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The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has selected Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. IOC President Jacques Rogge made the announcement Friday in an IOC meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark on Friday. The other three contestants, Chicago, Madrid, and Tokyo, were eliminated in earlier rounds of voting. Chicago was the first candidate city eliminated in voting, with Tokyo being dropped in the second round. Rio de Janeiro was left to compete with Madrid. [[image:Lula - foto oficial05012007 edit.jpg|thumb|left|160px|Brazilia

At least thirteen people have been killed after torrential rains caused mudslides in Italy on Friday. The mudslides occurred in the city of Messina, located in the northern part of Sicily. The mud blocked rails and road, cut off communications, and destroyed several buildings. Search and rescue teams were using dogs to locate survivors buried beneath the rubble. Around forty people were hospitalised. "Most of the dead and seriously injured were in two buildings that collapsed in mudslides," emergency services spokesman Giampiero Gliubizzi to

A tsunami that was generated in the South Pacific by a powerful undersea earthquake has killed at least 110 people, according to authorities. The majority of the fatalities occurred in Samoa, where rescue workers say at least 84 people were killed. Another 24 people are confirmed dead on American Samoa, while at least seven fatalities have been reported in nearby Tonga. The US Geological Survey says an 8.0 magnitude earthquake struck early Tuesday local time. It generated waves that devastated coastal areas, knocked down buildings and sent

Typhoon Ketsana, the storm that recently wreaked havoc on the Philippines and Vietnam, reached Cambodia on Wednesday, killing at least 11 people and injuring a further 29 in the country, according to officials. The National Committee for Disaster Management said that nine of the casualties were reported in the Kampong Thom province, located 130 kilometres north of Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh. Officials had launched search and rescue teams to find more victims, and sent medical supplies, food, and other necessities to affected regions of the

A crime scene police detective and a forensic biologist testified on Tuesday about bloody evidence entered into the court record, in the ongoing criminal trial against New York State Senator Hiram Monserrate. Monserrate faces charges of felony assault in an alleged attack on his girlfriend Karla Giraldo. The prosecution has asserted that when Monserrate discovered that his girlfriend had the business card of another man, he chose to strike out at her. Monserrate has entered a plea of not guilty to charges he sliced his girlfriend's face with b

Indonesian officials have said that at least 770 people have been killed and thousands more feared trapped under collapsed buildings, following a powerful earthquake on Wednesday. The 7.6-magnitude quake struck off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, and officials are trying to determine the extent of the damage. A second earthquake hit the region at 01.52 UTC on Thursday, measuring at a magnitude of 6.8, with the epicentre about 150 miles southeast of the first quake. The death toll is expected to rise as rescue workers dig throu

A British nursery worker, Vanessa George, and two other people, Angela Allen and Colin Blanchard, have been convicted, in Bristol Crown Court, of sexually abusing minors and sharing the pictures online. Each person recorded images on their mobile phones, and shared them with each of the other two via email and text. Detective Superintendent Adrian Pearson of Nottinghamshire Police called this behaviour "horrific and devilish", saying, "Those three individuals have shared quite willingly and freely images, texts, fantasies of the most serious l

Pakistani security officials have said that at least eight Taliban fighters were killed following a suspected US missile drone strike in the country on Wednesday. The drones struck the North Waziristan region of Pakistan, the fourth missile attack in the area since the beginning of the week, after the US decided to step up its offensive against insurgents in the region. "One missile hit the compound while the other hit a vehicle parked outside. We have confirmed reports of six dead," said an unnamed security official. Intelligence officials

General Ray Odierno, the senior US military commander in Iraq, has said that over four thousand troops serving in the country will be withdrawn from the country over the course of this month. The general announced the move on Wednesday, to a US congressional panel. After the withdrawal, due to be complete by the end of October, 120,000 troops will remain in Iraq. "That's a bit faster than we originally planned. As we go forward, we will thin our lines across Iraq in order to reduce the risk and sustain stability through a deliberate transitio

The Philippines, still reeling from the destructive Typhoon Ketsana just days before, is bracing for another strike from Typhoon Parma, which is expected to hit the region on Saturday. Ketsana brought torrential rains to the northern Philippines on Saturday, inundating most of the capital Manila and surrounding provinces. Scores of people were killed and many are still missing. Overall, Ketsana affected nearly two million people. Now Parma, a "super typhoon" packing winds of 150 miles per hour, is threatening to devastate the region again. T

Rhode Island will receive US$90 million in funding from the United States federal government to support unemployment benefits in the state. Rhode Island's Department of Labor and Training stated on Wednesday that it requested the line of credit because the account utilized to provide funding to unemployed individuals in the state had decreased to only $2 million; enough to last only a few days. In a statement released by the Department, the agency said: "Unemployment insurance customers will not experience any delays in receiving their week

Ecuadorean police clashed with Amazon Indians protesting new laws they fear will increase oil drilling, leaving one person dead and at least 49 others injured on Thursday. Authorities said the violence occurred Wednesday in Morona Santiago province, a major oil producing region. The clash came after three days of demonstrations in which indigenous groups had blocked roads in the jungle region to protest laws they say would encourage more oil drilling. The officials say one protester was killed and 40 police and nine protesters were injured. "