Yahoo! News: World News

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• Car bomb kills at least five in Hezbollah district of Beirut
• U.S. ship to depart soon on chemical weapons mission to Mediterranean
• Netanyahu gloomy as Kerry returns for peace talks
• South Sudan army advances on rebel towns before peace talks
• China military to launch 'joint command' to reorganize forces: report
• Catalan president calls on EU leaders to support push for independence
• Rescued passengers head for open Antarctic water
• Briton, New Zealander shot dead in Libya
• Israel killed majority of those behind Buenos Aires blasts: ex-envoy
• Thatcher's hairdo was high-maintenance
• Phoney Thatcher-Reagan tape spooked British spies
• Kerry in Israel on new Mideast peace push
• Scientists, tourists rescued from Antarctic ship begin long journey home
• 2 newspapers call for clemency for Edward Snowden
• Heavy snow, dangerous cold snarl travel in northeastern U.S.
• Israel strikes in Gaza after rocket attack
• US ship equipped to destroy Syria's chemical weapons
• Comic wanted banned in France allegedly threatened
• Skype says user information safe in Syrian Electronic Army hack
• Snowstorm bears down on northeastern United States
• Report: 2 Swiss found dead in Egyptian resort
• Qaeda leader held in Lebanon raised funds for anti-Assad militants -experts
• Briton, New Zealander killed in western Libya: security source
• Passengers rescued off ship stuck in Antarctic ice
• Briton, New Zealander found shot to death in Libya
• Kerry: Mideast peace still possible despite rifts
• Comic France wants banned allegedly threatened
• Car bomb kills four in Hezbollah Beirut bastion: minister
• Shooting heard at airport in Congo's capital
• Toronto Mayor Rob Ford files to run again
• Iraqis battle militant uprising in 2 Sunni cities
• C. Africa won't sap France's military
• Military: South Sudan rebels set eyes on capital
• Russian, Chinese warships to help Syrian mission
• Report: 2 Swedes found dead in Egyptian resort
• New York Times backs Snowden in US online spying row
• UN struggling to reach trapped Syrian communities
• Malnutrition kills 8 in Syria prison: NGO

Car bomb kills at least five in Hezbollah district of Beirut Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:04 PM PST By Oliver Holmes and Stephen Kalin BEIRUT (Reuters) - A car bomb killed at least five people in Hezbollah's stronghold in southern Beirut on Thursday, the latest in a series of deadly attacks on Shi'ite and Sunni targets in Lebanon. A security source said the blast was caused by a car bomb. The explosion occurred less than a week after former finance minister Mohamad Chatah, a critic of the Shi'ite Hezbollah militant group and its ally Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, was killed along with six others by a car bomb in Beirut. Last summer, bombs exploded in southern Beirut and outside two Sunni Muslim mosques in the northern city of Tripoli, killing scores of people.

U.S. ship to depart soon on chemical weapons mission to Mediterranean Posted: 02 Jan 2014 03:11 PM PST By David Alexander PORTSMOUTH, Virginia (Reuters) - The U.S.-owned cargo ship with the capability to destroy the nastiest of Syria's chemical weapons will depart for the Mediterranean in about two weeks, officials said on Thursday as shipyard workers readied the vessel for new sea trials. Forklifts moved equipment and sparks flew as workers welded containers and other gear on the deck of the MV Cape Ray, which is being outfitted with modular housing to accommodate three times its normal complement of personnel, plus two hydrolysis units for destroying Syrian chemicals used in mustard and nerve gas weapons. "Without this ship, this mission is not possible," top Pentagon arms buyer Frank Kendall, who has oversight of chemical, biological and nuclear arms, told reporters who were invited to tour the vessel at dock in Portsmouth, Virginia. Damascus agreed to eliminate its chemical weapons last year in the face of threatened U.S. military action following a Syrian chemical attack against rebels and their supporters in a civil war aimed at overthrowing President Bashar al-Assad.

Netanyahu gloomy as Kerry returns for peace talks Posted: 02 Jan 2014 10:58 AM PST By Arshad Mohammed JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered a gloomy assessment of peace prospects with the Palestinians on Thursday as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry began his 10th visit to the region in pursuit of a deal. "There is growing doubt in Israel that the Palestinians are committed to peace," said Netanyahu, speaking with Kerry at his side and accusing Palestinian officials of orchestrating a campaign of "rampant" incitement against Israel. Netanyahu specifically criticized Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for the heroes' welcome he gave a group of Palestinian prisoners, most convicted of murdering Israelis, who were released from Israeli jails on Tuesday. In the days before Kerry's latest trip to Jerusalem, Palestinian leaders have likewise accused Israel of trying to sabotage the talks aimed at ending their decades-old conflict.

