| Israeli strike in Syria kills senior Hezbollah figures Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:01 PM PST  By Mariam Karouny and Laila Bassam BEIRUT (Reuters) - An Israeli helicopter strike in Syria killed a commander from Lebanon's Hezbollah and the son of the group's late military leader Imad Moughniyah, Hezbollah said, in a major blow that could lead to reprisal attacks. The strike hit a convoy carrying Jihad Moughniyah and commander Mohamad Issa, known as Abu Issa, in the province of Quneitra, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, killing six Hezbollah members in all, a statement from the group said.
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| Ukrainian troops retake most of Donetsk airport from rebels Posted: 18 Jan 2015 12:37 PM PST  By Natalia Zinets and Lina Kushch KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian troops recaptured almost all the territory of Donetsk airport in eastern Ukraine they had lost to separatists in recent weeks, as thousands gathered in Kiev for a state-sponsored peace march on Sunday. The offensive brought fighting close to the industrial city of Donetsk, centre of a pro-Russian rebellion, while shelling intensified in other parts of the region known as "Donbass". With attempts to restart peace talks stalled, pro-Russian rebels have stepped up attacks in the past week and casualties have mounted, including 13 civilians killed in an attack on a passenger bus, which Kiev blamed on the separatists. Military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said the army's operation had returned battle lines near the airport to the previous status quo and thus not violated the 12-point peace plan agreed with Russia and separatist leaders last September in Minsk.
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| Poroshenko rejected peace proposal made by Putin, Putin's spokesman says Posted: 18 Jan 2015 11:25 AM PST  Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko rejected a peace plan proposed to him last week by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday evening, according to Russian media. Peskov said the plan, contained in a letter sent by Putin on Thursday evening, proposed a ceasefire by both government forces and separatist militiamen in southeastern Ukraine, as well as the withdrawal of heavy artillery by both sides.
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| Suspected Boko Haram fighters kidnap around 80 in Cameroon Posted: 18 Jan 2015 10:34 AM PST  By Anne Mireille Nzouankeu and Tansa Musa YAOUNDE (Reuters) - Suspected Boko Haram Islamist fighters from Nigeria kidnapped around 80 people, many of them children, and killed three others on Sunday in a cross-border attack on villages in northern Cameroon, army and government officials said. The group, which has killed thousands and kidnapped hundreds in its bid to carve out an Islamic state in northern Nigeria, has also targeted Cameroon and Niger over the past year as it seeks to expand its zone of operations. Sunday's kidnappings, among the largest abductions on Cameroonian soil, came as neighbouring Chad deployed troops to support Cameroon's forces in the area. "According to our initial information, around 30 adults, most of them herders, and 50 young girls and boys aged between 10 and 15 years were abducted," a senior army officer deployed to northern Cameroon told Reuters.
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| Iran, powers make 'limited' progress at nuclear talks, to meet in February Posted: 18 Jan 2015 11:31 AM PST  By Stephanie Nebehay and Marina Depetris GENEVA (Reuters) - Iran and major powers will meet again next month to try to narrow differences over Tehran's nuclear programme after making limited progress on Sunday, as Washington lobbied to stave off fresh sanctions, diplomats said. "The mood was very good, but I don't think we made a lot of progress," France's negotiator Nicolas de la Riviere told reporters as he left the European Union mission in Geneva. Iranian deputy foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said that discussions had been "good" and "extensive".
