Legendary pop singer Whitney Houston was found dead Saturday at a Beverly Hills, California, hotel, officials said. She was 48. The entertainer, whose incredible talent was discovered at an early age, was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. (6:55 p.m. ET) at the Beverly Hilton hotel despite resuscitation efforts, a police spokesman said. Beverly Hills Police Lt. Mark Rosen said there were "no obvious signs of criminal intent" and that the cause of her death is being investigated. Houston's bodyguard found her body, said Courtney Barnes, publicist for hip-hop artist Ray J, who was dating the pop diva. According to her official website, Houston sold ...
Yahoo Inc Chairman Roy Bostock and three other directors will step down as the struggling company ploughs ahead with an internal overhaul, including discussions on dealing with its stakes in China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan. The corporation - once a Web powerhouse but now agonizing over a range of options to revive flagging growth - on Tuesday said it appointed former Rovi Corp CEO and International Business Machines Corp veteran Alfred Amoroso and ex-eBay COO Maynard Webb as independent directors. Yahoo's board has come under fire from investors impatient with the company's persistent inability to effect a turnaround, and frustrated with the apparent indecisiveness of stakeholders over ...
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has vowed to fight an "anti-business culture" in Britain, warning that a row overexecutive pay and bonuses threatens the country's fragile economic recovery. "Let me say something about the row over bonuses and pay," Osborne said in a speech to the Federation of Small Businesses. "Of course rewards for failure are unacceptable -- and those who believe in the free market are the first to say so. But a strong, free market economy must be built on rewards for success." The Labour Party has heaped pressure on the ruling coalition to curb excessive pay for top executives, using a House of Commons debate to demand the return ...
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Tuesday he is resolved to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Russia at an annual rally calling for the return of all four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido in northern Japan, the Kyodo news agency reported. "We'll continue to make steady and determined efforts to move ahead with negotiations," Noda said, stressing the need to sign a peace treaty with Russia. The four islands - which Russia calls the Southern Kurils and Japan calls the Northern Territories - has been the subject of a territorial dispute between the two nations since the end of World War ...
Amanda Knox's Italian lawyer has filed an appeal of her slander conviction in Italy, a Knox family spokesman inSeattle said Monday. In October, an Italian appeals court overturned the young Seattle woman's murder conviction in the 2007 death of her British roommate in Perugia. But the same court upheld Knox's conviction for slander — for falsely accusing bar owner Diya "Patrick" Lumumba of involvement in the slaying. Lumumba was freed after two weeks in prison for lack of evidence. Knox later said she was "manipulated" during her lengthy police interrogation. An appeal of the slander conviction was filed Monday, Knox family spokesman Dave Marriott confirmed. He doesn't know when the Italian ...
The Dutch railway will remain 'vulnerable' during wintry weather but Dutch Rail (NS) and track operator ProRail did not help matters during the current cold snap by the late introduction of schedule adjustments to cope with the conditions, transport minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen told parliament in a briefing on Tuesday. The NS and ProRail assumed on Thursday of last week that there would be three to five centimetres of snow. When the forecast was increased on Friday morning to between 10 and 15 centimetres, it was too late to change the timetables automatically, Schultz van Haegen told parliament. Drivers and conductors ...
Greece can leave the eurozone without damaging monetary union, European digital affairs commissioner Neelie Kroes says in an interview with the Volkskrant on Tuesday. Kroes, a member of the Dutch ruling right-wing Liberal party VVD, is not a supporter of Greece exchanging the euro for the drachma, but says: 'It is absolutely not a case of man overboard if someone leaves the eurozone.' The commissioner is very critical of the new Greek government and says they are not fulfilling their promises. 'Too few spending cuts, too little restructuring,' she says. She says the Greeks should follow the example of Italy where the new ...
Mitt Romney hopes his presidential campaign hasn't ignored Rick Santorum's aggressive attacks for too long, as caucuses in Colorado and Minnesota on Tuesday could reshuffle the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum largely bypassed Florida and Nevada to blanket the two caucus states with criticism of Romney and lay the groundwork among conservatives who have great sway in the process. RivalNewt Gingrich praised Santorum's strategy as shrewd even as he signaled he had no interest in exiting the four-way race, which also includes Ron Paul. "I think that Santorum's going to have a pretty good day," Gingrich told reporters on the eve of the caucuses. "He targeted differently than I ...
