Saturday, November 24, 2012

Clashes in Cairo after Mursi seizes new powers

Clashes in Cairo after Mursi seizes new powers

Clashes in Cairo after Mursi seizes new powers

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 09:34 PM PST

A protester cheers as items ransacked from an office of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party burn in AlexandriaCAIRO (Reuters) - Angry youths hurled rocks at security forces and burned a police truck as thousands gathered in central Cairo to protest at Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi's decision to grab sweeping new powers. Police fired tear gas near Tahrir Square, heart of the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak at the height of the Arab Spring. Thousands demanded that Mursi should quit and accused him of launching a "coup". There were also violent protests in Alexandria, Port Said and Suez. ...

Syria says Turkey's bid for NATO missiles "provocative"

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 11:06 AM PST

Turkish soldier takes up his position near the border with Syria as seen from the Turkish border town of CeylanpinarBEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria on Friday condemned Turkey's request for NATO to deploy Patriot defense missiles near their common border, calling it "provocative", after a spate of clashes there that has raised fear of the Syrian civil war embroiling the wider region. The 20-month-old uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has turned increasingly bloody and heavy fighting has often erupted right along Syria's northern border with Turkey. Ankara has repeatedly scrambled fighter jets and responded in kind to stray shells and mortars flying into its territory. ...

Mexico arrests suspected murderer on FBI most wanted list

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 09:21 PM PST

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican federal police have captured suspected murderer, rapist and drug gang member Joe Luis Saenz, one of the 10 most wanted fugitives on the FBI's list, the government said on Friday. Saenz, a U.S. citizen, was arrested in the city of Guadalajara in western Mexico on Thursday following an investigation by the federal police in conjunction with the FBI, the government said in a statement. Saenz will be returned from Mexico to Los Angeles this weekend under FBI escort, said a statement from the FBI. ...

Magnitude 4.9 quake jolts Tokyo, no tsunami warning

Posted: 24 Nov 2012 01:20 AM PST

TOKYO (Reuters) - An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.9 jolted Tokyo and nearby areas on Saturday, but no tsunami warning has been issued, Japan Meteorological Agency said. Some trains were temporarily halted but are now back to normal service, public broadcaster NHK said. There were no immediate reports of damage. The depth of the tremor was 80 km (50 miles) in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, the Meteorological Agency said. (Reporting by Yoko Kubota; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)

Middle East nuclear talks will not occur next month: U.S.

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 07:07 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Talks planned for next month on banning nuclear weapons in the Middle East will not take place, the United States said on Friday, a development likely to anger Arab states but please Israel. The State Department announced that the mid-December conference on creating a zone free of weapons of mass destruction, or WMD, would not occur and did not make clear when, or whether, it would take place. Earlier this month, diplomats told Reuters that the talks were likely to be postponed, rather than canceled outright. "As a co-sponsor of the proposed conference ... ...

Thai police fire tear gas in clash with hundreds of protesters

Posted: 24 Nov 2012 01:10 AM PST

Police detain anti-government protesters after a scuffle near the government house in BangkokBANGKOK (Reuters) - Thai police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters who pushed through barriers and clashed with security forces on Saturday as thousands gathered seeking to overthrow Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's government. The royalist Pitak Siam group, led by retired military general Boonlert Kaewprasit, accuses Yingluck's government of corruption and being a puppet of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck's brother. ...

At least seven killed in attack on Shi'ite procession in Pakistan

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 11:51 PM PST

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A roadside bomb killed at least seven people near a Shi'ite procession in Pakistan on Saturday, police said, with security forces on high alert over fears of large-scale sectarian attacks on the minority sect across the country. Pakistan, a nuclear-armed U.S. ally, is suspending phone coverage in many cities this weekend, an important one in the Shi'ite Muslim calendar, after a series of bomb attacks on Shi'ites triggered by mobile phones. Hardline Sunnis have threatened more attacks as the Shi'ite mourning month of Muharram comes to a climax. ...

Russian scientist jailed under Putin walks free

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 10:37 PM PST

File photo of Russian physicist Valentin Danilov standing outside the Krasnoyarsk regional courtKRASNOYARSK, Russia (Reuters) - Russian scientist Valentin Danilov walked free on parole on Saturday after serving eight years of a 14-year sentence on charges of spying for China during President Vladimir Putin's first term. Danilov, 66, said shortly after his release in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk that he had regarded himself as a political prisoner because the information he passed on was declassified. "I would really appreciate it if somebody finally told me what state secret I sold," he said. Danilov smiled, joked and laughed with reporters. ...

