International Headlines

Date: Thu, 8 Apr 2010 20:02:04 -0400
>TOP STORIES as of 0800 HKT -- 09 April, 2010

> DEATH TOLL CLIMBS FROM RIO MUDSLIDES
The death toll from flooding and mudslides in Brazil continued
to climb, with official reports of at least 171 fatalities,
while thousands have been left homeless.

> FURY OVER THAI TV STATION CLOSURE
Anti-government protesters in Thailand remained defiant Thursday
as they demanded officials reopen their television station,
which was shut down amid accusations of misinformation.

> KYRGYZ PRESIDENT SAYS HE WON'T RESIGN
Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev says he won't abandon his
duties despite opposition claims that they have taken control
following days of bloody civil unrest.

> OBAMA, MEDVEDEV SIGN ARMS TREATY
U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian counterpart Dmitry
Medvedev sign a major nuclear arms control agreement reducing
the nuclear stockpiles of both nations.

> TIGER WOODS BEGINS MASTERS CHARGE
Tiger Woods has begun his charge for a 15th career major after
returning to competitive action at the Masters in Augusta.

> DIPLOMAT RELEASED AFTER PLANE INCIDENT
A passenger with diplomatic credentials of Qatar was detained
after a disturbance aboard a United Airlines flight en route to
Denver, Colorado, federal authorities said.

> CONJOINED TWINS STABLE AFTER SEPARATION
Surgeons in London successfully separated four-month-old
conjoined twins after a 14-hour operation Thursday, the hospital
announced.

> EXPLOSIVE GAS HALTS MINE RESCUE EFFORT
Rescue teams are getting ready to re-enter the site of a deadly
West Virginia mine explosion to search for four missing miners
after determining the air quality is safe.

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

> BA AND IBERIA SIGN MERGER DEAL
British Airways and Iberia on Thursday announced a definitive
merger agreement, ending nearly two years of often-strained
negotiations on the creation of a Europe's third-largest airline
group.

> HOW TO CREATE AN $850M FAD, LIKE BEBO DID
Do you remember Bebo? AOL bought the hot social networking Web
site for $850 million in 2008. This week, the company threw in
the towel -- Bebo will either be sold or shut down in 2010,
according to an internal memo.

> HOW FAR WILL CHINA GO ON CURRENCY?
The recent apparent rapprochement between the US and Chinese
administrations on China's currency value is looking a lot like
2005.