Today's Reuters World News Headlines - Yahoo! News:
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Insight: A secret plea for money from a mountain in North Korea
Wed,11 Jul 2012 07:12 PM PDT
Reuters -  SEOUL (Reuters) - In May this year, a North Korean defector in her 40s took a call from an unknown number at her office in the South Korean capital Seoul. It was from her brother, who she had not seen for more than a decade, calling illegally from North Korea after tracking her down. He was speaking from a remote mountainside near the border with China, and was in dire need of money to help treat another sister's late stage cancer, she said. ...
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Top China paper slams Clinton's democracy comments
Wed,11 Jul 2012 06:45 PM PDT
Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - China's top newspaper slammed U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday for comments she made lauding democracy and implicitly criticizing restrictions in China, saying those Asian countries that ape U.S. democracy were doomed to fail. Earlier this week, Clinton held up Mongolia's sometimes messy politics as a democratic model for Asia. While she did not directly name China, her comments appeared aimed partly at Beijing. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. to demand disclosures as it eases Myanmar sanctions
Wed,11 Jul 2012 06:30 PM PDT
Reuters -  VIENTIANE (Reuters) - The United States on Wednesday eased sanctions to allow its companies to invest in and provide financial services to Myanmar but will require them to make detailed disclosures about their dealings, the White House said. The unusual reporting requirement aims to promote greater transparency in the country - among the world's most corrupt according to watchdog Transparency International - as it emerges from nearly half century of military rule. In a development first reported by Reuters early on Wednesday, President Barack Obama directed the U.S. ...
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Report chides female violence in state of Mexico's president-elect
Wed,11 Jul 2012 06:18 PM PDT
Reuters - MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Human rights group Amnesty International released a report on Wednesday criticizing Mexican authorities for failing to tackle violence against women and highlighting abuses in the state recently governed by president-elect Enrique Pena Nieto. The report by the London-based group alleged that Mexican police solve only one out of every 21 rapes. Mexican officers also have flawed procedures for documenting the murders of women, in many cases failing to carry out proper autopsies, the report said. ... Full Story | Top |
Syria hit by diplomatic defection as U.N. battles divisions
Wed,11 Jul 2012 05:23 PM PDT
Reuters -  BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria's ambassador to Iraq defected on Wednesday in protest over President Bashar al-Assad's violent suppression of a 16-month uprising as the U.N. Security Council remained deadlocked over the next steps in the crisis. "I declare that I have joined, from this moment, the ranks of the revolution of the Syrian people," Nawah al-Fares said in a video statement posted on Facebook. He did not elaborate or say from where he had posted the statement. "I ask ... the members of the military to join the revolution and to defend the country and the citizens. ...
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Canadian exchange deal wins final clearance
Wed,11 Jul 2012 05:01 PM PDT
Reuters - TORONTO (Reuters) - The C$3.8 billion ($3.72 billion) acquisition of Canada's TMX Group cleared its final regulatory hurdles on Wednesday, allowing a financial consortium to take control of all of the country's major securities exchanges and related businesses. Concluding a drawn-out review process, regulators in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta approved Maple Group's acquisition of TMX - the operator of the Toronto Stock Exchange, TSX Venture Exchange for small-capitalization stocks, and the Montreal Exchange for derivatives, among others. ... Full Story | Top |
Syria hit by diplomatic defection
Wed,11 Jul 2012 04:56 PM PDT
Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria's ambassador to Iraq defected on Wednesday in protest over President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on a 16-month uprising as the U.N. Security Council remained deadlocked over the next steps in the crisis. "I declare that I have joined, from this moment, the ranks of the revolution of the Syrian people," Nawah al-Fares said in a video statement posted on Facebook. He did not elaborate or say from where he had posted the statement. Fares, who has close ties to Syrian security, was the first senior diplomat to quit the embattled government. ...
