Today’s world news round-up. An independent breakdown of notable global developments in a news update.
In France, socialist Hollande makes the wealthiest pay – Washington Post
French President Francois Hollande has made good on a campaign pledge to make the wealthiest in France pay up to 75 percent income tax. The U.S. Congress, meanwhile, is debating an Obama proposal to allow the top tax rates to rise from 35 percent to nearly 40 percent.
U.S. model for a future war fans tensions with China and inside Pentagon – Washington Post
The concept, the details of which are classified, has angered the Chinese military and has been pilloried by some Army and Marine Corps officers as excessively expensive. Some Asia analysts worry that conventional strikes aimed at China could spark a nuclear war.
In China, the rich and powerful can hire body doubles to do their prison time for them – Slate
The top one-tenth of 1 percent in China controls close to half of the country’s riches. The children and relatives of China’s rulers, many of whom grew up together, form a thicket of mutually beneficial relationships, with many able to enrich themselves financially and, if necessary, gain protection from criminal allegations.
Russia’s Pussy Riot Trial: A Kangaroo Court Goes on a Witch Hunt – Time
“We are seeing a concerted effort to instill fear, to let everyone know that dissent will no longer be tolerated,” says Masha Lipman, a political analyst in Moscow.
Suicide bomber kills self, wounds 9 in Kenya: police – Reuters
The attack came shortly before a visit to Kenya by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Africa, whose trip in part is intended to strengthen U.S. security ties in the face of growing threats from Islamist militants.