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.
OND Editors 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.
OND Editors consist of founder Magnifico, regular editors jlms qkw, maggiejean, wader, Oke, rfall, and JML9999, alumni editors palantir, BentLiberal and ScottyUrb, guest editor annetteboardman, and current editor-in-chief Neon Vincent. We invited our readers to comment & share other news.
BBC:Syria crisis: Bashar al-Assad says West will 'pay price'
Syria crisis: Bashar al-Assad says West will 'pay price'
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said the West will pay a high price for what he described as its support for al-Qaeda in his country's conflict.
In a TV interview, Mr Assad compared the situation to US support for Islamists in Afghanistan leading to the rise of the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
Syria's rebel al-Nusra Front recently pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda and is on a US terror blacklist.
The group has emerged as an effective anti-government force.
BBC:'Many injured' after blast at Texas fertilizer plant
'Many injured' after blast at Texas fertilizer plant
Many people are reported to be injured and others are trapped in burning buildings after an explosion at a fertilizer plant near Waco in the US state of Texas.
Firefighters, ambulances and six helicopters have been mobilised to deal with the situation.
Several buildings are reported to be on fire, some of them in neighbouring residential areas, KWTX-TV reported.
The blast at the West Fertilizer plant was reported at 19:50 (00:50 GMT).
BBC:Israel ready to act on Syria weapons, warns Netanyahu
Israel ready to act on Syria weapons, warns Netanyahu
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told the BBC that Israel has a right to prevent weapons from falling into the wrong hands in Syria.
He said that if terrorists seized weapons such as anti-aircraft and chemical weapons they could could be "game changers" in the region.
Israel has said its policy is not to get involved in the Syrian conflict.
But in recent months it has retaliated following Syrian fire into Israeli-controlled areas in the Golan Heights.
BBC:Pakistani troops in rescue effort after Iran quake
Pakistani troops in rescue effort after Iran quake
Pakistan has sent troops to help its citizens affected by a powerful earthquake that struck just over the border in south-east Iran.
The 7.8-magnitude quake, the most powerful to hit Iran for more than 50 years, caused 35 deaths in Pakistan's Balochistan province.
The National Disaster Management Authority say a further 150 people there have been injured.
The quake shook tall buildings as far away as India and the Gulf States.
BBC:Nigeria Boko Haram amnesty bid gets president's backing
Nigeria Boko Haram amnesty bid gets president's backing
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has set up a new committee to look at how an amnesty for the Islamist group, Boko Haram, can be implemented.
The committee will consider a 60-day timeframe for dialogue and disarmament, according to a statement from the president's office.
It will also look into support for victims of the violence.
The Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria has left thousands of people dead since it began in 2009.
BBC:Xstrata and Glencore merger gets China approval
Xstrata and Glencore merger gets China approval
China has approved the merger of commodities trader Glencore and mining group Xstrata, clearing the final big hurdle in completion of the deal.
The nod came after Glencore agreed to sell its stake in Xstrata's copper mining project in Peru to a buyer approved by Chinese authorities.
It also agreed to supply a minimum volume of copper concentrate to China for a period of eight years.
The merger will form one of the world's biggest metals and commodities firms.
Reuters:Exclusive: Risk ranking: China revamps anti-money laundering rules - sources
Exclusive: Risk ranking: China revamps anti-money laundering rules - sources
(Reuters) - Chinese banks must rate their clients' risk of criminal conduct on a scale of 1-5 as part of the central bank's moves to curb money laundering and fraudulent transactions estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars a year.
The new rules come as some experts cite China as the world's biggest source of 'dirty' funds and as it faces growing foreign pressure to scrutinize its financial links with North Korea and block cash transfers tied to Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions.
Global Financial Integrity, a Washington-based financial watchdog, estimated in December that China accounted for almost half of the $858.8 billion of illicit funds flowing into tax havens and western banks in 2010 - more than eight times the amounts for runners-up Malaysia and Mexico.
Over an 11-year period from 2000, China was home to $3.8 trillion worth of illicit financial flows originating from corruption, crime or tax evasion, the watchdog said. The numbers cannot be verified as there are few estimates in the market.
Reuters:No poultry contact in some Chinese bird flu cases : WHO
No poultry contact in some Chinese bird flu cases : WHO
(Reuters) - The World Health Organization said on Wednesday that a number of people who have tested positive for a new strain of bird flu in China appear to have had no contact with poultry, adding to the mystery about a virus that has killed 17 people to date.
