| Rebels pound Ukrainian troops after peace talks fail Posted: 02 Feb 2015 12:03 PM PST  By Aleksandar Vasovic YENAKIEVE, Ukraine (Reuters) - Separatist rockets streaked across hills in eastern Ukraine on Monday as rebels pounded the positions of Ukrainian government troops holding a strategic rail town while both sides pressed ahead with mobilizing more forces for combat. Kiev's military said five more Ukrainian soldiers were killed in clashes while municipal authorities in the big rebel-controlled city of Donetsk said 15 civilians were killed at the weekend by shelling in a surge of violence following the collapse of a new peace effort on Saturday. Talks between Ukraine, Russia and rebel officials in Minsk, Belarus, had raised hopes of a new ceasefire to stem the violence in a conflict that has claimed more than 5,000 lives.
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| Greece outlines debt 'menu' in bid to win over sceptical euro zone Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:42 PM PST  By William James and Renee Maltezou LONDON/ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's new government dropped calls for a write-off of its foreign debt and proposed ending a standoff with its official creditors by swapping the debt for growth-linked bonds on Monday, a week after its election on an anti-austerity platform. Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, in London to reassure private investors he is not seeking a Wild West-style showdown with Brussels over a new debt agreement, said the new left-wing government would spare privately held bonds from losses, a source told Reuters. The reported proposals, which included a pledge to reform the Greek economy, contrast sharply with the government's strident vows in Athens last week to ditch the tough austerity conditions imposed under its existing bailout. It was not clear, however, whether they would be accepted by European heavyweight Germany which opposes softening the terms.
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| French troops kill around a dozen Islamist militants in Mali Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:17 PM PST French forces in northern Mali have killed around a dozen Islamist militants in the region of the Adrar des Ifoghas mountains, France's defense ministry said on Monday. |
| Head of U.N. inquiry into Gaza conflict to quit over Israeli bias claim Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:22 PM PST By Thomas Escritt AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The head of a U.N. inquiry into last summer's conflict between Israel and Gaza said on Monday he would resign after Israeli allegations of bias due to consultancy work he did for the Palestine Liberation Organisation. Canadian academic William Schabas was appointed last August by the head of the United Nations Human Rights Council to lead a three-member group looking into alleged war crimes during Israel's military offensive in Gaza. Schabas' departure highlights the sensitivity of the U.N. investigation just weeks after prosecutors at the International Criminal Court in The Hague said they had started a preliminary inquiry into alleged atrocities in the Palestinian territories. |
| 'Mujahideen' talks in Iran cited in Canada train terrorism trial Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:38 PM PST  Two men charged with plotting to derail a train traveling from New York to Toronto had their plans foiled by an undercover police officer who convinced them he could help pull off the attack, jurors heard at the opening of their trial on Monday. One of the men, Tunisian Chiheb Esseghaier, told the undercover officer that he had met with "mujahideen" in Iran and had a plan in place with a "Palestinian brother," a reference to the second defendant, Raed Jaser, the court heard. In opening remarks, prosecuting lawyers said the two were motivated by Islamic extremism and wanted to murder people to instill fear, and so that Canada and the United States would remove their troops from Muslim lands. The pair also spoke of other plans, including the use of a sniper to target political leaders, the undercover officer said.
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| Judges decline to take on charges against Argentina's president Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:06 PM PST  By Sarah Marsh BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Two judges on Monday declined to handle the allegations brought by late prosecutor Alberto Nisman against Argentina's president, charging her with seeking to derail his investigation of the deadly 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center. Just days after Nisman brought the charges against President Cristina Fernandez and members of her government, he was found dead in his Buenos Aires apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. The mysterious circumstances of his death have rocked Argentina, sparking a blizzard of conspiracy theories. Banned from global credit markets since its record 2002 default, Argentina is struggling to finance its energy deficit.
