Today's Reuters World News Headlines - Yahoo! News:
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Frustrated Annan quits as Syria peace envoy
Thu,2 Aug 2012 06:53 PM PDT
Reuters -  UNITED NATIONS, ALEPPO, Syria (Reuters) - Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is quitting as international peace envoy for Syria, frustrated by "finger-pointing" at the United Nations while the armed rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad becomes increasingly bloody. As battles raged on Thursday in Syria's second city, Aleppo, between rebel fighters and government forces using war planes and artillery, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced in New York that Annan had said he would go at the end of the month. ...
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North Korea's Kim tells China, economy a priority
Thu,2 Aug 2012 06:44 PM PDT
Reuters -  BEIJING (Reuters) - North Korea's new young leader, Kim Jong-un, told a Chinese official that his government is focused on "developing the economy and improving people's livelihoods," China's official news agency reported late on Thursday. Kim's comments to the visiting Chinese official, Wang Jiarui, were the latest sign that the new young leader aims to tackle North Korea's decaying economy, which has been poorly managed under the military-first government system. ...
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Aerial bombardment kills 16 rebels in southern Syria
Thu,2 Aug 2012 06:35 PM PDT
Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian army helicopter bombardment killed 16 rebels from the same family in the southern Hauran Plain, a strategic region that links Damascus with Jordan, where fighting has intensified in the past several days, opposition sources said on Friday. The loss on the rebel side came after fighters attacked an army roadblock on Thursday near the town of Busra al-Harir and were pursued from the air, the sources said, adding that army artillery also started shelling the town. ... Full Story | Top |
China expresses regret over Annan's resignation
Thu,2 Aug 2012 06:25 PM PDT
Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - China has expressed regret over former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan's resignation as international peace envoy for Syria and stressed support for the United Nations playing an important role in resolving the Syrian crisis. Annan said he was quitting at the end of the month, frustrated by "finger-pointing" at the United Nations while the armed rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad becomes increasingly bloody. ... Full Story | Top |
Buenos Aires province devises its own Falklands ship ban
Thu,2 Aug 2012 03:48 PM PDT
Reuters -  BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Lawmakers in Buenos Aires province passed a bill on Thursday to prohibit ships involved in business activities off the disputed Falkland Islands from mooring at its ports, part of Argentina's drive to discourage oil exploration in the area. Argentina had already banned ships flying the Falklands flag from stopping at the country's ports. The regional Mercosur trade group backed the move. President Cristina Fernandez has launched a wide-ranging diplomatic offensive to assert Argentina's claims to the British-ruled islands 30 years after the Falklands war. ...
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Chile rejigs criticized tax reform bill in Congress push
Thu,2 Aug 2012 03:24 PM PDT
Reuters -  SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Chile's government on Thursday rejigged a sweeping tax reform bill aimed at helping fund an education overhaul, removing criticized benefits for higher earners as it seeks to help its passage through Congress ahead of key local elections. Conservative President Sebastian Pinera said the revamped bill would raise the tax take by around $1.2 billion in its first year, up from a previously anticipated annual $700 million to $1 billion in extra revenue. The changes also included a smaller than originally planned reduction in stamp duty on credit. ...
