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WASHINGTON: Despite being in the throes of a crippling political and economic crisis and almost entirely dependent on handouts from the United States and multilateral aid, Pakistan is poking a finger in the international community's eye. Days after it was revealed that Islamabad has doubled its nuclear weapons' inventory in the past decade, American experts have discovered that it has begun building a fourth plutonium-producing reactor to produce even more nuclear bombs to add to the 100-plus it already has. The Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) announced on Wednesday that it has obtained commercial satellite imagery from...

On January 12, 2010, an earthquake reaching a magnitude of 7.0 rocked Haiti. Over the next two weeks, 52 aftershocks measuring a magnitude of 4.5 or greater had added to the devastation. The city of Port-au-Prince was littered with rubble and death as impromptu tent cities sprang up everywhere. By July, an estimated $1.3 billion in funds had been raised by U.S. relief organizations. Charity is one of the most selfless, noble activities in which a person can participate; however, good intentions do not always beget good results. A year later the bodies are gone. The tent cities have upgraded...

Israel should give up US military aid It would be wise for Israel to take the initiative, before Tea Party Republicans make a move. 19 January 11 15:06, Ran Dagoni, Washington The time has come to bid goodbye to the military aid that the US extends to Israel, that generous package (currently worth $3 billion) that enables the Israeli taxpayer to share the cost of procuring equipment for the IDF with the US taxpayer. Israel should itself initiate the process of detachment from the Washington breast. It should be done gradually, on terms that will enable Israel to wean itself...

Delay comes as a result of Obama's difficulties in pushing next year's budget through Congress due to Republican opposition. American aid to Israel for developing and buying additional Iron Dome anti-rocket batteries might be delayed for at least a few months due to President Barack Obama's difficulties in pushing next year's budget through Congress. The delay will mean a long wait before the weapons can be bought from Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. In May, the House of Representatives approved Obama's decision to grant $205 million in special aid to Israel to buy the additional batteries and intercept missiles. Israel has...

Terror organization faces unprecedented crisis, according to Israeli intelligence assessments, stirring tension with its Iranian patrons. Iran has cut the annual budget it provides Hizbullah by over 40 percent, stirring an unprecedented crisis within the Lebanese Shi’ite guerrilla organization. This comes, according to recent Israeli intelligence assessments, just weeks before a United Nations tribunal is expected to accuse Hizbullah of assassinating former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri in 2005.

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) – More than half of the 1.4 million homeowners who enrolled in the Obama administration's flagship foreclosure-prevention program have fallen out.</p> <p>A separate report Thursday showed that the number of Americans at risk of foreclosure improved slightly over the summer. The Mortgage Bankers Association said that about 9.1 percent of homeowners had missed at least one mortgage payment in the July-September quarter. That was down from 9.9 percen6t in the April-June quarter and compared to a record high of more than 10 percent in the January-March quarter.</p>

WASHINGTON, D.C -- A Channel 2 Action News investigation found that the State Department is sending millions of dollars to save mosques overseas. This investment has received criticism as the United States makes an effort to slash nearly $4 trillion in government spending.

WASHINGTON: As it announced a whopping $2.29 billion in new military aid to Pakistan despite India's concerns in this regard, the United States has said its ties with Islamabad do not come at the expense of India and vice-versa. "This is a subject (India's concerns about US military assistance to Pakistan) that comes up in all of our discussions with high-level Indian officials. It comes up in all of our discussions with high-level Pakistani officials," US State Department spokesman P J Crowley told reporters when asked about New Delhi's concerns on the issue. "We continue to provide the same message...

Prudential Financial sent in a $2 million donation last year as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce kicked off a national advertising campaign to weaken the historic rewrite of the nation’s financial regulations. Dow Chemical delivered $1.7 million to the chamber last year as the group took a leading role in aggressively fighting proposed rules that would impose tighter security requirements on chemical facilities. And Goldman Sachs, Chevron Texaco, and Aegon, a multinational insurance company based in the Netherlands, donated more than $8 million in recent years to a chamber foundation that has been critical of growing federal regulation and spending....

