40 killed as Shiite rebels attack north Yemen town:
Shiite Muslim Houthi rebels backed by tanks launched a fresh attack on Friday on a town in north Yemen held by their Sunni Muslim Salafist rivals, a Salafist spokesman said, bringing the total death toll in three days of sectarian clashes to 40.
24 Killed, 87 Wounded in Iraq's Violence:
The deadliest attack occurred in Iraq's Northern central province of Salahudin, when up to seven people were killed and some 45 wounded in a coordinated suicide bombing and two car bomb attacks in the city of Tuz-Khurmato
Bush- Blair Legacy Continues
As UN says nearly 1,000 Iraqis killed in October:
Attacks and other violence across Iraq killed 979 people in October, the United Nations said Friday, a monthly death toll that is the same as the figure for September.
CIA Training "Rebels" In Syria, so far "only" 1,000 fighters instructed:
Republican Senator Bob Corker on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee admitted CIA's year-old program to provide military training to Syrian rebels, but criticized it as "incredibly, incredibly slow", saying he had so far instructed only about 1,000 fighters.
Hundreds of Syrian refugees 'denied entry into Jordan':
Hundreds of people fleeing the civil war in Syria are being turned back at the border with Jordan and neighbouring countries, says Amnesty International.
Children going hungry in Syria war zones: UN:
The United Nations' food aid agency said on Friday that it feared a rise in malnutrition among children trapped in besieged communities in Syria where fighting has halted supply convoys.
4 killed as Israel-Gaza violence flares over tunnel:
Four members of Palestinian resistance have been killed and five Israeli soldiers injured in violence in the Gaza Strip, Israeli and Palestinian sources say.
Jenin man shot dead by Israeli occupation forces:
"Ahmad was emptying products from a truck inside a market when Israeli soldiers began shooting at people in the market. Ahmad ran away to hide behind a wall, and he was peering out to see the situation and that's when he was shot by a bullet in his heart," he told Ma'an.
Fuel shortage causes power outage in Gaza:
"We have completely stopped the operation of (Gaza's sole) power plant this morning at 6 a.m. because we don't have a single liter of fuel," the authority's deputy chairman, told AFP. Khalil blamed the power outage on Egypt's destruction of tunnels used for bringing fuel to Gaza and accused the Palestinian Authority of charging Hamas too much for its fuel.
Panetta: US may have to use military force against Iran: -
Addressing the Anti-Defamation League's 100th annual meeting on Thursday night, former US secretary of defense and CIA director Leon Panetta told the ballroom of around 600 people that while the US has "implemented unprecedented sanctions and pressure on Iran, we may very well have to use military force to back up our policy."
Joe Biden presses Senate Dems on Iran:
Vice President Joe Biden joined other top Obama administration officials on Thursday in a bid to persuade the Senate not to impose new sanctions on Iran, a sign of how eager the White House is to avoid a conflict with Congress over the delicate diplomatic matter.
21 Taliban militants killed during operations, clashes in Ghazni:
Taliban-fighters-in-a-mad-006At least 21 Taliban militants were killed during joint military operations and clashes with the Afghan police forces in eastern Ghanzi province of Afghanistan.
US Kills 5 People In Pakistan:
The leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Hakimullah Mehsud, has been killed in a drone strike, a high-ranking Taliban official has told the BBC. Four other people were killed in the strike, including two of Mehsud's bodyguards, intelligence sources say.
In public relations exercise:
Pakistani political leader says NATO supply routes will be cut if U.S. drone strikes continue:
The chief political leader in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province threatened Thursday to choke off key NATO supply routes if U.S. drone strikes on Pakistan continue, setting up a potential clash within the country's national government.
Dozens injured at pro-Morsi rallies across Egypt:
Dozens of people have been injured as thousands of supporters of the deposed president, Mohamed Morsi, hold anti-military demonstrations across Egypt, security sources say.
Kerry to make first Egypt visit since army Coup :
Kerry's visit comes at a time of strained relations between the traditional allies after Washington suspended some military aid to Egypt following Morsi's ouster.
Blackmail Inc.
Tap on Merkel Provides Peek at Vast Spy Net:
It was not obvious to the National Security Agency a dozen years ago that Angela Merkel, a rising star as the leader of the Christian Democratic Union, was a future chancellor of Germany. But that did not matter.
Snowden ready to go to Germany under asylum as his letter to Berlin revealed:
NSA whistleblower, Edward Snowden, is ready to go to Germany and testify over the US wiretapping of Angela Merkel's phone on condition of granting him political asylum, a German MP who met Snowden has said.
