| | |
| Judge rules against 'America's toughest sheriff' in racial profiling lawsuit Friday, May 24, 2013 08:06 PM PDT  By Tim Gaynor and David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - Arizona lawman Joe Arpaio violated the constitutional rights of Latino drivers in his crackdown on illegal immigration, a federal judge found on Friday, and ordered him to stop using race as a factor in law enforcement decisions. The ruling against the Maricopa County sheriff came in response to a class-action lawsuit brought by Hispanic drivers that tested whether police can target illegal immigrants without racially profiling U.S. citizens and legal residents of Hispanic origin. U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Chinese premier criticizes EU move on trade measures Friday, May 24, 2013 07:57 PM PDT  SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang criticized the European Union over its plans to investigate alleged anti-competitive behavior by Chinese mobile telecom equipment makers and to impose punitive import duties on solar panels from China, state media reported. The official Xinhua news agency reported late on Friday that Li had told business leaders in Switzerland such measures would "harm others without benefiting oneself". Li is the most senior Chinese official to comment on the troublesome issue so far. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syria opposition unity talks face specter of collapse Friday, May 24, 2013 07:15 PM PDT  By Khaled Yacoub Oweis ISTANBUL - Syrian opposition talks aimed at presenting a coherent front at an international peace conference to end the civil war faced the prospect of collapse after President Bashar al-Assad's foes failed to cut an internal deal, opposition sources said on Friday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Corruption trial of Canadian trader ends in Cuba, with verdict soon Friday, May 24, 2013 06:49 PM PDT  By Marc Frank HAVANA (Reuters) - The trial of a Canadian businessman who bribed Cuban officials ended on Friday after two days of testimony, but there was no word on the outcome in a case closely watched by Havana's foreign business community. Sarkis Yacoubian, originally from Armenia and the owner of import firm Tri-Star Caribbean, was expected to plead guilty and hope for leniency for his cooperation with investigators after his July 2011 arrest. The five-judge panel was expected to announce its verdict within 10 days. ... Full Story | Top |
| Durable goods orders point to factory resilience Friday, May 24, 2013 06:30 PM PDT  By Jason Lange WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose more than expected in April, a hopeful sign that a sharp slowdown in factory output could soon run its course. New orders for durable goods, which range from toasters to aircraft, increased 3.3 percent last month, the Commerce Department said on Friday. The data was the latest to show the U.S. economy exhibiting surprising resilience in the face of harsh fiscal austerity measures enacted this year. ... Full Story | Top |
| Lobbying in American-US Airways deal focuses on small cities Friday, May 24, 2013 06:20 PM PDT  By Karen Jacobs (Reuters) - US Airways Group and American Airlines , seeking approval for a merger that would create the world's largest airline, are warning lawmakers that a requirement to divest certain airport slots would lead to less service for small and medium-sized cities, sources close to the effort told Reuters. The airlines may be required to shed slots Washington's Reagan National Airport to prevent market domination. There is concern that those slots could go to rivals, such as JetBlue Airways , which would likely use them for flights to major cities. ... Full Story | Top |
| Federal agency accepts Nevada hospital's plan to curb patient-dumping Friday, May 24, 2013 05:59 PM PDT By Ronnie Cohen (Reuters) - Federal authorities approved a Nevada hospital's proposal on Friday for correcting deficiencies that led to newly discharged psychiatric patients being bused out of state without adequate plans for continued care. The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also said it would conduct unannounced inspections of Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital in Las Vegas to ensure that procedures are in place and working to prevent further instances of so-called patient dumping. ... Full Story | Top |
| Guatemalan ex-president extradited to U.S. on money-laundering charges Friday, May 24, 2013 05:54 PM PDT  By Mike McDonald GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Former Guatemalan President Alfonso Portillo was extradited on Friday to the United States to face money-laundering charges, just days after former dictator Efrain Rios Montt's genocide conviction was overturned. A U.S. grand jury decided in 2009 that Portillo, who was in office from 2000 to 2004, should face charges that he laundered $70 million through U.S. banks. ... Full Story | Top |
