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| Philippine ship dodges China blockade to reach South China Sea outpost Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 09:10 PM PDT  By Erik de Castro and Roli Ng SECOND THOMAS SHOAL, South China Sea (Reuters) -The Philippine government vessel made a dash for shallow waters around the disputed reef in the South China Sea, evading two Chinese coastguard ships trying to block its path to deliver food, water and fresh troops to a military outpost on the shoal. It's also a reminder of how assertive China has become in pressing its claims to disputed territory far from its mainland. "If we didn't change direction, if we didn't change course, then we would have collided with them," Ferdinand Gato, captain of the Philippine vessel, a civilian craft, told Reuters after his boat had anchored on the Second Thomas Shoal under a hot sun. China, which claims 90 percent of the South China Sea, says the shoal is part of its territory. Full Story | Top |
| Washington mudslide victims remembered at tearful church services Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 09:09 PM PDT  By Jonathan Kaminsky and Bryan Cohen DARRINGTON, Washington (Reuters) - Churches offered prayers on Sunday for dozens of people dead and missing from last week's mudslide in Washington state, as well as words of solace for grieving families, many still waiting for news of loved ones who vanished. The formal death toll rose to 21 on Sunday, including the remains of 15 victims identified by medical examiners and six still awaiting positive identification, said Jason Biermann, program manager for the Snohomish County Emergency Management Department. Full Story | Top |
| North Korea starts firing drill off west coast: media Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 08:41 PM PDT SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has started a firing drill off its west coast, South Korean media reported on Monday, hours after Pyongyang notified Seoul and issued a warning to shipping to avoid an area near a disputed maritime border between the two countries. Shells appeared to have landed in the water north of one of the populated South Korean islands off the west coast of the peninsula but it was not clear whether they fell in South Korean waters, YTN news television said. (Reporting by Jack Kim; Editing by David Chance) Full Story | Top |
| North Korea declares no-sail warning off coast to conduct firing drills Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 07:24 PM PDT North Korea declared a no-sail warning on Monday for areas off its west coast near a disputed border with South Korea and has notified the South that it will conduct firing drills, a South Korean government official said. The area is near the so-called Northern Limit Line, drawn up at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, which the North has refused to recognize. The warning comes amid heightened tensions surrounding the North after the U.N. Security Council condemned Pyongyang for its mid-range missile launches last week, just as the leaders of South Korea, Japan and the United States met to discuss the North's arms program. The areas marked by the North are north of the naval border but lie close to islands populated by civilians, said the official, who requested anonymity. Full Story | Top |
| China to crack down on videos, audios promoting terrorism Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 07:18 PM PDT BEIJING (Reuters) - China will crack down on videos and audio recordings that promote terrorism, religious extremism and separatism, the government said on Monday. The notice, published by judicial, cultural and public security organs, said it is forbidden to spread such video and audio recordings on the web, via mobile phone, on social media and online marketplaces, among other means. ... Full Story | Top |
| No time limit on Malaysia jet search: Australia PM Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 07:14 PM PDT  By Michael Martina and Adam Jourdan PERTH/BEIJING (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said there was no time limit on the hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, missing for more than three weeks in the Indian Ocean with 239 people on board. A total of 20 aircraft and ships will resume scouring a massive area in the Indian Ocean some 2,000 km (1,200 miles) west of Perth on Monday, search authorities said. Families have strongly criticized Malaysia's handling of the search and investigation, including the decision last week to say that, based on satellite evidence, the plane had crashed in the southern Indian Ocean. Abbott rejected suggestions his Malaysian counterpart had been too hasty to break that news, given that no confirmed wreckage from the plane has been found and its last sighting on radar was northwest of Malaysia heading towards India. Full Story | Top |
