OND is a community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00AM Eastern Time.
The OND concept was borne under the keen keyboard of Magnifico - proper respect is due.
Current Contributers are ScottyUrb, Bentliberal, wader,Oke, rfall, JML9999 and Neon Vincent.
Editorial Note:There are a number of up to the minute DAILYKOS diaries on the events in Egypt such as.
Egyptian/Middle East Protests Mothership Diary 3
Please visit them. Thanks
BBC: US official Raymond Davis on Lahore murder charges
US official Raymond Davis on Lahore murder charges
A US consular employee has appeared in court charged with the murder of two motorcyclists who were shot dead in the Pakistani city of Lahore.
Raymond Davis told the court he had fired his gun in self-defence.
Another person was run over and killed by a vehicle carrying Mr Davis's colleagues as they came to his aid, police and witnesses have said.
The US embassy has not named the man involved in the shooting or given his role in the Lahore consulate.
BBC: Davos 2011: Aung San Suu Kyi calls for investment
Davos 2011: Aung San Suu Kyi calls for investment
Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has called for investment in her country, which she says has been "left behind".
In an audio address to the World Economic Forum, Ms Suu Kyi said the 55 million people in Burma yearned to be a part of the global community.
Burma had "already missed so many opportunities because of political conflicts", she said.
But she said potential investors should "put a premium on respect for the law".
BBC: Davos 2011: Geithner resists pressure for drastic cuts
Davos 2011: Geithner resists pressure for drastic cuts
US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has told Davos delegates rapid, drastic spending cuts are "not the responsible way" to cut national budget deficits.
He also said the US was more confident now there was a sustainable expansion, but said it was not a boom.
Mr Geithner said "education, innovation, and investment" were the way forward for the US economy.
And he envisaged a future where the US and China could both enjoy economic growth.
BBC: Davos 2011: Lagarde considers bigger euro rescue fund
Davos 2011: Lagarde considers bigger euro rescue fund
The European Union's financial bail-out fund - used to rescue the Irish Republic - could be enlarged, the French finance minister says.
Speaking at Davos, Christine Lagarde said leaders were discussing expanding the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) if needed.
The EU may also use the EFSF to buy back national bonds, she said.
There have been concerns that more funds would be needed to help indebted countries such as Spain and Portugal.
BBC: Ivory Coast: AU panel of leaders to seek way forward
Ivory Coast: AU panel of leaders to seek way forward
The African Union is setting up a panel of heads of state to find a solution to the political crisis in Ivory Coast.
The panel will come up with a legally binding settlement within a month, according to the Mauritanian president.
Alassane Ouattara is internationally recognised as the winner of Ivory Coast's November presidential election.
But the incumbent, Laurent Gbagbo, is refusing to step down after the Constitutional Council, headed by one of his allies, ruled in his favour.
BBC: Kabul Finest supermarket hit by deadly bomb attack
Kabul Finest supermarket hit by deadly bomb attack
At least eight people have been killed in a suicide attack at a supermarket popular with foreigners in the Afghan capital Kabul, officials say.
The bomber opened fire in the store before detonating his explosives, said police and witnesses.
Afghans and foreigners, including two women and a child, were among the dead, say reports. The Taliban told the BBC they had carried out the attack.
The blast left the Finest store, not far from the British embassy, ablaze.
The BBC's Quentin Sommerville, in Kabul, says the supermarket is located next to a busy roundabout and a police checkpoint, and like many stores in the Afghan capital it has armed guards.
Reuters: Citi may hold back toxic assets in unit sale
Citi may hold back toxic assets in unit sale
(Reuters) - Citigroup Inc (C.N) is open to holding back some toxic assets in a bid to get the most value from the sale of its consumer finance business, CitiFinancial, sources familiar with the situation said.
Citigroup is asking for book value for the business, which is being looked at mostly by private equity firms, sources said.
Private equity firms, including Fortress Investment Group (FIG.N), KKR (KKR.N) and Blackstone Group (BX.N), are among potential bidders, sources said.
The process is in the early stages and a deal is not imminent. First-round bids are expected in early February, according to the sources, who declined to be named because these talks are not public.
