Daily News Digest: Politics - Bloomberg News Headlines - Yahoo! News

Yahoo! Alerts

Yahoo! News | My Alerts | Edit Alert

Sunday, September 23, 2012 8:30 PM PDT

Today's Politics - Bloomberg News Headlines - Yahoo! News: Japan finance minister Azumi tapped for ruling party Post: NHK Romney promises to be more aggressive on campaign trail Obama's foreign policy bright spot now looking dimmer Government pledges 1 billion pounds for state-backed business bank Policeman at center of China scandal took walk on the wild side Voting laws may disenfranchise 10 million Hispanic U.S. citizens: study China jails ex-police chief, closes in on disgraced Bo China surveillance ships enter waters near disputed islands China jails ex-police chief Wang for 15 years in murder scandal U.N. chief warns Iran's Ahmadinejad on fiery rhetoric Belarus says election turnout strong, despite opposition boycott Democrats use "47 percent" comments to dog Romney in Ohio Dozens protest against detention of relatives at Saudi prison UK pledges $1.6 billion for state-backed business bank Clinton summit highlights good business practices Japan, China military conflict seen unlikely despite strain Ivory Coast to admit Ghana flights, keep land, sea borders shut Exclusive: North Korea plans agriculture reforms World Health Organisation says has found new SARS-like virus Street battles erupt in Guinea refinery town Sudan, South Sudan leaders negotiate on border, oil Myanmar president heads to U.S., seeks end to sanctions Insight: China housing drive gives measure of next Premier From Nigeria to Athens, Muslim protests rumble on Pakistani radio show uses mothers and mullahs to undercut Taliban Philippine mining at policy crossroads as investment sputters Canadian auto workers at Ford ratify labor agreement Japan PM says dispute with China could hurt economy: report Iran could launch pre-emptive Israel strike-commander Florida wants NASA land to develop commercial spaceport Bill Clinton has "no earthly idea" whether Hillary will run Chinese verdict on ex-cop set to tighten noose on Bo Iran readies domestic Internet system, blocks Google Miner BSG may sue Brazil's BTG Pactual over Guinea role: report UK considers tapping pensions to help home buyers Libyan army tackles rogue militias as two disband Israel, Palestinians discuss developing gas off Gaza coast Euro zone to boost bailout fund firepower to 2 trillion euros: report Former Russia defense chief Grachev dies Iran accuses IAEA of passing nuclear secrets to Israel Japan finance minister Azumi tapped for ruling party Post: NHK Sun,23 Sep 2012 08:16 PM PDT Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda is set to appoint Finance Minister Jun Azumi as the ruling Democratic Party's acting secretary-general, public broadcaster NHK said on Monday. The report did not mention if Azumi would retain the finance portfolio. Noda was re-elected as the head of the Democratic Party of Japan last week. (Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Michael Watson) Full Story Top Romney promises to be more aggressive on campaign trail Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:59 PM PDT Reuters - DENVER (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney vowed on Sunday that he would campaign more aggressively in battleground states in the final 43 days before the November election. The comments, made to reporters aboard his campaign plane, suggested Romney was taking to heart criticism from his own party about the amount of time he has spent raising funds versus speaking to voters. "I think the fundraising season is probably getting a bit quieter. I would rather spend the time in key states," Romney said in his first comments to reporters since Monday. ... Full Story Top Obama's foreign policy bright spot now looking dimmer Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:38 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - If you thought Mitt Romney was the only presidential candidate whose problems were piling up in the final stretch of the 2012 election campaign, think again. From Middle East upheaval to the troubled Afghan war effort to a more assertive Russia, President Barack Obama is facing pressures that threaten to chip away at a foreign policy record his aides hoped would be immune to Republican attack. The White House is increasingly concerned but isn't hitting the panic button, yet. ... Full Story Top Government pledges 1 billion pounds for state-backed business bank Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:32 PM PDT Reuters - BRIGHTON (Reuters) - The government said on Monday it would allocate 1 billion pounds towards a new state-backed business bank designed to expand lending to smaller firms currently starved of loans from Britain's main lenders. The government hopes its backing will be matched by a similar amount from private capital and could support up to 10 billion pounds of new and additional lending, Business Secretary Vince Cable said. ... Full Story Top Policeman at center of China scandal took walk on the wild side Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:29 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Former police chief Wang Lijun, who lifted the lid on China's biggest political scandal in two decades, was known for his wild and flamboyant behavior. Wang, a self-styled crusader against organized crime in the vast southwestern municipality of Chongqing, was jailed on Monday for 15 years for trying to cover up a murder carried out by the wife of his politician boss, Bo Xilai. Wang, 52, was an ally of Bo, the city's Communist Party chief who was once a candidate for