An earthquake of preliminary magnitude 6.8 struck today near the Kuril Islands, a remote archipelago between Russia’s Far East and Japan, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
The temblor’s epicenter was 100 miles (161 km) south-southwest of Severo-Kuril’sk, Russia, and 1,231 miles (1,981 km) northeast of Tokyo, Japan. It originated 3 miles (4.9 km) deep and struck at 4:12 a.m. Saturday local time [1812 Friday UTC], the USGS reports.
Earthquakes of this size are considered major and can cause significant damage, especially with poorly built structures. Even well designed buildings can be damaged or, in some cases, destroyed depending on the severity of the quake and a building’s proximity to the epicenter. Earthquakes of this size are sometimes followed by significant aftershocks.
Source: Live Science – Strong Earthquake Strikes Russia’s Kuril Islands
Attacks on Christians have been on the rise in Indonesia according to a report from Human Rights Watch.
HRW’s report, researched over a year between August 2011 and December 2012, showed that the government has made little attempt to stop Islamic extremists from taking violent action against Christians in the nation. The report states “harassment and intimidation of minority communities by militant Islamist groups has been facilitated by the active or passive involvement of Indonesian government officials and security forces”. Continue reading →
The Department of Homeland Security has released a report showing that 23 gas pipeline companies were hit by cyberterrorists in the first six months of 2012.
The attacks were launched by sending emails designed to trick high level managers into opening attachments to emails that would infect the company systems with a virus. It allowed the hackers to get into sensitive parts of the company’s network including systems that control the flow of gas. Continue reading →
Bankia, a company founded when seven struggling savings banks merged, has shown a record loss in 2012 causing analysts to wonder if the bank’s collapse is imminent.
Bankia’s losses for 2012 totaled $25.2 billion U.S. dollars. Continue reading →
Delwar Hossain Sayeedi, head of Bangladesh’s Jamaat-e-Islami Islamic group, has been sentenced to death after convictions on murder, torture and rape committed during the nation’s 1971 war for independence. Continue reading →
A 15-year-old girl raped by her father who later killed her baby has been sentenced to 100 lashes under the Sharia law in the Islamic nation of Maldives.
The girl was convicted for engaging in premarital sex. She was charged after an investigation into her stepfather’s attack precipitated by the discovery of a baby’s body buried on an island in the northern part of the country. The girl’s mother has been charged with failing to report abuse to authorities. Continue reading →
A senior UN official has told the BBC that hundreds of thousands of Malian nationals who fled in the wake of Islamic terrorists taking over the northern part of the nation have refused to return out of fear the terrorists will regain control of the region.
The refugees cited a pattern of rape and amputations against women and children by the Islamists as the leading fears preventing their return. Continue reading →
Terrorists attacked a police outpost in central Afghanistan has killed 11 policemen and 6 others.
The attack infiltrated a sleeping quarters in the compound where the 17 men were killed while they slept. The Islamists reportedly poisoned the men before shooting them. Police officials say the six who were not officers likely were visiting friends at the base when they were killed. Continue reading →
Pouring rain and strong winds are pounding the western part of Australia as Tropical Cyclone Rusty makes landfall.
The storm is carrying gusts of 103 mph according to Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology. Continue reading →
Confirmed cases of dengue fever in Brazil have almost tripled in the first seven weeks of 2013.
Over 200,000 people have been confirmed to have the deadly virus compared to only 70,000 people during the same time period in 2012. Thirty-three people have died so far. Continue reading →