Glencore and Xstrata agreed an all-share merger worth $90 billion (56 billion pounds) on Tuesday in the industry's largest ever deal, creating a commodities powerhouse spanning mining, agriculture and trading. Glencore, the world's largest diversified commodities tradinghouse, will issue 2.8 new shares for each Xstrata share in a deal they said was a "merger of equals." The ratio is a 15.2 percent premium to Xstrata shareholders compared with its share price last Wednesday before word leaked out about the merger talks, a joint statement said. "A merger between Glencore and Xstrata offers a unique opportunity to create a new business model in our industry to respond to ...
US White House hopeful Mitt Romney aims for another big caucus win in Colorado on Tuesday, as his well-oiled campaign machine works to cement his position as the Republican front runner in the US presidential race. Polls suggest he should triumph easily in the western US state -- where he scored 60 percent in 2008 -- although there is a tighter race in Minnesota, where last-placed Rick Santorum is hoping to snatch a win. Romney's main rival, former House speaker Newt Gingrich, is battling to stay in the race after two heavy losses in a row to the former Massachusetts governor, who ...
China will ultimately decide more yuan flexibility would benefit it, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Tuesday as Beijing defended its currency policy and said any changes would be on its own terms. Geithner, who told Indian television the global economic recovery “looks quite strong now,” also said it was “China’s choice” whether or not it revalues the yuan. The White House said President Barack... [more]
Scuffles broke out in Bangkok Tuesday between riot police and anti-government protesters, while a grenade exploded outside the ruling party’s offices, fanning tensions in the capital. The red-shirted supporters of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra threw plastic bottles and pushed against police barricades, paralysing Bangkok’s shopping and hotel district for a fourth day, despite the threat of arrest. “We are ready to fight... [more]
Gordon Brown is on his way back to Downing Street after asking the Queen for a May 6 General Election. Mr Brown will stand outside No 10 and set out the themes of his campaign as he fights to stay on as Prime Minister. He asked the Queen her to dissolve Parliament on April 12 which will mark the official start of the campaign. He stayed at Buckingham Palace for approximately 22 minutes. The polls suggest it will be the hardest fought election... [more]
The Greek-EU debt crisis is taking a new twist with the expected arrival here on Wednesday of experts from the International Monetary Fund amid uncertainty over the status of a vague EU-IMF safety net. Greek sources say the IMF mission is merely to offer advice on managing its crippled budget, but there is deep unease in financial markets about the outlook. Greece, a member of the eurozone, has revealed that it is planning a huge operation... [more]
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will kick off a month-long general election campaign Tuesday, set to be a neck-and-neck race dominated by the country’s recession-hit economy. Brown visits Queen Elizabeth II to dissolve parliament and officially fire the starting gun on the campaign which will culminate in a May 6 vote, a government source confirmed speaking on condition of anonymity. Campaigning has already been under way for some... [more]
Vietnam has dismissed what it called “groundless” accusations from Google and McAfee that the communist country had apparently used malicious computer programs to hack websites and spy on political opponents. Google said Vietnam had apparently used software known as “malware” to snoop on opponents of a controversial bauxite mine planned for Vietnam’s Central Highlands. It said the cyber attacks had targeted... [more]
Thai anti-government activists canceled plans to stage protests at nearly a dozen no-go zones across Bangkok on Tuesday but continued their siege of the capital’s upmarket shopping and hotel district. The protesters, who are demanding new elections, called off the proposed parade through the city after thousands of riot police and soldiers came out to block them, saying they wanted to avoid clashes. After some brief pushing and shoving... [more]
Today is Tuesday, April 6, the 96th day of 2010. There are 269 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On April 6, 1909, American explorers Robert E. Peary and Matthew A. Henson and four Inuits became the first men to reach the North Pole. On this date: In 1830, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was organized by Joseph Smith in Fayette, N.Y. In 1862, the Civil War Battle of Shiloh began in Tennessee as... [more]
Thousands of Peruvian wildcat miners were locked in a tense standoff with police on Monday after six people were killed during a protest against stricter environmental controls imposed by the government. The violence broke out near the town of Chala, 372 miles (600 km) south of the capital Lima, on Sunday when police tried to clear a roadblock set by the miners on the Panamerican Highway leading to Chile. Two of the dead were bystanders,... [more]
The Transportation Department says it’s seeking themaximum penalty, more than $16 million, against Toyota for failing to promptly notify the government about defective gas pedals among its vehicles. The fine would be the largest civil penalty ever issued to an automaker by the government. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says evidence shows that Toyota knew of the problem with sticking gas pedals in late September but did not... [more]
