World News
Browse all articles and features filed under the News desk.
SK set to expand ballistic missile range
South Korea is set to reach agreement with the US on expanding its ballistic missile range to better guard against attacks by North Korea, the South's leader was quoted Thursday as saying. The two allies are close to agreement on revising a 2001 deal that restricts Seoul's missil
Mini-tornado rips through Australian city
A devastating "mini-tornado" tore through the Australian city of Townsville on Tuesday, ripping roofs off houses, flipping cars and bringing down powerlines, officials and witnesses said. The Queensland State Emergency Service said it had received dozens of calls for help, with a
Nighttime solar power station
A unique thermosolar power station in southern Spain can shrug off cloudy days: energy stored when the sun shines lets it produce electricity even during the night. The Gemasolar station, up and running since last May, stands out in the plains of Andalusia. From the road between
China exerts rare public pressure on North Korea over missile plan
China put rare public pressure on ally North Korea over the reclusive state's plan to launch a long-range rocket which is raising tension in the region and could scupper a recent aid deal with the United States. The announcement of the launch immediately threw into doubt recent h
Einstein can rest easy as neutrinos obey speed limit
New research suggests neutrinos that appeared to break one of Einstein's fundamental theories by travelling faster than the speed of light actually keep within the universal speed limit after all. The latest measurement of the sub-atomic particles' speed of flight from the CERN r
Alert as Western Australia braces for cyclone
A tropical cyclone bearing down on Western Australia intensified on Saturday, placing the region on high alert as the storm threatened to bring destructive gale-force winds. Severe tropical cyclone Lua, upgraded to a Category 4 storm - five is the highest - is moving steadily tow
N. Korea says it will launch rocket next month
North Korea said Friday it would launch a rocket next month to put a satellite into orbit, a move that would breach a United Nations resolution passed after a previous launch in 2009. The event was scheduled between April 12-16 to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of foundi
Eye problems common in astronauts: study
Brain and eye problems have surfaced in astronauts who spent more than a month in space, marking a potential setback to plans for longer deep space missions, a US study said Tuesday. The research in the journal Radiology analyzed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of 27 astro
S. Korean, Russian scientists bid to clone mammoth
Russian and South Korean scientists signed a deal Tuesday on joint research intended to recreate a woolly mammoth, an animal which last walked the earth some 10,000 years ago. The deal was signed by Vasily Vasiliev, vice rector of North-Eastern Federal University of the Sakha Rep
Asia Cup: India record 50-run win over Sri Lanka
India defeated Sri Lanka by 50 runs in the second day-night match of the Asia Cup one-day tournament here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Tuesday. Chasing a huge target of 305 runs, Sri Lanka took the challenge in a brave manner as their two main batsmen Mahela Jayawarden
Senior North Korean officials visit border: report
About 130 North Korean officials visited the tense frontier with South Korea last week as Pyongyang intensified its threats against Seoul, a report said Wednesday. The North's Defence Minister Kim Yong-Chun and military chief Ri Yong-Ho toured the border truce village of Panmunjo
US envoy to Egypt arrives in Germany
US ambassador to Egypt rushed to Germany from where she will return to United States, according to German news agency. Earlier, around 100 protesters calling for an end to military rule in Egypt clashed with soldiers near the US embassy in Cairo. Shouting "Down with military powe
Nairobi attack death toll rises to six
A grenade attack on a Nairobi bus station killed at least six people and wounded 63, according to a new toll issued Sunday by Kenyan Internal Security Minister George Saitoti. "The death toll is now six, and we have 63 people undergoing treatment at the Kenyatta National Hospital
Strong solar storm heading for Earth
A strong geomagnetic storm is racing from the Sun toward Earth, and its expected arrival on Thursday could affect power grids, airplane routes and space-based satellite navigation systems, U.S. space weather experts said. The storm, a big cloud of charged particles flung from the
US pledges aid after 150 die in Congo blast
The United States led international pledges of emergency aid to Congo after huge blasts at an arms depot in Brazzaville killed more than 150 people and left 1,000 injured. President Denis Sassou Nguesso announced a curfew in the capital and cordoned off the area around the devast
Ice dam collapses at Argentine glacier
An ice dam at Argentina's Perito Moreno glacier collapsed early Sunday, creating an impressive spectacle not seen since July 2008, although few tourists were actually awake to experience the moment. Several tons of ice fell off the 60-meter (200 foot) ice dam into Lago Argentina
US 'concerned' over Qaeda attacks in Yemen:Pentagon
The United States is "very concerned" about the latest assault by Al-Qaeda militants in Yemen but does not believe the government's survival is in jeopardy, a Pentagon spokesman said Monday. In one of the single deadliest attacks against Yemeni forces, more than 100 government so
US toddler dies in wake of tornado, toll at 37
A two-year-old girl who was found barely alive amid the bodies of her parents and siblings after horrific tornadoes hit the United States, died Sunday after a 48-hour fight for life. Angel Babcock was discovered in a field near her family's home in New Pekin, southern Indiana aft
Oceans' acidic shift maybe fastest in 300 million years
The world's oceans are turning acidic at what could be the fastest pace of any time in the past 300 million years, even more rapidly than during a monster emission of planet-warming carbon 56 million years ago, scientists said on Thursday. Looking back at that bygone warm period
UK scientists to help satellites dodge sun storms
British scientists have developed a system to help protect navigation and communications satellites from potentially devastating solar storms, they said on Friday. Services spanning everything from mobile phones to sophisticated weaponry increasingly depend on global positioning