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Mexico paper stops drug war coverage after grenade attacks
Wed,11 Jul 2012 04:43 PM PDT
Reuters - MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A newspaper in Mexico's violent city of Nuevo Laredo announced on Wednesday it will end coverage of drug-related bloodshed, one day after grenades damaged its offices for the second time this year. Many Mexican news organizations have decided to report only basic facts about murders and massacres in recent years. But it is rare for a newspaper to drop coverage altogether. Tuesday's attack on the daily El Manana was among the latest incidents that have made Mexico one of the world's most dangerous places for journalists. ... Full Story | Top |
Syrian ambassador defects, says joined revolution
Wed,11 Jul 2012 04:06 PM PDT
Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - Syria's ambassador to Iraq Nawaf al-Fares said on Wednesday he had defected and joined the revolution against President Bashar al-Assad, becoming the first senior diplomat to quit the embattled government. Fares called on Syrian soldiers to follow his lead and turn their guns on the Damascus leadership, in a video statement posted on Facebook "I declare that I have joined, from this moment, the ranks of the revolution of the Syrian people," Fares said. "I ask ... the members of the military to join the revolution and to defend the country and the citizens ... ... Full Story | Top |
Maple-TMX deal wins final regulatory approvals
Wed,11 Jul 2012 04:03 PM PDT
Reuters - TORONTO (Reuters) - The C$3.8 billion ($3.72 billion) acquisition of Canada's TMX Group cleared its final regulatory hurdles on Wednesday, allowing a financial consortium to take control of all of the country's major securities exchanges and related businesses. Concluding a year-long review process, regulators in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta approved Maple Group's acquisition of TMX - the operator of the Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange for small-capitalization stocks. ... Full Story | Top |
Rape, assault are weapons of war in Syria: rights group
Wed,11 Jul 2012 03:39 PM PDT
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Government forces in Syria are targeting women for rape and assault as the conflict between President Bashar al-Assad and anti-government forces continues to escalate, according to a report released by a human rights group on Wednesday. Women Under Siege said it had documented 81 instances of sexual assault in Syria since anti-government demonstrations began in March 2011, with most occurring in the rebel stronghold of Homs, a frequent target of attack by government forces. ... Full Story | Top |
Helicopters attack Colombian rebels as president visits south
Wed,11 Jul 2012 03:31 PM PDT
Reuters -  TORIBIO, Colombia (Reuters) - Colombian helicopter gunships strafed suspected rebel hideouts and guerrillas set up roadblocks as President Juan Manuel Santos visited the nation's volatile south on Wednesday amid growing criticism that security has deteriorated. Latin America's fourth-biggest economy has battled Marxist insurgents for nearly five decades, and despite a U.S.-backed crackdown that drove rebels into more remote hideouts, guerrillas have stepped up attacks in the last few years. ...
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Canada's TMX in talks to buy Direct Edge: sources
Wed,11 Jul 2012 03:25 PM PDT
Reuters - NEW YORK/TORONTO (Reuters) - TMX Group Inc, the operator of the Toronto Stock Exchange, is in talks to buy U.S. stock market operator Direct Edge Holdings LLC, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. The deal hinges on TMX closing its own deal to be acquired by Maple Group, a consortium of Canadian banks, pension funds and financial firms, one source said. Maple received final regulatory approval for its C$3.8 billion ($3.72 billion) acquisition of TMX late on Wednesday. TMX urged its stakeholders to tender their shares to the deal. ... Full Story | Top |
Enbridge says pipeline safe after NTSB blasts company
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:57 PM PDT
Reuters -  CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Enbridge Inc, stung by a harsh rebuke from regulators over a 2010 spill that dumped more than 20,000 barrels of crude into a Michigan river system, has stepped up inspections and is confident its pipeline network is safe, the company's incoming chief executive said on Wednesday. Company President Al Monaco, slated to replace Pat Daniel as chief executive later this year, said Enbridge has boosted spending on safety inspections since the July 2010 spill in the Kalamazoo River. "We'll be spending in the area of $400 million, which is ... ...
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Mexico's president-elect calls on rivals to back reform push
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:48 PM PDT
Reuters -  MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican President-elect Enrique Pena Nieto called on rival parties to rally around his plans for economic reforms on Wednesday, naming a team of advisers to help negotiate deals in the new Congress. Pena Nieto's election win on July 1 will bring the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, which ruled Mexico for most of the 20th century, back to power after more than a decade on the sidelines. ...
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Analysis: Tourism helps South Tyrol defy Italian recession
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:42 PM PDT
Reuters -  SULDEN, Italy (Reuters) - Pure spring water, solitary Alpine paths, the discreet hospitality of mountain people: this is the sober recipe with which the remote South Tyrolean hamlet of Sulden has won over German Chancellor Angela Merkel for seven summers in a row. Merkel, a keen hiker who shuns exotic holiday destinations, was introduced to this village, population 350, at the foot of the majestic Ortles glacier by Italy's best-known living climber, Reinhold Messner, over dinner in Berlin in 2004. "She was planning to go to Seiser Alm, another resort in the Dolomites. ...
