International Headline News

Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2010 20:02:07 -0500
>TOP STORIES as of 0900 HKT -- 14 March, 2010

> DEADLY BLASTS ROCK SOUTHERN AFGHANISTAN
A series of explosions rocked southern Afghanistan's volatile
Kandahar province today, killing at least 35 people and wounding
47 others, local officials said.

> TALIBAN CLAIMS DEADLY ATTACK IN PAKISTAN
The Pakistan Taliban says it carried out a suicide bombing that
killed 13 people one day after twin attacks on a military convoy
in Lahore killed 44 people.

> KISSINGER TAKEN TO S. KOREAN HOSPITAL
Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger was admitted to a
hospital in Seoul on Saturday for "minor stomach troubles," the
state-run Yonhap news agency reported.

> GOOGLE TO SHUT CHINA SEARCH
Google has drawn up detailed plans for the closure of its
Chinese search engine and is now "99.9 per cent" certain to go
ahead as talks over censorship with the Chinese authorities have
reached an apparent impasse, according to a person familiar with
the company's thinking.

> PM'S GROUP LEADS IN IRAQ ELECTIONS
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's alliance led partial preliminary
election results Saturday in Baghdad, where the most
parliamentary seats are up for grabs, according to the electoral
commission.

> IRAN CRITICIZED FOR RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION
The State Department condemned Iran's persecution of religious
minorities on Friday following the Iranian authorities'
detention of Baha'is and Christians in recent months.

> PLANE CRASHES IN MOCK RESCUE EXERCISE
A plane in Nigeria carrying more than 30 emergency workers has
crashed in what was supposed to be a mock rescue exercise,
police said Saturday.

> CLINTON CALLS ISRAELI MOVE 'INSULTING'
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Israel's
announcement of new settlement construction in disputed
territory in East Jerusalem was "insulting" to the United
States.

BUSINESS
~~~~~~~~~~~

> LEHMAN REPORT BLAMES TOP EXECUTIVES
A one-year probe into the collapse of Lehman Brothers found
"credible evidence" that executives, including former chief Dick
Fuld, approved misleading financial statements and used an
"accounting gimmick" to flatter results.

> BA CABIN CREW TO STRIKE THIS MONTH
Union members representing British Airways cabin crews announced
Friday they will hold two separate strikes this month in a
dispute over working conditions.

> THOUSANDS PROTEST IN GREEK CAPITAL
Thousands of people march through Athens as part of a 24-hour
nationwide strike to protest against austerity measures by the
government.