Dozens of bombs in Baghdad, most of them non-lethal, heralded Iraq’s general election on March 7th. Turnout was lower than in 2005 but most Iraqis were determined to exercise their democratic rights. Rival alliances led by the prime minister, Nuri al-Mal… more »

Yemeni government forces stepped up a campaign against al-Qaeda suspects, as a clamour grew in the West after a failed attempt by a Nigerian jihadist to blow up an airliner approaching Detroit on Christmas Day. The man had recently been in Yemen. Securit… more »

Barack Obama was inaugurated as America’s 44th president. In a whirlwind first year in office, Mr Obama overturned a prohibition on federal funding for stem-cell research, eased some restrictions on dealing with Cuba, lifted a ban on people with HIV trav… more »

Greece’s credit rating was downgraded to BBB+, with a negative outlook, by Fitch, the first time in a decade that the country has received a rating below A. The downgrade caused stockmarkets to fall amid fears of a potential wider fiscal crisis in the eu… more »

America’s GDP grew in the third quarter, the first time its economy has expanded in more than a year. Home resales jumped by 9.4% in September from August, the biggest rise in 26 years, as first- time buyers rushed to take advantage of a tax credit that… more »

More than 100 people were killed by a car bomb in a crowded market area in Peshawar, capital of Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province. The attack coincided with a visit to Pakistan by Hillary Clinton, the American secretary of state, and with a continu… more »