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| Jared Leto, Jonah Hill win early MTV Movie Awards Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 07:31 PM PDT  By Mary Milliken LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar winner Jared Leto and Jonah Hill, an Oscar nominee, picked up early MTV Movie Awards, voted for by fans rather than the film industry elite. Host and late-night comedian Conan O'Brien kicked off the unbuttoned awards on Sunday by trying to break the record for the most celebrity cameos in his intro, notching up 50. Among them were Taylor Swift, who gave him a manicure, and Internet sensation Grumpy Cat, who slept in the front row of the audience. Hill won best comedic performance for his role as the drug-addled swindling stockbroker in director Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street," a role for which he was nominated for the Oscar for best supporting actor. Full Story | Top |
| Sebelius says she told Obama staying 'wasn't an option' Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 07:24 PM PDT  U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, who resigned last week, says she made the decision to leave and told President Barack Obama last month that staying on "wasn't an option". In her first interview since the White House announced her resignation as the president's top healthcare adviser, Sebelius told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday that she and Obama first spoke about her future after Obamacare enrollment began to show signs of recovering from its disastrous October 1 launch. "The president and I began to talk after the first of the year, and I went back to him in early March," Sebelius said. "I made it pretty clear that it really wasn't an option to stay on." Sebelius was responding to speculation that the White House may have forced her resignation in a bid to open a new chapter for Obama's signature domestic policy achievement ahead of November's election battle for control of Congress during the final years of the Obama presidency. Full Story | Top |
| Western nations line up at U.N. to slam Russia's moves on Ukraine Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 07:20 PM PDT By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Western nations on Sunday accused Russia of massing tens of thousands of well-equipped troops near the Ukrainian border in preparation for a Crimea-style invasion, while Russia denounced what it said was Ukraine's Russophobic, anti-Semitic leadership. "Satellite images show that there are between 35,000 and 40,000 Russian troops in the vicinity of the border with Ukraine, equipped with combat aircraft, tanks, artillery and logistical support units," Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said. "This is in addition to the 25,000 Russia troops based illegally in Crimea," Lyall Grant added in his speech during an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Ukraine. The meeting of the 15-nation council, the first emergency session on the Ukrainian crisis in weeks, was convened at Russia's request. Full Story | Top |
| South Korea's state health insurer sues Philip Morris, BAT for smoking damages Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 07:13 PM PDT  South Korea's state health insurer said on Monday it was seeking an initial 53.7 billion won ($51.9 million) from three tobacco companies, including the local units of Philip Morris and British American Tobacco, to offset treatment costs for diseases linked to smoking. The National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) said it was suing the two global cigarette makers, as well as local market leader KT&G Corp, in a South Korean court. Only four tobacco lawsuits have ever been heard in South Korea, all by individuals or families, and there is no precedent of a successful action against a tobacco company. "We believe the NHIS, as it takes responsibility for the health of the public and oversees the insurance budget, has a natural duty to bring this tobacco lawsuit," NHIS lawyer An Sun-young told reporters. Full Story | Top |
| NFL player Aldon Smith arrested at Los Angeles airport Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 06:28 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Police at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday arrested a National Football League player from the San Francisco 49ers for making a false bomb threat to screeners, officials said. Aldon Smith, 24, had been randomly selected for a secondary screening at the airport by a Transportation Security Administration agent, airport police Sergeant Karla Ortiz said. When police talked to Smith at the gate he again became uncooperative and was taken into custody, Ortiz said. He was taken to the Los Angeles Police Department and booked on a charge of making a false report of a bomb threat, she said. Full Story | Top |
| 'No evidence' of pre-collision fire in deadly California crash: NTSB Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 06:27 PM PDT  An investigation into the northern California crash between a FedEx truck and bus that killed 10 people last week has turned up "no evidence" of a pre-collision fire, contrary to a witness report, authorities said on Sunday. A witness in a car the truck clipped before crashing into the bus reported flames shooting from underneath the truck's cab before the fatal collision. Further investigation found no evidence of that, said Mark Rosekind, a National Transportation Safety Board member. "There is no evidence of pre-impact fire located at the accident scene, on the median or on the highway," Rosekind told a news conference. Full Story | Top |
| Well-equipped Russian troops amass near Ukraine border: Britain Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 05:50 PM PDT Russia has amassed tens of thousands of well-equipped troops near the Ukrainian border in addition to the 25,000 troops it recently moved into Crimea, which Moscow seized last month, Britain's U.N. ambassador said on Sunday. "Satellite images show that there are between 35,000 and 40,000 Russian troops in the vicinity of the border with Ukraine equipped with combat aircraft, tanks, artillery and logistical support units," Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said. Full Story | Top |
| Officials consider underwater robot launch for Malaysia jet Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 05:29 PM PDT  By Lincoln Feast and Stuart Grudgings SYDNEY/KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Australian officials leading the search for a missing Malaysia Airlines plane in the southern Indian Ocean are weighing when to deploy an underwater robot to aid in the hunt, now in its sixth fruitless week. Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 disappeared soon after taking off on March 8 from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board, triggering a multinational search that is now focused on the Indian Ocean. With the batteries on the locators now two weeks past their 30-day expected life, the focus may soon shift to trying to find wreckage using sonar and cameras on a small unmanned "robot" known as an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle. "This work continues in an effort to narrow the underwater search area for when the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle is deployed," the Australian agency heading the search said in a statement on Sunday. Full Story | Top |