China's top leadership but whose career now lies in ruins. ... Full Story Top Voting laws may disenfranchise 10 million Hispanic U.S. citizens: study Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:23 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New voting laws in 23 of the 50 states could keep more than 10 million Hispanic U.S. citizens from registering and voting, a new study said on Sunday, a number so large it could affect the outcome of the November 6 election. The Latino community accounts for more than 10 percent of eligible voters nationally. But the share in some states is high enough that keeping Hispanic voters away from the polls could shift some hard-fought states from support for Democratic President Barack Obama and help his Republican rival, Mitt Romney. ... Full Story Top China jails ex-police chief, closes in on disgraced Bo Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:13 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - A Chinese court jailed ex-police chief Wang Lijun for 15 years on Monday after finding him guilty on four charges, including seeking to conceal the murder of a British businessman, in a scandal that felled ambitious politician Bo Xilai. The verdict ends the career of one of China's most controversial police officers and moves the ruling Communist Party closer to deciding the fate of Bo whose contentious downfall has shaken a looming leadership handover. ... Full Story Top China surveillance ships enter waters near disputed islands Sun,23 Sep 2012 07:02 PM PDT Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - Two Chinese marine surveillance ships entered what Japan considers its territorial waters near disputed islands in the East China Sea on Monday, prompting an official protest from Tokyo amid rising tension between Asia's two biggest economies. China's Xinhua news agency confirmed that two civilian surveillance ships were undertaking a "rights defense" patrol near the islands, citing the State Oceanic Administration, which controls the ships. Japan's Foreign Ministry said it had lodged an official protest with the Chinese envoy to Japan against the move. ... Full Story Top China jails ex-police chief Wang for 15 years in murder scandal Sun,23 Sep 2012 06:16 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - A Chinese court sentenced ex-police chief Wang Lijun to 15 years in jail on Monday, after finding him guilty on four charges, including seeking to conceal the murder of a British businessman in a scandal that felled the ambitious politician Bo Xilai. The court in Chengdu in southwest China said Wang received the sentence for "bending the law for selfish ends, defection, abuse of power and bribe-taking," according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. Wang was the police chief of Chongqing municipality also in the southwest, where Bo Xilai was Communist Party head. ... Full Story Top U.N. chief warns Iran's Ahmadinejad on fiery rhetoric Sun,23 Sep 2012 05:26 PM PDT Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of the dangers of incendiary rhetoric when two men met in New York on Sunday before this week's annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly. "The secretary-general drew attention to the potentially harmful consequences of inflammatory rhetoric, counter-rhetoric and threats from various countries in the Middle East," Ban's press office said in a statement. ... Full Story Top Belarus says election turnout strong, despite opposition boycott Sun,23 Sep 2012 04:55 PM PDT Reuters - MINSK (Reuters) - Authorities in Belarus said they had a strong turnout in a parliamentary election on Sunday after hardline President Alexander Lukashenko denounced opposition leaders as "cowards" for urging people to boycott it as a sham exercise. The two main opposition parties had called on people to go mushrooming or fishing and abstain from voting in an election which they said would produce a token parliament to rubber-stamp directives by Lukashenko. "Elections took place in the course of which 109 deputies were elected ... ... Full Story Top Democrats use "47 percent" comments to dog Romney in Ohio Sun,23 Sep 2012 04:14 PM PDT Reuters - COLUMBUS, Ohio (Reuters) - If Republican Mitt Romney looks in the rear-view mirror when he rides through Ohio on a campaign bus tour this week, he'll see Democrats not far behind. Supporters of President Barack Obama's campaign are following Romney from town to town in a bus of their own as part of a hard-fought race for one of the most important states in the presidential election. ... Full Story Top Dozens protest against detention of relatives at Saudi prison Sun,23 Sep 2012 04:07 PM PDT Reuters - RIYADH (Reuters) - Dozens of Saudis protested at a prison in Qassim near the capital Riyadh on Sunday against the detention of their relatives in the Gulf kingdom where demonstrations are banned, protesters and a rights activist said. Police restricted the protesters to a cordoned off area for six hours, they said. Demonstrations are rare in Saudi Arabia which escaped last year's Arab Spring unrest but has faced criticism for its human rights record. ... Full Story Top UK pledges $1.6 billion for state-backed business bank Sun,23 Sep 2012 04:05 PM PDT Reuters - BRIGHTON, England (Reuters) - Britain said on Monday it would allocate 1 billion pounds ($1.6 billion) towards a new state-backed business bank designed to expand lending to smaller firms currently starved of loans from Britain's main lenders. The government hopes its backing will be matched by a similar amount from private capital and could support up to 10 billion pounds of new and