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 ...
Jennifer Aniston turned down a comedy career as a Saturday Night Live regular to star in Friends. The actress’ longtime pal Adam Sandler revealed the fact that Aniston was once approached to become an SNL castmember during a TV chat with Oprah Winfrey on Wednesday as the two movie stars were promoting their new film Just Go With It. He explained that the actress was hot comedy property when he was a writer/comic on the weekly satirical... [more]
The trial of MP Geert Wilders on discrimination and inciting hatred charges may be delayed, Nos television reports on Thursday. A lawyer representing groups who forced the prosecution department to take legal action against Wilders has gone to the appeal court to fight the department’s call for Wilders’ acquittal. The original court case against Wilders collapsed last year after a number of irregularities involving the judges, which... [more]
As leader of Europe’s strongest economy, Chancellor Angela Merkel will on Thursday attempt to send a united message alongside one of the weakest economies, Spain, in support of the troubled eurozone. Merkel’s meeting in Madrid with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero comes on the eve of a European summit in Brussels to discuss how to bail out crisis-torn member states. Berlin wants to broaden the agenda to include... [more]
Norwegians use their cars less, and make more use of public transport travelling to and from work. This is shown by a new survey made by the Institute of Transport Economics (TØI). The reduced use of private cars is highest in Oslo, where four out of ten now use public transport to and from work, according to TØI. The survey also shows that nearly 50 per cent of all Norwegian households now have at least two cars. Share this: ... [more]
Producers of American food and drink have discovered an antidote for post-holiday sales blues in the United States: China’s huge, gift-laden celebration of its new year. The 15-day celebration, known as Chun Jie, or Spring Festival, is China’s biggest holiday and a time to gather with relatives, feast and give gifts. Food, clothing and money are traditional presents, but a growing number of Chinese — especially the booming... [more]
One of the most powerful storms ever recorded in Australia pulled houses apart and snapped power poles as it ripped across already flood-sodden Queensland state Thursday, leaving authorities relieved that no one was killed. Officials had issued days of increasingly dire warnings, and said lives were spared because people followed instructions to flee to evacuation centers or bunker themselves at home in dozens of cities and towns in Cyclone... [more]
The leaders of Germany and Spain, Europe’s strongest economy and one of its weakest, will attempt to send a united message in support of the troubled eurozone in talks here Thursday. The Madrid meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero comes on the eve of a European summit in Brussels to discuss how to bail out crisis-torn member states. Berlin wants to broaden the... [more]
Australia’s biggest cyclone in a century shattered entire towns after pummelling the coast and churning across the country Thursday, terrifying locals but remarkably causing no fatalities. Exhausted residents emerged to check the damage after Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi hit land at around midnight, packing winds of up to 290 kilometres (180 miles) per hour, in a region still reeling from record floods. Officials and locals said 90... [more]
Google on Wednesday provided a glimpse at tablet computer software crafted to dethrone the iPad and courted developers key to the success of Apple gadgets. Google showed off a Honeycomb version of its Android operating system that will debut on the upcoming Motorola Xoom tablet that won raves at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last month. “Honeycomb is tailored for the new generation of tablet-sized computers,” Google... [more]
Revolt in Egypt and the implications for the stalled Middle East peace process are set to be key talking points for top defence officials at the Munich Security Conference in Germany starting Friday. The three-day annual get-together of ministers, top military brass, national security advisors and experts will also tackle hot-button issues like Iran, Afghanistan, the rise of China, NATO-Russia relations and disarmament. Other topics for... [more]