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| Bangladesh rape laws need overhaul to ensure justice, campaigners say Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:07 PM PST By Nita Bhalla NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Bangladesh must reform its archaic laws on rape to help boost convictions and instill confidence in victims who are often too afraid to seek justice, a legal aid group said on Monday. Over the last decade, the South Asian nation has implemented programs to help support victims of sexual violence, said the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Service Trust (BLAST), but rape laws, which date back to the British colonial era, remain unchanged. "There is every reason for an overhaul and comprehensive review of rape laws to take place, given the reality in Bangladesh of rape survivors not being able to get redress in these cases," said Sara Hossain, supreme court lawyer and BLAST's honorary executive director. The narrow definition of rape as vaginal intercourse, the fact that marital rape is legal, and recognition within the law that there must be proof of force in rape cases were some areas which needed to be reviewed, said Hossain. |
| Top Asian News at 1:00 a.m. GMT Posted: 18 Jan 2015 05:02 PM PST MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A crowd estimated at a record 6 million people by officials poured into Manila's rain-soaked streets and its biggest park Sunday as Pope Francis ended his Asian pilgrimage with an appeal for Filipinos to protect their young from sin and vice so they can instead become missionaries of the faith. The crowd estimate, which could not be independently verified, included people who attended the pope's final Mass in Rizal Park and surrounding areas, and lined his motorcade route, said the chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Francis Tolentino. |
| Nigeria lowers oil price ahead of presidential vote Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:59 PM PST  Africa's largest oil producer Nigeria on Sunday announced a cut in petrol prices, a month before the country votes in presidential and parliamentary elections. Oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke told an evening press conference that the price of a litre of petrol would drop from 97 naira to 87 naira (47 US cents) at midnight on Sunday. The measure was taken with the approval and directive of President Goodluck Jonathan, a candidate in the February 14 polls, she said, taking into account the recent volatility in the oil market. Nigeria depends on crude exports for 70 percent of government revenue and some 90 percent of its foreign exchange earnings.
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| Murray in good mindset under Mauresmo coaching Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:56 PM PST  Andy Murray says he feels in a good frame of mind heading into the Australian Open under the coaching of easygoing Amelie Mauresmo as the pair develop a greater understanding. Murray, a three-time runner-up at the Australian Open, had a surprise split with coach Ivan Lendl, then controversially hired former women's number one Mauresmo, last June. "Last year, for me, was quite difficult," Murray wrote in a column in Melbourne's The Age newspaper Monday. "I was coming back from surgery at the start of the year and then I started working with a new coach, Amelie Mauresmo, just before Wimbledon.
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| David Warner fined over spat with Rohit Sharma Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:53 PM PST MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia batsman David Warner says he has been fined half his match fee over his verbal altercation with India's Rohit Sharma during Sunday's tri-series one-day cricket international at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. |
| 3 burned to death in Hindu-Muslim clash in India Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:41 PM PST PATNA, India (AP) — At least three Muslim villagers were burned to death Sunday when their thatched huts were set on fire during a clash between Hindu and Muslim groups in eastern India, a government official said. |
| Ukraine leader vows to retake separatist-held east Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:28 PM PST  KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's president vowed Sunday to reassert government control over eastern regions as the army unleashed a counter-offensive against Russian-backed separatist fighters vying for command over the airport in the city of Donetsk.
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| Author: Key North Korean defector 'misled' him on life story Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:23 PM PST  UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A prominent North Korean defector who fled a prison camp and became the face of international efforts to hold the country accountable for widespread human rights abuses has changed important parts of his life story.
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| Mali government, UN declare country Ebola-free Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:12 PM PST  The Malian government and the United Nations on Sunday declared the country free of Ebola after 42 days without any new cases of the deadly virus. Health Minister Ousmane Kone said no confirmed cases had been registered since December 6 when the last Ebola patient had tested negative. "I declare this day... the end of the epidemic of the Ebola virus in Mali," he said in a statement broadcast on state television ORTM. The west African country "had come out" of the epidemic, Ibrahima Soce Fall, the head of the Malian office of the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), confirmed.
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| EU hails 'serious' Iran nuclear talks, says new round in February Posted: 18 Jan 2015 04:10 PM PST  Negotiators for Iran and six global powers striving to reach a complex deal on Tehran's nuclear programme had "serious and useful" discussions in Geneva Sunday and will meet again next month, the EU said. High level officials from the United States, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia met with Iran's deputy foreign minister Abbas Araghchi for a day of talks as part of "ongoing diplomatic efforts to find a comprehensive solution to the Iranian nuclear issue," the European Union said in a message sent to journalists. "They had serious and useful meetings chaired by EU political director Helga Schmid and decided to meet again in early February," the message said.
