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| Toronto's oft-lampooned mayor to guest on "Jimmy Kimmel" -reports Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 06:31 PM PST  Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, who became a popular target for late-night TV hosts after admitting to smoking crack cocaine in a "drunken stupor", will appear on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and may join the comedian at the Oscars, Canadian media reported on Saturday. The Toronto Sun newspaper said Ford is scheduled to be on the Jimmy Kimmel show Monday night and is "looking forward to promoting Toronto on the world stage." The article also quoted Ford as saying he would attend this year's Academy Awards, though another report by a local TV news channel said a plan for Ford to attend the ceremony with Kimmel was not confirmed. Full Story | Top |
| F/A-18 fighter jet crashes during training in Nevada Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 06:26 PM PST A U.S. Navy F/A-18C Hornet fighter jet crashed Saturday during a training mission near a Nevada air base, the Navy said. The status of the pilot was not immediately clear, Navy spokesman Commander Ryan Perry said in a statement. Perry said an investigation would be conducted to determine the cause of the crash, which occurred on a training range about 70 miles east of Naval Air Station Fallon in Nevada. The F/A-18C Hornet is a single-seat fighter jet built by Boeing Co beginning in 1987. Full Story | Top |
| Thailand re-runs disputed elections in five provinces Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 06:25 PM PST  Thailand is holding elections on Sunday in five provinces where voting was disrupted in last month's poll by anti-government protesters trying to unseat Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Election re-runs planned for April in other provinces have been suspended pending a court decision on procedures. Voting was disrupted in 18 percent of constituencies, 69 out of 375, nationwide, the Election Commission said, affecting 18 of 77 provinces. The demonstrators, who have blocked intersections in the capital for weeks, say Yingluck must resign and make way for an appointed "people's council" to overhaul a political system they say has been taken hostage by her billionaire brother and former premier, Thaksin Shinawatra. Full Story | Top |
| California governor signs $687 million drought relief legislation Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 05:46 PM PST  California Governor Jerry Brown on Saturday signed into law a $687 million drought-relief package to deal with a water shortage he has called the worst in the state's modern history. The largest share of the drought relief package - $549 million - comes from accelerated spending of bond money voters previously approved in two ballot propositions. Those measures will fund storm water recapturing, expanded use of recycled water, better management of groundwater storage and stronger water conservation measures. While much of the United States has been pummeled by a series of snow storms, California in recent months has struggled with a drought that threatens to inflict the worst water crisis in recorded state history. Full Story | Top |
| Venezuela government says foes seek to slam it at Oscars Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 05:21 PM PST By Daniel Wallis CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's government said "right-wing extremists" were lobbying in Hollywood for movie stars to denounce President Nicolas Maduro's socialist administration from the stage at Sunday's Academy Awards. Venezuela has been rocked by its worst unrest in a decade, with at least 17 people killed in violence around opposition demonstrations and clashes between hooded protesters, security forces, and pro-government militants. Maduro's critics are demanding he quit and accuse him of repression, while the president says "fascists" working with U.S. financiers want to engineer a coup like the one in 2002 that briefly toppled his predecessor, Hugo Chavez. "Right-wing extremists are lobbying in Hollywood, looking for pronouncements against Venezuela at the Oscars!" Information Minister Delcy Rodriguez said on her Twitter account @DrodriguezMinci on Saturday. Full Story | Top |
| Venezuela foreign minister to meet Ban Ki-moon in Geneva Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 05:21 PM PST  By Daniel Wallis and Girish Gupta CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela said on Saturday its foreign minister will meet United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in Geneva on Tuesday amid growing international calls for dialogue between political players to ease the OPEC nation's worst unrest in a decade. President Nicolas Maduro says his foes are trying to trigger a coup, while his opponents accuse troops and pro-government militants of attacking demonstrators. Venezuela's permanent representative to the United Nations, Jorge Valero, said on Saturday that the secretary general asked for a meeting with Foreign Minister Elias Jaua on Tuesday at the sidelines of a gathering of the U.N. Human Rights Council. "He will have the opportunity to explain the policies for peace and promotion of dialogue that the government is pushing, and to denounce the terrorist plans that have been developing in Venezuela," Valero told Noticias24 Radio in Caracas. Full Story | Top |