| Official death toll in Washington state mudslide raised to 21 from 18 Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 07:11 PM PDT ARLINGTON, Washington (Reuters) - The official death toll from last week's devastating mudslide in Washington state has risen to 21 from 18, Snohomish County Emergency Management Department officials said on Sunday. Agency program manager Jason Biermann told reporters the latest tally is based on the positive identification of three more victims, and said an additional four sets of remains were found on Sunday in the debris field. (Reporting by Bryan Cohen; Writing by Steve Gorman) Full Story | Top |
| Kerry meets with Lavrov on Ukraine, urges troop pullback Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 06:11 PM PDT  By Lesley Wroughton and Alexei Anishchuk PARIS/MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks on Sunday about ways to defuse the crisis over Ukraine, with Kerry telling Moscow that progress depended on a Russian troop pullback from Ukraine's borders. "Both sides made suggestions of ways to de-escalate the security and political situation in and around Ukraine," Kerry told a news conference late on Sunday after meeting with Lavrov for four hours in Paris. "Any real progress in Ukraine must include a pullback of the very large Russian force that is currently massing along Ukraine's borders," Kerry said. Full Story | Top |
| French left loses dozens of towns in local elections: exit poll Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 06:07 PM PDT French President Francois Hollande's ruling Socialists and their allies scored 42 percent of the total vote in local elections on Sunday, trailing opposition conservatives on 49 percent, a TV exit poll by survey group BVA showed. The National Front, which fielded candidates in a minority of municipalities across France, scored a total nine percent of the vote in the second-round run-offs, BVA estimated. Full Story | Top |
| Hollande's Socialists set to hold Paris town hall: exit poll Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 06:07 PM PDT PARIS (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande's ruling Socialists looked set to retain control of Paris town hall in local elections on Sunday as their candidate Anne Hidalgo won 54.5 percent of votes, according to a TV exit poll. If confirmed, the victory would be some consolation for Hollande's ruling party, which according to partial tallies and exit polls was on track to lose its grip on dozens of major towns elsewhere across France. (Reporting by Marion Douet; editing by Mark John) Full Story | Top |
| French reshuffle may loom after Hollande's Socialists routed in local elections Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 06:07 PM PDT  By Mark John PARIS (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande will take soundings on a possible cabinet reshuffle on Monday after the drubbing of his Socialists in local elections handed the far-right National Front victory in a record number of towns. Provisional results from Sunday's voting showed the protectionist, anti-EU party of Marine Le Pen set to take control of 11 towns across the country, easily surpassing a past record in the 1990s when it ruled in four towns. At least another 140 towns swung from the left to mainstream opposition conservatives as voters punished Hollande for his failure to turn around the euro zone's second largest economy and above all to tackle an unemployment rate stuck at more than 10 percent. While Hollande himself, who surveys show is the least popular leader in France's 56-year-old Fifth Republic, will remain in power, the question is whether he will replace Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, whose government has been accused of amateurishness and of being paralyzed by policy splits. Full Story | Top |
| Yellowstone National Park rattled by largest earthquake in 34 years Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 05:49 PM PDT  The latest earthquake struck at 6:34 a.m. near the Norris Geyser Basin and was felt about 23 miles away in two small Montana towns adjacent to year-around entrances to the park - Gardiner and West Yellowstone. The national park spans 3,472 square miles (8,992 square km) of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, and draws about 3 million visitors each year to its iconic geysers and wildlife attractions, including bison. A U.S. Geological Survey team planned to tour the Norris Geyser Basin on Sunday to determine if the quake altered any of Yellowstone's geothermal features, such as geysers, mud pots and hot springs. Several people reported having felt shaking they compared to the rumble of a tractor-trailer truck driving by, and a few items fell off the shelves at a local grocery store, a West Yellowstone police dispatcher said. Full Story | Top |
| Turkish PM Erdogan tells enemies they will pay price after poll Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 05:36 PM PDT  By Humeyra Pamuk and Ralph Boulton ANKARA/ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan declared victory in local polls that had become a referendum on his rule and said he would "enter the lair" of enemies who have accused him of corruption and leaked state secrets. But while Erdogan's AK Party was well ahead in overall votes after Sunday's elections, the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) appeared close to seizing the capital Ankara. Erdogan, fighting the biggest challenge of his 12-year rule, addressed supporters from a balcony at AKP headquarters at the end of a long and bitter election campaign in which he has labeled his opponents "terrorists" and an "alliance of evil". The election campaign has been dominated by a power struggle between Erdogan and a moderate U.S.-based cleric, Fethullah Gulen, whom he accuses of using a network of followers in police and judiciary to fabricate graft accusations in an effort to topple him. Full Story | Top |
