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| Head of Syrian Kurdish group in Turkey for talks: sources Friday, Jul 26, 2013 12:54 AM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - The head of a Syrian Kurdish group with links to militants in Turkey has flown to Istanbul for talks with government officials after an upsurge in fighting near the Turkish border, Kurdish political sources said on Friday. Saleh Muslim, the head of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), whose militias have seized control of districts in northern Syria over the past year, arrived in Turkey late on Thursday, Kurdish sources told Reuters. Turkish government officials could not confirm Muslim's arrival and said there were no plans for any high-level meetings. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt braces for rival rallies, army signals crackdown Friday, Jul 26, 2013 12:52 AM PDT  By Yasmine Saleh and Matt Robinson CAIRO (Reuters) - A deeply polarized Egypt braced for bloodshed on Friday in rival mass rallies summoned by the army that ousted the state's first freely elected president and by the Islamists who back him. Both sides warned of a decisive struggle for the future of the Arab world's most populous country, convulsed by political and economic turmoil since the 2011 uprising that ended 30 years of autocratic rule by Hosni Mubarak. ... Full Story | Top |
| With Pope in town, ribald Rio a land of outdoor confessionals Friday, Jul 26, 2013 12:51 AM PDT  By Paulo Prada RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Ah, Rio. The sun. The sand. The absolution. Often, tourists and travelers leave this hedonist hotspot with a feeling of guilt. This week, however, thousands of young visitors are dropping to their knees and asking for forgiveness. Never mind that they might still fall prey to the temptations of the famous nightclubs, bars and beaches of the coastal metropolis, let alone the allure of the many other young pilgrims gathered here for a week long visit by Pope Francis. ... Full Story | Top |
| Four more women accuse San Diego mayor of sexual misconduct Friday, Jul 26, 2013 12:37 AM PDT  SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Four more women, including a retired U.S. Navy admiral and a college dean, came forward on Thursday to publicly accuse San Diego Mayor Bob Filner of making unwanted sexual advances toward them, as local party leaders called on him to resign. The latest allegations leveled at Filner during a group interview of the four women by public television station KPBS brought to seven the number of women who have come forth since earlier this week to accuse the 70-year-old Democrat and former congressman of sexual harassment. ... Full Story | Top |
| World Bank says global food prices fell again in latest period Friday, Jul 26, 2013 12:15 AM PDT  By Paige Gance WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Global food prices fell by 2 percent in the latest four-month period, marking the third straight period of declines, as declining imports in the Middle East and North Africa, and lower demand pushed prices down 12 percent from their August 2012 peak, the World Bank said on Thursday. The World Bank's Food Price Index showed international prices of wheat fell by 2 percent, sugar by 6 percent, soybean oil by 11 percent, and maize, or corn, by 1 percent during the four-month period between February and June. ... Full Story | Top |
| South African rand steady, central bank could reiterate inflation concerns Friday, Jul 26, 2013 12:04 AM PDT  JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's rand was flat against the dollar on Friday and looked to tread a narrow range in the absence of major market-moving economic data, both locally and abroad. Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus, in her opening address at 0800 GMT at the bank's annual general meeting, is likely to reiterate concerns about weak economic growth and upward risks to inflation from the rand's recent sharp decline. By 0648 GMT, the local currency traded at 9.7245 against the dollar, barely changed from its New York close at 9.7300 on Thursday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Election offers new start for Mali, but no magic wand Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 11:34 PM PDT  By David Lewis and Adama Diarra BAMAKO (Reuters) - When Mali imploded last year - its president ousted by mutinous soldiers and its north seized by separatist and Islamist rebels - many called for an overhaul of the West African state's flawed democracy, once held up as a model of stability. Sunday's presidential election in the Sahel state, which experienced turmoil and conflict for over a year, including a French-led military intervention from January, provides the chance for a fresh start to rebuild and unite the nation. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: Setbacks to bring quieter Qatar foreign policy but no U-turn Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 11:27 PM PDT  By Regan Doherty, Amena Bakr and William Maclean DOHA/DUBAI (Reuters) - Qatar may tone down its pushy foreign policy, chastened by setbacks in Syria and Egypt, but is likely to keep supporting Arab Spring revolts and bankrolling Islamist influence, albeit a little more quietly. The tiny state provided much of the armed muscle behind the Arab rebellions, while its aid for Muslim Brotherhood rule in Egypt alarmed neighboring Gulf monarchies who see the Islamist movement as a threat to their own hereditary authority. ... Full Story | Top |
