North Korean secrecy on bomb test fuels speculation on nuclear advances
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U.S. officials and independent experts say North Korea appears to have taken unusual steps to conceal details about the nuclear weapon it tested in February, fueling suspicions that its scientists shifted to a bomb design that uses highly enriched uranium as the core.
At least two separate analyses of the Feb. 12 detonation confirmed that the effects of the blast were remarkably well contained, with few radioactive traces escaping into the atmosphere — where they could be detected — according to U.S. officials and weapons experts who have studied the data.
U.S. officials anticipated the test and monitored it closely for clues about the composition of the bomb, which was the third detonated by North Korea since 2006. The first two devices were thought to have used plutonium extracted from a dwindling stockpile of the fissile material that North Korea developed in the late 1990s.
Israel set to jail teenage conscientious objector for eighth time
Nathan Blanc has spent more than 100 days in prison over the past 19 weeks due to his refusal to enlist in Israeli army
It is a routine Nathan Blanc knows well. At 9am on Tuesday morning, the 19-year-old will report, as instructed in his draft papers, to a military base near Tel Aviv. There he will state his objection to serving in the Israeli army. Following his refusal to enlist, Blanc expects to be arrested and sentenced to between 10 and 20 days in jail. He will then be taken to Military Prison Number 6 to serve his time. And then, following his release, the cycle will begin over again.
The reason why Blanc knows what to expect is that this will be the eighth time the teenage conscientious objector has been jailed in the past 19 weeks. Since the date of his original call-up for military service, Blanc has spent more than 100 days in prison; on one occasion, he was released on a Tuesday and re-imprisoned two days later on a Thursday.
WORK
Unemployed youth turn their back on Spain
Frustrated by a lack of opportunities at home, Spanish youth are leaving in droves. More than 280,000 left last year alone in the hope of finding jobs in countries such as Germany, Britain, Argentina and Venezuela.
It was a small sign tucked in the corner of a pizzeria in Barcelona that got David Garcia Jurado all excited. After months of job hunting, "help wanted" was exactly the kind of sign he was looking for. David, who speaks three languages and has a master's degree in financial management, sent in his resume, anxiously hoping to hear back.
The call never came.
SA must interdict Djotodia: South African National Defence Union
The South African government has a legal duty to have Central African Republic (CAR) rebel leader Michel Djotodia indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), the South African National Defence Union (Sandu) said.
This followed media reports that rebels which took control of the country last week used child soliders against the SA National Defence Force, national secretary Pikkie Greeff said in a statement.
"Using child soldiers to conduct acts of war and aggression is a violation of human rights and an international act of criminality," he said.
"The SA government has a legal duty to enforce international human rights law. It can best do so by initiating the indictment of Djotodia through the ICC."
A step toward democracy: Privately owned newspapers return to Myanmar
In Myanmar the state has monopolized the daily press since the 1960s, but on Monday, privately owned daily newspapers will hit the streets once again. The change is part of reform efforts by President Thein Sein.
By Aye Aye Win, Associated Press / March 31, 2013
But for 81-year-old Khin Maung Lay, the rebirth of daily newspapers is like a second lease on life. He is chief editor of Golden Fresh Land, one of four dailies going on sale Monday as Myanmar takes another step in its march toward democracy.
He's old enough to recall there once had been a big and vibrant daily press in the Burmese, English, Indian and Chinese languages in the period of parliamentary democracy after Myanmar, known then as Burma, won independence from Britain in 1948.]
1 April 2013 Last updated at 00:47 GMT
The angels helping Indian start-ups spread their wings
Manish Taneja and Rahul Dash left their well-paid professional jobs in India's financial capital, Mumbai, because they wanted to start a business of their own.
They are among a growing tide of first-generation entrepreneurs in the country.
"Both of us were very interested in the internet space in India. We were looking for opportunities," says Mr Taneja.
That was 13 months ago, and they've since co-founded Purplle.com, a beauty and grooming website.
Mr Taneja adds: "We realised that beauty and grooming was at an inflexion point in India and we knew that it would take off."
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