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| Russian prosecutors drop jail threat against tycoon Lebedev Friday, Jun 28, 2013 12:57 AM PDT MOSCOW (Reuters) - State prosecutors asked a Moscow court on Friday to restrict media magnate Alexander Lebedev's movements for 21 months for punching a rival on a TV talk show but did not demand a jail sentence. Lebedev, backer of British newspapers The Independent and London Evening Standard, says the trial is the Kremlin's revenge for his criticism of the government and co-ownership of a Russian newspaper hostile to President Vladimir Putin. He also sees it as a warning to other Russian tycoons. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama jabs Russia, China on failure to extradite Snowden Friday, Jun 28, 2013 12:35 AM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Mark Felsenthal DAKAR (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday he would not start "wheeling and dealing" with China and Russia over a U.S. request to extradite former American spy agency contractor Edward Snowden. Obama, who appeared concerned that the case would overshadow his three-country tour of Africa begun in Senegal, also dismissed suggestions that the United States might try to intercept Snowden if he were allowed to leave Moscow by air. ... Full Story | Top |
| Vatican cleric, two others, arrested in bank investigation Friday, Jun 28, 2013 12:34 AM PDT ROME (Reuters) - A Vatican cleric, a member of Italy's secret services and a financial broker were arrested on Friday as part of an Italian investigation into the Vatican bank, a police source and a lawyer said. The cleric, Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, worked as an accountant in the Vatican's financial administration. He was arrested in a parish in Rome's outskirts, his lawyer Silverio Sica told Reuters. Scarano was suspended from his duties several weeks ago when he was placed under investigation by magistrates in the southern city of Salerno, his home town. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. suspends trade benefits for Bangladesh over safety Friday, Jun 28, 2013 12:17 AM PDT  By Doug Palmer WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama cut off long-time U.S. trade benefits for Bangladesh on Thursday in a mostly symbolic response to conditions in the country's garment industry that have cost more than 1,200 lives in the past year. The U.S. move does not directly affect Bangladesh's multi-billion-dollar clothing exports, since garments are not eligible for U.S. duty cuts. But it could prompt the European Union into similar action, which would have a bigger impact as Bangladesh's clothing and textiles exports to the EU are duty-free. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kenya says sees higher tourism revenues, arrivals in 2013 Friday, Jun 28, 2013 12:11 AM PDT  By Joseph Akwiri MOMBASA, Kenya (Reuters) - Kenya expects tourism revenues to rise four percent to 100 billion shillings this year, helped by higher visitor numbers after a peaceful election, the state-run tourism board said on Friday. A peaceful transition of power to President Uhuru Kenyatta after the closely contested election in March has helped rebuild Kenya's reputation as one of Africa's most stable democracies. ... Full Story | Top |
| Boston bombing suspect accused in four deaths, could face execution Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:52 PM PDT  By Scott Malone and Stephanie Simon BOSTON (Reuters) - Accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday on charges of killing four people in the largest mass-casualty attack on U.S. soil since September 11, 2001. The 30-count indictment filed in Boston federal court charges the 19-year-old ethnic Chechen with setting off two homemade pressure-cooker bombs in a crowd of thousands at the race's finish line and with committing a carjacking and engaging in a gunbattle with police before his April 19 arrest. Tsarnaev could be executed if convicted. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's Mursi circles wagons as trouble looms Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:44 PM PDT  By Tom Perry CAIRO (Reuters) - President Mohamed Mursi came to office promising to be a president for all Egyptians. A year into his term, the divisions deepened by his rule have pitched the nation into crisis. As Mursi's opponents mobilise for protests aimed at toppling him, the Muslim Brotherhood man shows no sign of flinching. Instead, he is digging in, backed by Islamist allies determined to shield Mursi from what they see as an attempted coup. ... Full Story | Top |
| One dead as Egypt simmers ahead of rallies Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:43 PM PDT By Alastair Macdonald and Yasmine Saleh CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's ruling Muslim Brotherhood said one man was shot dead and four wounded in an attack on a provincial party office, stoking factional rivalries ahead of mass rallies starting on Friday. It blamed activists who are campaigning to force President Mohamed Mursi to resign as he marks his first year in office. ... Full Story | Top |
