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Sunday, April 29, 2012 8:30 PM PDT

Today's Reuters World News Headlines - Yahoo! News: Egypt's Brotherhood says army plans cabinet reshuffle SNC-Lavalin's ex-exec arrested in Switzerland U.S. eyes testy China talks, Chen backer expects Chinese decision Top U.N. truce monitor in Syria, attack on Central Bank Militants fire on Syrian Central Bank: state TV French journalist missing after Colombia FARC battle Top U.N. truce monitor in Syria, lull in violence Israel court puts 60-day hold on settlement razings Greece opens detention camp for immigrants as election looms Libya's Gaddafi-era oil chief found floating dead in Danube Egypt's Brotherhood says army plans cabinet reshuffle Egypt cabinet reshuffle seen within 48 hours: speaker Egypt army ruler plans cabinet reshuffle: MP Dissident case poses test for U.S.-China diplomacy U.S. troops synch hi-tech and nomad intel in Kony hunt U.S. troops synch hi-tech and nomad intel in Kony hunt Saleh to leave Yemen temporarily: diplomatic source French Socialist heavyweights shun Strauss-Kahn Ex-oil chief who tried to reform Gaddafi's Libya dies Bahrain hunger striker force-fed, drugged: wife In Sudan and South Sudan, questions of nationality Islamist group says it carried out Damascus bombing Wary of Iran, Saudis seek progress on Gulf union Attack on Christians in Nigeria kills at least 15: witness Israel court puts 60-day hold on settlement razings Myanmar president orders shakeup for peace talks U.N. chief visits "new" Myanmar to push more reforms European MP says stopped from entering Bahrain Student demos turn violent in Mexico, 200 arrested Wary of Iran, Saudis seek progress on Gulf union Iraq to get first F-16 jets in early 2014: official South Sudan says to quit border zone, seeks end to clashes British Red Cross doctor kidnapped in Pakistan found beheaded British Red Cross doctor kidnapped in Pakistan found beheaded Saleh to leave Yemen temporarily, militants free soldiers Chinese play cat and mouse with censor to discuss dissident escape Escaped China activist in US protection-rights group Murdochs face tough week over scandal Drone strike kills four suspected militants in Pakistan Blind activist scaled wall in great escape from China security apparatus Egypt's Brotherhood says army plans cabinet reshuffle Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:36 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood said on Sunday the ruling generals planned to reshuffle the government in an apparent attempt to defuse a political feud overshadowing a presidential election campaign that gets under way on Monday. The Brotherhood has pushed for more say in the government for months since sweeping to a dominant role in parliament in an election marathon that ended in February this year. Essam el-Erian, a senior Brotherhood lawmaker, told Reuters the generals would initiate talks over the reshuffle but army officials did not immediately confirm any plans to do so. ... Full Story Top SNC-Lavalin's ex-exec arrested in Switzerland Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:04 PM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - SNC-Lavalin said on Sunday it has received confirmation that a senior executive who left the company in February, and who SNC accuses of a central role in a $56 million payments scandal had been arrested in Switzerland. SNC, Canada's biggest engineering company with operations in more than 100 countries, said it had been told that Riadh Ben Aissa, a former company executive vice-president who headed up its global construction operations, had been arrested. SNC did not disclose who it had received confirmation from about the arrest. ... Full Story Top U.S. eyes testy China talks, Chen backer expects Chinese decision Sun,29 Apr 2012 06:29 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States faces a tense week in China as high-level talks on trade and global hot spots like Iran and North Korea open in the shadow of a blind Chinese activist's bold escape from house arrest to seek U.S. protection in Beijing. The trip to Beijing would have been challenging for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner even without a human rights dispute over Chen Guangcheng, who a U.S.-based group says is hiding in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. ... Full Story Top Top U.N. truce monitor in Syria, attack on Central Bank Sun,29 Apr 2012 05:07 PM PDT Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Norwegian general charged with overseeing a shaky U.N.