The Overnight News Digest is an ongoing evening series dedicated to chronicling the day's news that the editor de la nuit finds of import or interest. Everyone is welcome to add their own news items in the comments. Tonight, I am featuring news from around the world.
Top Story
- WaPo - U.S. drone strikes resume in Pakistan; action may complicate vital negotiations
CIA drone missiles hit militant targets in Pakistan on Sunday for the first time in a month, as the United States ignored the Pakistani government’s insistence that such attacks end as a condition for normalized relations between the two perpetually uneasy allies.
The drone strikes, which have long infuriated the Pakistani public, killed four al-Qaeda-linked fighters in a girls’ school they had taken over in the North Waziristan tribal area, security officials there said.
Warning of diplomatic consequences, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the attacks, the first since Parliament’s unanimous vote this month approving new guidelines for the country’s relationship with the United States. Some politicians said the drone strikes might set back already difficult negotiations over the reopening of vital NATO supply routes to Afghanistan that Pakistan blocked five months ago. |
USA
- Star Tribune - Homelessness rising dramatically in Twin Cities suburbs
The waiting list at Anoka County's only homeless shelter -- a 20-bed facility -- hit an all-time high of 80 recently. That didn't include suburbanites who preferred sleeping at rest stops, couch-hopping or spending the night freezing in cars.
Homelessness is rising in Twin Cities suburbs, officials say. It's more pervasive in Anoka County than in Hennepin County, but harder to detect. Suburban panhandlers are rare. And some suburban homeless adults have steady jobs, but couldn't avoid foreclosures.
"To be homeless in the suburbs is the end of the line," said Heather Ries, director of Stepping Stone, Anoka County's homeless shelter. "It's a different culture here. The homeless in the suburbs don't scream, panhandle or knock down doors. They hide…Homelessness has quadrupled over four years in Washington County -- from 93 in 2008 to 381 in January. In Dakota County, where the homeless population exceeds 1,000 for the first time, it's grown 20 percent the past year -- from 841 in 2011 to 1,013 this year. |
- Roll Call - Green Voters Go on the Offensive
When Democratic strategist Bill Burton went looking for a partner to help his super PAC launch a $1 million ad campaign announced last week, he had more than one reason to knock on the door of the League of Conservation Voters.
The 43-year-old environmental group has ramped up both its political spending and its lobbying activity this year. And Democrats, tired of playing defense in a recent series of debates on climate and energy policies, are trying to turn environmental issues to their advantage.
“One of the lessons learned from the failure to pass a comprehensive clean energy bill back in 2010 is that we need to be smarter and sharper and more focused in our legislative accountability work,” LCV President Gene Karpinski said. |
- Oregonian - Naming Drakes Bay in California as historic site fuels debate over Oregon claims to Sir Francis Drake
After nearly five centuries of discussion over Sir Francis Drake's epic trip around the globe, you'd think history buffs could reach agreement. But as a proposed national landmark is proving, the debate still burns hot.
It was in 1579 that Drake claimed a piece of the West Coast for Queen Elizabeth I. Exactly where that site is, however, shifts from northern Oregon to Southern California and beyond -- depending on the researcher you ask.
But soon, one of the claims will become anchored just a bit more firmly on the record. Drakes Bay in Northern California is set to win designation as a national historic landmark. |
Europe
- Guardian - Nicolas Sarkozy faces renewed claim Gaddafi agreed to fund 2007 campaign
Nicolas Sarkozy is facing a renewed claim that Muammar Gaddafi agreed to donate up to €50m to his last presidential campaign.
The investigative website Mediapart published what it called "compelling new evidence" that the Libyan regime decided to help finance Sarkozy's successful election campaign in 2007. A document that it said was signed by Gaddafi's foreign intelligence chief, Moussa Koussa, stated that the regime had approved a payment of €50m (£40m).
Sarkozy said the document was a fabrication and a disgrace, and accused the French left of using the reports "to create a distraction". The letter, written in Arabic and dated December 2006, said Tripoli had agreed to "support the electoral campaign" of Sarkozy. |
- AP - Former Libyan prime minister found dead in Danube
Shukri Ghanem, a former Libyan prime minister and oil minister who last year announced he was abandoning Moammar Gadhafi’s regime to support the rebels who ultimately toppled the dictator, was found dead Sunday in a section of the Danube River flowing through Vienna, Austrian police said.
Police spokesman Roman Hahslinger said the body was found floating in the river early in the morning and showed no external signs of violence. But the cause of death, he added, was not immediately clear and an autopsy will be carried out.
“There would be no signs of violence if someone pushed him in,” Mr. Hahslinger said. “But it’s also possible that he became ill and fell into the water.” |
- Telegraph - Missiles on your roof during Olympic Games, MOD warns
When I checked my post on Friday night, I found three items: a credit card mailshot, a stationery catalogue – and a leaflet from the Ministry of Defence.