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Founder of modern Turkey Ataturk's daughter dies
Thu,2 Aug 2012 03:21 PM PDT
Reuters - ISTANBUL (Reuters) - The adopted daughter of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, was killed in a traffic accident, her son said on Turkish television on Thursday. Ulku Adatepe was 79. Adatepe died on Wednesday when she was thrown from a vehicle after the driver lost control of the car while driving on a motorway from Istanbul to the capital Ankara, the daily newspaper Milliyet reported. Adatepe's husband and the driver were hurt but survived the crash, which occurred in the northwest province of Sakarya. Her son Ahmet Dogancay confirmed the news on NTV television. ... Full Story | Top |
Syrian forces kill 50 in Hama clashes: residents
Thu,2 Aug 2012 03:20 PM PDT
Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian forces killed at least 50 people, among them 21 members of three families, during clashes with rebels in the central city of Hama, activists and residents said on Thursday. "During the clashes the army entered the neighborhood of Arbaeen and conducted raids, during which they killed members of three families," resident Abu Ammar told Reuters from the city. He said among the dead were 10 members of the Kanan family, eight from a family named Okda and three from the Saffaf family. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S.-backed study exploited China prisoners: rights group
Thu,2 Aug 2012 03:08 PM PDT
Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - A medical study published in the weekly journal Science and partially funded by the U.S. government was conducted at detention centers in China that engage in severe violations of human rights, according to a letter published by the journal Thursday. The study, in Science's April 13 issue, tested an experimental treatment for addiction on 66 former heroin users confined at two facilities in Beijing. ... Full Story | Top |
Tropical Storm Ernesto threatens Windward Islands
Thu,2 Aug 2012 03:02 PM PDT
Reuters - MIAMI (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Ernesto formed in the Atlantic Ocean near the Windward Islands on Thursday and could strengthen into a hurricane as it races westward across the Caribbean Sea, forecasters said. The storm was expected to hit the southern Windward Islands and cross into the Caribbean early on Friday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Island governments issued storm warnings for Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica, St. Lucia, Martinique and Guadeloupe, alerting residents to expect storm conditions as early as Thursday night. ... Full Story | Top |
Yemen tribesmen release Italian officer: official
Thu,2 Aug 2012 02:52 PM PDT
Reuters -  SANAA (Reuters) - An Italian embassy security officer kidnapped by Yemeni tribesmen has been released unharmed, a government official said on Thursday, the same day the country's information minister survived an assassination attempt. The incidents highlight continuing instability in Yemen five months after former leader Ali Abdullah Saleh was formally replaced by his deputy under a plan designed to forestall a slide into lawlessness. ...
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Plug likely to be pulled on U.N. observers in Syria: France
Thu,2 Aug 2012 02:51 PM PDT
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The Security Council will most likely not renew the mandate of the U.N. observer mission in Syria later this month, which would require it to pull out of the conflict-torn country, France's envoy to the United Nations said on Thursday. "I think the mission will disappear on the 19th of August," French Ambassador Gerard Araud, president of the Security Council this month, told reporters. The mandate of the U.N. mission in Syria, known as UNSMIS, expires on that date. ... Full Story | Top |
Brazil Supreme Court trial could tarnish Lula's legacy
Thu,2 Aug 2012 02:41 PM PDT
Reuters -  RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Seven years after a corruption scandal rattled the government of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brazil's Supreme Court on Thursday began a landmark trial that could mar the wildly popular leader's legacy. Brazilians still don't know the extent of the infamous "mensalão" scandal, an alleged scheme to pay legislators a monthly retainer in exchange for their support in Congress. ...
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UAE emirate's ruler seeks to calm anger over arrests
Thu,2 Aug 2012 02:25 PM PDT
Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - The ruler of an emirate in the United Arab Emirates sought to soothe anger over a crackdown on dissidents in the Gulf Arab country on Thursday, saying the recent detentions were necessary to protect them and the state. Some 35 dissidents, most of them are Islamists, have been detained by authorities since July 15 when the UAE said it was investigating a foreign-linked group planning "crimes against the security of the state". ... Full Story | Top |
Iran, EU agree to talk again on nuclear dispute
Thu,2 Aug 2012 01:51 PM PDT
Reuters -  BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Chief negotiators for the EU and Iran agreed on Thursday to hold more talks about Tehran's nuclear work, but the European Union gave no sign progress was imminent in the decade-long dispute. Six world powers, represented by EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, have sought to persuade Iran to scale back its nuclear program through intensifying economic sanctions and diplomacy. They have failed to reach a breakthrough in three rounds of talks since April. ...
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Turkish soldier killed in clash with Kurdish rebels
Thu,2 Aug 2012 01:48 PM PDT
Reuters - DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - At least one Turkish soldier was killed and seven wounded after Kurdish militants opened fire on their outpost in a remote area of southeastern Turkey on Thursday, the provincial governor's office said. Members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) attacked the sentry in the Eruh region of Siirt province using assault weapons, and the soldiers returned fire, they said. The attack occurred at about 7:30 p.m. (1330 EDT) while the soldiers were preparing to break their fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, the sources added. ... Full Story | Top |
U.N. demands end of foreign support for Congo rebels
Thu,2 Aug 2012 01:44 PM PDT
Reuters -  UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council on Thursday demanded an end to foreign support for the M23 rebels fighting against the Kinshasa government in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a rebuke diplomats said was aimed at Rwanda and Uganda. The 15-nation council issued a statement voicing its "strong condemnation of any and all outside support to the M23 and demand that all support to the M23, including from outside countries, cease immediately. ...