Chinese authorities have slaughtered thousands of birds and closed some live poultry markets to try to slow the rate of human infection, but many questions remain unsolved, including whether the H7N9 strain is being transmitted between people.
WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl confirmed that "there are people who have no history of contact with poultry", after a top Chinese scientist was quoted as saying this applied to about 40 percent of those infected.
"This is one of the puzzles still (to) be solved and therefore argues for a wide investigation net," Hartl said in emailed comments.
Reuters:Number of Japan jets scrambled against China planes doubles
Number of Japan jets scrambled against China planes doubles
(Reuters) - Japan scrambled fighter jets against Chinese planes twice as often in the year that ended in March as it did a year earlier, the Defence Ministry said on Wednesday, amid a territorial dispute over a group of East China Sea islands.
The number of scrambles against Chinese planes nearly doubled to 306, accounting for the increase in the number of overall scrambles from 425 to 567, the highest level in 22 years.
During the year to March 31, Japan experienced two cases of what it said was actual encroachment into its air space, one by China in December and the other by Russia in February.
The waters around the disputed islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, are rich fishing grounds and have potentially huge oil and gas reserves.
Reuters:Russian foreign minister tells West "don't isolate Assad"
Russian foreign minister tells West "don't isolate Assad"
(Reuters) - In an implicit warning to international supporters of Syrian opposition forces, Russia's foreign minister said on Wednesday that efforts to isolate one side in the conflict would wreck the chances of a negotiated solution and help militant Islamists.
Sergei Lavrov said the Friends of Syria group, which is meeting in Istanbul this weekend, had so far had a negative influence on implementing a 2012 accord among world powers aimed at resolving the war through talks among all sides.
Friends of Syria links the United States, European powers, Turkey and Gulf Arab states who support the opposition and have demanded that President Bashar al-Assad surrender power.
The 2012 Geneva accord left open the question of Assad's exact fate. Russia says his exit from power must not be a precondition for a dialogue among Syrians to end the conflict which has killed more than 70,000 people.
Reuters:Ivanplats shares plunge after Congo export ban
Ivanplats shares plunge after Congo export ban
(Reuters) - Ivanplats Ltd (IVP.TO) shares fell almost 18 percent on Wednesday after Democratic Republic of Congo banned exports of copper and cobalt concentrates, although there was no immediate indication the Africa-focused miner's projects would be affected by the ban.
The export ban is intended to encourage more value-added production in Congo, according to an order from the country's mining ministry obtained by Reuters. Dated April 5, it includes a 90-day grace period.
Ivanplats' Kamoa copper project is in Congo. A preliminary economic assessment released last September included plans for a concentrator and smelter.
The company, founded by mining entrepreneur Robert Friedland, said Thursday that it signed a memorandum of understanding with Congo's state-owned power company to upgrade a nearby power plant, securing more electricity for Kamoa.
Reuters:North Korea demands end of sanctions if U.S. wants dialogue
North Korea demands end of sanctions if U.S. wants dialogue
(Reuters) - North Korea demanded on Thursday the removal of U.N. sanctions imposed for its nuclear and missile tests and a U.S. pledge not to engage in "nuclear war practice" with South Korea if Washington truly sought dialogue.
"If the United States and the puppet South have the slightest desire to avoid the sledge-hammer blow of our army and the people ... and truly wish dialogue and negotiations, they must make the resolute decision," the North's National Defense Commission said in a statement.
"Firstly, the sanctions resolutions by the U.N. Security Council that were fabricated with unjust reasons must be withdrawn," the North's top military body said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.
CNet:Google will brick Google Glasses if owners resell or loan them out
Google will brick Google Glasses if owners resell or loan them out
If all you envisioned developing by being an early recipient of Google Glass Explorer Edition was a quick resale profit, think again: Google has rules against reselling the wearable tech without its permission.
As the Web giant began shipping the high-tech specs this week, it also unveiled a host of developer preview documentation, specs, and rules about what developers could and couldn't do. One of those things, apparently, is reselling or even loaning the $1,500 device to someone else. Developers who do risk having their prized specs deactivated.
As spotted by Wired, Google's terms of service regarding ownership and use are fairly specific:
You may not resell, loan, transfer, or give your device to any other person. If you resell, loan, transfer, or give your device to any other person without Google's authorization, Google reserves the right to deactivate the device, and neither you nor the unauthorized person using the device will be entitled to any refund, product support, or product warranty.