UN renews sanctions against Ivory Coast

October 27th, 2009 more images more imagesObama renews sanctions against SudanWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has renewed sanctions against Sudan, saying the government's actions and policies pose a continuing threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy.

October 27th, 2009 UN: Ivory Coast arms, diamond embargoes violatedUNITED NATIONS — The government and former rebels in Ivory Coast have repeatedly violated a U.N. arms embargo — and a ban on diamond exports is being flouted with help from many countries, according to a report by U.N.

October 18th, 2009 LONDON - The mighty African elephant could face extinction within 15 years due to the illegal ivory trade. According to a Sunday Express report, poachers slaughter 104 elephants every day for their valuable tusks.

September 30th, 2009 Kenya, Ethiopia authorities seize ivory stashNAIROBI, Kenya — Authorities in Ethiopia and Kenya have seized more than 2,600 pounds (1,200 kilograms) of bloodstained ivory from about 100 illegally killed elephants at airports, the head of Kenya's Wildlife Service said Wednesday. Julius Kipng'etich said trained dogs sniffed out a consignment of bloodstained tusks at Kenya's national airport late Tuesday.

August 24th, 2009 DPA HANOI - Vietnamese customs inspectors have discovered more than two tonnes of elephant tusks hidden in a shipping container full of snail shells from Kenya, an official said Monday. Bui Hoang Duong, head of the customs inspection department at the northern port of Haiphong, said inspectors opened the container Friday as part of enhanced scrutiny of shipping from Tanzania, due to recent cases of ivory smuggling.

August 15th, 2009 US renews calls on Iran to release AmericansWASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is pressing Iran to release Americans who are detained or have gone missing there. Retired FBI agent Robert Levinson has been missing since March 2007.

August 5th, 2009 LONDON - Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba has agreed a new three-year contract at Chelsea worth over 100,000-pounds-a-week. SunSport understands that the deal will be formally announced in the next few days.

July 31st, 2009 UN calls for Ivory Coast elections on Nov. 29UNITED NATIONS — The U.N.

July 29th, 2009 US envoy to consult UN sanctions panel on NKoreaWASHINGTON — The State Department says the Obama administration's coordinator for enforcement of U.N. sanctions against North Korea is going to New York to consult with the U.N.

July 14th, 2009 Kenya seizes ivory, rhino horn heading to AsiaNAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya seized more than 300 kilograms (660 pounds) of illegal ivory and black rhinoceros horn — some of it still bloody — on a cargo plane headed to Asia on Tuesday, wildlife officials said. The blood on some of the 16 elephant tusks and two rhino horns suggested the animals had been killed recently, said Patrick Omondi of the biodiversity and research division of the Kenya Wildlife Service.

June 19th, 2009 Report: Thailand fails to curb rampant ivory tradeBANGKOK — Thailand's government has failed to crack down on one of the world's largest markets of illegal ivory, allowing vendors to openly sell products that come from African elephants, a conservation group said in a report released Friday. The group TRAFFIC, which monitors trade in wildlife, said that judging by recent seizures of ivory imports and exports and several surveys it has done since 2006, Thailand has surpassed traditional hotspots like Japan and China.

June 3rd, 2009 FIFA remembers 31 fans killed in incidentsNASSAU, Bahamas — FIFA president Sepp Blatter urged nations Wednesday to avoid treating fans like "prisoners and wild animals" by using fences to hold them back in cramped stadiums, saying such a move would help avoid further fatal tragedies. FIFA said nine fans were killed June 1, 2008, at a World Cup qualifier in Liberia when a metal barrier gave way in an overcrowded stadium, and as many as 22 others died in a stampede shortly before another Cup qualifying match between Ivory Coast and Malawi on March 29.

May 14th, 2009 Ivory Coast sets long-awaited election for Nov. 29ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — Ivory Coast's Prime Minister Guillaume Soro announced on Thursday that the long-postponed presidential election will take place Nov.

May 9th, 2009 Obama renews sanctions on Syria to mark concernWASHINGTON — The Obama administration is renewing economic and diplomatic sanctions on Syria, even as two US envoys are in the Syrian capital exploring prospects for improved relations. The State Department said President Barack Obama felt compelled to renew the penalties, which were first imposed by George W.

April 24th, 2009 Russia renews opposition to sanctions on NKoreaSEOUL, South Korea — Russia's foreign minister on Friday renewed his country's opposition to sanctions against North Korea for its rocket launch and called for efforts to revive the stalled talks on ending Pyongyang's nuclear programs. North Korea last week expelled international nuclear monitors, vowed to restart its atomic program and quit disarmament negotiations to protest the U.N.