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| Body of India rape victim arrives home in New Delhi Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 08:03 PM PST  NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The body of a woman whose gang rape provoked protests and rare national debate about violence against women in India arrived back in New Delhi early on Sunday. The unidentified 23-year-old medical student died from her injuries on Saturday, prompting promises of action from a government that has struggled to respond to public outrage. She had suffered brain injuries and massive internal damage in the attack on December 16, and died in hospital in Singapore where she had been taken for treatment. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sex, drugs and rock and roll: Australia's other boom Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 06:25 PM PST  CANBERRA (Reuters) - Forget Australia's mining boom. The nation's strong economy, high currency and wages have made it a magnet for sex, drugs and rock and roll. Foreign sex workers, drug smugglers and global rock acts are all targeting Australia to cash in on an economy growing at 3.1 percent when other developed nations are struggling to expand at all. The alternative boom has emerged as Australian average full-time wages hit $72,500 a year, and with the Australian dollar trading stubbornly above parity with the U.S. dollar for the past two years. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senate leaders work to avoid New Year's "fiscal cliff" Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 04:22 PM PST  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional negotiators burrowed into their offices on Saturday to see if they could stop the U.S. economy from falling off of a "fiscal cliff" in just three days when the biggest tax increases ever to hit Americans in one shot are scheduled to begin. Aides to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell worked through the day on a possible compromise that would set aside $600 billion in tax increases and across-the-board government spending cuts that are set to kick in next week. ... Full Story | Top |
| Britain heading in the right direction: Cameron Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 04:02 PM PST  LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron said on Sunday Britain was heading in the right direction on all its major issues and could look forward to 2013 with realism and optimism. In a New Year video message, Cameron said the country had made progress on cutting its budget deficit, reforming welfare and improving school standards. Deficit reduction and preserving Britain's credit rating have been goals for the coalition of Cameron's Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, which came to power in June 2010 just after the budget deficit peaked at 11.2 percent of GDP. ... Full Story | Top |
| Death of India rape victim stirs anger, promises of action Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 02:07 PM PST NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - A woman whose gang rape provoked protests and rare national debate about violence against women in India died from her injuries on Saturday, prompting promises of action from a government that has struggled to respond to public outrage. The unidentified 23-year-old medical student suffered a brain injury and massive internal damage in the attack on December 16 and died in hospital in Singapore where she had been taken for treatment. ... Full Story | Top |
| Berlusconi says Monti plotting with Italy's center left Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 01:45 PM PST  ROME/MILAN (Reuters) - Silvio Berlusconi said on Saturday that outgoing Prime Minister Mario Monti was plotting with the left in his centrist alliance's bid to win Italy's national election in February, but centrist leaders denied any secret accord. Monti, who replaced Berlusconi as prime minister last year when Italy was scrambling to avert a financial crisis, said on Friday he wanted to unite a broad coalition of factions around a reform agenda aimed at easing the country's economic woes. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: After "fiscal cliff" dive, more battles, new cliffs Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 01:20 PM PST  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Whether or not the "fiscal cliff" impasse is broken before the New Year's Eve deadline, there will be no post-cliff peace in Washington. With the political climate toxic in Congress as the cliff's steep tax hikes and spending cuts approach, other partisan fights loom, all over the issue that has paralyzed the capital for the past two years: federal spending. The first will come in late February when the Treasury Department runs out of borrowing authority and has to come to Congress to get the debt ceiling raised. ... Full Story | Top |
| Four killed when Russian airliner crash lands Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 12:55 PM PST  MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian airliner flying without passengers broke into pieces after it slid off the runway and crashed onto a highway outside Moscow upon landing on Saturday, killing four of the eight crew on board and leaving smoking chunks of fuselage on the icy road. The crash during peak holiday travel ahead of Russia's New Year's vacation, which runs from Sunday through January 9, cast a spotlight on the country's poor air-safety record despite President Vladimir Putin's calls to improve controls. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syria doomed to "hell" without political deal: envoy Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 10:40 AM PST  MOSCOW/AZAZ, Syria (Reuters) - The international mediator touting a peace plan for Syria warned on Saturday of "hell" if the warring sides shun talks, and Moscow accused enemies of President Bashar al-Assad of blocking negotiations. U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said in Moscow that responsible people inside and outside Syria should "help the Syrians stop their descent into more and more bloodshed, into more and more chaos and perhaps a failed state". ... Full Story | Top |