Nicaragua's Ortega expects Colombia to respect border ruling

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 07:36 PM PST

Nicaragua's President Ortega speaks to supporters after casting his vote in the municipal elections at a polling station in Managua(Reuters) - Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega expressed confidence on Friday that Colombia would recognize an international court ruling this week that grants Nicaragua jurisdiction over resources-rich Caribbean waters near a Colombian archipelago. Ortega did not mention Bogota's announcement on Wednesday that it would keep navy ships in the disputed waters until the International Court of Justice rules on a possible appeal from the country. ...

Pope elevates 6 cardinals to choose successor

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 09:23 PM PST

Pope Benedict XVI, center, blesses faithful during his weekly general audience at the Vatican, Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2012. The Pontiff says he is praying for victims of the conflict between Israel and Gaza militants and gave his encouragement for efforts to obtain a cease-fire and negotiations. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)Six new cardinals are joining the elite club of churchmen who will elect the next pope, bringing a more geographically diverse mix into the European-dominated College of Cardinals.

Egypt clashes as president defends his new powers

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 07:53 PM PST

Protesters storm an office of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood Freedom and Justice party and set fires in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, Egypt, Friday, Nov. 23, 2012. State TV says Morsi opponents also set fire to his party's offices in the Suez Canal cities of Suez, Port Said and Ismailia. Opponents and supporters of Morsi clashed across Egypt on Friday, the day after the president granted himself sweeping new powers that critics fear can allow him to be a virtual dictator. (AP Photo/Amira Mortada, El Shorouk Newspaper) EGYPT OUTSupporters and opponents of President Mohammed Morsi clashed Friday in the worst violence since he took office, while he defended a decision to give himself near-absolute power to root out what he called "weevils eating away at the nation of Egypt."

Abbas determined to seek UN nod for Palestine

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 12:52 PM PST

FILE - In this Friday, Nov. 16, 2012 file photo, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a meeting of the Palestinian leadership at his compound in the West Bank city of Ramallah. After bitter rival Hamas fought Israel to a draw in Gaza, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has no choice but to ignore strong U.S. objections and seek U.N. recognition of a state of Palestine next week. But even such recognition may not be enough for the Western-backed backed proponent of a peace deal with Israel to stay credible as a leader and counter the soaring popularity of Gaza's Hamas militants. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed, File)After bitter rival Hamas held its own in a fierce battle with Israel, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has no choice but to override U.S. objections and seek U.N. recognition of a state of Palestine next week, his aides said Friday.

Algeria scandals mask high level power struggle

Posted: 24 Nov 2012 01:23 AM PST

FILE - In this Monday, April 6, 2009 file photo, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, gestures, during his last campaign rally in Algiers. The 72-year-old president Bouteflika is running against five other candidates, all low-profile figures. Algerians riveted are a new string of corruption allegations against top officials that show all the signs of being a behind-the-scenes struggle ahead of key presidential elections in 2014.(AP Photo, File)Nearly a week from regional elections, Algerians are less interested in the public vote than an intensifying behind-the-scenes power struggle — one that is playing out through a flurry of corruption probes.

Thai anti-government protesters clash with police

Posted: 24 Nov 2012 12:45 AM PST

Anti-government protesters gather, trying to break through concrete barricades erected on street near the protest site, as police fired tear gas to disperse them in Bangkok Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. The anti-government protesters calling for Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to step down launched a rally in Bangkok on Saturday that authorities fear will grow into the biggest demonstration the country has seen since she took office last year. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)Protesters calling for Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to step down rallied in the heart of Bangkok on Saturday, clashing with police in the first major demonstration against the government since it came to power last year.

End nears for shot boxer Hector 'Macho' Camacho

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 10:40 PM PST

Former world boxing champion Hector "Macho" Camacho, of Puerto Rico, is taken by paramedics inside a medical center in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2012. Camacho, 50, was shot in the face as he sat in a car at his hometown of Bayamon, one of the cities that make up the San Juan metropolitan area and doctors said he was in critical but stable condition, expected to survive. (AP Photo/GFR Media, Primera Hora/El Nuevo Dia, Sebastian Perez)The mother of Hector "Macho" Camacho says she has decided to have doctors cut off life support for the former world champion boxer Saturday once three more of his sons get a last chance to see him.