additional lending, Business Secretary Vince Cable said. ... Full Story Top Clinton summit highlights good business practices Sun,23 Sep 2012 03:43 PM PDT Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton opened his annual philanthropic summit on Sunday by urging business leaders to do more to alleviate poverty and improve the environment. "We live to prove that cooperation works better than conflict," Clinton said at the opening session of the eighth Clinton Global Initiative in New York. "Today we want to talk about how you can design your actions in advance to make it more likely that those efforts will succeed. ... Full Story Top Japan, China military conflict seen unlikely despite strain Sun,23 Sep 2012 03:33 PM PDT Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - Hawkish Chinese commentators have urged Beijing to prepare for military conflict with Japan as tensions mount over disputed islands in the East China Sea, but most experts say chances the Asian rivals will decide to go to war are slim. A bigger risk is the possibility that an unintended maritime clash results in deaths and boosts pressure for retaliation, but even then Tokyo and Beijing are expected to seek to manage the row before it becomes a full-blown military confrontation. "That's the real risk - a maritime incident leading to a loss of life. ... Full Story Top Ivory Coast to admit Ghana flights, keep land, sea borders shut Sun,23 Sep 2012 03:30 PM PDT Reuters - ABIDJAN (Reuters) - Ivory Coast will reopen its airspace to flights from Ghana but keep land and sea borders with its neighbor shut, said the Ivorian government on Sunday, after a series of deadly attacks last week in Abidjan and at a border crossing. "After 48 hours of observation of the movements of people and goods between the two countries, it is decided that only the air borders will be opened from Monday," the office of President Alassane Ouattara said in a statement read on state television. Ivorian airspace would reopen to Ghanaian flights from midnight, the statement said. ... Full Story Top Exclusive: North Korea plans agriculture reforms Sun,23 Sep 2012 03:16 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - North Korea plans to allow farmers to keep more of their produce in an attempt to boost agricultural output, a source with close ties to Pyongyang and Beijing said, in a move that could boost supplies, help cap rising food prices and ease malnutrition. The move to liberalize agriculture under new leader Kim Jong-un, who took office in December 2011 after the death of his father, would reverse a crackdown on private production that started in 2005. It comes amid talk that the youngest Kim to rule the impoverished North is considering reforms to boost the economy. ... Full Story Top World Health Organisation says has found new SARS-like virus Sun,23 Sep 2012 03:13 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - A new virus belonging to the same family as the SARS virus that killed 800 people in 2002 has been identified in Britain in a man who had recently been in Saudi Arabia, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Sunday. The United Nations health body, which issued a statement through its "global alert and response" system, said tests on the patient, a 49-year-old Qatari man, confirmed the presence of a new, or novel, coronavirus. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses which includes the common cold and SARS. ... Full Story Top Street battles erupt in Guinea refinery town Sun,23 Sep 2012 03:06 PM PDT Reuters - CONAKRY (Reuters) - Street clashes broke out on Sunday in the Guinean industrial town of Fria, home to RUSAL's huge alumina refinery, after local youths armed with knives and guns attacked suspected black market fuel salesmen, witnesses and officials said. At least 20 people were injured in the fighting which ran for several hours before regional security forces arrived in the afternoon to break it up, witnesses said. "Some youths ... ... Full Story Top Sudan, South Sudan leaders negotiate on border, oil Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:39 PM PDT Reuters - ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Leaders of Sudan and South Sudan met on late on Sunday to try reach a deal to end hostilities and restart oil exports but there was still no breakthrough on a key security accord after two weeks of talks in Ethiopia, officials said. South Sudan said it expected Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir and his southern counterpart, Salva Kiir, to reach an deal on Monday, after a U.N. Security Council deadline was unofficially extended. ... Full Story Top Myanmar president heads to U.S., seeks end to sanctions Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:36 PM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - Myanmar's reformist president heads to the United States this week, keen to win an end to sanctions and open a new chapter in a once frosty relationship that could bring economic and geostrategic benefits to both sides. After feting Nobel Peace Prize winner and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in Washington last week, the United States will welcome Thein Sein, a 67-year-old former general who emerged as the unlikely catalyst for a wave of reforms that were unthinkable a year ago. Thein Sein's U.S. ... Full Story Top Insight: China housing drive gives measure of next Premier Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:29 PM PDT Reuters - MENGTOUGOU, China (Reuters) - One day last summer, the man slated to become China's next premier strolled through a run-down alley between cramped