3/3 International Herald Tribune - World News, Analysis, and Global Opinions

8 die as gunmen in Pakistan attack Sri Lankan cricket team March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am A dozen gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team and its police escort in a commando-style operation, killing six police officers and wounding six cricketers, Pakistani and Sri Lankan officials said. For Saudi liberals, a ripple of hope in a sea of tradition March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am Many have hailed King Abdullah's recent cabinet reshuffle as a "mini-revolution" and proof that he is at last willing to tame the country's religious establishment. In Afghanistan, the idea of women's rights starts to take hold March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am Advocates are fighting entrenched traditions of forced marriages and spousal abuse. In Israel, Clinton pledges to work with new government March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am The U.S. secretary of state promised Tuesday to work with the new Israeli government, easing tensions ahead of a meeting with the hawkish prime minister-designate, Benjamin Netanyahu. Private guards are the front lines of India's security March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am While private security workers outnumber police and armed forces almost four to one in India, many are unarmed and ill trained. In secret letter, Obama offered deal to Russia March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am The letter suggested that the president would back off deploying a new missile system if Moscow would help stop Iran from developing long-range weapons. Two fallen U.S. mortgage giants are unlikely to be restored March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac not only are heavily indebted to the U.S. government, but they give lawmakers a tool to influence the policy market. Shares in Europe slide, Asian markets are calm March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am The slump in global stocks continued Tuesday in Europe and Asia, but Wall Street appeared headed for a stronger opening after Monday's global rout. In turbulent time for Britain's prime minister, a hope to bolster U.S. ties March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am No trip to the United States has been weightier for Prime Minister Gordon Brown than the two-day visit to Washington which he began on Tuesday and which will include a meeting with President Barack Obama. U.S. envoy on North Korea seeks to rejuvenate talks March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am The new U.S. envoy on North Korea arrived in Beijing on Tuesday for talks on how to coax the reclusive Communist country, which is thought to be preparing for a missile launch, into fresh steps towards nuclear disarmament. Bush administration memos claimed vast war powers March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am The Obama administration has released several opinions written after the Sept. 11,2001, terror attacks that show a broad view of presidential authority, including using the military domestically to fight those deemed terrorists. Melting pot of melodrama enthralls French nightly March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am Some 13 million people, nearly a fifth of the French population, tune in weekly to follow the convoluted fates of the families on the soap opera, "Plus Belle la Vie." Any more Earths out there? NASA hopes new mission will tell us March 3, 2009 at 6:05 am Someday it might be said that this was the beginning of the end of cosmic loneliness. British leader seeks warmer ties with U.S. March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Gordon Brown, the British prime minister who this week will be the first European government leader to visit the White House since Barack Obama took office, aims to give new momentum to the "special relationship" between Britain and the United States. In the White House, too, Obama thrives on taking risks March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Obama's closest aides have long embraced a pattern of far-reaching action on numerous fronts, even if it still startles official Washington. Clinton has doubts that Iran is open to discussions March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told an Arab foreign minister that she did not expect Iran to respond positively to an American offer of direct negotiations. Top bid on disputed Yves Saint Laurent bronzes was a protest from China March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm A Chinese collector and auctioneer, Cai Mingchao, described himself as a consultant that seeks to bring looted artifacts back to China. AIG reports $61.7 billion loss as U.S. gives more aid March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm The U.S. government agreed to provide an additional $30 billion in taxpayer money, even as it reported the biggest quarterly loss in history. Dow below 7,000 for the first time since 1997 March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Financial shares again led the decline, as investors worried about AIG and Citigroup. United Russia, party of Putin, cruises in regional elections March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm The ruling party won handily in Russian elections, the Central Election Commission said Monday, shining in the first electoral test for the prime minister since the economy began to sour. Guinea-Bissau soldiers shoot and kill president March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Army troops shot and killed João Bernardo Vieira, president of the small West African country of Guinea-Bissau, early Monday after a bomb attack that killed the army chief of staff, according to diplomats in the region. CIA destroyed 92 interrogation tapes March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm The agency destroyed 92 videotapes documenting the harsh interrogations of two Al Qaeda suspects, a greater number than previously acknowledged. Iraqi court acquits former top aide to Saddam Hussein March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Iraq's special criminal court Monday acquitted Tariq Aziz, the man who once served as the urbane, cigar-smoking public face of Saddam Hussein's rule, delivering the most significant not-guilty verdict in a series of prosecutions for crimes against humanity that occurred before the U.S. invasion in 2003. Times are grim when some pay to lose signs of wealth March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Sharon Baum, a New York real estate broker who has decided to give up her Rolls-Royce, may end up paying handsomely for the privilege of looking thrifty. Indonesian tiger catchers race against time March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Teams of rangers and conservationists, who rush to the scene every time villagers report attacks or sightings of endangered Sumatran tigers, have an increasingly difficult job as the land to re-release them disappears. Bad scans a growing problem for patients March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm More than 95 million high-tech scans are done each year, and medical imaging has ballooned into a $100-billion-a-year industry in the United States, but recent studies show that as many as 20 percent to 50 percent of the procedures should never have been done. Paul Krugman: Revenge of the glut March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm The international economic crisis is the revenge of the global saving glut. And the glut is still out there, worse than ever. After the indictment March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm Sudan's president, Omar Hassan al-Bashir, is likely to be the first head of state to be indicted by the International Criminal Court. What will happen next? Pursuing the spirit of Niu March 2, 2009 at 1:41 pm In Chinese culture, niu is often used to symbolize a hard working and trustworthy spirit. That spirit must inhabit us all in these trying times. President names governor of Kansas as health chief March 2, 2009 at 1:08 pm President Barack Obama on Monday nominated Kathleen Sebelius, the Democratic governor of conservative Kansas, as secretary of health and human services, effectively making her the point person for what may become the largest expansion of taxpayer-subsidized health insurance in four decades. Obama White House is a manse with a message March 2, 2009 at 12:24 pm The televised concert was part of an effort by President Obama and his wife, Michelle, to throw open the doors of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, and an exercise in presidential image-making to advance his political agenda. U.S. consumer spending rose in January March 2, 2009 at 8:21 am The figure rose in January after falling for a record six straight months, pushed higher by purchases of food and other nondurable items. But the increase is expected to be fleeting given all the problems facing the economy. Southeast Asian Nations talk of economic union March 2, 2009 at 7:51 am The group would be modeled on the European Union but analysts say some governments may not make the kinds of sovereignty concessions needed. A peek into the value of KKR's investments March 2, 2009 at 7:00 am Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the giant leveraged buyout firm, opened up a little on Monday as one of its publicly traded affiliates reports results. Analysts getting despondent about serial need for AIG bailouts March 2, 2009 at 5:57 am A revised bailout of American International Group may be just anotherBand-Aidsolution, but more than five months after it was first rescued by the U.S. government the option of letting the insurer fail would still be considered too big a shock to already fragile global markets.