Yahoo! News: World News

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• Separatists in east Ukraine call on Putin for help, Kiev warns of force
• Netanyahu orders cutback in contacts with Palestinian Authority
• Iran, six powers seek to narrow 'significant gaps' in nuclear talks
• Move to oust Thai PM more than just a walk in the park for protesters
• Pistorius forced to look at 'exploded' head of girlfriend
• Venezuela reaches out to Vatican No. 2 to mediate crisis
• Mexican national executed for 1997 Texas slaying
• US in talks with France on Holocaust compensation
• California man confesses to 40 killings
• Islamist gunmen kill eight in northern Nigeria attack
• Was 'Cuban Twitter' program political or not?
• Hunt for black box signals zeroes in on 'final resting place'
• More 'pings' raise hopes Flight 370 will be found
• Top Asian News at 11:30 p.m. GMT
• Linden re-joins Canucks as new president
• US senators urge full enforcement on steel imports
• Czech officers 'identify' Norway mystery man
• Argentine federal police stage major drug raids
• Atletico beats Barcelona to reach Champions semis
• Honduran migrants ask Mexico to allow free passage
• Bayern beats United 3-1 to reach Champions semis
• Mexican national set to die for 1997 Texas slaying
• Victim's family testifies in shoe stabbing case
• 21 injured in mass stabbing at US high school
• Moyes laments United's 'school-boy error' in Munich
• British culture minister quits over expenses claims
• AP Interview: US troops may be sent to E Europe
• Argentine federal police stage 'mega' drug raids
• Puerto Rico probes darkening of Vieques bio bay
• Two French soldiers wounded in Central African Republic before U.N. vote
• Pink eye extends school closures in American Samoa
• Toyota, GM recalls push US to near-record pace
• US officials reject Rubio claim about CIA report
• Pistorius refuses to look at photo of dead lover
• Mexican mayor detained for alleged links to cartel
• Italian court recognises gay marriage for first time

Separatists in east Ukraine call on Putin for help, Kiev warns of force Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:00 PM PDT By Thomas Grove LUHANSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Pro-Russian separatists reinforced barricades around the state security building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk on Wednesday and called on President Vladimir Putin for help after the government warned it could use force to restore order. Protesters were also engaged in talks to ease the standoff, which Kiev has said could provide a pretext for a Russian invasion, and lawmakers from eastern Ukraine proposed an amnesty for protesters to defuse tension. The former KGB headquarters is one of three government buildings seized this week in eastern Ukraine by protesters demanding regional referendums on independence from Kiev.

Netanyahu orders cutback in contacts with Palestinian Authority Posted: 09 Apr 2014 01:58 PM PDT By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel announced on Wednesday a partial freeze in high-level contacts with the Palestinians and also threatened economic steps after they signed international conventions, deepening a crisis menacing U.S.-brokered peace talks. Israeli government officials said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered cabinet members, directors-general of government ministries and other senior officials not to meet their counterparts in the Palestinian Authority (PA). A spokesman for the PA, which exercises limited self-rule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, said Israeli-Palestinian ministerial meetings were rare but voiced concern about the possibility of Israeli economic sanctions. The order does not apply to Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, Israel's chief peace negotiator, or to defense and security officials, Israeli officials said.

Iran, six powers seek to narrow 'significant gaps' in nuclear talks Posted: 09 Apr 2014 10:48 AM PDT By Louis Charbonneau and Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran will never slow down its nuclear research program, its supreme leader said on Wednesday as negotiators from Tehran and six world powers struggled to narrow "significant gaps" that the United States warned might be insurmountable. Western powers, along with Russia and China, want to prevent chronic tensions in the Middle East from boiling over into a wider war or triggering a regional nuclear arms race. Iran, for its part, is keen to be rid of international sanctions hobbling its oil-based economy. Clerical supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that the Islamic Republic's negotiating team in Vienna should not yield to issues "forced upon them".

