The US Department of Defense has designed a next-generation satellite capable of observing 40 percent of the Earth’s surface at any one time. The MOIRE satellite will be able to beam high-resolution images in real time from anywhere on our planet. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) – the institution that comes up with new technologies for the US military – has developed the... 

The Israeli parliament, Knesset, has approved a law allowing illegal African migrant workers living in the Occupied Palestinian Territories to be held without any charges. Under the new legislation approved on Monday, illegal immigrants face up to 12 months in detention. The law also gives Tel Aviv the right to send “illegal immigrants” to complexes called “open facilities” — until they... 

The number of Americans incarcerated in federal prisons throughout the country has increased by nearly 30 percent over the past ten years, according to a new report by an investigative arm of Congress. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released Monday attributed the 27 percent surge in prison population to mandatory sentencing minimums. The practice, in which a judge’s discretion... 

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) is sending out letters telling gun owners to turn over their rifles and shotguns — or else face the consequences. New York City’s ban on rifles and shotguns that hold more than five rounds is now being enforced, according to a letter the NYPD is sending out to targeted city gun owners. “It appears you are in possession of a rifle and/or Shotgun (listed... 

Israel’s Economy Minister Naftali Bennett has proposed the annexation of parts of the Palestinian land of the West Bank under Israel’s full military control. Bennett, who heads the far-right Jewish Home religious party, said on Sunday that he favors “implementation of Israeli sovereignty over the zone where 400,000 (settlers) live and only 70,000 Arabs.” The hawkish Israeli minister also... 

WikiLeaks founder and journalist, Julian Assange, has marked the third year spent in detention in UK under constant threat of extradition to Sweden. On December 7, 2010 Assange was taken into custody after voluntarily attending a British police station. He spent 10 days behind bars, before being released on bail with a residence requirement at Ellingham Hall in Norfolk, England. The journalist is... 

US energy giant Chevron has resumed its search for shale gas in north-eastern Romania after hundreds of riot police reportedly brutally removed a bunch of villagers who had been camping out at the site protesting the company’s plan. Back in October, Chevron suspended its plans to drill an exploration well for shale gas in the village of Pungesti – which is believed to be sitting on vast reserves... 

Billions of dollars annually are being used to fund operations conducted by the United States intelligence community, the likes of which allow the government to eavesdrop on emails, listen to world leaders’ phone calls and about everything in-between. One thing that budget hasn’t bought, however, is subtlety. The US National Reconnaissance Office launched a top-secret surveillance satellite into... 

The Canadian police have arrested a citizen on charges of trying to provide classified information to the Chinese government, officials say. Canadian police arrested Ontario resident Qing Quentin Huang on Saturday, on charges that he was taking steps to pass on classified information to China relating to Canada’s national shipbuilding strategy, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said on... 

Foreign-backed militants operating inside Syria have kidnapped 12 nuns from a convent in the Christian town of Ma’loula. According to local authorities on Tuesday, the militants took the nuns to the nearby town of Yabrud after they stormed the convent on Monday. There is no word on the fate of the nuns, but militants are usually known to kill people they kidnap. The militants fighting against... 

In another blow to the Constitution, the Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a case by Amazon and Overstock.com challenging a law that requires online retailers to collect sales tax in states where they have no physical presence. The Supreme Court refusal to hear the case will allow state governments to tax online retailers and turn online retailers into de facto tax collection agencies. The... 

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Detroit, Michigan is indeed eligible for bankruptcy protection, giving the go-ahead to the once booming Motor City to move forward with plans to restructure more than $18 billion in debt. Amid reading excerpts from a lengthy decision of more than 140 pages, United States Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes announced during Tuesday morning’s historic hearing that he... 

Three high school students are still dumbfounded after they were arrested this past Thanksgiving eve while waiting for a school bus. The Edison Tech high school students were on their way to a basketball scrimmage as part of a group of about a dozen teens who had been instructed by their coach to wait for the bus in downtown Rochester. A Rochester police officer arrived when he saw the group of teens... 

An Italian right-wing politician has been fined for organizing a protest against the wearing of Islamic veils for women. On Monday, Daniela Santanche, a leading member of the conservative Forza Italia party of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, was handed a 100-euro fine and a four-day jail sentence for not warning police about the action. The punishment was subsequently converted into a 1,100-euro... 

German Ambassador Peter Witting The UN human rights committee unanimously passed a ‘right to privacy’ resolution sponsored by Germany and Brazil that protects the right to privacy against illegal surveillance, following revelations about NSA spying. The resolution states that surveillance and data interception by governments and companies “may violate or abuse human rights.” This...