November 2009 Information & November 2009 Links at HealthHaven.com

At least two women are killed and six people trapped after a landslide in Los Gigantes, Tenerife. (The Daily Telegraph) (RTÉ) (Reuters) (BBC)
South Sudan's leader, Salva Kiir, announces he will back the independence of the semi-autonomous region in a 2011 referendum. (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
A ship carrying 100 tons of hydrochloric acid sinks in a section of the Yangtze River in China's central Hubei province after colliding with another vessel. (AFP) (Xinhua)
Nigeria's main rebel group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, threatens to call off its ceasefire with the government if foreign oil companies do not leave their land. (Al Jazeera)
At least 14 people are dead after Typhoon Mirinae hits the Philippines. (CNN) (Philippine Inquirier)
China's legislature sacks the country's education minister, Zhou Ji, amid a corruption scandal, replacing him with his deputy Yuan Guiren. (Times of India) (Associated Press) (Xinhua)
Six Uyghurs detained at Guantanamo Bay detention camp are released by the United States and resettled in Palau. (Associated Press) (Press TV)
11 people are killed after a Russian military cargo plane belonging to the Interior Ministry crashes in Yakutia. (RIA Novosti) (Press Trust of India)
The West Atlas oil rig that has leaked oil and gas for 10 weeks into the Timor Sea catches fire after an attempt to plug the leak. (BBC) (The Australian)
Several events are held to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Gaelic Athletic Association. (RTÉ)
Afghan Presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah pulls out of the run-off election versus Hamid Karzai due to concerns over the independence of Azizullah Lodin, the head of the Independent Election Commission. (The Guardian)
Police in Italy detain two more suspected mafia bosses, one day after the seizure of their brother in a raid near Naples. (BBC) (France 24)
The composer and pianist Elton John postpones three more concerts on The Red Piano Tour, this time in the United States, due to illness. (BBC)
U.S. Republican Party candidate Dede Scozzafava, who withdrew her bid for New York's 23rd Congressional District in the House of Representatives Friday, endorses the Democratic challenger. (The New York Times)

November 2, 2009 (Monday)

Simon Mann, a British mercenary who had been serving a 34-year prison sentence in Equatorial Guinea for his role in a failed coup d'etat, is given a presidential pardon. (The Guardian)(CNN)
Large parts of Venezuela begin rationing water after unseasonably dry weather. (Latin American Herald Tribune) (BBC)
Four people are sentenced to death by hanging in Tanzania for the killing of an Albino man last year. (IOL) (BBC)
Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić is to attend his war crimes trial on Tuesday, after boycotting previous sittings. (euronews) (The Daily Telegraph)
The United Nations announces it will suspend military assistance to an army brigade in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, after it was implicated in the killing of 62 people. (CNN) (Associated Press)
Two people are charged with "spreading false information" about the health of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej. (Bangkok Post) (The Times)
North Korea requests direct talks with the United States regarding the former's nuclear program, warning that it will "go its own way" if its demands are not met. (Joongang Daily) (UPI)
16 people are killed in a fire that destroyed 58 houses in the Philippine city of Bacolod. (Times of India)
The Royal Bank of Scotland announces cuts of 3,700 staff in the United Kingdom. (The Guardian)
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon makes a surprise visit to Afghanistan ahead of the 7 November second round of the presidential election. (Xinhua)
A large blast occurs in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, killing at least 35. (Reuters via the New York Times)
At least 15 Tamil asylum seekers are feared dead while being rescued in seas off the coast of Australia. (The Age)

November 3, 2009 (Tuesday)

After 29 years of decriminalized prostitution in the U.S. state of Rhode Island, Governor Donald Carcieri signs a bill into law outlawing prostitution. (Providence Journal)
Voters go to the polls in elections in the United States for Governors of Virginia and New Jersey, special elections for two Congressional districts, and several municipal elections. (CNN)
Czech President Václav Klaus signs the Lisbon Treaty after it was upheld by the Constitutional Court, thus fulfilling the final step in its ratification. (euronews)(BBC)
North Korea says it has completed reprocessing 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods as part of its nuclear program. (CNN) (Yonhap) (Al Jazeera)
African countries boycott the United Nations climate talks in Barcelona, Spain, after saying goals set by industrialised countries are too low. (Associated Press) (Bloomberg)
Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić attends his war crimes trial for the first time after boycotting previous sittings. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)
India's Supreme Court judges disclose their assets online. (Indian Express) (BBC) (AFP)
China accuses the Dalai Lama of damaging Sino-Indian relations ahead of his visit to the disputed border region of Arunachal Pradesh. (Times of India) (China Daily)
Dubai announces it is to appoint female muftis for the first time in 2010. (The National) (Philippine Inquirer)
Two senior United States officials arrive in Burma for talks with the military junta and National League for Democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. (CNN) (Xinhua)
Fiji expels envoys from Australia and New Zealand over alleged interference in the country's judiciary. (Fiji Times) (AFP)
An oil leak on the West Atlas oil rig in the Timor Sea is plugged. (The Australian) (BBC)
A former KGB agent, Russian-Israeli businessman Shabtai von Kalmanovic, is shot dead in Moscow, Russia. (The Guardian) (RIA Novosti)

