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| Iran nuclear deal to take effect on January 20 Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 03:58 PM PST  By Parisa Hafezi and Justyna Pawlak ANKARA/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A deal between Iran and six major powers intended to pave the way to a solution to a long standoff over Tehran's nuclear ambitions will come into force on January 20, the Iranian Foreign Ministry and the European Union said on Sunday. Shortly after the interim accord takes effect, an Iranian official added, Tehran and world powers will start negotiating a final settlement of their differences about activity the West suspects is aimed at obtaining a nuclear weapons capability. Iran says its atomic energy program is aimed purely at electricity generation and other civilian purposes, although past Iranian attempts to hide sensitive nuclear activity from U.N. non-proliferation inspectors raised concerns. The November 24 agreement appeared to halt a slide towards another, wider Middle East war over Iran's nuclear aspirations, but diplomats warn it will not be easy to carry out because of long-standing mutual mistrust. Full Story | Top |
| Al Qaeda Syria unit executes dozens of rivals in Raqqa: activists Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 05:17 PM PST  By Khaled Yacoub Oweis AMMAN (Reuters) - The al Qaeda-linked Islamist State of Iraq and the Levant executed dozens of rival Islamists over the last two days as the group recaptured most territory it had lost in the northeastern Syrian province of Raqqa, activists said on Sunday. One of the activists, who spoke from the province on condition of anonymity, said up to 100 fighters from the Nusra Front, another al Qaeda affiliate, and the Ahrar al-Sham brigade, captured by ISIL in the town of Tel Abyad on the border with Turkey, the nearby area of Qantari and the provincial capital city of Raqqa, were shot dead. "About 70 bodies, most shot in the head, were collected and sent to the Raqqa National hospital," the activist said. The fact that Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham are ideologically similar to the ISIL did not matter," he added. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Iran to get first $550 million of blocked $4.2 billion on February 1 Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 02:08 PM PST  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iran would receive the first $550 million installment of a total of $4.2 billion in previously blocked overseas funds on or about February 1, a senior U.S. official said on Sunday. Under a November 24 nuclear agreement, six major powers agreed to give Iran access to $4.2 billion in revenues blocked overseas if it carries out the deal, which offers sanctions relief in exchange for steps to curb the Iranian nuclear program. Some payments are contingent on Iran diluting its stockpile of 20 percent enriched uranium to no more than 5 percent enriched uranium. The U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Women lift 'American Hustle' at Golden Globe Awards Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 06:48 PM PST  By Mary Milliken BEVERLY HILLS, California (Reuters) - Actresses Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence put 1970s corruption caper "American Hustle" at the front of the pack midway through Sunday's Golden Globes by winning top acting honors in Hollywood's kick-off to the awards season. Adams won best actress in a musical or comedy for her role as the conniving partner to a con-man played by Christian Bale, while Lawrence took best supporting actress for her turn as his loopy wife. The film directed David O. Russell is one of the frontrunners for the 71st Annual Golden Globe Awards, an important but not entirely accurate barometer for the film industry's highest honors, the Academy Awards to be held on March 2. She starred in Russell's 2010 "The Fighter," while Lawrence won the best actress Oscar last year for his previous film, "Silver Linings Playbook." Jared Leto took the best supporting actor Globe for his role as Rayon, a transsexual with AIDS in the drama "Dallas Buyers Club." Director Spike Jonze won best screenplay for his quirky computer-age comedy "Her." "American Hustle" leads nominees with seven nods along with "12 Years a Slave," the brutal depiction of pre-Civil War slavery. Full Story | Top |
| Volkswagen says it plans to invest $7 billion in North America Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 07:12 PM PST  By Edward Taylor and Laurence Frost DETROIT (Reuters) - Volkswagen AG said on Sunday it plans to make a sport utility vehicle tailored for the North American market and will invest $7 billion in the region as it seeks to increase sales. Europe's largest automaker reiterated its goal of selling 1 million Volkswagen and upscale Audi vehicles annually in the United States by 2018 as it launches more locally made cars. The company said the move was a sign of renewed commitment to the market after a sales decline by its core VW brand, which continues to achieve low U.S. quality scores. "The Volkswagen brand is and remains at the heart of our product strategy here," CEO Martin Winterkorn told reporters in Detroit on the eve of the North American Auto Show. Full Story | Top |
