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| Defense at bin Laden son-in-law trial cites alleged 9/11 mastermind Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 08:52 PM PDT  By Bernard Vaughan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Osama bin Laden's son-in-law Suleiman Abu Ghaith, on trial in New York, had no role in al Qaeda military operations, said Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11 attacks, according to court documents filed late on Sunday. Abu Ghaith's lawyers submitted Mohammed's responses to their written questions along with a request to allow his testimony at the nearly two-week-old jury trial at which Abu Ghaith is charged with conspiring to kill Americans. The U.S. government contends that Abu Ghaith, 48, became a leader of al Qaeda militants after the September 11, 2001, attacks as a spokesman and recruiter of fighters, and that he knew of planned attacks against the United States. Abu Ghaith's lawyers argue there is no evidence that he knew of future attacks. Full Story | Top |
| As Russia closes in, Ukrainians fearful, defiant Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 08:01 PM PDT By Alastair Macdonald KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian museum caretaker Valentin knows what it's like when Moscow sends in troops to occupy a reluctant ally - he was there, in Red Army uniform, when Soviet tanks rolled in to crush the Prague Spring in 1968. Now we are the ones who are being occupied by the Russians," he said, shaking his head at the irony of history which sees Ukraine, long Moscow's closest partner, losing Crimea after Sunday's Kremlin-backed referendum there and fearing further invasion from the east. But, surveying Kiev war museum's display of tanks and combat aircraft, he said Russian President Vladimir Putin must beware. As Ukraine's government called up troops, and television ran images of Ukrainian armor on the move to a soundtrack of anti-Soviet patriotic song, he said the nation of 46 million would be no pushover: "We would resist. Full Story | Top |
| Japan does not recognize Crimea vote: government spokesman Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 07:40 PM PDT TOKYO (Reuters) - The Japanese government does not recognize a referendum in Crimea on seceding from Ukraine and calls upon Russia not to annex the Ukrainian region, its top government spokesman said on Monday. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters that Tokyo will respond on sanctions against Russia in coordination with the Group of Seven leading economies. Crimea's Moscow-backed leaders declared a 96-percent vote in favor of quitting Ukraine and annexation by Russia in a referendum Western powers said was illegal and will bring immediate sanctions. ... Full Story | Top |
| North Korea fires 25 short-range and obsolete rockets: South Korea Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 07:22 PM PDT North Korea fired 10 short-range missiles into the sea off the east of the Korean peninsula on Sunday, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported, citing unidentified government officials in South Korea. North Korea is not banned from short-range missile launches under U.N. sanctions and frequently tests its arsenal. The U.S. State Department said it was closely monitoring the situation after the reports of the missile firing. "We once again call on North Korea to refrain from provocative actions that aggravate tensions," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a brief statement. Full Story | Top |
| Truckers' strike at Vancouver port to continue Monday Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 07:10 PM PDT A two-and-a-half week container truck driver strike at Port Metro Vancouver was set to continue on Monday after a government and port authority plan to end the job action at Canada's largest port failed to make headway on the weekend. The 14-point plan, revealed late on Thursday by the Canadian and British Columbia governments and the port authority, sets out to address the concerns of the striking drivers on fair pay, reduced wait times at container facilities and the creation of an industry oversight committee. It also called for the striking drivers, who include unionized and independent truckers, to return to work immediately, ending a strike that has crippled operations and delayed the transport of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of goods. Gavin McGarrigle, British Columbia area director for Unifor, the union that represents about 400 container truck drivers, said it had responded to the 14-point plan with some questions but that it had been told it would get no answers until truckers returned to work. Full Story | Top |
| Moscow wins overwhelming Crimea vote, West readies sanctions Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 07:04 PM PDT  By Mike Collett-White and Alastair Macdonald SIMFEROPOL/KIEV (Reuters) - Crimea's Moscow-backed leaders declared a 96-percent vote in favour of quitting Ukraine and annexation by Russia in a referendum Western powers said was illegal and will bring immediate sanctions. As state media in Russia carried a startling reminder of its power to turn the United States to "radioactive ash", President Barack Obama spoke to Vladimir Putin, telling the Russian president that he and his European allies were ready to impose "additional costs" on Moscow for violating Ukraine's territory. But Obama said Russian forces must first end "incursions" into its ex-Soviet neighbor while Putin renewed his accusation that the new leadership in Kiev, brought to power by an uprising last month against his elected Ukrainian ally, were failing to protect Russian-speakers from violent Ukrainian nationalists. Full Story | Top |
