China has overtaken the UK and New Zealand as Australia’s biggest source of immigrants, official figures reveal. The latest government figures show a record 6,350 people arrived from China in the four months to October. China’s new primacy was due largely to a fall in migration from the UK and New Zealand, as people there opt to hold on to jobs instead of moving to Australia. Arrivals... 

A massive storm buried much of the central United States in dangerous ice and snow Wednesday, stranding scores of motorists with massive drifts that shut down major roads and defeated plows. Strong winds created drifts as high as 15 feet (4.6 meters) as the storm dropped as much as four feet of snow (1.2 meters) in some areas, said Pat Slattery, a spokesman for the National Weather Service. “This... 

Pope Benedict XVI hit out at the mass media on Tuesday, accusing it of deadening sensitivity to violence, exploiting individuals and ignoring everyday acts of love and kindness. Speaking during a ceremony in Rome’s historic Piazza di Spagna, where he paid homage to a statue of the Virgin Mary, the pope said the media ”poisoned” people’s souls. ”It recounts, repeats and... 

French Jewish President Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday warned believers to be thankful for the religious freedom they enjoy in France, amid national debates over faith following a Swiss ban on minarets. In an opinion piece published in the French daily Le Monde, the president defended the Swiss referendum against widespread international condemnation of the ban. “Instead of condemning the Swiss... 

Iran’s ambassador to UN demands Security Council take steps against comments made by Ephraim Sneh, who said Israel would attack Iran if sanctions weren’t in place by Christmas. Iran’s ambassador to UN demands Security Council take steps against comments made by Ephraim Sneh, who said Israel would attack Iran if sanctions weren’t in place by Christmas Iran’s ambassador... 

Citing religious discrimination, a diverse coalition of Jewish organizations is objecting to Switzerland’s ban of minarets on local mosques. Swiss voters this week approved by a strong majority a referendum outlawing the construction of minarets. The measure, pushed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), was supported by 57 percent of the population. However, Jewish organizations,... 

Iran warned Switzerland on Saturday of “consequences” over a referendum banning the building of new mosque minarets and urged Bern not to enforce the ban, the official IRNA news agency reported. The vote went “against the prestige of a country which claims to be an advocate of democracy and human rights,” Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told Swiss counterpart Micheline... 

Criminal charges of ‘domestic terrorism’ have been filed in the US First Circuit Appeals Court, case no. 09-2619, against this year’s Peace Prize Recipient, United States President Barack Obama. The charges stem from President Obama’s leading role in an extensive seditious conspiracy operating with impunity within the government and the courts of the United States. The conspirators have by... 

Visitors watch a visual display about the environment before the opening of the summit in Copenhagen Copenhagen is preparing for the climate change summit that will produce as much carbon dioxide as a town the size of Middlesbrough. On a normal day, Majken Friss Jorgensen, managing director of Copenhagen’s biggest limousine company, says her firm has twelve vehicles on the road. During the “summit... 

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While the Western powers have been pressuring Iran to accept a US-backed proposal over Iran’s nuclear fuel supply, the White House says it is still open to nuclear negotiations with Tehran but the time is running out. US National Security Advisor James Jones said on Sunday that the White House is “still open to nuclear talks” with Tehran, but “the clock is ticking” towards... 

You must have heard that the open-minded people of Switzerland took to the polls last weekend to ban minarets – in a country where there are four of them. These days, the global news is full of stories and commentaries about this apparently democratic, yet shockingly illiberal decision. But if you really want to understand the undercurrents that led the majority of the Swiss society to this unbelievable... 

The EU is to offer “one to three billion euros” in aid to developing countries over the next three years so they can fight the effects of “climate change”, the Financial Times Deutschland reported Sunday. The funding is to be agreed at a European Union summit in Brussels set for Thursday and Friday, which will also coincide with the world climate conference in Copenhagen that... 

Both Israeli and European officials believe the conclusions on the Middle East expected to emerge from Monday’s EU foreign ministers’ meeting will be different from a Swedish draft text calling for east Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state. However, what remains unclear after nearly a week of internal EU wrangling and heavy lobbying by both Israelis and Palestinians is... 

Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke on Thursday voiced his opposition to legislation calling for regular audits of the Fed’s monetary policies, but 79% of Americans think auditing the Fed is a good idea. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that just seven percent (7%) of adults oppose auditing the Federal Reserve and making those results available to the public. Fourteen...