| Global warming threat heightened in latest U.N. report Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 05:07 PM PDT Global warming poses a mounting threat to the health, economic prospects, and food and water sources of billions of people, a report by top scientists said, in a call for urgent action to counter the effects of carbon emissions. The latest report from the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), places an emphasis on the risks and may make the case for cutting greenhouse gas emissions clearer both to policymakers and the public by placing it in the category of an insurance policy for the planet. "Climate change is really a challenge of managing risks," Christopher Field, co-chair of the IPCC group preparing the report, told Reuters before its release on Monday. "One critical way is in decreasing the amount of climate change that occurs, and the other is finding a way to cope as effectively as we can with the climate changes that can't be avoided," Field said. Full Story | Top |
| Greece passes reform bill, government majority shrinks to two seats Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 05:03 PM PDT  By Angeliki Koutantou and Renee Maltezou ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece approved on Monday a contentious reform bill to secure bailout aid but the government was forced to expel a dissenting lawmaker, reducing its majority in parliament to just two seats. A total of 152 lawmakers backed the bill, which incorporates into Greek law hundreds of reform measures Athens agreed earlier this month with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund after more than six months of tough negotiations. The passage allows Athens to obtain loans to repay 9.3 billion euros of debt maturing in May, but left the fragile pro-bailout government with a new headache as three deputies refused to vote or voted against key articles in the bill. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras expelled one lawmaker who failed to back one article, while the Socialist PASOK party, one of the two ruling parties, was facing a new crisis after one of its lawmakers did not vote and another voted against an article. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. lawmakers see no evidence of terrorism in Malaysia jet crash Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 04:59 PM PDT By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senior U.S. lawmakers on Sunday said investigators had found no evidence thus far pointing to terrorism in the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 three weeks ago, and that it was critical to find the plane to understand what happened on board. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers and Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Dianne Feinstein, speaking on Sunday talk shows, said they had seen no evidence of foul play. Full Story | Top |
| Brazilian police backed by troops occupy slum by Rio airport Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 04:42 PM PDT  Brazilian police backed by troops occupied a massive slum next to Rio de Janeiro's international airport without firing a shot on Sunday to secure one of the city's most violent neighborhoods long run by drug dealers. Wresting control of the area from drug lords was a security priority for authorities because it surrounds the expressway to Galeao airport where tens of thousands of foreigners will land in June for the soccer World Cup. Traffickers have been there for years," Rio de Janeiro state security chief José Beltrame told reporters. The occupation follows a wave of attacks on police posts in slums that been occupied under Rio's so-called "pacification" program launched in 2008 to expel drug gangs to make the city safer ahead of the World Cup and the 2016 Olympic games. Full Story | Top |
| Kerry, Lavrov hold talks on de-escalating Ukraine crisis Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 04:22 PM PDT By Lesley Wroughton and Alexei Anishchuk PARIS/MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, discussed ways to defuse the Ukraine crisis during talks in Paris on Sunday in which Kerry made clear Washington still considered Russian actions in Crimea "illegal and illegitimate." Kerry said after his four-hour meeting with the Russian foreign minister that while they differed on events leading to the crisis, both sides recognized the importance of finding a diplomatic solution that meets the needs of the Ukrainian people. "Both sides made suggestions of ways to de-escalate the security and political situation in and around Ukraine," Kerry told a news conference, adding he raised "strong concerns" with Lavrov about the presence of Russian troops on the Ukraine border, which he said created a climate of fear and intimidation. The two were seeking to hammer out the framework of a deal to reduce tensions over Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. Full Story | Top |
