Korea's
government the number of North Koreans defecting to South Korea has
surged in recent years because of economic suffering in the North,
with more than 10,000 defections over the past three years.
   (AP, 11/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 15, In South Korea a
15-year-old boy committed suicide after killing his mother in a
fight over Internet games.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, The United States
said it has banned four senior Kenyan government officials and a
prominent Kenyan businessman from traveling to the US because they
are suspected of being involved in drug trafficking.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, US Senators Tom
Coburn, M.D. (R-OK), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), John McCain (R-AZ) and
Mark Udall (D-CO) announced their intention to force the US Senate
to hold a public vote on a binding earmark moratorium at the
earliest opportunity. The moratorium would go into effect
immediately and last through fiscal year 2013.
   (http://tinyurl.com/mz6d6zp)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, US officials
arrested Bruce Beresford-Redman, a former producer of hit TV show
"Survivor," at his home in Los Angeles and held him for extradition
to Mexico where he has been accused of murdering his wife in April.
   (Reuters, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, A US congressional
panel found New York Rep. Charles Rangel (80) guilty of 11
violations of House ethics rules.
   (SFC, 11/17/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, In Mississippi the
Southern Poverty Law Center sued the Walnut Grove Youth Correctional
Facility on behalf of 13 plaintiffs who alleged sexual abuse and
denial of medical treatment.
   (SFC, 11/17/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, Viktor Bout (43),
a suspected Russian arms dealer dubbed the "Merchant of Death," was
flown out of Thailand to face trial in the United States following a
long legal battle and fierce opposition from Moscow.
   (AFP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, Hollywood
publicist Ronni Chasen (64) was shot to death in her car in Beverly
Hills as she drove home after the party. Police later attributed her
murder to a botched robbery by small-time convict Harold Martin
Smith, who killed himself on Dec 1 as detectives attempted to
question him.
   (AP, 12/2/10)(http://tinyurl.com/29scdch)(SFC,
12/9/10, p.A18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, Afghan Pres. Hamid
Karzai urged insurgents to abandon violence and accept offers of
reconciliation from the government, using the Muslim holiday of Eid
al-Adha to issue a plea for peace. In Kunduz province two Afghan men
with government ties were killed by a bomb that had been hidden near
the grave of one of their relatives. A British soldier was killed by
insurgent gunfire in the southern province of Helmand. A homemade
bomb also killed an ISAF service member in southern Afghanistan.
   (AP, 11/16/10)(Reuters, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, It was reported
that Britain has agreed to pay hefty settlements to a group of
former Guantanamo Bay detainees who sued the government for alleged
complicity in their torture, one of the first big pay-outs stemming
from the US-led war on terrorism.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, Chinese Vice
President Xi Jinping began a trip to mineral-rich South Africa aimed
at securing resources for the Asian economic power, looking to
extend its influence in the African continent.
   (Reuters, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, In Egypt a senior
Brotherhood official said Egyptian police have rounded up about 600
Muslim Brotherhood members ahead of this month's parliamentary
election and some 250 are still detained. In southern Egypt Muslims
set fire overnight to at least 10 houses belonging to Coptic
Christians in the village of al-Nawahid over rumors that a Christian
resident had an affair with a Muslim girl. Coptic Christians make up
about 10% of Egypt's population of 80 million.
   (AFP, 11/16/10)(AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, The European Union
issued a stark assessment of the Irish debt crisis, warning that the
future of the 27-nation bloc was at risk as ministers headed for
talks on an increasingly probable rescue.
   (AFP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, In Greece dozens
of far-right activists and local residents in Athens threw eggs and
taunted hundreds of Muslim immigrants as they gathered to pray in a
central square for Eid al-Adha surrounded by a protective cordon of
riot police.
   (Reuters, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, India's national
auditors slammed a former telecommunications minister over a
multi-billion-dollar scandal in which government contracts were
handed out at "unbelievably low prices." The row over the
second-generation (2G) spectrum for mobile phones being sold in 2008
at far below market rates forced Andimuthu Raja to quit on Nov 14.
   (AFP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, Lebanese officials
said Russia will provide the Lebanese army with free helicopters,
tanks and munitions in a deal that will boost the country's poorly
equipped military. This news came just days after two key members of
the U.S. Congress released their holds on $100 million in US
military aid to the Lebanese army.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, In Mexico
Francisco Alberto Ruiz (35), a Colombian billing manager for
Swiss-based oil services company Weatherford International, was
found shot dead at the company's property in Tihuatlan, Veracruz
state.
   (AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, Myanmar's military
government warned against filing complaints over the Nov. 7
election, a move that could spell trouble for pro-democracy leader
Aung San Suu Kyi who has vowed to probe alleged voting
irregularities.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, In Pakistan
suspected American missiles slammed into a home and a speeding
vehicle near the Afghan border, killing 20 alleged militants.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, In Saudi Arabia
pilgrims performing the annual hajj cast pebbles at three stone
walls representing Satan in a symbolic rejection of temptation, as
Muslims around the world celebrated Islam's biggest holiday, the
festival of sacrifice.
   (AP, 11/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 16, The UN Education,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recognized everything
from the growing of corn, beans and chilies to Mexican dishes
prepared with grinding stones and mortars as an ancient process
worth safeguarding in the face of encroaching global influences.
France's multi-course gastronomic meal, Flamenco in Spain and
carpet-weaving in Azerbaijan also made the list.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, US House Democrats
elected Nancy Pelosi to remain as their leader despite massive party
losses in this month's congressional elections.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, A US federal jury
in NYC convicted Ahmed Ghailani, a Guantanamo detainee, of one count
of conspiracy and acquitted him on 280 other counts. He was the
first Gitmo detainee to face a civilian trial.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Alaska election
officials confirmed that Rep. Senator Lisa Murkowski won her US
Senate seat as a write-in candidate.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Some 48 of 1,730
California doctors, who received money from pharmaceutical companies
over the past 21 months, have been the subject of disciplinary
action as reported by ProPublica, an investigative news
organization.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, In San Francisco
some 300 students and UC employees protested at UCSF’s Mission Bay
campus as regents met on day 2 of a 3-day meeting. Expectations of a
6th tuition increase in 4 years triggered the protests. On Nov 18
tuition was raised 8%.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A1)(SFC, 11/19/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Booz Allen
Hamilton, government consulting company, hit Wall Street and raised
$238 million with its initial public offering of stock.
  Â
(http://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2010/11/17/booz-allen-ipo.aspx)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Researchers
reported that the new drug anacetrapib dramatically raises good
cholesterol and reduces bad cholesterol.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A15)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Scientists at CERN
reported that they have stored 38 atoms of the antimatter called
antihydrogen for a tiny fraction of a second. The first antihydrogen
atoms were made 15 years ago at CERN.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, British officers
in Sunningdale, near Ascot, stopped a van after a tip-off, causing
four men inside to try to escape. Police arrested them before
searching the vehicle, when they found a man wrapped in bags in the
back. He had been tortured and soon died.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, China said it will
intervene to control consumer prices if they rise too quickly, a
move that will do little by itself to tame inflation but could
foreshadow harsher monetary tightening. The government
announced food subsidies for poor families as it tries to cool a
double-digit surge in prices that communist leaders worry might stir
unrest.
   (Reuters, 11/17/10)(AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, In eastern Congo
Rwandan Hutu rebels attacked a truck, killing at least three people
and wounding several others. UN-run Radio Okapi earlier reported the
rebels killed 21 people in the attack in the heavily forested
Walikale territory, but a UN spokeswoman said peacekeepers on patrol
in the area confirmed only three dead.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, In Egypt a
security official said a teenage bride (19) has been beaten and
stabbed to death by brothers and an uncle after she married against
the family's wishes. The trio murdered the woman after tracking her
down to the apartment she shared with her husband, a poor farmer, in
Minya province. The men were subsequently arrested.
   (AFP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Germany said it
had strong evidence Islamist militants were planning attacks in the
next two weeks and ordered security at potential targets such as
train stations and airports to be tightened.
   (Reuters, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Guinea's military
declared a state of emergency following violence after a tense
presidential election. Pan-African rights group RADDHO said 10
people have been killed and 215 others injured in violence since the
election results were announced earlier this week.
   (AP, 11/17/10)(Reuters, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Haiti's health
ministry said that 1,100 people have now died from cholera. In
Cap-Haitien anti-UN riots disrupted international efforts to tackle
a spreading cholera epidemic, increasing the risk of infection and
death for tens of thousands of poor Haitians in the north.
   (AFP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Indonesia’s
disaster agency said that the death toll due to Mount Merapi had
risen to 275 and that most of the people were killed by searing gas
clouds. Others died during panicked evacuations or from respiratory
problems and other illnesses linked to the volcano.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Iraq’s Pres. Jalal
Talabani said he would never sign former deputy premier Tareq Aziz's
execution order, stressing it was time to turn the page on Iraq's
history of capital punishment.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Ireland agreed to
work with an EU-IMF mission on urgent steps to shore up its
shattered banking sector.
   (Reuters, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Israel approved
the withdrawal of troops from the northern half of a village that
straddles the border with Lebanon, a step that would end its
four-year presence in the area.
   (AFP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, An Israeli
airstrike killed two senior members of the Army of Islam. An Israeli
statement said the men targeted were "part of a terror cell that
planned to kidnap and kill Israelis" in the Sinai peninsula.
   (AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Italian police
captured Antonio Iovine (46), one of the country’s most wanted
mobsters. He was considered the financial brains behind the Camorra
crime syndicate clans.
   (SFC, 11/18/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Kyrgyzstan put its
deposed president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, on trial in his absence, with
prosecutors seeking a long prison term for Kurmanbek Bakiyev on
charges that he ordered troops to fire on demonstrators, killing 78
people. Bakiyev, in self-imposed exile in Belarus, was being tried
along with 27 other former officials for their alleged involvement
in the deaths during April street protests that led to the fall of
his government.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, In Madagascar Col.
Charles Andrianasoavina, who supported a politician's takeover last
year, claimed that he and other top-ranking officers have taken over
the country. The claim came on a day voters were deciding whether to
accept or reject a new constitution that calls for keeping Pres.
Rajoelina in power indefinitely. The constitutional referendum was
being held in defiance of regional efforts to find a negotiated
solution that would involve Marc Ravalomanana, the president ousted
in 2009, and other leaders. Rajoelina appeared confident of his hold
on power and told reporters the majority of the military was behind
him.
   (AP, 11/17/10)(AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, A gunbattle
between Mexican soldiers and drug cartel gunmen near the border with
Texas killed 11 alleged gang members and prompted the US to
reinforce security at international crossings. In Cancun the owner
of a company that distributes plastic bags was shot to death in a
parking lot near the hotel zone. A mother, father and their adult
son were found dead from gunshot wounds in Majahual, a fishing
village near the border with Belize. A man was shot to death while
leaving his house in the exclusive Tijuana neighborhood of
Chapultepec. 2 other people were wounded in a shootout on one of the
city's main avenues.
   (AP, 11/18/10)(AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, In Namibia a
suspected explosive device was found on a conveyor belt with luggage
on a Germany-bound flight. On Nov 22 a court said that Nehemia
Shafuda, chief inspector of the Namibian police aviation security,
faces charges for smuggling a suspected explosive device, using the
device in an airport and giving false information that interfered
with airport operations.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Nigeria's security
forces rescued 19 foreign and local hostages from militant camps in
the creeks of the Niger Delta oil region.
   (Reuters, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, Saudi Arabia's
King Abdullah stepped down as head of the country's National Guard
and transferred the influential position to his son, in an apparent
sign that the elderly monarch is beginning to lessen some of his
duties.
   (AP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 17, In Somalia
artillery shelling and gunfire between African Union troops and
Islamist insurgents killed at least 21 civilians in Mogadishu.
   (AFP, 11/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, It was reported
that about 39 percent of Americans said marriage was becoming
obsolete. The sentiment followed US census data released in
September that showed marriages hit an all-time low of 52 percent
for adults 18 and over.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, New York Attorney
Gen’l. Andrew Cuomo filed two lawsuits against Steven Rattner,
former head of Pres. Obama’s auto task force, alleging he paid
kickbacks to obtain $150 million from a large state pension fund to
be invested in Quadrangle Group. Rattner agreed to a settlement with
the SEC to pay $6.2 million and accept a 2-year ban on associating
with any investment advisor or broker dealer.
   (SFC, 11/19/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, In southern
California police arrested George Djura Jakubec (54), a Serbian
emigre, after finding large quantities of explosive ingredients,
including PETN, at his home in Escondido. On June 13, 2011, Jakubec
was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
   (SFC, 11/27/10, p.A7)(SFC, 6/14/11, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, General Motors
stock rose sharply as the icon of American manufacturing returned to
life as a publicly traded company. The share price would needs to
rise above $50 for the US government to get all its bailout money
back.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Afghan troops and
the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) wrapped
up the four-day operation in the Pech River valley of volatile Kunar
province. Reports said Operation Bulldog Bite may have killed more
than 40 insurgents.
   (Reuters, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, FIFA, the Int’l.
Football Federation, banned and fined 4 African officials from
involvement in the sport for breaches of trust. They included Amos
Adamu of Nigeria, and 3 others from Botswana, Mali and Tunisia.
Reynald Temarii, president of the Oceania Football Confederation,
was also banned and fined.
   (Econ, 11/27/10,
p.58)(http://tinyurl.com/2dg6gmw)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Australian
officials said they would deport Gabe Watson, an American man
convicted in the 2003 death of his wife on a scuba-diving honeymoon
after US officials pledged not to seek the death penalty if he is
convicted again at home.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Brazil’s federal
police said they have dismantled an international human-trafficking
ring that provided fake passports to Brazilians wanting to migrate
illegally to the US.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, In Germany Samuel
Kunz (89), one of the world's most-wanted Nazi suspects, died near
Bonn. He was under indictment on allegations he was involved in
killing hundreds of thousands of Jews at a concentration camp in
occupied Poland. Kunz was indicted in July on ten counts of murder
and 430,000 counts of accessory to murder on allegations he trained
at the SS Trawniki camp in occupied Poland and was sent from there
to the Belzec death camp as a guard from January 1942 through July
1943.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, India's Supreme
Court issued a sharp and rare rebuke of PM Manmohan Singh, demanding
he explain why the government took a year to investigate a
cell-phone licensing scandal that cost the country billions of
dollars.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Southern Israel
received 2 mortar shells fired from the Gaza Strip. There were no
casualties or damage.
   (AFP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Moroccan dissident
Abraham Serfaty (b.1926), one of a tiny minority of Jews in
predominantly Muslim Morocco, died. He was imprisoned and exiled by
French colonial rulers in 1952 and again by Morocco's independent
government in the 1970s for plotting against the state. The Rabat
government forced him into exile in France in 1991. He returned home
10 years later.
   (Reuters, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Nigeria's drug
enforcement found and seized 286 pounds (130 kg) of high-quality
heroin, destined for Europe, hidden inside a shipment of auto parts
sent from Iran.
   (AP, 11/19/10)(AFP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, The Norwegian
Nobel Committee Russia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Morocco, Iraq and China
have declined to attend the December 10 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony
for jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. 16 more countries had not
replied by the committee's extended deadline. An award spokesman
said the Nobel Peace Prize may not be handed out this year because
no one from imprisoned Liu Xiaobo's family is likely to attend the
ceremony.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, In Saudi Arabia
rain soaked crowds of Muslim pilgrims and lightning flashed as they
performed some of the final rituals of the annual hajj, stoning
symbols of the devil and circling the Kaaba, Islam's holiest site.
   (AP, 11/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 18, Swedish
prosecutors was permission to seek an int’l. arrest warrant for
Julian Assange, the founder of the WikiLeaks, on allegations of rape
and other sexual offenses.
   (SFC, 11/19/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, The opera “Billy
Blythe” opened in Little Rock, Arkansas. It was created by Bonnie
Montgomery and Britt Barber and focused on one day in the life of
teenager and later US Pres. Bill Clinton.
   (Econ, 11/27/10, p.41)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, US President
Barack Obama lifted a ban on US aid and government assistance for
Sudan to allow computers to be exported into the country ahead of a
key referendum.
   (AFP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, Jack Camp (67), a
federal judge in Atlanta, pleaded guilty to two drug related
charges. He had been arrested on charges that he bought and used
drugs with a stripper.
   (SFC, 11/20/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In Maryland Corey
Ausby (16) was beaten while walking through a Baltimore
neighborhood. In 2012 a trial opened for brothers Eliyahu (24) and
Avi Werdesheim (21). Charging documents said they pulled up next to
the black teenager in a vehicle, then got out and "surrounded him."
The passenger threw the teen to the ground and the driver hit him in
the head with a hand-held radio and patted him down. On May 3
Eliyahu was convicted of false imprisonment and 2nd degree assault.
His brother was acquitted.
   (AP, 4/23/12)(SFC, 5/4/12, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, NYC officials said
over 10,000 workers, exposed to toxic dust following the 9/11 fall
of the world Trade Center, have ended a legal fight with the city
and joined a settlement worth at least $625 million.
   (SFC, 11/20/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, Texas businessman
Samir Mahmoud Itani (51), head of American Grocers ltd., agreed to
pay $15 million to settle allegations of defrauding the government
by selling old relabeled food to the military to supply soldiers in
Iraq.
   (SFC, 11/20/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In California
PG&E announced that it is prepared to buy homes and farms in the
Mohave Desert town of Hinkley threatened by chromium 6 laced
groundwater.
   (SFC, 11/20/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, The Los Angeles
Auto Show opened. Fiat, now associated with Chrysler, introduced its
tiny Fiat 500. Fiat sales in America would begin in January,
following a 27-year absence.
   (Econ, 11/27/10, p.69)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In southern
Afghanistan a NATO soldier was killed in a bomb attack as leaders
met in Portugal to determine the future of the alliance's
mission. ISAF reported the capture of a leader from the
hardline, Pakistan-based Haqqani network in eastern Khost province.
In Baghlan a joint force targeted a series of compounds and captured
another key Haqqani figure, who served as a liaison between the
network and Taliban operatives in northern Afghanistan. Six of his
associates were taken into custody as well. In Kunar province ISAF
troops killed three civilians and wounded four others during
fighting with militants.
   (AP, 11/19/10)(AFP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, China ordered
lenders to lock up more of their money at the central bank for the
second time in two weeks, stepping up its battle to pull excess cash
out of the economy before inflation has a chance to take off.
   (Reuters, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In Egypt at least
100 members of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood were arrested
across the country less than 10 days ahead of legislative elections.
   (AFP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, French Pres.
Sarkozy, infuriated by reports linking him to an investigation into
possible kickbacks to French politicians in the 1990s, lashed out
“off the record” at a journalist in Lisbon and said he could just as
easily accuse him of being a pedophile.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, Indonesian
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said that an inquiry will be
launched into a female migrant's suspicious death in Saudi Arabia.
Kikim Komalasari, who had worked in Abha city in Saudi Arabia since
June 2009, had died from abuse. She was from Cianjur in West Java
province.
   (AFP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In Iraq 4
Jordanians of Palestinian origin from Zarqa were killed while
fighting American troops. The men were all in their 20s and 30s and
with the exception of one, had served jail terms in Jordan for
plotting anti-American terror attacks.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, Israel's military
condemned the publication of names and photographs of 200 Israeli
soldiers on a website that called them "war criminals." It was put
up earlier this week by anonymous activists in Britain and hosted by
a US-based Web service, which took it down by today citing "breach
of terms." Militants in Gaza fired rockets at southern Israel,
causing no casualties. Retaliatory Israeli air strikes wounded five.
   (AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In Mexico the
bodies of two men were found hanging from the Los Alamos bridge in
Tijuana.
   (AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, NATO leaders began
a 2-day meeting in Portugal. A top official said it will start
drawing down its troops in Afghanistan next July and its combat role
in the war-torn nation will end by 2014 or earlier so security can
be turned over to the Afghans. NATO leaders planned to approve a new
10-year vision for NATO.
   (AP, 11/19/10)(Reuters, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In New Zealand a
methane explosion ripped through the Pike River mine, the country’s
largest coal mine, with about 30 people underground. Five workers,
dazed and slightly injured, stumbled to the surface, while 29 were
missing. Fears over poisonous and combustible gases were preventing
rescuers from entering the mine. The explosion killed 29 workers.
Crews were not able to reenter the mine until 2019.
   (AP, 11/19/10)(AP, 11/20/10)(AP, 5/21/19)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, The Nigerian army
arrested a militant leader and 62 of his followers suspected of
involvement in a string of recent kidnappings of oil workers,
including foreigners. Gunmen suspected of being members of Boko
Haram, an Islamist sect behind a deadly uprising last year, shot
dead three worshippers at a mosque in the northern city of
Maiduguri.
   (AFP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In Pakistan
suspected US missiles destroyed a moving vehicle in North
Waziristan, killing four alleged militants inside it.
   (AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, In the Republic of
Congo 8 countries signed a convention to limit the spread of weapons
in central Africa, but three countries opted out. The Republic of
Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Chad, Angola, Sao Tome
and Principe, Central African Republic and Cameroon all signed.
Burundi, Equatorial Guinea and Rwanda did not sign.
   (AFP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, Thai police found
the remains of almost 1,700 illegally aborted fetuses hidden at a
Buddhist temple in Bangkok as the full extent of the grisly
discovery emerged. Thousands of anti-government demonstrators took
to the streets of Bangkok, peacefully marking the six-month
anniversary of the military's crackdown on their protest.
   (AFP, 11/19/10)(AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, A UN General
Assembly committee passed resolutions condemning human rights
violations in Iran, North Korea and Myanmar, provoking a furious
reaction from their delegations. The committee passed the resolution
by 80 votes to 44, with 57 abstentions.
   (AFP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 19, The world's
cardinals met at the Vatican to discuss religious freedom, sex abuse
by clergy and other issues amid a new dispute with China over an
illicit ordination that threatens delicate relations between the
two.
   (AP, 11/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, American scientist
Siegfried Hecker, a former director of the US Los Alamos Nuclear
Laboratory, said in a report that he was taken during a recent trip
to the North's main Yongbyon atomic complex to a small
industrial-scale uranium enrichment facility. It had 2,000 recently
completed centrifuges. The North told him it was producing
low-enriched uranium meant for a new reactor. North Korea told
Hecker it began construction on the centrifuges in April 2009 and
finished only a few days before the scientist's Nov. 12 visit.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, In Florida Brandi
Peters (27) and her 3 young children were found slain in a
Tallahassee home.
   (SSFC, 11/21/10, p.A14)(SSFC, 11/21/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, In eastern
Afghanistan Taliban suicide bombers on bicycles killed four people
and wounded 31. Hafiz Janan, a Taliban leader involved in training
foreign fighters, was killed in the Bakwa district of Farah
province. Another Taliban leader was captured in Baraki Barak
district of Logar province.
   (Reuters, 11/20/10)(AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, In Australia David
Auchterlonie was murdered on his 17th birthday in New South Wales.
Mathew Milat (17) and Cohen Klein (18) had planned for over a week
to lure Auchterlonie to his death. In 2012 Matthew Milat, a relative
of serial killer Ivan Milat, pleaded guilty to the ax murder and was
sentenced to at least 30 years in prison. Cohen Klein also pleaded
guilty and was sentenced for at least 22 years.
   (AFP, 6/8/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, China's
government-backed Catholic church ordained a bishop who did not have
the pope's approval, despite objections from the Vatican.
   (AP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, Colombia’s
President Juan Manuel Santos said a top FARC rebel leader who
oversees major cocaine production may have been killed in the
bombing of a guerrilla camp in the country's southern jungles.
Fabian Ramirez's pistols, rucksack and computers were found at the
scene of a pre-dawn bombing. At least six bodies were found.
   (AP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, In Egypt a tour
bus lost control and flipped over several times on a winding
mountain road near a Red Sea resort, killing eight tourists.
   (AP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, Ireland moved
towards finalizing its four-year crisis plan for cutting its budget
deficit which could pave the way for a multi-billion euro bailout.
   (AFP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, Yair Klein, an
Israeli wanted in Colombia for training militias that killed
hundreds of people, returned home after he was released from a
Moscow jail. Klein has denied working with Colombia's cocaine
cartels and said he only instructed paramilitaries in defense
tactics.
   (AP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, Madagascar PM
Camille Vital told reporters that 16 officers have surrendered,
ending an impasse that began Nov 17, when a faction of officers
declared they were taking over from Andry Rajoelina.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, In Mexico a gang
of suspected kidnappers were arrested by marines. They had detailed
plans of security arrangements for next week's UN climate change
talks in Cancun.
   (Reuters, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, NATO nations
meeting in Portugal formally agreed to start turning over
Afghanistan's security to its military next year and give them full
control by 2014. The US and its allies appeared to take conflicting
views on when NATO combat operations would end. NATO
Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he did not expect NATO
troops to stay in the fight against the Taliban after 2014. Russia
was receptive but stopped short of accepting a historic NATO
invitation to join a missile shield protecting Europe against
Iranian attack.
   (AP, 11/20/10)(Reuters, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, In Saudi Arabia a
young woman in her twenties defying a driving ban in the capital
died along with three female friends when her car overturned.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, Pope Benedict XVI
formally created 24 new cardinals amid cheers in St. Peter's
Basilica, bringing a mostly Italian group into the elite club that
will eventually elect his successor. Benedict XVI reiterated that
condoms are not a moral solution for stopping AIDS. But he added
that in some cases, such as for male prostitutes, their use could
represent a first step in assuming moral responsibility "in the
intention of reducing the risk of infection.
   (AP, 11/20/10)(AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 20, Venezuela’s
President Hugo Chavez stepped up his threats against the country’s
only remaining opposition-aligned television channel, calling its
owner, Guillermo Zuloaga, a fugitive criminal and accusing him of
conspiring against his government.
   (AP, 11/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, A national US
study by CQ Press found St. Louis as the nation's most dangerous
city in 2009, overtaking Camden, NJ. Detroit, Flint, Mich., and
Oakland, Calif., rounded out the top five. For the second straight
year, the safest city with more than 75,000 residents was Colonie,
NY.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In Afghanistan 3
civilians were killed by a roadside bomb in Kandahar province. Small
arms fire and a rocket attack killed the police chief of Musa Khel
district of Khost province. ISAF said more than 20 militants were
killed in air strikes and fighting, mainly in the restive south. The
watchdog panel charged with rooting out fraud in the recent
parliamentary election disqualified 19 candidates who had been
announced as winners in preliminary results. A man working on a
stream clearing project in Kandahar province was killed by an
unknown gunman in front of his children in Zhari district. 7 were
killed, two were wounded and four were captured during a clearing
operation that ended in Herat province. In northern Kunduz province,
insurgents attacked a checkpoint set up by a local police force,
sparking heavy fighting. Two of the local police were killed, along
with 17 of the attackers. A NATO service member died in an insurgent
attack in southern Afghanistan.
   (AFP, 11/21/10)(AP, 11/21/10)(AP, 11/22/10)(AP,
11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, in Afghanistan US
Marine Cpl. William Carpenter took a blow fram a grenade to save a
fellow Marine in Helmand province and was severely wounded. In 2014
Pres. Obama awarded him the Medal of Honor.
   (SFC, 6/20/14, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, Burkina Faso held
presidential elections. President Blaise Compaore (59), a former
army captain, was expected to win as he faced an opposition so
divided it could not mount a unified campaign to fight him
effectively at the polls. State media suggested Compaore won at
least 80% of the peaceful vote.
   (AP, 11/21/10)(Econ, 11/27/10, p.58)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In China water
flooded a small coal mine, trapping 28 people as they did safety
work to expand the mine's capacity. 13 workers escaped and rescue
work was continuing for the 28 missing at the Batian mine in the
southwestern province of Sichuan. 29 miners were rescued on Nov 22.
   (AP, 11/21/10)(Econ, 11/27/10, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In Indonesia the
death toll from the Mount Merapi volcano rose to 304 after more
victims succumbed to severe burns and illnesses.
   (SFC, 11/22/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, Iranian newspapers
reported that Pres. Ahmadinejad said the best age for girls to get
married was between 16 and 18. The Iranian intelligence ministry
said its security forces have killed two "terrorists" in clashes in
the Kurdish-populated western city of Sanandaj.
   (Reuters, 11/21/10)(AFP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, Ireland became the
second European country to ask for a multibillion euro emergency
loan to help stabilize its debt-ridden banks. Finance Minister Brian
Lenihan (1959-2011) recommended to a cabinet meeting that the
government should apply for a financial bailout program from the EU
and the IMF.
   (AP, 11/21/10)(AFP,
11/21/10)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Lenihan,_Jnr)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In Israel 2
workers were killed and two others were in critical condition in a
Haifa hospital after inhaling poisonous material from an accidental
leak at the country's oil refinery.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In Mexico Silverio
Cavazos Ceballos (41), the former governor of the Pacific state of
Colima (2005-2009), was shot dead by a group of armed men. Police
mounting an operation to find the killers came across a doctor in an
area near the crime. He was startled by officers and began to run
away. They shot him dead when he ignored orders to stop.
   (AP, 11/21/10)(AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In Pakistan 4
suspected US missiles slammed into a house in North Waziristan,
killing six people. The dead included 3 militants and 3 local
tribesmen harboring them.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, Palestinian
president Mahmud Abbas said that he will not return to the
negotiating table with Israel without a settlement freeze that
includes annexed Arab east Jerusalem. Thousands of young Jewish
settlers held a mass demonstration outside Israeli PM Benjamin
Netanyahu's offices in Jerusalem in protest at plans for a new ban
on settlement building.
   (AFP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, Poles voted in
local elections expected to reward the government's reluctance to
trim the welfare state in the EU's largest new member, the only one
in Europe to avoid a recession.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, A global tiger
summit meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, approved a wide-ranging
program with the goal of doubling the world's tiger population in
the wild by 2022 backed by governments of the 13 countries that
still have tiger populations: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China,
India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam
and Russia. Experts said wild tigers could become extinct in 12
years if countries where they still roam fail to take quick action
to protect their habitats and step up the fight against poaching.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 21, In central Somalia
at least 13 people were killed in heavy clashes that began a day
earlier between armed groups fighting for control of villages.
   (AP, 11/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, The US and its
allies accused North Korea of being a danger to the region after it
showed off its latest advances in uranium enrichment, but Washington
said it was still open to talks.
   (Reuters, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, The FBI raided
three hedge funds in NYC as part of a sweeping investigation into
insider trading.
   (Econ, 11/27/10, p.82)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Novell Inc., the
maker of Linux operating-system software, said it has agreed to be
bought by Attachmate Corp., for $2.2 billion, or about $6.10 per
share.
   (SFC, 11/23/10, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In eastern
Afghanistan homemade bombs killed 4 Afghan civilians, including two
children, riding on a tractor in the Zurmat district of Paktia
province. In an overnight operation in the same district, a joint
Afghan and NATO force killed Fared Gul, a Taliban fighter involved
in planting roadside bombs. 2 NATO coalition service members were
killed in the south. A suicide bomber detonated his explosives vest
while driving a motorcycle down a main road in Mohmand Dara
district, Nangarhar province. Haqqani network leader Wahidullah was
killed by an airstrike in the Sabari district of Khost province.
   (AP, 11/22/10)(AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In Australia
police said that an ongoing operation has smashed a cartel that has
raked in an estimated 400 million Australian dollars ($395 million).
Police had already arrested 34 people and seized 6,000 cannabis
plants in the biggest series of drug raids in the history of
Victoria state.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In Brazil local
Rio de Janeiro news media reported that armed men used roadblocks to
trap and rob drivers over the weekend, killing a man and alarming
public officials who are preparing to receive hoards of summer
tourists.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In Cambodia a
stampede by thousands of festival-goers left at least 351 people
dead and hundreds injured. A panic-stricken crowd, celebrating the
end of the rainy season on an island in a river, tried to flee over
a narrow bridge in the capital of Phnom Penh. Reports from
provincial officials put the death toll at 456.
   (AP, 11/23/10)(AP, 11/24/10)(AP, 11/25/10)(AP,
11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Germany’s defense
minister announced that Germany will end conscription in July and
switch to a slimmed-down volunteer military service focused on
missions abroad.
   (SFC, 11/23/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Egypt's Orascom
Telecom said it is selling its entire 50% stake in its Tunisian
subsidiary to Qatar Telecom in a deal valued at $1.2 billion.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, A Gambian Foreign
Ministry statement was issued giving Iranian government officials 48
hours to leave the country. The next day a senior Gambian security
official said the move was linked to Nigeria's recent seizure of
arms sent from Iran which were allegedly destined for Gambia.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In Haiti clashes
between political factions left two dead as growing violence and a
raging cholera epidemic raised fears of wider unrest ahead of key
post-quake elections.
   (AFP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, India gave the
green light for the construction of a second international airport
in the commercial capital Mumbai, a two billion dollar project that
was ten years in the making.
   (AFP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Diplomats said
Iran’s nuclear program has suffered a recent setback with major
technical problems forcing the temporary shutdown of centrifuges
enriching uranium.
   (SFC, 11/23/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In Iraq gunmen
shot and killed, Saad and Raad Hannah, two Christian brothers in the
northern city of Mosul in the latest in a spate of attacks targeting
the religious minority.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Ireland's the
government said banks will be pruned down, merged or sold as part of
a massive EU-IMF bailout taking shape. Ireland's Greens pulled the
plug on the deeply unpopular coalition government by calling for a
national election in January after an EU/IMF bailout package is in
place.
   (AP, 11/22/10)(Reuters, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Israeli bulldozers
began laying the groundwork for construction of a barrier to seal
off part of the Jewish state's border with Egypt. Israel's
parliament passed a law calling for a national referendum ahead of
any withdrawal from annexed east Jerusalem or the Golan Heights, a
move that could derail future peace deals.
   (AP, 11/22/10)(AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Madagascar’s head
of the electoral commission said 74% of voters had approved a new
constitution, which could keep coup Pres. Rajoelina in power
indefinitely.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, In Pakistan US
missiles killed five militants in North Waziristan.
   (AFP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, US federal agents
fanned out across Puerto Rico seeking to arrest 17 alleged members
of a drug smuggling organization. Luis Figueroa, the younger brother
of smuggling leader Jose Figueroa Agosto, had boarded the Caribbean
Princess with his wife, two children and in-laws before the
operation began. Agents waiting on board the ship arrested him
without incident before the ship reached its first port-of-call in
the US Virgin Islands.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Saudi King
Abdullah (86) departed for New York for medical treatment and
temporarily handed control of the world's top oil producer and key
American ally to Crown Prince Sultan, his half brother and heir to
the throne.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Somalia’s
Parliament Speaker Sharif Hassan Sheik Aden indefinitely postponed a
session scheduled to endorse or reject the proposed Cabinet of PM
Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed. Parliamentarians complained that he has
reduced the number of ministers, tapped technocrats from outside
Somalia and reduced some clans' influence.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, A South African
court said a Zimbabwean government property in Cape Town can be
auctioned to compensate three evicted white farmers in Zimbabwe for
legal fees.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, UAR state media
said a military Hawk training jet has crashed in Ras al-Khaimah,
killing the pilot. The single-engine Hawk is made by British defense
company BAE Systems.
   (AP, 11/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 22, Venezuela's oil
minister, Rafael Ramirez, said that the latest exploratory drilling
has confirmed "extraordinary results": about 15 trillion cubic feet
of gas under the sea floor in a place where experts once thought
there was only a fraction of that amount. An event launched a
separate $17 billion oil project involving Italy’s Eni SpA and state
oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Atlanta,
Georgia, Amador Cortes-Meza (36) of Mexico was convicted on federal
charges of orchestrating a sex trafficking scheme in which
prosecutors say he lured impoverished young Mexican women to the
Atlanta area with false promises of better lives, high-paying jobs
and even hints of romance. He was accused of bringing at least 10
women to the area between spring 2006 and June 2008.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Alfred Gaynor
(43), a serial killer from western Massachusetts admitted to
strangling a woman in 1995, his first victim of eight.
   (SFC, 11/24/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, A US federal jury
in Oakland, Ca., said SAP AG must pay Oracle Corp. $1.3 billion for
copyright infringement. In 2011 A US District Judge called the award
excessive and reduced it to $272 million.
   (SFC, 11/24/10, p.A1)(SFC, 9/2/11, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, A BP executive,
James Patrick Black (58), helping to guide recovery from the Gulf of
Mexico oil spill died with two others when a small plane crashed in
waters off the Florida Panhandle.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, An Afghan close to
negotiations with the Taliban said a man leading the Taliban side of
peace talks with the Afghan government was an impersonator, in a
setback to efforts to negotiate an end to the war.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Angola activist
Antonio Paca Panzo was released from jail for lack of evidence after
seven months and 12 days. Panzo was arrested in april in the Cabinda
region for apparently having T-shirts emblazoned with the faces of
four activists who had been arrested in January and were accused of
responsibility in a deadly attack on the Togo team bus as it headed
to the African Cup of Nations. Panzo was freed because of lack of
evidence.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Australia promised
to be a future long-tem supplier of rare earths to Japan, after
China suspended shipments of the minerals to its neighbor.
   (Reuters, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Police in Belgium,
Germany and the Netherlands arrested at least 10 people on suspicion
of planning an Islamist militant attack in Belgium.
   (Reuters, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Brazil police
in Rio launched a broad crackdown on gangs and drug-trafficking
groups rolling out helicopter-backed armored tanks in 20 slums,
killing at least two suspects.
   (AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Brazil Roberto
Puppo, a native of Bergamo, Italy, was shot and killed. His
bullet-ridden body was found in Alagoas on the next day. Authorities
believe the killing was ordered by da Silva's boyfriend, an Italian
man "suspected of belonging to an international organized crime
group." A teenager, who was not identified because he is a minor;
and a private security guard identified as Cosme Alves were arrested
after a few weeks and charged with the killing.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Burkina Faso 4
of the 7 candidates in recent presidential election say they won't
recognize the poll's results, claiming the vote was rigged.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, China acknowledged
that it is the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitter, as it called
on the United States to ensure climate change talks opening next
week make progress.
   (AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Croatia’s Atlantic
Grupa food company took over Slovenia’s Droga Kolinska for $326
million. This was the biggest corporate deal in the Balkans in
recent years.
   (Econ, 11/27/10, p.72)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, East African
leaders met in the Ethiopian capital to discuss beefing up the
African Union force in Somalia and tensions in Sudan ahead of
January's referendum on autonomy for the south.
   (AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, The European Union
urged Ireland to adopt an austerity budget on time to unlock
promised EU/IMF funding, responding to a deepening political crisis
that threatens to derail the financial rescue.
   (Reuters, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, The EU’s
anti-piracy naval force said that have caught 16 suspected Somali
pirates over the past 5 days in the Indian Ocean with the help of
the Seychelles coast guard.
   (SFC, 11/24/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Iran’s state radio
reported that authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Mahdi
Hashemi, the son of influential former President Akbar Hashemi
Rafsanjani, on charges of helping foment last year's postelection
unrest. Hashemi has been living in Britain since shortly after the
election.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Iraq a surgeon
and an engineer at Baghdad International Airport were gunned down in
a mostly Sunni neighborhood in western Baghdad. an Education
Ministry professor was shot in another Sunni area in northeastern
Baghdad. A passer-by was slain in a drive-by shooting in the
northeastern city of Kirkuk.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Ireland's banks
are up for sale, the country's central bank chief said, as the
government sought to cut them down in size after their reckless
lending forced the country to seek an international bailout.
   (Reuters, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Authorities in
southern Italy arrested two women in an operation against suspected
mobsters, a development that reflects the increasing role of women
in running the mob's affairs. Those arrested included Carmelina
Capria, wife of imprisoned clan boss Antonio Pesce, and Maria Grazia
Pesce, wife of fugitive boss Roberto Matalone.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Lebanese PM Saad
Hariri dismissed a media report that implicated Hezbollah and
possibly Lebanon's head of police intelligence, Colonel Wissam
Hassan, in the 2005 murder of his father, ex-premier Rafiq Hariri.
   (AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Mexican police
arrested Carlos Montemayor Gonzalez, nicknamed "El Charro," or "The
Cowboy," with help from the US Drug Enforcement Administration." He
was linked to the recently arrested US-born kingpin known as "La
Barbie," and to the killing of 20 Mexican tourists in September.
   (AFP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Nigeria's most
prominent armed group MEND said that on Nov 21 it had attacked and
destroyed the Obidi refinery trunk line feeding a refinery in the
Niger Delta region.