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| German police ban anti-Islamic rally citing terror threat Posted: 18 Jan 2015 03:08 PM PST  German police banned a planned rally by the anti-Islamic PEGIDA movement and other public open-air gatherings in the eastern city of Dresden Monday, citing a terrorist threat. There had been calls for would-be "assassins to mingle among the protesters... and to murder an individual member of the organising team of the PEGIDA demonstrations", police said in a notice on the 24-hour ban. This was consistent with "an Arabic-language tweet that called the PEGIDA demonstrations an enemy of Islam", it said. Top-circulation daily Bild said online that the threat targeted PEGIDA's most prominent leader Lutz Bachmann.
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| PSG, Marseille scrap to laborious wins in French league Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:50 PM PST  PARIS (AP) — Substitute Mario Lemina and France striker Andre-Pierre Gignac scored late in the second half as Marseille beat Guingamp 2-1 for its first win in a month while Paris Saint-Germain again struggled for inspiration in a scrappy 4-2 defeat of bottom side Evian on Sunday in the French league.
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| Arsenal beats City, Ronaldo & Messi score freely in wins Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:48 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — Arsenal dealt Manchester City's Premier League title defense a blow on Sunday, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi lit up Spain with multi-goal scoring performances.
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| Belgian prosecutors seek an extradition following Islamist plot Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:47 PM PST BRUSSELS/ATHENS (Reuters) - Belgian prosecutors have asked for the extradition of a person detained in Greece over a possible link with a foiled Islamist plot to attack Belgian police, officials said on Sunday. Greek and Belgian officials had said earlier there was no connection between the detention of more than half a dozen people on Saturday in Athens and events last week in Belgium, where police carried out deadly raids. "Further analysis of the elements of our investigation gave us enough reasons to ask for the extradition of one of the persons that were arrested yesterday by the Greek authorities," the Belgian federal prosecutors' office said in a statement. In Greece, police confirmed they had received the extradition request late on Sunday. |
| Frustration for Tunisia, Zambia at Cup of Nations Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:46 PM PST  There was frustration for much-fancied Tunisia and for 2012 champions Zambia as the Africa Cup of Nations moved to the remote outpost of Ebebiyin on Sunday. The small town where the borders of Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon and Gabon all converge welcomed a capacity crowd at its 5,000-seat stadium as Zambia and DR Congo opened their Group B campaigns with a 1-1 draw, with Premier League star Yannick Bolasie rescuing a draw for the Leopards.
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| Le Pen presses France to condemn 'Islamists' Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:40 PM PST  French far-right leader Marine Le Pen urged the government Sunday to denounce as "Islamists" the perpetrators of deadly Paris attacks that left the country reeling. The three-day killing spree that left 17 dead in and around Paris -- starting when gunmen stormed the offices of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on January 7 -- have left the world reeling, with questions raised about how the perpetrators slipped through the cracks. "Let us call things by their rightful names, since the French government seems reluctant to do so," Le Pen wrote in a New York Times op-ed. "France, land of human rights and freedoms, was attacked on its own soil by a totalitarian ideology: Islamic fundamentalism," the National Front leader continued.
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| Six Hezbollah fighters killed in Israeli strike Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:29 PM PST  Six Hezbollah fighters were killed Sunday in an Israeli air strike on the Syrian side of the Golan, including the son of assassinated senior commander Imad Mughniyeh. "A group of Hezbollah mujahedeen were martyred in a Zionist rocket attack in Quneitra, and their names will be revealed later," said Hezbollah's Al-Manar television. Hezbollah said in a statement received by AFP that six of its members were killed in the attack, among them a top military leader and Jihad Mughniyeh, the son of Imad Mughniyeh, a top Hezbollah operative killed in a 2008 car bombing in Syria which the group has blamed on Israel. A source close to Hezbollah told AFP the killed military leader was Mohammed Issa, a senior commander responsible for Hezbollah operations in Syria and Iraq.