| Liberian health authorities confirm two cases of Ebola: WHO Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 04:18 PM PDT By Alphonso Toweh MONROVIA (Reuters) - The World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Sunday that Liberia has confirmed two cases of the deadly Ebola virus that is suspected to have killed at least 70 people in Guinea. The outbreak of the highly contagious Ebola, which in its more acute phase, causes vomiting, diarrhoea and external bleeding, has sent Guinea's West African neighbors scrambling to contain the spread of the disease. Eleven deaths in towns in northern Sierra Leone and Liberia, which shares borders with southeastern Guinea where the outbreak was first reported, are suspected to be linked to Ebola. Full Story | Top |
| Shootout in Nigerian capital during attempted jail break kills 21 Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 04:00 PM PDT Detainees suspected of being members of Islamist militant group Boko Haram overpowered their guards at a prison near Nigeria's presidential villa in Abuja, seizing a rifle and triggering a gun battle that killed 21 people, security officials said. The prisoners struck on Sunday as the guards from Nigeria's State Security Service (SSS) came in to feed them at their headquarters' prison near the residence of President Goodluck Jonathan, SSS spokeswoman Marilyn Ogar said. Jail breaks by Islamists in Nigeria are common. Boko Haram militants, who are fighting to create an Islamic state in Nigeria and are seen as the main threat to Africa's top oil producer, attacked the main military barracks in the northeast, freeing dozens of prisoners on March 14. Full Story | Top |
| Long search looms for Malaysia jet, families renew protests Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 03:58 PM PDT  By Matt Siegel and Rujun Shen HMAS STIRLING NAVAL BASE, Australia/KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - T he search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 could take years, U.S. Navy officials suggested on Sunday, as search and rescue officials raced to locate the plane's black box recorder days before its batteries are set to die. Ten ships and as many aircraft are searching a massive area in the Indian Ocean west of Perth, trying to find some trace of the aircraft, which went missing more than three weeks ago and is presumed to have crashed. U.S. Navy Captain Mark Matthews, who is in charge of the U.S. Towed Pinger Locator (TPL), told journalists at Stirling Naval Base near Perth that the lack of information about where the plane went down seriously hampers the ability to find it. "Right now the search area is basically the size of the Indian Ocean, which would take an untenable amount of time to search," he said. Full Story | Top |
| Kerry, Lavrov discuss ways to de-escalate Ukraine crisis Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 03:39 PM PDT U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said late on Sunday he and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, discussed suggestions for de-escalating the Ukraine crisis during four hours of talks in Paris. Kerry told a news conference that the United States made clear it still considered Russian actions in Crimea to be "illegal and illegitimate." "The U.S. and Russia have differences of opinion about events that led to this crisis but both of us recognize the importance of finding a diplomatic solution and simultaneously meeting the needs of the Ukrainian people, and that we agreed on tonight," Kerry said. "Both sides made suggestions of ways to de-escalate the security and political situation in and around Ukraine," he said. Kerry and Lavrov were seeking to hammer out the framework of a deal to reduce tensions over Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region, with Western leaders considering broader sanctions against Russia that would target vital sectors of its economy including its mainstay oil and gas industry. Full Story | Top |
| Turkey's Erdogan declares victory in polls despite graft crisis Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 03:34 PM PDT Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan declared victory in local polls that had become a referendum on his rule and said he would "enter the lair" of enemies who have accused him of corruption and leaked state secrets. Erdogan spoke from a balcony at his AK Party headquarters to thousands of cheering supporters as early results showed it winning some 44-46 percent of the vote, and the opposition CHP trailing with 23-28 percent. Erdogan accuses a U.S.-based Islamic cleric, a former ally, of mounting a smear campaign using a network of followers in the police force to concoct a corruption case against him. Full Story | Top |
