Dozens of extremists attacked a Kenyan coastal town for hours, killing those who weren't Muslim and those who didn't know the Somali language, officials and witnesses said Monday. At least 48 people were killed and two hotels were set on fire. The assault in Mpeketoni began Sunday night as residents watched World Cup matches on TV and lasted until early Monday. Authorities blamed al-Shabab, Somalia's al-Qaida-linked terror group, who have vowed to carry out terror attacks to avenge the Kenyan military presence in Somali.
In an appearance on the Family Research Council’s “Washington Watch” last week Sen. Jim Inhofe deliberated whether President Obama is a terrorist supporter or a buffoon, and decided that he president is intentionally “supporting the enemy.”
The European Union's antitrust regulator has launched an investigation into tax deals that Apple, Starbucks and Fiat struck with some European countries, the start of a wider push to keep multinationals from taking advantage of loopholes. "When public budgets are tight and citizens are asked to make efforts to deal with the consequences of the (financial) crisis, it cannot be accepted that large multinationals do not pay their fair share of taxes," EU antitrust commissioner Joaquin Almunia said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine President-Elect Petro Poroshenko met briefly Friday for what could be the beginnings of a tense truce between the two nations. Putin went so far as to praise Poroshenko for his commitment to peace in eastern Ukraine.
Russia on Monday granted Ukraine another week before it will start demanding prepayment for gas, without which it has threatened to cut off supplies. The announcement by Russia's state gas company Gazprom came at the outset of a second round of European Union-mediated talks aimed at resolving the two countries' dispute over gas prices and outstanding debt.
Promising to bring back "happiness," the head of the military junta that took control of Thailand in a coup last week said Friday that elections may not occur for more than a year because peace and reforms must be achieved first. Martial law generally makes it hard for people to smile, though.
A judge in southern Iran has ordered Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg to appear in court to answer complaints by individuals who say Facebook-owned applications Instagram and Whatsapp violate their privacy, semiofficial news agency ISNA reported Tuesday.
So far, the drama of Thailand's military takeover has played out mainly in the political arena. As the army summons journalists and academics seen as anti-coup, detains ousted political leaders and issues stern warnings on TV, tourists are kicking back on the country's famed beaches and sightseeing in Bangkok. The main impact on visitors for now is a 10 p.m. curfew, which forces nightlife to close several hours earlier. But the cancellations are piling up as the coup's severity grows.
Citing privacy concerns, an Iranian court banned the website Instagram. The site follows Facebook, Twitter and YouTube onto the blacklist as Iran cracks down on methods used by the country's youth to communicate and voice dissent.
