document
stringlengths 35
636
| summary
stringlengths 6
265
|
|---|---|
former president bill clinton predicted thursday barack obama would beat john mccain `` handily '' in november 's election as he prepared to campaign on behalf of his successor as democratic leader . | bill clinton to campaign predicts handy obama win |
the eu 's french presidency on thursday condemned the murder of a lebanese opposition figure and stressed the bloc 's readiness to help bring to justice those carrying out terrorist acts . | eu presidency condemns killing of lebanese opposition figure |
a fire in the channel tunnel triggered traffic jams at both ends of the tunnel on thursday , as trucks and cars scrambled to find alternative ways of getting between france and britain . | channel tunnel fire triggers huge traffic jams |
reeling from almost nationwide destruction from hurricanes gustav and ike , cash - strapped cuba thursday charged the united states was `` lying '' about its stated willingness to help the communist country . | desperate cuba charges us is lying on storm aid |
south sudan appealed on thursday to uganda 's rebel lord 's resistance army -lrb- lra -rrb- to sign a final peace agreement `` for the sake of the people , '' as military pressure mounted against the insurgents . | uganda rebels must sign deal peace deal negotiator warns |
roads and bridges leading away from the texas coast were jammed thursday as hundreds of thousands of residents of houston and surrounding areas began a mass evacuation thursday , with deadly hurricane ike bearing down on the texas metropolis . | thousands forced to flee houston as deadly ike advances |
sarah palin is rejuvenating her republican running mate john mccain in three of the battleground states likely to decide his showdown with democrat barack obama , new polls showed thursday . | mccain basks in palin power in key swing states |
the united states said thursday it will monitor two russian tu-### strategic bombers , which it described as `` cold war era assets , '' following their deployment to venezuela . | us to watch russia 's cold-war era warplanes in venezuela |
the chinese company at the center of a major health scare said thursday its baby milk powder had been contaminated , as reports spread of infants being hospitalised with kidney stones . | health scare in china over contaminated baby milk powder |
a traditional chief in northern nigeria 's borno state was suspended from office thursday after divorcing his wife for having their children immunised against polio , a state spokesman said . | nigerian chief dethroned for divorcing wife over polio vaccine |
rescuers evacuated dozens of people from the channel tunnel on thursday after a fire on a freight shuttle injured ## people and forced the closure of the key transport link , officials said . | fire forces channel tunnel evacuation ## injured |
deadly clashes in bolivia thursday stoked fears of further widespread unrest and possibly even civil war , amid a furor over the expulsion of the us ambassador to the country . | fresh violence in bolivia stokes civil war fears |
republican white house hopeful john mccain commemorated september ## attacks from the crash site of united airlines flight ## in rural pennsylvania , commending `` the courage and sacrifice '' of its passengers . | mccain marks september ## strikes at flight ## crash site |
the fight for survival at several big us banks is focusing minds in europe on whether governments are prepared to react in case a major european bank also runs into deep trouble . | eu officials fear divisions in case of banking crisis |
un chief ban ki-moon on thursday said the world body was weighing sending a fact-finding mission to georgia and was willing to facilitate international talks on the breakaway enclaves of south ossetia and abkhazia . | un weighs sending fact-finding team to georgia |
a jailed member of the basque separatist group eta who was convicted of plotting to assassinate spain 's king juan carlos has begun a hunger strike to demand a transfer to a hospital , a basque prisoners ' rights group said thursday . | eta man convicted of plot to kill spanish king starts hunger strike |
john mccain and barack obama declared a truce thursday in their rancorous white house campaign , joining somber ground zero ceremonies on the seventh anniversary of the #\/## terror strikes . | tears political truce mark #\/## anniversary |
britain 's opposition conservative leader david cameron , whose party has a clear lead over the ruling labor party , is being presented to the world this week on the cover of time magazine . | british opposition leader gets the time treatment |
media watchdog ipi thursday slammed slovenia for exerting pressure on a finnish television channel which recently reported on corruption allegations against the slovenian premier . | media body slams slovenian pressure on finnish media |
