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 ...
US President Barack Obama has arrived in Hawaii, embarking on his year-end holiday after the political maelstrom of Washington – where he just earned a bruising tax victory. Air Force One touched down at Hickham Air Force Base in Honolulu at 5.52pm Friday (2.52pm today AEDT) after a flight of nearly nine hours. The president came to the press cabin with Christmas wishes early in the flight. Obama had delayed plans to join his wife... [more]
THE Kremlin’s rights panel has called for the resignation of Russia’s election chief and snap parliamentary elections in a damning statement on “discredited” polls that sparked mass demonstrations. The recommendations by the panel – which advises President Dmitry Medvedev on rights and social issues – are not binding but will add to pressure on the authorities for radical changes after the December 4... [more]
Tens of thousands of flag-waving and chanting protesters called on Saturday for a disputed parliamentary election to be rerun, increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin as he seeks a new term as Russian president. The protesters chanted “Russia without Putin” and “New elections, New elections” as speakers called for an end to Putin’s 12-year domination of the country at the second big opposition rally in two weeks... [more]
George Michael has received the best Christmas present: making it home to London in time for the festivities after being successfully treated for life-threatening pneumonia in Austria. The 48-year-old was taken to the AKH hospital in Vienna a month ago and was forced to cancel the rest of his Symphonica tour dates while he underwent treatment in intensive care. The singer held a press conference outside his house in Highgate yesterday... [more]
Australian singer/actress Holly Valance has got a very special early Christmas present, as her billionaire property developer boyfriend Nick Candy proposed in spectacular style. Nick and Holly are on holiday in Mauritius following the finale of Strictly Come Dancing last Saturday, and the groom-to-be got down on one knee on the beach with flaming torches spelling out his request. Holly shared a picture of the moment Nick popped the... [more]
A judge on Friday approved a divorce settlement between actor Mel Gibson and his estranged wife Robyn, ending their 31 years of marriage. Robyn Gibson will return to using her maiden name, Robyn Denise Moore, but other details of the divorce were kept confidential. The settlement becomes effective on January 9. Gibson, 55, and his wife married in Australia in 1980 and have seven children together. The couple separated in 2006 after Gibson... [more]
Queen Elizabeth II will use her Christmas Day message, recorded before her husband Prince Philip was rushed to hospital and underwent heart surgery, to praise the institution of family. The prince, who celebrated his 90th birthday in June, underwent a procedure to correct a blocked artery late Friday after being taken to hospital with chest pains. He was to remain for a “short period” in hospital in Cambridge, eastern England,... [more]
Russia’s opposition plans to stage new nationwide demonstrations on Saturday, expected to attract tens of thousands of people to protest alleged rigging of December 4 parliamentary elections. Incensed by claims of wholesale violations in the polls that handed a reduced majority to Vladimir Putin’s ruling party, tens of thousands of people already took to the streets across Russia on December 10. Those protests were the biggest... [more]
Chancellor George Osborne has refused to contribute to the IMF’s bailout fund for the EU, Sky News has learned. Mr Osborne told his EU colleagues he will not provide any cash to boost the 200bn euro fund, which is specifically aimed at the troubled eurozone. The conference call with 26 other EU finance ministers lasted three hours but ended without Britain’s agreement to put in up to 50bn euros. Mr Osborne insisted that while... [more]
As North Korea comes to terms with the loss of its “Dear Leader”, the shadowy figure of “the Great Successor” – his son – has begun to emerge. Kim Jong-un only appeared with his father on live television for the first time last October, clapping and saluting thousands of goose-stepping soldiers at a military parade. The third son of Kim Jong-il, Jong-un is believed to be around 27-years-old and was... [more]
