Stories for December 2014

Monday, December 8th 2014 - 11:09 UTC
Ten months of 2014 the hottest on record; land surface temperature up 2 Celsius degrees

Despite the record early snowfall in parts of the United States in recent weeks, 2014 is shaping up to be the hottest year on record and according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, the first ten months of this year have been the hottest since record keeping began more than 130 years ago.
Monday, December 8th 2014 - 07:18 UTC
Argentina claims BBC Top Gear had three different plates and planned to set the cars on fire

The BBC Top Gear team which last October toured Argentina with three vehicles and which triggered a strong controversy apparently had three different plates in just one car and tried to torch the vehicles to cause further 'scandal', according to reports from the Patagonian police which were attached to a second letter sent by Argentine ambassador Alicia Castro to the BBC Executive Board.
Monday, December 8th 2014 - 07:12 UTC
Road ahead for Latin America 'increasingly bumpy' says IMF Lagarde

Latin America faces a rocky road ahead despite social and economic achievements in recent years, according to the head of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde. Among the achievements in the last two decades and in most nations, Ms Lagarde mentioned low inflation, fiscal discipline, and financial stability.
Monday, December 8th 2014 - 07:04 UTC
Lagarde wishes to continue improving relations with Argentina

The head of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde said she wishes to “continue improving” the relationship between the IMF and Argentina, while at the same time focusing on the necessities of the region's third largest economy which is not growing as fast as it should.
Monday, December 8th 2014 - 06:55 UTC
Mujica says Guantanamo inmates in Uruguay can leave whenever they wish

The detainees from Guantanamo Base in Cuba that arrived in Uruguay on Sunday as part of an agreement with the US, “can leave the country whenever they wish”, since they come as 'refugees', announced President Jose Mujica.
Monday, December 8th 2014 - 06:42 UTC
US confirms Uruguay has received the six Guantanamo detainees

The United States Department of Defense announced on Sunday the transfer to Uruguay of six detainees from the Guantanamo Bay facility in Cuba, a long announced event which was postponed several times allegedly because of bureaucratic delays in the US and controversy in Uruguay.
Monday, December 8th 2014 - 05:16 UTC
Their Grave is the Sea - 1914 Naval Battles: Coronel and Falklands

By Harold Briley (*) Early in World War One the Royal Navy suffered one of its most disastrous defeats followed five weeks later by one of its most decisive victories. In the Battle of the Falkland Islands on 8 December, 1914, all five battle cruisers of the German East Asian Squadron and its support ships were defeated with nearly 2,000 men killed including their commander, Vice Admiral Graf von Spee. No British ships were lost and only eight British sailors were killed.
Saturday, December 6th 2014 - 08:39 UTC
Falklands Battle Centenary Memorial Wall unveiling and Act of Remembrance

Gilbert House, seat of the Falkland Islands elected government has released the program arranged for Monday 8th December 2014 to commemorate the victory of the Naval engagements of 8th December 1914, on which day 6 British sailors lost their lives and a number of others died later from injuries received during the battle. 2,260 German sailors also lost their lives.
Saturday, December 6th 2014 - 08:26 UTC
More jobs for the US economy in November: 241.000 a month this year

The US economy added 321,000 jobs in November, while the unemployment rate stayed at 5.8%, official Labor Department figures showed on Friday. The number of jobs created was well above analysts' forecasts of about 225,000 new jobs in the month.
Saturday, December 6th 2014 - 08:21 UTC
New York appeals court rejects “legal personhood” to chimpanzees

In the first case of its kind, a New York appeals court has rejected an animal rights advocate's bid to extend “legal personhood” to chimpanzees, saying the primates are incapable of bearing the responsibilities that come with having legal rights.