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Sunday, March 4, 2012 12:01 AM PST

Today's Reuters World News Headlines - Yahoo! News: Rescue, cleanups continue in tornado zone, 39 dead China lead pollution poisons 160 children: report China boosts defense budget by 11.2 percent for 2012 Putin set to reclaim the Kremlin in Russian vote Fourteen killed in Polish head-on train collision BP's $7.8 billion deal may speed payments for U.S. spill Syrian forces pound Homs, tanks deploy in east Tanks deploy in main city in eastern Syria Rescue, cleanups continue in vast tornado zone BP's $7.8 billion deal may speed payments for U.S. spill Putin set to reclaim the Kremlin in Russian vote In Greece, redundancy tips factory worker over the edge Passengers killed in Polish train crash: transport minister Italy shipwreck captain "was not wearing glasses" Sarkozy courts French right with immigration pledge Syrian forces pound Homs, block aid convoy Victims' families want truth at Italy shipwreck hearing Sudan's Bashir slams ICC warrant for defense minister Four dead in south Yemen blasts, al Qaeda blamed China urges Syria government, rebels to start dialogue U.S. says ties with Egypt still strong after NGO row Egypt parliament sees "interference" in activists' release Surveys point to election blow for India's Gandhis Syria aid convoy denied access to Baba Amro: ICRC Aid convoy unable to enter Syria's Baba Amro on Saturday French journalist tells of escape from Homs Turkey says Assad's forces committing war crimes Iran touts high turnout in election Merkel faces challenge at home on fiscal pact Suicide bomber attacks Algerian security base Chinese village unites for symbolic poll in bid to end graft Syrian town struggles under siege, awaits attack Diplomats receive bodies of journalists killed in Syria Explosion kills 7 in Syria's Deraa, say residents Syrian forces pounds Homs, block aid convoy Thousands protest against Hong Kong's outgoing leader Syria aid convoy stalled outside Baba Amro: ICRC Japan PM: no plan for snap vote; still hopeful on tax bill Afghans won't accept U.S. justice for Koran blunder: cleric Assad forces resume bombardment of Syria's Homs: activists Rescue, cleanups continue in tornado zone, 39 dead Sat,3 Mar 2012 08:31 PM PST Reuters - HENRYVILLE, Ind./CRITTENDEN, Kentucky (Reuters) - Rescue teams and residents combed through storm-wracked towns to assess damage on Saturday from a chain of tornadoes that cut a 1,000-mile (1,600-km) swath of destruction from the Midwest to the Gulf of Mexico, as the death toll rose to at least 39 people. The fast-moving twisters spawned by massive thunderstorms splintered blocks of homes, damaged schools and a prison, and tossed around vehicles like toys, killing 20 people in Kentucky, 14 in neighboring Indiana, three in Ohio and one in Alabama, officials said. ... Full Story Top China lead pollution poisons 160 children: report Sat,3 Mar 2012 08:26 PM PST Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Lead emission from factories and the natural environment in China's manufacturing heart of Guangdong has poisoned 160 children, Xinhua said on Sunday in the country's latest case of unfettered industrial toxins. Children from Dongtang town in Renhua country were found to have "elevated" levels of lead in their blood after inhaling lead-contaminated air and eating food tainted with lead, Xinhua said. Th e natural level of lead in Dongtang is also higher than usual as the town sits on a lead-zinc ore belt which raises the lead content in the soil, Xinhua said. ... Full Story Top China boosts defense budget by 11.2 percent for 2012 Sat,3 Mar 2012 08:14 PM PST Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - China will boost military spending by 11.2 percent this year, the government said on Sunday, unveiling Beijing's first defense budget since President Barack Obama launched a "pivot" to reinforce U.S. influence across the Asia-Pacific. The rise was announced by Li Zhaoxing, the spokesman for China's parliament, and will bring official spending on the People's Liberation Army to 670.2 billion yuan ($110 billion) for 2012, after a 12.7 percent increase last year and a nearly unbroken string of double-digit rises across over two decades. ... Full Story Top Putin set to reclaim the Kremlin in Russian vote Sat,3 Mar 2012 08:11 PM PST Reuters - VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin is almost certain to win a third presidential term in an election that began on Sunday in Russia's far east, though opponents have challenged the legitimacy of a vote they say is skewed in his favor. Putin's aides hope a strong win will take the sting out of an urban protest movement that casts the former KGB spy as an