-brokered truce in Syria arrived in Damascus on Sunday, boosting a monitor mission that activists say has helped ease the violence in the city of Homs, hotbed of a 13-month uprising. In the capital, militants fired rocket-propelled grenades at the Central Bank building, causing slight damage, and wounded four police when they attacked their patrol, state television reported. Activists in Damascus reported explosions and gunfire. ... Full Story Top Militants fire on Syrian Central Bank: state TV Sun,29 Apr 2012 04:38 PM PDT Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Militants fired rocket-propelled grenades at the Central Bank building in Damascus and also attacked a police patrol in the capital, wounding four police, state television said on Monday. It said the attack on the Central Bank by "an armed terrorist group" caused only slight damage, and security forces were chasing the attackers of the police patrol. Activists in the capital reported hearing several explosions and gunfire. (Editing by Stacey Joyce) Full Story Top French journalist missing after Colombia FARC battle Sun,29 Apr 2012 04:11 PM PDT Reuters - BOGOTA (Reuters) - A French journalist reporting alongside Colombian security forces tracking drug-funded FARC rebels was injured and then disappeared after a gun battle that killed three soldiers and a police official, the Defense Ministry said on Sunday. French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Romeo Langlois, a freelance reporter for French news channel France 24, was taken prisoner on Saturday by the Marxist guerrillas, but Colombia's Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon couldn't confirm his capture. ... Full Story Top Top U.N. truce monitor in Syria, lull in violence Sun,29 Apr 2012 03:56 PM PDT Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Norwegian general charged with overseeing a shaky U.N.-brokered truce in Syria arrived in Damascus on Sunday, boosting a monitor mission that activists say has already helped ease the violence in the city of Homs, hotbed of a 13-month uprising. General Robert Mood acknowledged the huge task awaiting the planned 300-strong unarmed mission, which now has 30 people on the ground, but said he was confident it could make headway. "We will be only 300 but we can make a difference," Mood told reporters on his arrival in the Syrian capital. ... Full Story Top Israel court puts 60-day hold on settlement razings Sun,29 Apr 2012 03:26 PM PDT Reuters - JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's Supreme Court postponed the razing of five unauthorized buildings in the West Bank on Sunday, a ruling that gave the government more time to argue against their demolition and placate pro-settler political partners. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government agreed last year to remove the apartment blocks on the edge of the Beit El settlement, after a court ruled they were built on private Palestinian land. ... Full Story Top Greece opens detention camp for immigrants as election looms Sun,29 Apr 2012 03:08 PM PDT Reuters - ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece opened its first purpose-built detention centre for illegal migrants on Sunday in Athens, a week before a national election where illegal immigration has emerged as a key issue. About 130,000 immigrants cross the country's porous sea and land borders every year, the vast majority via Turkey, and the authorities are forced to release those who are arrested because of a lack of permanent housing. With Greece in its fifth year of recession and worries over rising crime levels, illegal immigration has become a major issue in the run up of the May 6 election. ... Full Story Top Libya's Gaddafi-era oil chief found floating dead in Danube Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:59 PM PDT Reuters - VIENNA (Reuters) - Libya's former top oil industry official, Shokri Ghanem, has been found floating dead in the River Danube in Austria, police said on Sunday. Ghanem, 69, had been chairman of Libya's state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC) before defecting last year several months after opponents of Muammar Gaddafi had risen up against the Libyan leader and begun a rebellion. As NOC chairman since 2006, Ghanem helped steer Libya's oil policy and held the high-profile job of representing Libya at OPEC meetings, often visiting Vienna for meetings in that role. ... Full Story Top Egypt's Brotherhood says army plans cabinet reshuffle Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:33 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood said on Sunday the ruling generals planned to reshuffle the government in an apparent attempt to defuse a political feud overshadowing a presidential election campaign that gets under way on Monday. The Brotherhood has pushed for more say in the government for months since sweeping to a dominant role in parliament in an election marathon that ended in February this year. Essam el-Erian, a senior Brotherhood lawmaker, told Reuters the generals would initiate talks over the reshuffle but army officials did not