   (AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, North and South
Korea exchanged artillery fire after the North shelled Yeonpyeong
island near their disputed sea border, killing at least 2 South
Korean marines and 2 civilians, setting dozens of buildings ablaze
and sending civilians fleeing for shelter.
   (AP, 11/23/10)(AFP, 11/24/10)(Econ, 10/26/13, SR
p.5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In northwestern
Pakistan the concrete cover of a sewage tank collapsed during a
funeral, causing 14 people in Jhor village to plunge to their death.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, Saudi media said a
Saudi woman (53), accused of torturing her Indonesian maid, has been
sent to jail while the maid, Sumiati Binti Salan Mustapa (23),
receives extensive hospital treatment for burns and broken bones.
   (AFP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, A Spanish judge
ordered Carlos Vielmann, a former Guatemalan interior minister, be
freed because authorities in the Central American country failed to
request his extradition on charges he ordered the extra-judicial
execution of seven inmates. He resigned in 2007 after allegations in
one of those cases became known.
   (AP, 11/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 23, In Trinidad Sgt.
Simeon Roderique (38), a US Army soldier vacationing on the
Caribbean island, was killed when gunmen rammed his car from behind
in a rough slum and then opened fire. He was shot shortly after
dropping a woman off at her home in Laventille, a gang-plagued
community just east of Trinidad's capital. The woman's brother was
also killed.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Virginia 5
Somali men, accused of attacking the USS Nicholas on April 1, were
convicted on federal piracy charges. On March 14, 2011, the 5 men
were sentenced to life in prison.
   (SFC, 11/25/10, p.A19)(SFC, 3/15/11, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Former US House
Majority Leader Tom DeLay, once one of the most powerful and feared
Republicans in Congress, was convicted on charges he illegally
funneled corporate money to Texas candidates in 2002.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, The US Federal
Transit Administration sent an invoice to New Jersey for some $271
million for work done on the cancelled $8.7 billion Hudson River
rail tunnel connecting the state with NY.
   (SFC, 11/30/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In California Rep.
Steve Cooley conceded defeat to Dem. Kamala Harris for the office of
attorney general. Harris became the state’s first woman, the first
African American and the first Indian American in California history
to be elected as state attorney general.
   (SFC, 11/24/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In southern
California Carlie Rose Attebury (31), a former El Modena High School
high school band teacher, was convicted of 4 counts stemming from
her sexual relationship with a boy (15).
   (SFC, 11/26/10, p.A6)(http://tinyurl.com/2g9r229)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, The National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said it had closed 4,200
square miles/10,880 square kms of federal waters in the Gulf of
Mexico to royal red shrimping after a commercial shrimper discovered
tar balls in his net.
   (Reuters, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Afghan election
officials announced final vote totals for 33 of 34 provinces. 1.3m
of 5.6m ballots were discarded for fraud and 19 candidates were
disqualified for cheating. The top prosecutor announced a new
investigation into allegations of ballot manipulation, potentially
dealing another setback to a fraud-marred parliamentary election
just as many had hoped a declaration of final results would allow
the country to move on. Emerging opposition leader Abdullah Abdullah
said that more than 90 of his supporters had won seats in
parliament, following the announcement of certified results. Abdul
Hadi, a Taliban leader, was killed when he pulled a pistol on Afghan
and NATO forces who were trying to arrest him during a raid in the
Khogyani district of Ghazni province.Â
   (AP, 11/24/10)(AFP, 11/24/10)(AP, 11/25/10)(SFC,
11/26/10, p.A5)(Econ, 11/27/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Australia said
that a Thai-owned oil firm's "widespread and systematic
shortcomings" caused the worst offshore drilling accident in the
country's history, which created a massive oil slick. Thousands of
barrels of oil gushed into the sea from a damaged well after a blow
out on the West Atlas rig on August 21, 2009, prompting the
evacuation of workers.
   (AFP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Brazil heavily
armed men halted buses and cars, robbed their passengers and set the
vehicles ablaze in Rio de Janeiro, continuing a wave of violence
that has rattled rich and poor alike. Police raided gang-ruled
shantytowns, setting off clashes that killed 14 people as
authorities tried to halt a wave of violent crime.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Britain a
student mob attacked a police van in central London as violence
marred a second mass protest in the last fortnight against the
government's plans to triple university fees.
   (AFP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In the Central
African Republic rebels killed four soldiers and captured an unknown
number of troops in an attack on Birao, the main town of northern
CAR.
   (AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Egypt hundreds
of Christians smashed cars and windows in Cairo and clashed with
police in protests over the halt in the construction of a church
that left one person dead in Giza's Omraniya neighborhood. A 2nd
person died of injuries on Nov 26. The Coptic community said
authorities in Egypt are reluctant to approve permits to build
churches. Egypt’s attorney general decided to hold the 156
protesters for 15 days on suspicion of inciting the riots.
   (AP, 11/24/10)(Reuters, 11/25/10)(AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Guatemala
Francisco Dall'Anese, the head of a special UN-backed commission
(CICIG) prosecuting high crimes there, accused the government of
sabotaging efforts to bring back Carlos Vielmann, a former interior
minister, on charges of ordering extrajudicial killings of prison
inmates. On Nov 23 a Spanish judge freed Vielmann from prison.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In India Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar's National Democratic Alliance won 206 seats
in the 243-seat Bihar assembly, a huge jump from the 143 seats it
controlled in the last assembly. Bihar's reputation as one of
India's most crime-ridden states forced officials to hold the
elections in six phases over a month to allow the limited police
force to protect the polls.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In India a local
official said the northern Lank village council in Uttar Pradesh
state has banned unmarried women from using cell phones for fear
they will arrange forbidden marriages that are often punished by
death.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In India police
arrested eight people, including senior executives of leading state
banks, in Mumbai on accusations of taking bribes of more than 200
million dollars to smooth large corporate loans to builders. Those
arrested include the chief executive of LIC Housing Finance, India's
second largest housing loan firm, as well as executives of the Bank
of India, Central Bank of India and Punjab National Bank.
   (AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In India police in
the central state of Chhattisgarh arrested 11 people including a
"witchdoctor" and his wife after the body of a boy (2) was
discovered in their house. Further searches of the property in the
industrial town of Bhilai, about 45 km (30 miles) from state capital
Raipur, revealed the skeletal remains of a second victim, a girl
(6). The accused man had confessed to killing both children to
acquire "occult power and good fortune."
   (AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Indonesian Muslim
cleric Pujiono Cahyo Widianto (46), who sparked a national outcry by
marrying a 12-year-old girl, was sentenced to four years in prison.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Iraq a roadside
bomb killed four people in the town of Shurqat, 155 miles (250 km)
northwest of Baghdad.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Ireland set out a
four-year plan, aiming to make 15 billion euros worth of savings to
bring down its record deficit.
   (Reuters, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, A court in
southern Kyrgyzstan sentenced 17 people to life in jail for violence
that wracked the region in June. Judge Damirbek Nazarov ruled the
men killed 16 people on the highway linking the south with the
capital, Bishkek. All defendants in the trial that ended the
previous day were ethnic Uzbeks. International rights activists
largely agree the Uzbek minority sustained the bulk of the violence
that left 370 people dead.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In southern Mexico
Ciro Diaz Sanchez, the mayor of Pueblo Nuevo Solistahuacan, and
mayor-elect Pedro Bautista, disappeared after Mexico's army detained
members of the municipal police force and other local officials on
suspicion they were working for a drug cartel. The two, both members
of the leftist Democratic Revolution Party, went missing ahead of
searches of their houses, which turned up high-caliber weapons and
two stolen cars at Bautista's.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, A Mexican air
force cargo plane crashed at Monterrey International Airport killing
five military personnel.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In New Zealand a
second explosion occurred in the Pike River mine, almost exactly
five days after the first blast there. All 29 workers missing
underground were believed to have died after a second explosion.
   (SFC, 11/24/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Nigeria said it
has seized another illegal arms shipment at its main port, including
pistols and military vehicles, weeks after the discovery of a
weapons cache sent from Iran. The military items which were packed
inside a vehicle painted in army green. The illegal arms shipment
came from Belgium through Germany,
   (AFP, 11/24/10)(AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In northwestern
Pakistan one soldier was killed and another wounded when a roadside
bomb exploded during a foot patrol in South Waziristan.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Portuguese labor
unions mounted a general strike, pressing the government to scrap
austerity measures intended to ward off a debt crisis spreading
through the euro zone.
   (Reuters, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Somalia Bashir
Ahmed Abdi (51), a Minneapolis-based Somali lawyer, was shot dead in
Mogadishu. Relative Abdirahman Moalin said he was driving Abdi to a
meeting in Mogadishu when a single shot fired from what looked like
a government pickup truck hit Abdi beneath his shoulder, killing him
instantly.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Sudan's south
accused the northern army of carrying out an airstrike on an army
base in southern Sudan in an attempt to derail a January 9
referendum on southern independence.
   (Reuters, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, Emirati (UAR)
leaders prepared a lavish welcome for Britain's Queen Elizabeth II,
who is making her first state visit in more than 30 years to a
country with deep British ties.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, The UN human
rights office says a new international treaty against enforced
disappearances will come into effect on Dec. 23 after Iraq became
the 20th country to ratify it. The 2006 International Convention for
the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance declares
widespread or systematic kidnappings a crime against humanity. The
US has not signed the treaty.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, The Vatican
denounced China for ordaining a bishop without papal consent,
accusing the government-backed church of gravely damaging the faith
and warning that the bishop risked excommunication. The Vatican also
accused Chinese authorities of committing "grave violations of
freedom of religion and conscience" by forcing Vatican-approved
bishops to attend the ordination ceremony of Rev. Joseph Guo Jincai.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 24, In Yemen a suicide
car bomber struck a convoy of Shiites on their way to a religious
ceremony, killing at least 17 and wounding more than 15 people.
Al-Qaida was suspected though it would be the extremist
organization's first reported direct assault on the country's Shiite
minority.
   (AP, 11/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, US authorities
found a sophisticated tunnel used to smuggle drugs between Mexico
and San Diego, the second such discovery in the region in less than
a month. Investigators seized some 20 tons of marijuana. The
2,200-foot passage ran from a residence in Tijuana to a warehouse in
San Diego's Otay Mesa area.
   (AP, 11/25/10)(SFC, 11/27/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, San Francisco
based Del Monte said it has agreed to be acquired by a group led by
KKR & Co. in a $4 billion deal. KKR, Vestar Capital Partners and
Centerview Partners agreed to pay $19 a share in cash and would
assume $1.3 billion in net debt.
   (SFC, 11/26/10, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, The Afghan deputy
attorney general said his office has arrested two employees of the
nation's electoral commission and two people working in the money
transfer business on allegations of fraud in the September
parliamentary elections. In eastern Afghanistan 2 insurgent
facilitators were arrested on separate operations. NATO captured a
Haqqani leader in the eastern Afghan province of Khost.
   (AP, 11/25/10)(AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, British PM David
Cameron defended a new index aimed at measuring the population's
social and environmental wellbeing rather than just its wealth.
   (AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Bernard Matthews
(80), Britain’s largest turkey processor, died. He began in 1950
with an investment in 20 eggs. In 1953 he bought a derelict country
house, Great Witchingham Hall, where he and his wife, Joyce, raised
turkeys in all but one of the 36 rooms. It is still the company
headquarters.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, China’s state
media said Shanghai is suffering from its worst November air quality
in five years after the local government lifted pollution controls
that were in place for the six-month World Expo. China started
publishing hourly air-quality information for major cities across
the country as the world's top source of greenhouse gas emissions
tries to rein in its notorious pollution.
   (AFP, 11/25/10)(AFP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Colombian
prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for retired Gen. Miguel Maza
Marquez (73), a former domestic security chief, who they say
participated in the Aug 18, 1989, assassination of presidential
candidate Luis Carlos Galan.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, The EU high court
ruled that there is no such thing as "pure chocolate," ending an
EU-Italy food fight over chocolate labels. It also said the EU's
1999 chocolate labeling rules make no room for a "pure chocolate"
reference like the one Italy enacted in a 2003 law.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, European lawmakers
voted in favor of an independent, UN-backed investigation into
violence in Western Sahara that has left up to 11 people dead in the
disputed territory.
   (Reuters, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, India told
financial firms to review their exposure to a string of companies
whose executives were arrested on suspicion of taking millions of
dollars in bribes.
   (AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Iraq's PM Nouri
al-Maliki appealed to the country's warring political factions for
unity after formally accepting a request by the president to form
the next government, part of a deal to end an eight-month deadlock
over who would lead the country the next four years.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Italian students
occupied the Leaning Tower of Pisa and Rome's Colosseum to protest
education cuts and university reforms being considered by
parliament.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Macedonia police
raided the building housing A1 television, a private channel often
critical of PM Gruevski’s government.
   (Econ, 2/26/11,
p.57)(www.youtube.com/watch?v=NP0jAsK9sog)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, In Mexico
preliminary data was released by the National Institute for
Statistics and Geography. It said Mexico had 112.3 million
inhabitants as of July, 3.6 million more than experts had projected.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, A court in Nigeria
charged an alleged member of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and three
Nigerians over a shipment of mortars and rockets seized in the main
port of Lagos last month.
   (Reuters, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Nigeria's
anti-corruption police raided the offices of US firm Halliburton and
arrested 12 people in a bribery case involving former Halliburton
unit KBR Inc. Houston-based engineering firm KBR pleaded guilty last
year to US charges that it paid $180 million in bribes between 1994
and 2004 to Nigerian officials to secure $6 billion in contracts for
the Bonny Island liquefied natural gas project.
   (Reuters, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, In Pakistan a
paramilitary soldier was killed and six others wounded, two of them
critically, in a bomb attack on the outskirts of Hangu in the
northwest. Pakistan said that most of the explosives used in bomb
attacks on its territory were smuggled from Afghanistan but insisted
it was limiting the cross-border movement of insurgents fighting US
troops.
   (AFP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, South Africa said
it has launched an anti-corruption unit to investigate government
officials misusing funds and receiving bribes.
   (AP, 11/25/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, South Korea's
defense minister resigned amid intense criticism two days after a
North Korean artillery attack killed four people on a small island
near the Koreas' disputed frontier.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 25, Zimbabwe's PM
Morgan Tsvangirai filed court papers filed saying Pres. Mugabe
violated the constitution with his unilateral appointment of 10
provincial governors last month. Tsvangirai said the power-sharing
agreement requires the president to consult with the prime minister
before making key appointments, and that Mugabe did not.
   (AP, 11/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, US federal agents
in a sting operation arrested Mohamed Osman Mohamud (19), a
Somali-born teenager, just as he tried blowing up a van he believed
was loaded with explosives at a crowded Christmas tree lighting
ceremony in Portland.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In Argentina the
newspaper Clarin published the comments of a woman who has accused
her father of sexually abusing her for 30 years and having 10
children with her, including one who killed himself after learning
that his grandfather was his father. Elvira Gomez (43) did not
report the alleged abuse until her father, Armando Gomez (62), was
recently arrested for robbery.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In Brazil
residents of Rio's northern slums braced for more violence as
hundreds of reinforcements joined a widening crackdown on drug gangs
that has killed at least 30 people in six days. Some 800 troops
backed a police operation at the Alemao complex of shantytowns as
drug gang members stood their ground.
   (AFP, 11/26/10)(SFC, 11/27/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, The Central
African Republic government announced its forces had retaken Birao,
captured by rebels in a deadly assault two days earlier, but the
rebels said they were still in control.
   (AFP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In Chile the
lawyer for a group of men who accused Fernando Karadima, a prominent
Chilean priest, of sexually abusing them as teenagers said his
clients will not appeal a ruling in favor of the clergyman. Five
men, now adults, had alleged that Karadima began abusing them about
20 years ago, when they were between 14 and 17 years old. In 2011
the Vatican said Karadima was guilty of abusing minors and must
retire.
   (AP, 11/26/10)(SFC, 2/19/11, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Danish actor Palle
Huld (98), who reportedly inspired a Belgian cartoonist to create
the comic book reporter Tintin, died. He was a stage actor with
Denmark's Royal Theater, and he appeared in 40 Danish films between
1933 and 2000. In 1928 Huld won a competition organized by Danish
newspaper that wanted to send a teenager would-be-reporter around
the globe. For 44 days the 15-year-old traveled to North America,
Japan, Siberia and Germany, and was greeted by 20,000 people upon
his return to Copenhagen. Herge, the pen name of Belgian author
Georges Remi, heard of Huld's journey which reportedly inspired him
to create Tintin, the globe-trotting reporter.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, An Egyptian
judicial source said courts have ordered the cancellation of Nov 28
parliamentary elections in 24 districts after orders to reinstate
opposition and independent candidates were ignored. The Alexandria
criminal court sentenced 11 Islamists to two years in prison for
election campaigning for the banned Muslim Brotherhood.Â
   (AFP, 11/26/10)(Reuters, 11/26/10)(AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In Indonesia 5
endangered Sumatran elephants were found dead in Riau province on
Sumatra island. Conservationists suspected that farmers poisoned the
animals to stop them from damaging crops.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, The Japanese
parliament passed an extra budget worth 58 billion dollars to cover
a new stimulus package aimed at averting the threat of a
"double-dip" recession.
   (AFP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Kenya’s Wildlife
Service said its agents shot dead 2 suspected poachers shooting at a
herd of elephants in a national park.
   (SFC, 11/27/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Myanmar published
laws, signed by junta chief Gen. Than Shwe, stipulating that
parliamentarians will be allowed freedom of expression unless their
speeches endanger national security, the unity of the country or
violate the constitution. They also provide a two-year prison term
for those who stage protests in the parliament compound or
physically assault a lawmaker on its premises.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, The Dutch navy
said it has captured 20 suspected pirates off the Somali coast in
two operations in the last week and is holding them on a warship on
suspicion of involvement in hijacking a South African yacht.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, A Nigerian court
annulled the election of the governor of the southwestern state of
Osun and installed his opposition rival, in the latest blow to the
ruling party ahead of national elections next April. The court ruled
that Osun state governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola of the ruling People's
Democratic Party (PDP) had been wrongly elected in the 2007 polls
and installed his rival Rauf Aregbesola of the opposition Action
Congress of Nigeria (ACN).
   (Reuters, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Pakistan said
security forces arrested two would-be suicide bombers in the capital
Islamabad, adding that the thwarted attacks targeted parliament and
a mosque in an upmarket neighborhood. Suspected US missiles fired by
an unmanned plane hit a vehicle killing three alleged militants in
North Waziristan.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Portugal adopted a
raft of debt-reducing austerity measures, which the government
claimed would be enough to restore market confidence in its public
finances without resorting to a bailout.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Russia said it
will miss an April, 2012, deadline for destroying all of its
chemical weapons, as officials inaugurated a major new plant to
dispose of them. Pochep, the latest of six plants built in Russia in
recent years, will process nearly 19 percent of Russia's stockpile,
or 7,500 tons of nerve agent used in aircraft-delivered munitions.
The US has acknowledged it will also miss the deadline.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Saudi Interior
Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki said authorities have arrested
nearly 150 al-Qaida suspects over the past eight months, foiling
planned attacks on Saudi government officials, civilians and media
personalities.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Serbia sent a
formal request for the extradition of Peter Egner (88), a
naturalized American citizen who is suspected of serving in a Nazi
unit that killed some 17,000 Jewish and other civilians here during
World War II. Egner was born in Yugoslavia and emigrated to the
United States in 1960, gaining American citizenship six years later.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, South African
President Jacob Zuma arrived in Harare to try to smooth over
disputes threatening Zimbabwe's troubled power-sharing government.
Zuma said he had persuaded President Mugabe and PM Tsvangirai to
start talking again to address the rifts in their power-sharing
government.
   (AFP, 11/26/10)(Reuters, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In South Africa a
study led by the government-funded Medical Research Foundation says
that in Gauteng province, home to Johannesburg, more than 37% of men
said they had raped a woman. A quarter of the women interviewed said
they'd been raped, but the study said only one in 25 rapes are
reported to police.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In South Africa
lightning and a storm killed seven people and injured 67 at a
Christmas party at a nursery school in KwaZulu Natal.
   (AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, Spain’s PM Jose
Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said there was no chance Spain would seek a
bailout.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In Taiwan a gunman
opened fire on a campaign rally on the eve of key local elections,
killing one man and critically wounding the son of former
Vice-President Lien Chan. A suspect was in custody and may belong to
a gang.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 26, In Yemen a suicide
car bomber struck Shiite mourners heading to a funeral to Saada
province, killing at least two people.
   (AP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, New York state
police arrested Steven Pieper (21) just hours after searchers found
the body of a missing woman, believed to be Jenni-Lyn Watson (20), a
Mercyhurst College dance major.
   (SSFC, 11/28/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, US film director
Irvin Kershner (87) died in Los Angeles. His work included the
direction of the Star Wars sequel "The Empire Strikes Back," the
James Bond film "Never Say Never Again" and "Robocop 2." Other work
included "A Fine Madness" (1966), "The Flim-Flam Man" (1967),
"Loving" (1970), and "The Eyes of Laura Mars" (1978). The 1976
television movie "Raid on Entebbe" earned him an Emmy nomination for
direction.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, In Afghanistan 2
suicide bombers blew themselves up at an Afghan police headquarters
in eastern Paktika province, killing 13 police officers near the
Pakistan border. A NATO service member also was killed in a bomb
attack in eastern Afghanistan. Afghan and coalition forces killed at
least 15 insurgents during an overnight search for a senior Taliban
leader in the Sherzad district of Nangarhar province.
   (AP, 11/27/10)(AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Australia's Qantas
Airways resumed flights of its Airbus A380 superjumbos, after a
mid-flight engine failure grounded all six of the planes earlier
this month.
   (Reuters, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, The British
government said it is paying for more than 1,000 medical staff to
work in Haiti as part of an aid package worth more than 5.6 million
pounds to help combat a deadly cholera outbreak there.
   (AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, In China an
"extraordinary" Asian Games closed after 15 days of thrills and
spills that saw China reinforce its sporting credentials as 45
countries and territories took part. China’s final gold tally
reached 199 and its total medals to 416, both Asian Games records.
   (AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, In France
delegates at an Atlantic conservation conference in Paris took
measures to protect sea turtles and several types of sharks. ICCAT
members agreed to reduce the allowable Mediterranean and eastern
Atlantic bluefin tuna catch to 12,900 tons from 13,500 tons. The
allowable western Atlantic catch was reduced to 1,750 tons from
1,800, a level that American and Canadian fisherman already had been
unable to meet due to stock decline.
   (AP, 11/27/10)(SSFC, 11/28/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Guinea's
government announced border closures with Sierra Leone by land, sea
and air this evening stranding hundreds of people from Sierra Leone
on Guinea's side.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, In Haiti at least
one person was killed and several wounded when gunmen opened fire on
a rally for presidential candidate Michel Martelly.
   (AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, In eastern India
suspected Maoist rebels blew up an ambulance with a land mine in
Orissa state, killing at least three people inside.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Iran's state radio
reported that a man attempting to hijack a Syria-bound flight
carrying a number of Iranian lawmakers was arrested on board. ISNA
news agency reported that Iran has hanged in prison a man convicted
of raping several women in Isfahan. The latest hanging brings the
number of executions in Iran to at least 145 so far this year.
   (AP, 11/27/10)(AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Iraq arrested 12
militants suspected of helping take Christians hostage in a church
siege that killed 44 worshippers and two priests on Oct 31. Among
those apprehended were Huthaifa al-Batawi, the Baghdad chief of the
Islamic State of Iraq, the Al-Qaeda front group which carried out
the attack, while senior ISI leader Ammar al-Najadi was killed.
   (AFP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, In northern Italy
3 hikers died after being caught in an avalanche.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Ivory Coast
President Laurent Gbagbo issued a decree calling for a nationwide
curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Nov 27-Dec 1 to prevent any tampering
with vote counting. Opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara said the
move was illegal and unconstitutional, adding a curfew should only
come after the election if there is trouble.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Lebanese PM Saad
Hariri expressed concerns for stability in the Middle East as he
began a visit to Tehran to rally Iran's support for his efforts to
keep Lebanon stable amid tensions over a U.N. probe into the
assassination of his father, Rafik Hariri.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Mexico's federal
police in Ciudad Juarez captured Arturo Gallegos Castrellon (32), a
presumed leader of the Aztecas cross-border drug gang. He was
suspected in dozens of killings, including the slaying of a US
consulate worker. Two other members of the gang were arrested with
Gallegos on charges of transporting drugs and weapons.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Morocco’s foreign
minister in a published interview rejected a probe into violent
clashes between its security forces and residents of Western Sahara
by the UN. A day earlier, Human Rights Watch said Moroccan security
forces repeatedly beat and abused people they detained during
disturbances in Western Sahara earlier this month.
   (AFP, 11/27/10)(AFP, 11/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Pakistan offered a
reward for information about Taliban militants involved in planning
or carrying out attacks, and promised to resettle informers in
Pakistan or abroad. Hundreds of Sunni Muslims started a nearly
200-mile (320-km) high-risk trek across Pakistan in a protest
against Taliban attacks on the country's religious sites.
   (Reuters, 11/27/10)(AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Somalia's
parliament passed the proposed Cabinet of new PM Mohamed Abdullahi
Mohamed.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Taiwan's ruling
Nationalist Party won three out of five mayoral races, providing a
boost for President Ma Ying-jeou's policy of improving relations
with China ahead of the island's 2012 presidential poll.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 27, Venezuelan
President Chavez promoted Gen. Henry Rangel Silva to
general-in-chief. Silva had sparked controversy by suggesting the
military would not accept an electoral return to power by government
opponents.
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, More than 250,000
classified US State Department documents were released by online
whistleblower WikiLeaks. Among the leaked memos was information that
Iranian Red Crescent ambulances were used to smuggle weapons to
Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group during its 2006 war with Israel.
Memos said the "IRC shipments of medical supplies served also to
facilitate weapons shipments." Documents also detailed concerns by
US officials in Baghdad about Iran’s influence on Iraq. Memos also
said King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia had repeatedly urged the United
States to attack Iran to destroy its nuclear program to stop Tehran
from developing a nuclear weapon. One cable revealed that the US
kept nuclear weapons in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and
Turkey.
   (AP, 11/28/10)(Econ, 12/4/10, p.35)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Oregon an
Islamic center in Corvallis was firebombed, 2 days after Somali-born
Mohamed Osman Mohamud was arrested in a sting operation for trying
to blow up a van full of explosives in Portland. In August, 2011,
federal officials arrested Cody Crawford (24) for firebombing the
mosque.
   (SFC, 11/29/10, p.A7)(SFC, 8/26/11, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Cleveland,
Texas, a girl (11) was gang raped in an abandoned trailer home.
Authorities were notified of the alleged rape after a student from
Cleveland ISD found a video of the assault. Four assaults on the
young girl had begun in September. By March 24, 2011, 19 young men
and teenage boys were charged with participating in the rape. On Aug
30, 2012, Eric McGowen, who fled free on bail, was convicted and
sentenced to 99 years in prison.
   (SFC, 3/9/11,
p.A5)(http://tinyurl.com/4cbmd2c)(SFC, 3/25/11, p.A5)(SFC, 8/31/12,
p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Afghanistan
gunmen firing on a car killed Abdullah Ahmadzai, a local government
official, and two of his relatives in Logar province. Coalition
forces launched an airstrike in Nad Ali district in Helmand
province, killing a Taliban leader who planned and coordinated
roadside bombs against Afghan and NATO forces.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Brazil Rio
police, backed by helicopters and armored vehicles, invaded the
Alemao slum complex, long held by traffickers, quickly taking over
the key drug gang stronghold in a historic victory for the city
hosting the 2016 Olympics.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, BP said it has
agreed to sell its 60 percent stake in Pan American Energy to
Argentina-based oil and gas firm Bridas Corporation, as part of
asset sales to pay for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
   (AFP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Canadian comic
actor Leslie Nielsen (84) died in Florida of complications from
pneumonia. He was a star in a string of madcap spoof movies
including "Airplane!" and "The Naked Gun."
   (Reuters, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, China called for
emergency talks on resolving a crisis on the Korean peninsula, and
Seoul and Tokyo said they would study the proposal, as the US and
South Korean militaries started a massive drill.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Egypt held
elections for a new, 508-seat parliament. The election was marred by
scattered violence, reports of vote buying and the ejection of many
independent monitors from polling stations.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, The EU's finance
ministers agreed in an emergency meeting in Brussels to give Ireland
a euro67.5 billion bailout to help it survive its massive banking
crisis, and sketched out new rules for future emergencies to restore
faith in the euro currency.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Guatemala
police found the body of Mercedes Vasquez (27), a professional
football player, chopped up and left in five plastic bags in a rural
area. A message said the player was killed for "messing with other
women." He had been kidnapped a day earlier.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Guatemala a
livestock truck packed with workers on their way to a coffee
plantation veered off a winding road and crashed, killing 19 of the
passengers and injuring 44. Authorities smelled alcohol on the
breath of the truck driver after the crash.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Haiti held
elections. 96 contenders competed for 11 Senate seats and more than
800 sought to fill the 99-seat lower house. Within hours, ballot
boxes were ripped to pieces, protesters were on the streets and
nearly every presidential hopeful was united against the government.
12 of the 19 presidential candidates appeared together at a news
conference to accuse Pres. Rene Preval of stealing the election and
installing his chosen candidate, Jude Celestin. Haitian radio
reported one man was shot to death at a polling place in rural
Artibonite. Electoral officials said another was killed in southern
Haiti. On Dec 7 officials announced that government protege Jude
Celestin and former first lady Mirlande Manigat would advance to a
runoff in presidential elections.
   (AP, 11/28/10)(AP, 11/29/10)(SFC, 11/29/10,
p.A3)(AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Iran's Pres.
Ahmadinejad and Turkmen Pres. Berdymukhamedov inaugurated the last
section of the Sarakhs-Tehran pipeline to export Turkmen gas to
northeast Iran.
   (AFP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Iraq US troops,
who thought they were under attack, killed an Iraqi airport employee
as he drove near a military convoy on his way to work. In the
village of al-Meshahda gunmen wearing Iraqi security forces uniforms
invaded the home of Sunni Sheik Abdul Kerim Talab Mutlak
al-Halbussi, a leader of the local Sahwa, in a pre-dawn raid and
shot him and his son (15). In Baghdad a roadside bomb in a western
neighborhood killed a passer-by and wounded 3 during rush hour at
the start of the local work week.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Israel's Cabinet
voted to erect a massive detention facility to hold thousands of
Africans who have slipped illegally through the porous southern
border with Egypt, heating up a debate over how to handle their
mounting numbers.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Ivory Coast held
its runoff presidential election set to reunite the country eight
years after a civil war divided it in two. 5 months of violence
followed leaving at least 3,000 dead.
   (AP, 11/28/10)(Econ, 4/13/13, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Japan the
governor of Okinawa island was reelected and immediately called for
the removal of a controversial US military base which has strained
ties between Tokyo and Washington.
   (AFP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Kenya’s PM Raila
Odinga said homosexuals who are found in the midst of sex acts will
be arrested. Odinga's spokesman said in a statement later that night
that the prime minister was quoted out of context.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, African foreign
ministers, at a meeting on the eve of a summit on climate change in
Libya, rejected the idea of a joint declaration, which was to have
been signed at the conclusion of a two-day Africa-EU summit. The EU
had hoped to deliver a joint statement at the gathering of 80
nations from the two continents to deliver "a strong symbol" as the
Cancun conference on climate change opens in Mexico.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Nuri al-Mismari, a
top aide of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, was arrested in Paris
after a request from Tripoli, which said he was suspected of
embezzlement. France gave Libya 30 days to submit evidence backing
its accusations. Supporters of al-Mismari later said he was a victim
of a power struggle inside the ruling elite.
   (Reuters, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Voters in Moldova,
Europe's poorest nation, tried to break a political deadlock that
has kept it without a functioning government for more than a year.
The governing pro-Europe alliance led the opposition Communists in
early election results, but it was not clear if the coalition would
win enough legislative seats to end the country's year-long
political deadlock.
   (AP, 11/28/10)(AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Hundreds of
thousands of Moroccans demonstrated against a Spanish political
party's criticism of their country's raid on a protest camp in
Western Sahara.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In New Zealand a
4th explosion in 9 days ripped through the mine where 29 miners
perished. Officials said the coal was on fire, a development that
could significantly delay recovery of the bodies. Efforts to
retrieve the miners were abandoned on Jan 13.
   (AP, 11/28/10)(AP, 1/13/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Pakistan an
American drone fired one of its missiles but missed a speeding
vehicle. Its occupants quickly bailed out before a 2nd missile hit
and destroyed the vehicle.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, In Pakistan a
cargo plane carrying 8 people crashed in a residential area of
Karachi setting buildings on fire killing all 8 crew and at least 3
people on the ground.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Spain's Socialist
government, battered by fears of an Irish-style rescue of its
troubled economy, braced for a new blow as voters went to the polls
in regional elections in Catalonia. The pro-business Convergence and
Union (CIU) nationalists routed the ruling Socialists. The CIU won
62 of the 135 seats in the Catalan parliament.
   (AFP, 11/28/10)(Econ, 12/4/10, p.65)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 28, Swiss voters
approved a plan to automatically deport foreigners found guilty of
committing serious crimes or benefit fraud. Swiss national
broadcaster SF1 says 52.9% of voters backed the proposal put forward
by the nationalist Swiss People's Party, or SVP. Anti-racism groups
bemoaned that the SVP's posters showing white sheep kicking black
sheep off a Swiss flag played on stereotypical images of foreigners
as criminals.
   (AP, 11/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, President Barack
Obama announced a two-year pay freeze for federal employees, a move
White House officials say is the first of many difficult decisions
that must be made to reduce the nation's mounting deficit.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, David Schmauder
(48), a former Denver area postal worker, was sentenced to 2½ years
in federal prison for stealing over 11,000 packages and then selling
their contents.
   (SFC, 12/1/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Virginia Jama
Idle Ibrahim, a Somali citizen, was sentenced to 30 years in prison
for his role in an attack on a US Navy ship on April 10.
   (SFC, 11/30/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Wisconsin
sophomore Samuel Hengel (15) took 23 of his classmates and a teacher
hostage in a classroom at the Marinette High School, shooting
himself as police broke in. No one else was injured. Hengel died the
next day.
   (Reuters, 11/30/10)(SFC, 12/1/10,
p.A13)Â Â Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Managed care
consortium Kaiser Permanente of Oakland, Ca., announced $10.5
million in donations including $7.5 million over 3 years for Oakland
school programs.
   (SFC, 11/30/10, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Wal-Mart said it
will pay $2.3 billion for a 51% stake in Massmart, giving the
world's largest retailer a substantial presence in South Africa and
paving the way for further expansion across the continent.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Richard Goldman
(b.1920), San Francisco philanthropist and founder of the Goldman
Environmental Prize (1989), died.
   (SFC, 11/30/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, The dismembered
body of Herbert White (49) was found by a maid in a backpack in a
Los Angeles hotel room. Authorities linked the $40-a-night hotel
room to Edward Garcia Jr. (36) and his wife, Melissa Hope Garcia
(25). The Pennsylvania couple were arrested on Dec 9.
   (SFC, 12/11/10, p.A4)(http://tinyurl.com/27gm7lw)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Afghanistan said
its relations with the United States would not be affected by leaked
cables portraying President Hamid Karzai as weak and paranoid, and
his brother as a corrupt drugs baron. 6 NATO troops were shot dead
by a man wearing an Afghan border police uniform during a training
exercise in Nangarhar province. The shooter was killed. 9 Afghan
private security guards from a construction company were kidnapped
in Kabul province. Coalition forces killed Haji Ibrahim, a former
chief of Gereshk district, Helmand province, and arrested six
members of his family.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)(Reuters, 11/29/10)(AFP,
12/1/10)(AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, The British
government said it has issued an order to control the export of a
sedative used to execute death-row prisoners in the US. Exporters
will now be required to prove drugs will be used for legitimate
medical reasons, not execution.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, British pay-TV
giant BSkyB and Abu Dhabi Media Investment Corp. said they will
launch a free-to-air Arabic language news channel under a joint
venture.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In eastern China a
man detonated explosives near the president of Tianjin Normal
University, killing himself and possibly injuring the president in
an apparent suicide bombing.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Egypt
demonstrations and riots swept across the country protesting alleged
fraud by the ruling party in parliamentary elections. The opposition
said its candidates had been heavily defeated. Rights groups
estimated turnout for the elections was only 10 to 15 percent.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, The French daily
Liberation reported that Pierre Le Guennec (71), a retired French
electrician, and his wife have come forward with 271 undocumented,
never-before-seen works by Pablo Picasso estimated to be worth at
least $79.35 million. Police on Oct. 5 raided the couple's home,
questioned them and hauled off the works, which are now held by
France's official agency in charge of battling the illegal traffic
of cultural items.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, International
election monitors declared Haiti's vital post-quake elections valid,
while two leading presidential candidates rowed back on allegations
the polls had been rigged.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Iran’s President
Ahmadinejad admitted that "several" uranium enrichment centrifuges
were damaged by "software installed in electronic equipment," amid
speculation Iran's nuclear activities had come under cyberattack.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Iran assailants
on motorcycles attached magnetized bombs to the cars of two nuclear
scientists as they were driving to work in Tehran, killing Majid
Shahriari and wounding Fereidoun Abbasi. Pres. Ahmadinejad accused
Israel and the West of being behind the attacks.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, An Iraqi court
convicted Tariq Aziz (74), Saddam Hussein's longtime foreign
minister, of terrorizing Shiite Kurds during the Iran-Iraq war,
sentencing him to 10 years in prison. He already faced an execution
sentence from another case. The Iraqi military said its forces have
thwarted an attempt by a suicide bomber to blow up a vehicle by the
French embassy using intelligence gathered after a bloodbath at a
Baghdad cathedral.
   (AP, 11/29/10)(AFP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Israel gave
preliminary approval for 130 new apartments in disputed east
Jerusalem, the area the Palestinians want as the capital of their
hoped-for state.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Indian Kashmir
3 suspected militants and a policeman were killed in a gunbattle in
a busy market in Srinagar, as panicked locals ran for cover. Police
said one of the slain militants was identified as Abdul Rehman,
alias Naveed of Lashkar, a Pakistani national active in the area for
the last four years.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In southern
Kyrgyzstan at least four Islamic militants were killed in a clash
with security forces.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Lithuania the
skeletons of 18 of Napoleon’s soldiers were laid to rest, 200 years
following the French invasion of Russia. Their remains were found
last year by road builders outside Vilnius. The new graves were
added to some 2,000 others found during excavations in 2002.
   (SFC, 11/30/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Mexican federal
police arrested Jose Alfredo Landa Torres (37), a leader of the La
Familia operations in Morelia, Michoacan state. La Familia recently
made an unusual offer to disband if the government proves it can
protect citizens from other criminals in Michoacan. Mexican soldiers
found 18 bodies buried on a ranch near the Texas border. Gunmen
killed Hermila Garcia (36), a female police chief of the town of
Meoqui in Chihuahua state.
   (AP, 11/30/10)(Reuters, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, In Mexico a 2-week
UN conference opened on global warming. Some 15,000 negotiators,
environmental activists, businessmen and journalists convened at
Cancun to overcome the disconnect between rich and poor nations on
fighting global warming.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Nigerian union
leaders ordered their tanker drivers to halt the supply of petrol
nationwide for 7 days in protest at alleged maltreatment and killing
of their members by the military. The strike was suspended the next
day after a group of soldiers behind the killing of one of their
colleagues were handed over to police.
   (AFP, 11/30/10)(AFP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Pakistan's central
bank raised its benchmark interest rate by 0.5% to 14%, warning for
the second time in two months that rising inflation was impacting
the economy.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, A Sierra
Leone-flagged cargo ship, Karam 1, sank after colliding with the
Dutch tanker Alessandro DP, 10 miles (16 km) off Cape Emine in the
Black Sea. 5 sailors were rescued and 5 were missing.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Investors fled
Spanish debt, pushing 10-year bond rates to an eight-year high, as
Ireland's 85-billion-euro rescue failed to stop fears the crisis may
spread.
