| Gaza bloodshed deepens as airlines shun Israel Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:35 PM PDT By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Crispian Balmer GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Gaza fighting raged on Wednesday, displacing thousands more Palestinians in the battered territory as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said efforts to secure a truce between Israel and Hamas had made some progress. In a blow to Israel's economy and image, American aviation authorities extended a ban on U.S. flights to Tel Aviv for a second day, spooked by rocket salvoes out of the Gaza Strip, with many other global airlines also avoiding the Jewish state. Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, speaking in Qatar, praised the group's fighters, whom he said had made gains against Israel and said he supported a humanitarian truce but a ceasefire would only be acceptable in exchange for easing Gazans' plight. Adding to the pressure on Israel, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said there was "a strong possibility" that it was committing war crimes in Gaza, where 692 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have died in the fighting. |
| Exclusive: Ukraine rebel commander acknowledges fighters had BUK missile Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:47 PM PDT  By Anton Zverev DONETSK Ukraine (Reuters) - A powerful Ukrainian rebel leader has confirmed that pro-Russian separatists had an anti-aircraft missile of the type Washington says was used to shoot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 and it could have originated in Russia. In an interview with Reuters, Alexander Khodakovsky, commander of the Vostok Battalion, acknowledged for the first time since the airliner was brought down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday that the rebels did possess the BUK missile system and said it could have been sent back subsequently to remove proof of its presence. Before the Malaysian plane was shot down, rebels had boasted of obtaining the BUK missiles, which can shoot down airliners at cruising height.
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| Dutch mourn as first MH17 bodies arrive in Netherlands Posted: 23 Jul 2014 12:29 PM PDT  By Harro Ten Wolde and Thomas Escritt EINDHOVEN Netherlands (Reuters) - The bodies of the first victims from a Malaysian airliner shot down over Ukraine last week arrived on Wednesday at a military base in the Netherlands - a nation in shock and sorrow. Bells pealed and flags flew at half mast in memory of the 298 people killed when flight MH17 came down in an area of eastern Ukraine held by Russian-backed separatists, in the first national day of mourning since wartime Queen Wilhelmina died in 1962. King Willem-Alexander and Prime Minister Mark Rutte joined dignitaries on the tarmac as two military aircraft carrying 40 plain wooden coffins landed at Eindhoven in the southern Netherlands. Relatives of some of the victims were present at the airport but were shielded from the media glare, officials said.
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| TransAsia Airways plane crashes in typhoon-hit Taiwan, killing 47 Posted: 23 Jul 2014 10:58 AM PDT  By Faith Hung and Michael Gold TAIPEI (Reuters) - A TransAsia Airways turboprop plane crashed on its second attempt at landing during a thunderstorm on an island off Taiwan on Wednesday, killing 47 people and setting buildings on fire, officials said. The aircraft took off from Taiwan's southern city of Kaohsiung, headed for the island of Makong, but crash-landed in Huxi township of Penghu County, the main island of the chain also known as the Pescadores. "It was thunderstorm conditions during the crash," said Hsi Wen-guang, a spokesman for the Penghu County Government Fire Bureau. According to an official at the Civil Aeronautics Administration, air traffic control reported that the inclement weather at the time of the crash did not exceed international regulations for landing.
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| Islamic State says carried out Baghdad suicide bombing Posted: 23 Jul 2014 01:59 AM PDT  Islamic State militants claimed responsibility on Wednesday for an overnight suicide bombing in a Shi'ite district of Baghdad which killed 33 people, one of the deadliest recent attacks in the Iraqi capital. The hardline Sunni Islamist group which has led an offensive through northern and western Iraq said the explosion in Kadhimiya, site of a major Sh'ite shrine, was carried out by a fighter it named as Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Tunisi (the Tunisian). The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for a wave of bombings in Baghdad, including several blasts on Saturday which killed 27 people. Sunni fighters led by the Islamic State swept through most of Iraq's Sunni Muslim provinces towards Baghdad last month, their advance halted less than 100 km from the capital.