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U.N. Security Council divided over sanctions threat to Syria
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:29 PM PDT
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - International envoy Kofi Annan asked the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday to make clear to Syria's government and opposition that there would be "clear consequences" for not complying with his plan to end the 16-month conflict that has killed thousands. But the Security Council differed greatly over what those consequences should be, with the United States, Britain, Germany and France insisting that Syria should be threatened with sanctions, while Russia said that should be a "last resort." The deeply divided 15-member council must decide the future of a U.N. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. says concerned by Russian draft NGO law
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:24 PM PDT
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Wednesday it was concerned by Russian legislation that would force rights and campaign groups funded from abroad to register as foreign agents, saying it would impose tough new limitations on pro-democracy organizations. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said the United States had communicated "deep concern" to Moscow after the Russian lower house of Parliament gave initial approval to the bill, which is supported by President Vladimir Putin's United Russia party. ... Full Story | Top |
Djibouti: Western bases pose manageable risk
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:19 PM PDT
Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Host to the most important U.S. and French military bases in Africa, the tiny Red Sea state of Djibouti agrees it faces a risk of retaliation from the Islamist militants its Western guests hunt on forays into nearby countries. But it argues the menace is limited. Instead, the strategically placed country points to what it suggests is a more significant, long-term security consideration: the poverty, unemployment and regional political instability it sees as potential pathways to extremist thinking. ... Full Story | Top |
Signs point to early Quebec election, outcome uncertain
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:09 PM PDT
Reuters - (Reuters) - There are growing signs that Quebec Premier Jean Charest will call an early election despite polls showing his ruling Liberals could lose to a separatist party that seeks independence for the mostly French-speaking Canadian province. Montreal's La Presse newspaper, citing what it said were several Liberal insiders, said Charest strongly favored launching the campaign on August 1. That would mean an election on September 4. Charest's chief spokesman did not respond to a request for comment. ... Full Story | Top |
Excellon suspends work at Mexico mine due to protests
Wed,11 Jul 2012 02:05 PM PDT
Reuters - MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Canada's Excellon Resources Inc halted operations at its La Platosa silver mine in Mexico due to a continuing protest by landowners and union members, the company said on Wednesday. Protesters have blocked access to the mine in the northern state of Durango since Monday, following a contested vote on union representation last week. The national miners union says Excellon is trying to impose another more company-friendly union on the workers, a claim the Toronto-based miner denies. ... Full Story | Top |
Al Qaeda suicide bomber attacks Yemen police academy
Wed,11 Jul 2012 01:55 PM PDT
Reuters -  SANAA (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed at least 10 people outside a police academy in the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Wednesday, dramatically exposing the government's vulnerability to al Qaeda-linked insurgents despite a U.S.-backed offensive against them. Yemeni Interior Minister Abdul Qader Qahtan told state television the death toll was 10, with 15 wounded, some of them in a serious condition. Security officials had earlier put the number of dead at 22. ...
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Israel to deploy rocket interceptor at Egypt border
Wed,11 Jul 2012 01:50 PM PDT
Reuters - JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel said on Wednesday it would deploy a battery of Iron Dome rocket interceptors at a southern frontier town opposite Egypt, a move that follows cross-border attacks in the area. Israeli media reported that it was the first time the interceptors, which have been used against Palestinian rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip, were being set up at Eilat, near Israel's borders with Egypt and Jordan. ... Full Story | Top |
Government spat over draft exemptions deepens in Israel
Wed,11 Jul 2012 01:18 PM PDT
Reuters -  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's biggest coalition ally stepped up threats on Wednesday to quit Israel's government in a widening dispute over its demand to curtail military draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jews. Military service is a highly emotive issue in Israel, where most men and women start a two- or three-year service at the age of 18 and many are subsequently called up for reserve duty into their 40s. Many fervently Orthodox Jews are exempted so they can pursue religious studies, angering the more secular majority. ...