| Kerry urges Abbas to make 'tough decisions' on peace Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 06:55 PM PDT  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday "to make the tough decisions that will be necessary" before an April 29 deadline for a peace deal with Israel, a U.S. official said. President Barack Obama meets Abbas on Monday, nearly two weeks after the U.S. leader sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said he was prepared to make a "historic peace" with the Palestinians but offered no concessions in public. Kerry brought Israel and the Palestinians back into negotiations on July 29 after a three-year gap, and said at the time that "our objective will be to achieve a final status agreement over the course of the next nine months." As the April 29 deadline approaches, U.S. officials have scaled back their ambitions, saying they are now trying to forge a "framework for negotiations" by then. Kerry himself suggested on February 26 a full peace deal could take a further nine months. Full Story | Top |
| Mexico's national security commissioner resigns Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 06:10 PM PDT Mexico's national security commissioner Manuel Mondragon has resigned, the interior minister said on Sunday, raising questions about the government's strategy to stamp out organized crime. "I accepted the request by (Mondragon) to retire from the field," Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong said on his Twitter account. It was not immediately clear why Mondragon, who is well over 70, was stepping down. Osorio Chong did not give an explanation, saying only that he would make the official announcement on Tuesday and that Mondragon will now work on security strategy. Full Story | Top |
| Strong quake jolts Chile's North, no major damage Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 06:08 PM PDT  A strong quake struck off northern Chile on Sunday evening, triggering a brief evacuation of part of the coastal area but not causing any injuries or significant damage. The magnitude 6.7 quake, originally measured as a 7.0, was centered 37 miles west-northwest of Iquique and hit at a depth of 12.4 miles, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The ONEMI emergency office said there was no major damage stemming from the shake, which struck at 6:16 p.m. local time (2116 GMT), save for two small roadside rock falls in the Arica and Parinacota region. Chile's massive copper mines, clustered in the mineral-rich North, appeared to be fine. Full Story | Top |
| Fannie, Freddie bill leaves status of private shareholders to courts Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 06:07 PM PDT  By Margaret Chadbourn WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A draft bill to wind down government-run mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac , released by two leading U.S. senators on Sunday, would leave a decision on how to treat their private shareholders to the courts. The 442-page draft from the Democratic chairman of the Senate Banking Committee and the panel's top Republican would keep in place current terms of the government's bailout of the two companies that require them to sweep all their profits into the U.S. Treasury. It is silent on whether or not private shareholders should share in any proceeds when the companies are liquidated. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two leading sources of U.S. mortgage funds, were seized by the government during the financial crisis in 2008 and propped up with $187.5 billion in taxpayer funds. Full Story | Top |
| 'Good night': Haunting final contact from missing Malaysian jet Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 05:33 PM PDT  By Anshuman Daga, Niluksi Koswanage and Tim Hepher KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - The last words from the cockpit of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 - "all right, good night" - were uttered after someone on board had already begun disabling one of the plane's automatic tracking systems, a senior Malaysian official said. Both the timing and informal nature of the phrase, spoken to air traffic controllers as the plane with 239 people aboard was leaving Malaysian-run airspace on a March 8 flight to Beijing, could further heighten suspicions of hijacking or sabotage. The sign-off came after one of the plane's data communication systems, which would have enabled it to be tracked beyond radar coverage, had been deliberately switched off, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said on Sunday. The pilot's informal hand-off went against standard radio procedures, which would have called for him to read back instructions for contacting the next control center and include the aircraft's call sign, said Hugh Dibley, a former British Airways pilot and a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society. Full Story | Top |