authoritarian leader who rules by allowing a corrupt elite to siphon off the wealth from the world's biggest energy producer. ... Full Story Top Fourteen killed in Polish head-on train collision Sat,3 Mar 2012 07:39 PM PST Reuters - SZCZECHOCINY, Poland (Reuters) - At least 14 people were killed when two passenger trains collided head-on in southern Poland late on Saturday in one of the country's worst train crashes in more than 20 years. The two trains carrying an estimated 350 passengers were heading in opposite directions on the same track when they crashed at high speed in a rural area near the town of Szczechociny. At least 54 people were injured. One of the green-and-cream coloured carriages of an intercity train traveling to Warsaw had jack-knifed upwards from the force of the crash. ... Full Story Top BP's $7.8 billion deal may speed payments for U.S. spill Sat,3 Mar 2012 06:06 PM PST Reuters - NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - The estimated $7.8 billion deal struck by BP Plc with businesses and individuals suing over the massive 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill could speed up payments to thousands of claimants and offers lawyers a potential windfall in legal fees. London-based BP announced the deal on Friday with the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee, or PSC, which represents condominium owners, fishermen, hoteliers, restaurateurs and others who say their livelihoods were damaged by the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and subsequent oil spill. ... Full Story Top Syrian forces pound Homs, tanks deploy in east Sat,3 Mar 2012 04:10 PM PST Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian forces renewed their bombardment of parts of the shattered city of Homs and for a second day blocked Red Cross aid meant for civilians stranded without food and fuel in the former rebel stronghold, activists and aid workers said. Army tanks also deployed in the eastern city of Deir al-Zor Saturday to confront a growing rebel force there - setting up another possible flashpoint, opposition campaigners said. ... Full Story Top Tanks deploy in main city in eastern Syria Sat,3 Mar 2012 03:49 PM PST Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian army tanks deployed in the eastern city of Deir al-Zor on Saturday to support forces and militiamen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad who came under rebel attack after three pro-democracy demonstrators were killed, opposition activists said. "Old Russian T-54 tanks and armoured vehicles have taken positions at main roundabouts. Every half an hour or so you hear gunfire by the Free Syrian Army directed at roadblocks manned by security police and 'shabbiha' (pro-Assad militia)," Abu Abdel Rahman, one of the activists, told Reuters from Deir al-Zor. ... Full Story Top Rescue, cleanups continue in vast tornado zone Sat,3 Mar 2012 03:33 PM PST Reuters - HENRYVILLE, Ind/CRITTENDEN, Ken (Reuters) - Rescue teams and residents combed through storm-wrecked towns to assess damage on Saturday from a chain of tornadoes that cut a 1,000-mile swath of destruction from the Midwest to the Gulf of Mexico, as the death toll crept up to at least 37 people. The fast-moving twisters spawned by massive thunderstorms splintered blocks of homes, damaged schools and a prison, and tossed around vehicles like toys, killing 18 people in Kentucky, 14 in neighboring Indiana, three in Ohio and one in Alabama, officials said. Georgia also reported a storm-related death. ... Full Story Top BP's $7.8 billion deal may speed payments for U.S. spill Sat,3 Mar 2012 03:32 PM PST Reuters - NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - The estimated $7.8 billion deal struck by BP Plc with businesses and individuals suing over the massive 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill could speed up payments to thousands of claimants and offers lawyers a potential windfall in legal fees. London-based BP announced the deal on Friday with the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee, or PSC, which represents condominium owners, fishermen, hoteliers, restaurateurs and others who say their livelihoods were damaged by the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and subsequent oil spill. ... Full Story Top Putin set to reclaim the Kremlin in Russian vote Sat,3 Mar 2012 03:11 PM PST Reuters - VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin is almost certain to win a third presidential term in an election that began on Sunday in Russia's far east, though opponents have challenged the legitimacy of a vote they say is skewed in his favor. Putin's aides hope a strong win will take the sting out of an urban protest