November 4, 2009 (Wednesday)

The New York Yankees defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 7-3 in Game 6 to win the 2009 World Series. (Associated Press) (The New York Times)
Rebel Houthis in Yemen cross the border into Saudi Arabia, killing a Saudi security officer and injuring 11 others. (Angola Press) (The Times)
The Israeli navy intercepts the MV Francop, a ship alleging to have Iranian weapons bound for Hezbollah in Lebanon. (BBC) (New Zealand Herald)
The Cambodian government announces that ousted Prime Minister of Thailand Thaksin Shinawatra has been appointed as a government adviser. (Taiwan News) (AFP)
Iranian protesters mark the 30th anniversary of the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. There are also clashes between security forces and anti-government demonstrators. (Press TV) (Al Jazeera) (BBC)
The United Nations General Assembly debates on whether to endorse the Goldstone report on the Gaza War. (New York Times)
The death toll from Typhoon Mirinae in Vietnam rises to at least 90. (AFP) (VietnamNet)
An Italian court convicts 22 CIA agents and 2 Italian agents over the kidnap of Muslim cleric Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr in Milan in 2003, in the first court case challenging the CIA's "extraordinary rendition" programme. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (CNN)
United States officials meet Aung San Suu Kyi and the Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein in rare talks. (BBC) (TIME) (Bangkok Post)
The President of Sierra Leone Ernest Bai Koroma sacks two senior ministers on charges of corruption. (BBC) (Standard Times) (Reuters Africa)
Italian politicians and the Vatican condemn a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights that says having a crucifix in a classroom is a breach of human rights. (RTÉ) (Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
Around 700 people are injured in two earthquakes in southern Iran. (CNN) (Fars News Agency) (Times of India)
China approves a Disney theme park in Shanghai after a decade of negotiations. (The Times) (China Daily)
Australia and New Zealand expel Fiji's top diplomats in response to the decision of the Government of Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama to expel senior Australian and New Zealand diplomats from Fiji. (AFP via Google News)
A fire at a warehouse in Huwei Yunlin County, Taiwan, destroys between 400 and 500 historic puppets. (BBC) (Reuters India)
Eight children drown after a boat carrying 35 pupils capsizes in Kerala, southern India. (IOL) (Press Trust of India) (Xinhua)
United States elections, 2009
- Michael Bloomberg wins a third term as Mayor of New York City. (Politico)
- Chris Christie wins the position of Governor of New Jersey, defeating incumbent Jon Corzine. (CNN)
- Bob McDonnell wins the position of Governor of Virginia. (CNN)
- Bill Owens wins the New York 23rd congressional district special election. (CQ Politics)
- Voters in the U.S. state of Maine reject a law allowing same-sex marriage to occur in their state. (New York Times)

November 5, 2009 (Thursday)

The Swedish and Finnish authorities give a permit to build the controversial Nord Stream gas pipeline in their exclusive economic zones. (Reuters)
A U2 concert held at the Brandenburg Gate to mark the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall's fall is controversial when a wall is built around the venue. (BBC) (The Irish Times)
Saudi Arabia lifts a nine-year ban on Somali livestock imports, reopening Somalia's main export market. (BBC) (afrol News) (Voice of America)
An international team of scientists announces that the genome of the domestic horse has been successfully sequenced. (BBC) (CBC) (The Himalayan Times)
Venezuela deploys 15,000 troops to its border with Colombia. (AP)
13 people die and 30 people are injured in a shooting at the Fort Hood U.S. Army base in Texas. Fort Hood is currently under lock-down. (BBC)
The International Criminal Court is to open an investigation into the 2007 Kenyan post-election violence in which more than 1,000 people died. (AP) (Kenya Broadcasting Corporation)
A United Nations court imposes a defense lawyer on former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić, and postpones his trial until March 2010. (Al Jazeera) (Daily Telegraph)
Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai ends his boycott of the unity government. (IOL) (Xinhua)
Thailand and Cambodia recall their ambassadors over the Cambodian government appointment of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. (Thai News Agency) (Xinhua)
Hurricane Ida makes landfall in Nicaragua. (Reuters) (CNN)
The United Nations is to pull non-essential staff out of Afghanistan after an increase in violence in the country. (Times of India) (The Times) (Al Arabiya)
France's Europe Minister Pierre Lellouche describes the UK's Conservative Party pledge to return powers from Brussels to London as "pathetic". (France 24) (The Times) (Bloomberg)
Two senior Indonesian officials resign over a plot to weaken the anti-corruption agency. (Jakarta Post) (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
Paraguay's President Fernando Lugo replaces top military commanders amid rumours of a coup d'état. (CNN)
China postpones a plan to raise the Three Gorges reservoir to its ideal height due to lack of water. (BBC)
Ratu Epeli Nailatikau is sworn in as President of Fiji, succeeding Ratu Josefa Iloilo who retired in July 2009. (Fiji Times) (Radio New Zealand International)
South Africa's Olympic governing body suspends Leonard Chuene, the President of Athletics South Africa, and apologises to Caster Semenya over the controversy it generated over her gender. (BBC) (The Times)

