Yahoo! News: World News

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• Bomb shakes Damascus, opposition holds unity talks
• Hollande likely to shrug off "shock therapy" review
• Greece makes austerity push, workers gear for strike
• South Africa police block opposition from Zuma's home
• Israel kills Palestinian man near Gaza border: medics
• Fighting rages at Damascus Palestinian camp, 20 killed
• Israel announces plans to boost Iron Dome missile interceptor
• Foreign banks hope China's new leaders will loosen up regulators
• France could cut labour charges for some sectors: minister
• Gunmen wound Egyptian UNICEF worker in Karachi
• AP Photos: Egypt's Copts choose new pope
• Palestinian leader violates taboo on refugees
• Gulf squeeze on dissent raises alarm with allies
• Syrian rebels capture oilfield near Iraqi border
• Divisions emerge at Syria opposition conference
• France will stand against instability in Lebanon
• Report: Car bomb hits near major Damascus hotel
• Egypt's Coptic church chooses new pope
• Thousands of nationalists march in Moscow
• Gov't: BBC could face public inquiry over Savile
• US-Israel relations won't be shaken no matter who wins Tuesday
• New pope named for Egypt's embattled Coptic Christians
• Bo Xilai kicked out of China's Communist Party

Bomb shakes Damascus, opposition holds unity talks Posted: 04 Nov 2012 03:15 PM PST AMMAN (Reuters) - A bomb exploded near army and security compounds in Damascus, Syrian television reported, and fractured opposition groups seeking to topple President Bashar al-Assad began unity talks abroad to win international respect and arms supplies. The 50-kilogram (110-pound) bomb, near a large hotel in a heavily guarded district, was described by state media as an attack by "terrorists" - the government's term for insurgents in the 19-month-old uprising against Assad. ...

Hollande likely to shrug off "shock therapy" review Posted: 04 Nov 2012 04:01 PM PST PARIS (Reuters) - The French government is expected to play down a review on Monday that will prescribe taking an axe to payroll taxes and softening labor laws to reverse a long slide in competitiveness that has eaten away at exports and bled factory jobs. Any expectations that the widely-leaked government-commissioned report by industrialist Louis Gallois would bring big reforms have been snuffed out in advance by the Socialist government which has ruled out "shock therapy" proposals. ...

Greece makes austerity push, workers gear for strike Posted: 04 Nov 2012 04:10 PM PST ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's government will present a new austerity package to parliament on Monday, facing a week of strikes and protests over proposals which must win deputies' approval if the country is to secure more aid and stave off bankruptcy. Parliament is expected to vote on Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' package of 13.5 billion euros ($17 billion) in cost cuts and tax hikes on Wednesday along with measures making it easier for firms to hire and fire workers. ...

South Africa police block opposition from Zuma's home Posted: 04 Nov 2012 01:17 PM PST JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African police prevented the country's main opposition leader from using a public road leading to President Jacob Zuma's house in his home village on Sunday, citing safety concerns. South African media have reported the government plans to spend some 250 million rand ($28.61 million) on President Jacob Zuma's home village, angering the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) which had wanted to deliver letters from school children who lack textbooks, to illustrate where money should be spent. ...

Israel kills Palestinian man near Gaza border: medics Posted: 04 Nov 2012 03:46 PM PST GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli soldiers have shot and killed a Palestinian man who approached a fence near the border with Israel, medics said on Monday. An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed the shooting took place after darkness fell on Sunday, saying troops opened warning shots when a man walking west of the border in a riverbed failed to heed orders to leave the buffer area Israel maintains to try and prevent cross-border attacks. Palestinian medics said the victim was an unarmed, mentally unfit man and that they had to wait a couple of hours for permission to pick him up, early on Monday. ...

Fighting rages at Damascus Palestinian camp, 20 killed Posted: 04 Nov 2012 01:18 PM PST AMMAN (Reuters) - The Syrian army shelled rebel positions inside a Palestinian refugee camp on the edge of Damascus on Sunday killing at least 20 people, opposition campaigners said. The Yarmouk camp, adjacent to the capital's southern entrance, has become the latest battle ground between forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad and rebels fighting to end the president's rule. "Yarmouk is a dense area and shelling it always results in a human catastrophe. ...

Israel announces plans to boost Iron Dome missile interceptor Posted: 04 Nov 2012 01:29 PM PST JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel announced plans on Sunday to boost its Iron Dome missile interceptor system, citing successful tests of the largely U.S.-funded system conducted in light of what it called "a variety of unprecedented threats". A Defence Ministry statement said a fifth battery of the rockets used so far to fend off salvoes fired by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, would be added to the system "within a short time" following successful tests of an upgrade. ...

