Yahoo! News: World News

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• Putin signs Crimea treaty as Ukraine serviceman dies in attack
• Area of Malaysia plane search now size of Australia
• Ukraine crisis not seen hurting Iran nuclear talks: EU
• EU, U.S. denounce China's arrests of activists
• Calls to escalate Russia sanctions leave EU in a quandary
• Protests flare across Lebanon against 'siege' of border town
• Official: Haiti drought causes 'extreme emergency'
• U.S. condemns Russian move to annex Ukraine's Crimea
• Mexico appoints new chief of federal police
• Reno man on trial on faith-based fraud charges
• Obama and Merkel consult on Russia and Ukraine
• Deported immigrant activist asks for US asylum
• Detained Venezuela activist calls for more protests
• Uruguay's Mujica: big abroad, questioned at home
• Gorilla born in rare C-section at San Diego Zoo has pneumonia
• Chelsea defeats Galatasaray to reach CL quarters
• Rwandan ex-intel chief appeals genocide conviction
• Italy high court confirms Berlusconi ban from public office
• Ukraine grapples with despair in Crimea takeover
• Tabloid hacked Prince Harry homework message, court hears
• Real Madrid completes rout of Schalke with 3-1 win
• Chelsea stroll ruins Drogba's return
• China finds no terror link to nationals on Malaysia plane
• Putin signs treaty to add Crimea to map of Russia
• Parties and gunfire in separatist Crimea
• US citizen slain in Bahamas; 2 US men charged
• U.S. shuts Syrian embassy, consulates, orders diplomats out
• UN chief urges immediate talks on Ukraine crisis
• 2 charged with smuggling cocaine off Puerto Rico
• Italy's top court upholds Berlusconi public office ban
• Thai radar might have tracked missing plane
• Canada's long-time finance minister resigns

Putin signs Crimea treaty as Ukraine serviceman dies in attack Posted: 18 Mar 2014 02:17 PM PDT By Steve Gutterman and Pavel Polityuk MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Defying Ukrainian protests and Western sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty in Moscow on Tuesday making Crimea part of Russia again but said he did not plan to seize any other regions of Ukraine. On the peninsula, a Ukrainian serviceman was killed when a base still held by Kiev came under attack in the main town of Simferopol, the first death in Crimea from a military clash since Russia seized control three weeks ago. Kiev said the attackers had been wearing Russian military uniforms, and it responded by authorizing its soldiers in Crimea to use weapons to protect their lives, reversing previous orders that they should avoid using arms against attack.

Area of Malaysia plane search now size of Australia Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:18 PM PDT By Anshuman Daga and Niluksi Koswanage KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - An international land and sea search for a missing Malaysian jetliner is covering an area the size of Australia, authorities said on Tuesday, but police and intelligence agencies have yet to establish a clear motive to explain its disappearance. Investigators are convinced that someone with deep knowledge of the Boeing 777-200ER and commercial navigation diverted Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, carrying 12 crew and 227 mainly Chinese passengers, perhaps thousands of miles off its scheduled course from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. With the plane missing for 10 days, German insurer Allianz said on Tuesday it had started making payments on claims linked to the jetliner. Malaysian Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told a news conference the "unique, unprecedented" search covered a total area of 2.24 million nautical miles (7.68 million sq km), from central Asia to the southern Indian Ocean.

Ukraine crisis not seen hurting Iran nuclear talks: EU Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:06 PM PDT By Justyna Pawlak and Louis Charbonneau VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran and six world powers sought on Tuesday to make headway toward resolving their decade-old nuclear dispute, with Western officials expressing hope the talks would not be further complicated by the Ukraine crisis. So far, diplomats said, there is little sign that the worst East-West confrontation since the Cold War would undermine the quest for a deal over Iran's atomic activity and avert the threat of a Middle East war. The March 18-19 meeting between Iran and the powers - the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany - began a day after Washington and the European Union imposed sanctions on A number of Russian officials over Moscow's takeover of Ukraine's Crimea region. "I haven't seen any negative effect," Michael Mann, a spokesman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton who coordinates the talks on behalf of the six nations, told reporters.