| African Union urges S.Sudan to quickly form new government after cabinet dismissal Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 11:10 PM PDT  By Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - The African Union urged South Sudan's President Salva Kiir on Thursday to quickly form a new government and respect the country's diversity in doing so after Kiir sacked his cabinet amid talk of a succession struggle. Analysts say Kiir was trying to stem dissent and divisions inside his ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement(SPLM) party over endemic corruption and an economic crisis, largely the result of disputes with Sudan that have prevented South Sudan exporting crude oil. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kidnapped Lebanese manager released in Nigeria Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 11:09 PM PDT ONITSHA, Nigeria (Reuters) - Kidnappers released a Lebanese construction company manager on Thursday, two weeks after he was abducted from the firm's premises by armed men in southern Nigeria, the military said. Gunmen fired on the premises of Nigerian-owned but Lebanese-run construction firm Setraco in Benin city on July 8, killing two soldiers, wounding a third and seizing the hostage. "(He) has been released today by his abductors," military spokeswoman Captain Roseline Managbe said. "We are not aware if any ransom was paid." The company was not immediately available for comment. ... Full Story | Top |
| Burundi government revenue tumbles in wake of market blaze Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 11:06 PM PDT BUJUMBURA (Reuters) - Burundi's tax revenue fell 20 percent in the first five months of 2013 due to an economic slowdown and a fire that destroyed a major marketplace in the capital, the finance minister said after parliament approved a revised budget on Thursday. The revised 2013 budget projects tax revenues of 547.5 billion Burundi francs, well down from an initial forecast of 621 billion francs. Burundi's government has already cuts its growth forecast for 2013 to 4.8 percent from 6. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan to mull ability to hit enemy bases in defense review Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 10:18 PM PDT  By Linda Sieg and Kiyoshi Takenaka TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan should strengthen the ability of its military to deter and counter missile attacks, including the possible acquisition of the ability to hit enemy bases, the Defence Ministry said, but officials denied this would be used for pre-emptive strikes. The proposal - Japan's latest step away from the constraints of its pacifist constitution - is part of a review of defense policy by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government, which released an interim report on the issue on Friday. Final review conclusions are due by the end of the year. ... Full Story | Top |
| Accused Cleveland abductor to appear in court amid reports of plea deal Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 10:06 PM PDT  By Kim Palmer CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Accused Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro is scheduled to appear in court on Friday amid reports that he is close to agreeing to a plea deal under which he would serve a life sentence for kidnapping and raping three women and holding them captive for years. Several media reported on Thursday that prosecutors had offered Castro a deal to avoid a trial, and spare him the death penalty. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: Obama, Republicans gear up for bruising U.S. budget fight Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 10:04 PM PDT  By David Lawder and Caren Bohan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Another dramatic showdown between Republicans and the White House over federal spending looks inevitable this fall, with scary talk of government shutdowns and default on government debt. While Capitol Hill analysts are not predicting catastrophe, they have several reasons to worry that the conflict just weeks away could be even worse than usual. The timing is particularly bad, they say, because the political climate in Washington is unusually frayed by a host of tangential issues not present in previous battles. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: On U.S. banks and commodity trade, Fed unlikely to say no Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 09:03 PM PDT  By Jonathan Leff NEW YORK (Reuters) - When it comes to commodity trading, the U.S. Federal Reserve has a habit of lengthy deliberation, deep enquiry and saying yes. The Fed granted its first authorization to trade physical commodities to Citigroup Inc in 2003 after nearly five years of study; the letter allowing it to keep its Phibro unit arrived just six days before a grace period ended. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: Detroit set to beat bad-faith charge over bankruptcy Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 09:02 PM PDT  By Tom Hals WILMINGTON, Delaware (Reuters) - Meetings without the chance for any back and forth, unreturned phone calls and brusque tactics. To opponents of Detroit's bankruptcy filing, Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr has utterly failed to negotiate with them. But retired city workers, who are fighting to stop their pensions from being cut, and hope to stop Detroit's bankruptcy by claiming in court that Orr didn't engage in good-faith negotiations, are likely out of luck. ... Full Story | Top |
