The commander of the US Marines in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province has hailed the progress of a joint US-Afghan military campaign against the Taliban in the province's Marjah town. In an interview with Al Jazeera's James Bays, Brigadier-General Larry Nicholson said the military is in "very good shape", as the campaign, known as Operation Moshtarak, entered its eleventh day. "Today there were no fire fights after 29 fire fights on day two. Yesterday we had one," he said. "Today, the largest thing we did was hand out food. So I would say we've got to be pleased with where we are."
If you experience technical problems viewing this video please download the latest Adobe Flash Player.
Mexican police said they have captured a suspect they believe was trafficking cocaine and marijuana for the powerful Sinaloa cartel. Authorities also said Jose Vasquez Villagrana was a former U.S. Army soldier. (Feb. 23)
If you experience technical problems viewing this video please download the latest Adobe Flash Player.
A new study has concluded that a volcanic eruption of mud in Indonesia's east Java was caused by human error. An international team of scientists says there is no doubt that drilling at a nearby gas well weakened rock formations, triggering the crisis. The company responsible for the drilling, Lapindo Brantas, claims the problem was caused by an earthquake. Al Jazeera's Step Vaessen reports from East Java
If you experience technical problems viewing this video please download the latest Adobe Flash Player.
BRUSSELS (AP) -- EU regulators say British Airways, American Airlines and Iberia are offering to give away take-off and landing slots at London and New York airports to soothe European Union antitrust concerns....
LONDON (AP) -- Nationalized mortgage lender Northern Rock said Wednesday that it returned to profit in the second half of 2009 as interest income rose and losses on loans fell....
Yangon, March 10 (DPA) Myanmar's new election laws have barred opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and more than 2,000 other political prisoners from contesting polls planned this year, state media reports said onWednesday. Under the Political Parties Registration Law, published in state-run newspapers Wednesday, all prisoners are barred from joining political parties that register to contest a general election. This condition effectively excludes Suu Kyi and 2,100 other political prisoners from running in the upcoming polls, which would be the first in Myanmar in...
The aftershocks of the Port-au-Prince earthquake are hitting especially hard among displaced women, who face an outbreak of sexual violence. Liesl Gerntholtz on the awful toll—and how to help. Driving through Port-au-Prince’s Parc Jean Marie Vincent camp, the first thing I notice is how massive and congested it is. After that, the smell and the heat hit me. I had come to the camp to interview a young rape survivor, as part of a Human Rights Watch mission to Haiti to investigate sexual and other violence against women in the aftermath of the earthquake. Sexual violence often increases in emergencies, when normal structures have...
The Indonesian president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has confirmed that the terror suspect Dulmatin was killed in a police raid in Jakarta. Indonesian security forces said they had killed three suspected militants in two raids on Tuesday. But they could not confirm that Dulmatin, alleged mastermind behind the 2002 Bali bombings, was among those killed. Mr Yudhoyono is on a three-day trip to neighbouring Australia. The raids were said to be linked to an ongoing operation against militants in...
The Greek prime minister has welcomed the US response to his call for a crackdown on speculators he blames for damaging Greece's economy. George Papandreou met President Barack Obama in Washington on Tuesday to discuss his country's financial woes. "We have found a positive response from President Obama which means this issue will be on the agenda in the next G20 meeting," Papandreou told reporters, refering to the G20 meeting in June, outside the White House after the talks. Greece wants to see the US impose stricter...
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Americans have come to detest Congress ever more deeply as it nears the end of a nasty fight over health care. But more than half still back President Barack Obama, a bright spot for a Democratic Party counting on its leader to help stave off expected losses in elections this fall....
POLE CHAKI TRAINING BASE, Afghanistan (AP) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says some of the U.S. forces involved in the Afghanistan surge could leave the country before President Barack Obama's announced July 2011 date to begin withdrawal....
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) -- Israel's new plan to build 1,600 homes for Jews in east Jerusalem is overshadowing Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the West Bank....
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Kobe Bryant hit a 17-foot fallaway jumper with 1.9 seconds left, and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied in the fourth quarter to snap their three-game losing streak with a 109-107 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night....
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- Derick Nelson scored a career-high 36 points and slow-starting Oakland, Mich., defeated IUPUI 76-64 in the Summit League championship game to advance to the NCAA tournament Tuesday night....
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Shelvin Mack scored all 14 of his points in the first half, and Matt Howard had 14 points and nine rebounds to help No. 12 Butler rout second-seeded Wright State 70-45 in the Horizon League title game Tuesday night....