EU, U.S. denounce China's arrests of activists Posted: 18 Mar 2014 01:02 PM PDT By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - The United States and European Union (EU) accused China on Tuesday of using arrests and harassment to silence human rights activists, also voicing consternation at the death in custody of a prominent dissident. During the debate at the U.N. Human Rights Council, China's delegation responded that Cao Shunli had died in hospital last week of tuberculosis and that the Chinese people enjoyed the right to freedom of expression. It also tried unsuccessfully to stop a speech by Ti-Anna Wang, daughter of Wang Bingzhang, a physician serving a life sentence for his role in overseas Chinese democracy movements. Criticism of China is rare at the Geneva forum.

Calls to escalate Russia sanctions leave EU in a quandary Posted: 18 Mar 2014 11:07 AM PDT By Luke Baker BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Mocked by Moscow, the European Union needs to impose far tougher sanctions over Crimea to make President Vladimir Putin sit up and pay attention, but its ability to agree them is limited - and consensus may not be achievable at all. Russia's response to the first phase of EU sanctions - travel bans and asset freezes on 13 Russian and eight Crimeans - has been dismissive. Deputy PM Rogozin took to Twitter to ridicule the EU and the United States, calling their steps weak and meaningless. They wanted harder-hitting sanctions, but EU restrictions have to be agreed unanimously, which means the measures are only as strong as the country with the deepest reservations will allow.

Protests flare across Lebanon against 'siege' of border town Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:42 PM PDT Lebanese demonstrators blocked several roads throughout the country on Tuesday evening in protest at what they called a "siege" on the Sunni Muslim town of Arsal on the border with Syria. The road to Arsal was blocked by residents of the Shi'ite Muslim town of al-Labwa who erected sand barriers this weekend, a security source said, cutting it off from other parts of Lebanon. In the Beirut suburb of Qasqas, five protesters were wounded when the army fired tear gas into the crowd, the security source said. The border area has been steadily sucked into Syria's three-year-old conflict as Syrian troops and jets target rebel bases on the frontier and suspected Syrian rebels fire rockets at Shi'ite towns to punish the Shi'ite Lebanese militant group Hezbollah for supporting Assad.

Official: Haiti drought causes 'extreme emergency' Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:46 PM PDT PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A drought is causing an extreme emergency in northeast Haiti, wiping out sorely needed crops and livestock, an official said Tuesday.

U.S. condemns Russian move to annex Ukraine's Crimea Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:51 PM PDT By Susan Heavey and Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Tuesday condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and said it was preparing a fresh round of sanctions in response to the worst East-West crisis since the Cold War. "More is coming," said White House spokesman Jay Carney, a day after the United States slapped sanctions on 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials, penalties that some critics said did not go far enough to get Moscow's attention. ...

Mexico appoints new chief of federal police Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:40 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (AP) — The Mexican government has chosen the man who runs its national security council to be the new chief of federal police two days after the previous official resigned.

Reno man on trial on faith-based fraud charges Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:30 PM PDT RENO, Nev. (AP) — Federal prosecutors say a Reno businessman accused of defrauding the government went on a $13,000 Hawaiian vacation with some of the $200,000 in faith-based grants he claimed to be spending on charitable groups but instead converted for his own use.

Obama and Merkel consult on Russia and Ukraine Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:26 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House says President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have discussed Russia's annexation of part of Ukraine and agree that international monitors must be sent immediately to southern and eastern Ukraine.

Deported immigrant activist asks for US asylum Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:25 PM PDT TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) — A Mexican immigrant rights advocate who gained international attention in 2007 when she took refuge in a Chicago church before being deported from the United States has presented herself to U.S. border inspectors and asked for asylum on Tuesday.

Detained Venezuela activist calls for more protests Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:12 PM PDT A Venezuelan opposition leader jailed for a month urged supporters Tuesday to maintain their fight against socialist President Nicolas Maduro's protest-hit government. As the size of demonstrations seemed to start to wane, Leopoldo Lopez said in a handwritten letter from detention: "I send my deepest admiration of the Venezuelan people for its peaceful protest on the streets.

Uruguay's Mujica: big abroad, questioned at home Posted: 18 Mar 2014 04:08 PM PDT MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) — Uruguayan President Jose Mujica's cantankerous personality, homespun oratory and simple ways have made him wildly popular abroad.

