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Two people are dead and thousands of others lost their homes in southern China after Typhoon Chanthu. The Typhoon made landfall in the Guangdong province with winds that reached 126 kilometers per hour (78 miles per hour). The storm caused approximatively 2.2 billion yuan (US$325 million, €251 million) worth of damages. Chanthu caused downpours in China's southern provinces, with central and western provinces expected to flood as well. The Typhoon prompted President Hu Jintao to call for increased flood control measures. Chanthu is the latest

Despite promises he would testify in his own corruption trial, lawyers for former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich rested their case yesterday morning. His defense did not call a single witness, and apparently feels the prosecution has not proven their case. Closing arguments are scheduled for Monday. Speculation that Blagojevich would not testify began on Tuesday, when U.S. District Judge James Zagel adjourned 90 minutes early after a private meeting with the lawyers involved. Robert Blagojevich, the former governor's brother and co-defendan

Social networking service Facebook, which has been active for six years, has announced that the website reached a total of 500 million users on Wednesday. According to AFP, this number equates to one out of every fourteen people or, according to The Hindu, 8% of the population of the Earth. Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive officer and founder of Facebook, created a blog post in relation to this milestone. "As of this morning, 500 million people all around the world are actively using Facebook to stay connected with their friends and the pe

An advert by fast food restaurant Burger King has been banned from British television over claims that it is misleading. The campaign for the new TenderCrisp chicken burger received two complaints over the fact that the burger appears significantly larger on the advert than in real life. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) investigated the complaints and purchased three burgers from a Burger King restaurant. They reported that both the thickness and the height were "considerably less" than in the advertisement. The ASA also commented

Delta Air Lines flight 1457 departing from Atlanta made an emergency landing after it blew out a tire during take-off. The flight was destined to Portland, Oregon. There are no injuries reported at this time. The Boeing 737-800 departed from Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport Thursday afternoon. The flight was carrying approximately 160 passengers and six crew members. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said that the flight turned around when the flight crew noticed the blown out tire. The flight was forc

Judges from the United Nations International Court of Justice ruled Thursday that Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008 was not in violation of international law. Despite protests from Serbia, which claimed that Kosovo's independence threatened its sovereignty and was illegal under international law, ten of the ICJ's fourteen judges supported the non-binding motion declaring Kosovo's independence legal. The move was supported by the United States and most European countries, while other countries, including Russia and China,

After an oil pipeline in China exploded and spilled around 1,500 tonnes of oil into the Yellow Sea near the city of Dalian, the government has launched a cleanup operation consisting of more than 800 vessels. The spill occurred on Friday, after a pipeline at the port exploded. The oil terminal at the port has been closed ever since. Authorities have been using 24 ships designed for cleaning up oil, and today ordered around 800 civilian fishing boats to join the operation. The spill has been halted, although an oil slick which measured 50 squ

A televised debate between Australia's candidates for Prime Minister in the upcoming election has been rescheduled and shortened — to avoid a clash with popular cookery show MasterChef. The pre-election debate traditionally lasts 90 minutes and occurs at 1930 on the first Sunday of the campaign. With the grand finale of the cooking competition already scheduled for that time, and expected to attract around four million viewers, the decision has been made to move the debate forward to 1830 and shorten it to 60 minutes. When asked about Master

Australian opposition leader Tony Abbott has pledged private school relief if the Liberal/National coalition wins the upcoming federal election. The pledge came in response to the Australian Labor Party leader, and current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard proposing a uniform and school equipment tax break expansion. Abbott's proposal includes an offer of tax rebates for sending a child to a private school. For students in primary school, prep to grade 6, the rebate will rise to $500 Australian a year per student and families will be then able to

European astronomers have discovered the most massive star yet on record; it is approximately 300 times the mass of our sun, beyond the previously accepted limit of 150 solar masses. Paul Crowther, professor of astrophysics at the University of Sheffield, led the team of researchers that discovered the star. The team used the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, and data archived from the Hubble Space Telescope. The newly discovered star, designated R136a1, was discovered in the R136 star cluster. The researchers estimate that the current mas

Singapore police arrested British author and journalist Alan Shadrake one day after the launch of his book about the country's use of the death penalty. Shadrake, 75, was arrested on Sunday morning at a hotel in Singapore and taken into custody by police on charges of criminal defamation, in response to a complaint lodged by the city-state's Media Development Authority (MDA) over the contents of his new book, Once a Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock. Separately, the Attorney-General served Shadrake with an application for an order o

About 2,000 protestors marched against Internet censorship last Saturday in Istanbul in Turkey, Xinhua reported. Protesters gathered at central Istanbul’s Taksim Square and marched down to Istiklal Avenue, chanting slogans against Transport and Communications Minister Binali Yıldırım, Internet censorship, and especially against "Law No 5651". Many Internet groups, nongovernmental organizations, and Internet platforms participated in the protest, Hürriyet Daily News reported. Ekşi Sözlük, zaytung.com, bobiler.org, the Young Civilians, Penguen