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.
BBC:Yemen: President Saleh defiant after injury
Yemen: President Saleh defiant after injury
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has broadcast a brief audio message, hours after being injured in an attack on his compound in the capital Sanaa.
Mr Saleh said he was well and urged the army to confront his tribal opponents, who he blamed for the attack.
Seven people were killed. The prime minister and the speaker of parliament were among several injured.
The attack came amid huge demonstrations and continuing fighting between government and armed tribes.
BBC:Mladic shuns 'monstrous' charges
Mladic shuns 'monstrous' charges
Ex-Bosnian Serb army head Ratko Mladic has made his first appearance at The Hague war crimes tribunal, but said he would not enter a plea to the "monstrous" and "obnoxious" charges.
He is charged with crimes in the 1992-95 Bosnian war, including the massacre of about 7,500 people in Srebrenica.
Gen Mladic told the court he had been "defending my people and my country".
He also said he was "gravely ill", but a court spokeswoman said health checks had shown he was fit to stand trial.
Nerma Jelacic said a variety of tests had been done on Gen Mladic since he arrived at The Hague, but none had turned up any health issues to cause concern.
BBC:Syria: '34 killed' as thousands protest in Hama
Syria: '34 killed' as thousands protest in Hama
Thousands of anti-government protesters have taken to the streets across Syria after Friday prayers, in defiance of the ongoing crackdown on dissent.
At least 34 people were killed when security forces opened fire on a crowd of about 50,000 people in the central city of Hama, activists said.
The opposition has dedicated the day to the memory of more than 30 children said to have died in the uprising.
The army is meanwhile continuing its assault on the central town of Rastan.
Scores have been killed in the past few days as troops and tanks attempted to quell protests there. At least two civilians died on Friday, the Local Co-ordination Committees said.
BBC:UN may lift sanctions on some former Taliban members
UN may lift sanctions on some former Taliban members
A UN committee is to consider lifting international sanctions against some former Taliban figures.
The move comes at the request of the Afghan government.
It has asked for 18 people to be removed from the sanctions list. Sanctions include a travel ban and the freezing of assets.
The request is seen as part of broader efforts to promote reconciliation in Afghanistan and to explore the possibility of peace talks.
BBC:E. coli outbreak: Germany appeals for blood donors
E. coli outbreak: Germany appeals for blood donors
German clinics have appealed for blood donations as the number of people infected with a deadly strain of E. coli has reached 1,836 globally.
Nearly 200 new cases have been reported in two days in Germany, which has seen the most infections. The bug has killed 17 people in Germany and one in Sweden.
German scientists say the new E. coli strain's genes have been decoded. It is a new hybrid form toxic to humans.
Germans are still being advised not to eat raw vegetables.
BBC:Iraq: Bombs in Tikrit target mosque and hospital
Iraq: Bombs in Tikrit target mosque and hospital
At least 21 people have died in twin bomb attacks in the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit.
In the first attack, a bomb exploded outside a mosque during Friday prayers, killing 16 people.
Hours later, a suicide bomber attacked the hospital where the injured were taken, killing another five.
Scores more were wounded. On Thursday, bombings in Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, killed at least six people.
Reuters:China meets Libya rebels in latest blow to Gaddafi
China meets Libya rebels in latest blow to Gaddafi
(Reuters) - China made its first confirmed contact with Libyan rebels in the latest diplomatic setback for Muammar Gaddafi and France said it was working with people close to the veteran ruler to persuade him to leave power.
The meeting in Qatar between a Chinese diplomat and the leader of the rebel National Transitional Council follows a spate of defections by high-profile figures this week, including senior oil official and former prime minister Shokri Ghanem.
Libyan rebels and NATO have made Gaddafi's departure a condition for agreeing a ceasefire in the conflict but he emphatically told visiting South African President Jacob Zuma this week he would not leave Libya.
A NATO-led military alliance extended its mission to protect civilians in Libya for a further 90 days this week, and France said it was stepping up military pressure as well as working with those close to Gaddafi to try to persuade him to quit.
Reuters:Qatar deports Libyan woman who said she was raped
Qatar deports Libyan woman who said she was raped
(Reuters) - Qatar deported a Libyan woman who claimed that she had been gang raped by pro-government militiamen, after spending nearly a month in the Gulf Arab country, a United Nations refugee group said on Friday.