| Russia's Lavrov says Moscow, Washington to work with Ukraine Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 03:12 PM PDT Russian Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said on Sunday that Moscow and Washington had agreed to work with the Ukrainian government and the country's people to overcome the crisis, after meeting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Russian agencies reported. "We have agreed to work with the Ukrainian government and people to achieve progress in rights of minorities and linguistic rights," Lavrov told reporters after talks that lasted four hours, Interfax reported. Lavrov and Kerry met following a phone call between U.S. President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin last week, as both sides move to ease tensions in the worst East-West standoff since the Cold War. Full Story | Top |
| Afghan woman bids for power to halt slide in rights Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 03:07 PM PDT  By Katharine Houreld and Jessica Donati KABUL/KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - The deeply conservative, all-male crowd at Afghanistan's Kandahar stadium stared in disbelief as the small woman in a modest black headscarf stood up and reached for the microphone. Habiba Sarabi's speech in the southern Taliban heartland city lasted only a few minutes, thanking the crowd for supporting her candidacy in next month's presidential election. During their strict Islamist rule from 1996-2001, the Afghan Taliban had banned women from education, voting and most work, and they were not allowed to leave their homes without permission and a male escort. A fair election would mark Afghanistan's first democratic transfer of power, a monumental achievement for Afghans struggling to end decades of bloodletting and cement fragile gains in education, health and human rights. Full Story | Top |
| Thailand's 'red shirts' gear up for a fight Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 02:50 PM PDT  By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Aubrey Belford KHON KAEN/BANGKOK (Reuters) - The clock is ticking for Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who faces impeachment within weeks, but her supporters are hatching plans to thwart any move to dismiss her, with some leaders assembling what amount to militias. Yingluck has until later on Monday to defend herself before the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) against charges of dereliction of duty over a ruinously expensive rice-buying scheme. If the commission recommends Yingluck's impeachment, and the Senate then seeks to remove her, it could be a tipping point for the pro-government "red shirts", who have mostly stayed out of the fray since anti-government protests first flared in November. "We'll act when our democratically elected prime minister is kicked out by the elite," Suporn Attawong, a red shirt leader known by followers as "Rambo Isarn", told Reuters in Bangkok. Full Story | Top |
| U.S., Russia meeting on Ukraine ends after four hours of talks Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 02:26 PM PDT PARIS (Reuters) - Talks between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, ended late on Sunday after four hours of negotiations to defuse tensions over Ukraine. The goal of the meeting was to develop a proposal conceived by Kerry and Lavrov during earlier meetings to de-escalate the crisis over Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. Both sides are expected to hold separate news conferences on the outcome of the talks. (Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Peter Cooney) Full Story | Top |
| Greece secures votes to pass reform bill demanded by EU/IMF lenders Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 02:21 PM PDT Greece's government secured enough votes in parliament early on Monday to pass a key reform bill demanded by its international lenders, in exchange for further bailout loans to avoid default. A majority of deputies voted in favor of the reform measures Athens agreed earlier this month with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, after more than six months of tough negotiations. Passing the bill was a condition for Greece to qualify for fresh bailout aid it needs to repay 9.3 billion euros of debt maturing in May. But it also gives a boost to Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' government before local and EU elections in May, as it includes a 527-million euro windfall to be spent on poor, austerity-hit Greeks. Full Story | Top |
| Nationalism takes centre stage in Indonesia's election campaign Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 02:15 PM PDT  By Rieka Rahadiana JAKARTA (Reuters) - Dressed in the style of Indonesia's first leader, even using replica 1950s microphones, presidential hopeful Prabowo Subianto roared to thousands of supporters at a recent rally in the capital: "Indonesia cannot be bought". It is a nationalistic tone that has been on the rise in campaigns by the major political parties ahead of elections to choose a parliament on April 9 and a new president on July 9. The question of whether Indonesia is souring on the foreign money that helped bankroll much of its growth was thrust into the spotlight this year with a new law that aims to boost the country's profits by banning the export of minerals unless they have been processed first. That threatens the fortunes of some of Indonesia's biggest investors, notably two major U.S. mining companies with large operations in the country - Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold and Newmont Mining Corp. To continue exporting, mining firms must now either pay 20-25 percent tax from this year, rising to up to 60 percent by the second half of 2016, or invest hundreds of millions of dollars on new smelters. Full Story | Top |