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| Murdoch's firms won't face US phone hacking charges Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:34 PM PST  US authorities have decided not to pursue criminal charges in connection with the phone-hacking scandal involving Rupert Murdoch's media empire in Britain, his companies said Monday. In statements filed with US regulators, Murdoch's News Corp. and 21st Century Fox each said they would face no prosecution from the Justice Department. Using identical language, the two statements said the Justice Department "has completed its investigation of voicemail interception and payments to public officials in London and is declining to prosecute" either firm. In the wake of the scandal and the subsequent investigations in Britain, Murdoch split his empire into two entities -- News Corp. focusing on newspapers and publishing, and 21st Century Fox specializing in TV and film.
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| South Sudan's warring factions sign another peace deal Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:26 PM PST ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — South Sudan's warring factions early Monday signed another peace deal in the latest effort to end hostilities that have raged for more than a year, but analysts expressed doubt about whether it will hold. |
| Hostage killings highlight threat, meager options for Japan Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:22 PM PST  TOKYO (AP) — The killing of two Japanese taken hostage by the Islamic State group has savagely driven home the high stakes Japan faces and limited options it can muster in such circumstances.
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| Australia's Cahill to leave New York Red Bulls for Shanghai Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:18 PM PST  HARRISON, New Jersey (AP) — Australia midfielder Tim Cahill says he is leaving the New York Red Bulls and Major League Soccer after two years to join Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua.
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| Counter-demo dwarfs PEGIDA's Austrian debut Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:13 PM PST  Germany's PEGIDA "anti-Islamisation" movement held its first march in Austria on Monday but was dwarfed by a colourful counter-demonstration more than 10 times larger, according to police estimates. A number of the PEGIDA supporters at the Vienna demonstration were skinheads, and some of them performed Nazi salutes, an AFP reporter at the scene said. Police spokesman Roman Hahslinger told AFP that some 400 PEGIDA supporters showed up but that 5,000 people joined the counter-protest, shouting "Nieder, nieder, nieder mit PEGIDA!" ("Down, down, down with PEGIDA!") and waving rainbow flags. The two groups exchanged verbal insults and chants on a chilly evening in central Vienna but were kept apart by around 1,200 police, and there were no incidents of violence reported.
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| IndyCar says it won't replace canceled Brazil race Posted: 02 Feb 2015 04:00 PM PST  SAO PAULO (AP) — IndyCar says it will not schedule another race to replace the canceled season-opener that was expected to take place in Brazil in early March.
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| Christie: Parents deserve measure of choice on vaccinations Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:49 PM PST  CAMBRIDGE, England (AP) — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Monday parents should have some choice on whether to vaccinate their children, a position he's taken before but one that drew a new level of attention amid a U.S. measles outbreak and his recent moves toward running for president.
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| Colombian guerrillas, government resume talks Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:44 PM PST  Leftist FARC guerrillas resumed peace talks with the Colombian government Monday in Cuba, after a year-end break. The Bogota government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia have been negotiating for more than two years in Havana to bring an end to the 50-year insurgency, but key issues remain unresolved, including disarmament and how any agreement should be ratified. "We resumed the talks, and are hoping to continue to seek an agreement in the terms known by the people of Colombia and the whole world," said a statement from the guerrillas read to the press by commander Joaquin Gomez. Gomez criticized an initiative launched by President Juan Manuel Santos in 2013 that would put any peace accord to a national referendum.
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| Merkel presses Orban's Hungary over NGOs, media Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:42 PM PST  German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed concern Monday at the treatment in Hungary of civil society groups and the media as she paid her first visit to Budapest under Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Since coming to power in 2010 Orban has been accused of undermining democracy in the EU member state, including by muzzling the press and making life difficult for foreign-funded non-governmental organisations. "It is very important in a democracy, including when one had a broad majority, to recognise the role of the opposition, civil society and the media. Later in a speech at Budapest's Andrassy University, she said: "In a democracy the opposition is not an enemy, the majority must protect the minority... via respect for the constitution.
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| APNewsBreak: Defense nominee would reconsider Afghan plan Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:39 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — The president's nominee to be the next Pentagon chief says he would consider changing the current plans for withdrawing all U.S. troops from Afghanistan by the end of next year if security conditions worsen.
