Pakistan: U.S. drones kill 8 suspected militants

Updated 1:10 a.m. EST DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan Several missiles fired from American drones slammed into a compound near the Afghan border in Pakistan early Tuesday, killing eight suspected militants, Pakistan officials said. The two intelligence officials said the compound was located near the town of Mir Ali, in the North Waziristan tribal area. One of the officials said an al Qaeda operative...

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Meet Obama's Defense Secretary Nominee

President Obama nominated former Senator Chuck Hagel as the next U.S. secretary of defense. To those who haven't followed the Senate closely in the past decade, he's probably not a household name.Hagel is a former GOP senator from Nebraska and Purple-Heart-decorated Vietnam veteran, but he wouldn't necessarily be a popular pick with Republicans in Congress.At age 21, Hagel and...

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West vs Asia education rankings are misleading

Western schoolchildren are routinely outperformed by their Asian peers, but worrying about it is pointless MATHEMATICS and science are as essential to modern economies as coal was to the industrial revolution. So when the results of international tests show Western schoolchildren lagging behind their peers...

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Conservancy workers trained to help make estates safer

SINGAPORE: More conservancy workers have been trained to help make the estates safer.About 270 workers in the the east went through a half-day training workshop, named "Workers-on-Watch".They were taught how to look out for suspicious characters and activities.The workshop was organised by Bedok Police Division, with support from the Singapore Civil Defence Force, Singapore Customs and...

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NHL, players reach tentative agreement

From Maria P. White and Josh Levs, CNNupdated 1:11 PM EST, Sun January 6, 2013Mike Brown of the Toronto Maple Leafs strips the puck from Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings during a game last January.STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: Games could resume "hopefully, within a few days," Fehr saysFans react with a mix of frustration and excitement The two sides reach an agreement after a marathon negotiating...

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Google head Eric Schmidt on way to North Korea

Updated 3 a.m. EST Jan. 7, 2013 BEIJING The Google chairman wants a first-hand look at North Korea's economy and social media in his private visit Monday to the communist nation, his delegation said, despite misgivings in Washington over the timing of the trip. Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of one of the world's biggest Internet companies, is the highest-profile U.S. executive to visit North...

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Pastor Accused of Killing Wives Faces Trial

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday for Pastor Arthur Schirmer, who is accused of killing his second wife and then staging a car accident to hide it.Schirmer, 64, also faces a second trial at a later date for the death of his first wife. He has said he is innocent of all charges.In 2008, the pastor and his wife, Betty, were involved in what appeared at the time to be...

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Silent Skype calls can hide secret messages

Got a secret message to send? Say it with silence. A new technique can embed secret data during a phone call on Skype. "There are concerns that Skype calls can be intercepted and analysed," says Wojciech Mazurczyk at the Institute of Telecommunications in Warsaw, Poland. So his team's SkypeHide system lets users...

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Twin suicide attack at Afghan tribal meeting: officials

KANDAHAR: Two suicide bombers struck inside a meeting of community leaders in the southern Afghan town of Spin Boldak on Sunday, causing an unknown number of casualties, local officials said."There has been a twin suicide bombing in the Spin Boldak council building. The blasts were inside the hall during a meeting of tribal elders," Jawed Faisal, spokesman for the governor of Kandahar...

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Armstrong's lawyer: No mea culpa talks

By Jillian Martin and Chelsea J. Carterupdated 1:06 PM EST, Sat January 5, 2013STORY HIGHLIGHTSThe New York Times report cites unnamed associates and doping officials in its reportCyclist's lawyer says his client was not in discussion with U.S. or world anti-doping agenciesArmstrong was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and banned for life Cyclist has repeatedly denied using banned performance-enhancing...

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