A flotilla of ships titled the "Viva Palestina" convoy, hailed by organizers as the largest convoy to break the Gaza embargo, is set to depart this weekend, organizers announced Thursday. The flotilla has been cleared to sail from Syria to the Egyptian port of Al-Arish, from where it will make its way into Gaza. The Egyptian government announced that it will allow the aid convoy to dock at Al-Arish seaport while en route to Gaza. Hussam Zaki of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry confirmed that the convoy will be allowed access to Gaza however he insisted George Galloway, the British ex-parliamentarian

China rises and rises, yet still gets foreign aid BEIJING — China spent tens of billions of dollars on a dazzling 2008 Olympics. It has sent astronauts into space. It recently became the world's second largest economy. Yet it gets more than $2.5 billion a year in foreign government aid — and taxpayers and lawmakers in donor countries are increasingly asking why. With the global economic slowdown crimping government budgets, many countries are finding such generosity politically and economically untenable. China says it's still a developing country in need of aid, while some critics argue that the money should go...

2:19pm UK, Wednesday September 22, 2010 Robert Nisbet, US correspondent Nick Clegg has defended the government's commitment to pouring millions into international aid, while cutting budgets and services back home. The deputy Prime Minister is in New York attending a three-day summit at the United Nations to assess whether the Millennium Development Goals are still on target. Leaders from 192 countries set eight ambitious goals, including eradicating hunger and poverty, reducing child mortality rates and promoting gender equality. They also agreed goals on maternal health and creating a global partnership for development by 2015. Mr Clegg will confirm in a...

Development aid to Africa has been flowing for decades, but the results have been paltry. Instead, recipients have merely become dependent and initiative has been snuffed out. It is time to reform the system. Development aid to Africa is a blessing for all those directly involved -- both on the giving end and on the receiving end. Functionaries on the donor side, at least those abroad, earn good money. Many of those on the receiving end, for their part, know how to organize things in such a way that their own personal interests don't get short shrift. There is no...

BEIRUT — Lebanese Defense Minister Elias Murr Wednesday said he would reject any American military assistance to the Lebanese army if it comes with conditions that the weapons not be used against Israel. Murr was commenting on the decision by a US congressman to suspend $100 million of military aid to Lebanon over concerns the weapons could be turned on Israel and that Hezbollah may have influence over the Lebanese army. He stated that those who want to help the Lebanese army but place conditions on how their funds or weapons are used, should keep the money. The defense minister's...

Lebanese politicians reacted angrily Saturday to what they alleged was “a campaign to prevent the army from being properly equipped.” They appeared to be referring to calls from Israel to restrict the sale of advanced weapons to the Lebanese army, and to fears that the United States may reduce military funding. "The cabinet will draw up a plan to equip the army with all the weaponry it needs, and without taking the attitude of certain countries into account,” said Lebanese President Michel Suleiman. A statement from Suleiman's office said he would turn to “neighboring and friendly states” to obtain “all...

Washington - A Florida congressman is seeking an investigation into whether American equipment was used by Lebanese forces who fired on Israel last week or if the soldiers had received US-funded training. Democrat Rep. Ron Klein, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, requested the investigation in a letter sent to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday. (Snip) “In addition, if the Lebanese government had authorized this attack, I would be very concerned about continuing to provide military support to Lebanon,” Klein wrote.

Concerned that too many students are using federal grants to attend the “wrong kind of schools,” the US Department of Education is weighing new rules that would restrict grant money from being used to pay for schooling provided at for-profit institutions. For-profit schools provide training in fields like information technology, health care, criminal justice, and automotive repair. Enrollment at these for-profit schools has increased by 20% since the recession knocked so many out of their jobs. “Increasing enrollment in these private for-profit schools is not what the President had in mind when he expanded the grant program last year,” said...

The administration launched a $17 million program to fight rape in Congo—but is it effective? Dana Goldstein follows the money—and asks if Hillary Clinton’s rhetoric matches reality. Plus: See our entire Congo package on Giving Beast. Less than a year ago, Hillary Clinton became the first U.S. secretary of state to visit war-torn regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo—site of the deadliest conflict on the planet since World War II. The trip sparked hope that maybe, finally, the world would take action to stop the fighting, which has been characterized by a brutal and indiscriminate campaign of rape against...

At Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, there were almost five hours of public comment on the resolution condemning Israel for raiding a flotilla headed for Gaza. The speakers seemed about evenly split between the pro-Palestine and pro-Israel factions. Aside from a few outbursts (one from Supervisor Chris Daly) and some errant clapping, the meeting was remarkably civil. Did I mention it was a billion hours long? It was. Ultimately, the resolution was “referred to committee” by Supervisor Bevan Dufty. If board President David Chiu refers the resolution to the City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee (on which Dufty sits), it...

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) - Obama announces additional $400 million in aid to Gaza; Abbas says aid is 'positive sign'</p>