| Rebels extend reach in Central African Republic ahead of peace talks Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 08:07 AM PST  BANGUI (Reuters) - Rebels in Central African Republic took control of a strategic town north of the capital on Saturday after soldiers defending it withdrew, ramping up tensions ahead of planned peace talks. The three-week-old uprising by SELEKA rebels poses the biggest threat yet to President Francois Bozize's near ten-year rule over the former French colony - a nation plagued by poverty and turmoil despite its rich natural resources. ... Full Story | Top |
| SyriaAir cancels flight from Cairo to Aleppo Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 08:06 AM PST CAIRO (Reuters) - Syria's national airline cancelled a flight from Cairo to Aleppo on Saturday due to poor security conditions around the airport, Cairo airport officials said. Rebels fighting to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said last week they would target Aleppo's international airport and opposition activists said on Saturday there had been a big explosion near the complex overnight. The SyriaAir flight had been due to fly to Aleppo before continuing to Damascus. ... Full Story | Top |
| Only political process can save Syria from "hell": envoy Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 07:11 AM PST  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Syria faces "hell" if no deal is struck to end 21 months of bloodshed, an international mediator said on Saturday, but his talks in Russia brought no sign of a breakthrough after a week of intense diplomacy. U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov both said there was still a chance for a negotiated solution to the conflict, which has killed more than 44,000 people and set world powers against one another. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt lets building material cross its border into Gaza Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 06:45 AM PST  ISMAILIA, Egypt (Reuters) - Islamist-led Egypt allowed building materials into Gaza via the Rafah crossing on Saturday for the first time since Hamas seized control of the Palestinian enclave in 2007, an Egyptian border official said. It was part of a shipment of building materials donated by the Gulf Arab state of Qatar, which has pledged $400 million to finance reconstruction in Gaza. The Islamist group Hamas has run Gaza since driving out its rivals in the Palestinian Authority. ... Full Story | Top |
| Arab officials visit cash-strapped Palestinian territory Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 06:08 AM PST  RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Top Arab officials paid a rare visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Saturday to discuss a Palestinian financial crisis that President Mahmoud Abbas hopes will be eased by Arab donations. Arab League Chief Nabil Elaraby and Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr congratulated the Palestinians on a successful United Nations status upgrade last month, but stopped short of promising the badly-needed funds. "Palestine is in need of material and political support," Elaraby told a news conference in the Palestinians' de facto capital of Ramallah. ... Full Story | Top |
| Spaniard convicted in Cuban dissident death returns home Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 05:53 AM PST MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish political activist who was convicted in the death of prominent Cuban dissident Oswaldo Paya in a car crash in Cuba in July arrived in Spain on Saturday to serve out his four-year prison sentence, media reports said. Angel Carromero, a leader of the youth wing of Spain's ruling People's Party, was tried in Cuba and found guilty of reckless driving in the accident which killed one of the most important leaders of Cuba's small opposition community. ... Full Story | Top |
| CAR rebels occupy Sibut after army withdraws: resident, official Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 05:49 AM PST BANGUI (Reuters) - Rebels in Central African Republic took control of the town of Sibut, 190 km (115 miles) north of the capital Bangui, after national army and Chadian soldiers stationed there withdrew, a resident and the head of the pro-government youth movement said on Saturday. "The rebels arrived at around 9 a.m. on two trucks and several motorcycles and took positions at strategic points in the town, firing their guns," said Yvon Jolier Bema, a Sibut resident who fled to Bangui. "The national army and the Chadians had left on Friday in the direction of Bangui. ... Full Story | Top |
| Macedonian opposition rallies to demand early elections Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 05:43 AM PST  SKOPJE (Reuters) - Several thousand people rallied in front of the headquarters of Macedonia's rightist ruling party on Saturday demanding the immediate resignation of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and early elections. The rally was the culmination of days of smaller countrywide protests provoked by an incident last week when the opposition was ejected from the parliament after a disagreement and a brawl over the size of next year's budget. ... Full Story | Top |