immediately confirm any plans to do so. ... Full Story Top Egypt cabinet reshuffle seen within 48 hours: speaker Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:33 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's ruling army council plans to announce a reshuffle of Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzouri's cabinet within 48 hours, the state news agency quoted the speaker of parliament as saying on Sunday. Speaker Saad al-Katatni, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, received a phone call from the military council which he described as "satisfactory". "The military council will announce this reshuffle within 48 hours," the agency quoted Katatni as saying. (Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Louise Ireland) Full Story Top Egypt army ruler plans cabinet reshuffle: MP Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:33 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - The head of Egypt's ruling military council will start talks on a cabinet reshuffle, a leading member of the Muslim Brotherhood told Reuters on Sunday, in an apparent concession to the Islamist-dominated parliament's demand for a new government. Essam el-Erian, a senior Brotherhood lawmaker, said the ruling military council had told Parliamentary Speaker Saad al-Katatni, another member of the Islamist group, that Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi would begin talks for the reshuffle. A military official had no comment on the report. ... Full Story Top Dissident case poses test for U.S.-China diplomacy Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:32 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When Hillary Clinton made her first trip abroad as secretary of state, she baldly said the United States could not let human rights disputes get in the way of working with China on global challenges. Now that the blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng is under U.S. protection in Beijing, according to a U.S.-based rights group, the United States will find out if China has made the same calculation. Chen's escape after 19 months of house arrest and apparent request for U.S. ... Full Story Top U.S. troops synch hi-tech and nomad intel in Kony hunt Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:05 PM PDT Reuters - In a bare concrete room in a far-flung corner of Central African Republic, U.S. special forces and Ugandan soldiers map out the hunt for one of Africa's most wanted rebel leaders hiding in an area the size of California. The building belonged to the town of Obo's doctor until he was murdered last year by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) while transporting medicines by road. Now it serves as an operational centre in one of America's latest military ventures in Africa. The mission's goal is clear. ... Full Story Top U.S. troops synch hi-tech and nomad intel in Kony hunt Sun,29 Apr 2012 02:04 PM PDT Reuters - OBO, Central African Republic (Reuters) - In a bare concrete room in a far-flung corner of Central African Republic, U.S. special forces and Ugandan soldiers map out the hunt for one of Africa's most wanted rebel leaders hiding in an area the size of California. The building belonged to the town of Obo's doctor until he was murdered last year by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) while transporting medicines by road. Now it serves as an operational centre in one of America's latest military ventures in Africa. The mission's goal is clear. ... Full Story Top Saleh to leave Yemen temporarily: diplomatic source Sun,29 Apr 2012 01:49 PM PDT Reuters - SANAA/ADEN (Reuters) - Former president Ali Abdullah Saleh will leave Yemen temporarily after Gulf states leaned on him to get out of the way of his successor in order to ease tensions complicating efforts to stabilize the country, a diplomatic source said on Sunday. The diplomat said he expected Saleh to travel next week, probably to the United Arab Emirates, to allow recently elected President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to rule unhindered by his predecessor. Russia has said it is willing to take in Saleh. ... Full Story Top French Socialist heavyweights shun Strauss-Kahn Sun,29 Apr 2012 01:01 PM PDT Reuters - PARIS (Reuters) - The heavyweights of France's Socialist party shunned disgraced former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn on Sunday after he made an uncomfortable return to the political scene in the delicate final days of a presidential campaign. The party's presidential candidate told him bluntly to stay out of the campaign after London's The Guardian newspaper published an interview with him, and leading Socialists said they walked out of a weekend drinks party in Paris when they heard Strauss-Kahn was due to attend. ... Full Story Top Ex-oil chief who tried