| Thai protesters start Bangkok "shutdown" in bid to topple PM Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 08:14 PM PST  By Amy Sawitta Lefevre BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thousands of anti-government protesters began a blockade at major intersections in Bangkok on Monday as they sought to paralyze Thailand's capital, stepping up pressure on Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to resign. Police and soldiers kept watch as the city of some 12 million people ground to a halt, but there were no signs that the government was preparing to resist the protesters with force. The upheaval is the latest chapter in an eight-year conflict pitting Bangkok's middle class and royalist establishment against the mostly poorer, rural supporters of Yingluck and her self-exiled brother, billionaire former premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Thaksin was ousted by the military in 2006 and sentenced to jail in absentia for abuse of power in 2008, but he still looms large over Thai politics and is the dominant force behind his sister's administration from his home in Dubai. Full Story | Top |
| Friends of Syria group urges opposition to attend Geneva talks Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 12:13 PM PST  By John Irish and Warren Strobel PARIS (Reuters) - The "Friends of Syria", an alliance of mainly Western and Gulf Arab countries who oppose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, urged opposition groups on Sunday to attend this month's peace talks, saying there was no other route to a political solution. With 10 days to go until the first direct talks between the opposition and President Bashar al-Assad's government - set for January 22 in Switzerland and dubbed "Geneva 2" - Western backers have struggled to unify rebel groups. The main political opposition body in exile, the Syrian National Coalition (SNC), has been plagued by internal bickering. In a final statement, the 11 core Friends of Syria nations urged the SNC to attend the talks on the shores of Lake Geneva. Full Story | Top |
| Israelis pay last respects to warrior-statesman Sharon Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 04:26 PM PST  By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Thousands of Israelis bade farewell on Sunday to former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the maverick warrior-statesman who helped reshape the Middle East, as his body lay in state outside parliament in Jerusalem. Sharon died at the age of 85 on Saturday after eight years in a coma caused by a stroke he suffered at the pinnacle of his political power. He will be buried on Monday in a military funeral on his farm in southern Israel. Arik Sharon faded away eight years ago, and now we truly say goodbye to him," Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, using Sharon's nickname, wrote in a tribute on Sunday. Full Story | Top |
| Egyptians set to vote on army-backed post-Mursi constitution Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 02:02 PM PST  By Tom Perry CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptians vote this week for the first time since Mohamed Mursi's downfall in a constitutional referendum that will likely give a final push to a presidential bid by the man who deposed him, army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Approval of the rewritten constitution appears a foregone conclusion: Mursi's now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood is urging a boycott rather than a 'no' vote, while many Egyptians who backed his overthrow are expected to vote 'yes' in a show of support for the army-backed order that has replaced Islamist rule. Analysts say it hopes that the turnout and the 'yes' vote will outstrip ballots won by the Muslim Brotherhood to give the new order an electoral seal of legitimacy. "Egypt is on the threshold of a decisive stage in its history, the results of which are awaited by the world," Sisi said on Saturday in public remarks that included the clearest indication to date that he will stand for election. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: U.S. investigating Honeywell over export, import controls Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 05:12 AM PST  By Andrea Shalal-Esa WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department is investigating export and import procedures at Honeywell International Inc after the firm included Chinese parts in equipment it built for the F-35 fighter jet, three sources familiar with the matter said. Reuters last week reported that the Pentagon twice waived laws banning Chinese-built components in U.S. weapons in 2012 and 2013 for parts supplied by Honeywell for the $392 billion Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 program. New details have now emerged about one of those waivers, which involved simple thermal sensors that Honeywell initially produced in Scotland before moving that production line to China in 2009 and 2010. The other waivers involved high-performance magnets built in China and elsewhere. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: More well-known U.S. retailers victims of cyber attacks - sources Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 01:11 PM PST  By Jim Finkle and Mark Hosenball BOSTON/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Target Corp and Neiman Marcus are not the only U.S. retailers whose networks were breached over the holiday shopping season last year, according to sources familiar with attacks on other merchants that have yet to be publicly disclosed. Smaller breaches on at least three other well-known U.S. retailers took place and were conducted using similar techniques as the one on Target, according to the people familiar with the attacks. Only one well-known retailer, Neiman Marcus, has said that they too have been victim of a cyber attack since Target's December 19 disclosure that some 40 million payment card numbers had been stolen in a cyber attack. On Friday, Target said the data breach was worse than initially thought. Full Story | Top |
