Happy 2009! Transition to green!

WORLD NEWS

Date: Thu, 1 Jan 2009 05:02:05 -0500
TOP STORIES as of 1000 GMT -- 01 January, 2009

2008 CAPTURED IN PICTURES
A boy confronted by a baton-wielding police officer during
election protests in Kenya, Nairobi; a baby thrown to safety
from an apartment fire in Germany; Michael Phelps' historic
success at the Olympic Games; and one house standing alone after
Hurricane Ike -- from triumph to tragedy, 2008's best
photographs tell the story of a memorable year.

BANGKOK NIGHTCLUB FIRE KILLS 58
A fire and resulting stampede left nearly 60 dead early Thursday
at one of Bangkok's most upscale nightclubs, where about 1,000
revelers were ringing in the new year, Thai police said.

OLMERT: NO PEACE IN GAZA UNTIL ROCKETS STOP
The first day of 2009 dawned in Gaza with a sixth day of Israeli
airstrikes, a bombardment Israel's prime minister vowed would
not end until Hamas militants quit firing rockets into the
Jewish state.

U.N. MULLS CEASE-FIRE RESOLUTION ON GAZA
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called for an
immediate cease-fire in Gaza, condemning the recent actions of
both Hamas and Israel. He appealed to the international
community to do more to end the violence.

ISRAEL USES YOUTUBE, TWITTER TO SHARE VIEWS
Israel has taken its barrage of airstrikes in Gaza to the Web,
creating a YouTube channel this week to post footage of its air
force dropping bombs on Hamas targets.

REPORT: GAZPROM CUTS OFF UKRAINE'S GAS
Russian energy monopoly Gazprom cut off supplies of natural gas
to Ukraine after a payment deadline expired Thursday, Russian
state television reported.

1 MILLION CELEBRATE NEW YEAR IN NEW YORK
Strong winds, frigid weather and blowing snow will help
celebrators from around the world usher in 2009 Wednesday night
in New York's Times Square.

MISSILE ATTACK IN PAKISTAN KILLS 3
A suspected U.S. missile strike killed three people and wounded
two others in one of Pakistan's northwestern tribal districts,
Pakistani intelligence officials said Thursday.

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BUSINESS

SLOVAKIA READY FOR EURO SWITCH
Slovakia becomes the first of the larger ex-communist EU members
to join the European single currency on Thursday, hoping that
the move will provide stability amid the global economic storm.

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE IN U.S. SLUMPS
A key measure of U.S. consumer confidence fell to an all-time
low in December amid a dismal job market and uncertain outlook
for the new year.