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Mortar shells kill 20 in Damascus Palestinian camp
Thu,2 Aug 2012 01:38 PM PDT
Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - At least 20 people were killed on Thursday when Syrian security forces fired three mortar rounds at a Palestinian camp in Damascus, medical sources said. Witnesses in the camp told Reuters by telephone that the mortars hit a busy street as people were preparing a Ramadan meal to break their fasting. "I saw it all, I was going to my house when the first round hit the street, people ran to check the damage when the second one hit the same area," a resident said. "Many people were killed immediately," she said. ... Full Story | Top |
Don't judge Pussy Riot too harshly, Putin says
Thu,2 Aug 2012 01:25 PM PDT
Reuters -  MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday the three women in the band Pussy Riot who performed a "protest prayer" at Russia's main cathedral should not be judged too harshly, raising defense lawyers' hopes that they could escape lengthy jail terms. Putin's comments, reported by Russian news agencies during his visit to London, suggested the three members of the punk band could escape the maximum seven-year jail term following international criticism of the Kremlin over the case. Putin said here was "nothing good" about the band's protest, Interfax reported. ...
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Timeline: Sudan and South Sudan could face sanctions
Thu,2 Aug 2012 01:07 PM PDT
Reuters - (Reuters) - Here is a look at events in Sudan and South Sudan since the 2005 peace accord which ended more than two decades of civil war between rebels in the south of Sudan and the government in Khartoum in the mostly Muslim, Arabic-speaking north. January 9, 2005 - Southern rebel leader John Garang and chief government negotiator Vice President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha sign a comprehensive peace agreement ending the civil war. The agreement shares oil revenues between the north and south, sets up a coalition government and promises elections. ... Full Story | Top |
Putin weighs into punk trial after judo gold
Thu,2 Aug 2012 12:48 PM PDT
Reuters -  LONDON (Reuters) - Fresh from cheering a Russian judo star to a gold medal at the Olympic Games, President Vladimir Putin urged leniency on Thursday for members of a female punk band on trial for protesting against him at the altar of a Moscow cathedral. Putin told Interfax news agency that there was "nothing good" about the protest by the band Pussy Riot, which outraged many Russian Orthodox believers on the eve of Putin's latest presidential election win. "Nonetheless, I don't think that they should be judged so harshly for this," Interfax news agency quoted Putin as saying. ...
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Congress reauthorizes import ban on Myanmar
Thu,2 Aug 2012 12:27 PM PDT
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Congress voted on Thursday to extend a ban on imports from Myanmar, along with White House authority to waive the restriction if the Southeast Asian nation continues to make political and economic reforms. Both the Senate and the House of Representative approved the legislation on a voice vote, sending it to President Barack Obama to sign into law. The bill reauthorizes the ban for three years, but only extends it for one year to allow Congress an opportunity to revisit the issue in 2013. ...
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RIM to launch new PlayBook line next week
Thu,2 Aug 2012 12:09 PM PDT
Reuters -  TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's Research In Motion has chosen its home country to launch a PlayBook tablet with built-in support for cellular networks, a crucial feature missing from its poor-selling initial models. The BlackBerry maker said on Thursday it would launch the new tablets in Canada next week and roll them out in coming months in the United States, Europe, South Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. ...
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Clinton takes message of reconciliation to South Sudan
Thu,2 Aug 2012 12:00 PM PDT
Reuters -  KAMPALA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will press South Sudan to resolve disputes with its former rulers in the north, on her first visit to the world's newest country on Friday. On an 11-nation African tour, Clinton will be the most senior U.S. since independence last year, warning that bitter divisions over territory and oil threaten to wreck the economies of two nations. "We're encouraging both sides, South Sudan and Sudan, to meet and negotiate the differences between them as expeditiously as possible," a senior U.S. ...
