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| Israel says "checking" report Syria received Russian S-300 Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:40 AM PDT JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel is looking into reports on Thursday that Syria had received the first shipment of the advanced Russian air defense system S-300, an Israeli official said. "I have no information beyond what has been reported, which we are looking into," the official told Reuters on condition of anonymity, after a Lebanese newspaper quoted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as saying a shipment had arrived. ... Full Story | Top |
| China official PMI to show minimal growth in May Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:38 AM PDT  BEIJING (Reuters) - China's slowing factory sector may have barely grown in May amid lackluster local and foreign demand, a Reuters poll showed, adding to fears that the world's second-largest economy is losing steam. The median forecast of 10 economists polled by Reuters showed China's official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) likely retreated to 50.1 in May from April's 50.6 to hover a whisker above the 50-point threshold. A reading above 50 indicates expanding activity while a reading below that level points to a contraction. The report will be released on Saturday morning. ... Full Story | Top |
| Assad says Syria has received Russian missile shipment: Lebanese media Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:32 AM PDT  BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria has already received the first shipment of an advanced Russian air defense system and will soon get the rest of the S-300 missiles, President Bashar al-Assad was quoted as saying on Thursday. "Syria has received the first shipment of Russian anti-aircraft S-300 rockets," Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar newspaper quoted Assad as saying in an interview due to be broadcast later in the day. "The rest of the shipment will arrive soon." An interview with Assad will be released on Al Manar, a television station linked to Assad's ally, the Shi'ite Muslim militant group ... Full Story | Top |
| Russia: Syria opposition thwarting peace with Assad exit demand Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:32 AM PDT MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday accused the opposition Syrian National Coalition of seeking to thwart peace efforts by making President Bashar al-Assad's exit a condition for participating in a proposed international conference. "One gets the impression that the National Coalition and its regional sponsors are doing everything they can to prevent a political process from starting ... and to achieve military intervention in Syria," Interfax news agency quoted Lavrov as saying. (Writing by Steve Gutterman; editing by Elizabeth Piper) Full Story | Top |
| Bombs hit Baghdad districts, at least 10 dead Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:31 AM PDT BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A car bomb and several roadside blasts exploded in Shi'ite and Sunni Muslim neighborhoods across Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 10 people in the latest in more than a month-long surge in attacks, police and hospital sources said. No group claimed responsibility for the attacks, but Sunni Muslim Islamist insurgents and al-Qaeda's Iraqi wing have increased their operations since the beginning of the year as part of their campaign to stir sectarian tensions. ... Full Story | Top |
| Philippines' surprisingly strong first-quarter growth eclipses China Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:27 AM PDT  By Karen Lema MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines on Thursday posted surprisingly strong growth in the first quarter, knocking China from pole position in Asia, driven by robust domestic consumption and government spending. The stellar pace of expansion, which blew past expectations, pulled the peso up from an 11-month low and cemented views the central bank would leave its key policy rate on hold this year. Growth is seen powering on after the Philippines earlier this month got an investment grade rating from Standard & Poor's, the second debt agency to do so this year. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama expected to pick James Comey as next FBI chief: source Thursday, May 30, 2013 12:07 AM PDT  By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama is expected to nominate former Justice Department official James Comey as his next head of the FBI, a source said on Wednesday. If confirmed by the Senate, Comey, a Republican, would replace FBI Director Robert Mueller, who has led the agency since just before the September 11, 2001, attacks. Mueller is expected to step down this fall. The White House would not comment on Obama's decision but the source said Obama had been leaning toward Comey in recent days. It was unclear when an announcement would be made. ... Full Story | Top |