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| Suicide bombs in Nigeria's Kaduna kill 82, ex-leader Buhari targeted Posted: 23 Jul 2014 02:24 PM PDT  By Garba Muhammed KADUNA Nigeria (Reuters) - At least 82 people were killed on Wednesday in two suicide bombings in the north Nigerian city of Kaduna, one aimed at opposition leader and ex-president Muhammadu Buhari and another at a moderate Muslim cleric about to lead a crowd in prayer. The attacks bore the hallmarks of Islamist militant group Boko Haram, which considers all those who do not share its views to be enemies. In the deadliest attack, a bomber in a car full of explosives hurtled towards Buhari's convoy at the crowded Kawo market, his son told Reuters on the scene and police said later. Buhari was the main opposition party contender against President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2011 election and remains a key figure in the opposition alliance.
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| Meat supplier in China scandal has global reach Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:30 PM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — It isn't a household name, but the company at the center of a food scandal in China helps make some of the world's most popular foods, including the Big Macs and Quarter Pounders served at McDonald's locations.
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| Jailed Venezuelan opposition leader goes on trial Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:29 PM PDT  CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A top leader of the anti-government protests that wracked Venezuela for months this spring is getting his day in court.
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| NYC official: Thieves got into 1K StubHub accounts Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:27 PM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — Some of the hottest tickets in town — to Broadway hits, Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake concerts — went to an international ring of cyber thieves who took over more than 1,000 StubHub users' accounts to fraudulently buy tickets and resell them, prosecutors in the U.S. said Wednesday.
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| Kerry says 'some progress' in Gaza truce efforts Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:25 PM PDT  Washington's top diplomat said global efforts to end 16 days of bloodshed in Gaza were progressing Wednesday as the Palestinian death toll rose to 700 and airlines kept flights to Israel suspended over rocket fears. As US and UN diplomats continued intensive diplomacy, the Islamist Hamas movement rejected any truce without the lifting of Israel's eight-year blockade on Gaza. "We will not accept any initiative that does not lift the blockade on our people and that does not respect their sacrifices," Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said. Hamas hailed the suspension of Tel Aviv flights by many world airlines as a "great victory."
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| Scottish identity celebrated as Glasgow Games open Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:21 PM PDT  GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — The Loch Ness Monster, tartan-clad bagpipers and giant pieces of shortbread took the place of footballers on the Celtic Park pitch as the Commonwealth Games began with a celebration of Scottish mythology and traditions on Wednesday.
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| Playful Pole wins Tour stage, as Nibali marches on Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:16 PM PDT  PLA D'ADET, France (AP) — On the last of four Pyrenees ascents, Rafal Majka winked at a French TV camera and tugged playfully at a motorcycle's antenna.
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| Patriotic parade at big Peru psychiatric hospital Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:16 PM PDT  LIMA, Peru (AP) — Patients and staff at Peru's largest psychiatric hospital put on a patriotic parade at the facility Wednesday to celebrate the 193rd anniversary of the country's independence from Spain.
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| Exploding shooting targets banned from 12 U.S. national forests Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:15 PM PDT By Laura Zuckerman SALMON Idaho (Reuters) - Federal land managers on Wednesday banned exploding targets used by shooting enthusiasts from 12 national forests in four Western U.S. states, saying the devices could spark wildfires and are a threat to public safety. The prohibition in Idaho, Nevada, Utah and western Wyoming lasts a year and comes as U.S. land managers report a rise in the number of blazes ignited by the targets, which emit a bang and a cloud of smoke when struck by a bullet. The devices are blamed for nine wildfires on federal rangelands in Idaho in 2012, and five in 2013, said Josh Renz, a range technician with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Boise who specializes in wildfires. In May the devices were banned from millions of acres of public lands in Montana, northern Idaho, North Dakota, and the northwestern corner of South Dakota that comprise the U.S. Forest Service's Northern Region. |
| Argentina president says country will not default Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:11 PM PDT BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina's president says her country will not default because it has paid its debts to bondholders. |
| Canadian aviation giant Bombardier to cut 1,800 jobs Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:10 PM PDT  Canada's Bombardier will cut 1,800 jobs, the troubled aviation giant announced Wednesday in a major reorganization. "This marks another step in Bombardier's evolution," said Pierre Beaudoin, the company's president and chief executive officer, who said the overhaul, to be completed by January 1 of next year, would reduce costs and overhead. A spokeswoman for the Montreal-based company, Isabelle Rondeau, confirmed for AFP the size of the cuts. Beaudoin said in his press release that the reorganization -- in particular of the company's Aerospace branch -- "will enable us to be more agile and flexible in addressing customer needs, while increasing our focus on growth areas."