spain 's largest bank , santander , said thursday it has made an indicative bid for germany 's postbank with the aim of acquiring full control from owner and former postal monopoly deutsche post . | spain 's santander makes bid for germany 's postbank |
a technical recession in europe , defined as two consecutive quarters of economic contraction , can not be ruled out , dutch central bank governor and ecb board member nout wellink warned thursday . | ecb official warns recession can not be ruled out |
un chief ban ki-moon on thursday unveiled a report warning that poverty reduction goals agreed by world leaders eight years ago may not be met by the #### target date , particularly in africa . | un chief unveils report on flagging world fight against poverty |
turkish foreign minister ali babacan on thursday signed accords to boost economic and energy ties with switzerland during a visit to bern . | swiss turkish ministers sign cooperation pacts |
european stock markets suffered thursday , dragged down by the finance sector on mounting fears about the fate of struggling us investment bank lehman brothers . | european stocks close lower |
in what would be the third mega-deal in german retail banking in two months , deutsche bank has confirmed it is looking at an acquisition that would more than double its high street customer base . | germany set for another banking mega-deal |
russian troops labored thursday over a tentative pull-out from georgia as moscow vowed to strengthen its military after last month 's war and turned its diplomatic fire on ukraine . | russia turns diplomatic fire on ukraine |
the euro came under heavy pressure against the dollar and yen thursday on increasing speculation that the eurozone will not be able to escape a recession later this year . | euro slides against dollar yen |
nigerian president umaru yar ` adua on thursday urged a gathering of transparency experts here to look at ways of cracking down on `` blood oil '' , or crude stolen from conflict zones . | nigerian president urges crack down on blood oil |
oil and natural gas production in the gulf of mexico has been largely shut off as hurricane ike looms , the us department of energy said thursday , adding however that the storm was likely to spare most gulf energy installations . | oil gas production in gulf of mexico largely shut off as ike looms |
reeling from almost nationwide destruction from hurricanes gustav and ike , cash - strapped cuba thursday charged the united states was `` lying '' about its stated willingness to help the communist country . | desperate cuba charges us is lying on storm aid |
deadly clashes in bolivia thursday further stoked fears of widespread unrest and possibly civil war , amid a furore over the expulsion of the us ambassador to the country . | fresh violence in bolivia stokes civil war fears |
the heads of some of afghanistan 's leading private companies issued a joint call for peace thursday , saying UNK unrest and insecurity were hampering growth . | afghan business leaders call for peace |
british firefighters raced into the channel tunnel thursday to tackle a fire described as a `` serious incident , '' as traffic tailbacks rapidly formed on the british end after the tunnel was closed . | serious fire triggers gridlock at british end of channel tunnel |
president george w. bush dedicated the first september ## memorial thursday at the pentagon , hailing the `` heroes of #\/## '' and the absence of terrorist attacks on us soil in the seven years since that assault . | pentagon dedicates first september ## memorial |
us president george w. bush will welcome indian prime minister manmohan singh on UNK ## for talks on bilateral relations including a nuclear cooperation deal , the white house said thursday . | singh to visit us sept ## |
deadly clashes in bolivia thursday further stoked fears of widespread unrest and possibly civil war , amid a furore over the expulsion of the us ambassador to the country . | fresh violence in bolivia stokes civil war fears |
afghan president hamid karzai thursday welcomed a new us `` war on terror '' focus on pakistan 's border areas as more deadly violence underscored rampant militancy seven years after the september ## , #### attacks . | afghanistan welcomes war on terror shift on #\/## anniversary |
oil and natural gas production in the gulf of mexico has been largely shut off as hurricane ike looms , the us department of energy said thursday , adding however that the storm was likely to spare most gulf energy installations . | oil gas production in gulf of mexico largely shut off as ike looms |
zimbabwean president robert mugabe cast fresh doubt thursday on expectations of a power-sharing agreement with the opposition saying that talks to end a ruinous political crisis were `` stuck '' . | mugabe casts fresh doubt on zimbabwe deal |