In two breezy sides of A4, the MoD told me that the development where I live, the Bow Quarter in east London, was likely to be used as a launch site for a high-velocity-missile (HVM) ground-based air-defence system.
It came as something of a shock, given that the Bow Quarter is a leafy — some would say sleepy — gated enclave.
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- Spiegel - Eastern Germany Hit Hard by Decline of Solar
In 2006, solar-panel manufacturer Conergy moved into the never-used computer chip factory, joining Odersun, already headquartered in the city. In 2007, the United States solar giant First Solar opened a factory as well, followed by a second one last year.
Now, though, the future suddenly looks decidedly dark. Odersun declared bankruptcy in March and Conergy, while pledging to return to profit this year, has seen its share price lose 99.6 percent of its value in the last five years…
Frankfurt an der Oder's pain is far from an isolated case. The solar industry, once a beacon of hope for an eastern German economy that struggled for years to revive following reunification in 1990, is undergoing a brutal phase of consolidation. There is a massive surplus of global production capacity and the bad news for eastern Germany keeps getting worse. Last December, the Berlin company Solon, which employed hundreds in the Baltic Sea coast town of Greifswald, filed for bankruptcy. Aleo-Solar, based in Prenzlau north of Berlin, lost over €30 million (about $40 million) last year after turning a profit of €31.8 million in 2010, leading many to fear for their jobs there. |
- Telegraph - Former prime minister Geir Haarde of Iceland says he did not cause financial chaos
Geir Haarde, the former prime minister of Iceland, was the first head of state to be tried before a court for his role in the financial crisis. Mr Haarde, 61, called the whole process "preposterous" and raged that it was ridiculous for one man to held to account for the collapse of his country's banking system – and the earthquake it provoked in financial capitals around the world. But Iceland's people wanted someone to pay.
"He was the captain on the bridge, but there were more ministers," said Arni Einarsson, a pensioner living in Reykjavik. "The politicians thought that Iceland was like the Titanic, unsinkable. They were not on their guard."
In a neat wood-panelled library that served as a courtroom, the 15 judges found him guilty of not holding enough cabinet meetings to discuss the crisis. He was cleared of the three major charges of neglecting to act to cut the size of the country's banking system; of not ensuring British depositors' accounts in one Icelandic bank were transferred to a separate subsidiary; and of failing to make better use of the government's 2006 report on financial stability. |
Africa
- NYT - In Vast Jungle, U.S. Troops Aid in Search for Kony
It has got to be one of the oddest matchups in United States military history.
One hundred of America’s elite Special Operations troops, aided by night vision scopes and satellite imagery, are helping African forces find a wig-wearing, gibberish-speaking fugitive rebel commander named Joseph Kony who has been hiding out in the jungle for years with a band of child soldiers and a harem of dozens of child brides.
No one knows exactly where Mr. Kony is, but here in Obo, at a remote forward operating post in the Central African Republic, Green Berets pore over maps and interview villagers, hopeful for a clue.
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- LAT - Many in Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood wary of plunge into politics
The rise of the Brotherhood mirrors a pattern of Islamists coming to political prominence, most notably in Tunisia, since the uprisings of the "Arab Spring." This narrative is reshaping the Middle East, but it is revealing internal friction, political missteps and failure to put forth a vision that transcends Islamic designs and speaks to Christians, other non-Muslims and liberals.
These challenges epitomize the campaign of Brotherhood presidential candidate Mohamed Morsi, a conservative pressing for sharia, or Islamic law, to be embedded in the country's new constitution. To win office in next month's election, Morsi must appeal to Salafi fundamentalists while not pushing away moderates and liberals.
Many Egyptians wonder whether Morsi can fashion a political Islam to solve the country's deep economic problems. As recently as a few weeks ago, any Brotherhood candidate would have been regarded as the likely next president. Much has changed, and some now fear that the group is peddling more religion than public policy. Morsi is a front-runner but the race is tightening, especially with the popularity of secularist candidate Amr Moussa, a former foreign minister. |
- China Daily - At least 18 killed in Nigerian university attack
At least 18 persons were killed in an early Sunday morning attack in Nigeria's northwestern Kano State during a church service in the heart of Bayero University Kano, eyewitnesses and health workers reported.
Among the victims of the attack are professors Jerome Ayodele of the Chemistry Department and Andrew Leo of the Library Science Department respectably of the Bayero University Kano.
An eyewitness told Xinhua that some gunmen attacked the faithful when they were holding a service at 8:45 am local time in a lecture theater at the old site of the university. The witness said the gunmen threw some improvised explosive devices in the lecture theater and opened fire on those who attempted to run away from the scene. |
Middle East
- AFP - Lebanon seizes weapons on ship bound for Syria
The Lebanese navy has intercepted three shipping containers of weapons seemingly destined for Syrian rebel forces on board a ship originating from Libya, a security official has said.
