Sunny weather may wake you from extra hour of sleep
Hundreds of thousands of people in the Northeast remain without electricity after an early Nor’Easter dumped heavy snow that downed trees and power lines on Sept. 29. Thankfully, temperatures have increased and no further precipitation is expected for the next few days. This should help enable utility crews to restore power lines as well as keep people without emergency generators from suffering too much from cold.
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BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — The people of this strategically important Central Asian nation voted in a presidential election Sunday, seeking an end to years of political turmoil, though some fear the vote could expose the regional and ethnic divisions that nearly tore the country apart last year.
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TRIPOLI, Libya — Libya’s provisional leaders named an engineer as the new prime minister Monday, taking the first step toward assembling a new transitional government after the killing of Moammar Gadhafi and the formal end to the uprising that ended his nearly 42 years in power.
In China, political outsiders turn to microblog campaigns
BEIJING — For at least some candidates seeking parliamentary seats in local Chinese elections this year, the winning formula is the very antithesis of what works in the United States.
Despite US pressure, Pakistan unlikely to take on Haqqanis
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other senior administration officials visited Pakistan in October to demand that Pakistan’s spy agency either deliver the Haqqani network, a virulent part of the insurgency fighting U.S. forces in Afghanistan, to the negotiating table or help fight them in their stronghold in Pakistan’s rugged tribal areas.
76 arrested in drug ring traced to US from Mexico
PHOENIX — Law enforcement officials on Monday announced the breakup of a massive drug-smuggling ring that used lookouts on hilltops in southern Arizona to move huge quantities of marijuana and other drugs across the Mexican border to users throughout the United States.
Greece plans referendum on latest Europe aid deal
ATHENS, Greece — In a surprise move that jolted Europe and put his political future in play, Prime Minister George Papandreou announced Monday that his government would hold a referendum on a new aid package for Greece, putting austerity measures — and potentially membership in the eurozone — to a popular vote for the first time.
Storm leaves nine dead, over three million without power
It was a storm of record consequence, disrupting large swaths of the Northeast in ways large and small: Towns were buried in dense snowfalls, closing down streets, schools, and even, in some cases, Halloween celebrations.
Wild weather winding down
A historic winterlike storm over the weekend brought massive amounts of precipitation and high winds across the Northeast. Some parts of western Massachusetts received the most snow, with totals reaching just above 30 inches! In addition, out of all records at the National Weather Service, New York’s Central Park received 2.9 inches of snow, its highest amount ever recorded in October. The low pressure system that brought the wild weather moved up along the coast over the weekend. It exited very quickly by Sunday, allowing for high pressure to take over the region. Maybe a Santa Claus costume would have worked for trick-or-treating in the Northeast yesterday.
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World financial markets powered higher Thursday in the giddy hope that Europe’s plan to solve its sovereign debt crisis would finally lift the uncertainty over the global economy and markets. In the United States, a sharp jump in stocks continued what has become the biggest monthly rally in 47 years.
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WASHINGTON — Despite a pledge not to take money from lobbyists, President Barack Obama has relied on prominent supporters who are active in the lobbying industry to raise millions of dollars for his re-election bid.
Thousands leave Bangkok as flooding spreads
BANGKOK — With government officials saying there was nothing more they could do to protect the capital city from devastating flooding, tens of thousands of people were fleeing Bangkok on Thursday, jamming train and bus stations and clogging the southern highways out of town.
UN votes to end foreign intervention in Libya
The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Thursday to end its authorization on Monday of the foreign military intervention in Libya, the legal basis for the NATO attacks on Moammar Gadhafi’s forces during the eight-month civil war that toppled him from power.
US economy shows modest growth last quarter
U.S. economic growth picked up last quarter in the latest encouraging sign that the recovery, while painfully slow, had not stalled.
Early-season snow possible on Saturday
While many people will be celebrating Halloween this weekend, Mother Nature may have a trick (or treat) of her own up her sleeve. A storm currently centered over Georgia is forecast to develop and move up the Atlantic coast Saturday, potentially leading to some stormy conditions here in the Boston area on Saturday night. Depending on the exact track the storm takes off the New England coast, rain showers on Saturday evening may turn to snow showers overnight.
Attack in Kandahar breaks rare respite
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Insurgents armed with guns and rocket-propelled grenades attacked a small NATO base here Thursday, breaking an unusual period of calm in this volatile city and setting off a standoff between the attackers and coalition and Afghan forces that was continuing late into the evening.
North Korea is talking, but Panetta is skeptical
SEOUL, South Korea — Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta cast doubt Thursday on talks aimed at persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear program despite more positive public comments from negotiators for both countries earlier this week.
Nuclear talks with North Korea begin in Geneva
GENEVA — The United States and North Korea began two days of talks here Monday that U.S. officials have said will test the ground for a possible resumption of wider discussions on North Korea’s nuclear program.
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WASHINGTON — Republican presidential candidates are issuing biting and sustained attacks on the federal courts and the role they play in American life, reflecting and stoking skepticism among conservatives about the judiciary.
Cameron faces internal revolt over European policy
LONDON — After being berated by President Nicolas Sarkozy of France at a rancorous European summit meeting over the weekend, Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday faced an all-out rebellion from members of his own party over whether Britain should even be part of the European Union.