Politics

Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark has been appointed as head of the United Nations Development Program. The appointment follows a unanimous vote by the UN General Assembly yesterday. Clark will take up the role by April 20, replacing current UNDP Administrator Kemal Dervis. Clark is reportedly eager for the role, comparing it to winning her first election and becoming Prime Minister. "I guess this is another of those moments," she said. The UNDP gives training and advice to developing countries to spur global development and

According to officials, Somali pirates have seized a luxury boat named the Ocean Explorer off the coast of the Seychelles archipelago in the Indian Ocean. Seven Seychellois crew members are believed to be on board. The boat is thought to be headed for Somalia. Patrick Pillay, the Foreign Affairs Minister, said that the Seychelles government had contacted local naval forces who had pledged to "track down the boat." "The Indian Ocean Explorer has been seized by pirates about 600 miles west of the capital. What I've been told is they believe thi

An act signed into law by Afghan President Hamid Karzai last month dramatically rolled back the rights of women in that country, according to human rights groups and a United Nations report on the bill by the United Nations Development Fund for Women. The Afghan government has not provided a copy of the text of the Shia Family Law to the UN or to other outside groups requesting it, citing "technical problems", however, the UN and opposition politicians say that the bill contains numerous provisions restricting the rights of women, such as givi

The prime minister of the western African country of Guinea-Bissau has announced that the country will further postpone elections until June due to increasing violence. Elections are in order to replace the former president, who was assassinated last month. Francisco Jose Fadul, the nation's former prime minister, says that he has been beaten by men that he claims were in uniform. "Men in uniform forced their way into my house around 1:00 am (0100 GMT). They hurled abuse at me and beat me repeatedly and dragged me across the floor," said Fadul

The names of 77 reporters, photographers and broadcasters were added to a memorial to honor slain journalists in the Newseum in Washington, D.C.. "These 77 individuals were brought together in a fellowship that none of them would have chosen, a fellowship created by their commitment, their courage and, ultimately, their sacrifice," said Chris Wells, vice president of the Freedom Forum, which runs the Newseum. The Newseum Journalist's Memorial contains the names of 1,913 journalists dating back to 1837. Thirteen of the names added Monday were

The South Downs, an area of chalk downland in southern England is to gain National Park status under measures announced earlier today. In the announcement, Environment Secretary Hillary Benn was quoted as saying "It is fitting that in this year, the 60th anniversary of the radical legislation that gave birth to National Parks, we are celebrating an addition to the family." The designation has not been met with approval by some. Nigel Waterson, an MP for nearby Eastbournce, alleges to Channel 4 News that "ministers have ignored the views of al

On Wednesday, Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, leader of the Great Union Party (Büyük Birlik Partisi – BBP), died in a helicopter crash that claimed six lives. The helicopter crashed in a mountainous region near the city of Kahramanmaraş, and rescue efforts were hampered by stormy weather. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey, related that 2,000 personnel had assisted in the search and rescue to locate the downed helicopter. Thick fog compounded by a snow blizzard hampered efforts. Ismail Gunes, an Ihlas News Agency cameraman, ca

Last week, NATO and Iran had contact for the first time in thirty years, NATO officials stated Thursday. "[An Iranian] diplomat met with Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy Martin Erdmann," said chief alliance spokesman James Appathurai. The Iranian embassy in Brussels declined to comment on the visit. The visit to Brussels by the Iranian diplomat was the first "since the regime of the Shah" collapsed in the Iranian Revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini in 1979. "It was a first informal contact about the subje

On Tuesday, World Tuberculosis Day, the Government of Canada committed C$127.4 million to the fight against tuberculosis (TB) worldwide. The Minister of International Cooperation, Beverley J. Oda, said "Our government has a comprehensive, long-term approach in the global fight against tuberculosis and Canadians can be proud that our country continues to be an international leader. We have achieved significant results, as Canada has already contributed to the successful treatment of more than four million tuberculosis sufferers and saved over h

The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, opened the Canadian seal hunt amid protests by animal rights groups, at a time when bans on seal product imports are becoming more prevalent internationally. Seal hunters along the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence are allowed to catch a maximum of 270,000 Harp Seal pups from a total estimated population of 5.5 million. 8,200 is the allowable catch of Hooded seals from an estimated population of 600,000, and seal hunters may catch 50,000 grey seals from

On Wednesday, the European Parliament approved the "Single European Sky II" legislation that will lead to the creation of a single European airspace. The single European airspace will result in "more efficient rules, leading to shorter flights, fewer delays and reduced fuel consumption". In turn, this should result in fewer CO2 emissions and cheaper ticket prices. Implementation should be completed by 2012. Currently the European airspace consists of 650 parts with 60 different control centers and 27 air traffic control (ATC) zones. Internatio

United States President Barack Obama is seeking a "comprehensive exit strategy" from the Afghanistan war. During a 60 Minutes interview, Obama said, "There’s got to be an exit strategy. There’s got to be a sense that this is not perpetual drift." In February Obama said that 17,000 more troops would be sent this year before the August elections to supplement the 36,000 American troops already deployed in Afghanistan. Obama stated that the U.S. Mission in Afghanistan is "making sure that al-Qaeda cannot attack the U.S. homeland and U.S. i