deadly clashes in bolivia thursday further stoked fears of widespread unrest and possibly civil war , amid a furore over the expulsion of the us ambassador to the country . | fresh violence in bolivia stokes civil war fears |
un chief ban ki-moon on thursday unveiled a report warning that poverty reduction goals agreed by world leaders eight years ago may not be met by the #### target date , particularly in africa . | un chief unveils report on flagging world fight against poverty |
a fire on a freight shuttle in the channel tunnel on thursday forced an emergency rescue operation and the closure of the tunnel , officials said . | fire closes channel tunnel |
a ryanair flight was forced to return to dublin airport on thursday after the plane 's tail hit the runway as it took off for london , the airline and airport officials said . | ryanair plane in dublin airport take-off incident |
zimbabwean president robert mugabe , who thursday reported a snag in power - sharing talks with the opposition , arrived at a hotel were south african president thabo mbeki is trying to broker a deal . | mugabe arrives at harare hotel for powersharing talks |
russian president dmitry medvedev on thursday ordered the government and central bank to boost funds flowing into financial markets to curb a four-month slump that has seen stock prices fall by nearly half . | medvedev orders russian government to help strained markets |
the chinese company at the center of a major health scare said thursday its baby milk powder had been contaminated , as reports spread of infants being hospitalised with kidney stones . | health scare in china over infant milk powder |
oil and natural gas production in the gulf of mexico has been largely shut off as hurricane ike looms , the us department of energy said thursday , adding however that the storm was likely to spare most gulf energy installations . | oil gas production in gulf of mexico largely shut off as ike looms |
the us trade deficit rose sharply to ##.# billion dollars in july , the largest gap in more than a year , on record high oil prices and surging chinese imports , government data showed thursday . | us july trade deficit swells on oil chinese imports |
moroccan authorities on thursday released blogger mohamed UNK on bail from a two year jail term ordered for his internet criticism of king mohammed vi , a human rights group said . | blogger who criticised morocco monarch freed |
`` the joy of sex '' , the iconic ####s book which became the bedroom -lrb- and elsewhere -rrb- bible for a generation , has been re-released in an updated version for the UNK . | the joy of sex is back tweaked for the UNK |
in what would be the third mega-deal in german retail banking in two months , deutsche bank has confirmed it is looking at an acquisition that would more than double its high street customer base . | germany set for another banking mega-deal |
yemeni president ali abdullah saleh on thursday freed a dozen opposition activists jailed on charges of inciting unrest but a senior socialist politician remained behind bars , opposition and human rights sources said . | yemen activists freed but top socialist still held |
train traffic through the channel tunnel linking england and france was halted on thursday after a fire broke out , eurotunnel officials said . | fire closes channel tunnel |
european parliamentarians on thursday approved eu plans to decrease greenhouse gas emissions by ## percent but called for stricter limits to be set on the controversial use of biofuels . | eu deputies seek to limit use of biofuels |
president nicolas sarkozy 's `` soap opera '' love life and the radical change he is bringing to france will be brought to the big screen next year in a documentary , the film 's us director said thursday . | us director to make documentary on sarkozy |
president george w. bush dedicated the first september ## memorial thursday at the pentagon , hailing the `` heroes of #\/## '' and the absence of terrorist attacks on us soil in the seven years since . | pentagon dedicates first september ## memorial |
two international soldiers fighting taliban-linked insurgents were killed in afghanistan thursday , their forces said , as britain announced one of its troops had died a day earlier . | three international soldiers killed in afghanistan |
us stocks swung lower thursday amid heightened jitters about the financial sector as investment giant lehman brothers battled for survival . | banking jitters pressure wall street |
two taliban-style suicide blasts struck afghanistan thursday , killing at least four afghans and wounding about a dozen more , government officials said . | four dead as two suicide blasts hit afghanistan |
