LA Times News

LA Times News

American's bookstore in Paris becomes family affair

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 07:58 PM PDT

Sylvia Whitman gave up her ambitions in order to manage her father's iconic Paris bookstore, stitching together their frayed ties and bringing the shop into the 21st century.

They used to catch glimpses of him shuffling among the stacks in his English-language bookshop facing Notre Dame Cathedral, the white-haired Shakespearean king revered and feared by his subjects, who depended on him to avoid a train ride home, or worse, a job.

U.S. begins using Predator drones in Libya

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 07:58 PM PDT

The decision announced by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates marks a resumption of a direct combat role for U.S. aircraft in Libya and represents a shift for the White House.

President Obama has approved the use of armed Predator drone aircraft to launch airstrikes against ground targets in Libya, the latest sign of mounting concern in Washington that the NATO-led air campaign has failed to stop Moammar Kadafi's forces from shelling the besieged city of Misurata and other populated areas.

Loyal, secretive security forces keep Syria leader in power

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 04:58 PM PDT

Unlike in Tunisia and Egypt, there have been few defections in the armed forces despite a burgeoning protest movement.

Unable to stem a growing popular uprising with promises of reform, ceaseless propaganda and restrictions on the news media, Syria's government still retains one powerful weapon: the solid support of a secretive web of security forces that so far show no signs of abandoning President Bashar Assad and his Baath Party.

China sheds little light on detained activist Ai Weiwei

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 07:17 PM PDT

Authorities have not said why artist Ai Weiwei was seized at Beijing airport April 3. They also have not notified his family of his whereabouts or the charges against him.

Was it the semi-nude photographs of himself he posted on the Internet? Was it the current exhibit at London's Tate Modern in which he uses millions of sunflower seeds to make a playful commentary about how the Communist Party treated the late Chairman Mao Tse-tung as the sun, his subjects as sunflowers fawning toward the light?

Drug violence puts dent in Mexico City's Easter exodus

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 06:24 PM PDT

This year, some residents are forgoing the annual spring trip to tourist areas such as Acapulco, where drug cartel violence have made inroads.

The ritual exodus from Mexico City for Easter holidays usually launches around Palm Sunday, then shifts into full gear by right about now. This congested capital of about 20 million people virtually empties out, blissfully so for those who remain.

50 years later, Eichmann trial seen as Israel turning point

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 02:58 PM PDT

Israeli author Tom Segev explains how the Eichmann trial helped the Jews of Israel confront a dark past and forge a national identity that dominates the country's actions and attitudes today.

By Edmund Sanders

Pakistan Supreme Court frees 5 accused of gang rape

Posted: 21 Apr 2011 10:58 AM PDT

In a ruling seen as a setback for women's rights in Pakistan, the court releases five men accused of raping Mukhtar Mai on the orders of a village council in 2002. Mai has since become a prominent women's rights advocate.

In a ruling seen as a setback for women's rights in Pakistan, the country's Supreme Court on Thursday freed five men accused of gang-raping a woman on the orders of a village council.

China tries to scare motorists into safer driving

Posted: 20 Apr 2011 06:05 PM PDT

To reduce reckless road behavior in a nation filling up with new drivers, Chinese authorities are releasing videos of gruesome motor vehicle accidents. But the footage seems to have become more macabre entertainment than teaching tool.

On the first day of instruction to get his driver's license, Zheng Hao and his classmates sat down in a dimmed room and watched a video produced by traffic police with the innocuous title "Care about life: Follow the traffic rules."