South Sudan army advances on rebel towns before peace talks Posted: 02 Jan 2014 08:34 AM PST By Carl Odera and Aaron Maasho JUBA/ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - South Sudan's army (SPLA) said it was advancing on two rebel-controlled towns on Thursday as both sides gathered in Ethiopia for peace talks to end three weeks of violence that has pushed the world's youngest nation towards civil war. Both sides have agreed in principle to a ceasefire but neither has indicated when the fighting, which has killed more than 1,000 people and displaced nearly 200,000, will stop. South Sudanese President Salva Kiir declared a state of emergency late on Wednesday in Unity state and Jonglei, whose respective provincial capitals of Bentiu and Bor are in the hands of militia loyal to former vice president Riek Machar. A rebel spokesman in Unity dismissed the SPLA's comments on its advance as lies and said South Sudan's army and the national government in the capital Juba had resorted to a "war of allegations" before peace negotiations could get underway.

China military to launch 'joint command' to reorganize forces: report Posted: 02 Jan 2014 04:43 PM PST The Chinese military will establish a joint operational command over its military forces to improve coordination between different parts of the country's increasingly sophisticated military system, the official China Daily reported on Friday citing the Ministry of Defense. China has been moving rapidly to upgrade its military hardware, but military analysts say operational integration of complex and disparate systems across a regionalized command structure is a major challenge for Beijing. In the past, regional level military commanders have enjoyed major latitude over their forces and branches of the military have remained highly independent of each other, making it difficult to exercise the centralized control necessary to use new weapons systems effectively in concert. The report quoted comments made to China Daily by the Ministry of National Defense saying that China will implement a joint command system "in due course" and that it has already launched pilot programs to that effect.

Catalan president calls on EU leaders to support push for independence Posted: 02 Jan 2014 12:56 PM PST Catalonia's president has called on European Union prime ministers for support as the region seeks a vote on independence in November this year, the source of an increasingly bitter fight with Spain's central government. In letters dating from December and made public on Thursday, Artur Mas urged European powers to encourage a referendum that the center-right government of Mariano Rajoy says is unconstitutional and it will not allow. The Catalan struggle is likely to dominate the political agenda this year in Spain, which is slowly emerging from a recession and heading towards a general election in 2015. "Contrary to some reports, there are a number of legal and constitutional options which allow this referendum to take place in Catalonia," Mas wrote in a December 20 letter to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which was reproduced on his official website and is one of 27 sent to European leaders.

Rescued passengers head for open Antarctic water Posted: 02 Jan 2014 05:02 PM PST CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — All 52 passengers rescued after being trapped for more than a week on an icebound Russian research ship in the Antarctic were aboard an Australian icebreaker slowly cracking through heavy sea ice Friday toward open water after their dramatic rescue by a Chinese helicopter.

Briton, New Zealander shot dead in Libya Posted: 02 Jan 2014 04:37 PM PST Libyan troops on Thursday found the bodies of a British man and a New Zealand woman shot dead southwest of Tripoli, a security source told AFP. "The bodies of a British man and a New Zealand woman who had been killed by bullets were found on the beach in Mellitah on Thursday afternoon," the source said. Britain and New Zealand said they were seeking to confirm the report. New Zealand's foreign ministry said it was aware of the report and was "working with the relevant authorities to confirm this".

Israel killed majority of those behind Buenos Aires blasts: ex-envoy Posted: 02 Jan 2014 04:29 PM PST Israel has killed most of those behind the deadly attacks on its embassy and a Jewish charities building in Argentina in the 1990s, a former Israeli envoy said Thursday. The July 1994 bombing of the Argentine Jewish Charities Federation (AMIA) building in Buenos Aires killed 85 people. Hundreds were hurt in a bombing Argentina says was masterminded by Iran. Two years earlier, in March 1992, a car bombing in front of the Israeli embassy in the capital killed 29 and wounded 200 others.

Thatcher's hairdo was high-maintenance Posted: 02 Jan 2014 04:18 PM PST Margaret Thatcher's immaculate hairdo took intensive efforts to perfect, with the late British prime minister having her bouffant reworked every three days on average, records showed Friday. Her appointments diary for 1984, released by The National Archive three decades on, showed she had 118 hair appointments in the year. Around the G7 summit in London in June 1984, she had her hair done on five consecutive days.

Phoney Thatcher-Reagan tape spooked British spies Posted: 02 Jan 2014 04:15 PM PST A fake tape of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher arguing over the Falklands War had the British secret services scrambling to identify the culprits, archive files released Friday showed. The tape, supposedly a telephone recording of then US president Reagan and the British prime minister, was anonymously sent to several Dutch newspapers during the 1983 UK general election. In the faked exchange about the 1982 Falklands War between Britain and Argentina, Reagan urged restraint while Thatcher wanted Buenos Aires punished "as quickly as possible". The tape was constructed by cutting up and reassembling sound clips of the two leaders.

Kerry in Israel on new Mideast peace push Posted: 02 Jan 2014 04:07 PM PST US Secretary of State John Kerry met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday as he pushed a framework for Middle East peace talks, amid growing tension with the Palestinians. The two met in Jerusalem, launching what is expected to be an intense four days of shuttle diplomacy between Israeli and Palestinian leaders. Kerry's meeting with Netanyahu, which included a joint dinner, took five hours, officials said. The top US diplomat will be meeting with his Israeli counterpart Avigdor Lieberman on Friday morning before meeting again with Netanyahu, and later in the day heading to the west Bank city of Ramallah for talks with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

Scientists, tourists rescued from Antarctic ship begin long journey home Posted: 02 Jan 2014 03:56 PM PST By Maggie Lu Yueyang SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian icebreaker with 52 passengers rescued from a Russian ship trapped in Antarctic ice since Christmas Eve began the long journey home on Friday. "The passengers seem very glad to now be with us and they are settling in to their new accommodation," Jason Mundy, Australian Antarctic Division Acting Director who is on board the ice breaker Aurora Australis, said on Friday morning. A helicopter from the Chinese icebreaker Snow Dragon ferried the 52 scientists and tourists in small groups from the ice-bound Akademik Shokalskiy and transferred them to the Antarctic supply ship Aurora Australis late on Thursday. The Aurora Australis is now sailing towards open water and will then head towards an Antarctic base to complete a resupply before returning to Australia.

2 newspapers call for clemency for Edward Snowden Posted: 02 Jan 2014 03:51 PM PST LONDON (AP) — The New York Times and Guardian newspapers have called for clemency for Edward Snowden, saying that the espionage worker-turned-privacy advocate should be praised rather than punished for his disclosures.

Heavy snow, dangerous cold snarl travel in northeastern U.S. Posted: 02 Jan 2014 03:44 PM PST By Elizabeth Dilts and Scott Malone NEW YORK/BOSTON (Reuters) - The governors of New York and New Jersey declared a state of emergency and urged residents to stay indoors as a major storm hit the northeastern United States on Thursday, bringing heavy snow and delaying or canceling thousands of flights. The first major winter storm of 2014 brought dangerously low temperatures and strong winds from the lower Mississippi Valley to the Atlantic coast, with parts of New England including Boston bracing for as much as 14 inches of snow by Friday morning. "As this winter storm unfolds, bringing heavy snow and high winds to many parts of the state, I strongly urge all New Yorkers to exercise caution, avoid travel and stay indoors," New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said. Amid flight cancellations that hit just as many travelers were returning from holiday breaks, officials at Boston's Logan International Airport warned that takeoffs would likely end at about 8:30 p.m. (0130 GMT) and officials at New York area airports set up cots for potential stranded travelers.

Israel strikes in Gaza after rocket attack Posted: 02 Jan 2014 03:39 PM PST Israeli war planes carried out a series of strikes in the Gaza Strip early Friday, the army said, shortly after a rocket from the Palestinian enclave struck the Jewish state. A statement from the army said that "in response to rocket fire toward Israel," its "aircraft targeted a terror infrastructure site in the central Gaza Strip and three concealed rocket launchers in the northern Gaza Strip." There were no immediate reports of injuries in Gaza. Late Thursday night a projectile fired from the Islamist Hamas-run enclave hit southern Israel, a police spokeswoman told AFP, causing no harm or damage.

US ship equipped to destroy Syria's chemical weapons Posted: 02 Jan 2014 03:36 PM PST Aboard the MV Cape Ray (United States) (AFP) - With special machinery installed in the hold of this American cargo ship, the MV Cape Ray is poised to embark on an unprecedented mission to destroy Syria's lethal chemical agents at sea. At a shipyard in Virginia, the 650-foot (197.5-meter) ship from the Maritime Administration's reserve fleet has been outfitted with two portable hydrolysis systems designed to neutralize the most dangerous chemicals in Syria's arsenal. "I'm waiting for my sailing orders," said Captain Rick Jordan, clad in overalls and a construction helmet.

Comic wanted banned in France allegedly threatened Posted: 02 Jan 2014 02:55 PM PST PARIS (AP) — The Paris prosecutor's office said Thursday it is investigating threats against a comedian the French interior minister wants banned from the stage for what he says are racist and anti-Semitic performances.

Skype says user information safe in Syrian Electronic Army hack Posted: 02 Jan 2014 02:51 PM PST By Dan Whitcomb LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A day after the Syrian Electronic Army said it had hacked into Skype's social media accounts, the Internet calling service acknowledged on Thursday it had been hit with a "cyber attack" but said no user information was compromised. A Tweet posted on Skype's official Twitter feed on Wednesday read: "Don't use Microsoft emails (hotmail, outlook), They are monitoring your accounts and selling the data to the governments. #SEA" Similar messages were posted on Skype's official Facebook pages and on a blog on its website before being taken down later in the afternoon. Skype is owned by Microsoft Corp. The Syrian Electronic Army, an amorphous hacking collective that supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, later claimed the attack.

Snowstorm bears down on northeastern United States Posted: 02 Jan 2014 02:32 PM PST The northeastern United States prepared Thursday for snow, high winds and frigid temperatures, as a gust of wintry weather bore down on New England and surrounding states, cancelling flights. Temperatures in New York were expected to drop to 10 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 12 degrees Celsius) with a wind chill factor of minus nine degrees Fahrenheit, according to national weather forecasts. Tracking system FlightAware said that about 2,000 flights entering, leaving or inside the United States had been canceled.

Report: 2 Swiss found dead in Egyptian resort Posted: 02 Jan 2014 02:20 PM PST CAIRO (AP) — Authorities have discovered the bodies of a Swiss couple in a villa in a Red Sea resort city in Egypt, the country's state television website reported Thursday. It says investigators suspect the villa guard.

Qaeda leader held in Lebanon raised funds for anti-Assad militants -experts Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:59 PM PST By Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Saudi leader of an al-Qaeda spinoff group arrested in Lebanon this week was a key fundraiser in the Gulf for militants fighting to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, official and private experts say. The Lebanese army arrested Muhammad al-Majid, who leads the Lebanon-based Abdullah Azzam Brigades which claimed a double suicide attack on the Iranian embassy in Beirut last November. That attack was part of a spiral of sectarian violence in Lebanon that appears to be a spillover from Syria's civil war. Laith Alkhouri of Flashpoint Partners, a private group which monitors militant websites for business and government clients, said Majid had "been behind a great deal of financing to the jihadists fighting in Syria." U.S. and European officials say that the most militant Sunni factions fighting Assad's forces, including the Nusrah Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, both aligned with al-Qaeda, are being financed largely by wealthy families in Saudi Arabia and Gulf states.

Briton, New Zealander killed in western Libya: security source Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:58 PM PST A Briton and a New Zealander, both with gunshot wounds, were found dead in western Libya on Thursday, while two Americans were arrested in the eastern city of Benghazi, Libyan security sources said. The security situation has deteriorated in recent months in the North African country where the government is struggling to rein in militias and tribesmen who helped oust Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 and kept their guns. Another source said the New Zealander was a woman and the Briton a man. A spokeswoman for Britain's Foreign Office said, "We are aware of reports that the bodies of two foreign nationals have been found in Libya and we are urgently seeking further information from the authorities." A New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesman said the ministry was aware of reports that a New Zealander may have been killed in Libya.

Passengers rescued off ship stuck in Antarctic ice Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:54 PM PST CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — All 52 passengers trapped for more than a week on an icebound Russian research ship in the Antarctic were rescued Thursday when a Chinese helicopter swooped in and plucked them from the ice a dozen at a time.

Briton, New Zealander found shot to death in Libya Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:51 PM PST TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — A British man and a New Zealand woman were found shot to death in western Libya, a Libyan security official said Thursday.

Kerry: Mideast peace still possible despite rifts Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:43 PM PST JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted his Palestinian partner in peace-making efforts on Thursday, accusing him of embracing terrorists "as heroes," harsh words that clouded the start of Secretary of State John Kerry's tenth trip to the region to negotiate a peace deal he claims is "not mission impossible."

Comic France wants banned allegedly threatened Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:39 PM PST PARIS (AP) — The Paris prosecutor's office is investigating threats against a comedian the French interior minister wants banned from the stage, deeming his performances racist and anti-Semitic.

Car bomb kills four in Hezbollah Beirut bastion: minister Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:31 PM PST A car bomb killed four people in south Beirut Thursday, the fourth attack to hit the Hezbollah bastion since the Shiite group announced its intervention in Syria last year, the health minister said. The bombing came just weeks after a twin suicide bombing killed 25 people at the Iranian embassy in the same area and marked a new breach of the tight security in Hezbollah's stronghold. Health Minister Ali Hassan Khalil said four people had been killed and 77 wounded. Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said it may have been a suicide bombing.

Shooting heard at airport in Congo's capital Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:24 PM PST Heavy gunfire rang out from an airport in the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a Reuters witness in Kinshasa said on Thursday, days after an attack on the main airport. That's what justified the firing that was heard," government spokesman Lambert Mende told Reuters. On Monday, Congolese forces killed dozens of armed youths who attacked the main international airport, a barracks and a state television centre in incidents claimed by a disgruntled religious leader.

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford files to run again Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:20 PM PST TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Mayor Rob Ford has put his name on the ballot to run for another term, defying repeated calls for him to step down after admitting he smoked crack "in a drunken stupor."

Iraqis battle militant uprising in 2 Sunni cities Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:17 PM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi security forces and allied tribesmen battled on Thursday to put down al-Qaida-linked gunmen who, in a coordinated surge, ran rampant in two of the country's main Sunni cities, overrunning police stations and sweeping through the streets, emboldened by mounting sectarian tensions between minority Sunnis and the Shiite-led government.

C. Africa won't sap France's military Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:09 PM PST Bangui (Central African Republic) (AFP) - France's military mission in the Central African Republic will not suck in its troops in an expanding role, Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian vowed Thursday during a visit to the restive country's capital. Le Drian predicted last month's deployment of 1,600 French soldiers to the former French colony to help an African force there would prove as successful as France's mission launched nearly a year ago in Mali, where an Islamist militant advance was halted. Experts at the time, he told some of the French troops in Bangui, had predicted: "'In Mali, France is on a slippery slope' -- luckily for us, we didn't listen to those experts.

Military: South Sudan rebels set eyes on capital Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:09 PM PST ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Rebels in South Sudan are forcibly recruiting civilians to march on the capital, the military said, even as representatives of the warring factions gathered in neighboring Ethiopia on Thursday for the start of peace talks.

Russian, Chinese warships to help Syrian mission Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:05 PM PST NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — A spokesman for the joint Danish-Norwegian operation tasked with ferrying Syria's chemical weapons out of the strife-torn country says warships from Russia and China will provide additional security on the transport leg of the operation.

Report: 2 Swedes found dead in Egyptian resort Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:01 PM PST CAIRO (AP) — Authorities have discovered the bodies of a Swedish couple in a villa in a Red Sea resort city in Egypt, the country's state television reported Thursday. It says investigators suspect the villa guard.

New York Times backs Snowden in US online spying row Posted: 02 Jan 2014 01:01 PM PST The influential New York Times hailed fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden as a "whistleblower" on Thursday and threw its weight behind calls for him to be shown clemency. The editorial was quickly seized upon by activists campaigning to persuade President Barack Obama's administration to drop its bid to prosecute the former National Security Agency contractor.

UN struggling to reach trapped Syrian communities Posted: 02 Jan 2014 12:58 PM PST UNITED NATIONS (United States) (AFP) - Aid agencies face an increasing struggle to reach communities trapped in Syria's worsening civil war, UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos said Thursday. Amos highlighted the case of the Yarmuk Palestinian refugee camp in Damascus where the UN says at least 15 people have died from malnutrition in recent weeks. The United Nations has pressed the Syrian government and opposition for greater access since the UN Security Council demanded more cooperation from President Bashar al-Assad's government in October. Yarmuk is "one of the areas we are continually trying to seek access to, we haven't had any success to date with respect to Yarmuk.

Malnutrition kills 8 in Syria prison: NGO Posted: 02 Jan 2014 12:49 PM PST Eight people held by the Syrian government in Aleppo's central prison have died over the past two days from malnutrition, a monitoring group said Thursday. Another four people died elsewhere in Syria due to food shortages and a lack of medical supplies, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Control of Aleppo, once Syria's commercial capital, has been contested by loyalists and rebels for nearly 18 months. The Britain-based Observatory also called on humanitarian groups to negotiate entry into the prison to deliver food and medical supplies.

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