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White House says Iran's role with Syria not productive
Wed,11 Jul 2012 01:00 PM PDT
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Wednesday said Iran's role on Syria has not been productive and the United States was interested in working with nations that would be more constructive in helping bring stability. U.N. envoy Kofi Annan has said Iran should play a role in peace talks on Syria. White House spokesman Jay Carney said while he was not ruling anything out, "we reject the idea that it is likely that Iran can play a constructive role. ...
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Iran backs plan for Syria-led transition: Annan
Wed,11 Jul 2012 12:46 PM PDT
Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - International mediator Kofi Annan said on Wednesday Iran and Iraq supported a plan for a political transition in Damascus led by Syria and that they would use their influence to try to push all parties in that direction. He was speaking to reporters after briefing the U.N. Security Council on his trip to Syria as well as its ally Iran and Iraq, which has ties to Tehran. Annan has repeatedly said that regional heavyweight Iran should be involved in efforts to find a peaceful solution to the Syria crisis despite the West's firm rejection of any role. ... Full Story | Top |
Libya's Jibril extends vote lead with Benghazi rout
Wed,11 Jul 2012 12:32 PM PDT
Reuters -  TRIPOLI (Reuters) - The National Forces Alliance of Libyan wartime premier Mahmoud Jibril extended its lead over Islamists in landmark free elections with a landslide victory in the eastern city of Benghazi, new partial vote tallies showed on Wednesday. The North African country's first national vote in six decades has been hailed as a success by observers despite election-day bloodshed that claimed at least two lives. ...
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Saudi Shi'ites throng funerals of slain protesters
Wed,11 Jul 2012 12:31 PM PDT
Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Thousands of Shi'ite Muslims turned out for the funerals of two men killed during protests triggered by the arrest of a prominent Shi'ite Muslim cleric in Saudi Arabia's oil-producing Eastern province, witnesses said on Wednesday. Mohamed al-Felfel and Akbar al-Shakhouri were shot dead on Sunday in what an Interior Ministry spokesman described as a "criminal act" after protests broke out following the arrest of Shi'ite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr on sedition charges. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. sends man accused as Osama bin Laden's cook back to Sudan
Wed,11 Jul 2012 12:19 PM PDT
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has sent a Sudanese man, accused of guarding Osama bin Laden and helping him escape U.S. forces, back to Sudan after being held at Guantanamo Bay prison for over a decade, the Pentagon said on Wednesday. Ibrahim al Qosi was sentenced to 14 years after pleading guilty in 2010 to conspiring with al Qaeda and providing material support to terrorism, the Pentagon said in a statement. He completed his reduced, two-year sentence before his transfer took place, the statement said. ...
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Russia clashes with Syria opposition but ups diplomacy
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:44 AM PDT
Reuters - MOSCOW (Reuters) - Syrian opposition talks with Russia on a political transition in Damascus ended in discord on Wednesday, and an opposition leader accused Moscow of pursuing policies that were helping to prolong the bloodshed in the pivotal Arab country. "The Syrian people don't understand Russia's position. How can Russia keep supplying arms? How can they keep vetoing resolutions? There needs to be an end to mass killings," said Burhan Ghalioun of the exiled Syrian National Council (SNC). But in a week in which Russia has drafted a new U.N. ... Full Story | Top |
Nigeria's cabinet approves bill to overhaul oil sector
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:30 AM PDT
Reuters - ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria's cabinet has approved a final draft of an oil law, years in the making, that will be sent to President Goodluck Jonathan before going to parliament in a few days, the oil minister said on Wednesday. The Petroleum Industry Bill's passage is needed to unblock billions of dollars of stalled investment into exploration and production, but it has been stuck for about five years as ministers and parliamentarians disagreed on details. "(Cabinet) today approved the final draft of the new PIB. ... Full Story | Top |
Egypt president seeks talks over parliament crisis
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:21 AM PDT
Reuters -  CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Islamist president said on Wednesday he wanted talks with the judiciary and political powers to defuse a crisis over him trying reinstate parliament in defiance of generals who dissolved it last month based on a court ruling. Mohamed Mursi's statement appeared to be a call for a truce to prevent the crisis, less than two weeks into his presidency, from boiling over into open confrontation with the military council or the judges in his battle to wrest power. ...