| Guinness pulls out of NY's St. Patrick's parade over ban on gays Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 05:30 PM PDT  By Elizabeth Barber BOSTON (Reuters) - Irish brewer Guinness said on Sunday that it would not participate in New York City's St. Patrick's Day parade this year because gay and lesbian groups had been excluded, costing organizers a key sponsor of the annual event. The move came on the same day that Boston's Irish-American mayor skipped that city's St. Patrick's Day parade after failing to hammer out a deal with organizers to allow a group of gay and lesbian activists to march openly. "Guinness has a strong history of supporting diversity and being an advocate for equality for all. "As this has not come to pass, Guinness has withdrawn its participation. Full Story | Top |
| Soldiers storm Venezuelan protesters' stronghold Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 05:07 PM PDT  By Esteban Israel and Deisy Buitrago CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan troops stormed a Caracas square on Sunday to evict protesters who turned it into a stronghold during six weeks of demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro. National Guard soldiers fired tear gas and turned water cannons on hundreds of demonstrators who hurled rocks and some petrol bombs before abandoning Plaza Altamira, in affluent east Caracas, which has been the scene of daily clashes. "We are going to carry on liberating spaces taken by the protesters," the 51-year-old successor to late leader Hugo Chavez said in a speech at a pro-government rally in a different part of Caracas on Sunday. Militant opposition leaders and students have been urging Venezuelans onto the streets to protest issues ranging from crime and shortages of goods to the presence of Cuban advisers in Venezuela's army and other state institutions. Full Story | Top |
| New Zealand court fines US actor Chris Pine for drink driving Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 05:05 PM PDT  U.S. film actor and "Star Trek" star Chris Pine pleaded guilty in a New Zealand court to drink-driving and was fined and disqualified from driving for six months, media reported on Monday. The legal limit in New Zealand is 80 micrograms. She accepted that Pine, who stood silently throughout the hearing, was remorseful, and had made a large donation to a New Zealand charity. Full Story | Top |
| Obama warns Putin that U.S. ready to impose sanctions on Russia Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 05:02 PM PDT By Matt Spetalnick and Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday the United States rejected the results of a secession referendum in Ukraine's Crimea region and warned that Washington was ready to impose sanctions on Moscow over the crisis. With Washington and its European allies expected to slap "targeted" punitive measures on Russian officials as early as Monday, the White House said Obama made clear to Putin that the dispute could still be resolved diplomatically but that Russia first must halt military incursions into Ukrainian territory. Full Story | Top |
| Strong quake hits off Chile's North coast, no damage Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 04:20 PM PDT A strong quake struck off northern Chile on Sunday evening, triggering a preventive evacuation of part of the coastal area but not causing any injuries or damage to the country's crucial copper mines. The magnitude 6.7 quake, originally measured as a 7.0, was centered 37 miles west-northwest of Iquique and hit at a depth of 12.4 miles, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The ONEMI emergency office said that preliminarily no damage or injuries had been reported after the shake, which struck at 6:16 p.m. local time (2116 GMT). Chile's massive mines, clustered in the mineral-rich North, appeared to be fine. Full Story | Top |
| Republicans roar for Tea Party candidate at California convention Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 04:19 PM PDT  By Sharon Bernstein BURLINGAME, California (Reuters) - California Republicans wrapped up their annual state convention on Sunday with a roar of approval for a charismatic Tea Party-backed candidate seeking to unseat popular Democratic Governor Jerry Brown as he vies for an unprecedented fourth term. Tim Donnelly, a Southern California state assemblyman who made his name as a leader for the anti-illegal immigration Minutemen Project, brought the crowd of several hundred party activists to its feet in a speech that slammed Brown, warned of government tyranny and criticized recent efforts in the state to allow transgender children to use school restrooms in accordance with their gender identities. Speakers included former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus who urged members to strike a more inclusive tone as the party struggles to rebuild in a state where it once dominated. "We cannot abandon them ... We were once them." The convention took place after months of strategizing and fundraising led by former Republican state senate leader Jim Brulte. Full Story | Top |