Chinese-Mexicans celebrate repatriation to Mexico

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 10:43 PM PST

In this photo taken Saturday, Nov. 17, 2012, Juan Chiu Trujillo, a Chinese Mexican weeps as he recounts his life story during an interview in Mexico City. Chiu who was born in Mexico, was among thousands of Chinese Mexicans expelled when Mexico erupted into xenophobia fueled by the economic turmoil of the Great Depression. Chiu returned in 1960, along with 300 other Chinese-Mexicans, after President Adolfo Lopez Mateos paid for their travel expenses and decreed that they would be legally allowed to live in Mexico. Dozens of those Chinese-Mexicans and their descendants gather Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012, at a Chinese restaurant in central Mexico City to celebrate the anniversary of their return. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)Juan Chiu Trujillo was 5 years old when he left his native Mexico for a visit to his father's hometown in southern China. He was 35 when he returned.

Back to school in Gaza after Israel offensive

Posted: 24 Nov 2012 01:18 AM PST

Palestinian schoolchildren walk in debris by a damaged school in Gaza City, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. Schools in Gaza opened Saturday for the first time since the truce, which calls for an end to Gaza rocket fire on Israel and Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, came after eight days of cross-border fighting, the bloodiest between Israel and Hamas in four years. The school was damaged when Israeli forces struck on a nearby building. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)Tens of thousands of children are returning to school in the Gaza Strip after eight days of cross-border fighting between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which rules the coastal enclave.

Tibetan man sets self on fire in protest in China

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 08:17 PM PST

A Tibetan herdsman has died after setting himself on fire in northwest China's Qinghai province, state media reported Saturday, in the latest in a series of protests against Chinese rule.

EU summit ends without budget deal

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 09:47 AM PST

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, left, and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy participtate in a media conference after an EU summit in Brussels on Friday, Nov. 23, 2012. The prospect of failure hangs over a European Union leaders' summit intended to lay out the 27-country bloc's long-term spending plans. While heavyweights like Britain and France are pulling in opposite directions, smaller members are threatening to veto a deal to make themselves heard. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)A summit of the European Union's 27 national leaders, charged with agreeing on a long-term budget for the bloc, broke up Friday afternoon without being able to reach a deal.

New protests in Tahrir Square as Egypt's Morsi grants himself broad powers

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 11:49 AM PST

Thousands of opponents of Egypt's Islamist president clashed with his supporters in cities across the country Friday, burning several offices of the Muslim Brotherhood, in the most violent and widespread protests since Mohammed Morsi came to power, sparked by his move to grant himself sweeping powers.

Congo rebels advance as regional leaders seek cease-fire

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 11:10 AM PST

As regional leaders talked peace in plush hotel rooms a country away, fighting between rebels and government troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo's east rumbled on.

Gaza truce holding even after Palestinian death

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 09:03 AM PST

Israeli troops fired Friday to push back Gaza crowds surging toward Israel's border fence with the Hamas-ruled territory, killing one Palestinian and wounding 19 in the first violence since a truce between Israel and Hamas took hold a day earlier.

Black Friday: Think it's crazy in the US? You should see China's version.

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 08:53 AM PST

If you think America goes shopping mad on the day after Thanksgiving, you should look at China.

Russian beauty queen puts spotlight on Russia's official corruption

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 08:49 AM PST

A Russian beauty queen garnered global headlines this week by standing by her impassioned denunciation of the endemic corruption that demoralizes society and saps the economic life of her homeland, made in an essay she'd written that was supposed to be about why she's proud to be a Russian.

China's challenge with corruption

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 06:13 AM PST

Just two years after he founded Communist China, in December 1951, Mao Zedong issued one of his characteristically forthright directives. "We must probably execute 10,000 to tens of thousands of these embezzlers before we solve the problem," he wrote.

Restaurant mogul George Schenk melds the needs of people, planet, and profits

Posted: 23 Nov 2012 05:00 AM PST

In the fall of 1979, George Schenk stuffed all his worldly possessions into his pickup truck and moved from upstate New York to central Vermont. After settling in the sleepy ski town of Waitsfield, he began working as a dishwasher, freelance photographer, and live-in baby sitter.
Posted by Harshad at 1:52 AM

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