movement that casts the former KGB spy as an authoritarian leader who rules by allowing a corrupt elite to siphon off the wealth from the world's biggest energy producer. ... Full Story Top In Greece, redundancy tips factory worker over the edge Sat,3 Mar 2012 02:41 PM PST Reuters - KOMOTINI, Greece (Reuters) - After more than 30 years as a factory worker, Dimitris Manikas was dreaming of retirement and plans to get married for the third time when a redundancy notice blew his hopes away. Laid off from his job at a trash can factory in this northern Greek town, the 52-year-old father of two called off his wedding -- even though he had bought the wedding bands. Without any income, he feared his house would be next to go. ... Full Story Top Passengers killed in Polish train crash: transport minister Sat,3 Mar 2012 02:33 PM PST Reuters - WARSAW (Reuters) - Two trains collided head-on in Chalupki in southern Poland Saturday, killing a number of passengers and injuring up to 60, the country's transport minister said. "I'm on my way to the site of the accident ... It looks like it's one of the worst railway accidents of the last few years ... I know there are a few people dead," minister Slawomir Nowak told television station TVN24. Up to 60 people were injured in the crash and about 200 firefighters were working at the site of the accident, TVN24 reported. Pictures released by the channel showed derailed and crashed wagons. ... Full Story Top Italy shipwreck captain "was not wearing glasses" Sat,3 Mar 2012 01:43 PM PST Reuters - GROSSETO, Italy (Reuters) - The captain of the wrecked Costa Concordia cruise liner was not wearing his glasses on the evening of the accident and asked his first officer to check the radar for him, the officer's lawyer said on Saturday. The cruise liner capsized off the Tuscan island of Giglio after hitting a rock on January 13, killing at least 25 people. Seven people are still unaccounted for. Prosecutors have accused Captain Francesco Schettino of causing the disaster by bringing the Costa Concordia, carrying more than 4,200 passengers and crew, too close to the shore. ... Full Story Top Sarkozy courts French right with immigration pledge Sat,3 Mar 2012 12:15 PM PST Reuters - PARIS (Reuters) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy marked a rightward shift in his re-election campaign on Saturday, pledging to cut the number of immigrants and calling for clear labeling of halal meat in a bid to entice voters away from the National Front. Speaking to thousands of flag-waving supporters at a rally in the western city of Bordeaux, Sarkozy vowed to defend secular values in France - which has Europe's largest Muslim minority - and to send a tough message on law and order if he wins a fresh five-year term in a two-round election in April and May. ... Full Story Top Syrian forces pound Homs, block aid convoy Sat,3 Mar 2012 12:01 PM PST Reuters - Syrian forces bombarded parts of the shattered city of Homs anew on Saturday and blocked the first Red Cross aid meant for civilians stranded for weeks without food and fuel in the former rebel stronghold, activists and aid workers said. The renewed government assault came a day after U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he had received "grisly reports" that President Bashar al-Assad's troops were executing, imprisoning and torturing people in Syria's third largest city. "In an act of pure revenge, Assad's army has been firing mortar rounds and ... ... Full Story Top Victims' families want truth at Italy shipwreck hearing Sat,3 Mar 2012 11:22 AM PST Reuters - Survivors and relatives of victims of the Costa Concordia shipwreck clamored for truth at a pre-trial hearing in Italy on Saturday, with some still waiting for identification of the remains of their loved ones 1-1/2 months after the disaster. The giant cruise liner capsized off the Tuscan island of Giglio after hitting a rock on January 13, killing at least 25 people. Seven people are still unaccounted for, and eight of the bodies found have yet to be identified. ... Full Story Top Sudan's Bashir slams ICC warrant for defense minister Sat,3 Mar 2012 11:17 AM PST Reuters - KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir condemned an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued for his defense minister, who stood by his side during a speech on Saturday. The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant on Thursday for Defence Minister Abdel Raheem Muhammad Hussein as part of an investigation into atrocities in Darfur. Hussein is the latest of several senior officials in Sudan to be indicted by the court in The Hague, which is also seeking the arrest of Bashir on charges of orchestrating genocide. All