by Dafna Linzer in ProPublicaThe Iranian government has told the Obama administration and its Western allies that it is ready to hold "comprehensive, all-encompassing and constructive" negotiations on a range of security issues, including global nuclear disarmament.But the new proposal is silent on Iran's own nuclear program....

On Wednesday, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood delivered his rebuttal to growing Republican criticism over the stimulus before an audience at the Center for National Policy. “LaHood described the $787 billion stimulus package as ‘the most sweeping, complex and ambitious domestic aid package we have enacted in generations’...

 A 70 centimeter (27.6 in) Zander on Lake Maggiore, Switzerland was killed by police divers after it attacked several swimmers over the weekend. The fish weighed eight kilograms, or 17.5 pounds.The fish bit six bathers, two of whom required emergency medical treatment for bite wounds up to 10 centimeters (3.9 in) long. Fish...

Yesterday, the Treasury Department released new rules on how much banks that received TARP money can pay their executives. Among the rules is one that prohibits golden parachutes – defined as any payment to a departing exec simply because the exec is leaving. But an examination of public filings shows that a number of executives...

The H1N1 swine flu virus has now spread to 66 different countries across the globe, with at least 19,273 confirmed cases and 117 deaths having been reported according to the latest World Health Organisation (WHO) tally. A majority of the cases were reported by the United States, which now has at least 10,053 confirmed infections...

The Airbus A330-200 was last heard via radio at 22:30 local time (01:30 GMT). The Brazilian Air Force is confirming the disappearing of the aircraft, which vanished from radar approximately 190 miles (306 km) off the Brazilian coast. Reuters reports that an electrical short circuit during turbulence may have caused the plane...

The Israeli parliament, the Knesset, has initially voted in favor of two bills, the "Loyalty Oath Law" and the "Nakba Law", both of which have sparked major controversy and are aime at Palestinians living in Israel who are critical of Israeli policies in the occupied territories.  The first law, the 'Loyalty Oath Law', makes...

A passerby pushed a man, who was threatening to commit suicide, off Haizhu Bridge in Guangzhou, China. The 66-year-old passerby, Lai Jiansheng, told China Daily that "I pushed him off because jumpers like Chen are very selfish. Their action violates a lot of public interests."Lai initially volunteered his services to police...

A copy of a letter written to the Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper by a Canadian man facing the death penalty in Saudi Arabia has been obtained by The Canadian Press. In it, Mohamed Kohail pleads with the prime minister to utilise "every way possible to get me out of this situation." Munzer Al-Hiraki, 19, was killed ...

A judge in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States ruled that a boy, Daniel Hauser, has been medically neglected by his parents and must take chemotherapy and radiation therapy for his cancer against his will.Medical professionals testifying at the proceedings said that Daniel's cancer, Hodgkin's lymphoma, has a 90% survival ...