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| US hails Indonesia democracy in turbulent SE Asia Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:01 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's quick congratulation of Indonesia's election victor Joko Widodo on Wednesday, even as the losing candidate rejected the result, underscores Washington's intent to deepen ties with Jakarta and support democracy in Southeast Asia.
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| Republican senators want say on Iran nuclear deal Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:00 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators are insisting that the House and Senate sign off on any potential nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers or else sanctions on Tehran that had been temporarily lifted could kick back in. |
| Italian fugitive arrested at Dominican airport Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:59 PM PDT SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Interpol agents in the Dominican Republic announced Wednesday that they arrested an Italian fugitive at an airport in the Caribbean country's capital. |
| Hamas says Gaza truce talks "positive" Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:58 PM PDT  A senior Hamas official said on Wednesday there had been progress in negotiations to end the Gaza conflict but the Islamist militants needed detailed guarantees that Israel would ease its blockade of the enclave. Talks to end the 16-day conflict have intensified with US Secretary of State John Kerry shuttling between Jerusalem and Cairo in a bid to forge a truce. Hamas, which sparked the conflict by firing rockets from Gaza into Israel, had rejected an Egyptian proposal that called for a ceasefire first and then negotiations.
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| Chinese man pleads guilty in sensor smuggling try Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:58 PM PDT ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (AP) — A Chinese national accused of trying to smuggle sensors made for the U.S. military has pleaded guilty to violating the Arms Export Control Act. |
| Commonwealth Games open in colourful, moving ceremony Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:54 PM PDT  Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the 20th Commonwealth Games at Celtic Park on Wednesday after a moving and colourful ceremony in front of a 40,000 capacity crowd. The Games will feature 17 sports across 11 days of competition with more than 4,500 athletes from 71 nations competing, making the event the biggest Scotland has ever hosted. The Queen called on those present to "unite" in difficult times as a minute's silence was held for the victims of the Malaysia Airlines MH17 flight disaster. Eighty-two of the 298 people who died last week when the plane came down over eastern Ukraine were from Commonwealth nations.
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| Monaco beats 3rd seed Garcia-Lopez at Swiss Open Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:50 PM PDT GSTAAD, Switzerland (AP) — Juan Monaco of Argentina beat third-seeded Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 in the Swiss Open second round on Wednesday. |
| Rockets found at UN Gaza school have gone missing Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:38 PM PDT  UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. secretary-general on Wednesday said he is "alarmed" to hear that rockets found placed in a U.N.-run school in Gaza "have gone missing," and he demanded a full review of such incidents.
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| New Zealand raises interest rate to 3.5 percent Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:35 PM PDT WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand on Thursday raised its benchmark interest rate to 3.5 percent but signaled it was pausing its program of rate hikes. |
| European carriers suspend more Tel Aviv flights Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:33 PM PDT  BERLIN (AP) — Air France and Germany's two largest airlines on Wednesday canceled more flights to Tel Aviv because of safety concerns amid the fighting between Israel and Hamas.
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| Iraq: al-Maliki rejects Iran's urging to step down Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:26 PM PDT  BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki rejected an attempt by Iran to persuade him to step down, senior Iraqi politicians said Wednesday, underlining his determination to defy even his top ally to push for a third term in office and further exacerbating the country's political crisis.
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| U.N. chief alarmed as rockets found in Gaza school go missing Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:25 PM PDT  U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed alarm on Wednesday that 20 rockets found hidden in a United Nations school in the Gaza Strip had gone missing and directed the world body to deploy experts to deal with the situation. The main U.N. agency in Gaza, UNRWA, found the rockets in one of its vacant schools a week ago. It found a second batch in a vacant school on Tuesday, but said in a statement that because staff were withdrawn quickly, they were "unable to confirm the precise number." In both cases UNRWA said it "informed the relevant parties," but did not identify who had been contacted. Ban "expresses his outrage and regret at the placing of weapons in a U.N.-administered school," a United Nations statement said.
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| Kurds agree on Fuad Masum for Iraq president: officials Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:24 PM PDT  Veteran Iraqi politician Fuad Masum was almost guaranteed to become Iraq's next president after the main Kurdish blocs in parliament agreed on his candidacy Thursday. According to an unofficial power-sharing agreement, the position of federal president goes to a Kurd and Masum edged his rival Barham Saleh during a vote Kurdish MPs held behind closed doors in a Baghdad hotel, officials told AFP. "Fuad Masum is the only candidate of the Kurdish blocs for the position of president," a senior Kurdish official who witnessed the vote said. Other officials confirmed that Fuad Masum, who was born in 1938 and became the first prime minister of autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan in 1992, had received more votes than Saleh.
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| Talabani ally is Iraqi Kurds presidential choice Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:21 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Kurdish television is reporting that the Kurdish bloc in Iraq's parliament has named a close political ally in Jalal Talibani's coalition as its choice to replace the outgoing president. |
| CAR armed groups sign ceasefire agreement Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:20 PM PDT  Rival armed factions in the Central African Republic agreed to a tentative ceasefire on Wednesday at a peace conference held in neighbouring Congo. The agreement was signed by representatives of the mainly Muslim Seleka rebel coalition and Christian "anti-balaka" vigilante forces -- the main players in almost daily sectarian violence that has left thousands dead. A copy of the draft agreement obtained by AFP stated that a cessation of violence would "take effect in the entire territory of the Central African Republic." The peace talks, which began in the Congolese capital of Brazzaville on Monday, are aimed at reaching an agreement that would see the disarmament and demobilisation of the various militia groups in the country.
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| Cuba, US begin 5-game exhibition baseball series Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:13 PM PDT HAVANA (AP) — Cuba is hoping to use a five-game baseball exhibition against a team of U.S. college players to bounce back from recent disappointing international results in a sport that's considered the island's national pastime. |
| US pushes for truce as Gaza battle rages Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:08 PM PDT  GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The United States announced signs of progress in cease-fire talks Wednesday, but prospects for a quick end to the fighting were dim as Palestinian families fled fierce battles in southern Gaza and the death toll rose to more than 700 Palestinians and 34 Israelis.
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| Venezuelan opposition leader Lopez goes on trial Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:08 PM PDT  Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez went on trial Wednesday on charges of inciting violence during anti-government protests that ultimately left 43 people dead. The Harvard-educated economist, who says the charges are politically motivated, was transferred before dawn from his military prison on the outskirts of Caracas to a court in the center of the capital to stand trial alongside four students. Lopez was one of the main leaders of protests against President Nicolas Maduro's government that erupted in February and raged for four months, focusing Venezuelans' anger over rampant crime, runaway inflation and shortages of basic goods.
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| Republican asks if flight ban is boycott of Israel Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:04 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — A potential Republican presidential contender in 2016 on Wednesday questioned whether President Barack Obama used a federal agency to impose an economic boycott on Israel after the Federal Aviation Administration banned U.S. airline flights to Tel Aviv because of safety concerns amid fighting between Israel and Hamas.
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| Top Asian News at 10:00 p.m. GMT Posted: 23 Jul 2014 03:03 PM PDT TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A plane attempting to land in stormy weather crashed on a small Taiwanese island late Wednesday, killing 47 people and wrecking houses and cars on the ground. The ATR-72 operated by Taiwan's TransAsia Airways was carrying 58 passengers and crew when it crashed on Penghu in the Taiwan Strait between Taiwan and China, authorities said. The plane was arriving from the city of Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan. |
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