| Iran, big power nuclear talks hit snag on centrifuge research Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:37 PM PST  By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Negotiations between Iran and six world powers on implementing a landmark November deal to freeze parts of Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for easing some sanctions have run into problems over advanced centrifuge research, diplomats said. The dispute over centrifuges highlighted the huge challenges facing Iran and the six powers in negotiating the precise terms of the November 24 interim agreement. If they succeed, they plan to start talks on a long-term deal to resolve a more than decade-long dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions. Among the issues to be resolved in political discussions due to begin in Geneva later this week is that of research and development of a new model of advanced nuclear centrifuge that Iran says it has installed, diplomats said on condition of anonymity.
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| Russia again blocks U.N. Security Council from condemning Syria attacks Posted: 08 Jan 2014 04:32 PM PST  Russia blocked a U.N. Security Council statement on Wednesday that would have expressed outrage at deadly airstrikes by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces and condemned the use of missiles and "barrel bombs" in towns, U.N. diplomats said. Russia, a staunch Assad ally, opposed a similar statement on December 19 that would have condemned attacks by Syrian government troops on civilians. Russia, joined by China, has also vetoed three Security Council resolutions that would have condemned Assad's government and threatened it with sanctions. The council could not reach agreement on Wednesday because amendments proposed by Russia were "clearly designed to rob the statement of any reference to what has happened in Aleppo," said a U.N. diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
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| India tells U.S. to close embassy club; dispute exposes flaws in ties Posted: 08 Jan 2014 01:51 PM PST  By Frank Jack Daniel and David Brunnstrom NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - India ordered the United States on Wednesday to close down an embassy club for expatriate Americans in New Delhi, escalating a diplomatic dispute that has brought faultlines in ties between the nations out in the open. Furious at the arrest, handcuffing and strip search of its deputy consul in New York last month, India initially reacted by curtailing privileges offered to U.S. diplomats. The officer, Devyani Khobragade, was accused by prosecutors of underpaying her nanny and lying on a visa application, Nearly a month on, the row has started to affect the wider relationship between the world's two largest democracies, with one high-level visit by a senior U.S. official already postponed and a visit scheduled for next week by U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz looking doubtful. Both sides have said the relationship is important and will not be allowed to deteriorate - Washington needs New Delhi on its side as U.S. troops pull out of Afghanistan and it engages with China.
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| Libya's PM warns may sink oil tankers nearing east ports Posted: 08 Jan 2014 12:15 PM PST  By Ulf Laessing and Ghaith Shennib TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libya may sink tankers trying to load at eastern ports seized by armed protesters in an escalating confrontation over control of oil exports, Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said on Wednesday. His warning came after Libya's navy fired shots at the weekend to ward off a tanker that the state-run National Oil Corp. (NOC) said tried to load at one port that has been out of government control for six months. Brent crude rose above $107 a barrel on Wednesday, supported by the new worries over Libyan supplies, which have been slashed since summer by the blockade of three key eastern ports. Negotiations to end the protests have failed as eastern federalists, whose self-styled Cyrenaica government seeks more autonomy from Tripoli, have threatened to ship oil independently to world markets in defiance of Zeidan.
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| Panama Canal refuses to pay $1 billion more for expansion work Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:33 PM PST  By Lomi Kriel and Elida Moreno PANAMA CITY (Reuters) - The Panama Canal on Wednesday rejected a proposal that it pay $1 billion to continue work on expanding the waterway, and warned the building consortium behind the project that it could bring in others to finish the job. For the past week, the Panama Canal Authority (PCA) has been fighting with the consortium led by Spanish builder Sacyr over cost overruns in the plan to install a third set of locks for one of the world's most important cargo routes. But on Wednesday, Italian builder Salini Impregilo weighed into the debate with a separate proposal that suggested a deal was still some distance away. Impregilo said it had put forward two alternative solutions that involved the authority paying $1 billion to the consortium known as Grupo Unidos por el Canal (GUPC) to complete the work.
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| Turkish police purge reaches top ranks amid graft scandal Posted: 08 Jan 2014 11:16 AM PST  By Gulsen Solaker and Orhan Coskun ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's deputy police chief has been sacked, the most senior commander yet targeted in a purge of a force heavily influenced by a cleric accused by Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan of plotting to seize the levers of state power. Erdogan's AK Party meanwhile submitted plans to parliament to allow government more say over the naming of prosecutors and judges. Erdogan argues that a judiciary and police in the sway of the Hizmet (Service) movement of cleric Fethullah Gulen contrived a graft investigation now shaking his administration. The government has ousted hundreds of police since the graft affair erupted on December 17 with the detention of dozens of people including businessmen close to the government and three cabinet ministers' sons.
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| U.S. Energy Secretary delays India trip amid diplomatic row Posted: 08 Jan 2014 04:13 PM PST U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz will no longer travel to India as planned next week, an official of the U.S. Energy Department said on Wednesday, the most serious repercussion yet in a row over the arrest of an Indian diplomat in New York. "I can confirm that Secretary Moniz is no longer traveling to India next week," the official told Reuters. "We have been in conversation with Indian counterparts about the dates, and we have agreed to hold the dialogue in the near future at a mutually convenient date." Moniz's trip is the latest and most serious casualty in an escalating row over the treatment of Devyani Khobragade, India's deputy consul in New York. India is furious at her arrest, handcuffing and strip search last month after being accused by U.S. prosecutors of underpaying her nanny and lying on a visa application. |
| Central African leader faces pressure to quit at Thursday summit Posted: 08 Jan 2014 04:12 PM PST  By Madjiasra Nako and John Irish N'DJAMENA/PARIS (Reuters) - Central African Republic's interim President Michel Djotodia will face pressure to step down at a summit of regional leaders on Thursday amid frustration at his failure to quell his country's religious violence. Political sources in Bangui and French diplomatic sources said Djotodia would announce his departure at the meeting of the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) in the Chadian capital N'Djamena or shortly afterwards on his return to Bangui. But CEEAC Secretary General Ahmat Allami said the group would tell Djotodia that his transitional government was not working. "If you are incapable, if you are powerless in the face of the situation, make way for others who can do a better job," Allami said in N'Djamena.
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| AP Interview: Egypt's top satirist prepares return Posted: 08 Jan 2014 04:12 PM PST  CAIRO (AP) — Bassem Youssef, Egypt's most popular satirist often compared to U.S. comedian Jon Stewart, said Wednesday his team is preparing to bring back their widely watched television show poking fun at politics in a country still beset by turmoil following a July military coup.
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| Canada reports first H5N1 bird flu death in North America Posted: 08 Jan 2014 04:04 PM PST  Canada announced Wednesday the first H5N1 avian flu death in North America, of a patient who had just returned from China, and said it was urgently contacting airline passengers on the victim's flights. It was also the first known instance of someone in North America contracting the illness, Canada Health Minister Rona Ambrose told a press conference, stressing it was an "isolated case." The victim, who had recently returned from a trip to Beijing and had been otherwise completely healthy, was from the western plains province of Alberta, officials said, adding they were withholding the person's gender and other identifying details to protect the family's privacy. "I am here to confirm North America's first human case of H5N1, also known as avian flu," Ambrose said, confirming the patient died on January 3.
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| Obama likely to accept change in spying on leaders Posted: 08 Jan 2014 04:02 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is expected to tighten restrictions on U.S. spying on foreign leaders and also is considering changes in National Security Agency access to Americans' phone records, according to people familiar with a White House review of the nation's surveillance programs.
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| China to work with Ghana on illegal mining: FM Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:42 PM PST  China's foreign minister on Wednesday said Beijing was tackling illegal gold mining in Ghana, after hundreds of his compatriots were arrested and sent home for extracting the mineral without permission. Wang Yi, on a four-nation tour of Africa, told reporters after meeting his Ghanaian counterpart Hannah Tetteh in Accra that China took the issue "very seriously". "The Chinese government will encourage reputable and equitable finance companies to come to Ghana to be involved in the resource sector and we hope the government of Ghana will provide the support and facilitation to these companies," he added. Last year hundreds of people, most of them from China, were detained as the government began enforcing a law barring foreign nationals from engaging in small-scale mining operations.
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| Iraqi prime minister says victory certain as Falluja assault looms Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:24 PM PST  By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki vowed to eradicate al Qaeda in Iraq and predicted victory as his army prepared to launch a major assault against the Sunni Islamist militants who have taken over parts of the city of Falluja. Fighters from the al Qaeda-affiliated Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which is also active across the border in Syria, overran police stations in Falluja and another city in Iraq's western Anbar province last week.
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| Russia blocks new UN Syria statement Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:21 PM PST  UNITED NATIONS (United States) (AFP) - Russia on Wednesday blocked a British-drafted UN Security Council statement condemning the Syrian government attacks on the city of Aleppo, diplomats said. It was the second time in a month that Russia objected to a western bid to slam President Bashar al-Assad's air assault against Syria's biggest city which has killed hundreds since December 15. Aid groups say that Scud missiles and barrels packed with explosives and shrapnel have been dropped on schools, markets and hospitals in Syria's biggest city. Britain circulated a draft press statement expressing "outrage" at the government attacks on civilians to the other 14 members of the council on Tuesday night.
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| Immigration foes dig in amid expectations in House Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:16 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservatives and the nation's biggest business lobby sparred Wednesday over immigration overhaul, with advocates vowing a renewed effort to get the House to act this year and opponents digging in against anything that shifts the political spotlight from President Barack Obama's troubled health care law.
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| Tunisia's assembly appoints key electoral council Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:13 PM PST  Tunisia's national assembly appointed an electoral council on Wednesday to oversee elections this year, a key step in the country's transition to democracy three years after its "Arab Spring" uprising. Selecting the nine-member electoral council was a key part of an agreement to overcome months of political crisis between the ruling Islamist party, Ennahda, and its secular opposition over how to shape the country's young democracy. It was a tough task, but we have overcome differences," Meherzia Laabidi, deputy president of the assembly, said at the end of voting. Under the deal brokered late last year to end deadlock, Tunisia's government plans to resign shortly and hand over power to a non-political caretaker cabinet that will govern until new elections later this year.
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| UK: investigators study scene after copter crash Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:06 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — Authorities in England cordoned off flooded marshes Wednesday to investigate the crash of a military helicopter that killed four U.S. Air Force crewmembers.
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| Iraq: Fighters urged to go as supplies run short Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:02 PM PST  BAGHDAD (AP) — Tribal leaders in the besieged city of Fallujah warned al-Qaida-linked fighters to leave to avoid a military showdown, echoing a call by Iraq's prime minister Wednesday that they give up their fight as the government pushes to regain control of mainly Sunni areas west of Baghdad.
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| White House defends itself, Biden over Gates book Posted: 08 Jan 2014 03:01 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — Rushing to curb political fallout, the White House pushed back Wednesday against harsh criticism in a new book by former Defense Secretary Robert Gates that questions President Barack Obama's war leadership and rips into Vice President Joe Biden.
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| Train carrying oil derails, catches fire in Canada Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:48 PM PST  PLASTER ROCK, New Brunswick (AP) — Officials in Canada said a derailed freight train carrying crude oil and propane continued to burn Wednesday, and about 150 residents remained evacuated from their homes. There were no deaths or injuries.
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| Jury vindicates London police over riots killing Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:45 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — An inquest jury Wednesday largely vindicated London police over the fatal shooting that set off a wave of rioting across England more than two years ago, finding that officers acted lawfully when they shot 29-year-old gang member Mark Duggan.
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| Texas club auctions rhino hunt permit in bid to protect species Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:42 PM PST  By Jon Herskovitz AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The Dallas Safari Club will auction a permit to hunt a black rhino in Namibia, possibly fetching up to $1 million with proceeds going to protect the endangered animals in a move seen by some animal rights groups as ethically dubious conservation. "The whole purpose of the auction is to raise as much money as possible to ensure that the black rhino population continues to grow," club executive director Ben Carter said. "These bulls no longer contribute to the growth of the population and are in a lot of ways detrimental to the growth of the population because black rhinos are very aggressive and territorial. In many cases, they will kill younger, non-breeding bulls and have been known to kill calves and cows." There are about 25,000 rhinos in Africa - 20,000 white rhinos and 5,000 black rhinos - with the majority in South Africa.
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| New president of Somalia's Puntland vows to fight insecurity Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:34 PM PST  By Abdiqani Hassan GAROWE, Somalia (Reuters) - Parliament narrowly elected former prime minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali as president of Puntland on Wednesday, backing his campaign against corruption and insecurity in the relatively peaceful Somali region. At the tip of the Horn of Africa and with a third of Somalia's population of about 10 million, the semi-autonomous Puntland spans the north of Somalia and has largely escaped the worst of the country's upheaval of the last 20 years. Somalia's central government and foreign powers advocating a loose federal political system in Somalia have held Puntland up as a possible model, having avoided the worst of a seven-year insurgency fought by militants seeking to impose a strict interpretation of sharia law. Saciid Hassan Shire, the speaker for Puntland's parliament, declared Ali, an economist, the president-elect with 33 votes against outgoing leader Abdirahman Sheikh Mohamed Farole who got 32 votes in a run-off during the third round of voting by deputies.
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| Czech aid group says three local staff killed in Syria Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:31 PM PST  A Czech humanitarian aid group said Wednesday that three of its local staff had been killed in Syria during a mortar attack. Three staff members died in the attack, while two others suffered minor injuries, the group said in a statement. "We have all been shaken by the death of our colleagues and friends and it is with grief and pain that we are extending our condolences to the victims' families and relatives," said the group's director Simon Panek.
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| Actress' slaying puts Venezuela leaders on spot Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:31 PM PST  CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — President Nicolas Maduro hastily gathered state governors and mayors Wednesday to talk about the country's violent crime amid public outrage over the killing of a popular soap-opera actress and former Miss Venezuela.
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| AP Photos: The dance of devils in Ecuador Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:27 PM PST  PILLARO, Ecuador (AP) — Thousands of Ecuadoreans in elaborate devil masks and red costumes danced wildly in the streets of this Andean town in the "La Diablada de Pillaro," or the Devils of Pillaro festival.
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| Controversial French comic seeks to overturn show ban Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:23 PM PST  Nantes (France) (AFP) - Dieudonne, the French comic at the heart of a furore over sketches widely condemned as anti-Semitic, has asked courts to reverse bans on his shows as he kicks off his nationwide tour, his lawyer and court documents said Wednesday. The 47-year-old was due to start his tour on Thursday in the western city of Nantes, but as in several other cities around France, authorities banned his performance after Interior Minister Manuel Valls gave local officials the go-ahead to do so -- an initiative backed by President Francois Hollande. Dieudonne's material has been viewed as anti-Semitic for years, but he has gained greater prominence in recent months as a result of the Internet-driven success of the "quenelle", his trademark straight arm gesture which some have described as a reverse Nazi salute. Jacques Verdier, one of Dieudonne's lawyers, told AFP he had filed an application to a court in Nantes asking that the ban be overturned before Thursday's show in an emergency legal procedure.
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| Ralph Lauren's niece fined in air rage incident Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:21 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — The niece of fashion designer Ralph Lauren has been fined 2,000 euros ($2,725) for an air rage incident on a New York-bound plane that forced it to land in Ireland.
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| Tottenham's Defoe is Toronto bound Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:20 PM PST  Toronto (Canada) (AFP) - England striker Jermain Defoe will leave Tottenham Hotspur and join Major League Soccer's Toronto FC, according to Canadian media reports on Wednesday. The stunning move would see 31-year-old Defoe introduced in Toronto on Monday before rejoining Spurs until March 1, when he would officially become part of the North American side just two weeks before its season opener at Seattle, according to the Toronto Star. Toronto FC has released a series of short promotional videos with the catchphrase "It's a bloody big deal" with Monday's date. Canada's TSN Sports network reported that Defoe was expected in Canada this weekend to complete the deal for an MLS record transfer fee above $10 million and a salary of about $150,000 a week.
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| Egypt: El-Sissi seeks mandate from vote on charter Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:16 PM PST  CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's military chief is looking for a strong turnout in next week's constitutional referendum as a mandate to run for president. But the popular general who ousted President Mohammed Morsi and ordered a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood could be disappointed: His Islamist foes have promised a boycott and mass demonstrations aimed at keeping voters at home.
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| Police killing that led to UK riots was lawful, jury says Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:11 PM PST  A British inquest jury concluded Wednesday that police lawfully shot dead a man in 2011, prompting an angry reaction two years after his death sparked nationwide riots. The family of suspected gang member Mark Duggan shouted obscenities at jurors after the verdict, while police said reinforcements were ready to deal with any fresh unrest. The 29-year-old father of six was gunned down after police stopped the taxicab in which he was travelling in Tottenham, north London, in August 2011. The resulting unrest in London, Birmingham, Manchester and other English cities left five people dead and caused millions of pounds' worth of damage.
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| South Sudan battles rage as peace talks stumble Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:08 PM PST  South Sudan's government and rebels were locked in fierce battles across the country on Wednesday, as peace talks in neighbouring Ethiopia appeared to flounder. A rebel spokesman indicated that there would be no imminent truce in the country unless the government freed a group of alleged coup plotters detained after the fighting began more than three weeks ago, a demand rejected by Juba. But mediators returning from Juba late Wednesday said the detainees wanted a political solution to the crisis and did not want arguments over their liberation to block a potential ceasefire. Fighting was also taking place in the oil-producing Upper Nile State, while the rebels said more troops previously based in Juba had defected from the government side and could launch an assault on the capital.
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| Canadian oil train derails, burns after brakes activated Posted: 08 Jan 2014 02:03 PM PST By Solarina Ho TORONTO (Reuters) - A Canadian National Railway train carrying crude oil and propane derailed and caught fire in New Brunswick on Tuesday night after the emergency brakes were activated, federal safety officials said on Wednesday. The accident, the latest in a string of derailments that have put the surging crude-by-rail business under scrutiny, involved 17 cars on the railway's main line, Canadian National Chief Executive Claude Mongeau told a news conference. Five loaded tank cars carrying crude from western Canada to Irving Oil's Saint John refinery and four carrying propane were among the derailed cars, CN said. There were no injuries, but the fire that followed the derailment burned through the night. |
| South Sudan wounded signal scale of raging conflict Posted: 08 Jan 2014 01:59 PM PST  On the floor of the UN-run hospital in Juba, and along the corridors outside, lines of men groan in pain over bandaged gunshot wounds as they shift positions. More than three weeks of still ongoing brutal fighting in South Sudan are feared to have left thousands dead and many more wounded.
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| India takes aim at privileges held by US diplomats Posted: 08 Jan 2014 01:48 PM PST  NEW DELHI (AP) — India chipped away at America's diplomatic perks Wednesday, ordering the envoys to obey local traffic laws and warning that a popular U.S. Embassy club violates diplomatic law because it is open to outsiders.
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