Move to oust Thai PM more than just a walk in the park for protesters Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:06 PM PDT By Amy Sawitta Lefevre BANGKOK (Reuters) - Two months ago, Piyavadee Boonmak was living comfortably at home. But she quit her job as a civil servant and now works as a volunteer cleaning toilets at Lumpini Park, the new focal point of anti-government protests in the Thai capital. Piyavadee now lives in a khaki tent in the central Bangkok park, once a haven for joggers but now a temporary home for more than 10,000 supporters of a movement that has been trying for five months to oust Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Their aim is also to rid Thailand of the influence of her billionaire brother, ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

Pistorius forced to look at 'exploded' head of girlfriend Posted: 09 Apr 2014 09:18 AM PDT By Joe Brock PRETORIA (Reuters) - A South African prosecutor forced Oscar Pistorius on Wednesday to look at a forensic photograph that showed the head of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp after it was blown open by a hollow-point bullet fired by the Olympic and Paralympic track star. In a dramatic opening to his cross-examination of Pistorius, prosecutor Gerrie Nel made him admit he had killed Steenkamp then later confronted him with the photograph showing the side and back of her skull, her hair matted with blood and brains. Pistorius responded by burying his head in his hands in the witness stand, rocking from side to side and weeping. The double amputee sprinter, once revered across the world for his triumph over adversity, faces life in prison if convicted in the Pretoria High Court of the murder of Steenkamp, a 29-year-old law graduate and model.

Venezuela reaches out to Vatican No. 2 to mediate crisis Posted: 09 Apr 2014 01:32 PM PDT By Andrew Cawthorne and Diego Ore CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's government formally invited Vatican No. 2 Cardinal Pietro Parolin on Wednesday to mediate talks with the opposition in hopes of stemming violence that has killed dozens in the nation's worst unrest in a decade. In a letter, President Nicolas Maduro's government asked that Parolin, a former envoy to Venezuela who is now the Vatican's secretary of state, be named a "good faith witness" to a dialogue agreed after two months of protests. A Vatican spokesman confirmed the Roman Catholic Church's willingness to mediate, but gave no details. Venezuela's opposition coalition had indicated that current Vatican envoy, Aldo Giordano, would be attending the first formal talks, which are to start on Thursday in Caracas.

Mexican national executed for 1997 Texas slaying Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:55 PM PDT HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — A man who escaped prison in his native Mexico while serving a murder sentence was executed in Texas on Wednesday for fatally beating a former Baylor University history professor and attacking his wife more than 16 years ago.

US in talks with France on Holocaust compensation Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:53 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration on Wednesday warned several state legislatures against initiatives that would punish the state-owned French railway company SNCF for carrying out Holocaust-era deportations to Nazi death and labor camps.

California man confesses to 40 killings Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:46 PM PDT FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — A suspected contract killer charged in Central California with murdering nine people confessed to investigators that he carried out up to 40 slayings in a career spanning decades, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

Islamist gunmen kill eight in northern Nigeria attack Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:46 PM PDT Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - Scores of Islamist gunmen attacked a police station, a court and a bank in northern Nigeria on Wednesday, killing seven officers and a civilian, a police chief told AFP. The raid in the town of Gwaram in Jigawa state began at 1:00 am (0000 GMT) and sparked an hours-long shootout with the security forces, said Tamari Yabo, the assistant inspector-general of police in charge of the region. Boko Haram Islamists, waging a brutal insurgency which has killed thousands since 2009, have carried out dozens of attacks in surrounding areas, but Jigawa itself has been spared much of the violence. He told AFP the insurgents came on motorcycles and stolen vehicles, specifically targeting the town's main police station as well as a bank and a court that enforces Islamic law, or sharia.

Was 'Cuban Twitter' program political or not? Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:45 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is looking into whether a "Cuban Twitter" program secretly backed by the U.S. government contained messages that were political in nature, despite assertions from the administration that the effort was intended only to increase the flow of information in a country that heavily restricts Internet access.

Hunt for black box signals zeroes in on 'final resting place' Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:42 PM PDT Perth (Australia) (AFP) - The hunt for more black box "pings" from missing Malaysian airliner MH370 was narrowing Thursday to a specific patch of remote ocean after two more signals were detected. The head of the Australian-led search Angus Houston raised hopes Wednesday that wreckage will be found within days even as the black box batteries start to expire. Houston's Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) announced Thursday the search area off western Australia was now 57,923 square kilometres (22,364 square miles) -- some 20,000 square kilometres down on Wednesday.

