Hurricane Sandy closes-in on East Coast

Roaring up the East Coast, an intensified Hurricane Sandy threatens flooding and power shortages that could affect 60 million people.
Hundreds of thousands of people are evacuating New York City and New Jersey. Public transportation has been shut down throughout cities up the eastern seaboard as well as thousands of flights grounded.
A category one hurricane, Sandy is expected to make landfall within the next few hours near New Jersey. 69 people have already been killed by the hurricane, 52 of them were killed in Haiti when it swept through the Caribbean in the few past days.
President Obama has cancelled all of his campaign events just eight days before the US elections. The president has signed nine emergency declarations covering New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and District of Columbia, NPR reports.
Explosions rock Damascus on fourth day of attempted cease-fire
Car bombs, and airstrikes hit the Syrian capital, as witnesses say government warplanes launched 60 airstrikes in what is said  to be the heaviest air raid yet.
A blast on Monday in Jaramana, a district of Damascus controlled by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, killed at least 11 people and injured many more, according to both sides.
Activists reported a second explosion in al-Hajar al-Aswad neighborhood, where an airstrike by government forces struck a bus and left at least 10 people killed.
The violence brought a definitive and bloody end to a failed ceasefire, during which 500 people were reported dead in four days. It is reported that at least 80 people were killed on Monday alone. The uprising began 19 months ago, Al Jazeera reports.

Israel right-wing parties join forces

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu@@http://www.netanyahu.org/biography.html@@ will work with his ultra-nationalist Foreign Minister, Avigdor Lieberman@@http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avigdor_Lieberman@@, in January’s election, linking the Likud party and the Yisrael Beitenu party.
The two political parties have stated that joining forces would enable them to deal with the security and economic challenges ahead.
The election, which has been called nine months early, looks like it may go to the new joint party according to opinion polls that favor the right-wing alliance, The BBC reports.

Chinese chemical plant spurs protests

Protesters in China have gathered against the planned expansion of a chemical plant, even as local officials said the project would be ended.
In Ningbo City, Zhejiang province, thousands have clashed with riot police over raised health concerns about the health risks from pollution, The BBC reports.
More trouble for Berlusconi
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi@@http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silvio_Berlusconi@@ has suffered another political blow when his party lost a regional election in its former stronghold of Sicily.
The regional election results come on the heels of Berlusconi’s conviction last week for tax fraud.
The vote has been seen as a test ahead of a general election due next year, and it may be illustrative of a political sea change in Italian government, The New York Times reports.