Syrian army must pull back first under Annan plan

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• Syrian army must pull back first under Annan plan
• Gambhir assault not enough for India
• Old photos may be deceptive in Fla. shooting case
• NFL concussion lawsuits keep adding former players
• Obama says enough world oil to crack down on Iran sales
• Agent: Saints' Vitt appeals NFL suspension
• House candidate can note astronaut past on ballot
• Cuba dissident identifies papal Mass protester
• Coast Guard Academy to honor first black grad
• Stocks rise, extending best start since 1998
• Jump in US consumer spending brightens outlook
• Teams brace for thin air to reach hoops summit
• US unhappy with Russia over treatment of envoy
• Nadal withdraws at Key Biscayne with knee injury
• FIFA backs revamp of corruption investigation body
• AOL wins, bloggers lose over HuffPo payment suit
• Movie Scores: How the critics rated the new movies
• Obama raising campaign cash in Vermont, Maine
• 1 wounded in man's shooting spree in Finland
• Workers restoring Russian mansion find treasure
• Romney success in focus on campaign trail
• Visa, MasterCard scramble after massive data breach
• Residents: South Libya tribal fighting continues
• Parnell confirms deal on Point Thomson gas leases
• Mali's isolated junta seeks help to stop Tuareg juggernaut
• FDA rejects call to ban BPA from food packaging
• Gazan killed as Palestinians mark Land Day
• USDA says corn supplies fall, driving up prices
• MasterCard, Visa warn of possible security breach
• Eurozone boosts financial buffers to $1.1 trillion
• Jerry Lee Lewis weds for 7th time in Mississippi
• Mega-mania as jackpot increases to $640 million
• Annan calls for immediate Syria ceasefire
• Campaign treasurer pleads guilty to looting $7M
• EU watchdog: bank rate probes include Tokyo's Tibor
• Obama could face election-year jam on gay marriage
• Official One Direction book coming in May
• Euro zone agrees to boost rescue capacity
• Apple chief a hit with workers
• U.S. says has had good talks with South Korea over Iran sanctions

Syrian army must pull back first under Annan plan Posted: BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian artillery hit parts of Homs city and at least 37 people were killed in clashes around Syria on Friday, opposition activists said, as peace envoy Kofi Annan told President Bashar al-Assad his forces must be first to cease fire and withdraw. "The deadline is now," Annan's spokesman Ahmad Fawzi said in Geneva. "We expect him to implement this plan immediately." An army pullback to bases would permit a safe return to mass, peaceful protest, said anti-government activists. But there was no sign of any risk-free demonstrations on Friday. ...

Gambhir assault not enough for India Posted: A blazing innings by India's Gautam Gambhir could not prevent a South African win in a rain-hit one-off Twenty20 international at the Wanderers Stadium on Friday.

Old photos may be deceptive in Fla. shooting case Posted: When he was shot, Trayvon Martin was not the baby-faced boy in the photo that has been on front pages across the country. And George Zimmerman wasn't the beefy-looking figure in the widely published mugshot.

NFL concussion lawsuits keep adding former players Posted: What began last summer as a couple of cases with a handful of plaintiffs is growing week by week, and soon perhaps more than 1,000 former football players will be suing the NFL in federal court in Philadelphia.

Obama says enough world oil to crack down on Iran sales Posted: BURLINGTON, Vt./WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama vowed on Friday to forge ahead with tough sanctions on Iran, saying there was enough oil in the world market - including emergency stockpiles - to allow countries to cut Iranian imports. In his decision, required by a sanctions law he signed in December, Obama said increased production by some countries as well as "the existence of strategic reserves" helped him come to the conclusion that sanctions can advance. ...

Agent: Saints' Vitt appeals NFL suspension Posted: The agent for the Saints' Joe Vitt says his client has decided to appeal his NFL suspension for his role in New Orleans' bounty system.

House candidate can note astronaut past on ballot Posted: A congressional candidate in California's Central Valley can note on ballots that he used to be an astronaut.