indictees remain at large. ... Full Story Top Four dead in south Yemen blasts, al Qaeda blamed Sat,3 Mar 2012 10:44 AM PST Reuters - SANAA (Reuters) - Two suicide bombers drove a car packed with explosives into a Yemeni army base in the southern province of al-Bayda on Saturday, killing one soldier, the Defence Ministry said, in an attack for which al Qaeda claimed responsibility. Another soldier was killed by one of two blasts aimed at a central security forces building in the southern coastal town of Mukalla, where a March 25 suicide bombing killed at least 26 people. Authorities said they had made several arrests. ... Full Story Top China urges Syria government, rebels to start dialogue Sat,3 Mar 2012 10:21 AM PST Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - China urged the Syrian government and rebels trying to oust President Bashar al-Assad to end all acts of violence, especially against civilians. It also urged the government and rebels to "launch an inclusive political dialogue with no preconditions" under the mediation of the newly appointed U.N.-Arab League envoy on the Syria crisis, former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. ... Full Story Top U.S. says ties with Egypt still strong after NGO row Sat,3 Mar 2012 10:09 AM PST Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Saturday reaffirmed its backing for Egypt's efforts to get a $3.2 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund, despite the recent diplomatic standoff between Washington and Cairo over American pro-democracy activists. Egypt, coming off the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak who had ruled for 30 years, is in talks with the IMF for a loan to help it stave off a financial crisis. ... Full Story Top Egypt parliament sees "interference" in activists' release Sat,3 Mar 2012 10:09 AM PST Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - A senior Egyptian politician spoke out on Saturday against "flagrant interference" behind Cairo's decision to lift a travel ban on American pro-democracy activists accused of receiving illegal funds, echoing growing anger over the move. The decision to allow the eight Americans - part of a group of 15 foreigners - to fly out of Cairo on Thursday defused the first diplomatic standoff in decades between the United States and Egypt, but raised questions from politicians over possible pressure by the ruling military on judges. ... Full Story Top Surveys point to election blow for India's Gandhis Sat,3 Mar 2012 09:38 AM PST Reuters - NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's Rahul Gandhi failed to deliver the election comeback he had promised for the ruling Congress party in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh, according to voter surveys released after the phased, month-long poll ended on Saturday. Official results will not be known until Tuesday and it was not clear how accurate the handful of post-election surveys would prove, though they all showed similar trends. ... Full Story Top Syria aid convoy denied access to Baba Amro: ICRC Sat,3 Mar 2012 09:10 AM PST Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - Syrian authorities prevented a convoy of life-saving aid from entering the Baba Amro district of Homs for a second day on Saturday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said. "The ICRC and Syrian Arab Red Crescent did not enter Baba Amro today. Our negotiations with Syrian authorities continue in order to enter and help as many people as possible," ICRC spokesman Hicham Hassan told Reuters in Geneva. "We want to go in as soon as possible," he said. ... Full Story Top Aid convoy unable to enter Syria's Baba Amro on Saturday Sat,3 Mar 2012 08:17 AM PST Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - Syrian authorities prevented a convoy of life-saving aid from entering the embattled Baba Amro district of Homs on Saturday but negotiations were continuing, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said. "The ICRC and Syrian Arab Red Crescent did not enter Baba Amro today. Our negotiations with Syrian authorities continue in order to enter and help as many people as possible," ICRC spokesman Hicham Hassan told Reuters in Geneva. ... Full Story Top French journalist tells of escape from Homs Sat,3 Mar 2012 08:06 AM PST Reuters - PARIS (Reuters) - Wounded French journalist Edith Bouvier feared her attempt to escape from Homs had ended inside a dark, 3-km tunnel that rebels were using to supply the besieged Baba Amro district when the Syrian army bombarded its exit. Her leg broken by a shell which killed two foreign journalists days earlier, Bouvier was abandoned, taped to a makeshift stretcher, as rebels and dozens of wounded fled the