November 6, 2009 (Friday)

Tens of thousands of people protest against government cutbacks in eight Irish cities and ten locations across Northern Ireland. (The Irish Times) (RTÉ)
Germany's Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg admits mistakes were made in a September 4 Afghan air raid which resulted in 142 deaths. (The Sydney Morning Herald)
At least 34 people are killed and 29 are injured when a bus falls into a gorge in Himachal Pradesh. (The Times of India) (RIA Novosti) (BBC) (Reuters) (CNN)
At least nine people are missing following the crash of a Russian military plane in the Pacific Ocean. (RIA Novosti) (BBC)
Three people are hurt and a gunman takes his own life in a rare shooting incident in Yokohama, Japan. (BBC) (Daily Yomiuri)
One person is killed and five are injured during a shooting in an office building in Orlando, Florida, USA. (CNN), (Reuters)
Saudi forces continue more raids against rebel Houthi fighters in northern Yemen, after rebel fighters killed a Saudi security official. (Al Jazeera) (UPI)
The Russian human rights group Memorial says security forces from Chechnya have kidnapped the head of another rights group in Moscow and flown him to Grozny. (Al Jazeera) (AP)
Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya says a deal to resolve the political crisis in the country is "dead", after interim leader Roberto Micheletti announced a unity government without him. (BBC) (New York Times)
19 people are killed after a truck runs into a crowd in Luanxian, Hebei, China. (Xinhua) (Press Trust of India) (RIA Novosti)
Indian and Burmese armed forces target a Nagaland separatist rebel base in the northeast of Burma. (BBC)
A court in Côte d'Ivoire orders that compensation due to thousands of people affected by the dumped waste of Trafigura should not be distributed to one man. (BBC)
Niger's foreign affairs ministry confirms customs officials in Nigeria are blocking Niger from goods importation. (BBC) (Reuters)
The composer and pianist Elton John is released from his hospital bed in London after a period of illness which saw him cancel several concerts on The Red Piano Tour. (BBC) (CBC) (Reuters India)

November 7, 2009 (Saturday)

A British tourist is shot dead by a masked gunman in the U.S. state of Texas. (The Guardian) (BBC) (The Times)
Saudi forces bomb a Houthi rebel stronghold in northern Yemen for a third day. (AP) (Press TV)
Thousands of people in Bermeo, Spain, demonstrate for the release of 36 Spanish fishermen being held by Somali pirates. (AFP)
At least two workers are killed after a bridge under construction collapses in Andorra. (euronews) (IOL)
A NATO airstrike kills 7 members of the Afghan security force in the western province of Badghis. (CNN) (Bangkok Post)
Rival factions in Madagascar agree to form a unity government to end the political crisis in the country. (Xinhua) (BBC)
Scientists in the South Island, New Zealand, discover the first dinosaur footprints in the country, thought to be 70 million years old. (AFP) (New Zealand Herald)
11 people are confirmed dead after the crashing of a Russian military plane into the sea in the Tatar Strait, in the far east of Russia, yesterday. (AFP) (RIA Novosti)
Voters in the Northern Mariana Islands go to the polls to elect the governor, legislature and local municipal offices. (Marianas Variety)
Venezuela deploys 15,000 soldiers to its border with Colombia. (The Sydney Morning Herald) (The Scotsman)
Two Australian researchers compile new details on the dead from a World War I battlefield in Fromelles. (The Sydney Morning Herald)
Lebanon's political opposition agrees to join a unity government under Prime Minister designate Saad Hariri. (BBC)
Luigi Esposito, one of Italy's 30 most wanted men, is detained at a villa in Naples. (BBC) (ABC News)
Ecuador rations its electricity, leading to some blackouts in areas, including the capital Quito. (BBC)
Cuba removes peas and potatoes from its list of rationed foods but increases their prices. (The Daily Telegraph)
Caracas is put under widespread water rationing for the first time in several years. (The Washington Post)
Ashmolean Museum in Oxfordshire, the UK's oldest museum, reopens after renovations. (BBC) (Heart Radio Oxfordshire) (Kings Lynn News)