| Heathrow plans to name noisiest airlines Wednesday, May 29, 2013 11:49 PM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - London's Heathrow airport plans to name the noisiest airlines operating at the hub, as it ramps up efforts to gain approval for expansion. Europe's busiest airport also plans to significantly increase the fines it imposes on airlines that break noise limits, it said in a report released on Thursday. The two-runway hub, operated by Heathrow Ltd, said it would release quarterly figures that rank airlines on their noise performance from this summer. ... Full Story | Top |
| California's Democratic lawmakers push for tighter gun control Wednesday, May 29, 2013 11:20 PM PDT  By Sharon Bernstein SACRAMENTO, California (Reuters) - Democratic lawmakers in California, critical of Congress' failure to pass significant gun control legislation after mass shootings in Colorado and Connecticut last year, advanced a package of bills on Wednesday that would tighten a ban on semi-automatic firearms and further regulate ammunition sales. ... Full Story | Top |
| Chinese wonder why their tourists behave so badly Wednesday, May 29, 2013 10:45 PM PDT  By Li Hui and Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - From faking marriage certificates to get honeymoon discounts in the Maldives to letting children defecate on the floor of a Taiwan airport, Chinese tourists have recently found themselves at the center of controversy and anger. Thanks to microblogging sites in China, accounts of tourists behaving badly spread like wildfire across the country, provoking disgust, ire and soul-searching. ... Full Story | Top |
| Supporters of U.S. immigration bill unsettled by Rubio message Wednesday, May 29, 2013 10:11 PM PDT  By Caren Bohan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican Senator Marco Rubio's repeated criticism of parts of the sweeping U.S. immigration bill he helped craft has unsettled immigration reform advocates and others who support its passage. Rubio, a Cuban-American lawmaker from Florida seen as a possible 2016 presidential contender, has consistently defended the bill's centerpiece - providing legal status for roughly 11 million undocumented immigrants. ... Full Story | Top |
| Cricket-Spinner Ahmed could be cleared for Ashes next week Wednesday, May 29, 2013 09:38 PM PDT SYDNEY, May 30 (Reuters) - Legspinner Fawad Ahmed's path to the Australia squad for the Ashes series could be cleared as early as next week after the government introduced legislation on Thursday that enables them to fast-track citizenship in special cases. Pakistan-born Ahmed arrived in Australia in 2010 before claiming asylum as a refugee on the grounds that he had been subject to death threats from Islamic extremists for being involved with an NGO promoting women's rights. ... Full Story | Top |
| Foreclosure sales tumble in first quarter: RealtyTrac Wednesday, May 29, 2013 09:06 PM PDT  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sales of U.S. homes in foreclosure fell in the first quarter, a report from RealtyTrac showed on Thursday, the latest data to suggest the housing market is on the mend. There were 190,121 properties sold that were in the foreclosure process or already seized by lenders, down 18 percent from the last quarter of 2012 and a decrease of 22 percent from the first quarter the year before. That accounted for 21 percent of all home sales, down from 25 percent in the first quarter of 2012. ... Full Story | Top |
| Thailand's CP Foods says considered bidding for Smithfield Wednesday, May 29, 2013 09:01 PM PDT HONG KONG (Reuters) - Charoen Pokphand Foods Plc, controlled by Thai billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont, said on Thursday it had considered bidding for Smithfield Foods Inc. On Wednesday, China's privately-owned Shuanghui International agreed to buy Smithfield Foods for $4.7 billion in cash to feed growing Chinese appetite for U.S. pork, in a deal that has already stirred concern from U.S. politicians. CP Foods declined to give more details due to a non-disclosure agreement. (Reporting by Denny Thomas and Khettiya Jittapong; Editing by Ryan Woo) Full Story | Top |
| Civil rights group wants review of FBI shooting of Chechen man in Florida Wednesday, May 29, 2013 08:45 PM PDT  (Reuters) - A Muslim civil liberties group said on Wednesday it wants a review of the death of a Chechen immigrant linked to the Boston Marathon bombing suspects who was shot and killed by an FBI agent in Florida. The FBI has said that Ibragim Todashev, 27, was being questioned when he suddenly attacked an agent on May 22 at his Orlando condominium and was shot and killed based on the "imminent threat posed by the individual. ... Full Story | Top |
| California 12-year-old accused of killing sister denies charge in court Wednesday, May 29, 2013 08:03 PM PDT By Ronnie Cohen SAN ANDREAS, California (Reuters) - A 12-year-old boy accused of fatally stabbing his younger sister in a crime that traumatized their California town denied a second-degree murder charge through his attorney in juvenile court on Wednesday, and the boy's lawyer said he planned a vigorous defense. The boy, who is identified in court as Isaiah F., appeared in shackles and spoke only once during the proceeding in Calaveras County juvenile court when he agreed to continue to waive his right to a speedy trial. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama says Democrats could win back U.S. House in 2014 Wednesday, May 29, 2013 07:45 PM PDT  By Roberta Rampton CHICAGO (Reuters) - President Barack Obama, whose agenda has been frustrated by Republicans in Washington, said on Wednesday he believed his party could reclaim control of the House of Representatives in the 2014 midterm elections but conceded it was an uphill struggle. The party in power in the White House typically loses seats in the first midterm election after a presidential campaign, and many political analysts believe Democrats could lose seats in Congress in 2014. ... Full Story | Top |