reverberations of explosions and headed back to the shattered neighborhood. "One of them placed his Kalashnikov on me. He put his hand on my head and said a prayer. ... Full Story Top Turkey says Assad's forces committing war crimes Sat,3 Mar 2012 07:19 AM PST Reuters - ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on opponents bears the hallmarks of war crimes and his violent repression is damaging the chances of a negotiated peace, Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Saturday. The comments by Syria's powerful neighbor indicated the latest violence had put Assad beyond redemption in Ankara's eyes, despite his once-close friendship with Turkey. "The Syrian regime is committing a crime against humanity every day," Davutoglu told a joint news conference with visiting Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi. ... Full Story Top Iran touts high turnout in election Sat,3 Mar 2012 06:43 AM PST Reuters - TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran, under intense Western pressure over its disputed nuclear program, on Saturday declared an initial turnout of 64 percent in a parliamentary election shunned by most reformists as a sham. Iran's Islamic clerical leadership is eager to restore the damage to its legitimacy caused by the violent crushing of eight months of street protests after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected in a 2009 vote his opponents said was rigged. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who endorsed the 2009 result, has since turned sharply against Ahmadinejad. ... Full Story Top Merkel faces challenge at home on fiscal pact Sat,3 Mar 2012 06:39 AM PST Reuters - BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces an unexpected challenge in getting new euro zone budget discipline rules approved at home, after the government confirmed on Saturday the new treaty will require a two-thirds majority in both houses of parliament. This will leave Merkel depending on major opposition parties, who, despite having backed her in the past on a second Greek bailout package or extended powers for the bailout fund, are likely to set conditions for their support such as new measures to stimulate European growth. ... Full Story Top Suicide bomber attacks Algerian security base Sat,3 Mar 2012 06:31 AM PST Reuters - ALGIERS (Reuters) - Twenty-three people were wounded on Saturday when a suicide bomber drove a four-wheel drive vehicle packed with explosives at a paramilitary police base in a Sahara desert town, local media and security officials said. The attack was the first in the town of Tamanrasset, an oasis about 2,000 km (1,240) miles south of the Algerian capital, and underscored mounting instability in the Sahara desert after the conflict in nearby Libya. ... Full Story Top Chinese village unites for symbolic poll in bid to end graft Sat,3 Mar 2012 06:31 AM PST Reuters - WUKAN, China (Reuters) - Residents of a southern Chinese village on Saturday elected a reformist leader to run a new administrative authority that many hail as a model for greater grassroots democracy following an uncompromising standoff over land grabs and abuse of power. The fishing village of Wukan, nestled on the Guangdong coast with a picturesque harbor flanked by hills, has emerged from nowhere as a symbol of rural activism and electoral reforms nationwide, embracing rare freedoms granted by provincial authorities in December to defuse a major flashpoint. ... Full Story Top Syrian town struggles under siege, awaits attack Sat,3 Mar 2012 05:25 AM PST Reuters - QUSAIR, Syria (Reuters) - When the fighting stops, Qusair feels empty. An odd motorbike rumbles to life and buzzes away. Men sit by shuttered storefronts, talking in hushed voices. A child laughs and ducks into an alley, gravel crackling under her feet. But when the artillery and rifle fire begins, the din of war consumes the town. The men pack up their chairs. The children disappear indoors. Black smoke rises on the horizon. For nearly six months, Syrian troops and tanks have blockaded this town of about 40,000 people, cutting its normal supplies of food and fuel. ... Full Story Top Diplomats receive bodies of journalists killed in Syria Sat,3 Mar 2012 05:08 AM PST Reuters - DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Diplomats in Syria on Saturday received the bodies U.S. journalist Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik, who were killed last month during the shelling of the Baba Amro district of the city of Homs. A Reuters witness said the diplomats, believed to be the French ambassador to Syria, Eric Chevalier, and a representative from the Polish embassy, which is managing U.S. affairs in Syria, had taken the bodies