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Iraq seeking Russian air defense gear: official
Thu,2 Aug 2012 11:47 AM PDT
Reuters -  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's acting defense minister is in Russia negotiating the purchase of air surveillance equipment to help Iraq rebuild its crippled military defenses, a lawmaker said on Thursday. American troops pulled out of Iraq in December, leaving the war-battered country to defend its own borders and airspace for the first time since it was occupied in 2003. Under Saddam Hussein, Iraq's air force was one of the largest in the region with hundreds of mainly Soviet-designed jets. But its military was disbanded after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 deposed of Saddam. ...
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Russia's Putin says regrets Annan's departure
Thu,2 Aug 2012 11:38 AM PDT
Reuters - MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he regretted Kofi Annan was leaving his role as international peace envoy for Syria and called the situation there "a tragedy", Russian news agencies reported. Annan said on Thursday he would quit, frustrated by "finger-pointing" and a stalemate at the U.N. Security Council while the armed rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad was becoming increasingly bloody. "Kofi Annan is a very respectable person, a brilliant diplomat and a very decent man, so it's really a shame," Putin said in London, according to Interfax. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. pins Annan's resignation on Syria diplomacy failures
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:54 AM PDT
Reuters - ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - Kofi Annan's resignation on Thursday as international peace envoy for Syria underscores Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's refusal to abide by a U.N.-backed peace plan and the failure of Russia and China to hold Assad accountable at the U.N. Security Council, the White House said. ... Full Story | Top |
ECB signals may buy euro zone bonds
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:47 AM PDT
Reuters -  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank indicated on Thursday it may again start buying government bonds to reduce crippling Spanish and Italian borrowing costs but the conditions it set and the dissenting voice of its key German member disappointed markets. In the latest move to contain the euro zone crisis, ECB President Mario Draghi indicated that any intervention would not come before September - and only if governments activated the euro zone's bail-out funds to join the ECB in buying bonds. "The Governing Council ... ...
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Kenyans see jobs, corruption as top election issues: Gallup
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:45 AM PDT
Reuters - NAIROBI (Reuters) - Creating jobs and tackling corruption are the two most important challenges that Kenyans want their government to address in the run-up to elections next March, according to a Gallup public opinion poll released on Thursday. The next presidential election in east Africa's biggest economy will be closely scrutinized because it will be the first since the 2007 vote that triggered fighting in which more than 1,200 people were killed. ... Full Story | Top |
Iranian tankers return to buy Syrian crude
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:45 AM PDT
Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Iran has become Syria's main crude oil buyer, helping Bashar Al-Assad's flailing government to circumvent Western sanctions, as Iranian tankers have returned for a third time since April, shipping industry sources said. Although Tehran already finds it difficult to sell its own crude under sanctions, two of its ships picked up Syrian oil late in July following a smaller purchase at the start of the same month. Asia is the likely destination for the Syrian oil but the sources said it remained unclear where the previous cargoes ended up. ... Full Story | Top |
Cairo asks U.S. to free last Egyptian at Guantanamo
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:15 AM PDT
Reuters -  CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt has asked the United States to free an Egyptian held at Guantanamo Bay since 2001 and who had been charged with backing terrorist groups in Afghanistan, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday. It was the latest move by the Muslim Brotherhood-led administration to secure freedom for Egyptians jailed for Islamist militancy at home and abroad in the few weeks since President Mohamed Mursi was sworn in. ...
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Echoes of past in new Egypt government
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:08 AM PDT
Reuters -  CAIRO (Reuters) - Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi kept his post as Egyptian defence minister in a Muslim Brotherhood-led administration sworn in on Thursday by President Mohamed Mursi, confirming the military's role at the epicenter of power. Tantawi's inclusion in Prime Minister Hisham Kandil's cabinet was widely expected, but underlined the emerging power balance between a civilian president from a once banned Islamist group and the generals who removed Hosni Mubarak from power. "Do we start from zero? For sure, no," Kandil said during a news conference. ...