| Russian jet splits apart after landing, none killed: airport Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 05:38 AM PST MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian jet with 11 crew and no passengers board went off a runway and split into three pieces after landing at Moscow's Vnukovo airport but nobody was killed, an airport spokeswoman said. There may have been injuries among crew of the Tupolev Tu-204 jet, spokeswoman Yelena Krylova said in televised comments. (Reporting by Alissa de Carbonnel; Writing by Steve Gutterman) Full Story | Top |
| Passenger jet goes off runway outside Moscow, catches fire: Ifax Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 05:01 AM PST MOSCOW (Reuters) - A passenger plane ran off an airport runway outside Moscow on Saturday and caught fire, the Interfax news agency reported, citing police. There was no immediate word on the type of plane or how many people were aboard. An initial report from Interfax said the plane had landed hard on a highway. (Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing by Alison Williams) Full Story | Top |
| Assad's forces seize Homs district from rebels: activists Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 04:39 AM PST  BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian government forces have pushed rebels from a district in Homs after several days of fierce fighting in the strategically important city, opposition activists said on Saturday. The army moved into Deir Ba'alba, a neighborhood on the northeastern edge of Homs, they said, leaving the rebels controlling just the central neighborhoods around the old city and the district of Khalidiyah, immediately to the north. ... Full Story | Top |
| Shock, heartbreak for U.S. parents adopting Russian kids Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 04:21 AM PST  (Reuters) - For months, life for Ann and Kurt Suhs has been a whirlwind of assembling documents, getting fingerprinted and scheduling evaluations of their Atlanta-area home in preparation for welcoming a Russian child into their family for a second time. Now, the couple - who adopted their son Ben, now 7, from Russia at age 13 months - say they were blindsided by news that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Friday banning Americans from adopting Russian children effective next Tuesday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Six held over rape of woman in India charged with murder: police Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 03:08 AM PST  NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Six suspects held in connection with the rape of a women in India have been charged with murder after she died on Saturday of injuries sustained in the attack, police said. "They have been charged (with murder)," said Rajan Bhagat, a spokesman for New Delhi police. The woman, who was gang-raped on a New Delhi bus on December 16, died in hospital in Singapore. The attack has sparked protests and a national debate about violence against women. All six suspects in the rape have been arrested and are in custody. (Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy; Editing by Robert Birsel) Full Story | Top |
| Central Africa states to up troops in Central African Republic ahead of peace talks Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 01:41 AM PST LIBREVILLE (Reuters) - Central African Republic's neighbors have agreed to increase the number of troops stationed there to help defend against rebels threatening to overthrow the government. The Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) - which already has more than 500 peacekeepers in CAR - announced its decision overnight in Gabon's capital Libreville, ahead of peace talks planned between the SELEKA rebels and the government in early January. ... Full Story | Top |
| Russian deputy finance minister Savatyugin resigns Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 01:24 AM PST MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Savatyugin, who oversees the financial markets, banking and insurance sectors, has submitted his resignation. He published a photo of the letter on Twitter, asking Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to accept his resignation from January 9. Savatyugin, who has been in the job since 2010, declined to comment to Reuters on his future job plans. ... Full Story | Top |
| Greece uncovers tourism scam, looks for unaccounted millions Saturday, Dec 29, 2012 01:20 AM PST  ATHENS (Reuters) - Three Greeks were arrested on suspicion of trying to defraud the national tourism board, police said on Saturday, and the finance ministry is investigating a suspected 12-million-euro hole in the state agency's books. Tourism is one of cash-strapped Greece's few remaining money-spinners and the EOT tourism board is in charge of funding several promotion campaigns and subsidy programs for the industry. ... Full Story | Top |
| Russian police free child hostage, kill seven militants in Dagestan Friday, Dec 28, 2012 10:31 PM PST MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian security forces killed seven militants and freed a 6-year-old girl taken hostage in the restive Dagestan region of Russia's volatile North Caucasus on Saturday, a national anti-terrorism committee official told Interfax news agency. The incident took place in an apartment building in the provincial capital of Makhachkala, according to the Interfax report. The militants broke through a wall, entered an apartment and took the girl hostage, according to the report. ... Full Story | Top |
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