U.S. president vows to step up pressure on China and prevent Iran from getting nuclear weaponWASHINGTON (AP) ― U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday used his annual State of the Union policy address to denounce America’s economic inequality, drawing a battle line with Republicans ahead of what is expected to be a tough fight for re-election.The nationally televised speech before a joint session of Congress, one of America’s grandest political events, put Obama back in the spotlight after month

Iraqi security forces inspect the site of a blast after a bomb ripped through a group of workers in Sadr City in Baghdad on January 24, 2012. (AFP)HADITHA, Iraq (AP) _ In this town which saw 24 unarmed civilians die in a U.S. raid seven years ago, residents expressed disbelief and sadness that the M

BRUSSELS (AFP) - A tiny revolutionary fold-up car designed in Spain's Basque country as the answer to urban stress and pollution was unveiled Tuesday before hitting European cities in 2013.The "Hiriko", the Basque word for "urban", is an electric two-seater with no doors whose motor is located in th

BOSTON (AP) _ Newly released final recordings President John F. Kennedy secretly made in the Oval Office include an eerie conversation about what would become the day of his funeral.While trying to arrange his schedule, Kennedy remarked that Nov. 25 was shaping up to be a ``tough day'' after his ret

Expats can commonly be found in Seoul’s large array of bars and restaurants on any given weekend. But on one recent Saturday, a group of 50 expats spent their night roaming the streets of Seoul, not looking for a fun night out, but rather to pick up cards and fliers advertising prostitution. The flash mob, which was organized through Facebook, called for all foreigners in Seoul to give a voice to the voiceless. “We know that this isn’t the most effective way to do things, but with a big group of

Nokia Oyj’s first phones running Microsoft Corp. software may have sold enough units last year to help rebuild investor confidence in the Finnish company, which lost $19 billion in market value in 2011. The Lumia handsets, which went on sale in Europe in November, probably sold 1.3 million units globally to operators and retailers by the end of last year, according to the average estimate of 22 analysts compiled by Bloomberg. The projections range from 800,000 to 2 million and only one analyst p

GENEVA (AFP) ― The International Labour Organization on Tuesday released a pessimistic report for the global jobs market in 2012 saying urgent attention is needed to create 600 million new jobs in the next 10 years.“Despite strenuous government efforts, the jobs crisis continues unabated, with one in three workers worldwide, or an estimated 1.1 billion people, either unemployed or living in poverty,” said ILO director-general, Juan Somavia, in the Global Employment Trends 2012 report.“What is ne

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) ― British adventurer Felicity Aston became the first woman to ski alone across Antarctica on Monday, hauling two sledges around crevasses and over mountains into endless headwinds, past the South Pole and onward to the coastal ice shelf, persevering for 59 days in near-total solitude.She made it to her destination ahead of schedule, using nothing but her own strength to cover 1,744 kilometers from her starting point on the Leverett Glacier on Nov. 25 to Hercules Inle

KYOTO, Japan (AP) ― They no longer speak the same language, but two brothers separated nearly 60 years each think the other hasn’t changed a bit.Japanese-American Minoru Ohye celebrate his 86th birthday Monday with his only brother after traveling to Japan for a reunion with him.The brothers were born in Sacramento, California, but were separated as children after their father died in a fishing accident. They were sent to live with relatives in Japan and ended up in different homes.The reunited

SANAA (AP) ― The departure of leader Ali Abdullah Saleh for medical treatment is doing little to calm Yemen ― the opposition movement is skeptical that he’ll stay away and many are looking to presidential elections as the real test of regime change.A wave of mutinies against the air force commander provided the latest example of how Yemenis are impatient for reform and how tenuous the security situation remains in the key U.S. ally in the fight against al-Qaida.“The post-Saleh era has not starte

CAIRO (AP) ― It was a raucous beginning Monday for Egypt’s first democratically elected parliament.Islamist lawmakers added religious references to the oath of office. Liberal lawmakers improvised too, adding a pledge to protect the “revolution” that ousted Hosni Mubarak. Some wore scarves with words protesting military trials for civilians. Shouting matches erupted. Hundreds massed outside, calling on the ruling generals to step down.And millions of Egyptians watched it all unfold live on TV.Th