   (AFP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Turkey complied
with a European Court of Human Rights ruling and returned a
19th-century orphanage to the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul,
the center of Orthodox Christianity around the world. Turkey took
control of the building in 1997, many years after it was abandoned,
on the grounds that it belonged to another foundation and had fallen
into disuse. The Patriarchate said the government had refused to
issue necessary permits for the maintenance and repair of the
structure, one of the largest wooden buildings in the world.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, Uganda launched a
program to circumcise over a million men every year in an effort to
stem AIDS infections.
   (SFC, 11/30/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, The United Nations
released a report saying armed groups in volatile eastern Congo,
including the army, have bypassed international efforts at reform
and have instead formed criminal networks to exploit the nation's
mineral wealth.
   (AP, 11/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 29, The UN launched an
appeal for $252 million (193 million euros) in international aid to
respond to the urgent needs of some 32 million West Africans in
2011.
   (AFP, 11/30/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, US Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton touched down in Astana, Kazakhstan, to attend
the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
summit on a trip through Central Asia that will also see her visit
Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, as well as Bahrain.
   (AFP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Investors sold off
government bonds from Spain, Portugal and Italy amid worries that
Europe's debt crisis has not been contained by Ireland's bailout but
will force more expensive rescue efforts.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, The 2010 hurricane
season came to an end. 10 storms were named with 12 hurricanes, none
of which touched the US coastline.
   (SFC, 11/29/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Brazil’s
government said troops would remain in the Complexo de Alemao slum,
a sanctuary for many drug traffickers, for at least 6 months to
maintain order. The recent operation to pacify the slum left at
least 37 people dead.
   (SFC, 12/1/10, p.A2)(Econ, 12/4/10, p.49)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, British students
held a third day of protests over plans to triple university tuition
fees, with police urging them to avoid the violence that marked
earlier demonstrations. Police arrested 153 people as over 1,000
students took to the streets of London.
   (AFP, 11/30/10)(SFC, 12/1/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Chad's army said
it has entered the northwest part of neighboring Central African
Republic and pushed out a group of rebels that had attempted to take
the town of Birao.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, The EU announced
that Iran has agreed to discuss its nuclear program at a meeting
next week in Geneva.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Egypt’s official
election results were released. The ruling National Democratic Party
wiped out its Islamist opponents from parliament in the first round
of a disputed election. The leading opposition group dismissed
the results of parliamentary elections as "invalid," but
nevertheless said its candidates would participate in weekend
runoffs.
   (AP, 11/30/10)(AFP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, An Israeli court
convicted Elior Chen, a self-proclaimed rabbi, of severely abusing
eight young children and instructing his followers to do the same.
He was found guilty of hitting the children with a hammer, binding
their limbs and burning body parts, among other acts. Chen was
arrested in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2008 after fleeing Israel. He was
extradited to Israel last year. On Feb 28, 2011, an Israeli court
sentenced Chen to 24 years in prison.
   (AP, 11/30/10)(AP, 2/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, In Italy police
vans and lines of officers in riot gear blocked access to much of
Rome's historic center to keep thousands of student protesters from
reaching Parliament. Similar protests snarled other cities,
including Milan, Turin, Naples, Venice, Palermo and Bari. In Genoa,
students protested under the slogan "they block our future, we block
the cities."
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Ivory Coast
opposition leaders accused Pres. Laurent Gbagbo of trying to steal
the presidential election.
   (SFC, 12/1/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, In Kyrgyzstan
Social Democrat Party leader Almazbek Atambyev said that the leaders
of two other parties have agreed on posts they would take in the
government ending weeks of political uncertainty. Atambyev says he
is set to become prime minister.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Mexico City
lawmakers approved legislation to allow women in the capital
district to be surrogate mothers.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, A Mexican human
rights group and Disability Rights Int’l. released a report on
atrocious and abusive conditions in Mexican institutions for the
mentally and physically disabled.
   (SFC, 12/1/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, In Morocco a bus
carrying workers plunged off a road into a ravine during heavy rain,
killing at least 20 passengers and injuring three others.
   (AFP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov 30, Pakistani police
arrested four Taliban militants who were planning "terror attacks"
in the prosperous financial hub Karachi. Three suicide jackets,
rifles, pistols and explosives were recovered in the raid. A suicide
bomber blew himself up close to a police van in the northwest,
killing six people and wounding 17 others.
   (AP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, Ronald L. Brekke of
California was arrested for helping nearly 1,000 people falsely
claim millions of dollars in tax refunds. He had earned over
$400,000 since February 2009. Brekke had told his victims the US
Treasury would pay out tax refunds equal to their personal debt, a
deception known as "1099 OID" fraud, after the form used to claim
the refund. The scam started to fall apart after two
co-conspirators, both Canadians, tried to cash refund checks worth
more than $350,000 each at a bank in Bellingham, Wash. In 2012
Brekke was convicted of conspiracy and wire fraud.
   (AP, 3/18/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, In San Francisco
Jelvon Helton was murdered at the Gravity bar in the Marina
district. His brother had been murdered in the city two years
earlier.
   (SFC, 6/11/18, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, Sarah Bara was beaten
to death with sticks on Groote Eylandt off the northern Australian
coast. In 2011 Glenys Wurrawilya, Susie Wurrawilya, Paul Wurramara
and Roderick Mamarika received sentences ranging from five years to
seven-and-a-half years in jail. The four were accused of killing Ms
Bara during a fire circle ceremony in which they attempted to
cleanse her of the devil.
   (AP,
12/23/11)(http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=189133)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, In China Tan Yong
attacked his wife Li Yan (39) with an air gun, but she grabbed it
from him and used the butt of the weapon to kill him. He had
previously hurt three other wives. Yan was later convicted of murder
and sentenced to death. In 2015 the Ziyang Intermediate People's
Court re-sentenced her to death with a two-year reprieve, meaning
the penalty is likely to be commuted to life in prison.
   (AFP, 4/24/15)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, Italy and Montenegro
agreed to build an undersea cable to let Montenegro export
electricity.
   (Econ, 12/18/10, p.100)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, A Eurobarometer
survey showed that faith in the courts was the lowest in Lithuania
among 27 European Union member states.
   (AP, 6/11/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, Jun Young-su, a
Korean-American businessman from Orange County, Ca., was arrested in
North Korea in connection with illegal religious activities.
   (SFC, 4/15/11, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nov, In Turkey a
devastating fire destroyed the roof of Istanbul’s Haydarpasa railway
station. Train traffic was expected to restart in 2019.
   (AFP, 2/15/18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, President Barack
Obama reversed a March decision to expand offshore oil exploration
to the Atlantic Ocean and eastern Gulf of Mexico, but said deepwater
drilling could continue in the part of the Gulf hit by the BP
disaster.
   (AFP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, It was reported
that the Pentagon has rolled out prototypes of a programmable
"smart" grenade launcher, a shoulder-fired weapon that uses
microchipped ammunition to target and kill the enemy, even when the
enemy is hidden behind walls or other cover.
   (AFP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Extended
unemployment benefits for nearly 2 million Americans began to run
out, cutting off a steady stream of income and guaranteeing a dismal
holiday season for people already struggling with bills they cannot
pay.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In Rohnert Park,
Ca., Calli Murray (2) was killed and her mother injured as a Sonoma
State Univ. student ran into them while texting on her phone. In
2011 Kaitlyn Dunaway (19) pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 5
days in jail and nearly 4 months of home detention.
   (SFC, 11/17/11, p.C3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In San Francisco
Dr. Dean Edell (69), syndicated radio medical show host, announced
his retirement on KGO-AM, where he began in 1979.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.C7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Harold Martin Smith
(43), a man wanted in the Nov 16 slaying of Hollywood publicist
Ronni Chasen (64), killed himself in the lobby of a dreary Los
Angeles hotel as police closed in to question him.
   (AP, 12/2/10)(SFC, 12/9/10, p.A18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, A Delaware jury
awarded $30 million in damages to John Vai, who claimed he was
sexually abused by former priest Francis DeLuca (80) in the 1960s.
DeLuca was defrocked in 2008 after serving a short prison sentence
for repeatedly molesting his grandnephew (18). The Wilmington
diocese, facing more than 100 priest-abuse lawsuits, filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.A13)(http://tinyurl.com/2cqrfcl)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, The Illinois
Legislature voted to legalize civil unions.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.A13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, The Journal Nature
published a research study that estimated the universe contains some
300 sextillion stars, 3 times more than previously calculated.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.A16)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In Afghanistan
gunmen kidnapped 16 deminers but released nine of them hours later
before taking the rest to an unknown location. A coalition service
member was killed in a roadside explosion in the south. The
remaining 7 deminers were freed in Pakistan on Dec 3.
   (AFP, 12/1/10)(AP, 12/2/10)(AFP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Belarus announced
that it will give up its stockpile of material used to make nuclear
weapons by 2012. The arrangement was announced on the sidelines of
an international security meeting in the Central Asian nation of
Kazakhstan by US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and her
Belarussian counterpart, Sergei Martynov.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Central African
Republic President Francois Bozize said Jean-Bedel Bokassa (d.1996),
the former self-styled "emperor" who was overthrown in 1979, is
"rehabilitated in all his rights" in a decree published to coincide
with the country's 50th anniversary celebrations. Bozize awarded
Bokassa the state’s grandest medal of honor.
   (AP, 12/1/10)(Econ, 8/27/16, p.35)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In Egypt a top
official from the opposition Muslim Brotherhood said the group is
pulling out of parliamentary elections, citing widespread fraud.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, A Guatemalan
ex-congressman, Manuel Castillo, was sentenced to 203 years in
prison after being found guilty of ordering the assassination of
three Salvadoran representatives to the Central American Parliament
and their driver in 2007. Two former police officers and four others
were also sentenced to between 99 and 210 years.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In India Azim
Premji (b.1945), chairman of Wipro Ltd., announced a nearly $2
billion donation to fund education programs for the poor.
   (SFC, 12/3/10,
p.A2)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azim_Premji)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Human Rights Watch
urged Indonesia to overturn the Shariah laws in Aceh province, in
effect since 2001, due to alleged widespread rights abuses.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.A11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In Iran for the
second time in a month, heavy air pollution in the smog-filled
capital of Tehran, home to over 12 million people, has forced
authorities to close government offices and schools and declare a
two-day public holiday because of the health dangers of being
outdoors.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Iran hanged Shahla
Jahed (40), a former soccer player's mistress. She was convicted in
2002 of murdering her love rival in a case that captivated the
Iranian public for several years.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Kazakhstan began
hosting a 2-day summit of the OSCE, the first in 11 years, seeking
to revamp the organisation's ability to react to security crises.
   (AFP, 12/1/10)(Econ, 12/4/10, p.54)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Kuwait began
hosting a two-day conference to try to attract aid and investment to
resource-rich but neglected east Sudan.
   (AFP, 11/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In southern Nigeria
a gun battle between police and armed robbers left seven people
dead, including a policeman and three passersby.
   (AFP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In Peru a tourist
bus collided head-on with a truck loaded with cement, killing 4
travelers from Belgium and one from the Netherlands as well as both
drivers in the southern Chacachaca area. 28 people were injured.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In the Philippines
suspected communist guerrillas seized a passenger bus then opened
fire on pursuing government forces in a running gunbattle that
killed at least four people in San Francisco town, Quezon province.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Portugal suffered
another blow when its borrowing costs rose sharply in a government
Treasury bill auction, but officials insisted the debt-ridden
country could survive without an international bailout.
   (Reuters, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Russia’s PM
Vladimir Putin warned that his country will find it necessary to
build up its nuclear forces, if the United State's doesn't ratify a
new arms reduction treaty.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, South African white
farmer Attie Potgieter (40), his wife Wilna (36) and their
3-year-old daughter were murdered on their farm in Lindley. 6 men
were later charged with the murders. Attie was slashed over 150
times.
   (Econ, 9/17/11, p.48)(http://tinyurl.com/3ru3qom)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, On World AIDS Day
South Africa counted the world’s largest HIV-positive population
with an estimated 5.7 million people infected, over 11% of its 50
million people.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Spain said it will
sell off a third of its national lottery business, partially
privatize airports and cut both a key jobless benefit and taxes for
small companies in an unexpected move to soothe market fears about
debt.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Spain’s Interior
Ministry said police over the last 24 hours have arrested seven
people in Spain and three in Thailand in an international operation
against a group suspected of forging passports for an
al-Qaida-linked Islamic terrorist group.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, In southern Sudan
northern-backed militias ambushed its army killing 10 soldiers and
two civilians in the latest hike in north-south tensions ahead of a
January 9 vote on southern independence.
   (Reuters, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, Turkey’s PM Recep
Tayyip Erdogan said a US diplomat who reported claims in a State
Department memo that he has Swiss bank accounts should be punished
for making a false allegation. A classified cable, released this
week by WikiLeaks and dated Dec. 30, 2004, from then-U.S. Ambassador
Eric Edelman said: "We have heard from two contacts that Erdogan has
eight accounts in Swiss banks; his explanations that his wealth
comes from the wedding presents guests gave his son and that a
Turkish businessman is paying the educational expenses of all four
Erdogan children in the U.S. purely altruistically are lame."
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, The UN said it is
seeking $530 million for aid projects in Somalia next year, and it
called the country's 20 years of strife a catastrophe that is "as
urgent as ever."
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 1, The UN named 3
Rwandan rebel leaders and a Congolese military officer, suspected of
recruiting child soldiers and other abuses, on its worldwide travel
ban and assets freeze aimed at stemming widespread violence in
Congo.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, A US government
report said nearly 50,000 prison inmates claimed over $130 million
in tax refunds this year without providing and wage information to
the IRS.
   (SFC, 12/2/10, p.A13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, NYC Rep. Charles
Rangel (80) was censured by the US House of Representatives for
financial misdeeds.
   (SFC, 12/3/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, PepsiCo agreed to
buy one of Russia's top drinks companies in a deal that would make
the US food giant a dominant force in the Russian market and extend
its reach deep into former Soviet lands. Pepsi announced that it
will buy 66% Wimm-Bill-Dann for $3.8 billion and launch a tender
offer for the rest of the company.
   (AFP, 12/2/10)(Econ, 12/11/10, p.75)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, NASA researcher
Felisa Wolfe-Simon (33) reported that a strange bacterium,
Halomonadaceae, found in California's Mono Lake, thrives on arsenic
and redefines life as we know it. She said the bacterium does not
merely eat arsenic, but incorporates the toxic element directly into
its DNA. Her finding stirred much controversy.
   (Reuters, 12/2/10)(SFC, 5/28/11, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In Afghanistan 2
coalition service members were killed by bombs and insurgent
fighting in the south and east. Afghan and coalition forces detained
numerous suspected insurgents during two security operations in the
south and east.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Australia's PM
Julia Gillard slammed WikiLeaks' publication of classified documents
as "illegal," in the country's strongest condemnation yet of the
website's ongoing release of sensitive data.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Australian
contractor Leighton Holdings said it had won a 22-year coal mining
contract with India's state-owned NTPC power company worth 5.5
billion dollars (5.3 billion US).
   (AFP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Heavy snow caused
travel chaos across much of northern Europe, keeping London's
Gatwick airport closed for a second day and disrupting road and rail
travel in France, Germany and Switzerland. Freezing temperatures and
often blinding snowfall killed 12 people, 10 in Poland and 2 in
Germany. Poland had already reported 8 dead due to the cold. Some of
the worst floods in a century devastated parts of the Balkans.
Authorities declared a state of emergency in Bosnia, Serbia and
Montenegro.
   (Reuters, 12/2/10)(AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, A CAR spokesman
said 71 people, including 65 rebels, were killed last week in
clashes between insurgents and government troops in northeastern
Central African Republic.
   (AFP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Dominican Rep.
authorities detained 18 military officials and two US pilots, Kevin
Kuranz (31) and Christopher Smith (28), after stopping a
cocaine-laden airplane from taking off. The plane was owned by
Wisconsin-based Air Cargo Carriers LLC. The pilots were freed on
bail on Dec 20 pending further investigation.
   (AP, 12/3/10)(AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Egypt's second
biggest opposition bloc said it would refuse to take up the two
seats it won in a parliamentary election it said was faked, in
addition to refusing to take part in a second round.
   (Reuters, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In Greece police
clashed with demonstrating students outside the parliament in the
latest protest against austerity measures.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Guinea's Supreme
Court validated Alpha Conde's victory in a presidential race
considered the country's first democratic contest, but which was
tainted by the ethnic divide it exposed.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Iraqi officials
said security forces have arrested 39 suspected Al-Qaeda members in
the mostly Sunni western province of Anbar. 2 insurgents were killed
and 2 others wounded in an army raid in the northern province of
Salaheddin. One of those wounded was a Moroccan fighter. Violence in
Baghdad and the restive northern city of Mosul left three dead,
including an 18-year-old girl, and nine wounded.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In northern Israel
at least 41 people were killed in a massive forest fire. At least 37
of the dead were prison guards on board a bus, who had been trying
to evacuate prisoners from a facility in the forest.
   (AP, 12/2/10)(AFP, 12/3/10)(SFC, 12/3/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Retired Naples
Cardinal Michele Giordano (80), the highest ranking church official
to ever stand trial in Italy, died. The cardinal was acquitted in
2000 of charges that he supplied about $800,000 (€600,000) to
finance a loan-shark ring run linked to his family. He was also
accused of misappropriating another $500,000 in church funds. He had
always proclaimed his innocence.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In Ivory Coast
military policemen killed four people at an office of the opposition
presidential candidate, as the country tensely waited for the
release of election results that were being blocked by the
president's followers. Election commission chief Youssouf Bakayoko
announced that opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara had won with
54.1% of the vote, compared to 45.9% for Pres. Gbagbo. Shortly
thereafter, two decrees read on state TV announced that the
country's air, land and maritime borders had been closed and that
all foreign radio and TV broadcasts were banned indefinitely.
   (AP, 12/2/10)(AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In Kuwait City a
two-day conference on east Sudan ended. Donors and investors pledged
3.55 billion dollars for the development of resource-rich but
neglected area.
   (AFP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Mexico’s army
detained a 14-year-old suspected of working as a killer for a drug
cartel. The alleged young assassin, nicknamed "El Ponchis," was
captured at the airport in Cuernavaca with his 19-year-old sister as
they were trying to catch a flight to Tijuana. The siblings' mother
was arrested in her San Diego apartment on Dec 6 and charged on Dec
8 with entering the US illegally. On Dec 9 US officials said the
boy, Edgar Jimenez Lugo, was born in San Diego. On Feb 9, 2011,
Jimenez was charged with the homicides and other crimes, including
arms possession and transporting cocaine. On July 26, 2011, Jimenez
was sentenced to 3 years in prison.
   (AP, 12/3/10)(AP, 12/9/10)(AP, 2/10/11)(AP,
7/26/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Nigeria's
anti-corruption police said they planned to file charges against
former Vice President Dick Cheney in a $180 million bribery case
involving a former unit of oil services firm Halliburton.
   (Reuters, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, ExxonMobil said
management staff in Nigeria have begun an indefinite strike after
dozens of local employees were sacked, but that oil production has
not been affected. A military taskforce (JTF) comprising the
army, navy and air force began raiding three camps which are
believed to belong to a notorious gang leader in Delta state. The
next day local residents said several civilians were killed and
scores displaced during the raids against armed gangs in the Niger
Delta. At least 9 people were reported killed and houses were found
burned after the military raids. Activists and witnesses said as
many as 150 people were killed around the village of Ayakoromo.
   (AFP, 12/2/10)(Reuters, 12/3/10)(AFP,
12/4/10)(SFC, 12/4/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Qatar was selected
as host of the 2022 World Cup, beating out a bid by the United
States to bring soccer's showcase back to America for the first time
since 1994.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Russia won the bid
to host the 2018 World Cup following a vote by FIFA's executive
committee members.
   (AFP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In Somalia clashes
between Islamic fighters and government soldiers killed at least
five people in Mogadishu. Fighting between two Islamist groups in
the southern town of Burhakaba entered a second day and left 9 dead
and 15 wounded.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Spanish police and
media said hooded thieves have stolen a van containing some 20
pieces of art reportedly including works by Picasso, Colombian
artist Fernando Botero and Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida. The
art was valued at least €5 million ($6.6 million).
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, In Sudan a protest
outside a Western Darfur university against peace mediators ended
violently when police fired gunshots to disperse the crowd, leaving
two civilians dead.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Former Taiwanese
President Chen Shui-bian was moved from a jail to a nearby
penitentiary to formally begin serving a 19-year sentence, after the
Supreme Court upheld his conviction on wide-ranging graft charges.
   (AP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, The UN appealed for
$415 million (€315 million) to feed almost two million Zimbabweans
facing near immediate malnutrition.
   (AFP, 12/2/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 2, Vanuatu PM Edward
Natapei was replaced by deputy premier Sato Kilman following a vote
of no confidence in the nation’s Parliament.
   (SFC, 12/3/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, President Barack
Obama slipped unannounced into Afghanistan, one year after widening
an ever deadlier war and just days before a pivotal review about the
9-year-plus conflict. Due to weather Obama planned a secure video
conference with Pres. Karzai from Bagram Air Field.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, The White House
announced that Pres. Barack Obama has granted the first pardons of
his presidency, to 9 people convicted of crimes including possessing
drugs, counterfeiting and even mutilating coins.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, A US federal court
search warrant said Navy Reserve Intelligence Officer Minkyu Martin
(22) was under investigation for passing classified information to
an FBI agent he thought was a foreign intelligence agent.
  Â
(http://cicentre.net/wordpress/index.php/tag/bryan-minkyu-martin/)(SFC,
12/7/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, US and South Korean
representatives broke through a stalemate on issues related to the
automobile industry, clearing the way for closer economic ties with
fast-expanding South Korea. President Barack Obama hailed the
agreement as a "landmark trade deal" that would support at least
70,000 US jobs.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, It was reported
that California is the only state in the nation to provide vehicles
to its rank-and-file lawmakers for unlimited use. The state faced a
$6 billion deficit and lawmakers already have cut programs such as
adult dental care and health care programs for children from
low-income families.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, The US Air Force's
secrecy-shrouded X-37B unmanned spaceplane returned to Earth after
more than seven months in orbit on a classified mission.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Online payment
service provider PayPal said in a company blog it has cut off the
account used by WikiLeaks to collect donations.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Wikileaks struggled
to stay online as corporations and governments moved to cut its
access to the Internet, a potentially crippling blow for an
organization dedicated to releasing secret information via the web.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, US diplomatic
cables, revealed today by WikiLeaks, portrayed Afghanistan as rife
with graft to the highest levels of government, with tens of
millions of dollars flowing out of the country and a cash transfer
network that facilitates bribes for corrupt Afghan officials, drug
traffickers and insurgents.
   (AP, 12/3/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Argentina
leaders of the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world held their
annual goal-setting summit amid tensions raised by the publication
of US diplomatic cables that in some cases plant doubts about the
unity and friendship they publicly profess.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Rio Tinto, an
Anglo-Australian mining firm, announced a joint venture with
Chinalco, to hunt for minerals in China.
   (Econ, 12/18/10, p.130)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Vienna, Austria,
the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency
approved an IAEA-run repository for nuclear fuel, in a move meant to
limit proliferation by making domestic uranium enrichment programs
superfluous.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Authorities in
Bosnia, Serbia and Montenegro declared a state of emergency and
evacuated hundreds of people after heavy rainfall caused severe
flooding along the Drina River, the worst in 104 years.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Outgoing Brazilian
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced recognition of a
Palestinian state within the 1967 borders in a public letter
addressed to Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas. This was made public
by Brazil's foreign ministry.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Negotiators for the
US and Brazil initialed a text in Rio de Janeiro for a new air
transport agreement. Once formally approved, the pact will establish
an Open Skies air transportation relationship between the two
countries that will expand services and could bring down prices.
   (AFP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Former British
Labor MP David Chaytor (61) pleaded guilty to fraud charges,
becoming the first politician to be convicted over his expenses
claims.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, British forecasters
issued warnings of widespread ice and hazardous conditions lasting
well into the weekend as the country's cold snap tightened its grip
and three more deaths were reported.
   (AFP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, A land dispute on
Easter Island turned violent when riot police evicting islanders
from their ancestral home were surrounded by rock-throwing
protesters. About two dozen people were injured in a 7-hours-long
confrontation. The official native name of Easter Island, known for
its stunning gigantic stone heads known as Moais, is Rapa Nui, and
that's what many natives call themselves, refusing to identify with
Chile, which annexed the island in 1888.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Chinese police
detained the wife of Hada, the co-founder of a Mongolian separatist
movement, and raided the family bookstore just days before the
activist is to be released from 15 years in prison.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, A Chinese passenger
train set a new record for speed, hitting 302 miles per hour (486 km
per hour) during a test run.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, A Chinese cargo
ship with 24 Chinese passengers and crew members sank off the coast
of the Philippines. At least 14 crewmen were rescued and 10 were
missing.
  Â
(www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6B30U120101204)(SFC, 12/6/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, The death toll in
Haiti’s cholera epidemic reached nearly 1,900 people since erupting
less than two months ago. The Health Ministry said there have been
more than 80,000 cases since it was first detected in late October.
The Pan-American Health Organization projected it could sicken
400,000 people within a year.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Iraq 24 people,
including 22 Iranian pilgrims visiting Shiite holy sites, died when
two buses collided head-on south of Baghdad. A sniper shot and
killed a policeman manning a checkpoint in Baghdad. Gunmen with
silencers opened fire from a speeding car on a police colonel and
wounded him.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Ivory Coast new
figures put up by a Gbagbo loyalist said that the incumbent
president had in fact been re-elected. They put Gbagbo on top with
more than 51% of the vote by chucking out some 500,000 ballots from
Ouattara strongholds.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Kenya two
attacks in Nairobi killed three police officers. Police asked the US
FBI for help and hoped that advanced forensics would determine
whether the attacks were linked and if they were carried out by
terrorists.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Lebanon the
militant Hezbollah group said it discovered what it said was an
Israeli device on Hezbollah's private telecommunications network in
the southern village of Majdel Silim. The device was apparently
detonated remotely by the Israelis.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Lithuania said a
South Korean bidder, Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), had pulled
out of a four-nation nuclear power plant project and another was
rejected. Lithuania itself has been aiming to have a stake of around
one-third, but there has been disagreement with Estonia, Latvia and
Poland about their relative holdings and power share-out.
   (AFP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Mexican Judge
Fernando Cordova del Valle ruled that prosecutors failed to bring
enough evidence against Sandra Avila Beltran, described by US and
Mexican officials as a major decision-maker for the Sinaloa gang,
Mexico's most powerful cartel. The "Queen of the Pacific" had been
charged with organized crime, conspiracy to traffic drugs and money
laundering. Mexican police arrested Jacobo Tagle Dobin (31), a
suspect in the 2005 kidnapping and presumed killing of Hugo Alberto
Wallace (36), a Mexican businessman, whose crusading mother led a
high-profile campaign that helped crack open the case. In January,
2011, Beltran was sentenced to time already served on a
weapons charge.
   (AP, 12/3/10)(AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 2/6/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, The Netherlands'
justice minister and five southern Dutch cities said they will
implement new restrictions on marijuana cafes after a wave of
drug-related gangland violence.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Pakistani police
said they have arrested five suspects linked to an attack on a spy
agency building in Lahore last year which killed 24 people. Police
said the suspects belonged to the previously unknown
Al-Toheed-wa-al-Jihad faction which falls under the umbrella
Pakistani militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, Palestinian
president Mahmud Abbas threatened to dissolve the Palestinian
Authority if Israel does not stop building settlements on occupied
land.
   (AFP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Peru a bank
robber held 34 people hostage for more than seven hours in a
nationally televised drama that ended when a police sniper crawled
through a ventilation duct and shot and killed him.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, The Philippine
government and communist rebels announced they will resume peace
negotiations to end the 41-year-old Maoist insurgency early next
year after the talks were suspended more than six years ago.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Poland the death
toll from a deep freeze increased to 30 with a dozen more deaths
overnight. The death toll across Europe reached at least 40.
   (AP, 12/3/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, South Korea
threatened to bomb North Korea if it tries a repeat of last week's
attack, raising its rhetoric after the US warned of an "immediate
threat" from Pyongyang.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, The Spanish
government approved new austerity measures and a limited economic
stimulus package to ease investor fears about its debt, and insisted
again it was taking strong steps to right its ailing economy.
   (AP, 12/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 3, In Spain a sickout
by air traffic controllers created travel chaos. Spain’s military
assumed control and the government threatened the controllers with
jail terms in an unprecedented emergency order to get planes back in
the skies and clear chaotic airports clogged with irate travelers.
   (AP, 12/4/10)(SFC, 12/4/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, President Barack
Obama signed legislation giving the lame-duck Congress two more
weeks to try to pass a legislation funding the government for the
rest of the budget year, through September.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, A Nevada panel
voted to establish the state’s first-ever bear hunting season. Some
200-300 lived along Nevada’s eastern Sierra.
   (SSFC, 12/5/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, Mill Valley, Ca.,
resident John Nuzzo (65) died of an apparent heart attack. He was
better know to legions of fans as John Leslie, an adult film actor
who appeared in over 300 movies before becoming a prolific director.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.C5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In southwestern
China an explosion caused by illegally stored chemicals killed seven
people and injured 37 at an Internet café.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, The Colombian Red
Cross said the toll from weeks of heavy rains across Colombia has
risen to 174 people dead and over 1.5 million homeless.
   (AFP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In Haiti 17 people
died when a group taxi slammed into a truck on a blind curve in the
southern peninsula town of Aquin.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In Iraq bombs
killed 17 people across Baghdad, including Iranian pilgrims near a
revered shrine and shoppers at a Shiite neighborhood market.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, Israel said it was
disappointed by Brazil's decision to recognize a Palestinian state
within the 1967 borders, saying it flew in the face of efforts to
negotiate a peace deal.
   (AFP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, Ivory Coast
President Laurent Gbagbo was sworn in for a new term even though the
UN and world leaders maintain his opponent won the disputed
election, which was the West African nation's first since a civil
war.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In northern Israel
a massive fire was still consuming swathes of land, with little sign
Israeli and foreign firefighters were winning the battle to contain
it.
   (AFP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In Jamaica an oil
spill was discovered in Kingston Harbor. Authorities were still
investigating a Nov 22 spill in the capital's harbor, the
7th-largest natural harbor in the world.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In northeastern
Nigeria a shootout between suspected members of a radical Muslim
sect and security forces killed three people, including an
8-year-old boy.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, In Russia a
Dagestan Airlines passenger jet, carrying at least 155 people, made
an emergency landing at a snowy Moscow airport after its engines
failed. It skidded off the runway and slammed into buildings,
killing two people and injuring around 40.
   (AP, 12/4/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 4, It was reported
that South African gangsters were stealing supplies of the
antiretroviral drug Stocrin. They were mixing it with cannabis, rat
poison and some other ingredients to make a lethal new drug called
whoonga (wunga), used to produce a cheap high.
   (Econ, 12/4/10, p.60)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Pres. Obama honored
5 individuals for this year’s Kennedy Center Honors. They included
Oprah Winfrey, Beatle Paul McCartney, dancer-choreographer Bill T.
Jones, country singer Merle Haggard, and Broadway composer Jerry
Herman.
   (SFC, 12/6/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Don Meredith (72),
one of the most recognizable figures of the early Dallas Cowboys and
an original member of ABC's "Monday Night Football" broadcast team,
died.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In Afghanistan a
Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up next to a string of shop
stalls inside the eastern Gardez army base, killing two NATO service
members and at least two civilians. In the south another NATO
service member was killed in an insurgent attack while an Afghan
employee of an American contractor was shot dead in the city of
Lashkar Gah. A British soldier was killed during an operation in the
Nad-e Ali District of Helmand province. Supporting fire from a US
aircraft was suspected. He was the 346th death among British forces
and civilian defense workers in Afghanistan since 2002. Four Afghan
election commission employees were arrested in a sign that the
political intrigue over September's fraud-tainted parliamentary
election is not over.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In Argentina
Spanish and Portuguese-speaking nations wrapped up their annual
meeting by adopting a provision threatening exclusion for any member
country that doesn't abide by democratic process.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Mike Hancock (64),
a member of the British House of Commons Defense Committee, and the
European Security and Defense Assembly of the Western EU, said that
his Russian assistant, Katia Zatuliveter (25), is facing deportation
as a suspected spy. On Nov 29, 2011, a special immigration tribunal
ruled that Zatuliveter can remain in Britain because she does not
pose a threat to national security.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 11/29/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In southwest China
at least 22 people died and one person was severely burned when a
spreading grassland fire swept through a mountainous Tibetan region.
   (Reuters, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Colombian officials
said a landslide following weeks of drenching rains has buried more
than 50 homes in the northwest. Rescue workers soon recovered 47
bodies. As many as 80 people remained missing and feared dead.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 12/6/10)(AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Egypt held runoff
parliamentary elections. President Hosni Mubarak's ruling party won
a sweeping victory after the two main opposition groups decided to
boycott in protest of alleged fraud in the first round. Mubarak's
party won 420 of 508 seats in parliamentary polls.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 12/6/10)(AFP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, A shark tore the
arm off an elderly German tourist at an Egyptian Red Sea resort,
killing her almost immediately, only days after sharks badly mauled
four other European tourists in the waters.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Iran claimed it
could now use domestically mined uranium to produce nuclear fuel,
giving the country complete control over a process the West suspects
is geared toward producing weapons.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, An Israeli fire
department official said the huge forest fire in Israel's north is
under control. The fire burned half of one of Israel's largest
wooded areas over four days. 42 Israelis were killed in the fire.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 1/5/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In southern Italy a
speeding car plowed head-on into a group of cyclists, killing eight
of them. Police said the driver had been smoking marijuana.
   (AP, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In Mexico armed
commandos attacked two drug rehabilitation centers in Ciudad Juarez,
killing four people and wounding five.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Nigeria's military
acknowledged that raids in pursuit of an alleged gang leader in the
main oil-producing region may have killed civilians, but insisted
only militants were targeted. On Dec 15 the military said 14
people, including 8 soldiers and 6 civilians, were killed during the
operation targeting a notorious gang leader.
   (AFP, 12/5/10)(AFP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Russian news
reported that a Proton rocket and its payload of three GLONASS-M
navigation satellites has fallen into the Pacific Ocean after
failing to reach orbit. They were to be part of Russia's satellite
navigation system competing with the U.S. Global Positioning System
(GPS). The mishap eventually cost space chief Anatoly Perminov his
job.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 8/18/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Suspected Somali
pirates hijacked the M.V. Jahan Moni, a Bangladeshi ship carrying
nickel ore in the Arabian Sea and appeared to be headed to the
lawless East African nation. The 25 Bangladeshis on the cargo ship
included the wife of one crewman. The Moni was released on March 14,
2011, followed a ransom said to be $4.2 million.
   (AP, 12/6/10)(AP, 3/14/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, Former South
African leader Thabo Mbeki sought to mediate an end to a dispute
over Ivory Coast's presidential election that has threatened to
trigger unrest in the divided West African nation.
   (Reuters, 12/5/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In Uruguay Maria
Esther Gatti de Islas (92), a human rights activist, died. She
helped found Uruguay's organization of relatives of people who
disappeared during South America's "dirty wars."
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 5, In Venezuela voters
in several regions elected governors in two states and mayors in 11
municipalities, including the country's second-largest city. An
opposition candidate won the mayorship of Venezuela's second-largest
city of Maracaibo. Candidates from Chavez's ruling party captured 7
of the 11 mayorships and one state.
   (AP, 12/5/10)(AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, The US, South Korea
and Japan all urged China to help rein in its ally North Korea and
vowed solidarity in defending Seoul from any further attacks from
the North.
   (AFP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, The US government
provided estimates showing the US population grew to somewhere
between 306 million and 313 million over the past decade.
   (SFC, 12/7/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Internet giant
Google fielded a new champion on the mobile phone market
battlefield, a "Nexus S" smartphone made by South Korea's Samsung.
It included built-in support for Near Field Communication, a
wireless standard that enables customers to make payments over an
electronic reader.
   (AP, 12/6/10)(SFC, 12/7/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, It was reported
that Fiji Water, owned by billionaire Stewart Resnick, will acquire
Justin Vineyards and Winery in Paso Robles, Ca.
   (SFC, 12/6/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Virginia the
body of Tina Smith (41) was found slain in her home near Salem. Her
daughter Brittany Mae Smith (12) was missing as well was the
suspected killed Jeffrey Scott Easley (32). He had been living with
the Smiths since meeting Tina online last October. On Dec 9 police
in California arrested Easley in San Francisco and rescued the girl.
   (SFC, 12/11/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, The African Union
appointed Guinea's interim president Sekouba Konate to drive forward
plans for an African military force which had been due to be
operational by this year.
   (AFP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Argentina announced
that it recognizes the Palestinian territories as a free and
independent state within their 1967 borders, a step it said reflects
frustration at the slow progress of peace talks with Israel.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Belgium's central
bank chief, Guy Quaden, urged the rudderless country's divided
politicians to speedily form a government to allay financial market
fears about its future.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, British researchers
said they may have found a way to reverse damage in the central
nervous system caused by multiple sclerosis, in a study hailed by
campaigners as a major breakthrough.
   (AFP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Cuba’s Supreme
Court, for the second time this month, commuted the death sentence
of a Salvadoran man convicted of plotting a series of Havana hotel
bombings in 1997, leaving just one person left on the island's death
row. Otto Rene Rodriguez Llerena's sentence was reduced to 30 years
in prison.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, European nations
wrestled over whether to commit more money to help stabilize the
euro, as finance ministers gathered in Brussels to find ways to
fight the debt crisis that has rocked the currency bloc.
   (AP, 12/6/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, A coalition of
Egyptian rights groups urged President Hosni Mubarak to nullify the
results of the country's parliamentary election because of
widespread vote rigging. Election monitors charged that Egypt's
polls were marked by widespread fraud, as Mubarak's party prepared
to take almost 100-percent control of parliament.
   (AP, 12/6/10)(AFP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Haitian medical
sources said fully 140 people have died of cholera in recent days in
the southwest, a region that had been largely spared the epidemic.
Officials raised the death toll to over 2,000 since the outbreak
began in October.
   (AFP, 12/6/10)(SFC, 12/7/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, A motorboat
overloaded with mostly Haitian migrants slammed into a reef off the
British Virgin Islands and capsized as it tried to evade
authorities. At least 8 people were killed, including two infants.
25 people were rescued. Police in St. Maarten arrested three
Haitians and said they will be charged with human smuggling in the
case.
   (AP, 12/7/10)(AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, India and France
signed a multibillion agreement to build two nuclear power plants in
India as French President Nicolas Sarkozy worked to drum up business
for his nation during his four-day visit.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Ireland Tony
Walsh (56) was convicted of raping 3 boys over a 5-year period three
decades earlier. Investigators had concluded that Walsh actually
raped and molested hundreds of boys and girls while serving as a
Dublin priest from 1978 to 1996. Investigators also reported that
the Vatican had tried to stop the Dublin church from defrocking
Walsh.
   (SFC, 12/18/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Israel's top
policewoman, who had clung to life for four days after her patrol
car was trapped in a burning Israel forest, died of her wounds as
the last of the flames subsided in the worst fire in Israel's
history.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, New Zealand
officials attackers wielding bats or clubs slaughtered two dozen fur
seals, including newborn pups, over several days at the Ohau Point
colony, one of the country’s most popular sanctuaries for watching
the animals. Oahu Point was only reoccupied for breeding in 1990,
and about 600 fur seal pups were born there in 2004.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Nigeria's Niger
Delta a militant faction said it had ruptured an oil pipeline in
response to what it said was the killing of innocent civilians
during a military offensive last week.
   (Reuters, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Pakistan twin
suicide bombers in police uniform killed 43 people in Ghalanai, the
main town in the tribal district of Mohmand, attacking an
anti-Taliban militia and pro-government elders near the Afghan
border. US drone missile strikes killed 7 people in the tribal
region.
   (AP, 12/6/10)(AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Poland's parliament
got notice of its first ever African lawmaker, a teacher and
Christian pastor from Nigeria who has lived in Poland for 17 years
and proven himself a popular local leader. John Abraham Godson (40),
a councilman in the central city of Lodz, will fill a seat in the
national parliament vacated by a fellow lawmaker from the Civic
Platform party.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Russia Yegor
Sviridov (28) was shot dead with rubber bullets during a fight in
northwest Moscow. A suspect arrested in the shooting was from
Kabardino-Balkaria in the Caucasus. Russian media later said
Sviridov was a member of the Spartak Ultras, a group linked to
soccer fan violence in the past. In Oct 2011 a jury at Moscow City
Court convicted Aslan Cherkesov of premeditated murder. The court's
Judge sentenced him to 20 years in prison. Five other people who
took part in the brawl were sentenced to five years in jail each for
hooliganism and inflicting light bodily injury.