| Putin ready to invade Ukraine; Kiev warns of war Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 05:18 PM PST  By Lidia Kelly and Pavel Polityuk MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded and won his parliament's approval on Saturday to invade Ukraine, where the new government warned of war, put its troops on high alert and appealed to NATO for help. Putin's open assertion of the right to send troops to a country of 46 million people on the ramparts of central Europe creates the biggest confrontation between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Troops with no insignia on their uniforms but clearly Russian - some in vehicles with Russian number plates - have already seized Crimea, an isolated peninsula in the Black Sea where Moscow has a large military presence in the headquarters of its Black Sea Fleet. Kiev's new authorities have been powerless to stop them. Full Story | Top |
| Abenomics struggles to deliver Japan public works boom Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 05:04 PM PST  By Antoni Slodkowski and Junko Fujita TOKYO (Reuters) - When Tokyo asked for bidders to build what is expected to be the world's largest fish market on the city's vacant eastern edge there were no takers. In a graphic illustration of how the hopes for "Abenomics" are falling short, the city was forced to raise by two-thirds its budget for the project to more than $1 billion before some of Japan's top construction companies stepped forward. "Wages and material costs are rising, and that's why we failed to attract bidders the first time we tried," said Koji Ishii, a city official overseeing the project, on a sprawl of landfill at Toyosu, next to Tokyo Bay. Tokyo's predicament highlights a deeper problem for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's economic revival plan for Japan, comprising his "three arrows" of hyper-easy monetary policy, fiscal spending and growth-generating structural reform. Full Story | Top |
| China blames Xinjiang militants for deadly attack at station Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 04:45 PM PST  By Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - China blamed militants from the restive far western region of Xinjiang on Sunday for an attack at a train station on the other side of the country by knife-wielding "terrorists" in which at least 33 died, including four of the assailants, who were shot dead. The attack, in the balmy southwestern city of Kunming late on Saturday evening, marks a major escalation in the simmering unrest which had centered on Xinjiang, a heavily Muslim region strategically located on the borders of Central Asia. It is the first time people from Xinjiang have been blamed for carrying out such a large-scale attack so far from their homeland, and follows an incident in Beijing's Tiananmen Square in October which shook the country's Communist leadership. China has stepped up security in Xinjiang after a vehicle ploughed into tourists on the edge of Tiananmen Square, killing the three people in the car and two bystanders. Full Story | Top |
| Canada says recalling ambassador from Russia for consultations Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 04:39 PM PST Canada is recalling its ambassador to Russia for consultations about the crisis in Ukraine and is freezing preparations to take part in the Group of Eight summit in Sochi, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Saturday. Harper, who talked earlier in the day with U.S. President Barack Obama, said Canada condemned Russia's intervention in Ukraine in the strongest possible terms. "Canada has suspended its engagement in preparations for the G-8 Summit, currently planned for Sochi, and the Canadian ambassador in Moscow is being recalled for consultations," Harper said in a statement issued after an emergency cabinet meeting. Full Story | Top |
| Gay rights group gets OK to join Boston St. Patrick's Day parade Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 03:54 PM PST A gay rights group will be allowed to march in Boston's St. Patrick's Day parade, event organizers said on Saturday, reversing a 20-year-long stance after the city's new mayor intervened. It was unclear, however, if marchers from MassEquality, one of the largest gay rights advocacy groups in Massachusetts, would be permitted to carry signs or use slogans identifying themselves as gay men and women, which may yet prove a sticking point. "We don't ban gays, we just want to keep the parade an Irish parade," Tim Duross, the lead organizer of the parade that celebrates the city's Irish heritage and honors military veterans, said in a telephone interview on Saturday. He cited parade rules banning political protest and references to sexual orientation, suggesting that MassEquality was established enough not to have to explain who they are. Full Story | Top |
| China blames Xinjiang militants for station attack Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 03:39 PM PST BEIJING (Reuters) - An attack at a train station in southwestern China was carried out by militants from China's far western region of Xinjiang, state news agency Xinhua said on Sunday. "Evidence at the crime scene showed that the Kunming Railway Station terrorist attack was carried out by Xinjiang separatist forces," Xinhua said, citing the government of Kunming city where the attack happened. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Dan Grebler) Full Story | Top |