The cargo contained machineguns, artillery shells, rockets, rocket launchers and other explosives, the Lebanese official said.
The interception came after the Syrian leadership accused the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, of encouraging terrorists. |
- AP - Top al-Qaida bomb maker in Yemen resurfaces
When a drone strike killed one of the leaders of al-Qaida's affiliate in Yemen last year, U.S. intelligence officials thought they also had wiped out the terrorist group's top bomb maker.
Soon it became apparent that Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri, the brains behind sophisticated bombs that have been used in attempts to attack the U.S., was still alive. A hunted al-Asiri went underground, knowing the U.S. was after him, particularly after the U.S. killed Anwar al-Awlaki, one of the Yemen group's top leaders.
But U.S. counterterrorism officials say he has resurfaced. They worry he might be at work doing what he does best: building bombs that could defeat airline security... |
South Asia
- Guardian - Bin Laden files show al-Qaida and Taliban leaders in close contact
Documents found in the house where Osama bin Laden was killed a year ago show a close working relationship between top al-Qaida leaders and Mullah Omar, the overall commander of the Taliban, including frequent discussions of joint operations against Nato forces in Afghanistan, the Afghan government and targets in Pakistan.
The communications show a three-way conversation between Bin Laden, his then deputy Ayman Zawahiri and Omar, who is believed to have been in Pakistan since fleeing Afghanistan after the collapse of his regime in 2001.
They indicate a "very considerable degree of ideological convergence", a Washington-based source familiar with the documents told the Guardian.The news will undermine hopes of a negotiated peace in Afghanistan, where the key debate among analysts and policymakers is whether the Taliban – seen by many as following an Afghan nationalist agenda – might once again offer a safe haven to al-Qaida or like-minded militants, or whether they can be persuaded to renounce terrorism. |
- Times of India - Rare species of king cobra snake sighted in Kalesar national park
A snake, with a longish body and reportedly with three mouths, was sighted in the jungles of Kalesar National Park on Saturday evening. While locals believed that it is a miracle that the snake has been sent by Lord Shiva, zoologists felt happy for a different reason.
Zoologists said that it is a matter of joy that such species cobra has been found in a jungle of the region.
After long queues of vehicles were witnessed on the spot where the snake appeared on the road near Kalesar Park on Saturday, on Sunday, people were seen waiting for a glimpse of the snake on Sunday, taking it to be a messenger of God, but it did not appear. |
Asia
- NYT - In Crisis Over Dissident, U.S. Sends Official to Beijing
The Obama administration rushed to contain a growing diplomatic crisis between the United States and China, sending a senior diplomat to Beijing to discuss the fate of a blind dissident who fled house arrest last week.
Amid intense secrecy, including a nearly blanket refusal to comment, the administration sought to negotiate over the safety of the dissident, Chen Guangcheng, who is said to be in American hands in Beijing — though it remained unclear late Sunday whether he was in the embassy, in a diplomatic residence, or somewhere else.
The senior diplomat, Kurt M. Campbell, an assistant secretary of state, arrived Sunday to meet with Chinese officials concerning Mr. Chen’s case, and to try to keep the matter from undermining the administration’s longstanding effort to improve economic and security relations with China, senior officials and diplomats in Washington and Beijing said. |
- China Daily - ConocoPhillips to compensate for oil leaks
US energy giant ConocoPhillips China and its partner the China National Offshore Oil Corp have agreed to pay 1.68 billion yuan ($267 million) for the oil leaks off northern Bohai Bay, China's maritime watchdog announced on Friday.
ConocoPhillips China will pay 1.09 billion yuan in compensation for the oil spills, while China National Offshore Oil Corp and the Chinese unit of ConocoPhillips will pay 480 million yuan and 113 million yuan respectively for environmental protection efforts in Bohai Bay, according to the State Oceanic Administration…
The two leaks in the Penglai 19-3 oilfield, the country's biggest offshore oilfield, released more than 700 barrels of crude oil into the waters and triggered widespread anger and criticism from the Chinese public about ConocoPhillips' inefficiency in dealing with the accidents.
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- WaPo - As Japan strains to care for elderly, sacrifices begin
The ominous demographics of this aging nation have long been seen by Japanese as a distant concern, not a present-day one. But that mind-set is being called into question by a prime minister who says that a crisis requiring immediate sacrifices has already begun.
In recent months, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has staked his job and bet his support on a tax increase designed to fund Japan’s soaring social security costs.
And the potential tax hike is only a sneak preview of the burdens to come as Japan grows into the world’s grayest society, a nation where two decades from now seniors will outnumber children 15 and younger by nearly 4 to 1. |
Oceana
- SMH - Australia now 'indifferent' to environment
Concern for the environment has dwindled into a ''middling'' issue that many people do not have strong feelings about, a major study into Australian attitudes towards society, politics and the economy has found.