Eman Al-Obaidi, who arrived in Qatar on May 11, was detained by Qatari officials on Wednesday evening and forced with her visiting parents to board a flight on Thursday to Benghazi, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.
Al-Obaidi, who had been staying in a Doha hotel, is said to have fallen out of favor with Libyan rebels in Qatar.
A diplomatic source told Reuters the Qatari government was asked by Qatar-based Libyan rebels to return her to eastern Libya, where they are locked in an armed conflict against the rule of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Reuters:OPEC should raise output at meeting: advisory board
OPEC should raise output at meeting: advisory board
(Reuters) - OPEC should increase its oil production when it meets next week in order to meet higher demand expected in the second half, a delegate who attended a meeting of the group's advisory board told Reuters on Friday.
The Economic Commission Board, meeting in Vienna ahead of the June 8 formal OPEC meeting, did not have a recommendation for how much oil the producer group should add to the market, the delegate added.
"There will be more demand during the second half of the year, and there is a need for OPEC to meet that demand," the delegate said on condition of anonymity.
The delegate said members of the advisory board expected supply disruptions in Libya would continue into the second half.
Reuters:Brent edges up as weak dollar offsets jobs data
Brent edges up as weak dollar offsets jobs data
(Reuters) - Brent crude edged up on Friday as the weak dollar and Middle East violence sparked a rebound after disappointing U.S. payrolls data sent prices plunging.
U.S. crude futures settled slightly lower after tumbling more than $2 in early trade reacting to the jobs data. U.S. May nonfarm payrolls posted the weakest reading since September and the U.S. jobless rate rose to 9.1 percent.
The dollar fell as the disappointing U.S. jobs data added to evidence of an economic slowdown. The euro touched a one-month high on optimism that Greece will receive its next aid payment. The lessening of worry about Greece also helped Brent crude rebound.
Brent crude for July delivery rose 30 cents to settle at $115.84 a barrel, recovering from a $113.40 intraday low. It ended with a weekly gain of 81 cents, or 0.7 percent.
Reuters:Wall Street skids to fifth week of losses, hope endures
Wall Street skids to fifth week of losses, hope endures
(Reuters) - Wall Street closed out a fifth week of losses with more selling on Friday after an anemic jobs report strengthened the case that the economy was slowing, though analysts said indexes may stabilize in the near-term.
Selling was heavy in the morning following the payroll report, and the S&P 500 intermittently tested its April low at 1,294.70 until a bullish report on the services sector helped equities recover some losses.
Major indexes are trading at their lowest in six weeks, and the S&P is off 4.7 percent from highs reached in late April. However, fund managers say stocks have priced in macroeconomic uncertainty by now.
"We don't see material downside from here," said Jim McDonald, chief investment strategist at Chicago-based Northern Trust Global Investments, which has $650 billion in assets under management.
Reuters:White House delays updated budget data release
White House delays updated budget data release
(Reuters) - The White House will delay release of updated economic and budget projections until after a July 16 deadline because of ongoing deficit talks and other factors, an administration official said on Friday.
The White House's so-called mid-session review includes revised estimates of the budget deficit as well as U.S. revenues and spending.
Unique changes to the budget calendar prompted the delay, the official said, citing the fact that Congress used short-term spending bills for months until it finally agreed on a budget for fiscal 2011 halfway through the year.
"This has not been a normal year in terms of budgeting and appropriations," the official said.
Bloomberg:Microsoft Said to Limit Device Makers’ Chip-Partner Choices
Microsoft Said to Limit Device Makers’ Chip-Partner Choices
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) has asked chipmakers that want to use the next version of Windows for tablets to work with no more than one computer manufacturer, three people with knowledge of the plan said.
Chipmakers and computer makers that agree to the terms will get incentives from Microsoft in exchange for accepting the restrictions, which tie a single chipmaker to one tablet design, said the people, who declined to be identified because the new program hasn’t been made public.
Seeking to limit variations may help Microsoft speed the delivery of new Windows tablets by keeping tighter control over partners and accelerating development and testing. Though the program isn’t mandatory, the restrictions may impede chip- and computer makers from building a variety of Windows-based models to vie with Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s iPad, the people said. In past versions of Windows software, chipmakers could work with multiple computer manufacturers.
“Microsoft is still in the development process on the next version of Windows, continuing the engineering work with our silicon partners as part of the technology preview we talked about in January,” Microsoft said in an e-mailed statement. “We continue to talk regularly with hardware partners around the world as part of our development process.”