46 hurt in clashes before vote in Greece

46 hurt in clashes before vote in Greece

Athens, greece

Hours of rioting outside Greece’s parliament left 46 people injured Tuesday, on the eve of a vote by lawmakers to adopt more painful austerity measures — a condition for bailout funds needed to prevent a potentially disastrous default.

At least 14 people were arrested, authorities said, as youths clashed with riot police on-and-off for more than 10 hours and into the night, leaving the city center filled with tear gas and strewn with smashed-up marble paving stones. Unions had begun a 48-hour strike that shut down services and staged mass rallies throughout the capital in another day of chaotic protest.

The new austerity measures must be passed in a two-part vote today and Thursday if Greece’s international creditors are to release the next batch of the country’s bailout fund.

Senate panel: U.S. can join fight in Libya

washington

In a victory for President Barack Obama, a Senate panel voted Tuesday to approve U.S. participation in the military campaign against Libya and Moammar Gadhafi’s forces.

The 14-5 vote in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee stood in sharp contrast to the House’s overwhelmingly rejection of a similar step last week, muddling the message about congressional support for the commander in chief’s actions and the NATO-led operation.

The resolution would limit U.S. involvement to one year while prohibiting American ground forces in Libya except for search and rescue operations or to protect government officials.

Pope’s first tweet

vatican city

Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday tweeted for the first time, announcing the launch of a Vatican news information portal.

Benedict’s tweet read: “Dear Friends, I just launched News.va Praised be our Lord Jesus Christ! With my prayers and blessings, Benedictus XVI”.

The portal www.news.va for the first time aggregates information from the Vatican’s various print, online, radio and television media. It’s the latest effort by the Vatican to bring its evangelizing message to a greater, Internet-savvy audience and follows forays into Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Tropical Storm Arlene forms in Gulf

miami

Forecasters say Tropical Storm Arlene has formed in the Gulf of Mexico but is not likely to threaten the U.S. coast.

The government of Mexico on Tuesday issued Tropical Storm warnings for the northeastern coast from Barra De Nautla north to Bahia Algodones. The storm is predicted to hug much of the coast over the next few days.

Prosecutors: Dismiss Bulger’s charges

boston

Federal prosecutors moved Tuesday to dismiss a 1994 racketeering indictment against mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger to focus on a later indictment that charged the newly captured fugitive of participating in 19 murders.

But U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf told prosecutors in a court hearing that dismissal of the indictment is “not automatic” and that he would give Bulger’s provisional attorney, Peter Krupp, a day to consult with Bulger to see if he objects to the dismissal.

The earlier indictment, which charged Bulger with extortion, loan sharking, witness tampering and conspiracy, prompted Bulger to flee Boston just before it was handed up in early 1995. He remained a fugitive until last week.

Associated Press