More 'pings' raise hopes Flight 370 will be found Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:34 PM PDT PERTH, Australia (AP) — After a navy ship heard more signals from deep in the Indian Ocean, the head of the search for the missing Malaysian jetliner said Wednesday he believes the hunt is closing in on the "final resting place" of Flight 370.

Top Asian News at 11:30 p.m. GMT Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:33 PM PDT PERTH, Australia (AP) — Searchers looking for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane have discovered new signals consistent with those emitted by so-called black boxes in the Indian Ocean, but they do not want to send a submersible down yet to look for the plane. For now, they will continue to use the towed pinger locator to get a better fix on the location. Here's why: ___

Linden re-joins Canucks as new president Posted: 09 Apr 2014 04:00 PM PDT Trevor Linden, who at 21 became one of the youngest captains in National Hockey League history, was named president of hockey operations for the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday. The hiring of the 43-year-old Linden came just one day after the firing of the team president and general manager Mike Gillis. Linden, who was also given the role of alternate governor, will be responsible for all hockey operations, comprising overseeing coaching and scouting staffs and player development. Linden was selected second overall by Vancouver in the 1988 NHL entry draft after a successful junior career where he won back-to-back Memorial Cup national championships with his hometown Medicine Hat Tigers.

US senators urge full enforcement on steel imports Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:48 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — A group of senators seeking to protect jobs is calling on President Barack Obama's administration to fully enforce trade laws in deciding whether imported steel reinforcing bar from Turkey and Mexico unfairly undercuts U.S. prices.

Czech officers 'identify' Norway mystery man Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:46 PM PDT The mysterious amnesiac man who turned up in Norway but could not remember his name or where he was from has been identified by the Czech police, their counterparts in Oslo said on Wednesday. "We were informed tonight through Interpol that the Czech police had identified the man," Oeyvind Torgersen, an Oslo police official told AFP. "The Czech police went to his parents... we know his identity," said Torgersen, but adding no further details. The information may help bring to an end months of fruitless search to find out the identity of the man who spoke English with a Slavic accent, and known only as "John Smith".

Argentine federal police stage major drug raids Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:41 PM PDT BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina's government made a huge show of force against drug trafficking on Wednesday, sending more than 3,000 federal agents to raid 82 more "bunkers" in and around the port city of Rosario, where the death toll is soaring from a bloody turf war.

Atletico beats Barcelona to reach Champions semis Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:33 PM PDT MADRID (AP) — Atletico Madrid finally got the better of Spanish rival Barcelona on Wednesday as Koke's early goal guided his team to a 1-0 win and into the Champions League semifinals with a 2-1 aggregate victory.

Honduran migrants ask Mexico to allow free passage Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:33 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (AP) — About a dozen Honduran migrants who lost legs and arms after falling from trains during northbound journeys across Mexico asked the country's Senate on Tuesday to stop the government's persecution of Central Americans, protect them from criminal gangs and contribute money to shelters for their care.

Bayern beats United 3-1 to reach Champions semis Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:24 PM PDT MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich needed a bit of a wake-up call against a surprisingly resilient Manchester United team. Once it came, there was no stopping the defending champions from reaching a third straight Champions League semifinal.

Mexican national set to die for 1997 Texas slaying Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:15 PM PDT HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — A Mexican national was headed to the Texas death chamber Wednesday for the fatal beating a former history professor and attack on his wife more than 16 years ago.

Victim's family testifies in shoe stabbing case Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:12 PM PDT HOUSTON (AP) — The sister of a man who was fatally stabbed with a stiletto heel by his girlfriend tells jurors his violent death is "like a nightmare" she wishes she could wake up from.

21 injured in mass stabbing at US high school Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:10 PM PDT At least four fellow students were critically injured in the assault at Franklin Regional High School, said Thomas Seefeld, chief of police in Murrysville, an outer suburb of Pittsburgh. The school principal and another member of staff overpowered the suspect, who was arrested within five minutes of police officers being alerted by radio, police said.

Moyes laments United's 'school-boy error' in Munich Posted: 09 Apr 2014 03:07 PM PDT Munich (Germany) (AFP) - David Moyes admits Manchester United made a 'school-boy error' by throwing away a second-half lead at Bayern Munich as his side crashed out of the Champions League's quarter-finals. Champions Bayern romped to a 3-1 victory at home to United in Wednesday's quarter-final, second-leg to win the tie 4-2 on aggregate. United squandered a 1-0 lead following Patrice Evra's fantastic 57th-minute strike as Bayern equalised just 69 seconds later through Mario Mandzukic, the first of Munich's three goals in the final half an hour.

