An international conference is supporting a plan for Afghan forces to take control of their country's security by 2014. Afghan President Hamid Karzai proposed the plan which also calls for greater control over development aid. The conference in Kabul also supported President Karzai's call for other countries to spend at least 50% of aid through the Afghan government. More than 40 billion dollars have been spent on Afghanistan since 2001. American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told delegates the United States is pleased by Afghan government improvements in governing and security.
President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron have condemned Scotland's release of Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi. Scottish officials released the Libyan who was found guilty of the 1988 airplane bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland. However, Mr. Cameron rejected calls for an investigation into whether British oil company BP influenced the Libyan's release. He said Scotland made the decision. Some American lawmakers have accused BP of seeking the release of al-Megrahi to gain a business deal. Al-Megrahi was released because doctors said he had a short time to live. But he is alive and free today in Libya.
小荷作文网 www.zww.cn European Union Foreign Ministers are set to accept more restrictions against Iran. The new plan would include measures to ban investment in the oil and gas industry. The Foreign Ministers will meet next Monday in Brussels. Parts of the temporary resolution were made public Tuesday. They showed that EU Foreign Ministers are expected to approve the decision for further restrictions related to Iran's nuclear program. Parts of the present document call on Iran to return to talks. The new EU steps are also expected to include trade, banking and transportation including shipping and air supplies.
小荷作文网 www.zww.cn The top United Nations Human Rights official is accusing security forces in Kyrgyzstan of detaining hundreds of ethnic Uzbeks after clashes in June. Navi Pillay said she has information suggesting local officials are ignoring abuses that often lead to forced confessions. The reports say some detainees were tortured. At least one detainee reportedly died because of abuse. Ms. Pillay said such actions violate local and international laws and threaten the weak peace in Kyrgyzstan's south. Tensions are still high in that area. One month after an estimated 2000 people were killed in clashes between ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz.
Pakistani officials say 5 militants including suicide bombers have been killed while try to enter a military training area in the country's northwest. The officials say security forces opened fire on the attackers as they tried to get inside the training center in the town of Mardan near the Afghan border. Officials say 3 suicide bombers set off their explosives during the gun battle. Troops killed 2 other militants.
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A United States official has asked oil company BP to extend testing of a containment device on a broken oil well in the Gulf of Mexico for another 24 hours. The head of the American Government's Response Team Thad Allen said officials are pleased with the progress in observing the well's safety. He said small leaks of oil and methane gas have been found around the well, but that there is no sign the well is in danger.
The United States Senate has cleared the way for legislation to extend unemployment payments for more than 2 million Americans. The aid will go to people who have lost their jobs and not worked for more than 6 months. Majority Democrats needed the vote of recently sworn in senator Carte Goodwin of West Virginia to end delays by minority Republicans who opposed the bill. Mr. Goodwin is temporarily replacing Senator Robert Byrd who died last month. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill late Tuesday.
Taiwan will establish a new anti-corruption agency. President Ma Yingjiu said the agency will use similar agencies in Hong Kong and Singapore as models. He said the agency will operate under the Justice Ministry. The announcement comes after a series of corruption cases including the arrests of 3 top judges and a lawyer. They are suspected of accepting illegal payments.
The World Health Organization and the United Nations AIDS Agency are praising reports of a major success in fighting the spread of AIDS. UN AIDS Director Michel Sidibe says results from tests of a new vaginal gel are giving hope to women. He says the gel will help women control the risk of infection. Mr. Sidibe spoke at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna, Austria. WHO-Director Margaret Chan says her group will work to make the gel available as soon as tests show it is safe and effective. But experts warned that more research is needed before the gel can be released to the public. The gel contains the drug Tenofovir. South African researchers say women using the medicated gel during sex had a 50% lower infection rate after a year than those using a gel without the drug.
A strong earthquake has struck the coast of Papua New Guinea. There is not information about a possible ocean-wave or tsunami, or about damage to the area. The earthquake took place early Wednesday. It was centered 130 kilometers east of Kandrian on the Island of New Britain. The United States Geological Survey measured the quake's magnitude at least 6.3.
And now briefly, here again is the major news of the hour.
An international conference is supporting a plan for Afghan forces to take control of their country's security by 2014. President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron have condemned Scotland's release of A Libyan man found guilty of bombing a passenger plane. And a UN official is accusing forces in Kyrgyzstan of detaining hundreds of ethnic Uzbeks after clashes in June.
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