November 8, 2009 (Sunday)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez tells the country's army and civilians to "prepare for war" with Colombia. (AP) (Xinhua)
Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, indicted by the International Criminal Court, cancels his trip to Turkey. (Hurriyet) (Sudan News Agency) (IOL) (BBC)
El Salvador declares a state of emergency as 91 people drown from the effects of a coastal low. (BBC) (CNN)(CBC)
The 21st summit of APEC begins in Singapore. (Channel News Asia) (Straits Times)
At least 13 people are killed and at least 35 are injured in a suicide attack in Adezai, Pakistan. (Al Jazeera) (Hindustan Times) (BBC) (Reuters India) (RTÉ)
Speaking at Sharm el-Sheikh's Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China's Premier Wen Jiabao, pledges $10 billion (£6 billion) loans to Africa over a three-year period, in order to increase Sino-african cooperation. (BBC) (France 24) (RTÉ) (Bangkok Post) (The Age)
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il sacks a top TV official after state television begins broadcasting advertisments, out of concern that they were "increasing the influence of capitalism". (RTHK) (Joongang Daily) (The Independent)
Sharon Commins and her Ugandan colleague Hilda Kawuki are awarded the Hugh O'Flaherty Humanitarian Award. (RTÉ)
Thousands of people in Okinawa, Japan protest, demanding the removal of a U.S. military base. (BBC) (Reuters)
Police in the Democratic Republic of the Congo arrest 100 people accused of killing dozens and displacing thousands in a conflict over fishing rights. (IOL)
The United States House of Representatives votes 220-215 to pass the highly debated health care reform act. (New York Times)
The Dalai Lama begins a visit to Tawang, in the disputed territory of Arunachal Pradesh in northeastern India, amid objections from China. (Indian Express) (Hindustan Times) (BBC)
Northern Mariana Islands general election, 2009 results are released
- Republican Party candidate Heinz Hofschneider and incumbent Governor Benigno Fitial virtually tie in the closest gubernatorial election in history. A runoff election will be held in the next 14 days to determine the winner. (Marianas Variety)

November 9, 2009 (Monday)

World leaders mark the twentieth anniversary of the Berlin Wall's fall, with the main celebrations taking place at the Brandenburg Gate. (BBC) (Deutsche Welle) (The Age) (Bangkok Post)
A senior Burmese diplomat says the military government will release Aung San Suu Kyi soon. (The Guardian) (AP)
Somali pirates attack a Hong Kong-flagged oil tanker with long range rocket-propelled grenades 1,000 miles east off the Somali coast in the Indian Ocean. (Khaleej Times) (BBC) (AP)
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announces the formation of a unity government with Hezbollah. (Reuters) (Xinhua)
Northern Mariana Islands gubernatorial election, 2009
- The Northern Mariana Islands election commission sets November 23 as the guberntorial runoff election between Governor Benigno Fitial and challenger Heinz Hofschneider. (Saipan Tribune)
Iraq sets its next general election for January 21, 2010. (Washington Post)
A high speed rail link under construction, Gautrain, will not be ready for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. (BBC) (Times of South Africa)
Three American hikers detained on the border between Iraqi Kurdistan and Iran are to be charged for espionage by Iranian authorities. (The Independent) (Fars News Agency)
Fifth outbreak of Sa'dah insurgency:
- Houthi fighters in Yemen say Saudi Arabia is using phosphorus bombs against them. (AFP) (Press TV)
- An Eritrean opposition leader claims weapons used by Houthi rebels are being supplied by Iran and transferred via Eritrea. (Yemen Post)
In China eight ethnic Uyghurs and one Han are executed for their role in the Urumqi riots in July, in the first executions to take place. (Al Jazeera) (BBC) (Radio Television Hong Kong)
MDC official Roy Bennett's trial on terrorism charges begins in Zimbabwe. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters South Africa)
The death toll in El Salvador's floods and mudslides reaches 140. (BBC) (Sky News) (Reuters)
Tens of thousands of people gather in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh to hear an address by the visiting Dalai Lama. (BBC) (Sify) (Radio Television Hong Kong)
Downing Street defends Prime Minister Gordon Brown's habits after the mother of a soldier killed in Afghanistan labels a misspelled letter she received from him as a "hastily scrawled insult". (BBC)
"House of Horrors" murderer Jason Somerville pleads guilty to strangling his wife Rebecca Somerville and neighbour Tisha Lowry before having sex with their corpses in Christchurch, New Zealand. (The Sydney Morning Herald) (Radio New Zealand)
The South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo alleges that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has six personal trains and 19 stations for his own use. (AP) (Chosun Ilbo) (AFP)
Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell announces that she will not seek re-election in 2010. (New York Times)

November 10, 2009 (Tuesday)

A power failure at Itaipu causes a massive blackout, affecting 15 states of Brazil and, briefly, the entire country of Paraguay; chaos is reported in major cities such as São Paulo. (BBC)
South and North Korean naval ships fire on one another after a North Korean ship crossed the disputed Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea. The vessel later returned "wrapped in flames" after the incident. (Yonhap) (BBC) (China Daily)
Prosecutors begin cross examining former Liberian President Charles Taylor at his war crimes trial. (Reuters) (BBC) (AllAfrica.com)
Thailand's ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra arrives in Cambodia to take up his new appointment as economic adviser to the Cambodian government. (Al Jazeera) (ABC News)
A conservation group warns that the koala could be extinct within 30 years. (The Age) (3 News NZ) (The Daily Telegraph)
Former President of French Polynesia Gaston Flosse is arrested as part of a corruption investigation. (Radio New Zealand International)
John Allen Muhammad, mastermind of the 2002 Beltway sniper attacks, is executed in Virginia. (AP via Fox News (US))