in what would be the third mega-deal in german retail banking in two months , deutsche bank has confirmed it is looking at an acquisition that would more than double its high street customer base . | germany set for another banking mega-deal |
a ryanair flight was forced to return to dublin airport on thursday after the plane 's tail hit the runway as it took off for london , an airport authority spokeswoman said . | ryanair plane in dublin airport take-off incident |
south africa thursday said it has given its #### humanitarian award to former cuban president fidel castro for his contributions to `` humankind beyond boundaries . | cuba 's castro wins safrican humanitarian award |
iran on thursday rejected us accusations that the iranian shipping company UNK was involved in tehran 's alleged nuclear weapons program , the official news agency irna reported . | iran rejects us shipping accusations |
aung san suu kyi 's lawyer said thursday that he had held `` positive '' talks with the detained democracy leader and that she appeared in good health , after reports she was not accepting food . | lawyer says suu kyi in good health |
the film debut by one of france 's most provocative writers , michel houellebecq , has been panned by critics following its release in france . | french writer houellebecq 's film gets thumbs-down |
german energy group eon , which wants to build nuclear power stations in britain , on thursday signed an agreement enabling it to connect with the british national power network , an eon spokesman said . | energy group eon signs deal to connect with british power grid |
averting a recession in europe will be the burning issue for eu finance chiefs meeting friday and saturday on the french riviera as the euro and stocks tumble on fears of a downturn . | eu finance chiefs brace for recession fight |
russia condemned thursday the `` unfriendly '' stance of ukraine over the war in georgia and its treatment of ethnic russians , fuelling tensions in what is feared could be the region 's next flashpoint . | russia slams unfriendly ukraine |
reeling from almost nationwide destruction from hurricanes gustav and ike , cash - strapped communist cuba thursday charged the united states was `` lying '' about its stated willingness to help . | desperate cuba charges us is lying on storm aid |
german-born swiss chocolate magnate klaus jacobs , who for many years ran the company making the famous UNK bars , died thursday aged ## , swiss news agency ats reported . | chocolate magnate klaus jacobs dies at ## |
serbia said thursday it is `` determined '' to arrest bosnian serb genocide suspect ratko mladic as the un chief war crimes prosecutor left belgrade optimistic about the case crucial to the country 's eu aspirations . | serbia determined to nab mladic president tells un prosecutor |
venezuelan president hugo chavez said thursday he has ordered a probe into a suspected coup plot allegedly involving active and retired military officers . | chavez orders probe into suspected coup plot |
oil prices tumbled to six-month lows below ## dollars on thursday as the dollar rallied and the likelihood of a sharp global economic slowdown loomed over demand growth , traders said . | oil prices slide to six-month lows under ## dollars |
survivors mourned at new york 's ground zero on thursday as john mccain and barack obama suspended their rancorous white house campaign to commemorate the seventh anniversary of the #\/## attacks . | tears political truce mark #\/## anniversary |
belgium 's far-right vlaams belang party denounced thursday what it called the `` islamisation of europe '' at a ceremony to mark the anniversary of the september ## , #### attacks in the united states . | belgian far-right slams islamisation of europe on attacks anniversary |
the killing of a lebanese politician in the first such attack against a pro- syrian figure jeopardises national reconciliation efforts already undermined by deep rifts between rival factions . | murder of lebanon politician threatens reconciliation bid |
lehman brothers shares plunged further thursday as fears intensified about the survival of the troubled wall street investment giant . | lehman shares slide further as survival prospects dim |
police on thursday found a suitcase thought to contain the remains of a little french girl allegedly murdered by her israeli grandfather and dumped in a river in a grisly case that has shocked the country . | israeli police find girl 's body in suitcase |
iran on thursday rejected us accusations that the iranian shipping company UNK was involved in tehran 's alleged nuclear weapons program , the official news agency irna reported . | afp middle east news agenda |