| Tribal clashes kill 50 near gold mine in Sudan's Darfur Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:40 PM PDT By Ulf Laessing KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Fighting between two Arab tribes vying for control of a gold mine has killed around 50 people in Sudan's troubled Darfur region, a tribal leader and a U.N. source said on Thursday. The clashes erupted on Wednesday, pitting the Bani Hussein against the Rizeigat, tribal groups which began fighting in January over the use of the gold mine near El Sireaf in North Darfur, Masar al-Duma Atim, a Bani Hussein leader, told Reuters. "Between 40 and 50 people were killed in El Sireaf on Wednesday," he said. "They attacked us at 9 a.m." A U.N. ... Full Story | Top |
| Britain plans world's first go-ahead for '3-parent' IVF babies Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:34 PM PDT By Kate Kelland, Health and Science Correspondent LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is planning to become the first country in the world to offer controversial "three-parent" fertility treatments to families who want to avoid passing on incurable diseases to their children. The methods, currently only at the research stage in laboratories in Britain and the United States, would for the first time involve implanting genetically modified embryos into women. Critics said the technique was ethically suspect and would eventually lead to a eugenic 'designer baby' market. ... Full Story | Top |
| IMF warns of risks to Ghana's growth and fiscal targets Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:34 PM PDT  ACCRA (Reuters) - There are "implementation risks" facing Ghana's aim to halve its budget deficit to 6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) within three years, the International Monetary Fund warned on Thursday. The government of the cocoa-, gold- and oil-exporting country outlined plans in March to trim the deficit to 6 percent by 2015 after excessive election spending last year helped to pushed it to 12.1 percent, way above a 6.7 target. To allay investor concerns, the government recently announced it would scrap costly subsidies on fuel. ... Full Story | Top |
| With multiple missions, US military steps up Africa focus Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:31 PM PDT  By Peter Apps, Political Risk Correspondent WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Striking Islamist militants with drones, supporting African forces in stabilizing Somalia and Mali and deploying dozens of training teams, the U.S. military has returned to Africa. Its presence remains mostly low key, barely mentioned in the context of President Barack Obama's visit this week to Africa. Nevertheless, with some 4,000-5,000 personnel on the ground at any given time, the United States now has more troops in Africa than at any point since its Somalia intervention two decades ago. ... Full Story | Top |
| Australian PM Rudd urges China action on trade deal Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:30 PM PDT  By James Grubel CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's Sinophile Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Friday urged China - the country's largest trading partner - to conclude a stalled free trade deal, using his first news conference since regaining power to praise the current bilateral relationship. Rudd, a former diplomat who speaks fluent Mandarin, said China's concerns that its farm industry could be hurt by a free trade pact with Canberra were unfounded given the size of Australia's agricultural output. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama heads to South Africa with Mandela on his mind Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:27 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Mark Felsenthal DAKAR (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama heads to South Africa on Friday hoping to see ailing icon Nelson Mandela, after wrapping up a visit to Senegal that focused on improving food security and promoting democratic institutions. Obama is in the middle of a three-country tour of Africa that the White House hopes will compensate for what some view as years of neglect by the administration of America's first black president. ... Full Story | Top |
| South Africa's credit growth and money supply slow in May Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:26 PM PDT JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Growth in credit demand by South Africa's private sector slowed to 9.05 percent year-on-year in May, from 9.13 percent in April, central bank data showed on Friday. Expansion in the broadly defined M3 measure of money supply also braked, coming in at 9.75 percent year-on-year from 9.98 percent in April. Economists surveyed by Reuters had expected credit growth to slow to 9.1 percent and money supply to 9.5 percent. Full Story | Top |
| Sanofi wins diabetes drug approval in Japan Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:13 PM PDT PARIS (Reuters) - French drugmaker Sanofi said it won approval from the Japanese government for its Lyxumia drug for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes in combination with basal insulin. Lyxumia is part of a new class of diabetes treatments called GLP-1 analogues which prompt the body to release insulin when a diabetic's blood sugar level climbs too high. Lyxumia is now approved in Mexico, the European Union, Australia and Japan, Sanofi said in a statement on Friday. A new drug application for lixisenatide in the United States is currently being reviewed, it added. ... Full Story | Top |