| Threatening letters sent to New York mayor may contain ricin: police Wednesday, May 29, 2013 07:25 PM PDT  By Edith Honan and Chris Francescani NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two anonymous letters addressed to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his gun control group contained material believed to be the potentially deadly poison ricin, and referenced the debate on gun laws, police said on Wednesday. The New York Police Department said initial tests on the two letters, opened in New York on Friday and in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, indicated the presence of ricin. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senator John McCain confident of identifying 'good guys' in Syria Wednesday, May 29, 2013 07:06 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senator John McCain said on Wednesday, two days after meeting with rebels in Syria, that he is confident the United States can send weapons to fighters in Syria without the risk they will fall into the wrong hands. "We can identify who these people are. We can help the right people," McCain said on CNN's program "Anderson Cooper 360." McCain, a Republican, is an outspoken advocate for U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Judge rejects legal challenges by accused Colorado theater gunman Wednesday, May 29, 2013 07:00 PM PDT  By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - A Colorado judge rejected challenges on Wednesday to the state's insanity defense statute and death penalty law by accused movie theater spree gunman James Holmes, resolving a key legal hurdle in the sensational case. Lawyers for Holmes, accused of killing 12 moviegoers and wounding dozens more in a rampage last July, had argued that the state's insanity law was unconstitutional because it forces their client to cooperate with court-appointed psychiatrists. ... Full Story | Top |
| Illinois judge resigns after charges of possessing heroin Wednesday, May 29, 2013 06:53 PM PDT By Brendan O'Brien (Reuters) - An Illinois judge resigned on Wednesday, days after he was charged in federal court with possession of heroin and weeks after a fellow judge died of a cocaine overdose while the two were on a hunting trip. Michael Cook submitted his resignation as a St. Clair County Circuit Court judge and is now undergoing treatment for drug abuse, said his attorney, Thomas Keefe. Cook has been involved with two drug-related incidents in recent months. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. soldier accused of killing Afghans in deal to avoid execution -lawyer Wednesday, May 29, 2013 06:48 PM PDT  By Eric M. Johnson SEATTLE (Reuters) - A U.S. soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians in two rampages from his Army post last year has reached a plea deal with prosecutors to avoid the death penalty, one of his lawyers said on Wednesday. Robert Bales, a decorated veteran of four combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, is accused of gunning down villagers, mostly women and children, in attacks on their family compounds in Kandahar province in March 2012. ... Full Story | Top |
| Florida executes man who raped and killed 10-year-old girl Wednesday, May 29, 2013 06:32 PM PDT MIAMI (Reuters) - A man convicted of raping and strangling a 10-year-old girl who lived next door to the halfway house where he resided more than 20 years ago was executed in Florida on Wednesday, a state prison official said. Elmer Leon Carroll, 56, was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. EDT from a lethal injection at the Florida State Prison near Starke, said Ann Howard, a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Corrections. Carroll was convicted in the 1990 murder of Christine McGowan. ... Full Story | Top |
| Top U.S. tax breaks to cost $12 trillion over decade, benefit wealthy: CBO Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:52 PM PDT  By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top ten tax deductions, credits and exclusions will keep $12 trillion out of federal government coffers over the next decade, and several of them mainly benefit the wealthiest Americans, a new study from the Congressional Budget Office shows. The top 20 percent of income earners will reap more than half of the $900 billion in benefits from these tax breaks that will accrue in 2013, the non-partisan CBO said on Wednesday. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. congressmen in Russia on Boston bombing fact-finding mission Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:43 PM PDT  MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. congressmen will meet security officials in Moscow this week to find out whether the FBI could have done more with Russian intelligence on the Boston bombing suspect to prevent the attack, one of the lawmakers said on Wednesday. U.S. President Barack Obama's administration and the intelligence community face scrutiny over criticism they failed to see the danger from Tamerlan Tsarnaev and his younger brother Dzhokhar - the prime suspects in the twin bombings that killed three people and injured over 170 at the Boston Marathon. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sprint, SoftBank agree to U.S. national security deal Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:40 PM PDT  By Alina Selyukh (Reuters) - Sprint Nextel Corp and Japan's SoftBank Corp said on Wednesday they had reached a national security agreement with U.S. authorities, overcoming a major hurdle for the Japanese company's $20.1 billion bid to control the wireless carrier. Even with that approval, there are still a number of regulatory, congressional and investor hurdles facing SoftBank before it can close on its plan to break into the U.S. market. One influential U.S. senator said on Wednesday he was "carefully examining" the approval to see if it eased his security concerns. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. drone kills Pakistan Taliban No 2 : security officials Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:34 PM PDT  By Jibran Ahmad PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - A U.S. drone strike killed the No. 2 of the Pakistani Taliban in the North Waziristan region on Wednesday, three security officials said, in what would be a major blow to the militancy. The drone strike killed seven people, Pakistani security officials said, including Taliban deputy commander Wali-ur-Rehman, in the first such attack since a May 11 general election in which the use of the unmanned aircraft was a major issue. It was also the first reported U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Buddhist mobs attack Muslim homes in Myanmar, one dead Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:31 PM PDT  By Jared Ferrie LASHIO, Myanmar (Reuters) - Security forces struggled to control Buddhist mobs who burned Muslim homes on Wednesday for a second day in the northern Myanmar city of Lashio in a dangerous widening of ultra-nationalist Buddhist violence. Scores of young men and boys on motorbikes and on foot marauded through the city of 130,000 people, some singing nationalist songs, a day after a mosque and religious school were torched. One person was killed and four were wounded in fighting, Ye Htut, spokesman for President Thein Sein, said in a Facebook post. ... Full Story | Top |
| Wife of Philadelphia abortion doctor sentenced to prison Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:30 PM PDT By Dave Warner PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - The wife of a Philadelphia doctor convicted of murdering babies during late-term abortions was sentenced on Wednesday to up to 23 months in prison for helping her husband. Pearl Gosnell, 52, whose husband, Dr Kermit Gosnell, ran the now-shuttered Women's Medical Society clinic in Philadelphia, had pleaded guilty to performing an illegal abortion, being part of a corrupt organization and conspiracy. ... Full Story | Top |
| Lawmaker asks Justice Department to investigate JPMorgan power trading Wednesday, May 29, 2013 05:00 PM PDT  By David Sheppard NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Congressman on Wednesday called on the Department of Justice to investigate JPMorgan Chase & Co's power trading in Michigan, as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) considers whether to sanction the firm. Michigan Congressman Dan Kildee, a Democrat who sits on the Committee on Financial Services, said in a letter to the DoJ that it should pursue its own investigation into JPMorgan to see if it manipulated electricity markets. ... Full Story | Top |
| Angry about immigration plan, some gay donors cut off Democrats Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:57 PM PDT  By Rachelle Younglai WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Some disappointed activists say they are yanking their support for the Democratic Party after Senate Democrats opposed a proposal in an immigration bill that would have allowed citizens to bring their foreign-born, same-sex spouses to the United States. Jonathan Lewis, a Miami philanthropist who donated more than $35,000 in 2012, has stopped giving and is urging others to do the same until President Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats stop breaking promises to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. ... Full Story | Top |
| Venezuela furious at Colombia's meeting with opposition leader Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:46 PM PDT  By Enrique Andres Pretel and Luis Jaime Acosta CARACAS/BOGOTA (Reuters) - Venezuela reacted with fury to Wednesday's talks between Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles, saying it was a "bomb" in ties and recalling an envoy to Colombia's peace process. Capriles met Santos in Bogota at the start of a tour around Latin America to press his case that last month's presidential poll in Venezuela was fraudulent and President Nicolas Maduro's government is therefore illegitimate. ... Full Story | Top |