British culture minister quits over expenses claims Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:55 PM PDT British culture minister Maria Miller, an ally of Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, was forced to quit her post on Wednesday following a row over her parliamentary expenses. Miller, who oversaw the legalisation of gay marriage and new plans to regulate the press, said she feared she had become a "distraction" for voters ahead of European and local elections next month. She had come under intense pressure after overclaiming for a mortgage on her London home, re-opening the toxic issue of expenses that caused a major scandal in 2009, after which seven lawmakers were jailed.

AP Interview: US troops may be sent to E Europe Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:52 PM PDT PARIS (AP) — NATO's top military commander in Europe, drafting countermoves to the Russian military threat against Ukraine, said Wednesday they could include deployment of American troops to alliance member states in Eastern Europe now feeling at risk.

Argentine federal police stage 'mega' drug raids Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:52 PM PDT BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina's federal government is making a huge show of force against drug trafficking, sending more than 3,000 federal agents to raid more than 80 drug "bunkers" in the city of Rosario, where the death toll is soaring from a bloody turf war.

Puerto Rico probes darkening of Vieques bio bay Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:47 PM PDT SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Authorities in Puerto Rico announced Wednesday they are investigating why a glowing bay that attracts thousands of tourists a year has grown dark in recent weeks.

Two French soldiers wounded in Central African Republic before U.N. vote Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:47 PM PDT Two French soldiers were wounded in the Central African Republic capital, an army spokesman said on Wednesday, a day before the United Nations Security Council was due to vote on a new peacekeeping force. Killings have continued between the majority Christian population and increasingly isolated Muslim communities in the landlocked former French colony despite the presence of 2,000 French peacekeepers as well as 6,000 African Union forces. In a sign of the ongoing difficulty in restoring order, two French soldiers were wounded in the legs when a man threw a grenade at them after he had been asked to disarm, said French Army Captain Sebastien Isern in Banqui. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power, who met with its interim leader Catherine Samba-Panza, said only 29 percent of the funding had been forthcoming.

Pink eye extends school closures in American Samoa Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:41 PM PDT PAGO PAGO, American Samoa (AP) — American Samoa is keeping most schools closed for the rest of the week as the U.S. territory tries to contain a pink eye outbreak that has affected at least 2,400 students and teachers, disrupted court hearings and kept some passengers from boarding flights.

Toyota, GM recalls push US to near-record pace Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:37 PM PDT DETROIT (AP) — Big U.S. recalls by General Motors and Toyota have put the auto industry on a record pace as companies try to avoid bad publicity and punishment from an increasingly aggressive government.

US officials reject Rubio claim about CIA report Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:36 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department is seeking the declassification of a 10-month-old letter expressing its concerns about a controversial Senate torture review, U.S. officials said Wednesday.

Pistorius refuses to look at photo of dead lover Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:30 PM PDT PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) — A shaken Oscar Pistorius refused to look at a gruesome photo of his slain girlfriend's bloodied head on Wednesday, telling a prosecutor through tears, "I don't have to look at a picture. I was there."

Mexican mayor detained for alleged links to cartel Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:27 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (AP) — Federal authorities have detained a mayor in the southern state of Guerrero for allegedly protecting a drug gang and involvement in at least 15 kidnappings.

Italian court recognises gay marriage for first time Posted: 09 Apr 2014 02:26 PM PDT An Italian court on Wednesday recognised a gay couple as married for the first time in Italy, which does not have any form of official acknowledgement of same-sex unions. The court in Grosseto in Tuscany ordered the city council to list the couple, who had their wedding in New York in 2012, as married in a ruling that was immediately hailed by gay rights campaigners as historic. "This is an unprecedented case in our country," Sergio Lo Giudice, a senator for the Democratic Party and a former head of the watchdog Arcigay, told reporters. Aurelio Mancuso, head of Equality Italia, said: "They have managed to achieve what has always been denied by city authorities and courts -- having their status as a couple married in a foreign country recognised".

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