• The new status allows Palestinians to participate in General Assembly debates
• State status lets Palestinians apply to join the International Criminal Court and other U.N. agencies
• A state of Palestine has already been recognized by 132 countries, and the Palestinians have 80 embassies and 40 representative offices around the world
• To become a full UN Member it requires Security Council approval

United Nations, Nov. 29.─ The U.N. General Assembly has overwhelmingly endorsed a Palestinian Authority bid to upgrade its status to a "non-member observer state." The Palestinians sought the upgrade, despite stiff opposition and possible negative repercussions from Israel and the United States.

Speaking just ahead of Thursday's vote, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas urged the General Assembly to "issue a birth certificate" for the state of Palestine. He is calling on member states to support that bid.

The US will overtake Saudi Arabia and Russia to become the world's largest global oil producer by the second half of this decade, according to the International Energy Agency, as the shale revolution redraws the global energy landscape

Nov. 15.─ The agency's latest World Energy Outlook said the US could be almost self-sufficient in energy by 2035, marking "a dramatic reversal of the trend seen in most other energy-importing countries". It said the US would overtake Russia as the largest gas producer by 2015.

The resurgence in US oil and gas production, it said, was spurring economic activity "with less expensive gas and electricity prices giving [US] industry a competitive edge". Last week, a Germany industry lobby group warned that US companies are enjoying a rising advantage in energy costs.

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President Obama takes a firm stand at the opening of the General Assmbly

United Nations, Sept. 25 (Reuters).─ President Barack Obama warned Iran on Tuesday the United States will "do what we must" to prevent it from acquiring a nuclear weapon and said time was running short for diplomacy but ignored the Israeli prime minister's demand to set a "red line" for Tehran.

Taking the podium at the United Nations six weeks before the U.S. presidential election, Obama sought to counter criticism of his foreign record by Republican rival Mitt Romney, who has accused him of mishandling the Arab Spring uprisings, damaging ties with Israel and not being tough enough on Iran.

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• "Obviously there is huge climate impact," explained Julienne Stroeve, a scientist from the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Centre. "The sea ice now helps keep our planet cool by reflecting most of the sun's energy. And so by removing the ice, then the ocean's going to absorb all that heat during the summertime"
• The white line in the stellite picture represents the ice boundary last Summer (2011)

Ottawa, Sept. 19.─ The summer thaw climaxed on Wednesday and now will begin to turn with the coming of colder weather, but the speed and extent of the melt this year has prompted them to revisit their projections for ice-free summers and for global warming more generally.

"It didn't just beat the 2007 minimum, it beat it by a whole lot," said Julienne Stroeve, a scientist from the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Centre.