Foreign banks hope China's new leaders will loosen up regulators Posted: 04 Nov 2012 01:19 PM PST SHANGHAI (Reuters) - For all the hopes that China's forthcoming leadership change will herald a new wave of market reforms, foreign bankers don't expect to get the level playing field they crave any time soon. Trends are positive, but progress can be frustratingly slow. "My outlook is basically optimistic, particularly in the medium term. The near term is always always uncertain," Christian Murck, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in China and independent director of J.P. Morgan Chase (China) Ltd, told Reuters. ...

France could cut labour charges for some sectors: minister Posted: 04 Nov 2012 01:59 PM PST PARIS (Reuters) - The French government could propose cutting labour charges for selected sectors and companies as part of its plan to kickstart competitiveness, the junior minister for small and medium-sized business said on Sunday. In an interview with TV channel France 5, Fleur Pellerin said small-to-medium enterprises will play an important role in a government plan due to be outlined on Tuesday, the day after the publication of a government-commissioned report by industrialist Louis Gallois on how to improve competitiveness. ...

Gunmen wound Egyptian UNICEF worker in Karachi Posted: 04 Nov 2012 12:42 PM PST KARACHI, Pakistan (Reuters) - Gunmen wounded an Egyptian working for the United Nations Children's Fund when they fired on his vehicle in Pakistan's largest city on Sunday, police said. The motive for the attack was not entirely clear, but police said it may have been a robbery gone wrong. The shooting followed an attack in July when two men working on the World Health Organization's polio campaign were wounded. Taliban fighters oppose the campaign and many religious leaders say it is a Western conspiracy to spy on or sterilize Muslims. On Sunday three international U.N. ...

AP Photos: Egypt's Copts choose new pope Posted: 04 Nov 2012 11:19 AM PST A blindfolded child reached into a crystal chalice and pulled out a slip of paper — and Egypt's Coptic Christians had a new pope.

Palestinian leader violates taboo on refugees Posted: 04 Nov 2012 09:32 AM PST The Palestinian president has set off a strident debate by shattering a once-inviolable taboo, publicly suggesting his people would have to relinquish claims to ancestral homes in Israel.

Gulf squeeze on dissent raises alarm with allies Posted: 04 Nov 2012 11:50 AM PST The Gulf has been the slow burn of the Arab uprisings.

Syrian rebels capture oilfield near Iraqi border Posted: 04 Nov 2012 09:34 AM PST Syrian rebels firing mortars and rocket-propelled grenades captured an oilfield in the country's east on Sunday after three days of fierce fighting with government troops protecting the facility, activists said.

Divisions emerge at Syria opposition conference Posted: 04 Nov 2012 12:26 PM PST Sharp disagreements arose Sunday on the first day of a Syrian opposition conference meant to forge a more cohesive leadership that the international community says is necessary before it will boost its support for those trying to overthrow President Bashar Assad.

France will stand against instability in Lebanon Posted: 04 Nov 2012 05:33 AM PST France's president pledged Sunday that his country will stand against instability in Lebanon, two weeks after the assassination of a senior Lebanese intelligence official sparked clashes between pro- and anti-Syrian groups.

Report: Car bomb hits near major Damascus hotel Posted: 04 Nov 2012 04:03 AM PST A car bomb exploded near a major hotel in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Sunday, wounding several people, a pro-government television station reported.

Egypt's Coptic church chooses new pope Posted: 04 Nov 2012 04:56 AM PST Egypt's ancient Coptic Christian church named a new pope on Sunday, chosen in an elaborate ceremony where a blindfolded boy drew the name of the next patriarch from a crystal chalice.

Thousands of nationalists march in Moscow Posted: 04 Nov 2012 03:42 AM PST Thousands of nationalists marched through the Russian capital Sunday, chanting slogans including "Moscow is a Russian city" to express their resentment of dark-complexioned migrants from the Caucasus and Central Asia.

Gov't: BBC could face public inquiry over Savile Posted: 04 Nov 2012 03:12 AM PST Britain's culture secretary says the government could order a full public inquiry into the British Broadcasting Corp.'s handling of the Jimmy Savile sex abuse scandal.

US-Israel relations won't be shaken no matter who wins Tuesday Posted: 04 Nov 2012 01:51 PM PST It's no secret that there's been little love lost between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who began their terms within months of each other – and now both face reelection.

New pope named for Egypt's embattled Coptic Christians Posted: 04 Nov 2012 08:58 AM PST Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church chose a new pope today, putting a new leader at the helm of Egypt's largest Christian sect at a time of increasing difficulty for the minority.

Bo Xilai kicked out of China's Communist Party Posted: 04 Nov 2012 06:21 AM PST Chinese leaders ended a key closed-door conclave on Sunday with a decision to formally expel disgraced politician Bo Xilai from the Communist Party, in a meeting that also promoted two senior military men and approved the party constitution's amendment.

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