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Court fight highlights depth of Egypt's power struggle
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:21 AM PDT
Reuters -  CAIRO (Reuters) - A decision by Egypt's supreme court to overrule the president when he recalled parliament has raised the stakes in the power struggle between the long-repressed Muslim Brotherhood and the military which ruled for decades. Hours after the Islamist-led parliament met on Tuesday in open defiance of the generals who had ordered it dissolved last month, the court halted President Mohamed Mursi's decree to reconvene the assembly. The court ruling highlights the scale of the conflict ahead for Mursi's Brotherhood. ...
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Libya Islamist chief won't concede election defeat
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:20 AM PDT
Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - The head of Libya's largest Islamist party refused on Wednesday to concede defeat in its first free election in almost half a century, accusing his main liberal rival of "tricking" voters with disingenuous commitments to Islam. In an interview with Reuters, Mohammed Sawan, leader of the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm, branded wartime prime minister Mahmoud Jibril as a former ally of ousted dictator Muammar Gaddafi and said that Jibril's party could lose its lead once fuller results from Saturday's vote trickle in. ... Full Story | Top |
U.N. chief voices concern to Rwanda over support for Congo rebels
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:07 AM PDT
Reuters -  UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern to Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Wednesday over U.N. claims that rebels in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were receiving support from Rwandan officials. Ban phoned both Kagame and DRC President Joseph Kabila to discuss a mutiny in the mineral-rich eastern Congo province of North Kivu, which has been swept by waves of violence since March after hundreds of former rebels defected from the army. An addendum to a recent report by U.N. ...
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Obama eases U.S. sanctions on Myanmar
Wed,11 Jul 2012 11:01 AM PDT
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Wednesday eased sanctions against Myanmar to allow U.S. companies to invest there, calling it a "strong signal" of support for political reform taking root in the southeast Asian country. But Obama said Washington remained concerned about the lack of investment transparency as well as the military's role in Myanmar's economy and made clear that U.S. firms would be required to make detailed disclosures on their dealings there. "Today the United States is easing restrictions to allow U.S. ...
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Boat sinks off Sierra Leone, 30 feared drowned
Wed,11 Jul 2012 10:36 AM PDT
Reuters - FREETOWN (Reuters) - At least 30 people are feared drowned after a boat capsized off the coast of Sierra Leone in bad weather over the weekend, Sierra Leonean and Guinean authorities said on Wednesday. The boat was carrying passengers and tons of merchandise between the neighboring capitals of Conakry in Guinea and Freetown in Sierra Leone. Guinean government spokesman Durus Yale Dore said he had reports of 30 deaths. Ibrahim Wurie, the head of Sierra Leone's maritime administration, told journalists about 50 people had died, though authorities had recovered only two corpses. ... Full Story | Top |
Spain unveils new austerity under European pressure
Wed,11 Jul 2012 10:17 AM PDT
Reuters -  MADRID (Reuters) - Recession-plagued Spain unveiled new austerity measures on Wednesday designed to slash 65 billion euros from the public deficit by 2014 as Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy yielded to EU pressure to try to avoid a full state bailout. The conservative leader announced a 3-point hike in the main rate of Value Added Tax on goods and services to 21 percent and cuts in unemployment benefits and civil service pay and perks in a speech interrupted by jeers and boos from the opposition. "These measures are not pleasant, but they are necessary. ...
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Exclusive: Riggers sought evacuation before deadly Chevron blast
Wed,11 Jul 2012 10:01 AM PDT
Reuters -  LONDON (Reuters) - Chevron Corp. left workers pleading to be evacuated from a gas exploration platform off Nigeria which kept drilling while smoke poured from a borehole until an explosion killed two people as the rig became engulfed in flames, according to accounts from four of the platform's workers. Chevron, the second largest U.S. oil major, said it did not receive requests to evacuate the KS Endeavour rig and that staff on board had the right to call a halt to work if they believed conditions were unsafe. ...
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No foul play in death of Gaddafi oil boss: Austria
Wed,11 Jul 2012 09:56 AM PDT
Reuters -  VIENNA (Reuters) - Libya's Gaddafi-era prime minister and oil chief Shokri Ghanem died after suffering heart failure and falling into the Danube river and there is no sign of foul play, the Vienna prosecutor's office said on Wednesday. The mysterious death in late April shocked Ghanem's friends and colleagues, who at the time said they suspected enemies may have hunted down and killed the man who knew more than anyone else about the toppled Libyan dictator's billions. ...
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