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Clashes disrupt union protest against steel plant closure
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:06 AM PDT
Reuters - TARANTO, Italy (Reuters) - More than 100 union activists waving burning flares and throwing eggs stormed the stage where Italian labor leaders were speaking against the closure of the country's largest steel plant on Thursday, forcing police to escort the leaders to safety. Despite health and environmental concerns, the closure of the ILVA factory, which employs 12,000 people, would be a severe blow to the poor southern city that is, like the rest of Italy, mired in recession and facing double-digit unemployment. ... Full Story | Top |
Iraq hits out at Turkey over trip to contested city
Thu,2 Aug 2012 10:02 AM PDT
Reuters -  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's government on Thursday said Turkey had violated its constitution by sending its foreign minister without permission to visit a city at the heart of a dispute between Baghdad and the country's autonomous Kurdistan region. Relations between Iraq, close to Shi'ite Iran, and Sunni Muslim regional power Turkey, were strained at the end of last year after Iraq tried to arrest one of its Sunni vice presidents and Ankara gave him refuge when he fled Iraq. ...
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Saudi aid convoy for Syrian refugees leaves Riyadh
Thu,2 Aug 2012 09:38 AM PDT
Reuters - RIYADH (Reuters) - A convoy of trucks left Riyadh for Syrian refugee camps in Jordan on Thursday evening carrying the first batch of aid from a 10-day national appeal that has so far raised $125 million. Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter and birthplace of Islam, has led Arab diplomatic efforts to isolate the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over his suppression of a 16-month-old rebellion against his rule. ... Full Story | Top |
Romania court delays impeachment ruling, prolongs agony
Thu,2 Aug 2012 09:34 AM PDT
Reuters -  BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania's Constitutional Court on Thursday delayed ruling on whether a referendum to impeach the president was valid, an unexpected twist that extends a damaging political crisis. The court had been expected to invalidate Sunday's referendum after official data showed that while a majority of those voting wanted to dismiss the president, turnout did not reach a required 50 percent threshold. However, the court postponed its decision on President Traian Basescu's impeachment until September 12, extending the political uncertainty and pushing the leu 0. ...
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U.S. approves $12 million more relief aid for Syrians
Thu,2 Aug 2012 09:19 AM PDT
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama has approved another $12 million in emergency relief aid to Syrians, the White House said on Thursday, calling on other countries to boost their donations as a result of worsening conditions there. "After nearly 17 months of conflict, the humanitarian situation is dire and rapidly deteriorating," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement. The statement did not mention the announcement that U.N. ... Full Story | Top |
Syria says Turkey sending terrorists to wage war
Thu,2 Aug 2012 09:13 AM PDT
Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria accused Turkey on Thursday of playing a "fundamental role" in supporting terrorism by opening its airport and border to al Qaeda and other jihadists to carry out attacks inside Syria. Once close allies, the two countries' relationship quickly deteriorated as President Bashar al-Assad intensified a crackdown in a 17-month-old uprising against his rule. Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has called on Assad to leave and Ankara has set up a sprawling refugee camp along the border which houses thousands of Syrian refugees. ... Full Story | Top |
Defense minister symbol of Syria's brutal war
Thu,2 Aug 2012 09:00 AM PDT
Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - When Sunni officer Fahed al-Freij was promoted to replace Syria's Defense minister, slain in a bomb attack two weeks ago, few people paid much attention and rebels dismissed him as inconsequential. But Lebanese officials close to the Syrian government said his appointment was a clear indication that President Bashar al-Assad, taken aback by the assassination of four of his top security officials, had decided to respond savagely. They said Freij, a staunch Assad supporter, was known for brutality and shoot-to-kill tactics. ... Full Story | Top |
Annan, quitting Syria role, faults U.N. blame game
Thu,2 Aug 2012 08:54 AM PDT
Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - Kofi Annan blamed "finger pointing and name calling" within the U.N. Security Council among the reasons for his decision on Thursday to quit as the U.N.-Arab League Joint Special Envoy for Syria. "The world is full of crazy people like me. So don't be surprised if Secretary General Ban Ki-moon can find someone who can do a better job than me," Annan said when asked if he thought someone else would be named to succeed him. ... Full Story | Top |
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