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| Cuadrado seals Chelsea move on quiet transfer deadline day Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:34 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — Europe's top clubs shunned any last-minute scramble for players on the final trading day of the season Monday, with Premier League leader Chelsea making the only major deal by completing formalities to sign Juan Cuadrado.
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| Kenya obtains nearly $700 mn in IMF backing Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:23 PM PST  Kenya obtained nearly $700 million worth of precautionary loan support from the International Monetary Fund on Monday as the country undertakes important economic reforms. The IMF approved a $497.1 loan under its Stand-By Arrangement facility and another $191.2 million under its Stand-By Credit facility. "The Kenyan authorities' prudent macroeconomic policies and major institutional and economic reforms of recent years have contributed to macroeconomic stability, higher growth, and increased external buffers," IMF deputy managing director Naoyuki Shinohara said.
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| Australian Prime Minister sought loyalty promise from deputy but refused: media Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:18 PM PST  Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott sought a commitment from deputy party leader Julie Bishop that she would not challenge him, Sky News reported on Tuesday, a promise that the Foreign Minister refused to give. At a meeting on Monday, Abbott sought the promise from Foreign Minister Bishop, Sky News reported. When asked about the report on Australian television, Abbott declined to refute the account.
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| Hamas supporters in Gaza protest Egyptian court ban Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:10 PM PST  Hundreds of Hamas supporters marched in the Gaza Strip on Monday to protest an Egyptian court decision to declare the Islamic movement's armed wing as a banned "terrorist" group. Waving the green flag of the movement, which is the de facto power in the coastal Palestinian territory, demonstrators chanted "Hamas is not terrorist" and "Hamas is our pride" during the rally in the northern Gaza town of Jabaliya.
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| Winter transfer market remains flat in France on last day Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:09 PM PST PARIS (AP) — Marseille strengthened its attacking options by finalizing the loan of Monaco winger Lucas Ocampos on the final day of Europe's winter transfer window, which closed on Monday without any major signing in France. |
| U.S. slaps visa restrictions on current, former Venezuelan officials Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:04 PM PST The United States on Monday imposed visa restrictions on current and former Venezuelan officials involved in alleged human rights abuses and on people believed responsible for public corruption in the oil-exporting country. "We are sending a clear message that human rights abusers, those who profit from public corruption, and their families are not welcome in the United States," the U.S. State Department said in a statement. The restrictions are the latest sign of the strained relations between Washington and Caracas. U.S. President Barack Obama signed legislation in December to impose visa sanctions on Venezuelan officials. |
| 'Low risk' bird flu identified at British farm Posted: 02 Feb 2015 03:03 PM PST  Tests have confirmed an outbreak of avian flu in chickens at a farm in southern England but officials described it as a "low severity" strain of the disease on Monday. Britain's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said there was no link with a separate outbreak of bird flu detected at a duck breeding farm in November. "The advice from Public Health England is that the risk to public health is very low," Defra said in a statement. Tests found the outbreak was the H7 form of avian flu, described as less severe form of the H5N8 strain found at the duck farm.
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| Libyan troops try to block PM visit, may signal rift with government Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:59 PM PST By Ayman, al-Warfalli, Feras and Bosalum BENGHAZI/TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Troops loyal to a Libyan general tried to block internationally recognized Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni from visiting the eastern city of Benghazi at the weekend as he looked to show support for his soldiers battling Islamist groups. Army members under the control of General Khalifa Haftar tried to deny Thinni's plane permission to land on Sunday and later briefly halted his convoy during the visit, a minister and military officials said on Monday. "When Thinni's plane was approaching Benghazi an officer came and said permission to land had been denied," Interior Minister Omar al-Zanki said. Thinni still managed to land and hold a cabinet meeting in Benghazi after visiting military commanders, he added. |
| US-Venezuela tensions escalate over human rights, VP Biden Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:51 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Fraught relations between the United States and Venezuela turned openly hostile on Monday as the U.S. slapped new visa restrictions on Venezuelan officials and their families and Venezuela's president accused Vice President Joe Biden of plotting to overthrow him. |
| Greek finance minister says determined to make debt viable Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:51 PM PST Greece may use financial tools to pull itself out of debt "serfdom", Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said in a statement late on Monday but said it would not back down from seeking a reduction in its overall debt burden with foreign creditors. The statement from Varoufakis, who met investors in London on Monday to explain the new Greek government's ideas about replacing its international bailout with a new agreement on its debt, followed comments he said had been misinterpreted. |
| Giovinco joins Toronto from Juventus early Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:45 PM PST  MILAN (AP) — Juventus allowed Sebastian Giovinco to join MLS side Toronto FC early Monday as it re-signed Alessandro Matri on loan.