Cuba dissident identifies papal Mass protester Posted: A leading Cuban dissident has identified the mystery man who yelled anti-government slogans just before a Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI this week before being hustled away by security agents.

Coast Guard Academy to honor first black grad Posted: Since becoming the first African-American to graduate from the Coast Guard Academy in 1966, Merle Smith has seen more diversity among the corps of cadets. But he says the academy still has work to do to better reflect the face of America.

Stocks rise, extending best start since 1998 Posted: Rising consumer spending boosted stocks on Friday as Wall Street closed its best first quarter since 1998.

Jump in US consumer spending brightens outlook Posted: U.S. consumers boosted their spending in February by the most in seven months, raising expectations for stronger growth at the start of the year.

Teams brace for thin air to reach hoops summit Posted: The rust-colored sign in the arena's loading dock serves as both a welcome and a warning for players when they step off the team bus.

US unhappy with Russia over treatment of envoy Posted: The Obama administration has complained to Russia about harassment of its outspoken ambassador in Moscow, who has confronted television news crews and taken to social media to raise suspicions that his cell phone and email were being hacked.

Nadal withdraws at Key Biscayne with knee injury Posted: Rafael Nadal's knee trouble has sidelined him again, and he hopes for a quick recovery to avoid missing any of the upcoming clay-court season.

FIFA backs revamp of corruption investigation body Posted: FIFA will change the way it investigates corruption and is prepared to examine any "credible" evidence of past wrongdoing, president Sepp Blatter said Friday.

AOL wins, bloggers lose over HuffPo payment suit Posted: The Huffington Post doesn't have to pay bloggers for providing content for its website in part because they knew from the start they wouldn't be paid and could have taken their work elsewhere, a federal judge ruled Friday.

Movie Scores: How the critics rated the new movies Posted: The Greek gods may be able to take down mythical beasts, but they can't win over film critics, as "Wrath of the Titans" opens this week to largely negative reviews.

Obama raising campaign cash in Vermont, Maine Posted: Raising campaign cash in reliably Democratic Vermont, President Barack Obama on Friday called this year's presidential race a "clarifying election" that will determine what the country stands for.

1 wounded in man's shooting spree in Finland Posted: A 23-year-old gunman wounded the father of his former girlfriend in an office building in Finland on Friday, then went to a nearby school and fired several shots through a classroom door, police said.

Workers restoring Russian mansion find treasure Posted: For years, kopek-pinching Soviets sat down in a cheap restaurant in a former mansion of the nobility for plain meals, unaware of the treasure secreted nearby.

Romney success in focus on campaign trail Posted: Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney is defending his personal wealth as Democrats try to portray him as out of touch with most people.

Visa, MasterCard scramble after massive data breach Posted: Credit card giants Visa and MasterCard were scrambling on Friday to thwart cyber crooks who looted a massive trove of precious account data, evidently from a payment processor in New York.

Residents: South Libya tribal fighting continues Posted: A senior Libyan government official says that warring tribes in the south have brokered a cease-fire after days of deadly clashes, but residents say the fighting continues.

Parnell confirms deal on Point Thomson gas leases Posted: Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell confirmed Friday that a settlement has been reached in the long-running dispute over leases on the Point Thomson gas fields, clearing the way for progress on a major pipeline project.

Mali's isolated junta seeks help to stop Tuareg juggernaut Posted: Mali's embattled coup leader Captain Amadou Sanogo on Friday asked for outside help against advancing Tuareg and Islamist fighters who seized another key northern town from overwhelmed soldiers.

FDA rejects call to ban BPA from food packaging Posted: The Food and Drug Administration has rejected a petition from environmentalists that would have banned the plastic-hardening chemical bisphenol-A from all food and drink packaging, including plastic bottles and canned food.

Gazan killed as Palestinians mark Land Day Posted: Israeli gunfire killed a 20-year-old man and wounded another 51 people on Friday, as thousands rallied across the West Bank and Gaza to mark Land Day, medical sources said.