Gorilla born in rare C-section at San Diego Zoo has pneumonia Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:58 PM PDT A baby gorilla born in a rare Caesarian section at the San Diego Zoo last week has pneumonia and was treated for a collapsed lung, officials said on Tuesday. The 17th gorilla delivered at the Southern California zoo developed the illness, an inflammation of the lungs with congestion, around the time of her birth, according to a statement from the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. "We've been working with the baby all weekend and after having several days of experience treating her, it's pretty obvious that we've been dealing with pneumonia," Nadine Lamberski, associate director of veterinary services at the park, said in a statement. Zoo spokeswoman Christina Simmons said veterinarians performed a procedure to inflate a collapsed lung on the animal, an endangered western lowland gorilla.

Chelsea defeats Galatasaray to reach CL quarters Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:55 PM PDT LONDON (AP) — Samuel Eto'o and Gary Cahill scored first half goals as Chelsea turned in a dominant performance to beat Galatasaray 2-0 on Tuesday and reach the Champions League quarterfinals with a 3-1 victory on aggregate.

Rwandan ex-intel chief appeals genocide conviction Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:55 PM PDT PARIS (AP) — A lawyer for a Rwandan former intelligence chief who was convicted in France's first genocide trial says he's filed an appeal for his client.

Italy high court confirms Berlusconi ban from public office Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:44 PM PDT By Gavin Jones ROME (Reuters) - Italy's highest appeals court on Tuesday confirmed a two-year ban from public office for centre-right leader and former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi over a conviction for tax fraud. Berlusconi's lawyer Niccolo Ghedini said he was "extremely disappointed" by the ruling of the Court of Cassation, which diminishes Berlusconi's hopes of running as a candidate in elections for the European Parliament in May. Berlusconi had appealed against the ban handed down by a Milan appeals court last October. Berlusconi, whose Forza Italia party is the largest parliamentary opposition to Matteo Renzi's coalition government, has continued to lead his party from outside parliament since he was stripped of his seat as a senator in November.

Ukraine grapples with despair in Crimea takeover Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:40 PM PDT KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's leadership simmered with a mix of hopelessness and anger at losing Crimea, tempering an influx of eager young men signing up as reservists with the growing certainty that no savior would deliver them from the Russian takeover.

Tabloid hacked Prince Harry homework message, court hears Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:34 PM PDT Former News of the World editor Andy Coulson paid a private investigator to monitor royal phone calls, including one in which Prince Harry asked for help with his homework, Britain's phone-hacking trial heard Tuesday. Clive Goodman, former royal editor of the Rupert Murdoch tabloid that closed in 2011 at the height of the scandal, told London's Old Bailey court that Coulson approved payments of £500 ($830, 595 euros) a week to Glenn Mulcaire to "monitor" three phones in the royal household. They belonged to Helen Asprey, an assistant to Princes William and Harry, their private secretary Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, and press secretary to Prince Charles, Paddy Harverson.

Real Madrid completes rout of Schalke with 3-1 win Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:34 PM PDT MADRID (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo scored two goals as Real Madrid completed its Champions League last 16 thrashing of Schalke with a 3-1 victory on Tuesday.

Chelsea stroll ruins Drogba's return Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:25 PM PDT Chelsea ruined Didier Drogba's return to Stamford Bridge as the Blues swept into the Champions League quarter-finals with a 2-0 victory over Galatasaray on Tuesday. Jose Mourinho's side refused to be distracted by Galatasaray striker Drogba's emotional first appearance at the Bridge since his exit in 2012 and goals from Samuel Eto'o and Gary Cahill killed the last 16, second leg clash before half-time. The 3-1 aggregate victory booked Chelsea's spot in Friday's quarter-final draw and eased the sense of angst around the club following Saturday's acrimonious 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa, which saw Mourinho and Blues midfielders Willian and Ramires all sent off.

China finds no terror link to nationals on Malaysia plane Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:18 PM PDT Intelligence checks on 153 Chinese passengers on a missing Malaysian airliner produced no red flags, China said Tuesday, as Malaysia marshalled ships and planes from 26 countries to search an area the size of Australia. Eleven days after contact was lost with Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 and its 239 passengers and crew, there has been minimal progress in determining precisely what happened or where the plane ended up. The head of Malaysia Airlines, Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, said he was unable to confirm the report. Two thirds of those on board were Chinese, and Malaysia had asked authorities in Beijing to run an exhaustive background check on all their nationals as part of a probe into everyone aboard.