| In war or withdrawal, Sharon marched to his own drum Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 03:14 AM PST  By Dan Williams and Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A maverick in war and politics, Israel's Ariel Sharon reshaped the Middle East in a career marked by adventurism and disgrace, dramatic reversals and stunning rebounds. Loathed by many Arabs and a divisive figure within Israel, Sharon left his mark on the region as perhaps no other through military invasion, Jewish settlement building on captured land and a shock decision to pull out of Gaza. Some diplomats believed that had he remained in good health, he would have secured peace with the Palestinians after overcoming domestic critics to force through the withdrawal of troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip in 2005. "As one who fought in all of Israel's wars, and learned from personal experience that without proper force, we do not have a chance of surviving in this region ... I have also learned from experience that the sword alone cannot decide this bitter dispute in this land," Sharon said in 2004, explaining his move. Full Story | Top |
| Thai protesters move to shut down Bangkok to force out PM Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 03:45 PM PST By Amy Sawitta Lefevre BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand braced for a "shutdown" of its capital on Monday by protesters who want to topple Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and install an unelected government, as fears grew that the southeast Asian country could be heading for civil war. Protesters led by former opposition politician Suthep Thaugsuban started blocking major intersections late on Sunday, aiming to create traffic chaos in a city of an estimated 12 million people where roads are clogged at the best of times. The upheaval is the latest chapter in an eight-year conflict pitting Bangkok's middle class and royalist establishment against the mostly poorer, rural supporters of Yingluck and her self-exiled brother, former premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Thaksin was ousted by the military in 2006 and sentenced to jail in absentia for abuse of power in 2008, but he still looms large over Thai politics and is the dominant force behind his sister's administration from his home in Dubai. Full Story | Top |
| Al Qaeda Syria unit executes dozens of rival Islamists: activists Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 03:40 PM PST The al Qaeda-linked Islamist state of Iraq and the Levant executed dozens of rival Islamists over the last two days as the group recaptured most territory it had lost in the northeastern Syrian province of Raqqa, activists said on Sunday. One of the activists, who spoke from the province on condition of anonymity, said up to 100 fighters from the Nusra Front, another al Qaeda affiliate, and the Ahrar al-Sham brigade, captured by ISIL in the town of Tel Abiad on the border with Turkey, the nearby area of Qantari and the provincial capital city of Raqqa, were shot dead. Full Story | Top |
| Israelis pay last respects to warrior-statesman Sharon Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 10:29 AM PST By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Thousands of Israelis bade farewell on Sunday to former prime minister Ariel Sharon, the maverick warrior-statesman who helped reshape the Middle East, as his body lay in state outside parliament in Jerusalem. Sharon died at the age of 85 on Saturday after eight years in a coma caused by a stroke he suffered at the pinnacle of his political power. He will be buried on Monday in a military funeral on his farm in southern Israel. Arik Sharon faded away eight years ago, and now we truly say goodbye to him," Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, using Sharon's nickname, wrote in a tribute on Sunday. Full Story | Top |
| Bomb attacks kill at least 18 in Iraq Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 10:39 AM PST Bombs killed at least 18 people in Iraq on Sunday, police and medics said, as the Shi'ite-led government sought to evict al Qaeda-linked militants from Falluja without a fight. No group claimed responsibility for the bombings, but Sunni Islamist insurgents have stepped up a violent campaign in the past year, engulfing Iraq in its worst bloodshed for five years. Sunday's deadliest blast was caused by a car bomb that killed nine people outside a bus terminal in the Allawi district of Baghdad, near the site of a suicide bombing four days ago at an airfield where 23 army recruits were slain. Another car bomb in Baghdad killed five people, while two bombs planted near a supermarket in the town of Tuz Khurmatu, about 175 km (110 miles) north of the capital, killed at least four people and wounded 28, police said. Full Story | Top |