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| Juventus beats Verona 4-0 to move 5 points clear Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:23 PM PST  MILAN (AP) — Carlos Tevez scored twice to help Juventus beat Hellas Verona 4-0 on Sunday and move five points clear at the top of Serie A.
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| Dominguez wins Latin American Amateur, headed to Augusta Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:19 PM PST BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Matias Dominguez closed with a 1-under 71 on Sunday to win the inaugural Latin American Amateur Championship, earning a spot at Augusta National in April as the first player from Chile at the Masters in more than 50 years. |
| Benfica beats Maritimo 4-0 to restore lead in Portugal Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:18 PM PST LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Midfielder Eduardo Salvio scored two goals and set up another as Benfica routed Maritimo 4-0 on Sunday, restoring its six-point lead over FC Porto midway through the Portuguese league season. |
| Eurostar to resume service after weekend of 'Chunnel' disruptions Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:12 PM PST  Eurostar will run a full train service Monday but with some delays possible, after a weekend that saw disruptions caused by a lorry fire and an electrical glitch in the Channel Tunnel between Britain and France. "The entire tunnel will not be repaired tomorrow, but there will be parts which will have been repaired that will facilitate more traffic in the tunnel, which will allow us to operate a normal service," Eurostar's chief executive Nicolas Petrovic told AFP. Eurostar, which offers passenger rail services linking London, Brussels and Paris, had to cancel 11 trains, while other traffic faced delays of up to five hours. Only one of the two tunnels linking Britain and France was in service on Sunday.
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| Ronaldo nets 2 as Real wins; Messi hits 3 in Barca victory Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:09 PM PST  BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi scored goals in bunches on Sunday as leader Real Madrid stayed one point ahead of Barcelona with the Spanish league reaching its halfway point.
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| Israeli strikes kill 6 Hezbollah fighters in Syria Posted: 18 Jan 2015 02:01 PM PST  BEIRUT (AP) — An Israeli strike in Syria on Sunday killed the son of a slain top Hezbollah commander and at least five other fighters in a move that could ratchet up tensions with the powerful Lebanese Shiite movement, which recently boasted of rockets that can hit any part of the Jewish state.
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| Senator to push for Iran sanctions _ or a say on any deal Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:53 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — A leading Republican critic of President Barack Obama's foreign policy is pushing for new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program, unswayed by a White House veto threat and lobbying by Britain's leader.
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| Olympiakos beats Panetolikos 2-0 to keep Greek league lead Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:51 PM PST ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Mathieu Dossevi and Yiannis Maniatis scored in the second half to give defending champion Olympiakos a 2-0 victory win over visiting Panetolikos in the Greek league Sunday. |
| Manhunts, death threats as Europe on high terror alert Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:51 PM PST  Europe was on high alert Sunday as the suspected mastermind of a jihadist cell in Belgium remained at large and jittery authorities blocked anti-Islamist rallies in Germany and France. With tensions heightened, the second gunman in the Charlie Hebdo magazine attack was buried discreetly in an unmarked grave near Paris late Saturday in the hope that it would not become a pilgrimage site for radical Islamists. Meanwhile, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, considered the brains behind the cell plotting to kill Belgian police, was still on the run days after the group was dismantled by intelligence services. The group claimed the threat came from the Islamic State group based in Syria and Iraq, with local media reporting that PEGIDA's most prominent leader Lutz Bachmann was the target.