| Mexican President Pena Nieto's thyroid growth benign -official Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 08:32 PM PDT  MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A nodule on Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's thyroid gland is benign, an official in the president's office said on Thursday. Pena Nieto is due to undergo surgery to remove the nodule next Wednesday, in a procedure that will last an hour and a half, the president's office said in a statement on Wednesday. The official said the operation was a simple one and that the nodule was being removed because doctors thought that was the best course of action. Pena Nieto will spend four days recovering after the operation. ... Full Story | Top |
| Organization of America States backs fragile El Salvador gang truce Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 08:20 PM PDT  SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) - Jose Miguel Insulza, the secretary general of the Organization of American States, gave his support to a fragile truce between El Salvador's gangs on Thursday, despite a recent uptick in murders. After meeting with El Salvador's president, Mauricio Funes, Insulza backed the tentative peace treaty between the Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, and their rivals, Barrio 18, pointing to an overall decrease in the number of killings in the Central American country since the truce took hold in March 2012. ... Full Story | Top |
| Opposition mounts to Summers as possible Fed chief Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 08:13 PM PDT  By Pedro da Costa and Mark Felsenthal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama could be months away from announcing his pick to replace Ben Bernanke at the Federal Reserve, yet critics are already making an unusual public effort to stop one contender in the race - former U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers. The outcry has come not from Republicans, but the left wing of the Democratic Party. Summers advised Obama, was treasury secretary under former President Bill Clinton, led Harvard University and was chief economist for the World Bank. ... Full Story | Top |
| Massive California wildfire sparked by faulty electrical gear Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 07:57 PM PDT By Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Faulty electrical equipment sparked the 10-day-old forest fire that had threatened the scenic mountain resort of Idyllwild in Southern California before cooler, rainy weather helped crews largely subdue the blaze, fire authorities said on Thursday. The so-called Mountain Fire charred 27,000 acres in mountains near Palm Springs, forcing the evacuation of several communities and destroying seven homes. The blaze, which was first reported on July 15, was 92 percent contained by Thursday evening, authorities said, as crews worked to mop up hot spots. ... Full Story | Top |
| Juror says Zimmerman 'got away with murder' Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 07:39 PM PDT  By David Adams (Reuters) - A juror in the trial of George Zimmerman says the former neighborhood watch volunteer "got away with murder" when he was acquitted earlier this month in the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin. The woman, who is part Hispanic and was identified in court as juror B29, said she would have liked to convict Zimmerman of murdering Martin but her hands were tied by a lack of evidence. "You can't put the man in jail even though in our hearts we felt he was guilty," she said in an interview due to be aired on ABC's "Good Morning America" on Friday. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. agents 'got lucky' pursuing accused Russia master hackers Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 07:08 PM PDT  SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The two Russians arrested in what prosecutors call the largest online fraud case brought in the United States were caught through a combination of high-tech tools, dogged detective work and sheer luck. The propensity of the wealthy young Russians to travel provided authorities with their big opportunity to collar them in the Netherlands last year. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. navy to recover bombs from Great Barrier Reef Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 06:31 PM PDT  SYDNEY (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy said on Friday it would lead the effort to recover four unarmed bombs it was forced to drop in Australia's World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef marine park. The U.S. 7th Fleet would take the lead in recovering the bombs, coordinating with Australian authorities to ensure "the environment is protected with the greatest care", it said in a statement. "We are fully committed to redressing any potential adverse environmental impact in a timely manner," the Navy said, adding it would announce more detailed plans as they were finalized. U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Alabama executes man advocates said was mentally ill Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 06:25 PM PDT By Verna Gates BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Reuters) - Alabama executed a convicted murderer on Thursday who prisoners' rights groups said was mentally ill. Andrew Reid Lackey, 29, was put to death by lethal injection at Holman Prison in Atmore, Alabama, prison officials said. It was the state's first execution since 2011. Lackey was convicted of killing Charlie Newman, an 80-year-old World War Two veteran in Athens, Alabama. Lackey made no statement before his execution, according to prison officials. He was pronounced dead at 6:25 p.m. CDT (2325 GMT). ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. sidesteps decision whether to cut off aid to Egypt Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 06:23 PM PDT  By Arshad Mohammed and Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration sidestepped a decision on cutting off most of the annual $1.55 billion of U.S. aid to Egypt by saying on Thursday it does not plan to rule on whether a military coup took place in Egypt. The stance resolves a dilemma for the White House: whether to comply with a U.S. law that requires eliminating most aid in the event of a military coup or to find that the armed forces' July 3 ouster of President Mohamed Mursi was not in fact a coup. ... Full Story | Top |