| Obama, wary of foreign crises, faces East-West standoff in Ukraine Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 03:29 PM PST  By Matt Spetalnick and Warren Strobel WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As Russia deepened its military intervention in Ukraine's Crimea region on Saturday, ignoring Barack Obama's stern warning, the U.S. president faced a critical test of whether Washington has the leverage or the will to get Moscow to back down. Obama, who has avoided entanglement in global crises where possible and focused on domestic affairs, now finds himself in the midst of the most dangerous East-West standoff since the end of the Cold War. U.S. officials have said for months they did not want Ukraine's political crisis to turn into a Washington-Moscow tug of war. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. tells Russia: Ukraine intervention risks dangerous escalation Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 02:54 PM PST U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told his Russian counterpart on Saturday that Moscow's military intervention risked creating further instability and an escalation "that would threaten European and international security," the Pentagon said. "Secretary Hagel stressed that, without a change on the ground, Russia risks further instability in the region, isolation in the international community and an escalation that would threaten European and international security," Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said in a statement, describing the call with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Full Story | Top |
| At least 28 die in 'terrorist' attack at Chinese train station: reports Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 02:33 PM PST By Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - At least 28 people were killed by knife-wielding attackers in a "violent terrorist attack" at a train station in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming, and police shot dead five of the assailants, state media said on Sunday. Another 113 people were wounded, the official Xinhua news agency said, revising down a previous higher figure. "It was an organized, premeditated violent terrorist attack," Xinhua said. "They just fell on the ground." Graphic pictures on the Twitter-like microblogging service Sina Weibo showed bodies covered in blood lying on the ground at the station. Full Story | Top |
| Obama expresses deep concern to Putin on Ukraine Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 02:33 PM PST U.S. President Barack Obama told Russian President Vladimir Putin that Russia had committed a clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty by sending forces into Crimea and warned of consequences. "The United States condemns Russia's military intervention into Ukrainian territory," the White House said in a statement outlining what was discussed in a 90-minute phone call between Obama and Putin. The White House said the United States will suspend participation in preparatory meetings for G8 summit in Sochi, Russia. Full Story | Top |
| West voices alarm on Crimea, urges Russia to respect Ukraine sovereignty Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 02:29 PM PST The West expressed alarm on Saturday over fast-moving developments in Ukraine's Crimea, urging all sides to avoid further escalation and calling on Russia to respect Ukraine's sovereignty. A week after violent protests forced Russian-backed President Viktor Yanukovich to abandon power in Kiev, Ukraine's new leaders say Russia is trying to take control of the southern Crimea region, which has a majority ethnic Russian population. France, Britain and Germany issued calls for de-escalation in Crimea hours after U.S. President Barack Obama warned that military intervention in the region would be deeply destabilizing and "carry costs". Full Story | Top |
| Bomb kills at least 10 in northeast Nigerian city: witnesses Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 02:24 PM PST By Lanre Ola MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) - At least 10 people were killed on Saturday when a bomb exploded in the northeast Nigerian city of Maiduguri, witnesses said, in a region where the Islamist sect Boko Haram is pursuing a bloody insurgency. Boko Haram, whose fight for an Islamic state in northern Nigeria has killed thousands and made the group the biggest threat to security in Africa's top oil producer, is increasingly targeting the civilian population. "I am at the scene now, it is very bad," local resident Ismaila Abdulraman told Reuters by telephone. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing, but Boko Haram only communicates occasionally through Internet videos, days or weeks after attacks. Full Story | Top |
| Sleepy Crimean port turns out for Russian troops Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 02:11 PM PST By Alissa de Carbonnel BALACLAVA, Ukraine (Reuters) - When a convoy of Russian military vehicles unloaded dozens of armed troops into this sleepy Crimean port town on Saturday, residents thronged around them honking car horns, snapping pictures and waving Russian flags. Although the Russian-speaking servicemen bore no insignia, their vehicles had Russian military plates and there was no doubt among residents they were deployed from the nearby Russian base to take up position outside a Ukrainian border guard base. Ludmila Marchenko, a retired teacher, simply burst into applause when asked about the masked soldiers with automatic rifles standing guard nearby. Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded and won approval from his parliament on Saturday for military action in Ukraine to protect Russian citizens. Full Story | Top |
