A Vatican study on whether it could permit condoms to battle HIV/Aids has a very narrow scope: married Roman Catholic couples in which one partner has the virus. But its theological underpinnings are centuries old, and could lay the groundwork for an end to the church’s blanket ban on contraception.
Five-times champions Canterbury Crusaders are facing a Super 14 acid test against South Africa’s Northern Bulls on Friday in an encounter they must win to keep their title hopes on track. Buffeted by last weekend’s upset defeat to the Western Stormers, the champion New Zealand province suddenly find themselves with their season on the line.
You’re both grounded! Two voting-age sons of a northern Ohio candidate didn’t go to the polls on Tuesday, and their father’s race ended in a tie. William Crawford, trying to retain his seat on the central committee of the Erie County Democratic Party, and challenger Jean Miller each received 43 votes in the primary balloting.
More than 5 000 Indonesians have fled their homes around simmering Mount Merapi, officials said on Thursday, as the first lava flow oozed from the volcano. Lava spilled at 2am (7pm GMT on Wednesday) from a new lava dome that has grown on top of Mount Merapi, which has been on stand-by alert for three weeks, said Muzani from Yogyakarta’s vulcanology office.
My friend lived for a while on credit cards. He had no money coming in, lots going out and only the cards to buy things. He had little intention of making repayments, and less ability to do so. His credit rating plummeted as debts mounted. His phone was besieged by callers demanding he start a repayment plan.
The United States and other international mediators battled on Thursday to strong-arm Darfur’s rebel leaders into accepting a peace deal to end three years of slaughter in their devastated region in western Sudan. US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick and British International Development Secretary Hilary Benn added their weight to African Union peace talks after the warring parties failed to meet a deadline for an accord.
Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has called for bygones to be bygones between black and white in his country, saying the two sides have to live together. The 82-year-old veteran, scheduled on Thursday to open a road named after him in Malawi, said late on Wednesday that black and white ”cannot avoid each other”.
The Vatican said on Thursday that the ordination earlier this week of two Chinese bishops without its approval was a ”serious violation of religious liberty”. Vatican spokesperson Joaquin Navarro-Valls demanded that Chinese authorities respect the freedom and autonomy of the Roman Catholic church, which says it is the only body that can make such decisions.
Authorities in Botswana were on Thursday still searching for two Swedish journalists reported missing after they set out on a road trip to a game reserve at the weekend and failed to return, according to news reports. Helene Astrom and Jenny Soderqvist reportedly travelled to the Kutse game reserve in the Kalahari desert at the start of the weekend, planning to spend two days there.
Amere Arega walked gingerly across the cracked earth along the tense border between Ethiopia and Eritrea, searching for unexploded landmines — a legacy of conflicts that have ravaged the Horn of Africa for the past 70 years. Amere is part of an increased effort by donor agencies, the European Union and others to de-mine the area.