November 11, 2009 (Wednesday)

Raymond Jessup is sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexual assault of an underage girl after the April 2008 raid of the YFZ Ranch in Eldorado, Texas. (UPI).
Two bloggers from Azerbaijan, Emin Milli and Adnan Hajizade, are sentenced by a court for "hooliganism" in a restaurant scuffle linked to the posting of a satirical video dressed as a donkey on Youtube that mocked government restrictions on civil liberties. (BBC) (Trend News Agency) (Taiwan News)
A gold mining operation is investigated by Chinese authorities after allegations it has damaged part of the Great Wall of China in Inner Mongolia. (Xinhua) (BBC) (Times of South Africa)
Iran protests to Oxford University's Queen's College over a scholarship in memory of the slain Iranian student Neda Agha Soltan. (AP)
Officials in Brazil investigate the cause of a massive power cut which may have affected a fifth of the population and neighbouring Paraguay. (BBC) (New York Times)
Yemen criticises "interference" by Iran in the conflict with Houthi rebels in the country, after Iran criticised Saudi Arabian intervention in the conflict. (Khaleej Times) (Yemen News Agency) (AFP)
Anti-monarchy protesters and riot police clash in Montreal, Quebec during a tour by Prince Charles. (Metro) (The Daily Telegraph) (CBC)
A Russian-born German man is sentenced to life imprisonment for fatally stabbing Marwa El-Sherbini in a court, an attack that caused uproar in the Muslim world. (AP) (NY Times) (Deutsche Welle)
The discovery of a new dinosaur species, named Aardonyx celestae, in South Africa is announced. (IOL) (AP) (AFP)
Cambodia rejects a request by Thailand to extradite ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. (Phnom Penh Post) (Thai News Agency) (BBC)
South Korean troops are put on high alert for possible retaliation after a naval clash with North Korea yesterday. (Al Jazeera) (AP)
Local government offices in southern Nepal shut in protest after a senior local official is slapped by Deputy Agriculture Minister Karima Begam. (BBC) (Telegraph Nepal) (IOL)
For the first time since World War I, the leaders of Germany and France appear together at a ceremony on Remembrance Day to commemorate the end of the conflict. (MSNBC)

November 12, 2009 (Thursday)

The discovery of two sunken World War II Japanese submarines off Oahu, Hawaii, is announced. (NY Times) (The Christian Science Monitor)
United States Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan will face 13 charges of murder for the Fort Hood shooting. (AP via New York Times)
United States Federal prosecutors begin legal action to seize properties owned by the Alavi Foundation on the grounds that it has ties with Iran. (New York Times)
In the Glasgow North East by-election, voters pick Labour candidate Willie Bain as the replacement for former House of Commons speaker Michael Martin. (BBC News)
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev calls for an overhaul of the Russian economy and democratic modernisation in an annual state of nation address. (BBC) (Reuters South Africa) (ITAR-TASS)
The head of the Sri Lankan armed forces Sarath Fonseka resigns over reports he is suspected to contest the next presidential election. (AP)
U.S.-based rights group Human Rights Watch accuses Chinese authorities of running illegal "black jails" where Chinese citizens are detained for bringing up local complaints. (Al Jazeera) (Ghana Broadcasting Corporation) (The Independent)
Sheikh Mohamed Abdi Aware, a Somali judge known for issuing tough sentences to pirates and Islamists, is shot dead in Somalia's Puntland region. (IOL) (BBC) (Press TV)
At least 18 people are killed in an illegal mine collapse in western Ghana, Ghana's most devastating mining tragedy. (Times of India) (BBC) (RTÉ)
Thousands of Maoist supporters demonstrate in an anti-government protest in Nepal over the President's decision to overrule attempts to sack the head of the army. (Hindustan Times) (AFP) (Xinhua) (The Himalayan Times)
Former President of Palau Tommy Remengesau is convicted of 12 ethics code violations. (RNZI)
The government of Venezuela nationalizes the Fama de America and Cafea coffee producers. (Businessweek)

November 13, 2009 (Friday)