from the Al-Assad University Hospital in Damascus. (Reporting by Marwan Makdesi; Editing by Sophie Hares) Full Story Top Explosion kills 7 in Syria's Deraa, say residents Sat,3 Mar 2012 05:02 AM PST Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - An explosion killed seven people and wounded several others in the southern Syrian town of Deraa on Saturday, residents said, in what the Syrian government said was a suicide car bomb attack. "At least seven people were killed and another eight injured. They happened to be next to the car when it exploded," Saed Jawabra, a Deraa resident said. Residents said a white Kia car exploded in a park near a military checkpoint in the town's Rawda district, shattering windows in the area and leaving a huge crater. ... Full Story Top Syrian forces pounds Homs, block aid convoy Sat,3 Mar 2012 03:44 AM PST Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian forces pounded the battered city of Homs on Saturday and blocked aid reaching civilians stranded for weeks without food and fuel in the former rebel stronghold, activists and aid workers said. The renewed government assault came a day after U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he had received "grisly reports" that President Bashar al-Assad's troops were executing, imprisoning and torturing people in Syria's third largest city. ... Full Story Top Thousands protest against Hong Kong's outgoing leader Sat,3 Mar 2012 03:23 AM PST Reuters - HONG KONG (Reuters) - Thousands of people marched to the offices of the Hong Kong city government on Saturday, demanding that outgoing chief executive Donald Tsang stand trial following allegations of ethics violations in his dealings with businessmen. The protest came ahead of an election this month to replace Tsang in which the China-backed frontrunner, Henry Tang, has become embroiled in a political scandal, adding to Beijing's headache. Tsang, who has led the former British territory since 2005, has come under fire for taking private luxury yacht trips and flights. ... Full Story Top Syria aid convoy stalled outside Baba Amro: ICRC Sat,3 Mar 2012 02:52 AM PST Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Saturday it was still negotiating with Syrian authorities who have denied its aid convoy access to the shattered Baba Amro district of Homs. An ICRC convoy of seven trucks carrying food and other life-saving relief supplies, joined by Red Crescent ambulances to evacuate the sick and wounded, has been stalled in the city of Homs since arriving there on Friday. "The ICRC and Syrian Red Crescent are not yet in Baba Amro today (Saturday). We are still in negotiations with authorities in order to enter Baba Amro. ... Full Story Top Japan PM: no plan for snap vote; still hopeful on tax bill Sat,3 Mar 2012 02:51 AM PST Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Saturday he had no intention to call an early election any time soon and saw some promising signs that an elusive agreement with the opposition on his tax hike proposals was still possible. "In the continuing parliament debate, I believe that we've started to click with the opposition party. As such, with the support of both parties, I hope to submit this law as soon as possible and have debate in order to pass the law," Noda told foreign media. ... Full Story Top Afghans won't accept U.S. justice for Koran blunder: cleric Sat,3 Mar 2012 02:46 AM PST Reuters - KABUL (Reuters) - Afghans will never accept U.S. justice for five American soldiers involved in burning copies of the Koran, and could rise up in a "storm of fury" if there is no public trial, a senior cleric said on Saturday. The burning of Korans at a NATO air base has incensed the Muslim nation and sparked protests, complicating efforts by the United States to forge a long-term security pact with Afghanistan ahead of an end-2014 foreign combat troop pullout. "The military leaders who ordered the burning and the offenders should both be tried and punished ... ... Full Story Top Assad forces resume bombardment of Syria's Homs: activists Sat,3 Mar 2012 02:18 AM PST Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - Armed forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad bombarded the Jobar residential neighborhood of Homs on Saturday where thousands of civilians from an area overrun by the army had taken refuge, an opposition activist organization said. "In an act of pure revenge, Assad's army has been firing mortar rounds and 500 mm machine guns since this morning at Jobar. We have no immediate reports of casualties because of the difficulty of communications," the Syrian Network for Human Rights said in statement. ... Full Story Top

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