Putin signs treaty to add Crimea to map of Russia Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:17 PM PDT MOSCOW (AP) — In a gilded Kremlin hall used by czars, Vladimir Putin redrew Russia's borders Tuesday by declaring the Crimean Peninsula part of the motherland — provoking a surge of emotion among Russians who lament the loss of empire and denunciations from Western leaders who called Putin a threat to the world.

Parties and gunfire in separatist Crimea Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:07 PM PDT SIMFEROPOL (Ukraine) (AFP) - Gunfire rang out in Crimea's main city of Simferopol on Tuesday, even as hundreds partied on the central Lenin Square to celebrate an agreement to incorporate their Black Sea peninsula into Russia. Two people were reported killed and two injured in a gun battle at a Ukrainian military building, which shattered a tense month-long face off between Russian forces and pro-Moscow militias. Police spokesperson Olga Kondrashova was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying the gunfire "came from the same place", both against the Ukrainian military and against the pro-Moscow forces.

US citizen slain in Bahamas; 2 US men charged Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:06 PM PDT NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Two U.S. citizens have been charged in the stabbing death of another U.S. citizen following a fight on the island of Bimini, authorities in the island chain said Monday.

U.S. shuts Syrian embassy, consulates, orders diplomats out Posted: 18 Mar 2014 03:01 PM PDT By Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday suspended operations of Syria's embassy in Washington and its consulates and told diplomats and staff who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents to leave the country. State Department officials said while embassy and consular activities were affected the United States was not severing diplomatic relations with Syria despite failed peace initiatives to end the three-year-old war. U.S. special envoy for Syria Daniel Rubinstein said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had refused to step down and was responsible for atrocities against Syrians. "Consequently, the United States notified the Syrian government today that it must immediately suspend operations of its embassy in Washington, D.C., and its honorary consulates in Troy, Michigan, and Houston, Texas," he said in a statement.

UN chief urges immediate talks on Ukraine crisis Posted: 18 Mar 2014 02:58 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly urged an immediate resumption of "constructive dialogue" among all parties to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, while the Security Council called its first meeting on the matter since the Crimea region voted to leave Ukraine and join Russia.

2 charged with smuggling cocaine off Puerto Rico Posted: 18 Mar 2014 02:58 PM PDT SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Federal authorities say two Puerto Rican men have been charged with conspiracy to import 242 kilograms (533 pounds) of cocaine into the U.S. Caribbean territory.

Italy's top court upholds Berlusconi public office ban Posted: 18 Mar 2014 02:55 PM PDT Italy's supreme court on Tuesday upheld a two-year ban from public office against former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi who had filed an appeal with the country's top court. The ban was imposed as part of a tax fraud conviction against the media magnate last year and blocks him from running in elections. The 77-year-old was sentenced to four years in prison for the fraud linked to his Mediaset business empire, with an automatic reduction to one year under a 2006 amnesty law aimed at reducing prison overcrowding. Berlusconi, who was also stripped of his seat in the Senate over the case, is expected to serve the term through community service due to his age.

Thai radar might have tracked missing plane Posted: 18 Mar 2014 02:50 PM PDT KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Ten days after a Malaysian jetliner disappeared, Thailand's military said Tuesday it saw radar blips that might have been from the missing plane but didn't report it "because we did not pay attention to it."

Canada's long-time finance minister resigns Posted: 18 Mar 2014 02:34 PM PDT Canada's long-time finance minister announced his resignation Tuesday, after steering the G7 nation through the Great Recession and back to a balanced budget forecast for next year. Jim Flaherty, 64, said he informed Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Monday of his surprise decision to return to the private sector -- one year before the next general election. "My goal was always to get Canada back on track to a balanced budget after the large deficit we agreed was necessary in budget 2009 to combat the Great Recession and protect Canadian jobs," Flaherty, appointed to the job in 2006, said in a statement. There is no doubt that Canada's budget will be balanced in 2015.

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