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| North Korean defector, subject of escape bestseller, changes his story Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:50 PM PST  A North Korean defector whose escape from a brutal prison camp was the subject of a bestselling book has changed key parts of his story and on Sunday apologized for misleading people. "Escape from Camp 14", written by former Washington Post journalist Blaine Harden, brought Shin Dong-hyuk international fame. Shin, one of the best-known defectors from reclusive North Korea, said on his Facebook page he had tried to hide parts of his past. He also said he may end his campaign to shut down prison camps in North Korea, which was instrumental in bringing a U.N. resolution urging the referral of the country to an international criminal tribunal.
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| Bolasie salvages draw for DR Congo Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:48 PM PST  Crystal Palace winger Yannick Bolasie equalised as Democratic Republic of Congo fought back to draw 1-1 with Zambia Sunday in the Africa Cup of Nations Group B opener. Given Singuluma stunned the Leopards by giving the Zambian Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) a second-minute lead in a match where the Congolese had a territorial edge. Bolasie levelled midway through the second half in a game that featured two other English Premier League players -- Southampton striker Emmanuel Mayuka and West Bromwich Albion midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu.
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| Prominent Irish politician becomes first openly gay minister Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:42 PM PST  One of Ireland's most prominent politicians announced he is gay on Sunday, becoming the first openly homosexual cabinet minister in Irish history four months before a referendum on same-sex marriage in the traditionally Catholic country. Seen as a potential contender to succeed Prime Minister Enda Kenny as leader of the ruling centre-right Fine Gael party, Health Minister Leo Varadkar made the announcement in an interview on national broadcaster RTE. The influence of the Roman Catholic Church in the traditionally conservative country has waned in the wake of a series of child abuse scandals in Ireland, which decriminalised homosexuality in 1993. Yet Irish Times political correspondent Fiach Kelly described the interview as a "seminal moment in Irish public life".
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| Murphy overpowers Robertson in Masters final Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:31 PM PST  Shaun Murphy thrashed Australia's Neil Robertson 10-2 in the final of the Masters at London's Alexandra Palace on Sunday to complete a career Triple Crown. The Englishman's crushing win over Robertson saw him join the world number one in a select group, now comprising 10 players, who have each won snooker's three most prestigious tournaments -- the World Championship, the UK Championship and the Masters. Robertson produced arguably the performance of the tournament in cruising past Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 in the semi-finals.
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| Allenby beaten, bruised and stunned over Hawaii robbery Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:23 PM PST  HONOLULU (AP) — His left eye bruised and swollen shut, Australian golfer Robert Allenby is still shaking over a beating and robbery that left him unable to remember anything except being dumped in a gutter near a park of homeless people.
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| Dozens arrested at Niger demo after deadly cartoons riots Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:20 PM PST  Police in Niger on Sunday fired tear gas and arrested dozens at a banned opposition protest, a day after deadly riots over a depiction of the Prophet Mohammed in French weekly Charlie Hebdo. The protesters responded to the tear gas by throwing stones at the police and burning tyres but later dispersed peacefully, an AFP correspondent reported. Some 90 protesters were arrested but there were no injuries, Hamidou Garba, governor of the Niamey region, said on state TV channel Tele Sahel. Ten people were killed in violent demonstrations over the latest issue of Charlie Hebdo -- the Paris-based satirical weekly where 12 people were shot dead on January 7 by Islamist radicals out to avenge previous publications of Mohammed cartoons.
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| Danish PM to visit health workers in Sierra Leone Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:16 PM PST  Denmark's Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt begins a visit to Sierra Leone on Monday, making her the first Western leader to travel to the African nation since it was hit by a deadly Ebola outbreak. "It is important that countries like Denmark show support and solidarity with Sierra Leone and other west African countries affected by Ebola," she said. Thorning-Schmidt will visit a group of 19 Danish healthcare workers who were sent to the northeastern town of Port Loko in December to work at an Ebola treatment centre.
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| Iran and UAE look to avoid Japan Posted: 18 Jan 2015 01:15 PM PST  Sydney (AFP) - Three-time Asian Cup winners Iran will go for a win against surprise package the United Arab Emirates on Monday as they try to avoid a likely quarter-final against holders Japan.
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