| China calls Xinjiang unrest a 'terrorist attack', ups death toll to 35 Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 11:08 PM PDT By Sui-Lee Wee and Li Hui BEIJING (Reuters) - China's state media has raised to 35 the death toll from unrest this week in far western Xinjiang region, and denounced the clashes, the deadliest in four years, as a "terrorist attack". Xinjiang is home to a large Muslim Uighur community and violence focusing on its discontent had been confined recently to southern districts. The altercations in Shanshan county on Wednesday marked a return of unrest to Xinjiang's north. ... Full Story | Top |
| Former Chinese Communist Party official gets 13 years for bribery: Xinhua Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 10:41 PM PDT  BEIJING (Reuters) - A former regional Communist Party official implicated in a sex scandal that has transfixed China was sentenced on Friday to 13 years in jail for bribery, government news agency Xinhua reported on Friday. Lei Zhengfu, a portly, pop-eyed ex-secretary of a region in southwestern China's Chongqing, was caught on video having sex with an 18-year-old mistress, with the clip ricocheting around China's gossip-obsessed Internet when it surfaced last November. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan PM Abe hops and flips in voter-wooing game app Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 10:33 PM PDT  TOKYO (Reuters) - It's a bird, it's a plane ... It's a cartoon version of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, hopping and somersaulting his way through the sky in a smartphone game app his party hopes will lure young voters ahead of a July 21 election. A growing number of Japanese politicians are venturing into the cyber world after a legal change allowed the use of social media in campaigns, setting up Facebook pages and twitter accounts to woo voters before a July upper house election. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: Syria peace conference: Don't hold your breath Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 10:14 PM PDT  By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - How deep is the divide separating Russia and the United States on Syria? A photo from the recent G8 summit in Northern Ireland says it all - two grim-faced leaders slouched in their chairs, Barack Obama biting his lip and Vladimir Putin staring at the floor. The awkward photo opportunity, which went viral on the Internet, highlights the increasingly tense relationship between the former Cold War foes who find it difficult to agree on a series of high-profile issues, including Syria and a fugitive U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: In shadow of landmark decisions, U.S. high court also rules for business Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 10:06 PM PDT  By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Less noticed in a flurry of high-profile rulings on race, voting rights and gay marriage was how the U.S. Supreme Court rounded off its term by delivering a string of victories to businesses and employers. Just this week, the court handed wins to generic drug manufacturers facing design-defect lawsuits, employers battling harassment and retaliation claims and landowners struggling to obtain permits for construction projects. In all four cases, the court was split 5-4 with the conservatives in the majority. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. watchdog raps Pentagon for buying aircraft for Afghan unit Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 09:06 PM PDT By David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A government watchdog criticized the Pentagon on Friday for forging ahead with controversial helicopter purchases from a Russian arms dealer despite warnings the Afghan special forces unit due to receive the aircraft could not fly or maintain them. The watchdog - the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction - urged the Pentagon to suspend the $553 million Russian arms deal as well as a $218 million contract for 18 planes from a U.S. firm until plans were in place to fully recruit and train the Afghan special forces unit. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sony says Dubai dealers sold Iran $12.8 million in equipment Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:55 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Sony Corp said some dealers in Dubai resold about $12.8 million worth of its video equipment and medical instruments to Iranian ministries, in a move that could possibly attract U.S. penalties. The dealers resold some equipment to Iran's broadcasting unit and health ministry, and some also planned to sell equipment to the information technology department of the country's police, the firm said in a filing with the U.S. regulator. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan business mood seen turning positive: BOJ tankan Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:44 PM PDT  By Leika Kihara TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese manufacturers' sentiment turned positive in the three months to June for the first time in nearly two years, a closely-watched central bank survey is likely to show on Monday in a sign recent market turbulence has yet to hurt the feel-good mood created by the government's reflationary policies. The Bank of Japan's "tankan" survey will likely show the headline index for big manufacturers' sentiment improved 11 points from three months ago to plus 3, according to a Reuters poll. ... Full Story | Top |