Philippines President Gloria Arroyo signs a law banning torture, making it a criminal offence punishable by up to 30 years imprisonment. (Philippine Inquirer) (Bangkok Post)
The Turkish government unveils a plan to improve rights of the Kurdish minority to end the decades long ethnic conflict in the southeast of the country. (Today's Zaman) (AFP) (Xinhua)
Cambodia detains a Thai man on charges of spying for Thailand. (Bangkok Post) (Times Live South Africa) (Sina)
Microsoft admits that the Windows 7 USB/DVD download tool contains code that is covered by the Gnu Public License and offers to make it available under the terms of that license. (PC Magazine)
American politician William J. Jefferson, former Democratic Party Congressman from the U.S. state of Louisiana, is sentenced to 13 years in prison for corruption. (AP via Houston Chronicle)
NASA claims to have discovered water after the LCROSS satellite crashes near the South Pole of the Moon. (New York Times)
South African President Jacob Zuma says the police do not have a "licence to kill" after recent incidents of innocent people being killed by police. (Eyewitness News) (BBC)
Two people are killed and 43 rescued from a bomb shelter in a fire that triggered multiple explosions at an arms depot near Ulyanovsk, western Russia. (BBC)(RIA Novosti) (Al Jazeera)
At least 240 villages in southwestern Saudi Arabia are evacuated due to fighting between Yemeni Houthi rebels and Saudi forces along the border. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
Chinese nationals in Angola say they are increasingly being targeted in "mafia-style" attacks by Angolan gangs. (AFP) (BBC)
Four members of Algeria's national football team are injured when their bus comes under attack by stone throwers in Cairo, Egypt. (BBC) (Taiwan News)
38 people are killed in collapsed school buildings and road accidents caused by heavy snowfall in China, the heaviest in 60 years. (BBC) (China Daily) (Times of India)
Czech Prime minster Jan Fischer deposits the Treaty of Lisbon ratification instrument at the Italian foreign ministry in Rome. (Foreign ministry of Italy)
Tens of thousands of Maoist supporters in Nepal block the headquarters for the Nepali government for a second day. (AP) (Al Jazeera)
The diaries of Gareth Jones, a British reporter who exposed the 1933 famine in Ukraine, are put on public display for the first time. (AP) (BBC)
A bomb hits the Peshawar office of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency with at least seven people dead and 35 injured. (BBC)
Jersey's Chief Minister Terry Le Sueur hosts the 13th summit of the British–Irish Council. (RTÉ)
The Japan Coast Guard evacuates 28 passengers and crew from the Ariake commercial ferry after it rolls over onto its side in rough seas off Mie Prefecture in the Pacific Ocean. (Mainichi Shimbun) (IOL)
Kosovo prepares for historic elections after a flare-up earlier this week targeted Prime Minister Hashim Thaci in the western town of Decan. (CNN)
Actor and film director Clint Eastwood is made a commander of the Légion d'honneur. (Xinhua) (ABC News) (Gulf Daily News)
A court in Buenos Aires declares Argentinean law restricting marriage to a man and a woman unconstitutional, allowing a same-sex couple to marry; the city government announces it will not appeal. (Reuters) (CNN)
The United States opens its first marijuana cafe. (Reuters)

November 14, 2009 (Saturday)

New Zealand qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1982, by defeating Bahrain in a playoff billed as "the biggest sporting event ever staged in New Zealand" and the country's most attended football match ever. (BBC) (Arabnews)
U.S. evangelist Tony Alamo is sentenced to 175 years in prison for taking underage girls across several states for sexual intercourse. (CNN) (Telegraph.co.uk)
The Ogaden National Liberation Front, a separatist Somali rebel group in the southeast of Ethiopia, says it has begun a new offensive. (BBC) (Ethiopian Review)
A Peruvian court orders the arrest of two Chilean military officers on charges of spying, causing a diplomatic row between the two countries. (AFP) (BBC)
Two Saudi soldiers are killed and five wounded killed in fighting with Houthi rebels in northern Yemen. (Press TV) (Al-Sharq al-Awsat) (AFP)
More than 1,000 ultra-Orthodox Jews demonstrate outside the offices of U.S. firm Intel in Israel in protest at work taking place at the site on the Jewish Sabbath. (Jerusalem Post) (Reuters) (BBC)
A fire at a shooting range in Busan, South Korea kills 10 people including two Japanese tourists and injures six others. (Korea Times) (Japan Today) (UPI)
Slovenia signs an agreement with Russia to allow the South Stream gas pipeline to Europe pass through the country. (ITAR-TASS) (Bloomberg)
Thousands of protesters demonstrate in Taipei, Taiwan, against imports of certain U.S. beef products. (Radio Taiwan International) (AFP) (Taiwan News)
Several people are killed and dozens injured after an express train crashes near Jaipur, India. (NDTV) (BBC) (Indian Express)
The United Nations chief of the Food and Agriculture Organization completes a 24 hour hunger strike in Rome, Italy, ahead of a UN summit next week. (AP)
At least 11 people are killed and 24 injured after a bomb explodes in Peshawar, Pakistan. (Al Jazeera) (Geo TV) (Brisbane Times)
The Papal ban on discussion of the ordination of women priests is challenged by Willie Walsh, Bishop of Killaloe during his address to the Association of European Journalists in Dublin. (RTÉ) (BBC) (The Irish Times)
The body of veteran Slovenian mountaineer Tomaž Humar is located in the Himalayas days after going missing whilst climbing Langtang Lirung. (The Irish Times) (BBC)
Sweden returns 22 skulls stolen by Swedish scientists from indigenous cemeteries in Hawaii during the 19th century. (BBC)
Russian authorities in Perm detain three homeless males on charges of murder, cannibalism and the unlawful selling of body parts to a kebab shop. (BBC) (The Irish Times) (The Times of India) (ABC Online)