| NATO ambassadors to discuss Ukraine on Sunday: NATO's Rasmussen Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 01:27 PM PST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO ambassadors will meet in Brussels on Sunday to discuss the situation in Ukraine, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen tweeted on Saturday. "North Atlantic Council will meet tomorrow followed by NATO-Ukraine Commission," Rasmussen wrote. A NATO diplomat said the North Atlantic Council (NATO ambassadors') meeting would take place at 1 p.m. (1200 GMT) and the NATO-Ukraine Commission meeting at 4 p.m. (Reporting by Robert-Jan Bartunek and Luke Baker; Editing by Kevin Liffey) Full Story | Top |
| Pakistani army fuels anger in securing Swat from Taliban Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 01:03 PM PST  By Mehreen Zahra-Malik KHWAZAKHELA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani farmer Wazir Jamal was so upset about being forced off his patch of land to make way for an army base in the Swat Valley that he killed himself, family and friends say. The army pushed Pakistani Taliban militants out of the scenic northwestern valley with a big offensive in 2009 and it is determined to keep them at bay. But in securing Swat with new checkpoints and bases, the army has had to take over some land, fuelling resentment among people who were happy to see soldiers chase the Taliban away but now wonder about the cost. "We're not against the army but please don't rob us of our lives," said Kaleem Ullah, Jamal's 16-year-old son. Full Story | Top |
| Obama national security aides discuss policy options for Ukraine Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 12:48 PM PST President Barack Obama's national security team met on Saturday for an update on the situation in Ukraine and to discuss potential policy options, a senior Obama administration official said. The meeting came as Ukraine asked the United States and other key members of the U.N. Security Council to help safeguard its territorial integrity after Russia announced plans to send armed forces into the country's autonomous Crimea region. Seen leaving the White House after the meeting were Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, CIA Director John Brennan, General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and James Clapper, director of national intelligence. Full Story | Top |
| The day Ukraine's 'Maidan' lost control Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 12:37 PM PST By Stephen Grey KIEV, Ukraine (Reuters) - A World War Two movie set in Crimea was playing on a giant screen in Kiev's Independence Square on Saturday when a politician stepped on the stage to break the shocking news. Yuri Lutsenko, a former interior minister who had gone over to the protesters' side to topple their country's leader, said events in Ukraine had now moved beyond their control. Their movement, launched last year, wanted to edge Ukraine closer to the European Union to share its free markets and its political rights. The hundreds who had spent winter in this amphitheatre of protest - in a movement that came to be known simply, like the main square itself, as the Maidan - had survived bitter cold, police assaults, and clashes in which dozens of their number were killed, mostly by police bullets. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Ecobank CEO's contract must be terminated immediately - PIC letter Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 11:55 AM PST  By Matthew Mpoke Bigg ACCRA (Reuters) - The main shareholder in Ecobank , one of the biggest banks in sub-Saharan Africa, called on Saturday for its Ivorian chief executive Thierry Tanoh to be dismissed immediately. The South African government-owned Public Investment Corporation's (PIC) demand was made in a letter to the interim chairman of the bank, which is headquartered in Togo and is listed in Nigeria and Ghana and on the West African regional bourse BRVM. Full Story | Top |
| British opposition Labour party loosens century-old tie with unions Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 11:51 AM PST  Britain's opposition Labour party voted on Saturday to change its century-old relationship with trade unions to try to revitalise the party before next year's parliamentary election. In such elections the vote of an ordinary party member will now have the same weight as that of a member of parliament, and union members will vote as individuals rather than in a bloc. The shift also ends automatic enrolment of union members in the Labour party. Britain's biggest union, Unite, was accused - but later cleared - of hijacking the selection of a candidate to contest a parliamentary seat in the Scottish town of Falkirk to increase its influence in government. Full Story | Top |
| Suspects shot dead in China station attack: Xinhua Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 11:29 AM PST BEIJING (Reuters) - A number of suspects were shot dead during a "premeditated, violent terrorist attack" at a train station in southwestern China in which at least 27 people died, state media said on Sunday. The official Xinhua news agency said the identities of those shot dead had yet to be confirmed. The attack happened late on Saturday in Kunming city. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Kevin Liffey) Full Story | Top |