USDA says corn supplies fall, driving up prices Posted: New government data released Friday showed a drop in the amount of corn in storage and raised concerns that supplies will remain tight and prices high in the near term.

MasterCard, Visa warn of possible security breach Posted: (Reuters) - MasterCard Inc, Visa Inc and Discover Financial Services have been victims of a potential security breach, the latest in a string of incidents that have put the personal information of millions of credit cardholders at risk. The companies -- the first, second and fourth largest global credit card processors, respectively -- said the issue stemmed from a third-party vendor and not their own internal systems. It is unclear just how large of a breach this is and how many customers might be affected. MasterCard and Visa said they have notified banks about the security breach. ...

Eurozone boosts financial buffers to $1.1 trillion Posted: The 17 countries that use the euro have boosted their emergency funding for heavily indebted countries to €800 billion ($1.1 trillion) — an amount that falls short of what the currency union's international partners had said is needed to calm financial markets.

Jerry Lee Lewis weds for 7th time in Mississippi Posted: Rock 'n' roll legend Jerry Lee Lewis has married for a seventh time in Mississippi, and the new bride is his cousin's ex-wife.

Mega-mania as jackpot increases to $640 million Posted: Lottery ticket lines swelled as the record Mega Millions jackpot grew to $640 million, thanks greatly to players who opened their wallets despite long odds of success. Officials estimated ticket-buyers will have spent more than $1.46 billion on the jackpot by the time Friday night's numbers are drawn.

Annan calls for immediate Syria ceasefire Posted: International envoy Kofi Annan urged Syria's Bashar al-Assad to immediately implement a ceasefire, as fighting raged on Friday even after the embattled president said he had accepted the peace plan.

Campaign treasurer pleads guilty to looting $7M Posted: A former California campaign treasurer pleaded guilty Friday to looting at least $7 million from the accounts of dozens of Democratic candidates and political organizations, in one of the nation's most egregious political embezzlement cases.

EU watchdog: bank rate probes include Tokyo's Tibor Posted: BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU regulators are investigating whether banks may have manipulated the Tokyo interbank lending rate, Tibor, in addition to the London and European Libor and Euribor rates, the EU's antitrust chief said on Friday. The European Commission and enforcers in the United States, Switzerland and Japan are currently investigating whether banks influenced key interbank lending rates that affect loans around the world. Last year the European Commission raided several lenders, related to its Euribor investigation. ...

Obama could face election-year jam on gay marriage Posted: President Barack Obama could be caught in an election-year bind on gay marriage, wedged between the pressure of supporters who want him to back same-sex marriage and the political perils of igniting an explosive social issue in the midst of the campaign.

Official One Direction book coming in May Posted: One Direction is on a new direction: a book deal.

Euro zone agrees to boost rescue capacity Posted: COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Euro zone finance ministers agreed on Friday to increase their financial firewall to 700 billion euros to ward off a new flare-up of Europe's sovereign debt crisis, drawing a positive initial reaction from G20 partners and markets. The 17-nation currency area agreed to combine two rescue funds to make 500 billion euros of new funds available in case of emergency until mid-2013, on top of 200 billion euros already committed to bailouts for Greece, Ireland and Portugal. ...

Apple chief a hit with workers Posted: Apple chief Tim Cook has won over the company's employees, according to a workplace study released on Friday showing he may be better liked than his legendary predecessor Steve Jobs.

U.S. says has had good talks with South Korea over Iran sanctions Posted: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - White House officials have had "constructive discussions" with South Korea on reducing their imports of Iranian oil, a senior Obama administration official said on Friday. President Barack Obama decided on Friday there is enough oil in global markets to move forward with sanctions on countries that do not reduce imports of Iran's oil. South Korea, the fourth largest buyer of Iranian crude, is one of 12 countries, including China and India, that could face U.S. sanctions unless they reduce the shipments. ...

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