| Insight: War turns Syria into major amphetamines producer, consumer Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 01:39 AM PST  By Stephen Kalin BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria has become a major amphetamines exporter and consumer as the trauma of the country's brutal civil war fuels demand and the breakdown in order creates opportunity for producers. Drugs experts, traders and local activists say Syrian production of the most popular of the stimulants, known by its former brand name Captagon, accelerated in 2013, outpacing production in other countries in the region such as Lebanon. Reports of seizures and interviews with people connected to the trade suggest it generates hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenues in Syria, potentially providing funding for weapons, while the drug itself helps combatants dig in for long, grueling battles. Most other economic activity in Syria has ground to a halt in the past two years due to the violence, shortages and international sanctions. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. profits could bounce in 2014 if economy gains steam Saturday, Jan 11, 2014 10:37 PM PST  By Caroline Valetkevitch NEW YORK (Reuters) - A more robust U.S. economy could lift 2014 profits and boost corporate spending, giving some comfort to investors worried about bloated stock prices. Faster economic growth should translate into better sales growth for the Standard & Poor's 500 index, and that has investors watching the coming fourth-quarter earnings reports to see if chief executives sound more optimistic - and if they plan on spending the gigantic pile of cash they are hoarding. For the S&P 500, fourth-quarter profit growth is expected to have increased 7.7 percent from a year ago, while revenue is expected to have risen just 0.4 percent, Thomson Reuters data showed. Analysts at Mizuho Securities noted this week that rising GDP is a good predictor of profit growth. Full Story | Top |
| Insight: Italian home base hampers sofa king Natuzzi Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 04:26 AM PST  By Francesca Piscioneri SANTERAMO IN COLLE, Italy (Reuters) - From this hilltop town on the heel of Italy's boot, Pasquale Natuzzi has built an eponymous furniture company that is one of the country's most global brands. It sells sofa beds from Dallas to New Delhi and is one of a handful of Italian companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Yet today, Natuzzi's home base is dragging it down. The core of its production and half of its 6,500 worldwide employees are in Italy where high labor costs and strict employment laws make it hard for companies to keep up with more nimble competitors elsewhere. Full Story | Top |
| Restaurants reopen with bottled water after West Virginia spill Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 01:32 PM PST By Ann Moore CHARLESTON, West Virginia (Reuters) - Restaurants and shops were reopening on Sunday in parts of West Virginia where the water supply was poisoned by a chemical spill, although up to 300,000 people spent a fourth day unable to use tap water for anything besides flushing toilets. State government officials, the utility company West Virginia American Water and the National Guard were continuing to test the water supply on Sunday after as much as 7,500 gallons (28,000 liters) of an industrial chemical leaked into the Elk River on Thursday. It could still be several days before people in nine counties and Charleston, the state capital and largest city, can once again use the water from their faucets for drinking, cooking and bathing. Full Story | Top |
| U.N. watchdog eyes increased Iran presence to verify nuclear deal Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 07:01 AM PST  By Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) - The U.N. atomic watchdog is considering increasing its presence in Iran to better handle an extra workload in verifying Tehran is carrying out a deal with world powers to curb its nuclear program, diplomats said. Facing an expanded role as a result of the November 24 accord, the International Atomic Energy Agency is likely to need more inspectors in Iran and is also examining whether to set up a small, temporary office there, they said. While IAEA inspectors frequently travel to Iran to make sure there is no diversion of nuclear material for military purposes, they do not now have any such operational base. Iran would need to approve such a move. Full Story | Top |
| Gunmen assassinate Libyan deputy industry minister Sunday, Jan 12, 2014 05:18 AM PST By Ghaith Shennib TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Gunmen killed Libya's deputy industry minister as he drove home from shopping in the coastal city of Sirte late on Saturday in an attack security officials blamed on hardline Islamist militants. Libya is still plagued by widespread violence and targeted killings more than two years after the civil war ousted Muammar Gaddafi, with militants, militia gunmen and former rebels often resorting to force to impose demands on the fragile government. The theory is, the bomb failed, so they shot him instead." The official blamed Islamist militants who have been trying to extend their influence in Sirte, which has been more stable recently than the coastal capital of Tripoli, about 460 km (290 miles) to the west, or the eastern city of Benghazi. Prime Minister Ali Zeidan's central government, weakened by political infighting and with only nascent armed forces, is struggling to wrest control back from areas where militias are still dominant. Full Story | Top |
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