| Moscow gay athletic games suffer disruption, harassment Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 11:24 AM PST  By Katya Golubkova MOSCOW (Reuters) - Disruption and police intrusions marred Russia's first open Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) athletic competition this week, organizers said. The five-day Russian Open Games, held the week after Russia hosted the Sochi Winter Olympics, brought people from around the world to play football, basketball and other sports. The Sochi Olympics, a personal prestige project for President Vladimir Putin, had come under fire after the Russian leader signed a law last year that critics said discriminated against gays and could encourage hate crimes. The organizers of the Open Games had to find some venues at short notice after the Russian LGBT Sport Federation was informed at the last minute that some of its bookings had been canceled. Full Story | Top |
| Britain says 'no excuse' for military intervention in Ukraine Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 11:17 AM PST By Belinda Goldsmith LONDON (Reuters) - Britain urged Russia on Saturday to calm the situation in Ukraine after Russian President Vladimir Putin secured his parliament's authority to invade his neighbor's territory. "There can be no excuse for outside military intervention in Ukraine - a point I made to President Putin when we spoke yesterday," Prime Minister David Cameron said. The world is watching." Britain called an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council for Saturday to discuss events in Ukraine. Foreign Secretary William Hague described the Russian action as a "potentially grave threat" to Ukraine's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity that breached a 1994 pact signed by Russia, the United States, Britain and Ukraine. Full Story | Top |
| EU's Ashton urges Russia not to dispatch troops to Ukraine Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 11:00 AM PST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said a decision by the Russian parliament to authorize the use of Russian forces in neighboring Ukraine was an unwarranted escalation of tensions. "I therefore call upon the Russian Federation not to dispatch such troops but to promote its views through peaceful means," Ashton said in a written statement on Saturday. Ashton added that she would meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov after Monday's extraordinary meeting of EU foreign ministers to discuss the bloc's response to the situation in Ukraine. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S., Russian defense chiefs talk amid Russian moves on Crimea Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 10:59 AM PST U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke on Saturday with his Russian counterpart, a U.S. official told Reuters, as Russian President Vladimir Putin secured his parliament's authority to invade Ukraine. The official gave no details of Hagel's conversation with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Putin was given quick authority on Saturday by Russia's parliament to invade Ukraine after troops seized control of the Crimea peninsula. The developments came a day after Obama had warned that there would be "costs" if there was military intervention by Russia in Ukraine, where Moscow ally President Viktor Yanukovich was ousted last week. Full Story | Top |
| Turkish parliament votes to shut schools run by Erdogan rival Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 10:53 AM PST  By Ayla Jean Yackley ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's parliament has voted to close private preparatory schools, many of which are a source of income and influence for an Islamic cleric accused by Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan of covertly seeking to topple him. Erdogan has accused cleric Fethullah Gulen, whose followers wield influence in the police and judiciary, of concocting a graft scandal to compromise his government. Full Story | Top |
| To see U.S. wealth gap, look no further than Washington Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 10:01 AM PST  By Ian Simpson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama is making income inequality an issue in midterm elections, and proof of the gap between rich and poor is close at hand right outside the White House. The booming District of Columbia features the wealthiest high-income strata among big U.S. cities and more poor people than the national average, leading analysts to call it a microcosm of the larger U.S. economy. A flood of mostly young, educated newcomers has helped revitalize once-blighted neighborhoods, but is wiping out low-cost housing within sight of the Capitol. Full Story | Top |
| Attack at China station deemed 'violent terror attack' Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 09:58 AM PST BEIJING (Reuters) - An attack at a train station in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming in which at least 27 people were killed has been deemed a "violent terror attack", state television said on its official microblog on Sunday. It provided no further details. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Kevin Liffey) Full Story | Top |