| RBS in advanced talks over resuming dividends: FT Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 04:15 PM PDT  (Reuters) - State-backed Royal Bank of Scotland is in advanced talks with the British government to buy back a "golden share," which would enable the lender to resume paying dividends, the Financial Times reported. RBS, which is 81 percent-owned by Britain's government after being bailed out during the 2008 financial crisis, has deferred its annual general meeting to the end of June because of the talks, the FT said, without citing sources. Through the terms of the bailout, the government acquired a dividend access share (DAS) in RBS, giving the state rights to an enhanced dividend and making the bank less attractive to private investors. RBS, once the world's largest bank, has been in talks with the government and the European Commission since last year to free itself from the DAS. Full Story | Top |
| EU to adopt Russia sanctions as Crimea crisis deepens Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 04:02 PM PDT By Adrian Croft and Jan Strupczewski BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union will raise the stakes in a confrontation with Russia over Ukraine on Monday by slapping sanctions on Russian officials, a day after voters in Ukraine's Crimea region opted to join Russia in a referendum the EU condemned as illegal. EU diplomats worked late into the night on Sunday, haggling over a list of people in Crimea and Russia who will be hit with travel bans and asset freezes for actions which "threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine." The initial list of 120 to 130 names, including senior figures in Russia's military and political establishment, will be whittled down to perhaps "tens or scores" of people before EU foreign ministers take the final decision in Brussels on Monday, diplomats say. Full Story | Top |
| More clashes in Caracas after anti-Cuba protest Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 03:57 PM PDT By Deisy Buitrago and Esteban Israel CARACAS (Reuters) - Opponents of Venezuela's socialist government marched on Sunday to protest against alleged Cuban interference in the armed forces, with clashes breaking out afterwards in a Caracas square. Several thousand people marched towards the Carlota military air base in the latest of daily demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro's government that began in early February. Security forces stopped them from reaching the base, however, and some student protesters went instead to Plaza Altamira, an opposition stronghold, where they threw stones at troops firing rounds of tear gas. Militant opposition leaders and students have been urging Venezuelans onto the streets to protest over issues ranging from crime and shortages of goods to the presence of Cuban advisers in Venezuela's army and other state institutions. Full Story | Top |
| In doubling yuan trading band, China aggravates foreign investor concerns Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 03:50 PM PDT  By Pete Sweeney SHANGHAI (Reuters) - The Chinese central bank's decision to relax its grip on the yuan has been welcomed as a sign of financial liberalization, but it is aggravating concerns among foreign executives and investors about their exposure to China in the near term. The doubling of the trading band from Monday points to much greater downside risk in a currency that many investors have treated as a one-way appreciation bet for years, even when the yuan's daily trading range was expanded in the past. The central bank had engineered a slide in the yuan's value, adding to jitters in a market already anxious over the country's first default on a domestic bond, and signs of slowing economic growth, highlighted by a dramatic 18 percent fall in exports in February and sluggish manufacturing. "The foreign investors who we spoke with before this announcement were already becoming cautious," said Brian Ingram, chief investment officer at Ping An Russell Investment Management in Shanghai. Full Story | Top |
| Syrian forces fully control rebel stronghold near Lebanon Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 03:41 PM PDT  By Mariam Karouny and Stephen Kalin BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian forces backed by Hezbollah militants took full control of the town of Yabroud on Sunday after driving out rebels, helping President Bashar al-Assad secure the land route connecting the capital Damascus with Aleppo and the Mediterranean coast. The fall of Yabroud, the last rebel bastion near the Lebanese border, could sever a vital insurgent supply line from Lebanon and consolidate government control over a swathe of territory from Damascus to the central city of Homs. A suicide bomber killed three people in a strike on a Hezbollah stronghold in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley on Sunday. Radical Sunni groups have pledged to attack the Shi'ite Muslim militant group in Lebanon until it withdraws from Syria. Full Story | Top |
| North Korea fires 10 short-range missiles: Yonhap Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 03:22 PM PDT North Korea fired 10 short-range missiles into the sea off the east of the Korean peninsula on Sunday, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported, citing unidentified government officials in South Korea. Yonhap said the missiles flew for 70 km (45 miles) before splashing into the sea. North Korea is not banned from short-range missile launches under U.N. sanctions and frequently tests its arsenal. The U.S. State Department said it was closely monitoring the situation after the reports of the missile firing. Full Story | Top |