brick huts and then toured a construction site a few miles away where brightly painted tower blocks promised new homes for the country's poor. The contrasting neighborhoods, both in Beijing's poor, mining region of Mengtougou, embody the affordable housing policy overseen by Vice Premier Li Keqiang, who is expected to replace Premier Wen Jiabao in an upcoming leadership handover. ... Full Story Top From Nigeria to Athens, Muslim protests rumble on Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:13 PM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Muslims protested in Nigeria, Iran, Greece and Turkey on Sunday to show anti-Western anger against a film and cartoons insulting Islam had not dissipated. As delegates from around the world gathered in New York for a U.N. General Assembly where the clash between free speech and blasphemy is bound to be raised, U.S. flags were once again burning in parts of the Muslim world. ... Full Story Top Pakistani radio show uses mothers and mullahs to undercut Taliban Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:08 PM PDT Reuters - PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - Slowly, Ziarat Bibi recalled the last words she spoke to her son, her pain seeming to fill the dimly lit radio studio. "He was preparing for his exam. I told him to pick up his books," she said, as transmitters beamed her grief to listeners across northwest Pakistan. A Taliban bomb killed her son before he took his exam. She has not been able to touch his books since. ... Full Story Top Philippine mining at policy crossroads as investment sputters Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:06 PM PDT Reuters - MANILA (Reuters) - Conflicting regulations and a freeze on new mine deals in the Philippines are strangling development of its rich mineral resources, with mining investment over the next four years at risk of being less than half the $12 billion touted by the government. The Southeast Asian nation has huge mineral reserves, estimated to be worth $850 billion, ranking third in the world in gold, fourth in copper and fifth in nickel, according to the Philippine Mines and Geosciences Bureau agency. ... Full Story Top Canadian auto workers at Ford ratify labor agreement Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:03 PM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - Unionized workers at Ford Motor Co's Canadian operations have voted in favor of a four-year labor agreement with the company, the Canadian Auto Workers union and Ford said on Sunday. Some 82 percent of the Ford workers who voted backed the deal, the CAW said in a statement. The agreement with Ford was the first deal reached at the Detroit Three companies in this round of talks, and serves as a model for pattern bargaining with General Motors Corp and Fiat SpA's Chrysler Group LLC. ... Full Story Top Japan PM says dispute with China could hurt economy: report Sun,23 Sep 2012 02:01 PM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said violent protests in China over the two countries' ongoing territorial dispute could weaken China's economy and spook foreign investors, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. "China should be developing through the various foreign investments it receives," Noda told the Journal. "Anything to discourage that is a disservice to itself." Japan and China have been at odds over a group of islands in the East China Sea, called Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan. ... Full Story Top Iran could launch pre-emptive Israel strike-commander Sun,23 Sep 2012 01:39 PM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran could launch a pre-emptive strike on Israel if it was sure the Jewish state was preparing to attack it, a senior commander of its elite Revolutionary Guards was quoted as saying on Sunday. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, a brigadier general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, made the comments to Iran's state-run Arabic language Al-Alam television. "Iran will not start any war but it could launch a pre-emptive attack if it was sure that the enemies are putting the final touches to attack it," Al-Alam said, paraphrasing the military commander. ... Full Story Top Florida wants NASA land to develop commercial spaceport Sun,23 Sep 2012 01:29 PM PDT Reuters - CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - With an eye toward developing a commercial spaceport, Florida has asked NASA to transfer 150 acres of land north of the shuttle launch pads and the shuttle runway to Space Florida, the state's aerospace development agency. "Florida believes that the properties identified in this request are excess to the needs of the U.S. ... Full Story Top Bill Clinton has "no earthly idea" whether Hillary will run Sun,23 Sep 2012 01:06 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - If Secretary of State Hillary Clinton harbors ambitions to run for president, she is keeping them under tight wraps. "I have no earthly idea what she'll decide to do," her husband, former President Bill Clinton, said on CBS television's "Face the Nation" on Sunday. Although Hillary Clinton went down to defeat to President Barack Obama in a close primary contest in 2008, she has stayed in the public eye as the president's top diplomat. In that role, Clinton, who had been a U.S. ... Full Story Top Chinese verdict on ex-cop set to tighten noose on Bo Sun,23 Sep 2012 12:03 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - The ex-police chief who triggered China's most spectacular political upheaval for decades is virtually sure to be convicted on