| U.S., China set for high-stakes rivalry in skies above South China Sea Posted: 15 May 2015 03:03 AM PDT  By Greg Torode HONG KONG (Reuters) - When the U.S. navy sent a littoral combat ship on its first patrol of the disputed Spratly islands in the South China Sea during the past week, it was watching the skies as well. The USS Fort Worth, one of the most modern ships in the U.S. navy, dispatched a reconnaissance drone and a Seahawk helicopter to patrol the airspace, according to a little-noticed statement on the navy's website. While the navy didn't mention China's rapid land reclamation in the Spratlys, the ship's actions were a demonstration of U.S. capabilities in the event Beijing declares an Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the area - a move experts and some U.S. military officials see as increasingly likely. "It's not inevitable but if we are betting paychecks I'll bet that they will eventually declare one, I just don't know when," said a senior U.S. commander familiar with the situation in Asia.
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| Wreckage of missing U.S. helicopter found in Nepal; no survivors Posted: 15 May 2015 01:31 PM PDT  By Gopal Sharma and Tommy Wilkes KATHMANDU (Reuters) - The wreckage of a U.S. military helicopter lost on an earthquake relief mission in Nepal was found on Friday high on a mountainside, with all eight on board presumed dead, U.S. officials said. A U.S. search team identified the wreckage as that of the missing Marines UH-1Y Huey helicopter deployed after the Himalayan state was hit by a massive earthquake last month that killed more than 8,000 people. We believe there were no survivors," said John Wissler, lieutenant general of the U.S. Marines. The Huey went missing while it was distributing aid on Tuesday, the day a strong aftershock hit Nepal and killed more than 100 people.
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| Obama seeks to reassure Gulf allies, sees no early end to Syria war Posted: 15 May 2015 04:30 PM PDT  By Rania El Gamal and Sami Aboudi DUBAI (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday that Washington would help Gulf allies face conventional military aggression but also get them to work more in their own defence against any unconventional menace, such as destabilising Iranian actions in the region. Obama said Syria's civil war would "probably not" end before he left office, describing the situation as heartbreaking but adding that Washington could never on its own have brought that conflict to an end. Many states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are critical of what they see as Obama's hesitant approach to the war in Syria, where President Bashar al-Assad is backed by their regional rival Iran.
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| Kerry discusses shelter for Rohingya with Thai minister Posted: 15 May 2015 03:53 PM PDT  The United States said on Friday it had urged Thailand to consider sheltering stateless Rohingya Muslims who have fled Myanmar and are adrift in boats in the Indian Ocean, and urged countries in the region not to send the migrants back to sea. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry discussed the plight of the refugees by telephone with Thai Foreign Minister General Tanasak Patimapragorn late on Thursday. Nearly 800 migrants were brought ashore in Indonesia on Friday, but other vessels crammed with them were sent back to sea despite a United Nations call to rescue thousands adrift in Southeast Asian waters with dwindling food and water. Thousands of Rohingya Muslims fleeing Myanmar and Bangladesh are stranded on boats as regional governments block them from landing.
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| U.S. to expedite military aid to Iraqi forces, Biden tells Abadi: White House Posted: 15 May 2015 03:33 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden spoke with Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi on Friday about the attacks by Islamic State militants on the city of Ramadi, and pledged the United States would expedite U.S. aid to Iraqi forces. "This will include delivery of heavy weaponry, including AT-4 shoulder-held rockets to counter vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices, additional ammunition, and supplies for Iraqi forces," the White House said in a statement. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Editing by Doina Chiacu)
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| Fighting continues in Yemeni city despite truce, 10 killed Posted: 15 May 2015 04:44 AM PDT  At least 10 people were killed in heavy clashes in Yemen on Friday despite a five-day humanitarian truce, while aid distribution to the millions deprived of food, fuel and medicine by weeks of fighting and air strikes continued. Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition of Arab states backed by the West, has pounded Iranian-allied Houthi forces and fighters loyal to Yemen's former leader since March 26, aiming to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The ceasefire, which began on Tuesday, appeared to be mostly holding on Friday despite heavy ground fighting between local militiamen and the Houthis in the city of Taiz, residents said. Meanwhile, tribal sources said on Friday Houthi fighters have withdrawn from the border area between Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
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| Philadelphia train may have been hit by projectile before wreck Posted: 15 May 2015 04:53 PM PDT  By Jarrett Renshaw PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - The Amtrak train that derailed in Philadelphia and a separate commuter train in the vicinity may have been hit by projectiles of some kind shortly before the wreck, a U.S. transportation safety official said on Friday, after investigators interviewed members of the Amtrak crew. An assistant conductor told NTSB investigators on Friday that she heard the engineer, 32-year-old Brandon Bostian, talking by radio with the driver of another train from the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA).