| China's war on smog will be won or lost in polluted Hebei Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 02:13 PM PDT By David Stanway BEIJING (Reuters) - China's war on pollution is only a few weeks old, but the battle lines are already being drawn between Beijing and Hebei, the province most synonymous with dirty air. A succession of Hebei officials used the annual session of parliament in Beijing this month to urge the central government to boost subsidies to help with job losses and other costs from mandated cuts in industrial production across the country. One local official said Hebei was taking on too much of the burden. The pleas came after Premier Li Keqiang, in his opening address to parliament on March 5, declared war on pollution in an attempt to head off growing anger over the quality of China's air, water and soil. Full Story | Top |
| Early Turkish vote results suggest strong lead for Erdogan's party Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 02:05 PM PDT Initial results in Turkey's local elections suggested a strong showing for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's ruling party on Sunday, an outcome likely to bolster his authority in battling "traitors" within the state he accuses of seeking to topple him. With around half of the votes counted, results broadcast on Turkish television put Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party ahead with 44-46 percent of the vote. The main opposition CHP, the party of the modern secular republic's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, captured around 23-28 percent. The nationwide elections are widely being seen in Turkey as a referendum on Erdogan's 11-year rule, a test of his support as he battles corruption allegations and security leaks he has cast as a "dirty campaign" of espionage by his political enemies. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. increases security funding to Moldova as tensions rise Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 01:19 PM PDT  The United States on Sunday pledged $10 million to bolster border security in Moldova at a time when concerns are rising about divisions within the country over a trade deal with Europe and Russia's intervention in neighboring Ukraine. The pro-Western Moldavan government is pushing ahead with an EU trade deal by the summer despite the increasing debate on whether to integrate with Europe or stick with former Soviet master Russia. It was the rejection of the same EU deal in November by former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich that triggered street protests against his rule after he balked under the threat of economic retaliation from Moscow. U.S. Assistance Secretary for Europe Victoria Nuland announced the new U.S. funding during a visit to Moldova on Sunday before she flew to Paris for a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Full Story | Top |
| Libyan parliament passes law to organize new elections Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 12:02 PM PDT  Last month, the General National Congress (GNC) assembly agreed to hold early elections, in an apparent effort to assuage ordinary Libyans angry over political chaos in the country nearly three years after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi. It is now up to the elections commission to set a date. Full Story | Top |
| Chechens offer weary welcome to new Crimean compatriots Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 11:26 AM PDT By Thomas Grove GROZNY, Russia (Reuters) - Days before Crimea voted in a referendum to join Russia from Ukraine, Adam, a Chechen soldier, was ordered to go to the Black Sea peninsula to defend Russia's interests. He and about 200 other soldiers from his special battalion, grouping ethnic Chechens, were mobilized on March 12 and spent two weeks in the Crimean city of Yevpatoria. The mission, which mainly involved guarding buildings, was an illustration of how far the Chechnya region in Russia's North Caucasus is ready to go to show allegiance to Russian President Vladimir Putin, 14 years after he crushed its separatist drive. But many Chechens feel no love for Russia and have a sardonic message for their new Crimean compatriots: welcome to Russia, we hope you like it. Full Story | Top |
