Yahoo! News: World News

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• Gunbattle rocks Gao after rebels surprise French, Malians
• Opposition "would talk to Assad in northern Syria"
• Top U.S. general backed arming Syrian rebels "conceptually"
• NATO's Afghanistan force gets new U.S. commander
• Five crew killed in Canaries cruise ship safety drill
• Bahrainis start first reconciliation talks since 2011
• Britain to Scotland: lose global clout if you exit UK
• Colombia, FARC say peace talks advancing
• Horse trading exposed by British beef scandal
• Exclusive: U.N. monitors see arms reaching Somalia from Yemen, Iran
• Islamic extremists attack Malian troops in Gao
• Cruise ship lifeboat accident kills 5 in Spain
• 10 dead in stampede at Hindu festival in India
• Rebels, troops battle for key Damascus highway
• 'Argo' named best film at Britain's Oscars
• Winners of the 2013 British Academy Film Awards
• 103 said killed in South Sudan cattle raid clash
• France hunting fraudsters in horsemeat scandal
• Tunisia: President's party quits government
• Muslim makes Israeli football debut
• Lebanese military seals off a town involved in Syrian rebellion
• Afghans flock to India for infertility treatment
• Iran marks revolution anniversary with soaring, defiant rhetoric
• Egypt's unfinished revolution
• Where's the most expensive McDonald's Big Mac in the world?

Gunbattle rocks Gao after rebels surprise French, Malians Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:24 PM PST GAO, Mali (Reuters) - Islamist insurgents launched a surprise raid in the heart of the Malian town of Gao on Sunday, battling French and local troops in a blow to efforts to secure Mali's recaptured north. Local residents hid in their homes or crouched behind walls as the crackle of gunfire from running street battles resounded through the sandy streets and mud-brick houses of the ancient Niger River town, retaken from Islamist rebels last month by a French-led offensive. ...

Opposition "would talk to Assad in northern Syria" Posted: 10 Feb 2013 04:03 PM PST AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian National Coalition leader Moaz Alkhatib said on Sunday he was willing to hold talks with President Bashar al-Assad's representatives in rebel-held areas of northern Syria to try to end a conflict that has killed about 60,000 people. The aim of the talks would be to find a way for Assad to leave power with the "minimum of bloodshed and destruction", Alkhatib said in a statement published on his Facebook page. ...

Top U.S. general backed arming Syrian rebels "conceptually" Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:07 PM PST ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT (Reuters) - The top U.S. military officer said on Sunday he favored the idea of arming Syrian rebels during discussions within the Obama administration about how to help resolve the country's civil war, but there was never a specific plan under review. General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he thought arming the rebels might help end the crisis more quickly and avert the collapse of government institutions, which could lead Syria to become a failed state. ...

NATO's Afghanistan force gets new U.S. commander Posted: 10 Feb 2013 10:42 AM PST KABUL (Reuters) - The U.S. Marine Corps general who will oversee the withdrawal of most foreign troops from Afghanistan and wind down America's longest war took command of NATO-led forces on Sunday at a change-of-command ceremony that emphasized Afghan sovereignty. General Joseph Dunford took charge of the International Security Assistance Force from Marine Corps General John Allen, who ended a 19-month tour that was arguably one of the most difficult periods in the war, now in its 11th year. "Today is not about change, it's about continuity. What has not changed is the will of this coalition ...

Five crew killed in Canaries cruise ship safety drill Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:44 PM PST MADRID (Reuters) - Five crew members died in an emergency drill on a cruise ship in the Canary Islands on Sunday, police and the cruise ship operator said. Cables snapped on a lifeboat and it plunged 20 meters (65 feet) to the ocean and fell upside down, killing the five and injuring three others aboard, during the mock rescue exercise on the Thomson Majesty, operated by British travel group TUI Travel plc. The boat was docked in the port of the capital of the island of La Palma, Santa Cruz. ...

Bahrainis start first reconciliation talks since 2011 Posted: 10 Feb 2013 10:17 AM PST MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain's government and opposition held reconciliation talks on Sunday for the first time since July 2011 to try to end two years of political deadlock in the strategically vital Gulf Arab island kingdom. Home to the U.S. Fifth Fleet, the tiny state has been hit by unrest since mass pro-democracy protests in early 2011, becoming a front line in a region-wide tussle for influence between Shi'ite Muslim Iran and Sunni Arab states such as Saudi Arabia. ...

Britain to Scotland: lose global clout if you exit UK Posted: 10 Feb 2013 04:05 PM PST LONDON (Reuters) - The British government on Monday intensified its campaign to stop Scotland leaving the United Kingdom, publishing a legal opinion suggesting it would forfeit its membership of international bodies such as the European Union if it chose independence. The pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) that runs Scotland's devolved government plans to hold a referendum on the politically sensitive and emotionally charged subject next year, and has played down the impact of a "Yes" vote on Scotland's international status. ...

Colombia, FARC say peace talks advancing Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:41 PM PST HAVANA (Reuters) - Colombia and the Marxist FARC rebels said on Sunday their talks aimed at ending half a century of conflict are picking up the pace and making progress toward an agreement on land reform, a key point in the peace process. Speaking as they ended their latest round of negotiations in the Cuban capital, negotiators signaled that the public acrimony they had displayed in recent weeks did not reflect what was happening behind closed doors. ...