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| Britain's only UKIP MP says leader should 'take break' Posted: 15 May 2015 04:53 PM PDT  The only elected MP for Britain's UK Independence Party called for leader Nigel Farage to "take a break" on Saturday, after a week in which bitter infighting engulfed the party. Writing in The Times, Douglas Carswell said he admired Farage, but criticised some of his tactics in the lead up to Britain's election last week. "UKIP is here to stay. He argued the party needed to broaden its appeal and persuade voters from across the political spectrum that Britain should leave the European Union in a referendum expected by 2017 -- UKIP's principle aim.
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| McIlroy, Mickelson chasing Simpson, Streb at Wells Fargo Posted: 15 May 2015 04:48 PM PDT  CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Webb Simpson has plenty of hometown knowledge when it comes to playing Quail Hollow Club.
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| Shields wins 200 fly to overshadow Phelps-Lochte matchup Posted: 15 May 2015 04:47 PM PDT CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Former NCAA champion Tom Shields won the Arena Pro Swim Series' 100-meter butterfly final Friday, overshadowing the head-to-head matchup between Olympic gold medalists Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte. |
| Canada plans to cut emissions by 30 percent by 2030 Posted: 15 May 2015 04:37 PM PDT TORONTO (AP) — Canada announced Friday it plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 amid international efforts to create a new framework for addressing climate change. |
| Boston bomber Tsarnaev sentenced to death Posted: 15 May 2015 04:36 PM PDT  A US jury on Friday sentenced 21-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death for his role in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, one of the worst assaults on American soil since the September 11, 2001 attacks. The same 12-member panel of jurors convicted him on April 8 on all 30 counts relating to the April 15, 2013 bombings, the murder of a police officer, a carjacking and a shootout while on the run. Tsarnaev went on the run and was arrested four days later, hiding and injured in a grounded boat on which he had scrawled a bloody message defending the attacks as a means to avenge US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He showed no emotion as he stood, flanked by female lawyers and wearing a dark blazer with his hands clasped before him as the court clerk declared the death penalty verdict before a hushed room.
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| Slovakia's Peter Sagan takes Tour of California lead Posted: 15 May 2015 04:33 PM PDT SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (AP) — Slovakia's Peter Sagan took the Tour of California lead Friday in the sixth stage, racing to a dominating victory in the rescheduled and shortened individual time trial. |
| Top Asian News at 11:30 p.m. GMT Posted: 15 May 2015 04:32 PM PDT LANGSA, Indonesia (AP) — More than 1,000 people fleeing persecution in Myanmar and poverty in Bangladesh came ashore Friday around Southeast Asia, describing murder, extortion and near-starvation after surviving a harrowing journey at sea. An increasingly alarmed United Nations warned against "floating coffins" and urged regional leaders to put human lives first. The United States urged governments not to push back new boat arrivals. |
| Gulf nations say reassured by Obama's 'ironclad' pledge Posted: 15 May 2015 04:29 PM PDT  Gulf nations were reassured by a pledge from US President Barack Obama that Washington would stand by them despite its overtures to Iran, a senior Arab official said Friday. "We're very happy the outcome of the results disappointed pundits, and exceeded beyond most expectations," said Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg, assistant secretary general for the Gulf Cooperation Council. Obama had gathered top leaders from the six GCC countries -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- for Thursday's secluded talks in the leafy woodland retreat.
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| Fate of Cyprus ghost town rests with peace talks Posted: 15 May 2015 04:26 PM PDT  Forty years since the jet-set graced Varosha's beaches, former residents of the one-time "Riviera of Cyprus" hope Friday's renewed talks between the divided island's leaders could see them finally return home. Crumbling houses, flats on the verge of collapse, a skeleton of a petrol station: Varosha still bears the scars of the 1974 Cyprus conflict. Around 45,000 people once lived in the neighbourhood, part of the eastern town of Famagusta that used to be known as the "pearl" of Cyprus. In 1974, in response to an Athens-engineered coup attempting to unite Cyprus with Greece, Turkish troops invaded the north of the island.
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| Mexico judge returns girl to custody of US mom after 8 years Posted: 15 May 2015 04:24 PM PDT  MEXICO CITY (AP) — A Mexican judge returned a long-missing teenager to her U.S. mother Friday, ending the woman's eight-year search and a cross-border custody case in which another girl was mistakenly sent to Texas against her will.