to reform Gaddafi's Libya dies Sun,29 Apr 2012 12:45 PM PDT Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Shokri Ghanem, Libya's former prime minister and oil chief, saw it as his mission to change his country from the inside, only to realize too late that Muammar Gaddafi would never accept any meaningful reform. Ghanem died in Vienna, at the age of 69, a spokesman for the Austrian foreign ministry said on Sunday. A fluent English speaker who was educated in the United States and worked abroad for years, Ghanem was one of the main reforming influences inside the Libyan administration for the past decade. ... Full Story Top Bahrain hunger striker force-fed, drugged: wife Sun,29 Apr 2012 12:29 PM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - The wife of a jailed Bahraini activist and hunger striker said on Sunday he was being drugged and force-fed, but authorities denied the accusations saying the man had agreed to receive medical treatment. Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, one of 14 men imprisoned on charges of leading an uprising in the island kingdom last year, has been fasting for more than two months. "I went to see my husband today and he told me that he was drugged last Monday," Khadija al-Mousawi told Reuters by phone after what she said was her first visit to her husband in two weeks. ... Full Story Top In Sudan and South Sudan, questions of nationality Sun,29 Apr 2012 12:26 PM PDT Reuters - KHARTOUM/JUBA (Reuters) - Sultan Kwaje's problems started when his country disappeared from under him. He was born in the southern part of Sudan but has lived in the north for more than three decades. When South Sudan broke away as an independent country from Sudan in July, Kwaje was left on the northern side of the border, a foreigner. The Sudanese government, he said, fired him from his job in the civil service. Tens of thousands of South Sudanese in the north lost their jobs after the split. About 500,000 are now technically illegal because they lack official residency papers. ... Full Story Top Islamist group says it carried out Damascus bombing Sun,29 Apr 2012 12:14 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - An Islamist group called "al-Nusra Front" claimed responsibility on Sunday for a suicide bombing which killed at least nine people in the Syrian capital Damascus on Friday. The group named the bomber as Abu Omar al-Shami and said he detonated his explosives amidst 150 members of the Syrian security forces who were gathered outside the Zain al-Abideen mosque in the Midan district of Damascus. It was not possible to verify the statement. ... Full Story Top Wary of Iran, Saudis seek progress on Gulf union Sun,29 Apr 2012 12:09 PM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Wary of Iran and regional protest movements, Gulf Arab states are pushing ahead with plans for a political union that would involve joint foreign and defense policies, the Saudi foreign minister said in a speech at the weekend. The comments by Prince Saud al-Faisal come two weeks ahead of a summit of U.S.-aligned Gulf leaders in Riyadh that will review an outline for such a union after Saudi King Abdullah first floated the idea last December. ... Full Story Top Attack on Christians in Nigeria kills at least 15: witness Sun,29 Apr 2012 12:04 PM PDT Reuters - KANO, Nigeria (Reuters) - Gunmen killed at least 15 people and wounded many more on Sunday in an attack on a university theatre being used by Christian worshippers in Kano, a northern Nigerian city where hundreds have died in Islamist attacks this year. Security sources said gunmen arrived on motorbikes and threw small homemade bombs into the theatre before shooting fleeing worshippers. There was sporadic gunfire in other parts of the city later on from attackers driven from the university by the army, the sources said. "I counted at least 15 dead bodies. ... Full Story Top Israel court puts 60-day hold on settlement razings Sun,29 Apr 2012 11:43 AM PDT Reuters - JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's Supreme Court postponed the demolition of five unauthorized buildings on the West Bank on Sunday, a ruling that gave the government more time to argue against their destruction and placate pro-settler political partners. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government agreed last year to remove the apartment blocks on the edge of the Beit El settlement, after a court ruled they were built on private Palestinian land. ... Full Story Top Myanmar president orders shakeup for peace talks Sun,29 Apr 2012 11:42 AM PDT Reuters - YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar will overhaul its peace negotiating teams in a bid to settle armed rebellions with ethnic rebel militias following a failure to end a stubborn conflict in the strategic Kachin State, sources close to the process said on Sunday. President Thein Sein has ordered a shakeup after a lack of a breakthrough following six rounds of talks with Kachin political leaders. Fighting between troops and militias has displaced more than 50,000 people since June. ... Full Story Top U.N. chief visits "new" Myanmar to push more reforms Sun,29 Apr 2012 11:27 AM PDT Reuters - NAYPITAW, Myanmar (Reuters) - U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon made a landmark visit to a fast-changing Myanmar on Sunday to encourage further reforms and push for a further easing of Western sanctions to help normalize United Nations operations in the long isolated country. Ban's trip was his first since a reformist, quasi-civilian government took office a year ago, ending five decades of authoritarian military rule and thawing Myanmar's relations with the international community. ... Full Story Top European MP says stopped from entering Bahrain Sun,29 Apr 2012 11:04 AM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - A European Union member of parliament with a diplomatic passport said she was prevented from entering Bahrain on Sunday in an application of visa rules imposed while the government grapples with a pro-democracy movement. Ana Gomes, a Portuguese member of the European Parliament's foreign affairs and human rights committees, said she was held at Manama airport for over seven hours when she tried to enter the Gulf Arab state during a stopover on the way to Libya. "I've been ... ... Full Story Top Student demos turn violent in Mexico, 200 arrested Sun,29 Apr 2012 10:25 AM PDT Reuters - MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Students demanding access to university hostels set fire to two police cars in street protests in the Mexican city of Morelia on Saturday that led to 200 arrests, local media reported on Sunday. Masked men sprayed a police pick-up with gasoline and then set it ablaze with molotov cocktails on one of the busiest streets of Morelia, television images showed. The protesters, mainly young men, were demanding local government funding to maintain access to student hostels from which they had were evicted by police. ... Full Story Top Wary of Iran, Saudis seek progress on Gulf union Sun,29 Apr 2012 10:06 AM PDT Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Wary of Iran and regional protest movements, Gulf Arab states are pushing ahead with plans for a political union that would involve joint foreign and defense policies, the Saudi foreign minister said in a speech at the weekend. The comments by Prince Saud al-Faisal come two weeks ahead of a summit of U.S.-aligned Gulf leaders in Riyadh that will review an outline for such a union after Saudi King Abdullah first floated the idea last December. ... Full Story Top Iraq to get first F-16 jets in early 2014: official Sun,29 Apr 2012 09:20 AM PDT Reuters - BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq will receive the first 24 of 36 F-16 fighter jets it has ordered from the United States at the beginning of 2014, a senior official told Reuters on Sunday. Under deposed dictator Saddam Hussein, Iraq's air force was one of the largest in the region with hundreds of mainly Soviet-designed jets. Its military was disbanded after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Last July, Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki doubled the number of warplanes Iraq had initially planned to buy to strengthen an air force neglected during a protracted period when the country relied on U.S. air support. ... Full Story Top South Sudan says to quit border zone, seeks end to clashes Sun,29 Apr 2012 08:00 AM PDT Reuters - JUBA (Reuters) - South Sudan has told the United Nations it will pull all police out of a disputed region on its border with Sudan and is committed to halting all fighting with its northern neighbor, but Khartoum declared a state of emergency in some border areas. The conflicting developments on Sunday raised questions whether United Nations and African Union appeals for an end to more than three weeks of border clashes between Sudan and South Sudan would bear fruit and avert full-blown war in the oil-producing region. ... Full Story Top British Red Cross doctor kidnapped in Pakistan found beheaded Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:55 AM PDT Reuters - QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) - The beheaded body of a kidnapped British doctor working for the International Committee of the Red Cross was found by the roadside on Sunday in the southwestern Pakistan city of Quetta, police and Red Cross officials said. Khalil Rasjed Dale, 60, was abducted by suspected militants on January 5 while on his way home from work. "The ICRC condemns in the strongest possible terms this barbaric act," ICRC Director-General Yves Daccord said in a statement. "All