Politics

President Bush approved a historic bill designed to keep brain-damaged Terri Schiavo on life-support, shortly after it was sent to him by the US House of Representatives. "Today, I signed into law a bill that will allow federal courts to hear a claim by or on behalf of Terri Schiavo for violation of her rights relating to the withholding or withdrawal of food, fluids, or medical treatment necessary to sustain her life," said Bush's written statement. Bush waited at the White House for the bill's arrival and signed it into law after returning

Rodrigo Granda, also known as Ricardo Gonzalez, was arrested by Colombian forces on December 13, 2004. The communist group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) claims the arrest is illegal, since Granda was in Venezuela for purposes related to his work as a international FARC delegate. However, the Colombia government does not recognize the FARC as a legitimate political group and accuses the FARC of terrorism and drug trafficking. According to a note released by the FARC, several communist parties are showing solidarity with the FARC

The Lebanese political opposition group, dubbed the "Cedar Revolution" by the US State Department, claims Syria should be held responsible for a car bomb that rocked the Christian neighborhood of New Jdeideh in the capital city of Beirut, The blast occurred early yesterday morning. "The security agencies belong to [Syria]. There is no other explanation. When security agencies come under Lebanese control it will be another matter," Reuters quotes opposition leader and Druze chieftain Walid Jumblatt as saying. After the car bomb explosion, whic

Lebanese President Emile Lahoud said he will not be attending the upcoming Arab summit scheduled for Monday. The announcement was made Saturday after a car bomb in the early morning hours wrecked a six-story apartment building, causing injuries, but there have been no reports of deaths. It is not clear at this time who is responsible for the bombing. Both the Lebanese and Syrian governments denied any involvement. There was an accusation, reported by Reuters on Sat Mar 19, 2005 12:27 PM ET, made by key opposition leader, Walid Jumblatt, saying

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi announced on Friday that Japan will not shoot down missiles that are headed for its allies. Koizumi spoke at the plenary meeting of the Upper House of the Japanese Parliament. "The purpose of our country's missile defense is to intercept incoming missiles targeting Japan," said Koizumi. "We are not thinking of dealing with other missiles targeting our allies." Koizumi pointed out that the angle and altitude of a missile in flight could be used to determine the target of the missile. He went on to cla

The Head Minister of the Institutional Security Cabinet of Brazil's General Jorge Felix, and the director-general of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin), Mauro Marcelo de Lima e Silva say that the documents mentioned by the Brazilian magazine Veja may be incorrect. Last weekend, Veja reported that Partido dos Trabalhadores (or PT), the Brazilian ruling party and the party of president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, received 5 million dollars from FARC in its 2002 political campaign. The magazine used documents gotten from Abin itself as a

Northern Ireland secretary Paul Murphy said there is "no hope" of political progress on peace talks until all IRA "criminal activity" has been dealt with. Mr Murphy praised the courage of the McCartney sisters' campaign for justice for those responsible in the murder of their brother Robert McCartney. Their brother was stabbed and kicked to death after an altercation in a bar in the center of Belfast. The gang which killed him included at least three members of the IRA. Mr Murphy's comments came during a visit the sisters made to Washington.

The famous "Mao suit", prominently worn by Chinese leaders in the decades following that country's 1949 revolution, is on the verge of disappearing from China, as the fashion-conscious younger generation shuns the previously common style in favor of the latest apparel offered by modern designers. China's President Hu Jintao was last seen in a green Mao suit while visiting a military base during the Chinese New Year. During the recent National People's Congress gathering in Beijing, Sun Fucai, manager of the official Red Capital clothing store

The late Robert McCartney's five sisters are visiting the United States in an effort to place pressure on the IRA. They are meeting with Ted Kennedy and other political leaders to gather support. They are also meeting with President Bush on St. Patrick's day, and will give him a dossier. They accuse IRA members of killing their brother during a brawl in a Belfast bar in January. Sinn Féin is also alleged to have attempted to cover up the incident by at least one of the women. Catherine McCartney said to the BBC, "We have to be very careful

The United Kingdom Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Right Honourable Gordon Brown PC MP, in a speech to the British House of Commons today presented his ninth Budget, what is very likely to be his last Budget before the next UK General Election. This opened the parliamentary debate on the 2005 Finance Bill, and was followed by responses from the opposition parties. In a 48 minute long speech, the Chancellor presented a Budget of "tax cuts that are reasonable, spending that is affordable, and [economic] stability that is paramount", that was "

Dueling between protest groups continued yesterday in Beirut at Martyrs' Square where hundreds of thousands demonstrated in opposition to Syrian forces inside Lebanon. It is estimated the rally consisted of nearly a million people, making it twice the size of the one organized last week by the Shiite group Hezbollah who call for Syrian forces to remain in Lebanon. Monday's rally also marks the one month anniversery of the assassination of former anti-Syrian Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Crowds wearing colors of red and white to show th

Two Taiwanese political parties of the independence-leaning "pan-green alliance" unveiled new bills today in response to the new "anti-secession" law passed earlier this week by the People's Republic of China. The Democratic Progressive Party is expected to introduce a bill giving the President of the Republic of China the power to take "non-peaceful" action, or other actions, to "safeguard Taiwan's sovereignty and territory". The draft version of the law mandates that the Taiwanese President must report to the legislature on any such actions