| Stockholm calmer but violence spreads outside Swedish capital Friday, May 24, 2013 05:36 PM PDT  By Ilze Filks and Mia Shanley STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - A nearly week-long spate of rioting spread outside Stockholm on Friday but authorities said police reinforcements sent to the Swedish capital had reduced the violence there, even though dozens of youths set cars and a recycling station ablaze. The rioting - set off earlier this month by the police shooting of a 69-year-old man - continued for a sixth night in mainly poor immigrant areas in Stockholm. ... Full Story | Top |
| Associate of arms dealer Viktor Bout extradited to New York Friday, May 24, 2013 05:05 PM PDT By Chris Francescani NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S-Syrian citizen accused of conspiring with jailed Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout has been extradited to New York from Australia to face charges he conspired to buy aircraft in violation of economic sanctions, federal prosecutors said on Friday. Richard Ammar Chichakli is scheduled to be arraigned in federal magistrate court in Manhattan on Saturday, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, said in a statement. ... Full Story | Top |
| Judge rules against Arizona sheriff in racial profiling suit Friday, May 24, 2013 04:26 PM PDT PHOENIX (Reuters) - A federal judge on Friday found hardline Arizona lawman Joe Arpaio had violated the constitutional rights of Latino drivers in his crackdown on illegal immigration, and ordered him to stop using race as a factor in law enforcement decisions. The ruling against the Maricopa County sheriff came in response to a class-action lawsuit brought by Hispanic drivers that tested whether police can target illegal immigrants without racially profiling Hispanic citizens and legal residents. U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kosovo moves against restaurants holding wild bears Friday, May 24, 2013 04:25 PM PDT  By Fatos Bytyci PRIZREN, Kosovo (Reuters) - Kosovo has launched a campaign to seize wild bears held in restaurants and private zoos, responding to concerns over dwindling numbers in the Balkan country's mountainous border areas. Authorities have so far traced at least 15 caged bears held in restaurants to help lure customers, to the outrage of animal rights activists. Ministry of Environment officials say the number of bears in the wild in Kosovo has fallen below 100 due to the destruction of their natural habitat and illegal hunting. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama awards top U.S. honor to girls killed in 1963 racial bombing Friday, May 24, 2013 03:24 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama awarded the highest U.S. civilian honor on Friday to four black girls killed in a civil rights-era church bombing 50 years ago, saying their tragic deaths ultimately "helped to trigger triumph." In a signing ceremony at the White House, marking what he described as "a great moment," Obama awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to 14-year-olds Addie Mae Collins, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley, and 11-year-old Denise McNair, who were killed in the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senator urges 'extreme caution' on SoftBank -Sprint deal Friday, May 24, 2013 02:53 PM PDT  By Doug Palmer and Liana B. Baker WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An influential senator expressed strong concerns on Friday about Japanese company SoftBank Corp's plan to buy 70 percent of Sprint Nextel , warning it could expose the United States to Chinese cyber attacks. "I have real concerns that this deal, if approved, could make American industry and government agencies far more susceptible to cyber attacks from China and the People's Liberation Army," Senator Charles Schumer of New York said in a statement. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bail denied to Massachusetts teen accused of Facebook terror post Friday, May 24, 2013 02:52 PM PDT By Richard Valdmanis BOSTON (Reuters) - A judge denied bail on Friday to a Massachusetts teenager who was arrested on terrorism charges after posting lyrics on his Facebook page suggesting he could do worse than the Boston Marathon bombers. Cameron D'Ambrosio, an 18-year-old aspiring rapper from Methuen, about 30 miles north of Boston, was arrested on May 1 after he posted a note on his Facebook page that included the words "a boston bombinb wait till u see the shit I do." D'Ambrosio was charged with "communicating terrorist threats" and faces as many as 20 years in prison if he is convicted. ... Full Story | Top |
| Arizona jury foreman says believed Jodi Arias was abused Friday, May 24, 2013 02:47 PM PDT  By David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - The foreman of an Arizona jury that deadlocked over whether Jodi Arias should be put to death for murdering her ex-boyfriend believes she was mentally abused, but said on Friday that had not been enough to excuse her crime. Arias, a former waitress from California, was found guilty this month of murdering Travis Alexander, whose body was found slumped in the shower of his Phoenix-area home in June 2008. He had been stabbed 27 times, had his throat slashed and been shot in the face. ... Full Story | Top |