| Congressman asks Justice Dept to investigate JPMorgan trading Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:37 PM PDT By David Sheppard NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Congressman on Wednesday called on the Department of Justice to investigate JPMorgan Chase & Co's power trading in Michigan, as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) considers whether to sanction the firm. Michigan Congressman Dan Kildee, a Democrat who sits on the Committee on Financial Services, said in a letter to the DoJ that it should pursue its own investigation into JPMorgan to see if it manipulated electricity markets. ... Full Story | Top |
| New York security guard accused of threatening to blow up high school Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:29 PM PDT By Jonathan Allen NEW YORK (Reuters) - A high school security guard accused of threatening to blow up his school in suburban Nyack, New York, was ordered to court next month to face criminal charges, police said on Wednesday. Kenneth Carter, 51, was arrested at Nyack High School last Wednesday after a colleague told the school administration he vowed an attack, said a spokeswoman for the Clarkstown Police Department. He was apparently angry about an earlier disciplinary incident at the school, she said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Three Senegal women freed after rebel kidnapping Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:28 PM PDT BISSAU (Reuters) - Three Senegalese women who work for a South African organization that cleared land mines and were kidnapped by separatist rebels in Senegal this month were handed over to authorities in neighbouring Guinea-Bissau on Wednesday. Twelve employees of demining firm Mechem were kidnapped by a faction of the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance, which has waged a 31-year struggle for independence in Senegal's southern border with Guinea-Bissau. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. finds unapproved genetically modified wheat in Oregon Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:20 PM PDT By Charles Abbott WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A strain of genetically engineered wheat never approved for sale or consumption was found sprouting on a farm in Oregon, the U.S. government said on Wednesday, and grain traders warned the discovery could hurt export prospects for U.S. wheat. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported the discovery of a wheat variety developed years ago by biotechnology giant Monsanto Co to be resistant to its Roundup herbicide. It was never put into use because of worldwide opposition to genetically engineered wheat. ... Full Story | Top |
| Immigrants are net contributors to U.S. Medicare program : study Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:17 PM PDT By Susan Heavey WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Immigrants for years have paid far more into Medicare's coffers than they have pulled out, effectively subsidizing rising healthcare payments to the aging U.S. population, a study released on Wednesday showed. The analysis from Harvard Medical School showed immigrants generated a $13.8 billion surplus for the U.S. government healthcare program for the elderly in 2009, the most recent figures available. ... Full Story | Top |
| Morgan Stanley sues high-producing brokers for jump to Stifel Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:15 PM PDT  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley has asked an Idaho court to prohibit three brokers it says generated over half the revenue at its Coeur d'Alene branch from contacting former colleagues about joining them at a Stifel Nicolaus & Co. office they have set up in the same city The office's producing branch manager, Michael Armon, and two associates resigned from Morgan Stanley on May 9, causing "upset, anxiety, insecurity, uneasiness and concern" at "a relatively small office" that had only six advisers, according to a May 17 filing in U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Top US tax breaks to cost $12 trillion over decade, benefit wealthy : CBO Wednesday, May 29, 2013 04:06 PM PDT  By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top ten U.S. tax deductions, credits and exclusions will keep $12 trillion out of federal government coffers over the next decade, and several of them mainly benefit the wealthiest Americans, a new study from the Congressional Budget Office shows. The top 20 percent of income earners will reap more than half of the $900 billion in benefits from these tax breaks that will accrue in 2013, the non-partisan CBO said on Wednesday. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. soldier accused of killing Afghans reaches deal to avoid execution : lawyer Wednesday, May 29, 2013 03:42 PM PDT By Eric M. Johnson SEATTLE (Reuters) - A U.S. soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians in two rampages from his Army post last year has reached a plea deal with prosecutors to avoid the death penalty, one of his lawyers said on Wednesday. Robert Bales, a decorated veteran of four combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, is accused of gunning down villagers, mostly women and children, in attacks on their family compounds in Kandahar province in March 2012. ... Full Story | Top |
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