TEHERAN - IRANIAN President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began work on Thursday to set up his new government, facing unrelenting protests over his re-election and divisions even within his own hardline support base.
Mr Ahmadinejad was sworn in on Wednesday for a second four-year term after massive opposition to his June 12 election victory sparked the worst crisis for the Islamic republic in its 30-year existence.
WASHINGTON - NEW claims for US unemployment benefits fell more sharply than expected in the past week, extending a downward trend since June amid signs the recession is bottoming, government data showed on Thursday.
The Labor Department said initial claims for insurance benefits fell to a seasonally adjusted 550,000 in the week ended on August 1. That was below the revised 588,000 new claims filed in the preceding week, and lower than the average analyst forecast of 580,000.
PYEONGTAEK (South Korea) - STRIKERS on Thursday agreed to end their occupation of a South Korean auto plant which sparked violent clashes, a report said, a day after police staged airborne raids to try to evict them.
Unionists and management at debt-stricken Ssangyong Motor agreed on a broad framework for a layoff plan to end the 77-day occupation by workers battling redundancy, Yonhap news agency quoted a source close to negotiations as saying. A company spokesman could not immediately confirm the report.
MOSCOW - EAT your heart out, Sarkozy. Stand back, Barack.
Vladimir Putin proved this week that even a gimlet-eyed Russian politician can rise to the status of global celebrity in the multimedia age, as pictures of his bare chest and manly deeds on Siberian holiday caused tongues to wag worldwide.
