[World] Almost 1000 doomsday cult members arrested in China

Almost 1000 doomsday cult members arrested in China
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-20794276
Liu Qiyuan with his survival pods Farmer Liu Qiyuan has built seven survival pods in which people can ride out the Apocalypse, if it happens.

Modi Inches Closer to India's Capital
http://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/20/gujarat-chief-minister-narendra-modis-victory-could-propel-him-to-national-stag/
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, outside the Bharatiya Janata Party headquarters in Ahmedabad, Gujarat Sam Panthaky/Agence France-Presse - Getty ImagesGujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, outside the Bharatiya Janata Party headquarters in ...

Lawmakers press for answers on 9/11 Libya assault
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/9754609/US-inquiry-into-Benghazi-mission-attack-criticises-grossly-inadequate-security.html
Search. Close. Lawmakers press for answers on 9/11 Libya assault. Donna Cassata, Associated Press3:17a.m. EST December 20, 2012. CommentsShare.

Park seeks unity after narrow poll win
http://www.news.com.au/news/south-koreas-president-elect-park-geun-hyes-approach-to-north/story-fnejlrpu-1226541271722
Park Geun-hye began her first day as South Korea's president-elect by visiting the graves of both her authoritarian father and his most famous opponent, as she seeks to win over her detractors following a fiercely contested campaign.

UPDATE 1-Russia's Putin signals he backs tough response to US rights law
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20795523
Thu Dec 20, 2012 4:30am EST. * Putin signals he backs draft law on adoptions. * Dismisses health concerns as rumours spread by opponents.

Israel moves forward with new settlements in West Bank, east Jerusalem
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/1220/breaking4.htm
JERUSALEM - Israel on Wednesday pressed forward with the construction of thousands of new homes in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, part of a series of new settlement plans that have drawn worldwide rebuke, including from its closest ally, the United ...

Iraq's Talabani Treated in Germany, Isn't in Coma, Aide Says
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/7YquDjoGCUeJMrOwogQQRN/Iraqi-Presidents-stroke-fuels-fears-of-crisis.html
Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, the country's first Kurdish head of state and a moderating force among the nation's rival factions, isn't in a coma and was flown today to Germany for treatment, the head of his office said.

Al Qaeda grows powerful in Syria as endgame nears
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/1220/breaking9.htm
By Khaled Yacoub Oweis. AMMAN | Thu Dec 20, 2012 1:29am EST. AMMAN (Reuters) - Having seen its star wane in Iraq, al Qaeda has staged a comeback in neighbouring Syria, posing a dilemma for the opposition fighting to remove President Bashar ...

Ninth Death In Pakistani Polio Attacks Reported
http://www.rferl.org/content/pakistan-polio-ninth-death/24803969.html
Pakistani rescue workers wheel the body of Farzana, a female polio campaigner, at Peshawar Hospital on December 18. Tweet · Follow @RFERL.

George Entwistle pay-off cavalier use of public money - MPs
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20793496
The pay-off to former BBC director general George Entwistle - who quit in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal - was a "cavalier" use of money, MPs say.

Delhi gang rape case: Victim stable, conscious, doctors say
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Delhi-gang-rape-case-Victim-stable-conscious-doctors-say/articleshow/17690168.cms
NEW DELHI: Having undergone a surgery to remove her gangrenous intestine, the 23-year-old paramedical student gang-raped on Sunday passed an "uneventful night" and is "stable, alert and conscious", doctors treating her said on Thursday.

UPDATE 1-French colonisation of Algeria "brutal" - Hollande
http://www.skynews.com.au/world/article.aspx?id=828445
Thu Dec 20, 2012 4:11am EST. (Adds further quotes, background). ALGIERS Dec 20 (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande acknowledged on Thursday France's colonisation of Algeria had been "brutal and unfair" but he stopped short of an apology to the ...