Headlines

 Guatemala City, May 5.─ President Otto Perez Molina (photo) imposed a state of siege on four municipalities in the eastern part of the country following the abduction of 23 police officers and the killing of another cop, the Guatemalan government said Thursday.

The measure allows authorities to restrict mobility and public gatherings for the next 30 days in San Rafael Las Flores and Castillas, Santa Rosa province; and Xelajpan and Maraquescuintla, Jalapa.

Seoul, Apr. 4.─ North Korea's army said Thursday that it had received approval for a "cutting edge" nuclear strike on the United States, adding that the situation on the Korean Peninsula had reached an explosive stage.

The threat followed the North's move Wednesday to ban South Korean workers from a joint industrial complex that has long stood as a symbol of the tenuous peace on the peninsula.

What riled House Republicans wasn't the taxes on the rich in the Senate's 'fiscal cliff' bill, it was the absence of significant spending cuts. But changes at this late date could have scuttled the bill. So they yielded to pressure

Washington, Jan. 1 (DP.net).─ At 11 p.m., this first day of the year after the "fiscal cliff" deadline had expired, the House voted with bipartisan support to pass the Senate's "fiscal cliff" bill, 257 to 167. The vote represented a bipartisan agreement with 172 Democrats and 85 Republicans supporting the measure. Among prominent Republicans voting in favor were House Speaker John Boehner (R, Ohio) and former VP candidate Rep Paul Ryan (R, Wis).

Congress broke a rancorous stalemate Tuesday to pass legislation designed to avert the so-called fiscal cliff. But the compromise bill, which blocked most impending tax increases and postponed spending cuts largely by raising taxes on upper-income Americans, left a host of issues unresolved and guaranteed continued budget clashes between the parties.

 Dec. 31 (UN).─ Appalled by the "escalating terrorist violence" in Pakistan, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has spoken out on the matter, calling for those responsible to be held accountable, according to his spokesperson.

In a statement issued on Sunday night, the spokesperson said that the UN chief condemns the "the continued violent targeting of religious minorities" – the latest such incident involving the bombing of three buses carrying pilgrims on Sunday – as well the killing of 21 members of a Government-backed tribal police force last week.