european parliamentarians on thursday approved eu plans to decrease greenhouse gas emissions by ## percent but called for stricter limits to be set on the controversial use of biofuels . | eu deputies seek to limit use of biofuels |
bulgaria 's decision to extend the probe of the #### `` umbrella killing '' of dissident georgy markov was welcomed thursday by another bulgarian dissident who survived a similar attack . | dissident welcomes extension of poison umbrella inquiry |
nato secretary general jaap de hoop scheffer will travel to latvia friday for talks with foreign ministers from the baltic states , amid growing concern there about russia 's actions in georgia . | nato chief to riga for baltic talks on russia georgia |
a bomb blast and an attack on a combat post killed two nato soldiers in afghanistan , one of them british , the alliance 's international security assistance force and british military said thursday . | two nato soldiers killed in afghanistan |
a new UNK commission set up after the former soviet republic 's clash with russia will meet for the first time next week , an alliance spokesman said thursday . | new UNK commission to meet on monday |
five islamists accused of killing a us diplomat and his driver in the sudanese capital on new year 's day told police they had wanted to `` kill americans , '' a court heard on thursday . | five on trial for us diplomat murder wanted to kill americans |
eritrea on thursday slammed a `` hostile '' canada for denying its foreign minister a visa over his participation in the country 's three-decade independence war against ethiopia . | eritrea slams canada for denying fm a visa |
spain on thursday backed efforts by six central american nations to reach an association and free trade agreement with the ##-nation european union . | spain backs eu-central america trade agreement |
thousands gathered to dedicate the first september ## memorial thursday , observing a moment of silence at the instant seven years ago when an airliner slammed into the pentagon , killing ### people and five hijackers . | pentagon dedicates first september ## memorial |
britain 's opposition conservative leader david cameron , whose party is enjoying a clear lead over the governing labor party , is being presented to the world this week on the cover of time magazine . | british conservative leader gets the time treatment |
ceremonies began thursday at new york 's ground zero , also due to be visited by white house rivals barack obama and john mccain on the seventh anniversary of the #\/## attacks . | ground zero ceremony starts in new york |
the radical reforms that nicolas sarkozy is carrying out in france and the president 's `` soap opera '' love life will be brought to the big screen in a documentary , the film 's us director said thursday . | us director to make documentary on sarkozy |
unions at alitalia and investors who want to reorganise the ailing italian carrier were locked in talks thursday on a plan seen as a last-ditch bid to save the company from bankruptcy . | alitalia unions investors in talks on airline 's future |
zimbabwe 's deadlocked political rivals entered a fourth day of talks on thursday with signs that president robert mugabe and opposition leader morgan tsvangirai were inching towards an agreement . | zimbabwe rivals moving closer to deal |
spanish foreign minister miguel angel moratinos will friday begin a six-day middle east tour with stops in egypt , israel , jordan , syria and the palestinian territories , his ministry said . | spanish foreign minister set for mideast tour |
us stocks opened with heavy losses thursday amid heightened jitters about the financial sector and a weakening global economy . | banking jitters send wall street tumbling |
russian foreign minister sergei lavrov accused the united states on thursday of seeking to encircle russia , and reiterated moscow 's opposition to us plans to install a missile shield on polish soil . | lavrov accuses us of trying to encircle russia with shield |
russian troops on thursday were seen dismantling positions near the western georgian towns of poti and UNK in line with an agreement brokered in moscow by eu leaders this week . | barbed wire comes down at russian positions in georgia |
lehman brothers shares plunged anew thursday as fears intensified about the survival of the troubled wall street investment giant . | lehman shares slide further as survival prospects dim |
five islamists accused of killing a us diplomat and his driver in the sudanese capital on new year 's day told police they had wanted to `` kill americans , '' a court heard on thursday . | five on trial for us diplomat murder wanted to kill americans |
power-sharing talks between zimbabwe 's political rivals are still stuck at the same point , president robert mugabe said thursday , despite his recent hints that a deal was imminent . | zimbabwe talks stuck at the same point says mugabe |