The Korea Herald

Los Angeles teacher charged with molesting 23 kids

World NewsFeb 1, 2012

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Authorities say the elementary school teacher told the children that it was a game. Once inside his third-grade classroom, they say, he blindfolded them, gagged them and set cockroaches crawling on their faces.And then, Mark Berndt photographed them, creating hundreds of images t
Woman offers kidney to get son a job

World NewsFeb 1, 2012

An Italian woman said she is willing to give up a kidney in exchange for a job for her 38-year-old son. The Perugia woman, whose name was not released, told the daily La Nazione she had “nothing left to lose and nothing to be ashamed of” in offering her kidney in exchange for employment for her s
Doctors in Peru to remove 'parasitic twin'

Feb 1, 2012

LIMA, Peru (AP) -- Doctors in Peru have found a ``parasitic twin'' in the stomach of a 3-year-old boy, and plan to surgically remove the tissue Monday.Dr. Carlos Astocondor of the medical team at Las Mercedes Hospital in the northern port of Chiclayo says the condition occurs in about one of ev
Romney defeats Gingrich in Florida

World NewsFeb 1, 2012

Mitt Romney has won the Republican primary in Florida, soundly defeating Newt Gingrich and taking a big step toward becoming the Republican challenger to President Barack Obama.Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney works the phones for votes at his campaig
Oil market well supplied: OPEC sees

World BusinessJan 31, 2012

Global oil markets are “very well supplied,” the head of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said, while Saudi Arabia, the group’s largest member, said it’s able to deal with any future shortages. OPEC, responsible for 40 percent of world oil output, is pumping about 30.6 million barrels a day, Secretary-General Abdalla El-Badri said Monday in a speech at Chatham House in London. There’s unlikely to be any disruption to shipping in the Persian Gulf, as threatened by Iranian officia
WTO to hit China over export limits

World BusinessJan 31, 2012

World Trade Organization judges rejected China’s appeal of a ruling that found restrictions on exports of nine raw materials break global rules and give the country’s manufacturers an unfair edge over competitors. The WTO concluded on July 5 that Chinese quotas, export duties and license requirements on overseas shipments of industrial ingredients including coke, zinc and bauxite are discriminatory. The restrictions have stoked tensions between China and its trading partners, which accuse the Ch
Investors face more than 70% loss in Greek deal

World BusinessJan 31, 2012

BRUSSELS (AP) ― Investors participating in a deal to slash Greece’s massive debt would face an overall loss on their bond holdings of more than 70 percent, a person involved in with the negotiations said early Tuesday.European leaders at a summit in Brussels said a final debt deal could be signed off in the coming days, together with a second multibillion-euro bailout package designed to save the country from a potentially disastrous bankruptcy.Athens and representatives of investors holding Gre
Japan factory output increases

World BusinessJan 31, 2012

Japan’s industrial output increased the most in seven months in December as manufacturers made up for disruptions caused by Thailand’s worst floods in 70 years. Factory production rose 4 percent from November, when production slid because of supply disruptions, the trade ministry said in Tokyo Tuesday. The median estimate of 30 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 3 percent gain. Manufacturers from Honda Motor Co. to Toyota Motor Corp. are optimistic about demand as they recover from
Fed: U.S. banks tighten lending to Europe banks

World BusinessJan 31, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) ― A Federal Reserve survey has found that more than half of U.S. banks that lend to European banks have tightened their standards, a reflection of the persistent European debt crisis.Of the 26 U.S. banks surveyed that make loans to European banks, five said they had tightened their standards considerably in the October-December quarter. Another 10 said that they had tightened them somewhat in the same period, according to the survey released Monday.Many economists predict that Eu
Italy ‘optimistic’ bailout fund will grow in size: Monti

World BusinessJan 31, 2012

BRUSSELS (AFP) ― Italian Premier Mario Monti said Monday he was confident the EU’s permanent bailout fund would grow in size with fresh funds, seeing a softening in German opposition.“We are getting the feeling that there is a shift in Germany’s position and I am optimistic,” he told reporters after an EU summit here.“It is important that the capacity of this fund is changed,” he said, although he added that “Italy would not need these funds.”The bailout fund, or European Stability Mechanism agr
China cadmium spill threatens city water supplies

World NewsJan 31, 2012

SHANGHAI (AP) -- China’s environmental authorities were redoubling efforts Monday to prevent a toxic cadmium spill from further tainting water supplies of cities downstream, as seven chemical company officials were reported detained in connection with the accident.Official reports have provided little information about the exact cause of the spill, whose impact was first seen in fish kills in mid-January. The contamination initially was blamed on a mining company, but the official Xinhua News Ag
Window narrows for military actions on Iran

World NewsJan 31, 2012

With toughened sanctions, use of direct force seems highly unlikely as Israel seeks to thwart nuclear TehranJERUSALEM (AP) ― Officials are quietly conceding that new international sanctions targeting Iran’s suspect nuclear program, while welcome, are further constraining Israel’s ability to take military action ― just as a window of opportunity is closing because Tehran is moving more of its installations underground.The officials say that Israel must act by the summer if it wants to effectively
Winter cold snap kills 36 in eastern Europe

World NewsJan 31, 2012

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) -- A severe and snowy cold snap across central and eastern Europe has left at least 36 people dead, cut off power to towns, and snarled traffic. Officials are responding with measures ranging from opening shelters to dispensing hot tea, with particular concern for the homeless and elderly.This part of Europe is not unused to cold, but the current freeze, which spread to most of the region last week, came after a period of relatively mild weather. Many were shocked when temp
Occupy D.C. defies police order, hoists ‘tent of dreams’

World NewsJan 31, 2012

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Occupy D.C. protesters defied a threatened police clampdown on their tent colony Monday, pitching a massive “tent of dreams” in the park near the White House they took over four months ago.With several hundred cheering supporters looking on, but no police in sight, they hoisted a deep-blue tarpaulin over an equestrian statue of Civil War general James McPherson in the downtown Washington square that bears his name.Under the tarp, and surrounding the granite base of the statue,
Americans take refuge as tension with Egypt grows

World NewsJan 31, 2012

CAIRO (AP) ― Three American citizens barred from leaving Egypt have sought refuge at the American Embassy in Cairo amid growing tensions between the two allies over an Egyptian investigation into foreign-funded pro-democracy groups.The White House said Monday it was disappointed with Egypt’s handing of the issue, which U.S. officials have warned could stand in the way of more than $1 billion in badly needed U.S. aid.The growing spat between the two longtime allies reflects the uncertainty as the