The main headlines on Al Jazeera English, featuring the latest news and reports from around the world.
Continue reading …A female missionary from the US was fatally shot in Mexico yesterday, the AP reports. Husband Sam Davis drove his wife, Nancy, 59, back over the border after gunmen in a pickup shot her in the head after trying to stop their vehicle, he told police. Davis drove against traffic…
Continue reading …Authorities in Chile are launching an investigation into the death of former President Salvador Allende in 1973. His body was found in the presidential palace after it was stormed by the forces of Augusto Pinochet, who launched the military coup that toppled the socialist Allende. The investigation will try to…
Continue reading …The indigenous Sami peoples in the Arctic have found a way to help reindeer survive the ravages of climate change—but we’re guessing the deer don’t like it too much. Fluctuating temperatures have been a challenge for the reindeer, because melting snow often refreezes and forms ice over the pastures…
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Wall Street executives, US regulatory agencies, and the US federal reserve are all being blamed in a new report into the causes of the 2008 financial meltdown. The country’s presidential commission also concluded the financial meltdown could have been avoided altogether. But even as it wraps up its two year inquiry, the 10-member panel remains sharply divided over the causes. The report reflects the views of six Democrats – while the four Republicans have written dissenting opinions. It also lays much of the blame on what it says are the “reckless” practices of financial firms like Fannie Mae, AIG and Bear Stearns. It says poor controls led to excessive borrowing and risky investments on mortgages. It also faults “weak” government regulators like the Securities and Exchange Commission and US Central Bank – for failing to rein in the banks they supervised. Singled out is former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan – for backing de-regulation practies that accelerated the sub-prime mortgage crisis. Lobbyists are also being heavily blamed. Al Jazeera’s Nick Spicer reports.
Continue reading …Forbes is out with its annual ranking of NBA teams, with this year’s headline-grabbing stat coming courtesy of LeBron James. His blockbuster trade to the Miami Heat raised the value of the team by 17% to $425 million, good for seventh in the league. The value of his old team,…
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In Spain there has been a formal demand for an investigation into baby kidnappings that took place under the regime of General Franco. A group representing the families affected say hundreds of thousands of babies were stolen from clinics. It is believed the abductions took place well into the 1980′s, after the death of General Franco. Sonia Gallego reports
Continue reading …Chinese young people are desperate to get an education—in McDonald’s management techniques. China’s edition of McDonald’s “Hamburger University” has become harder to get into than Harvard, Bloomberg reports, accepting less than 1% of applicants, compared to the Crimson’s record low of 7% last year. Of course, it’s not exactly…
Continue reading …Gail Collins thinks there’s “a new streak of craziness abroad in the land” regarding guns, and she contrasts two proposed pieces of legislation as proof. The first, introduced by Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg, would put into place “modest” checks such as “making it more difficult to sell guns to people…
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