| Serbia's centre-right claims majority unseen since Milosevic Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 02:40 PM PDT  By Ivana Sekularac and Matt Robinson BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia's centre-right Progressives, a party of former ultra-nationalists converted to the cause of European Union membership, won an outright majority in parliament on Sunday promising deep economic reform. The margin of victory, rivalling the results of late strongman Slobodan Milosevic during the war years of the 1990s, will see Progressive Party (SNS) leader Aleksandar Vucic become prime minister as Serbia embarks on talks to join the EU. Pollster Cesid said the Progressives had won 48.8 percent of ballots cast, which under Serbia's electoral system would translate into around 157 seats in the 250-seat parliament. "My goal is not to be rich, my goal is for the people of Serbia to live better," he said. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. Army general in sex crimes case to plead to lesser charges Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 02:27 PM PDT  By Colleen Jenkins WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina (Reuters) - The United States has agreed to drop charges of sexual assault brought against an Army general in exchange for him pleading guilty to lesser charges including "mistreatment" of his accuser, a junior officer, the general's lawyer said on Sunday. Under the terms of an agreement with military prosecutors, the government will drop sex assault charges against Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair, as well as two other charges that would have forced him to register as a sex offender, lead defense attorney Richard Scheff said in an email. Sinclair, 51, had been charged with forcible sodomy based on allegations by a female U.S. Army captain that could have sent the 27-year Army veteran to prison for life. Full Story | Top |
| Crimeans vote over 90 percent to quit Ukraine for Russia Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 02:25 PM PDT  By Mike Collett-White and Ronald Popeski SIMFEROPOL/KIEV (Reuters) - Russian state media said Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to break with Ukraine and join Russia on Sunday, as Kiev accused Moscow of pouring forces into the peninsula and warned separatist leaders "the ground will burn under their feet". With over half the votes counted, 95.5 percent had chosen the option of annexation by Moscow, the head of the referendum commission, Mikhail Malyshev, said two hours after polls closed. Western powers and leaders in Kiev denounced it as a sham. Underlining how Moscow's military takeover of the peninsula two weeks ago has driven Russia and the West into a crisis with echoes of the Cold War, Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama spoke by telephone and, according to the Kremlin, the Russian and U.S. presidents agreed on a need to cooperate to stabilize Ukraine. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. urges North Korea to refrain from provocative actions Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 02:20 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department on Sunday called on North Korea to refrain from provocative actions following reports Pyongyang had fired 10 short-range missiles into the sea off the east of the Korean peninsula. "We are closely monitoring the situation on the Korean Peninsula," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a brief statement. "We once again call on North Korea to refrain from provocative actions that aggravate tensions." (Reporting by Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Peter Cooney) Full Story | Top |
| Suicide bomb kills three in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley: security source Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 01:55 PM PDT At least three people were killed and six wounded when a suicide car bomber struck a petrol station in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley near the border with Syria, a security source said. He said two of the dead were members of Hezbollah who had approached the vehicle in the town of Nabi Osmane, a bastion of the Shi'ite Muslim militant group, which has been the target of attacks over its involvement in Syria's civil war next door. What appeared to be the structure of the petrol station and an adjacent building were heavily damaged. Hezbollah is fighting alongside Syrian government forces against a Sunni Muslim-led insurgency seeking to topple President Bashar al-Assad, whose minority Alawite sect is an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. rejects Crimea referendum, warns Russia of imminent sanctions Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 01:43 PM PDT  By Matt Spetalnick and Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States warned Russia on Sunday that Western sanctions were imminent and Moscow would pay an increasing price for its military intervention in Ukraine as the White House rejected a referendum in the Crimea region that it was powerless to stop. With Washington and its European allies expected to unveil coordinated punitive measures against Moscow as early as Monday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Russia must pull its forces in Crimea back to their bases. Full Story | Top |
