http://thestar.com.my/news/worldupdates/ Update: Thursday, March 11, 2010 MYT 4:00:32 AM http://thestar.com.my/common/images/thestar_140x45.gif http://thestar.com.my/ 88 31 http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T232410Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468086-1&sec=Worldupdates LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Conservatives, favourites to win an election due in weeks, said on Wednesday they would back a U.N. arms embargo on Iran and a ban on oil and gas investment if Tehran remains defiant over its nuclear plans. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-11T010417Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468030-3&sec=Worldupdates RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden publicly scolded Israel on Wednesday over a Jewish settlement plan, saying it was undermining peace efforts after Palestinians agreed to U.S.-mediated talks. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T204540Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468050-1&sec=Worldupdates OSLO (Reuters) - A record 237 people and organisations have been nominated for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, with interest boosted by last year's award to U.S. President Barack Obama, organisers said on Wednesday. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T233550Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468092-1&sec=Worldupdates BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Initial results from Iraq's national election are likely to be released by Thursday, Iraqi and U.N. officials said on Wednesday, as further signs emerged of a strong showing for Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-11T004342Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468106-1&sec=Worldupdates ROME (Reuters) - Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi went on the offensive on Wednesday, accusing the opposition of using dirty tricks to exclude his party's candidates from a regional election and announcing a national protest rally. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-11T011456Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468091-5&sec=Worldupdates BAKU (Reuters) - Two Azerbaijani opposition bloggers, jailed in a case which rights groups say highlights the shrinking freedoms in the oil-producing state, had their appeal rejected on Wednesday. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T210305Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468057-1&sec=Worldupdates OSLO (Reuters) - A dimming of the sun to match conditions in the "Little Ice Age" of the 17th century would only slightly slow global warming, a study indicated on Wednesday. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T233036Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468088-2&sec=Worldupdates HAIFA, Israel (Reuters) - An Israeli court on Wednesday began hearing a civil damages lawsuit filed by the parents of an American woman who was killed by an Israeli military bulldozer in the Gaza Strip seven years ago. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T210823Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468056-2&sec=Worldupdates PARIS (Reuters) - In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says that if anyone leads innocent children to sin, "it would be better for him to have a great millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea." http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/11/worldupdates/2010-03-10T224710Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-468077-1&sec=Worldupdates ROME (Reuters) - A senior Google Inc. executive dismissed any impact on the company's Italian business from a court ruling on a cyber-bullying case, as the company unveiled a deal with the Italian government to digitise books.