SPRINGFIELD—Another light agenda greeted the City Council Monday night shortly after it city finance officials presented the budget for fiscal year 2015, which begins on July 1st. Few if any items engendered much discussion most had virtually no opposition ahead of the beginning of the Council’s
…And the World: We begin today in Iraq, where Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki’s party won enough votes to again form a coalition government and maintain its hold on the oil-rich nation. Maliki will need to bring in other parties to get a majority in parliament,
…And the World: We begin today in India, as the World’s Largest Democracy concludes its marathon five weeks of voting. According to the Times of India, it appears the National Democratic Alliance, headed by the Bharatiya Janata Party will win the most seats. That could
…And the World: We begin today in Nigeria, where President Goodluck Jonathan is facing withering criticism for the government’s response to the abduction of 276 schoolgirls. Jonathan held a rare press conference to address the issue head on while the Islamist terrorist organization, Boko Haram,
…And the World: We begin today in Israel, which has received a stern warning from US Secretary of State John Kerry that the country risks becoming an “apartheid state” if it does not find peace with the Palestinians (AIPAC objected). The comments came in a
…And the World: We begin today in the Ukraine, where violence in the East has flared up again. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Ukraine is failing to hold up its end of a bargain made in Geneva among the US, EU, Russia and Ukraine.
…And the World: We begin today in the Ukraine, where militants in the country’s east have ignored a deadline to evacuate occupied government buildings, although Ukrainian forces have begun to push back. The pro-Russian militants, who represent a distinct minority compared to the situation Crimea
…And the World: We begin today in Afghanistan, where amid relatively little violence, voters cast ballots for president. Hamid Karzai is not on the ballot this time and the vote could prove to be an event that lets the beleaguered and war-torn country’s move on
…And the World: We begin today in Turkey where local elections appear to have favored Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AK party despite weeks of protests and shutdowns of social media networks. Erdogan and Parliament were not on the ballot, but the mid-forties polling his
…And the World: We begin today in the Indian Ocean, where Malaysian officials now believe the missing Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 ended. In a press conference, Malaysian authorities essentially extinguished all hopes that any survivors would be found. The Sydney Morning Herald writes about Chinese