May 4, 2001 (idea)

If there is anything that should be in a day log, it's whats going on in the world. So for now on, I'll be keeping the top headlines from around the world here. I've added The Middle East Times today, and their headlines are among the most intriguing. If there are any sources I'm not using that you recommend, please /msg me.

Without further ado, here is today's top news from around the world:

The BBC's Top Headlines:

• UK condemned over IRA deaths
  The British Government failed to respect the human rights of 10 IRA members shot dead by the security forces, a European court rules.
• Pope seeks to placate Orthodox
  Pope John Paul II asks for forgiveness for Roman Catholic sins against the Orthodox faith during a controversial visit to Greece.
• Khatami ends waiting game
  Iran's President Mohammad Khatami registers to run for office again, ending months of uncertainty about the future of his reform movement.
• China attacks 'supremacist' US
  Beijing accuses the US of trying to establish global domination with its anti-missile programme, as tensions continue.
• Kremlin welcomes Bush missile speech
  Russia's President Putin says US President George W. Bush's defence policy speech earlier this week is a "good basis" for further dialogue.
• UN condemns Timor trial 'mockery'
  The United Nations criticises jail sentences given by the Indonesian authorities to six men for killing aid workers in West Timor last September.
• Congo report denounced
  The governments of Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi denounce a UN report accusing them of using the war in DR Congo to plunder its mineral wealth.
• Ivory Coast accuses chocolate companies
  Ivory Coast tells chocolate companies they will have to pay more for cocoa if child slavery is to end in West Africa.
• Cuba's anti-corruption ministry
  Fidel Castro's government sets up a ministry to root out corruption and improve efficiency in the economy.
• Chirac condemns torture general
  President Chirac calls for disciplinary action against a retired general who has shocked France with tales of torture during the war with Algeria.
• Police crack down on Berber rally
  Algerian riot police fire tear gas in the north-eastern city of Bejaia on young Berbers demonstrating against "police repression".
• UN refugee appeal to Pakistan
  UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers asks Pakistan to be patient over the presence of more than two million Afghan refugees.
• Six killed in Assam attack
  At least six people die in the fresh violence in India's north-eastern state of Assam, where state elections are due next week.

The New York Times' Top Headlines

• Bush Will Modify Ban on New Roads in Federal Lands
  The White House will put in place Clinton administration regulations intended to protect national forests but will allow those rules to be amended case by case.
• Florida Leaders Sign Agreement for Overhaul of Voting System
  Six months after a chaotic election in Florida, state lawmakers have reached agreement on a bill that would do away with questions about determining voter intent.
• U.S. Is Voted Off Rights Panel of the U.N. for the First Time
  In a move that reflected a growing frustration with America's attitude, the United States was voted off the United Nations Human Rights Commission.
• Blair Says Cattle Disease Is Near End; Elections Due
  Prime Minister Tony Blair said that Britain was in the home stretch of its race to contain a ruinous epidemic of foot-and-mouth disease.

China Daily Top Headlines

• N. Korea lashes US over terrorist label
  North Korea on Thursday accused Washington of trying to isolate it after the US State Department kept the state on its list of countries that sponsor terrorism.
• White House, Justice search for new FBI director
  The White House and US Justice Department scrambled on Wednesday to find a replacement for retiring FBI Director Louis Freeh, one of the nation's most powerful law enforcement jobs that requires Senate approval and carries a 10-year term.
• Massive poverty a political powderkeg in Asia
  This week's rebellion of the poor in the Philippine capital has underscored the serious political risks of having large sections of the population living in poverty, analysts and development experts said.
• Anson Chan retires, happy with career
  Hong Kong's return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 and the standing ovation after speaking to the Asia Society last week were Anson Chan's two most memorable moments throughout her public career, she said.

The Middle East Times Top Headlines

• Egypt looks to Russia for missile technology
  In a move that could signal a major foreign policy move, Egypt raised the topic of acquiring Russian military technology during President Hosni Mubarak's visit to Moscow at the end of April.
• Solar Temple cult influenced by ancient Egypt
  The French court trying a man accused of masterminding the death of 74 members of a New Age doomsday cult last week heard that he was inspired by a 1970s trip to Egypt.
• Middle East states still dominate U.S. list of terrorism sponsors
  The United States on April 30 cited but did not endorse Israeli allegations that security officials in the Palestinian Authority of President Yasser Arafat took part in attacks on Israeli targets.
• Palestinians find ready supply of suicide bombers
  Palestinian suicide bombers evoke incomprehension as well as fear among many Israelis who find it hard to grasp the desperation and fervor that motivates them.
• Helicopter gunships and Jewish moral responsibility
  With Israeli helicopter gunships firing into cities and towns in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and Tzahi Hanegbi, an Israeli cabinet minister in Ariel Sharon's new government, speculating about another war in the Middle East, American Jews are caught in a dilemma.
• Dawn coming for sleeping giant insurance
  Egypt – the largest country in the Arab world with more than 65 million inhabitants and a burgeoning middle class – is in the process of liberalizing its insurance sector, long dominated by four state-held insurers.
• Dubai launches 'enlightened' Islamic satellite TV
  A new Islamic satellite channel is using women anchors, dramas and cartoons to improve what many Muslims see as their faith's much-maligned image.
• Morocco tries to improve status of women
  Morocco's King Muhammad on April 27 set up a commission to try to improve the status of women in this North African male-dominated society.
• Saudi Arabia to ban 200,000 more web sites
  Saudi Arabia is planning to bar access to another 200,000 Internet sites within the next two months, a Saudi newspaper reported on April 28.
• A lot of desert but not many roses greet Sting concert
  Thousands of people trekked out to the Pyramids of Giza on April 25 to witness the widely publicized Sting "mega concert." But, despite the combined allure of one of the world's biggest solo artists and one of the ancient wonders of the world, the evening turned out to be a disappointment.