| Toronto mayor denies, finally, use of crack cocaine Friday, May 24, 2013 02:44 PM PDT  By Julie Gordon TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, under pressure to respond to allegations he was filmed using drugs, said on Friday that he does not smoke crack cocaine and could not comment on a video he had not seen or does not exist. "There has been a serious accusation from the Toronto Star that I use crack cocaine. I do not use crack cocaine, nor am I an addict of crack cocaine," he told a news conference. ... Full Story | Top |
| IMF's Lagarde escapes formal investigation in court Friday, May 24, 2013 02:37 PM PDT  By Noémie Olive PARIS (Reuters) - French magistrates decided on Friday not to place IMF chief Christine Lagarde under formal investigation over her role in a 285-million-euro ($368.5 million) arbitration payment made to a supporter of former president Nicolas Sarkozy. Lagarde instead was given the status of a "supervised witness" after two full days of questioning on her 2008 decision as Sarkozy's finance minister to use arbitration to settle a legal battle between the state and businessman Bernard Tapie. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bosnia president, charged with graft, freed from jail Friday, May 24, 2013 02:30 PM PDT  SARAJEVO (Reuters) - The president of Bosnia's autonomous Muslim-Croat federation was freed from jail on Friday after the Constitutional Court ordered his release following his arrest last month on corruption charges. President Zivko Budimir was arrested along with 19 other officials in late April in the most high-profile anti-corruption drive in Bosnia since independence more than two decades ago. A court ordered Budimir and his four co-accused aides to be kept in detention because some of them held Croatian passports and there was a risk they might try to flee. ... Full Story | Top |
| Illinois House votes to allow residents to carry concealed guns Friday, May 24, 2013 02:13 PM PDT  By Joanne von Alroth SPRINGFIELD, Illinois (Reuters) - The Illinois House of Representatives on Friday voted overwhelmingly to allow residents to carry concealed guns, taking the state one step closer to joining all others in allowing some form of carrying guns in public. Illinois is the only state in the nation to ban most people from carrying a concealed gun outside the home. Lawmakers acted on Friday after a federal appeals court in January struck down the ban, saying it violated the right to bear arms enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. ... Full Story | Top |
| Veterans' claims put pressure on Obama even as backlog dips Friday, May 24, 2013 02:06 PM PDT  By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A long-growing backlog of U.S. military veterans' disability claims, which has stoked congressional anger, has dipped in recent weeks, however tentatively. But that is not taking any pressure off President Barack Obama, his Department of Veterans Affairs or the Pentagon to fix a system that has left veterans waiting - sometimes for years - to get answers from the U.S. government about their disability claims. Instead, warnings from Congress are growing more acute. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama urges U.S. military to stamp out sexual assault Friday, May 24, 2013 02:02 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason ANNAPOLIS, Maryland (Reuters) - President Barack Obama urged the future leaders of the U.S. military on Friday to stamp out sexual assault from their ranks, warning that a few individuals could undermine the strongest military in the world. Addressing the graduating class of the U.S. Naval Academy, Obama used his commencement speech to take on a problem that has dogged the Pentagon and the White House in recent weeks. ... Full Story | Top |
| Justice Department defends journalist email search Friday, May 24, 2013 02:00 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Justice Department said on Friday that senior officials including Attorney General Eric Holder vetted a decision to search an email account belonging to a Fox News reporter whose story on North Korea prompted a leak investigation. In a statement emailed to Reuters, the department said the search warrant for the reporter's email account followed all laws and policies and won the independent approval of a federal magistrate judge. ... Full Story | Top |
| Column: What war on the press? Friday, May 24, 2013 01:48 PM PDT  By Jack Shafer (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has declared war on the press, say writers at Slate, the Daily Beast, Reason, the Washington Post (Jennifer Rubin, Dana Milbank and Leonard Downie Jr.), Commentary, National Journal (Ron Fournier), the New York Times editorial page, CBS News, Fox News (Roger Ailes) and even Techdirt. Scores of other scribes and commentators have filed similar dispatches about this or that federal prosecution "chilling" the press and pulping the First Amendment. ... Full Story | Top |