   (AP, 12/11/10)(SSFC, 12/12/10, p.A10)(AP,
10/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Saudi Arabia's Rani
Investment Group said it would break ground on a 100-million-dollar
(75-million-euro) resort on a Mozambique island next year, aiming to
cash in on foreign tourists.
   (AFP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Somalia 18
people were reported killed in weekend fighting. Mogadishu ambulance
service chief Ali Muse said that 66 civilians were also wounded in
the fighting. In central Somalia clashes between rival Majerteen and
the Sa'ad clans killed at least 20 people.
   (AP, 12/6/10)(AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, A South African
newspaper, The New Age, debuted with denials it is an agent of the
governing African National Congress. The owners, members of the
Gupta family, which has mining, computer and other businesses in
South Africa and India, was seen as close to President Jacob Zuma.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Sudan aircraft
from the northern Sudanese military began 3 days of bombings in
western Bahr el Ghazal state. No casualties were reported. They
follow multiple bombing runs by the north in November in a disputed
region on the border between neighboring northern Bahr el Ghazal
state and southern Darfur state. A committee with representatives
from the UN mission in Sudan and the northern and southern Sudanese
militaries later found that the bombings violated the 2005 agreement
that ended more than 20 years of civil war.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Switzerland six
world powers held their first meeting in 14 months with Iran over
its disputed nuclear program, sounding out Tehran's intentions after
it claimed to have taken a new step in making fissile material.
   (AFP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, In Tanzania the
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda handed down a life
sentence to Ildephonse Hategekimana, a lieutenant from the former
Rwandan army, after finding him guilty of genocide, murder and rape
in the 1994 massacre of Tutsis.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 6, Venezuelan soldiers
took charge at several privately owned hotels to help accommodate
some of the thousands of people who have been forced from their
homes by flooding and mudslides following weeks of torrential rains.
   (AP, 12/6/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Pres. Obama reached
a deal with GOP leaders to extend all tax cuts in return for an
extension of unemployment benefits.
   (SFC, 12/8/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, The New York Times
reported that US officials believe the militant group Hezbollah,
based in Lebanon, has acquired an arsenal of some 50,000 rockets and
missiles, raising fears of an enlarged conflict with Israel. Iran
and Syria were named as the sources.
   (AFP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, The three-yearly
OECD Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) report said
the United States has fallen from top of the class to average in
world education rankings and warned of US economic losses from the
trend. America came 26th in a ranking of high school math scores.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)(Econ, 12/11/10, p.82)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In California 52
Filipino hospital workers sued their employer, Delano Regional
Medical Center, alleging they were the sole ethnic group targeted by
a rule requiring them to speak only English.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Data released on
education in California indicated that in 2009 some 37% of African
American students in public schools had dropped out. The Hispanic
dropout rate was 27%. The general dropout rate in SF was 9%, in
Oakland it was 40%.   Â
   (SFC, 12/8/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Connecticut the
maker of Skoal and Copenhagen smokeless tobacco agreed to pay $5
million to the family of a man who died of mouth cancer in what is
believed to be the first wrongful-death settlement won from a
chewing tobacco company.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, WikiLeaks' founder
Julian Assange was remanded in custody until December 14 by a London
court after he said he would fight extradition to Sweden where he
faces rape allegations.
   (AFP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Elizabeth Edwards
(b.1949), separated wife of former presidential candidate John
Edwards, died in North Carolina of cancer.
   (SFC, 12/8/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Maj. Gen. Richard
Mills, a senior US Marine general in Afghanistan, declared the
battle in the southern Taliban stronghold of Marjah "essentially
over."
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, John James
Audubon's "Birds of America," a rare blend of art, natural history
and craftsmanship, sold for more than $10.27 million at a London
auction, making it the world's most expensive book.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, China hit back at
the United States and its Asian allies for their refusal to talk to
North Korea, saying dialogue was the only way to calm escalating
tension on the divided Korean peninsula.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In central China an
explosion at a coal mine killed 26 miners who were working despite
an order to halt production, while a mine tunnel collapse elsewhere
left four dead in the latest accidents to strike the country's
mining industry.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Hendrik Coetzee
(35), an acclaimed South African outdoorsman, was dragged from his
craft by a crocodile on the Lukuga River in Congo. 2 Americans
watched, horrified, and paddled to safety. Coetzee was leading a
kayaking expedition from the source of the White Nile into Congo. In
2004 he had kayaked down the Nile, four months and 4,200 miles, from
source to sea.
   (AP, 12/9/10)(Econ, 1/1/11, p.78)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, The EU conceded
that its previous bank stress tests were not stringent enough as it
confirmed that it will start a new round in February, while the
continent's strongest economies bet they can sort out the region's
debt crisis without the need to top up bailout funds.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, An expert report
submitted to the French foreign ministry said respected French
epidemiologist Professor Renaud Piarroux conducted a study in Haiti
last month and concluded the epidemic began with an imported strain
of the disease that could be traced back to the Nepalese base.
   (AFP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Georgia said it has
arrested six people, all of them Georgian citizens, suspected of
being agents for Russia and accused them of staging a series of
explosions, including one outside the US Embassy in the capital.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Leaders of six
US-allied Gulf Arab nations, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC),
said they were monitoring with "utmost concern" developments in
Iran's disputed nuclear program and issued a thinly veiled warning
to their Persian neighbor not to meddle in their internal affairs.
The 2-day gathering of leaders from the Emirates, Saudi Arabia,
Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman followed the publication of leaked
US diplomatic memos that revealed deeper concern among Gulf Arab
leaders over Tehran's nuclear program than had previously been
known.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Haiti furious
supporters of an apparently eliminated candidate set fires and
manned barricades in the streets of Port-au-Prince after officials
announced that government protege Jude Celestin and former first
lady Mirlande Manigat would advance to a runoff in presidential
elections.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In India a bomb
hidden in a metal canister exploded in Varanasi as thousands
gathered for a Hindu ceremony, killing a toddler and triggering a
stampede that left many others wounded.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Jordanian computer
engineer Mohammed Rateb Qteishat (33) was killed by Iraqi forces in
Mosul. He was an al-Qaida operative fighting American forces in
Iraq. In 2006, he was sentenced to death in absentia in his native
Jordan for plotting attacks on Americans in Jordan and attempting to
blow up hotels in Amman.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Israel expressed
disappointment with Argentina's recognition of a Palestinian state
in territories Israel occupied in 1967, saying they undercut
American-led efforts to create such a state through negotiations
with Israel.
   (AP, 12/7/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Israel 3 dozen
top rabbis threw their support behind a religious ruling barring
Jews from selling or renting homes to non-Jews, an indication of
growing radicalism within the rabbinical community at a time of
mounting friction between Israeli Arabs and Jews.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In the Ivory Coast
Laurent Gbagbo, the man who the UN says lost the country’s
presidential election, went ahead with naming his new cabinet
anyway. He tapped Charles Ble Goude as minister of youth,
professional education and employment. Goude was sanctioned in 2006
by both the US and UN. He has been accused of making repeated public
statements advocating violence against foreigners and UN
installations and personnel.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Mexico's Defense
Department said soldiers killed six assailants in a clash in the
northern state of Tamaulipas, across the border from Texas. In
Cancun police said they found the bodies of three men who had been
shot to death in neighborhoods far from where UN Climate Change
conference was taking place. The body of a fourth man was found in
another Cancun neighborhood.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In the Netherlands
a teacher (27) was arrested on suspicion of molesting dozens of very
young children. The man's computers containing child pornography
were seized and he later confessed to dozens of sex crimes allegedly
committed over the past year and a half.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, Nigeria's
anti-corruption agency charged former US Vice President Dick Cheney
over a bribery scheme involving oil services firm Halliburton Co.
during the time he served as its top executive. A Nigerian court
charged Charles Okah, the brother of an alleged militant, and three
other suspects with treason and terrorism over the October 1
Independence Day twin car bombings that killed 12 people.
   (AP, 12/7/10)(AFP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Norway Nobel
officials said China and 18 other countries have declined to attend
this year's Nobel Peace Prize ceremony honoring imprisoned Chinese
dissident Liu Xiaobo, as China unleashed a new barrage deriding the
decision.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Pakistan a
suicide bomber attacked a convoy carrying the top official in the
restive Baluchistan province, wounding 9 people but leaving the
chief minister unscathed.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Saudi Arabia the
Omma Conference magazine said in a statement posted on its website
that police arrested its editor Mohammed Al-Abdul Karim at his home
and took him to Hayer prison outside the capital Riyadh. In an
article last week, Al-Abdul Karim predicted that Abdullah's death
might cause the oil-rich kingdom to fall apart.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, South Korea's Pres.
Lee Myung-bak promised to transform five islands that lie along the
tense maritime border with North Korea into "military fortresses"
impervious to the kind of deadly attack the rival neighbor launched
last month.
   (AP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 7, In Switzerland 6
world powers wrapped up two days of "substantive" talks with Iran on
its contentious nuclear program, with the two sides agreeing to meet
again in Istanbul next month.
   (AFP, 12/7/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Pres. Obama signed
legislation to pay American Indians and black farmers some $4.6
billion for government mistreatment over many decades. The
legislation settled 4 long-standing Native American water rights in
Arizona, New Mexico and Montana.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, The Middle East
peace process lay in tatters after Washington admitted defeat in its
efforts to secure an Israeli freeze on settlement building, the
Palestinians' condition for resuming talks.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, US State Department
spokesman Philip Crowley said the self-determination referendum on
Sudan's oil-rich Abyei region will not take place as planned on
January 9.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, The US Senate voted
to convict Louisiana district court Judge Thomas Porteous on charges
of corruption and perjury. The Senate acted for the 8th time in
American history to remove a federal judge through the impeachment
process. Porteous was barred from holding future office.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A20)(NY Times, 1/11/21)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, The US Business
Roundtable published “Roadmap for Growth,” a 26-page manifesto on
what the nation’s biggest multinational companies want from
government before they start hiring again.
  Â
(http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/12/08/top-ceos-offer-roadmap-for-growth/)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Maryland federal
authorities arrested Antonio Martinez (21) for attempting to blow up
a military recruitment center in Catonsville, with what he thought
was a vehicle bomb. On April 6, 2012, Martinez renounced terrorism,
but was still sentenced to 25 years in prison.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A22)(SFC, 4/7/12, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, The Giving Pledge
campaign, launched by Microsoft founder Gates and investor Buffett
in June, announced 17 new pledges bringing the total to 57
billionaires pledging to give away at least half their fortunes.
   (Reuters, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Cyber attacks
apparently organized by Internet activists sympathetic to WikiLeaks
founder Julian Assange shut down the website of credit card company
Mastercard and two Swedish sites. WikiLeaks published a new set of
cables, and in a defiant message posted online the secret-spilling
website promised that the leaks would keep on flowing despite the
arrest and jailing of its founder on sex allegations.
   (Reuters, 12/8/10)(AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, US scientists
published a study of stem cell technology used to create mice from
two fathers, an advance that they say could help preserve endangered
species and even help same-sex couples have their own genetic
children one day.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Space Explorations
Technologies, aka SpaceX, successfully launched its Falcon 9 test
rocket from Cape Canaveral. Its Dragon capsule was retrieved in the
Pacific ocean 3 hours later after it had circled the globe 2 times.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Afghanistan a
Taliban leader and three of his family members were killed in a
coalition airstrike on their car, which was traveling in Nad Ali
district.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Australia's Foreign
Minister Kevin Rudd said that the US government is responsible for
the leaking of hundreds of thousands of classified diplomatic memos
and cautioned against blaming the website that published the secret
cables and its founder.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In eastern
Bangladesh a speeding train slammed into another moving slowly
through a station, killing as many as 19 people and injuring scores
more.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Brazilian mining
giant Vale made its Hong Kong trading debut, the first South
American firm to list in the city, as the company ramps up its
exposure to resource-hungry China.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Chile a fire set
off by rioting inmates in a severely overcrowded prison killed at
least 81 prisoners and seriously injured at least 14 others at the
San Miguel prison south of Santiago. In March, 2011, a Chilean court
ordered three prison guards held on negligent homicide charges for
the deaths of 66 of the 81 inmates. 5 senior officers were charged
with manslaughter and ordered to remain in the country.
   (AP, 12/8/10)(AFP, 3/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, The EU competition
watchdog fined 5 Taiwanese and South Korean electronics companies
euro649 million ($857 million) for fixing prices on LCD panels
between 2001 and 2006. Samsung Electronics Co., also participated in
the price fixing but escaped a fine because it blew the whistle on
the cartel.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, A French court put
14 former Chilean officials on trial in absentia over the 1973-1975
disappearance of four French citizens under the regime of Chilean
dictator Augusto Pinochet.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In France heavy
snowfall forced the closure of Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport and
shut down the Paris bus system.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, German prosecutors
filed war crimes charges against two Rwandan men suspected of
issuing orders to a mostly ethnic Hutu militia involved in killings
of Congolese civilians. Ignace Murwanashyaka (47) and Straton Musoni
(49) were charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes and
membership in a foreign terrorist group. Murwanashyaka allegedly
served as FDLR's president from 2001 and Musoni served as vice
president from 2004, and the pair controlled the militia group from
Germany.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Haiti Michel
"Sweet Micky" Martelly urged his backers to nonviolently protest
results from Nov 28 presidential elections that demonstrators say
were rigged. His campaign manager later said they would formally
challenge the tallies released the previous evening to Haiti's
Provisional Electoral Council. Thousands of protesters rampaged in
Haitian towns, torching buildings in armed clashes that left four
dead after election results triggered bitter accusations of
vote-rigging.
   (AP, 12/9/10)(AFP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Iraq a car bomb
outside a restaurant killed 3 people in Taji. Scattered bombings and
gunfire left a total of 5 people dead and 24 wounded. A roadside
bomb in Baghdad wounded 7 Iranian pilgrims on a bus traveling to a
Shiite religious festival. In southern Iraq a US soldier was killed
during operations.
   (AP, 12/8/10)(AP, 12/9/10)(SFC, 12/9/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Israel decided to
allow increased exports from the Gaza Strip, further easing its
blockade of the territory run by the militant Palestinian Hamas
group.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, A top Israeli
official said his government is holding talks with Turkey aimed at
mending relations, seven months after a deadly Israeli raid on a
Gaza-bound flotilla sent ties into a chill.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, The top UN envoy in
Ivory Coast said that opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara had won
the disputed presidential election by an "irrefutable margin" as the
international community stepped up pressure on the incumbent to
concede defeat.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Japan’s space
agency said its “Akatsuki” space probe has hurtled past Venus after
failing to enter the planet's orbit as planned, but it voiced hope
for a successful rendezvous six years from now.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Mexican federal
police investigating a tip about the presence of armed men in
Apatzingan in Michoacan state came under fire from La Familia
gunmen. Gunmen fired on civilian cars and used the sometimes-burning
vehicles as barricades in Apatzingan. An 8-month-old baby, riding in
a taxi with his mother, was killed as was the teenage daughter of a
former city mayor, and a local police officer.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(SFC, 12/10/10, p.A12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Mexico a federal
police helicopter that had transported two inmates to a Mexican
prison crashed in Veracruz state, killing four people and injuring
two others.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, A Mozambican judge
sentenced two former government officials to 12 years in prison for
stealing 3.6 million meticais ($103,000) from the government. The
court ordered the government data center's former director Orlando
Come and former head of administration and finance Manuel Vilanculos
to repay the stolen money.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Pakistan a
teenage suicide bomber killed 15 people at a busy market in Kohat,
in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This was the
third attack in three days blamed on Islamist extremists bitterly
opposed to the US-allied government. The Taliban kidnapped 7
teachers and the watchman of a government school travelling near
Orakzai. 5 teachers were recovered in a shootout that left one
policeman dead.
   (AFP, 12/8/10)(SFC, 12/9/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Panama historic
flooding forced the closure of the Panama Canal for the first time
in 21 years.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In the Philippines
Pres. Benigno Aquino III lashed out at a Supreme Court decision
rejecting an investigative body he created to look into alleged
corruption during his predecessor's administration, vowing his
anti-graft battle would not be deterred by the setback.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, In Russia drug
control agencies from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia and Tajikistan
agreed to step up cooperation to stop the flow of drugs through
Afghan borders.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, Serbia's decision
to boycott the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony honoring imprisoned
Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo triggered criticism from human rights
activists and the EU, which expressed shock that the candidate for
EU entry would meet China's demands. Serbia feared its attendance
could anger China, which has supported Belgrade in opposing the 2008
independence declaration of its former province of Kosovo.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 8, South African
President Jacob Zuma announced a 210 million rand ($30 million)
credit package for Cuba and forgave Cuba's debt to South Africa
during a state visit to the island nation, a decision his opponents
criticized.
   (AP, 12/8/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Bank of America
agreed to pay $137 million to settle federal and California state
bid-rigging and kickback charges related to municipal bond contracts
dating back to 1998.
   (SFC, 12/10/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In West Virginia an
explosion at AL Solutions Inc., a small chemical plant in New
Cumberland, killed 2 workers and injured 2 people.
   (SFC, 12/10/10, p.A17)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, James Moody
(b.1925), jazz musician, died in San Diego. His work included over
50 solo albums.
   (SSFC, 12/12/10, p.C10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In southern
Afghanistan insurgents killed a NATO service member.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Heavy British
police presence held off angry student protesters marching to
London's Parliament Square as lawmakers debated a controversial plan
to triple university tuition fees in England. Protesters attacked a
Rolls Royce carrying Prince Charles and wife Camilla Parker-Bowles,
as they drove through London’s West End. The couple were not hurt.
   (AP, 12/9/10)(SFC, 12/10/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, England’s
Glastonbury Holy Thorn Tree, venerated for centuries by Christians,
was chopped down overnight after a sprig from the tree was cut off
in a ceremony so it could be given to Queen Elizabeth II to decorate
her Christmas table. Religious tradition holds that the original
tree was planted by St. Joseph of Arimathea, the wealthy merchant
who volunteered his tomb to Jesus, after he first made landfall in
England some 2,000 years ago.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, A report in the
medical journal Lancet criticized Canada for exporting chrysotile,
or white asbestos, while it virtually bans the product at home, who
fibers can lead to respiratory diseases and cancers.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In China the
inaugural Confucius Peace Prize was awarded to former Taiwan
vice-president Lien Chan at a chaotic press conference held by a
handful of Chinese university professors. Lien's office in Taiwan
declined comment, saying they had no knowledge of the award. Chinese
poet Qiao Damo, one of the "candidates", told reporters the lack of
any word from Lien represented "silent acceptance" of the prize,
prompting laughter from assembled journalists.
   (AFP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Former Croatian PM
Ivo Sanader, under investigation in a corruption case, left the
country crossing into Slovenia, hours before parliament voted on
lifting his immunity from prosecution so that he could be detained.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Human Rights Watch
said India's security forces routinely gun down cattle smugglers and
other civilians crossing the border with Bangladesh despite scant
evidence of any crime.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In Iran Ali
Shakouri-rad, one of the prisoners of the post-election events, was
jailed for "propagating against the regime and spreading lies." He
was released on Jan 24, 2011. He was previously freed on bail on
October 28, two weeks after being arrested for what Tehran
prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi called "security reasons."
   (AFP, 1/24/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In Iraq attacks on
a police patrol in northern Baghdad and a checkpoint north of the
city killed two policemen.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, The Israeli air
force bombed four sites in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, causing no
casualties. The air raids came after Palestinian militants fired
several mortars into southern Israel from Gaza the previous day.
   (AFP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In Ivory Coast
pressure increased on Laurent Gbagbo as continental heavyweights
South Africa and Kenya joined UN calls for him to abandon his bid to
cling to power after disputed polls. The African Union suspended
Ivory Coast until Gbagbo hands over power to Alassane Ouattara, whom
the AU and UN consider the winner of last month's election.
   (AFP, 12/9/10)(Reuters, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Jamaican police
discovered a body buried in a shallow grave at a construction site
outside the capital. The remains were identified as those of Esmond
Morris (32), who had not been seen since Dec 6. He had a gunshot
wound in the back of the head. 2 more bodies were found the next day
and police said they expected to find more.
   (AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In Japan the 3rd
International Pole Dancing Championships concluded. The competition
was held in a large arena near the Tokyo Dome, the Japanese
capital's main sports stadium, with competitors from countries
ranging from Malaysia to Moldova. Japan's Mai Sato defended her
title as the women's champion, and Duncan West of Australia won in
men's. This year also had a disabled division, which was won by
hearing-impaired Eri Kamimoto of Japan.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Jordan appointed a
woman, Ihsan Barakat (46), as chief district attorney of the
country's capital, marking the first time a woman has held a top
prosecutor's post in the pro-American Arab kingdom.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In Mexico federal
police hunted for top leaders of the La Familia drug cartel in
Michoacan state, unleashing narco-blockades and shootouts that left
2 more people dead. La Familia cartel leader Nazario Moreno Gonzalez
(40), known as "The Craziest One," was killed in a clash between
police and cartel gunmen. Police recovered the bodies of three other
suspected La Familia members and detained three others. In northern
Chihuahua state six people were gunned down by the side of a highway
leading south of the capital. In the resort city of Acapulco, a
traffic cop was found shot to death on a road, his hands bound.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(SFC, 12/10/10, p.A12)(AP,
12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Netherlands
arrested a young hacker who confessed to participating in attacks by
WikiLeaks sympathizers on websites, including MasterCard, PayPal and
Visa.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, In Nigeria an
election officials said thieves had infiltrated Murtala Muhammed
International Airport and stole just-arrived equipment needed to
register voters ahead of next year's hotly contested presidential
election. Police arrested four men while four others had fled, after
a 30-minute shootout with members of Boko Haram, a radical Muslim
sect, who ambushed security officers at a checkpoint in Maiduguri.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, Communist allies
North Korea and China proclaimed their unity as the North's leader
Kim Jong-Il held his first meeting with a senior Chinese envoy since
the region's worst crisis in years erupted.
   (AFP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, South Africa
unveiled its national space agency, aiming to become a leader in
earth observation technology across the continent in 10 years.
   (AFP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 9, The Provea human
rights group said 13,985 people were murdered in Venezuela last year
and the figure could be significantly higher, alluding to the
rampant crime that has become a central concern of Venezuelans.
   (AP, 12/9/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, US Deputy Energy
Secretary Daniel Poneman said that the framework pact — known as the
123 agreement because its requirements are set in section 123 of the
US Atomic Energy Act — would help boost nonproliferation efforts and
create new business opportunities. The deal did not require
congressional approval, but Congress could have rejected it within
90 days of continuous session — a period that elapsed Dec 9 without
a vote of disapproval.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, It was reported
that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is missing key
information on who owns one-third of the 357,000 private and
commercial aircraft in the US, a gap the agency fears could be
exploited by terrorists and drug traffickers.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, The US Navy
completed its latest test of an electromagnetic rail gun at the
naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Va. The gun generated a
record 33 megajoules of force out of the barrel and sent a 20-pound
slug of aluminum at 7 times the speed of sound. The electric gun was
able to send a projectile over 100 miles.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.A17)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, It was reported
that the United States is concerned that Mozambique could become a
narco-state because of close ties between drug smugglers and the
nation's government, according to US Embassy cables released by
WikiLeaks.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, In NYC Nicholas
Brooks (24), the son of an Oscar-winning songwriter, was arrested on
charges of attempted murder and strangulation in the death of
fashion designer Sylvie Cachay (33), who was discovered around 3
a.m. the previous day at the Soho House hotel. Brooks' Academy
Award-winning father, Joseph Brooks (72), is awaiting trial in an
unrelated case. He was accused of raping 11 women he lured to his
apartment with the promise of a starring role in a movie. He has
pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges and is free on bail.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, In Afghanistan, in
recognition of International Human Rights Day, several hundred
demonstrators, some holding photographs of victims of three decades
of war, shouted for justice and peace in Kabul, just hours before a
suicide car bomber blew himself up in Nangarhar province, killing
two civilians. In the south a NATO service member was killed by a
roadside bomb. 15 civilians were killed when their vehicle struck a
roadside bomb in Helmand province.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(Reuters, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Algerian troops
killed 10 Islamist rebels in the eastern Kabylie region known as a
stronghold of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
   (Reuters, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Australia's
attorney general declared 45 communities along the country's east
coast disaster areas, following weeks of drenching rains that have
submerged homes, destroyed crops and killed four people.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Bolivia enacted a
law lowering the country’s retirement age to 58. The current
retirement age was 65 for men and 60 for women.
   (SFC, 12/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, The Brazilian
government said gay couples in stable relationships are entitled the
same social security pension benefits enjoyed by heterosexual
couples.
   (SFC, 12/11/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, China's central
bank raised the amount of money the country's lenders must keep on
reserve for the third time in a month, following a spate of robust
data that strengthened the case for policy tightening.
   (Reuters, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Police in Croatia
issued an international arrest warrant overnight for former PM Ivo
Sanader, who left the country just as it became clear that
prosecutors wanted him investigated and detained on corruption
charges. Sanader was arrested on an international warrant in
Austria.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, EU banking
supervisors agreed on finalized mandatory guidelines for awarding
bank bonuses, saying key requirements can be "neutralized" for less
risky firms and staff.
   (Reuters, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, A German battalion
in a French-German military brigade officially took up arms at a
ceremony in eastern France attended by the two countries' defense
ministers. This was the first time since World War II that German
combat troops were stationed in France, part of a conscious effort
to show the two EU powers have forever buried former hatreds.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Guinea lifted a
state of emergency in a sign of rising stability since elections
marred by street violence. The African Union confirmed that it has
lifted sanctions against Guinea following the country's presidential
election.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(Reuters, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Indonesian police
arrested Abu Tholut (42), one of the country's most-wanted Muslim
militants, accusing him of plotting high-profile assassinations and
bloody attacks on foreigners at luxury hotels in the capital. Tholut
identified four more militants. Anwar Effendi, Wardi, Sukirno, and
Sri Puji Mulyo Siswanto were suspected of concealing information
about terrorism and of hiding Tholut. All 4 were arrested by the
next day.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Sakineh Mohammedi
Ashtiani, an Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning for
adultery, confessed to helping a man kill her husband and re-enacted
the alleged crime in an interview broadcast by Iranian state
television, an apparent effort by the government to deflect
international criticism over the case.
   (AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, In Jordan fans of
rival soccer teams clashed after a match, injuring 250 people in
violence that pointed to the deep divisions between the nation's
native Bedouin clans and its Palestinians.
   (AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Police in
Indian-controlled Kashmir arrested a college lecturer on charges he
gave his students an English exam filled with questions attacking
India's crackdown on demonstrations in the disputed region. The exam
written by Noor Mohammed Bhat and administered to students across
the region on Dec 8 included questions such as, "Are the stone
pelters real heroes? Discuss."
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, In Mexico a
gunbattle between rival gangs left 11 people dead during a Virgin of
Guadalupe celebration in the western town of Tecalitlan.
   (AP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Mexico scrambled
to break an impasse between rich and poor nations over future cuts
in greenhouse gas emissions as 190-nation climate talks went down to
the wire.
   (Reuters, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, A Moldova court
ordered a recount in the inconclusive national election after the
Communist Party complained of "massive irregularities" in the Nov 28
vote.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Dignitaries in
Norway celebrated this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner, imprisoned
Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, with an empty chair. Xiaobo,
derided by Beijing as a political farce, dedicated it from his
prison cell to the "lost souls" of the 1989 Tiananmen Square
crackdown.
   (AP, 12/10/10)(Reuters, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, In Pakistan a
suicide attacker drove a vehicle packed with explosives into a
hospital for Shiite Muslims that was under construction in the
northwest, killing at least 10 people. A missile fired from a US
drone destroyed a vehicle in the Mir Ali town of North Waziristan,
killing at least four suspected militants.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Leading Pakistani
newspapers acknowledged they were hoaxed after publishing reports
based on fake WikiLeaks cables that contain crude anti-Indian
propaganda.
   (AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Panama’s President
Ricardo Martinelli said he will declare a national state of
emergency allowing the government to mobilize more resources for
affected areas. Heavy rains and flooding in Panama have killed 10
people and forced more than 4,700 from their homes.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Philippine
President Benigno Aquino III ordered prosecutors to drop criminal
charges against 43 health workers arrested by the army as suspected
communist rebels 10 months ago, saying their rights were violated.
   (AP, 12/10/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, A Serbian court
acquitted 10 men charged with helping Ratko Mladic, Europe's most
wanted fugitive, evade arrest on genocide charges before a UN war
crimes court.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Serbia reversed
its boycott of the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony honoring imprisoned
Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo after facing sharp criticism from the
EU and human rights activists at home.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Somali pirates
hijacked the MV Panama just east of the Tanzania-Mozambique border,
making it one of the most southerly attacks Somali pirates have
pulled off. All 23 crew members were from Myanmar.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, In Sweden a court
convicted two men linked to the al Shabaab militant group for
conspiracy to commit a terrorist act and sentenced them to four
years jail.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 10, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez said he will ask his congressional allies to
again grant him special powers to enact laws by decree.
   (AP, 12/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, Nissan North
American delivered its first all-electric Leaf to Olivier Chalouhi
(31) of Redwood City at a dealership in Petaluma, Ca. His cost was
$33,500, but rebates were expected to drop the price to about
$20,000.
   (SSFC, 12/12/10, p.C2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, Mark Madoff (46),
one of Bernard Madoff's sons, was found dead of an apparent suicide
in his Manhattan apartment on the second anniversary of his father's
arrest.
   (AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, In Afghanistan a
car bomb blast near the police headquarters in Kandahar City wounded
four Afghan police and two civilians. The suicide attacker in Kunduz
province drove a police vehicle and targeted an Afghan National Army
convoy, wounding five soldiers and four civilians. An air strike by
the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) killed
seven road construction company employees overnight. ISAF said
Afghan and foreign troops were approached and then fired on by armed
men while hunting an insurgent and shot back, killing seven. The
disputed incident sent hundreds pouring onto the streets of Gardez
city in a protest that turned violent.
   (Reuters, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, Egypt’s minister
of electricity said his country plans to build its first nuclear
power plant and have it operational by 2019.
   (SSFC, 12/12/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, In Cancun, Mexico,
almost 200 countries agreed to modest steps to combat climate
change, including a Green Climate Fund to help poor nations, but
they put off tough decisions on cutting greenhouse gas emissions
until next year.
   (Reuters, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, In northwest
Pakistan gunmen on motorcycles shot dead two police officers in
Hayatabad, while security forces killed four militants in fighting
elsewhere in the region.
   (AP, 12/11/10)(SSFC, 12/12/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, Somali pirates
captured the MV Renuar, a Panama-flagged, Liberian-owned cargo
vessel, about 1,000 miles (1,610 km) east of Somalia.
   (AP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, The Sudanese army
attacked a village in South Darfur for a second consecutive day in
violence that has left one person dead and driven at least 250
civilians from their homes.
   (AP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, South Sudan’s
ruling party formally confirmed for the first time that it will
support secession in a January independence referendum that could
lead to the break-up of Africa's largest nation.
   (AFP, 12/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, In Sweden two
blasts rocked central Stockholm, killing the suspected bomber, later
identified as Taymour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly (b.1981). Two people were
wounded. Police had good leads into what they said were "terror
crimes." On March 8, 2011, police in Scotland arrested Ezedden
Khalid Ahmed Al Khaledi (30) on suspicion of aiding the suicide
bomber who had targeted Christmas shoppers in Stockholm.
   (Reuters, 12/12/10)(Reuters, 12/13/10)(SFC,
12/14/10, p.A3)(AP, 3/8/11)(AP, 3/14/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 11, Turkmenistan
signed broad agreements with Afghanistan, India and Pakistan at a
summit in its capital Ashgabat on the 1,700-km (1,050-mile) TAPI
pipeline. Afghanistan the next day said it will deploy up to 7,000
troops to secure the major transnational gas pipeline, slated to run
through some of the most dangerous parts of the war-torn country.
   (AFP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, The Washington
Post reported that 8 out of the 12 top US gun dealers whose products
fuel Mexico's drug violence are located in the state of Texas. 3
others were in Arizona, and one was in California. There are 3,800
gun retailers in Texas, 300 in Houston alone.
   (AFP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, A storm that
spanned parts of eight states continued to dump heavy snow in the
upper Midwest, collapsing the Metrodome in Minneapolis and forcing
numerous road closures.
   (AP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, In Long Beach,
Ca., police officers shot Doug Zerby (35) over a dozen times as he
manipulated a pistol grip water nozzle. The shooting spurred street
protests. Prosecutors in 2011 said police acted lawfully in killing
Zerby, who was drunk at the time. His family filed a federal civil
rights and wrongful death lawsuit against the city.
   (SFC, 11/4/11, p.C6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, In southern
Afghanistan an insurgent attack killed at least six foreign troops
and two Afghan soldiers in Kandahar's Zhari district. Several
suspects were arrested for the suicide attack that killed six US
troops when an explosives-packed minibus blew up at the entrance of
a joint NATO-Afghan base.
   (Reuters, 12/12/10)(AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Australia unveiled
tough changes to finance laws, banning unpopular mortgage fees and
cracking down on price collusion between major banks in a bid to
boost competition in the sector.
   (AFP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Bangladesh's Dhaka
Stock Exchange plunged 3.32%, its biggest one-day fall since the
index was introduced in 2001. Garment workers demanding the
implementation of a new minimum wage clashed with police at an
industrial zone in the southeast, leaving up to three people dead
and 100 hurt.
   (AFP, 12/12/10)(AP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Hundreds of
Egyptian activists and members of opposition groups protested
against what they said were violations during a parliamentary vote
that handed the ruling party a huge victory last month.
   (Reuters, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, In Iran Mashallah
Shamsolvaezin, a prominent reformist journalist and head of the
Journalists' Association of Iran, said he has been sentenced to 16
months in jail on charges of insulting Pres. Ahmadinejad and
undermining the Islamic regime. Shamsolvaezin went on trial in
October and has 20 days to appeal. Sajjad Qaderzadeh, the son of a
woman whose death sentence by stoning caused world outrage, was
released after paying a $40,000 bail.
   (AFP, 12/12/10)(AP, 1/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, In Iraq a suicide
bomber blew up his car outside government offices in Ramadi, killing
at least 13 people, including women and elderly people waiting to
collect welfare checks. Six police officers were among the dead.
Near Baquba a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-laden vest
near an Ashura procession, killing three people.
   (AP, 12/12/10)(AFP, 12/13/10)(SFC, 12/13/10,
p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Kosovars voted in
the first general poll since the country's declaration of
independence from Serbia in 2008, a critical election already marred
by ethnic tension that many fear will split the world's newest
country.
   (AP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Heavy rain and
fierce winds pummeled countries across the Middle East, killing a
woman in Lebanon, sinking a ship off Israel's coast and prompting
Egypt to close its largest Mediterranean port. At least 3 people
killed in Egypt as gale-force winds and torrential rain pounded the
coastline.
   (AP, 12/12/10)(AFP, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, A foundation run
by Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi's son, Seif al-Islam, released a
mixed annual report on human rights in Libya, noting progress on
some issues and failures in others.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Mexican police
arrested Enrique Lopez of the notorious Sinaloa drug trafficking
operation based in the northern Mexico town of Chihuahua. His
brother, Ever Horacio Lopez, was shot and killed in the standoff
with police. The men were lieutenants of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman,
said to be Mexico's most wanted man, who is believed to have
escaped.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Nigeria's military
said it had taken control of eight camps belonging to Ateke Tom, a
militant leader in southern Rivers State. In the southeast Obioma
Nwankwo, a gang leader accused of kidnapping children from a school
bus, was killed. An unknown number of alleged gang members also
died. 6 others were arrested. The operation freed a family of five.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 12, Lawyers for a
Sudanese campaign group launched a legal bid to halt Sudan's
referendum on southern independence, accusing organizers of
mishandling the process, a move which could derail the January 9
vote.
   (Reuters, 12/12/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, President Barack
Obama signed into law the $4.5 billion Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act,
part of an administration-wide effort to combat childhood obesity.
Thousands more children would get into school-based meal programs
and those lunches and dinners would become more nutritious.
   (AP, 12/13/10)(SFC, 12/14/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, The US government
welcomed a World Trade Organization ruling that upheld President
Barack Obama's controversial decision last year to slap duties on
Chinese-made tires to protect US workers from a market-disrupting
surge in imports.
   (Reuters, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, A US federal judge
in Virginia ruled that Congress could not order individuals to buy
health insurance.
   (SFC, 12/14/10, p.A14)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, A classified US
document, dated Feb 26, 2010, released by WikiLeaks said Venezuela’s
government sold China oil for as little as $5 a barrel and was upset
that China apparently profited by selling the fuel to other
countries. Another embassy report on Sept. 23, 2009, said Venezuela
has been manipulating its oil price index. Other cables indicated
significant problems at PDVSA.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, US immigration
agents discovered a 13-foot drug tunnel stretching from the Mexican
border to a metered parking space in Arizona, where vehicles with
holes cut in the bottom would park and take marijuana from people
inside the underground space.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Sheila Verke, a
64-year-old substitute teacher and single parent from Fort Mohave,
Arizona, claimed a $95.3 million Powerball jackpot.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Richard Holbrooke
(b.1941), a former US ambassador to the UN, died following surgery
for a tear in his aorta. Holbrooke edited the magazine “Foreign
Policy from 1972-1977. He was remembered for engineering the end of
the 1992-1995 Bosnia war, Europe's bloodiest conflict since World
War II, and for seeking to bring stability to war-torn Afghanistan.
In 2011 Derek Chollet and Samantha Power edited “The Unquiet
American: Richard Holbrooke in the World.”
   (AP, 12/14/10)(SFC, 12/14/10, p.A6)(Econ,
12/18/10, p.166)(Econ, 12/3/11, p.102)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Schools in
Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin and other states closed because of snow
and low temperatures. Authorities worked frantically to reach
motorists in snow-covered northwest Indiana who were trapped in
their cars in biting temperatures.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Afghan lawmakers
demanded that President Hamid Karzai inaugurate a new parliament on
December 19 and draw a line under disputed results of a fraud-hit
September election.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, In Argentina a
yacht returning from Antarctica smashed ashore in a storm near the
city of Ushuaia, killing two Polish brothers, Marek and Pawel
Radwanski, and injuring five other people.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, A Chinese vessel
carrying fertilizer and heavy fuel collided with a German cargo ship
off northwestern Denmark. The Hong Kong-flagged Cleantec was listing
and its 24-man crew was ready to be evacuated.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Egyptian officials
said rain and sandstorms that battered the country at the weekend
killed at least 31 people, adding the toll could rise as rescue
workers were still sifting through two collapsed buildings.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, The EU said it
will impose sanctions on Ivory Coast unless the incumbent president
recognizes his rival as the winner of last month's election, as
panic spread in Abidjan after shots were briefly fired.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, India's parliament
ended its winter session without having passed a single piece of
legislation, after the opposition forced adjournments for 22
business days in a row.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, In Iraq four
Shiites were killed and 17 others wounded when a suicide bomber
detonated explosives in Balad Ruz. Insurgents killed a woman and her
daughter when they bombed the house of a member of Sahwa, the
anti-Qaeda militia, in the town of Jurf al-Sakhr.
   (AFP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Israel flew home
150 illegal Sudanese migrants in a secret operation that was the
largest such deportation from the Jewish state.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, The Oriental Rose,
Japanese-operated chemical tanker, was strafed by gunfire from an
unidentified vessel off the Somali coast slightly wounding two crew
members.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, A UN official said
a campaign to resettle ethnic Nepalese forced out of Bhutan two
decades ago has found homes for 40,000 refugees in Western
countries, although tens of thousands continue to wait.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, In Pakistan a
roadside bomb exploded near a school bus in Peshawar, killing the
driver and wounding at least two children. Human Rights Watch (HRW)
said at least 22 Pakistani teachers and other education
professionals were killed by suspected militants between January
2008 and October 2010 in the southwestern province of Baluchistan.