| Tanker that loaded oil in Libyan rebel port still in Mediterranean Sea: minister Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 01:07 PM PDT A tanker that loaded oil at a Libyan port held by rebels is still sailing in the Mediterranean Sea, a government minister said on Sunday, contradicting claims by the rebels that it had reached its destination. The rebels, in the east of the country, who are calling for a greater share of oil wealth and autonomy, managed last week to load crude onto a 37,000 metric ton-tanker, which escaped the Libyan navy, embarrassing the weak central government and prompting parliament to vote the prime minister out of office. "The tanker is still in the Mediterranean Sea." He gave no more details, saying only that the tanker's movements were "being monitored internationally." On Saturday, the rebels said the tanker had reached its final port, without saying where. The Libyan navy lost contact with the tanker after firing on it on Monday or Tuesday, officials have said. Full Story | Top |
| Tense Crimea votes overwhelmingly to leave Ukraine for Russia Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 12:58 PM PDT By Aleksandar Vasovic and Mike Collett-White SIMFEROPOL, Ukraine (Reuters) - Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to break away from Ukraine and join Russia in a referendum on Sunday that has alarmed the former Soviet republic and triggered the worst crisis in East-West relations since the Cold War. According to results of an exit poll announced first on Russian media, 93 percent of voters backed a union with Moscow, 60 years after Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, an ethnic Ukrainian, gifted Crimea to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on an apparent whim. Thousands of people filled Lenin Square in the centre of Simferopol, Crimea's capital, and waved Crimean and Russian flags in a festive celebration of what most locals wanted. "We cannot be any worse off than we are now," said Lyudmila Sergeyevna, a 64-year-old who was born in Simferopol and has lived on the peninsula all her life. Full Story | Top |
| Markets on edge as Crimea votes to quit Ukraine Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 12:47 PM PDT  By Rodrigo Campos NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock investors will start the week on edge as markets worldwide react to the referendum that appears to back Russia's claim to Ukraine's Crimean peninsula, even if the vote result is not internationally recognized. U.S. stocks closed on Friday with their largest weekly drop in the last seven weeks as the worst confrontation between Russia and the West since the end of the Cold War continues to unfold. Russian state media quoted an exit poll as saying 93 percent of voters supported union with Russia. The White House rejected the referendum and called Russia's actions "dangerous and destabilizing." "There's an open question as to who suffers most," said Sam Wardwell, investment strategist at Pioneer Investments in Boston, about the planned economic sanctions. Full Story | Top |
| Popularity of Peru's Humala tumbles as political crisis balloons Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 12:43 PM PDT  By Teresa Cespedes LIMA, Peru (Reuters) - Peruvian President Ollanta Humala's approval rating in March dove back down to the lowest levels of his presidency, stung by a political crisis and amid discontent over income distribution, a poll showed on Sunday. Humala's popularity shed 8 percentage points to fall to 25 percent, according to the Ipsos Peru poll published in newspaper El Comercio. But the boost appears to have been short-lived, and Humala's slumping popularity comes at a particularly thorny moment for the leader who took power in 2011. Congress failed to ratify his new Cabinet on Friday as some lawmakers complained it reflected meddling by powerful first lady Nadine Heredia in the government, creating a major political crisis and effectively leaving the government in limbo. Full Story | Top |
| Founder of Westboro church in Kansas excommunicated, on death bed: son Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 12:38 PM PDT The founder of a fundamentalist church known for picketing military funerals and political events with anti-gay signs was excommunicated last year and is near death in a Kansas hospital, his son said on social media on Sunday. Fred Waldron Phelps Sr, who launched the Topeka-based Westboro Baptist Church in the 1950s, "is on the edge of death at Midland Hospice house," his son, Nathan Phelps, wrote on his Facebook page. Destroyed by the monster he made." The Westboro Baptist Church did not respond Sunday to an email seeking confirmation that Fred Phelps had been excommunicated. Phelps had long been pastor of the church, which is best known for carrying anti-gay signs and picketing events including military funerals, gay rights rallies, political gatherings and mainstream Christian events. Full Story | Top |