Russian Prime Minister says US hurt by evidence of 'cynical' spying:
"Can the situation be calmed? I think it's possible. But to be honest, no assurances will help here," he said. "What can you say in this situation? 'Sorry, we won't do it anymore' or 'We will not try to listen in on you'? Nobody will believe it."
NSA Spied on World Bank, IMF, UN, Pope, World Leaders, and American Politicians and Military Officers:
A high-level NSA whistleblower says that the NSA is spying on - and blackmailing - top government officials and military officers, including Supreme Court Justices, high-ranked generals, Colin Powell and other State Department personnel, and many other top officials.
Fact or fiction;
Obama halted NSA spying on IMF and World Bank headquarters:
President Barack Obama has ordered the National Security Agency to stop eavesdropping on the headquarters of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank as part of a review of intelligence gathering activities, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.
Snowden hired by major Russian website:
US whistle-blower Edward Snowden is set to begin work in unnamed company in Moscow on November 1.
Finland says it was target of "massive" digital spying: -
Finland said Thursday its foreign ministry had been the target of "massive" digital spying, but its most sensitive information was not affected. The MTV3 television station which first broke the story reported that the Russian and Chinese secret services were suspected by Helsinki of being behind the digital attacks.
Six Ways to Keep the Government Out of Your Files:
Pro-tips on how to lock down your data.
Poland asks European court to hide CIA secret torture prison case from public:
Poland has asked the European Court of Human Rights to bar media and public presence during an upcoming hearing on Poland's complicity with the CIA's "extraordinary rendition" program that delivered terror suspects to secret prisons around the world.
Taiwanese government introduces terrifying Special Forces clone army:
Taiwanese Special Forces and a select few other military units recently received updated bulletproof armor that includes a ballistic face mask that serves to protect operators from lethal headshots and to reduce fighting effectiveness of opposing forces, seemingly by causing them to immediately curl into the fetal position and cry for their mothers
Los Angeles International Airport shooting:
TSA officer killed; several others wounded: A federal law enforcement official said that a TSA officer was shot and killed at a passenger screening checkpoint at Los Angeles International Airport. Three or four other TSA employees were injured in the shooting, the official said.
LAX shooter identified as Paul Anthony Ciancia, 23, of Los Angeles:
The gunman in today's shooting at Los Angeles International Airport has been identified as Paul Anthony Ciancia, a 23-year-old Los Angeles-area resident with strong anti-government views, NBC News reported.
Pew's Appalling Thumbs Up for Payday Loans With 129% Annual Interest:
Payday lenders have found a powerful friend in the Pew Charitable Trusts. In a recent report on payday lending -- the culmination of two years of work -- Pew embraces reforms to this industry that would still allow the poorest Americans to be charged annual interest rates in the triple digits.
Goldman Sachs pays Hillary Clinton $400,000 -- for two speeches:
Hillary Clinton spoke at two separate Goldman Sachs events on the evenings of Thursday, October 24 and Tuesday, October 29. As both Politico and the New York Times report, Clinton's fee is about $200,000 per speech, meaning she likely netted around $400,000 for her paid gigs at Goldman over the course of six days.
In case you missed it:
Hillary Clinton Taps Speechmaking Gold Mine:
Just a few months after leaving the State Department, Hillary Rodham Clinton has plunged into the lucrative world of paid speechmaking, joining a branch of the family business that has brought the Clintons more than $100 million since her husband left the White House in 2001
Food Stamp Cuts as Business Opportunity?
The cut to the nation's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program going into effect today will take food away from 47.7 million Americans who need it. This includes working people whose pay isn't enough to feed their families; out-of-work Americans still looking for a job; elderly people; people with disabilities; and 21 million children.
How You Pay Farmers to Watch Their Crop Shrivel Up and Die:
The federal crop insurance program puts farmers in a real bind. And as climate change intensifies, it's only getting worse.
Judges reinstate Texas abortion restrictions:
As a result, about one third of Texas' abortion clinics won't be able to perform the procedure starting on Friday, November 1. Women's groups fighting the law have argued that it would cause these clinics to shut down permanently.
Texas man arrested and jailed for overdue library book:
This is the second Texas arrest that's made the headlines this month, following a report concerning a Richland Hills woman who was arrested, strip-searched, and jailed because she failed to pay a traffic ticket on time.