The provincial government in Baluchistan said the situation was
beginning to improve and that fewer teachers were asking to
transfer.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, Mikhail Prokhorov,
the Russian billionaire owner of the New Jersey Nets, introduced a
new line of hybrid cars — called "Yo" — that he hopes to begin
selling in 2012.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, A South Korean
fishing boat sank in the Antarctic Ocean's frigid waters, with 22
sailors feared killed in the open sea where vessels trawl for
deep-water fish. 20 survivors were rescued shortly after the 614-ton
vessel went down some 1,400 miles (2,250 km) south of New Zealand. 5
bodies were recovered and 17 men remained missing.
   (AP, 12/13/10)(SFC, 12/14/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 13, St. Vincent and
the Grenadines PM Ralph Gonsalves, who has led the Caribbean nation
into an alliance with Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, won a narrow victory
in parliamentary elections to keep his party in power for another
five years.
   (AP, 12/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, The US Coast Guard
named Rear. Adm. Sandra Stosz (50) to lead its academy at New
London, Conn., beginning next summer.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.A16)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, The US District
Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ordered San
Francisco-based Twitter Inc. to hand over private messages, billing
addresses and connection records of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange
and other alleged associates, including the US Army intelligence
analyst suspected of handing classified information to the site and
a high-profile Icelandic parliamentarian. A second document, dated
Jan. 5, unsealed the court order.
   (AP, 1/8/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Arizona a
shootout between border patrol agents and bandits near the border
with Mexico left American agent Brian A. Terry (40) dead and a
suspect wounded. On May 6, 2011, Manuel Osorio-Arellanes of El
Fuerte, Mexico, was indicted for 2nd degree murder. On July 9, 2012,
a federal grand jury indictment named 6 people involved in Terry’s
killing. A $1 million reward was offered to help track 4 fugitives
in the case. On Feb 10, 2014 Osorio-Arellanes was sentenced to 30
years in prison.
   (AP, 12/16/10)(SFC, 5/7/11, p.A4)(SFC, 7/10/12,
p.A6)(SFC, 2/11/14, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In California a
mother loading her 2-year-old son into an SUV was killed and six
others were wounded in a gunbattle at a strip mall in south
Sacramento. A 2nd victim, Marvion Barksdale (20), died at a hospital
of his injuries.
   (AP, 12/15/10)(SFC, 12/16/10, p.E3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Florida gunman
Clay A. Duke opened fire at a school board meeting in Panama City.
He killed himself following an exchange of shots with a security
guard.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Nevada an armed
bandit escaped on a motorcycle after stealing $1.5 million in casino
chips from the Bellagio resort. On Feb 3 police identified suspect
Anthony M. Carleo (29) of Las Vegas as the bandit. Carleo was booked
under the name Anthony M. Assad. On Aug 23, 2011, Carleo was
sentenced to at least 3 years in prison.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.A8)(SFC, 2/4/11, p.A7)(SFC,
8/24/11, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Missouri Secret
Santa II hit the streets in a long-standing Kansas City tradition of
handing out $100 bills, sometimes several at a time, to unsuspecting
strangers in thrift stores, food pantries and shelters.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, A new US survey
said about 6% of high school seniors reported smoking marijuana
daily.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, San Jose, Ca.,
adopted the strictest ban on plastic bags in the state.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.C3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In southern
Afghanistan a NATO service member died from a roadside bomb.
Jordanian-Palestinian militant Mahmoud Abu Reidah (38) was killed by
US forces. An al-Qaida operative better known as Abu Rasmi, he was
granted political asylum in Britain in 1998.
   (AP, 12/14/10)(AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Angolan President
Jose Eduardo dos Santos started a historic first state visit to
South Africa, a trip aimed at ending decades-long enmity between two
of the region's major economies.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Bangladesh a
devastating blaze raced through a garment factory near the capital,
killing at least 29 people and injuring more than 100.
   (AP, 12/14/10)(AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, A report, "High
and Dry," by the Shan Sapawa Environmental Organization and the Shan
Women's Action Network, said local trade and transport on the river
in northern Myanmar near a border trade crossing with China has been
severely affected by unpredictable daily changes in the water level
since the completion in mid-2010 of the 360-foot (110-m) tall
Longjiang Dam about 19 miles (30 km) upstream.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, EU Parliament
President Jerzy Buzek said that Guillermo Farinas, whose 134-day
hunger strike helped draw attention to the plight of Cuban political
dissidents, would be represented by an empty chair at the midweek
ceremony to award the Sakharov Prize for the Freedom of Thought.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Amnesty
International accused the European Union and Libya of cooperating to
prevent migrants from Africa from reaching Europe.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Haiti Michel
"Sweet Micky" Martelly, the popular singer-turned-presidential
candidate, called for the electoral commission to be replaced and
the vote redone with all the original candidates involved. His
apparent loss in flawed elections helped spark days of rioting.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In India a bus
carrying wedding guests plunged into a reservoir killing 29 people
in Karnataka state.
   (SFC, 12/15/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Israel barred a
group of Palestinian firefighters who helped battle the country's
worst wildfire from attending a ceremony in their honor, the latest
in a series of embarrassments over Israel's handling of the blaze.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In Italy
protesters set cars alight and hurled cobblestones at police in
chaotic scenes in central Rome after PM Silvio Berlusconi won a
crucial confidence vote in parliament. Over 100 people were injured
including around police.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)(Econ, 12/18/10, p.95)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Libyan leader
Moamer Kadhafi pushed again his dream for a sole African government
and was backed by Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade as he urged the
creation of a single African army.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Mexico’s death
toll in drug-related violence in the border city of Ciudad Juarez
rose to 3,000 this year after 2 men were shot dead on a street.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, A Nigerian
official said Nigeria has negotiated a 250 million dollar settlement
deal that would see it drop charges against US ex-vice president
Dick Cheney and others over a bribery scandal.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, In the central
Philippines suspected communist guerrillas killed 10 army soldiers
returning to their camp after being recalled from combat two days
before a Christmas cease-fire. A boy (9) also was killed in the
crossfire when the New People's Army guerrillas detonated land mines
then opened fire on the soldiers near where villagers were swimming
in a river in Northern Samar province.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, A Sri Lanka
official said security forces have stepped up a campaign to arrest
some 50,000 military deserters, after reports that absent soldiers
were increasingly involved in crime.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Sudanese
authorities arrested about 30 women who tried to hold a protest in
Khartoum against the brutal police whipping of a young woman shown
in a video posted on YouTube and charged them with disrupting public
order.
   (AFP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, The IMF said
Togo's foreign debt will be slashed more than 80% after the African
nation took steps to recover from economic crisis.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 14, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez asked congress to grant him special powers to
enact laws by decree for one year, just before a new legislature
takes office with a larger contingent of opposition lawmakers.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, The US filed suit
for the first time against BP and eight other companies for
uncounted billions of dollars in damages from a massive oil spill in
the Gulf of Mexico, the worst in US history.
   (AFP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, New statistics
showed that the IRS has increased the number of returns it audited
by nearly 11 percent this year. Wealthy taxpayers and big businesses
were most likely to be targeted.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Facebook founder
and CEO Mark Zuckerberg (26) was named Time's "Person of the Year"
for 2010, joining the ranks of winners that include heads of state
and rock stars as the person the magazine believes most influenced
events of the past year.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Newark, Ca.,
Justice Afoa (17), a high school football star, was stabbed to
death. In 2012 three gang members were arrested and charged with
conspiracy and murder. Rafael Tovar (34) and Daniel Howard (33)
killed Afoa to get even for an earlier fight that caused one of the
gang members “great embarrassment.” Tovar and Howard were later
convicted of first-degree murder. On June 30, 2015, Daniela Guzman
(21) was convicted of conspiracy to commit assault.
   (SFC, 12/13/12, p.C2)(SFC, 7/2/15, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Las Vegas the
new $3.9 billion Cosmopolitan resort opened with 2,995 rooms and
100,000 square feet of casino.
   (SFC, 12/13/10, p.D4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Blake Edwards
(b.1922), American film director, died in Santa Monica, Ca. In 1958
he created the TV series “Peter Gunn.” His films included “Breakfast
at Tiffany’s” (1961), “10” (1979) and the Pink Panther farces.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.D5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In southern
Afghanistan a bicycle bomb killed three children and wounded six
civilians near Kandahar City at a temporary camp for pilgrims
returning from Mecca. A NATO service member was killed in a blast in
the south.
   (AFP, 12/15/10)(AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Australia signed
an agreement with Brazil to share knowledge on putting on the
Olympics to help preparations with Rio's hosting of the 2016 Games.
   (AFP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In New South
Wales, Australia, police found seven boxes of chemical glassware
used to make drugs when a van was stopped outside the town of
Quirindi. A forensic search of the van later found 43 pounds of
hidden ecstasy tablets with a street value of about 20 million
Australian dollars ($19.7 million).
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In violent seas
off Australia’s Christmas Island at least 48 refugees, thought to be
from Iran and Iraq, died after their wooden boat shattered before
horrified witnesses. 42 survivors, including 9 children were
rescued. On January 24, 2011, Australian authorities charged three
Indonesian men with people smuggling. Iranian-born Ali Khorram
Heydarkhani (40) was detained by Indonesian authorities on January
25 but only sent to Australia after overstaying his visa. On May 12,
2011, he was charged in Sydney with offences relating to the
boatpeople disaster.
   (AFP, 12/15/10)(AP, 12/16/10)(AP, 12/20/10)(AP,
1/25/11)(AFP, 5/12/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Brazil’s members
of Congress voted themselves a 62% pay rise. Many state governments
and municipalities soon followed suit.
   (Econ, 1/1/11, p.32)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Chinese Premier
Wen Jiabao's travelled to India to build trust between two Asian
powers with increasingly close economic ties despite their ongoing
competition for regional influence.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In southwest China
local authorities told state press that Zeng Lingquan, the operator
of an unlicensed shelter for disabled people, sold at least 70
mentally ill workers into slavery in recent years. Lingquan was
arrested on Dec 13.
   (AFP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In China workers
blasted through the last part of a tunnel that connects the Tibetan
county of Metok to China's major thoroughfare.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, The Costa
Rica-based Inter-American Court on Human Rights, part of the
Organization of American States (OAS), condemned Brazil for the
forced "disappearance" of 62 suspected leftist militants during its
military dictatorship and said it should allow prosecutions for
abuses committed during the era.
   (Reuters, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Cuban dissident
Guillermo Farinas (48) used a video address at today’s award of the
EU's main human rights prize, to call for the release of political
prisoners in his homeland and for the government to end attacks on
the opposition. Farinas was not allowed by Cuba to travel to receive
the prize in Strasbourg, France.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, British-based
explorer Tullow Oil PLC led a consortium and started producing
55,000 barrels per day from rigs off Ghana's Atlantic Ocean coast in
the Jubilee Field, which was discovered three years ago and holds an
estimated 1.8 billion barrels of oil.
   (AP, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Greece angry
unions triggered a 24-hour strike to protest labor reforms and pay
cuts. Protesters clashed with riot police across Athens.
   (SFC, 12/16/10, p.A9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Hong Kong police
said they have dealt a major blow to a notorious triad group, after
a territory-wide series of raids rounded up dozens of people,
including a suspected gang leader.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Iran 2 suicide
bomb attacks outside a mosque killed 39 people and wounded more than
100 during a Shi'ite religious ceremony in the southeastern city of
Chabahar. Jundollah, a Sunni Muslim rebel group, claimed
responsibility for the bombings.
   (Reuters, 12/14/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Human Rights Watch
said Iranians convicted for same-sex activities are on death row and
awaiting hanging, including several who were minors when arrested.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Iraqi authorities
said they have obtained confessions from captured insurgents who
claim al-Qaida is planning suicide attacks in the US and Europe
during the Christmas season. Hundreds of thousands of Shiites
descended on Karbala ahead of the climax of Ashura ceremonies,
surrounded by heavy security over fears of attacks. The UN Security
Council lifted most of the sanctions imposed on Iraq following its
1990 invasion of Kuwait.
   (AP, 12/15/10)(AFP, 12/15/10)(SFC, 12/16/10,
p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Ireland's
parliament approved an €85 billion ($113 billion) EU/IMF bailout
package in the face of opposition threats to renegotiate the deal to
force losses on some senior bondholders in Irish banks.
   (Reuters, 12/15/10)(Econ, 1/8/11, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Japan the city
of Tokyo restricted the sale of manga comics and anime films with
extreme depictions of rape, incest and other sex crimes, despite
industry charges of censorship.
   (AFP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In the Indian
portion of Kashmir police fired tear gas and swung batons to
disperse hundreds of Muslims participating in religious processions.
At least six people were injured.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Ben Zygier (34)
reportedly committed suicide in a high-security Israeli jail after
being held for months in great secrecy. His body was soon flown from
Israel to Melbourne for burial. The Australian man had reportedly
been recruited by the Israeli spy agency Mossad.
   (Reuters, 2/12/13)(AP, 2/19/13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Kenya's police
commissioner said authorities will act swiftly and firmly against
any outbreaks of violence connected to the announcement of suspects
by the International Criminal Court's prosecutor. ICC prosecutor
Luis Moreno Ocampo was expected to announce the names of six Kenyan
leaders suspected of fanning the flames of violence after the
country's December 2007 presidential election. Officials from the
UK, Canada, World Bank and UNICEF demanded that the Kenyan
government prosecute corrupt officials who stole money earmarked to
help send poor children to school.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, A Swiss prosecutor
wrote a report for the Council of Europe implicating Kosovo's PM
Hashim Thaci (b.1968) in drug smuggling and murder.
  Â
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashim_Tha%C3%A7i)(Econ., 6/27/20,
p.42)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Lebanon's army
said its military experts have discovered and dismantled two spy
cameras planted in the country's mountains by Israel.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, A Martinique court
found businessman Alain Despointes (84), guilty of condoning a crime
against humanity for praising slavery during a 2009 TV interview and
sentenced him to pay a fine of nearly $10,000. He was the first man
in Martinique found guilty under a 2001 French law that declared
slavery a crime against humanity.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Nepal a small
passenger plane with 22 people on board went missing while flying
over a mountainous region. All people were killed after the plane’s
wing apparently clipped a mountaintop.
   (AP, 12/15/10)(AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Scottish
engineering firm Weir was fined £3 million for paying illegal
kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's Iraqi regime to secure contracts. Weir
admitted making payments of £3.1 million to the Iraqi regime through
an agent to get contracts worth £35 million between September 2001
and April 2004 to supply spare pumps for drinking water and oil
projects.
   (AFP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, In Spain a man
walked into a bar in the town of Olot and shot two men dead with a
shotgun. Minutes later, he went to a bank and killed two staff
members. The man had a mortgage at the bank for an apartment that
was going to be seized for nonpayment.
   (AP, 12/15/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Sweden deported 5
Iraqi Christians, part of a group of at least 20 Iraqis, who failed
to gain asylum and were flown out of the country. On Dec 17 the UN
refugee agency called itself "dismayed" over the deportation and
called on countries to take in Iraqis from Baghdad, Kirkuk and three
northern provinces that the UN considers unsafe because of repeated
attacks, sectarian tensions and human rights violations.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 15, Jordanian engineer
Maath Mohammed Kamal Alia (45) was arrested in Yemen on suspicion of
throwing a bomb at a US Embassy vehicle.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, President Barack
Obama said the United States will start withdrawing US troops from
Afghanistan in July as promised. He still warned of sobering days,
saying the war will remain a "very difficult endeavor." In
Afghanistan a bomb killed 14 members of the same family north of
Herat city. 4 Afghan soldiers died overnight in a NATO air strike in
Helmand province.
   (AP, 12/16/10)(AFP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, The US FDA said it
was beginning the process to rescind Avastin’s accelerated approval
in breast tumors. The drug had global sales of $6 billion in 2009.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.C1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, The big set of
sand barriers erected by Louisiana's governor to protect the
coastline at the height of the Gulf oil spill was criticized by a
presidential commission as a colossal, $200 million waste of BP's
money so far.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Lorillard Tobacco
Co. was ordered to pay $81 million in punitive damages to the estate
and son of a Boston woman who started smoking at age 13. A day
earlier jurors ordered Lorillard to pay $71 million in compensatory
damages to Willie Evans and the estate of his mother Marie, who died
of lung cancer in 2002.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, US authorities
said 7 people have been arrested following the seizure of nearly 11
tons of marijuana, valued at $22 million, packed into railroad cars
from Mexico and destined to Chicago.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.A13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, The California Air
Resources Board approved the creation of the nation’s first
broad-based program to put a cap on green house gas emissions.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In California
Rohayent Gomez (13) was shot and paralyzed by police officer Victor
Abarca as the boy held a replica gun. In 2012 a jury ruled that the
LAPD must pay $24 million to Gomez.
   (SSFC, 12/16/12, p.A12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Prosecutors in
Atlanta, Georgia, said they have seized 700,000 tabs of Ecstasy and
charged Devon Samuels, a US Customs and Border Protection agent,
along with 13 others in a large scale drug trafficking scheme.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, New York police
scoured a 10-mile stretch of a Long Island beach access road where
four bodies were discovered this week.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Oklahoma executed
John David Duty (58) using a drug combination that included the
sedative pentobarbital, commonly used to euthanize animals. Duty had
strangled a cellmate nearly a decade ago.
   (SFC, 12/17/10, p.A13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, A federal
indictment said a Texas couple, Najmeh Vahid and Dr. Hossein Lahiji,
and the head of an Oregon charity secretly sent millions of dollars
to an Iranian bank and to a contact in Iran for nine years,
violating a US embargo. The head of the charity, Mehrdad Yasrebi,
allegedly funneled money that was meant for food and other
assistance to his cousin and to a bank controlled by the Iranian
government.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Astronauts from
the US, Russia and Italy blasted off in a Soyuz spacecraft from
Kazakhstan on a mission to the Int’l. Space Station.
   (SFC, 12/16/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Gene Smith
(b.1936), librarian and Tibetologist, died in NYC. In 1999 he set up
the Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center in Boston and then in NYC.
   (Econ, 1/15/11,
p.98)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._Gene_Smith)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Bangladesh
Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, a key figure in the opposition
Bangladesh Nationalist Party, was arrested. A tribunal has said it
has found evidence of Chowdhury committing genocide, rape, arson and
looting during the bloody 9-month liberation struggle against
Pakistan in 1971. Allegations soon emerged that security forces
tortured Chowdhury during interrogations.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Belgium NATO
Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, speaking at a
groundbreaking ceremony for a new NATO building, said the new
structure is essential to meet the demands of a rapidly changing
security environment. Completion is due in 2015.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Bolivia
lawmakers in a natural gas-rich eastern province removed Tarija Gov.
Mario Cossio, a key opponent of leftist President Evo Morales, after
he was charged with dereliction of duty and causing economic damage.
His unseating by a legislature dominated by Morales supporters left
opposition governors in control of just two of Bolivia's nine
provinces.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, London's High
Court upheld a decision to release WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange,
under strict conditions, as he fought extradition to Sweden over
alleged sex crimes.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Chinese Premier
Wen Jiabao pressed on with a charm offensive in India, offering
support for New Delhi's bid for a greater role in the United Nations
and agreeing on an ambitious target of $100 billion annually in
trade between the rising Asian powers by 2015.
   (Reuters, 12/16/10)(SFC, 12/17/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, China’s General
Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine
said in a statement that it has banned poultry and poultry product
imports from Manitoba, Canada, after an outbreak of low-pathogenic
H5N2 bird flu there.
   (Reuters, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Human Rights Watch
urged the EU to stop returning migrants and asylum seekers to
Ukraine, saying that they faced abuse and torture in the former
Soviet republic.
   (Reuters, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Lawyers said a
French judge has filed preliminary charges against six people close
to President Paul Kagame of Rwanda over the 1994 assassination of
the country's then-president in a missile attack on his plane. Among
the six people in question are ranking Rwandan army officers,
including James Kabarebe, who has been Rwanda's defense minister
since April, Charles Kayonga and Jackson Nkurunziza. The remaining
three were identified as Jacob Tumwine, Sam Kaka and Franck Nziza.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, India's Hero Group
said it was ending a 26-year-old joint venture with Honda Motor and
buying out the Japanese firm's stake in the biggest Indian
motorcycle manufacturer by sales.
   (AFP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Iraq bombs
hidden in trash cans exploded near a group of pilgrims in a town
north of Baghdad, killing two people as millions of Shiites headed
to ceremonies to mark Ashura, a day of mourning. Karbala provincial
council chief Mohammed al-Mussawi said "We were able to destroy 14
terrorist cells and arrest 73 people, including 37 wanted persons."
   (AP, 12/16/10)(AFP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, The Israeli
military said the air force has shot down a suspicious object,
"apparently a balloon," hovering over southern Israel, where its
main nuclear reactor is located.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Ivory Coast
gunfire and explosions shook Abidjan as supporters and security
forces loyal to the two men claiming to be president clashed. An
attempt by Alassane Ouattara’s people to march on the state
television building left about 20 people dead.
   (AP, 12/16/10)(AFP, 12/17/10)(Econ, 1/8/11, p.46)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Malaysian
opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and three of his allies were
suspended from parliament for six months in votes that triggered
pandemonium and an opposition walkout.
   (AFP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Mexico said that
more than 30,000 people have been killed in drug violence since
President Felipe Calderon launched a crackdown against cartels in
late 2006. Masked men pulled up in a car in front of the governor's
office in Chihuahua. One appeared to exchange words with anti-crime
crusader Marisela Escobedo Ortiz, who was holding a vigil outside.
She tried to flee by running across the street, but the gunman
chased her down and shot her in the head. The burned and dismembered
remains of Escobedo's 17-year-old daughter were found in a Ciudad
Juarez trash bin in June, 2009. Three judges ordered the release of
the main suspect in the daughter's killing after he was absolved by
a court in April for lack of evidence. The scandal resulted in the
suspension of the judges. The judges resigned on March 11, 2011.
   (AP, 12/16/10)(AP, 12/18/10)(AP, 3/15/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Mexico some
50-100 migrants were reportedly abducted by an armed group that
stopped a freight train they were traveling on as it entered Oaxaca
state from the border state of Chiapas.
   (AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Nigeria
Pentecostal pastor John Nadrew (46) was given three years and eight
months after security agents found an AK-47 rifle and five pistols
in his house in Dot village during a raid last month.
   (AFP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Pakistan 16
people were wounded, two critically, when an assailant threw an
explosive device at Shiite Ashoura procession. A US missile strike
killed 7 militants in the Spin Drand area of Khyber close to the
Afghan border.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Palestinian
negotiator Nabil Shaath said he has asked representatives of several
EU countries to recognize the truce lines before the 1967 Mideast
war as the borders between Israel and a Palestinian state.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, Russian
cardiologist Ivan Khrenov told PM Putin during a live call-in show
that his bosses instructed doctors and nurses to show fake pay slips
and pose as recovering patients surrounded by new equipment during
the premier's November visit to a hospital in the central town of
Ivanovo. Putin's visit to the hospital was nationally televised,
just like the call-in show where Khrenov made his claims.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Saudi Arabia
hundreds of Sunni hard-liners in Medina attacked those participating
in the commemorations, known as Ashura. The day of mourning marks
the killing of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein in the year
680 in present day Iraq. Shiites represented 10% of predominantly
Sunni Saudi Arabia's 22.6 million people.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, The UN's human
rights chief said that Sudan is blocking aid workers from entering
the country ahead of next month's referendum on independence for the
south.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, The UN Security
Council adopted Resolution 1960, which called for an end to all acts
of sexual violence. The Secretary-General was asked to include
information on parties suspected to be responsible for acts of rape
or other acts of sexual violence, which the Council would use to
engage with the parties or take action against them.
  Â
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1960)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, A fierce fight in
Ukraine's parliament sent at least six lawmakers to the hospital
with concussions, a fractured jaw and multiple bruises, setting a
new low for the often-tumultuous body. Pro-Tymoshenko legislators
had been blocking legislative work all day, protesting a corruption
probe against her.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, A
Vietnam-registered fishing boat, named Phu Tan, capsized off the
Chinese coast leaving 27 fishermen missing.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 16, In Zimbabwe
Raphael Khumalo, chief executive at the Zimbabwe Standard said first
lady Grace Mugabe (45) has filed a $15 million lawsuit against the
independent newspaper after they published a story citing WikiLeaks
cables, dating to 2008, alleging her involvement in illegal diamond
deals.
   (AP, 12/16/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Pres. Obama signed
into law a tax bill extending cuts for all Americans. The $858
billion package included 13 months of extended benefits to the
unemployed and a boost for renewable power companies.
   (SFC, 12/18/10, p.A12)(SFC, 12/18/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, The states of
Arizona and Nevada sued Bank of America Corp., accusing the largest
US bank of routinely misleading consumers about home loan
modifications.
   (Reuters, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, The widow of
Jeffrey Picower (d.2009), a Florida philanthropist, agreed to return
$7.2 billion that her husband reaped from the giant Ponzi scheme of
Bernard Madoff.
   (SFC, 12/18/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, The Archdiocese of
New York announced that a Roman Catholic tribunal has defrocked
former monsignor Charles Kavanagh (73) for molesting a teenage
student in the 1980s. Kavanagh denied the accusation.
   (SSFC, 12/19/10, p.A12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Don Van Vliet
(69), American musician and artist, died in California. He had
performed as Captain Beefheart and was best known for his 1969 album
“Trout Mask Replica” released by Captain Beefheart and His Magic
Band.”
   (SFC, 12/18/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Afghanistan
kidnappers killed a Bangladeshi working for a South Korean firm and
held 3 road workers hostage after storming their camp at gunpoint
between the northern provinces of Balkh and Samangan. Haitham
Mohammed al-Khayat (26), a prominent Jordanian-Palestinian militant
better known in extremist circles as Abu Kandahar al-Zarqawi, was
killed by US forces. He was an administrator of the online jihadi
forum, Al-Hesbah, according to Islamist militant websites.
   (AFP, 12/18/10)(AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, British landscape
architect Joanna Yeates (25) went missing following a night out. Her
body was found in the Failand area of Bristol on Christmas Day. She
had been strangled. On Jan 20, 2011, Dutch engineer Vincent Tabak
(32) was detained after police uncovered fresh evidence. On Oct 28
Tabak was found guilty of murder.
   (AFP, 1/4/11)(AFP, 1/22/11)(Reuters, 10/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Chinese Premier
Wen Jiabao made a rare visit to Pakistan aimed at expanding trade
ties and the flow of Chinese investment into the country.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, A French court
convicted 13 former officials who served under Chilean dictator
Augusto Pinochet for roles in the disappearance of 4 French
nationals. It sentenced two to life in prison: Juan Manuel Contreras
Sepulveda, who at the time headed Pinochet's political police, and
Octavio Espinoza Bravo, an army colonel. All 14 of the defendants
were tried in absentia.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Iraq a roadside
bomb in southeast Baghdad exploded as Shiite pilgrims were returning
home from Karbala, after final ceremonies ended for Ashura, the
Shiite Muslims' most solemn religious event of the year. Eight
pilgrims were wounded. The UN refugee agency said an "exodus" of
thousands of Iraqi Christians was taking place following a deadly
church attack in Baghdad carried out by Al-Qaeda militants at the
end of October.
   (AP, 12/17/10)(AFP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Israel
Christine Luken (44), female American tourist, was stabbed to death.
Her body was found on Dec 19 bound and with multiple stab wounds
near a road outside Jerusalem. Her friend, Kaye Susan Wilson, told
police the two had been hiking in a nearby forest when they were
assaulted by two Arab men. She, too, was bound and stabbed, but
managed to escape her assailants. On Jan 26, 2011, Palestinians
Kifah Ghneimat and Iyad Fatafa were indicted for Luken’s murder.
Ghneimat was convicted on Sep 25.
   (AP, 12/19/10)(AP, 1/26/11)(AP, 9/26/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Ivory Coast police
were out in force in Abidjan as supporters of the internationally
recognized winner of Ivory Coast's presidential election vowed to
try once again to seize state institutions after a similar attempt
the day before resulted in up to 30 deaths.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Kyrgyzstan's
fractious parliament named a new prime minister and formed a
government, ending weeks of political uncertainty. Social Democrat
Party leader Almazbek Atambayev was named premier with 92 out of 114
votes.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Maltese Foreign
Minister Tonio Borg promised during a visit to the Gaza Strip to
donate funds to the United Nations agency caring for Palestinian
refugees.
   (AFP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Mexico 141
inmates, a number later raised to 153, escaped from a state prison
in the northern border city of Nuevo Laredo. Authorities said the
breakout was probably helped by prison employees. More than 40
prison guards were later charged with helping 153 inmates escape
from the prison. 11 men were reported abducted from a bar in
Acapulco. Two of the abducted men were later found dead. Their hands
and feet had been cut off. On Dec 27Â police in Acapulco found
the decapitated bodies of two more men in front of the same bar.
   (AP, 12/17/10)(AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, A Nigerian court
sentenced 15 Muslim herdsmen to 10 years each over sectarian
violence in the country's central region that left hundreds dead
this year. Nigerian tanker drivers suspended petrol deliveries to
Lagos and other areas to protest the firing of 2,500 members,
sparking long queues at filling stations.
   (AFP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Nigerian NDLF
militants attacked three pipelines operated by the US oil giant
Chevron and Italian firm Agip in the key oil producing state of
Delta.
   (AFP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Nigeria dropped
charges against US ex-vice president Dick Cheney and others over a
bribery scandal allegedly involving Halliburton after a reported
settlement of 250 million dollars. On Dec 21 Halliburton said it had
agreed to pay 32.5 million dollars to the Nigerian government, plus
2.5 million dollars in costs.
   (AFP, 12/17/10)(AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, North Korea said
it would strike again at the South if a live-firing drill by Seoul
on a disputed island went ahead, with an even stronger response than
last month's shelling that killed four people. Russia urged South
Korea to halt plans for the artillery drill.
   (AP, 12/17/10)(Reuters, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Pakistan 3
American missile attacks killed 54 people in the villages of Spin
Drag and Shandana in the Tirah Valley of the Khyber region, an area
that has seen few such strikes in the past, possibly signaling an
expansion of the CIA-led covert war inside the country.
   (AP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Sudan's army
clashed with Darfur rebels for a third time in a week. UN officials
said clashes between the Sudanese army and former rebels who signed
a peace treaty with Khartoum have forced the displacement of more
than 12,000 people in less than a week.
   (Reuters, 12/17/10)(AFP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Tunisia Mohamed
Bouazizi (26), a university graduate without a steady job and trying
to support his family, burned himself after police confiscated the
fruits and vegetables he sold without a permit. His self-immolation
left him in intensive care and sparked protests over unemployment
that led to at least three deaths. Bouazizi died on Jan 4.
   (AP, 1/2/11)(AP, 1/5/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Venezuelan
lawmakers granted President Hugo Chavez broad powers to enact laws
by decree, undermining the clout of a new congress that takes office
next month with a bigger opposition bloc. Officials and troops began
seizing 47 private ranches as pres. Chavez pushed ahead to take over
big swaths of agricultural land in western Venezuela.
   (AP, 12/18/10)(SFC, 12/18/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Vietnam
Southeast Asia's largest hydroelectric power station began operating
to help ease an electricity shortage. The first of six turbines at
the Son La station was connected to the national power grid.
   (AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, In Yemen gunmen
killed three soldiers and wounded seven others when they opened fire
on a military base in the southern province of Abyan.
   (AFP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 17, Zimbabwe's Pres.
Mugabe said the power-sharing government is not working and must
end, putting him on a collision course with PM Morgan Tsvangirai.
Mugabe told his party conference that British and US companies in
Zimbabwe will be nationalized unless sanctions against the country
are dropped.
   (AFP, 12/17/10)(AFP, 12/17/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Tensions between
the US and Venezuela flared over Washington's nominee for
ambassador, as President Hugo Chavez warned that diplomat Larry
Palmer would be detained and put on the next flight home if he tries
to set foot in the country.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In a historic vote
for gay rights, the US Senate agreed to do away with the military's
17-year ban on openly gay troops and sent President Barack Obama
legislation to overturn the Clinton-era policy known as "don't ask,
don't tell."
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In Louisiana a
small plane crashed after takeoff in Crowley killing 3 people and
injuring 2 others.
   (SSFC, 12/19/10, p.A12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Luis Moreno
Ocampo, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, said he
has evidence Sudanese Pres. Omar al-Bashir has stolen billions of
dollars from his impoverished country. The embezzlement accusations
were first reported by British newspaper The Guardian, based on a
diplomatic cable provided by the Wikileaks website.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In eastern
Afghanistan NATO troops killed more than 20 insurgents in fighting
after a patrol came under fire. German Chancellor Angela Merkel paid
an unannounced visit to northern Afghanistan to boost German troops'
morale for a war that is deeply unpopular at home and to meet with
the Afghan president. A leader of the Haqqani network was killed in
an operation by international forces and their Afghan counterparts
in the eastern Khost province. A man was captured during a night
raid in the Zharay district of southern Kandahar province by Afghan
and coalition forces, who described him as "a key Taliban weapons
facilitator."
   (AP, 12/18/10)(Reuters, 12/18/10)(AP,
12/22/10)(Reuters, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In northeastern
Bangladesh a boat packed with passengers capsized on the Surma
River. Rescuers the next day said at least 37 people died and 18
more were missing.
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In Brazil
bridegroom Rogerio Damascena (29) fatally shot his new wife, Renata
Alexandre Costa Coelho (25), his best man, Marcelo Guimaraes, and
then himself after announcing to horrified guests that he had a
"surprise" for them.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Fresh snow brought
much of Britain to a standstill, on what is traditionally the
busiest weekend for shopping and travel in the run-up to Christmas.
Blizzards and freezing temperatures shut down runways, train tracks
and highways across Europe.
   (Reuters, 12/18/10)(AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Andrew Lindo (29)
strangled, battered and stabbed Marie Stewart to death while their
children were asleep, at their home in Holmfirth, West Yorkshire.
Hours later, he took the two children to collect his lover, Angela
Rylance (30), spending the night with her in the bedroom where he
had carried out the brutal murder. On Sep 21 a judge ordered that
Lindo serve a minimum of 22 years behind bars.
   (AFP,
9/21/11)(www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-14842805)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, A 63-ton Chinese
fishing boat capsized after ramming into a 3,000-ton South Korean
coastguard ship trying to curb its illegal fishing activities,
leaving one Chinese crew member dead and another missing.
   (AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Cuban President
Raul Castro told legislators that the future of the country's
revolution is at stake as the government tries to institute sweeping
economic reforms, adding that the changes are meant to strengthen
socialism — not replace it.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Germany’s weekly
Der Spiegel reported that local tax authorities recovered 1.6
billion euros this year from citizens who had stashed their cash in
secret accounts in Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
   (AFP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Iran's president
announced the start of a plan to slash energy and food subsidies,
part of government efforts to boost the country's ailing economy.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Iraq's parliament
took a major step toward creating a unity government, lifting a ban
on three Sunni Muslim politicians who were barred from running in
national elections last March after being accused of having ties to
Saddam Hussein's ousted regime.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, An Israeli
airstrike killed five Gaza militants in the deadliest attack against
the coastal strip in months. The Israeli military says the men were
about to launch a rocket attack against southern Israeli communities
when they were struck.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In the Ivory Coast
Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to step down from the presidency,
ordered all UN peacekeepers to leave the country immediately,
calling the global body that has endorsed his political rival an
"agent of destabilization." The UN certified results showed that
opposition leader Alassane Ouattara had won by "an irrefutable
margin."
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In Mexico a lumber
operation, associated with the family of anti-crime crusader
Marisela Escobedo Ortiz, killed on Dec 16, was burned down in Ciudad
Juarez by unknown arsonists. The body of Manuel Monge Amparan, a
relative of Marisela Escobedo Ortiz, was dumped on a street in
Ciudad Juarez.
   (AP, 12/18/10)(AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Pakistan and China
concluded nearly 15 billion dollars' worth of deals, as visiting
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Beijing would "never give up" on the
troubled nuclear-armed Muslim country.
   (AFP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Pakistan's top spy
agency denied that it helped unmask the CIA's station chief in
Islamabad, dismissing speculation it was retaliating for a US
lawsuit linking the Pakistani intelligence chief to the 2008 attacks
in Mumbai, India. The station chief in Islamabad has operated as a
virtual military commander in the US war against al-Qaida and other
militant groups hidden along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. His
recall was made public a day earlier.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, Russian news
agencies said Moscow police have arrested 500 people to stop them
attending rival protests over the killing of a soccer fan and the
ethnic violence that erupted after the slaying. Seven hunters and
forest rangers were shot dead in a wooded area in the Caucasus
province of Kabardino-Balkaria.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, In Spain tens of
thousands of workers staged strikes in 40 cities to protest state
plans to up the retirement age to slash public deficit.
   (AFP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 18, A Sri Lanka
Cabinet minister backtracked saying the government will now allow a
UN team to visit the country and share evidence gathered during an
investigation into whether war crimes were committed during the
final phase of the island's bloody civil war.
   (AP, 12/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, In northern
Afghanistan troops shot dead rebels at an army recruitment center in
Kunduz to end a day-long siege following 2 attacks by militants that
killed at least 13 security personnel. In Kabul two suicide bombers
targeted an army bus, killing five military personal. One civilian
was killed and four children were wounded when their vehicle was
struck by a roadside bomb in Panjwayi district, in Kandahar
province.
   (AFP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Belarus held
elections. Authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko expressed
confidence that he would win a fourth term. Opposition leaders and
rights activists reported that more than 30 people campaigning
against the president had been detained. The country's election
commission declared that Lukashenko got almost 80% of the vote in a
preliminary count, handing him a fourth term in office.
   (AP, 12/19/10)(AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, A Dubai court
sentenced Mark Arnold (42), a Briton, charged with killing Kelly
Winter, his South African ex-lover, to life in prison. Winter (36)
disappeared in August 2008 following a quarrel with Arnold.
Prosecutors charged him with clubbing her to death with a baseball
bat and dumping her body with weights in the sea. Her body was never
found. Life in prison equals 25 years in the United Arab Emirates.
   (AFP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Europe saw little
respite from the Arctic conditions that have closed airports and
disrupted travel on the weekend before Christmas.
   (Reuters, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, The Guatemalan
military declared a state of siege in a northern province that
authorities say has been overtaken by Mexican drug traffickers.
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Iran levied up to
a five-fold hike in fuel prices as the government started scrapping
subsidies as part of a long-awaited economic overhaul, despite
initial resistance by conservatives. Thousands of truck drivers
nationwide stopped working because they were not allowed to increase
their prices.
   (AFP, 12/19/10)(SFC, 12/25/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Israel's cabinet
decided to limit stipends paid to full-time ultra-Orthodox Jewish
seminary students after the payments sparked widespread protests
among university students.
   (AFP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Ivory Coast state
television left no doubt who's in control of the media: Laurent
Gbagbo was shown taking the oath of office with no mention that the
United Nations says he lost the presidential election and should
step down. The UN warned against attacks on its personnel in Ivory
Coast and said it would stay.
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, In Mexico a
massive oil pipeline explosion lay waste to parts of in San Martin
Texmelucan, incinerating people, cars, houses and trees as gushing
crude turned streets into flaming rivers. At least 29 people were
killed, 14 of them children. Authorities blamed oil thieves after
investigators found a hole in the pipeline and equipment for
extracting crude. On Jan 10 a police officer died of his injuries
bringing the death toll to 30.
   (AP, 12/19/10)(AP, 12/22/10)(AP, 1/10/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas hosted dozens of Israeli legislators and
activists, and urged them to relay a simple message to the Israeli
public — he is serious about negotiating a peace deal and that the
Palestinians will never again resort to violence.
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, In the northern
Philippines a fire rapidly swept through a 5-storey budget hotel in
Tuguegarao burning to death 15 people, several crammed in bathrooms
where they fled in panic. Nine of the victims were nursing students
in town to take a licensing exam. The death toll rose to 16 after
one person died in a hospital
   (AP, 12/19/10)(AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, In Somalia a
merger was announced between al-Shabab and Hizbul Islam. Analysts
and fighters said the weak, UN-backed government could face an
increase in attacks from Islamist insurgents after the two largest
groups dropped their running feud and merged.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, Sudan's President
Omar al-Bashir said the country would adopt an Islamic constitution
if the south split away in a referendum due next month, in a speech
in which he also defended police filmed flogging a woman.
   (Reuters, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 19, The UN Security
Council held an emergency meeting on rising tensions on the Korean
Peninsula.
