International

• Thursday, March 18th 2010 - 21:43 UTC

  Policies to protect tigers have “failed miserably…and are continuing to fail”

  

  Governments across the world have “failed miserably and… are continuing to fail” to halt the growth of illegal poaching and trade in tiger body parts, said Willem Wijnstekers, Secretary-General, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

• Thursday, March 18th 2010 - 21:36 UTC

  Total ban on polar bears’ products trade rejected at UN wildlife meeting

  

  Polar bears have lost out on increased protection under international law after a US led bid for a total ban on trade in products made from the animals, such as furs and rugs, was rejected at a UN wildlife meeting in Doha, Qatar, Thursday.

• Thursday, March 18th 2010 - 02:02 UTC

  Lula da Silva laid a wreath at Arafat’s mausoleum and ready “to talk to Hamas”

  

  Brazil's president criticised Israeli policies towards the Palestinians, warning that Israel's separation barrier, its blockade of Gaza and its continued settlement building was extinguishing “the candle of hope”.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 22:52 UTC

  Astronomers detect outer solar system planet with “moderate” temperatures

  

  European astronomers have found a planet outside our solar system with a relatively moderate temperature, far cooler than other “exoplanets” discovered to date. The planet Corot-9b has an estimated surface temperature between 160 C and -20 C. It has about 80% of the mass of Jupiter and its orbit is similar to that of Mercury.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 22:42 UTC

  Four banks accused of selling “toxic derivatives” to the city of Milan

  

  Four major banks have been ordered to stand trial in Italy in a fraud case related to derivatives trading. JP Morgan Chase, UBS, Deutsche Bank and Germany's Depfa bank have been told they will be tried for aggravated fraud, along with 13 other people. The charges relate to the sale of derivates to the city of Milan.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 22:37 UTC

  China forecasted to grow 9.5%; inflation and real estate bubble real threats

  

  The World Bank raised its China growth forecast this year to 9.5% from 9% but said Beijing needs to cool inflation and possible bubbles in real estate prices.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 22:32 UTC

  Germany favours exclusion of Euro-zone members to avert a currency crisis

  

  Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel says she wants the Euro-zone to be able to exclude one of its members in future if that is necessary to avert a crisis. Mrs Merkel told the German Bundestag (parliament) that existing EU rules were not strong enough to deal with the current crisis triggered by Greece.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 22:30 UTC

  Facebook beats Google as the most visited website in the US

  

  Facebook has beaten Google to become the most visited website in the US for the first time. The social networking website knocked the search engine off the top spot for the week ending March 13, according to industry analysts Experian Hitwise.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 06:42 UTC

  St. Patrick's Day Facts: Shamrocks, Snakes, and a Saint

  

  On St. Patrick's Day—Wednesday, March 17—millions of people will don green and celebrate the Irish with parades, good cheer, and perhaps a pint of beer. But few St. Patrick's Day revelers have a clue about St. Patrick, the man, according to the author of St. Patrick of Ireland: A Biography.

• Wednesday, March 17th 2010 - 06:09 UTC

  First Russian head of state visit to Argentina next month

  

  Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will travel to Argentina on April 14 and 15, the first official visit by a Russian head of state in 125 years of bilateral relations, the Argentine Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.