WASHINGTON (AFP) – An unusual solar flare observed by a NASA space observatory on Tuesday could cause some disruptions to satellite communications and power on Earth over the next day or so, officials said.The potent blast from the Sun unleashed a firestorm of radiation on a level not witnessed since 2006, and will likely lead to moderate geomagnetic storm activity by Wednesday, according to the N

The South Korean economy grew at a slower pace than previously estimated in the first quarter as weaker domestic demand and sluggish facility investment offset robust exports, the central bank said Wednesday.The country's gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic performance, grew a revised 1.3 percent in the January-March period from three months earlier, down from an earlier estim

SANAA, Yemen (AP) -- Embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh flew to Saudi Arabia for medical care after he was wounded in a rocket attack on his palace, a senior government official said Sunday. Saleh's abrupt departure threatened to deepen the crisis in his impoverished nation shaken by months of protests against his 33-year rule.Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh (AP-Yonhap News)His departure f

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) -- A top al-Qaida commander and possible replacement for Osama bin Laden was killed in an American drone-fired missile strike close to the Afghan border, a fax from the militant group he heads and a Pakistani intelligence official said Saturday. A supporter of the Pakistani religious party Jamaat-e-Islami reacts during a rally against drone attacks, in Karachi, Paki

A babysitter in the United States who allegedly left a three-year-old in a car unsupervised for eight hours has been charged with negligent homicide.Genee Brumfield from Louisiana, who is also the godmother of the victim, left the child in the car while visiting her mother on the way to the day care center.All the doors and windows were locked, while the heat inside the car reached 65 degrees Cels

Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency arrested a 29-year-old man for swindling by posing as a woman in order to lure prostitute seekers.The convict, identified by his surname Yoon, allegedly approached some 340 men via online dating websites for false sex trafficking. The tempted victims sent him a total amount of $60,000.Yoon had posted photos of random women from the Internet, and then suggested “she

An Army private shot himself dead with his assault rifle early this week while on duty at a frontline unit, the latest in a recent string of deaths of conscripts, officials said Thursday. The private, identified only by his surname Choi, was found dead with a bullet in his head in the pre-dawn hours of Monday outside a military post near Hwacheon, 118 kilometers northeast of Seoul, according to th

Two young men and two women were found dead in a car Thursday in an apparent Internet-based group suicide, Korean police said.Police said the four, including a 25-year-old woman identified only as Park, left suicide notes in their bags in the car parked next to a river in Seongju, 210 kilometers southeast of Seoul.They apparently inhaled toxic fumes after burning coal briquettes inside the vehicle

 TOKYO (AFP) - Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Thursday survived a no-confidence motion brought by the conservative opposition after he pledged to step down once the country has recovered from the March 11 quake.The motion against Kan, brought in the lower house of the Diet legislature by the main conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and two small parties, was defeated by a margin of 15

A prisoner in U.K. has been allowed to have artificial insemination with his partner by virtue of the right to family life clause of the Human Rights Act.While there is a consensus about the importance of human rights, the debate concerning “right to family life” under the Article 8 of the Act is stirring British society. Some say that the article is misused as a way to escape punishment. Just las

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- California medical officials revoked the license of the fertility doctor who helped ``Octomom'' Nadya Suleman become the mother of 14 children through repeated in vitro treatments, according to a decision made public Wednesday. Michael Kamrava (AP-Yonhap News)The Medical Board of California said it was necessary to revoke Dr. Michael Kamrava's license to protect the public. The

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) -- Google said Wednesday that a cyber spying campaign originating in China had targeted Gmail accounts of senior US officials, military personnel, journalists and Chinese political activists."We recently uncovered a campaign to collect user passwords, likely through phishing," Google security team engineering director Eric Grosse said in a blog post. The logo of internet search

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says Syria's alleged torture and killing of a 13-year-old boy underscores that the Syrian government is making no effort to institute real reforms. Syrian anti-regime protesters carry banners during a rally in Talbiseh, in the central province of Homs, Syria, on Friday. (AP-Yonhap News)She says she hopes the child didn't die in vain, and that President Bas

LDS church opens singles-only chapel to promote marriageThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as “Mormons,” has opened a new chapel exclusively for young single members in Crystal City, Virginia, There are now about 800 members worshiping, attending bible studies, and other activities including pizza parties. This unique chapel for singles in their 20s to 40s aims to persua

Former gang leader Cho Yang-eunPolice are investigating allegations that former gang leader Cho Yang-eun blackmailed a singer to compensate his acquaintance for loss from his stock investment. Police said the notorious gangster, 60, intimidated the singer in August 2009, and threatened to chop the man’s leg off and bury it unless he paid back 1.7 billion won.Cho denied the charges, though he admit

A former state auditor and aide to President Lee Myung-bak was arrested Monday on charges of taking bribes from a now-suspended savings bank that was seeking his influence to avoid punishment for extending illegal loans and other irregularities.Eun Jin-soo, who resigned last week as a ranking member of the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI), is accused of accepting 70 million won ($64,635) in cas

Korean military intelligence officials are investigating seven officers and soldiers for posting pro-Pyongyang messages on an online community that praises North Korea, military officials said Monday.About 70 military personnel were registered as members of the online community, called the "Cyber Command for Defense of Fellow Countrymen," and seven of them posted pro-North Korea messages there, of

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) -- Spanish vegetables suspected of contamination with a potentially deadly bacteria are being recalled from stores in Austria and the Czech Republic to prevent the spread of a deadly outbreak, officials said.The death toll from the bacteria rose to at least 10 people, and hundreds across Europe have been sickened.Czech authorities said Sunday that 120 organic Spanish cu

CHANGWON (Yonhap News) -- Prosecutors in this southern coastal city said Sunday they arrested three pro football players for alleged involvement in a widening game-fixing scandal.The three, all from Daejeon Citizen football club based in the central city of Daejeon, were the latest to be arrested by prosecutors in the probe that began earlier this month. Two other Daejeon Citizen players and two b

Actors Hyun Bin and Lee Byung-hun won the top prize at the 2011 Paeksang Arts Awards on Thursday at Kyung Hee University in Hoegi-dong, eastern Seoul. Heartthrob Hyun was awarded the grand prize in the TV category for his role in the hit SBS TV series “Secret Garden.” Hyun became one of the nation’s most popular actors after he played the main character, an obnoxious but cute department store owne