   (AP, 12/19/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Facebook CEO Mark
Zuckerberg toured the offices of Baidu, China's top search engine,
during a visit that has sparked speculation the social networking
magnate is looking for business opportunities in the world's largest
Internet market.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, New York
authorities searching in a weedy area off Ocean Parkway for Shannan
Gilbert (24, a sex worker from New Jersey who had been missing since
May, found the remains of a woman later identified as Melissa
Barthelemy (24). Two days later, during another search in the same
area, authorities found the bodies of three more victims: Amber Lynn
Costello (27) Megan Waterman (22), and Maureen Brainard-Barnes (25).
Three months after that, in March 2011, the remains of Jessica
Taylor (20) were also located near Gilgo Beach. Other parts of
Taylor’s body had been found nearly eight years before in
Manorville. Three more bodies -- an unidentified woman, a 2-year-old
girl and an unidentified Asian male believed to be between 17 and 23
-- were found April 4, 2011. A week later, the last two of the 10
victims were found in neighboring Nassau County, including the
toddler's mom. In 2020 the identification of Jane Doe #6 was made
using DNA technology.
   (Good Morning America, 2/2/20)(ABC News, 5/22/20)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, International
observers and Western governments accused Belarus' strongman leader
of using fraud and violence to remain in power after more than 16
years of repressive rule, saying that Pres. Lukashenko's re-election
had been seriously flawed.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, British police
arrested a dozen men suspected of plotting a large-scale terror
attack, the biggest anti-terrorist sweep since April 2009, when 12
men were detained over an alleged al-Qaida bomb plot in the northern
city of Manchester.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, China's state news
agency said eight people have been sentenced to prison terms of up
to two-and-a-half years for selling fake rabies vaccines that
contributed to the death of one boy. A court in southwestern Guangxi
region sentenced Zhang Dazhi to 30 months' jail while seven others
were handed one-year prison terms.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, In Colombia
another mudslide caused by weeks of rains destroyed 52 makeshift
mountainside homes. Two people were missing.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, An Egyptian State
Security prosecutor said that authorities have charged a local
businessman, Tarek Hassan, and two Israelis for recruiting agents in
Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon to spy for Israeli intelligence.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, The European Union
Divorce Law Pact or Rome III Regulation, formally Council Regulation
(EU) No. 1259/2010, implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of
the law applicable to divorce and legal separation is a regulation
concerning the applicable law regarding divorce valid in 16
countries. In 2016 Estonia became the 17th country to sign the
agreement.
  Â
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applicable_divorce_law_regulation)(Econ,
2/18/17, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Snow and frigid
temperatures caused disruption across northern Europe for a third
day, stranding travelers, snarling traffic and shutting schools, and
the bad weather is likely to run through Christmas.
   (Reuters, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Iran and Qatar
pledged to cooperate for greater regional security during a visit to
Tehran by Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, the emir of the tiny
but energy-rich Gulf state.
   (AFP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Iran hanged 11 men
authorities said were members of Jundallah, an armed Sunni militant
group, convicted of bombings.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Iran's judiciary
spokesman confirmed that Mohammad Reza Rahimi, the country's first
vice president, was facing corruption charges. Iran has 12 vice
presidents but Rahimi is the most senior among them.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, In southeastern
Iran a magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck a remote area late at night,
killing at least 11 people and injuring 40 people.
   (AP, 12/21/10)(SFC, 12/22/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Iraqi army special
forces killed three Libyans allegedly planning suicide bombings
ahead of Christmas in a raid in the northern city of Mosul.
   (AFP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, In Malaysia a
double-decker bus carrying Thai tourists overturned on a highway,
killing 28 people on their way back from a hill resort.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, North Korea said
it would not react to "reckless" military drills by the South,
despite an earlier threat to retaliate, and CNN reported that
Pyongyang had agreed to the return of nuclear inspectors.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, In Pakistan
militants fired rockets at a NATO convoy carrying supplies to
Afghanistan, destroying two oil tankers and wounding two people in
the Khyber tribal region.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Palestinian
militants in Gaza fired seven mortar shells into southern Israel
that fell on open ground and caused no casualties.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, In Puerto Rico at
least 17 people were detained as students at the largest public
university in the Caribbean clashed with police during an indefinite
strike over a new fee.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, A Puerto Rico
National Guard UH-72 Lakota helicopter crashed in the ocean while
returning from a drug raid on Vieques. 3 bodies of the six people on
board were found and the remaining were feared dead. The last body
was recovered on Jan 23.
   (AP, 12/21/10)(AP, 12/22/10)(AP, 1/23/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Serbia urged
international authorities to investigate allegations of a trade in
the kidneys and other organs of civilians slain in the aftermath of
Kosovo's 1999 war for secession.
   (AP, 12/20/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Somali pirates
hijacked the MV Orna cargo vessel after firing rocket propelled
grenades and small arms at the ship, a Panama-flagged, bulk cargo
vessel owned by a company in the United Arab Emirates. In June,
2011, pirate a said an undisclosed number of pirates and hostages
were forced to abandon the bulk cargo carrier MV Orna. Abdi said it
is believed the fire was caused by an electrical problem in the
ship's kitchen.
   (AP, 12/20/10)(AP, 6/15/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 20, Venezuela’s
government formally rejected Larry Palmer, Washington's nominee for
ambassador. The US State Department said the decision will have
consequences on their relations. Venezuela’s parliament passed a law
banning for the first time Internet content that promotes social
unrest, challenges authority or condones crime, fueling outrage by
the opposition.
   (AP, 12/20/10)(AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, US tax authorities
announced that Deutsche Bank has admitted criminal wrongdoing and
agreed to pay more than $550 million in connection with its
participation in tax shelters from 1996-2002 that enabled the rich
to temporarily avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in US
taxes.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, The United States
said it has approved travel sanctions against Laurent Gbagbo and
about 30 others following Ivory Coast's disputed presidential
election.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, The US Treasury
Department imposed sanctions against Zimbabwe's attorney general,
Johannes Tomana, saying his actions undermined the country's
democratic institutions.
   (Reuters, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In southern
Afghanistan a British soldier was one of two NATO service members
killed in Helmand. 5 civilians died as militants attacked coalition
forces in the Sangin district. Seven insurgents were killed in the
battle.
   (AP, 12/21/10)(AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, The Australian
Defense Force said steroids and unidentified substances had been
seized in recent raids after a tip-off. A report claimed Australian
sailors have been stashing large amounts of cocaine and heroin on
navy ships and selling them in Sydney's red light district and that
this has been going on "for years."
   (AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In Belarus Grigory
Kostusyev, a presidential candidate arrested after weekend
elections, said the KGB tried to pressure him into renouncing his
opposition to the country's authoritarian regime.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, British man
Stephen Griffiths (40), who called himself the "Crossbow Cannibal,"
was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to killing
three prostitutes. Griffiths admitted murdering Suzanne Blamires
(36), Shelley Armitage (31) and Susan Rushworth (43), who all worked
as prostitutes near his home in Bradford.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Toronto-Dominion
Bank said it will buy Chrysler Financial from private equity firm
Cerberus Capital Management for $6.3 billion, joining the throng of
Canadian institutions expanding foreign operations.
   (Reuters, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, China urged North
Korea to follow through on its offer to allow UN nuclear monitors
into the country as a way to alleviate international tensions during
a standoff with the South.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In Cuba Francisco
Chavez Abarca of El Salvador was handed a 30-year prison sentence
for his role in a string of bombings at tourist hotels in the 1990s.
The bombings killed an Italian tourist in 1997.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, The leaders of
Egypt and Libya were in Khartoum for talks with Sudanese leaders on
the future of Africa's largest country ahead of a referendum that's
likely to break it into two.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, A French judge
charged exiled Rwandan Hutu rebel leader Callixte Mbarushimana (47)
over his alleged role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. The former
"executive secretary" of the Hutu guerrilla FDLR, who had been
living in France as a computer technician, was charged with crimes
against humanity.
   (AFP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Alpha Conde
heralded a new era for Guinea after being sworn as the nation's
first freely elected president in front of visiting heads of state
and jubilant supporters.
   (AFP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Hungary’s Fidesz
party passed the second part of contentious legislation placing
broadcast, print and online media under the supervision of a new
authority with power to impose large fines for ill-defined offenses.
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.53)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In India Russia’s
Pres. Medvedev clinched agreements with its Cold War-era ally to
deepen nuclear energy cooperation and develop a supersonic fighter
to rival a US jet. Russia and India pledged to share intelligence
and work together to fight international terror.
   (Reuters, 12/21/10)(AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Iraqi lawmakers
unanimously approved a new government to be headed by incumbent
Shiite PM Nouri al-Maliki, ending nine months of political deadlock
that threatened to stall economic development and suck the country
back into sectarian violence. They also adopted a 43-point program
aimed at liberalizing the economy and fighting terrorism. Women made
up a quarter of the 325-seat Parliament but were given only two
ministries in the 44-member Cabinet, approved after a nine-month
delay.
   (AP, 12/21/10)(AFP, 12/21/10)(AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, The Israeli air
force hit seven suspected militant sites in the Gaza Strip in an
unusually large operation. Palestinian militants retaliated by
sending a rocket crashing down near a kindergarten in southern
Israel. Israel's military chief confirmed the Palestinian use of
Kornet missiles. This marked a new milestone for Gaza militants, who
have steadily built up their arsenal from a collection of crude,
homemade rockets to include more menacing imported weapons. Israeli
defense officials said the laser-guided Kornet came from Iran.
Israel's answer, called Trophy, was the first-of-its-kind
Israeli-made system carried by tanks that is designed to shoot down
missiles like the Kornet.
   (AP, 12/21/10)(AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Toyota Motor Corp.
agreed to pay the US government a record $32.4 million in additional
fines to settle an investigation into its handling of two recalls at
the heart of its safety crisis. The latest settlement, on top of a
$16.4 million fine Toyota paid earlier in a related investigation,
brought the total penalties levied on the company to $48.8 million.
   (AP, 12/21/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In Mexico seven
gunmen kidnapped 9 Central American migrants from a train near the
Ixtepec, a town in Oaxaca state. Five of the migrants escaped and
reported the kidnapping. Another was killed as he tried to flee. 3
remained missing.
   (AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Netherlands-based
Royal DSM NV, the world’s largest maker of vitamins, agreed to buy
Martek Biosciences, a US maker of nutritional ingredients for baby
food, for $1.09 billion.
   (SFC, 12/22/10, p.D3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, A Sudan military
source said 20 soldiers from the south Sudan army (SPLA) have been
killed in clashes with rebels led by former general George Athor.
   (AFP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In Tonga Noble
Lord Tu’ivakano won a secret ballot among lawmakers to become the
country’s first prime minister elected by parliament rather than
appointed by King George Tupou V.
   (SFC, 12/21/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, Venezuela’s
congress, dominated by President Hugo Chavez's allies, passed a law
barring foreign funding for nongovernment organizations and
political parties, adding to a series of measures that critics say
aim to stifle dissent.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 21, In Zimbabwe 9
people died and 25 were injured when a speeding bus slammed into a
truck in Harare. 3 infants were among the dead.
   (AP, 12/22/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, President Barack
Obama fulfilled a campaign promise and signed a landmark law
repealing the ban on gay men and women serving openly in the armed
services.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, The US Senate, in
its final act of the lameduck session, approved the Strategic Arms
Reduction Treaty (71-26) signed earlier this year by Pres. Obama and
Russia’s Pres. Medvedev.
   (SFC, 12/23/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In South San
Francisco, Ca., 3 young men were shot and killed in a driveby
shooting at the corner of Linden and Eighth Lane. In 2012 nineteen
people were indicted for the killings. 3 federal agents were wounded
during arrest procedures.
   (SFC, 5/4/12, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Chicago 2
firefighters were killed when a roof collapsed in a vacant burning
building. The tragedy took place exactly 100 years following the
Chicago Union Stock Yards fire that killed 21 firemen.
   (SFC, 12/23/10, p.A7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Afghan officials
said Iran has banned fuel exports to Afghanistan, stranding about
3,000 fuel trucks at the border and driving up wholesale prices for
the refined products ahead of what many Afghans fear will be a
blistery winter in their oil-poor nation.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, A joint Afghan and
NATO patrol killed several insurgents in the southern province of
Helmand during an operation targeting a mid-level Taliban leader
involved in roadside bomb attacks. A Taliban leader involved in the
Dec 19 bus bombing in Kabul and two other insurgents in an airstrike
in Ghazni province in the center of the country. A roadside bomb
struck a tractor pulling a cart loaded with passengers, killing a
child and wounding nine people in the Garm Ser district of Helmand
province.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Albania invited an
international investigation into claims it was linked with the
trafficking of organs from slain civilians during the war in
neighboring Kosovo.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Argentina
former dictator Jorge Videla was sentenced to life in prison for the
torture and murder of 31 prisoners, most of whom who were "shot
while trying to escape" in the months after his military coup.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Australia Kok
Loong Wong of Malaysia appeared in a Sydney court charged with
possessing 200 pounds (90 kg) of crystal meth in his home, the
seventh-largest "ice" haul in Australian history.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, A rights group
said Belarus has opened criminal probes against 18 leading
opposition figures over involvement in post-election riots that
could see them jailed for up to 15 years. Belarus has said it
arrested over 600 people in the wake of recent protests against
authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko's re-election.
   (AFP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Bolivia sent a
letter to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declaring its
recognition of an independent and sovereign state of Palestine.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, A Dubai court
slashed the prison terms for two men convicted in the 2009 slaying
of a former Chechen warlord from life to just three years in a
surprise ruling that highlighted the international intrigue
surrounding the case. The family of the slain Chechen strongman,
Sulim Yamadayev, had submitted a letter disavowing any desire for
further punishments in connection with the killing.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In France 113
children arrived from Haiti to start new lives with adoptive parents
in time for the holidays.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Haitian officials
said angry mobs have lynched at least 45 people in recent weeks,
accusing them of spreading a cholera outbreak that has killed over
2,500 people across the country.
   (AFP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, The Indian
government, facing mounting public anger over soaring onion costs,
scrapped tax on imports of the vegetable to try to rein in prices of
the staple food.
   (AFP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Iran's armed Sunni
militant group said it will kill an abducted Iranian after
authorities rejected an offer to swap the hostage for 200 of the
group's imprisoned members. The man was identified as a former
worker at an Iranian nuclear facility who was kidnapped two months
ago.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Iraq a large
military operation targeting Al-Qaeda and their sleeper cells was
launched overnight in Anbar province. 93 suspects were arrested,
including 60 wanted men. Gunmen with silenced weapons raked the car
of General Imad Hasham with gunfire in a Baghdad street, killing him
and wounding his daughter. Gunmen also with silenced weapons shot
and wounded police Lieutenant Colonel Majid Hamid as he was driving
through the Amiriya area of Baghdad.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Rome, Italy,
all embassies were informed about a pair of package bombs that
exploded at the Swiss and Chilean embassies, injuring two people who
opened them. Security officials later said that an Italian group
calling itself Informal Anarchist Federation claimed responsibility.
   (AP, 12/23/10)(AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Rome tens of
thousands of students took to the streets to peacefully protest
planned changes in the university system. Protests in Palermo and
Milan turned violent.
   (SFC, 12/23/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Nigeria’s state
oil firm said it has shut down three of its four refineries because
of sabotage of pipelines leading to them. It called on the military
to increase security.
   (AFP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, A small Pakistani
army training plane crashed into mountains in the country's
southwest. The pilot and co-pilot died in the crash.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, The Saudi Civil
and Political Rights Association said in a statement that the
Interior Ministry summoned the coordinators of the protest to notify
them that their request has been rejected, without giving any
reasons. The group's 20 demands included curtailing privileges of
members of the Saudi royal family, fighting corruption and nepotism,
and creating an independent judiciary.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, South Korea
announced land and sea military exercises including its largest-ever
live-fire drill near North Korea just as tension on the peninsula
was beginning to ease after Pyongyang's attack on a southern island.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Spain's "El
Gordo", one of the world's biggest lotteries, gave out 2.3 billion
euros (1.9 billion British pounds) in Christmas prizes with
Spaniards spending almost the same as last year on tickets.
   (Reuters, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Sudan Mudawi
Ibrahim, a prominent Darfur activist, was sentenced to one year in
prison and fined on embezzlement charges. He was acquitted on the
same charges earlier. Authorities appealed and won a new verdict
without a retrial.
   (AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, Thailand's
government withdrew armed soldiers from skytrain stops in Bangkok
and other key sites as it lifted an eight-month-old state of
emergency imposed when protesters overran the capital.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, In Tunisia a
24-year-old jobless protester was electrocuted after announcing he
wanted to end his life and mounting a high-voltage electricity pole
in the town of Sidi Bouzid. Police fired tear gas at stone-throwing
protesters after simmering tensions linked to unemployment erupted
after the demonstrator committed suicide.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, The UN nuclear
agency said tons of highly radioactive nuclear waste from a defunct
Serbian reactor have been repatriated to Russia. The 2.5 metric tons
(2.76 tons) of the spent fuel arrived at a secure Russian facility
from Serbia's Vinca reactor.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, The UN Security
Council voted to increase by half the number of African Union
peacekeepers supporting Somalia's transitional government against
Al-Qaeda-inspired rebels.
   (AP, 12/22/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 22, A Venezuelan court
sentenced Jose Sanchez Montiel, an opposition politician, to 19
years in prison, saying he was an accomplice in the 2007 killing of
a military intelligence official. He was elected to the National
Assembly in September while in jail awaiting sentencing. On Dec 24,
2011, a court granted parole to Montiel for humanitarian reasons
because of his advanced prostate cancer.
   (AP, 12/23/10)(AP, 12/24/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, The US Treasury
Department defended its issuance of special licenses for American
companies to do business with Iran and other blacklisted nations, in
response to a New York Times report on deals made despite sanctions
and trade embargoes. An examination by the newspaper found the
Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control has made
nearly 10,000 exceptions to U.S. sanctions rules over the past
decade.
   (Reuters, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, The US population
reportedly grew 9.7% over the previous decade to 308.7 million as
the US Census Bureau began releasing data.
   (SFC, 12/24/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In central Florida
Kenneth Stephens Jr. (35), a blast team supervisor, was trapped
underwater and feared dead after ground gave way at a limerock mine
in Bushnell.
   (SFC, 12/24/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In Afghanistan a
suicide bomber killed an Afghan policeman and wounded five civilians
in Kunduz. A blast in Ghazni killed a man suspected of being either
a suicide bomber or of trying to plant a bomb under a truck. A NATO
helicopter opened fire on a convoy of cars heading to an event
hosted by the head of a local council in Faryab province, killing a
police officer and the brother of a lawmaker. It was reported that
US-donated medicines and pharmaceutical supplies meant to keep the
new Afghan army and police healthy have been disappearing before
reaching Afghan military hospitals and clinics.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)(AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In Australia
Melbourne men Wissam Mahmoud Fattal (34), Nayef El Sayed (26), both
of Lebanese descent, and Somali-origin Saney Edow Aweys (27) were
found guilty of conspiring to plan a terrorist act, which carries a
possible life term. Two other men, Somali-origin Abdirahman Mohamud
Ahmed (26) and Yacqub Khayre (23) were found not guilty after the
three-month trial.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Anglo-Australian
resources giant Rio Tinto made a 3.9 billion US dollar offer for
Australia's Riversdale, sparking speculation of a bidding war for
its African steel-making coal with Indian and other rivals.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Human Rights Watch
said The United States and Britain should immediately stop
supporting the Bangladeshi Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), an
anti-crime force blamed for killing hundreds of suspects without
trial, if there is no visible effort to reform it.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, China's capital
announced that it will sharply limit new vehicle registrations to
try to ease massive traffic jams that are rapidly turning Beijing's
streets into parking lots.
   (AP, 12/23/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, China said it will
boost further its already expanding economic ties with Africa, which
reached a record two-way volume of more than $100 billion this year.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In southwestern
Colombia a landslide caused by weeks of rains buried 4-5 houses
killing at least 12 people. The government and Red Cross said the
year's heavy rains have killed at least 312 people in the country.
   (AP, 12/24/10)(Econ, 1/15/11, p.40)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, It was reported
that the first pill designed to curb a person’s urge to have more
than a few drinks of alcohol was undergoing tests in Europe. The
drug (nalmafene) was developed by H. Lundbeck A/S in Valby, Denmark.
   (SFC, 12/23/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, The EU and the US
jointly threatened to review ties with Belarus following an
opposition crackdown after elections that kept President Alexander
Lukashenko in power.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Greece's governing
Socialists won a key budget vote in Parliament, calling for deeper
austerity measures in the crisis-hit country and promising to avoid
default despite a soaring national debt.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Hungary’s
lawmakers approved new budget plans and pledged to get the budget
deficit below 3 percent of national income next year. Fitch Ratings
said the measures proposed, particularly on pensions, could actually
worsen the public finances in coming years.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Indian official
data showed that food price inflation has returned to double-digits,
fuelled by surging onion prices, adding to pressure on the
scandal-hit Congress government.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad joined regional leaders for a summit on economic
cooperation in Istanbul, just a month ahead of nuclear talks with
world powers.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In Iraq police
patrol discovered the body of Barbaros Mohammed Habeeb, a member of
the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's
party, in the disputed northern oil hub of Kirkuk. Security forces,
searching for a young woman on suspicion she had ties to al-Qaida,
raided her father's home outside Baqouba. During questioning Najim
al-Anbaky told police he had killed his daughter, Shahlaa, a month
earlier because he found out she intended to blow herself up in a
suicide attack.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)(AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, The Irish
government gained court approval to nationalize Allied Irish Banks,
the fourth bank taken over by Ireland amid a financial crisis
brought on by speculative real estate lending.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Israel's Peace Now
movement said Israeli settlers have illegally begun work on at least
100 homes in the occupied West Bank since the end of a freeze on
settlement construction.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, The UN said at
least 173 people have been killed in the Ivory Coast and 90 others
tortured or treated inhumanely because of post-election violence.
The UN General Assembly formally recognized Alassane Ouattara as the
winner of the Nov. 28 runoff vote and rescinded the credentials of
the Ivory Coast UN ambassador, a supporter of Laurent Gbagbo.
   (AP, 12/23/10)(AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In Kazakhstan a
forum of 900 people in Ust-Kamenogorsk put forward an initiative to
extend via referendum the president’s term in office until 2020 and
to cancel the next presidential election, due in 2012. On Dec 29 it
was backed by the country’s one-party parliament and waited for the
signature of Pres. Nazarbayev.
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.40)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, Nigeria said it
has signed loan deals with China worth 900 million dollars that will
be used to finance rail and communication projects in Africa's most
populous nation.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In South Africa
serial killer Thozamile Taki (36) was convicted of murdering 13
women and dumping their bodies in sugarcane plantations around the
country. The bodies of the women had decomposed in the fields when
they were found in 2007. On Jan 19 Taki received the maximum 13 life
sentences. He was also sentenced to 208 years for robbery charges.
   (AP, 12/23/10)(AP, 1/19/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In western Sudan
Darfur's main rebel groups fought alongside each other for the first
time in years as they clashed with government forces. Rights group
Amnesty International said that a Sudanese court had sentenced high
profile rights activist Mudawi Ibrahim to one year in jail for
embezzlement despite an earlier acquittal which found no fraud
within his aid agency, SUDO, one of many shut down last year.
   (AFP, 12/23/10)(Reuters, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 23, In Venezuela
police and soldiers fired water cannons and plastic bullets as
thousands of students protested against a law passed by Venezuela's
congress that increases the government's powers over the country's
universities.
   (AP, 12/23/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Afghanistan 2
Afghan security guards were killed after coalition forces raided the
compound of Tiger International, an Afghan private security company,
in Kabul over an alleged plot to attack the United States embassy. A
policeman and one civilian were killed by a mine near Khost. A
policeman was killed and another injured when their vehicle struck a
roadside bomb near the main road between Jalalabad and Torkham in
Nangarhar province.
   (AFP, 12/24/10)(AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, The leaders of
Afghanistan and Pakistan met in Istanbul for a new round of talks
aimed at building trust between the two neighbors. Turkey’s Pres.
Gul said a railroad between Turkey and Pakistan should be extended
to Afghanistan and flights between the three countries should be
expanded for better cooperation.
   (AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, The Bangladesh
government announced it was planning a “high-level” investigation
into the operations of Grameen Bank, a microlender founded by
Muhammad Yunus, winner of the 2006 Nobel peace prize.
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.75)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Belarus President
Alexander Lukashenko was officially declared the winner of a fourth
term in office in a vote that both his challengers and international
monitors say was tainted by fraud.
   (AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Colombia’s police
and air force began an anti-drug operation in Meta state.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, The Ecuadorean
government recognized Palestine as a sovereign state.
   (AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Ecuador an
overcrowded bus plunged into a 1,100-foot (350m) ravine leaving 38
people dead and 46 injured.
   (AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Heavy snow
stranded thousands of Christmas travelers in Europe, with Belgium's
main airport closed for landing and icy roads in Sweden choked with
traffic.
   (AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Guinea's President
Alpha Conde named Mohamed Said Fofana, a former director of economic
research, as the nation's new prime minister.
   (AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In India Dr.
Binayak Sen (60), a physician, outspoken government critic and human
rights activist, was convicted along with 2 others of aiding
communist rebels in eastern India. All three were sentenced to life
in prison.
   (AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Iraq a Shiite
militia leader, his wife and three children were killed in a bomb
attack on their home in Haswa, south of Baghdad.
   (AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Israel hundreds
of Israelis and African migrants marched down Tel Aviv's main
boulevard to protest a government plan to build a detention facility
to hold those who enter the country illegally.
   (AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Ivory Coast
Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to concede defeat after presidential
elections, faced two major setbacks as officials cut off his access
to the state funds used to pay soldiers and state television
remained off the air in much of the country. The UN said masked
gunmen with rocket launchers were blocking access to what officials
believe may be a mass grave site. West Africa leaders from the
15-country regional bloc ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West
African States, threatened to send military intervention into Ivory
Coast if incumbent Gbagbo refuses to step down peacefully.
   (AP, 12/24/10)(AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Macedonia police
arrested Vellija Ramkovski and 14 employees of his private A1
television channel. The channel has often critical of PM Gruevski’s
government.
   (http://tinyurl.com/46rkkat)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Mexico 11 of
the murder victims were shot in Ciudad Juarez.
   (AFP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Dutch police
arrested 12 Somali men in the key port city of Rotterdam on
suspicion of preparing a terrorist attack. Dutch authorities on Dec
26 cleared five of the 12 Somali men who were detained Christmas Eve
on suspicion of preparing a terrorist attack. By Dec 30 the
remaining Somalis were released but 3 were still considered suspect.
   (AP, 12/25/10)(AP, 12/27/10)(AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In central and
northern Nigeria a series of unprecedented Christmas Eve bomb blasts
and attacks on churches left 32 people dead in Jos. 6 people were
killed when petrol bombs were thrown at churches in the northeastern
city of Maiduguri, in Borno state.
   (AFP, 12/25/10)(Reuters, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In northwestern
Pakistan Taliban insurgents launched coordinated attacks on five
paramilitary checkpoints, leaving at least 11 soldiers and 24
militants dead. A bomb fitted with a timer exploded in a private
boys' primary school in Peshawar's Pelosi neighborhood, wounding
four children. The US embassy in Islamabad said Washington
transferred more than 600 million dollars to the Pakistani
government this week to pay for its efforts in the fight against
violent extremists.
   (AFP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Russia's
parliament gave preliminary approval to a landmark nuclear arms
reduction treaty with the United States, supporting ratification of
the new START pact in the first of three required votes.
   (Reuters, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Russia's central
bank raised interest rates on its deposit operations to contain
surging inflation, its first step away from the loose policy
implemented after the financial crisis hammered the Russian economy.
   (Reuters, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Russia announced a
deal to buy at least two of France’s advanced Mistral-class
amphibious warships. This was the first time in modern history that
Russia has made a major defense acquisition abroad.
   (SFC, 12/25/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, In Saudi Arabia
police shot dead a man, disguised as a woman, at a checkpoint south
of Riyadh after he opened fire on them. Police later identified the
man as Mohammed Issam Tahir al-Baghdadi, an al-Qaida operative
wanted for terrorist activities.
   (AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, South Africa's
minister of international relations and cooperation said South
Africa has been invited by China to join the four-member "BRIC"
grouping of fast-growing emerging markets. South Africa is the
world's 31st-largest economy, according to World Bank data for 2009
and is less than a quarter the size of the smallest BRIC economy,
Russia.
   (Reuters, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Sudanese
government troops killed at least 40 rebels and wounded many more in
a new offensive in the country's troubled Darfur region. 3 soldiers
also died and 13 were wounded when army forces attacked joint
positions of two rebel groups: the Justice and Equality Movement and
the Sudan Liberation Movement.
   (AP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 24, Thailand film
director Tanwarin Sukkhapisit said she plans to appeal a decision by
the National Film Board that her film, "Insects in the Backyard,"
cannot not be shown in Thailand because it is immoral and
pornographic. The movie was about a transgender father struggling to
raise two children.
   (AP, 12/24/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, Benin said three
West African presidents will fly to Ivory Coast to tell incumbent
leader Laurent Gbagbo to quit or face force, a sign of mounting
regional determination to force him out.
   (Reuters, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In London Kristy
Bamu (15) died after days of abuses in a Congolese exorcism ritual
by his sister Magalie (29) and her partner, football coach Eric
Bikubi (28). Bikubi and Magalie were found guilty of murder in 2012.
Bikubi was sentenced to at least 30 years in prison and Bamu a
minimum of 25 years.
   (AFP, 3/5/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, China’s state
media said police are offering cash and other rewards to encourage
the country's millions of Internet users to help solve criminal
investigations. China announced a 25-basis point increase in
benchmark one-year interest rates, providing much-needed reassurance
that it was determined to rein in price pressures.
   (AFP, 12/25/10)(Reuters, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In China village
leader Qian Yunhui (53) was killed under the wheel of a truck in
Yueqing, Zhejiang province. On Jan 4 police charged the driver, Fei
Liangyu, with accidental death. Thousands of netizens accused local
government officials of killing Qian to silence his six-year
campaign against fixed elections and illegal land expropriation,
which was quickly denied by local authorities. On Feb 1, 2011, Fei
was sentenced to three and a half years' imprisonment.
   (Econ, 1/8/11,
p.41)(http://tinyurl.com/4uwql4b)(AP, 2/1/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In Colombia a 120
helicopter-borne commandos raided the camp of drug lord Pedro
Oliverio Guerrero, head of the so-called Popular Revolutionary
Anti-Terrorist Army of Colombia. Officials on Dec 29 confirmed that
they had found the body of Guerrero, also know as "The Knife," near
Puerto Alvira in Meta province. 2 police officers also died in the
operation.
   (AP, 12/30/10)(SFC, 12/30/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, Guatemala captured
4 suspected drug traffickers on top of 18 arrested over the past
week, as well as automatic weapons and small planes in a
country-wide sweep to crack down on Mexican cartels smuggling drugs
through Central America.
   (Reuters, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In India a rocket
carrying a GSAT-5P communications satellite exploded just after
takeoff from the Sriharikota space center in Andhra Pradesh state.
   (SSFC, 12/26/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In northern India
a bus collided head-on with a van that was carrying mourners
returning from a funeral, killing 35 people.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In Iran a
convicted drug trafficker has been hanged in the northern city of
Sari after being convicted of keeping, carrying and selling the
narcotic drug crack.
   (AFP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In southern
Lebanon Ghandi Sahmarani, the leader of an Al-Qaeda splinter group,
was found shot dead execution-style in Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian
refugee camp.
   (AFP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In Mexico 2 more
murder victims were shot in Ciudad Juarez.
   (AFP, 12/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, Nigeria’s
President Goodluck Jonathan handed out $1 billion from the nation’s
“excess crude account” to government officials for Christmas
presents.
   (Econ, 1/22/11, p.58)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In Pakistan a
burqa-clad, female, suicide bomber attacked a crowd of people as
hundreds from the Salarzai tribe headed toward a food distribution
center in the Bajaur region on the Afghan border. 45 people were
killed. The Salarzais are a major regional anti-Taliban tribe, which
has been backing army operations against the militants. The bombing
forced the World Food Program to shut down operations in the Bajur
region.
   (AP, 12/25/10)(Reuters, 12/26/10)(SFC, 12/27/10,
p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, In the southern
Philippines a bomb exploded during Christmas Day Mass at a chapel
inside a police camp on Jolo island, wounding 6 people. The next day
Pres. Aquino said that investigators had identified a suspect and a
possible "terror plot" in the bombing.
   (AP, 12/25/10)(AFP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, Somali pirates in
the Arabian Sea hijacked the MV Thor Nexus, a Thai-owned cargo ship
with 27 crew members. Suspected Somali pirates attacked the
Taiwanese ship FV Shiuh Fu No. 1, some 120 nautical miles off the
northeastern tip of Madagascar. All communication was lost and there
were strong indications that it may have been seized with its 26
crew members.
   (AP, 12/25/10)(AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 25, Former Venezuelan
President Carlos Andres Perez (88) died in Miami. His popularity
soared with his country's oil-based economy, but later faced riots,
a severe economic downturn and impeachment in his homeland. Perez
governed Venezuela from 1974-79 and again from 1989-93 and denied
any wrongdoing.
   (AP, 12/25/10)(Econ, 1/8/11, p.86)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Allstate Corp
filed suit against Bank of America Corp, its Countrywide lending
unit and 17 other defendants for allegedly misrepresenting the risks
on more than $700 million of mortgage securities it bought from
Countrywide.
   (Reuters, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Arizona Gavin
MacFarlane (28) opened fire inside a Phoenix strip club killing 2
people and wounding 2 others.
   (SFC, 12/28/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Massachusetts
police officer John McGuire was shot dead while investigating a
robbery in Woburn. Scott Hanwright (19) was charged for murder and
Kevin Dingwell (51) was charged with being an accessory after the
fact. A 3rd suspect, Dominic Cinelli (57) was fatally shot by
responding officers.
   (SFC, 12/28/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Geraldine Doyle
(86), a Michigan factory worker used as the unwitting model for the
wartime Rosie the Riveter poster, died. The term "Rosie the Riveter"
stems from a 1942 song honoring the women who took over critical
factory jobs when American men went off to war. The inspirational
"We Can Do It!" poster was not widely seen until the 1980s when it
was embraced by the feminist movement as a potent symbol of women's
empowerment.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Teena Marie
(b.1956), Motown’s “Ivory Queen of soul” died. Her hits included
“Lovergirl,” and “Fire and Desire” with mentor Rick James.
   (SFC, 12/27/10,
p.C4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teena_Marie)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, The Afghanistan
Defense Ministry said it will investigate missing US-donated
medicines and pharmaceutical supplies meant for its army and police.
"Numerous insurgents were killed" in two separate incidents in
Helmand and Kandahar during a NATO operation targeting suspect
vehicles. Several suspected insurgents were detained.
   (AP, 12/26/10)(AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Bolivia the
government under Evo Morales announced an end to subsidies on many
fuels. The measure involved a 73% increase in the price of petrol.
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.36)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, London’s
Underground drivers went on a 24-hour strike in a dispute over
holiday pay. Members of the Aslef trade union voted to walk out
after transport chiefs refused their demand for triple pay and a day
off for working on December 26, the day after Christmas being a
national holiday in Britain.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Dagestan eight
men were killed in a shoot-out with police after they barricaded
themselves in a house in the city of Makhachkala and refused to give
up.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In the Dominican
Rep. former President Salvador Jorge Blanco (84) died. He was
convicted of corruption in 1991 under a political antagonist's
administration but declared innocent in 2001 by an appeals court,
died. Blanco was president from 1982-1986.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Egypt said it has
adopted a stimulus plan with the aim of injecting 10-20 billion
pounds ($1.72-3.44 billion) into the economy in the 2011 calendar
year. Gamal Mubarak, the son of Pres. Mubarak, said he will press
ahead with bold new economic reforms that will be "more ambitious
and more daring" than those that have come before, while still
vowing to protect the nation's poor from any fallout.
   (Reuters, 12/26/10)(AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In southern Egypt
a tour bus slammed into a truck, killing eight Americans and
injuring 21 others in the latest fatal crash involving tourists.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Iran local
media reported that a death sentence has been imposed on a man
suspected of spying for Israel. A Tehran prosecutor confirmed that
economist Fariborz Raisdana has been arrested for trying to subvert
the recent subsidies plans in radio interviews.
   (AP, 12/26/10)(SFC, 12/29/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Israel and
Palestinian militants traded threats amid fresh skirmishes along the
tense Gaza Strip border in which two Islamic Jihad fighters were
killed. Nine French activists were arrested during a pro-Palestinian
demonstration at a major Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank.
   (AFP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Ivory Coast
allies of Alassane Ouattara called for a general strike to last
until incumbent Pres. Laurent Gbagbo concedes defeat.
   (SFC, 12/27/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Malaysia 3
Singaporean tourists drowned and two others were missing after an
overloaded passenger boat capsized near Sibu island.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Nigeria clashes
left at least one person dead and a number of houses burned in the
city of Jos amid tensions following a series of Christmas Eve bomb
attacks.
   (AFP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In the Philippines
Communist rebels threatened more attacks despite looming peace talks
with the government, as they marked the insurgency's 42nd
anniversary by defiantly marching with their weapons in public view.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Russia several
thousand people rallied in Moscow to protest the ethnic clashes that
have rocked Russia, holding posters reading "Fascists disgrace
Russia" and chanting "No to Fascism!"
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, In Russia icy rain
shut down Moscow's largest airport for nearly 15 hours, coated roads
with ice and left more than 300,000 people and 14 hospitals without
electricity.
   (AP, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Ukraine's security
service detained former interior minister Yuri Lutsenko, the latest
move in a crackdown on the previous government since Pres.
Yanukovich took power. The state prosecutor's office this month
charged Lutsenko with abuse of office, saying he had embezzled state
funds. He denied any wrongdoing and dismissed the charges as
politically motivated.
   (Reuters, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 26, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez made his first use of new decree powers to
create a $2.3 billion fund for reconstruction after widespread
flooding that left more than 130,000 people homeless.
   (Reuters, 12/26/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, Hundreds of
passengers were stuck at airports up and down the US East Coast as a
blizzard menaced travelers trying to get home after the holidays.
   (AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, Alfred Kahn (93),
US airline deregulator, died. In 1977 he took over the Civil
aeronautics Board for Pres. Carter. His academic efforts included
the 2-volume work: “The Economics of Regulation: Principles and
Institutions” (1988).
   (Econ, 1/22/11, p.101)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Afghanistan a
Taliban car bomb targeted a bank where police queued for salaries in
Kandahar, killing three people. NATO said one of its service members
was killed in a roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan.
   (AP, 12/27/10)(AFP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In China 14
children died when the vehicle taking them to school plunged into a
creek in the central province of Hunan. In Guizhou province 7 people
died and 15 were injured after a truck crashed into a gas station in
fog, causing a pileup involving more than 100 cars.
   (AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, An Egyptian
Ministry of Health official said a resurgent H1N1 swine flu virus
has infected 1,172 people in Egypt and killed 56 since October 8.
   (Reuters, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Guatemala men
claiming to belong to the Zetas drug gang forced radio stations to
broadcast a threat of war in a northern Guatemalan province where
the government declared a state of siege last week.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Iraq 2 suicide
bombers blew themselves up, killing nine people at the government
compound in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar province. 43
people were injured by the blasts. 3 members of the same family were
killed when a roadside bomb hit their car outside the town of
Dujail, 50 miles (80km) north of Baghdad.
   (AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, A Tel Aviv
University team excavating a cave in central Israel said teeth found
in the cave are about 400,000 years old and resemble those of other
remains of modern man, known scientifically as Homo sapiens, found
in Israel. The earliest Homo sapiens remains found until now are
half as old. The prehistoric Qesem cave was discovered in 2000, and
excavations began in 2004.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Italy bomb
squad experts defused a package bomb that was delivered to the Greek
Embassy in Rome, four days after similar mail bombs exploded at two
other embassies, wounding two people.
   (AP, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Mexico police
in Guerrero state found the remains of three people in a clandestine
grave in the town Teloloapan. A police report said the three unknown
people were believed to have been killed about four months ago. In
the Gulf coast state of Veracruz one policeman was killed, and a
local police commander was wounded when a man opened fire on
municipal offices in the town of Otatitlan. The Defense Department
said troops patrolling the mountainous area of Tamazula, Durango,
discovered a cache of weapons and 770 kg (1,697 pounds) of marijuana
in 191 bales.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, Morocco’s interior
ministry said security forces have arrested six Moroccans suspected
of planning attacks in the country and abroad.