Horse trading exposed by British beef scandal Posted: 10 Feb 2013 12:12 PM PST LONDON (Reuters) - As Britons choke on discovering they may have eaten horse that was imported as beef, and ministers blame an "international criminal conspiracy", this new scandal has exposed the sometimes murky labyrinth by which food reaches Europe's dinner tables. Lurid headlines reveal a culinary gulf between distaste for the notion of horsemeat in Britain and its status as a delicacy elsewhere in Europe. ...

Exclusive: U.N. monitors see arms reaching Somalia from Yemen, Iran Posted: 10 Feb 2013 03:22 PM PST UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - As the United States pushes for an end to the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia, U.N. monitors are reporting that Islamist militants in the Horn of Africa nation are receiving arms from distribution networks linked to Yemen and Iran, diplomats told Reuters. The U.N. Security Council's sanctions monitoring team's concerns about Iranian and Yemeni links to arms supplies for al Shabaab militants come as Yemen is asking Tehran to stop backing armed groups on Yemeni soil. Last month Yemeni coast guards and the U.S. ...

Islamic extremists attack Malian troops in Gao Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:51 PM PST GAO, Mali (AP) — Black-robed Islamic extremists armed with AK-47 automatic rifles invaded Gao in wooden boats Sunday to launch a surprise attack on the most populous city in northern Mali, two weeks after French and Malian troops ousted the jihadists.

Cruise ship lifeboat accident kills 5 in Spain Posted: 10 Feb 2013 12:05 PM PST LA PALMA, Canary Islands (AP) — A lifeboat being used on a safety drill aboard a cruise ship in Spain's Canary Islands fell about 65 feet (20 meters) into a port on Sunday when a cable snapped, trapping crew members beneath it and killing five of them, officials said.

10 dead in stampede at Hindu festival in India Posted: 10 Feb 2013 09:52 AM PST ALLAHABAD, India (AP) — At least 10 people were killed and a dozen more injured Sunday after a stampede broke out at a train station in the northern Indian town where millions of devout Hindus gathered for a religious festival, a senior government minister said.

Rebels, troops battle for key Damascus highway Posted: 10 Feb 2013 09:28 AM PST BEIRUT (AP) — Opposition forces targeted Damascus with mortars, a roadside bomb and a suicide attack on Sunday as they pressed ahead in their quest for the seat of President Bashar Assad's power.

'Argo' named best film at Britain's Oscars Posted: 10 Feb 2013 03:49 PM PST LONDON (AP) — Iran-hostage drama "Argo" continued its journey from awards-season outsider to favorite Sunday, winning three prizes, including best-picture, at the British Academy Film Awards.

Winners of the 2013 British Academy Film Awards Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:03 PM PST LONDON (AP) — Winners of the 2013 British Academy Film Awards, presented Sunday:

103 said killed in South Sudan cattle raid clash Posted: 10 Feb 2013 01:05 PM PST JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — More than 100 people were killed in a violence-prone region of South Sudan when one tribe attacked another while cattle were being moved across land, officials said Sunday.

France hunting fraudsters in horsemeat scandal Posted: 10 Feb 2013 02:37 PM PST PARIS (AP) — Europe's horsemeat scandal is spreading and threatening cross-border tensions, as France says Romanian butchers and Dutch and Cypriot traders were part of a supply chain that resulted in horsemeat disguised as beef being sold in frozen lasagna around the continent.

Tunisia: President's party quits government Posted: 10 Feb 2013 12:29 PM PST TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tunisia's political crisis entered a new phase Sunday with an announcement that Cabinet ministers of the president's own party are quitting the governing coalition, which could force the ruling Islamists to compromise with the opposition.

Muslim makes Israeli football debut Posted: 10 Feb 2013 01:44 PM PST JERUSALEM (AP) — Under heavy security, a Muslim football player whose signing with a Jerusalem club sparked a violent uprising by a hardcore group of racist fans made his much anticipated debut Sunday to a rousing ovation.

Lebanese military seals off a town involved in Syrian rebellion Posted: 10 Feb 2013 10:52 AM PST A deadly gunbattle between Lebanese troops and residents of this isolated border town has further strained political and sectarian tensions in a country already buffeted by the repercussions of the war in neighboring Syria.

Afghans flock to India for infertility treatment Posted: 10 Feb 2013 10:39 AM PST New Delhi's Press Enclave Road represents the city's complex mix of communities like no other: One side boasts an enormous modern shopping mall featuring the Hard Rock Cafe and Zara; the other, a string of eateries advertising Afghan rice dishes and chemist signs in Dari, one of Afghanistan's main languages.

Iran marks revolution anniversary with soaring, defiant rhetoric Posted: 10 Feb 2013 08:59 AM PST Iran marked the 34th anniversary of its Islamic revolution today with mass rallies, nuclear defiance, and anti-Western proclamations that it is defeating all "treacherous enemies."

Egypt's unfinished revolution Posted: 10 Feb 2013 08:46 AM PST Mohsen al-Domiati, a cap pulled low over his forehead, stands dejectedly near a mosque in the Egyptian city of Port Said, which recently has been a source of seething protests against the rule of President Mohamed Morsi. He stares off into space vacantly. His eyes are red.

Where's the most expensive McDonald's Big Mac in the world? Posted: 10 Feb 2013 05:00 AM PST Venezuela might have the world's cheapest gas. But if you are heading through a McDonald's drive-thru, don't expect the same deal: It's got the most expensive Big Mac in the world.

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