Cuba's Oil Quest to Continue, Despite Deepwater Disappointment

An unusual high-tech oil-drilling rig that's been at work off the coast of Cuba departed last week, headed for either Africa or Brazil. With it went the island nation's best hope, at least in the short term, for reaping a share of the energy treasure beneath the sea that separates it from its longtime ideological foe.For many Floridians, especially in the Cuban-American community, it was...

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Spokesman: Gaza Ceasefire to Be Announced

A ceasefire between Hamas and Israel will be announced tonight, almost a week after the assassination of Hamas' top military commander led to the worst violence between Gaza and Israel in four years.Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum told ABC News the news would be announced at 8 p.m. in Cairo (1 p.m. ET), where Egypt has been trying to broker a peace deal. Hamas, Islamic Jihad and...

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Motor Racing: Ferrari tactics leave rivals unruffled in title battle

AUSTIN, Texas: Ferrari's chief opponents in this year's fight for the Formula One drivers' world championship on Monday said they had no serious objections to the Italians' pragmatic decision to conjure up a deliberate gearbox penalty for Felipe Massa ahead of Sunday's United States Grand Prix.Briton Lewis Hamilton won the race for McLaren ahead of defending champion and current series...

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Consult experts on CAG rejig: Karunanidhi

CHENNAI: DMK president M Karunanidhi on Monday urged the central government to consult experts before a decision to make the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) a multi-member body. In a statement issued here, Karunanidhi said: "Having the recent problem in mind, the central government should consult senior experts in the country and take an appropriate decision on the issue." According to Karunanidhi...

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Lonesome George Not the Last of His Kind, After All?

The tide may be turning for the rare subspecies of giant tortoise thought to have gone extinct when its last known member, the beloved Lonesome George, died in June.A new study by Yale University researchers reveals that DNA from George's ancestors lives on—and that more of his kind may still be alive in a remote area of Ecuador's Galápagos Islands. This isn't the first time Chelonoidis...

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Israeli Airstrike Kills Top Islamic Jihad Commander

An Israeli strike on a Gaza City high-rise today has killed one of the top militant leaders of Islamic Jihad, the Palestinian militant group said.The second strike in two days on the downtown Gaza City building that houses the Hamas TV station, Al Aqsa, has killed Ramez Harb, who is a leading figure in Al Quds Brigades militant wing, according to a text message Islamic Jihad...

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Futsal: Last-gasp Brazil break Spanish hearts in final

BANGKOK: Holders Brazil claimed their fifth Futsal World Cup title with a nerve shredding 3-2 extra-time final win in Bangkok to break Spanish hearts for a second successive tournament.In a pulsating end to three weeks of competition, Neto was the night's hero, scoring the winner -- his second goal of the game -- with penalties looming.Brazil's talisman Falcao, playing his fourth World...

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Salman Khurshid closely following developments in Savita Halappanavar death case

LONDON/NEW DELHI: External affairs minister Salman Khurshid was closely following developments in the case of the death of an Indian woman in Ireland after she was refused termination of her pregnancy despite miscarrying. This was conveyed to her husband Praveen Halappanavar, according to sources in the external affairs ministry. Following a meeting of Indian ambassador to Dublin Debashish Chakravarti...

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Lonesome George Not the Last of His Kind, After All?

The tide may be turning for the rare subspecies of giant tortoise thought to have gone extinct when its last known member, the beloved Lonesome George, died in June.A new study by Yale University researchers reveals that DNA from George's ancestors lives on—and that more of his kind may still be alive in a remote area of Ecuador's Galápagos Islands. This isn't the first time Chelonoidis...

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Obama Backs 'Israel's Right to Defend Itself'

Nov 18, 2012 8:45am AP Photo/Pablo Martinez MonsivaisBANGKOK, Thailand — President Obama today fully backed Israel’s right to defend itself and warned that the escalating violence in the Middle East threatens the prospect for a lasting peace process.Speaking at a joint press conference with Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Obama called for an end to the firing...

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