   (Reuters, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Pakistan
intelligence officials and tribal elders say the Pakistani Taliban
have kidnapped 23 tribesmen who recently met the army chief in South
Waziristan. Suspected US missiles struck two vehicles in a Taliban
stronghold on Pakistan's side of the border with Afghanistan,
killing 18 militants, including four foreigners.
   (AP, 12/27/10)(SFC, 12/28/10, p.A3)(AP, 2/25/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In the Philippines
US Lt. Cmdr. Scintar Buenviaje Mejia (35) died of head injuries
after jumping from a second-floor staircase while a security guard
escorted him to the bathroom. He was arrested a day earlier with
what was thought to be cocaine. Tests later showed the white powder
wasn't an illegal drug.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Russia jailed
ex-tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky was found guilty of money laundering
and theft of billions of dollars at a trial that has renewed doubts
about the Kremlin's commitment to the rule of law.
   (Reuters, 12/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, In Serbia a series
of explosions damaged the Sloboda ammunition factory in Cacak.
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, Somali pirates
seized a ship with eight crew onboard. The MV EMS River was seized
approximately 175 miles (280 km) northeast of the port of Salalah,
Oman.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 27, Venezuela said it
has detained 12,376 people for drug-related crimes this year, about
40 percent more than in 2009.
   (Reuters, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, The US Postal
Service unveiled its first-class commemorative stamps for 2011. All
were marked with the word "forever" instead of the current rate of
44 cents.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In New Orleans,
La., a fire in an abandoned warehouse killed 8 homeless squatters.
   (SFC, 12/29/10, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Dr. Billy Taylor
(b.1921), jazz pianist and composer, died in Manhattan. His work
included the ambitious “Suite for Jazz Piano and Orchestra” (1973).
   (SFC, 12/30/10,
p.C6)(www.nojazzfest.com/chat/showthread.php?t=14270)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Hailey Dunn (13)
vanished from her Texas home. Her body was found three years later.
In 2021 police arrested Shawn Adkins, her mother’s boyfriend at the
time of Hailey’s disappearance.
   (https://tinyurl.com/s93evp4h)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, An Afghan soldier
was killed in a suicide attack in the eastern Paktika province. NATO
said that it, in conjunction with Afghan forces, had killed more
than 15 insurgents over the past 24 hours.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Australia
drenching rains pounded communities across the northeast, flooding
major highways and prompting hundreds of evacuations.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Belarus Pres.
Lukashenko appointed Mikhail Myasnikovich (60), the official head of
the Belarussian Academy of Sciences, as the new prime minister.
   (SFC, 12/29/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, West African
leaders Boni Yayi of Benin, Sierra Leone's Ernest Bai Koroma and
Pedro Pires of Cape Verde met with incumbent Ivory Coast leader
Laurent Gbagbo to deliver an ultimatum from the ECOWAS regional bloc
to step down or face removal by force. But Gbagbo's government
signaled he was unlikely to agree to cede power to Alassane
Ouattara.
   (Reuters, 12/28/10)(SFC, 12/29/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, China said it is
reducing the amount of rare earths it will export for the first half
of the year by more than 10 percent, likely to be an unpopular move
worldwide since the minerals are vital to the manufacture of
high-tech products.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, A Chinese
journalist died from injuries sustained in a gang beating that some
say was linked to his investigative work. Sun Hongjie, a senior
reporter at the Northern Xinjiang Morning Post, died at a hospital
in the city of Kuitun 10 days after he was beaten by six men at a
construction site.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Cuba's Supreme
Court commuted the death sentence against a Cuban-American who was
the last person remaining on death row in the island nation. The
court sentenced Humberto Eladio Real to 30 years in prison instead.
On Oct. 15, 1994, Real and six other members of a Florida-based
exile group came ashore in northern Cuba, armed with assault rifles
and other weapons. A man was killed, and the group was captured
shortly thereafter.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, German engineering
group Siemens said it has won a contract that could be worth some
€600 million ($790 million) to supply 258 wind turbines to a US
power company.
   (AFP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Honduras radio
reporter Henry Suazo (36) was gunned down outside his home in La
Masica, the 10th journalist killed in the Central American country
this year.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Project developer
Bashar Masri said about 20 Israeli suppliers will help build Rawabi,
the first modern Palestinian city in the West Bank, but only after
promising they will not use products or services from Israeli
settlements.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Iran hanged Ali
Akbar Siadat, an Iranian convicted of spying for Israel. Another
Iranian was hanged for membership in an exile opposition movement.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Veteran Israeli
journalist Dov Yudkovsky (89) died. He had fled the Nazi Holocaust
and later became editor of Israel's best-selling newspaper. In 2002,
Yudkovsky was awarded the Israel Prize, the Jewish state's highest
honor, for his work in the media.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, Japan postponed
the creation of a greenhouse gas emission trading system by a year
until after April 2014 in the face of strong resistance from the
business lobby.
   (AFP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Mexico gunmen
battled police in the northern state of Durango, leaving two
bystanders, a federal agent and two drug cartel suspects dead. 13
suspects were detained, including several former state policemen who
allegedly worked for the Sinaloa cartel headed by fugitive drug lord
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman," which is fighting the Zetas gang for
control of the region. The navy captured four suspects linked to
drug-cartel activities, including two females under the age of 18. A
raid by a feared drug gang burned down half of the isolated village
of Tierras Coloradas, Durango state, leaving more than 150 people,
mostly children, homeless in the raw mountain winter.
   (AP, 12/29/10)(AP, 12/30/10)(Reuters, 2/17/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Nigeria members
of the radical Muslim sect Boko Haram shot and wounded a retired
senior police officer and two civilians in the city of Maiduguri.
Boko Haram also claimed responsibility for the Christmas Eve bomb
blasts in Jos that left at least 32 dead.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Pakistan a
barrage of US missiles killed at least 15 militants in the North
Waziristan tribal district, obliterating compounds and vehicles used
by Islamist fighters.
   (AFP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, A former Russian
senator was sentenced to life in jail for ordering multiple killings
and financing a criminal group. The Moscow City Court said that Igor
Izmestyev, a former senator and oil trader from the central region
of Bashkiriya, financed a mob that killed 14 people between 1992 and
2004. The court sentenced 4 more mobsters to up to 23 years in jail.
Their so-called Kingisepp mob was known for finishing their victims
off with a shot in the eye.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Russia robbers
carrying assault rifles in a baby carriage fatally shot two guards
outside a commercial bank and a man walking his dog and got away
with more than $800,000 worth of cash in St. Petersburg.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, An aging Russian
military cargo plane crashed, killing all 12 people aboard. The
An-22 plane was on a flight from the southwestern region of Voronezh
region when it crashed in the Tula region, about 120 miles (190 km)
south of Moscow.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, South Korean
education officials said almost 30 robots have started teaching
English to youngsters in a South Korean city, in a pilot project
designed to nurture the nascent robot industry.
   (AP, 12/28/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 28, In Thailand US and
Thai officials arrested a group of 12 Chinese nationals accused of
obtaining fake visas to try to gain entry to the United States. The
visas bore the same numbers as authentic ones issued by the US
Embassy in Warsaw to Polish citizens.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, President Barack
Obama bypassed Congress to name the first US ambassador to Syria in
nearly six years. Obama took the controversial step of forcing
through the appointments of Ambassador Robert Ford and five other
officials while the Senate, which normally needs to confirm
nominations, was out of session.
   (AF, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Wayne,
Michigan, a natural gas explosion destroyed a furniture store,
killed two people and injured two others. Owner Paul Franks was in
critical condition.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Groups including
the UN, Harvard University, Google Inc and Not On Our Watch, an
organization co-founded by actor George Clooney, launched the
Satellite Sentinel Project, a project using satellites to "watch"
Sudan for war crimes before a vote that could split the African
country in two.
   (Reuters, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In eastern
Afghanistan US forces clashed with insurgents, fending off a Taliban
assault for the second time in as many days. NATO said it and Afghan
forces have detained a Taliban leader in the southwestern province
of Nimroz. NATO forces killed at least 5 Taliban fighters over night
in Nangarhar province. Two slain Taliban commanders were identified
as Shir Zaman and Zhir Gull.
   (AP, 12/29/10)(SFC, 12/30/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, An Angolan court
sentenced Jean Antuan Pwaty (42) a Congolese citizen, to 24 years in
prison following the Jan 8 attack on Togo's national soccer team
that killed two people and left eight others wounded including a
goalkeeper. Pwaty was convicted of murder, armed rebellion and
attempted murder.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Australia’s
military cleared a town in eastern Australia, airlifting the entire
population of 300 people by helicopter in Theodore, where waters
were continuing to rise after days of drenching rain. A total of
1,000 people were evacuated from central and southern Queensland
state.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Belarus lawyers
said the seven presidential candidates who were arrested after this
month's election have been formally charged with organizing a mass
public disturbance and face up to 15 years in prison.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, A Belgian priest
published a confession to a child sex-abuse accusation that came to
light during a campaign to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize
for his work fighting globalization's impact on developing
countries. In October, after supporters of Francois Houtart (85)
began working to nominate him for the Nobel, a woman contacted the
nonprofit organization he founded and said the priest had abused her
brother 40 years ago.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Brazilian media
reported that President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has decided not to
extradite former Italian guerrilla Cesare Battisti, a move that
could hurt ties with Italy.
   (Reuters, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Canada said it no
longer recognized the Ivory Coast ambassador to Ottawa appointed by
president Laurent Gbagbo, and that it would welcome new diplomatic
representation from the West African nation.
   (AFP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Cuba’s official
Gazette said that effective January 1, personal cleanliness products
will be cut from ration books that islanders have come to rely on as
part of a small supply of basic goods.
   (SFC, 12/30/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Denmark 4 men
planning to shoot as many people as possible in a building housing
the newsroom of a paper that published cartoons of the Prophet
Muhammad were arrested in an operation that halted an imminent
attack. The 4 were Swedish residents, a Tunisian (44), a
Lebanese-born man (29), an Iraqi asylum seeker, and a 30-year-old
whose national origin was not released. Police in Stockholm arrested
a Swedish citizen of Tunisian origin, suspected of being linked to
the plot. Denmark freed the Iraqi suspect the next day due to an
apparent lack of evidence. The trial of Munir Awad, Omar Abdalla
Aboelazm, Mounir Ben Mohamed Dhahri and Sabhi Ben Mohamed Zalouti
opened on April 13, 2012.
   (AP, 12/29/10)(AP, 12/30/10)(AP, 4/13/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Egypt flood
waters caused by torrential rains earlier this week swept a bus
packed with 77 schoolgirls and their teachers off a highway in the
country's south, ending in the tragic death of 15 people, most of
them students. The last two survivors were pulled out of the waters
in the early hours Dec 31.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, The spokesman for
the EU's anti-piracy force said Somali pirates over the Christmas
weekend unsuccessfully targeted two ships, going farther south than
ever before to attack vessels.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Haiti Paul
Waggoner, an American aid worker, was released from a notoriously
overcrowded Haitian prison after a judge apparently cleared him of
allegations that he kidnapped an infant from a hospital where he
worked as a volunteer. Waggoner had been in custody for 18 days
while authorities investigated the allegations of Frantz Philistin,
a Haitian man whose infant son was treated at a hospital in
Petionville in February.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Honduras and
Mexico announced they have agreed to create a high-level group to
combat attacks on undocumented Honduran migrants who are passing
through the country en route to the United States.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, A payments dispute
between India and Iran escalated after Tehran refused to sell oil to
India under New Delhi's prohibitive new rules. Last week, the
Reserve Bank of India said deals with Iran must be settled outside
the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) system, used by central banks of
member nations to settle bilateral trades.
   (Reuters, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Iraq 3 al-Qaida
suicide bombers attacked a police building in Mosul, leveling the
building and killing Lt. Col. Shamil al-Jabouri, the city's top
commander. He had escaped at least five previous assassination
attempts. On of the suicide bombers was shot dead before setting off
his explosives belt.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Mexico gunmen
believed to be linked to drug cartels killed 4 police officers and a
doctor in apparently coordinated attacks in and around the northern
city of Monterrey. Six people were found dead in the southern state
of Guerrero.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Igor Luksic
(b.1976) took office as prime minister of Montenegro.
   (Econ, 6/16/12,
p.63)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Luk%C5%A1i%C4%87)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In southern
Nigeria 2 bombs exploded during a political rally in Yenegoa,
Bayelsa state. No one was killed but a number of people were taken
to hospital with injuries. Suspected Islamists killed 8 people,
including 3 policemen, in five separate attacks in the northern city
of Maiduguri.
   (Reuters, 12/29/10)(AFP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In Northern
Ireland frustration and fears of disease mounted as 36,000 people
were left without water, some for more than a week, after a deep
freeze and a sudden thaw caused aging pipes to burst.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Pakistan's
US-allied ruling party scrambled to keep its fragile coalition
government in power as its senior leaders met with two dissident
political partners, urging them to rejoin the Cabinet.
   (AP, 12/29/10)Â
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Palestinian
president Mahmud Abbas traveled to Brazil to lay the symbolic
foundation stone of a Palestinian embassy in Brasilia.
   (AFP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, In the Philippines
a gift-wrapped grenade exploded and killed a woman (31) when she
opened the package inside her house in an upscale neighborhood of
Manila.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, A Russian a court
ordered 3 men to be them held in custody at least until the end of
the week. Investigators had arrested two men and Andrei Chernyshev,
a government official, who is believed to have ordered the November
attack and brutal beating of environmental activist Konstantin
Fetisov.
   (AP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Spain's government
formally launched the privatization of air traffic control in 13
airports, just weeks after clamping down on a wildcat strike by
controllers.
   (AFP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, Sudan demanded a
detailed UN audit on a program to rehabilitate ex-civil war soldiers
following charges that millions of dollars have been embezzled or
mismanaged.
   (AFP, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, The UAE embassy in
Ottawa said on its website that Canadians would be charged $250 for
a 30-day single entry visa while a six-month multiple entry visa
would cost $1000, with a maximum stay of 14 days during each visit.
Tensions have risen between the two countries since Canada denied
expanded landing rights for UAE airlines flying to Canada. That
triggered a UAE government decision to end access to a military base
used by the Canadian military to support troops in Afghanistan.
   (Reuters, 12/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In southern
Afghanistan 14 Afghan civilians were killed and four others injured
when a minivan struck a roadside bomb in Helmand province. Several
insurgents and a child were killed in fighting during a joint
operation with Afghan forces targeting a Taliban logistics officer
in a compound in Wardak province. Afghan and coalition troops killed
Maulvi Bahadar (Bahadur), the Taliban "shadow governor" of northern
Kunduz province.
   (AFP, 12/30/10)(AP, 12/31/10)(AP, 1/2/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Reporters Without
Borders said that since Dec. 25, the Belarus KGB had searched the
offices of 3 news outlets and an opposition party, the homes of 2
journalists, 2 human rights activists, 2 former presidential
candidates and 4 of their advisers. The homes of 2 more journalists
were searched the next day.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Bolivia
protests against sharp increases in gas prices turned violent as
thousands demanded that Pres. Morales’ government repeal the hike.
   (SFC, 12/31/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Brazil's state-run
Petrobras confirmed that oil fields recently discovered offshore
contained 8.3 billion barrels of recoverable crude and gas, and said
the biggest field was being renamed "Lula."
   (AFP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Cambodia charged
seven Thais, including a ruling party politician, with illegal entry
and put them in jail awaiting possible trial, despite strong
protests from Thailand. The detainees were inspecting contested
territory from Thailand's eastern Sa Kaeo province when they were
captured a day earlier by Cambodian soldiers.
   (AFP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In China Zeng
Jinchun was shot to death for taking more than $4.7 million in
bribes. He was the ruling Communist party's top corruption inspector
for Chenzhou city in the central province of Hunan. Zeng was found
guilty of taking the 31 million yuan in bribes in return for handing
out mining contracts and job promotions over a decade ending in
2006.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 29, China’s Xinhua
News Agency reported that a fire at a factory belonging to the
Quanxin Pharmaceutical Co. in southwestern China's Yunnan province
caused a blast that killed at least five people and injured eight
others.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Croatia the
leading daily Sata published only good news for today. A huge smiley
face appeared on the front page, and politics and crime were
banished. The horoscope still forecast trouble for people with some
signs.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Greece a
powerful bomb hidden on a parked motorcycle exploded outside two
court buildings in central Athens and a small bomb went off outside
the Greek embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, but neither caused
injuries.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Iran media
reported the arrest of seven Al-Qaeda militants in the northwestern
province of West Azerbaijan.
   (AFP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Iraq at least
four Christian homes in Baghdad were hit in the first string of
attacks since al-Qaida-linked militants last week renewed their
threats of violence against Christians. 2 people were killed when a
bomb exploded outside a Christian family's house in Baghdad's
eastern neighborhood of al-Gahdir.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Israel former
President Moshe Katsav (65) was convicted of raping an employee when
he was a Cabinet minister in 1998. "Relax, you'll enjoy it." He held
the largely ceremonial office of president from 2000-2007.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Israeli troops
seized Khalil al-Rabai, a Hamas member of the Palestinian
parliament, the fifth to be rearrested recently after serving
previous prison terms. With Rabai's arrest the number of Hamas MPs
in Israeli custody is now believed to be 13.
   (AFP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Poland Anders
Hogstrom, a Swedish man, was sentenced to two years and eight months
in prison for instigating the December 2009 theft of the notorious
"Arbeit Macht Frei" ("Work Sets You Free") sign from the former
Auschwitz death camp.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In southwestern
Poland 3 miners were killed by falling rocks after a minor
earthquake at a copper mine.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, In Qatar Mathaf,
the first Arab Museum of Modern Art, opened.
   (Econ, 1/1/11, p.74)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Jailed Russian oil
tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky was sentenced to six more years in
prison following a trial seen as payback for his defiance of
Vladimir Putin.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, A Spanish court
convicted four Civil Guard police officers of torturing members of
the armed Basque group ETA who were arrested for bombing Madrid's
airport in 2006. The officers were found guilty of beating and
threatening Mattin Sarasola and Igor Portu after they were taken
into custody in 2008.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, A Thai court
ordered prison terms for 79 members of the right-wing, nationalist
"Yellow Shirt" movement who stormed a state television station two
years ago armed with guns, knives and clubs.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Turkey’s the
state-run Anatolia news agency said police have detained 10 people
suspected of links to the al-Qaida terror network and accused of
preparing to stage an attack before New Year's Eve.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, The United Nations
accused Ivory Coast incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo's security
forces of blocking access to mass graves, saying investigators
believe as many as 80 bodies may be in one building that UN
personnel are being kept from entering.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, The Independent
Human Rights Defenders Group said at least 39 people have died of
torture in prisons of authoritarian Uzbekistan this year amid a
spiraling crackdown on religious groups and government critics.
   (AP, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Pope Benedict XVI
issued new norms governing the Vatican’s banking system.
   (SFC, 12/31/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez's government devalued its bolivar currency for
the second time in 12 months, abolishing the lowest exchange rate as
the OPEC member fights to revive its economy.
   (Reuters, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Yemen released
hundreds of detained Shiite rebels as part of a ceasefire in their
years long conflict.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 30, Cyber activists
said they have brought down Zimbabwean government websites after the
president's wife sued a newspaper for publishing a WikiLeaks cable
linking her with illicit diamond trading.
   (Reuters, 12/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, San Francisco was
chosen to host the next America’s Cup in 2013.
   (SFC, 1/1/11, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In Arkansas a
tornado killed 3 people in the hamlet of Cincinnati. A storm spawned
by the same weather left 3 people dead near Rolla, Missouri. A 4th
person, injured in Rolla, died the next day.
   (SFC, 1/1/11, p.A6)(SSFC, 1/2/11, p.A11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, The body of John
Wheeler III (66), a national defense consultant, was found in a load
of trash at a landfill in Wilmington, Delaware. He was last seen
alive a day earlier in Wilmington.
   (http://tinyurl.com/2c6hzrd)(SFC, 1/5/11, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In western
Virginia a small aircraft collided with a medical helicopter in the
air, killing two people on the plane.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Afghan forces
conducted an overnight raid in two compounds in Tahar province
killing a Taliban district chief in a gunfight that also left an
Afghan policeman and a border guard dead, NATO said insurgents
attacks claimed the lives of two coalition service members.
Coalition forces killed Abdul Hai, a Taliban leader in Kunduz.
   (AP, 12/31/10)(AP, 1/2/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In Argentina
thieves dug a 100-foot-long (30m) ventilated and lit tunnel from a
neighboring building into a Buenos Aires bank and spent the weekend
opening and emptying between 130 and 140 of the branch's 1,408
boxes. The robbery wasn't discovered until the bank opened on Jan 3.
   (AP, 1/4/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In Australia
floodwater rose across a vast area in the northeast, inundating 22
towns, forcing 200,000 residents out of their homes, and closing a
major sugar export port.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Belarus declared
that Europe's top rights watchdog would no longer be able to work in
the country, after the OSCE condemned the conduct of this month's
presidential election.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Brazil's president
granted political asylum to Italian fugitive Cesare Battisti, but
the case must still be heard by the nation's Supreme Court.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Britain said it no
longer recognized the ambassador appointed by Ivory Coast strongman
Laurent Gbagbo who is refusing to step down after elections widely
viewed as having been won by his rival Alassane Ouattara. Britain
said it would give support at the UN for the use of force to oust
Ivory Coast's incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo if West African
nations sought backing for a military intervention.
   (AFP, 12/31/10)(Reuters, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, The Jakarta-based
Legal Aid Foundation said in a new report that law enforcement
officials from police to prison wardens routinely torture Indonesian
suspects and convicts to extract confessions or obtain information.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Mexico's federal
police said that the once-fearsome La Familia drug cartel has been
"completely dismembered" and has broken down into small groups that
commit robberies to pay their members. The half-naked body of a
woman who had escaped from prison officials while facing kidnapping
charges was found hanging by the neck from an overpass in Monterey.
5 inmates, including a Colombian man sentenced to more than 20 years
for smuggling a ton of cocaine into Mexico aboard a boat, escaped a
prison in Cancun.
   (AP, 12/31/10)(AP, 1/5/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Nigerian police
said they have arrested Bunu Wasili (55), a man suspected to be a
leader and financier of Boko Haram, along with 91 others. The
radical Muslim sect was responsible for dozens of recent killings in
northern Nigeria. A New Year's Eve bombing in Abuja killed 4 people.
   (AP, 12/31/10)(Reuters, 1/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In Pakistan
violence flared as police and protesters clashed during a mass
protest strike that closed businesses across the country over a bid
to end the death penalty for blasphemy. A US missile strike killed 8
suspected militants in North Waziristan. A bomb blew up outside a
district police headquarters in the town of Lakki Marwat in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province, killing a bystander and wounding two other
people. A second bomb targeting a NATO supply convoy in the border
town of Chaman set one fuel tanker on fire and wounded a passer-by.
The Pakistani Taliban released 23 tribesmen it had kidnapped and
held captive for three weeks. They were released after being tried
by a Taliban court and being submerged in cold water as punishment.
   (AFP, 12/31/10)(AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Palestinian
president Mahmud Abbas laid the first stone of what will become a
Palestinian embassy in Brazil, the most important Latin American
country to recognize a sovereign Palestinian state.
   (AFP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In the Philippines
Councilman Reynaldo Dagsa was shot dead in Manila. A photograph
identified one gunmen, who was captured Jan 3 along with an
accomplice. One suspect was a car thief who was out on bail and
likely sought revenge against Dagsa for ordering his arrest last
year. The main shooter, Arnel Buenaflor, was captured on Jan 6 in a
boarding house in Aurora township.
   (AP, 1/4/11)(AP, 1/7/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In Russia Boris
Nemtsov, a former deputy Russian prime minister during Boris
Yeltsin's presidency, was among 68 people arrested at an
unsanctioned rally in Moscow. He and other protesters had gathered
on the opposite side of a square from an authorized protest. On Jan
2 he was sentenced to 15 days in jail for failure to follow police
orders. Nemtsov was released on Jan 15. A female suicide bomber was
killed on the outskirts of Moscow by a bomb that was to have been
deployed in the city's central Manezh Square where Muscovites throng
for holiday celebrations. A 2nd female suicide bomber was arrested
and sentenced to 10 years in jail in May, 2012. On Nov 28, 2012,
Ilyas Saidov of Dagestan, who brought the suicide belts, was
sentenced to 15 years in jail.
   (AP, 1/3/11)(AP, 1/15/11)(AP, 2/3/11(AP,
11/28/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In Russia 13
villages remained without power following a freezing rain that
caused trees and power lines to snap. Power was cut off to 789
villages and towns with a total of 400,000 inhabitants in the region
around Moscow.
   (AP, 1/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, Rwandan police
said they are working with counterparts in Dhaka to deport 64
Bangladeshi victims of human trafficking, after the arrest in Kigali
of their suspected trafficker. Abdul Sattar Miah was arrested Dec 27
in a hotel in Kigali, in possession of the passports of his presumed
victims.
   (AFP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, The FV Vega 5,
hijacked by Somali pirates, was spotted near the Mozambique coast,
approximately 200 nautical miles southwest of the Comoros islands.
It was seen towing what looked to be a pirate attack skiff and did
not respond to any calls.
   (AP, 1/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec 31, In South Africa
thousands of Zimbabwean immigrants crowded outside immigration
offices as a deadline approached for them to obtain permits or face
deportation.
   (AP, 12/31/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, The massive B09B
iceberg grounded near a penguin colony in East Antarctica, forcing
them to make a lengthy trek to find food. By 2013 some 150,000
penguins had died after the penguins were forced to walk more than
60 km (37 miles) to find food, impeding their breeding attempts.
   (AFP, 2/14/16)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, In China Dai
Qingcheng (46) was given the death penalty for raping 116 women
between 1993 and 2009 in Anhui province in eastern China.
   (AP, 4/19/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, In 2017 the New York
Times reported that Chinese government "systematically dismantled"
CIA spying operations in China starting late this year and killed or
imprisoned at least a dozen CIA sources over the next two years.
   (AP, 5/21/17)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, In the Czech Rep.
4,000 hospital physicians delivered resignations to protest low pay
with an effective start time in March. Their current starting salary
was about 4 euros per hour ($5.25).
   (SSFC, 12/26/10, p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, In Greece the state's
attempt to start work on a planned garbage dump on a hillside near
Keratea caused locals to set fire to construction vehicles and erect
massive roadblocks on a highway that bypasses the town and runs to
the capital. Local opposition continued into April as locals
developed increasingly inventive roadblocks to stop contractors from
getting to the proposed dump site.
   (AP, 4/16/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, Laos said China would
build a $7.2 billion high-speed railway from the border to its
capital, Vientiane. Construction was due to begin in April, 2011.
The 262-mile railway was expected to take fie years just to lay the
tracks.
   (Econ, 1/22/11, p.49)(Econ, 10/26/13, p.49)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, Oliver O'Grady (66)
was arrested in Dublin, Ireland, after leaving a computer containing
pornographic images of children on a flight from Amsterdam. O'Grady
had worked as a priest in northern California from 1971 until 1993,
when he was arrested for abusing two brothers. He served seven years
in prison and was deported to his native Ireland in 2000. In 2012 he
was sentenced to 3 years in prison in Ireland for possessing child
pornography.
   (AP, 1/31/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, Transparency Int’l.,
a Berlin-based lobby group, ranked Liberia as the most corrupt
country in the world.
   (Econ, 9/10/11, p.54)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, Lithuania reviewed
its 2011 budget and declared war on smuggling to boost revenue as
its deficit swelled to 9.2% of economic output. Smuggling of
tobacco, alcohol and fuel was costing the country some $193 million
a year in lost taxes.
   (SFC, 12/9/10, p.A8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, In New Zealand 2
spade-toothed beaked whales, a mother and her calf, beached
themselves. The species, identified later by DNA, was described as
the world's "rarest and perhaps most enigmatic" marine mammal.
   (AP, 11/5/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, In South Korea Jay Y.
Lee (43), the son of Chairman Lee Kun-hee, was named president of
Samsung Group, which contained 83 firms under an umbrella company
called Everland. The Lee family controlled a 46% stake.
   (Econ, 10/1/11, p.77)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dec, The Paris Club
decided to cancel $203 million in debt to Togo. The informal group
of 19 creditor countries included the world's most industrialized
nations.
   (AP, 5/12/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Elizabeth Abbott authored
“Mistresses: A History of the Other Woman.”
   (Econ, 12/18/10, p.164)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Richard Aldrich authored
“GCHQ: The Uncensored Story of Britain’s Most Secret Intelligence
Agency.”
   (Econ, 7/10/10, p.80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ayaan Hirsi Ali authored
“Nomad: From Islam to America: A Personal Journey Through the Clash
of Civilizations.”
   (SSFC, 5/23/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Allbright authored
“Peddling Peril: How the Secret Nuclear Trade Arms America’s
Enemies.
   (Econ, 3/13/10, p.86)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ronald Asmus authored “A
Little War That Shook the World: Georgia, Russia and the Future of
the West.” It covered the 2008 war in Georgia.
   (Econ, 1/23/10, p.78)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Philip Ball authored “The
Music Instinct: How Music works and Why We Can’t Do Without It.”
   (Econ, 2/6/10, p.90)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Elif Batuman authored “The
Possessed: Adventures With Russian Books and the People who Read
Them.”
   (SSFC, 2/21/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Peter Beinart authored
“The Icarus Syndrome: A History of American Hubris.”
   (Econ, 5/29/10, p.82)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ira Berlin authored “The
Making of African America: The Four Great Migrations.”
   (Econ, 2/13/10, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Anthony Bianco authored
“The Big Lie: Spying, Scandal, and the Ethical Collapse at
Hewlett-Packard.”
   (SSFC, 7/18/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tony Blair, former British
prime minister, authored his memoir “A Journey.”
   (Econ, 9/4/10, p.60)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tom Bingham, British
jurist, authored “The Rule of Law.”
   (Econ, 2/13/10, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Rachel Botsman and Roo
Rogers authored “What’s Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative
Consumption.”
   (Econ, 10/16/10, p.82)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Charles Bowden authored
“Murder City: Ciudad Juarez and the Global Economy’s New Killing
Fields.”
   (SSFC, 4/25/10, p.F3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tom Bower, English
historian, authored “Oil, Money, Politics and Power in the 21st
Century.”
   (SSFC, 5/30/10, p.F8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ian Bremmer authored “The
End of the Free Market: Who wins the War Between States and
Corporations.”
   (Econ, 6/5/10, p.89)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â John Seely Brown, Lang
Davison and John Hagel III authored “The Power of Pull: How Small
Moves, Smartly Made, Can Set Big things In Motion.”
   (Econ, 7/24/10, p.67)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oliver Bullough authored
“Let Our Fame Be Great: Journeys Among the Defiant People of the
Caucasus.”
   (Econ, 4/3/10, p.86)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Former Pres. George W.
Bush authored his memoir “Decision Points.”
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.40)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Michael Byers authored
“Who Owns the Arctic: Understanding Sovereignty Disputes in the
North.”
   (Econ, 3/5/11, p.68)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Peter Calthorpe authored
“Urbanism in the Age of Climate Change.”
   (SSFC, 2/13/11, p.G1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nicholas Carr, American
commentator, authored “The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to
Our Brains,” in which he claimed that the Internet is on its way to
smothering creativity and profound thinking.
   (SSFC, 6/6/10, p.F1)(Econ, 11/6/10, SR p.18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Philip Carr-Gomm authored
“A Brief History of Nakedness.”
   (Econ, 7/3/10, p.79)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Laura Citron authored “A
Compendium of Kisses,” an examination of philematology, or the study
of kissing.
   (Econ, 2/13/10, p.86)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Victoria Clark authored
“Yemen: Dancing on the Heads of Snakes.”
   (Econ, 4/24/10, p.81)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jonathan R. Cole authored
“The Great American University: Its Rise to Pre-eminence, Its
Indispensable National Role, Why It Must Be Protected.
   (Econ, 1/9/10, p.81)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Keith Colquhoun
(1928-2010), former obituaries editor for the Economist, authored
“Five Deadly Words,” his 11th blackly comic novel.
   (Econ, 7/17/10, p.49)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ted Conover authored “The
Routes of Man: How roads Are Changing the World and the Way We Live
Today.”
   (SSFC, 2/28/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bruce Cumings, professor
of history at the Univ. of Chicago, authored “Dominion from Sea to
Sea: Pacific Ascendancy and American Power.”
   (Econ, 3/13/10, p.87)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Paul Davies authored “The
Eerie Silence: Renewing Our Search for Alien Intelligence.”
   (Econ, 4/10/10, p.86)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Howard Davies and David
Green authored “Banking on the Future: The Fall and Rise of Central
Banking.”
   (Econ, 2/19/11, p.78)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Chinese writer Li Delin
authored the "Goldman Sachs Conspiracy." The new book accused the
investment bank of trying to destroy China. By August some 100,000
copies were sold following its release in June, reaching popular
website Sina.com's top-10 list. It followed another by author Li
Delin, "Eliminate All Competitors — How Goldman Sachs Wins Over the
World," published last year.
   (AP, 8/25/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Dickson Despommier, a
professor at Columbia Univ., authored “The Vertical Farm: Feeding
the World in the 21st Century.”
   (SFC, 12/24/10, p.15)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Philip Dray authored
“There is Power In a Union: The Epic Struggle of Labor in America.”
   (SSFC, 9/5/10, p.F7)(Econ, 9/11/10, p.101)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Alice Echols authored “Hot
Stuff: Disco and the Remaking of Popular Culture.”
   (SSFC, 4/4/10, p.G1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Michael Eisner, the former
boss of Disney, authored “Working Together: Why Great Partnerships
Succeed.”
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â James Ellroy (b.1948),
American crime novelist, authored “The Hilliker Curse: My Pursuit of
Women.” It was a sort of companion piece to “My Dark Places,” a 1996
account of his obsessive search for his mother’s killer (1958).
   (SSFC, 9/12/10,
p.F1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Ellroy)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Timothy Ferris authored
“The Science of Liberty: Democracy, Reason, and the Laws of Nature.”
   (SSFC, 2/28/10, p.F1)
2010      American journalist
Larry Gelb (1937-2019) authored "Power Rules: How Common Sense Can
Rescue American Foreign Policy".
   (SFC, 9/2/19, p.C2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Stephen Goldsmith, Harvard
professor, authored “The Power of Social Innovation.”
   (Econ, 8/14/10, p.56)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ken Gormley authored “The
Death of American Virtue: Clinton vs. Starr.”
   (SSFC, 2/21/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Manlio Graziano authored
“The Failure of Italian Nationhood: The Geopolitics of a Troubled
Identity.”
   (Econ, 6/11/11, SR p.4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Paul Greenberg authored
“Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food.”
   (SSFC, 7/11/10, p.F1)(Econ, 7/24/10, p.82)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Imtiaz Gul authored “The
Most Dangerous Place: Pakistan's Lawless Frontier,” a book about
Pakistan’s tribal areas.
   (Econ, 7/31/10, p.28)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Stefan Halper authored
“The Beijing Consensus: How China’s Authoritarian Model Will
Dominate the Twenty-First Century.”
   (Econ, 6/25/11, SR p.3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Oren Harman authored “The
Price of Altruism: George Price and the Search for the Origins of
Kindness.”
   (Econ, 5/22/10, p.89)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Shane Harris authored “The
Watchers: The Rise of America’s Surveillance State.”
   (SSFC, 3/7/10, p.F5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â British physicist and
mathematician Stephen Hawking and physicist Leonard Mlodinow
authored "The Grand Design."
   (AP, 9/8/10)(Econ, 9/11/10, p.101)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Thomas Hegghammer authored
“Jihad in Saudi Arabia: Violence and Pan-Islamism singe 1979.”
   (Econ, 3/27/10, p.91)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Hirst authored
“Beware of Small States: Lebanon, Battleground of the Middle East.”
   (Econ, 7/3/10, p.78)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Arnold Hiura authored “Kau
Kau: Cuisine and Culture in the Hawaiian Islands.”
   (SFC, 8/3/10, p.E1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jonathan Holslag authored
“China And India: Prospects for Peace.”
   (Econ, 2/6/10, p.89)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jennifer Homans authored
“Apollo’s Angels: A History of Ballet.”
   (SSFC, 11/14/10, p.F5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Fraser Howie and Carl
Walter authored “Red Capitalism: The Fragile Financial Foundation of
China’s Extraordinary Rise.”
   (Econ, 12/11/10, p.105)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tony Hsieh, founder of
online shoe retailer Zappos, authored “Delivering Happiness.”
   (Econ, 9/10/11, SR p.12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Yu Jie authored “China’s
Best Actor, Wen Jiabao.” It was published in Hong Kong, but was
banned on the mainland.
   (Econ, 8/28/10, p.35)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Simon Johnson and James
Kwak authored “13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next
Financial Meltdown.”
   (Econ, 3/20/10, p.91)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Douglas Hurd (b.1930),
former British foreign secretary (1989-1995), authored “Choose Your
Weapons: The British Foreign secretary, 200 Years of Argument,
Success and Failure.”
   (Econ, 3/20/10, p.93)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Steven Johnson authored
“Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation,” in
which he named 7 ways in which new ideas can sprout from old ones.
   (Econ, 10/2/10, p.90)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sebastian Junger authored
“War,” an account of his experiences as an embedded journalist in
Afghanistan.
   (SSFC, 5/16/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Anatole Kaletsky authored
“Capitalism 4.0: The Birth of a New Economy in the Aftermath of a
Crises.”
   (Econ, 7/10/10, p.81)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kevin Kelly authored “What
Technology Wants,” a sweeping history of technology.
   (Econ, 10/2/10, p.90)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jeff Kingston authored
“Contemporary Japan: History, Politics and Social Change Since the
1980s.”
   (Econ, 8/21/10, p.68)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Stephen Kinzer authored
“Reset: Iran, Turkey and America’s Future.”
   (Econ, 7/17/10, p.87)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Kirkpatrick authored
“The Facebook Effect: The Inside Story of the Company that is
Connecting the World.”
   (Econ, 6/5/10, p.92)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Joel Kotkin authored “The
Next Hundred Million: America in 2050,” a look at what America might
be like as the population grows from some 300 million to 400
million.
   (SSFC, 2/28/10, p.F3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Michael Krasny, San
Francisco talk show host (KQED), authored “Spiritual Envy: An
Agnostic’s Quest.”
   (SSFC, 10/3/10, p.F3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Timur Kuran authored “The
Long Divergence: How Islamic Law Held Back the Middle East.
   (Econ, 1/29/11, p.67)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Robert Lacey authored
“Inside the Kingdom: Kings, Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists, and the
Struggle for Saudi Arabia.”
   (Econ, 3/27/10, p.91)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â John Lanchester authored
“IOU: Why Everyone Owes Everyone and No One Can Pay.”
   (Econ, 3/20/10, p.92)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jaron Lanier (49), virtual
reality pioneer, authored “You Are Not a Gadget: A Manifesto.”
   (SSFC, 2/7/10, p.A19)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Annie Leonard authored
“The Story of Stuff,” an expansion of her 2007 video and Web site:
www.storyofstuff.org.
   (SFC, 4/3/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Josh Lerner and Mark
Schankerman authored “The Comingled Code: Open Source and Economic
Development.”
   (Econ, 1/15/11, p.93)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Michael Lewis authored
“The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine,” an account of the
professional investors who foresaw the financial debacle and
profited from it.
   (SSFC, 3/14/10, p.F1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Suzanne Loebl authored
“America’s Medicis: The Rockefellers and Their Astonishing Cultural
Legacy.”
   (Econ, 11/27/10, p.94)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bruce Lourie and Rick
Smith authored “Slow Death by Rubber Duck: The Secret Danger of
Everyday Things.”
   (SFC, 3/12/10, p.F8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nancy Lublin authored
“Zilch: The Power of Zero in Business,” in which she argues that
for-profit companies can learn from non-profits.
   (Econ, 7/17/10, p.72)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Clarence Lusane authored
“The Black History of the White House.”
   (SSFC, 1/16/11, p.H5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Lynch authored “When
the Luck of the Irish Ran Out: The world’s Most Resilient Country
and Its Struggle to rise Again.”
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.102)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Neil MacGregor authored “A
History of the World in 100 Objects.” This followed his BBC radio
series of the same title.