four charges on Monday, turning attention to the fate of his disgraced former boss, Bo Xilai. A court in southwest China will announce its verdict on the charges against Wang Lijun, the former police chief of Chongqing municipality in southwest China -- chiefly, that he tried to cover up the murder of a British businessman by Gu Kailai, the wife of Bo, one of China's most controversial politicians. ... Full Story Top Iran readies domestic Internet system, blocks Google Sun,23 Sep 2012 12:00 PM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran plans to switch its citizens onto a domestic Internet network in what officials say is a bid to improve cyber security but which many Iranians fear is the latest way to control their access to the web. The announcement, made by a government deputy minister on Sunday, came as state television announced Google Inc's search engine and its email service would be blocked "within a few hours". "Google and Gmail will be filtered throughout the country until further notice," an official identified only by his last name, Khoramabadi, said, without giving further details. ... Full Story Top Miner BSG may sue Brazil's BTG Pactual over Guinea role: report Sun,23 Sep 2012 11:37 AM PDT Reuters - SAO PAULO (Reuters) - BSG Resources, a mining company operating in Guinea with Brazil's Vale , may sue investment bank BTG Pactual over the latter's role as an adviser to the West African country's government, O Estado de S. Paulo newspaper reported on Sunday. According to the paper, BSG Resources Chief Executive Asher Avidan is in Brazil looking for legal advisers, with a view to filing a lawsuit against BTG Pactual and partner AGN Participações. BTG Pactual and AGN created holding company B&A Participações to invest in mining projects globally. ... Full Story Top UK considers tapping pensions to help home buyers Sun,23 Sep 2012 11:31 AM PDT Reuters - BRIGHTON (Reuters) - Britain will allow parents to use money locked up in pension schemes to help their children obtain mortgages and buy their own home, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said on Sunday. The scheme, still at the planning stage, aims to give a lift to a sluggish economy with a 125 million pound ($200 million) boost to the housing and construction market. It comes after Clegg and Prime Minister David Cameron announced 10 billion pounds of government backing for new housing schemes earlier this month. ... Full Story Top Libyan army tackles rogue militias as two disband Sun,23 Sep 2012 10:41 AM PDT Reuters - TRIPOLI/DERNA, Libya (Reuters) - Libya's army on Sunday ordered rogue armed groups in and around Tripoli to leave state and military premises or be ejected by force, apparently seeking to capitalize on the withdrawal of militias from Benghazi and Derna. The two main Islamist militias in Derna, a town in eastern Libya known as an Islamist stronghold, said on Saturday they were disbanding after one of them, Ansar al-Sharia, was driven out of Libya's second city, Benghazi. ... Full Story Top Israel, Palestinians discuss developing gas off Gaza coast Sun,23 Sep 2012 10:33 AM PDT Reuters - JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The U.S.-backed Palestinian administration is negotiating with Israel for permission to develop natural gas off the coast of the Gaza Strip, Israeli and foreign diplomats said on Sunday. Mediterranean gas could be a windfall for the Palestinian Authority (PA), which operates under Israeli occupation in the West Bank and has alarmed the World Bank by sinking into fiscal crises amid shortfalls in international aid. ... Full Story Top Euro zone to boost bailout fund firepower to 2 trillion euros: report Sun,23 Sep 2012 10:00 AM PDT Reuters - BERLIN (Reuters) - Euro zone states are preparing to allow the bloc's permanent bailout fund to leverage its capital in the same way as its predecessor so it can reach a capacity of more than 2 trillion euros and rescue big countries if necessary, Der Spiegel said on Sunday. ... Full Story Top Former Russia defense chief Grachev dies Sun,23 Sep 2012 09:52 AM PDT Reuters - MOSCOW (Reuters) - Former Russian Defense Minister Pavel Grachev, who said Chechen rebels could be crushed in a few hours with a single airborne regiment - ahead of a devastating 20-month war - died on Sunday aged 64. The general was defense minister under President Boris Yeltsin in 1992-1996 and was one of the decision-makers behind the first war Moscow launched, in December 1994, to defeat separatist forces. ... Full Story Top Iran accuses IAEA of passing nuclear secrets to Israel Sun,23 Sep 2012 09:12 AM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - A senior Iranian lawmaker accused the UN nuclear watchdog on Sunday of passing confidential details of Iran's atomic work to Israel, and a military commander said Tehran may consider a pre-emptive strike on the Jewish state if it looked set to attack. Javad Jahangirzadeh, a member of parliament's presiding board, said International Atomic Energy Agency chief Yukiya Amano had made "repeated trips" to Israel, divulging sensitive information about what Tehran says is its peaceful nuclear program. ... Full Story Top

You received this email because you subscribed to Yahoo! Alerts. Use this link to unsubscribe from this alert. To change your communications preferences for other Yahoo! business lines, please visit your Marketing Preferences. To learn more about Yahoo!'s use of personal information, including the use of web beacons in HTML-based email, please read our Privacy Policy. Yahoo! is located at 701 First Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA 94089.