| Iraq death toll exceeds 700 in February: U.N. Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 09:23 AM PST  By Ned Parker BAGHDAD (Reuters) - More than 700 people died in violence in Iraq in February, not including nearly 300 reported deaths in western Anbar province, where security forces have been battling Sunni Muslim rebels since January, the United Nations said on Saturday. The world body said local authorities had recorded 298 civilian deaths in Anbar, but that it could not confirm the figures independently due to the chaos in the desert region. Outside Anbar, the bloodshed was worst in Baghdad, where 239 civilians were killed, followed by Salahuddin province to the north with 121 dead. The United Nations said it had confirmed 703 deaths in Iraq in February, compared to 733 in January, excluding Anbar. Full Story | Top |
| Protesters raise Russian flag in two east Ukrainian cities Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 08:23 AM PST Dozens of people were hurt in clashes on Saturday when pro-Russia activists stormed the regional government's headquarters in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv and raised the Russian flag, local media said. The UNIAN news agency said thousands of people had gathered outside the building during a protest against the country's new leaders who ousted President Viktor Yanukovich a week ago. The leaders of Crimea, a Black Sea peninsula with an ethnic Russian majority that is home to a Russian naval base, say they have joined forces with Russian servicemen to exert control over key buildings. Russian parliament has approved a proposal by President Vladimir Putin to deploy troops in Ukraine. Full Story | Top |
| European center-left launches election drive, attacks austerity Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 08:14 AM PST  By James Mackenzie ROME (Reuters) - European center-left parties called on Saturday for a change to austerity policies enacted to counter the euro zone crisis as they named Martin Schulz to be their candidate for next head of the European Commission. The Party of European Socialists (PES), which groups Europe's main center-left parties, said the focus on tight budgetary policy during the crisis had resulted in mass unemployment, hardship and the rise of populist movements. The euro zone is gradually recovering from its worst economic crisis since the launch of the single currency but its southern members continue to struggle and youth unemployment remains above 40 percent in Greece, Spain and Italy. "Europe can't continue like this," French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told reporters at a special PES congress in Rome held to launch the joint platform for the European parliamentary elections on May 22-25. Full Story | Top |
| EU foreign ministers to hold emergency Ukraine talks on Monday Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 08:00 AM PST EU foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting in Brussels on Monday to discuss the situation in Ukraine, an EU diplomat said. "There will be an extraordinary meeting on Ukraine on Monday. Full Story | Top |
| Pakistani Taliban announces ceasefire to revive peace talks Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 07:37 AM PST  By Katharine Houreld and Mehreen Zahra-Malik ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The Pakistani Taliban on Saturday announced a one-month ceasefire aimed at reviving peace talks after receiving what it said were government assurances it would not be attacked. A government negotiator could not confirm that there were such guarantees, but said talks could be restarted if the ceasefire was honored. Speculation has mounted in recent weeks that the Pakistani military is planning an offensive against the insurgents after talks between the militants and government broke down. "The senior leadership of the Taliban advises all subgroups to respect the Taliban's call for a ceasefire and abide by it and completely refrain from all jihadi activities in this time period," spokesman Shahidullah Shahid said in a statement. Full Story | Top |
| Macedonia poised for early parliamentary vote after ruling coalition spat Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 07:37 AM PST  By Kole Casule SKOPJE (Reuters) - Macedonia is set to call early parliamentary elections in a bid to end a political deadlock sparked by the two main ruling coalition members' failure to agree on a candidate for the upcoming presidential vote, officials said on Saturday. The ethnic Albanian Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), a junior coalition member, was angered by its larger partner VMRO-DPMNE's decision to nominate current president Gjorge Ivanov as its candidate. Conservative Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski's VMRO-DPMNE party accepted the challenge and it was ready for an early vote. Full Story | Top |
| Pakistan court convicts five of reporter's murder in landmark case Saturday, Mar 01, 2014 06:57 AM PST By Katharine Houreld ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A Pakistani court convicted five men on Saturday of murdering a young television reporter, his brother said, marking the first time anyone has been convicted for killing a Pakistani journalist. Wail Babar, a 28-year-old journalist for Geo news, covered the seamy side of Karachi, a sweltering port megacity of 18 million people. One of the men convicted, Mohammad Shahrukh Khan, said in a videotaped confession posted on YouTube that he had been asked to follow Babar home from work by an activist from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), the party that rules Karachi. The MQM denies any link to Khan or the other killers. Full Story | Top |
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