American soldiers fire at Afghan bus, killing civilians
KABUL — American troops raked a large passenger bus with gunfire near Kandahar on Monday morning, killing and wounding civilians, and igniting angry anti-American demonstrations in a city where winning over Afghan support is pivotal to the war effort. The shooting, which killed as many as five civilians and wounded 18, occurred on the eve of the most important offensive of the war. In coming weeks, thousands of American, NATO and Afghan troops are expected to try to take control of the Kandahar region, the spiritual home of the Taliban.
Active hurricane season
Two groups of independent forecasters have issued their preliminary forecasts for the upcoming hurricane season, which runs from June through November. Both groups are predicting above average activity of 15–17 storms, of which 8–9 will become hurricanes.
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It could take weeks for engineers to salvage the South Korean warship that sank in waters disputed by North Korea after a mysterious explosion and provide a definitive explanation of what caused the disaster. But some signs are pointing to North Korea, raising uncomfortable questions for the South’s government.
Court documents detail teenage girl’s final days of fear
Phoebe Prince, the 15-year-old who killed herself after relentless taunting, spent her final days in fear of girls who had threatened to beat her up, according to the first official accounts released in a case in Massachusetts that gained wide attention last week, when six students were charged with felonies.
Opening new era, U.S. and Russia sign nuclear arms pact
With flourish and fanfare, President Barack Obama and President Dmitry A. Medvedev of Russia signed a nuclear arms control treaty on Thursday and opened what they hoped would be a new era in the tumultuous relationship between two former Cold War adversaries.
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The Chinese government is preparing to announce in the coming days that it will allow its currency to strengthen slightly and vary more from day to day, people with knowledge of the emerging consensus in Beijing said on Thursday. The move would help ease tension with the Obama administration about the huge trade deficit the United States has with China.
Unearthing human ancestor is child’s play in South Africa
Nine-year-old Matthew Berger dashed after his dog, Tau, into the high grass here one sunny August morning in 2008, tripped over a log and stumbled onto a major archeological discovery. Scientists announced Thursday that he had found the bones of a new hominid species that lived almost 2 million years ago during the fateful, still mysterious period spanning the emergence of the human family.
Variable weather for CPW
Boston experienced unusually warm weather this week, most notably on Wednesday when the record high of 86°F set in 1991 was smashed by a high of 90°F. Expect more seasonable weather to return for the weekend, which will be dry except for a chance of rain today.
Disposal of plutonium from accord likely to take decades
The plutonium that is the key ingredient in thousands of nuclear weapons sidelined in the new arms control treaty between the United States and Russia is likely to be around for decades at least, according to experts. They say the process for destroying plutonium has not yet started to whittle down the surplus created by previous agreements.
Video shows photographer being killed in 2007 air attack
WASHINGTON —The Web site WikiLeaks.org released a graphic video on Monday showing an American helicopter shooting and killing a Reuters photographer and driver in a July 2007 attack in Baghdad.
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LOS ANGELES <i>— </i>A powerful earthquake southeast of Tijuana shook Southern California on Sunday afternoon, damaging buildings in border towns and rattling a seismically-sophisticated population as far north as Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas as chandeliers swayed, homes shook and the earth seemed to slide under the feet of people emerging from Easter church services for well over a minute.
Anglican archbishop rebukes Irish church for abuse scandal
LONDON — At a time when his relations with Pope Benedict XVI are already strained over the pope’s offer to dissatisfied Anglicans of fast-track conversion to Roman Catholicism, the archbishop of Canterbury has plunged into the crisis over cases of abuse by Catholic priests, choosing the Easter weekend to describe the Catholic Church in Ireland as “losing all credibility” because of its poor handling of the crisis.
As mayhem erupts in Times Square, 4 are shot and 33 arrested
NEW YORK — As Sunday night turned into Monday, what has become something of a violent Easter night ritual began to unfold. Hundreds of people filled Times Square, some pouring out of the subway, howling and unruly. By night’s end, four people had been shot, and the police had arrested 33 people.
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CARCAS, Venezuela — Prime Minister Vladimir Putin of Russia visited Venezuela on Friday to sign a series of military and oil agreements with President Hugo Chavez, who is seeking to expand ties with Russia as a way of countering the influence of the United States in Latin America.
More warmth, finally!
The first days of April are much more welcoming than many of those cold, wet, windy days of March. Don’t expect new floods to engulf your surroundings later this week. We will continue to dry out from all that rain as unseasonably warm temperatures stream into New England. A high of 77°F was recorded at Logan airport on Sunday, breaking the 1950 record by 2 degrees. A large ridge of high pressure, centered just north of the Bahamas, is responsible for transporting the warm southern air into our neck of the woods. For today, expect warm westerly winds and some partly cloudy skies by evening. There may even be a shower overnight due to a weak impulse approaching from the west.
Obama limits when United States would use nuclear weapons
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said Monday that he was revamping American nuclear strategy to substantially narrow the conditions under which the United States would use nuclear weapons, even in self- defense.
Top european clerics defend Pope Benedict abuse decision
ESSEN, Germany — The case that has raised questions about the future pope’s handling of a pedophile priest in Germany came to light three decades after it occurred, and then almost by chance. It happened when Wilfried Fesselmann, an early victim, said he stumbled on Internet photographs of the priest who sexually abused him, still working with children.
Court ruling on wiretap a challenge for President Obama
WASHINGTON — As a presidential candidate, then-Sen. Barack Obama declared that it was “unconstitutional and illegal” for the Bush administration to conduct warrantless surveillance of Americans. Many of his supporters said likewise.
After Iraq vote, Tehran seeks to weigh in on establishing government
BAGHDAD — Iran may seem an unlikely place to turn for guidance when it comes to putting together a democratic government, but that is exactly what most of Iraq’s political class did immediately after last month’s parliamentary elections.
Strains easing, Chinese leader plans visit to United States
WASHINGTON — Tensions between China and the United States have ebbed significantly in recent days, with the countries now working together to confront Iran over its nuclear ambitions and with the Obama administration backing off a politically charged clash over China’s currency.