November 15, 2009 (Sunday)

The Metro Gold Line extension opens in East Los Angeles and Boyle Heights after decades of planning. (Los Angeles Times)
Domenico Raccuglia, considered one of Italy's 30 most dangerous fugitives, is arrested after 15 years on the run. (BBC) (AFP)
Belle de Jour, the best-selling author of The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl, identifies herself as Dr. Brooke Magnanti, a specialist in cancer epidemiology at the Bristol Initiative for Research of Child Health. (BBC) (Times Online) (AP)
Four people are hospitalised and at least 60 others are injured at Millennium Point in Birmingham during a performance by JLS. The rest of the event is cancelled. (BBC)
Prime Minister Gordon Brown apologises for the role of the United Kingdom in sending thousands of children to former colonies in the 20th century. (RTÉ)
Kosovars go to the polls for the first local elections since declaring independence from Serbia. (Deutsche Welle) (Xinhua)
U.S. President Barack Obama becomes the first U.S. President to meet with Burma's military government, calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners. (Reuters) (BBC) (Bangkok Post)
APEC leaders say a deal on global warming will not be possible before next month's United Nations summit in Denmark. (CNN) (The Times)
Colombia announces it will release four detained members of the Venezuelan National Guard who were arrested on Colombian territory. (BBC) (Press TV)
A group of Cuban dissidents holed up in a house in Havana begin a liquid-only fast. (CNN)
The Nigerian rebel group Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta announces it has begun peace talks with the government. (Afrique en ligne) (NEXT) (Reuters)
Iran's Parliament approves President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's final three ministerial choices. (Press TV) (Taiwan News) (Xinhua)
Chechen security forces kill up to 20 anti-government fighters southwest of the capital Grozny. (Al Jazeera)

November 16, 2009 (Monday)

Kevin Rudd, the Prime Minister of Australia, apologises to the "forgotten Australians" raised in orphanages and foster homes during the twentieth century. (The Australian)
NASA launches Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-129 at 1928 UTC (2:28pm EST), bringing supplies and the first two ExPRESS Logistics Carriers to the International Space Station. (NASA)
At least 8 people are dead and dozens missing after a ferry collided with an oil barge in Burma's Irrawaddy Delta. (AP)
A Zambian court clears journalist Chansa Kabwela of Zambia Post newspaper of pornography charges after she sent pictures of a woman giving birth in a hospital car park to President Rupiah Banda in protest at the effects of a national strike. (Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation) (The Post) (BBC)
U.S. President Barack Obama arrives in Shanghai, China, and holds a town-hall-style meeting with students. (AJNews)
The United Nations "Hunger Summit" opens in Rome, Italy. (AFP)
The IAEA expresses concern after a late declaration of a second nuclear site by Iran. (Al Jazeera) (UPI)
One of the United Kingdom's most prolific rapists, known as the "Night Stalker" who it thought to have struck more than 200 times, is charged with 22 offences against the elderly from 1992 to 2009. (The Times)
Algeria deploys security at the Egyptian embassy in Algiers after Egyptian businesses are attacked in the capital, and security is also tightened in Sudan ahead of a World Cup play off between the two countries. (BBC) (Times of India)
The United Nations is criticised after a poster that made reference to China's internet censorship by the OpenNet Initiative at an international conference focussed on Internet freedom in Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, is removed. (BBC) (CBC) (AP)
Kosovo's ruling party, the Democratic Party of Kosovo, claims victory in local elections, the first since the declaration of independence from Serbia. (Xinhua) (Deutsche Welle)

November 17, 2009 (Tuesday)