| Mississippi Supreme Court reverses DNA ruling in murder case Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 06:11 PM PDT  By Emily Lane JACKSON, Mississippi (Reuters) - The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled that death row inmate Willie Jerome Manning can ask a lower court judge to allow DNA and fingerprint testing in a bid to overturn his conviction for murdering two college students. The ruling came more than two months after the same court stopped Manning's execution on May 7, hours before it was scheduled to take place. The order, dated Tuesday, also reverses an earlier decision in which the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 against Manning's request for DNA testing. ... Full Story | Top |
| Smithfield's China deal spurs heparin heart drug safety concerns Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 05:55 PM PDT  By Toni Clarke WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers are concerned a Chinese company's planned $4.7 billion acquisition of pork producer Smithfield Foods Inc could affect the safety and availability of heparin, a blood-thinner widely used in heart surgery and kidney dialysis that is derived from pig intestines. Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce wrote to Smithfield on July 24 asking the company to turn over information on its production of crude heparin, the raw ingredient used to make the drug. ... Full Story | Top |
| Weiner mayoral campaign falters; woman details sex chats Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 05:32 PM PDT  By Edith Honan and Jonathan Allen NEW YORK (Reuters) - Anthony Weiner's New York mayoral campaign took a beating on Thursday as he lost his lead in a new poll and admitted to sending lewd online messages to up to three women since he resigned from Congress over such behavior two years ago. One of those women came forward on Thursday to say they had frequent sexually charged conversations both online and over the phone last year, although they never met in person. ... Full Story | Top |
| Halliburton pleads guilty to destroying Gulf spill evidence Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 05:23 PM PDT  By Jonathan Stempel and Braden Reddall (Reuters) - Halliburton Co has agreed to plead guilty to destroying evidence related to the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Thursday. The government said Halliburton's guilty plea is the third by a company over the spill and requires the world's second-largest oilfield services company to pay a maximum $200,000 statutory fine. Halliburton also agreed to three years of probation and to continue cooperating with the criminal probe into the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Asiana crash families hire prominent New York law firm Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 05:16 PM PDT  By Casey Sullivan, Dan Levine and Sarah McBride NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Families of the three passengers who died when an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 crashed in San Francisco this month have retained the prominent New York law firm Kreindler & Kreindler to represent them as legal maneuvering over liability and damages heats up. Kreindler & Kreindler, which specializes in aviation law, made a name for itself representing victims in catastrophic air disasters, including the September 11, 2001, attacks. ... Full Story | Top |
| SAC gets cut by 'edge', a word Cohen hated Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 05:04 PM PDT By Lauren Tara LaCapra, Matthew Goldstein and Emily Flitter NEW YORK (Reuters) - Until recently, having an "edge" was a coveted trait on Wall Street. After the federal indictment on Thursday of billionaire investor Steven A. Cohen's hedge fund for insider trading, it is becoming a four-letter word. In painting a picture of a cutthroat culture at SAC Capital Advisors LP, U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. will not declare whether coup occurred in Egypt: U.S. official Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 05:01 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration told lawmakers on Thursday it does not intend to make a determination on whether a military coup occurred in Egypt, a senior U.S. official said, in a move that avoids a decision that would automatically force the cut-off of U.S. aid Briefing members of Congress, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns told them the administration was not legally bound to draw any conclusion whether or not the ouster of Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi should be designated a coup, and that to make such a declaration would not be in the U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. Navy defends new warship, warns against slowing production Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:57 PM PDT  By Andrea Shalal-Esa WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Navy officials on Thursday staunchly defended the newest class of U.S. warships despite a spate of technical glitches, and they warned lawmakers that halting funding for the ships or their equipment could drive up costs. They rejected a report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released Thursday that blasted the acquisition program for the Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) as a risky "buy before fly" approach and urged lawmakers to limit funding for more ships until the Navy completed technical studies. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. charges SAC Capital with insider trading crimes Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:49 PM PDT  By Emily Flitter, Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors indicted billionaire Steven A. Cohen's hedge fund for insider trading, a rare move that could end the career of one of Wall Street's most successful investors and trigger a fundamental change in how traders try to gain an edge over rivals. The government accused SAC Capital Advisors LP of presiding over a culture where employees flouted the law and were encouraged to tap their personal networks of contacts for inside information about publicly traded companies. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. does not plan decision on Egypt coup Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:48 PM PDT  By Arshad Mohammed and Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration told Congress on Thursday it does not plan to make a determination on whether a military coup occurred in Egypt, avoiding a decision that would force the cut off of most of the annual $1.55 billion in U.S. aid. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns delivered the message in separate briefings to senior members of the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives, several lawmakers told reporters after meeting the number two U.S. diplomat. ... Full Story | Top |
| Farm bill on hold while House tries again on food stamp cuts Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:39 PM PDT  By Charles Abbott WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled House will try to cut billions of dollars from the food stamp program before negotiating an overall farm bill with the Senate, the House majority leader said on Thursday two months before the current farm law expires. Majority Leader Eric Cantor said the House "eventually" would open final-round discussions with the Senate on a farm bill that could cost $100 billion a year. The current farm law expires on Sept 30. Congress has 12 days of work scheduled before then, mostly because of a five-week summer recess. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. judge approves IBM's foreign bribery case settlement with SEC Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:21 PM PDT  By Alina Selyukh WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Thursday signed off on IBM's 2011 settlement with U.S. regulators over charges of foreign bribery, wrapping up the latest case that questioned U.S. authorities' aggressiveness in investigating corporate misconduct. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon approved the settlement between International Business Machines Corp and the Securities and Exchange Commission after IBM agreed to a two-year reporting requirement on accounting fraud or bribery as well as federal investigations. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syrian rebels ask Kerry to send U.S. arms quickly Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:08 PM PDT  By Michelle Nichols NEW YORK (Reuters) - The head of Syria's opposition told U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday the country's situation was "desperate" and called for the United States to arm the rebels quickly and to push harder for a political settlement. The United Nations says more than 100,000 people have been killed since Syria's civil war erupted more than two years ago pitting President Bashar al-Assad's forces against rebels seeking to end his family's four-decade rule. President Barack Obama, having withdrawn U.S. troops from Iraq and seeking to wind up the U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. regulator announces $885 million settlement with UBS Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 04:04 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. regulator on Thursday said it reached an $885 million settlement with UBS over allegations the bank misrepresented mortgage-backed bonds that were sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the housing bubble. Under the terms of the agreement with the Federal Housing Finance Agency, UBS must pay about $415 million to Fannie Mae and $470 million to Freddie Mac to resolve claims related to securities sold to the companies between 2004 and 2007. The Swiss banking giant did not admit to any liability or wrongdoing in settling the allegations. ... Full Story | Top |
| Turmoil hits Tunisia after secular politician slain Thursday, Jul 25, 2013 03:46 PM PDT By Tarek Amara TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisian opposition politician Mohamed Brahmi was shot dead on Thursday in the second such assassination this year, setting off violent protests against the Islamist-led government in the capital and elsewhere. "This criminal gang has killed the free voice of Brahmi," his widow, Mbarka Brahmi, told Reuters, without specifying who she thought was behind the shooting outside their home in Tunis. Brahmi's sister later accused the main Islamist Ennahda party of being behind the killing. "Ennahda killed my brother," Souhiba Brahmi said. ... Full Story | Top |
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