US support for Rwanda wanes amid concern over violence in Congo
Washington signals shift in policy by cutting aid and rebuking Kagame administration for apparent support for rebels in DRC
The US is retreating from years of solid public support for Rwanda's president, Paul Kagame, in a major shift that suggests Washington's concern at continued bloodletting in the Democratic Republic of Congo now outweighs western guilt over the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
The Rwandan government has hit back at the latest accusations of its support for rebels in the DRC, calling a detailed United Nations report that prompted the US, Britain and other countries to cut aid last week an orchestrated attempt to "cast Rwanda as the villain". But Washington appears unpersuaded after publicly endorsing the report which lays out evidence of Rwanda providing fighters and military equipment to rebels in the eastern DRC where 18 years of conflict have cost the lives of several million people.
Ambushes and air strikes as Syrian regime fight rebels street-by-street to gain possession of Aleppo
Violence and expectation of more destructive strife to come, added to the sense of fear and the growing stream of refugees fleeing their home.
Ambushes and air strikes, sieges and executions were the bloody order of the day in Aleppo today as rebel and regime forces fought street by street to gain possession of Syria’s largest city.
The violence, and expectation of more destructive strife to come, added to the sense of fear and the growing stream of refugees fleeing their home.
While continuing resistance against armour and artillery in the districts of Salheddine and Hamdaniyeh, opposition fighters took the offensive in other areas; a series of police stations and posts were overrun with the defenders captured in some cases, but also a large number shot dead, with sizeable amounts of arms and ammunition seized.
08/01/2012
Anatomy of a DisasterIncompetence and Naiveté Behind Berlin Airport Delay
By Sven Roebel and Andreas Wassermann
With the opening of Berlin's new airport delayed at least until next spring, a legal battle has erupted over damages and responsibility. Court documents reveal that the architectural firm behind the project emphasized appearance and gave short shrift to vital operational details.
It was the first good news in months. Last Tuesday, specialists performed what's known as a "hot gas smoke test" on the fire safety system at Berlin's new airport, finally giving the facility's operating company something positive to report. "Initial results show a successful exercise," the company' press office was quick to report, explaining that "despite a simulated power failure," smoke created in a controlled fire "escaped the building safely."
Power restored to 3 electricity grids but jitters remain
AFP
New Delhi, August 01, 2012
New Delhi, August 01, 2012
India's power network was back at full capacity on Wednesday after two days of massive outages that blacked out half the country and left more than 600 million people in 20 states without electricity.
"Power has been restored fully across the northern, eastern
and north -eastern grids,"
Power System Operation Corp chief SK Soonee told AFP.
Monday's failure of the northern network, followed by the expanded collapse of all three grids after midday on Tuesday caused chaos across a vast region, paralysing transport networks.
Hundreds of miners were trapped underground for hours in the eastern states of West Bengal and Jharkhand, metro services were stopped temporarily in New Delhi and hundreds of trains were held up nationwide.
London Olympics: To foreign eyes, NBC is all about U-S-A, U-S-A
I am a German following the London Olympics from Boston. Or trying to, anyway.
By Rieke Havertz, Contributor
Aiming for gold, Team USA finished at a frustrating fifth place in men’s gymnastics after struggling in several routines. Morning news in the States was full of questions how that was even possible.
But as I watched the analysis, I kept wondering: Which country got the gold medal? Fifteen minutes on CNN – no word on that.
Smart move
Focusing on the national team at the Olympics is the smart move in any country. That’s what viewers are most interested in. In Germany, everyone heard everything about the men’s gymnastics team seventh place performance. But journalists overseas don’t forget to mention the medalists who don’t come from their own country. So they learned that China won the event, followed by Japan and Great Britain.
US author Gore Vidal dies aged 86
Celebrated writer and political commentator Gore Vidal has died aged 86, his family has confirmed.
He died at his home in Los Angeles on Tuesday evening, with the cause of death believed to be complications from pneumonia.
Gore Vidal produced 25 novels, including the best-selling Burr and Myra Breckenridge, more than 200 essays and several plays.
He also ran for political office twice and was a well-known commentator.
His nephew Burr Steers told US media that his uncle had been ill "for quite a while".
He was among a generation of literary writers who were also genuine celebrities - fixtures on chat shows and in gossip columns.
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