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| Nadal beaten by Wawrinka for 5th loss on clay this year Posted: 15 May 2015 04:20 PM PDT  ROME (AP) — The French Open is rapidly approaching and Rafael Nadal is suddenly not so dominant on clay anymore.
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| Pampling shoots second straight 63 to open 4-stroke lead Posted: 15 May 2015 04:18 PM PDT GREER, S.C. (AP) — Australia's Rod Pampling shot his second straight 9-under 63 on Friday to open a four-stroke lead in the Web.com Tour's BMW Charity Pro-Am. |
| Boston Marathon bomber Tsarnaev sentenced to death for 2013 attack Posted: 15 May 2015 04:14 PM PDT  By Scott Malone and Elizabeth Barber BOSTON (Reuters) - Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was sentenced to death by a U.S. jury on Friday for helping carry out the 2013 attack that killed three people and wounded 264 others in the crowds at the race's finish line. After deliberating for 15 hours, the federal jury chose death by lethal injection for Tsarnaev, 21, over its only other option: life in prison without possibility of release. The same jury found Tsarnaev guilty last month of placing a pair of homemade pressure-cooker bombs on April 15, 2013, as well as fatally shooting a policeman. William Richard, the father of bombing victim Martin Richard, described the decision to leave his 8-year-old son to die of his wounds so that he could save the life of his daughter, Jane, who lost a leg but survived.
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| Obama renews authority for US sanctions on Myanmar Posted: 15 May 2015 04:14 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama has renewed for a year his authority to maintain sanctions on Myanmar, amid international alarm over the plight of Rohingya Muslims whose mass flight has caused a refugee crisis in Southeast Asia. |
| Pagenaud posts best lap on Fast Friday at Indianapolis Posted: 15 May 2015 04:13 PM PDT  INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — France's Simon Pagenaud posted the top speed on the fastest day of the week at Indianapolis.
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| US jury orders death for the Boston Marathon bomber Posted: 15 May 2015 04:11 PM PDT  BOSTON (AP) — A jury sentenced Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death Friday for the Boston Marathon bombing, sweeping aside pleas that he was just a "kid" who fell under the influence of his fanatical older brother.
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| Kerry discusses shelter for Rohingya with Thai minister Posted: 15 May 2015 04:08 PM PDT The United States said on Friday it had urged Thailand to consider sheltering stateless Rohingya Muslims who have fled Myanmar and are adrift in boats in the Indian Ocean, and urged countries in the region not to send the migrants back to sea. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry discussed the plight of the refugees by telephone with Thai Foreign Minister General Tanasak Patimapragorn late on Thursday. Nearly 800 migrants were brought ashore in Indonesia on Friday, but other vessels crammed with them were sent back to sea despite a United Nations call to rescue thousands adrift in Southeast Asian waters with dwindling food and water. Thousands of Rohingya Muslims fleeing Myanmar and Bangladesh are stranded on boats as regional governments block them from landing. |
| White House urges Asian nations to save Rohingya migrants Posted: 15 May 2015 04:07 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House urged Southeast Asian nations on Friday to work together to save lives of Rohingya migrants who have been adrift at sea since leaving Myanmar, according to a statement. Deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes also expressed security concerns over China's land reclamation in the South China Sea at a meeting with senior officials from 10 nations, the White House said. (Reporting By Julia Edwards; Editing by Doina Chiacu) |
| Alison Lee leads Kingsmill Championship Posted: 15 May 2015 04:04 PM PDT  WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) — Alison Lee shot a 4-under 67 on Friday to take a two-stroke lead in the LPGA Tour's Kingsmill Championship.
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| Ukraine president enacts controversial laws banning Soviet symbols Posted: 15 May 2015 03:57 PM PDT  Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Friday enacted laws banning Soviet symbols and communist-era propaganda, his office said, after the measures drew strong Russian criticism when they were approved by parliament last month. The measures come as Ukraine's pro-Western government seeks a complete break with its Soviet past and as its soldiers fight rebels in its east allegedly supported by Russia. The laws "prohibit Soviet symbols, condemn the communist regime, open the Soviet special services archives" and officially recognise the role of a nationalist group that fought for Ukraine's independence in the mid-20th century. Besides angering Russia, which has called the move "totalitarian," the measures rushed through parliament in April also exacerbated tensions with pro-Moscow rebels after lawmakers approved them.
