Saturday, January 22, 2011 - Last Update: 4:40 AM ET (09:40 GMT)

Protest by Tunisian Vendor Rattles Arab World

SIDI BOUZID, Tunisia — Mohamed Bouazizi, the fruit vendor who died after setting himself on fire, has become a symbol of defiance in Tunisia.

Week in Review

How a Single Match Can Ignite a Revolution

Burning oneself as political protest is not new. Perhaps what is new about the latest self-immolations is their effectiveness.

West Presses Karzai on Delay in Seating Parliament

KABUL — The United Nations released a strong statement late Friday expressing “deep concern and surprise” at President Hamid Karzai’s decision to delay seating a new Parliament on Sunday.

<p>“I never spent the night in the same place twice,” said Alexey Plutser-Sarno.</p>
Joseph Sywenkyj for The New York Times
The Saturday Profile

Artist’s Cat-and-Mouse Game Brings Claws

KIEV, Ukraine — Aleksei Plutser-Sarno, who belongs to the radical Russian art collective Voina, has been on the run since Russian law enforcement tried to shut the group down.

A Creator Prepares to Take the Reins at Google

SAN FRANCISCO — Larry Page’s move to chief executive will test his skills at handling the daily grind of running a business.

Following Threat, France Reaffirms Afghan Mission

PARIS — French officials said a new message attributed to Osama bin Laden, which threatened the lives of French hostages, would not deter their efforts in Afghanistan.

You Think Houses Are a Slow Sell? Try a Yacht

The market for yachts is still depressed long after the recession has ended, discouraging would-be buyers and leaving owners unable to sell.

South Korean naval special forces guarded Somali pirates after detaining them on the South Korean cargo ship Samho Jewelry in the Arabian Sea on Friday.
South Korea Rescues Crew and Ship From Pirates

SEOUL — South Korea said it freed the crew of a freighter hijacked in the Arabian Sea, killing eight of the Somali pirates who seized the ship last week.

Latest News From Asia
France Seeks to Let Icons Light Up Once More

PARIS — Lawmakers adopted a bill that would exempt “artistic or cultural works” from a 1991 law that prevents the presence of tobacco in advertisements for goods of any kind.

Latest News From Europe
Michele Alliot-Marie, the French foreign minister, left, was shielded by security during her arrival at Al-Quds hospital in Gaza on Friday.
French Minister Pelted With Eggs in Gaza

GAZA — Palestinians attacked Michele Alliot-Marie’s motorcade in Gaza on Friday, assailing her for a comment about Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier being held captive, that was falsely attributed to her.

Latest News From the Middle East
Protesters Say Ruling Party in Tunisia Must Dissolve

TUNIS — The powerful Tunisian trade union squared off against the interim government on Friday in the biggest protests since the ones that pushed out the country’s dictator, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.

Latest News From Africa
Jean-Claude Duvalier, the former dictator known as Baby Doc, read a statement to reporters Friday in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Haiti Leader Faces Pressure in Fight Over Runoff Race

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — President René Préval of Haiti faced increasing pressure on Friday to drop his preferred candidate from a coming presidential runoff election.

Latest News From the Americas
David Kaczynski, brother of the Unabomber, in 2003.
In Tucson, Solace From Relatives of Past Killers

TUCSON — The parents of Jared L. Loughner are being approached by the kin of those who have also gone on killing sprees.

Latest U.S. News

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The Greatest Composers

“Bach may have been the best engineer but Mozart will always be, in Rossini’s words, the angel of music,” writes Subirana in Montreal.

Dot Earth: Tough Climate Math

“What we need right now is a world wide policy of no new coal plants. I think that import duties on goods from countries that are not cutting their coal use would be an excellent policy to implement,” writes Chris Dudley.

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