Cheers, gunfights in Yemen as Saleh goes to Saudi

SANAA/RIYADH - Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, wounded in an attack on his palace, has flown to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment, potentially offering a face-saving end to his three decade rule.

Yemeni ruling party official Tareq al-Shami said that Saleh would return to the country within days, but uncertainty about whether he would be able to maintain his grip after months of protests meant the risk of further turmoil remained high.

Some Yemenis celebrated what they hoped would be Saleh's permanent departure, but the jubilation was mixed with firefights and explosions in Sanaa, and gunbattles broke out in the city of Taiz, about 200 km (124 miles) south of the capital.

"People are worried about what will happen after Saleh's departure. They're most worried about a military coup or struggles for power within the army," said Farouq Abdel Salam, a resident in the southern port city of Aden.

Acting President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi met military commanders, including Saleh's powerful sons and nephews, who remain in Yemen. Hadi also met the U.S. ambassador.

Worries are mounting that Yemen, already on the brink of financial ruin and home to al Qaeda militants, could become a failed state that poses a threat to the world's top oil exporting region and to global security.


                                                                                                         - Manila bulletin / PAtis

Our top fact of the day, Romans

Ancient Romans e used human urine as an ingredient in their toothpaste. 

Our top fact of the day

You are about 1 centimeter taller in the morning than in the evening!

Lightning strikes kill 40 in Bangladesh

DHAKA - Lightning strikes during a heavy rainstorm in Bangladesh killed at least 40 people and injured more than 150, most of them harvesting rice in fields or fishing,,  police and officials said on Tuesday.

Manila Bulletin - The deaths, the largest number of casualties from lightning in a single day, occurred on Monday. Ten people died in northwestern Chapainawabganj district.

Rainstorms ahead of the monsoon season starting in May or June often bring electric storms that kill residents and damage crops.


                                                                                                            -Patis


                                                                                                                                          

Our top fact of the day, George Washington

George Washington grew marijuana in his garden.

Obama visits family roots in Ireland

DUBLIN - President Barack Obama declared solidarity between the United States and economically struggling Ireland with a symbolic gulp of beer and a rousing speech, telling a huge Dublin crowd on Monday: "Your best days are still ahead."

Manila Bulletin- Beginning a four-nation European tour with a celebration of his Irish roots, Obama came to Ireland as what one man called a long-lost cousin.                                                                  
                                                                                 
Crowds packed the streets for both a stirring speech in Dublin and a visit to the tiny village of Moneygall, where an ancestor of Obama's lived before moving to the United States.

Introduced by Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny as "the American dream come home," Obama told the throng in central Dublin: "My name is Barack Obama, of the Moneygall Obamas."

For Ireland, Obama's arrival, and the visit of Britain's Queen Elizabeth last week, are a welcome distraction from the global attention paid to its financial woes and the ensuing international bailout.

Obama was also due to visit Britain, France, and Poland on a week-long trip whose agenda includes talks on issues as Afghanistan and Pakistan after the killing of Osama bin Laden, the world economy and the "Arab spring" uprisings.




                                                                                

Our top fact of the day, Adolf Hitler

Nazi leader Adolf Hitler had only one testicle also called as Monorchism.