| Blackberry plans Heartbleed patches as mobile threat scrutinized Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 05:24 PM PDT  By Jim Finkle BOSTON (Reuters) - BlackBerry Ltd said it plans to release security updates for messaging software for Android and iOS devices by Friday to address vulnerabilities in programs related to the "Heartbleed" security threat. Researchers last week warned they uncovered Heartbleed, a bug that targets the OpenSSL software commonly used to keep data secure, potentially allowing hackers to steal massive troves of information without leaving a trace. Security experts initially told companies to focus on securing vulnerable websites, but have since warned about threats to technology used in data centers and on mobile devices running Google Inc's Android software and Apple Inc's iOS software. Scott Totzke, BlackBerry senior vice president, told Reuters on Sunday that while the bulk of BlackBerry products do not use the vulnerable software, the company does need to update two widely used products: Secure Work Space corporate email and BBM messaging program for Android and iOS. Full Story | Top |
| Blaze in Chilean port city kills 11, destroys 1,200 houses Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 05:21 PM PDT  By Anthony Esposito VALPARAISO, Chile (Reuters) - At least 11 people were killed and 1,200 houses destroyed over the weekend by a fire that devastated parts of the Chilean port city of Valparaiso, as authorities evacuated thousands and sent in aircraft to battle the blaze. Pushed by strong Pacific coast winds, the fire started on Saturday and rampaged over 700 hectares (1,700 acres) of forest and hilly residential neighborhoods including La Cruz and Las Canas, authorities said. "It is still not completely extinguished," said local government official Ricardo Bravo, referring to lingering pockets of fire still burning in the higher parts of the city Sunday night. "We are looking for something to remember our home by, but there's nothing," Jose Miguel Rivera, 59, told Reuters as he sifted through the ashes where his house used to be. Full Story | Top |
| Yen gains, stocks brace for losses on Wall St. gloom Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 05:00 PM PDT  Ongoing tensions in Ukraine also sapped investors' appetite for risk. Ukraine gave pro-Russian separatists a Monday morning deadline to disarm or face a "full-scale anti-terrorist operation" by its armed forces, raising the risk of a military confrontation with Moscow. European Union foreign ministers will hold talks later on Monday about tougher sanctions against Russia. Full Story | Top |
| GSK faces bribery investigation in Poland: BBC Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 05:00 PM PDT (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline Plc is facing a criminal investigation in Poland for allegedly bribing doctors to promote its asthma drug Seretide, BBC Panorama reported on Sunday. The BBC reported that 11 doctors and a GSK regional manager have been charged over alleged corruption between 2010 and 2012. "The investigation found evidence of inappropriate communication in contravention of GSK policy by a single employee. GSK, Britain's biggest drugmaker, was accused by Chinese authorities in July of funnelling up to 3 billion yuan ($483 million) to doctors and officials to encourage them to use its medicines in a case that rocked the pharmaceuticals industry. Full Story | Top |
| Coeure sets out contours of possible ECB asset-buy plan Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 04:16 PM PDT  A top European Central Bank policymaker on Sunday described how the ECB would approach an asset purchase plan to tackle low inflation, stressing such a program "would not be about quantity, but about price." Euro zone inflation is running at 0.5 percent - far below the ECB's target of just under 2 percent over the medium term. The ECB opened the door after its policy meeting earlier this month to turning on its money-printing presses to keep inflation from staying too low, though it shows no sign of embarking on such quantitative easing (QE) just yet. "Asset purchases are an instrument that we are ready to use if we deem necessary," Benoit Coeure, who sits on the ECB's six-member Executive Board, said a speech at a conference organized by the International Monetary Fund. "If such easing is called for, the Governing Council is unanimous in its commitment to use also unconventional instruments within its mandate." Coeure said the ECB would have to decide whether asset buys would be useful and added what he called "a few qualifying remarks" about possible targeted asset purchases by the ECB. Full Story | Top |
| More Russian incursions would hurt Ukraine economy: central bank Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 03:42 PM PDT Russia's further incursions into eastern Ukraine would have serious macroeconomic consequences, destabilizing banks and crimping Ukraine's national output, the central bank governor said on Sunday. Many of Ukraine's biggest factories and some of its agricultural production lie in the east, where pro-Russian separatists have taken up arms and occupied government buildings. "The main risk (to the economy) has a political-occupational character," National Bank of Ukraine Governor Stepan Kubiv said in an interview on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank meetings in Washington. "Because if after Crimea, it will be Lugansk, Slaviansk, Donetsk, Kharkhiv, and other small towns, then we immediately talk about a considerable amount of liquidity," he said, listing other towns in Ukraine. Full Story | Top |
| Glitzy Olivier Awards honors 'Mormon', 'Ghosts', Sunday, Apr 13, 2014 02:45 PM PDT By Michael Roddy LONDON (Reuters) - The London production of "Book of Mormon" won best musical at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, and its star Gavin Creel took home the award for best actor in a musical. A staging of Stephen Sondheim's one-time flop "Merrily We Roll Along" won the award for best musical revival while an adaptation of Ibsen's "Ghosts" was another big winner at Britain's biggest night for theatre. The play "Chimerica" examining the relations between China and America won best new play award for playwright Lucy Kirkwood and best director award for Lyndsey Turner, and overall was the biggest award winner, taking away five. "To come to the West End for us was a privilege and this award is an absolute honor," Anne Garefino, co-producer of "Book of Mormon" said in accepting the evening's top award for the London theatre district production of the show by "South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker. Full Story | Top |
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