BAN

Zimbabwe is considering a ban on raw platinum exports in a bid to force miners to set up refineries in the country, but this move will not take place overnight, a government official said on Wednesday.

Debt-riddled Japan Tuesday relaxed its self-imposed decades-old ban on military equipment exports in a move that will open new markets to its defense contractors and help the nation squeeze more out of its defense budget.

Workers began culling 17,000 chickens at a wholesale poultry market in Hong Kong on Wednesday after a dead chicken there tested positive for the deadly H5N1 avian virus, a government spokesman said.

The NCAA decided to impose a one-year bowl ban, a reduced amount of scholarships, and an additional year of probation on Tuesday on the Ohio State football program.

Ohio State University has been handed a one year bowl ban, according to a report.

Angry MPs forced parliament to close on Monday and protesters gathered outside a Russian consulate over a Siberian trial calling for one of Hinduism's most holy books to be put on a list of banned literature.

Environmental activists may suffer a major loss at the hands of an omnibus spending bill winding its way through Congress, as lawmakers moved to defund new Energy Department standards for incandescent light bulbs.

The Netherlands' controversial pot ban for foreign tourists has been delayed.

A nationwide cell phone ban will likely go into effect by the Federal National Transportation Safety Board, after a 2010 crash in Missouri in which the driver sent 11 texts in 11 minutes before the collision.

U.S. safety investigators called on Tuesday for a nationwide ban on texting and cell phone use while driving, a prohibition that would include certain applications of hands-free technology becoming more common in new cars.

Safety investigators called on Tuesday for a nationwide ban on texting and cell phone use while driving, a prohibition that would include certain applications of hands-free technology becoming more common in new cars.

The law will likely prompt legal challenges, based on religious freedom provisions in the constitution.

But while most states have been willing to address texting while driving in some way or another, there's lingering doubt whether all will jump on board with the strict regulations recommendations.

NTSB wants the 50 states and the District of Columbia to ban the nonemergency use of portable electronic devices if they aren't designed for supporting the task of driving.

The recommended national ban wouldn't apply to hands-free devices or to passengers of vehicles. In the past, the NTSB has recommended bans for cell phones and messaging devices for novice drivers, school bus drivers and commercial truck drivers, but this is far more reaching -- potentially impacting every driver on the road.

Ban Ki-moon's surprise visit to Mogadishu on Friday marked the first time since 1993 that a United Nations secretary-general had visited Somalia's capital city.

An Australian court on Friday lifted a ban on the sale of Samsung Electronics' Galaxy tablet computer in the country, adding to a U.S. legal victory for the South Korean technology firm in its bruising battle with Apple Inc.

Insider trading by federal lawmakers is unlawful, but "distinct legal and factual issues" may arise and make the investigation or prosecutions difficult to proceed. However, any statutory changes on insider trading should be "carefully calibrated" to ensure they do not narrow current law, a top Securities and Exchange Commission official warned Tuesday.

Shares in Samsung Electronics Co Ltd rose more than 2 percent on Monday after Apple Inc's bid to halt U.S. sales of its Galaxy line of products was rejected, easing concern of slowing growth in its telecom business, which generates revenue of $13 billion per quarter.

The Supreme Court declined on Monday to review a state court's ruling that religious groups in New York could not use public school facilities for worship services, even outside of school hours.

The European Union is becoming skeptical about slapping sanctions on imports of Iranian oil, diplomats and traders say, as awareness grows that the embargo could damage its own economy without doing much to undercut to Iran's oil revenues.