| UK consumer morale hits two-year high in June - GfK Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:39 PM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - British consumer morale has risen to its highest level in just over two years this month, boosted by increasing optimism about the economy and a greater willingness among households to splash out on big purchases. Market research company GfK said on Friday that its monthly consumer confidence index rose to -21 in June from -22 in May. That was its highest level since May 2011 and matched expectations in a Reuters poll. The data adds to signs from industry surveys that Britain's still-weak economy is gaining steam. The Bank of England forecasts 0. ... Full Story | Top |
| San Diego protester faces vandalism charges for sidewalk chalk drawings Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:27 PM PDT By Marty Graham SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - A protester is standing trial on criminal vandalism charges in San Diego, and faces a sentence of up to 13 years in prison if convicted, for a scribbling a series of anti-bank slogans in chalk on a city sidewalk. Mayor Bob Filner has denounced the prosecution of Jeff Olson, 40, a man with no previous criminal record, as a waste of taxpayer money and an abuse of power that infringes on First Amendment free speech protections in the U.S. Constitution. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama has short list of potential Bernanke successors: source Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:22 PM PDT  By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House has assembled a short list of candidates to succeed Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, a source familiar with the process said on Thursday, and U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew is running the search. Bernanke is expected to leave when his second term as head of the central bank ends on January 31, after an eventful eight years in helping the U.S. economy recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression. ... Full Story | Top |
| Massachusetts police seek man in murder probe of ex-NFL star Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:08 PM PDT  BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts State Police are seeking a man named Ernest Wallace in connection with a murder case against ex-NFL star Aaron Hernandez, the Bristol County District Attorney's Office said in a release late on Thursday. Wallace, 44, is believed to be an "accessory after the fact" in the killing of Odin Lloyd, 27, a semi-pro football player whose body was found June 17 near Hernandez's house in North Attleborough, about 40 miles south of Boston, the release said. Hernandez was charged with Lloyd's murder and fired by the New England Patriots football team on Wednesday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan prices stop falling but BOJ inflation goal seen a tall order Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:02 PM PDT  By Tetsushi Kajimoto and Kaori Kaneko TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's consumer prices stopped falling in May and labor demand reached its strongest level in five years, but the Bank of Japan's time frame for achieving a 2 percent inflation target still appears unlikely. Industrial output rose at its fastest pace since 2011, in a sign of strength in the corporate sector, but an unexpected fall in household spending may raise some concerns about activity. ... Full Story | Top |
| Colorado theater gunman to be tethered to courtroom floor for trial Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 07:58 PM PDT  By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - A Colorado judge ruled on Thursday that accused theater gunman James Holmes will tethered to the courtroom floor by a cable for security reasons during his murder trial, but denied a defense request to sequester the jury. Holmes is charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder stemming from a shooting rampage last July that killed 12 moviegoers during a midnight screening of the Batman film "The Dark Knight Rises" at a suburban Denver cinema. ... Full Story | Top |
| Leader of leftist party in Mexico's Oaxaca state found dead Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:31 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The dead body of a top leader of Mexico's Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) for southern Oaxaca state was found on Thursday and police are investigating his death as a homicide, the state attorney general's office said. Nicolas Estrada, president of the PRD's state council in Oaxaca, one of the leftist party's strongholds, likely died several days before his body was found, officials said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Former senior U.S. general targeted over leak investigation: report Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:20 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Retired U.S. General James Cartwright is the target of a Justice Department investigation into the leaking of secret information about the Stuxnet virus attack on Iranian nuclear facilities in 2010, NBC News reported on Thursday, citing unidentified legal sources. NBC said Cartwright, once the second highest ranking officer in the U.S. military, is being probed over the leaked information about the computer virus, which temporarily disabled 1,000 centrifuges used by Iran to enrich uranium, setting back its nuclear program. ... Full Story | Top |