of us at the ICRC and at the British Red Cross share the grief and outrage of Khalil's family and friends. ... Full Story Top British Red Cross doctor kidnapped in Pakistan found beheaded Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:54 AM PDT Reuters - QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) - The beheaded body of a kidnapped British doctor working for the International Committee of the Red Cross was found by the roadside on Sunday in the southwestern Pakistan city of Quetta, police and Red Cross officials said. Khalil Rasjed Dale, 60, was abducted by suspected militants on January 5 while on his way home from work. "The ICRC condemns in the strongest possible terms this barbaric act," ICRC Director-General Yves Daccord said in a statement. "All of us at the ICRC and at the British Red Cross share the grief and outrage of Khalil's family and friends. ... Full Story Top Saleh to leave Yemen temporarily, militants free soldiers Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:34 AM PDT Reuters - SANAA/ADEN (Reuters) - Former president Ali Abdullah Saleh will leave Yemen temporarily after Gulf states leaned on him to get out of the way of his successor to ease tension complicating efforts to stabilize the country, a diplomatic source said on Sunday. The diplomat said he expected Saleh to travel next week, probably to the United Arab Emirates, to allow recently elected President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to rule unhindered by his predecessor. Russia has said it is willing to take in Saleh. ... Full Story Top Chinese play cat and mouse with censor to discuss dissident escape Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:30 AM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese played cat and mouse with the censors on the popular Twitter-like microblog service Weibo on Sunday to express support for escaped blind dissident lawyer Chen Guangcheng, while China maintained its silence on what has happened to him. Neither China nor the United States has commented on whether Chen has sought refuge in the U.S. Embassy, as activists and one diplomat contend, in a drama that threatens to overshadow a two-day Sino-U.S. meeting in Beijing from Thursday, though both sides say the meeting will proceed as scheduled. ... Full Story Top Escaped China activist in US protection-rights group Sun,29 Apr 2012 07:02 AM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng is under U.S. protection in Beijing after an audacious escape from 19 months under house arrest, a U.S.-based group said on Saturday, in a drama that threatens to ignite new tensions between the two governments. The United States has not confirmed publicly reports that Chen, who slipped away from under the noses of guards and eyes and ears of surveillance equipment around his village home in eastern Shandong province, fled into the U.S. embassy. ... Full Story Top Murdochs face tough week over scandal Sun,29 Apr 2012 06:58 AM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Rupert Murdoch's tetchy and uncompromising appearance at a British inquiry into phone hacking could come back to haunt him this week when politicians give their verdict on the scandal at his defunct News of the World newspaper. Three days of grilling at the Leveson judicial press inquiry last week extracted few new facts from Rupert and his son James as the 81-year-old casually threw out insults at politicians and described himself as a victim of a corporate cover-up. ... Full Story Top Drone strike kills four suspected militants in Pakistan Sun,29 Apr 2012 06:15 AM PDT Reuters - PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - A U.S. drone strike killed four suspected militants in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region near the Afghan border on Sunday, intelligence officials and witnesses said, the first strike in almost a month. The controversial drone program, a key element in U.S. counter-terrorism efforts, is highly unpopular in Pakistan, where it is considered a violation of sovereignty which causes many civilian casualties. ... Full Story Top Blind activist scaled wall in great escape from China security apparatus Sun,29 Apr 2012 06:14 AM PDT Reuters - HONG KONG/BEIJING (Reuters) - Inside a dilapidated house in China's rural Shandong province, Chen Guangcheng feigned illness, lying on his bed for extended periods so that his guards would be lulled into complacency, activists said. Then he made his move, scaled a wall and slipped out to freedom. It was a disciplined deception that allowed the blind Chinese activist to outwit his guards in an escape from house arrest that now threatens diplomatic ties between China and the United States, human rights campaigners involved in the getaway said. ... Full Story Top

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