CP World Report: Washington Gay Marriage, Boko Haram, Syria, Great Wall of China
A coalition of groups seeking to overturn Washington State's same-sex marriage law received twice as many signatures needed to have a referendum in November. "Preserve Marriage Washington" collected about 242,000 signatures. In February, Washington Governor Christine Gregoire signed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in the state. With her signature, Washington became the seventh state in the country to approve same-sex marriage. The legislation was to take effect yesterday but now it has been blocked.
A deadly shootout between the extremist Islamic group Boko Haram and the Nigerian Military. 19 people were killed. All of those who died were members of Boko Haram. The shootout began after soldiers tried to raid suspected hideouts of the group. The gunfight comes days after Boko Haram members attacked a church in Nigeria with a car bomb, killing a dozen Christians. Another eight civilian protesters were shot dead by the military trying to maintain law and order at the blast site. It also comes after Nigerian Bishops issued an open call for God's vengeance upon the group as they have been trying to wipe out Christianity. The administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has been vowing to challenge Boko Harem.
Syrian troops reportedly blocked UN observers yesterday from reaching the site of a new mass killing where the opposition reported 78 people--including women and children--were slaughtered. It's said to have happened in a farming area in the central province of Hama . Syria has denied the opposition claims. The reports came just a couple of weeks after 108 people were killed in one day in Houla (Howala) . That massacre brought international outrage and a coordinated expulsion of Syrian diplomats from around the world.
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Meanwhile….
U-S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke in Istanbul at an international gathering on Syria and Iran. She called for a full transfer of power from Assad saying that Syria cannot be stable or peaceful until Assad leaves.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is in Europe and stressing the need for a Euro plan given the financial mess there. While in London this week, Harper dined with his cost-cutting soul-mate, British Prime Minister David Cameron. He also met with fiscal opposite--France's new Socialist leader Francois Hollande. After that meeting, Harper called the 17-country Eurozone a "half-done project" that lacks the tools to contain Europe's spiraling debt crisis. He explained: they don't have a central bank authority that a monetary union usually has, nor the regulatory authorities to go with it. His description echoed that of German Chancellor Angela Merkel who has been calling for a more centralized political and monetary Europe. Harper says European leaders need to come up with a plan — and soon.
Meanwhile….
Media reports say Europe could be working on a limited bailout for Spain's troubled banks while
Madrid would only have to implement a few reforms. Yet Spanish officials said recently they have no intention of seeking a bailout from the EU. The possible limited bailout announcement comes as Spain gets ready to sell up to two-and-a-half-billion-dollars worth of bonds. The auction is a crucial test of Spain's ability to tap international credit markets.
The Great Wall of China has turned out to be much longer than previously estimated. In fact double the length. While it was thought to be 5,500 miles long, a recent measurement shows the wall spans 13, 170 miles.
IN HEALTH NEWS…..
When a child is diagnosed with asthma, it becomes a family effort to create a healthy living environment. Dr. Sanjay Gupta shows us how home visits from medical staff can help these young patients