| Michael Jackson's nephew says singer happy in final days Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:20 PM PDT  By Dana Feldman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's nephew and co-guardian to his three children testified on Thursday in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the late pop star's family that the "Thriller" singer appeared happy at a family party about month before his death in 2009. "He was in a good mood, he was happy, making jokes," T.J. Jackson, 34, the son of Jackson 5 member Tito Jackson, told jurors in a Los Angeles courtroom about the last time he saw the self-styled "King of Pop." "We talked primarily about the children," T.J. said. "I wanted to have more kids, so did he. ... Full Story | Top |
| Europe clinches deals on banks, budget, youth jobless Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:08 PM PDT  By Luke Baker and Paul Taylor BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders agreed on new steps to fight youth unemployment and promote lending to credit-starved small business on Thursday after deals on banking resolution and the long-term EU budget gave their summit a much needed lift. The 27 leaders resolved to spend 6 billion euros over the next two years to support job creation, training and apprenticeships for young people, and to raid unspent EU budget funds to keep the effort going thereafter. ... Full Story | Top |
| British rebate fears allayed to seal budget deal Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:48 PM PDT  By Charlie Dunmore and Luke Baker BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders unanimously backed a deal on the EU's long-term budget at a late-night summit, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said on Friday, after British concerns over its long-cherished budget rebate were soothed. "When it comes to the EU budget, there is full agreement in the European Council," Van Rompuy told a news conference, allaying concerns that the nearly 1 trillion euro package of spending measures could be derailed by a last-minute hitch. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama's environmental nominee in jeopardy from Senate Republicans Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:38 PM PDT  By Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama made a plea this week for the U.S. Senate to confirm his choice to head the agency that will oversee the core of his new climate change plan, but nominee Gina McCarthy's prospects seem increasingly in doubt. McCarthy was nominated by Obama in March to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency where she is currently the top air quality official. She has yet to receive a vote in the full U.S. Senate after narrowly being approved by the Senate Committee for the Environment and Public Works on a party-line vote. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senate immigration bill stirs hope for Arizona migrants Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:35 PM PDT By Tim Gaynor PHOENIX (Reuters) - For undocumented immigrants who fear arrest each day they go to work in Arizona, the passage on Thursday of a landmark U.S. Senate immigration bill has renewed hope they may one day emerge from the shadows - but that dream might be short lived given the bill's slim chances of passing the House of Representatives. "It's incredible ... ... Full Story | Top |
| Costa Rica probes soapy money-laundering link to Venezuela Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:12 PM PDT By Isabella Cota SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (Reuters) - Costa Rica said on Thursday it was investigating two men suspected of laundering money for Venezuelan government firms after detecting a shady scheme to buy millions of bars of soap. Investigators in the Central American nation said they had frozen at least $15.5 million in bank accounts belonging to a Costa Rican lawyer and a Venezuelan who had made suspicious transactions for a company owned by Venezuela's government. ... Full Story | Top |
| Wall Street watchdog scraps controversial supervision plan Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:04 PM PDT By Suzanne Barlyn (Reuters) - Wall Street's industry-funded watchdog has scrapped a controversial plan that would have required brokerages to supervise business lines that are not related to the securities industry, according to a recent regulatory filing. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, in a long-awaited proposal that would streamline rules for how brokerages should supervise themselves, dropped the idea it had initially proposed to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2011. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senate passes sweeping immigration legislation Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:59 PM PDT  By Richard Cowan and Thomas Ferraro WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate approved a landmark immigration bill on Thursday that would provide millions of undocumented immigrants a chance to become citizens, but the leader of the House of Representatives said the measure was dead on arrival in the House. In a rare show of bipartisanship, the Democratic-controlled Senate passed the bill by a vote of 68-32, with 14 of the Senate's 46 Republicans joining all 52 Democrats and two independents in support of the bill. ... Full Story | Top |
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