| Judge orders Philadelphia faith-healing couple held in son's death Friday, May 24, 2013 01:43 PM PDT By Dave Warner PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - A Philadelphia couple charged with murder after their baby died without medical care must be held in jail whether or not they make bail, a judge ruled on Friday. The couple, Herbert and Catherine Schaible, believe in faith healing, and those who share their beliefs might be willing to harbor them if they decide to flee, Judge Benjamin Lerner told a court hearing in Philadelphia. The Schaibles were charged with third-degree murder on Wednesday after the April 18 death of their seven-month-old son Brandon from bacterial pneumonia, dehydration and strep. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. audit regulator reaches deal with China on document access Friday, May 24, 2013 01:29 PM PDT By Dena Aubin and Sarah N. Lynch NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. regulators will get access to Chinese companies' audit documents under a deal announced on Friday, opening the way to probes of bungled audits after a two-year stand-off between China and the United States. The nonbinding deal is only a partial victory for the United States, which has been blocked from investigating accounting scandals at dozens of Chinese companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges. It applies only to enforcement cases against auditors, not against China-based companies suspected of accounting fraud. ... Full Story | Top |
| New U.S. fears emerge over tainted compounded steroids Friday, May 24, 2013 01:26 PM PDT By Toni Clarke (Reuters) - The Food and Drug Administration said on Friday it has received seven reports of illnesses in patients who took steroid injections compounded by a pharmacy in Tennessee. The FDA said full clinical information about the patients is still being gathered, but it suggested some of the problems were infections and that "at least one of these infections appears to be fungal in nature." The steroid in question is same one - methylprednisolone acetate - that was linked to a meningitis outbreak last year that has killed some 53 people and sickened more than 700. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bausch & Lomb's Ista pleads guilty over kickbacks Friday, May 24, 2013 01:25 PM PDT By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - Ista Pharmaceuticals Inc pleaded guilty on Friday to charges it used kickbacks and improper marketing to boost sales of a drug meant to treat eye pain and agreed to pay $33.5 million to settle criminal and civil liability, the U.S. Department of Justice said. The unit of eye care company Bausch & Lomb pleaded guilty to conspiracy to offer kickbacks to induce physicians to prescribe Xibrom, a drug meant to treat pain after cataract surgery, and conspiracy to promote that drug for unapproved uses, including after Lasik and glaucoma surgeries. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. awards medals to four girls killed in 1963 civil rights bombing Friday, May 24, 2013 12:52 PM PDT  (Reuters) - President Barack Obama signed a bill into law on Friday granting the United States' highest civilian honor to four black girls killed in a civil rights-era church bombing that shocked the nation in 1963. Congress awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to 14-year-olds Addie Mae Collins, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley, and 11-year-old Denise McNair, who were killed in the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. ... Full Story | Top |
| President Obama again to serve as honorary Cup chairman Friday, May 24, 2013 12:29 PM PDT  (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has accepted an invitation to be honorary chairman of this year's Presidents Cup, the second time he will fulfil the role at the biennial team competition, the PGA Tour said on Friday. Obama, an avid basketball player who often escapes the pressures of the Oval Office by taking to the golf course, served as honorary chairman when the event was last played in the United States, at San Francisco's Harding Park in 2009. ... Full Story | Top |
| Church of England unveils plan for women bishops in 2015 Friday, May 24, 2013 12:08 PM PDT By Tom Heneghan, Religion Editor (Reuters) - The Church of England published a plan on Friday to approve the ordination of women bishops by 2015, a widely supported reform it just missed passing last November after two decades of divisive debate. It said the new plan, outlined in a document signed by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Archbishop of York John Sentamu, would be presented to the General Synod, the Church legislature, in July to begin the approval process. ... Full Story | Top |
| Golf-President Obama again to serve as honorary Cup chairman Friday, May 24, 2013 12:08 PM PDT May 24 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has accepted an invitation to be honorary chairman of this year's Presidents Cup, the second time he will fulfil the role at the biennial team competition, the PGA Tour said on Friday. Obama, an avid basketball player who often escapes the pressures of the Oval Office by taking to the golf course, served as honorary chairman when the event was last played in the United States, at San Francisco's Harding Park in 2009. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syria opposition seeks to unify as momentum for talks builds Friday, May 24, 2013 12:00 PM PDT By Khaled Yacoub Oweis ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Syria's fractious opposition scrambled to agree a new leadership on Friday in a bid to present a coherent front at peace talks which the United States and Russia are convening to seek an end to more than two years of civil war. A major assault by President Bashar al-Assad's forces on a rebel held town over the past week is shaping into a pivotal battle. It has drawn in fighters from Assad's Lebanese allies Hezbollah, justifying fears that a war that has killed 80,000 people would cross borders at the heart of the Middle East. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama wants to end 'war on terror' but Congress balks Friday, May 24, 2013 11:34 AM PDT  By Patricia Zengerle and Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama wants to roll back some of the most controversial aspects of the U.S. "war on terror," but efforts to alter the global fight against Islamist militants will face the usual hurdle at home: staunch opposition from Republicans in Congress. In a major policy speech on Thursday, Obama narrowed the scope of the targeted-killing drone campaign against al Qaeda and its allies and announced steps toward closing the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba. He acknowledged the past use of "torture" in U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| State Department posts feedback on Keystone pipeline Friday, May 24, 2013 11:30 AM PDT By Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department says it is taking the unusual step of releasing publicly the feedback it has received about a controversial pipeline project after an "unprecedented" response to its draft environmental report. The department said it had received more than 1.2 million comments on TransCanada Corp's proposed Keystone XL pipeline that would run from oil sands in Alberta, Canada to refineries and ports along the U.S. Gulf Coast. ... Full Story | Top |
| Taliban attack international compound in Afghan capital Friday, May 24, 2013 10:49 AM PDT  By Amie Ferris-Rotman and Mirwais Harooni KABUL (Reuters) - Taliban militants launched a large-scale attack involving the United Nations in the center of the Afghan capital Kabul on Friday, sparking a five-hour battle with security forces. A plume of smoke hung over Kabul after the attack was launched, with the sound of .50 caliber heavy machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and sniper fire clearly audible throughout the city center as night fell. An Afghan police officer was killed and 10 other people were wounded during the attack, which began at 4 p.m. ... Full Story | Top |
| UK treating plane incident as criminal, not terror-related Friday, May 24, 2013 10:49 AM PDT STANSTED, England (Reuters) - British police said on Friday they are treating an incident involving a plane carrying almost 300 passengers from Pakistan as criminal rather than as terror-related. "It's a criminal investigation under the direction of Essex police," Superintendent Darrin Tomkins told reporters at Stansted airport near London to where the plane was diverted. Asked if it could be terror related, he added: "This incident is being treated as a criminal offence." "The plane will remain at its current location and will subject to forensic examination by specialist officers. ... Full Story | Top |
| Soccer-UEFA targets game's evils on great day for Gibraltar Friday, May 24, 2013 10:29 AM PDT (Writes through) By Mike Collett LONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - UEFA president Michel Platini repeated his call for soccer to win the battle over the evils affecting the game on an historic day for Gibraltar who were delighted at becoming European soccer's newest member on Friday. UEFA also responded to demands from its top clubs by awarding a Champions League place to the the Europa League winners, while delegates at the annual Congress of European soccer's governing body unanimously approved a resolution introducing tough new measures to fight racism. ... Full Story | Top |
| UBS France could face criminal investigation: source Friday, May 24, 2013 10:26 AM PDT  PARIS (Reuters) - UBS' French unit could be placed under formal investigation in the coming days as part of a broader probe into the Swiss bank's business practices, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday. UBS France CEO Jean-Frederic de Leusse was questioned by judges who are deciding whether to formally place the bank under investigation - a step which under French law means there is serious or consistent evidence pointing to probable implication of a suspect in a crime -, the source said. UBS officials in Zurich declined to comment. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sandy who? Jersey shore opens for summer seven months after storm Friday, May 24, 2013 10:25 AM PDT  By Victoria Cavaliere SEASIDE HEIGHTS, New Jersey (Reuters) - The New Jersey shore ushered in the unofficial start of summer on Friday, with businesses making last-minute preparations and officials declaring the resort towns ready for visitors seven months after Superstorm Sandy. Governor Chris Christie oversaw a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open a freshly re-constructed boardwalk in Seaside Heights and declared it "a great day for New Jersey." "We're here with the whole country welcoming the Jersey shore back," he said. ... Full Story | Top |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment