Yahoo! News: World News

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• Thousands flee Syrian town as 'major assault' looms
• Kerry says China willing to pressure North Korea on nuclear plans
• Exclusive: Syria on track to miss deadline to destroy chemical weapons
• U.S. military not targeting released Afghan prisoners, Pentagon says
• Cuba suspends consular services in the U.S. due to banking problem
• Bulgarian police detain 120 after mosque attack
• Moody's upgrades outlook for Italy's govt bonds
• England football great Finney dead at 91
• US: Taliban struck shortly after insider attack
• India 201-5 at lunch on day 2, 2nd test vs. NZ
• Ancient dog burial site found in Mexico City
• Biden: No expectations for Democrats on trade
• Twitter reports image blocking in Venezuela
• Texas jury convicts man of consulate slaying
• Top-seeded Ferrer into semifinals in Buenos Aires
• Marine arraigned in Iraq slaying retrial
• Wanxiang increases bid to win Fisker asset sale
• London Fashion Week kicks off
• Norway big favorite in women's cross-country relay
• Thai police push out street protesters, briefly
• Fourcade, Bjoerndalen eye Olympic biathlon records
• 2 Olympic short track medals to be awarded
• From Shani Davis to a Belgian, 1,500 wide open
• Hollywood shooting movie about Chile miners
• Anti-Maduro protests renew Venezuela turmoil
• Russia's Tretiakov trying to hang on in skeleton
• Nordic combined guys back in action on large hill
• Syria peace talks face total deadlock as death toll soars
• The Hoff's daughter: Respect for plus-sized models
• Canada finally starting to roll in men's curling
• Stoch goes for 2 golds in a row at Sochi Olympics
• Rodman out of rehab: 'I'm not an alcoholic'
• Olympic women's hockey quarterfinals on Saturday
• Street stylists steal scene at London Fashion Week

Thousands flee Syrian town as 'major assault' looms Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:00 PM PST By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - Thousands of people have fled a rebel-held town in Syria after it was bombed and shelled in an operation that has prompted fears of a major assault by ground troops, the United Nations said on Friday. The fighting came as peace talks in Geneva neared the end of a second round with the government and opposition sides sticking to their positions and as far from agreement as ever. "Nearly 5,000 people have been killed just since these talks began," a senior U.S. official said in Geneva on Friday. Military action in the town of Yabroud, in western Syria near the border with Lebanon, would fit with the government's aim of securing a corridor linking Damascus with President Bashar al-Assad's heartland on the Mediterranean coast.

Kerry says China willing to pressure North Korea on nuclear plans Posted: 14 Feb 2014 06:44 AM PST By Arshad Mohammed and Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday China is willing to exert more pressure to get North Korea to give up its nuclear program. He told reporters in Beijing he was pleased that China "could not have more forcefully reiterated its commitment" to the goal of denuclearizing North Korea. "I encouraged the Chinese to use every tool at their disposal, all of the means of persuasion that they have, building on the depths of their long and historic and cultural and common history (with North Korea)," he said. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Kerry China would work with all parties concerned, including the United States, to play a constructive role for the region's peace and stability.

Exclusive: Syria on track to miss deadline to destroy chemical weapons Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:48 PM PST By Anthony Deutsch AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Syria has relinquished only 11 percent of its chemical weapons in three shipments and is on track to miss a politically-loaded midyear deadline to completely destroy the toxic stockpile, sources told Reuters on Friday. Syria should already have handed over the 1,300 tonnes of toxic chemicals declared to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the body overseeing the process with the United Nations under a Russian-American deal. A third shipment this week contained 54 metric tonnes of hexamine, a raw material for explosives, bringing the total shipped so far to a bit more than 140 tonnes, three sources at the OPCW said. The next deadline is the end of March, when the most toxic chemicals, including sarin and mustard gas and their precursors, are supposed to have been destroyed outside the country.

U.S. military not targeting released Afghan prisoners, Pentagon says Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:45 PM PST The U.S. military said on Friday it was not actively targeting any of the 65 detainees released by Afghan President Hamid Karzai's government, but warned that if the freed prisoners returned to the fight, "they do it at their own peril." Despite fierce U.S. protests, Karzai's government released the detainees on Thursday, in the latest sign of deteriorating ties between Washington and Kabul after more than 12 years of war. At the same time, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said the released prisoners "are not considered targets right now." "There's not going to be an active targeting campaign ... to go after them. The release of the detainees has stoked anger in the war-weary U.S. Congress, where Senator Lindsey Graham has said he would introduce a resolution condemning Karzai's actions and would seek to cut off some U.S. development aid in response. U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel shared the frustrations of many in Washington, Kirby said, adding that the defense chief understood that Karzai's actions "make it that much harder for many of those on the Hill in Congress to further support the Afghan missions." "But again, this is a relationship that matters and a country that matters.

Cuba suspends consular services in the U.S. due to banking problem Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:35 PM PST By David Adams MIAMI (Reuters) - Cuba suspended nearly all its consular services in the United States on Friday after it was unable to find a bank to handle the accounts of its diplomatic missions in Washington and New York, it said in a statement released to news organizations. The decision by the Cuban Interests Section, Havana's mission in Washington, stems from its inability to find a replacement for M&T Bank Corp, which had decided to stop offering services to foreign diplomatic missions. In a statement Cuba blamed the decision on U.S. economic sanctions against the communist-run island, saying consular services would remain closed indefinitely "until banking services are re-established." The decision threatened to disrupt a recent surge in travel between the two countries. "It has been impossible for the Interests Section to find a U.S.-based bank that could operate the bank accounts of the Cuban diplomatic missions," the Cuban Interests Section said in a news release on Friday.

Bulgarian police detain 120 after mosque attack Posted: 14 Feb 2014 01:32 PM PST Bulgarian police detained more than 120 people on Friday after hundreds of nationalists and soccer fans attacked a mosque in the country's second city Plovdiv, smashing its windows with stones. Over 2,000 people had gathered outside a Plovdiv court as it heard an appeal case dealing with the return of an ancient mosque in the central city of Karlovo, taken over by the state more than 100 years ago, to Bulgaria's Chief Mufti, the Muslim religious authority. The rally then marched through the city and some protesters, chanting racist slogans, approached a Plovdiv mosque cordoned off by police, police said in a statement. TV footage of national BNT television showed several protesters who appeared to have suffered head injuries in clashes with police.

Moody's upgrades outlook for Italy's govt bonds Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:57 PM PST Moody's Investors Service on Friday raised the outlook on Italy's government bond rating to stable from negative, citing improved financial strength in the European country.

England football great Finney dead at 91 Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:47 PM PST England football great Tom Finney has died at the age of 91, his former club Preston North End said Friday. "Preston North End have been informed of the extremely sad news of the passing of Sir Tom Finney," a statement on the English third tier club's website said. "Sir Tom was the greatest player to ever play for Preston North End and one of all time greats for England. Finney, a winger who could play in several positions across the forward line, was famously loyal to his hometown side in Lancashire, north-west England.

US: Taliban struck shortly after insider attack Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:43 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon says that shortly after two U.S. soldiers were gunned down by two men wearing Afghan army uniforms in eastern Afghanistan, Taliban insurgents attacked the district center where the Americans had been operating.

India 201-5 at lunch on day 2, 2nd test vs. NZ Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:40 PM PST WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Opener Shikhar Dhawan was out for 98 as India reached 201-5 at lunch Saturday to take a nine-run first innings lead on the second day of the second cricket test against New Zealand.

Ancient dog burial site found in Mexico City Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:40 PM PST MEXICO CITY (AP) — Archaeologists say they have discovered "an exceptional" burial site under an apartment building in Mexico City containing the remains of 12 dogs, animals that had a major religious and symbolic significance to the Aztecs of central Mexico.

Biden: No expectations for Democrats on trade Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:37 PM PST CAMBRIDGE, Maryland (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden told Democratic lawmakers Friday that trade negotiations with Asia and Europe serve U.S. economic and strategic interests, but acknowledged that Democrats are unlikely in the near future to support President Barack Obama's request for fast-track authority to approve the trade agreements.

Twitter reports image blocking in Venezuela Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:36 PM PST LIMA, Peru (AP) — Twitter said Friday that Venezuela had blocked images on its service following an anti-government protest that turned bloody, and it offered a workaround for users who want to get tweets via text message on their cellphones.

Texas jury convicts man of consulate slaying Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:35 PM PST EL PASO, Texas (AP) — A federal jury convicted a high-level Mexican gang member on Friday of participating in the 2010 slaying of a U.S. consulate employee in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

Top-seeded Ferrer into semifinals in Buenos Aires Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:34 PM PST BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Top-seeded David Ferrer defeated fellow Spaniard Albert Ramos 6-1, 6-2 on Friday to reach the semifinals of the Copa Claro tournament in the Argentine capital.

Marine arraigned in Iraq slaying retrial Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:27 PM PST SAN DIEGO (AP) — A Marine sergeant who is being retried in an Iraq war crimes case has been arraigned on charges that include murder and obstruction of justice.

Wanxiang increases bid to win Fisker asset sale Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:24 PM PST DOVER, Delaware (AP) — A hard-fought auction for the remaining assets of failed electric-vehicle maker Fisker Automotive ended Friday with a winning bid by Chinese auto-parts conglomerate Wanxiang Group.

London Fashion Week kicks off Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:23 PM PST LONDON (AP) — Goodbye snowy New York, hello gusty London! After a week battling frigid temperatures and sleet in the U.S., the fashion crowd found little solace in the British capital as London Fashion Week kicked off Friday in sweeping wind and rain.

Norway big favorite in women's cross-country relay Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:21 PM PST KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — Marit Bjoergen has had to wait a full week for another Olympic medal, which is nearly an eternity by her standards at the games.

Thai police push out street protesters, briefly Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:19 PM PST BANGKOK (AP) — Riot police managed to clear anti-government protesters from a major boulevard in the Thai capital in a small but brief victory as authorities try to reclaim areas that have been closed during a three-month push to unseat Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

Fourcade, Bjoerndalen eye Olympic biathlon records Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:16 PM PST KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — After dominating the first week of men's biathlon at the Sochi Olympics, Martin Fourcade has his eyes set on breaking a 46-year-old French record in the final week.

2 Olympic short track medals to be awarded Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:11 PM PST SOCHI, Russia (AP) — After two days off, short track resumes Saturday with medals awarded in the women's 1,500 meters and the men's 1,000.

From Shani Davis to a Belgian, 1,500 wide open Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:07 PM PST SOCHI, Russia (AP) — The 1,500 meters has always been considered the King of Races in speedskating. At the Sochi Games, Saturday's event throws up plenty of pretenders to the throne, from the United States to Belgium and, of course, the dominant Dutch.

Hollywood shooting movie about Chile miners Posted: 14 Feb 2014 04:00 PM PST COPIAPO, Chile (AP) — French actress Juliette Binoche's scream pierced the frigid night in the remote Chilean desert: "They are alive!"

Anti-Maduro protests renew Venezuela turmoil Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:56 PM PST Students opposed to Venezuela's government returned to the streets Friday to protest against President Nicolas Maduro after a week of violence that saw three people killed at political rallies. The tension that surrounds the demonstrations in Caracas was underscored by a report from Twitter that the government has blocked pictures of the unrest from being shared between users on the social messaging service. Hundreds of protesters blocked the capital as part of an anti-government movement launched 10 days ago by students, backed by some opposition politicians. Despite having the world's largest proven reserves of crude oil, the country remains economically divided with the past week seeing the biggest show of defiance to Maduro's leadership since he took over from Hugo Chavez last year.

Russia's Tretiakov trying to hang on in skeleton Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:56 PM PST KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — Alexander Tretiakov's lead would probably be safe against anyone else, the Olympic gold as good as hanging from his neck.

Nordic combined guys back in action on large hill Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:51 PM PST KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — With one Nordic combined gold medal already tucked in his suitcase to take back to Germany, Eric Frenzel begins his quest for a second when official training begins Saturday for the individual large hill at the Sochi Olympics.

Syria peace talks face total deadlock as death toll soars Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:46 PM PST Syria's faltering peace process ground to total deadlock Friday amid growing concern of complete collapse despite international pressure, as the death toll on the ground continued to soar. On the penultimate day of the current round of UN-brokered peace talks, Syria's warring sides appeared further apart than ever, agreeing on only one thing: that the negotiations so far were going nowhere. "We deeply regret that this round did not make any progress," said Syria's deputy foreign minister, Faisal Muqdad, after meeting UN mediator Lakhdar Brahimi. As the parties in Geneva failed to agree even on an agenda for their talks, the death toll inside Syria continued to climb.

The Hoff's daughter: Respect for plus-sized models Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:44 PM PST LONDON (AP) — Fashion weeks are not the friendliest events for larger women — or anyone else not tall, slim and perfectly put together. But Hayley Hasselhoff says there's no reason why plus-sized models shouldn't get the same recognition as stick-thin ones.

Canada finally starting to roll in men's curling Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:44 PM PST SOCHI, Russia (AP) — Canada has its focus back and is beginning to roll at the men's Olympic curling tournament. And that spells trouble for its rivals.

Stoch goes for 2 golds in a row at Sochi Olympics Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:40 PM PST KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — Kamil Stoch of Poland overcame a touch of influenza to win the normal hill gold medal at the Sochi Games last weekend. He's apparently feeling just fine heading into Saturday's large hill competition, which can't be good news for the other 49 jumpers in the final at the RusSki Gorki Jumping Center.

Rodman out of rehab: 'I'm not an alcoholic' Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:38 PM PST Dennis Rodman checked into an alcohol-rehabilitation center to reevaluate his life, not give up drinking.

Olympic women's hockey quarterfinals on Saturday Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:35 PM PST SOCHI, Russia (AP) — Sweden has long thought of Finland as the little brother, a realm that answered to the Swedish king for 600 years. The dynamic also extended to sports, where Sweden's teams have traditionally dominated.

Street stylists steal scene at London Fashion Week Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:30 PM PST LONDON (AP) — Can't get a ticket to a catwalk show? Use a little imagination, and you can star in your own.

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