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| Spectacular crashes at Indianapolis raise safety concerns Posted: 15 May 2015 03:52 PM PDT  INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — IndyCar manufacturers Chevrolet and Honda are taking a deep look into their oval aero kit packages following two spectacular crashes this week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
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| Lollipop man fired for stopping fire engine Posted: 15 May 2015 03:45 PM PDT  A lollipop man who halted a fire engine to let children cross the road has been dismissed, his local council said on Friday. "Four or five firemen got out of the vehicle and escorted him off the road," witness Jacqui Brittain told the BBC. Brittain, a former lollipop woman, said that as the fire engine approached with its lights on, the man walked into the road and began letting children cross. A spokeswoman for Luton Borough Council said inquiries had concluded.
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| Kerry to press Beijing to halt projects in South China Sea Posted: 15 May 2015 03:41 PM PDT  BEIJING (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in China to press Beijing to halt increasingly assertive actions it is taking in the South China Sea that have alarmed the United States and China's smaller neighbors.
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| Charities review over poppy seller death Posted: 15 May 2015 03:35 PM PDT  Charities are to review whether lessons can be learned after Britain's longest-serving poppy seller died after being bombarded with pleas for donations. Olive Cooke, 92, had dedicated over seven decades to raising money for the Royal British Legion by selling the remembrance poppy pins. Friends and relatives said that persistent requests for donations from charities had caused Cooke distress. "She was exhausted by the situation in the end," friend Michael Earley said.
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| Sutherland, Maggert share Regions Tradition lead Posted: 15 May 2015 03:32 PM PDT  BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Kevin Sutherland and Jeff Maggert both looked as if they were finishing off just another round.
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| US plays down IS militants' gains in Iraq Posted: 15 May 2015 03:20 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite major new setbacks in Iraq, the U.S. military command leading the fight against Islamic State militants insisted Friday that its strategy is working and that the militants' takeover of a key oil refinery and a government compound are fleeting gains feeding an IS propaganda machine.
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| 6 bodies recovered from flooded gold mine in Colombia Posted: 15 May 2015 03:15 PM PDT  BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Six bodies were recovered from a flooded gold mine, and rescuers were searching for nine other people still missing, Colombian officials said Friday.
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| Ivory Coast opposition coalition launched as crowd chants Gbagbo's name Posted: 15 May 2015 03:15 PM PDT  Ivory Coast politicians on Friday launched an opposition coalition ahead of October presidential elections as crowds chanted the name of ex-strongman Laurent Gbagbo, currently awaiting trial at the International Criminal Court. It also called for the dissolution of the current electoral commission amid claims it is biased in favour of President Alassane Ouattara, who will be seeking re-election and is the only major candidate in the race so far ahead of the October vote. Former prime minister Charles Konan Banny and the ex-president of the National Assembly, Mamadou Koulibaly, were among those at the first meeting of the National Coalition for Change launched on Friday.
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| David into British Open semis as Egyptian duo miss out Posted: 15 May 2015 03:06 PM PDT  Record-breaking world number one Nicol David moved closer to her sixth British Open title with a quarter-final win in Hull, northern England, on Friday. The legendary Malaysian's 11-6, 11-8, 12-10 win over Sarah-Jane Perry, the British national champion, was made more significant by losses for two talented Egyptians who were among her most dangerous rivals. David played with great patience and plenty of control against an aggressive and threatening opponent, especially when coming from 4-8 down in the third game and saving three game points. She was simultaneously aware that her path was potentially easier after losses for Raneem El Weleily, the second seed who was some punditsâ tip for the title, and Nour El Sherbini, who ended Davidâ s world title defence in Penang 14 months ago.
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| Men flee from traffic stop; Puerto Rico police find $800,000 Posted: 15 May 2015 03:04 PM PDT SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Police in Puerto Rico say they discovered $800,000 in cash stashed inside a car after two men ran away during a traffic stop. |
| Boko Haram retakes Nigerian town of Marte in Borno state Posted: 15 May 2015 03:00 PM PDT Boko Haram militants retook the Nigerian town of Marte in Borno state, which had been liberated in February, the state deputy governor said. "It is sad as we have been made to understand that Marte is today completely fallen under the control of the insurgents, which to us is a very huge set back," Borno's deputy governor Zannah Umar Mustapha said. Boko Haram took over a territory larger than Belgium last year, killing thousands of people and displacing some 1.5 million. |
| 4 charged with shipping guns to Lebanon to remain in custody Posted: 15 May 2015 02:52 PM PDT  CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Four relatives charged with stockpiling weapons in Iowa to ship to Lebanon were making money trafficking arms in a war-torn region and may have ties to Hezbollah, federal investigators said Friday.
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