| Boston mayor skips St. Patrick's parade over exclusion of gay group Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 12:33 PM PDT  By Elizabeth Barber BOSTON (Reuters) - Boston's Irish-American mayor skipped the city's St. Patrick's Day parade on Sunday after failing to hammer out a deal with organizers to allow a group of gay and lesbian activists to march openly. Mayor Marty Walsh had tried to negotiate a deal with organizers, the conservative Allied War Veteran's Council, to allow members of MassEquality, one of Massachusetts' largest gay activist groups, to join the parade. "As mayor of the city of Boston, I have to do my best to ensure that all Bostonians are free to participate fully in the civic life of our city. Unfortunately, this year, the parties were not able to come to an understanding that would have made that possible." Despite Walsh's boycott, other prominent Democratic Boston politicians, including Representative Stephen Lynch, marched in the parade, which drew tens of thousands of spectators, some of whom expressed disappointment at MassEquality's exclusion. Full Story | Top |
| China may make the weather despite Fed and Ukraine Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 12:03 PM PDT  By Mike Peacock LONDON (Reuters) - A U.S. Federal Reserve meeting and Western sanctions on Russia will give financial markets plenty of pause for thought in the week to come but it could be China that sets the economic weather. Politically this story dwarfs all others in the world but economically, some perspective is required. Full Story | Top |
| In China, Michelle Obama to stay firmly in 'mom in chief' mode Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 11:55 AM PDT  By Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. first lady Michelle Obama is expected to steer clear of controversial issues such as human rights when she visits China this week but her trip could help advance a top item on her husband's foreign policy agenda: deepening Washington's ties with Beijing. The week-long trip marks only the third foreign solo trip for Obama, who has cultivated a self-described "mom in chief" image, putting her energy into raising her daughters Malia, 15, and Sasha, 12, and signature domestic policy issues such as combating childhood obesity. She has joked that her motto during her husband's White House tenure has been to "do no harm." In keeping with that cautious approach, the White House said Obama's message on the trip will focus on cultural ties between the two countries and "the power and importance of education" for young people in both countries. But her trip, which will be front-page news in China and closely parsed by media, will carry important symbolic value. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. urges Russia to pull troops in Crimea back to barracks Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 11:52 AM PDT The United States told Russia on Sunday that it would not accept the results of Crimea's referendum on seceding from Ukraine and urged Moscow to pull its forces in Crimea back to their bases, a senior U.S. State Department official said. The U.S. official was offering an account of a telephone conversation between Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who, according to a Russian statement, "agreed to continue work to find a resolution on Ukraine through a speedy launch of constitutional reform." The U.S. official made clear Washington was pleased by Moscow's emphasis on constitutional reforms, describing this as "positive." The official stressed, however, that what troubled the United States most were Russian troop movements into Crimea. "It is Russia's military movements and escalatory steps that are raising the greatest concern," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity after Kerry and Lavrov spoke on Sunday, the day of the referendum in Crimea. Full Story | Top |
| Frontrunner to lead India picks holy Hindu city for election race Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 11:45 AM PDT  By Frank Jack Daniel NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The frontrunner to become India's next prime minister has announced he will run for election in the holy city of Varanasi, a decision that could galvanize support among fellow Hindus but may focus attention on accusations of religious bias. As India heads towards a general election that will start next month, Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said on Saturday the seat he will contest will be in Varanasi, where pilgrims come to wash away their sins in the sacred Ganges river. Running for election in the ancient city, sometimes called the heart of Hinduism, will help Modi brush up his Hindu nationalist credentials and also focus his campaign on a key swing area, India's most populous state Uttar Pradesh. "Grateful to the Party for giving me opportunity to contest the election from the holy city of Varanasi! An honor to contest from Varanasi," Modi wrote on Twitter. Full Story | Top |
| White House says Russia to face 'increasing costs' for Ukraine crisis Sunday, Mar 16, 2014 11:33 AM PDT The White House on Sunday rejected the referendum in Ukraine's Crimea region and said Russia will pay a price for its military intervention in the region through sanctions and increased instability. "As the United States and our allies have made clear, military intervention and violation of international law will bring increasing costs for Russia - not only due to measures imposed by the United States and our allies but also as a direct result of Russia's own destabilizing actions," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement. Full Story | Top |
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