| French far-right to win more towns in elections: exit polls Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 11:08 AM PDT PARIS (Reuters) - Candidates backed by France's far-right National Front (FN) party were on track to secure victories in the southern towns of Beziers and Frejus in local elections on Sunday, exit polls and partial tallies showed. Amid broad dissatisfaction with President Francois Hollande's ruling Socialists, the FN already made a breakthrough in last week's first round of voting by winning power in the northern town of Henin-Beaumont. (Reporting by Michel Rose; editing by Mark John) Full Story | Top |
| Ten dead as Chadian troops open fire on Bangui civilians - officials Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 10:26 AM PDT At least 10 people were killed and dozens wounded when Chadian troops opened fire on civilians in Central African Republic's capital Bangui, officials said on Sunday. The troops were driving into the city, scarred by religious conflict over the past year, to escort a convoy of Muslims back to Chad, having earlier crossed the countries' border some 500 km (300 miles) to the north in about 15 army vehicles. People panicked and started running and ducking for cover," said Sebastien Wenezoui, a spokesman for the country's Christian militia, the anti-balaka. Saturday's shooting was the latest in a string of violent incidents involving Chadian troops, who the anti-balaka accuse of siding with Muslims and Seleka rebels and preying upon the local Christian population. Full Story | Top |
| Egypt to hold May 26-27 presidential election Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 10:11 AM PDT  By Shadia Nasralla CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptians will vote on May 26-27 in a presidential election that Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is expected to win easily, meaning the former army chief who deposed Islamist President Mohamed Mursi could be sworn in as head of state by early June. Widely seen as Egypt's de facto leader since he deposed Mursi after mass protests against his rule, Sisi enjoys backing from supporters who see him as Egypt's saviour. But he is viewed by the Islamist opposition as the mastermind of a coup that ignited the worst internal strife in Egypt's modern history. It will be the second time Egyptians have voted in a presidential election in less than two years. Full Story | Top |
| Saudi dynasty moves to forestall succession crisis Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 09:29 AM PDT  By Angus McDowall RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's appointment of Prince Muqrin as deputy crown prince is a first step towards addressing its biggest dynastic challenge for 50 years and forestalling a possible succession crisis in the world's top oil exporter. The ruling al-Saud family is fast approaching the moment when it must decide how to jump down a generation from a line of brothers born to the country's founder King Abdulaziz to their sons and nephews, a process fraught with difficulty. There should be clarity and there should be a correct approach to succession," said Khaled al-Maeena, editor at large of Saudi Gazette, an English-language daily. Although any jostling for power among the 40-odd branches of King Abdulaziz's descendents is kept carefully hidden behind the ornate doors of royal palaces, Saudis with royal connections say some members of the family worry about being sidelined. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine's 'Chocolate King' could edge new-look Yulia for president Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 08:54 AM PDT  By Richard Balmforth KIEV (Reuters) - Gone is the trademark peasant-style hair braid, though the familiar voice and the assured, rapid-fire delivery tell you Yulia Tymoshenko is back as a political force in Ukraine. But instead of the fiery Tymoshenko, it is Petro Poroshenko, a 48-year-old billionaire known as the 'Chocolate King' who is now the front-runner for a May 25 presidential election which the new leadership hopes will unite a divided country amid growing pressure from Russia hostile to its political changes. Poroshenko, whose chain of confectionery shops puts him in Ukraine's top 10 rich list, received a huge boost at the weekend when popular boxer-turned-politician Vitaly Klitschko pulled out of the race and endorsed him for the presidency. Even before Klitschko bowed out on Saturday, Poroshenko, a beefy man with a thick shock of grey hair, was well ahead in ratings on 25 per cent, with Klitschko on 9 percent and Tymoshenko trailing with 8.3 percent. Full Story | Top |
| Over 100,000 protest in Taiwan over China trade deal Sunday, Mar 30, 2014 08:52 AM PDT  By Michael Gold and James Pomfret TAIPEI (Reuters) - More than 100,000 protesters took to the streets of Taiwan's capital on Sunday as a two-week-long campaign against a trade pact with China gathered steam, piling further pressure on the island's leader. The rally in Taipei - where many were dressed in black and some clutched sunflowers to symbolize hope - was one of the largest in recent years in Taiwan, an island that split from China over six decades ago after a civil war. Protesters say the deal to open 80 of China's service sectors to Taiwan and 64 Taiwanese sectors to China was rushed through, and could leave Taiwan increasingly beholden to China's Communist Party leaders. Full Story | Top |
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