BERLIN – Scientists working at the world’s biggest atom smasher say they have discovered a new kind of particle called “pentaquarks.” The existence of pentaquarks was first proposed in the 1960s by American physicists Murray Gell-Mann and Georg Zweig. Gell-Mann, who coined the term “quark,” received the Nobel Prize in …
Read More »Clashes in Yemen kill 20, including 4 civilians, as fighting rages north of Aden
SANAA, Yemen – Officials say 20 people died in clashes in Yemen’s Marib province and the city of Taiz between Shiite Houthi rebels and pro-government forces who are backed by airstrikes from a Saudi-led coalition. Medical sources in Marib say clashes there killed nine rebels and seven anti-Houthi tribesmen. Medical …
Read More »Amnesty International: Mexico corpse discoveries highlight 'shocking' crisis of disappearances
MEXICO CITY – Amnesty International says the discovery of 129 bodies during the search for 43 missing students highlights a “crisis of enforced disappearances” in Mexico. The international human rights watchdog calls the situation “shocking” — not only in the state of Guerrero, where the students disappeared last September, but …
Read More »Iran says 'high-level' talks with EU planned following nuclear deal
TEHRAN, Iran – Iran’s foreign minister says “high-level” talks will soon be launched with the European Union following a nuclear agreement reached with world powers earlier this month. Mohammad Javad Zarif said Tuesday that the talks “in the near future” will focus on energy, environmental and human rights issues, as …
Read More »Dominican truckers blockade border crossings into Haiti to protest violence against drivers
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – The main truckers union in the Dominican Republic on Monday blocked transport of all freight through border crossings into neighboring Haiti, citing concerns about their safety. The Dominican truckers said they were protesting recent violence against them while in Haiti. They asserted that some 60 …
Read More »Homemade bomb believed set off by Abu Sayyaf militants kills 2 soldiers in Philippines
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine military says two soldiers have been killed by a homemade bomb believed to have been set off by Abu Sayyaf militants in a restive southern province. A military spokesman for the region, Ensign Chester Ramos, said the two soldiers were part of a security detail …
Read More »Former Iran president Rafsanjani's son begins 10-year sentence on corruption, security charges
TEHRAN, Iran – Iran’s official IRNA news agency is reporting that a son of former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has begun a 10-year prison sentence after his conviction on corruption and security charges. Before entering Tehran’s Evin prison on Sunday, Mahdi Hashemi Rafsanjani reportedly called his conviction “unjust” and …
Read More »Israeli rabbis create independent Jewish conversion court, defying Orthodox monopoly
JERUSALEM – A group of Israeli rabbis has established an independent Jewish conversion court, defying the Orthodox establishment’s monopoly on religious affairs. Israel’s Orthodox rabbinate controls conversion, marriage and burials. The new court is meant to ease conversion for tens of thousands of people, mainly immigrants from the former Soviet …
Read More »Puerto Rico prepares for mass wedding of gay couples after court ruling
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – More than 60 gay couples are preparing to exchange vows at a mass wedding in Puerto Rico, celebrating a U.S. Supreme Court ruling affecting the socially conservative U.S. territory, organizers said Wednesday. Most of the couples are Puerto Ricans, but others from Haiti, the Dominican …
Read More »Sprint car driver killed in accident at Pennsylvania speedway
Sprint car driver James Campbell Jr. was killed Friday night in a crash at a Pennsylvania raceway. The Cumberland County Coroner’s office says Campbell died after striking the wall on the half-mile banked clay oval at Williams Grove Speedway. The multi-car accident occurred during warm-up laps. The speedway canceled the …
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