LA Times News

LA Times News

Poor neighborhood in Aleppo is focus of battle for Syria

Posted: 03 Aug 2012 05:37 PM PDT

Since rebels seized Salahuddin recently, the neighborhood has been the scene of intense fighting for Aleppo. The battle for the city could be decisive for President Bashar Assad.

ALEPPO, Syria — The car slams to a halt in front of the rebel field hospital on Shariyeh Street in the Salahuddin neighborhood, and a young man, his white pants drenched with blood, is carried haphazardly inside. But there is no doctor here.

U.N. General Assembly condemns Syria crackdown

Posted: 03 Aug 2012 05:35 PM PDT

The vote, which also criticizes the U.N. Security Council, sends a message that the world body sees President Bashar Assad's crackdown as immoral and that his grip on power must be broken.

The U.N. General Assembly condemned the Syrian government's latest attacks on rebellious citizens Friday in a symbolic vote that also criticized infighting on the Security Council that has thwarted intervention to halt an escalating civil war.

London Olympics: British patriotism blossoms amid the Games

Posted: 04 Aug 2012 12:00 AM PDT

A royal wedding, the queen's diamond jubilee and now the Olympic Games give rise to a burst of American-style flag-waving among the usually understated Brits.

LONDON — Ironic detachment may be the guiding principle of acceptable behavior in Britain, but Hannah Prince is having none of it.

In Venice, Pierre Cardin has designs on the sky

Posted: 03 Aug 2012 05:04 PM PDT

Fashion designer Pierre Cardin wants to build the Palais Lumiere, or Light Palace, an 800-foot high-rise in Venice. Some in Italy are aghast.

ROME — If French fashion designer Pierre Cardin gets his wish, construction could soon begin in Venice on a futuristic glass and metal building that at nearly 800 feet tall would dwarf the iconic bell tower and domes of St. Mark's Square.

In China, shipbuilders languish after bubble bursts

Posted: 03 Aug 2012 05:00 AM PDT

A building binge fueled by boom times has led to a glut of ships as China's economy slows down. China's expansion of the sector has only compounded the problem.

YUEQING, China — A shipbuilding boom raised the fortunes of this hardscrabble industrial port. Five-star hotels sprouted along with machinery depots and metal shops. European luxury cars darted past heavy trucks on the bustling streets.