   (Econ, 11/6/10, p.106)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sigurdur Gylfi Magnusson
authored “Wasteland With Words: A Social History of Iceland.”
   (Econ, 5/29/10, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nelson Mandela (92)
authored "Conversations with Myself," based on decades of his
anti-apartheid notes, letters and conversations. His 1995
autobiography, "Long Walk to Freedom," is known worldwide.
   (AP, 10/10/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Harry Markopolos authored
“No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller,” the story of his
discovery of the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme.
   (Econ, 3/20/10, p.92)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sebastian Mallaby authored
“More Money Than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite,” a
history of hedge funds back to the 1950s.
   (Econ, 6/12/10, p.82)(Econ, 6/26/10, p.89)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Joe Matthews and Mark Paul
authored “California Crackup: How Reform Broke the Golden State and
How We Can Fix It.”
   (Econ, 4/23/11, SR p.10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Richard McGregor authored
“The Party: The Secret World of China’s Communist Rulers.”
   (Econ, 6/19/10, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Robert McCrum authored
“Globish: How the English Language Became the World’s Language.”
   (Econ, 5/29/10, p.83)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Hamish McDonald authored
“Mahabharata in Polyester: The Making of the World’s Richest
Brothers and Their Feud.” It was about Indian brothers Mukesh and
Anil Ambani.
   (Econ, 11/6/10, p.105)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bethany McLean and Joe
Nocera authored “All the Devils Are Here: The Hidden History of the
Financial Crisis.”
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Joseph Menn, Financial
Times cyber-security reporter, authored “Fatal System Error: The
Hunt for the New Crime Lords Who Are Bringing down the Internet.”
   (SSFC, 1/24/10, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Northern Ireland
journalist Ed Moloney authored "Voices From the Grave," a book based
on interviews provided by Northern Ireland militants to Boston
College researchers on condition they not be published until the
interviewees were dead. It identifies Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams
as a key Irish Republican Army figure who directed some of the IRA's
most notorious killings and bombings. Moloney had detailed Adams'
IRA record in his 2002 book "A Secret History of the IRA." The new
book also includes the story of Protestant bomber-turned-peacemaker
David Ervine, who died in 2007.
   (AP, 3/29/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Craig Monson authored
“Nuns Behaving Badly: Tales of Music, Magic, Art & Arson in the
Convents of Italy.”
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.103)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ian Morris authored “Why
the West Rules – For Now: The Patterns of History and What they
Reveal About the Future.”
   (Econ, 10/9/10, p.119)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kosuke Motani authored
“The Real Face of Deflation,” in which he argued that deflation in
Japan is a structural problem linked to bad business decisions and
demography.
   (Econ, 2/12/11, p.85)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Siddhartha Mukherjee
authored “the Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer.”
   (Econ, 11/6/10, p.107)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â B.R. Myers authored “The
Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves And Why It Matters.”
   (Econ, 2/27/10, p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tarek Osman authored
“Egypt on the Brink: From Nasser to Mubarek.”
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.102)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nicholas Ostler authored
“The Last Lingua Franca: English Until the Return of Babel.”
   (Econ, 12/18/10, p.163)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Fintan O’Toole authored
“Enough is Enough: How to Build a New Republic,” a call for Ireland
to start afresh.
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.102)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nell Irvin Painter
authored “The History of White People.”
   (SSFC, 3/28/10, p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sarah Palin authored her
2nd book “America By Heart: Reflections on Family, Faith and Flag.”
   (SFC, 11/20/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Raj Patel, British-born
academic, authored “The Value of Nothing: How to Reshape Market
Society and Redefine Democracy.”
   (SSFC, 1/10/10, Books
p.F7)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raj_Patel)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Hank Paulson, former US
Treasury Secretary, authored “On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop
the Collapse of the Global financial System.”
   (Econ, 2/6/10, p.90)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Texas Gov. Rick Perry
authored “Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America from Washington.”
   (Econ, 7/23/11, p.32)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Donald Pfaff,
neurobiologist, authored “Man & Woman: An Inside Story.”
   (Econ, 1/1/11, p.76)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Roger Pielke Jr. authored
“The Climate Fix: What Scientists and Politicians Won’t Tell You
About Global Warming.”
   (Econ, 10/30/10, p.91)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sasha Polakow-Suransky
authored “The Unspoken Alliance: Israel’s Secret Alliance with
apartheid South Africa.
   (Econ, 5/22/10, p.88)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â James Prosek authored
“Eels: An Exploration, from New Zealand to the Sargasso, of the
World’s Most Mysterious Fish.
   (Econ, 9/25/10, p.106)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Robert D. Putnam authored
”American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us.”
   (SSFC, 10/10/10, p.F3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Raghuram Rajan authored
“Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World
Economy.” He argued that inequality was a cause of the crises.
   (Econ, 3/17/12, p.87)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jack Rakove, Univ. of
Stanford professor, authored “Revolutionaries: A New History of the
Invention of America.”
   (SSFC, 5/23/10, p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Robert B. Reich authored
“The Next Economy and America’s Future.”
   (SSFC, 9/26/10, p.N1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Keith Richards, guitarist
with the Rolling Stones, authored “Life.”
   (Econ, 11/13/10, p.80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Burton Richter
(1931-2018), Nobel Prize winner in Physics (1976), authored "Beyond
Smoke and Mirrors: Climate change and Energy in the 21st Century."
   (SFC, 5/27/10, p.E1)(SFC, 7/25/18, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Riddle (1942-2012)
co-authored authored, “The Color of Law: Ernie Goodman, Detroit, and
the Struggle for Labor and Civil Rights,” a meticulously researched
biography of the legendary Detroit labor lawyer. Mr. Riddle wrote
the book with friends, Steve Babson and David Elsila.
   (http://tinyurl.com/9v465zw)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Matt Ridley authored “The
Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves.”
   (Econ, 5/15/10, p.90)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Larry Rohter authored
“Brazil on the Rise: The Story of a Country Transformed.”
   (Econ, 8/21/10, p.69)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Mitt Romney, former
governor of Massachusetts, authored “No Apology: The Case for
American Greatness.”
   (SFC, 3/3/10, p.A6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â William Rosen authored
“The Most Powerful Idea in the World: A Story of Steam, Industry and
Invention,” a study of the process of tinkering with an existing
mechanism to make it better.
   (Econ, 8/14/10, p.70)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Australian PM Kevin Rudd
penned a children's book featuring his family pets. It was titled
"Jasper and Abby and the Great Australia Day Kerfuffle."
   (AFP, 1/3/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Leila J. Rupp authored
“Sapphistries: A Global History of Love Between Women.”
   (SSFC, 2/14/10, p.F5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ruth H. Sanders authored
“German: A Biography of a Language.”
   (Econ, 8/7/10, p.86)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Thilo Sarrazin (65), a
board member of Germany's august central bank, authored “Deutschland
schafft sich ab” (Germany Is Abolishing Itself or "Germany Is Doing
Away with Itself), a book claiming German society was being made
"dumber" by Muslim immigrants including Turks and others from the
former Yugoslavia and the Middle East. It became a runaway
best-seller, and cost him his job.
   (AP,
9/15/10)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thilo_Sarrazin)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Robert Scheer authored
“The Great American Stickup: How Reagan Republicans and Clinton
Democrats Enriched Wall Street While Mugging Main Street.”
   (SSFC, 9/26/10, p.N1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Carl Schoonover authored
"Portraits of the Mind: Visualizing the Brain from Antiquity to the
21st Century" (Abrams 2010).
  Â
(www.livescience.com/14413-brain-images-portraits-mind.html)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tom Segev authored “Simon
Wiesenthal: The Life and Legends.”
   (Econ, 8/28/10, p.73)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Prof. Scott Shane of
Ohio’s Case Western Reserve authored “Born Entrepreneurs, Born
Leaders, How Your Genes Affect Your Work Life.”
   (Econ, 9/25/10, p.99)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Clay Shirky authored
“Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age.”
   (Econ, 1/15/11, p.76)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Patti Smith, rock musician
and writer, received the US National Book Award for her memoir “Just
Kids.”
   (SFC, 2/9/13, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Timothy Snyder authored
“Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin.”
   (Econ, 10/16/10, p.101)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Steven Solomon authored
“Water: The Epic Struggle for Wealth, Power, and Civilization.”
   (Econ, 1/2/10, p.64)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Francis Spufford authored
“Red Plenty: Industry! Progress! Abundance! Inside the Fifties’
Soviet Dream.”
   (Econ, 8/21/10, p.69)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Gary Shteyngart authored
his novel “Super Sad True Love Story.” The novel takes place in a
near-future dystopian New York where life is dominated by media and
retail, when the Chinese yuan is a global currency and all people
wear an “apparat” around their neck with RateMe Plus Technology.
  Â
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Sad_True_Love_Story)(Econ,
12/17/16, p.20)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Stipp authored “The
Youth Pill: Scientists at the Brink of an Anti-Ageing Revolution.”
   (Econ, 7/24/10, p.80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Barbara Strauch authored “
The Secret Life of the Grown-Up Brain.”
   (SFC, 6/7/10, p.E1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Angus Trumble authored
“The Finger: A Handbook.” Trumble examines the “digitus impudicus”
from many angles with appealing anecdotes.
   (Econ, 5/22/10, p.88)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kelly Valen authored
“Twisted Sisterhood: Unraveling the Dark Legacy of Female
Friendships.”
   (SFC, 11/3/10, p.E1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Shankar Vedanta,
India-born Washington Post science journalist (b.1969), authored:
“The Hidden Brain: How Our Unconscious Minds Elect Presidents,
Control Markets, Wage Wars, and Save Our Lives.”
   (www.answers.com/topic/shankar-vedantam)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Vlatko Vedral authored
“Decoding Reality: The Universe as Quantum Information,” wherein he
argues that information can be created out of nothing.
   (Econ, 4/24/10, p.81)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Lorenzo Vidino authored
“The New Muslim Brotherhood in the West.”
   (Econ, 10/30/10, p.91)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Thomas de Waal authored
“The Caucasus: An Introduction.”
   (Econ, 10/23/10, p.102)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Barry Wain authored
“Malaysian Maverick: Mahathir Mohamad in Turbulent Times.” The book
covered the 22 years that Mohamad spent as Malaysia’s prime minister
(1981-2003).
   (Econ, 1/23/10, p.79)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ethan Waters authored
“Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche.”
   (SSFC, 1/31/10, p.F7)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Gunnar Wetterberg, Swedish
historian, authored “The Nordic Federal State,” which proposed a
pan-Nordic federation to unite Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway,
and Sweden under a single monarch: Denmark’s Queen Margrethe.
   (Econ, 11/6/10, p.66)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Christopher Whalen
authored “Inflated: How Money and Debt Built the American Dream.”
   (Econ, 12/18/10, p.164)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Meg Whitman, the former
CEO of eBay and candidate for California governor, authored “The
Power of Many: Values for Success in Business and in Life.”
   (SFC, 1/25/10, p.A1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ben Wildavsky authored
“The Great Brain Race: How Global Universities Are Reshaping the
World.”
   (Econ, 5/15/10, p.92)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â David Willetts (b.1956)
authored “The Pinch: How the Baby Boomers Took their Children’s
Future and Why They Should Give It Back.”
   (Econ, 2/13/10, p.83)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Edward O. Wilson, Harvard
biologist and the world’s leading myrmecologist, authored his novel
“Anthill.”
   (Econ, 5/1/10, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The 942-page, 3-volume set
“Gahan Wilson: Fifty Years of Playboy Cartoons by Gahan Wilson” was
published.
   (SSFC, 1/24/10, Books p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Simon Winder, British
writer, authored “Germania: In Wayward Pursuit of the Germans and
Their History.”
   (SFC, 4/16/10, p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Robert S. Wistrich
authored “A Lethal Obsession: Anti-Semitism From Antiquity to the
Global Jihad.”
   (SSFC, 2/14/10, p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bob Woodward authored
“Obama’s Wars.” In it he alleged that some 3,000 CIA operatives are
active in the tribal regions of Pakistan.
   (Econ, 9/25/10, p.44)(Econ, 10/9/10, p.58)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Tim Wu authored “The
Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Systems.” He
proposed that America adopt a “Separations Principle” that would
enforce a split between creators of content, those that distribute
it and makers of devices on which it is consumed. Â
   (Econ, 1/1/11, p.77)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â John Yoo authored “Crisis
and Command: “A History of Executive Power From George Washington to
George W. Bush.”
   (SSFC, 1/31/10, p.F4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Gregory Zuckerman authored
“The Greatest Trade Ever: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of How John
Paulson Defied Wall Street and Made Financial History.”
   (Econ, 2/20/10, p.81)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Claus Wischmann and
Martin Baer produced the documentary “Kinshasa Symphony” in which
they followed Armand Diangienda and the Orchestre Symphonique
Kimbanguiste in Kinshasa as they prepared for a concert of
Beethoven’s ninth symphony.
   (Econ, 3/27/10,
p.94)(www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vTk0XsgZV4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The US Congress enacted
the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.
   (Economist, 9/15/12, p.71)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â American Bridge 21st
Century was set up with backing by George Soros and other Democrats
to prepare dossiers on prominent Republicans and film them in order
to pounce on ill-chosen words.
   (Econ, 7/12/14, p.27)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The US EPA launched the
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) to improve water quality,
clean up shorelines and restore habitats in the Great Lakes region.
  Â
(http://greatlakesrestoration.us/pdfs/21050720-report_to_congress.pdf)(Econ,
8/1/15, p.28)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â California’s Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger signed a law limiting handgun ammunition sales. It
was to take effect in February, 2011, but was blocked by a Superior
court judge in Fresno. In 2013 a state appeals court barred
enforcement of the law.
   (SFC, 11/8/13, p.D6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â California’s federal
prison receivership put a stop to all tubal ligations on female
prisoners. In 2013 the Center for Investigative Reporting found that
148 women in state prisons had received tubal ligations without
required state approvals from 2006-2010. This prompted state
lawmakers to call for an investigation.
   (SFC, 7/12/13, p.D8)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Uber launched in San
Francisco as an alternative to taxi service allowing customers to
hail drivers from their smartphones.
   (Econ, 3/29/14, p.80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Georgia Congressman Nathan
Deal faced an investigation by the US Office of Congressional Ethics
(OCE) for using his position to enrich himself. Shortly before the
OCE report was due to be released Mr. Deal resigned saying he wanted
to focus on running for governor.
   (Econ, 10/26/13, p.38)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Steven Carse (25) began
hawking ice lollies on a corner in Atlanta, Ga. In 2016 his “King of
Pops” brand expected annual sales of 2 million.
   (Econ, 7/30/16, p.22)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Iowa’s Supreme Court
struck down a ban on gay marriage. Anti-gay-marriage groups targeted
three judges and all 3 lost their seats.
   (Econ, 11/24/12, p.32)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of New
Orleans, Louisiana, shrinking since the 1960s, was down to 343,829.
The city lost 29% of its population since 2000.
   (Econ, 9/24/11, p.34)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Maine’s candidate for
governor Paul LePage said that if he was elected he would tell
Pres. Barack Obama “to go to Hell.” LePage won with 38% of the vote.
   (Econ, 8/31/13, p.26)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â General Motors shut down
its vast Buick City manufacturing complex in Flint, Michigan. In
2019 the Buick name disappeared from its North American models.
   (SFC, 9/23/19, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The Missouri Department of
Corrections established a Puppies for Parole program in which
inmates train animals with behavioral or other issues that make them
difficult to adopt. Inmates managed to train deaf dogs to respond to
hand signals.
   (Reuters,
2/9/11)(http://doc.mo.gov/documents/dai/PuppiesForParole_flyer.pdf)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â New Hampshire boasted the
highest beer sales per person in the US with an average of 32.7
gallons of beer sold per legal-age drinking person. Cross-border
sales contributed.
   (SFC, 6/25/11, p.D2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Forrest Fenn, American art
collector, deposited a bronze treasure box in the mountains north of
Santa Fe. He then wrote a memoir with a six paragraph poem
containing nine clues to where his treasure lies.
   (Econ, 11/26/16, p.28)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â North Dakota counted some
641,000 residents, or about .02% of the US population.
   (Econ, 2/13/10, p.33)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Apple bought Siri, a
personal digital assistant, for $200 million.
   (Econ, 9/12/15, p.57)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In the Automotive X Prize
competition a fuel efficiency prize of $5 million was awarded to
Edison2, a Virginia company, for a safe, cheap and easily built car
that could do more than 100 miles per American gallon. The company’s
Very Light Car (VLC) was a prototype design for 2- and 4-passenger
automobiles.
  Â
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Very_Light_Car)(Econ, 5/16/15,
p.72)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â General Electric developed
a hand-held electrocardiogram called the Mac 400. The $800 device
reduced the cost of an ECG to just $1 per patient.
   (Econ, 4/17/10, SR p.6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Organovo, a San
Diego-based company founded in 2007, developed the first commercial
3D bio-printer. The $200,000 machine will initially produce simple
tissues such as skin, muscle and short stretches of blood vessels.
   (Econ, 2/20/10, p.77)(Econ, 3/8/14, p.18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nextdoor, a private online
community for neighborhoods, was founded. By 2018 the SF-based
company had more than 160,000 neighborhoods in the US, Germany, the
Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
   (SFC, 1/13/18, p.D4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Pinterest, an online
scrapbooking website, was founded.
   (SFC, 4/26/14, p.D1)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The Allen Institute for
Brain Science, founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, launched
its human brain atlas.
   (Econ, 9/7/13, TQ p.25)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Purdue Pharma reformulated
OxyContin, an opioid painkiller, to make it harder to crush, after
users discovered that they could get a heroin-like high by crushing
the pills and snorting or injecting the entire dose at once. In 2018
Purdue said it will stop marketing opioid drugs to doctors.
   (SSFC, 2/11/18, p.A15)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The Imagenet Large Scale
Visual Recognition Challenge (ILSVCR) challenged research teams to
submit programs that classify and detect objects and scenes. It
began as a contest to encourage artificial intelligence workers to
measure their progress in getting computers to recognize and label
images automatically. In 2015 computers surpassed humans for the
first time.
   (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ImageNet)(Econ,
6/25/16, SR p.4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kevin Systrom developed a
filter for a photo-sharing app called "Codename" and posted a snap
of a dog by a taco stand. This became the first image posted to what
became Instagram. Systrom and Mike Krieger founded Instagram and in
2012 sold it to Facebook for $1 billion.
   (Econ., 5/23/20, p.71)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Fourth-generation networks
embraced internet protocol providing mobile devices with broadband
access to the internet. The first generation of cellular phones
began around 1980 and relied on analogue technology. The 2nd
generation arrived in 1991 and wireless networks began to go
digital. By 2001 the 3rd generation dumped circuit-switching for
more efficient packet-switching.
   (Econ, 5/30/15, TQ p.10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Analysis of human bone
discovered in the Altai Mountains of Russia found that it was
neither Neanderthal or modern human. The cave had been occupied in
the 18th century by a monk named Denis, so Denisovan was the name
given to this associated branch of Homo sapiens.
   (Econ, 7/5/14, p.65)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â US public debt at the end
of 2010 stood at 62% of GDP. This was defined as federal government
debt held by the public. General government gross debt, however,
stood at about 92% of GDP.
   (Econ, 4/30/11, p.84)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â US banks repossessed more
than 1 million homes in 2010. That marked the highest annual tally
of properties lost to foreclosure on records dating back to 2005.
   (AP, 1/13/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The average cost of this
year’s Decennial US Census was estimated at $46.93 per person
compared to 1.13 cents in 1790.
  Â
(http://www.genealogybranches.com/censuscosts.html)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In the US 33,000 Americans
were killed on roads. This was 60% above the OECD average.
   (Econ, 4/30/11, p.29)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The US had 13.1 million
arrests this year. Drug violations accounted for just over 1.6
million of the arrests according to FBI data released in 2011.
   (Econ, 9/24/11, p.40)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ethane concentrations in
the atmosphere began increasing after decades of decline. In 2016
researchers said gas fields in the Bakken Formation in Montana and
North Dakota were responsible for the increases in the air
pollutant.
   (SSFC, 5/1/16, p.A10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Abu Dhabi German
entrepreneur Thomas Geissler, creator of the "Gold to Go" brand and
chief executive of Ex Oriente Lux, installed a money machine at the
Emirates Palace hotel that dispenses pure gold. The
cash-for-gold machines were first tested in Germany in 2009.
   (Reuters, 5/13/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Afghanistan’s central bank
spent $820 million of its reserves bailing out Kabul Bank.
   (Econ, 6/18/11, p.47)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Afghanistan some 2,043
civilians died this year as a result of Taliban attacks and military
operations targeting the militants. Roadside bombs killed 268
American troops this year, a 60% increase over the year before.
   (AP, 1/19/11)(AP, 1/26/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The vaccine MenAfriVac was
introduced into Africa to immunize3 people against meningitis A. An
outbreak in 1996 had killed 25,000 people and sickened 250,000 in
six months. By 2015 the caseload of the illness plummeted to zero in
16 countries that used the vaccine.
   (Econ, 11/14/15, p.79)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Algeria’s population stood
at about 35 million.
   (Econ, 5/29/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bahrain’s population was
about 738,000, including some 235,000 non nationals.
   (NYT 2011 Almanac, p.537)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of
Bangladesh stood at about 160 million. 70% were under 35.
   (Econ, 6/12/10, p.45)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Belarus
was about 10 million.
   (Econ, 12/4/10, p.66)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bosnia’s population
numbered about 3.8 million.
   (Econ, 10/2/10, p.54)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Brazil’s government began
allowing taxpayers to deduct costs for cosmetic surgery.
   (SFC, 5/1/10, p.A3)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Brazilian census figures
for this year showed that nearly 43,000 children under 14 years of
age were living with a partner in defiance of laws forbidding these
unions. The census put the number of Roman Catholics at about 65% of
the population of 192 million, down from 74% in 2000. It also marked
the first time in which black and mixed-race people officially
outnumbered whites, weighing in at just over 50 percent, compared
with 47 percent for whites.
   (AP, 9/13/11) (AP, 11/3/12)(AP, 3/17/13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Britain’s Behavioral
Insights Team (BIT) was set up to help policymakers change behavior
through nudges rather than taxes or laws. BIT was spun out of the
government in 2014, and became partly owned by the Cabinet
Office, employees and Nesta, an innovation foundation.
   (Econ 5/20/17, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Marine biologists
predicted that Scotland’s Firth of Clyde was about to become
Britain’s first ecological desert. This was based on historic catch
data in the area.
   (Econ, 8/31/13, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Bulgaria’s population was
about 7.6 million and included a 750,000 Turkish minority.
   (Econ, 2/6/10, p.58)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Burundi’s population stood
at about 9 million. Tax revenues were around $9 million.
   (Econ, 7/24/10, p.48)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Cambodia
was about 14 million.
   (Econ, 7/31/10, p.32)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Canadian first-time
novelist Johanna Skibsrud, author of "The Sentimentalists," was a
surprise winner of the C$50,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize. Nova
Scotia-based specialty publisher Gaspereau Press could produce only
1,000 copies a week of the finely bound book, using an old-fashioned
press.
   (Reuters, 11/11/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Canada’s population was
estimated at around 34,108,800 as of July 1 this year.
   (SSFC, 10/3/10, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Chile Nicolas Shea
founded Start-Up Chile, a program that used government funded seed
capital to encourage entrepreneurial activity.
   (Economist, 10/13/12, p.79-80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â China opened a 4-km bridge
from the mainland to the island of Pingtan, directly across from
Taiwan. By 2011 China hoped to develop the island together with
Taiwan as a duty free enclave.
   (Econ, 5/19/12, p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â A prediction was made that
China’s paramount leader will either have been elected or selected
by an elected multi-party national parliament.
   (SFC, 5/26/96, Z1 p.6)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Zhang Jingli, one of four
deputy heads of China’s State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA),
was removed from his post at the food and drug safety watchdog. He
was under investigation over alleged bribery linked to US
pharmaceuticals giant Johnson & Johnson. In early 2011 he was
stripped of his party membership.
   (AFP, 1/6/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â China began introducing
donation schemes for human organs as its source of organs from
prisoners fell due to fewer executions. A national organ bank was
set up fight corruption in the organ-allocation system.
   (Econ, 8/24/13, p.42)(Econ., 3/14/15, p.48)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Meituan Dianping, a
Chinese company selling discount vouchers online, was founded by
Wang Xing. The company went public in Hong Kong in 2018 as a "search
engine for services." By 2020 it was valued at more than $100
billion.
   (Econ., 7/11/20, p.53)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Xiaomi, a Chinese maker of
smart phones, was founded. In 2013 it was valued at $10 billion.
   (Econ, 9/14/13, p.69)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The AIDS epidemic in China
was expected to infect over 10 million people by this time,
according to a 1998 forecast by the Ministry of Health. In 2006
China backed off from the high number but gave no new estimate.
   (SFC, 12/2/03, p.A3)(SSFC, 7/30/06, p.A17)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â China's population grew to
1.34 billion people.
   (AP, 2/28/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Nets, a Denmark-based,
payments firm, was created from the merger of payments companies in
Denmark and Norway. In 2014 Nets was bought by Bain Capital and
Advent Int'l., two American private-equity firms, and ATP, a Danish
pension fund. In 2017 Hellman & Friedman, an American
private-equity firm, offered to acquire Nets for $5.3 billion.
   (Econ, 9/30/17, p.66)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The Dominican Rep.
government amended the country's constitution to deny citizenship to
children born in the Dominican Republic to foreign parents.
Government officials then began applying the change retroactively to
people of Haitian descent who already held citizenship.
   (AP, 10/12/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Egypt’s population
numbered about 85 million, roughly a quarter of all Arabs.
   (Econ, 10/16/10, p.55)(Econ, 8/13/11, p.63)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Eritrea supplied arms and
supplies to Al Shabab militants in Somalia.
   (SSFC, 4/29/12, p.E9)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Ethiopia set up METEC, a
Metals and Engineering Corporation. In 2011, the government awarded
METEC contracts related to a dozen mega projects: the plan was for
METEC to establish new industries and build factories and
infrastructure before opening the companies up to private sector
investment.
   (Reuters, 11/14/18)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Stephane Hessel (93), a
former French Resistance spy, authored “Indignez-Vous” (Get
Indignant), a 32-page pamphlet calling people to action to protect
human rights and combat against the yawning gap between rich and
poor.
   (www.commondreams.org/view/2011/01/05-8)(SFC,
1/7/11, p.A5)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In France there was an
extortion attempt against Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, maker of the
world’s most expensive wine. In 2014 Maximillian Potter authored
“Shadows in the Vineyard: The True Story of a Plot to Poison the
World’s Greatest Wine.”
   (Econ, 7/19/14,p.71)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The French public health
system had a $16 billion (€12 billion) shortfall.
   (Econ, 2/12/11, p.58)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The AR drone built by
Parrot, a French company, became a best seller. The easy-to-fly
quadcopter was able to beam video back to a smartphone.
   (Econ, 9/26/15, p.80)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Ghana
was about 23 million.
   (Econ, 1/2/10, p.36)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Germany an 800-page
history of the country’s foreign ministry was published: “Das Amt
und die Vergangenheit.” It was commissioned by the ministry and
authored by Eckart Conze, Norbert Frei, Peter Hayes and Moshe
Zimmermann.
   (Econ, 10/30/10, p.57)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Guinea’s population was
about 10 million.
   (AP, 12/1/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Honduras, country of 7.7
million people, held the planet’s highest murder rate. The country
saw 6,200 killings this year, the equivalent of 82.1 homicides per
100,000 people, well above the 66 per 100,000 in neighboring El
Salvador.
   (Econ, 7/24/10, p.40)(AP, 10/30/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â A UN study showed that 30
percent of Hondurans interviewed had been victims of extortion, 26
percent more than once.
   (AP, 8/8/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Iceland’s Parliament
indicted former PM Geir Haarde for violating the laws of ministerial
responsibility. He was charged with doing too little to protect the
country against expansionary lending by bankers that resulted in
financial disaster.
   (SFC, 3/6/12, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In India over 200 poor,
debt-ridden residents of Andhra Pradesh killed themselves late this
year following over indebtedness to microfinance companies.
   (SFC, 2/25/12, p.A4)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In India some 410 million
people lived below the UN’s estimated poverty line of $1.25 per day.
   (Econ, 9/25/10, p.36)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In India nearly 135,000
people or 366 a day died on the country’s roads this year.
   (AFP, 6/16/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Indonesia WHO reported
that some 400,000 people die each year from smoking-related
illnesses. Anti-smoking groups teamed up with Muhammadiyah, the
country’s 2nd largest Islamic organization, to issue a fatwa
declaring smoking haram, i.e. forbidden under Islam.
   (Econ, 5/1/10, p.44)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Indonesia a video
circulated widely on the Internet late showed men in uniform burning
the genitals of a suspected separatist and running a knife across
the neck of another, sparking an international outcry. In 2011 three
soldiers were charged with the relatively minor offense of
disobeying orders, which carried a maximum penalty of 30 months in
prison. The 3 soldiers were sentenced on Jan 24 for up to ten months
in prison, angering rights activists who slammed the lenient verdict
as a sham underlining the military's impunity.
   (AP, 1/14/11)(AP, 1/24/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Iran hanged at least 179
people in 2010.
   (AFP, 1/19/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The Israeli-based Shurat
HaDin law center won $378 million in a US court against North Korea
over the killing of Americans at an Israeli airport in 1972, but it
was unable to collect.
   (AP, 8/4/15)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Italy Operation Gaol
led to the arrest of over 40 people associated with the ‘Ndrangheta
organized crime group.
   (Econ, 4/26/14, p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Japan extended its Air
Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) to cover a Japanese-held island
claimed by Taiwan.
   (Econ., 6/20/20, p.34)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Japan’s nominal GDP of
$5.474 trillion in 2010 put it behind China's $5.879 trillion. China
first eclipsed Japan in the second quarter.
   (AP, 2/14/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Japan’s population was
about 127 million. Some 2 million foreigners lived there legally. It
was expected to fall to around 100 million by 2050.
   (Econ, 5/15/10, p.49)(Econ, 7/17/10, p.68)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Jordan’s population
numbered about 6 million. Half of the people were of Palestinian
origin.
   (SFC, 2/2/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kashmir’s population was
about 11 million.
   (Econ, 1/1/11, p.35)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kenya’s technology-related
services exploded to $360 million, compared to $16 million in 2002.
Products were designed for mobile phones rather than computers.
   {Kenya, Telecom}  Â
   (Economist, 8/25/12, p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Kenya
was estimated at over 40 million.
   (Econ, 2/20/10, p.46)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Kosovo’s population was
about 2 million.
   (SFC, 10/27/10, p.A2)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of
Kyrgyzstan was about 5.4 million.
   (Econ, 5/15/10, p.49)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Lesotho, entirely
surrounded by South Africa, barely numbered 2 million people.
   (Econ, 8/7/10, p.44)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Liberia under Pres. Ellen
Johnson Sirleaf won a colossal write-down of debts under the Heavily
Indebted Poor Countries program.
   (Econ 7/1/17, p.52)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The US provided Liberia
almost $230 million in aid this year.
   (Eon, 11/19/11, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The World Bank estimated
that 447,000 people from Macedonia were living abroad.
   (Econ., 3/7/15, p.54)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Mauritius Navinchandra
Ramgoolam became prime minister following elections.
   (AFP, 3/30/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Mexico Christian Tellez
Padilla disappeared in Veracruz state. In 2019 a UN committee said
Mexico is responsible for his forced disappearance and asked for a
renewed investigation. Human rights experts believed local police
worked with the Zetas cartel to disappear Padilla.
   (AP, 8/19/19)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Mexico's drug violence
left 15,273 dead in 2010, making it the deadliest year yet since
President Felipe Calderon launched a military crackdown on organized
crime.
   (AFP, 1/12/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Mexico this year was the
world’s 11th largest by population and the 14th largest in economic
size.
   (Econ, 10/16/10, p.29)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Mongolia concluded a $242
million bailout by the IMF.
   (Econ, 10/29/16, p.33)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Morocco’s population stood
at about 32 million.
   (Econ, 5/29/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of
Mozambique was about 20 million.
   (Econ, 7/10/10, p.50)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Myanmar the annual
income per person was about $459.
   (Econ, 8/21/10, p.34)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Nicaragua the income
per head was about $2,600, the lowest in Central America.
   (Econ, 5/1/10, p.38)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Niger
numbered about 15 million.
   (Econ, 2/27/10, p.56)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Process & Industrial
Developments (P&ID) was set up to execute a deal with the
Nigerian government to build and operate a gas-processing plant in
the southeastern port city of Calabar. When the deal collapsed,
P&ID took the government to arbitration, eventually winning a
$6.6 billion award that has been accruing interest since 2013. In
2019 the company was ordered by a court in the capital Abuja to
forfeit its local assets to the government. The order came after two
men linked to P&ID pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and tax
evasion on the company's behalf.
   (Reuters, 9/19/19)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Nigeria theft, sabotage
and operational reasons caused 27,580 barrels of oil to spill from
the Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell facilities this year.
   (AP, 5/27/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Pakistan some 21
million people were affected by flooding this year that killed 1,750
people and cost the economy $10 billion.
   (AP, 9/12/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Pakistan
was about 180 million.
   (Econ, 8/21/10, p.36)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â A leaked American embassy
cable accused Horacio Cartes of Paraguay of laundering drug money.
   (Econ, 4/27/13, p.35)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Romania Emil Boc's
government increased sales tax from 19 percent to 24 percent and cut
public workers' salaries by a quarter to reduce the budget deficit.
   (AP, 2/6/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Russian authorities closed
the Moscow square, Triumfalnaya Ploshad, saying an underground car
park would be built there. It had become the main venue for
anti-Putin rallies. No car park was built and the site became an
archaeological dig for two years. The square only reopened long
after the 2012 presidential election. It has since been landscaped
in a way to make protests impossible.
   (Reuters, 3/20/17)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Yury Kovalchuk, a friend
of Pres. Vladimir Putin, bought Video Int’l., Russia’s largest
advertising agency. Kovalchuk already had large stakes in Gazprom
Media and National Media Group.
   (Econ, 2/15/14, p.45)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Sao Tome and Principe
the Democratic Action party of Pres. Patrice Trovoada won
legislative elections.
   (AFP, 9/3/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Saudi Arabia an
estimated 4 million women over the age of 20 were unmarried in the
country of 24.6 million. Many male guardians forcibly kept women
single, a practice known as "adhl." Saudi feminist Wajeha
al-Hawaidar described male guardianship as "a form of slavery."
   (AP, 11/27/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Senegal
numbered about 13 million.
   (Econ, 2/27/10, p.55)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Serbia’s population was
about 7.3 million.
   (Econ, 10/30/10, p.56)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sierra Leone writer
Olufemi Terry won the 2010 Caine Prize for African Writing.
   (www.caineprize.com/about.php)(Econ, 7/10/10,
p.82)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Sierra Leone the UN
radio station merged with the government-controlled Sierra Leone
Broadcasting Service.
   (Economist, 9/1/12, p.51)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Singapore’s population
numbered about 4.8 million.
   (Econ, 5/22/10, SR p.10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Mohamud Nur, nicknamed
Tarzan, became mayor of Mogadishu. His term lasted only four years.
   (Econ, 11/19/16, p.72)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Somali pirates stages 219
attacks in 2010. Ransoms climbed to $238 million, an average of $5.4
million per ship.
   (Econ, 2/5/11, p.16)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of
Somaliland was about 2.5 million.
   (Econ, 7/3/10, p.45)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In South Africa 566 people
were reported killed this year as a result of police action.
   (Econ, 8/27/11, p.41)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â South Africa lost 333
rhinos to poaching in 2010, the highest number ever recorded and
almost triple the previous year's losses.
   (AP, 1/12/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The Green Climate Fund
(GCF) was established within the framework of the UNFCCC. It was
founded as a mechanism to assist developing countries in adaptation
and mitigation practices to counter climate change. It is based in
the new Songdo district of Incheon, South Korea.
  Â
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Climate_Fund)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Sudan the Darfur
conflict claimed more than 2,300 lives in 2010, according to new UN
figures released in January 2011.
   (AFP, 1/19/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Sweden’s population stood
at about 9.4 million, of whom 14 percent was foreign-born. Some 71
percent of Swedes nominally are members of the Lutheran Church of
Sweden, although few attend church regularly. Literacy is virtually
100 percent. Life expectancy is among the world's highest, 79 years
for men, 83 for women.
   (AP, 9/18/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Suriname numbered about
500,000 people. Satellite analysis of scarred earth and diverted
waterways showed that miners have deforested at least 30,000
hectares (74,000 acres) and damaged more than 2,200 km (1,370 miles)
of river over the past decade.
   (AP, 8/30/10)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Swaziland’s main revenue,
generated mostly from a regional customs union dominated by South
Africa, fell by almost two-thirds this year due to an economic
slowdown.
   (Econ, 7/30/11, p.43)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Tajikistan the
government of Pres. Rakhmon (b.1952) stepped up a campaign to close
unregistered mosques, while making it close to impossible for new
mosques to register.
   (Econ, 7/2/11,
p.34)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emomalii_Rahmon)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of
Tajikistan, one of the poorest of the former Soviet states numbered
about 7.3 million people. 70% lived in abject poverty.
   (AP, 1/3/10)(Econ, 3/6/10, p.60)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Up to 3,000 female babies
were presumed "missing" from Taiwan's population this year due to
illegal sex-selective abortion.
   (AP, 5/15/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Thailand’s population
numbered about 67 million people.
   (Econ, 9/18/10, p.58)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Trinidad and Tobago
suffered 472 killings this year, close to 5% of all deaths. The
murder rate was 36 per 100,000 people, seven times higher than in
the US.
   (Econ, 2/12/11, p.46)(Econ, 8/27/11, p.32)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Mehmet Emin Karamehmet
(b.1944), founder of Turkcell and Turkey’s 2nd richest man, was
sentenced to almost 12 years in jail for having used Pamukbank as a
cash cow for Cukurova Holding, his family owned group. The sentence
was suspended pending retrial.
  Â
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehmet_Emin_Karamehmet)(Econ, 4/21/12,
p.83)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Venezuela 476 people
died and 967 were injured in prison violence this year, according to
figures compiled by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
   (AP, 10/24/11)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Vietnam the state-owned
shipbuilder, Vinashin, imploded with debts of $4.5 billion.
   (Econ, 1/8/11, p.42)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In northern Vietnam a
Vietnam Association of Agent Orange Victims was established in
Thai Binh province by five foreign members of a Scientology-funded
sister organization, The Association of Better Living and Education.
It offered a 25-day vitamin and sauna regime for victims of Agent
Orange. Scientologists believed the regime can "sweat out" toxins
stored in body fat. There were no peer-reviewed studies to back this
claim.
   (AP, 4/4/13)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â The population of Vietnam
was about 86 million.
   (Econ, 9/4/10, p.46)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Vietnam wiped out its own
last known Javan rhinoceros despite efforts to protect it. The last
of the population was found dead in a national park, shot through
the leg with its horn hacked off. Illegal rhino killings in South
Africa skyrocketed, from 122 in 2009 to 333 in 2010 and a record 448
in 2011. By 2012 crushed rhino horn powder fetched up to $55,000 per
kg in Asia ($25,000 per pound).
   (AFP, 4/4/12)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â Yemen was scheduled to
receive $150 million from the US this year including $34 million for
“tactical assistance.”
   (Econ, 4/24/10, p.45)
2010Â Â Â Â Â Â In Zimbabwe ZIFA chief
Henrietta Rushwaya sent the national soccer team to play
unsanctioned friendlies in Thailand, Syria and Malaysia, where a
betting syndicate allegedly fixed the results. She was fired and
charged with bribery and corruption.
   (AFP, 2/29/12)
2010-2011Â Â Â In the two years following Haiti’s
January 12, 2010, earthquake some $6 billion in aid flooded into the
country.
   (Econ 5/6/17, p.55)
2010-2012 In Tanzania the number of elephants at the Selous Game
Reserve droped from 40,000 to 13,000 during this period. In 2014 it
was reported that more than 100,000 African elephants had been
killed during this period for their tusks.
   (SFC, 8/23/14, p.A2)
2010-2013Â Â Â In India some 300 young people
reportedly killed themselves over a 3-year period in Telangana, a
territory of 35 million people who make up about 40% of Andhra
Pradesh state.
   (Econ, 3/30/13, p.40)
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