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| Syria air strikes kill 44 Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:43 PM PST  Syrian government air strikes on opposition-held towns across the country killed at least 44 people on Monday and wounded more than 100, a monitoring group said. In Jassem in the southern province of Daraa, 16 civilians were killed in four air strikes, while 25 were wounded, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The strikes came in response to a major rebel offensive that has been under way in southern Syria for months. "As usual, the regime is striking populated areas in order to make civilian supporters of opposition fighters turn against them," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.
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| Greece proposes restructuring of ECB, official sector debt: source Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:42 PM PST By William James LONDON (Reuters) - Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is proposing to swap government debt held by the European Central Bank and the official sector for growth-linked and perpetual bonds, sparing privately held bonds from losses, a source said on Monday. Varoufakis and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras are touring European capitals this week in a diplomatic offensive to replace Greece's bailout accord with the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund. "These bonds held by the ECB right now can be restructured. |
| Stocks rise in late rally on higher oil; energy stocks jump Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:39 PM PST  NEW YORK (AP) — A late rally led by energy companies pushed U.S. stock indexes higher Monday after the market flitted between small gains and losses for most of the day.
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| Canada says release of Al-Jazeera journalist is 'imminent' Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:27 PM PST TORONTO (AP) — Canada's foreign minister said Monday the release of Al-Jazeera journalist Mohamed Fahmy from a prison in Egypt is "imminent." |
| Hardline Indian Hindus become Modi's enemies from within Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:25 PM PST  By Andrew MacAskill and Rupam Jain Nair RISHIKESH, India (Reuters) - In an ashram near the Ganges river in the Himalayan foothills, Indian priest-turned-politician Sakshi Maharaj mimes rowing a boat to illustrate what will happen if Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government ignores Hindu nationalist demands."Modi will have to be a boatman: one oar must focus on the economy and the other must concentrate on the Hindu agenda," says Maharaj, clad in saffron robes and sitting cross-legged on a bed. He twirls his bejeweled fingers in the air, explaining that otherwise the boat will spin in circles.The Hindu priest, who has been charged with rioting and inciting communal violence, is the embodiment of hardline religious elements in Modi's party whose strident behavior is dragging on the government's economic reform agenda.In recent months, Maharaj has created uproar by describing Mahatma Gandhi's Hindu nationalist assassin as a patriot, saying Hindu women should give birth to four children to ensure the religion survives and by calling for Hindus who convert to Islam and Christianity to be given the death penalty.For the first time since the election last year, some lawmakers in Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are rebelling against his focus on mending the economy and governance at the expense of promoting Hinduism.
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| Chelsea land Cuadrado on low-key deadline day Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:18 PM PST  Chelsea made the biggest splash on a low-key transfer deadline day as the Premier League leaders signed Colombia international winger Juan Cuadrado from Fiorentina on Monday. Blues boss Jose Mourinho had been linked with a move for Cuadrado for several weeks and he finally landed his target after making room in his squad by selling German World Cup winning winger Andre Schurrle to Bundesliga title challengers Wolfsburg just hours earlier. Cuadrado, 26 and who signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with the west London club, told Chelsea's website: "I am very happy and thankful for this opportunity I've been given.
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| Al-Jazeera reporter has mixed feelings on release from jail Posted: 02 Feb 2015 02:18 PM PST  CAIRO (AP) — Al-Jazeera journalist Peter Greste expressed "relief and excitement" Monday at being freed after more than a year in an Egyptian prison, but also said he felt real stress over leaving his two jailed colleagues behind.
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