Shorts (left)
JERUSALEM — His foreign minister had to resign after being accused of fraud. He was sharply criticized for his government’s handling of Prisoner X, who committed suicide in prison. And now this, which made front-page news in Israel this weekend: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands accused of dipping into state coffers for an ice cream budget of $2,700 a year.
Pipeline call gives Obama new problems either way
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama faces a knotty decision in whether to approve the much-delayed Keystone oil pipeline: a choice between alienating environmental advocates who overwhelmingly supported his candidacy or causing a deep and perhaps lasting rift with Canada.
As Assad holds firm, Obama could revisit arms policy
WASHINGTON — When President Barack Obama rebuffed four of his top national security officials who wanted to arm the rebels in Syria last fall, it put an end to a debate of several months over how aggressively Washington should respond to the strife there that has now left nearly 70,000 dead.
When being unemployed is a barrier to finding a job
NEW YORK — The sign outside the diner said help wanted. But when Albert Mango said he was out of work, he was told there was no opening there.
Violent television affects children’s behavior, study says
Experts have long known that children imitate many of the deeds — good and bad — that they see on television. But it has rarely been shown that changing a young child’s viewing habits at home can lead to improved behavior.
Rain tonight, followed by a dry week
The Boston area received a quick blast of winter weather on Sunday, when Logan Airport recorded 5.1 inches of snow. The fresh snow on top of the ice-coated snow remaining from the previous weekend’s snow storm made for slippery conditions. The cold temperatures of Sunday and Monday will make way for highs today in upper 40°Fs, as a warm front associated with a low pressure system in the Great Lakes rotates through our region. It will bring with it showers (mostly rain) this afternoon and evening. Following the passage of the associated cold front tonight, Wednesday and Thursday will be slightly colder than normal with blustery winds. The weather will moderate somewhat on Friday before our next chance for precipitation on the weekend. Five days out, there is still uncertainty, but at the moment it looks like a mix of rain and snow.
More winter weather approaching
A few days of relative warmth and sun started melting the snow that piled up from last weekend’s blizzard. However, winter weather will return by the end of this weekend, with light snowfall possible on Saturday and an Arctic air mass moving in on Saturday night. On Saturday, expect temperatures around freezing, with cloudy skies and a chance of rain and snow in the afternoon and evening. Sunday and Monday will bring crisp, clear mornings with windchill in the single digits. Only 14 more days until meteorological spring begins!
South Korea shows military muscle in sparring with North
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea flexed its military muscle Thursday by staging large military drills and disclosing a new cruise missile capable of hitting any target in North Korea, as the North became increasingly candid about its intentions to build intercontinental ballistic missiles tipped with nuclear warheads.
Russia seeks arrest of Georgian politician Givi Targamadze
MOSCOW — Russian authorities issued an arrest warrant for a Georgian politician, Givi Targamadze, on Thursday, charging that he had incited riots in Russia, in particular by helping to organize an anti-government march in May that culminated in a confrontation between protesters and the riot police.
Shorts (right)
WASHINGTON — Florida’s growing history of flawed elections regained national attention Tuesday when President Obama used the story of a 102-year-old former Belle Glade farmworker who waited hours to vote to highlight a new nonpartisan voting commission.
Shorts (left)
HOUSTON — A federal judge in New Orleans approved on Thursday Transocean’s agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge and pay $400 million in criminal penalties for its role in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil well blowout that left 11 workers dead and resulted in a yearlong moratorium on deepwater drilling.
Vowing reform, China’s leader airs other message in private
HONG KONG — When China’s new leader, Xi Jinping, visited the country’s south to promote himself before the public as an audacious reformer following in the footsteps of Deng Xiaoping, he had another message to deliver to Communist Party officials behind closed doors.
Benedict says he will be ‘hidden to the world’ in retirement
VATICAN CITY — Saying he would soon be “hidden to the world,” Pope Benedict XVI took his leave of parish priests and clergy of the Diocese of Rome on Thursday in a moving encounter during which he gave a personal, and incisive, recollection of the Second Vatican Council, the gathering of bishops 50 years ago that set the Roman Catholic Church’s course for the future.
Prisoner X linked to Dubai assassination in new report
JERUSALEM — The Australian-Israeli man recently identified as Prisoner X — found dead in 2010 in a maximum-security prison cell — may have been involved in the assassination of a Hamas leader that year, an episode that was among the most embarrassing in the history of Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad.
Sun, warmth to decrease depth of snow
This past weekend’s blizzard blanketed our area with over two feet of snow, creating several shoveling and plowing problems for residents and commuters in the Boston area. However, this week’s weather will be somewhat beneficial to those who wish the snow out of their way. Sunshine will return today, and temperatures are expected to be comfortably above the freezing mark during each daytime period through Friday.
Partners of gay military personnel are granted some benefits
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon on Monday expanded benefits to same-sex partners of military personnel to include a range of services offered at posts and bases, but withheld more expansive benefits sought by gay and lesbian couples — in particular medical and dental coverage and housing allowances.
Pope Benedict XVI says he will resign, cites ill health
ROME — Citing advanced years and infirmity, Pope Benedict XVI, the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, stunned the Roman Catholic world Monday by saying that he would resign Feb. 28, less than eight years after he took office, the first pope to do so in six centuries.
Senate Democrats unveil plan to avert broad spending cuts
Senate Democratic leaders are closing in on a $120 billion package of tax increases on the affluent and targeted spending cuts that they say would be large enough to put off looming, across-the-board spending cuts to defense and domestic programs for 10 months.
Shorts (left)
VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI’s surprise announcement Monday that he will resign Feb. 28 sets the stage for a succession battle that is likely to determine the future course of a church troubled by scandal and declining faith in its traditional strongholds.
Syrian insurgents claim large hydropower dam
BEIRUT — Syrian insurgents and opposition activists said Monday that rebel forces had taken control of Syria’s largest hydroelectric dam, an assertion that, if confirmed, would give them significant control over a vital reservoir and what remains of the sporadic power supplies in their war-ravaged country.