Author: Admin

Reuters

Israeli authorities gave initial approval on Wednesday for the construction of 200 new homes in an urban settlement in Jerusalem, a move that could aggravate tensions with Palestinians that Washington is trying to lower.

Violence has flared in the past few weeks over Jerusalem’s most sacred and politically sensitive site, holy to both Jews and Muslims. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was due in Jordan on Wednesday for talks with King Abdullah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on efforts to calm the situation.   Continue reading “Israeli gives initial approval for 200 new homes in East Jerusalem”

Twin Cities – by Dee J. Hall, Wisconsin State Journal

Wisconsin could have one of the nation’s most sweeping drug-testing requirements for those receiving public benefits if the proposal by Gov. Scott Walker to test those who apply for unemployment checks and food stamps becomes law.

But with scant details, it’s unclear whether any expansion beyond the current testing of drug felons would be allowed under federal law governing the state’s FoodShare program. It’s also unclear how Wisconsin could craft any broad-based testing program for public benefits recipients that would be found constitutional.   Continue reading “Wisconsin’s Scott Walker wants jobless, food stamp recipients to face drug tests”

Fox News

President Barack Obama announced Wednesday that the U.S. has set a new goal to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by between 26 percent and 28 percent over the next 11 years as part of a climate change agreement with China.

The new target is a drastic increase from earlier in Obama’s presidency, when he pledged to cut emissions by 17 percent by 2020. By contrast, Obama’s counterpart, Xi Jinping, did not pledge any reductions by a specific date, but rather set a target for China’s emissions to peak by 2030, or earlier if possible. Xi also pledged to increase the share of energy that China will derive from sources other than fossil fuels. China’s emissions have grown in recent years due to the building of new coal plants.    Continue reading “Obama vows US will cut emissions by at least 26 percent over next 11 years”

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The Daily Caller – by Jamie Weinstein

Like the Nixon administration before it, President Barack Obama’s White House apparently keeps — or at least at one time kept — an enemies list.

In a profile in the New Republic of Valerie Jarrett, who is considered Obama’s most influential White House adviser, Noam Scheiber writes of the existence of an enemies list — or as he termed it, “a shit list.”   Continue reading “Liberal Mag: Valerie Jarrett Keeps An Enemies List”

Reuters – by JATINDRA DASH

Ten women died and 14 were in a serious condition after botched operations at a government mass sterilization “camp” in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, officials said on Tuesday.

The women fell ill on Monday, two days after surgery at a so-called family planning camp at a village. Such camps are held regularly in Chhattisgarh and other Indian states as part of a long-running effort to control India’s booming population.   Continue reading “Ten women die after botched surgery at sterilization ‘camp’ in India”

CTV News – by Peter Enav

JERUSALEM — Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian demonstrator in clashes in the West Bank on Tuesday as Israel tightened security following a pair of Palestinian attacks that took two Israeli lives the day before.

Tuesday’s clashes erupted near the city of Hebron where about 150 Palestinian demonstrators were throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli soldiers, the army said.   Continue reading “Clashes erupt in West Bank; Palestinian protester killed”

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Philly.com

Reuters

An armed man was taken into custody after holding at least two people hostage for several hours in an office building in Norman, Oklahoma, on Monday, police said, adding there were no reported injuries.

“Suspect in custody,” police in Norman, about 20 miles south of Oklahoma City, said in a statement. Police said they had been in talks with the suspect, trying to negotiate a peaceful resolution to the standoff.   Continue reading “Gunman in custody after taking hostages in Oklahoma”

BBC News

Two Israelis have been killed in separate knife attacks in Tel Aviv and the occupied West Bank.

The first attack in Tel Aviv targeted a soldier. A Palestinian from the West Bank city of Nablus was arrested.

An Israeli woman was later stabbed to death near the Alon Shvut Jewish settlement in the West Bank. The assailant was shot by a security guard.   Continue reading “Israeli woman and soldier killed in two knife attacks”

ABC News

Spreading labor strife at major West Coast seaports is exacerbating problems that importers have had getting products to market, threatening the on-time delivery of some holiday goods.

Until this week, dockworkers and their employers were negotiating a new contract with little of the public drama that characterized past talks.   Continue reading “Labor Strife at Ports Further Slows Goods Movement”

C-Net – by Don Reisinger and Roger Cheng

President Barack Obama urged the government to adopt tighter regulations on broadband service in an effort to preserve “a free and open Internet.”

In a statement released Monday, Obama called on the Federal Communications Commission to enforce the principle of treating Internet the same way, also known as Net neutrality. That means treating broadband services like utilities, so Internet service providers would be unable “to restrict the best access or to pick winners and losers in the online marketplace for services and ideas.”   Continue reading “Obama says broadband Internet should be regulated like utility”

Fox News

BEIJING –  Putting a bright face on the future of U.S. ties to China, President Barack Obama announced Monday that the two countries would start granting visas to each other’s citizens valid for up to a decade. Yet thorny issues like human rights and trade lurked just under the surface, reflecting the tough road ahead for the two economic powers as Obama began a weeklong trip to the region.

Obama, addressing Asian business leaders at a high-level summit, sought to dispel the notion that America’s interest in Asia should be a cause for concern for China’s leaders. Beijing has viewed Obama’s engagement here with trepidation, suspecting the U.S. wants to limit China’s rise, but Obama insisted that “one country’s prosperity doesn’t have to come at the expense of the other.”   Continue reading “US, China agree to expand validity of business, tourist visas to 10 years”