Food, health, crime, safety and rights to basic public services - the tangible things that people confront on a daily basis - are dominant national concerns.
''Australians are effectively indifferent to global and societal issues, rating these significantly lower,'' said the report What Matters to Australians, produced by the University of Technology, Sydney and the Melbourne Business School, with the support of the Australian Research Council. |
- SMH - Clive Palmer plans to build Titanic II
Queensland billionaire mining magnate Clive Palmer has unveiled his plans to build the Titanic II to add to his tourism portfolio.
Mr Palmer said his new company Blue Star Line Pty Ltd had commissioned the state-owned Chinese company CSC Jinling Shipyard to build a near replica of the ill-fated Titanic. The cost is unknown.
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- Fairfax NZ - Call to end commercial eel fishing
New Zealand's longfin eels are heading for extinction with many being chopped up to pieces in pumps and turbines, a freshwater scientist says.
Massey University's Mike Joy said longfin eels, which were listed as ''threatened'', were also dying because of agriculture runoff in rivers.
The pollution was destroying the eels' food supply and habitat, he said. ''The bizarre thing is that we commercially fish for them.''
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Americas
- MercoPress - Brazilian congress approves forest bill that further threatens Amazon basin
Brazil’s Lower house of Congress on Wednesday approved a bill that weakens the country’s benchmark environmental law protecting the Amazon and other areas, a move that some fear will lead to a spike in deforestation.
The agriculture lobby waged a 10-year battle in Brazil’s Congress to make changes to the law, known as the Forest Code. The measure now goes to President Dilma Rousseff, who is expected to sign it but may use her line-item veto power to strike out portions of the bill…
“This vote is a big setback,” said environmental lawyer Raul do Valle with the watchdog group Instituto Socioambiental. “What Brazil built for decades, legislation that protected its forests, is being erased”. |
- LAT - At 80, Colombian artist Fernando Botero has no plans to retire
Honored here on his 80th birthday last week with a congressional medal and dinner with the president, Colombia's most famous artist, Fernando Botero, says he'll keep working until he keels over with "a paintbrush in my hand."
But the politically attuned artist, whose themes have included mass murders, vicious drug capos and torture as well as his trademark "volumetric" nudes and whimsical reworkings of old masters, is skeptical that he will live to see the peace his countrymen so desperately want.
"Colombia is now living the best moment it has in 12 or 13 years. You can go out on the street at night and drive out to the country without being afraid of a kidnap," Botero, a down-to-earth, blunt-spoken paisa, as natives of Medellin are known here, said in an interview in Bogota a few days before his birthday, April 19. "But there is still the problem of peace." |
- MercoPress - Mexico sets ground-breaking global benchmark on tacking deforestation
Below the global radar, a major victory was secured in Mexico on Tuesday 24th April in the world-wide battle to prevent deforestation and forest degradation, which are collectively the world's second largest sources of greenhouse emissions.
A set of legal amendments were approved by the Mexican Parliament that set a powerful global precedent for empowering local communities to address deforestation. In so doing, the vote also positions Mexico as the first country in the world to legislate in support of efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (the so-called REDD+ agenda).
This is a crucial development, and is of global importance for several reasons.
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- Houston Chronicle - Number of Americans killed in Mexico continues to rise
While still miniscule compared to the more than 50,000 Mexicans claimed by the violence, the annual tally of Americans slain has risen steadily since 2007.
Half of last year's American homicides happened in Mexican border cities and towns - a third in Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez alone. Many involved lifelong border residents born in the United States. But the killings increasingly have occurred deep inside Mexico. The State Department issued a travel warning in February that advises U.S. citizens to avoid 14 of Mexico's 32 states and to use extreme caution when visiting four others.
The risks remain small given that 19.9 million Americans visited Mexico last year, and as many as 1 million U.S. citizens live there, according to U.S. government estimates.
Mexican gangsters aren't "going after Americans specifically in any way, either tourists or people involved in that business," said Hugo Rodriguez, head of the State Department's citizens services section for the Americas. |
- Globe and Mail - TransCanada seeks switch from gas to oil
TransCanada Corp. is “actively” pursuing a move to ship oil rather than natural gas along a key pipeline network, as prices for the Alberta gas fetch low profits.
Eastern Canadian refineries have enquired about the possibility of moving oil through the Calgary-based company’s Mainline network instead of natural gas, said Russ Girling, the company’s chief executive officer.
Those refineries are now importing oil at higher prices because they are paying the international rate, which outpaces prices in North America by about $15 because of a glut of crude at refining hubs in the United States. That gap has spurred domestic producers to seek ways to sell their oil at higher prices, which means reaching the global market by way of eastern Canada. |