A prominent human rights campaigner for the Western Sahara region, Aminatou Haidar, who is on hunger strike at an airport in the Canary Islands, is to appear in a Spanish court on charges of public disorder. (Reuters) (AFP)
The head of the opposition in Comoros is arrested after openly criticising President Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi. (IOL)
Slovakia and the Czech Republic mark the 20th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution which overthrew the communist government of Czechoslovakia. (CNN) (BBC)
A Russian icebreaker with 100 tourists on board is stranded in ice in the Antarctic. (AP) (RIA Novosti)
Israel approves a further 900 settler homes in a settlement in East Jerusalem. (Daily Telegraph) (Xinhua) (Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
Piracy in Somalia:
- A chemical tanker, the Singapore-operated MV Theresa VIII with 28 North Koreans on board, is seized by Somali pirates northwest of the Seychelles. (BBC) (AP)
- The Spanish ship Alakrana and its crew of 36 are released after a US$3.5 million ransom is paid. (Al Jazeera) (Channel News Asia)
An inquiry into a scandal known as "Indonesia's Watergate" says a police case against two anti-corruption officials should be dropped. (Jakarta Post) (BBC) (UPI)
South African human rights activist Kumi Naidoo becomes the executive director of Greenpeace, the first African to head the organisation. (AP)
U.S. President Barack Obama continues his first trip to China and meets with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. (Reuters) (Xinhua) (Asia Times Online)
The death toll after a ferry collided with a oil barge in the Irrawaddy Delta, off the coast of Burma, rises to 50. (Al Jazeera)
The Original of Laura, an incomplete novel by Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov, is published 32 years after his death despite his wish that its manuscript be burned. (BBC News) (The Independent) (The Cornell Daily Sun)

November 18, 2009 (Wednesday)

The France national football team beat the Republic of Ireland at the Stade de France to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa, and Thierry Henry admits after the game to have committed handball in the move leading to the decisive goal. (Telegraph)
The population of Africa reaches one billion. (BBC)
The Government of Hong Kong unveils a new democratic political reform plan, which includes the expansion of the Legislative Council. (Radio Television Hong Kong) (Channel News Asia) (Straits Times)
Iraqi Vice President Tariq Al-Hashimi vetos part of the country's new election law, putting the scheduled January 2010 elections in doubt. (Al Jazeera) (AP) (BBC)
Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd announces that he will consider a probe of the Church of Scientology in Australia after an attack on the organization by independent parliamentarian Nick Xenophon. (BBC)
According to the 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index, Somalia is the most corrupt of 180 countries surveyed, and New Zealand is the least corrupt. (Reuters)
Four people are killed after a bomb left over from the Vietnam War explodes as they try to remove explosive material in southern Tay Ninh Province. (AFP)
Taiwanese universities announce they will admit mainland Chinese students for the first time next year. (Taiwan Today) (China Daily) (AFP)
Senator and President pro tempore of the United States Senate Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia becomes the longest serving member in the history of the United States Congress. (Associated Press)
Queen Elizabeth II officially opens the Parliament of the United Kingdom and delivers Her Majesty's Most Gracious Address. (Daily Telegraph) (BBC)

November 19, 2009 (Thursday)

New guidelines from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists for cervical cancer screening suggest that a woman should have her first pap smear at age 21. (New York Times)
Google releases the source code of its open source Operating system Chrome OS.(PCMAG)
U.S. media mogul and talk show host Oprah Winfrey announces she will end her long running talk show in 2011. (AP via Newser)
European Union / Three new positions created by the Treaty of Lisbon:
- The Prime Minister of Belgium, Herman Van Rompuy is chosen as the first permanent President of the European Council by European Union leaders. (BBC)
- British politician Catherine Ashton is selected as EU's first Foreign Minister. (BBC News)
- French diplomat Pierre de Boissieu is selected as the first Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union. (AFP via Google News)
Yemeni government forces say they have killed a leader during fighting with Houthi rebels in the north of the country. (Reuters)
Egypt recalls its ambassador to Algeria after complaints about violence towards its football fans after a World Cup play off. Sudan also summons its envoy to Egypt over media coverage of the game's aftermath. (BBC) (AFP) (Al Bawaba)
Irish politicians, including Taoiseach Brian Cowen, call for a controversial football playoff for the 2010 FIFA World Cup between France and Republic of Ireland to be replayed as the Football Association of Ireland lodges an official complaint with FIFA. (RTÉ) (The Guardian) (Radio Netherlands) (The LA Times)
The discovery of three ancient crocodile species, Kaprosuchus saharicus, Araripesuchus rattoides and Laganosuchus thaumastos, is announced. (AP) (National Geographic News) (Times Online)
The European Court of Justice rules that airlines will have to pay compensation to passengers who experience delays of more than three hours. (Independent) (European Court of Justice)
Bangladesh's Supreme Court upholds the death sentences of five former soldiers convicted of assassinating the country's founder, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. (bdnews24.com) (Al Jazeera) (BBC)
Zimbabwe begins withdrawing soldiers from diamond mines after recommmendations by the Kimberley Process regarding human rights abuses. (The Herald) (Reuters South Africa) (AFP)
The Russian Constitutional Court prolongs a ban on the death penalty. The moratorium had been due to expire on January 1. (RIA Novosti) (BBC) (Xinhua)
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo steps down as head of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD party and endorses her former defense minister Gilberto Teodoro for President. (Straits Times) (BBC) (Philippine Star)
Cambodia takes control of a Thai-owned air traffic control firm in a deepening diplomatic row between the two countries. (Thai News Agency) (BBC) (UPI)
A suicide blast near the judicial complex in Peshawar, Pakistan kills at least 17 people and wounds more than 30 others. (NY Times)

November 20, 2009 (Friday)