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A 6-month-old child is alive, having only received minor injuries, after the stroller it was riding in was run over by a commuter train in Melbourne, Australia. The entire incident was recorded by security cameras at Ashburton railway station, where the incident occurred. Security video footage shows the mother tending to her baby who was in a stroller. She then moves the stroller a safer distance from the tracks. After letting go of the stroller for a second, it rolled towards the tracks and fell off the platform, being struck and dragged nea

Voters in Botswana will head to the polls this Friday to vote in parliamentary elections. The incumbent Democratic Party, in power since 1966, is expected to win the vote. Some voters left their homes as early as 04.00 local time to be in time for the opening of polling stations two hours later, and voters moved through polling stations at a steady pace throughout the day. About 700,000 residents are registered to vote. Joseph Gaie, lecturer in political ethics at Botswana University in Gaborone, told the Voice of America news agency that a g

Prices for crude oil reached a one-year high on Friday, as increasing industrial production in the United States raised hopes that the economic recession might be easing. US Crude oil futures gained for the seventh straight day, and has increased by 12.9% since October 7, and is now just above US$78 a barrel. The move came after a report released by the US Federal Reserve indicated a 0.7% rise in factory output. Brent crude oil was also up, gaining 76 cents to reach $76.99. Paul Crovo, an oil analyst based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for P

A strong, 6.4 magnitude earthquake stuck Indonesia on Friday, even as recovery efforts continued from the devastating tremors that hit there last month. The earthquake caused some buildings to sway in the country's capital, Jakarta; however, there were no reports of injuries. According to officials, the earthquake's epicentre was in in the Sunda Strait, off the western coast of the island of Java. The earthquake wasn't powerful enough to generate a tsunami, according to a Meteorology and Geophysics Agency official, Suhardjono. On September

At least one firefighter has been injured while battling a blaze on Buffalo, New York's East side early this morning. The name, extent of his injuries and his condition are not yet known. According to firefighter radio communications, he has been taken to Erie County Medical Center "for evaluation." The blaze began in an attic, inside an abandoned 2 1/2 story wooden frame house at 189 Townsend in the city's East side at about 11:15 p.m. (EDT) Friday evening. The fire quickly spread out of control and firefighters focused their attention on p

New York State Senator Hiram Monserrate faced public calls for his resignation after he was found guilty Thursday of misdemeanor assault, in the criminal trial involving an alleged attack on his girlfriend Karla Giraldo. Monserrate will face sentencing on the misdemeanor assault conviction on December 4. The misdemeanor assault conviction means Monserrate is guilty of "recklessly causing physical injury" to Giraldo. Monserrate could be sentenced to one year in jail for the misdemeanor assault conviction. The prosecution had asserted that whe

International pressure is mounting on Guinea's military junta to withdraw from the country's planned elections by the International Criminal Court, the United Nations, and the European Union. The Hague court announced in a statement on Wednesday that it is deciding whether the events of September 28 amount to crimes against humanity, when people died at a sports stadium in the capital Conakry. Rights groups say soldiers shot 157 people, with thousands injured and women raped, claims denied by Guinea's rulers. The United Nations is also investi

According to organisers, more than one million people have marched across Madrid, Spain to oppose plans to liberalise abortion law. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero wants to introduce abortion on demand, allowing women as young as 16 to have abortions without their parents' consent. Currently women may only terminate pregnancies in the predominantly Catholic country under specific circumstances. The 1.5-kilometer (one-mile) march contained members from 42 religious and civil society groups, with 600 buses and several planes used to

The European Commission (EC) published its annual progress report on the Western Balkans and Turkey on Wednesday. In the report, the EC said that Croatia could wrap up its membership talks in 2010, but the other Balkan countries have more work to do. The report provides no entry date for Croatia. "Croatia will need to pursue its reform efforts, in particular on the judiciary and public administration, the fight against and organised crime, and minority rights. If Croatia meets all outstanding benchmarks in time, the accession negotiations cou

Miten Mehta, the son of the CEO of the Lilavati Hospital in Colaba, India, reportedly committed suicide on Wednesday after jumping from the ninth floor of the Maker Towers residence. Mehta, aged 54, was a diamond merchant based in Belgium. Police said that the incident took place sometime between 20:30 Mumbai Time (+5.5 UTC) and 21:00. At 21:00, police received a call from the residents of the building saying that Miten had committed suicide in Maker Towers, Colaba. Police arrived at the scene and took him to the GT hospital, but he was declar

Pakistani officials have said that five attacks on government sites across the country have killed at least forty people. The latest attack occurred late on Thursday at a government residential area in Peshawar. Officials said they suspect Taliban militants for being responsible for the attacks. Authorities said that the situation in the eastern city of Lahore was under control, following separate attacks on the country's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and two police training centers. Gunmen with at least one suicide jacket stormed the F

China has sentenced six more people to death for murders committed during July riots in far northwestern Xinjiang region. This brings the number of people facing the death penalty for their involvement in the riots to nine. China saw its worst ethnic violence in decades, when riots erupted in Xinjiang's regional capital, Urumqi, in July. Muslim Uighurs attacked members of China's dominant Han ethnic group. The Han Chinese retaliated, two days later, by attacking Uighurs. Officials say nearly 200 people were killed in the riots. The Chinese me