Reuters: Jordanian protesters demand political reforms
Jordanian protesters demand political reforms
(Reuters) - Islamists, leftists and trade unionists gathered in central Amman Friday for the latest protest to demand political change and wider freedoms.
A crowd of at least 3,000 chanted: "We want change."
Banners and chants showed a wider range of grievances than the high food prices that fueled earlier protests, and included demands for free elections, the dismissal of Prime Minister Samir Rifai's government and a representative parliament.
The protest after Friday prayers was organized by the Islamic Action Front, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood which is the only effective opposition and biggest party, but included members of leftist parties and trade unions.
Reuters: Police destroy protest camp at Tunisian PM's office
Police destroy protest camp at Tunisian PM's office
(Reuters) - Tunisian riot police broke up a protest camp in the capital on Friday, hoping to end days of demonstrations against a government that has undergone a major overhaul to meet some of the crowds' demands.
The assault on the round-the-clock sit-in came a day after Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi replaced 12 cabinet ministers in an attempt to placate protesters demanding a purge of all members of the former ruling party.
The reshuffle won the backing of Tunisia's powerful labor union, which had organized protests and strikes around the country, but failed to satisfy several hundred young men who had traveled from the grim cities of the interior to make their voice heard in the capital.
Reuters: Pentagon issues guidelines for repealing gay policy
Pentagon issues guidelines for repealing gay policy
(Reuters) - New Pentagon rules allowing gays to serve openly in the U.S. military prohibit separate bathroom facilities based on sexual orientation and say not all benefits will be extended to same-sex dependents.
The Pentagon issued new guidelines on Friday as a first step to ending the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that forces gays to keep their preferences secret in order to serve in the military.
Congress repealed the policy last month but gave the military an unspecified amount of time to prepare the sweeping change. President Barack Obama said in his State of the Union address this week the change would be enforced this year.
The new guidelines ask the military top brass for precise plans within a week to implement the policy.
Reuters: Goldman CEO gets salary boost, $12.6 million shares
Goldman CEO gets salary boost, $12.6 million shares
(Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group tripled Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein's base salary and awarded him $12.6 million of stock, even after the bank's net income plunged last year.
Blankfein is receiving base pay of $2 million effective Jan 1, up from $600,000, he company said in a filing.
The shares awarded to Blankfein amount to a 42 percent increase from the all-stock bonus he received for 2009, and are the latest sign that U.S. banks are moving away from some of the austerities imposed by the financial crisis.
Legislators, regulators, and others pressed banks to reduce bonuses for 2009, soon after the financial system was rescued by more than a trillion dollars of support from the U.S. government. Many critics complained that banks privatize their profits and socialize their losses. Big bonuses paid for 2009 would have intensified public outrage.
Reuters: White House to release budget on Feb 14
White House to release budget on Feb 14
(Reuters) - President Barack Obama's budget proposal for fiscal 2012 will be released on February 14, an administration official said on Friday, setting up a tough fight with Republicans who vow to cut spending.
Democrat Obama wants a 5-year, non-security discretionary spending freeze as a downpayment toward curbing the huge U.S. budget deficit, while also promoting investment that he says will boost U.S. growth and ease high unemployment.
Republicans say this represents spending the country cannot afford, and pledge deeper cutbacks to help control a federal deficit the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates will hit $1.48 trillion in fiscal 2011.
The U.S. funding gap grew sharply after Obama agreed with Republicans to extend Bush-era tax cuts for all Americans for two years, pumping $858 billion into the economy over time as it slowly recovers from a deep recession.
xinhuanet: British PM, Bill Gates announce large increase of funds for eradicating polio
British PM, Bill Gates announce large increase of funds for eradicating polio
"DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister David Cameron announced here Friday that Britain is going to double its commitment to the polio-eradication campaign from 30 million U.S. dollars to 60 million dollars.
"This will enable us to vaccinate an extra 45 million children," he told reporters.
However, Cameron insisted that "good policy must follow good money" so that re-vaccination must become routine under this new funding regime. He also said that for each pound Britain puts in, it wants to see five pounds leveraged from other donors.
Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, joined the British prime minister for the announcement in the last open session of the 3rd day of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos.